by Leia Stone
“Let’s have sex in his car,” Brock whispered.
I busted out laughing, pulling back to find Brock grinning.
“You can’t be serious.”
He just winked.
“Oh my God.” Alphas and their need to mark their territory. “Just pee on the seat and get it over with.”
He looked like he was actually considering it and I smacked his chest lightly. “I’m joking, obviously.”
“Text me every hour while you’re gone. If he comes on to you, I have every right to beat him within an inch of his life.”
He was right. The alpha’s girlfriend, mate, fiancée, or wife was not to be touched—in any pack, by any wolf. It was sacred law. The fact that I was pregnant with his child made it even more serious. If Jack tried to kiss me against my will, Brock could kill him and the council would approve.
I gulped. “It‘ll be fine.” I sure as fuck hoped. “We’re going to catch this psycho siren and put that to rest so I can focus on this gate and these Akuma demon overlords that want to take over Earth.”
He stared into my eyes; he wasn’t finished with the intensity yet. “I’ll wrap things up here as fast as I can so I can help you take her down if you need me to.”
Brock and I hunting and working together? Who would be in charge? Sounded messy.
“I’ll be okay,” I said.
Without warning, he wrapped his arms around me and pressed the entirety of my body flush against his. When he brought his lips to mine, my face was already tilted upward, waiting for him.
He kissed me like we were alone and without a large audience, all of whom were undoubtedly watching us through the big window. His hands moved across my back as his tongue merged with mine. I tangled my fingers in his hair and he pulled me even closer, making it plain as day that, if it were up to him, we’d be taking this inside, straight to his bed.
His lips stole the breath from me … until his hands stilled against my waist, and he scattered light kisses across my jaw and the side of my neck.
When the kisses stopped and he rested his chin against my head, I forced myself to get the words out that were so difficult for me to say. Regret was even scarier than the L word. With how our lives had been lately, I wouldn’t risk not telling him what I was now certain I felt.
What I could no longer deny.
Breathless, I pulled back until I met his fiery stare, the one that promised that this kiss was only an appetizer. “I love you too,” I blurted out, my heart pounding.
A slow grin that was the sexiest thing I’d ever seen crept across his face. The dark stubble on his jaw made his amber eyes nearly glow. His lips, cherry red after our kiss, continued to spread until the look was almost predatory. And I was on the menu.
Man, was I a goner. Brock had lured me in, hook, line, and sinker.
11 Motley Crew
Jack crossed his arms over his muscular chest and scowled at me from the passenger seat of my Jeep. With dirty blond hair perpetually in need of a cut, and piercing green eyes, which brought back memories of us between the sheets that I could really do without right now, he stared at me in that way of his that made women yearn to do his bidding.
“Don’t give me that look,” I said. “You could’ve taken your own car.”
“Not if I wanted the chance to get up to date on this case before charging in there balls out and guns blazing.”
Jack always did have a way with words. But despite his colorful language, what he really meant was that he wanted the chance to grill me, and I refused to ride in the back seat of his car, second to Kenzie, his hunting partner and other ex-girlfriend.
The grumbling purr of Tianna’s ‘67 Fastback Mustang signaled that she and Cass, with Molly in the back seat, were ready to head out of here. I turned the engine of the Jeep. “Buckle up,” I said to Jack, because I couldn’t help myself. I knew exactly how he’d react.
His eyes narrowed at me as he yanked the seatbelt down across his body like it was a foe he was forcing to submit to his will.
Kenzie chuckled from the back seat, where she sat next to Haru and Reo. “Show that seatbelt who’s boss, Jacky.”
When Jack swiveled in his seat to give her the look, she simply met his glare with one of her own. I hadn’t been looking forward to seeing Jack or his ex, but anyone who could give the fierce Jack Randone shit and not flinch was okay in my book. They’d dated right after we split up when they were assigned as partners.
Rule number two in bounty hunting: never date your partner.
