by Crystal Dawn
“What’s in it?”
“Gin, whisky, and a lemon twist.”
“I’ll remember that one. Did Nat get in touch with you?”
“She did. I picked her up this morning. She’s in the room next to me. I’m fairly sure she’s already spoken to Tanner and Harvey.”
“They didn’t mention it.”
“Maybe they want to keep her to themselves? She’s beautiful.”
“Hm. That shouldn’t make any difference.” Dez just shrugged then turned to fix two drinks for guys bellied up to the bar hitting on her. He didn’t like the guys paying her so much attention. The looks he sent them weren’t nice, but they didn’t seem to notice anyone, but Dez,
Tending bar was keeping her too busy to notice him. JC didn’t like to be ignored even when he understood the reason for it. Across the room, he saw Tanner so he motioned to him. “Hey, Boss.”
“Why didn’t you tell me Nat was here?”
“I’ve been busy. You never said to let you know. She’s an accountant, you never want to talk to those.” Tanner noted.
“I hear she’s very attractive.”
“She’s okay. Harvey seems to like her well enough. They started talking shop so I left.”
“Got froze out?” JC asked.
“Maybe a little. Those two have a lot in common. I think our boy might learn something from her. He seemed impressed.
“Good. I can’t wait to get some figures on what those guys did to us.”
“She plans to start first thing in the morning right after Harvey takes her and Dez to breakfast.”
“He’s taking Dez too? Where?” JC asked.
“He’s having it delivered to the meeting room. Nat said Dez helps her sometimes.” Tanner explained.
“Don’t say a word to Harvey, but I plan on being there.”
“Okay, Boss.”
“Stop with the boss shit already.”
“Okay. You were just acting like a pushy boss.” Tanner said before he walked off.
JC wondered when Seb’s person would arrive. Hell, no one was telling him anything except Dez, maybe they already had. “Hey, Dez.”
“Yup, JC?”
“Is Seb’s guy here yet?”
“No, Seb’s guy won’t be here until the morning.” Dez grinned. What was so funny?
He wasn’t going to worry about it. It sounded like Seb’s guy would be here in time to join them for breakfast. That suited JC just fine. After saying goodbye, he left Dez working hard serving drinks, the night went on until it was closing time.
JC woke up with a thought on his mind that he had somewhere he needed to be. That’s when he remembered he planned to have breakfast with two lovely ladies and some bums. He was curious about Nat, Dez’s friend. Maybe more curious about her in terms of how Harvey felt about her. That wolf never showed this much interest in a female, suddenly he was all over her.
Once he was up and dressed, he headed to the bar. The meeting room was a small addition, it almost seemed a separate building the way it was set up. It was a single story with a bathroom and kitchenette of its own. The breakfast would be delivered rather than prepared here. It would be interesting to see what it would be.
After he parked in his reserved spot, he headed into the meeting room. The scent of delicious foods hit his nose. Harvey had gone with the expensive catering company two of the she-wolves had started a few years ago. The food was incredible, but the cost too high to afford for every day. As he got closer he heard the sounds of talking and laughter coming from the room.
“JC, what are you doing here?” Harvey asked. “Nat, this is JC, the boss.”
“Nice to meet you.” Nat replied. She was attractive, no doubt about it. JC still preferred Dez. “I appreciate the warm welcome and getting to room next to Dez,”
“You two are close friends?” JC asked.
“Extremely. We’ve known each other forever.” Nat grinned at Dez who grinned back.
“I thought I would join you lovely ladies for breakfast.” JC explained. “You have anything to report, Harvey?”
“Yes, Boss. I’ve given Nat the background. She already found a hidden account tied to our business they haven’t separated yet. She already reclaimed it and canceled it.”
“How much?”
“Only ten thousand, but it’s just the first.” Nat answered.
“What is your standard fee?” JC asked.
“Five percent of reclaimed moneys.”
