Fur Fox's Sake (Shifters Undercover Book 2)

by Milly Taiden

  With a huff, Charli said, “Okay, do you want to know why I’m calling or not?”

  She smiled. “Of course I do. You’d better be inviting me to some food event. I’ve got some doozies to tell you that I discovered the last few days.”

  “Really? Great. And I’ve got a dead wolf in the morgue, the likes of which you’ve never seen nor will again.”

  “No way. Did you hit it with your truck and mangle it beyond belief?”

  Barry’s and others’ laughs came through along with another slap. Charli said, “Now, why would you say that?”

  Marika rolled her eyes. She couldn’t believe Charli would ever forget that night—

  “Oh,” Charli said. “Don’t you say one word about that. I’ll so—”

  Marika laughed. “I’m not. I know you have extra ears nearby.”

  “I’m not listening,” Barry said. “It’s not my ears that are extra.”

  “Mine, either,” came a voice she’d not heard before. Then a man’s face leaned in front of Charli, taking up the whole screen. He was drop-dead gorgeous with his perfect hair and dark eyes. And if she was seeing correctly, his eyes morphed into feline, meaning he was a shifter and his animal was close to the surface in response to her.

  Her fox dashed up front and center and stuck her nose against her mind like pressing your face against a window to see in better. Marika told her fox to calm down. They were talking on the phone, which had no smell, she reminded her. But the man looked damn fine from her perspective. Man, it had been so long since she’d had sex, but he looked perfect to get her out of her self-induced abstinence.

  “Hi,” he said. “I’m Devin Sonder.” His voice was dreamy and strong. Sent tingles running to her female parts. First time in forever. Holy wow. Her human side hadn’t been this interested in a man in a long time. And he wasn’t even in the same room.

  Her fox pushed at her skin. Obviously, she liked him too. But just because she turned suddenly horny didn’t mean he was their mate. It meant she’d take him down anywhere and practice making kits with him. She licked her lips and his eyes flashed purely animal. Oh god. She was going to orgasm on the spot.

  He smiled and her undies got drenched. “Do you have a name?”

  Oh fuck. How embarrassing. She’d been lost in sex thoughts when she should’ve been giving her name to him. Man, he really got to her and the wet spot on her panties. Shit. Thank god she was the only shifter in the lab. Devin’s brow raised and she realized she still hadn’t given him her name.

  “Marika!” Her cheeks flushed hot. “Paters. Marika Paters. Uh, nice to meet you, Devin.” His face momentarily disappeared and the image blurred between his face and Charli’s. Must’ve been fighting for the phone. The man she’d soon get naked (maybe) won. His smile returned.

  “Are you at your office for a little bit? I’d like to meet you,” he asked.

  Oh yes. She was all for that. “Charli can give you directions. I’ll be here, waiting.” That didn’t sound too desperate, did it?

  “I’ll see you shortly.” His image jerked away and Charli’s grinning face appeared before she put the phone on normal mode.

  “Is this what I think it is?” Charli asked.

  Marika tried to act nonchalant about the whole thing. She shrugged a shoulder. “Eh, maybe.” Then excitement bubbled up, too much for her to keep in. “Oh my god, Charli. He is really hot!” Marika jumped up and down in a circle, then froze. “Why didn’t you introduce us earlier, Charli? You keeping him from me?” Female shifter jealousy crept up. Nobody better touch him. She didn’t even know why she was suddenly so possessive of a guy she didn’t even know.

  Charli snorted on the line. “Right, Mari. Like I had a freaking clue you two would react that way to just a phone call.” She could practically hear her friend roll her eyes. “Now, do you want me to show you this animal or not?”

  “Yes, Charli, bring me this amazing dead wolf, and I’ll share with you two what I’ve got. I’ll give you a little teaser. As far as the world’s concerned, Barry doesn’t exist.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Devin took his foot off the gas pedal as he realized he was going a little over the speed limit—about twenty miles per hour over. Shit. How would it look for a former police officer to get a speeding ticket? If the ticketing officer was a shifter, he’d understand the rush; if not, then Devin was screwed.

  Screw—yes, please. His animal’s first thoughts went straight to the gutter. He’d better pull his mind out of there. He was not screwing this gorgeous woman that pulled at his animal’s desires (and every dirty human one) within the first minutes of meeting. How barbaric. His panther disagreed. But he was an animal; what did Devin expect?

  Devin let out a sigh and thought back to hearing her voice for the first time. He’d never heard anything so melodious in his life. And her laugh sent joy through him, something he hadn’t felt for a long time.

  Then seeing her beautiful face on Charli’s small phone . . . his heart melted. The fact that his chest constricted and the word mate floated in his mind made him extra nervous. Could she be? Mate. He’d never heard of anyone recognizing a mate via a video call. Maybe he was just really fucking horny. Or maybe she really is your mate, you dumbass. In his dreams, she wasn’t nearly as stunning as real life.

  Could his luck finally be turning around? He’d believed for so long that his mate didn’t exist. That he didn’t deserve love because of what happened. Maybe he was wrong.

