Read Online KEEPING YOU: Howlers Motorcycle Club 1: A Werewolf Shifter Paranormal Motorcycle Club Romance by Lauren Devane - Free Book Online Page A

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    “Don’t worry, Sare-bear. I’m not going to leave you again.” I meant what I said, but a ripple of doubt wouldn’t go away. Every day that I was home, I found myself missing Sam and the compound. It was like an empty pit had formed in my stomach that wouldn’t ever be filled. I’d grown used to group dinners, the smell of leather and the roar of Harley engines coming to life before a run.
    The night that Mike had taken me home, I’d let my eyes drift closed as I imagined I was riding behind Sam.
    Once I’d even gotten in my rental car and driven out of town, heading toward the compound. I stopped myself before I could get to the third exit on the highway. There was no guarantee that I’d be allowed to leave once I drove through the gates and that was a risk I couldn’t take.
    We were eating tableside guac and quesadillas at our favorite restaurant, listening to the too-loud music and drinking weak margaritas. I’d been with Sarah every night since I came back into town and drove straight to her house from the exit. She didn’t let me out of her sight for more than the balance of my work day.
    That night, I convinced her that I needed to go home and take care of my place. She reluctantly agreed on the condition that I meet her for breakfast. After a hug, she got into the car and drove away. I watched until her taillights faded, then headed for my own vehicle.
    Cool night air surrounded me, but felt strangely heavy on my skin, like it a damp cloak wrapped around my shoulders. Alone in the parking lot, a cloud moved over the almost-full moon and left me in shadows. A feeling like someone was watching me—a tingle on my skin— crept over me and I shuddered, moving quickly to the car with my keys in my hand.
    Once the engine was running and I was pulling out of the spot, I began to feel safer. Then I looked back and saw a silhouette slip from the shadows and move into the alley. Convinced that it was just a trick of light, I focused on the road.
    At home, I walked onto my porch and pulled out my keys to open the house. I was about to slide them into the lock when I heard a voice.
    “Ellie.”
    I turned to see Sam standing at the base of the steps, staring up at me. “I missed you,” he said.
    “What are you doing here? You scared the hell out of me at the restaurant.” I walked away from the door to stare at him. “Did Michael change his mind?”
    “No. I just missed you. What restaurant?”
    “What do you want me to say, Sam?” Despite my words, butterflies began hula-hooping in my stomach. The sight of him made me feel so good that it was physical.
    “Say you’ll come home with me,” he said solemnly.
    “I can’t.”
    “Then I’ll stay with you.” He walked up onto the porch and examined it, touching the white railing and pushing the swing. “This looks like a nice place to sit.”
    “You can’t stay here.”
    “You didn’t miss me even a little?” His eyes, limpid pools of gold, were too easy to lose myself in. I looked away.
    “You kept me prisoner.”
    “I know. It was wrong. But would you have me risk the life of every man, woman and child in the compound?”
    Put that way, I felt like I was somehow in the wrong. “No, but I wouldn’t have told.”
    “We didn’t know that then.”
    “But you do now?”
    He nodded.
    “I have a life here.”
    “You can keep your life.”
    “Damn it, Sam.” Anger suddenly overwhelmed me and I pushed past him to the door. “You can’t just show up and tell me these things and think we’re going to be together.”
    “Why?”
    “Because you take me over. One day as your captive and I’m already thinking about a future with you. With just you. That’s so damn twisted.”
    “It’s not,” he argued. “You’re my mate.”
    “I’m not a wolf.”
    “I am.” We stared at each other, then I turned and unlocked the door. He was right at my heels.
    He heard it before I did.
    The slightest sound.
    Click .
    Boom .
    Then I was falling, my