They’d broken up since then but were stuck hunting together. Sucked for Kenzie, I was sure.
I backed out and eased behind Tianna, who didn’t seem to understand the meaning of slow driving as she whipped around the corner onto the long drive out going twice too fast. Tires squealed and Haru whistled from the back seat. “At least she knows how to handle that beauty.”
I flicked my eyes to the rearview mirror. “I didn’t peg you for a car enthusiast.”
“I’m not,” he said, “but that’s no ‘car.’ That’s a thing of pure magnificence.”
Reo nodded his head in agreement. Well, the brothers never ceased to surprise.
“Who the hell are those two, anyway?” Jack asked. He’d never had much use for finesse.
Apparently he hadn’t changed much in the couple of years since we dated. I still remembered the night I called it quits and walked away, swearing to never get involved with a werewolf again. I’d finally had enough of Jack’s shit. Jack always put Jack first and Gran taught me better than to accept a man that did that.
I tossed an uncertain glance toward the Japanese warriors flanking Kenzie. There hadn’t been a chance to confer before we left. Either Jack or Kenzie had been around at all times, and the last thing I’d wanted was to make Jack suspicious. Behind the gruff don’t-give-a-shit appearance was one of the better bounty hunters the Agency had. He didn’t miss much, and I wasn’t ready to unload my kitsune shit on him yet.
Haru and Reo met my gaze but didn’t offer any guidance. How I handled this was entirely on me.
“They’re my protectors,” I finally said, because Jack could sniff out a lie with the best of them. I had to offer him at least some of the truth or he wouldn’t buy it. Besides, he knew me. We’d been together long enough for him to learn all my tells.
“And what are they supposed to protect you from?” he asked, eyes sweeping all over me, making me jumpy.
From ex-boyfriend werewolves like you who obviously aren’t as over things as I’d hoped. Why was he all up in my business?
I pinned my eyes on Tianna’s taillights and feigned nonchalance. “Funny story. It turns out that my dad is actually alive. He sent them to watch out for me after hearing about the siren attack.” I shrugged, hoping the shock factor of my news would be enough to distract Jack. “He probably feels guilty for having been a no-show in my life for so long.”
Jack whistled. “Damn, Evie. That’s some serious shit right there. He’s alive? After all this time?”
My shoulders softened a bit. Jack and I had been good friends before we’d let it go further, messing up everything. “Yeah, can you believe it? I only just found out. I haven’t even met him yet.”
Jack turned to stare ahead. “Wow. That’s really nuts.”
I nodded. “Sure as hell is. So Haru and Reo are here to watch my back while we track down this siren. They know what they’re doing. They won’t get in the way.”
Jack turned in his seat and checked them out. Finally, he gave them an appreciative nod.
“So what’s the deal with Cass?” Jack said. “His girl called him a snickerdoodle. Has he gone soft or something?”
“Actually, she called him her shnookum, and hell no he hasn’t gone soft. Would you like me to tell him you asked about him, though?” I said with a wicked smile.
Cass would kick his ass for even asking the question.
“You can’t entirely blame me for asking,” Jack said. “I show up and her
e you are playing house with the local alpha. And Cass has some giant roller-derby looking chick fawning all over him. It’s ... weird.”
I noticed Kenzie’s attention on me from the back and flicked my gaze toward her. When I smiled a bit at her, she shook her head and rolled her eyes as if to say, “Jack hasn’t changed a bit.”
What did I ever see in this asshole? Oh yeah, he was hot as fuck, and the sheets sizzled when we rolled in them.
“I mean, you’re knocked up,” Jack said. “How’d that happen?”
“You need me to explain the birds and the bees to you?” I said, because his serious questions were making me want to slam on the brakes, jump out of the car, and run away.
“Nah, I remember the steps to getting you there pretty damn well.” He winked.
Dick.
I hissed. “Jack,” I scolded. “Your ex-girlfriend is in the car.” And I was extremely not single.
