Guarded Hearts

Chapter 3

©CRGangell aka Whitesabretooth

Chapter 3

Maria felt a body slam into her as she braced herself for the impact of bullets. The air was slammed from her lungs as she struck the ground, rocks and dirt dug into her skin and grazed against her left cheek. She heard a curse as she tried desperately to draw air back into her lungs. She felt herself being rolled beneath the car she had been standing next to and the ping of bullets thudding into the side of the car where she had been only moments before.

She opened her eyes and blinked in surprise, Eric was above her, his arms

wrapped protectively around her. His long black hair had fallen from its tie and brushed against her skin as he turned. They were close together, his body protecting hers in the cramped gap between his truck and the ground as return shots were fired.

He didn’t move, he held her and waited for the fire fight to stop. She quivered beneath him in fear and confusion, fear because she was being shot at and confusion because Eric had risked his life to save hers. He leant closer to her to try to glance out from under the car; her warm breath brushed his cheek. He could see nothing but as the guns kept firing, he stayed

close to Maria to keep her safe.

She took a deep breath and frowned as something tickled her nose, something delicious, woodsy and definitely male. She leant forward her nose almost touching the skin of his cheek. She took a deep breath letting his scent dance around her nose. She felt her wolf tilt her head as she studied his scent for all of a Nano second before urging her human side to grab him and not let go.

They heard a car roar off and the gunfire stopped almost instantly. Electra dropped to her belly, “Maria?” She reached in and helped to get the two out from under the car. “Are you okay?” Electra asked as she pried a stunned Maria from Eric’s arms.

Electra brushed dirt from Maria’s face carefully and saw blood from gravel grazes.

“I’m okay…” She brushed off Electra’s caring hands and turned to Eric. “Thank you Eric.” She said, her wolf growled in approval, as she looked her mate over, he would be everything they needed.

He brushed his hair out of his face and smiled with a shrug. “Just doing my job.” He told her but that was far from the truth, the moment he saw the barrel of the gun his only thought was to keep her safe, he had ignored everything he had been trained to do in such a situation, his men, his own safety, to get her safe.

Electra had her phone out and was talking quickly into the mouthpiece. She was warning Nathanael, one of Eric’s men was getting back up to Katie’s.

Eric was scratching his head, wondering at the motive behind the attack. No one was hurt although the shooters did their best to try. But what was the motive?