by Tyler, J. D.
And where the heck had those naughty thoughts come from, anyway? Couldn’t be those full lips or the angle of his cheekbones. Those smoky blue-gray eyes regarding her in amusement. Or that sexy tribal tattoo creeping from under the sleeve of his T-shirt to run down his muscular arm.
“Kira? If you win?”
She shook herself, struggling not to blush. “Um, you have to promise to do your best to see that they get home, or wherever they wish to go, within reason.”
Jaxon glanced to Nick for confirmation. When his boss nodded, he agreed. “Okay. If it’s within our power, they’ll leave if they wish. But just so you know, it might not be possible for them all. I don’t have a portal to the Fae realm hidden under my bed.”
“It’s a deal.”
Nick stood, signaling a conclusion to the meeting. “Kira, welcome aboard. Give me a regular end-of-week report on Block R so we can discuss their progress. I’ll have Mac see you about starting in the lab, too.”
“Thank you, Nick. I won’t let you down.”
His gaze softened, and for a second, he appeared melancholy. “I know.” He turned to Jaxon as he walked them to the door. “Tell the guys I’ll see everyone in half an hour, in the smaller meeting room.”
“Will do.”
As she and Jaxon walked out together, she was hyperaware of the big man at her side. He must put off some serious pheromones because all she wanted to do was rub against him like a cat in heat. She’d been attracted to men, but never like this. It was almost as if she had no control over the need to be close to him, and that scared her a little.
“I’ll show you around outside, if you want,” he offered. “If you’ve never been to Shoshone, you’re in for a real treat.”
Just being with Jax was a treat, but she kept that to herself. “I’d love that.”
“Come on.”
He offered his arm and after a second’s hesitation, she slipped her fingers around his biceps. The gesture was sweet and so old-fashioned, and so at odds with the raging beast that had torn out two men’s throats, she didn’t know what to say. It did funny things to her heart, and brought her defenses down several notches, which made her uneasy, too.
She found it hard to comprehend that this man and his friends were shifters. Where was the line between man and beast? Or was there no definition, one simply meshing with the other to create an altogether different being? Could a woman fall in love with such a man?
Could she make love with a shifter? And then came the inevitable disturbing thought—who would I be making love to? The man, the wolf, or both?
She shuddered, and Jax misunderstood the reason. Thank God.
His voice was concerned as he looked down at her. “Are you cold? It’s usually warm during the day in the summer, but it can get chilly up here at night.”
“No, I’m fine, but thanks.” He led her out a side door and she stood gazing in awe at the view. Towering aspen and pine skirted the edges of the compound, and beyond that a wide lake sparkled perhaps a half mile away. In the distance, the Rockies rose majestically toward the sky, defying mankind and the changes wrought by millions of years.
She’d only seen one thing more impressive.
“Stunning, huh?”
She met his gaze squarely. “Very.” Damn, she hadn’t meant for that to come out so low and husky, betraying her inner turmoil. The awareness of him and how good he smelled, how warm and right he felt beside her. Solid. Why did he have to be so danged sexy?
His pupils enlarged, and his voice was deep as he pointed to a part in the trees. “Want to take a walk? There’s a great footpath and a stream that way. The view is awesome.”
So tempting. “You have a meeting in thirty minutes. I don’t want to make you late.”
He shrugged. “I’m a big boy. Besides, we won’t go far.”
“Lead the way,” she said, already cursing herself for her weakness. What was it about this guy that clouded her judgment?
Gently, he peeled her hand off his arm. Disappointed, she started to put some space between them, but he took her hand instead, completely swallowing it in his. The spark from the contact zinged up her arm and spread all over her body. Tightened her nipples and made her ache to get closer.
Lips hitching up, he tugged her hand and they started off. As they entered the mouth of the trail, she forced her attention to a different kind of scenery.
“It really is beautiful here. I like to walk in the mornings if I get up in time, and I can’t imagine any place more scenic to get my exercise.”
