Shifter Wars Complete Series

by Sarah J. Stone

  "Don't worry about it," I said. "If we're gonna work together—and that's a big ‘if'—then I need to know you a little better."

  "Yeah?" she said. "And what about you? All I know is, well, you know."

  "And that's all you're gonna know for now," I said. "Bad bargaining skills; you gave up something without making sure I was gonna give something in return."

  "You ass," she said with a small smile. "Fine.”

  The smile hung on her face for a few long moments, and despite myself, part of me wanted to close the distance between us and plant a kiss on those sexy lips of hers. But I checked myself; I'd done the sobering up I wanted to, and now it was time for bed.

  "Okay," I said. "Time for me to sleep this shit off. Guest bedroom's down the hall and to the left. You need anything, go find it. But no snooping."

  "Scout's honor," she said holding up two fingers.

  With that, I headed out to my bedroom. My mind was swirling with the events of the evening. And despite the fact that'd I'd nearly been killed, all I could think about was Harper. Her face hung in my mind and wouldn't leave.

  Kicking off my shoes and falling onto the bed, I was quickly in a dreamless, deep sleep.

  CHAPTER 6

  HARPER

  I woke up that next morning feeling groggy and disoriented, but refreshed. Waking up in a strange bedroom is always something that gives me shock and a half, though my days of doing…those sorts of things on the regular were, thankfully, long behind me. As soon as I came to, my hand shot out toward my phone and I checked the time. It was nine o'clock—far later than I usually like to sleep. But I told myself that I had spent the previous night in a hospital bed recovering from my wounds, so maybe a little bit of a sleep-in was warranted. Still, I couldn't help but feel lazy.

  Heaving myself out of bed, I looked down and saw that I'd fallen asleep in my clothes. Everything on my body was wrinkled and rough, and I felt grimy, like I'd been sweating through my clothes during the night. I remembered Jerrod, and realized that the last thing I wanted to do was see him looking like this.

  Why do I think that? Why do I care how I look in front of this guy?

  It didn't take much deducing for me to come to the realization of why this was.

  Okay, so he's a good-looking guy. Even though he looks like he's seen far better days. And I know he has.

  Stepping into the bathroom, I gave myself a once over in the mirror, running a nearby brush through my hair in a vain attempt to wrangle some of my bedhead. I tamped it down a bit, but I still looked like a hot mess.

  Gotta leave the bedroom at some point.

  I went out into the hallway and into the living room. The place was filled with natural light and was even a little cheery, despite the mess. The living room was quiet, and I didn't hear Jerrod anywhere.

  Must be sleeping off that whiskey. Nothing like booze to turn a good man into a worthless layabout.

  I entered the kitchen, which was a spacious room of stainless steel appliances and sleek, white surfaces, the windows affording a lovely view of the Village. Looking around, I noticed two things: one, the garbage bag full of take-out containers that seemed to be recently put together, and two, the pot of coffee in the fancy maker. I placed my finger on the pot and felt that it was hot. Removing the pot, I gave it a sniff—it smelled fresh. Did Jerrod actually get up and make coffee?

  A cup of coffee in hand, I walked out to the living room and looked out over the city as I considered just what the hell I was going to do with myself. Jerrod didn't seem all that keen on helping me, but I at least had to stick around until he gave me a final know. And drunk that he was, I knew that could mean I'd be sitting around here until the afternoon.

  Taking a sip of my coffee, I was surprised to find that it tasted like it smelled—fresh. I'd half-expected what was in the pot to be a batch Jerrod made God-knows-when and left simmering into sludge. But it was recently made and delicious.

  Something was up, I realized. And that's when I caught something out of the corner of my eye on the dining table. Several somethings, that is. On the white, rectangular span of the table were dozens of sheets of paper, an empty manila folder set off to the side next to them. Sipping my coffee, I approached the table and looked the papers over, and realized that they were all documents that appeared to have to do with Aubrey Carver, more specifically the case that Jerrod had been working on a year back.

