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The following excerpt from WINDSWEPT is for readers 18 and over. Excerpt from Windswept by Kate Hill (m/m erotic shapeshifter) Available from Ellora's Cave. A gunshot broke the stillness and Parker flinched, startled by the sound. His surprise was quickly forgotten by a screech from the raptor. It dropped fast. Too fast. Parker didn't doubt the shot had been meant for the bird. "Oh no," he murmured. How could somebody do that? Most likely the bird was an endangered species. Eagles especially were protected by law. Instinctively he began climbing faster, hurrying in the general direction in which the bird had dropped. He knew trying to find it would be futile. It could have landed miles away. Even if he did manage to locate it, what could he do? Perform surgery on a wild bird of prey in the middle of nowhere? Still, anything was a welcome distraction from the depression and self-pity he'd been wallowing in. His heart pounded with exertion as he ran, stumbling several times on the rocks. Once he landed on a jagged edge that cut through his jeans. He glanced at his scraped, bleeding knee but didn't bother stopping. He wasn't sure of how much time passed before he slowed his pace. Dripping sweat, his lungs burning, he paused and leaned against a tree. What the hell was the point? Then he heard it. A rustling of leaves and a low, distinctly human moan. Slowly he followed the sounds behind a huge moss-covered rock and discovered a naked, bleeding man lying prone on a patch of dirt. "What the hell…" Parker murmured, quickly dumping his backpack and kneeling beside the man. He was very long and slender yet his muscles were starkly defined beneath his smooth, tanned skin. Kinky black hair clung to his shoulders and matted against his bloody back. Parker brushed aside the hair to examine his injury. It seemed to be the exit wound of a bullet in his shoulder. The point of entry was the deltoid area. He grasped the man's wrist and checked his pulse. It was fast but strong. Without hesitation, Parker retrieved his medical supplies from his backpack. Why he'd bothered bringing along the tools of his trade when he'd planned to commit suicide was still beyond him. Maybe it was habit. Not that it mattered anyway. He quickly washed his hands and snapped on gloves. His patient lifted his head and blinked his large, dark eyes for several seconds, as if dazed. Then his gaze fixed on Parker and he spoke in a smooth, quiet voice, surprisingly calm for someone in his situation. "Who are you?" "My name is Parker Rigby. Don't worry. I'm a doctor. Now take it easy. I'm going to look at your shoulder." Parker helped the man onto his back. In spite of the pain he must be suffering, he moved to accommodate Parker and made no sound except for a sharp intake of breath. "What's your name?" "Jindra." While Parker inspected the wound, he asked, "How did this happen, Jindra?" "I don't know." "This is a bullet wound. You didn't see who shot you?" Jindra shook his head and swallowed, his teeth gritted. He was losing a lot of blood but Parker had seen far worse bleeding. If he hurried, he believed Jindra had a good chance of surviving. "Are you here alone?" Parker asked. "Yes." Parker shook his head slightly. "Not too smart. It's dangerous to hike alone." "Then what are you doing here?" Jindra's voice sounded a bit strained and Parker didn't doubt he hurt pretty badly at the moment. "Are you allergic to any medications?" "I don't know." Raising an eyebrow, Parker glanced over his supplies. "You're not helping me much here, Jindra." "Sorry." Parker smiled in a manner most of his patients found comforting. No matter how dire the situation, Parker always had a great bedside manner. He wanted people to believe in his ability. Until recently he'd always been confident in himself, at least when it came to practicing medicine. He administered the painkiller then set to work repairing Jindra's injury. When he'd packed for the trip, he'd taken his usual survival kit made up of several tools of his trade, including some drugs necessary to treat injuries in an emergency situation. He had to admit that this time he'd taken enough drugs to commit suicide, if he'd decided to go through with his plan. Now he was using the drugs to save a life. Perhaps this situation was a hint that killing himself wasn't the answer to his problems. When he'd finished, he cleaned up the area then brought Jindra some of his clothes. It again struck him that he'd carefully packed all his usual items for a camping trip, even though he'd come here to seriously consider taking his life. This told him that in spite of his depression, he wasn't truly ready for suicide. Before offering to help Jindra into the clothes, he inspected several old scars on his sides that had caught his attention earlier. The long age-whitened marks wrapped around Jindra's ribs. "How did you get these?" Parker asked, tracing one of the scars with his fingertip. Jindra's muscles rippled beneath Parker's touch and he said, "I'd rather not talk about it." Parker nodded and helped him dress then went to pitch the half tent. At least that would give Jindra some protection while he traveled back down the mountain to get help. Once the shelter was up, he returned to his patient who appeared deeply asleep, probably from the stress of the injury combined with the drugs. Parker had given him shorts, socks and a shirt. In his line of work, few things shocked him, but he had to admit he was curious about Jindra's reason for running naked around the mountainside. He knelt beside Jindra and studied him carefully. Though he made it a rule not to notice patients in that way, he couldn't help admitting this man was attractive, though unconventional and almost primal. His thick, curly hair hung halfway down his back and his eyelashes were incredibly long. Rather sharp bone structure and a nose that reminded Parker of a bird of prey completed the wild-child look. He also noted Jindra was tall, right around Parker's own height of six feet three inches. They were of a similar build—lean, long-limbed and athletic. Lithe rather than bulky. Just by working on him for a short time, Parker had felt the strength in Jindra's body. For some inexplicable reason he reminded Parker of an injured wild animal. Even the look in his onyx eyes had screamed freedom, yet he'd been well-spoken. This man was a genuine mystery and if Parker had been in a different frame of mind he might have been intrigued. His gaze lingered on Jindra's chest and abs. Sexual desire coiled in Parker's belly and he resisted the urge to touch the man in a completely unprofessional way. His cock swelled so that he nearly had to adjust his jeans. Damn. What was wrong with him? This was a patient. No. Actually he wasn't a patient. Jindra just happened to be an injured guy who was lucky Parker stumbled upon him. Hell, Parker had left medicine and was about to check out of the Hotel Life as well. What difference did it make if he fantasized a little about some stud he'd found practically bleeding to death in the forest? If you want to die then why are you thinking about sex? How depressed can you be? Parker shook his head clear. He was confused. Again. What had happened to him? He was the guy who always knew what to do. Now he was stumbling around like a moron. "Hey, Jindra, wake up." He rested a hand on Jindra's shoulder. It was rock-hard, like the rest of his body seemed to be. Parker's cock throbbed but he willed his desire into submission. Immediately Jindra's eyes opened and gazed into Parker's. "I am awake." "I'm going to get you into my tent then go for help." "No." Jindra grasped Parker's arm hard, his slender fingers biting into the flesh. "The bullet is out, right?" "There was no bullet. It went clean through but you still should be checked out at a hospital." "No. You cleaned and dressed the wound. I'll be fine." Parker narrowed his eyes and tugged away from Jindra's grasp. "What kind of trouble are you in?" "I haven't done anything illegal if that's what you mean." "I mean, why were you running around up here naked? Who shot you? Don't think I'm foolish enough to believe you don't know who did it." A glacial look crept into Jindra's eyes and something told Parker this wasn't the sort of man he wanted as an enemy. The smart thing to do would be to leave and get help, just as he'd planned. For all he knew whoever shot Jindra might still be creeping around. What if he returned to finish the job? Parker relaxed for a moment. At least getting shot by a stranger would beat taking his own life. "I swear I haven't broken the law and I'm not in any trouble," Jindra said. All his experience as well as his common sense told Parker not to believe him but for some strange reason, he did.

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