Contents
Step in to our world
Sacred Bond
Prologue
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merrick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Taryn
Merick
Epilogue
Author C.A. Harms
Author Evan Grace
Copyright @ 2020 C.A. Harms & Evan Grace All Rights Reserved
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and other elements portrayed herein are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real persons or events is coincidental.
No part of this book may be reproduced, storied in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior permission of the author. If you should do so, legal action may be taken to protect the authors and their work
Step in to our world
We hope that you enjoy Taryn and Merick as much as we enjoyed creating them. This book was a new venture for the both of us, never before writing Paranormal Romance, but we enjoyed the freedom to create such a hidden world. We are so excited to share this world with you and bring you more stories that will unfold from all the characters that we share in the Secrets of Stone Ridge series.
Prologue
Taryn
“Taryn! Don’t wander off. Stay out of the forest. Daddy hasn’t checked the area to make sure everything is safe. There could be wild animals that’ll try to eat tiny little girls like you for lunch.” Mom tickles my sides, making me laugh as I try my best to inch away from her.
“Staahhp!” I squeal and she finally lets me go. “I’m not little.” I put my fists on my hips, feeling defiant, and hating how they baby me. I swear my parents are the best, but they treat me like I’m a toddler. I’m twelve now and next year I’ll be a teenager, but to them, I think I will always remain young and delicate.
Mom pulls me into a hug. “Oh you’ll always be my baby. Remember don’t wander far.” I watch her walk back into the cabin and once the door closes, I head around the side of the cabin to look around. The mountains look like they’re so close, but Dad says they’re miles and miles away. They’re big and have a magical appearance to them. Almost like a painted picture, perfect, with vibrant colors and a calmness that draws you in. A peacefulness that soothes me.
No more than a hundred yards away, the opening of the forest calls to me. Lined with trees you can’t see beyond leaving so much to the imagination. What lays beyond? A need so powerful beckons for me to seek out the mysteries it holds. I take one step closer and then another, looking behind me, I make sure my mom isn’t watching. I step into the trees and smile, there’s a huge patch of wildflowers in a little clearing up ahead. Petals of blues and purples, almost pastel hug the ground like a blanket. They are all so bright they almost don’t seem real, more like a painting. I’d never seen anything more magical.
I wish I brought the camera Daddy bought me for my birthday. This would make the prettiest picture. The closer I get to the flowers, I see they’re a bluish-purple with delicate-looking petals like velvet. I want to pick some to take back to the cabin, I can already imagine bringing them to my nose and breathing them in. I bet they smell amazing. As I reach for them, I get an uneasy feeling triggering chills that cover my arms and the back of my neck. I pause, with my hand extended out before me. My heart races, my breath quickens.
I look around and don’t see anything, but that unsettled feeling doesn’t subside, so I decide to leave the flowers untouched. A bird sings in the distance and I follow the sound to see what kind it is. The further I go into the forest, I start to feel lightheaded. My body feels like it’s being pulled deeper into the woods, almost as if something is leading me, calling me.
I stop walking and looking around. “Where am I?” I whisper to no one in particular as my heart begins to race faster. “Mom! Dad!” I cry out immediately regretting my decision to defy my mother's wishes. I spin around looking for something that would show me I was not lost. A familiar path maybe, a limb of a tree I may have stepped over on my journey, but panic starts to fill me as I realize nothing looks familiar anymore. I’m lost.
Prickly leaves of various plants and sticks slap at my legs while I run as fast as I can in the direction I think might lead me back to my parents. A small clearing gives me a sense of hope until I realize that I am only running around in circles. My lungs feel so tight when I attempt to breath making the panicked feeling in me grows more intense. Stopping to catch my breath I hear a twig snap only it’s not from my own movements. I push my hair, wet with sweat, out of my face.
My body trembles with fear as a small wolf comes out from the trees. It’s gray and white with the darkest eyes I’ve ever seen, almost black. Slow and steady it moves in closer, watching me. Tears fill my eyes and slide down my cheeks as I remain perfectly still while it stares at me. “P-P-Please d-don’t h-hurt m-me.”
The wolf starts walking slowly toward me and my body becomes rigid with fear. I don’t know what to do or how to protect myself, so I stand as still as a statue. The closer it gets to me, it lowers its head, and a small whimper falls from its mouth. It’s strange, the wolf almost appears friendly. My body starts to relax and the fear is beginning to fade away, only I don’t move as I wait for its next move.
When it finally stops in front of me, it cocks its
