by Lynn Hagen
“But he can’t come out during the day,” Roy argued. “Since the sun is still all bright and shiny, I’m safe.”
Malik didn’t look convinced. “How about that demon?” he asked. “I talked with Raven. He told me about some guy named Razor who was after Calhoun. So no, you are not safe.”
This was not what Roy wanted. He’d been enjoying his outing so far, but Malik was ruining it. He stood and matched Malik’s glare. “You’re not my father. I’ll go where I want, when I want.”
Darren’s brows shot up, and Malik looked as if Roy had slapped him. “When did you grow a pair?” A smile curved the side of Malik’s face. “I like the new fire in you.”
Roy had no idea where that outburst had come from. He normally wasn’t a confrontational man. “I’ve always had a pair,” he replied before heading toward the door. “I have to pick up some lunch. I’ll see you guys later.”
It had to be the stress turning Roy into a dick. Although he felt inferior to his coworkers, that wasn’t who Roy was, and he didn’t like it. Something had to give. He couldn’t keep living under this kind of strain.
Roy left the station and headed toward the diner but slowed as his stomach filled with rocks. Storming down the street toward him was Calhoun, and he didn’t look like a happy man.
Chapter Seven
The nightmares that Calhoun lived with were nothing compared to the fear he’d felt when he couldn’t find Roy in the house. His heart wouldn’t stop hammering, and all he thought about was that someone had gotten to his mate while he was taking a piss.
Calhoun’s hands shook as he carded them through his hair. Roy was all right. He wasn’t hurt or dead. His mate was walking toward him, and Calhoun felt as though he couldn’t get to Roy fast enough.
“Before you start in on me,” Roy started to say, but Calhoun wasn’t listening.
His chest hurt, he felt dizzy, and there was tingling in his hands. He also couldn’t shake the terror that gripped him.
Calhoun couldn’t breathe as he leaned against the wall next to the diner. He shook out his hands, forcing his breaths to slow down.
“Whoa.” Roy placed his hands on Calhoun’s arms. “I’ve seen this before.”
“What the hell is wrong with me?” Fuck, he was sweating now.
Roy petted Calhoun’s upper arms. “Breathe in and out very slowly, Cal. You’re having a panic attack.”
“A what?” Calhoun scowled as he pressed his hands against his knees. “I don’t have fucking panic attacks. That’s for those who—” Calhoun rubbed his chest. “Are you sure I’m not dying? I feel like I’m dying.”
“You’re not dying. You’re overwhelmed. It happens to the best of us.”
Calhoun turned his glare to Roy. “Have you ever had one?”
“No, but lately, I’m surprised I haven’t already suffered through a dozen of them.”
He didn’t like this feeling. Not at all. Calhoun never had panic attacks. He really didn’t. He’d been the enforcer for his entire pack, had hunted down the worst scum the world had to offer. He considered himself a badass in every sense of the word.
But the panic he’d felt when he couldn’t find Roy nearly brought him to his knees. He crushed his mate to him. “Don’t you ever fucking leave my sight again.”
“Cal, let me go.” Roy struggled to get free, but Calhoun didn’t want to let him go.
“Let me hold you until I calm down.” He didn’t care who saw them hugging on the street. Those with delicate senses could kiss his ass. He was keeping Roy wrapped in his arms for as long as his mate allowed.
Roy sagged against him, curling his arms around Calhoun’s waist. He thought about what Roy had said, how he should have had a dozen panic attacks by now. Calhoun had been so busy trying to keep the guy safe that he hadn’t really thought about how this whole situation was affecting the human.
In a week and a half, Roy had gone from ignorant of Calhoun’s world to thrust directly into it, and then one of the bastards after Calhoun had attacked. His mate had to be stressed the fuck out.
“I’m sorry,” Calhoun whispered. “I didn’t mean for you to get caught up in any of this. If I could tuck you away someplace safe, I would, but—”
“But I’m not allowed to leave your side,” Roy finished for him. “And while I enjoy your company tremendously, I still need my own breathing room.”
