Read Growl (Winter Pass Wolves Book 2) for Free Online

a head start on the promised relaxation.
    Chase was mastering the grill station, it looked like. Penny and Harlan were already in the hot tub. From Penny’s blush and occasional giggles, Brooke felt safe assuming that Harlan was groping her under the water. Brooke couldn’t blame the other woman for her elation; Harlan with his shirt off was a masterpiece.
    “Beer? I got you the fancy stuff you like,” Chase said, turning from the grill to engage Brooke.
    “Sounds awesome,” Brooke said, grabbing one from the cooler.
    “You definitely need to get in the hot tub and relax,” her brother said. “You’ve been walking around looking like you swallowed something bitter since you got here.”
    “That is not true!” Brooke protested, popping the cap off her bottle of beer.
    “Is too,” Chase shot back.
    “Is not! What are we, five?” Brooke said with an exasperated laugh.
    “Get in the hot tub,” Chase ordered.
    “Make me,” Brooke said.
    “Can’t leave the grill unattended,” Chase sighed. “I delegate it to Pax.”
    Brooke saw Pax stroll up as Chase spoke. He was bare to the waist, wearing nothing but a pair of dark swim trunks. Brooke felt her tongue dart out across her lips as she took in Paxton’s incredible chest. Those abs, the thick vee of muscle that bracketed his hips…
    The man was so hot, it was unfair .
    “Delegate what?” Pax asked casually, grabbing his own beer from the cooler.
    “To throw Brooke in the hot tub. Don’t open that beer until you get her uptight ass in the hot tub,” Chase ordered.
    A devilish smile lit Pax’s lips, his dimples flashing.
    “No problem,” he said.
    “Guys, no.” Brooke held up her hands and started backing away.
    In a flash, Pax set down his beer and pounced on Brooke, scooping her up like a helpless child. Before she knew what was happening, Pax’s hands were closing around her waist, and then she and her beer were settling into the hot tub.
    “Uh…” slipped from her mouth as Pax climbed in beside her, planting himself right next to her. She turned to Chase for support, but her brother merely looked amused. Damn. They were clearly conspiring against her, in a fucked up way.
    “Beer?” Pax asked Chase, who handed Pax’s beer over.
    “This is ridiculous,” Brooke muttered, raising her beer so that the bottle’s bottom wasn’t in the hot water.
    When Pax’s arm slid around her waist, his arm resting casually on her hip, she shivered and went hot all over, and it wasn’t just the steaming water.
    “Relax,” Pax urged her, his voice turning teasing. “Nothing’s happening. It’s not like we’re unchaperoned or anything. You really do have a stick up your ass these days, don’t you?”
    “You try planning a wedding! The lady making our cake quit over creative differences. My mother in law hates the dress and veil I chose. Our caterer lost their liquor license… and now I’ve been forced to change venues!” Brooke declared, her jaw tensing.
    “Okay, okay,” Pax waved her down, sipping his beer. “Maybe we can just talk about… something else. Anything else.”
    He shifted, seeming a little uncomfortable. Brooke felt a pang of guilt, rubbing her wedding in his face. After all, she’d dumped him horribly and cut him out of her life without any real explanation. She was just lucky that Pax was still willing to speak to her, much less be nice about it.
    If he had any idea why she’d actually left… Brooke had the idea that he’d be much more aggressive about the talk he said they needed to have. Probably about touching her, too…
    “Where’d you go?” Pax asked, a smile curling his lips. “You look a little flushed.”
    “It’s the hot water,” Brooke said, rolling her eyes. Still, she shared his smile. “You’re just cocky. You think everything’s about you. Always have.”
    Brooke didn’t miss the way Pax bit his lower lip for the briefest second when she said cocky . She’d sort of assumed that Pax was just goading