“Keyword, ex,” Kenzie said in a tight voice, but surely she didn’t expect him to think before he spoke. That wasn’t his way.
I hurried to change the subject. “Did Mack fill you guys in on what’s been going on with Calista?”
“Not really,” Jack offered. “We just got the regular ol’ case file. It doesn’t say much beyond that this siren is a real bitch.”
I wiggled in my seat. “She’s definitely that, but it gets more complicated.”
Kenzie leaned forward in between our seats. Jack was the one with the reputation for bringing difficult perps in at the Agency, but Kenzie could hold her own too. She had to be good at her job for Mack to send her out, especially since she was a human.
Sighing, I filled them in, leaving out only the bits about the teeny-tiny little inconvenient broken gate to the underworld. You know, that thing. I wasn’t ready to deal with the shit show that would inevitably arrive when they found out about it. I was going to try to keep it on the DL for as long as possible.
“That sure is complicated,” Kenzie said when I’d finished. “So if this one triplet, Calista, is loose, and the other is in lockup, where’s the third?”
I flicked a nervous glance at Haru and Reo, whose faces were masks that didn’t reveal a single secret.
“I’m not sure where the third one is,” I said, and that was the truth. We had theories, but no way of verifying that the third siren was still trapped in the underworld like legend said.
“Could the third one be working together with this Calista? Is there any chance that we’ll be heading into a trap of some sort?” Jack asked.
“There’s always that chance in our line of work, Jack, you know that. All we know for sure is that Calista is as mean as they get, she has two sisters out there, and she’s far more powerful than any normal siren. And like I said before, we think she’s gotta be working with a witch.”
He nodded. “That’d make sense with the soul and youth stealing. Witches love that shit.”
Was that a dig at my people? Gran would’ve smacked him upside the head for a comment like that.
“Do you have any idea what witch she’s working with?” Kenzie asked, more diplomatically.
“No. But whoever she is, she knows what she’s doing. Calista has tripled in power since Cass and I first captured her and her sister.”
“All right,” Jack said. “So tell us about this gym we’re heading to.”
“Typical gym from what Molly could tell.”
“And Molly is your purple-haired apprentice?” he asked.
“Hm-hmm. Apparently every single one of the vics were members of the same gym, one of those upscale places with a spa and pool and everything.”
“A pool,” Jack repeated. “That doesn’t bode well.”
“No, it doesn’t, especially not since the last time we tried to apprehend her there was a pool there too, and she used the water from it to trap me in a huge water bubble. I couldn’t breathe. It was bad.”
Jack snapped his head to me. “How bad?” His entire posture screamed protectiveness.
“Really bad,” I said. Jack’s eyes grew stormy and I rushed to continue. “She’s able to control the water to a greater degree than other sirens. She can shape and direct it in huge quantities. Keep sharp while we’re out there.”
Jack pointed up ahead. “Is that the place?”
My gaze swept over the sign. “Yep, that’s the one.”
“Damn,” Kenzie said. “It’s ritzy, huh?”
She could say that again. It looked more like a five-star hotel than a gym.
I followed Tianna’s cherry red Mustang into the parking lot of a medical complex, which was right next to the gym, and took the spot next to hers. The second we hopped out of the car, Tianna started flashing orange magical light at us.
“Whoa!” Jack put up his hands. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Tianna didn’t stop and she didn’t answer.
Cass flew right up to Jack’s face. “My woman is doing you a favor. She’s casting a cloaking spell over us so no one sees our motley crew armed to the teeth heading toward that fancy gym.”
“All right. That’s good, then,” Jack said, looking a bit unnerved.
“You bet your tight ass it is,” Cass snapped.
Cass was all attitude, but Jack’s face lit up in a grin. “It’s good to see you, Cass. It’s been a long while.”
“Yeah, it has. I guess it’s good to see you too.” Cass looked to me with a bit of worry marring his mug.
‘You okay with this?’ he asked me.
‘Yeah, I think so. You two used to be friends. Sort of. So let’s all just try to get along.’
