Read Sondrae Bennett - Alpine Woods Shifters 4 for Free Online Page A

expect. If you’re going to keep putting yourself in these dangerous situations, I have to insist you learn how to defend yourself.”
    “And how am I supposed to do that? Besides the yoga classes I teach in town, there’s a youth ballet class, and a step aerobics class. What kind of self-defense am I going to learn, how to sashay the bad guys to death?”
    Cody frowned at her words. She was right. There was nowhere nearby to learn self-defense classes. Most shifters developed a natural instinct to fight, but somehow Misty had missed that day in Shifter Instinct 101. Although, now that he thought about it, developing a class in self-defense for the town wouldn’t be a bad idea. It would be a great way to protect his skulk when he wasn’t around.
    Cody glanced back at Misty. She needed to learn now. It would take time to develop a full class and find an instructor. They couldn’t wait that long. He wouldn’t wait.
    “I’ll teach you.” Cody twitched. Had he just said those words? He’d been thinking of asking one of the senior members of the skulk to teach her, but the thought of another man putting his hands on Misty, even to teach her self-defense, made him want to throw a blanket over her and shield her nakedness.
    What was wrong with him? This was Misty. His friend-who-was-like-a-sister Misty.
    He looked down at the thigh he’d been absently rubbing earlier. Maybe not quite like a sister. No, he couldn’t teach her. Right now, the emotions rolling through him were too confusing. But he couldn’t let any of the other male foxes teach her, either. They’d have to figure something else out.
    His gaze moved up, stopping at the growing bruise on her side, the skin there already darkening. Once again, instinct warned him not to wait. And he always trusted his instinct.
    Glancing up, he gazed into Misty’s eyes. She looked downright giddy at the idea of learning how to fight. Knowing he was caught, Cody sighed. It appeared he would be teaching her. He’d just have to stifle these new, strange feelings for the time being. At least until he figured out what had caused them and put an end to it.
     

 

 
    Chapter 3
     
    Misty released the chipmunk she’d captured. She wasn’t hungry. Just restless. Cody was coming over tonight to begin her fighting lessons, and nervous energy filled her. If she hadn’t done something to burn off the excess energy, she would have started cleaning. And once she got started, she’d never be able to stop.
    So she’d decided to shift and go for a run, especially since she still had an hour and a half before Cody was supposed to arrive. But now that she was here, surrounded by the forests she loved, boredom set in. Well, maybe bored was the wrong word, but she was still filled with the restless energy she’d hoped to dismiss.
    After Cody had announced he would teach her, she’d been elated. After all, how could more time with the man she loved be a bad thing? Not to mention, there’d been something in his eyes and touch the night she’d been attacked. Some emotion she’d never seen before.
    But a couple days away from him had allowed the doubts to set in. Yes, she hoped Samantha’s marriage to Jason would pave a path for her and Cody, and yes, she needed to spend time with the man in order to convince him she was perfect for him. But she knew what a miserable fighter she was. Her father had tried to teach her once, before declaring her hopeless and giving up. Having Cody watch her flail around like a landlocked fish probably wasn’t going to make her appear irresistible.
    Too late now. Cody had already rearranged his schedule in order to meet with her tonight, even moving his weekly meeting with the elder members of the skulk. It would not only be rude to cancel, but outright inconsiderate. She’d just have to suck it up and look like an idiot. But she supposed if she’d managed to overcome Cody seeing her pathetic attempts to climb the rope in gym class, she’d get over