“Conrad,” he answered without looking to see who was calling. He didn’t want to risk hitting the dipshit now in front of him.
“Fuck, fuck, shit.”
“Gavin?” What did my brother do now?
“Eldon, I need you to come to the clubhouse.” A loud crash rang in the background.
Eldon sighed. It was Sunday. He’d just finished running all his errands, and now, he just wanted to relax before going to work tomorrow. “Gavin, I’m kind of in the middle of something right now,” he lied. “Can we do this later?”
“No. I…I really fucked up. I need your help.”
Eldon pulled his phone away from his face. “Motherfucker,” he cursed with his teeth clenched. He didn’t care if his brother could hear him. He put the phone back to his mouth. “Okay. I will be there in about twenty minutes.”
He hung up the phone, flipped on his blinker, and took the next exit. After making his next turn to the clubhouse, he turned the radio on.
“There’ve been reports of shots fired and a car bomb exploding in a quiet neighborhood in a Minneapolis suburb this morning. At this time, law enforcement has no suspects. There is said to be three victims involved, but the identities of the individuals are unknown at the time.”
A chill went down Eldon’s spine. There was no way his brother could be behind this, yet his gut instinct was telling him that Gavin was responsible.
After Donny had found the video of Demi Cross, the search for information had turned up nothing. No one had seen anything. There were no mysterious deaths or injuries reported. It was as if the incident hadn’t happened. Eldon hadn’t even turned up anything in the police database. That meant that this Demi had friends in high places.
Vance Llewelyn must have protected Demi and the whole shifter community from finding out that shifters existed and that Demi had killed someone in self-defense. To Eldon, this’d just proven that mixed species weren’t a threat to the shifter way of life, but Donny had been furious.
If this attack on the radio was Demi and Gavin was involved, Eldon was sure that Donny was behind it. His brother would never come up with a plan like this on his own.
Of course, Eldon could just be expecting the worst.
As he raced toward the clubhouse, he could only hope his speculation was all wrong.
Kendall woke with a splitting headache and stared up at a water-stained ceiling. She rubbed the back of her head where it hurt the most and encountered a nice-sized bump. She remembered the gunshots, the explosion, and someone picking her up and strangling her until she lost consciousness. But then…
Ah, yes. She’d woken up in the back of a vehicle and gone for the door. The driver must have hit her to knock her out.
She took her time in sitting up on the old and smelly couch she’d been dumped on and looked around.
It appeared to be an office of some sort. Unfortunately, the desk sat empty and free of any computer. She looked to the door and wondered if she was lucky enough that the thing was unlocked.
There were voices coming from the other side of the door, and they were arguing and getting louder. The good news was that her hearing had returned.
She sniffed the air. Her sense of smell wasn’t back to normal yet, but it was better than it had been after the bomb because she smelled the remnants of cat-shifters.
The door swung open, and a dark-haired man stepped through. The sight of him made her catch her breath, but she didn’t understand why. She’d never seen him before in her life.
“Holy shit. What the hell did you do?” He stepped forward toward Kendall.
“It was smoky. I couldn’t see or smell anything. I didn’t know she wasn’t Demi,” a second voice said from outside the door.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. I don’t know what happened, but I’m here to take you home.”
A younger man stepped in. “You can’t do that.” He had lighter hair than the dark-haired man, but they looked similar enough that she guessed they were siblings.
She took a deep breath and realized he was also the guy who had brought her here. Kendall jumped up from the couch and lunged for him, but the dark-haired man stopped her, wrapping her in his arms.
“I know you want to kill him, but that won’t solve anything. I need to get you out of here before anyone else shows up.”
“You can’t take her, Eldon. She’s my proof that I didn’t screw up.”
The man holding her—Eldon—laughed, but it sounded like it was more in disbelief. “I think the fact that you brought a wolf-shifter here is proof that you did screw up.”
The younger man stepped back until he was out the door. He shook his head. “No. We can trade her for the half-human or something. I can’t let you take her.”
“Fuck,” Eldon yelled as he pushed Kendall out of the way and made a beeline for the door.
Unfortunately, it was too late. The door slammed in his face, and she heard the sound of the lock being sprung.
Eldon slammed his fist against the door. “Gavin. Gavin, open this door right now!”
“No. I’m calling Donny.”
The echo of footsteps retreated, and Eldon turned around. He slammed his head against the door in frustration. “I don’t suppose you’ve found a way to get out of here?”
She shook her head. “I just woke up before you arrived. I don’t suppose you have a cell phone in your pocket?”
“I left it in my vehicle.” He pushed himself away from the door. “Well then, we’d better figure out what we’re going to do because we can’t stay here.”
The brunette wolf-shifter crossed her arms over her chest. “And why should I trust you? Your brother—he is your brother, I presume—shot at my friends, blew up one of their cars, and kidnapped me.”
Eldon forced himself to look up from her chest where her arms pushed her breasts out. Despite the dire situation, his hormones were surging, and he was this close to getting a hard-on. It was not like him.
