Free Caged Wolf (Wolves of Willow Bend Book 2) by Heather Long Page A

Much he would share with his brothers, but not her. Her laughter resonated within him, soothing raw nerves and easing aches and pains he had barely acknowledged.
    She sat in the grass, sunlight glinting off the red and gold strands in her dark hair. The woman needed to be outside every day. Her skin, however, was too pale for long-term exposure. Spurred by the thought, he elbowed Linc. “We were on our way to see Emma.”
    “Is something wrong?” To his brother’s credit, Linc looked directly at Vivian with a concerned frown. “I thought Gillian had seen her and that Margo hadn’t hurt her.” The slight hitch in the sentence betrayed Linc’s thoughts on the subject better than a growl. He’d been the one who’d tried to keep the Enforcer and Owen from taking her.
    A.J. tapped Linc’s shoulder with a light fist. “Gillian did. This is something else.”
    “We’ll walk with you,” Tyler offered and, before A.J. could react, his brother walked to where Vivian sat and offered his hand. She gave him a small, shy smile and let him help her to her feet. Her eyes widened, however, when Tyler lifted her into a hug. “It’s good to see you again.” Affectionate welcome aside, if his brother didn’t put her down in one, two…  
    Tyler set her on her feet and A.J. held out his hand. She abandoned his brother and accepted his hand, interlacing their fingers without a shred of hesitation. Mollified by her blatant choice, he nodded to Tyler. “Not that I mind the company, but Emma hasn’t moved has she?”
    “No,” Linc answered and took point to lead the way. Tyler fell in behind them and A.J. understood.
    His brothers wanted to protect him. Growing up in Willow Bend, it had always been the three of them, thick as thieves. Yes, they had friends and other family—and of course their baby sister—but the bond he shared with Linc and Tyler went beyond blood. In his life, it had always been brothers, family, pack…
    Before.
    Slanting a look at the woman walking beside him, his heart shuddered. He’d chosen Vivian over his brothers, over his family and over his pack.
    “I was moving to Arizona,” Vivian said, though he’d missed the question when he’d been lost in thought.
    No, she cannot go to Arizona. He refused to even contemplate the possibility. Not anymore. They’d talked so briefly on the subject and he understood her need to be away from St. Louis, to leave behind the city where she’d suffered so much pain.
    “You don’t want to go there,” Tyler said, echoing A.J.’s internal monologue. “It’s hot, dusty and miles away from anything interesting.” And controlled utterly by the Sutter Butte pack.
    “It’s not all dusty. Flagstaff is supposed to be lovely. It has trees…”
    “We have trees here,” Linc answered. “Better temperatures. Good hunting. Lots of open land.”
    “Yeah, you want to move, move here.” His brothers launched into all the attributes for the local area, but A.J. said nothing.  He felt, more than saw, Vivian’s gaze upon him, but he didn’t have the right to comment. Not when he only had orders to offer her. He didn’t want her going anywhere except right here.
    With him.
    No exceptions.
    A wild possessiveness surged in his blood, chasing away reason. He didn’t dare open his mouth. No, silence was better.
    Except his brothers wouldn’t shut up. Linc spun to walk backwards, his attention on Vivian. “What would you do in Arizona that you can’t do here?”
    “Get a job for one.”
    “We have jobs,” Tyler volunteered. “What do you do? We’ll find some places for you to apply.”
    A.J.’s attention riveted to her response. What did she do? When he’d met her, she’d been a student. At least he thought she had. He remembered textbooks. Or maybe that had been a dream.
    She hesitated, uncertainty filled her scent and her heart sped up. Worry, anxiety, fear—the combination threatened to gut him.  He squeezed her hand, rubbing his thumb over her