“The trails are great for that purpose, but never venture out alone,” he said, his tone deadly serious. “The grizzlies have been really aggressive again this summer. There are also black bears, moose, and any number of dangers. If you went off alone and got hurt, we could find you by following your scent, but it might be too late.”
“I knew that, but it’s easy to forget that dangerous things can be found in pretty packages.”
He gave her an odd look. “Don’t I know it.”
Jax didn’t explain and she didn’t ask, though she was curious. She wondered what made the man tick, what pain lurked in his past. She sensed whatever rode him was more than losing his former life as a Navy SEAL, being turned into a shifter, though that was bad enough. Without being told, she knew it would take a lot more than a fledgling friendship and a few strolls in the woods to crack his armor.
Had any woman ever managed that feat before? Had there been anyone serious?
There wasn’t now, she decided, or he wouldn’t be holding her hand. There wouldn’t be this spark that threatened to ignite when they touched. Jax didn’t seem the sort of man to stray once he’d set his romantic course. If he ever did.
Did he date? Did he do hearts and flowers? No. This man would take and possess. He’d envelop his lover and have her drowning in such a way that she’d never want to come up for air. He’d be her air, demand everything of her, and she’d willingly give.
What nonsense! Daydreaming would never make the ultimate man of her fantasies emerge from the mist and carry her away to be delightfully ravaged until the end of their days.
Men like that didn’t exist, except in movies and books.
“This is one of my favorite spots,” he told her, pointing ahead to where the forest grew sparser. A small stream burbled, the sun catching the water tumbling over rocks. The area around it was green and lush, just right for lazing the day away.
Too bad they couldn’t. “Do you come here much?”
“Not as often as I’d like, but I get out here now and then, mostly when I go for a midnight run.”
She’d give anything to see his wolf in this enchanted place, in the moonlight. What would it be like to run with him, to be like him? Instead, she observed, “You told me not to come out alone, but you take the risk.”
“I have an advantage, don’t forget. The only creature that’s likely to bother me in wolf form is a human, and out here there’s little chance of that happening.”
“Still.” She huffed.
He turned to face her, stepping real close. “You worried about me?” Reaching out, he stroked the curve of her jaw with his fingers. She was too distracted to answer as he lowered his head. Took her mouth.
Fire. Sweet, unmerciful flames, licking at her as sure as his tongue slipping inside. Tasting, stroking. She pressed into the hard line of his body, savoring his full lips claiming hers. His earthy male scent drove her crazy, and she wanted more. Against her stomach, his erection came to life, plumped, grew long and stiff, burrowing in as though seeking what it wanted most.
Both hands framed her face and he explored, swirling his tongue, muscles bunching against her straining body. This man made kissing an erotic, seductive art form. No one else had ever compared to how damned good he felt. Right here, taking what he wanted.
Pulling back some, she opened her eyes. She wanted to see his face, and she wasn’t disappointed. He was as lost as she was to the moment, eyes closed, blac
k lashes fanning on his cheeks like lace. Groaning, he opened his eyes and broke the kiss. The glaze of arousal lifted bit by bit, and his expression grew fierce.
“I can smell him on you,” he rasped. His lips pulled back some, showing his sharp canines. The same teeth that had killed those men.
“Wh-what?” she stammered.
“Aric. I smell him on you.”
This morning. Aric’s kiss. He was jealous! “Oh. Well, he’s a pretty good kisser.” Anger darkened his face and she figured teasing him on that issue wasn’t smart. “But he didn’t do a thing for me. Zip.”
He subsided some. “Oh? What about my kiss?”
She pretended to think about it. “Hmm. It was marginally better.” At his crestfallen look, she couldn’t keep up the charade. Grinning, she twined her arms around his strong neck. “I’m kidding. You sexy thing, that was the most wonderful toe-curling kiss I’ve ever had. Rocked my world.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
He yanked her against him, hand splayed at her waist. Narrowing his eyes, he rumbled a warning. “Don’t let me smell him, or any man, on you again. I won’t be responsible for how my wolf reacts. I wouldn’t hurt you, but him? All bets are off.”