Yes, the female in front of him was attractive, but she was far from the first pretty woman he’d crossed paths with.
“My name is Eldon Conrad. Yes, that fucking idiot out there is my brother, Gavin.” He moved further into the room just in case Gavin was eavesdropping. “He got involved with the wrong group of people, and I’ve been trying to pull him out for months now.”
The female lifted her brow. “I think you’ve failed.”
Eldon laughed and sat down on the couch. “Miserably.” He looked up at the female. “But I want you to know I don’t condone his actions. I’m a detective with the Minneapolis Police Department, and I just wanted to get my brother free.”
“Why didn’t you tell your alpha about them?”
“Because, believe it or not, before today, I never saw them break any laws. It’s all been talk. They haven’t done anything illegal in the eyes of human or shifter law. I don’t know Vance Llewelyn personally, but I don’t believe he would break up a group just because of their beliefs because then, where do you draw the line? Freedom of speech and all that.”
He tilted his head to the side. “I don’t suppose you’re going to tell me who you are?”
The female held out her hand. “Kendall Walker. Wolf-shifter sentinel, ambassador to the cat-shifters.”
“Ambassador?”
She shrugged. “Not really. It’s more like a liaison program. I’m living with the cat-shifters to help build a better bond between our two species and to help us work together.”
“That would explain why you’re here and not Demi Cross.”
“Yeah. I was on protective duty. You’re not the only failure in the room.”
Eldon smiled and greeted her with a handshake. Static electricity shot up his arm, and his almost hard-on was now official.
He pulled his arm away and shook the feeling out of his hand. “Fuck. I don’t know what it is, but I am suddenly…”
“Horny?” Kendall supplied.
“Well…yeah.”
“That’s because I
’m about to go into heat.”
“Great. And here I thought, the situation couldn’t get any worse.”
Chapter 25
Saxon led Demi and Siya into the house.
“With us staying here, will we still be able to go to work?” Siya asked.
Saxon mulled it over in his head. “It’ll be up to Vance, but I don’t see why not. Someone will have to take you back and forth, of course.”
“I wonder if this is what prison feels like,” Demi commented.
“Probably,” Saxon said. If she was going to be sarcastic, he was, too.
“Seeing as it was my lawn that was shot up and my car that exploded, I’m more than happy to stay here. And, since I don’t have a vehicle, I’ll take any ride that is offered to me.”
Demi winced. “I’m sorry. It’s my fault you’re in this situation. I’m being insensitive.”
Siya shrugged. “I get it. After living with your grandmother, you want your freedom. It’s understandable.”
“Man, she’s got you pegged,” Saxon said to Demi.
“Yeah, she minored in psychology.”
Saxon walked them to the hallway and stopped in front of Ram’s room. “You can stay in Ram’s room, Siya.”
“Isn’t that kind of weird?” she asked.
“No. He’s in charge of your protection.”
“Does he know this?”
Saxon grinned. “He will when he wakes up. But feel free to tell him now.”
“I think I’ll wait.” Siya opened the bedroom door and stepped inside.
Saxon took Demi’s hand and led her down to his room. Camden was sitting against his headboard with a book on his lap. He looked up when they entered.
“I’m kicking you out,” Saxon told the younger shifter.
“And where am I going to sleep?”
“You can take Kendall’s room until she gets back. She has two beds.”
“Why don’t you take Kendall’s room?”
“Because it would be insensitive to have sex in her room when she’s been abducted.”
“You could just not have sex,” Camden offered.
“Or you could just go and stay in there for the time being,” Saxon countered. “Don’t forget who’s been a sentinel longer.”
Camden rolled his eyes. “Fine.” He set his feet on the floor. “But you owe me.”
“Whatever.”
Camden took a bag out of his closet and loaded up some clothes and personal items before taking it across the hall.
“You can set your stuff on Camden’s bed,” Saxon told Demi.
“What if I want to sleep there instead?”
Saxon bit back a smile, keeping his face straight. She’d made several comments like that all day, as if she wasn’t going to be spending the night in his bed with her thighs spread for him. “Go for it. You might want to wash the sheets first though. Camden’s been known to sweat.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Gross.”
Saxon laughed, and Camden stuck his head back in the room. “It’s all lies.” He smiled at Demi. “You’re more than welcome to sleep in my bed.”
Saxon narrowed his eyes and growled.
Camden laughed and left the room.
Saxon turned to Demi to see she had a huge grin on her face.
“What?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
He stared her down, but she just laughed.
“Come on,” she said. “I need some food. Siya and I never made it to brunch.”
Ram woke and rolled over on his bed, immediately sensing two things. The sun was still up, and someone else was in his room with him.
He moved from his bed to look at the usually empty one in his room to see a sleeping Siya there. He’d already known it was her since some of her blood still ran through his body.
He sat next to her and ran his finger down her cheek. She smiled before her eyes slowly opened.
Her body stiffened when she first saw him but relaxed when she must have recognized him. Despite the blackout curtains in his room, there was plenty of light to make out faces.
