Battered Not Broken Read Online Free PDF

eyes dropped to her twined fidgeting
fingers.
    “I’m fine,” she whispered in a tiny voice,
almost too low to hear.
    “No, you’re not, Gilly. You’ve got some nasty
bruising. If I was a betting man, I’d think someone did this to
you.”
    “No.” Her eyes shot to his. “I…” She licked
her lips and he could practically see the wheels spinning in her
head as she sought a good lie.
    “Let me guess, you had a run-in with a
door?”
    Gillian’s eyes dropped to her folded hands.
“Yes, that’s right, a door.”
    Sure it was.
    “A door that happened to have four fingers
and an opposable thumb?” His hands covered hers, stopping her from
rubbing and twisting them together while stealing her attention.
“Gilly, you don’t have to tell me who it was, just tell me if
they’re coming after you. My brothers and I want to help you, but
we can’t if we don’t know some of what’s going on.”
    Tears threatened to pour from her eyes and
his heart broke for her. From what he could see of her body, it was
apparent she was a strong woman who was willing to fight.
    Sniffling, she shared her story with him.
    “The door’s name is Kyle. He’s been following
me for about a week and keeps finding me. This…” she gestured to
her neck, “is from the last time he found me. I don’t want to drag
you three into this. I just need some time to rest and then I’ll be
on my way.”
    “Gilly, how are you going to get out of here
without a car? Without warm clothes? You go out in the blizzard and
you’re as good as dead.”
    Wiping the tears away, she stared at him. “My
car broke down at the beginning of your driveway. But I’d rather
the elements take me to my death than him.”
    He believed it. Max felt the truth of her
words through his soul and knew if push came to shove, Gillian
would rather die in the cold than by Kyle’s hand.
    “Okay, Gilly. We’ll take a look at your car
tomorrow if the weather allows it. But you’re staying with us until
it’s fixed. There’s no way we’ll allow you to go traipsing through
the mountain side dressed in jeans and sneakers.”
    “But he’ll find me. And he’ll find you. I
don’t want that.”
    “And we’ll protect you, Gilly.” As if
possessed, he cupped her cheek and his thumb brushed away her
single escaped tear . “The Bearclaw brothers can take care of
themselves and, if you’ll let us, won’t let anything happen to you
either.”
    Straightening, he grabbed the robe Conner had
hung on a nearby hook and held it open for her. “Now, if we’re done
arguing, let’s go see what Ronan and Conner have made for us, shall
we?”
    Max turned his head as she stood, trying not
to look at her nude body when she dropped the towel. He winced in
empathy when she groaned—the salve had some anesthetic properties,
but it couldn’t take away all of her pain. When she slid her arms
in, he released his hold and allowed her to wrap it around her
body. After she tightened the tie and turned around, he scooped her
into his arms, laughing at her high-pitched squeak.
    “All set, beautiful?”
    Gillian slid her arms around his neck and he
nearly groaned at her touch. When she laid her head on his
shoulder, her breath feathered across his skin and his cock took
notice.
    “All set.”

Chapter Four
     
    Gillian stretched her tired, aching muscles
as she snuggled under the covers in the Bearclaws’ guest bedroom.
Over dinner she’d found out the room she guessed was the guest room
wasn’t the guest room at all. It was Ronan’s.
    That had been an embarrassing moment. Sitting
around their kitchen table, scarfing down the dinner Conner and
Ronan had made, she nearly choked on a big hunk of steak when they
told her. Face burning, her eyes shot to Ronan’s. How could a man
surrounded by so much happiness have such a sparse, cold room? His
unblinking gaze rested on hers, as if challenging her, until she
dropped her eyes to her plate. His look spoke volumes; Ronan was a
man who had