Pack Wars Complete Box Set: Paranormal Menage Werewolf Military Heroes

by Vella Day

  He tugged her close. “That’s a good idea.”

  The grocery store was in the same outdoor mall, so they walked over and picked up the items.

  “Will Kurt be home soon to help?”

  “Knowing him? No.”

  That stunk. As much as she liked the idea of having a cozy evening decorating the tree, not having Kurt there would put a damper on everything. She’d grown to care so much for the men that one without the other just didn’t do it. Her ultimate Christmas present would be making love to both at the same time.

  Once they’d found everything, they headed home. Drake carried in the tree and set it down on the stand. She put the groceries away and then cleared the dining room table to make the decorations.

  She spread out the paper. “Okay. Here’s what we’re going to do.” She showed him how to make a four-inch paper band garland. “Take the next one and loop it like this.”

  “Basically, we’re making a daisy chain.”

  “Yup.”

  For the next half hour, they cut and glued. The way they focused on their task, one would have thought they were making intricate nuclear weapons. Drake didn’t believe in measuring, but he had a great eye for size. If Kurt had been here, she and Drake would have created ninety percent of the garland to Kurt’s ten percent.

  Drake pushed back the chair. “Why don’t I pop the popcorn while you finish the loopy-de-loop?”

  Loopy-de-loop? Cute. “Works for me.”

  After he made the popcorn, they carefully strung it. They would have had a second strand, but they ate half.

  Drake held up the finished string. “It’s time we place this on the tree.”

  He’d set it up in the corner. They’d spent time shoving, bragging, and laughing, but in the end, the tree looked adorable. She was glad she let Drake talk her into buying a string of small white lights. When he plugged it in, they kissed to make it official.

  Drake grinned. “How about some wine and a movie?”

  She couldn’t remember the last time she’d relaxed and done nothing for an evening. “I’d love that.” It might help take her mind off what Kurt was doing.

  While Drake got the drinks, she surfed Netflix for something to watch. A romance probably wouldn’t sit well with him. “How about Wolverine?”

  His laugh carried from the kitchen. “That movie is ridiculous. How about one of the Transformers?”

  She’d watched the first one and liked it. “Sure.”

  By the time she’d cued it up, Drake returned with wine and a few kernels of leftover popcorn. “Can’t let this go to waste.”

  “Wouldn’t want that.”

  They cuddled next to each other like a married couple, and the domestic scene wasn’t lost on her. She swore she didn’t drink more than a glass or two of wine, but when she opened her eyes, he was carrying her into the bedroom—his bedroom. He pulled off her shoes and socks and discarded her jeans. He must have thought she’d rouse if he removed much more, because he left her shirt on. He slipped into bed and pulled her tight. The last thing she remembered was him tugging her close.

  When sunlight filled the room, she rolled over and patted the bed. Drake was gone. Even though they hadn’t made love, snuggling next to him capped off a wonderful evening. She eased out of bed and shuffled into the kitchen.

  He grinned. “Morning, sunshine.”

  How come he was so cheerful? She stepped closer. “Wow. You’re making waffles.”

  “That okay?”

  “Yeah. Is Kurt up?” She rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

  “He never came home last night.”

  Her stomach soured. “Aren’t you worried? He could have been in a fight and been shot.”

  “He can handle himself.”

  She didn’t detect anything but sincerity. “That may be, but I’m betting if he spotted Mendez in the parking lot, he’d try to take him down.”

  “Could be.”

  Drake was being too cavalier. “Aren’t you going to call him?”

  He placed the waffles on a plate and brought them over to the table. “He texted me this morning. He’s still observing.”

  That would have been good information to know. “It’s Christmas Eve. Can’t he give up on Mendez for two days? The guy will still be an ass the day after Christmas.”

  He smiled. “Maybe you should get a job working for the general. We could use more people like you.”

  “That’ll be the day. The first thing I’d do would be to rein Kurt in.”

  He placed the syrup on the table. “Good luck with that.”