“What are you doing here?”
She pushed herself into a sitting position and yawned. “Someone shot at Demi and me this morning and blew up my car. And then they kidnapped Kendall.”
Ram had to process her words for a second. “Are you fucking serious? How long did I fucking sleep?”
He looked at his clock. He’d only been sleeping for about five hours, not that he needed much more than that.
“Yeah,” Siya answered. “Saxon is convinced it was the Donald Wright guy. He’s probably right. He thinks that my house and car were targeted because someone was always watching Demi.”
“Someone should have been watching you, too.”
She shrugged. “Maybe. I mean, they wouldn’t have gone after me if I weren’t friends with Demi. I’m not the important one in this scenario.”
Ram frowned. “That’s not true.”
Siya laughed. “I’m glad you think so because Saxon said you’re in charge of me.”
Ram grinned.
“I mean, in charge of my safety,” she clarified.
He shrugged. The two things weren’t that different in meaning.
“Are you okay with that?” she asked.
“Of course. It’s my job. I’ve had much worse assignments.”
“You’re going to be bored.”
“We’ll see.”
“Also, Saxon told me that I was supposed to stay in here. Is that okay? Is that weird?”
“Not at all. It’ll be easier to keep you safe when you’re sleeping.” Plus, for some reason he couldn’t decipher, he liked having the human around. He didn’t usually care much for their species, but he liked this one. “Although, we’ll be sleeping opposite times. As much as I’d like to go out in the sun, it drains me of energy.”
“You’re in luck. I work nights this week at the hospital, but someone else will still need to come and pick me up in the morning since I get off at six thirty. And, next week, I work evenings—two in the afternoon until ten thirty—so you can pick me up from work.” She tilted her head. “If we’re still here, that is.”
“We’ll worry about that later. Do you work tonight?”
“Yes. That’s why I was trying to get in a nap.” She ran her hands through her hair. “It’s strange. When I was sleeping, I almost forgot about everything that had happened, but waking up and seeing you brought it all back.”
“Maybe you should call into work.”
“No. I’d rather keep busy.” She smiled. “Besides, now, I have to pay for a new car. I should start picking up overtime.”
“Don’t you have insurance?”
“Yes, but it’ll only pay for so much.”
“You know that the cat-shifters will probably cover the rest. This is not something that you brought upon yourself.”
She shook her head. “I can’t ask them to do that.”
She wouldn’t have to ask. They would just do it. But she’d find that out for herself.
“I suppose we should get up and see what else I missed today.” Ram stood and stretched his muscles.
When he looked back at Siya, she was admiring his chest. He did a few more stretches that weren’t needed just to give her more time to watch him. He liked her eyes on him.
She’d just better not look too low, or she would see the erection threatening to escape his boxers now that he’d seen her staring and smelled her arousal.
She didn’t realize it yet, but she was going to end up in his bed, and when she did, it was going to be so good.
Something in Ram told him to take it slow with her and not to rush anything, so he was taking his time. With most women, he’d have already fucked them several times. Siya didn’t realize how special she was.
Ram turned from her to go to his dresser. He found a T-shirt and clean shorts, which he threw on the bed. Then, he dropped his underwear and kicked them into his dirty-laundry pile in
the closet.
Siya made a noise behind him, and he looked over his shoulder.
“You okay?”
She swallowed, and her eyes moved up from his naked ass. “Um…yeah, sure.”
He looked down as if he’d just noticed that he didn’t have clothes on. “Sorry about that. I’m used to living with shifters. They take their clothes off all the time.”
Siya’s eyes got impossibly bigger.
Ram laughed. “Not, like, all the time. They just take their clothes off to shift. It’s not a nudist event around here or anything.” He reached for his towel and wrapped it around his waist.
“That’s a good thing. I don’t want to lie to my mother any more than I normally have to when she calls me this week.”
“So, you’re not going to be telling her that you’re sleeping in some male’s room?”
“There’re just some things she doesn’t need to know.”
Chapter 26
Demi was half-asleep when a large, callous hand ran across her abdomen. Saxon pulled her leg behind her and over his and pushed his cock inside her.
They both groaned at his entry into her body.
This was Demi’s second morning waking up next to Saxon, and she was amazed at how insatiable he was. But he wasn’t the only one. Demi wanted him inside her as much as possible, and that kind of scared her when she let herself think too much about it.
She wouldn’t get to wake up like this forever, and she didn’t know how long it would last. She wanted to find Kendall and Donald Wright, but she also didn’t want her time with Saxon to end.
Saxon kissed and sucked on her neck as he thrust into her from behind. He hadn’t bitten her again, and she really wanted him to. If she asked him to, would he read too much into it?
There was only one way to find out.
“Bite me,” she commanded.
Saxon lifted his head and paused mid-thrust. “What did you say?”
She looked over her shoulder into his face. Sure, this was one way to scare a guy away, but Saxon wasn’t the sticking-around type anyway.
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