by Renee Rose
* * *
The orgasm hadn’t diminished her interest in Cody—not in the least. The way he’d taken her had been base and raw—utterly humiliating, and yet the orgasm he’d wrung had been out of this world. Which was why she’d been devastated when, yet again, he’d left her without a word. This time, though, she understood.
Cody wanted her. He wanted to mark her, even, like Ben had marked Ashley, only he apparently thought that would be a terrible idea. Tears stung her eyes.
She spent most of the day catching up on work. She posted photos of a new listing and put together the virtual tour. She called several clients to give them updates and put together comps for a house one of her clients was considering making an offer on.
Only after she’d done everything she needed to do, did she call Ashley for a heart to heart.
“So he won’t have sex with me because he wants to mark me,” she said dully.
“What? Oh, my God! Seriously? He thinks you’re his mate?”
“No! That’s the problem. He definitely doesn’t want me as his mate. So it’s a no-go. Which is fine, really, because he’s a little too much my type, if you know what I mean.”
Ashley paused. “No, actually, I don’t. What are you trying to say?”
“Have you seen the guy? He looks like he could be a mob enforcer or a hitman or something. Covered in tattoos, works as a manual laborer.”
Ashley was silent. “Did you just say works as a manual laborer?”
“I don’t mean to sound snobby. I have nothing against blue collar work—obviously. I still work in a bar to make ends meet and every guy I’ve dated has had a menial job. It’s just… I’d decided it was time for an upgrade. I want to date a normal, professional guy this time. Not some dark, dangerous, motorcycle-riding head of a wolf gang.”
Ashley snorted with laughter. “I don’t know, that sounds really hot to me. But I don’t know if I’d called him a manual laborer. I mean, I thought Ben said he flips houses?”
“Yeah, he works for CJ Steele Construction, the company that refurbishes houses in the Old North End neighborhood—the ones I’ve been lusting after? But you know what I mean. He’s not a doctor or lawyer.”
“You’re not even making sense. When did you ever want a doctor or lawyer?”
“That’s the point!” she wailed. Usually Ashley understood her better than this. “It’s not what I want, but it’s what I should want. I’m done with bad boys and Cody is definitely a bad boy.”
“Hmph,” Ashley sniffed. “Well, I don’t believe you, but it sounds like you need some time and space to figure out what you want next, and you’re just getting out of a relationship, so don’t rush. If Cody won’t have sex with you, that’s probably a good thing. You know you’re way too loyal to people you’ve bonded with.”
“Shut up.”
“I’m not criticizing. It’s what makes you an amazing friend and a perfect sister. It’s what will make you the best girlfriend for the guy who doesn’t take advantage of you.”
“If that guy exists,” she said sourly.
“He exists,” Ashley murmured and Melissa heard the depth of her love for Ben. A pang of guilt over calling during their honeymoon made her forget her own dramas.
“Hey, get back to your groom. Your alpha wolf. Does he still bite you?”
Ashley laughed. “No, once he marked me he had more control.”
“Good to know. Not that I’m going to be getting marked or anything. Have fun. Give him another killer blowjob today, okay?”
“He’ll thank you for that suggestion,” Ashley said with a laugh. “I’ll talk to you soon. Love you.”
“Love you, too,” she said softly and hung up.
* * *
Cody came home that afternoon to find Melissa sitting on the couch with the Chromebook propped on her legs, looking adorably studious. He’d rushed through his tasks for the day, not wanting to leave her alone too long.
Or maybe it was the fact that her scent still lingered on his clothes, the vision of her, glorious and naked, trying to tug him into the shower that morning kept replaying in his mind until he could scarcely think.
She didn’t look up immediately, but her cheeks colored, and he knew she was remembering what he’d done to her that morning. He smirked.
“Hey, baby. No special outfit to greet me today?”
She pursed her lips in what must be her attempt at prudish, but actually made her look even more sex-kitten. “That got me spanked, if I recall.”
