Read Online Feral Seduction (Feral Protectors 2) by Liv Brywood - Free Book Online Page B

around the meadow. They gave me a crown of violet wildflowers and I carried a bouquet of irises. I didn’t wear anything, of course. I really didn’t care about being naked all the time until I started showing.”
    Ryker said, “She makes a fat joke at least twice a day. I don’t know how many times I have to tell her that she looks like a goddess.”
    Stryde smiled. Diana was pretty, but Brandy, she was a goddess. As Diana continued telling him about the life-mate ceremony, his thoughts drifted to Brandy. He wondered how she’d fared. Had her uncle helped her stop her stalker?
    He hoped she was okay. Part of him was tempted to scout her uncle’s house just to see how she was doing. But then he had to remind himself that her welfare wasn’t his concern.
    “…and the party didn’t end until sunrise,” Diana finished.
    Stryde smiled. “I bet you were a stunning bride. Ryker’s a very lucky man.”
    “You better believe it. I’m just glad she finally sold her house. We had decided to wait until things were settled with the house before committing to the life-mate ceremony. She needed to wrap up her old life,” Ryker said.
    Diana said, “I wanted the transition to be complete. I didn’t want to have one foot in the old world and one foot in new one.”
    Stryde knew exactly what she was saying. He was stuck in a transitional state, not ready to let go of the past, and therefore unable to move on. He knew it; he just didn’t know how to change it, and he wasn’t sure that it would ever change.
    As he watched Ryker embrace his mate, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy. Ryker deserved Diana. He was a strong protector and he’d shown that he could keep her safe.
    Stryde didn’t deserve a mate. In another life, maybe he’d try to find Brandy. But in this one, he deserved to be alone.
    Hours later, as the moon hung low on the horizon, he hugged Diana and Akila. He slapped Ryker on the back. “It’s been too long.”
    “You can show your face here more than once a year,” Ryker admonished.
    “I know. I will. I just need—”
    “More time. I know, just don’t wait too long.”
    Stryde chuckled. “I feel like we’ve had this conversation before.”
    Ryker grinned. “Maybe. Have a good trip home.”
    “I will.”
    Stryde gave them one last wave before he started into the woods. One he was out of their line of sight, he turned toward the cave on Howling Mountain. A few more days, then he’d go home.
     
    ***
     
    Brandy jumped out of bed. She pulled on her clothes while running to the bathroom. She slammed and locked the bathroom door. Her shoes still lay on the tile where she’d left them earlier. She didn’t have time to put them on, so she grabbed them and slung them over one shoulder.
    She eyed the narrow window above the sink. It would be a gamble, but she had to fit through it. If she didn’t, she was as good as dead.
    She climbed onto the sink and pushed the window up. It didn’t budge. In her panicked state, she’d forgotten to unhinge the lock. She tore the lock open, ripping a nail in the process. She’d only fit if she went head first.
    She’d just shoved her head through the opening when a loud bang sounded on the door. She screamed and struggled to pull herself through the window.
    Behind her, the sound of cracking wood sent a new wave of terror through her. She had to get out before he broke the bathroom door down.
    She clutched the window frame and tugged her hips through the opening. Just as her ankles were about to clear the ledge, a large hand reached out to clamp down on her ankle. She shrieked and released her grip. Gravity forced her feet through the window and ripped her ankle out of her attacker’s grasp.
    She hit the ground with a thud. Air whooshed out of her lungs and for a second she couldn’t breathe. She watched in horror as a masked man tried to force himself through the small opening. He cursed and disappeared.
    With only seconds to spare, she scrambled