Strange Lake Falls Panther (Strange Lake Falls Series Book 4) Read Online Free Page A

There was one other that she responded to, but there is no chance of that happening. He’s not a werewolf.”
    Roxanne wished she could have taken back what she had just said. She watched as Mary fidgeted, clearly uncomfortable with the thought of Roxanne having been attracted to Ric. Ric wrapped a soothing arm around Mary’s shoulders.
    “The council also had their chief soothsayer, Rajene, call me. Rajene says that there is something going on with the few remaining purebloods, they have a limited time to reproduce. She says this is your time, but if you do not breed now, you may not be able to for some time.”
    Some time? That could be anything from five years to one hundred. She didn’t want to wait one hundred more years before having children.
    “What should I do? Did Rajene say?”
    “You need to find someone your wolf will respond to and mate as soon as possible. I have a friend in the northern mountains who is a good Alpha. He is also a pureblood. He will arrive tomorrow. You need to push your wolf with him. He might be your only chance.” Ric stood up and looked down at his mate. “I’m going to go get you a sandwich before Sam eats all the meat. She’s worse than the twins.”
    “Thanks, babe. I’m starving.” Mary smiled as she watched Ric leave. Then she turned to Roxanne. “I’ve never had to depend on my wolf to be attracted to someone. Is it difficult? Do you have any control?”
    Roxanne shook her head. “You can’t make a wolf do or feel something. Either they do or they don’t.”
    “Do you have to mate the guy or can you just . . . you know.”
    Roxanne laughed. “You mean get knocked up? I could get pregnant, as long it was my breeding time. But to bring a werewolf child into the world, it is always easiest and best if both the parents are mated and there for them. But it’s not a requirement.”
    “So maybe when this other guy comes, you should just see if you could be attracted sexually enough to breed, and take the stress of mating him off of your shoulders.”
    Roxanne thought about it. It wasn’t a horrible idea. It was an unconventional one, considering wolves tended to be very old fashioned, but it could work. Especially if the male was kind and good to her.
    “I’ll think about it.”
    Mary nodded. Then she gave Roxanne a big smile. “I’ve got really good news.”
    Roxanne smiled back as she leaned back in the chair. “What’s that?”
    “Connor is coming home.”
    Holy shit! Roxanne tried to hide her excitement, but found herself sitting up straighter again. “That’s great news. When does he arrive?”
    “Tomorrow or the day after, I not sure. We received the message tonight, but you know how these messages can get delayed. He could already be here. I should call the house and check.”
    Roxanne stood up. “I’ll leave you to that. Goodnight, Mary.”
    “Goodnight.” Mary was already reaching for her cell phone.
    Roxanne took the stairs with feet that felt like lead. Connor was coming home and she was going to have to at least breed with a wolf. She felt like something important was about to happen. She hoped she was ready for it.
     
     

Chapter 4
     
    Connor walked into the darkened house. He dumped his bags just inside the front door and kept going. He knew his way around without the lights.
    It was so quiet. He knew his mother expected him to take over this house as his own now, but the place was just too big for him. It had three bedrooms, each with its own bathroom, a living room, and a family room. The basement was unfinished but it was also huge. He often wondered what his parents were thinking when they bought such a huge place with only one child.
    He noticed that there was a blinking light on his answering machine. He hit play. “You have eight messages. First message. ‘ Connor, this is your mother. Call me when you arrive.’ Second message. ‘ Connor, it's Mom. I don’t think there’s any food in the house. Come by the pack house when you