“That’s acceptable. I can’t wait to see what you do.”
“Nat is incredible.” Dez gushed.
“Dez will help me until her shift starts. I’ll get a lot done that way.” Nat explained.
“It seems Dez is multitalented.” JC pointed out. Nat immediately had a deer in the headlight look.
“I have a talent or two.” Dez jumped in.
“You’re a bartender, a business major, a hobby farmer, and now an accountant. That’s a lot of talent.”
“Why thank you.”
That was when the food started getting put out. The females seemed to be starving as they turned all their attention on the food. Everyone fell over the food because it was so delicious. They had even brought cinnamon rolls with pecans on top. JC was glad he’d come if only for the food, but he was also happy to have met Nat. The surprises didn’t end there.
The investigator Seb sent arrived. Her name was Seleste. She appeared to be well known by Dez and Nat. Seleste was a lion shifter, a beautiful one at that. Tanner’s eyes glazed as he stared at her. None of these females would be here for long so he didn’t mind if his guys enjoyed their company like he intended to enjoy Dez’s.
Breakfast was finished now so work began. Tanner took Seleste to his office to bring her up to speed. Harvey settled in with Nat trying to help her or so he said. It didn’t look like he knew enough about what she was doing to be much help. JC just watched as Dez and Nat began to work on the computer. Dez seemed to know what she was doing often pointing out information then switching computers with Nat.
Harvey wasn’t in the way, he just wasn’t any help. “Yes!” Nat yelled. “I could kiss you Dez. That led me straight to it. We just got fifty thousand more.” They fist bumped then dug in to work harder.
His beta looked up at JC who just raised his eyebrow at him. Harvey clearly wasn’t any help to these two females, but it was also obvious he didn’t want to leave. That was alright, but everything seemed under control here so he went to find Tanner.
Once at Tanner’s office, he knocked on his door. Entering, he always forgot how small the office was. He dropped into the seat next to Seleste. “Don’t mind me. I’ll just listen to get the information I need.” Seleste just shrugged while Tanner looked unhappy. He just needed to realize work came before fun.
Both of the lovely girls stayed a week before they left. Nat managed to track down half a million dollars that were connected to his pack. That was way more than he’d expected, but she said it was from some unethical business practices those men had employed. JC was considering ways to give some of it back to his pack members. They could use a child care center in their area.
Seleste had tracked everything down to the Scrazassi crime family. She was able to get him a great deal of information not only on the family itself, but on those that worked for them. There was enough information to go to the law. She also told him Damon was currently working on a case against the family that involved other people in their community. That’s when he’d called Damon himself.
“Damon here.”
“This is JC. I’m calling about the Scrazassi crime family.”
“I already know. I got information from an informant in my investigation. What do you want to do?”
“I want them strung up. Any luck in finding the bad council members?”
“We got one, the other will be gotten soon.”
“Maybe you’ll finally get them all cleaned out.” JC hoped.
“It’s my dream.” Damon admitted.
After a little more small talk, they hung up.
Both Seleste and Nat were gone. JC spent a lot of time at the bar flirting with Dez. They’d not dated, but they spoke every night. It was funny that he knew more about Dez in so little time, then he’d known about Mitzy in years.
This night, he’d stayed even though it was late. They’d talked and drank long after the bar had been closed just the two of them. Maybe not the smartest thing, but he enjoyed talking to her. She’d been a bit tipsy so he’d escorted her up to her room.
“I guess I’ll give you a goodnight kiss before I leave you safe and sound.” He’d said as he’d leaned in dropping his lips on her. His arms had wrapped around her as his tongue had sunk into her mouth tasting her spicy sweet flavor.
Somehow he’d found the strength to pull back. He’d walked away leaving her breathing heavy, just as he had. JC was mixed up. He wanted her, but he wanted more. The fact that she wasn’t a wolf, messed with his mind too. His wolf didn’t seem to mind, why was that?
