“Uh huh. Should I ask Jax where he took you last night?”
Ignoring his teasing seemed best. “Do you have plans right now? Because I could use your help.”
“My plans involve drinking coffee and eating until I’m awake enough to move.”
“I need you to get moving sooner rather than later. We’ve got a worse problem with Trent than we thought.”
Bryce set his mug down and straightened in his seat. “What do you mean?”
“I’ve been doing some investigating.”
“Does King know?”
I huffed as I joined Bryce at the table. “Of course King doesn’t know. If he did, he would’ve taken over himself or possibly delegated the problem to you or Garrett.”
“If he could find Garrett. He’s hardly been around for the last few weeks.”
I frowned. “Are you worried about him?”
“I wasn’t, but Shadow is uneasy about him, and you know he’s the one Garrett talks to most. He won’t give me any details though.”
“Sounds like we need to investigate that too. But first we have to fix the situation with Trent. King has enough on his mind with the lions. We can take care of this.”
Bryce studied me for a moment. “You did something, didn’t you? Something I’m not going to like?”
“I went on a date with Trent.”
Bryce slammed his hand down on the table. Claws shot from his fingers and dug into the wood. “You what?”
“He’s gotten more defiant about the changes we’ve made at the escort service, and we know something’s not right with the accounting. I realize it isn’t as high a priority as King holding control of the Council, but someone needed to figure out what was going on, and this was the easiest way.”
Bryce’s expression softened and his lips curled up. “It had the advantage of making Jax jealous too, right? Please tell me you took him with you.”
“Yes, I took Jax. I wasn’t going anywhere with Trent without protection.” Bryce didn’t need to know what I’d done after the date.
“So what did you find out?”
I was thankful Bryce wasn’t going to berate me anymore the way King would have. “I don’t know a lot of details, but Trent is hosting private parties with our escorts, involving some of the clients we’ve banned.”
Bryce’s eyes widened. “Did he tell you that?”
“No, he took a phone call during dinner. He didn’t even bother to walk away from the table since he thinks I’m just a pretty boy who doesn’t have a head for business.”
Bryce scoffed. “Sometimes I think you’re the most informed one of us.”
“Tell King that.”
“King trusts you more than you realize. He just wants to keep you safe.”
I rolled my eyes. “He’s an asshole a lot of the time, but I know he cares about me.”
“We all do. And so does Jax. When are you going to do something about the situation with him?”
I sighed. “I think were fated mates, Bryce. At first, before we realized that, Jax didn’t want to risk being with me because it could get him fired, and then he couldn’t protect me.”
“And now?”
“Now, he thinks King will have to accept our relationship because mates can’t be separated.”
“He’s right,” Bryce insisted. “King would never try to keep you from your mate, especially now that he understands how that would feel.”
“I just… I want us to be fully bonded before we tell him because then he really won’t have a choice.”
Bryce took a sip of coffee before responding. “And Jax doesn’t agree?”
“No, he hates sneaking around, and he thinks we should tell everyone first. I just can’t… not now. I want to at least wait until this thing with the lions gets settled.”
Bryce moved around the table and laid his hands on my shoulders. “I won’t say anything, but you can’t keep this a secret for too long.”
“I know. I just… I need to know King won’t take his anger out on Jax.”
“Jax has done an amazing job so far. King might grumble or complain. Garrett will probably say something inappropriate, but they like Jax, and if King can trust him with Emerson, he can trust him with you.”
Before I could respond, Shadow padded into the dining room in wolf form. I wondered how much of our conversation he’d heard. He gave me a pointed look and nuzzled my leg, and I slid my hands into his soft fur. I glanced at Bryce.
“Does Shadow know too? About Jax?”
I knew my youngest brother wouldn’t say anything to King or Garrett.
Shadow made a rumbly sound that I understood as an affirmation.
“He sees a lot more than we realize,” Bryce said
“You’re okay with it?” I asked as I scratched his ears.
Shadow’s snout rose up and down. I expected him to settle against me, but instead, he transformed. “You and Jax belong together. That’s obvious. Also, I want to help you take Trent down.”
Bryce growled. “I don’t want you anywhere near that man.”
Shadow rolled his eyes. “You sound just like King.”
I gave Bryce a look that told him to let me handle this before turning back to Shadow. “Are you sure? If I’m right about the worst of it, things are going to get ugly. Maybe you could —”
“Do you even realize you treat me just like they treat you?” He gestured toward Bryce as though he represented all of our older brothers. “You’re overprotective of me, and you don’t want me to take part in anything. You’d prefer to just keep me locked up here.”
His words hit me like punches to the gut. Was I really as overprotective of Shadow as my older brothers were of me? “I thought you preferred to stay here most of the time.”
“I did at first, but now that I’m ready to do more, no one wants to let me. No one trusts me to know what’s right for myself.”
That was exactly what I’d expressed to Jax. Did this mean I needed to be more understanding about how King treated me? I didn’t like that at all. I might not be able to sympathize with King’s highhandedness, but I was going to try to see Shadow differently. He could be as strong and capable as I was, even if he’d had a lot more trauma in his past. “I’m sorry. I guess I do feel protective toward you like they do toward me.” I glanced at Bryce.