“I know.” Calhoun pressed his cheek on top of Roy’s head. He hadn’t meant to suffocate the guy, but Calhoun was so terrified Razor or Merk would get their hands on Roy. It was an all-consuming fear that he didn’t know how to let go of it.
The riotous feelings inside Calhoun slowly ebbed away. He released Roy and scrubbed a hand over his unshaven jaw. “I feel like the biggest fucking baby in the world.”
“Why?” Roy asked. “People have them. It’s no big deal.”
“You don’t have them,” Calhoun pointed out.
Roy rolled his eyes. “Come on, macho man, let’s get something to eat. My cupboards are growing bare, and I need meat.”
Calhoun smiled and grabbed Roy’s hand. “I promise to stop keeping you locked up as my sex slave.”
“Seriously.” Roy stopped and looked up at him. “I can understand you being wary at night. I get that. From what you’ve told me, Merk is one scary son of a bitch. But I’m not going to stay stuck in the house during the day.”
“Demons,” Calhoun said then looked around to make sure no one was listening. There were people on the street, but none close enough to hear them. “Only demon warriors fade in the sunlight. Razor could be walking around town right now.”
“Okay, then when we’re out, we stick together, but I can’t—”
“Stay stuck in the house, I know.” But if it was up to Calhoun, Roy wouldn’t leave the bed.
Then a thought struck Calhoun. “Since we know the two men after me are somewhere close by, I need to go get my truck. How does a road trip sound?”
They could get out of Maple Grove for a while and truly enjoy themselves. The thought excited Calhoun.
“Really?” Roy grinned. Clearly he liked the thought, too. “Where is your truck?”
Calhoun shook his head. “I don’t want to talk about it in the open. Let’s grab something to eat, head home, then take off.”
Roy’s grin widened. “You realize you just called my house home.”
“I like its charm.”
Roy’s brows dipped. “But you just invited yourself to live there.”
“Is that a problem?” Calhoun hadn’t thought it would be. He’d sent Raven to gather his things from the motel a week ago, and Roy hadn’t said anything then.
His mate burst out laughing. “You should see the look on your face. No, it’s not a problem. I like having you there.”
“You’re an asshole.” He pulled Roy into his arms and gave him a quick kiss.
After they’d eaten, walked to the house, and loaded the car with essentials they would need, Calhoun and Roy took off, heading toward the open road.
Already Calhoun felt better. The ten-hour drive would do them both some good. He didn’t plan on driving straight there. Calhoun wanted to see the sights and have a good time.
He prayed nothing fucked that up. Roy needed to have fun and let his proverbial hair down. They’d both been under a lot of stress, and a road trip was exactly what they needed.
* * * *
“You’re the copilot,” Calhoun argued five hours later.
Roy was tired, his back hurt, and he was hungry. That salad he’d eaten earlier hadn’t put a dent in his appetite, but he’d been so eager to leave that he hadn’t paid attention to how hungry he still was.
Now he was hangry, because he was pissed Calhoun was snapping at him.
“A copilot tells the driver where to go, gets him what he needs, and keeps me company so he doesn’t fall asleep.”
Roy glared at him. “Do you really want me to tell you where to go?” He held his phone up and jabbed a finger at t
he screen. “It has no idea where we are. That little dot? That’s us. That big empty space? That’s our surroundings. I know how to read a damn map. I just don’t have one to read right now.”
“Then focus on the signs,” Calhoun snapped.
“What goddamn signs?” Roy looked incredulously at him. “There hasn’t been a sign to read in the last hour. All I see are mile markers.”
Roy folded his arms and sat back, glaring out the passenger window. He was so hungry he was ready to eat one of the thousand cows he’d spotted in the many fields they’d passed. He also wanted to get out and stretch, but he’d wait until they’d reached civilization.
He didn’t regret coming on this trip. Roy just wished he’d been smart enough to bring more snacks. What they’d packed was already gone, empty wrappers and juice bottles strewn across the backseat.
“There!” Roy sat up and pointed at the sign up ahead. “Bubba’s Beef Shack. I don’t care if they serve slop. I’m starving.”
“Just as long as Bubba didn’t scrape that beef off the side of the road,” Calhoun muttered.
