Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 95748 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 479(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95748 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 479(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
His eyes narrowed. “Okay. If I shift, can you ride me?”
She tried to snort at the innuendo, but it came out as more of a shaky exhale. Still, she managed a nod. Heat radiated off his body, even though he stood completely naked in the freezing air, snowflakes melting the second they touched his skin.
He brushed snow off her face. “Hold on tight. We’re not far.”
A crash echoed through the trees behind them. He took several steps away from her, and his body shimmered and shifted into his massive wolf form, fur bristling, eyes alert.
She swung the backpack over her shoulders, her fingers fumbling with the straps before she leaped onto his back. She clutched his thick ruff, leaning forward until her face pressed against the warmth of his neck.
He launched forward, paws pounding against snow-packed earth as the forest blurred past in streaks of white and gray. The wind slashed at her face, icy and sharp, but she clung tighter, tucking her fingers deeper into his fur. Beneath her body, his muscles moved with power as each of his long strides carried them closer to safety.
He ran gracefully between trees, with some branches snapping back and breaking off. She squeezed her eyes shut and went limp so he could move them both. His heart beat steadily beneath her palms, and she counted each one, trying to hold on.
Her arms shook, and her legs went numb.
All she had to do was hold on.
Something collided with Jackson, and they both flew through the air into the forest. Emily tumbled off his back, snow bursting around her as she smashed into a snowbank. She rolled wildly, gasping for breath, and clawed her way to her feet, waist-deep in snow.
Four wolves advanced.
Jackson skidded across the icy ground, hit a tree with a sickening thud, and dropped. Blood splattered against the white snow.
Her pulse pounded in her ears as he leapt back up in wolf form, snarling with lethal fury. He lunged at the closest wolf, claws slashing through fur and skin as he clamped his jaw on the attacker’s throat. Bones crunched, and blood sprayed hot against the snow as Jackson wrenched his teeth from the wolf’s neck, and the lifeless body dropped. The other three wolves attacked in unison.
“No!” Emily screamed. She flung the backpack aside, heart hammering as she sprinted forward. One of the wolves pivoted and leapt at her, jaws snapping. She kicked hard, connecting with its head, but the impact barely slowed it down. The snow clung to her legs, slowing her down as the wolf lunged again.
Jackson tore into the other two wolves. His claws raked through one’s skull, and blood splattered in arcs across the snow. He spun to the last wolf, jaws clamping around its hind leg, bones snapping.
Emily ducked as the wolf attacking her surged again, its teeth grazing her shoulder. She dropped into a low stance, fingers curled into fists. The icy air burned her lungs as adrenaline surged through her veins.
Jackson roared.
She tried to scramble back as the wolf came at her, slowly herding her toward the rocks.
Her body froze, movements sluggish as the wolf advanced. She fell onto her back.
The wolf climbed her, yellow canines flashing, dripping saliva and blood. A sharp yelp echoed through the trees. Jackson? Was he hurt?
Fear surged through her veins as she tried to punch up. The wolf pressed its massive paws against her shoulders, pinning her as its hot breath blasted her face. Its dark eyes gleamed with malicious curiosity.
It sniffed and inhaled deeply as if committing her scent to memory. She coughed against the stench of the Ravencall member. She didn’t know this wolf, but the scent marked it as one of them. A claw traced her cheek, deliberate and slow. Panic flared, and she shoved upward with both arms, striking its muzzle. The blow glanced off, barely registering. Its lips curled, almost like a smirk.
A blur of fur and fury crashed into the wolf, knocking it sideways. Jackson’s growl vibrated through the air as he slammed the attacker into the trees with brutal force. Snow exploded in a spray of white. Branches cracked. Emily pushed herself up, shaking with cold, her vision swimming. She tried to stand, but her legs buckled beneath her.
She gasped Jackson’s name, her voice thin and weak. The cold wrapped around her, dragging her down. The world tilted, narrowing to a pinpoint as warmth blossomed somewhere deep within, slow and steady like a heartbeat.
Then everything went wonderfully warm…and dark.
Chapter 21
Jackson clutched Emily tightly against his chest, shielding her as he sprinted through the forest. His bare feet had gone numb miles ago, but the pain didn’t slow him down. It couldn’t. He couldn’t shift with her in his arms, and leaving her behind wasn’t an option. So he’d yanked on his shirt and jeans, staying in human form. The air burned his lungs with each ragged breath as branches tore at his skin, slicing across his shoulders and thighs.