  But he knew he couldn’t spend much time with her. He had the damn murder investigation to start. The first forty-eight hours were crucial when it came to crimes such as this and finding the perp. After those initial few hours, odds of catching the killer dropped drastically. The FBI wouldn’t let the murder of a senator go unsolved, even if they had to find an innocent body to take the fall.

  If it came to that, he’d wash his hands of the case. If it wasn’t by the book, he didn’t want any part of it. He’d learned his lesson well. Strict adherence to rules and codes was the only thing that mattered. Well, maybe with his mate, he might bend those rules just a bit. Or a lot. He cringed at the thought. Should he press his luck like that? Absolutely not.

  He would allow nothing to hurt his mate. He would guard her night and day, twenty-four seven. Occasionally, she could go to the bathroom by herself, if he felt confident she was safe. No one would take her away from him. The dark side of humanity and shifterkind had been imprinted on his soul. More than enough murders, blood, and deaths rested in his tortured mind.

  He slowed for the turn Charli described when giving him directions to the Fish and Wildlife Service. Pulling into the parking lot, he saw a woman pacing along the side of the building. That was her. He knew it was. His panther almost leaped forward.

  Marika felt so dumb. I’ll be here, waiting, she’d told him. Like she was dangling on his every breath. Even though she was, he didn’t need to know. What if he wasn’t her mate? She’d just made a fool of herself. Did she sound desperate? Oh god, she did. Her office was a mess. She headed outside to wait for him. Maybe the fresh air would chill her out a little.

  Leaning against the building, she was less chilled than when she walked out. Her fox reacted to the outdoors and spazzed, happy to be in the sun and waiting on the man that could possibly be their mate. Maybe, she reminded. Yeah, her fox was sure this was him. If not, she’d kick his ass for getting her hopes up.

  Maybe they could have lunch together. Shit. She had promised her mother she’d come over for lunch today. Her mom was cooking one of her favorites—lasagna. Would it be okay to invite him? Would it be too soon to meet her mom? But if he were her mate, they’d mate and do the marriage thing anyway, right? Why put it off, then? Her fox wholeheartedly agreed. Whatever. If her mate said jump off a bridge, her fox would agree. Maybe.

  On the street out front, a car slowed and turned in. Could that be him? She glanced at her watch. That was record time. She’d never made it that quickly from Shedford before. Wi
th a breath out, she tried to remain calm and look as normal as she could standing beside a building ogling the street.

  Before she realized she was moving, her fox had pushed her down the sidewalk toward the parked car in front of the main door. He was getting ready to step out. Her first full glimpse of the man she might spend the rest of her life with. Her heart fluttered. She prayed she wouldn’t pass out from the excitement.

  As she stepped off the sidewalk next to him, he straightened and turned. In his hand was a narrow square box. Her presence must have startled him since he jumped back with wide eyes. Then he said, “Did you order the pizza? It’s twelve dollars and fifty-four cents.”

  She glanced at what he held. Papa Juan’s Fresh and Fast displayed across the box top. It was too early for pizza, unless someone was having it for breakfast. Sounded good to her animal. No, they were out here for their mate.

  “Marika?” She turned to see a sexy man in a suit and tie step away from a dark vehicle in the next row. That was him. Better than what the phone showed. Again, her bright-green sneakers moved her forward.

  God, he was so perfect. Maybe a bit too clean-cut and too neatly dressed, but that was fine. Mother Nature created each half for one another. Her research was all about this. None of that mattered now. She was meeting her mate.

  He was meeting his mate. She was stunning. Her perkiness for him was so cute; he adored it. His eyes glanced over how her lab coat was buttoned wrong and how one pant leg was clinging to her sock, and her shoes reminded him of radioactive puke. He barely noticed any of that. She was perfect.

  When she was near enough, he reached out and took her hand. Oh yes, the electricity and fireworks exploded in him. This was his mate, no questions asked. His arms involuntarily scooped her against him, bringing her flush with his body. She fit him, curve for curve. He breathed deeply and she did the same.

  Her heart raced and his heart would forever match hers. One being. Of course, he wasn’t saying any of that mushy stuff out loud. That was so not manly.

  He wanted to kiss her, but that was going too far for the first ten seconds of knowing each other. Maybe not thirty, though. What should he say to her? Hi, you’re my mate. Let’s get it on. Yes, his panther said. He didn’t even dignify that with an answer.

  Maybe he should’ve asked Russel for tips. Wait a second. What the hell was he thinking?

  “Hi, Devin. It’s nice to meet you,” she said. Her hands shook. Was she as nervous as him? You’d think he was in high school asking out his first date. He needed to play this cool and easy.

  “Hi to you too.” For fuck’s sake, if that wasn’t lame as shit. “I mean, it’s really great meeting you. You’re even more beautiful in real life than on that tiny phone screen.”

  Her cheeks reddened. How sweet. Was it too soon to fall in love?

  “I’m glad you came down for a quick visit. My fox was hoping you’d be the one for us.” She ducked her head and blushed further. “Is this too soon to say that?”

  He brushed his fingers over her cheek. “I don’t think so. Not in this case.”

