Dawson Fur Hire
Page 16
“Because I’m stronger now, Dalton! I’m different. I’m changed because of you. Because I have something to fight for now. You won’t cut down the hanging tree. You’ll carve our initials in it, and we’ll take it back. And that scar on your neck will be so beautiful to me. You know why? Because the last moments I saw you with that awful rope around your neck, your eyes were on me, and you were telling me to run. You were about to hang, and you were trying to save me. You did save me. You balked against Clayton’s order and called in your pack. You ended Vega, you kept fighting to live, and now I don’t have to…” Her shoulders sagged as a sob clawed its way up her throat. “I don’t have to bury you and try to survive what your loss would do to me. Please don’t push me away.”
Dalton dropped the loops of rope and pulled her into an embrace so tight she couldn’t breathe, but she didn’t care. He was warm and alive against her, and they would be all right.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he chanted between kisses laid on top of her hair.
His body was shaking, so she clung tighter to him and pressed her cheek against his chest just to feel and hear his steady heartbeat. That sound was everything right now.
“I thought I was going to lose you,” he rasped. “I thought I was going to lose everything again, and I couldn’t stop it. I had to trust Link and Chance and the Silvers instead of being able to protect you all by myself, and it kills me.”
“Baby,” she whispered, easing back. “That’s the way it’s supposed to be with our pack.”
“Our pack,” he repeated, brushing the pad of his thumb lightly under the cut on her cheek.
“Yeah. It’s not you or me against the world anymore, Dalton.” She smiled slowly. “We’ve got them, and they have us.”
Her words weren’t just a balm because her mate was worried for her. She had Dalton now, and he’d given her more than he understood. He’d given her a family. He’d given her the protection of his body, but also of his pack and the Silvers, who had taken a huge risk tonight just to make sure she was okay. She didn’t know what the coming years would bring or if the danger from the Hell Hunters was truly over, but she knew one thing.
She wouldn’t face them alone.
Dalton was unwavering in his devotion for her. He was trustworthy.
He had given her a pack, a home, and unconditional love. He’d given her the promise of forever with the ring that clung to her finger and the fresh claiming mark on her back. He made her that same promise every time he told her he loved her, every time he kissed her. But more than that, he’d given her a future unburdened of fear.
Standing on her tiptoes, Kate kissed his lips gently and reveled in the sound of the content growl that softly rattled his throat.
Her Dalton, her wolf. Her mate.
The Hell Hunters hadn’t broken them as they’d intended.
They’d strengthened them instead.
Epilogue
“He’s here. Shut your mouth holes!” Vera sang in an opera voice as she ran through the Silver Summit Outfitters lodge, her glittery high heels clacking across the hardwood floors.
A new wave of nerves took Kate. She wrung her hands and took a deep, steadying breath. Dalton was finally back after a weeklong guided tour with Chance and a group of fishermen.
Link hugged her to his side and whispered, “Are you ready?”
“No. Yes! I was so scared the timing wouldn’t work out.”
Link’s face split into a smile, his gray eyes dancing as he said, “April first, and he’s back right on time, just like Lennard said he would be.”
It was a good sign that Dalton hadn’t wanted to binge drink and disappear this year. Chance had said this was the first year Dalton had wanted to keep everything normal, and then he’d thanked Kate for starting that change in his cousin. Silly Chance. Couldn’t he see? Dalton was the one who’d saved her.
The butterflies in her stomach were flapping double-time as she grinned at the small crowd of their closest friends. She pressed her finger to her lips. “Shhh. Give me five minutes, and I’ll bring him in.”
Vera, Elyse, and Lena were all grins as she shot them a wink and headed for the door. Nicole handed her the new puppy Kate had bought, a little red and white troublemaker named Sasha Two. With an emotional smile, Nicole hugged Kate’s shoulders tightly. Words weren’t needed now. Nicole understood how big this was.
Cuddling the fluffy little husky pup close, Kate let herself quietly out of the heavy front door.
Over the past year, this lodge had become a home away from home, as it was for Dalton. She visited often when he was out on tours, usually hitching a bush plane ride with Lena when she came up to visit her mate, Jenner. Kate had grown close to the Silvers over the months, but Nicole had become like a sister to her, and Fina like a niece. Good packs were like that, she supposed.
