Read Online The Cowbear's Christmas Shotgun Wedding (Curvy Bear Ranch 3) by Liv Brywood - Free Book Online Page A

to make it. Fresh air was too far away. Strength left her body with every passing second. She willed her arms and legs to move, but she couldn’t.
    A man’s strong arms lifted her off the floor and pulled her against his hard chest. She tilted her head up just enough to recognize him. Logan! He’d come to save her.
    Logan ran out of the building just seconds before it completely collapsed. She coughed and sputtered as she tried to draw life-giving oxygen into her lungs.
    “Honey, are you hurt? Did you get burned?” He set her on the ground and pulled open her robe. His hands gently felt along the sides of her body as if to confirm she was alive.
    “Okay.” She couldn’t manage more than one word. Her lungs felt raw, as if they’d been singed by the fire.
    All of Logan’s brothers rushed into the area. Mack and Brady grabbed horses and led them to a nearby pasture while Hank waved at the incoming fire truck.
    “Water,” she gasped.
    “I’ll be right back, honey.” Logan ran into the house and came back seconds later with a tall glass of water. “Drink it slowly.”
    As he helped her sit up, he cradled her head in his huge palm. She took a sip. She wanted to gulp the cool liquid, but didn’t want to choke on it, so she took small mouthfuls at a time.
    “What happened?” Logan asked.
    “I don’t know. I woke up and smelled smoke. When I came outside, the barn was on fire. I had to save the animals.”
    “You could have been killed.”
    “I couldn’t let them be burned alive. Did I get them all? There should be thirty.”
    “Hey Mack, can you get a head count?” Logan yelled.
    He sat on the frozen ground and pulled her into his arms. The warmth and safety of his body helped ease the tension in her spine. For the first time since she’d arrived on the ranch, she cried. Thick tears spilled down her face.
    “You’re safe now,” Logan whispered as he pressed his lips against her temple.
    “He loved that barn so much.”
    “Your father?”
    “Yes. He built it from the ground up when I was a little girl. He took so much pride in it. Sometimes, I think he loved it more than he loved me.” She sniffed.
    “I’m sure he loved you too.”
    “Wishful thinking. He only ever loved two things: booze and himself,” she said bitterly.
    A firefighter in full gear approached. “Are you the owner of this property?”
    “Yes.”
    “It’s going to be a total loss. The best we can do is keep it from spreading.”
    “I understand,” she said. “Thank you.”
    After the firefighter left, she turned away from the burning remains of the barn. She buried her face in Logan’s chest and took comfort in his piney scent. At least she wasn’t going through this completely alone.
     
    ***
     
    Logan waited until the last flickering flame died. Tendrils of smoke curled up from the wreckage. Kate clung to him and cried for at least an hour before finally calming. He listened to her even breaths and thanked God a thousand times that she hadn’t been hurt.
    Rage boiled in his veins. He knew exactly who was responsible for this. There was no way Milton was going to get away with another arson. If he had to hunt down the bastard himself and let his bear tear him apart, so be it. No one hurt his family without answering to him.
    He held her closer. So what if she wasn’t really a part of his family. He cared about her, more than he’d realized. His bear huffed in frustration as if to say, of course you dummy .
    Apparently his bear was more in tune with his desires than he was. But wasn’t that always the case? Maybe he needed to listen to his bear more, and not just pay attention to his bear’s basic needs. Maybe there was more to the creature than he realized. Maybe his bear also needed to love and be loved.
    After the fire marshal finished picking through the remains of the barn, he walked over to Logan. “I still have to do an official investigation, but the stink of accelerant is all over what’s left of the