Swallowing hard, she could only nod, not certain how she felt about the mandate. Looking smug, he planted another steamy kiss on her mouth, stepped back and took her hand.
“Now, unfortunately, I have a meeting to get to.”
He walked her back to the compound, never letting go of her hand. She didn’t understand his reaction to Aric putting the moves on her, and had a feeling he didn’t, either.
“I don’t know what Nick will have us doing this afternoon, but I’ll see you later,” he promised, once they were inside.
“Sure. Later,” she managed. He swung around and she watched his fine ass sway back and forth in his jeans until he turned the corner.
Good God. Maybe a man from her fantasies could become a reality after all.
Five
Jaxon could barely concentrate as Nick moved to the front of the meeting room. His erection throbbed in time to the headache pounding at his temples. What in God’s name was wrong with him? Half an hour alone in Kira’s presence and he was ready to jump the woman and have his way.
Her scent was driving him insane. It was like he had a zillion ants crawling under his skin, the urge to mate her—fuck her until they were both limp and exhausted—almost a physical pain.
He’d been nuts to kiss her, much less make demands they weren’t ready for. Who was he kidding? He’d never be ready to settle down with any woman. Not after—no. She was a nightmare he would not revisit. The only purpose Beryl served now was as a fitting reminder of why he was alone. Why he would stay that way?
He’d take back what he said to Kira about staying away from other men. Tell her it was a mistake, which was the truth. It was as though someone else’s mouth had been saying the words, but he hadn’t been able to stop them.
But this itching under his skin was abominable. He had to find sexual relief ASAP. And not from his own hand. He needed to bury his cock in a hot, willing sheath and fuck until he couldn’t breathe any longer. It wouldn’t be Kira, no matter that the idea made his wolf whine in distress.
Any woman would have to do. Today, tomorrow night at the latest, he’d call on Jacee. She had never turned him away, and probably never would. He didn’t need Kira, just a sleek body, and he’d remind himself of that soon.
“Jax, are you with me?”
Jerking his head up, he found everyone’s attention on him. Great. Meeting Nick’s gaze, he schooled his face into a cool mask. The man saw far too much. “I’m sorry. I missed what you said.”
After shooting Jaxon a look of irritation, the older man started over. “We’ve got two cases Grant dropped on my desk early this morning. The first is a string of murders that have happened around Cody. Or more accurately, the bodies were dumped outside town, but the victims were killed elsewhere. The second is a guy who’s been hanging around the cemetery not far from where the bodies were found and is doing a bang-up job of making the locals nervous. Whether or not he’s responsible for the killings or knows anything about them, we don’t know, but we’re going to find out.”
Zander spoke up. “Why’d we catch this? Sounds like a job for the sheriff’s office.”
Ryon smacked his friend on the back of the head. “Why do ya think, idiot? These aren’t just any bodies and this dude is no ordinary drifter. Otherwise, Grant wouldn’t have become involved.”
A few snickers ensued before Nick continued. “Correct. There have been four bodies discovered in shallow graves on the northeast border of the Shoshone, all within a few yards of one another. After the sheriff’s office and forensics went over the area, the county coroner was called out. He immediately ascertained what the cops suspected—all four bodies were in varying stages of decomposition, the most recent one dead only a few days.”
“They found a dumping ground,” Jaxon guessed.
“Right. All were men, approximate age range early twenties to early thirties. No IDs, and no men have been reported missing from Cody or the surrounding areas. In layman’s terms, the men were tortured to death. It appears they were kept in captivity—ligature marks on the wrists and ankles—and were malnourished. Scalpel marks and missing tissue from several areas of the body suggest they endured some kind of medical procedure.”
“Jesus,” Ryon whispered. At first Jaxon thought his friend was reacting to what Nick said. But his eyes were closed and his face had paled, his skin gray and clammy. “I don’t know what you want. I don’t understand.”