  I hurriedly sat down, setting the steaming cup of coffee next to me as I began poring over the papers with eager eyes. From what I could piece together, it seemed that Jerrod and his partner Sophia had been doing recon on Aubrey for months, gradually assembling a case. They'd been suspecting that Carver was planning some serious power plays in the lion society, ones that might involve assassination. I looked over the files eagerly, trying to follow the investigative path that Jerrod and Sophia had taken. Everything was looking promising; through the course of their information-gathering, it seemed like they were building a strong case that something was about to go down in the lion society.

  But the thread came to an abrupt conclusion with the death of Sophia. Jerrod was put on leave, and the investigation was shelved due to pressure from the Carver clan. Damn shame- the two of them looked like they might've had something, maybe even have been able to stop the assassination before it happened. If Aubrey was indeed behind it.

  Sitting back and reflecting on what I'd just read, I realized that I could hear something, something like a soft hushing sound. I listened more, and determined that it was the sound of a shower.

  Was Jerrod up?

  Before I could think the matter over too deeply, the sound cut off. I turned back to the papers and my coffee, trying to figure out anything I could that might help me determine if Aubrey was the one who was responsible for the deaths of my team members. I spent the next ten minutes transfixed by the documents, determined to suck from them every bit of information that I could.

  "Find anything worthwhile?"

  Jerrod's voice snapped me out of my concentration so abruptly that I nearly spilled my coffee all over the papers. I looked up, and seeing Jerrod standing there was twice the shock that hearing his voice had been.

  He'd cleaned up. A lot

  The first thing I noticed was that his grungy, unkempt beard had been shaved off, revealing the smooth, fair skin and strong, wide jaw underneath. His full, sensual lips were now visible as well, and his mouth was turned up on one side into a small smile. His dark hair was slicked back, and his piercing blue eyes seemed clearer. And instead of the jeans and t-shirt he was dressed in last night, he was now wearing a professional outfit of a crisp white button-up, perfectly-fitted charcoal gray slacks, and a pair of shiny black double-monk shoes. He looked every bit the sharp detective that he once was. To be blunt, he looked totally gorgeous.

  "You, um…cleaned up," I said, barely able to form the words.

  "I figured that if I'm going to be playing detective, I might as well look the part," he said, coming over to me. "You know, fake it till you make it."

  I smiled just a little too wide; I was losing my composure. "Sure," I said. "I was just, um, looking over all this."

  "That's the case that Sophia and I had put together," he said. "But I'm sure you figured that out already, detective." He flashed me a half-smile of pearl-white teeth. I could barely concentrate with him looking at me like that.

  "Mhmm," I said. "It, um, all looks good- good case you guys were building."

  "Oh, I know," he said, his wry, smart-assey tone a curious contrast to his professional look. "I do good work."

  Another killer smile.

  Get your damn head in the game, Harper. I turned my attention back to the documents.

  "I got up early and pulled this out of my computer; feel free to mark any of it up."

  I grabbed a pen and started doing just that. "I mean, all of this is solid," I said, "but the problem—as I'm sure you know—is that it all comes to a grinding halt when you had the, um, in
cident."

  "I figured," Jerrod said. "But it might be a place to start."

  He sat down next to me and began going over the documents with me. After a time, my eyes settled on something.

  "Here," I said, pointing to what appeared to be a shot of Aubrey's social calendar last year. "'Annual Caver Gala'."

  I pointed to the date, which was about a year ago today. "You know anything about this?"

  Jerrod picked up the sheet of paper and began reading.

  "Aubrey's a socialite—lives for this kind of shit. This gala was set to take place the week after the last op that Sophia and I had taken—the one that ended our investigation."

  Quiet a euphemism.

  "We'd been planning on going, figuring that we might be able to find some loose tongues and maybe even learn a little about what exactly Aubrey was planning."

  "Think it's worth checking out a year later?" I asked.