“I’m still eating it,” Roy said. “We’re both hungry and tired. Maybe there’s a motel in town we can catch a few hours of sleep.”
Calhoun grabbed Roy’s hand and kissed his knuckles. “You’re right, and I’m sorry I’m being a dick. I get a bit cranky when I’m tired.”
“This coming from a guy who slept fourteen hours the last time he was exhausted.”
Over the past week Calhoun hadn’t gotten much sleep. He didn’t think Roy knew that, but Roy kept an eye on the guy. With his nightmares, and then the insomnia, Calhoun should’ve been a basket case by now.
That still didn’t excuse him taking his anger out on Roy. That wasn’t fair, and Roy was gonna shove his foot up Calhoun’s ass if the guy kept being an asshole.
Roy’s brows drew down when they pulled into the parking lot of Bubba’s. The blacktop was cracked to hell, with large potholes that Calhoun had to navigate around. The building badly needed a paint job, and there were weeds growing everywhere.
“Are you sure this place is open?” Calhoun stared through the windshield as he drove around a particularly large hole.
“How should I know?” Roy asked. It wasn’t as though he came there all the time. “I see other cars.”
Calhoun scowled. “What you see are redneck trucks.”
There were even three ATVs parked on the side of the building, but Calhoun was right. One truck was jacked so high the driver probably had to dive into the driver’s seat. It had some kind of bar on the front grille and spotlights mounted on top. The other trucks were similar. One even had a dead deer in the back.
“I think we landed in No Country for Old Men.” Roy looked at Calhoun. “Are you sure we should stop here?”
Calhoun gave him a daft look. “The next restaurant is probably miles and miles away. We’re hungry, and we’re eating here.”
Roy half expected tumbleweeds to roll by as they got out and closed their doors. He did not have a good feeling about this.
“Just stick close to me,” Calhoun said as he opened the diner door. Country music greeted them as Roy looked around at the sea of cowboy hats.
“We should order to go,” Roy whispered. “I don’t think they like strangers.”
Everyone in there was staring at them. Roy had an urge to hide behind Calhoun. But he wouldn’t. He was a damn deputy, and anyone who had a problem with them could kiss Roy’s pale ass.
A mousy-looking waitress showed them to a table. Her hair was dull and hung around her shoulders. She had brown eyes that were as flat as the tabletops, but at least she had on sensible shoes. Roy believed in them if a person was on their feet all day.
But they did nothing to flatter her. Her nametag said her name was Sarah.
“Your server will be right with you.” She set their rolled-up silverware on the table and walked away.
The place might look as though it needed to be bulldozed, but the food smelled divine. Roy inhaled deep drafts as he looked over the menu.
He noticed Calhoun hadn’t said a word. When Roy looked up, he saw that Calhoun was surveying the people. “What’s wrong?” Roy whispered.
Calhoun looked at him with wary eyes. “No need to whisper. Everyone in here can hear you.”
What did that mean? Roy started to ask but looked around instead. Every last pair of eyes was aimed at them.
“It seems we’ve walked into a clan of hyenas.” Calhoun looked over his shoulder before he turned his attention to Roy. When he spoke, it wasn’t for Roy to hear but the customers. “We’ve just come here for a bite to eat. We’re not here to stir up trouble.”
Calhoun had spoken in a low voice, and Roy was terrified the men sitting at the tables would jump them. Hyenas? Really? It seemed they just couldn’t get far enough away from the nonhumans, far enough away that Roy could relax.
The guy at the next table over gave them a shady-ass grin. “Ain’t no problem. Enjoy yourselves.”
Roy doubted that would happen. He glanced at Calhoun. “We really are on a tight schedule. Maybe we should get our food to go.”
Like he’d suggested in the first place.
“No need for that,” the stranger said.
“No, my mate is right,” Calhoun said. He stood and grabbed Roy’s hand. “We’re just gonna get our food and hit the road. We have a long drive ahead of us.”
There had to be over a dozen men there. At least Calhoun was smart and didn’t fool himself into thinking he could take them all. Roy was too damn young to die.
