Moon Shifter 02 - Primal Possession

thighs.
    She slightly shook her head. “I can’t believe you’re asking.”
    As he leaned forward, her phone rang. “Ignore it.”
    She did. He invaded her mouth with his tongue and the hand that had been caressing her back cupped one of her breasts and gently squeezed. She moaned into his mouth when her cell rang again.
    They both pulled back at the same time. He slid out of bed and grabbed her purse off the rocking chair in the corner of the room. After he handed it to her, she fished around until her fingers grasped her phone.
    She paused when she saw the number. “It’s the police station…. Hello?”
    “December. Thank God.” It was Parker.
    She mouthed it to Liam, who nodded and sat on the edge of the bed.
    “Are you okay?”
    “I’m fine.” She didn’t want to get into anything with Liam so close. With his supersonic hearing she had no doubt he could hear every word her brother said.
    “Why are you staying at the Armstrong ranch? I stopped by the store today and Kat said you’d been hurt.”
    She cringed. Hopefully her friend hadn’t said anything else. “I’m not hurt. I just needed a day off.”
    “Don’t lie to me. Why are you at their ranch?” The way he said “their” dripped with disdain.
    She motioned to Liam that she wanted privacy and, without bothering to put on clothes, hurried to the attached bathroom. “What I do with my private life is my business. I like Liam. A lot. I know you don’t like it, but you’re going to have to get used to it. He’s already done so much for me—something you know. If you’d just give him a chance, you’d see he’s not like the shifter who killed—”
    “Don’t fucking say his name,” he growled.
    “Why not? He was our brother and he deserves to be remembered.”
    Parker swore under his breath. “I know that. Why the hell are you staying at the ranch—and don’t give me a bullshit story about wanting a day off. Did something happen?”
    She bit her bottom lip. She and Liam hadn’t talked about it, but neither of them had mentioned contacting the police. It was sort of like they had an unspoken agreement about the whole thing. The guy had worn gloves and the cops couldn’t do anything anyway. Mainlyshe didn’t want to involve her brother because she knew he’d want to put her under lockdown and she’d rather stay with Liam. And strangely enough, she trusted Liam to figure out what was going on. “I already told you. I wanted to spend some time with Liam. A lot has happened in the past couple weeks and I needed a break.”
    “So that’s it? You’re shutting me out over some shifter? A fucking stranger?”
    “Don’t do this,” she begged.
    “Do what? Make you choose? I won’t, little sister. Have your fun with him, but don’t come crying to me when he hurts you.” The phone line went dead.
    Fighting back tears, she sagged against the counter. The tile floor was cold under her feet, but she barely felt it. An acute ache pushed at the middle of her chest with the force of sharp daggers. She’d known Parker would have a problem with her and Liam, but she hadn’t expected that vehement reaction. He’d always been there for her. The one person she could count on. But she couldn’t continue to live her life for him.
    Staring blindly at the floor, she tried to catch her breath. Parker would get over this. He had to.

Chapter 15
    P arker glared at his phone. As if that would do any good. What the hell was his sister thinking? He shouldn’t have been such an asshole, but she was being an idiot. He’d already fielded calls from a few citizens concerned about December’s association with the Armstrong pack. Not that he gave a shit about some small-town busybodies.
    Anything could happen to her out on that ranch and he’d be helpless to stop it. Pushing back from his desk, he grabbed his hat and shoved his phone into his pocket. He was going to give them a visit right now. He and Liam could finally hash this thing out once and for all. While Parker appreciated all the help Liam had been giving him in watching December, it was time to draw some clear boundaries. He’d convince December to temporarily move in with him. Or maybe get her to take a vacation. Anything to get her away from here.
    A quiet knock on his half-open door caused him to look up. Natasha, his receptionist, tucked a dark strandof hair behind her ear. “Hey, Parker. Uh, got a call from Edith Hopper, but if you’re leaving—”
    He shook his head.