Free Fighting Fate by Carrie Ann Ryan Page A

but she’d be part of this. Relish it.
    He groaned against her, opening his mouth to her. He moved his hands so they held her lower
    back, pressing her to his chest, his erection hard, demanding against her belly. Cailin thrust her
    fingers in his hair, panting as she deepened the kiss.
    Their tongues tangled, fighting for dominance as they kissed each other, their chests heaving.
    Finally, she pulled back, taking two steps away so she could think. He’d made her dizzy, drunk,
    addicted. Damn his taste, his…everything.
    “Go home, Cailin,” Logan grunted. He gave her a sad smile before tucking her hair behind her
    ear. “Get ready for what needs to be done, and I will be there by your side. I won’t leave you.”
    She nodded, emotions clutching at her. She needed to breathe, to think.
    To grieve.
    Cailin quickly dressed and made her way home. Logan had left her at the door, and she could
    feel his gaze on her as she moved. While she had a feeling he wanted to come with her and not let her
    leave his sight, he must have known she needed the time alone to compose herself.
    As soon as she got home she quickly showered, trying to prepare herself for the day. Logan’s
    scent had leeched into her skin, and her wolf didn’t want to wash it away. Only the fact that the man
    would be by their side soon seemed to calm them both.
    She could still remember the first time she’d seen Logan. He’d been covered in blood, her
    brother’s blood. North had almost been killed by Corbin during an attack on the Jamensons’ property,
    and the Andersons had saved his life. Lexi and Parker had been holding North’s chest together as he
    bled while Logan had driven into the den, not knowing if either of them would die or not—North from
    his wound and Logan at the hands of the Pack.
    After all, at the time they’d been outsiders in the middle of a war. But they’d risked it all to save
    North. Logan’s actions were proof to the Alpha and his family that the Andersons could be trusted.
    That and the fact that their wolves readily submitted to a new Pack.
    Cailin had been so scared for her brother, scared she’d never see him again. Yet even then, her
    attention had drifted to the large man with the darkness covering his appearance and build so deeply it
    seemed like a second skin.
    That danger attracted her like no other.
    Neither had made a move, even though they both knew the potential for mating lay between them.
    There hadn’t been time, not really. And when things finally calmed down, she’d run. She’d pushed
    him away, not ready to bare herself and give up what she’d tried so hard to attain her whole life—
    freedom.
    Now that she’d lost the two people she held most dear, she knew she’d made a mistake keeping
    him away.
    She wanted to mate with Logan Anderson.
    Cailin just hoped Logan still wanted her.
    Oh, he might have said he’d never leave her, but she’d pushed him away for so long his wolf
    might have stopped the mating dance—a painful process she didn’t know if she herself could survive.
    Logan was strong though.
    Stronger than most
    Stronger than her.
    She shook her head, clearing her thoughts of mating, strength, and a bond that would come later
    —she hoped. Her heart lay heavy in her chest at what she was about to see, about to do. She quickly
    put on the black dress she kept in the corner of her closet. She’d worn it only once, and after today,
    she’d never wear it again.
    The woman in the mirror wasn’t her.
    It couldn’t be.
    That pale face, lank hair, and dead eyes. No, it couldn’t be her. She didn’t look like the strong
    wolf she needed to be for her people, her family. She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to
    gain the courage she needed to walk into the Pack circle and say goodbye to her parents.
    She wouldn’t cry in front of her Pack. She’d done that enough.
    Only the thought of Logan being by her side helped her step into her shoes, the loose skirt around
    her thighs