The Finding Read Online Free

the shoulder. “Why don’t you make a move on her?”
    Daniel firmed
his mouth and shoved his hands in his pocket. “She’s not ready
yet...”
    “Ready? She’s
nineteen; definitely time for her to choose a mate.”
    “You know her
history.” Anger washed over Daniel’s face and Bryan gripped his
shoulder.
    “I do. But she
can’t live in the past forever. Someone needs to help her move on.
Why not you?”
    Shrugging,
Daniel threw his water bottle in the recycling bin and picked up
his discarded t-shirt. “I don’t know. The time never seems
right.”
    “If you wait
too long, you might lose your chance.” Bryan threw out the warning
and headed for the door, knowing he’d pushed all he could. Daniel
had to be the one to make the move.
    Once outside,
he debated about turning into his wolf form, but decided to finish
his workout as he’d started. His human body needed the exercise
more than his wolf did.
    Bending to
tighten his laces, he heard giggling coming from the nearby gazebo
and glanced that way. An exasperated sigh escaped his lips as he
saw two young girls peering at him. Becky and Emily were the
daughters of the newest family to join Ryne’s pack. At fifteen and
thirteen respectively, they were harmless enough, but the crush
they’d developed on him was annoying and embarrassing.
    As Beta, he was
the second in command, the Alpha’s bodyguard, and the pack’s
enforcer. Being followed by giggling teenagers did nothing for his
image, nor did he know how to deal with them. He didn’t want to
hurt their feelings, but subtle hints weren’t having much effect in
dissuading them.
    Knowing if he
delayed much longer, they’d actually work up the nerve to approach
him, he got to his feet and prepared to walk past them.
    “Hi Bryan!” The
girls spoke at the same time. One was attempting an exaggerated
model stance while the other settled for tossing her long blonde
hair over her shoulder.
    “’Evening,
girls.” He kept his eyes focussed straight ahead and didn’t slow
his pace otherwise they might decide to follow him. It wouldn’t be
the first time it had happened. As he continued on his way, he
picked up on parts of their conversation...
    “Did you see
how his muscles rippled? And his butt...”
    “Mmm. And his
voice. It’s so deep it makes me shiver.”
    “I like his
hair best. Dark blond is so cool.”
    “No. I think
it’s more of a light brown.”
    “Whatever. His
eyes are dreamy.”
    “Oh yeah, hazel
eyes...”
    Bryan winced.
Geez, it was like he was some pin-up poster boy. It was nice when
the ladies in town were all over him, but these two were just kids.
It made him feel creepy, like he was some kind of pervert. He broke
into a slow jog and headed around the curve in the driveway,
catching a glimpse of the girls still staring his way.
    He wondered
when he’d quit being a kid himself and why he felt he was so much
older now. After all, he was only twenty-four. That was young,
wasn’t it? Maybe it was the responsibilities of being Beta that
weighed him down and made him feel older. The pack was growing;
Ryne was going to be a father... He chuckled at the thought of his
bad-ass Alpha changing diapers. He could never imagine himself in
such a position.
    Breaking into a
run, he veered off the driveway and headed deeper into the woods.
Nope, a Beta had to be tough and ready to defend the pack or deal
with trouble makers. Settling down to family life just wasn’t part
of his plan. Right now, he was a no-strings attached kind of guy.
That’s how he liked it and that’s how things would remain.
    *****
    Las Vegas,
Nevada, USA...
    “Hey, Kellen!
It’s almost supper time.” Cassie called out happily from the stove
where she was stirring a pot of pasta sauce. She hummed a Latin
tune under her breath as she worked, swaying slightly to the beat.
Her singing was off key, but it didn’t matter. Her plans had gone
off without a hitch so far and she was feeling extremely pleased
with