He sauntered toward her, his cock already stiffening at the memory. “And I seem to recall you enjoyed that spanking. Quite a bit.”
Her lips twitched, but she continued to play at ignoring him, clicking away on the computer.
The burner phone he’d bought her rang.
“I forwarded the calls from my old phone to this number,” she explained as she picked it up. “This is Melissa.” The blood drained from her face. “I don’t know where he is,” she croaked into the phone.
He rushed to her side and put his ear next to hers.
“You tell him Junior Rabago is looking for him, and I want my money back. He has until Friday to produce it.”
“How much money does he owe you?”
“Fourteen grand, plus interest. I need it paid in full or you and your boy both die. Don’t think I can’t find you.” He hung up.
Melissa drew a long, shaky breath. “Well… at least I know how to get a hold of him now, if we do use Ben’s money to pay him off.”
“We’re paying him off. The sooner the better. We need to get this guy off your back and out of your life.”
“Do you think it will get him off Jeremy’s back too?”
He glowered, hating that she mentioned the asshole. “Only if he’s part of the delivery,” he opined.
Her hand shook as she looked at the phone in her hand. “I talked to Ashley today and Ben said he could have the money transferred straight to your account, if you give him the routing and account number.”
“I’ll text it now.” He moved away from her, no longer able to stay so close without shoving her onto her back and having his way with her.
She returned her focus to the Chromebook and her brow furrowed. “Oh, no!” she exclaimed, smacking her forehead. She tossed the Chromebook down on the sofa and jumped to her feet. “Oh crap, oh shit, crap shit crap!” She paced a rapid circle around his living room, shaking her fists in various directions.
“What? What is it?”
She whirled on him. “I forgot my little’s birthday.”
He stared at her. What in the hell was she freaking out about? “Your what?”
“My little. I’m in the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program. I was supposed to have a date with my little to celebrate her birthday last night. With everything that’s going on, I totally forgot. She probably tried to call my phone but of course I don’t have it—it’s probably dead by now. I feel like such a schmuck.”
He stared at her, surprised at how much she seemed to care about this. She’d just taken a phone call from a guy who’d threatened to kill her without freaking out, and now she was upset? Over a missed date with a charity case? Was the woman he’d pegged as superficial, if not selfish, actually this upset about an underprivileged kid? Just the fact that she participated in the program shocked the hell out of him.
“So tell her you’ll make it up to her.”
To his alarm, her big blue eyes swam with tears. “You don’t understand. This is a totally underprivileged kid. Her mom’s a stripper crack whore who barely keeps a roof over her head. She’s probably never had a decent birthday in her life. I’d bought her a great gift and I—” She stopped, her chin wobbling.
“Baby.” The need to comfort her made him want to howl. He wasn’t any good at soothing women—he sorely lacked practice—but he sure as hell had to try. Tucking her against his side, he rubbed circles over her lower back. “Beautiful girl, don’t cry. We’ll go over there right now and explain. W
ell, we can’t explain about people wanting you dead, but we’ll tell her you had an emergency.”
“But her gift,” she moaned. “It’s at my place.”
“We’ll get her a present on the way and you can tell her you have something else for her later. She’ll get two birthdays. What kid wouldn’t love that?”
Melissa sniffed. “You don’t mind taking me there now?”
He cupped her chin and lifted her tearstained face. The sight of the moisture still tracking down her cheeks was unacceptable. He wanted to crush anything and everything that had ever made her cry. It unnerved him how much power her tears commanded over him. “As long as you stop crying,” he muttered.
She gave a half-sob, half-laugh and shoved him away, dashing at the tears with the back of her hand.
They drove to Dairy Queen and picked up an Oreo ice cream cake, decorated with her little’s name—Margot—because Melissa said she probably didn’t get much with her name on it. With the cake on her lap and a Target gift card stuffed in her purse, Melissa sat rigidly beside him, shoulders square and stiff.
