Joy to the Wolves (Red Wolf #1) - Terry Spear Page 0,47

hell had that happened? And how had he slept through it? Not that this was unwelcome, just that he was supposed to be protecting her, damn it. Not sleeping through everything.

He hoped Brooke knew she’d shifted and wouldn’t be shocked when she woke. He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes, trying not to think of having the beautiful she-wolf in his embrace, but it wasn’t working. With her hot little body resting naked against his, her sweet cinnamon scent and her warm breath against his naked chest were waking parts of his body that needed to go back to sleep.

She was warm and soft and cuddly. Trying to put the feel of her out of his thoughts, Josh somehow managed to fall asleep for another hour, waking to an alarm going off in the master bedroom. For the first time in a long time, he wanted to just stay in bed and sleep the morning away…with the she-wolf in his arms.

Brooke lifted her head and groaned. He sighed. He was afraid she was going to regret having joined him in bed. He was glad she’d slept through the night and they hadn’t had any disturbances.

“Uh, sorry about that.” She quickly kissed his cheek and just as quickly climbed off the bed and hurried out of the room.

He smiled. “It was all good. You kept me warm when I was getting a little chilly,” he called after her, wishing he had caught her before she ran away and had given her a more…meaningful kiss. It was probably just as well because she might not be ready for that when she was naked in bed with him.

“Ha!” she called out from the other bedroom.

“You did.”

“You stole the covers last night, and I was trying to get them back.”

He chuckled. “I just wanted you to stay close.”

She laughed.

Josh got out of bed, took a shower in the guest bathroom, and dressed in the change of clothes he had in his emergency pack. His brother had bought him a red sweater? Hell. He guessed his brother thought he should be dressed for Christmas if he was going to work in Brooke’s antique shop for the holidays. Josh never wore red or Christmas sweaters. Thankfully, Maverick had picked up a couple of pairs of regular jeans for him. Josh put on the boots he’d been wearing, glad they hid the red socks Maverick had bought him. The turkey. Josh had used his socks from his emergency kit and had forgotten to put a fresh pair in his bag.

He was glad his brother had bought him a couple extra pairs of black boxer briefs—not red underwear, which he probably couldn’t find—in case Brooke caught sight of them. Josh headed to the kitchen on a quest for coffee.

Brooke walked into the kitchen while Josh was making the coffee. “Hope you don’t mind.”

“No, go right ahead.” She was wearing a red sweater dress that caressed all her curves, reminding him just how curvy she was when he woke to find her naked, sleeping against him like she belonged there with him.

Not that he should go there. He couldn’t help thinking about it though. She was a she-wolf in need, unattached, the right age, and totally appealing.

“Adam’s meeting us here to house-sit in case the intruders show up while we’re at the shop,” Josh said.

“Oh good. I worried about that. I’d hate to come home to find my house was ransacked next.”

“Right. What did you want me to do?” he asked.

“Could you make the lavender tea for me for my thermos?” She set it on the counter. “And if you’d like”—she brought out another thermos—“you can make yourself some coffee to go. We can get more at the shop since I have a kitchen there, but I get so busy, I often don’t have time to make it. When I do have time for the kitchen, it’s to make cocoa and wassail for customers. So it’s easier to take a thermos.”

“Sure. Though while I’m at the shop, I can help you out with anything you need.”

“Thanks. Does French toast and bacon for breakfast sound good?” she asked.

“That sounds great.”

They sat down to eat at the kitchen table in the little nook where her bow windows looked onto a garden. Evergreen shrubs bordered her property, and she had a couple of fir trees so her front yard didn’t look barren like it might otherwise in winter.

“I don’t remember ending up in the wrong bed last night.” She