Christmas Moon by Sadie Hart Page A

happened after his
little window-smacking scene at my house.”
    Hunter kept pace beside her as he let her
words sink in. He could see the deer killing as a frustration kill.
Hell, the rogue hadn’t eaten any part of it. Just left the body
there. Could even see why it had been his yard. After all, the
rogue had probably watched while Hunter had cleaned the spray paint
off her garage and gone inside for a drink. Maybe it had just been
rage he’d needed to let out.
    The part of this he didn’t like was the fact
that this time he didn’t have a deer, he had a member of Hunter’s
pack. “Do you think he took Rylie for the same purpose as that
deer?”
    “I don’t know.” She glanced at him, her gaze
hard but there was an edge of sympathy to it. He could see where
she would have made a damn good cop. “But we’re going to find
her.”
    Then, before he could ask anything else, she
shifted. The woman vanishing into a large red dog that was suddenly
running through the trees in the direction of his house. His wolf
leapt under his skin, ready to follow, and Hunter let the beast
have its way. In a breath he was on all four paws running through
the snow covered woods, gaining on the sprinting dog ahead. She was
fast, he was just faster.
    Over the course of a mile he drained away the
lead she’d had on him and caught her, easing his stride until he
could keep pace with her. Bree seemed determined to run herself
into the ground. He couldn’t smell anything she was chasing, so it
had to be whatever they’d found back there, she was trying to
outrun. And if that was the case, he was going to run with her.
    The forest broke around them and she slowed,
her breath coming out in puffs. She shifted back and stumbled, but
Hunter was there to catch her. His hand clasped her elbow as he
steadied her.
    “You okay?”
    “Yes. Let’s just get to Rylie’s place. If it
is like the deer, it’ll be a spur of the moment snap. The rage just
suddenly getting too much. I want to get there first.”
    There was something else, something she
wasn’t saying, but it wasn’t his place to pry right? He reached out
and touched her cheek and she leaned into his touch. A soft smile
touched her lips and she turned to look at him.
    “I want to save your wolf, Hunter.”
    “He’ll come for you. Stalkers normally do and
if you’re right, he wants you dead.”
    She reached towards her hip and let the palm
of her hand rest on her gun. There was steel in her eyes as she
stared him down. She’d been an alpha once. He’d read everything he
could get on his new neighbor when she’d arrived. Ex-Hounds weren’t
exactly normal. Looking into her eyes he could see the strength
that had let her lead a pack of Hounds after rogue
shifters—killers, rapists, even just those with a bad rap and beast
side to make them more dangerous.
    Whatever fear he’d caught glimpses of back
there in that makeshift house was gone now. The woman full of
uncertainty and wanting to disappear from the other day, she was
gone too. The shift was remarkable. He’d wanted to know everything
about her then, and now the desire had only strengthened. Made him
want more.
    He let his hand fall and they headed for his
truck. Bree glanced at him as she reached for the passenger door.
“Do you have a way into her apartment?”
    “Yeah I got a key. We didn’t find anything
last night, but like I said I don’t think that Hound cared.”
    “What made you think I would?”
    “Because you cared about the kids leaving
graffiti on your house. The ones you thought were behind the calls
too. The local Hounds wouldn’t have given a damn.” He pulled open
the door and paused, meeting her gaze. “Because you could have shot
me the other night, because you accepted me into your home and let
me stay the night to ‘protect’ you even when you didn’t need it.
All of that told me you had a heart, you gave a damn, and that you
might just help me.”
    She waited until they were on the road