Free Taken: True Mates Book 2 (BBW Wolf Shifter Romance) (A Craggstone Paranormal Romance) by Olivia Arran Page B

done, Ian. This is the last time we will speak…but, there’s no hard feelings. Look after her?” I nodded at Jasmine, who had wrapped herself around her mate, hugging him tight.
    “I will, I promise. You can visit her, if you want?”
    “Or, she could visit me…at my apartment—”
    “At the Colstone Packhouse,” Sean interjected firmly, reaching me and grabbing my hand.
    Surprised, I looked up at him, then down at our linked hands. What the?
    Not waiting for a reply, Sean tugged on my hand, leading me out of the village and up into the forest.
    “Luis is waiting at the boundary,” he explained, still gripping my hand firmly.
    Lost for words, I let myself be led. Did this mean? My heart swelled with hope.
     
    ***
    Sean
    Her hand felt small in mine, fragile and soft against my calloused palms. Searching the forest, I looked for Luis. I had left him right here, somewhere?
    A chuckle sounded from above and, with the grace of his inner cat, Luis dropped from his perch in a tree, landing soundlessly in front of us.
    “Lisa!” He dragged her away from me, pulling her into his arms and crushing her tight.
    I bit back the growl that welled in my throat. For fucks sake, he’s her twin brother, I shot at my beast, who was pawing the ground, eager to pull her back, away from what he perceived to be a male threat. Everything was black and white with him. One of our many problems.
    Mine, he growled inside my head.
    Possessive much?
    He grinned, baring his teeth.
    Yeah, me too… I sent back, matching his grin with one of my own. With a jolt I realized this was the first time in…yeah, a long time that we had agreed on anything.
    Releasing Lisa, but keeping her tucked against his side, Luis listened as we filled him in on what had happened.
    “That no good—!”
    Lisa laid a hand on his arm. “Luis, it’s fine. Really. Sean—” she turned and looked at me, a smile teasing her full lips, “—well, he handled it beautifully.”
    Her smile tugged at me and, just like that, I melted, all my objections liquefying, until all that was left was a puddle of lust.
    I looked at her, seeing her for what seemed to be the first time. This was a woman who had stood strong, protecting her family even at great personal cost. She had bounced back, retaining her spit and fire, even through being kidnapped. She wouldn’t screw with me, mess me around.
    And, my beast had listened to her. Even out of control and in a haze of rage, he had stopped at her command. Stopped and listened . And that was the deciding factor, in my mind. I was so scared of losing control, of hurting someone I loved — but it turned out, love negated the need for control.
    How the hell had I missed that one? And, how the hell was I going to make it up to her?
    Oblivious to my inner ramblings and brilliant light-bulb moment, the brother and sister had continued to talk, though Luis now looked relaxed and not ready to kill someone.
    I had to try. Maybe I could explain, without giving away too much. “You go on ahead, Luis. Let whoever is left at the packhouse know we’re on our way back. Uh, Lisa and I need to…talk…” I mumbled the last bit, flushing a little under Luis’s knowing look.
    “Sure thing, man. I’ll catch you both later. Much later.” Luis flashed a wink at Lisa, then bounded off ahead, his strides long and smooth.
    I grabbed Lisa’s hand again, marveling at how I could feel so calm, yet also so out of control at the same time.
    Tugging her with me through the forest, I set a rambling pace, content just to be with her. But she was too quiet, and she was never quiet.
    I glanced sideways at her, our eyes connecting instantly, a frisson of electricity passing between us.
    “So, Lisa…” I started. Shit! I thought desperately, trying to figure out what to say, and how to say it. I’d never been one for wearing my heart on my sleeve.
    Here goes nothing.
     

CHAPTER NINE
    Lisa
    Sean was shooting me sideways glances, a ‘deer in the