Ashwood Falls Volume Two Read Online Free

It’d been way too long since she’d let another touch her or even be as close as Keegan had been the last few weeks.
    God, his wild, earthy scent drove her mad.
    She peered at the door as Keegan opened it to the two young sentries. Each nodded to Keegan in greeting then flicked their gazes to her. Tanner Raines, Luna’s youngest son, offered her a gentle smile. She relaxed a little more.
    Tanner was a strong, yet quiet, wolf. He was also very handsome like his brothers, Dane and Hayden. Tanner’s dark auburn hair fell over his ears and reached his jaw line, framing his young face. His boyish good looks and his quiet nature told nothing of the power inside him.
    He was telekinetic—able to move and control objects with his mind—and from what Addyson heard, his ability was very powerful. Shay, Keegan’s daughter, had told her once that Tanner’s gift went beyond just moving objects. He could bend them, break them, and even shatter glass with his mind.
    She smiled back at Tanner then at Kirk, who was always a little too serious. “Hello, boys.”
    Kirk grunted, but she swore she caught a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth. The sentry was a leopard shifter. Underneath that hard exterior, he had a gentle soul. His family had survived the first wave of attacks on Ashwood over two hundred years ago. He’d been there when Keegan found her outside the den. God, how long ago had it been? Twenty-five years, give or take.
    “I’m hardly a boy, ma’am.” Kirk took a step toward her with his hand raised as if he was going to touch her. It was an automatic response for shifters. In fact touch was as important to them as breathing. When they greeted a fellow Pack member it was customary to touch a hand or shoulder.
    It was something Addyson couldn’t allow no matter how much she craved it.
    She took a step back and Keegan moved to stand in Kirk’s path, halting him and drawing his gaze from her to his Alpha. A moment later Kirk lowered his head in a submissive way.
    Addyson’s heartbeat kicked up for several beats. None of the sentries or the enforcers was submissive by any means. Each one held a dominant power that was unique.
    She wanted to tell Keegan it was okay, but she remained motionless. Mistakes like the one Kirk was about to make could get him killed. And not from the Alpha who protected her in a way she didn’t quite understand.
    No, in the field, if Kirk forgot the dangers for even a split second, he’d lose his life.
    With his head still lowered, he lifted his gaze to hers as if waiting for her reaction and spoke to the Alpha. “I will go back to the den and have Blaine send a replacement.”
    Silence filled in the space around them for far too long. Addyson wasn’t sure how much longer she could stand it. The childish urge to knock over furniture or a lamp or something to break the silence made her palms itch. She’d had enough of the cold quiet during her hundred years as the Onyx’s pet.
    Finally Keegan spoke, easing her tension a little. “Be at ease. Your comfort with Addyson is the reason you’re here. However, be warned that if you forget about what touch can do to her again, you will know exactly what she feels.”
    Kirk lifted his gaze to meet Keegan’s and nodded. “Understood.”
    The sentry didn’t even flinch at the warning. However, she did, even though she knew that the Alpha was law and if he didn’t have a handle over his soldiers, then he’d be seen as weak.
    She stepped forward until she was a foot from Keegan and offered her gloved hand, first to Tanner then to Kirk. Each gently squeezed her hand before releasing it. She dropped her hand. “Thanks for babysitting me.”
    She didn’t bother keeping the annoyance out of her tone. She was still mad at Keegan’s too-careful, too-fathering tone in the kitchen. She wasn’t a child, damn it. She sure wasn’t some helpless submissive that needed coddling.
    When she was around Keegan, she had an uncontrollable urge to spar