Protect Me (Sawtooth Shifters, #3) by Kristen Strassel Read Free Book Online

obvious.”
    “I know you’re—“ I almost said embarrassed . That would’ve set her back into the Stone Age. “—self-conscious about your inexperience. Dallas won’t care. But if you do something he doesn’t expect, he might get confused or hurt. If you keep this a secret you’re setting both of you up for failure.”
    “Maybe it’s best that way.” A tear ran down Lyssie’s cheek, but she didn’t stop scrubbing the spaniel in the tub.
    “No.” Man, I really wished I was a hugger. I put my hands on the table next to the tub. “Think about when you told Baron about the night terrors last night. You knew it was the right thing to do. Do you want me to tell him?”
    She didn’t answer me.
    “I think we should do the photo shoot today,” Trina announced when she came out of her office. “Everyone’s off the wall because of the moon, and you know derpy looking pictures work best for adoptions.”
    Perfect idea. Although Trina knew a lot more than we did about whatever Shadow had planned. I wondered if she was looking for a distraction for the surprises this full moon was bringing all of us.

Chapter Seven
    B aron
    Nobody ever said no to my mother. After raising four boys with nothing, practically on her own, Angela Channing knew how to get people to do what she wanted. Even before I understood what she’d accomplished, I admired my mother. She could always make something from nothing. She wasn’t afraid of fighting for what was right, but she made sure to provide a safe, comfortable home for anyone who needed it. In a lot of ways, Kiera reminded me of her. They were going to either love each other or hate each other. No middle ground. That’s what I loved about both women. Nothing was ever half way with either of them.
    “Shadow should be here,” Mom grumbled, setting up her spread. “He doesn’t need an invite. If he’s going to spend every waking minute with that girl, the least he could do is introduce her to me.” We had a tradition, her own version of a Full Moon party. Single adult wolves celebrated the moon in a much wilder way, since none of us had a wife or family to get home to. Mom taught us to be proud of what we were, and to celebrate being both wolf and man. We’d been doing this ever since we were kids. The only thing that had changed was we had beer instead of soda, and my dad and Archer were no longer with us.
    My youngest brother was killed in the very last dog fight. The girls from Forever Home almost broke it up in time. He died in Trina’s arms. Everyone thought Archer was weak because he never wanted to fight. I’d thought he was smarter than anyone gave him credit for. He didn’t grow up in a culture where he was encouraged to be who he was. I missed him so much. He’d laugh at all our jokes, and be the go-between with Mom when we needed to cut loose. Guys didn’t talk much, but Archer listened. In business, he handled our books and turned on the charm for any potential clients while we did the heavy lifting.
    I couldn’t settle down. Last night played on repeat in my mind: the man who attacked Kiera lying in the snow, ruined and bloody, the branch still heavy in my hand. I sucked down most of my beer, Dallas eyed me as I sat at the table, double-fisted. Mom wasn’t paying attention to us, stirring a giant pot of spaghetti sauce. We’d tried to help, but she swatted us away.
    “I’ll bring Kiera to meet you as soon as the shift is over,” I said. Mom turned back to me, her face lit up like a little kid on Christmas morning. “I think you’ll really like her.”
    “I can’t wait, Baron.”
    “What the fuck happened last night?” Dallas asked, ignoring the glare Mom shot over his shoulder. “I can’t wait to repay you that little favor.”
    “Kiera wiped out on the Black Diamond trail.” The second beer popped open without any effort. We shouldn’t shift until the moon was completely full. Strong and healthy, we’d definitely shift this month but after