Ethan (Blackbeary Creek 1) by Ruby Shae

alone unless she needed help.”
    “I agree,” Graham said, standing, too. “I have a bad feeling about this.”
    “I’m going.”
    Ethan stepped inside the house, grabbed his wallet and keys from the table near the door, and met Graham back out on the porch. As they walked to Ethan’s SUV, he fired off instructions.
    “Try to call her,” Ethan said. “Find out if she’ll tell you anything, but be cool, and don't tell her I'm coming. Keep it short and sweet, and then let me know what, if anything, you find out. Next go see Tristian, and fill him in, but don’t let him call her or any of the Locke brothers. If she thinks we’re checking up on her, she’ll run, and if she runs, and she is in danger, then we’re screwed. I can’t protect her if I can’t find her.”
    “Got it,” Graham said. “I’ll call you in a few minutes.”
    Ethan pulled open the door to his vehicle, slid one leg in, and turned back to Graham.
    “Thank you, Graham,” Ethan said, honestly. “You did the right thing.”
    “I know,” Graham said, “but if you break her heart, or you’re lying for any reason, then I’ll be waiting in front of the big house when you get back, and I won't go easy on you like Tristian did.”
    Ethan wanted to laugh at the comment about Tristian going easy on him, even though it was true. His ribs and face still stung, and if his alpha had come at him fully, he’d probably still be in an immobile heap on the driveway.
    Graham might look bookish and nerdy, but they’d sparred before, and Ethan knew the man’s strength. The other bear wasn’t as strong as their alpha, but it would be a fair, well-matched fight.
    One he didn’t ever want to have.
    He knew how much Graham cared for Tegan, and he respected the man's warning.
    “You’re a good friend to her, Graham,” Ethan said. “You always have been, and I appreciate that more than you know. I promise you’ll never have a reason to fight me.”
    “Good,” Graham said. “Now get out of here, and go get your mate.”
    Graham turned without another word, pressed a button on his phone, and started walking back toward his house.
    Ethan slid the rest of the way into the SUV, turned the key, and sped down the paved driveway. Right before turning onto the main road, he glanced in his review mirror, and saw a pissed off Tristian standing on the porch of the main house.
    Hopefully, the man would listen to Graham before pounding on him.

Chapter Five
     
    “Room service.”
    Tegan jumped at the loud knock on the door, thankful no one could see her cell-phone flying through the air. Though she had ordered the food minutes before, the loud banging on the door seemed inconsistent with the atmosphere of the hotel, and fear raced down her spine.
    It didn't help that she wasn't fully awake from her nap.
    Earlier, after the bellboy had dropped off her bags, she’d filled the huge tub with warm water and bubbles, and then soaked her tired muscles until her skin wrinkled and the water was ice cold. The soothing bath was followed by a warm shower, and she’d leisurely washed her skin and hair with the expensive luxury soap and shampoo provided by the hotel.
    When she was mostly dry, she’d grabbed the thick, cozy robe hanging on the back of the door, certain it wouldn’t fit, but desperate to feel the soft, plush material against her skin.
    Usually, one-size-fits-all robes didn't come close to covering up her extra curvy body, but the Locke’s didn’t do anything one-size-fits-all. The garment wrapped around her curves with room to spare, and she’d stared into the bathroom mirror for several minutes, truly amazed.
    Although she’d already asked the Locke’s for so much, she needed the robe in her life on a permanent basis. If she had to live the rest of her life alone, she wanted this robe to do it in.
    The fact that she’d basically settled for a robe instead of a man—any man, although she only wanted Ethan—made her realize how exhausted she was,