Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45605 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 182(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45605 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 182(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
I should put her down and take care of about a dozen things while she naps, but I can’t bring myself to part from her. For long minutes, I watch her sleep, her features softer at rest. Her little mouth works that pacifier as if she’s been sucking one for years. It’s a lifeline. She’ll learn to accept this practice as well as many others because the soothing benefits will make suckling impossible to resist.
My girl is in for a lot of surprises today, but one step at a time. We’ve crossed two big hurdles. Bottles and pacifiers. Granted, she’s not exactly aware of the pacifier, but even without her knowledge, she’s accepting the addictive device.
I have to force myself to tear my gaze away and pull out my phone. There are several texts in the group chat I have with my pride brothers. Several of them have acknowledged they’ve heard of my claiming and congratulated me. They will all cover for me at the logging site while I help my Little girl get acclimated to her new life.
I open some online sites where we will order clothes and anything else Cora needs, but I don’t put anything in the cart. I’ll let her choose when she’s ready.
As far as supplies to take care of her Little side, most of that is already in place in my home. All of us have been prepared to bring home a mate on a moment’s notice for a few years. For a long time, I stored everything in a box in the closet, but after Navin claimed Brea, I boldly opened the box and moved everything where it would inevitably belong in the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom. I even had pacifiers stashed in the end table drawer. I was ready.
As soon as she wakes up, I intend to further shock her by giving her a bath. I won’t be leaving her in the bathroom to do so herself. I’m sure it will unnerve her, but from now on, I will enjoy taking care of her in many ways as often as possible. It’s what I’m wired to do.
Cora is just as wired to accept my care as I am to give it. The difference is that the concept is foreign to her, and she’s likely to fight me every step of the way. That’s okay. I’m a patient man when it comes to my mate.
As much as I hate it, I need to remind myself that Vincent was hotter than hell when I told him Cora would not be leaving with him. I thought the man was going to have a coronary, which would have been nice and convenient, especially if he’d died on the spot and eliminated the threat he poses.
He’ll be back. He’s not going to release her so easily. But he’s also not going to get any help from the local sheriff, if that’s what he thinks. He spoke of contacting the authorities a dozen times.
Cora is a grown adult. She doesn’t need her stepfather’s permission or consent to move out of his home and into mine.
There were two people in town my pride brothers and I quickly made nice with and befriended as soon as we bought this logging company—the town doctor and the town sheriff.
We occasionally need the help of a physician, and it’s easier if the man or woman is familiar with lion shifters and our needs. We also wanted to reassure the sheriff and his deputies that we are a peaceful group that means no harm to the community. He isn’t going to listen to the ranting tantrum Vincent Jones is sure to bring to his office over the calm reassurances we have always provided him.
That’s not to say we are altogether nonviolent. We can and will eliminate anyone from this planet who dares to fuck with one of our own—including our mates.
I have a strong suspicion this situation with Jones will not end well for him, which means I will need to find a way to eliminate him that won’t cause eyebrows to raise in the sheriff’s office.
It can be done. We’ve done it before. No one will ever know there was a connection between Brea and the asshole who tried to traffic her. That poor fellow made the unwise decision to go hiking in the mountains in the dark and met his untimely demise by falling off a cliff. As far as the sheriff is concerned, Mitchel was nothing but a stupid fuck. And we like it that way.
Nothing is impossible.
Chapter Six
Cora
I’m groggy and warm as I become aware of my surroundings. It takes only a moment to remember where I am because Orion is holding me and smiling.
My heart lurches as I recall everything that’s happened today, right up to the point where I took a bottle in this man’s arms. Apparently, I also fell asleep here, and he’s still holding me.