Mystical Warrior by Janet Chapman Read Free Book Online Page B

then nothing.
    She leaned forward and frowned down at the porch. He had to have seen her sitting on the stairs when he’d driven in. Why wasn’t he coming to discuss her new pet?
    Gathering her courage, because she knew that postponing the confrontation would only add to her angst, Fiona started down the steps. But she plopped back down with a gasp when her landlord silently rounded the corner of the house carrying her bag of dog food. He set it on the bottom step, then pulled some money out of his pocket and held it up for her to see.
    “Johnnie Dempster asked me to give this to you. He told me once he thought about it, he decided he wanted you to have the dog when he realized it was going to a good home,” he said, tucking the money under the bag of food.
    Fiona stood up in alarm. “Oh no, you must give it back to him! I do not wish to feel beholden to Mr. Dempster.”
    “Hey, I tried to get him to keep at least a hundred, but he insisted on giving it all back minus what he spent on the food and leash. Don’t worry; Johnnie’s not looking for a new girlfriend. He just got rid of the last one with his skin barely intact.” He stared up at her for several seconds and then suddenly blew out a sigh. “Dempster’s a good man, Fiona, and he has a passion for dogs. But your new little friend there,” he said, gesturing toward Misneach, “was the runt of the litter, and Johnnie knows he’ll make a better companion than a hunter, so he’s beholden to you for taking it off his hands.”
    Fiona plopped back down on the stairs, trying to decide if she believed him or not. “And you … you will let mekeep Misneach?” she whispered, looking at his broad chest because she wasn’t quite able to meet his gaze.
    She saw him shrug. “I’ve wanted to get a dog myself but didn’t think it was fair, considering the long hours I’m gone from the house. Truth is, I like the idea of having a dog around to keep the raccoons and skunks out of the barn.” Although it didn’t quite reach his eyes, he smiled up at her. “Just teach him to do his business in the woods, and keep him out of the trash.”
    Fiona jumped to her feet again, unable to contain her excitement. “I promise, you won’t even know he’s here!”
    Misneach came awake with a startled yelp and tumbled down several steps before he slammed into Fiona’s legs, knocking her off balance. She tried to grab the railing with one hand and Misneach’s leash with the other, only she missed both when the leash tangled in her legs. But just as she felt herself falling, she was suddenly swept off her feet and gently set on the stairs.
    “Th-thank you,” she whispered in horror.
    But she was talking to Trace Huntsman’s back. And if she hadn’t still been shivering from the feel of his warm, powerful arms around her, she might have thought nothing had happened as she watched her landlord disappear around the corner of the house—with Misneach, leash flapping behind him, yapping excitedly at his heels.
    Fiona shivered again. She couldn’t believe a man could move that fast or so silently; yet he must have, or she would have been lying in a heap on the ground right now.
    Hearing a sudden yelp followed by strangled cries of distress, Fiona rushed down the remaining steps to find Misneach hanging off the side of the porch, frantically pawingthe air. But before she could even reach him, Mr. Huntsman was there, unsnapping the leash from his collar before lowering him to the ground.
    Fiona swept the whimpering puppy into her arms and whispered soothing words into his trembling fur. But when she lifted her gaze to thank her landlord, the man had once again disappeared as silently as a ghost.
    She frowned down at the leash. The handle had wedged in a crack between two rotten boards, apparently bringing Misneach to an abrupt halt before flinging him off the porch. She kissed the top of his head and set him down, then pulled the leash free. But before she could snap it onto