“Hey,” Bryce protested. “I’m the most accommodating of all of us.”
Shadow and I both laughed, but I noticed Shadow was shivering.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
He huffed. “I’m cold. That’s all. You all worry over the littlest thing with me.”
Fuck. Was I really as much of an overprotective prick as my older brothers?
“I’ll grab you some clothes,” Bryce said.
Shadow shrugged. “Just a blanket would be fine.
“Let’s all go to the living room,” I suggested. “We can snuggle on the couch while we make plans.”
With all the uncertainty in my life—my relationship with Jax, the lions scheming against us, and now whatever was going on with Trent—I needed the comforting touch of family. It was something all shifters craved, but it was harder to get now that we no longer lived as packs. I was thankful to have my family close, and I hoped they could accept Jax as one of us.
We settled on the couch, and Bryce pulled a blanket over us. I hadn’t planned to reveal what had happened the night before, but our closeness made me feel safe, and the words spilled out. I told them about sneaking out of the house and going to the casino, about what I’d seen, including Corbin making a run for it. And finally, I confessed to nearly being attacked by a bear shifter.
Bryce growled. “You should never—”
“Trust me. Jax has said everything you’re thinking. I won’t do anything like that again.”
“He’s good for you,” Shadow said.
I squeezed his hand. “I know.”
“I’m just glad he understands how impulsive you can be,” Bryce snarled.
> “What’s your plan now?” Shadow asked, ignoring Bryce’s anger.
“I went through the employee records this morning and found Corbin’s contact information. I tried calling him, but he didn’t answer. Jax is on duty with Emerson, so I was going to see if Bryce would be willing to help me track Corbin down.”
“Great. I’m in,” Shadow said.
Bryce growled. “I don’t think —”
“Shadow being there might help Corbin feel more comfortable.”
Bryce took a long slow breath. “When King finds out about this, he’s going to lose his mind.”
“I asked you to come with me specifically so when King found out he wouldn’t give me a safety lecture,” I explained.
Shadow huffed. “Bryce, you can just stay here if you’re scared of King. We’re perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves.”
“I learned last night that’s not always the case,” I hated to say it, but it was true. “If Jax hadn’t been there as my backup, I might not be here talking to you now.”
Bryce growled.
“Fine.” Shadow said, glaring at Bryce. “You better not tell King or Garrett though.”
Bryce gave a dry laugh. “Trust me, I’m not going to say a damn thing, because I don’t want them exploding at me, but eventually, we’ll have to tell them what’s going on.”
“Once we’ve talked to Corbin, we’ll hopefully have enough information to make a plan to expose Trent,” I said. “That’s when we’ll talk to King.”
Shadow stood from the couch and stretched. “Give us twenty minutes to shower and change, and we’ll go.”
“I really wanted more breakfast and coffee,” Bryce groaned.
Shadow rolled his eyes. “Then eat fast.”
Less than an hour later, we arrived at Corbin’s apartment. I tried calling him again, but his phone went straight to voicemail like it had before. Showing up at his home unannounced would likely alarm him, but I hoped I could convince him we wanted to protect him, not push him into something as bad or worse than Trent had.
We climbed the rusty metal staircase that brought us to the second floor of his building. I felt lucky to have made it to the top without the thing collapsing. Seeing how rundown the building was made me wonder if we needed to reevaluate what we charged for our services and the percent of commission we took. Bryce stayed near the top of the stairs while Shadow and I proceeded on. When we found Corbin’s door, Shadow pressed his ear to it.
“I hear someone moving around,” he whispered.
“Good. Let’s see if it’s Corbin.” I didn’t know if he had a roommate or not, but I hoped we’d get lucky and catch him at home.
I knocked, and a few seconds later, the door opened as much as the security chain would allow. Corbin’s face emerged in the crack. Once again, he was wearing beautifully applied makeup. “Mr. Howler?”
“Yes, but you can call me Storm.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I want to talk to you about the parties Trent has been organizing.”
His eyes went wide, and he ran a hand through his ginger curls. “I… I don’t really know anything about what Trent does.”
“You’re not in any trouble, but I saw you last night when you raced out of a private room at Lucky’s. You looked upset. I’m hoping you’ll be willing to explain what was going on.”
“I… I don’t think… He said that if we talked about it, we—”
“I intend to put a stop to what Trent is doing, but I need more information. If you talk to me and my brothers, you could help everyone who’s involved. I promise you will be protected.”
Corbin frowned. “You’re not alone out there.” I assumed he could smell Shadow and possibly also Bryce.
“You’re right. I’ve got my younger brother, Shadow, and my older brother Bryce. We’re all here to help.” Bryce move toward us, an odd expression on his face.
“I won’t let anything happen to you. I swear it,” he said, his tone far more serious than usual.
Corbin sucked in his breath when he looked toward Bryce, but he didn’t seem intimidated. He seemed intrigued.
“May we come in?” I asked.
“I… That is, I… It’s a mess in here, but I guess so.” He shut the door. I heard the chain slide, and then he opened it again.
