Read Online Clawed: Wild Things, Book 3 by Beverly Rae - Free Book Online Page A

interested expression, hoping it would encourage him to talk.
    “Nope.”
    Damn. He’d gone back to a one-word answer.
    “So you’re here on business? Or pleasure?”
    “Pleasure.” Again, one word.
    “Oh. Then I guess the fishing is good?”
    “It’s okay.” He cleared his throat. “I’m sorry.”
    She held her breath, fearful of the direction he’d taken the conversation. Was he sorry they’d had sex? “You are? About what?”
    “Your drawing.”
    “Oh.” Crap, now she was down to one-word responses. Getting him to open up was as difficult as getting Lassie to speak Italian. “It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault. I’m sorry I yelled at you.”
    “No problem.”
    She sighed and sat up, pulling on the sleeping bag to cover her nakedness. Her gaze fell to his uncovered crotch, drying her mouth and proving that the multiple orgasms she’d experienced hadn’t been her last. Just looking at the man’s impressive shaft sent a sexual burn to flare between her legs.
    “You saw me at the stream.”
    Startled, she stared at him, unsure how much she should reveal. He waited, his face open, eager to hear her answer. What would he say if she told him she’d thought she’d seen him change into a bear? Even she had a difficult time believing it.
    “Yes, I did.” She dropped her gaze lower and was once again stirred by his large shaft. Another rush of desire turned her legs to jelly. She might have fallen if she hadn’t been sitting.
    He pulled a small section of sleeping bag over to cover his crotch. Had he caught her gawking? She blushed and lifted her head, determined to keep her gaze high.
    “I’m sorry you saw that.”
    Was he talking about his package now? Or about what she’d seen at the stream? “I’m not.”
    His eyebrow arched, his stare intensified. “You’re not?”
    “No.” She nodded, admitting the truth to herself for the first time. “But I don’t understand either. Tell me, Conan. Tell me what happened.” The second she’d asked, she sensed him retreat behind an invisible wall.
    “What’s to tell? I like to fish.” His hard face lacked any emotion.
    Disbelief ripped her apart, but she hung on. She had to know the truth. “With your bare hands?”
    He laughed, an insincere snort of a chuckle that didn’t come from deep inside him. “No, not with my bare hands. I used a net.”
    “A net? I didn’t see any net.” His lie hurt her more than any simple denial would have. Granted, they didn’t know each other, but hadn’t they shared a very intimate connection? After what they’d done, couldn’t he tell her the truth? He darted his eyes away, churning a hole in her stomach.
    “It’s a very small net.”
    Disappointment shot through her. He’d already withdrawn from her with his lie about the net. Why bother trying to get him to tell the truth when he refused to open up? “I see.”
    “That’s right.” His eyes grew cold and impenetrable. “Nothing more, nothing less.”
    Pushing her hurt away, she opted for a different topic. A topic she hoped would be a lot less dangerous to broach. “Do you have any family? Kids?” She paused and strengthened her resolve to know. “A wife?”
    He jerked his head up, his eyes narrowing. “Why do you ask?”
    “You mean about having a wife? Seems like a reasonable question after what we did. Although I guess I should’ve asked before we did what we did. And for the record, I hope you don’t have one.”
    “Why would it matter?”
    Was he for real? She gritted her teeth to keep choice words from slipping out. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because I wouldn’t like being the other woman.”
    This time his laugh was full throated and sincere, rolling out of his chest. “The other woman? Where did you get the idea that you’re the other woman?”
    Her ire dissipated for a moment as hope, ridiculous as it may have been, seeped in. “So you’re not married?”
    “No way.” He grabbed for his clothes and tossed hers to her.