“What’s happened?” she asked.
“It’s Luna. She’s missing.”
Her stomach lurched.
“I have to find her. I have to… Oh God,what if she’s hurt…?” He swallowed. “What if she tried to follow us and fell in a ditchsomewhere?” His damp hair tumbled across his face as he chucked yetmore food into the basket.
“Grayson, stop!” She grabbed his arm. “Lookat me.”
Finally, he paused long enough to meet hergaze.
“Leave the picnic. It’s not important.” She cupped hisangular jaw, tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. “We’ll findLuna. Together.”
Chapter Nine
Grayson stilled, fraught with worry overhis daughter. He couldn’t bear to think of her hurt, her bodybroken and bloody.
Pain twisted in his gut.
Jamie’s words hung in the air between them.‘We’ll find Luna. Together.’
Rain trickled down her porcelain cheeks asshe looked at him, her huge eyes brimming with concern. Concern forhis daughter, whom she hardly knew, but it was as though Jamie was sharing his pain,easing his anxiety, if only a fraction. The knots in his shouldersunravelled a little.
Together.
Somehow, he believed her. He couldn’t evenbegin to analyse what her kiss had done to him. Made his heartbeat faster for one, butit had blown his mind and done something to his soul too. What thatmeant, he had no idea. It was something magical and beautiful, thatmuch was certain, but what if he allowed it to gofurther?
What if he lost control of his wolf?
He had to focus on one problem at a time. Namely, Luna. “Eversince I lost Piper, I have this fear that I’ll lose Luna too.”Grayson slammed the lid on the picnic hamper and stood. “It eats meup inside sometimes.”
Jamie stood too, tugging at the picnicblanket beneath hisfeet. “Let’s get back to the manor and we can start searching forher.” He stepped off the blanket and she shoved it into the basket.“For all we know, she could be burrowed away in the library, orstudying somewhere. She did seem overly enthusiastic when Alicesaid her tutor was coming.”
He frowned. He’d thought that too.
Jamie picked up Cujo, who’d decided tojoin them after spending most of his time by the edge of theclearing. “If we run, we can get there faster.” She didn’t wait forhis answer as she spedoff towards the woods.
Grayson picked up the basket and followed,easily catching up with her in a few seconds.
He overtook her, the need to find hisdaughter paramount. He skirted a tree and glanced behind. Jamie wasrunning full pelt, but she couldn’t keep up with him. He knew thesewoods blindfolded, and knew a shortcut too, but it was steep andtreacherous, especiallyin this rain. He’d get to the manor a hell of a lot sooner if heshifted. His surefooted wolf agreed, but what aboutJamie?
He stopped to let her catch up.
Jamie lost her footing and slipped on themud, her legs flying in the air as she fellbackwards, stillmanaging to hold Cujo.
He raced back to pick her up. “Are youokay?”
She refused his help and scrambled to herfeet, her cheeks crimson. “Yep, all good. I’m slowing you down,aren’t I?”
“No, it’s fine.”
“It’s not. If you want to go wolf andrun off ahead, I’m sureyou’ll get there faster than me and Cujo.”
Could she read his mind, and his wolf’stoo?
But to wolf out in front of her couldfrighten her, and there was no way he was going to jeopardise whatwas happening between them—whatever that might be—especially since she seemed to be warmingto him in ways he’d only fantasised about up until now. “No, Iwon’t leave you, Jamie.” A sudden thought struck him. Turning hisback to her, he said, “Hop on. I’ll give you apiggyback—”
“Carry me?” she interrupted. “You have to be kidding.”
“I can run fast. We’ll get back to the manorin half the time.”
She regarded him for a moment. Rainplastered her hair to her head and her dark eyelashes glistenedwith raindrops. Slowly, the corner of her mouth curved.“Okay, I’ll do it for Luna.”She climbed on his back like a monkey, Cujo tucked safely under herarm. “Not for you to re-enact a scene from Twilight.” Her breath tickled his neck as she clung tohim, her thighs wrapped around his waist, the heat between her legspressing against the small of his back.
He inhaled, trying to focus as he weavedthrough the trees. “I’m no vampire, Jamie.” No, he was ahot-blooded werewolf who yearned for a mate.
“Good, because I prefer werewolves myself.”She nuzzled into his neck. “I might even get a sweatshirt made with Team Graysonon it—once we’ve found Luna, of course.”
Grayson stumbled on a loose tree root. Howthe hell could he concentrate on finding his daughter when she wasgiving off all kinds of signals?
A sudden rustling from a thicket to his left focused hiswayward thoughts.
He dropped the picnic basket and froze.
Jamie’s grip tightened around his neck. “Whatis it?” she whispered.
“I heard something… Wait…” He sniffed thedamp air. Equal amounts of anger and relief flooded his system as he caught ascent.
Luna.
His daughter climbed out of the thicket,leaves in her hair and mud smeared on her face.
Jamie slipped down his back. “Luna! Thankgoodness you’re okay.”
Grayson raced to his daughter. “What thehell are you doinghere?”
Luna’s expression showed nothing butinnocence, infuriating him more.
“I followed you. I wanted to have a picnicwith you and Jamie.”
He shook her shoulders. “Have you any ideahow worried I was?” He hated that he had to shout at her.“I’m confiscating your iPad fortwo months. Do you hear me? Two whole months.” Of course she heardhim, he was yelling.
Her iPad was how she spent most of hertime, watching Willow’s makeup tutorials, among other things, likefunny voice-overs with animals.
“I thought you’d be happy, Dad.” Her bottomlip trembled. “I practised my tracking skills like you showed me,stayed downwind and everything so you couldn’t pick up myscent.”
Jamie’s shoulder brushed his arm as shecame to stand beside him. “Two months is a little harsh, Grayson. Don’t be too mad atLuna. She’s safe, that’s all that matters.”
She held his hand and he wanted to shove itaway, but something stopped him. He glowered at her instead.
No one ever questioned how he disciplinedhis daughter,