Bryce stumbled into me as we started walking into the apartment. I glanced back at him and mouthed, “What’s wrong?”
He just shook his head as he stared at Corbin. I couldn’t really blame him. The young man was beautiful, and he was only wearing a silky purple dressing gown with a lace trim.
Corbin led us through a small living room. There was a basket of unfolded laundry on the sofa, dishes on the coffee table, and teetering piles of books, but it was clean except for the clutter.
When we entered the kitchen, Corbin gestured toward the table, which looked like it was on its last legs. “This is the only place where there’s room for all of us to sit. I’m sorry it’s not much. I’m in school, and my sister begged me for money again. I knew she’d never pay it back, but I gave it to her anyway, and… you don’t want to hear about all that. Would any of you like some coffee? I just made a pot.”
“Yes, please,” I said. Shadow declined, and Corbin turned to Bryce, but my older brother just stared at Corbin like he wanted to devour him. I kicked him under the table.
“Oh… Coffee. Yes. Thank you.” Did he really have to be so obvious? We weren’t here to flirt.
“We’re interested in anything you can tell us about what happened at the casino last night,” I said as Corbin pulled some mugs from a cabinet and poured our coffee.
“Trent’s been hosting these parties for several months. I think some of the men who attend them asked him to set something up for them, but I’m not sure. He invites some of us who work for Shifting Sophistication to entertain at the party, but it’s not like working for you. We’re expected to do anything the men ask of us.” He set our mugs on the table along with a cream pitcher and a sugar bowl.
“Trent also brought in some other escorts, right?” I asked.
“He did, and they’re… Well, I’m not sure how old they actually are, but some of them barely looked fifteen, and some of them are human.”
I bit back a growl. Bryce and Shadow tensed beside me. “When is the next party?”
Corbin frowned. “I don’t know. He doesn’t tell us more than a day ahead of time.”
“What made you leave last night?”
Corbin looked down at his mug and tapped his fingers against it.
Shadow reached out and touched his hand tentatively. “We only want to know so we fully understand what Trent is up to.”
He met Shadow’s gaze. “I know. It’s just… I agreed to these parties to make extra money. I knew they wouldn’t be regulated the way my appointments are when I’m working for you. I thought I could handle that, but last night, these men were taking turns with me, and it just… got to be too much. I pretended to pass out, and they told me to go get some water and then get my ass back to them, but I couldn’t do it. I ran before Trent made me take something.”
My wolf snarled inside. “What kind of something?”
“He encourages us to take stimulants so we’ll be peppier and able to last longer.”
Bryce growled. “This ends now.”
I laid a hand on my brother’s leg. “We will put a stop to this, but if we go charging after Trent and making accusations, he’ll deny everything. Then he’ll go to Bernice and fuck up our relationship with the bear shifters.”
Corbin looked so fucking resigned. Shit. He didn’t know me and how much I cared for the people who worked for my family. I probably sounded calculating and unconcerned to him.
Shadow slid out of his chair and knelt beside Corbin. “When I was sixteen, I got taken in by an asshole who hurt me. Storm, Bryce, and their siblings saved me. They’re good people, and they’re trying to change shifter society for the better, but it isn’t
easy, and their alliances are important. They often have to work around some obstacles, but if they say they’ll put a stop to Trent’s parties, I believe them. You could help us if you wanted to.”
I stared at Shadow in amazement. I knew he was stronger and healthier than he had been a year ago. I knew he loved his new family, and that he understood King’s vision. But hearing him explain the situation to Corbin sent warmth all the way to my toes. I rubbed Shadow’s back as I looked at Corbin. “I’m sorry if I sounded like I didn’t care. I want to protect you and everyone else that works for us. Are all the escorts at these parties willingly, or is Trent coercing people into it?”
“He’s not forcing us, at least not those of us who work for you. He’s luring us with the promise of more money, but so far, he hasn’t given us our cut from a single party. I’ve asked him about the money several times, but he keeps putting me off. I think he plans to keep it all for himself.”
Bryce growled. When I looked over at him, his eyes had gone wolfish.
I clasped his shoulder. “We will stop Trent, but we need to find out who else is involved. We can’t help the humans and teenagers he’s bringing into this if we don’t know all the facts.”
Bryce snarled. “I don’t want to wait.”
He was usually more easygoing than Garrett or King. I wasn’t sure if he was thinking of what happened to Shadow or if the way he’d been watching Corbin was responsible for his fierce reaction.
“I want to help,” Corbin said. “Hopefully, Trent will ask me again even though I snuck out last night. I’m twenty, but I can look younger, and Trent says these men love that.”
Destroy, my wolf demanded. I wanted Trent to pay as much as Bryce did, but Jax had been right the night before, and his advice was still right now. We couldn’t make an impulsive move. We needed all the information we could gather, and we needed a solid plan.
“Corbin, if you’ll let us know when the next party is and agree to go, I’ll come up with the best plan to expose Trent and make him lose his status with the bear shifters. If he’s keeping all the money, he’s probably cheating someone above him just like he’s cheating you. If he’s running this scheme at his aunt’s casino without her knowledge, she won’t hesitate to punish him severely.”
Bodyguard's Bite Page 13
