A Lion Shame (Bear Creek Grizzlies Book 3) by Layla Nash, Callista Ball Page A

get in the car, and start driving. If you bring anyone else, you'll both get a bullet. Got it?"
    He hung up. SJ's heart pounded as she stared at the phone. She wanted to ignore him, to just call Tate and have him handle it, but there was no telling what Chuck actually planned to do. Tate didn't deserve to pay the price for her actions. She'd taken the car, she had to return it. And she absolutely had to protect Dakota. At least Rosie could look after her, if anything happened to SJ.
    She picked the baby up and snuggled her, taking a deep breath from her hair to memorize the way she smelled. Dakota had been the only good thing in her life for a long, long time. She was a good baby. SJ's whole world in one cuddly bundle. Tears burned SJ's eyes but she swallowed them back and got her bag and wallet and keys. She could drive the car to the next town and get back quickly. It wasn't that far and it wouldn't take long.
    SJ carried Dakota downstairs and found Rosie in the storeroom. "Can you do me a favor, Rosie, and watch Dakota for a little while? I want to run to the store and pick up a few things for dinner. I know you're busy in the bar, but —"
    "Not a problem," Rosie said, smiling as she held her hands out to Dakota. "This little peanut can help me keep everyone in line. And there's only two people here anyway. You sure you're okay, though? You still look a little shaky."
    SJ smiled and tried to hide how tightly she gripped the keys in her pocket. "Yeah, it's just a short trip. And I think some fresh air will do me some good."
    "Call if you need anything," Rosie said, and carried Dakota into the bar while SJ stayed in the storeroom in the back.
    She waited only a few seconds to make sure Rosie wouldn't see which way she turned, then SJ headed out into the cold. Clouds built up on the horizon, darkening the early afternoon sky more than normal, and she pulled her coat tighter as she headed for where the car was parked behind the garage. They hadn't wanted to leave it on the street where anyone could get to it, but that meant it was out of sight in the empty lot behind the mechanic's property. SJ glanced over her shoulder to scan the street, searching for anyone suspicious, but no one else dared the cold and pending snow.
    SJ exhaled when she saw the car, for a second worrying that maybe it was already gone, and hurried toward it, wanting to get out of the wind. She could call a cab company to meet her at the town Chuck mentioned when she was on the way and knew how long it would take her to get there. Easy. It would all be easy and she'd be home in time to make dinner for Dakota and to give Rosie a break in the bar.
    She unlocked the driver's side door and yanked at it, the metal almost frozen shut. Maybe she could convince Rosie to move some place warmer. SJ gritted her teeth and tried again, ready to break the window, but froze as something cold pressed against the back of her neck and a hand caught her wrist. Pried away the keys.
    Chuck growled in her ear, "I didn't really think you were this stupid."
    SJ closed her eyes, heart sinking.

Chapter 13
Tate
    T ate's head spun for an hour after he left Rosie's apartment and Sarah Jane, the lion irrationally angry about abandoning their mate when she was in danger. Even though he had work to do for Simon's business, ferrying a few tourists from the Lodge back to town, he didn't want to leave. But anger boiled in his guts, a slow burn that made him kick the truck door and hit the radio hard enough to break something. It wasn't fair. The universe was a cruel son of a bitch, and he hated it. Hated it.
    He drove too fast, the truck skidding on the icy roads as a blizzard kicked up in the distance. He hated winter. He really hated snow. Tate got almost halfway to the Lodge, just to the foot of the mountains, when dread swept over him. He'd been on the phone with Zoe, listening to her account of the latest pregnancy news and something about heartburn and a new kitten, when Tate froze