Free Primal Surrender by Lori King

problem was she wanted him just as much as she wanted Mack. They were very different from each other, and yet she felt the same connection with both of them. Something deep inside of her was happier when she was in the presence of the Thompson brothers, and it unnerved her a bit.
    Her thoughts were interrupted by the tinkling sound of her cell phone, and she cursed as she ran to look for it. She had a bad habit of laying it down wherever she was when she hung up and then forgetting where it was. It jingled away for several seconds before chiming a new voicemail was available as though punctuating the fact she had missed the call. When she finally located it on the bathroom countertop where she left it last night before taking her shower, she regretted listening to the message the moment she heard her father’s voice.
    “Claudia, this is your father.” Like she didn’t already know who it was. She rolled her eyes as he continued, “I’m following up on the Granite Estates project. We got a fax today that the Stone River planning board is holding a town hall meeting this week. You need to be there, Claudia. This project must proceed without hindrance.” He cleared his throat, “Uh, I hope you’re well. Call your mother soon so she doesn’t worry.”
    The message clicked off, and she attempted to slide the phone into her back pocket, knocking the paint scraper to the floor with a clatter. She jumped nearly a foot when the doorbell rang a minute later.
    Seriously, this place is like Grand Central Station all of a sudden.
    Pondering how Ryker had managed to get to the store and back so quickly, she was frowning as she tugged open the heavy door. To her surprise, Mack was standing outside her front door, holding a bouquet of daisies that were clearly just picked. Her heart flip-flopped when his face lit up in a brilliant smile. He reminded her of a kid with his clear blue eyes, blonde curls, and dimples.
    “Hi, sweetheart.”
    “Mack! What are you doing here?” She held the door open as wide as possible, but with his broad shoulders he still had to turn to fit through the opening beside her.
    Handing her the bouquet, he wrapped an arm around her waist. “I was thinking about you and wanted to come see you in the light of day. Is that okay? I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”
    “Uh, no it’s fine. I’m just scraping paint off the house today. Let me go put these in water.” She started to twist out of his grip, but he stopped her with one hand on her jaw.
    His eyes narrowed, “You seem tense. Does it upset you that I came over, Claudia?”
    Stilling in his hands, she sighed, “No. Actually I’m glad you did. I wanted to see you again after last night.”
    Pure male satisfaction lifted the corners of his lips into a smirk, and he dipped his head to claim a kiss from her, stopping her words. His kiss was so different from his younger brother’s it made her gut twist with guilt. As much as she enjoyed it, she couldn’t continue without telling him the truth. Forcing one hand up to his chest, she pushed a little, breaking their kiss.
    “Mack, stop. We need to talk.”
    His hands dropped away from her and he cursed. “I’m moving too fast for you, right? I’m sorry for pushing you, sweetheart, I’ll ease up.”
    “Damn it, would you let me explain before you get all worked up,” she snapped. “What is it about you two Thompson brothers that impedes the connection between your ears and your tongue? I want to kiss you, Mack, I happen to enjoy it. A lot. But you need to know Ryker showed up here just a little while ago.”
    “What did he say? Did he upset you?” His instant anger on her behalf was sweet considering he thought she and Ryker were still at odds.
    “No, he apologized profusely, and then he kissed me.”
    Mack’s mouth fell open and he stared at her in shock. There wasn’t any other emotion on his face. No anger, or betrayal, just pure confused shock. “He what?”
    “He kissed me, and