  She sat, and as soon as he poured her some coffee, she dug in. “These are fabulous.”

  “I’m glad you like them. So what do you want to do today?”

  Have sex, walk on the beach, and have more sex. “Maybe we could find a pay phone so I could call my parents.”

  “A pay phone? I’m not sure they exist anymore. How about using Skype?”

  “That’s too advanced for them.” She had to find some way to contact them. “I’m worried that my mom will freak if she doesn’t talk with me on Christmas. I may not be there in person, but we’ve always phoned.” She drew in her bottom lip.

  “How about if we get a disposable phone?”

  “Really?” Drake was so wonderful. “You rock.”

  Having that dilemma resolved, she allowed her mind to wander to Kurt. She didn’t like how he was driving himself so hard. She took the last bite of her waffle. Yum.

  “We should call your general.”

  He shoved a whole waffle in his mouth and his cheeks puffed. She could tell he was trying to make her laugh. “Whakdt outhel I dltl that?”

  He succeeded. “Swallow, and then talk.”

  He finished chewing his meal. “Listen. Kurt is battling his own demons. Nothing we say or do will make him change his mind about going after Mendez.”

  If he loved me he would want to be with me. “You’re right.” Damn.

  * * *

  The dumpster stunk, but Kurt’s vantage point was too good to consider moving. He’d spotted Mendez going into the factory an hour ago, but Kurt wasn’t able to do anything about it. The man had an entourage of men around him from the moment he exited the car. Hearts were tricky places to hit.

  Kurt nearly gave in to the urge to rush in and spray bullets around the office, but the chances of not being caught were too slim.

  He’d already gone through his stash of food. Leaving his prized spot to get more supplies wasn’t an option. Mendez might slip out and defeat the one chance he had of capturing the bastard.

  Perhaps Drake was able to glean some information from his bugs. He pulled out his cell. Keeping an eye on the entrance and Mendez’s car, he dialed Drake.

  When he answered, Chelsea’s laugh in the background made his cock ache.

  “Hey! What’s up?” Drake said. He sounded like they were having a lot of fun.

  He told him about spotting Mendez. “He might be in his office. Did you happen to pick up any chatter?” He suspected Drake might not have been monitoring the computer as closely as Kurt would have liked.

  “I’m in the kitchen now. I’ll check. Can I call you back?”

  “Sure.” He disconnected, hoping the reason for the delay wasn’t so they could finish making love.

  Don’t even go there.

  Kurt had used his phone to take a movie of Mendez going into the building, but he doubted anyone without a magnifying glass would be able to tell the man’s identity.

  He sat up. The door to the warehouse opened, and Mendez and his group exited. Kurt took aim, but he didn’t have a clean shot at the man’s heart. Damn. Why couldn’t the man be human? A shot to the head would have done the trick.

  He slumped back. Instant death would be too good for the man responsible for so many teenage deaths—including his brother’s, not to mention Jeffrey’s.

  Once the car pulled away, Kurt’s cell vibrated. “Mendez is gone,” he said without waiting for Drake
to tell him that piece of news.

  “Yeah. He didn’t make any calls, but I heard him say there was a shipment going out of the port next week. He’ll be meeting with Statler and Reinhold tomorrow.”

  Those two men were as important as Harvey Couch in the organization. “Did he say where?”

  “No.”

  “Thanks.” Kurt leaned back against the wall and rang off.

  He made a note in his tablet about the time Mendez arrived, the port information, and the meeting date. Since tomorrow was Christmas, he figured there wouldn’t be much activity unless the meeting was held here.

  It was going to be a long night and an even longer day. Perhaps tomorrow morning, he’d call home to hear his mom’s voice. With Jeffrey’s death, she’d be extra sad, even though her sisters would be there to help with the pain.

  * * *

  “Wake up, sleepy head. It’s Christmas!”

