Read Mountain Moonlight for Free Online

covered half her body? Damn, she’d fought harder than she  thought judging from  her injuries. And they hurt like hell, the cuts burning in the hot water. She settled in, laid  her head against thecool back of the tub and closed her eyes.

    23

    Jaci Burton

    Her eyes flew open when she felt something soft and warm against her injured cheek, only  to find Conner had rolled up his  shirtsleeves and was on his knees, leaning over the tub to press a washcloth to her face.
    He smelled good.  Not like cologne. Like soap. And man. Pure, sexy, his natural scent soaking into her senses.
    “Does this hurt?” he asked, tenderly wiping the dried blood from her face.
    “No.” It felt good, actually. Getting Peter’s scent off her was paramount. Despite theshock she knew she should feel, anger permeated her every thought. How dare Peter try to take what she hadn’t offered?
    She lay still while Conner washed her face  and neck. Despite the fact he could see into the water, he didn’t once glance down at  her body. Instead, he focused on the areashe was cleaning. When he left and brought  back a large bowl, then proceeded to lather up her hair and rinse  it with clear water from the sink, she felt more like she’d beenspending a day at a spa than recovering from a brutal attack.
    “I think we got all the blood cleaned up. You ready to get out of there?”
    She nodded and he lifted her, immediately  wrapping a large bath towel around her. He held her hand as she stepped from the tub.
    “Tell me where your nightgown  is.”
    “Nightgown? I don’t own any.”
    “What do you sleep in?”
    “Usually, nothing. Unless it’s really cold outside. Then I put on socks.”
    His eyes flamed for a brief second, then returned to normal again. “Here, wear this.”
    Now it was her turn to stare as he pulled  off his long-sleeved shirt and  took off the dark blue T-shirt underneath it. “It’s clean. I just slipped  it on after my shower, right before I heard the noises in here and ran in.”
    She was such an idiot! “I didn’t even thank you for coming to help me.”
    “Not necessary. I’m glad I made it in time.”
    So was she, for reasons she couldn’t explain.
    He held  his shirt out  for her and she dropped the  towel, his gaze flitting on herbreasts for only a second before he met her eyes again. This time, that smoldering heat stayed around a little longer.
    And she felt that heat. Felt it, and wondered how she could possibly feel attraction to someone after what she’d just been through.
    She slipped his T-shirt over her head. It still held the warmth and smell of his bodyand she wanted to pull it closer against her skin.
    “Again, thank you. Most people don’t get  involved in others’ business. Most would have ignored the noises.”

    24

    Mountain Moonlight

    Reaching for his long-sleeved shirt, he shrugged into it  and began to button it. “I’m not most people.”
    She was beginning to realize that.

    25

    Jaci Burton

    Chapter Three
    Conner poured two glasses of brandy, taking a moment to  get his  emotions under
    control before he stepped back into the room with Katya.
    He still wanted to kill that sonofabitch. When he heard Katya’s screams, he tore down the path and ripped open  her front door, shocked to find Peter straddling her and ready to rape her. Blind rage filled him and he wanted to tear the lupine apart piece by piece. Instead, he’d forced common sense  into his  anger-soaked brain and lifted Peter off her bruised and bloody body, though he was perversely satisfied that she’d managed to wound the bastard a little.
    The urge to choke the life from him still thundered through his blood.
    Weak men preyed on women. As a lupine, Peter was considered a danger. Any other pack would kill him. But Conner had to  respect the lupine laws of the Braslieus.  He could only hope Peter would receive the justice he deserved.
    Staying on  to help Katya bathe had been a lesson in