“Crap, somebody bring him back,” Aric blurted. It always unnerved the normally brash wolf when Ryon’s spirits came to call.
The sole Channeler and Telepath on the team, Ryon was often sought out by the dead beseeching him for help he didn’t know how to give. Like now.
Jaxon would take his ability as a RetroCog any day. He had no control over events that had already occurred, but at least he wasn’t barraged by dead people, and that suited him just fine.
Leaning close, he gripped his friend’s shoulder and shook gently. “Hey, buddy. Let them go, come on back.” The blond’s eyes fluttered open. “Ryon?”
“God, I hate when they blindside me,” he rasped. “Why can’t they get that there’s not a damned thing I can do to help them?”
“How many this time?” Nick asked, frowning.
“Two. They were yelling at me, but as usual, the words were garbled. One kept pointing at you, like he was all worked up by what you were telling us.”
“One of the four victims?”
“Maybe. I don’t know. You got photos?”
“Not yet. Grant is sending them by e-mail shortly.”
“Okay.” Ryon rubbed his temples.
“You all right?”
“I’m fine. Not gonna toss my cookies or anything. Sorry about that, guys.”
Hammer thumped him on the back. “Give yourself a break, man. It’s all good.” From the quiet one of the bunch, it was practically a speech.
Nick got the meeting on track again, keeping a wary eye on Ryon. “So the coroner determines cause of death. Imagine his surprise to discover the men weren’t human.”
Aric whistled through his teeth. “Let the fun begin.”
“No shit.” This from Zan.
“Shifters?” Jaxon wondered aloud. His mind drifted to the suspicions Kira had shared with him and Nick, and the gene/DNA report she’d read. Nick’s eyes met his, and Jaxon knew his boss was thinking the same thing, though how they could be related was a mystery.
“Bingo. To say the coroner got excited is an understatement. Thank Christ Sheriff Deveraux is in our loop and got to the man before he had the chance to blab the news to everyone he knew. Deveraux called Grant, and now we’re ‘assisting’ the sheriff’s office in the investigation. Off the record, of course.”
“Who’s got the bodies?
” Zan asked.
“Melina and her team will have them as of this morning, when they pick them up from the coroner. We’ll be able to learn a lot more about the victims after they conduct some tests, much more than a few crime scene pics will tell us.”
Aric leaned back in his chair and propped his feet on the table. “This is all real fascinating, but I don’t see what we can do here. I mean, point me at a demon or whatever and I’ll smoke it. Fuck, we’re soldiers, not detectives.”
“Well, it looks like you’ll have to be both,” Nick snapped. “Unless you’ve got another Paranormal Black Ops team on speed dial to take this mess off our hands. No? Didn’t think so.”
Aric shut his trap, but shook his head, his displeasure clear.
Nick parked his ass on the corner of the table. “Our advantage is our Psy skills. We’ll use all of our resources to get a lead on what happened to these poor guys, and why. Which brings us to the drifter in the cemetery. Witnesses report he’s young, early to midtwenties, with collar-length black hair. Deveraux personally ran him off night before last. Said he’s very Goth, wears a heavy silver pentagram, three studs in each ear, black eyeliner, and a black leather duster. Translation—he ain’t from Wyoming.”
That got a good laugh from everyone.
“All kidding aside, in light of the discovery of the bodies and their proximity to the cemetery, he’s a person of interest. Deveraux got his name—Kalen Black. Go figure. If the bodies had been found at the time, he would’ve held the guy for questioning. Tonight we’ll stake out the cemetery, see if he shows. If he doesn’t, we’ll ask around and try to pin down where he might’ve gone. We’ll leave at sunset. Questions?”
No one had any, and Jaxon made himself scarce before anyone could ask him where he was going. Hell, this was supposed to be their weekend off, and that had sure been shot to shit, hadn’t it? He was entitled to some of the R & R they’d all been forced to abort last night, and he didn’t feel one bit guilty about taking his due or not inviting his friends to ride into Cody. They were big boys.
And where he was going, he didn’t need any tagalongs.
