Lift Her Up (Kaid Ranch Shifters #3) - T. S. Joyce Page 0,2
piercings all down one ear and wore a black tank top that was ripped low, exposing the top of her breasts. Rows of black bracelets adorned one wrist, and her jeans were dark blue, no rips. A pair of black western boots with steel toes completed her outfit.
A snarl sounded low in her throat.
Fuck. He’d turned her into this.
“You used to hate the color black,” he murmured.
“Nice opener.”
God, he didn’t even recognize the grit in her voice. The wolf he’d given her had changed everything about her.
This. This awful, poisonous feeling… This was why he’d left his old life. Guilt wasn’t good for a man like him. When his own wolf let off a long growl, Wes shook his head and slammed the heel of his boot on the wooden floorboards hard enough to jolt pain up his bad leg. That stopped the noise.
“What would you like me to open with?” he asked.
Summer shrugged up one shoulder. Her mis-colored eyes were empty. “Honestly, I don’t care. I’m here for one thing, and one thing only.”
“Sam?”
She nodded slow.
“How?” he asked, taking a step toward her.
The snarl in her throat got louder. Summer held her finger up and angled her face. “Close enough, Wesley. My wolf, she don’t like you, and I’m not one of you Kaids. Didn’t get that lucky gene. Didn’t get that control. You want your throat ripped out? March on closer then. You want to stay in one piece?” Summer twitched her head toward the door. “You stay the fuck over there.”
Wes didn’t like being talked to like this, but a wise man knew when he deserved something. Summer could kill him, and he would bleed out knowing he earned her teeth. So, he took a step back and angled his head in a gesture he’d never done before—for anyone. He exposed his neck, a sign of submission.
Her silver eye glowed brighter. “Your wolf sure feels different. Meaner. Even now, while you’re pretending to be submissive, you can’t stop glaring at me. I almost forgot how bright your eyes get when you go animal. Almost. The first time I saw them, do you remember?”
He wanted to retch at the memory. He slid his hands behind his back and clenched them hard. Steady now. “I remember. How could I forget?”
“Oh, you seemed to forget just fine, Wes. I’m not here to give you shit, though. I’m here to get your help. Far as I’m concerned, you owe me about a dozen favors.”
“What do you need?”
“Your anger. The Wesley Kaid I knew would fight anything, or anyone, at any time. Does that Wesley still exist?”
“Yes.”
“Then I want your protection.”
“Aw, Summer. Didn’t you know? You don’t have to cash in any favors for that. All you gotta do is ask.”
“You’ll probably die,” she said simply.
Well, now he was curious. “Where’s Sam?”
“When I tell you, you’re going to want to Change and maul something, but I warn you—you won’t be mauling me. You’ll get yourself killed, Wesley. Control is key around me.”
He hated that she called him “Wesley.” Hated being called by his full name by anyone, but she knew that. She was using it to get under his skin, or perhaps to distance him.
“I won’t Change,” he said.
One corner of those perfect, full lips turned up, but her smile was still dead as hell. “Pity. You would be a fun fight.”
The Summer he knew was long gone. His heart ached with the realization. He deserved it. Deserved it.
“Samuel Kaid doesn’t go by his given name anymore. He goes by Bones.”
“What the hell?” Wes asked. “Why did he change his name?”
“Oh, you’ll see. Guess what pack he branded himself into.”
Wes leaned back against the wall by his dresser and uttered honestly, “I don’t keep up with the packs or the moving members in them. Not anymore. I keep up with life here at the ranch, that’s all. I don’t worry about the other wolves unless they come into my territory.”
“I heard.” She arched her dark eyebrows. God she was stunning, even as this dark being. “You killed the entire Westland Pack, didn’t you?”
He didn’t trust her anymore. She was too different from what she used to be, and though female wolves were rare, they could be dangerous as hell. They were the more cunning gender by far, and he wasn’t getting trapped into some confession. Not when he didn’t know what pack she was branded to. “Why would you think I killed the Westland pack?”
“Hmm,” she murmured, rocking back in the chair