Mating Behavior Read Online Free

winked, but still held a look of concern.
“No problem. Why don’t you put your foot up for a bit while I get
another fire started?”
    She grabbed his hand and pulled him close.
“Alan.”
    “Yes?” he asked, his light blue eyes locked
on her.
    Katie fought the urge to put her mouth
closer to his. Alan’s lips were fuller than most men she knew and
they served nicely to soften an otherwise too hard face. He’d had a
full beard for about six months until she complained about missing
the sight of his dimpled chin. The next day, Alan’s face was a
smooth as a baby’s bottom. That wasn’t exactly what she wanted
either. After much hint dropping, Alan had taken to leaving a light
dusting of hair on his jaw line. Each day was a testament of her
will power—not demanding he kiss her.
    She ran her hand through his nut brown,
layered hair and put her lips close to his. “Thank you for making
my ankle feel better.”
    Alan’s brow furrowed as he leaned in closer
to her. His warm breath skated over her bottom lip and she had to
keep from moaning. He planted his hands on both sides of her and
stared deeply into her eyes. It wasn’t something Alan was prone to
doing and it caught Katie a bit off guard. “I need to gather more firewood, hon,” he said, sounding more like he was
trying to convince himself he needed to move, rather than sway
her.
    “Uh-huh.” Katie put her hand over his and
caressed his fingers. “Be careful. They tell me there are wolves
out here.”
    A slow, sexy smile slid over his handsome
face. “You don’t say? I’ll have to be on my guard then, huh?”
    Suddenly, the idea of him being hurt seemed
very real for some odd reason. Katie knew they were only joking
back and forth, but she couldn’t shake the feeling Alan might very
well end up injured. She clutched his hand. Her oldest sister and
her mother possessed the ability to see the future. While Katie
didn’t, every now and then she could sense pending danger. She knew
better to ignore the sensation, regardless of how silly it seemed.
“Seriously, Alan, be careful. Please.”
    “Don’t worry. I won’t leave you to brave the
elements all by your lonesome, Katie.”
    Pfft, I could control the elements if I
focused hard enough.
    Letting go of his hand, Katie cupped his
chin quickly. “Alan Lawrence Becker, this is not funny. I don’t
give a damn about being alone in the… umm… never mind, I do care
about that, but not as much as I care about you. Be careful.
Promise me. We’re a long way out from help being able to get to us
if we have a problem.”
    Alan puckered his lips and moved forward,
pressing his lips to her forehead. “I will. I promise.”
    It wasn’t the first time he’d given her a
chaste kiss like that and each time he did, she couldn’t help but
wonder what it would be like to really kiss him.
    Katie ran her hands up the sides of his face
and pressed her forehead to his lips once more, savoring the feel
of being this close to him. “Give me a minute and I’ll come with
you.”
    “And if I should run into wolves, how are
you planning to protect me?” he asked good humouredly. “You going
to read them the riot act too? Works on me, so it very well could
work on them, too.”
    She hadn’t thought about that, but it didn’t
matter. It wasn’t as if she could summon her powers and zap a wolf
with Alan watching her. Regardless, she wasn’t completely helpless
and hated feeling that she was. Katie stared into his eyes as she
swallowed hard. Feelings she’d long since given up trying to get to
go away resurfaced with a vengeance. “I want to be with you.”
    “Be with me?” Alan asked lifting a
questioning brow.
    Katie averted her gaze. “I mean, uhh, I want
to help you gather more firewood.”
    “Rest your ankle,” he said, pressing an
innocent kiss to the tip of her nose. “I’ll be back in a bit. I
promise.”
    She clung to him and Alan drew back
slightly. “Katie, what’s wrong? You’re acting