by C. M. Steele
“I know I can do it, but I didn’t think you wanted me to be in law enforcement,” I remind him.
He cups my face and kisses my nose. “I don’t want you patrolling, but I’m not against you sitting behind the desk, giving orders and delegating.” He gives me a smile.
“I can manage that, and I won’t be a total lazy prick.”
“Good. So let me handle this, and then I turn over the station to you.”
“Fine, just come back to me. That matters more than anything else.” I can’t lose him.
“I will. You’re my priority, but I am still the pack Alpha.”
“I know. Kiss me before you go.”
“Always.” His mouth crashes down on mine. His kiss is hard, dominating as he swipes his tongue along mine. I thrust my hands into his hair, bringing us closer. I need more, and he delivers.
The sound of the car pulling up in the driveway pulls us apart. “Mark’s here.”
“Sorry, love.” He kisses the top of my head. I smile up at him before walking to the front door. Aria comes running up the stairs and throws her arms around me.
“Maria, it’s a girls’ night!”
I love his little sister. She’s exuberant and sweet. The men share a look of concern on their faces, so I take Aria in the house because they’ve business to discuss. I understand that there are levels of authority. Turner is still my mate and we are close to equals, but I’m not strong yet and I’m a liability to them. If I ever shift, then I’ll be able to give him a little help. Even then, I doubt he’d ever want me involved.
“So you need to tell me more about Jacob. I know you lived with him, so you must know what he likes and what he doesn’t?”
“You don’t even know if you’re mated to him yet, but if it makes you feel better, I’ll give you a little bit about him. You know what he looks like, but you haven’t had time to spend with him. He’s more than his good looks. He’s really smart, like book smart. He works for the Wolfe Creek Police department now. He only started after graduating from college. He loves the outdoors, which I’m starting to suspect is what most shifter men enjoy.”
“Yes, and most of the women too. I think it’s the wolf in us. Speaking of, we have to figure out how to get you to shift.”
That’s something that bothers me. I have no idea when or if I will ever shift, and it might take a serious injury to Turner. I’d rather never shift than for that to happen.
We work on dinner to keep our minds off of what the guys are up to. We’re about to eat when the sound of a car comes up the driveway. It doesn’t sound like Turner’s or Mark’s vehicle, but then I look, and it’s Nancy with a file folder.
“Shit. Act cool. She’s the receptionist for Turner.”
“Oh, yeah. I recognize her.”
“Hey, Nancy,” I greet her on the porch. Fuck, I should have put on a coat.
“I brought some papers that need to be signed for Mr. Turner,” she says, holding her large purse.
“He’s out with the guys. Poker night,” Aria says. “You can drop them off. I’m sorry you came all this way.”
“No. That’s okay. Can I use the little girls’ room, though? The cold air hit me, and now I have to go.”
“Sure.” We let her in, and she goes straight to the bathroom like she’s been here before. If I didn’t know better, I’d be jealous.
“Has she been here before?”
“Not that I’m aware of, but maybe she pulled the same thing with him before.”
“I bet,” I scoff. I can’t believe Turner never noticed her interest. Then again, he’s a guy—a dense shifter who wouldn’t know that she was being more than sweet.
Still, I try to keep my cool because she can’t take my man from me. I just want her ass out of my house. She comes out a minute later, and then that’s when I see a different look in her eyes. It’s not sweet, nice, or even envious. She’s on drugs. Did she do a line or something like that?
“Are you okay, Nancy?”
“I’m fine.”
“So the papers?” I ask.
“I’ll just wait to give them to the boss.”
“You can leave them with me.”
“No, I can’t, because you forgot them in the first place. You’ll probably be too busy gagging on his cock to remember to do your job. At least Daphne could control herself around the boss. You seduced him, and that’s why he gave you the spot. He’s just like every other man.”
“Excuse me?”
“Don’t act all innocent. I had a camera put in there to watch Daphne and him to see if she was having an affair, but they never did anything. You, on the other hand, were a dirty little whore with my man. I thought he would notice me, and then I just assumed he was gay, but then you came in and let him fuck you. I suppose he has a thing for Latinas.”
“My brother loves Maria. What they do is their business, and you’re going to regret everything you’ve said here.” Aria moves to get in front of me, but that’s when Nancy pulls a gun. Shit. I don’t have my service revolver anymore.
“I’ll kill you both before I let you steal my life.” The shot goes off before I know what happens, but Aria’s mid-shift, then she’s hit with a bullet. I scream out.
“Bitch, you see I’m serious.”
“You don’t have to do this.”
“Too late.” I don’t know who says that, whether it’s me or her, but I don’t think…I just react. The shot goes off, but all I see is my mate in my head.
10
Turner
“Where is Merrick?” I ask Mark as we get to my SUV. It’s faster, and I can reach anyone from it.
“He’s parked outside Anderson’s residence. They’re waiting for you to move on the situation.”
“Let’s go, then.”
“Aren’t you going to say bye to your mate?”
I love you. Be strong, my queen.
I love you, too. Stay powerful, my warrior.
“Done. Now let’s go. We don’t have much time to waste.”
“That’s a pretty cool thing.” He shakes his head and smiles.
