The Gold Gulch pack had always taken pride in their Mates. They’d taken pride in this one, too, until eighteen months ago when she cut them off. They felt nothing from her and she recognized nothing from them. Like losing your inner wolf, losing touch with the Mate was like losing part of yourself. Without the Mate, wolvers lost part of their connection with the pack. To have her back…
The Mate went on as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. “I wanted to be sur e to invite you to the Lantern Show, Sheriff McCall. I’d really like you to meet John Washington. I think you’ll like him. And it will give you the chance to meet other likeminded members of the pack.”
“ Miss Kincaid and I were just speaking of it, Ma’am. She’s agreed to hold my hand and introduce me to my new schoolmates,” he said with a straight face.
The Mate stared into his eyes for a moment, probing, and he stared right back. She blinked and laughed.
“Unlike our Mi ss Kincaid here, Sheriff McCall, I think you pretend very well.” She nodded to him as if acknowledging something and turned to Rachel with a tinkling laugh. “Be careful, Rachel. He’s a sly one. My advice is to listen to your wolf. I’ll see you both at the Lantern Show.” With a wave of her fingers, The Mate went sailing off again.
Rachel’s heart was pounding with unfamiliar emotion. Listen to her wolf? The ridiculous animal was turning somersaults and howling with glee. “Stop it. Stop it!” she shouted silently, but her wolf had been silent too long and it appeared to have forgotten its entire vocabulary except for one word.
“Mate, mate, mate, mate, mate. Mate!”
No, no, no, no, no. No! She’d spent almost half her life avoiding just this situation and she wasn’t going to fall for it now. She was no cub in the first bloom of adulthood with no defense against the primal call to mate. She didn’t care if he teased her and made her laugh. It didn’t matter if he thought she was cute. It was of no consequence that those beautiful gray eyes looking into hers could melt her heart. Listen to her wolf? No! Better the old adage; “Let not your wolf lead your human.”
She must tighten her stays and steady her course. She had not wavered in fifteen years. She would not waver now.
“You don’t go to church, do you, Mr. McCall?” Rachel asked when the Mate was far enough away not to overhear.
“Not since I was ten and too big for my grandmother to wrestle to the ground. Why?”
“Because it is obvious you have not heard enough sermons on the subject of prevarication.”
“I really need a notebook,” he sighed. “No, no! A copybook! See? I can learn, Miss Kincaid. ” He grinned at her like a mischievous boy. “I just need a teacher and don’t say I need Mr. Washington, because I don’t swing that way. I need you to teach me, Miss Kincaid. Who else would put up with me and what the hell is prevarawhatsits?”
“Prevarication, Mr. McCall. Telling lies.” Rachel started back toward the hotel, leaving him standing behind her. “I was looking forward to meeting you,” she mimicked in her version of his deep voice. “I regret not meeting you sooner. Miss Kincaid and I were just speaking of it. She’s agreed to hold my hand.”
He was suddenly in front of her, blocking her path. She moved to her left. He stepped to his right. She stepped to the right. He moved to the left.
“ You’d better stop. People will think we’re dancing in the street.” He laughed at her scowl, grabbed her hand, held it over her head and walked around her, making her turn with him.
“Stop it!” she hissed. “What will people think?”
“That Miss Rachel Kincaid has the good sense to dance with the best looking guy in town?” He pulled her to a log bench meant for tourists to take their rest, and sat her down beside him.
“ I would have no sense at all if I were to dance with you,” she laughed, unable to hold her frown. “You hold too high an opinion
The Mate went on as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. “I wanted to be sur e to invite you to the Lantern Show, Sheriff McCall. I’d really like you to meet John Washington. I think you’ll like him. And it will give you the chance to meet other likeminded members of the pack.”
“ Miss Kincaid and I were just speaking of it, Ma’am. She’s agreed to hold my hand and introduce me to my new schoolmates,” he said with a straight face.
The Mate stared into his eyes for a moment, probing, and he stared right back. She blinked and laughed.
“Unlike our Mi ss Kincaid here, Sheriff McCall, I think you pretend very well.” She nodded to him as if acknowledging something and turned to Rachel with a tinkling laugh. “Be careful, Rachel. He’s a sly one. My advice is to listen to your wolf. I’ll see you both at the Lantern Show.” With a wave of her fingers, The Mate went sailing off again.
Rachel’s heart was pounding with unfamiliar emotion. Listen to her wolf? The ridiculous animal was turning somersaults and howling with glee. “Stop it. Stop it!” she shouted silently, but her wolf had been silent too long and it appeared to have forgotten its entire vocabulary except for one word.
“Mate, mate, mate, mate, mate. Mate!”
No, no, no, no, no. No! She’d spent almost half her life avoiding just this situation and she wasn’t going to fall for it now. She was no cub in the first bloom of adulthood with no defense against the primal call to mate. She didn’t care if he teased her and made her laugh. It didn’t matter if he thought she was cute. It was of no consequence that those beautiful gray eyes looking into hers could melt her heart. Listen to her wolf? No! Better the old adage; “Let not your wolf lead your human.”
She must tighten her stays and steady her course. She had not wavered in fifteen years. She would not waver now.
“You don’t go to church, do you, Mr. McCall?” Rachel asked when the Mate was far enough away not to overhear.
“Not since I was ten and too big for my grandmother to wrestle to the ground. Why?”
“Because it is obvious you have not heard enough sermons on the subject of prevarication.”
“I really need a notebook,” he sighed. “No, no! A copybook! See? I can learn, Miss Kincaid. ” He grinned at her like a mischievous boy. “I just need a teacher and don’t say I need Mr. Washington, because I don’t swing that way. I need you to teach me, Miss Kincaid. Who else would put up with me and what the hell is prevarawhatsits?”
“Prevarication, Mr. McCall. Telling lies.” Rachel started back toward the hotel, leaving him standing behind her. “I was looking forward to meeting you,” she mimicked in her version of his deep voice. “I regret not meeting you sooner. Miss Kincaid and I were just speaking of it. She’s agreed to hold my hand.”
He was suddenly in front of her, blocking her path. She moved to her left. He stepped to his right. She stepped to the right. He moved to the left.
“ You’d better stop. People will think we’re dancing in the street.” He laughed at her scowl, grabbed her hand, held it over her head and walked around her, making her turn with him.
“Stop it!” she hissed. “What will people think?”
“That Miss Rachel Kincaid has the good sense to dance with the best looking guy in town?” He pulled her to a log bench meant for tourists to take their rest, and sat her down beside him.
“ I would have no sense at all if I were to dance with you,” she laughed, unable to hold her frown. “You hold too high an opinion
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