  Jerrod raised his eyebrows. "You feel up for a gala? No offense, but you don't really seem like the type."

  "Oh?" I sat back in my chair and crossed my arms, a playful smile on my lips. "And sort of type, exactly, do you see me as?"

  "The type that works herself to death, comes home, shoves down some take-out, then goes to bed up and ready to do it all over again. Maybe a cat somewhere in the picture. Or two."

  He wasn't too far off, but I wasn't going let him win this one so easily.

  "Maybe, maybe not, detective, but, yes, I can handle an evening of snooty, rich types. Especially if it might result in some information to help us get this shit solved."

  "You got a ball gown?"

  I couldn't help but laugh. "Sure. I usually tuck one into my purse before I head out. You never know when you're going to have to go to an emergency gala, you know."

  Jerrod shook his head. "I meant do you have one at your apartment, smart ass,"

  "What," I said, "can't get it as good as you give it?"

  "In my apartment, only I can be the snarky prick," he said, with a half-smile.

  "Fair enough," I said. "And no—I think the last time I wore anything like that was for the thing after I graduated from intelligence academy. And that was a rental."

  "Then we're going to have to come up with something," he said, looking away in thought. "Why don't you just take my car into town and grab something off Fifth Ave. Get something to wear, get yourself dolled up, and come back ready to go. I'll get everything set up with you and me being on the list."

  "Whoa," I said. "I can't afford a gown right off the rack on Fifth Ave. You know how much Sapiens make."

  "I meant I'd buy it for you."

  "No way to that, either. You don't need to be spending money on me. Especially for something as pointless as a gown."

  "It's not pointless if it's necessary for the job. Besides, I've got more money than I know what to do with; it'll do me good to spend some money on someone who's not me."

  "Fine. But let me pay you back or something."

  "You can pay me back by helping me finally solve this case."

  "Fine." I still felt weird about the whole thing. "Just make sure that everything's ready for tonight."

  "Of course," he said. "The keys for the Mercedes are hanging near the door."

  "Mercedes?" I asked. "Was that what you drove last night?"

  "I, uh, have a couple of cars. When you're alone and have money, you buy some unnecessary things to break up the day."

  "Noted."

  "All right," Jerrod said. "Go ahead and get to it; I'm gonna pull some strings to make sure that we're both on the guest list for tonight; you go get ready. And my card's in my wallet. Just grab the black metal one."

  "Will do."

  With that, I grabbed the keys from where Jerrod said they'd be, along with the fancy card in his wallet, and headed out. As soon as I stepped into the elevator and began descending, I felt like I'd just broken free of some kind of trance. Seeing Jerrod looking like that…It just was quite the thing to deal with first thing in the morning. And on the way down and to the car I found myself doing the thing where I went over our interactions, trying to figure out if he'd been flirting with me or not.

  What the hell is wrong with you? I scolded myself. All that's going on and you're wondering about shit like this, like some stupid high school kid?

  But I couldn't help it. I knew how silly it was in my rational mind, but the other part of me couldn't help but think about how he looked cleaned up and dressed sharp as hell. He was certainly an attractive man—that I couldn't deny.

  Okay, enough. I hit the button on the fob once I'd reached the parking garage and walking toward the beep. Just focus on the damn task at hand for now.

  I let out a little gasp when I approached the car. It was a beautiful, silver Mercedes, the kind of car that only a certain sort of person who lived in this city drove. After opening the driver's side door and sliding into the seat, I sank down into it, barely able to look over the dashboard. It took some fumbling with the controls, but I eventually got myself situated. I held the fob in front of the ignition and the car roared to life. Minutes later, I was driving through the city, headed toward Fifth Avenue.

  Once there, I found a spot and stepped out. The day was sunny and beautiful—a perfect spring day in Manhattan. Shopping wasn't exactly my usual pastime, but after some working up the nerve I started heading into the stores and looking around, wincing at the price tag of just about every gown that I laid eyes on.

  It's for the mission. Just buy something and be done with it.

