Mated To Magic (Stark Creek Shifters Book 1) by Barb Shuler (free ereaders .TXT) 📕

back of the couch and pulled it over my legs. Now to wait out my big bad wolf and hope to God he didn’t blow the house down.

7

Dalton

The sun was creeping up on the horizon by the time I pulled into the driveway. I was beyond tired. Running through the woods, being angry, and worrying about Mia took a toll on me, mentally. I pulled the keys from the ignition, got out of the truck, and jogged up the walk to the house. I’d lost my boots in the shift, so I wiped my bare feet on the rug outside on the porch before unlocking the door, turning the alarm off, and shutting the door behind me.

I could hear the TV, so I made my steps light as I went into the bathroom. I needed a shower. I was dirty and smelled like roadkill. I was also hoping it would help to invigorate me so I could talk to Mia about what happened. I’d worry about sleep later.

I left the bathroom in a pair of sleep pants and went into the living room. My skin tingled when I saw her laid out on the couch in my jersey. I stood in the doorway, my eyes just taking in every inch of her beauty. My wolf growled, clawing to get out so he could mark her. Guess he was tired of me being an idiot.

Slowly, silently, I made my way to her. She’d never admit it if I told her she snored, but she did. It was a soft, delicate snore. It was adorable. I smiled, turned off the TV, and tossed the remote back onto the coffee table. I took her blanket off of her, folded it, and laid it on the back of the couch. With practiced ease I scooped Mia up, brushed a kiss against her forehead, and carried her to the bedroom. Once she was snuggled under the sheets, I moved to the chair in the corner and just watched her.

Closing my eyes, I listened to her breathing and the steady beat of her heart. I let my own body relax into her scent and sound. My eyes popped open when the faintest scent of blood wafted across my nose. I shook it off at first, but my wolf knew something wasn’t quite right. I followed the scent to her bathroom. I growled when I spotted the bandage in the trash bin. Why was she bleeding and needing a bandage?

I stalked back to the bedroom, my temper rising at the thought of her being hurt and me not knowing it. Not being there to stop it. I crawled onto the bed, pulled the covers back and leaned in, scenting her. The blood smell was stronger toward her chest, neck area. I pulled at the collar of the jersey and a piece of white bandage peeked out. There was a faint scent of Jay on her, which is to be expected, and someone else. I knew it, but I couldn’t place it.

“Mia,” I growled out her name, my control slipping slightly as I tugged the jersey over further.

Thankfully it was big enough I could pull it off of her. I sniffed the bandage and looked down at her. She grunted but didn’t wake fully. My fingers made quick work of pulling a corner of the bandage back so I could see what had happened to her.

I pulled it off slowly, getting a good look at her wound. The slice along her shoulder wasn’t too long, but the fact that it was there had me growling, my body vibrating with a rage I’d never felt before. I’d seen slices like this before. This was a knife wound.

“Mia! Wake up, baby.”

She grunted, her eyes fluttering open.

“Who hurt you?”

“I’m fine,” she grumbled, slapping at my hand.

Fine? Maybe she hit her head too. I started looking her over, not caring that I would actually wake her up.

“Dalton, stop!” she huffed.

I blinked, trying to get myself under control. My skin rippled as my wolf fought to come to the forefront. He, too, needed to be assured that she was okay.

“You were hurt. Please, baby, tell me what happened. Who am I hunting down?” I moved to cup her cheek with my palm, my eyes meeting hers as I lay beside her, my body touching hers along the side.

“Some guy in the bar grabbed me. It’s fine, really.”

I met her gaze, my thumb rubbing along her cheekbone. It was taking all I had in me to keep from growling. This was not her fault. I didn’t want her to think I was mad or upset with her.

“You are not fine. He hurt you.” The growl that punctuated my words made the bed vibrate under us. “Where was your fucking security? Do they need a refresher in how to do their fucking jobs?”

“It’s not that simple.”

“It is that simple. They’re supposed to make sure anyone coming in is clean. Stop trouble before it starts. Keep you and the girls safe.”

She shifted underneath me. I knew that look in her eyes, and the minute her bottom lip was pulled between her teeth I knew I had her. She wasn’t telling me something.

“Tell me what happened. I want it all. I want to know who hurt you.”

My voice was calm, but my wolf was ready to pounce, as was I. I would hunt them down, corner them, and slowly tear their limbs off, one by one. Every scream would fuel the wolf inside of me to bite harder, to cause more pain. They’d dared touch what was mine; the only recourse was death.

“I don’t know who it was. Some guy didn’t like being turned down and had a knife. When he grabbed me, the guys had to stop their assault. They did it to keep me from getting hurt.”

I snarled at those words. She was hurt. I was staring at the swollen skin that had been cut. The beauty of her flawless skin