by Bianca D’Arc
The next morning, Ezra was up well before Thea. He listened at her door for a moment, hearing the steady breathing that told him she was still sound asleep. They’d had a long day yesterday, and he was happy enough to let her sleep in.
He left a note on the table in case she woke while he was gone, then he headed out on a supply mission. He picked up groceries for the refrigerator—particularly breakfast ingredients—then worked his way back to the room. Thea was still asleep when he returned, so he started cooking breakfast. He was hungry, and he figured she’d come out if the scent of cooking bacon had the same power over her that it did him.
He grinned as he set the pan of bacon on the cooktop. Sure enough, about fifteen minutes later, Thea’s door opened. She looked adorably rumpled, her hair a little messy and her eyes a little heavy-lidded. She looked cute. Like a sleepy mama bear just coming out of hibernation.
“You got bacon?” The final word sounded like she was referring to the Holy Grail or some other sacred object.
“Bacon, eggs, bread for toast, and some other stuff. I figured if we’re going to be here a few days, we might as well stock the fridge,” he told her. She shuffled into the kitchen area to look over his shoulder at the nearly-done pan full of bacon, inhaling with a sappy smile on her face.
“Can I help cook?” she asked, her gaze never leaving the crispy bacon in the pan.
“Not today. I’ve got it. Why don’t you set the table, and I’ll serve this up? Do you want eggs?” He began taking the bacon out of the frying pan and placing it on the paper-lined plate he’d prepared to help blot up some of the grease.
“Yes, please. Can I have two, scrambled well?” she asked in a prim voice, still eyeing the bacon.
“Coming right up. You want toast with that?” As he said the words, the toaster popped, and two perfectly browned slices came into view.
“I’ll take those, if you don’t mind,” she told him, reaching for the fresh toast.
She politely reloaded the toaster with two new slices and set it to toast before heading to the table. She’d set out plates while they’d been talking, and Ezra followed her, placing the plate of bacon in the center of the table.
“Start on that, and I’ll have your eggs ready in a few minutes,” he told her, feeling indulgent because his inner bear liked providing for her. It made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
He made her eggs and his all at the same time, dividing up the mound in the frying pan and giving her the smaller portion. He took his seat at the table after serving them both and noticed the bacon sandwich she’d made with her toast and half the plate of bacon. It seemed like she’d been very deliberate about leaving exactly half of the bacon for him, which was sweet, but he wouldn’t have minded if she’d eaten the whole thing. He wanted her to have whatever she wanted—even if that meant he’d have to make more bacon for himself.
The thought struck him as he broke up the crunchy bacon into his eggs. He would happily go without so that she had what she wanted. He’d never really felt that way about any other female who wasn’t related to him. That probably meant something important, but as he started to think through the possibilities—all of them intriguing in a scary sort of way—his phone started singing out with alerts for incoming text messages. Three or four in a row.
He reached for his phone and placed it on the table next to his plate. “Sorry. It sounds like someone wants to get in touch with me pretty badly.”
“No problem. I don’t mind,” she told him, busying herself with her eggs as he scanned the incoming messages.
“Damn,” Ezra mumbled, reading the urgent texts from Ace, who was at the bike shop, and his brother, Jack, who was on the other side of town. It was a three-way text. “Thea, I hate to say this, but you should probably stay inside today.”
“What? Why?” she wanted to know.
“Someone is stirring up trouble between the groups of shifters in town this week. There are at least three werewolf Packs, plus a few more bears, besides us five. Apparently, they’re talking about some sort of blood feud, but the reasons aren’t clear.” He tapped out a brief answer on his phone and sent it on its way. “I’m going to have to check this out,” he told her, standing. “I’m sorry to leave like this in the middle of breakfast, but I need to know what’s happening, and if all-out war can be prevented. Jack seems to think there’s something funny about the way this is developing. He has a nose for magic, and he said…” Damn, this was going to be hard to say to her, of all people. “He said there might be a magical component to this. He thinks someone is driving the violence.”
Her face drained of color, and she dropped her fork. “There’s a mage here, manipulating the shifter population into fighting?”
“It’s possible,” he told her, though Jack had said it was the likely situation.
“Then, I’m coming with you,” she said, shocking the hell out of him as she stood.
“Say what?” He rocked back on his heels, unprepared for her fierce stance.
“I refuse to cower from some bastard mage who thinks he can maneuver us into bleeding for his perversions. I’ll help you track him down and kill the bastard.”
Wow. She was serious. Mama bear was riled up, and no way did Ezra have the heart to tell her she couldn’t come with him. She deserved a chance to get a little of her own back. She had earned the right to stand on her own two feet and face down a danger like the one that had trapped her before. She probably needed to know she could, as a further step in her recovery.
But this time, Ezra would be standing right behind her, backing her up. He’d let her do her thing, but if she needed help at any point, he was there to let her know she wasn’t alone.
“All right,” he said, finally, coming to a decision. “Dress in your leathers. We’re going to be among bikers. Shifters, too. But they’re all different breeds connected by their love of bikes. We need to fit in.”
