Two for Protection Read Online Free

her,
connecting the three of them together. She looked at them expecting them to be
glowing from all the power that tingled through them.
    “What’s
happening?” she asked, her voice timid.

Chapter Three
     
    Milo’s
eyes widened with the knowledge of what was happening, and he glanced at Tad to
confirm it. The emotions of Tad and Courtney flowed through him, making his
stomach roil with the sudden rush, and the chocking terror Courtney was dealing
with. Unable to pull his hand away, he sank to the floor trying to believe it.
    Mates.
A human and bear.
    “Tad?”
    Tad’s
deep inhale cut through the air like a knife. “Do you believe in soul mates?
Love at first sight?”
    Her
green eyes sparkled with unshed tears. “I guess. I’ve never really thought
about it. My mom said when she met my father there was an instant connection.
What does this have to do with anything? What just happened?”
    Milo
squeezed her thigh, bringing her attention back to him. “It’s hard to explain,
Courtney, and it sounds unbelievable. Shifters have something like what humans
consider soul mates. When we find ours, a connection is formed, linking us
together. It’s what has happened here.”
    “That’s
insane.”
    He
tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Insane as it must sound to you, it’s
true. It’s our life.”
    “You
can feel our emotions as I felt your fear earlier.” Tad leaned forward, closer
to her. “If you don’t believe what Milo says, believe what you feel. You feel
drawn to us, do you not?”
    She
shook her head, bumping into Milo’s hand. “I felt the draw to you before, but that
means nothing. I wanted comfort, someone to help me. There’s nothing
supernatural about desire between two…well, three consenting adults.”
    Tad and
Milo exchanged another glance. “Desire, no…but the mating is,” Tad explained. “It’s
also something you won’t be able to fight. The longer you go without the touch
of your mates, the more painful it becomes. There are key differences in the human
idea of love at first sight and shifters mating.”
    She
cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow at him. “What are you
saying?”
    “That
you won’t be able to resist us.” Milo’s fingers teased along her jaw. “Every
second that passes ties us closer together. Denying a mate’s touch is more than
longing. It will send agony through your body until it breaks your mind.”
    Easing
out of their touch, she stood and strolled to the window, a slight limp from
the cuts on her foot slowing her. “This isn’t happening, I’m running for my
life and now two shifters show up and try to lay their claim to me.”
    “I
understand this is hard to believe, but the timing couldn’t be better.” When
she spun around to glare at Milo, he explained. “Being mates we will always
know if you’re in danger, wherever you are. We will protect you from Jeffery
and anyone he hires. No harm will come to you as long as we’re here.”
    “You
can’t promise that. The U.S. Marshal was supposed to do that, instead he ended
up dead. I don’t want to see others killed because of me.” Tears glistened in
her eyes as she met Milo’s gaze.
    He
stood from where he knelt by the chair, careful to not scare her he closed the
distance between them. “Nothing will happen to us. Shifters are harder to
kill.” Tentatively, he touched her, drawing his finger down her arm.
    “You
don’t understand what kind of man Jeffery is. He’ll kill anyone who gets in his
way. No one around me is safe. He blew up my house trying to stop me.”
    Tad
came to them, standing on her other side. He slid his arm around her waist,
linking them together again through touch. “Trust me, we’ve gone up against
worse than him. If he blew up your house and killed the U.S. Marshal in charge
of keeping you safe, how did you escape?”
    “I was
in the garage getting a jar of pasta sauce from the storage area…since the
pantry is too small. So I made a