  Drake gently shook Chelsea’s shoulder. After making love with him last night, she’d been so tired, she’d slept like the dead. As wonderful as the experience had been with him, something had been missing—Kurt. Not that she’d ever made love with two men at the same time, but she could only imagine how fantastic it would be with Drake and Kurt.

  “I’m awake.” But only a little.

  She sat up and rubbed her eyes. Drake pulled her T-shirt off, bent over, and licked her nipples.

  “Hey, they’re tender.”

  He laughed. “Come on, then. I made you breakfast.” He tossed her T-shirt back at her and strode out.

  As soon as she smelled the coffee, she dressed in a hurry. They decided they’d make the cookies they forgotten to make yesterday to give them something to do. No doubt, she’d be glancing at the clock every hour, wondering if she’d ever see Kurt again.

  Drake kept the tree plugged in. It had to have been one of the nicest ones she’d ever had.

  When she reached the kitchen, Drake had made berry-filled crepes and filled two cups with steaming coffee. “These look amazing.” What couldn’t the man make?

  “They don’t call me Chef Drake for nothing.”

  She laughed, but worry quickly doused it. “What if Kurt isn’t ever able to get Mendez? He can’t sit outside forever.”

  “I imagine the general and his men will figure out where they are and take over.”

  “You’re still not going to tell them?”

  He sipped his coffee. “Closure means a lot to Kurt.”

  “Being obsessed can kill a person’s spirit.”

  He reached across the table and rubbed her hand. “I’ll speak with him if nothing happens by next week.”

  She groaned. “A whole week? You do realize I need to get back to work. If I don’t show my homes, I’ll lose my customers and my job.”

  He picked up the hand he’d just rubbed. “You could always move in with us and live a life of luxury.”

  She didn’t believe he was serious, but she addressed his comment anyway. “I appreciate the offer, but I wouldn’t be happy doing nothing. Life is about achieving and liking yourself.”

  “Point taken.”

  They finished their breakfast in silence. She studied Drake. She couldn’t tell if he was worried about his friend, or if he was resigned to the fact that Kurt was Kurt, and he needed to follow his own path.

  After they cleaned the dishes, Drake pulled out the cookie ingredients. “How about we make the cookies, then go for a walk on the beach?”

  “That sounds wonderful.”

  “Do you mind mixing the dry ingredients while I do the butter, eggs, and vanilla?”

  She looked at him. “When did you become so organized?”

  He grinned. “Maybe I’m pretending Kurt is here.”

  Wow. So he was hurting, too.

  She’d only gotten around to measuring the flour when the front door clicked open. Her pulse soared.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chelsea rushed into the living room. Kurt walked in looking exhausted, but all she cared about was that he was back.

  “You’re safe.” She threw her arms around his neck.

  “Yes, but very ripe. Let me take a shower.” He tapped her nose. “Alone. I have other plans for later.” He winked.

  The old Kurt was back! “Okay, but hurry.” She figured he would have told her if Mendez was dead. Just in case he wanted to surprise her, she had to ask. “Is my nemesis still walking the earth?”

  “For now.”

  Damn. Drake stepped into the living room. The men looked at each other but neither spoke. That stupid telepathy stuff rankled her sometimes.

  Kurt kissed her forehead and trudged down the hallway. With renewed energy, she headed to the kitchen. If Kurt joined them in making the cookies, it would be so much more meaningful. Drake followed her.

  “What did Kurt say to you?”

  “He wants to tell you himself.”

  She waved her hands over her face. “Why do you guys always keep me in the dark?”

  Drake moved to within a few inches of her. He lifted her chin. “It makes your senses more acute.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m not talking about sex.”

  “I am.” He kissed her thoroughly, and all thoughts of not knowing what Kurt said left her mind. Drake leaned back. “I want to blindfold you and hold you hostage while my cock explores your beautiful body.”

  Her pussy dampened at the mere mention of being rendered helpless. This time, she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of reacting to his blatant overture. “Should we finish making the cookies or wait for Kurt?”

  “He won’t mind if we continue.”

