The Gift of My Mate (Siberian Volkov Pack Romance Book 9) Read Online Free

sister, Malina, and the one Ujarak is hugging is my middle brother, Kumaglak. Malina, this is my mate, Margot Martin.”
    Margot froze. No. Her nostrils flared, expecting to smell the scent of a lie, instead the smell of truth was behind Mathis’s words. She shook her head. She must be wrong. Mathis wasn’t really her mate, she just wished him to be. He wouldn’t hide the mating bond from her, not for two years.
    Her body began to shake. Margot tipped back her head and howled her grief to the sky. The need to run, to flee from her mate’s treachery, gripped her. She leapt for the open door and the darkness outside.
    Mathis lunged at her. “Margot, NO!”
    She made it past his grasping hands and jumped into the waiting snow. Then she ran.
     
    §
     
    “Dammit!” Mathis ripped off his shirt and reached for his pants.
    “What are you going to do?” Ujarak asked.
    “Go after her. If we’re not back by tomorrow, come looking.” Mathis shucked his pants and called the change.
    White lights surrounded him as his jaw lengthened and fur sprang from his skin. In a moment he was a huge white wolf, broader and shorter than other lycans, he was still bigger in stature than most.
    He ran out the door, trusting his family to have his back. Margot’s trail, easy to follow through the snow, led to the northwest. Thank goodness, the storm passed leaving a layer of powder. Mathis lengthened his stride. He would need to catch her before she ran into any nanuk . Not all polar bear shifters were friendly with the lycans.
     
     

Chapter Three
     
    The cold of the night air burned her lungs. Her heart pounded, flooding her ears with the sound of rushing blood. She reached for the next stride. How could Mathis do this to her? He denied her. Kept their mating a secret from her. She leapt over a narrow ravine.
    Tears blurred her vision, but still she ran. The moon bounced off the snow and an occasional bush. She ran and ran. Her heart shattered in her chest. All she ever wanted was to be loved, to have a family of her own. Her mate didn’t want her. It rang in her head with each stride, didn’t want her, didn’t want her.
    Her lungs fought for breath. Her legs quivered. She was broken, alone. From the corner of her eye, she saw a gigantic monster wolf coming up beside her. She put on a burst of speed, wondering why she bothered to fight to survive, when she had nothing to live for.
    The animal growled, showing huge white teeth. Margot shuddered, fear coursed through her. Was this one of the ferocious amarok the Inuit Indians spoke of? She tried to swerve away. The beast stayed with her. She swerved again. He followed her. The animal snapped his teeth, barely missing her. Margot jumped to the side. Next, he lunged at her, knocking her over.
    She rolled. He surrounded her. She bit and scratched. He growled, “Dammit, Margot! Stop it! Stop fighting me,” pierced her brain. She froze. They rolled to a stop at the bottom of a ravine. The enormous beast held her down. His jaws clamped on her shoulder. She looked into chocolate brown eyes glaring at her in fury. She whimpered. Slowly, his hold on her lessened. He watched her, waiting to see if she made a move.
    “Stay right where you are. You’re foolishness has increased the danger you’re in tenfold. Wait while I dig us a snow cave.”
    Her foolishness? With a final stroke, his words turned what was left of her heart, to dust. She laid where he left her, uncaring whether she lived or died. Tears leaked from her closed eyes, the cold slowly eating its way through her fur.
    “Dammit, Margot! Why didn’t you move to stay warm?”
    Strong arms lifted her and carried her through a small opening into a dug-out snow cave. Mathis laid her down, his hands searching for wounds on her body. The bite on her shoulder left her fur wet, but he was careful not to break the skin. He rubbed her legs and torso, trying to get her warm. Finally, he pulled her into his arms, using the heat of his naked