“I take it this was a good long night?” Bryce said.
“Really good.”
“He was good to you?”
I hated that I couldn’t keep myself from smiling like a lovesick idiot. “He was the best because he listened to what I wanted, and he only hurt me the way I like.”
Bryce growled.
“Calm down. You know I’m a submissive. Our family runs a fucking kink club.”
Bryce blew out a long breath. “I know. It’s just… It’s you.”
“Can’t you be happy for me?”
He laid a hand on my shoulder and smiled. “I am happy for you, and you look really good. You must have needed this.”
“I did.”
“So are you seeing him again? I expect an introduction next time.”
“If I introduced you, that would mean the end of things since you, King, and Garrett would scare him off.”
Bryce huffed.
“It doesn’t matter though. He was only in town temporarily.”
“Aww. That’s too bad.”
I decided not to explain that there was a chance he’d be moving here. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, and my brothers didn’t need to know all my business.
Bryce’s phone buzzed, and he frowned at it.
“It’s King, isn’t it?”
“Yes. He said I better drag your ass home so we can sit you down and make sure this never happens again.”
“Of course he did. I’m not sorry I wanted a night on my own. I deserved that. I’m a fucking grown-up. A grown-up who helps run multiple lucrative businesses, but I get why you were scared this morning. I would never have done that on purpose.”
Bryce pulled me into a tight hug, and I drew in his comforting scent. “I know. I’m just glad you’re all right, but King and Garrett probably aren’t going to accept your explanation that easily, and Shadow was terrified. He was pacing around the house growling and barking. He clearly wanted to go with me to search for you, but he refused to change into human form.”
I felt the worst about scaring Shadow. All my brothers loved me and would do anything for me—except give me the freedom I desired. But Shadow was still working to overcome his past, and stress like this wouldn’t help. “Does he know I’m all right? Is he with King?”
“He’s with Garrett, and I texted them too.”
“So now everyone is going to drop what they’re doing and have a yell-at-Storm session?”
Bryce grinned. “Pretty much. Yeah.”
“And none of you have more pressing business than this?”
“Do you honestly think King’s going to be able to concentrate on anything until he manages this?”
“No. Just let me finish getting dressed and grab my stuff, and we’ll get this over with.”
“I’ll try to sneak you upstairs so you can shower and change. It would be best if we didn’t have this conversation with you smelling like your lover from last night.”
I thought about the things Jax and I had done in the middle of the night. When I took a deep breath, I smelled our mingled sweat and cum. I was so not going home like this. “Damn. I wish I had a change of clothes here.”
“I can run and get you something while you shower,” Bryce offered.
“You’d do that?”
“Of course. There are a couple of shops just down the street. I’m sure I can find something for you.” He looked me up and down. “What size are you?”
I told him and tossed him the room key.
“Get cleaned up, and I’ll be back soon.”
For once, I didn’t mind him ordering me around. “Thanks, Bryce.”
“I’ve always been the easy one to convince. The rest of your morning will suck, so this is the least I can do.”
Even as little kids, Bryce had been the most easygoing of us, and he was happy to do even the smallest thing to thwart King.
He was right. This morning was going to suck. I was not looking forward to dealing with the rest of my brothers. If they were just being overprotective assholes as usual, I’d tell them off, but this time, I’d actually been irresponsible. I’d worked so hard to prove that I could make my own choices, that I didn’t need anyone looking after me, and now I’d fucked up and scared them all. At least I could have a few blissful moments of peace under the warm shower spray before I had to face the music.
When Bryce and I arrived back at the Howler family estate, the rest of my brothers were already gathered. The only one of my siblings who was missing was my sister, Lacey. She’d found her mate a few years ago—a tiger shifter to King’s horror—and moved away with him.
King exploded at me the second we entered the living room. “What the hell were you thinking?”
“That I deserved a chance to go out with someone you hadn’t vetted.”
King pointed to the couch where Shadow was curled up in wolf form. Bryce and I sat down, and I stroked my younger brother’s soft fur. He laid his head in my lap as King paced in front of us. “When were you going to bother to turn back up? You do have a job and responsibilities.”
I blew out a long breath and raked my hand through my hair. I needed to be mature and apologize for scaring them, but King’s attitude made me want to defend myself and tell him none of this would’ve happened if he treated me like an adult.
My wolf snarled, wanting to be free, and I could feel King’s wolf spoiling for a fight as well. His eyes had shifted, and he’d squeezed his hands into fists, likely to keep them in human form. As invigorating as it might be in the moment, I would never beat King in a physical fight, and we’d both wind up sore and tired and just as angry as when we’d started.
So I had to stay calm. It always fell to me to be the voice of reason, even when I was the one who fucked up.
“I’m sorry for scaring all of you this morning. I turned my phone off last night when I left the club, and I should’ve turned it back on before I fell asleep. That’s on me. It’s not something I’ve done before, and I don’t plan to make that mistake again. Can we move on now? I’d like to hear about the interview and get started on the rest of my work for the day.”
