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There were way too many males around her, pushing too close. He didn’t like it. His wolf liked it even less.
Eliza slid her hand to the inside of his elbow. “Do you want to go next?” she asked softly.
One of the men, a stranger to him, was holding his gaze too long. With a quick snarl of his lip, he disengaged his glare right before he pressed his lips to Eliza’s. She offered a surprised squeak, but didn’t back away from him. Good.
He eased out of the kiss and took the rifle from her sagging hand. Boy, he could feel everyone’s gaze on the back of his neck. Usually that would set him off and send the wolf ripping out of him, but not today. Today he was keeping his human skin, and he would keep better attention on his mate.
Wife.
Garret frowned and hesitated pulling the trigger.
She was just his wife.
He cast her a confused look, and she was looking up at him looking just as stunned as he felt. Her full lips were still parted slightly, her freckled arms were dotted with red rash, and her eyes were so clear and green, all trained up on him. A few of her auburn curls had escaped their pins, and her cheeks were flushed a pretty shade of pink.
He’d never seen a prettier woman in all his life than in this moment right here.
He pulled the rifle back up, aimed steady, and fired.
A hole blew right through the bullseye, and the crowd got to buzzing like an angry beehive with their murmuring.
He handed her back the rifle, and twitched his head for her to line back up to shoot again.
“Hold it in tight to you,” he murmured, watching her stance. “Right leg back a little wider, build that strong base. Steady.”
“My arms are getting tired,” she admitted, struggling to hold the heavy rifle up.
“You have this. You ain’t weak,” he told her. She wasn’t.
Eliza frowned in determination, pulled it back up straight, and held the butt of the gun tight to her shoulder. He could hear the breath still in her lungs. Three breaths later, and she softly pulled the trigger. Huh. Lenny had been teaching her well. The bullet hit just a few inches off his bullseye.
Good woman.
A strange sensation filled his chest and made it hard to breathe. What was this feeling? It felt like…it felt a little like…pride?
She handed the rifle to him, and God, the grin that painted her face just about stopped his heart.
“Boss,” Burke barked softly through the crowd.
His attention snapped to his friend, and Burke gestured to his eyes. Shit.
Garret pulled the brim of his dark hat lower over his eyes and ducked his gaze. “I’ll be close,” he promised Eliza, so she knew she could enjoy the day but not feel alone. He turned around, rested his fingers on the front of his brim, and put his head down as he headed through the crowd. He could feel someone following him. He thought it was Burke until he glanced over his shoulder.
It wasn’t. Eliza was keeping up with him, a big smile on her face as she talked to people and waved to others she’d apparently already met today.
The woman seemed to be able to charm anyone. Except the Jenningses.
Anna stood at the edge of the crowd, her furious glare trained on Eliza.
A snarl rattled his chest, and he had to purposefully swallow it down. He reached back and wrapped his hand around Eliza’s, and she let off another one of her surprised squeaks. That noise in her throat was so damn cute. She would be noisy when he took her to bed. He just knew it.
His cock was thickening just thinking about it, so he shook his head hard and tried to think about something else. He focused on the back of the cabin up ahead. It wasn’t helping. His cock was throbbing with need now.
Burke and Lenny were following them. He could hear them chatting easily.
Suddenly Eliza twined her fingers in his, and he looked down, shocked.
“It’s a nice touch—the hand holding,” she explained. “Keep it up, and the town might actually begin to think you like me.”