  I wandered through the aisles of the boutique like I was lost. Eventually, one of the clerks came to assist me and helped me find something suitable. Once she spotted Jerrod's black card she was more than willing to help me with whatever I needed. So, I settled on a deep blue gown that seemed elegant without being too ostentatious. Once that was settled, I found some beauty parlor and left everything up to them, my only directions being not to make me look like a total harlot.

  Makeup and fashion weren't really my thing, but it was nice to treat myself like this, as strange as the circumstances were. Once I was done around the middle of the afternoon, I headed back to the apartment, happy to put the car away; driving something like that only made me extremely conscious of how expensive even the slightest sing would be. Jerrod didn't seem too concerned about money, but I wanted to be extra careful either way.

  Walking back into the apartment, I came upon Jerrod still seated at the table, but now wearing an extremely stylish tuxedo. His eyes flicked to my face, then my hair, then the gown in my bag.

  "Damn," he said. "You look like a different person. No offense."

  "That's about the same reaction that I had seeing you without that hobo beard."

  "Hey, I got a lot of compliments on that hobo beard."

  "Bartenders trying to sweet-talk you into settling your tab don't count, I'm afraid."

  "Cute," he said. "Anyway, I got us on the list for tonight. I'm going to have to be pretty inconspicuous, what with Aubrey having tried to kill me a year ago."

  "You think he'd recognize you?"

  "Maybe. But something tells me he's the type not to pay too much attention to the little people. Besides, it's a risk we have to take. And we're Sapiens; we don't need an excuse to pull stunts like this."

  "Well," I said. "To be fair, I'm the only Sapien here. You turned in your badge, remember?"

  "I suppose you're right," he said. "Then I'll have to ask you to let me bask in your glory for the evening. Maybe some of that prestige will rub off on me."

  I smirked. "How long till we have to be there?"

  "Soon," he said. "Go get dressed and ready and we'll head out."

  I didn't need to hear it a second time. I ducked into the bedroom and got ready, putting on my gown and matching shoes. I felt a little ridiculous when I looked in the mirror; I preferred things that were easy to wear and didn't draw attention to themselves, and this was exactly the opposite of that. Still, it felt…nice to wear som
ething a little more glamorous. It was a side to me that I didn't know I had.

  Once ready, I headed to the living room where Jerrod was waiting for me, a martini in hand as he stood in front of the windows looking out over the city, the sun setting in brilliant salmon and cream colors behind him. Turning to me, his eyes went a little wide.

  "Wow," he said. "That's…really nice."

  "Thanks," I said, looking down at the dress. "Not my usual style, but I guess it'll do for tonight."

  "Don't sell yourself short; you look like a million bucks."

  "Such a smooth-talker," I said sardonically.

  "Hey," Jerrod said with a smirk. "Didn't anyone ever tell you how to take a compliment?"

  With that, he killed his drink and the two of us were off. After driving through the evening city, we arrived at a beautiful stone building, the kind that had to have been built no later than the early twentieth century. In front was a U-shaped driveway where all manner of luxury cars were pulling in and being given over to valets. Men and women in elegant clothing emerged from the cars and headed up the illuminated stone staircase that led up to a pair of massive double doors where a pair of black-clad men waited to let them in.

  "Fancy shit," I said, checking out the scene.

  "Wait until you see the inside," Jerrod said. "This is the kind of shifter party that little people like us never get to see."

  Once the valet took the car, Jerrod came over to my side and let me out, offering his arm to me. "We're a couple tonight," he said in a low voice. "Play the part."

  I took his arm and stepped out of the car and into the cool evening air. Being surrounded by the wealthiest of the wealthy shifters, I felt immediately overwhelmed.

  "Just look like you've done this a million times before," he said out of the corner of his mouth through a beaming smile.

  "Easier said than done," I said as we ascended the stairs.

  Soon, we were at the top, where the men flanking the doors stood checking names. When it was our turn, Jerrod gave them his name and we were in.