Free Ryan's Treasure by Becca Dale Page A

matter spattered the granite. Her own wolf howled, and the change came without warning though she did not have the control to stop it halfway. Drake leaped into the fray, his beast savage and unmistakable. Soon his soldiers followed their king.
    Nadi prowled on top of her haven, safe while the males battled. Watching made her useless, so she pounced. An attacker rolled beneath the momentum of her fall, stronger than his wiry body implied. He flipped her, teeth sank into her ruff, holding her steady so he could mount…then he was gone. Her hero stood over her moments later. Blood dripped from his fearsome muzzle, her assailant’s carcass limp and battered beside him.
    The remaining interlopers fled, tails between their legs.
    Nadi staggered to her feet and forced her wolf away so she could tend the wounds of those who’d saved her, starting with her champion. She reached for his arm.
    He snarled and jerked away then grabbed her and shook her hard. Fangs and fur coated in enemy gore. I told you to stay put!
    Holding her breath against the stench of death, she stepped close to lay her head on his chest, arms gripping his waist. “I couldn’t watch them kill you. You shouldn’t have asked me to.”
    Ryan shuddered and jerked her closer. Slowly, he changed, beast becoming man. Claws shrank to gentle hands. Fur gave way to smooth, beautiful skin. “I saw you jump. I couldn’t get to you fast enough.” He hugged her tighter. “Don’t ever do that again.”
    Drake cleared his throat. “I have wounded who need tending. Come back to camp with us.”
    “No.” Ryan looked at the battered group. “Take care of your people. My sister lives not far from here. We’ll stay there tonight.”
    “With the cats?”
    “Away from anyone who will care about Nadi’s condition.”
    His brother looked down then up again. “Who will protect her from you?”
    Fear rose once more, but Ryan chuckled and patted her back. “If I can get past Kya and Ja, or the feline guards my brother-in-law will station at her door, then I deserve to have her.”
    “Never against her will.” Drake caught his arm. “I need your word.”
    “You have it, as does she.”

Chapter Eight
     
     
    Nadi watched Ryan and his brother-in-law stroll the perimeter of the property. Dim path lamps did little to part the darkness, but neither panther nor wolf would require much light to find the way.
    “Do you need anything else before I call it a night?” Kya entered the guest bedroom carrying a tray filled with meat pies and a pot of tea.
    “Oh, no, thank you.” She gestured around the small but beautiful room. “This is really nice.”
    “But…?”
    A quick glance outside revealed no sign of the males. “Nothing. I just wondered where your brother would be sleeping…I mean…I wouldn’t want to take his bed.”
    Ryan’s sister laughed while she turned down the covers. “He’ll be fine. My husband has a cot in his office.”
    “Oh. But that sounds so small. Shouldn’t I sleep there?”
    “Ryan would never allow it. It’s on the first floor in a room with far too many windows. You’re safer here.”
    “But the security fence and the guards—”
    “He’d have a fit.” Kya laid an extra blanket on the end of the bed and started for the door then stopped. “Ja’s office is downstairs, last door at the end of the main hall. Just in case you need to find my stubborn brother for anything.”
    Nadi sank to the edge of the bed and stared until the door closed. Desire unlike anything she had ever felt thrummed in her blood. The long, cool bath she’d taken had done nothing to alleviate the situation. She needed Ryan, ached for him, despite the doubts that would not leave.
    He claimed he wanted her. If she went to him, would he send her away? He had given his word not to touch, but she had made no such promise.
    Ja came upstairs, his rumbling purr whisper quiet as the door to Lynx’s room opened and closed and then another farther down the hall.