Read Racing Home (Dirt Track Dogs Book 3) (Paranormal Wolf-Shifter Romance) for Free Online

wanted to make sure you had something to replace it.”
    Blister stared at the box in shock, his heart twisting in his fucking chest. His throat burned with humiliation. His gaze went back and forth between her expectant face and the tent. It was obvious she was trying to help, but all it did was drive home how different he was. How he had to hide away from people when truly he wished he could just live.
    But the fire had done more than damage his body. It damaged his soul.
    He’d burned in his bed, while he slept. The idea of being in one again made him physically ill.
    He’d gone back into his burning house over and over again, trying to save his family. No house had felt comfortable since.
    The staring, the curiosity, the general sense of unease he got from others kept him separated from the masses whether he wanted to be or not.
    He cleared the lump from his throat. “You really shouldn’t have.”
    She rocked on her feet like a four-year-old at Christmas. “Well, you needed a place to sleep right? Or, actually, I thought this out. I wasn’t sure if it was the right kind or not, but I knew you wouldn’t want to stay in the big house. I remembered you said you liked to be alone.”
    Goddamn it. She’d put so much thought into this. It broke his heart. He both hated and loved her gift. Hated it for what it represented. Loved it because she’d put such effort into it. Because it came from a place in her heart that genuinely cared about others.
    A gift. When was the last time anyone had done something like that for him?
    “So if the tent doesn’t work, I thought… I thought if you wanted, you could just stay here.”
    Blister froze. The air around them grew tense with warning but Annie charged ahead with her plan.
    “There are plenty of bedrooms for you to choose from. And I wouldn’t, you know, talk your ears off or anything. Or if you want something even quieter, you could um, stay in the storm shelter.” She hesitated. “It’s sorta like a tent but more… solid. It... well… I mean, it sounded like a better idea in my head.”
    Stay here? With her. Whether it was the shelter or a bedroom, it was too close. Too dangerous. He couldn’t get close to her. He had to help from a distance. If he wasn’t careful, she’d feel the mating bond. And there was no way he was sentencing her to a lifetime with someone like him. Someone with his kind of baggage. Someone who couldn’t make her happy. She deserved more than what he could ever offer.
    “I can’t be here with you. It isn’t right.” He lifted the box, hefting it up on his shoulder.
    He caught the way her gaze fluttered to the ground, and it bothered him. Her expression had no name. Or at least none he wanted to claim. He stared at her. The corners of her mouth curved upward enough to be a small grin, but she didn’t look happy.
    “Thank you for the tent,” he tried, hoping it would change whatever that look was on her face. “It’s… real nice.”
    “Sure.” She nodded, taking a deep breath and giving him a fake smile. “No problem. Hope it helps.”
    Blister frowned. But before he could say something stupid, he turned and stalked to his truck, throwing the tent in the bed. Without looking back, he started the engine and drove away from the awkward exchange. Just once he wished he could be around someone and not feel like every word or action was wrong. Just once. And maybe even with her.
    It would make his fucking year.

Chapter Five
     
    The hammering started at the break of dawn. Like, the actual break of dawn. There was exactly one streak of sunlight peeking through Annie’s curtain and judging by the bluish hue of her room, that ray was new as a baby foal in the spring.
    Annie stumbled from her bed to peek out the window. But she was on the wrong side of the house. All she could see was several trucks full of lumber and other supplies. None of them were Blister’s.
    She shook her head, yawning and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She