Love's Mountain Quest by Misty M. Beller

Author:Misty M. Beller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Historical Fiction;FIC042110;FIC042030;FIC027360
ISBN: 9781493421718
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2020-04-22T16:00:00+00:00

SIXTEEN

The mare limped along beside Joanna, but at least the horse was able to walk. The two geldings trailed behind on their longer ropes.

When they neared the trees, Isaac’s voice sounded across the open ground. “Joanna?” So many questions hung in the word. Anxiety so thick she could almost touch it.

“I’m not hurt. Three wolves attacked the mare, but I stopped them. I’m bringing her in so we can care for her wounds. The geldings, too.” She could barely see him, only a shadow among the tree trunks, but she kept talking. Maybe knowledge of the situation would help him feel less out of control.

Or maybe she spoke to calm her own nerves.

“We need a fire or some way to get enough light to tend her injuries. She has a large gash on her neck, and I think some on her flanks. It’s hard to see much out here.”

“You’re not hurt?” The rasp in his voice sank all the way through her. Drew her in.

Her feet stepped nearer without her consent. Close enough to reach out to him if she chose. “I’m not hurt.”

She could see his face now. The lines across his brow, the solid lock of his jaw. Yet his eyes were still shadowed. Impossible to read the expression there.

She could feel his need. Feel his urgency to touch her. Feel his restraint. Even if he had no desire for something permanent between them, he needed to know with his own hands that she was unhurt.

Dropping the mare’s rope, she reached out and pressed her palm to his chest. The muscles tensed under her skin and the intake of his breath was loud enough to hear.

Yet he didn’t move. Didn’t reach for her. Didn’t even breathe again, as far as she could tell. The pounding of his heart under her fingers was the only sign that her nearness affected him half as much as it did her.

Every part of her wanted to draw closer, to press her lips to his. To force him to wrap his free hand around her.

Maybe touching him had been a bad idea.

But then he reached out. Gripped her arm and pulled her closer. Pressed his mouth to hers with a hunger so strong it ricocheted through her body. It would be impossible to deny him, even if she wanted to.

But she didn’t.

As he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer, she dropped the rifle and the gelding’s ropes, then slid both her hands up to cup his neck. Her fingers brushed against his hair, its silky curls drawing her in. She wove her hand through its thickness, relishing in the sensation as the power of his kiss drove all the way through her.

He was everything her heart craved. A protector. Someone to carry the load when she couldn’t. And she couldn’t remember ever being so affected as this man made her feel at this moment.

His lips strayed to her jaw, and she tilted her chin up. A tiny moan slipped from her mouth.

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