“So long as they figure out I’m the Alpha bitch in charge, we’re all going to get along fine.” A steely look entered her eyes before she spun and headed for her bedroom. Ezra finished shoveling the rest of his breakfast into his mouth. He was already dressed for action, but he’d wait for Thea. He liked this gutsy new side of her.
Thea went into her bedroom and lost a bit of the steam that had driven her to volunteer—no, demand—to go with Ezra. What was she thinking? Had she even been thinking when she’d made that demand?
She wasn’t sure where all that bravado had come from, but in the moment, it had felt good. Really good. As if she was evolving into…someone she could be really proud of. No more hiding in the corner, locking herself away in her parents’ home. She was wild and free and on her own for the first time in her life.
Well, not completely on her own. Having Ezra here was probably what was making her feel so bold. She had this sense that, no matter what kind of trouble she might find herself in, he’d be there to back her up.
She felt her bear demanding that she do the same for him. Equals. Alphas. Partners?
She wasn’t sure where that thought was coming from either…only that it felt really, really right.
She dressed quickly, ready for action in just a few minutes. Shifters got good at dressing and undressing faster than most people, and their clothing was never fussy. Easy on, easy off, ready to shift into whatever form was best suited to the situation.
When she came out of the bedroom, shrugging into her jacket, she found Ezra waiting for her. He handed her something that she took without question, only realizing a moment later what it was.
“I turned the rest of your breakfast into a sandwich. You can eat it on our way out the door,” he told her.
A little piece of her heart melted at the sweet gesture. What a nice thing he’d done for her. Food was one of the most basic, most important things to a shifter. The fact that he’d thought enough about her welfare to make sure she got to finish her breakfast was very indicative of his protectiveness and generosity. How could anyone
possibly not like this man? He was a big teddy bear.
They rolled into the bike shop a few minutes later. The sign above the garage bays proudly proclaimed they were arriving at Zappo’s Bike Repair. The small garage had three open bays, but there were no hydraulic lifts in this shop. No, this place was strictly for vehicles of the two-wheeled variety.
There were bikes in various states of completion all over the place, and at least a half-dozen guys working on them throughout the three bays. There were another three guys in the office, dithering over parts. Every single one of them looked up when Thea got off her bike. She sniffed delicately. In addition to the bear brothers they’d met last night, there were a whole lot of wolves present. And they were all watching the sway of her hips as she walked toward Ezra.
Thank goodness, he’d waited politely for her to join him. She would not feel entirely comfortable facing down a dozen lusty shifters all by herself, but then again—they were wolves. Her bear would eat them for breakfast if they tried any shit with her. Grrr.
She didn’t know where this new feistiness had come from, but she liked it. Prior to her abduction, she’d never really been a forceful woman. Now, the bear had really come out to play, asserting itself even while she was in human form, probably to protect her better than it had in the past. No way was Thea going to be an easy mark now or in the future. If someone wanted to hurt her…well…they could try, but she’d put up one hell of a fight, and anyone who dared touch her without permission would get bloody—by her claws. That was for certain.
Ezra held out an elbow, and she slid her arm through his, making a clear statement that they were together. The change in the speculative feel of the looks sent her way was welcome. She’d just gone from being available to claimed, and as caveman-ish as that was, in shifter culture, that meant only an idiot who wanted to tangle with Ezra would try anything with Thea. He had very clearly just put her under his protection. The big lug, she thought affectionately. He really was the sweetest man.
Ezra escorted her directly into the bay where two of the bear brothers she’d met last night were working. When they saw her, both of them wiped off their hands on nearby rags and came forward to give her hugs in greeting, one at a time. It was a bear thing. Bear hugs were the best kind, after all.
After spending the previous evening with them, Thea felt comfortable with the brothers. Especially knowing that Ezra trusted them to get the inside scoop on this place. She looked around as she stood back and Ezra exchanged greetings with his operatives. Only Ace and King were there. Jack had been following a lead, if she recalled what Ezra had said before they left the hotel. Perhaps he was still out there, following it. In the meantime, there were a lot of eyes on Thea and Ezra, and from the scents, they were all werewolves. Very curious werewolves.
An older werewolf came out of the office and headed straight for them. Ace made a show of noticing the older man’s interest and stepped forward to make the introductions.
“Boss, this is an old friend of mine and his lady friend. Ezra Tate and Thea Jackson. Guys, this is Francis Benito, manager of this establishment.” Thea watched as the two Alpha males—albeit of different species—sized each other up. Finally, the older man stuck out his hand.
“Friends call me Frank,” he said in a voice that sounded like it had been honed with sandpaper.
“Frank,” Ezra said politely. “Nice place you got here.” Ezra made a show of looking all around the repair bays at the bikes in various states of repair.
“Nice wheels,” Frank said, nodding toward Ezra’s vintage motorcycle.
From there, the two men launched into a conversation filled with numbers and model names. Real gear-head talk that Thea really couldn’t follow. She’d bought her bike because Margo—the werewolf woman who had been a big part of Thea’s rescue—had ridden a Harley. Margo was badass, and Thea remembered looking at the other woman and wanting to be more like her. Alpha. In control. Able to take care of herself and drive a big, scary machine.