“How long have you been her big sister?” He wanted to know more about this side of Melissa. This unexpected and generous side.
“Not long.” She raked her teeth across her lower lip. “Six months. It’s a project of Brown Realty. I didn’t want to do it at first.”
“Why not?” He expected her to say what a pain it was or to enumerate the problems with the program, but she stared out the window, still worrying her lip between her teeth.
“I get too attached,” she said finally, with a sigh. “I don’t do casual relationships. I’m all in and I never know when to quit.”
Somehow he thought she might be talking about her ex-boyfriend, too.
She heaved another sigh. “I can’t believe I missed her birthday date. I’m such a fuck-up.”
His eyebrows shot up. That was his line. Did Melissa really see herself that way? If so, she’d been looking in the wrong mirror. “How are you a fuck-up?”
“Always have been,” she said softly.
He hated the dullness in her voice, in her blank stare out the window. “I keep trying to better myself, but I just don’t ever seem to get it right.”
“I thought I said no more crying,” he said, hoping to lighten the mood. It didn’t work. She didn’t even seem to hear him.
“Hey… I’m sure you’re an amazing big sister. Margot’s going to be thrilled.”
“Ashley wouldn’t have forgotten.”
Ashley. Was that her twin?
“Melissa, you’re being too hard on yourself.”
“Ashley was the good twin. The one with perfect grades and high test scores. The one who got everything right.”
His lip curled. He knew something about not measuring up to siblings. Quite a lot, in fact. “So what does that make you?”
She gave a harsh chuff of laughter. “I was the one cutting classes in high school. Trying drugs in the lower parking lot with the rough crowd. Dating assholes like Jeremy.”
Ah. He hated that her asshole ex took up so much brain space for her, but at least she knew it had been a mistake.
He pulled up at the address for a low-income apartment building she’d given him and turned the truck off, twisting to face her. “Comparisons will fuck you every time, my friend,” he said, trying to make his voice light. “Next to me, you were probably the golden child.”
He watched her return to him then, blinking and losing the faraway stare. Her eyes searched his face with curiosity and it was his turn to sound bitter. “I have some perfect brothers, too. I hate the motherfuckers.”
She laughed, sending relief flapping through his belly. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She shoved open her door and took the cake from her lap before they stepped out. The darted glance she sent from under her lashes seemed shy, as if she hadn’t expected him to be a gentleman. Well, why in the hell should she? He’d practically gone out of his way to shock her with his basest manners.
They climbed the stairs—apparently there was no elevator in the place—to the third floor. The stained hallway walls and filthy laminate tile screamed volumes about the care the landlord took of the place. Yeah, he didn’t keep his place spic and span, but that was because it was his and he didn’t care. The houses he rented out or sold to others reflected the pride he took in restoring them, bringing them up to a higher code than people expected. That was what had made him successful.
Melissa knocked on one of the doors and shifted from foot to foot. He dropped a hand on her shoulder to reassure her. Seeing this vulnerable side of her brought out furious protective instincts. He wanted to repair every broken piece of her, sand down every surface of her life, to prevent her from ever getting another splinter.
And the urge terrified the shit out of him. Mad lust for her he at least understood. She was smoking hot, human or not. But this other instinct—the one that didn’t seem to understand they weren’t in a relationship, weren’t attached in any way, didn’t even like each other much—screamed mate. Screamed it even louder than the urge to mark her.
The door swung open and a lanky, sullen teen with blue-tipped hair that hung in her eyes peered out. She scowled at Melissa, although he thought he saw a glimmer of interest at the cake.
“Margot, I’m so sorry I missed our date. My house got broken into and I had to move out and… things just went haywire.”
The girl stared over Melissa’s shoulder at him. “Who’s that?”
Melissa bit her lip. “This is Cody. He’s, uh…” She darted an uncertain glance in his direction.
