Kodiak's Claim by Eve Langlais Read Free Book Online Page B

grandmother, who for some reason seemed determined to work against him, had Tammy bundled in her ridiculous red parka, wearing a DOT-approved helmet, with her arms around his waist on his snowmobile. He could have taken his truck, but the time it would have taken to warm it up made it not worth it. But next time he should make the effort because having her hugging him, even with their many layers, had a ridiculous effect on him.
    One he didn’t like at all, but his bear really enjoyed.

Chapter Seven
    Tammy wasn’t quite sure how she ended up sitting on the ass end of a snowmobile holding onto Reid for dear life as he maneuvered a dark trail.
    She blamed the delicious pie and his grandmother, who seemed to have a way of getting her to do and say things she didn’t meant to.
    I’m here to ask the questions. And yet, Tammy had found herself answering plenty as the old lady drew out most of her life history, a history Reid appeared to listen to even if he didn’t add much other the occasional manly grunt and half-hidden smiles.
    So much for his claim he didn’t have a sense of humor. She’d caught his snort of amusement when she’d told his grandmother how she handled her cheating ex. She’d seen him stifle a grin when she explained her mother’s theory about aliens and their radioactive Northern Lights creating mutants. What she didn’t understand was the smoldering interest in his gaze as he watched her devour that most delicious sandwich and decadent pie. If she didn’t know any better, she’d think he found the sight of her eating arousing.
    As if. No man liked to see a woman pack away enough food for two. In her defense, she’d not eaten a decent meal since leaving home.
    His possible sexual interest—which probably had to do more with the novelty of someone new than her looks—would have been easier to handle if it wasn’t reciprocated. The more time she spent in the man’s presence, the more she wanted to eat him, quite literally. Or ride him. Or, heck, have him ride her. At this point, her riled hormones didn’t much care so long as they got some action. But Tammy refused to dwell on or travel down that road, for a multitude of reasons.
    Firstly, he was under investigation. She didn’t get the impression he was the type to steal from his own company and have people killed or taken prisoner, but then again, most mass murderers seemed like the nicest of guys until the bodies turned up in their yard or basement.
    Second, a good-looking guy like him probably had his pick of the ladies. She had no interest in having her curvy frame and technique compared against that of another woman. Positive self-esteem only went so far.
    And thirdly, she was only here temporarily. Even if he was into big, beautiful women, and they did turn out to be wildly compatible sexual partners, it couldn’t go anywhere. It wouldn’t last. She had her job and apartment back home. Getting involved wasn’t conducive for a healthy emotional heart. She could too easily fall for the big guy and, in the process, end up crushed, and not just by his big ol’ body if he collapsed on her after sex.
    All the reasons in the world to keep her distance, and yet she snuggled closer as he sped along, the rumble of the engine making conversation impossible. Loud motor or not, though, there was no mistaking the crack of a rifle shot—not to a girl who learned how to fire a gun before she rode a bike. Her dearly departed father had odd notions when it came to father-daughter time.
    A second and third loud crack quickly followed.
    Before she could wonder if hunting was allowed so close to human habitation, she was tumbling to the ground. A pile of squishy snow broke her fall, but it was the heavy, bulky frame atop hers that made her wonder if she’d die.
    Insurance agent investigating a claim suffocated under the body of Reid Carver, who was shot while riding his snowmobile to work. She shoved at his body, relieved when he growled, “Stop