Winter (Rise of the Pride, Book 2) by Theresa Hissong Read Free Book Online

sister. Winter hadn’t been seen since the day he ran out
without explaining why he wouldn’t touch her. What the hell did he
mean he didn’t want to subject her to his life?
    It didn’t matter anyway. She wasn’t going to
be around long. The bar needed her and Liberty couldn’t continue to
work as much as she’d been doing. The pride’s doctor ordered her to
rest for a few weeks or until the morning sickness subsided. Talon
had thrown a fit when Liberty protested, saying she could easily
sit in her office and do paperwork.
    The sun was shining outside the windows as
she rolled to her side, adjusting her arm so it was propped up on a
pillow. She watched the tops of the trees sway with each gust. Even
with the soothing sounds, she was restless, worrying about
Winter.
    She’d overheard Talon speaking to Dane,
telling him that Winter had been working with the sheriff since the
day before to help find a missing person that had been seen in the
area. Booth and Noah, the alpha’s brother, were on foot, checking
all of the wooded areas for the man’s scent. They still hadn’t
found anything.
    As far as Nova knew, no one had found Perry,
and she was even afraid to bring up the subject because all of the
males would bristle at the mention of the man who’d seemed to
disappear into thin air. She wondered why Perry was so curious
about the pride and why he wanted to know where they lived.
    Swinging her legs over the side of the bed,
she stood up slowly, thankful that the medicine hadn’t made her
head dizzy. She wanted to move around for a few minutes and maybe
head to the kitchen to see if Mrs. Shaw had made some more of her
sweet tea.
    Nova took her empty glass and padded quietly
out of the room. She frowned when she thought she’d caught Winter’s
unique scent, but shrugged when she inhaled again and found
nothing.
    Downstairs, people moved around, most of
them ignoring her. When she turned the corner into the kitchen, the
Guardian Savage was leaning against the counter, talking to a young
girl who was about sixteen years old.
    “Nova?” Savage said as she walked into the
room. His heavily tattooed arms were folded across his massive
chest, his long hair hanging loose around his sharp jaw. “Are you
feeling okay?”
    “Yes,” she answered and nodded. “I was
coming to get some tea.” She held up the empty glass and gave it a
little shake.
    “You could’ve called down and one of us
would’ve helped.” He frowned.
    “Thank you, Savage.” Nova smiled. “But I can
take care of this. I need to move around.”
    “Hi,” the girl said, holding out her hand
for an introduction. “My name is Sofia and this scary guy is my
brother.”
    “It’s very nice to meet you, Sofia,” Nova
replied, taking the young girl’s hand. She was beautiful and looked
very much like Savage, except her long, brown hair was a shade
darker than his.
    “I’m going back to the house,” Sofia
announced, smiling at Nova once more before standing up on her toes
to kiss Savage’s cheek. He patted her on the head affectionately
and shooed her out of the house with a promise to come by for
dinner.
    “She’s very pretty,” Nova said, reaching
into the refrigerator for the pitcher of tea. She filled up her cup
and looked over at Savage. He was scowling at the empty doorway
where his sister had just exited.
    “Yes, she is.” He wiped his hand down his
face and blew out a frustrated breath. “I’m not ready to start
kicking little cub’s asses for looking at her.”
    Nova laughed and shook her head. “It’s going
to happen. Just remember that cats don’t do well in cages.”
    “That’s the truth,” Savage agreed. “Can I
get you anything?”
    “No, I’m good,” she yawned. “I think I’m
going to take a nap.”
    “Call one of us if you need anything,” he
said, allowing Nova to leave the kitchen first.
    As she walked through the living room, Marie
and another woman were just walking through the back door with
several