“It is, but we don’t have much time. I want him to be caught off guard. How many weapons does he have in his house?”
“An arsenal.”
“Damn it. Fine.” We’re only about fifteen minutes from his residence. It’s pissing me off that he played this game. What’s his goal? Thinking about my plan, I say, “I want to talk.”
“We can open a line and call him. What are you thinking?”
“Maybe the bastard is just curious. Maybe he doesn’t mean any harm and witnessed all the sudden marriages and babies. Maybe Hunter was right to keep humans out of the area as much as possible. We’ve welcomed them into our midst, and now we’re at risk of exposure.”
“Yes, but as you say that, you’ve mated with a human,” he reminds me.
“I know, but apparently it’s only the Alphas that are mating with humans. I’m not saying we get rid of them or anything. I’m just saying we need to be a fuckload more careful.” I can’t lose Maria. Never. I’ll do whatever I have to, even if it means closing the resort, keeping the shifters to one side of the town. Something has to give.
“Well, that’s the problem. No one expects to be spied on in their home,” he says. He has a point. Whether or not we live next door to them, if they spy on us, they’ll learn more than we want them to know about us. I’m shaking with rage just thinking about Anderson stalking Daphne and Elijah, but I’ll pay the bastard back.
“True. Now let’s turn the tables,” I add.
We pull up and Merrick is sitting in his car, watching and listening from a distance.
“What’s going on inside there?” I ask in a whisper.
“He’s checking his weapons. I don’t know what he has planned, but he’s alone in there.”
“Okay.”
“Open the line,” I tell Mark. He hands me a dummy phone and presses the call button. He doesn’t answer the first time. In fact, he stares
at his phone in awe and suspicion. With the blessing of keen sight at night, we can see right through his basement window, even though he has most of it blocked off. He’s waiting for a war. Nut case.
“Do I continue to call?”
“Yes.”
On the second call, he picks up on the last ring. “It seems you’ve been a Peeping Tom, which is illegal as fuck. Something I wouldn’t expect from a man of the badge.”
“Turner, call your dogs off.”
“What dogs? I haven’t done anything. You, on the other hand, have committed several offenses. Tsk, tsk.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Nothing. I’m just curious as to what you’re going to do?”
“A good dog is a dead dog.”
“Don’t make it come to that. I assure you that it won’t end well for you.”
“No, maybe not, but I’ll be taking that bitch of yours with me to the other side.”
“What?”
“You won’t make it out of the building.”
“I don’t have to. My work is already being done for me. I knew you’d want to keep her safe.”
“Bullshit.”
“You’d be surprised what people are willing to do when they believe they can get super powers too.”
Maria, tell me you’re okay.
Someone’s here.
Get into the basement safe room. Take my sister. I love you. I’m on my way now.
No!
“Make it look like we’re all leaving. Get him when he thinks he’s safe. Tie him up, and I’ll deal with him.”
I jump into my truck with Mark, and Merrick jumps into his. We race down the road. I know Merrick’s going to sneak out and hide, but I have to get to my mate.
“Call Maria.” My truck rings, but she doesn’t answer.
I’m coming, my queen. Suddenly I feel an intense pain, and then it eases.
“Fuck, she’s not answering me.”
We pull up to the house in less than eight minutes, and there’s a minivan parked next to Mark’s truck.
We step out, and he slices the tires as he passes. I step in and watch the scene in front of me. My sister’s on the floor, but then my mate snarls and growls, pouncing on Nancy who has a gun in her hands. The gun flies out and Maria bites Nancy’s jugular, ending the young woman. God, my wife is gorgeous in her white fur and honey eyes. I run in and make sure Nancy’s dead before I rub my mate’s head. “I love you.” She relaxes and shifts effortlessly back into human form as if she’s done it a thousand times. Swiftly, I grab the throw off our sofa and toss it on Maria. Then I hear a groan.
“Aria!”
Maria and I hurry to my sister, and Mark is pressing his shirt to her shoulder. “We need to get her to a hospital.”
“I’m fine. God, Maria’s a badass Alpha female.”
“I want to be badass like that one day.”
“That she is.”
“Mark, can you drive her to the hospital?”
“I can.”
“I’m going to help Maria wash up and deal with this, and then I’ll be at the hospital in an hour.”
“Don’t worry about me.” She winks. My sister’s more badass than she knows.
“Mate, stay here while I get rid of this one here.” I grab the body and run through the woods to where I know a small pack of mountain lions live. I toss the body in there, and it’s not more than a minute before they’re devouring what is left of Nancy. She shouldn’t have come after my mate. This is for the best.
I rush back to the house to see the blood on the floor has already been cleaned up and the shower’s running. Leaning up against the wall, my mate sobs hard. I grab a towel and pull my woman out, turning off the water before carrying her to our bed. With her in my lap, I let her cry.
“Oh my goodness, we have to go.” She flies off me, the towel falling. “We promised Aria.” Damn it, I’m not supposed to be so damn horny right now.
“Yes, get dressed.” I still have another bastard to deal with. I close my eyes and think about the shit I have to do. I strip and shower because I have some of Nancy’s blood on me. After a quick wash, I meet my mate downstairs.