“Nice try,” Garrett said. “You’re not getting out of this that easily, but we have a compromise to propose.”
My brothers’ idea of a compromise usually meant me agreeing to whatever they said. “A compromise on what?”
“You having the freedom to run off and fuck whoever you please,” King said.
I growled. “Why should you have more freedom to do that than I do?”
“Because I…” Even my obnoxious, arrogant, I’m-in-charge-of-everything older brother didn’t have the nerve to try to justify that. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“I know how to take care of myself. I don’t play with people who haven’t already proven they’re trustworthy.” As soon as I said those words, I regretted it, because while that had been true in the past, I’d trusted my instincts with Jax. They’d been right, of course, but I hadn’t known anything about him when I’d left the club with him.
King ran a hand through his hair. “I know.”
“What about last night?” Garrett said. “How did you know the man you left with was trustworthy? Was he someone we know?”
Damn him for being so perceptive. “I don’t have to confine myself to only going out with men you know.”
“You didn’t answer the question.” Garrett pointed out. “How did you know he’s trustworthy?”
“I took a fucking risk for once. My wolf liked him, and nothing about him set off even a hint of wariness. Can we just get back to this compromise?”
King snarled. “I still don’t like this.”
Shadow lunged toward him, growling, and I tried to hold him back, stroking his sides.
King actually looked contrite. “I’m sorry, Shadow. You’ve already told me I’m being an ass.”
“You are, you know?” I said. “I was in the wrong this morning, but you have to trust that I’m not as fragile a
s you think I am.” Why couldn’t they trust me like Jax had?
Garrett petted Shadow as he caught my gaze. “It’s not easy when we have so many enemies.”
King stepped forward and took my hands in his. “I know how capable you are, how strong you are. Without your ability to manage things, I could never have accomplished all I have since our father died. I value you, and I love you, so I don’t want to see you hurt.”
He was sincere. I could feel it and see it in his eyes.
I almost told him everything was fine and he could keep on being his arrogant, overprotective self, but the way he treated me really wasn’t okay. “You know I love you too, no matter how frustrated I am with you, or with any of you.” I glanced around. Shadow nuzzled me. Garrett nodded. He wasn’t one for emotional displays, but I knew he loved me as much as the rest of my brothers.
Bryce laid a hand on my back. “I don’t know what we’d do without you.”
“Thank you all, but I still haven’t heard about this compromise.”
King let my hands go and glanced at Garrett, who gave him a pointed look. “You can go out with whoever you want without us interrogating you if you take one of our guards with you.”
I bristled. “None of you take a guard with you.”
“Shadow is with a guard or one of us anytime he leaves the house,” King pointed out.
“That’s different.”
“It is, and it isn’t,” Garrett said. “You’re more vulnerable than us, Storm. It’s simply true, and the other shifter families know it. They also know how much we love you, so by striking at you, they would devastate us.”
I exhaled. He was right, but I didn’t have to like it. Was I willing to make this bargain? It wasn’t what I wanted—the same freedom as my alpha brothers—but it was better than what I had now, and far more reasonable than I expected from King. The guards wouldn’t interfere in what I was doing, and I could take a few more risks, knowing they were there watching out for me.
“Fine. I accept the compromise.”
Bryce smiled. “This worked out better than I expected.”
Neither Garrett nor King looked pleased with the situation. But they’d offered it, so now they were stuck with it. One thing I did know about my brothers: they would never go back on their word.
“I would prefer one of the newer guards though. It would be too awkward to have a hookup while one of the men who’ve been with us since I was a kid was potentially listening in.”
King shuddered. “They are not going to listen, but I’ve already planned to assign you the guard we hired this morning. It would’ve been nice if you’d been here to meet him and give your opinion, but we all liked him. He has a military background, and he answered all our questions in a straightforward manner, never trying to pretend he was anything he wasn’t.”
“He was the perfect candidate,” Garrett agreed.
Shadow whined and rubbed himself against me.
“I asked Shadow to come to the interview since you weren’t here,” Garrett explained.
“And?” I looked at my younger brother.
Shadow raised his snout, telling me he agreed with their assessment.
When King mentioned a military background, all I’d been able to think of was Jax. If only he were the one who’d be following me around. My phone had buzzed several times while I’d talked to my brothers, but I wasn’t ready to check it yet. I wanted there to be a message from Jax so badly that I was afraid to look.
“When does he start?”
“Tomorrow,” Bryce said. “We explained that we needed someone right away. He said he could work the rest of the week, but then he’d need to have a few days to gather his things and move.”
“So I can meet with him in the morning?”
“That’s right. And if you were to need anyone tonight—” King’s growl cut Bryce off.
“Tonight we will all be having dinner together,” my oldest brother declared.
I wanted to protest just on principle, but I made the mature choice. “I’ll be here for our weekly dinner. I don’t have any plans tonight.”
“Damn right you don’t,” King said. He may have given a little, but he was still King. Would he ever stop treating me like a kid? “Now if we’re done with all this nonsense, there’s work to do.”
