Howl (Winter Pass Wolves Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

jeans that clung to her curves just right, making Harlan’s mouth water a little. Her wavy red hair was pulled into a braid, fastened at the end with a few threads that looked like they’d come from some part of her shirt.
    Her heart-shaped face, big brown eyes, and freckle-covered nose were just overkill. If she kept looking at him like that, all innocent and tempting, Harlan was going to tackle her to the ground and rip her clothes off.
    He turned back to the stove and took the kettle off, pouring the water over a filter and some grounds he’d set up earlier, which drained into a large glass container. The coffee’s fragrance bloomed under his nose, comforting him, washing away Penny’s intrusive scent for a few moments.
    “Coffee?” he asked after a minute, not turning to look.
    “You got cream?”
    Harlan turned to find Penny staring out the window at the fresh snowfall.
    “Yeah.”
    He fixed her a cup and left it on the counter with the cream, taking his own cup and retreating to his armchair. He couldn’t afford a repeat of yesterday’s little scene on the couch, better to sit where Penny couldn’t join him.
    “Thanks,” Penny said, taking her cup and sitting on the couch across from him. “So… there’s even more snow today, looks like.”
    “Yep.”
    “I hate to say this, Harlan, but I think you might be stuck with me for a couple of days,” Penny said. A blush rose in her cheeks after a moment, making Harlan wonder what she was thinking. She was too far away for him to scent her, but yesterday her desire for him had been plain enough. Resisting her pheromones in the air was one of the hardest things Harlan had ever done.
    Hell, if she hadn’t just been through a terrible ordeal and almost froze to death in the woods, Harlan wouldn’t have even tried.
    “You’re going up to the main lodge tonight, actually,” Harlan said, squirming in his seat, trying to disguise his body’s response to her presence. “I’m the one who’s leaving.”
    “What? Why?” Penny’s brow creased. “You’re going to leave me here with a bunch of crazy hunters?”
    “I admit, it’s not ideal,” Harlan said. An understatement. “I’m going to lead them off into the wilderness, away from town. That’s why I’m leaving. I already stocked the main lodge and set up a couple of the rooms in the event of the cabin generators going down, so you’ll have plenty of firewood and food. Wifi, even, as long as the power doesn’t go out.”
    Penny’s incredulous expression made Harlan’s lips lift at the corners.
    “You guys have internet out here?”
    “We’re loners, not cavemen,” Harlan said.
    “Man, I wish I’d brought my laptop from my car,” Penny sighed. “I don’t know what I’d even look at, though. My Facebook is all weddings and babies, which I find depressing. And there aren’t any good job postings for art teachers in the middle of the school year, which is even sadder.”
    After a moment she shook her head.
    “Sorry. You don’t need to know all that,” she said.
    “It’s okay,” Harlan said. And it was, really; immediate threats of hunters and werewolves aside, a little part of him was mulling over her other problems, seeking a solution.
    He wanted to help her, which was… yeah, totally outside the norm for him.
    A crackling electronic noise made him jump. Harlan and Penny looked toward the sound, coming from a walkie-talking sitting on its charging base next to the front door.
    “H, we got company,” came a staticky voice. Chase. “They’re tripping sensors on the property line. We got about fifteen minutes before they’re in our hair.”
    “Shit. Okay.” Harlan jumped up, grabbing for his jacket as he shoved his feet into his boots. “The hunters are back. They don’t know you’re here, and I want to keep it that way. Hunker down in the bedroom. Lock the door, and don’t come out for anyone except me. Got it?”
    Penny’s eyes were wide, but she nodded and