“I’m sorry you had to kill her.”
“It’s not that I had to kill her. I’m upset about it, but it’s more about your sister getting hurt. How can I be your mate if I can’t protect her?”
“Or how can I be your mate when I couldn’t protect you?”
“That’s not true. You had no idea.”
“Yes, and Nancy has been nothing but nice to you until now, so how could you have known? How could we have known?”
“She was obsessed with you. She wanted you to marry her. She heard us having sex in Daphne’s office.”
“Oh shit. Yes, she forgot something and came back. She was angry and then saw the chief.” Fuck, what makes me so damn appealing to the opposite sex? It’s insane.
“I’m so sorry, my love.” I say as I slip on my jeans. Maria watches with admiration. “We’ll make up for lost hours tonight. I’m still going to have to call my parents about this.”
We get in my truck, and I call Mark. “She’s getting stitched up. She’s good. It was a through and through. The doc gave her a meds script that I’ll put in for you.”
“We’re on our way now.”
“Okay. See you soon. We won’t leave until you get here.”
“I have to call my parents.”
My dad picks up on the first ring. “Please tell me everything’s okay.”
“It will be soon. We have a serious problem.” I explain what happened, and he says, “Save that bastard for me. He could have killed both my babies.”
“He wouldn’t have gotten the drop on me. I was careless with my mate.”
“No. You did the right thing, and if your mate had died, you would have died. You know that as much as I do.”
“True. I don’t want to even consider that.”
“I know. I’m sure you don’t.”
“What happened with Max?”
“Nothing. The bastards put him in jail for supposedly committing a homicide, but after records showed he’d just arrived in town, he was cleared. It made no sense, and I know it all has to do with that asshole chief. He wanted me out of town so you’d have less reinforcements.”
“I know. I’m glad, though, that you’re all safe.”
“We’re almost at the hospital to pick up Aria.”
“I need to talk to my daughter.”
“Call Mark. He’s waiting there with her.”
“Okay.” We end the call, and I squeeze Maria’s hand and bring it to my lips.
“Your wolf is beautiful, Maria. Just so you know. It’s fucking sexy as hell.”
“Sexy?”
“Yes. You pounced before she could figure out what was happening, and then you shifted back into your sexy human form like it’s natural to you, proving that you were meant for me.”
“Stop saying things like that. We have to get your sister, and now I’m horny.”
“I know. I can feel your pussy fluttering without even having to have my fingers sliding through your plump little lips.” Before she could say something with venom, we pull into the hospital parking lot.
We’re in the foyer when Aria pushes herself up out of the wheelchair. “I told them I don’t need it.”
I looked at the doctor who we all know because he’s one of our own. “Thank you,” I say.
“Just doing my job, Alpha,” he whispers that last bit. “Excuse me, but I have another patient coming in. Apparently there was someone shooting off guns like an idiot in the woods. Drunk teens not realizing what goes up must come down.” He shakes his head and walks away.
“Ready to go?”
“Yes. We never got to finish our ice cream, and I’m super hungry all of a sudden.” Ten minutes later, she’s asleep in the back seat.
“She’s exhausted. It’s been a day from hell, hasn’t it?”
“That’s for
sure. I’m tired too.”
“I bet. It takes a while to get used to shifting. When we’re pups and first start shifting, we sleep a lot more.”
“I’ll take you both up to bed, and then we can get this all squared away.” Maria walks alongside me while I carry my sister into the house. As soon as I have my sister in her temporary room here, I scoop up my tired mate and take her to our room. Once I tuck her in, I give her a deep kiss. “I have a few things to deal with, but I’m not leaving this time. I’ll be downstairs and up to bed as soon as everything is settled.”
As soon as I’m downstairs, Mark, Merrick, and Elliot are on my steps. “So what’s going on, guys?”
“It’s too late. His house blew up. I don’t know if he accidentally set off the explosion, but we won’t know anything until the fire department is done.”
“I’m about to go there now and investigate,” Elliot says. He’s the chief of the fire department and the fire investigator.
“Good. Let us know what you find. I need to know if he’s dead or not.”
“Of course.” He nods and walks out of the house to his fire chief SUV.
“So what happened to the dumb bitch?”
“She’s food for the mountain lions.”
“Good. Should we put her vehicle on the road near the mountain pass without any gas?”
“Sounds good. Siphon every drop out, so it looks like she stopped there and got lost. She was a hiker, so maybe she thought she could walk back and met with foul play. It’s snowing now. Any prints will be covered by morning.”
I smile. “It’s very true. I did make sure to drag her with blood dripping just in case.” The animals would have dragged her to a secluded spot.
“Great. Now let me get inside to the new chief of police.”
“Your mate?” I nod. “Awesome. It fits.” We shake goodbye, and the guys get to work.
Nothing can be done until morning, so I lock up and head to our room. After stripping down to my boxers, I put on some pajama pants just in case my sister wakes up. Maria rolls into my arms and snuggles down with me. It feels so damn good to get some sleep.
The sun is starting to rise when I hear my sister groan. I get up and go to her room. “How are you feeling?”