“Shall I accompany you to the club?” I asked. King glared at me for a moment. “Or would you rather lock me in my room here so you’ll be sure you know where I am?”
Garrett studied me. “That’s not a bad thought.”
I scowled at him. “That was a joke.”
“Let’s go,” King snarled, and I followed him out the door.
6
Jax
As I got ready to start my first day at my new job, all I could think about was seeing Storm again. After my interview had gone surprisingly well, Mr. Howler had offered me the job on the spot.
I’d gone into the interview unsure about working as a bodyguard for the Howlers because what I had learned about them made them seem cold and ruthless, but I’d seen a group of brothers who cared about each other and wanted to make things better for the shifters in their city. They were exactly the sort of people I wanted to work for. Being around them made me miss my old unit even more than I had been already. I had no family to speak of, and I wondered if I truly felt a part of something again.
I wasn’t sure personal security was where I wanted to be, but I didn’t have to do this forever. Working for the Howlers would give me the focus I’d been needing, and a chance to continue what I’d started with Storm. I’d told myself I’d dig up anything I could find on the family, but when they’d made the offer, I couldn’t turn down the chance to see him again. I knew better than to make life decisions based on one night together—one amazing, eye-opening night—but I’d thought of him almost constantly since I’d left him the day before. As soon as I’d left the Howler estate, I’d texted him to let him know I’d not only taken the job but would be staying in town for the rest of the week because my new employer wanted me to start immediately. We’d agreed to meet for dinner once I was done with work for the day.
I’d come close to missing out on the opportunity altogether. I hadn’t remembered to set my alarm until I’d been drifting off to sleep sometime in the early hours of the morning after round three—or was it four?—with Storm. He was so damn insatiable, but I’d finally exhausted him. He hadn’t even stirred when my alarm had gone off. I’d debated waking him, but after everything we’d done, he had needed to rest. Since he was a shifter, his ass would heal quickly, but he needed rest for that healing to take place.
And I had to admit, it was easier to make my exit while he slept because I hadn’t wanted to say goodbye. I’d found a notepad and pen on the hotel desk and managed to compose a note after two false starts. It wasn’t like me to overthink things like that, but I wanted everything I did for Storm to be perfect.
My wolf had urged me to stay, but I’d needed to get back to my friend’s house and change before my interview. Walking away from Storm had been physically painful, but I didn’t want to think too hard about what that meant because I needed to focus on making a good impression for my first day. I’d been hired with a one-month probationary period, and I intended to wow my employers. I’d trained for years to learn single-minded focus, and I couldn’t remember the last time it had been this hard to achieve. But if I could ignore what was going on around me in a war zone, surely I could stop thinking about how badly I wanted to bury myself in Storm again and just do my fucking job.
I finished trimming my beard and checked my appearance in the mirror one last time. Clean. Neat. Well put-together.
The drive to the Howlers’ estate took about thirty minutes in traffic. Hopefully I’d be able to find some place closer, but from the search I’d done the night before, anything closer was going to be way out of my price range. The salary they offered me was quite generous, so while I might have to live further out to start with, I’d be a
ble to build up some savings, assuming I liked the job and they were satisfied with my performance. They would be because I was damn good at keeping people safe.
The Howlers’ butler, Arthur, let me in and showed me to King’s office. When I stepped inside, I froze.
Storm was there.
His eyes widened when I came in, and even though he’d schooled his face quickly, King had noticed. “Do you two know each other?”
My mind spun trying to figure out what was going on, but I kept my face impassive. I wouldn’t reveal anything about what had happened between me and Storm, especially considering I was now fairly certain Storm was one of the Howler brothers I hadn’t met. I’d been trying so hard to keep from thinking about him during my interview, and their resemblance wasn’t particularly noticeable. Seeing Storm and King side by side, though, I could tell they had the same eyes and the same shape to their mouths, even if otherwise, Storm was soft where King was hard lines of determination.
If Storm was related to King and Garrett, one of the other brothers I’d met, no wonder he felt smothered by them. A few seconds with King and I’d pegged him as a control freak. I could easily imagine him thinking it was his job to keep Storm safe.
“We met when Jax visited Tooth and Claw the other night,” Storm said, looking right at me and smiling. I could feel his smile as if he were running his hands over me. It looked like this job wasn’t going to work out after all. I couldn’t work for his family and sleep with him, but I wasn’t sure I could resist the temptation of him if I saw him day after day.
“You met him?” King asked, a hard edge to his voice. He knew Storm had spent the night with someone, and it wasn’t going to be hard to figure out that someone was me.
“Yes,” Storm said, refusing to give an inch. Watching him stand up to his brother was hot as hell. If I stayed here, I’d constantly be fighting to keep from walking around with a hard-on.
“I’m sorry. I don’t think this is going to work out. I hadn’t realized I’d be working for someone I know. I appreciate your consideration, but—”
Bodyguard's Bite Page 5
