Kodiak's Claim by Eve Langlais Read Free Book Online

over the soft skin of her hands. He turned until he could peek down at her. A frown creased her brow, and again, she made to move away, but he caught her with his hands on her waist, for some reason not eager to let her escape.
    “What are you doing?” she asked.
    I don’t know. Instinct not logic currently dictated his actions. But he didn’t admit this aloud. “Do you always ask so many questions?”
    “Only when I’m trying to understand what’s going on.”
    “Isn’t it obvious?”
    Confusion clouded her gaze. “No.”
    Did she not sense the attraction between them? Of course she didn’t. She was a simple human. She couldn’t know how his bear chuffed at her nearness. How the scent of her aroused him. How he wanted to lay claim to her body.
    What the fuck is wrong with me?
    Apparently, his grandmother wondered the same thing. “Reid Alexander Carver, what are you doing manhandling our guest?”
    Oops, caught harboring naughty thoughts and jolted back to sanity. What am I doing?
    The city girl jumped, and Reid dropped his hands. Tamara quickly put space between them as she whirled to confront his grandmother. “What is it with people sneaking around here?” she exclaimed.
    His grandmother grinned. “We’re just light on our feet, child. I see you’ve recovered from your unfortunate incident.”
    “Yes, ma’am. Although I hardly call sedating me accidental.” She said this with a suspicious glance in his direction.
    “Don’t ma’am me, child. My name is Ursula, but everyone calls me Ursa, the mother bear.”
    If only city girl knew how true those words were. Ursa truly was a mother bear, and a matriarch of the clan. Although, he would have added to that title the less official ones of wielder of a mean wooden spoon and champion ear grabber.
    “I’m Tammy. I’m with—”
    “The insurance company. Yes, Travis told us, and glad we are that you’ve come. These thefts and tragedies have completely devastated our small community. Poor Reid here has been quite frantic trying to figure out a way to keep the business afloat while things are sorted out.”
    Frantic? Reid didn’t bother to retort at this exaggeration but rather took another bite of his sandwich. If he couldn’t feed one appetite, might as well take care of another.
    “Yes, well, I’m not here to solve a crime,” Tammy stammered. “Merely to judge the company’s eligibility to the claim.”
    “Of course you aren’t here to solve the problem. A delicate thing like you shouldn’t get involved in violent criminal matters.”
    It was Tammy’s turn to choke on the mouthful of her sandwich.
    “Goodness, child, are you all right?” his grandmother asked as she thumped her heartily on the back.
    The sound half strangled, Tammy managed to gasp, “Yes, fine. Wrong pipe.”
    Ha. More like a victim to his grandmother and her straight talk. The city girl might have thought she held an edge when it came to shooting from the hip, but his grandmother wrote the book.
    “I see Reid made you a sandwich. Such a good boy. Although I see he forgot a drink.” Which his grandmother, in the wink of an eye, had served to their guest, a tall glass of milk. “Once you’re done with the sandwich, I’ve got freshly baked pie for dessert.”
    “Pie?” Tammy asked faintly before taking another bite.
    “Yes, apple pie, with brown sugar and cinnamon. If you like, I can heat it up and put a dollop of ice cream on top. That’s how Reid likes his.”
    Whatever other questions Tammy might have harbored got quelled under his grandmother’s steady chatter and feeding. No one went hungry in her house.
    To Reid’s surprise, Tammy, once over her initial shock, managed to keep up, not just with the food but the barrage of questions. More like an inquisition, one Reid paid way too much attention to.
    “How many brothers and sisters do you have?”
    “None. Unfortunately.” Tammy made a face.
    “Why unfortunately?” his ursa inquired.
    “Because it