The beauty of this place awed her every time she looked over the clearing to the sprawling deck down by the water’s edge, the river beyond, and the snow-peaked mountains beyond that. Kodiak was unsettled and untamed. Wild, just like her mate.
She was stunned to stillness when she saw him riding through the trees on a buckskin horse. The hanging scar was half-hidden under his dark scruff, and his eyes were black as pitch under the bill of his worn baseball cap. A backpack clung to his wide shoulders, and his torso moved in time with the smooth gait of his horse. He was talking to a client on the horse next to him and hadn’t seen her yet. Usually, he spotted her right away, but he didn’t expect her this trip, so she took the moment to enjoy watching him work. Oh, Dalton was a capable man, as he’d shown her over the past year. He was a good provider, a patient teacher, and an incredibly skilled tracker. There was nothing he couldn’t do, and watching him dismount his horse with a smooth swing of his leg, she was taken again with how lucky she’d been to find him. He took so much responsibility on his shoulders and never once had she seen him buckle or heard him complain. He was just that strong and resilient. And hers.
Chance rushed to unload the clients’ belongings as Dalton led the horses into the corral and pulled their saddles off one-by-one, resting each on the wooden fence to pull into the barn when they were through. Chance knew about the surprise, though, and from here, she could hear him rushing her mate to hurry up.
With a giggle, she toted a wiggling Sasha Two down the porch stairs. Dalton caught her movement and jerked his attention to her. A breathtaking smile slid slowly over his face as he began to walk toward her, and then jog.
He met her in the middle and caught her up in a hug. “Damn, wife, you’re a sight for sore eyes. What are you doing here? I was coming straight home tonight.” With a sudden frown, he eased back and studied her face. “What’s wrong?”
She laughed and rubbed her cheek against the thick scruff on his jaw. He always looked like a sexy mountain man when he finished a guided tour. “I couldn’t wait any longer to show you our first dog. It’s happening, Dalton. Tobias flew her in two days ago from her breeder near Anchorage. She has champion bloodlines, her grandfather led a team to second place in the Iditarod last year, and she’s all ours. She’s the start of it all, Dalton. Link even made us this gorgeous wooden sign to go over the driveway. It says Dawson Huskies. We figured you’d be the one to want to hang it.”
The worry melted from Dalton’s dark eyes, and his smile came easy again. “What’s her name?”
“Sasha Two.”
“Perfect,” he murmured, settling Kate on her feet. He took the ten-week-old pup from her arms and held her up, staring thoughtfully into her blue eyes. When the puppy yipped and wiggled her little curly tail, Kate almost lost the hold on her emotions. This wasn’t done yet.
“She’s not your only surprise,” Kate said, tugging his hand toward the lodge.
“What?” Dalton asked, laughing nervously like he’d missed a joke somehow. He allowed her to lead him across the yard and up the porch before he balked at the door.
With one last look at the confusion that had command
eered his face, she pushed the door open.
The small crowd erupted into cheering, whooping, and whistling. From behind, Chance gripped Dalton’s shoulder and shook him slowly before he sidled around him and joined the others. Vera and Nicole were already crying.
His smile turned to bafflement as he stepped into the sprawling entryway. He lifted his gaze to the giant hand-written congratulations sign that hung over the stairs. He cast an uncertain look to the dining table that was lined with food, homemade beer, moonshine, and the green, glittery, three tiered cake on the end—Vera’s idea, of course.
“Are we getting married again?” he asked in confusion. “I thought you wanted the small wedding.”
“No,” Kate said through an excited grin. “Our wedding under the hanging tree was perfect.”
“Oh.” His dark eyebrows furrowed, and he looked at Sasha Two, who was currently chewing the undone top button of his sweater.
“It’s not her either,” Kate said as the cheering died down. She pulled his palm to her lips, pressed a kiss there, then leaned her cheek against it. “Five years ago, April First hurt you deeply.”
Dalton swallowed hard and cast a quick look around, then back to her with a slight shake of his head. “I don’t understand.”
Her eyes burned with tears as she pulled his hand down to cup her belly, growing tighter everyday with their child. “Now we’re taking April back.”