“I’m her bodyguard,” he filled in. “Until we figure out who broke into her place and why.” Stick close to the truth when dealing with humans. That’s the way he’d always played it.
The teenager nodded, absorbing his position as if most people in her life walked around with beefy tattooed bodyguards. She looked down at the cake, then over her shoulder, where a television blared. A pair of feet hung off the edge of a ratty tartan couch. “You can’t come in right now.”
“That’s okay. I just wanted to bring this over.” Melissa handed her ‘little sister’ the cake, then took the gift card they’d picked up at the grocery store on the way over.
The teen switched the cake to one arm and reached for the gift card, finally cracking her first smile. “Thanks.”
“Hopefully we can meet next week.” She shot another glance at him. “But I’ll let you know either way. I have a new number—I’ll text it so you have it.”
Margot narrowed her eyes. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes, I’ll get it straightened out. I’m really sorry about yesterday.” Melissa gave the girl an awkward hug.
Margot stiffened under the hug and ducked her head, so Melissa pulled quickly away. After an awkward goodbye, the door shut and he eyed Melissa, trying to get a read on how she thought it had gone.
She tilted her head up to meet his gaze. “Thanks.”
Warmth seeped through his chest. It was just one word, but it shivered in the air between them, bare and exposed. She’d shown him her real self today—the one underneath the haughty exterior, and he didn’t take the honor lightly.
He hooked an arm around her waist and started to pull her toward him, when a scent caught his notice. Whirling, his eyes came to rest on the female pup from the mall.
* * *
Cody had been about to kiss her, but he stopped and turned. The girl they’d seen at the mall stood behind him, frozen, her green eyes wide.
“Hey.” Cody’s voice was kind—nothing like his usual gruff tones. “Where’s your mom?”
The girl sucked her lower lip into her mouth and didn’t answer.
“Will you tell her I’m here?”
Eyes still glued to Cody, she nodded and backed away from them, running to the end of the hall, where she pushed the last door open and disappeared inside.
Cody exchanged a look with her and set off down the hall, following
. Melissa hurried to catch up, but then halted, wondering if she was intruding.
“Should I—? Maybe I’ll wait down in the truck?”
Cody stopped and frowned. “Not safe.” He held out his arm and when she arrived at his side, he tucked her in against him. It seemed so natural, she almost forgot how strange it was to have the tension between them eased. She knew she’d thrown him for a loop when she’d lost it back at his place, but forgetting Margot’s birthday had been unforgivable. She’d worked for months just to get a rapport going with the girl, and to lose it all because she’d been so self-absorbed just killed her.
But Cody had been amazing. She really hadn’t expected him to comfort her or even to take her dilemma seriously. She definitely hadn’t expected him to help her fix things. She wondered if she’d misjudged him. There might be more to the guy than the dirty-talking construction worker.
They stood outside the apartment door, but Cody didn’t knock. Instead he leaned a shoulder against the wall, keeping her nestled against his other side.
The door opened as far as the chain lock would allow and the pale, gaunt face of the shifter female peered out. Her gaze swiveled from Cody to her and back to Cody. Her nostrils flared and Melissa knew she must be scenting them.
“Lived here long?” Cody asked when she didn’t speak.
She shook her head rapidly, causing her blond hair to fall in her eyes. “Just a few weeks. We’re new to town.”
Cody waited again, but she didn’t elaborate. When he spoke again, he adopted a tone she hadn’t heard from him before. It was slow, patient. Like he knew the female would spook if he showed too much aggression. “I’m Cody. This is my friend Melissa. We aren’t here to hurt you.”
The woman studied them both a moment longer, then, looking as if it was against her better judgement, slid the lock on the door and let it swing open. “Would you like to come in?” She sounded resigned, tired.
Melissa hid her shock as they stepped into the dingy apartment. There was no furniture in the tiny studio, save a single mattress with a quilt pulled over it. Both children sat on it, watching the newcomers.