Cass nodded. ‘If at any time you decide it isn’t all right and you want me to kick his ass, just say the word.’
I grinned, and from the way Jack was looking at the two of us, it was clear he realized we were doing our telepathic thing.
“Get your shit together, people,” Tianna said. “We’re all going to need to be at our best when we head in there. I can feel the siren. She’s definitely here.”
The siren was here now? The hairs on the back of my neck stood up at attention.
“And I had a little chat with Willemena before she left,” Tianna continued. “She has some ideas about what witch we might be dealing with.”
En masse, we leaned toward the towering fae-witch.
“She says there are only three witches anywhere near this area capable of augmenting a siren’s magic like this. She believes it’s either Char of the Northwestern Coven, Saharan from Washington, or Darlene from the California rogue witches.”
None of us said a word for a few beats. “Why do y’all look like someone just stole your ice cream cones?” Molly asked.
“Because those witches are on the most wanted bounty list,” Cass said. “If we’re up against one of them … we’re fucked.”
“They’re as bad as they get,” Tianna agreed. “They play for whichever side offers them the greater reward.”
“And they have the skills to demand their price,” Kenzie added.
“I thought Mack sending reinforcements was overkill,” I said.
“And now you’re worried we might need more?” Jack asked. “Don’t worry, Evie. I won’t let anything happen to you.” He winked again.
‘I see he hasn’t changed a bit,’ Cass said.
Kenzie cast a murderous look at Jack. “Can you stop thinking with your dick for one second?”
“What? She’s pregnant, for crying out loud. I won’t let anything bad happen to you either. Don’t worry.”
Kenzie just rolled her eyes. “Just be my hunting partner and keep it at that. I don’t need saving.”
God, what a nightmare it would be to work with your ex. There was a reason the number two rule was to never date your partner. This was the kind of shit that happened when you did.
“We’ll protect Evie,” Reo said to Jack. “You don’t need to worry about her.” He and Haru stood shoulder to shoulder, the only ones not to look the least bit worrie
d at the roster of witches we might be dealing with in addition to a murderous siren.
“Let’s go,” Tianna called. “No one will notice us approaching as long as you don’t touch anyone.”
I needed to learn this concealment spell. It sounded badass.
“Do you think Calista knows we’re coming?” Kenzie asked.
“She might. I wouldn’t put it past her,” I said.
She could be lying in wait for all we knew. I’d never wanted to nab a perp so badly.
“Do you feel any dark witch magic?” Tianna asked me, her eyes lit up with curiosity, and I realized I was still in training.
Closing my eyes, I took in a deep breath and let my magic filter out like little fingers, brushing up against the various energy strands inside of the gym, just as Tianna had taught me. When I felt a sickly, heavy energy, I recoiled and snapped my eyes open.
“I feel a dark magic and bad intentions ringing throughout my bones. The witch is most definitely inside,” I said.
Tianna considered me with approval in her gaze. “Yes, I think she is too. I think the siren and the witch are waiting for us.”
Fuck. Now I was glad we’d brought such a big crew.
“So does she know we’re coming?” Molly asked, starting out toward the entrance with the rest of us.
“I’m not sure about that,” Tianna replied. “But she might, because she’s in the most powerful place of all for her right now.”
“The pool,” Cass guessed.
“Bingo, sugar plum.”
“Great. She’s got a gazillion gallons of water at her disposal. Everyone, make sure to keep your heads above water, literally.” I patted the katana slung across my back, then my gun just to make sure, while Cass unzipped his fanny pack and passed me a few of Gran’s magic vials.
“Once we have eyes on her,” Jack said, “we’ll surround her and come in hard. Let’s take her down before she has the chance to cause too much trouble.”
But one look at my companions told me they were thinking the exact same thing I was. There was a fat chance in hell that this siren was going down without a fight. Even if she wasn’t ready for us, she’d throw everything she had at us the moment she spotted us.