Dalton’s eyes filled, and he shook his head. “Don’t tease me, wife,” he whispered.
“I wouldn’t. I’ve been waiting until April first to tell you. It’s been so hard keeping it quiet from you.”
“Everyone knows?” he asked, chest heaving as he scanned the faces of the people who meant the most to them.
Vera sniffled and nodded. “I’ve already been working, just in case it’s a girl.”
“Oh my God,” Dalton said in a huff, sinking down to his knees. He settled Sasha Two on the floor and cupped the slight swell of Kate’s belly with both hands. His shoulders shook as he pressed his lips against her stomach.
Warm tears streaked down Kate’s cheeks as she closed her eyes and ran her fingers through his hair. “You’re going to be a great daddy,” she whispered.
He lifted his gaze to her, now bright and gold. Beautiful. She hoped their child had his wild eyes.
“I’m going to be a dad,” he murmured. He pressed another kiss to her stomach and stared at it. “I’m going to be your dad.”
Chance lowered to his knees beside Dalton and hugged his shoulders, gripping his shirt, and Link knelt behind Dalton, hand on his back as he swallowed over and over, his eyes lightened to the color of snow. One by one, the others approached and touched Dalton, and at last, Kate sank to her knees and hugged his neck.
Dalton cupped her belly, rubbing it in slow, gentle circles as he held her close. “You’ve given me everything,” he whispered against her ear.
“No,” she said, smiling at the people surrounding them who had played such a pivotal part in this moment. “We gave each other everything.”
Up Next in This Series
The Final Book in the Bears Fur Hire Series
Chance Fur Hire
Coming January 2016
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Other Series by T. S. Joyce
Saw Bears
Lumberjack Werebear (Book 1)
Woodcutter Werebear (Book 2)
Timberman Werebear (Book 3)
Sawman Werebear (Book 4)
Axman Werebear (Book 5)
Woodsman Werebear (Book 6)
Lumberman Werebear (Book 7)
Fire Bears
Bear My Soul (Book 1)
Bear the Burn (Book 2)
Bear the Heat (Book 3)
Gray Back Bears
Gray Back Bad Bear (Book 1)
Gray Back Alpha Bear (Book 2)
Gray Back Ghost Bear (Book 3)
Gray Back Broken Bear (Book 4)
Lowlander Silverback (Book 5)
Last Immortal Dragon (Book 6)
A Very Beastly Christmas (Holiday Novella, Book 7)
Bear Valley Shifters
The Witness and the Bear (Book 1)
Devoted to the Bear (Book 2)
Return to the Bear (Book 3)
Betray the Bear (Book 4)
Redeem the Bear (Book 5)
Bear Valley Valentine (Valentine’s Day Novella)
Hells Canyon Shifters
Call of the Bear (Book 1)
Fealty of the Bear (Book 2)
Avenge the Bear (Book 3)
Claim the Bear (Book 4)
Heart of the Bear (Book 5)
Wolf Brides
Wolf Bride (Book 1)
Red Snow Bride (Book 2)
Dawson Bride (Book 3)
Standalone Shifter Romance
Coveted by the Bear
Amazon
Standalone Contemporary Romance
Shelter Me Home
Amazon
About the Author
T. S. Joyce
T.S. Joyce is devoted to bringing hot shifter romances to readers. Hungry alpha males are her calling card, and the wilder the men, the more she'll make them pour their hearts out. Experienced at handling an alpha male of her own, she lives in a tiny town, outside of a tiny city, and devotes her life to writing big stories. Foodie, bear whisperer, ninja, thief of tiny bottles of awesome smelling hotel shampoo, nap connoisseur, movie fanatic, and zombie slayer, and most of this bio is true.
Bear Shifters? Check
Smoldering Alpha Hotness? Double Check
Sexy Scenes? Fasten up your girdles, ladies and gents, it’s gonna to be a wild ride.
For more information about T. S. Joyce and her work, visit her website here.
Contents
Other Books in This Series
Copyright
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Epilogue
Up Next in This Series
Newsletter Sign-Up
Other Series by T. S. Joyce
Fire Bears
Gray Back Bears
Bear Valley Shifters
Hells Canyon Shifters
Wolf Brides
Standalone Shifter Romance
Standalone Contemporary Romance
About the Author