The next day, he called a meeting with his betas. They were all present and accounted for. “I’m having a hard time figuring out what I want from Dez. My wolf seems to want to mate her.”
His betas all gave him a serious look. ”I thought you said you knew your mate would be a she-wolf?” Tanner said.
“I always thought so.” JC admitted.
“You need to have sex with her. If you do and you lose interest, you’ll know she’s not for you.” Harvey suggested.
“What if I don’t lose interest?”
“Then we’ll meet again and discuss what that might mean.” Tanner suggested.
In some ways it sounded right. Test things, see where they went. In other ways it was like it cheapened their relationship to have sex just to see if he wanted more. In the end he had little choice. The only way to see where things went was to pursue the relationship.
That night, he hung around the bar trying to hide the guilt he felt. “What’s the matter with you?” Dez asked.
“I just have a lot of decisions on my mind.” He admitted.
“I thought you had the trouble with those crooks dealt with.” Dez questioned.
“If only that was the only problem I ever had to deal with. What about you? Everything going okay?”
“It could be better, could be worse.”
“That’s a no answer. It tells me nothing at all.”
“I’ve got everything cleaned up now. It’s time to lock up and get out of here.” Dez declared.
“Are you going to invite me upstairs?” JC asked.
Chapter 6
Lovers
Of course she did. They’d gotten to know, and dare she say, like each other over the last couple of weeks. There was a red hot attraction there just sizzling under the surface. She wanted to explore it, but it scared her after what had happened with Mickey. Still, the need to touch, to kiss, and explore him was there.
They stood at the door to her room unsure how to proceed. She could tell he wanted to come in as much as she wanted to invite him in. The male exuded a sexiness that filled her with desire. There was a saying, to get over a man just get under a man. If she did that now, Mickey would be little more than a bad memory.
So what was the problem? If Mickey had caused her pain, JC would devastate her. He would rip her heart apart if he wasn’t serious about a relationship. There was also the location problem. He was a pack alpha. There was no leaving here for him. It was true it wasn’t far from her home, but it was far enough to be inconvenient.
He looked into her eyes deeply. The sapphire blue of his eyes melted her heart and soul. JC leaned forward almost in slow motion until his lips touched hers. The heat lit a fire inside her. Somehow during the kiss, her door had been opened, closed, and they were lying on her bed.
Dez knew she should be concerned that he managed all that so artfully. The problem was she couldn’t string two words together with his hands strumming her breasts while his lips teased hers. His package pressed against her pussy, hot and hard. Heaven help her, she was a goner. Passion carried her away like it never had before.
Neither of them thought about anything they should have. What did they want out of this? Was it one night or the beginning of something more? The before sex talk was completely lacking including the condom talk. Desire ruled the day with no room for common sense or much of anything else.
Clothing disappeared almost as if by magic. She felt his hot silky skin rubbing against her. His fingers moved over her body eliciting an incredible response. Her moans and whimpers drew groans from him. Dez spread her legs as his fingers found their way to her entrance. They plunged into her wet center as his mouth worked its way down her body skimming over her belly. By the time his mouth reached her nether lips, she was ready to jump out of her skin.
It was hard to believe she was in bed with JC doing the horizontal tango. Other males faded in her memory. All she could think of was him and the way his body felt as his mouth worshipped her. His tongue strummed her clit as his fingers drove inside her. Her body tightened as the orgasm loomed over her. JC sucked her bundle of nerves into his mouth setting her body off.
A scream tore from her mouth as her body arched up against him. Wave after wave of passion rushed over her body as she clenched on his fingers as wetness coated them. As she lay trembling beneath him, he stared into her eyes as he lifted his fingers to his mouth to suck every savory drop of her honey from them.
JC spread her legs over his shoulders as he sank into her. He filled her up to near bursting, so big he eclipsed anyone she’d ever had before. Pausing, he let her adjust before he began to move in and out of her slick entrance. Her muscles tightened around him. It felt heavenly having him deep inside her. Her body arched up to take in all of him.
