The Bite Before Christmas by Lynsay Sands, Jeaniene Frost Page A

growled, waving her away. “We need to get the wood and get inside in case he changes his mind and comes back. You can look at it then.”
    Katricia hesitated, but then hurried past the stairs and the end of the deck to quickly gather up the logs he’d dropped to go after the bear. Teddy was relieved not to have to do it himself. Now that the panic was over, the adrenaline was beginning to seep out of him and he was starting to feel weak and shaky.
    Leaving her to it, he stopped at the stairs and pressed the log he carried to his chest to free his other hand to hold the rail. He started up the four short steps, frowning at how much effort it took. By the last step, it was like climbing Mount Everest, and he was swaying, his hold on the rail the only thing keeping him upright.
    â€œTeddy?” The concern in Katricia’s voice made him straighten and force himself to take the two steps to the cottage door. He managed to pull it open and stagger inside. He even made it to the open inner door to the cottage, but then he was suddenly on his knees and slumping against the door frame, both arms now hugging the log to his chest, instinctively pressing it tight against the pain beginning to radiate there.
    â€œTeddy!”
    He heard the crash of the wood hitting the vestibule floor behind him and then Katricia was catching him under the arms. The log slipped from his hold and dropped to the floor as she lifted him to his feet from behind and propelled him out of the doorway and inside. The damned woman was practically carrying him like he weighed no more than a child, he thought with disgust as she moved him to a kitchen chair and set him in it. These immortal women could really be hard on a man’s ego.
    â€œLet me see.” She moved around in front of him and tried to pluck his arms away from his chest, but he merely turned away on the seat with annoyance.
    â€œGet the wood and close the door first. You’re letting all the heat out,” Teddy muttered.
    Cursing, Katricia hurried to do as he said. The moment she did, he sagged back in the chair and let his arms drop away so he could peer down at himself. The only light in the room was the fire in the fireplace. The two logs he’d put on before going outside were now burning merrily, but it didn’t really cast much light on the situation this far away. Still, he could make out enough to know he’d taken a serious injury. He could see the wound was long, tearing through his heavy winter coat at the right side of his upper chest and shooting down at a diagonal to his left hip. The animal’s claws had shredded through the cloth, insulation, and even the zipper . . . and, no doubt, his skin as well. He could see the sheen of blood in the dim light and was now aware of the dampness down his stomach and legs. His jeans were wet with his own blood, and liquid was trickling down his legs. Christ, he was bleeding badly, he thought with concern. And it was beginning to hurt like hell now.
    â€œLet me see.” Katricia was there again, turning the whole chair to face her, and this time Teddy didn’t try to stop her.
    Her reaction on first seeing the wound was a bit alarming. Immortals had better night vision than mortals, and he had no doubt she could see in this light as easily as if it were daylight. The dismay and horror on her face as she bent to look at his chest and stomach wasn’t encouraging, and then she was suddenly all activity and curses as she quickly set about removing his coat.
    â€œWhy the hell did you do it?”
    That frustrated mutter caught his ear as Katricia finished with his coat and started on his sweater, simply ripping the tattered material to the sides.
    Opening eyes he hadn’t realized he’d closed, Teddy frowned at the top of her head and asked with confusion, “Do what?”
    â€œAttack the damned bear,” she snapped, now rending the shredded flannel top of his pajamas open as