Some guy on the far side of the restaurant stood. “You heard our alpha. Sit and eat.”
Fuuuuck. They were so screwed.
* * * *
Calhoun cocked his head to the side. “Jason?”
Jason Beaumont grinned as he crossed the room. Calhoun gave him a quick man-hug—chests bump, a double tap on the back with the side of the fist…and break—before he slapped Jason on the shoulder. “Where the hell you been hiding, Calhoun?”
A two-arm man-hug was reserved for family and close friends, which Jason was not. They’d worked together on one mission, and after that, they’d parted ways.
“Keeping busy.” Although he was looking Jason in his face, Calhoun was also watching everyone in the room. Hyenas weren’t to be trusted. They were shady as fuck and cutthroat. Calhoun was glad he didn’t have to fight his way out, but he still needed to be careful what he said. Hyenas could turn on a dime.
“Is that really your alpha?” Calhoun asked, keeping his friendly smile in place. He needed to know the hierarchy so he would know who to show respect to and who could kiss his ass.
“Yeah, that’s Calvin.” Jason patted Calhoun between the shoulder blades. “Why don’t we grab some grub and catch up outside? We don’t want to disturb everyone’s dinner.”
Calhoun tightened his hold on Roy’s hand. He had read between the lines. Jason’s clan wasn’t happy for the intrusion, and Jason was politely getting them out of here.
“Sounds good,” Calhoun said. “Just grab me whatever you have on hand and I’ll meet you out by my car.”
Calhoun nodded toward the alpha. “It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
That apparently satisfied the guy. He nodded and went back to his meal. Calhoun wasn’t kissing ass. He was following protocol. Maple Grove just had a hodgepodge of shifters living in town. Most places had packs, clans, covens, or whatever. You always paid the alpha the respect he deserved when you were in their territory.
He walked Roy slowly toward the exit. A fast break would’ve caused confusion, and a few hyenas might have given chase.
As soon as they were outside, Calhoun breathed easier.
“What the hell just happened?” Roy asked.
Calhoun explained the politics to his mate.
Roy’s brows rose. “Should I have said something to him?”
“No, that would’ve been disrespectful, at least with hyenas.�
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His mate seemed even more confused. “Why?”
Calhoun didn’t want to lie to Roy, but his mate wasn’t going to like the answer. Roy went out of his way to appear masculine, but it just wasn’t in the cards for the guy. He was too petite and soft-looking. Once again Calhoun was shocked his mate was on the police force.
“Because I’m the dominant male between us. If you would have spoken, the alpha might have slapped you, and then I would have had to slaughter everyone in there.”
“That’s bullshit,” Roy snapped. “I’m just as dominant as you are.”
No fucking way was Calhoun gonna contradict his mate. No fucking way. He didn’t want to spend the next five or six hours getting angry glares and smart-ass comments. His mate might be compact, but he was still a pistol when riled.
“Here you go,” Jason said as he exited the restaurant. “Best barbeque you’ll ever taste.” He looked over his shoulder and then back at Calhoun. “Sorry about that. My clan doesn’t take kindly to strangers, and a tiger shifter, no less.”
“Understandable.” Calhoun held up the bag with the food in it. “Much appreciated.”
Jason sure as fuck loved to slap Calhoun on his shoulder. It was starting to piss him off, but he kept his mouth shut. “Glad to see you again,” Jason said. “Call me sometime and we’ll get together.”
That would never happen. One, he didn’t have Jason’s number. Two, even though they were friendly enough, Calhoun didn’t trust the guy.
“Sure thing.” He waved for his mate to get into the car. “And thanks again for the food.” Calhoun stepped out of the way before Jason slapped his arm again. If the guy did, he just might shift and eat the bastard.
Calhoun got into the car and drove away.
“He seemed friendly.”
Calhoun snorted. “Never, ever trust a hyena shifter. They’ll smile in your face while contemplating your death.”
“Then why did he get us out of there and give us food?”
Even as his stomach grumbled, Calhoun tossed the bag into the backseat. “And never trust anything they give you. For all we know, Mousy Sarah probably spit in it.”
