Spirits Shared Read Online Free

demanded that he take her in
his arms but he forced himself into his role of sheriff. "What
happened?"
    "A boulder hit the car. We went off the
road."
    "Who was with you?"
    "Clay."
    "Your fiancé?"
    Tears sheened her eyes. She nodded. "He's
hurt. He's at least got a concussion. But there could be internal
injuries."
    Another sob like the one she'd first greeted
him with left her, and again he fought the urge to take her into
his arms. Already he burned with the desire to protect and comfort
and possess her.
    He fisted his hand rather than curl it
around her arm, grabbing at any excuse to touch her. Nodding toward
the cruiser, he said, "Get in the front."
    He slid into the driver's seat, uncertainty
and hope and worry for her turning Thunderbird spirit into a
tornado trapped inside a mortal body. She was his perfect
match.
    As a man he wouldn't have known it, not with
the ring on her finger. But his spirit had passed over her in the
Thunderbird's form and recognized her as his mate.
    One of his mates.
    Let her be the first of two mates.
    Her fear and anxiety burrowed into him. If
Clay wasn't also meant to be his mate, then the ring on her finger
said she would endure the grief and pain of losing someone she
loved.
    That possibility made it a struggle not to
floor the gas pedal. Tekoa's heart beat too hard and too fast in a
too tight chest, sending ache into the hands gripping the steering
wheel. "What's your name?"
    "Jessica. Jessica North."
    "I'm Tekoa." They reached the totem poles
and the rain eased.
    "Turn left," she said. "It's a little
further."
    The sky darkened with storm and nightfall.
He sped up, driving as fast as he dared.
    They rounded jutting rock and ahead of them
a man lay sprawled face-up in the road.
    "Clay!" She unclasp her seatbelt and grabbed
the door handle.
    Tekoa shackled her wrist, the contact enough
to fist and squeeze his heart. "Hold on."
    He braked a few feet from Clay, released her
and shifted the cruiser into park.
    She shoved the door open and scrambled out.
He joined her, kneeling next to Clay.
    Blue eyes with uneven pupils opened.
"Jess?"
    "I'm here. The sheriff's here. You're going
to be okay." She stroked Clay's cheek, love in her touch and gaze
and voice.
    Tekoa leaned over Clay. "Do you hurt
anywhere?"
    "Stomach hurts. Chest hurts. May have broken
some ribs."
    "Anything else?"
    "Head hurts. Puked a little while ago. Think
I have a concussion. Had one before." He closed his eyes and
shivered violently. "And cold. So cold."
    "Let's get you to the car," Tekoa said.
    Clay roused enough to help them get him on
his feet and then onto the back seat.
    Tekoa retrieved a blanket from the trunk and
covered him, then tapped Clay's cheek. Slowly Clay opened eyes the
color of a summer sky.
    Let him be my mate , Tekoa thought.
"Stay conscious."
    "Will try."
    Returning to the driver's seat, Tekoa
shifted out of park. "There's a turnout up ahead."
    "How far to the hospital?"
    "Too far."
    Her sound of distress arrowed into his heart
and this time he didn't stop himself from taking her hand.
    He wanted to say, It'll be okay. Clay
will be okay. But they weren't of The People and she wouldn't
be comforted by his intention to do a sing.
    He squeezed her hand, glanced away from the
road long enough to meet her eyes and will her to trust him.
"Downed trees and mudslides have the fastest route to the hospital
blocked. There are ways around but they'll add hours to the trip
and some of the roads are extremely rough. There's a good chance
that traveling over them will make him worse. My cabin's closer.
Right now it's better to get him there and out of his wet
clothes."
    The curl of her fingers around his, the feel
of her engagement ring against his palm, wrapped his heart in bands
of heat and hope. "Okay," she said, twisting in her seat to monitor
Clay, the tug of her hand from his leaving aching bands of
longing.
    They reached the turnout, did a U-turn and
headed toward his cabin.
    Jessica was his. He didn't doubt