  Was he talking about more kisses or stirring the cookie dough? She snatched the bowl Drake had been using and began to pound the butter and eggs. Once she’d mixed them the best she could, she dumped the dry ingredients into the egg mixture.

  After she finished, she dipped a finger into the mix and took a bite. “Perfect.”

  Drake tried it, too. “I agree. Let Kurt put in the chips.” He gave her another kiss.

  This time their tongues entwined, and they explored each other with slow, even strokes. He tasted sugary sweet.

  She leaned back for air and circled her finger on his chest. “I wonder if Kurt will be interested in having a little bit of Christmas cheer later on?”

  “He might be hungry. He’s been away for a while.”

  She could take that either way, but she liked the idea of one of them eating her. “Maybe he’d like it if I got naked and wrapped a big bow around my chest.”

  “Did I hear someone mention a naked chest?” Kurt came up behind her and kissed her shoulder.

  He smelled like fresh mint soap. She twisted. Kurt wore only jeans. No shirt and no shoes. Wow. “That had to be to be the fastest shower on record.”

  “I didn’t want to keep you waiting.” He gave her a chaste kiss then grabbed her hand. “I know you both are curious about what happened. Let’s sit in the living room, and I’ll tell you about my revelation.”

  The word revelation reverberated in her mind. She had no idea what that was about. She glanced back at the dough, but decided it would keep.

  Kurt sat on the chair and motioned for Drake and Chelsea to sit across from him on the sofa. “Sitting next to a stinky dumpster for a few days gave me time to contemplate a lot of things.”

  She imagined it would. For one, he should have considered moving. “Like what?”

  “For starters, the longer I hid, the more my hatred of the man boiled to the surface. I kept raising the gun and taking aim at the door, imagining the moment when I would kill the son of a bitch.”

  “I thought he showed up?” Maybe she’d heard wrong.

  “He came, all right, but his bodyguards stayed too close to him. I couldn’t get a clean shot to his heart.”

  “So you gave up?” She figured he would have remained vigilant until he succeeded.

  Kurt leaned back and smiled. “No. I came to my senses. When Drake told me Mendez
was going to meet with two other men to execute this drug deal, I realized that even if I killed Mendez, another would take his place.”

  No one was indispensable—job-wise at least. “So what does this mean?”

  “I was hungry and getting tired of smelling rotten food. All the while, I kept picturing you and Drake having fun, making love, and snuggling at night. I’d become so focused on my goal that I didn’t realize the best goal of all was right in front of me.”

  She thought she knew what he was saying, but she needed to be sure. “Does that mean you’re not going after Mendez?”

  “It means I’ve turned the information over to the general, and he’ll be dealing with it. You and this relationship are more important to me than taking down one man. If the general is in charge, maybe he’ll be able to destroy the entire drug cartel, whereas I would have killed only one man.”

  She prayed he was as happy with the decision as she was. She jumped up. “I’d say that’s the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten.”

  Kurt stood, too. “I can think of a better present.”

  She crossed her arms over her chest. “And what would that be?”

  He scratched his chin and glanced over at Drake, who got up and rushed down the hallway. “You’ll see.”

  “What did you say to him?”

  “That’s between me and Drake.” He stood and held out his hand. “Now that I don’t have to worry about that evil man, how about you show me some of your loving ways?”

  To mimic him, she scratched her chin. “Hmm. I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

  He was on her in a flash. Kurt picked her up and carried her down the hall. “You will suffer for sassing me.”

  She dropped her head back and laughed. “Oh, yeah? Remember, I love pain when it is administered with a loving hand.”

  “I got a lot of loving and a lot of hand.”

  Here was the other man she’d grown to love.

  Love?

  Yes, she loved these men, now that they had their priorities straight. She hoped today would be the day when they both would claim her as theirs.

  She expected him to go into his room, but he didn’t. When he passed not only hers but Drake’s also, her curiosity got the best of her. “Where are we going?”