Alaskan Sanctuary Read Online Free Page A

forced to leave the sanctuary in his sock feet. He’d deposited them by the door of the hotel on his way in because he’d rather sit at the bar in his socks than too-small bunny slippers.
    “Are you going to arrest me, Officer? Aren’t you taking the whole ‘no shirt, no shoes, no service’ thing a bit far?” He looked pointedly at the shiny silver badge fixed to Tate’s parka.
    His friend shrugged. “I’ll let it slide this time.”
    “Gee, thanks.” Ethan stared into his empty coffee cup.
    “Seriously, though. What gives with the socks?”
    Ethan sighed. “I had a run-in with a wolf.”
    Tate’s grin faded. “A wolf? Are you okay?”
    Ethan pretended not to notice when his friend’s gaze flitted briefly to the stuffed grizzly bear in the corner. Tate was one of the few people in Aurora who knew about what had happened in Denali. Since his work as a state trooper sometimes took him to other parts of Alaska, he’d known Ethan back then. Before. He was the only person Ethan still communicated with who’d been part of that world. He was a trusted friend. But that didn’t mean Ethan wanted to have another heart-to-heart about his past.
    He didn’t want Tate’s sympathy. He didn’t want sympathy from anyone. He just wanted to write his piece and move on to something else. Another assignment. Something involving politics or sports. Or anything else he could write about without feeling as if he’d been emotionally eviscerated.
    He gritted his teeth. “It wasn’t like that.”
    The wolf had put an untimely end to his hiking boots, and Ethan had been a little rattled. That’s all. Once his article was written, he’d forget all about Piper and her wolves and get on with his life.
    Unless something happens to her.
    “I’m doing a story on the new wolf sanctuary. Have you heard about it?”
    Tate nodded. “A little. They just opened, right?”
    “ She just opened.” They wasn’t exactly accurate considering Piper’s rescue center was essentially a one-woman show.
    “She?” Tate’s eyebrows rose. “Interesting.”
    “Anyhow, I’m fine.” Ethan swallowed. “For the most part.”
    “If you say so.” Tate studied him for a moment. Then, apparently convinced that Ethan wasn’t on the verge of some kind of breakdown, he blew out a breath. “Try not to break any more laws, though.”
    Ethan slid him a sideways glance. “So going without shoes is, in fact, illegal?”
    “Could be.” Tate shrugged. “ Should be, seeing as it’s twenty degrees outside. Either way, just don’t give me a reason to arrest you. I wouldn’t want to have to take back the stellar job recommendation I gave you.”
    Ethan paused. Job recommendation? “ The Seattle Tribune ? You’re kidding.”
    “Nope. Not kidding. They called me yesterday afternoon.”
    The Seattle Tribune . Finally. For almost a year now, Ethan had been applying for jobs at bigger newspapers. It was time to leave Alaska. Past time. But finding a newspaper job when print journalists were somewhat of a dying breed wasn’t easy, especially given the fact that Ethan’s only work experience was for a small regional paper.
    His entire higher education had been designed to get him out of Manhattan and into the Land of the Midnight Sun. While his prep school friends had gone on to earn business or law degrees, Ethan had studied forestry and ecology, despite the overwhelming disapproval of his father. Ethan couldn’t have cared less what his dad thought. Every move he’d made since he’d been old enough to formulate a plan had been designed to get him out of New York and into the wilds of Alaska. And he’d actually managed to do it.
    For a time, life had been perfect. But then those wilds had gotten the better of him.
    Of course, if he’d wanted to leave badly enough, he could have gone back to Manhattan. It’s what his ex-wife had wanted. She’d begged him to leave Alaska and take the job his father had waiting for him in New York. Alaska had