Thea had come to love her new bike in the weeks since she’d purchased it and learned how to ride. She wasn’t quite in Ezra’s class when it came to being knowledgeable about the machine, but she was learning as she went along. She wasn’t sure she’d ever become an aficionado, though. She was capable but didn’t have a lot of experience with mechanical things. She could fix something in a pinch, but she didn’t know all the inner workings of bikes the way the men around her right now did. It just wasn’t something that interested her.
She’d much rather feel the wind against her body, buffeting her as she rode along than spend much time thinking about the gears and pistons that made everything work. She also liked the functional fashion that went along with riding. Leather was awesome to wear. It made her feel sexy. Judging by the attention she’d been getting from males of every species along her journey so far, she looked good in it, too. That boosted her confidence, which was a good feeling.
As Ezra moved away with Frank to discuss his vintage bike, Thea realized Ace and King were flanking her, one on either side. One held some kind of wrench in his hand. The other was still wiping grease off his fingers with a rag. She glanced at each of them in turn, but they were watching everything but her. It was like they were guarding her or something. For a moment, Thea felt a little bit like royalty with her very own honor guard.
The sound of an approaching motor broke that daydream. She recognized the man on the big machine. It was the missing brother of the trio, Jack. After parking his own bike, he came right up to her and gave her a bear hug in greeting. Of the three, Jack had the liveliest personality.
He took her hands in his after the hug and looked into her eyes. “You all right?”
How did Jack know…? Damn. Ezra must have told the brothers something about how they’d met.
Thea gently disengaged her hands from his—a statement of her own strength. “I’m fine. Hoping to kick some ass, but otherwise fine.”
A wolf who was loitering just a little too close behind them chuckled, and she turned to look at him. Something about him seemed a little off, but they’d come here to gather information, and it looked like this guy wanted to speak.
“You know where I can do a little of that ass kicking?” Thea asked the young werewolf bluntly. Bears weren’t known for the subtlety, so she figured it was okay to come out and say something like that to him, considering what he’d just overheard her saying.
He chuckled again in a way that sent shivers of alarm down her spine. Something was not right with this boy.
“Yeah. Gonna have a brawl at the full moon. Gonna kill some of those White Oaks pussies.” If he’d been in wolf form, the young man would have been drooling. Damn. The look in his glassy eyes was downright creepy.
“What is White Oaks?” Thea asked.
“A Pack that rolled into town from Iowa. They come every year for the rally,” another of the mechanic wolves nearby answered. He seemed a little less…wrong…than the younger man, but there was still something off about his eyes. “They’re going to learn they should just stay home and out of our territory next year. If any of them are still alive after tomorrow night.”
The conversation came to a halt as Ezra and Frank returned. The younger wolves went back to work on their respective projects while the bear brothers surrounded Thea protectively and sent each other speculative looks. They had all seemed surprised by the answers to Thea’s questions, and she wondered if she’d just elicited more information from their co-workers in three minutes than they had in three days.
The thought was enough to make her smile. Ezra returned her smile as he walked right up to her and put his arm around her waist. The others moved off to give him room, and Frank left with an abstract wave for them both. He went back into his office and didn’t come out again.
“Seen enough?” she asked Ezra, as if she’d had enough of the motorcycle shop and just wanted to go and have fun somewhere else. She could play the demanding girlfriend if she had to.
“Sure thing. We’re in town all week,” King told Ezra.
“I was hoping we could discuss it later today. You guys take a lunch break?” Ezra asked with the just right amount of casualness, Thea thought.
“Yeah, we usually get burgers over at Molloy’s,” Jack piped up. “You and your lady are welcome to join us. Not many of our kind here this year, and I haven’t seen such a pretty female in a long time,” was Jack’s comment as he gave Thea a good-natured leer.
She laughed at his over-the-top flirting and looked at Ezra, but he was cool. It was pretty clear that Jack was only being friendly and wasn’t trying to steal Thea away from Ezra in any way. Bears were playful sometimes, and Jack seemed to be that kind of personality. Thea found him charming in a brotherly sort of way.
“We’ll see you there,” Ezra told the men. “Lunch is on me.”
“Then, we’ll definitely see you there,” Ace replied, grinning. He reached forward to shake Ezra’s hand in farewell, and Ezra repeated the gesture with each of the other brothers before turning to go.
CHAPTER FIVE
Thea followed Ezra as they got on their bikes and headed away from the garage. Once they were out of sight, he gestured for her to pull over into the large parking lot of a strip mall. She followed him to a corner of the lot where they parked their bikes and shut down the motors so they could talk quietly.
“Sorry about that,” Ezra said first, before she could ask him what that little encounter had all been about. “There were way too many wolves there to discuss anything, and they all smelled off to me.”
“Off how?” she asked, instead of the many other things running through her mind.
“I don’t know.” He grimaced and shook his head once. “It could be drugs, but most shifters don’t bother with that stuff. I didn’t think there were any human drugs that could really affect our kind to any large degree—unless they took massive quantities. Our metabolisms are just too fast-burning to let the effect last very long.”