JC sped up as he began to pound into her. She wanted to move, but he held onto her legs keeping them in his chosen position limiting her ability to move. Dez could only arch upward to force him in just a little deeper.
“Oh, JC!” She screamed as she felt herself moving to the edge of release. It only made him move faster until he pushed her over then joined her as he yelled her name out loud.
Dez collapsed against the bed sated for now, but not him. He rolled her over. “On your hands and knees.” He instructed.
She complied as he shifted his position then placed his cock at her entrance. One arm moved under her to hold her up while the other one moved to her clit. Was it even possible to come again? Her clit began to send thrills through her alerting her that it was indeed possible. JC was hammering into her when he suddenly smacked her ass. It stung, and she started to protest, but he drove in hard and deep.
Now she was close to another orgasm reaching for it with all she had while he pounded into her. “Cum for me, Dez!” He urged
Yes! She wanted to so badly. On the edge, she hurt with the need to come around his big cock. He leaned over her nibbling on the back of her neck. It felt good pushing her closer still until he pinched her clit. Something she normally would say wouldn’t set her off, but it did. Dez slammed back into him her channel clenching hard. Her eyes were closed as fireworks lit up under her eyelids.
Did she lose consciousness for a moment? She couldn’t say for sure, but as he exploded inside her, it was all she could do not to collapse under him. He pounded into her until he’d filled her with all his essence then he began to slow down. JC rolled off her onto the bed. He lay still, but his cock still looked hard even though he seemed to be resting. She collapsed next to him wanting to rest just for a moment.
When she woke up, JC was gone. It was no surprise. She didn’t mind either because it spared them both the morning after embarrassment that still being in bed together would cause. Dez felt good. JC was alright, she liked him, but the stronger feelings weren’t there, not yet anyway. There was a potential to feel more, but if everything stopped right now, she’d be fine. He’d helped her over Mickey so there had been a positive result. It had also cleared away her
tension making her relaxed.
If they let things go, she wouldn’t develop that pesky affection for him that would cause a heartache. On the other hand if they pursued their feelings, she knew deep down something good could develop. Maybe even something lasting. Dez got up to take a shower. She dressed for work ready to go downstairs to eat her first meal of the day. Sometimes she ate a traditional breakfast, but sometimes she ate lunch.
It was nice to have a choice. Today when she sat down in the area where food was often served, a waitress brought her a plate of food. “Boss ordered it for you. It’s already paid for. What do you want to drink?”
“A big cup of coffee, please.” She smiled at the waitress. Dena was a nice girl. She was a wolf like most of the females around here. The young she-wolf had a killer crush on Grant who never seemed to notice her. Dena was training to be a nurse working as a waitress to put herself through school.
Dena brought her coffee back setting it next to her. “What’s it like away from here?” She asked.
“It depends on where you go. A lot of small towns are like it is here. Big towns are different, but they can be hard on people not used to them.”
“You live in a small town don’t you? Isn’t it near the white wolf?” Dena’s voice was hushed in awe.
“Ariel is a great person, but she’s just a female like you and me. I think you’d like her if you met her. Did you know there’s a program where you can ask to visit other packs to meet people there?”
“Really? What are the chances she’d pick me?” Dena asked.
“Pretty darn good. No one seems to know about the program except Ariel’s people. She’s got a lot of room as long as you don’t go during summer when school’s out or Christmas holidays.”
“Why not then?”
“She has a big summer camping thing with all the little white wolves. They’ve been doing it since Ariel was a kid and Great Aunt Daisy started it. In the winter, all the white wolves that can make it attend a big Christmas event at Ariel’s. Last year, we all got snowed in and no one could leave. Ariel opened her house up to her neighbors too because some of them had no power or water. She makes things like that fun even with people camping out on the floor. Everyone made s’mores and told scary stories.”