  Her smile blew him away. “Good, that’s good.”

  Charli’s SUV pulled into the parking lot. Their nonexistent time was up. He sighed. “Looks like it’s back to work for us.”

  “Do you get to take lunch?” she asked. He nodded. “Would you like to come to my mother’s today for lunch? I promised her I’d visit.”

  Meeting the parents already? Holy fuck. He found that he wanted to. She must’ve seen fright on his face.

  “You don’t have to. It was—I thought—”

  “No, I mean, yes. I’d love to eat with you and your mom. Call me later? I have to go.” He handed her a card with his mobile number. She slipped it into her coat pocket.

  “I will.”

  Behind them, car doors closed. “Hey, Marika and Devin,” Charli hollered. “How’s it going?”

  “Great, Charli. Fantastic,” he said. He leaned down and placed a kiss on Marika’s cheek. She quickly reached up to hold his face, then laid a big one on him. No wimpy cheek kiss for his mate. No. She was fire, ready to burn. Let the scorching begin! Right after that, she watched him walk away, leaving her to count the time before she saw him again. She was turning into a wuss.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Inside the FAWS building, Marika led Charli and Barry down the hall toward the refrigerated rooms. She fanned her face, still hot from her quick meeting with her mate. Boy, was he hot. She couldn’t wait to get him out of his clothes. Good god, listen to her. She sounded like a horny toad. Fox, toad, who cared?

  Barry carried a huge black bag that contained the mysterious animal Charli had spoken about on the phone.

  “Marika, slow down, woman,” Barry huffed. “I’m carrying two hundred pounds of dead wolf here.” Marika wanted to have it in cold storage while she went over her findings with the other two. They could look at the animal afterward.

  “Sorry, guess I’m a little excited.”

  “A little?” Barry continued. “I doubt a herd of grasshoppers has as much energy as you do.”

  Marika spun around and walked backward just as quickly. “A herd of grasshoppers? Seriously?”

  Barry frowned. “Like I have a clue what a bunch of those things are called.”

  “‘Cloud,’ love,” Charli offered. “They’re called a cloud of grasshoppers.” They deposited the creature in the deep freeze, then walked through the lab door. She heard Charli snicker behind her.

  “What are you laughing at now, Charli?” Since her friend had been with her mate, the woman was always happy. It wasn’t that Mari was jealous—not anymore—she was just as happy too.

  Charli said, “Oh nothing. I could just tell which side of the lab you’ve been working in.”

  Marika stopped. “What do you mean by that?” She looked around the room, then at her little area. Yeah, she’d agree there were more—a lot more—papers, books, chip bags, pizza boxes, and a soda can or five than anywhere else in the room. But dammit, she was working. Who had time to clean while trying to play Build a Bear Shifter?

  She snagged a trash can on the way to her table. “Here.” She thrust it at Barry to hold while she scooped handfuls of trash into it. “I can keep a clean house, if I want. I just usually don’t want.”

  Charli gave her a big hug. “You know I don’t care how organized you’re not. Just as long as you’re not helping me in surgery, we’re great. Or in a hurry to find your car keys, or the TV remote.”

  Mari huffed. “Have you ever seen pictures of Einstein’s desk? He said ‘Organized people are just too lazy to go looking for what they want.’ And ‘If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?’”

  “That’s good.” Barry laughed. “Did Einstein really say those?”

  Charli bumped him with her elbow. “Don’t get her started. Einstein is her idol.” Marika brushed her hand through the air as if to wave away all the nonsense.

  “Let’s get down to business, you two. We have some serious stuff to go over. Barry being the center of it.” The scent of Charli’s fear filled the air. Barry wrapped an arm around his mate and held her to him. Marika longed for the same from a partner. She then realized the silly banter just now was their way of coping with the scary news she was to tell them. That made her rethink how she would reveal the facts.

  Changing her mind on her presentation, she hopped to the next table and dragged a comparison microscope front and center, then felt around and lifted papers looking for the glass plate samples.

  “After you guys left last week, I scanned Barry’s prints into the national fingerprint system and came up with nothing. Then I went through INTERPOL’s databases with prints and DNA. Still nothing.” She stopped. Well, shit. Where in the hell were those blood samples? They were there a minute ago. Good god, she’d lose her ass if it weren’t attached.

  “Where was I?”

  “INTERPOL,” Barry and Charli said together
.

  “Right,” Marika said, talking and searching at the same time. “I also put his data through other databases few know about, and still nothing. So, I figured Barry was either not from this planet,” she looked over her shoulder toward Barry, “just kidding there. Or had been living under a rock so remote, he didn’t even have a Facebook account.”

  Final-fucking-ly, she found the glass microscope plates tucked safely inside a plastic container where they should be. See, she could be organized.

  She placed a plate under each scope, focused the lenses, then stepped back. “Okay, guys. Take a look at these. One is my blood cells and one is human. What do you think?” She knew Charli would know the difference, but she needed this for what came next.

  Charli nodded, then moved for Barry to look. “I’ve seen plenty of animal blood and human blood,” the vet said. “But I’ve never seen shifter cells before. It’s like half the cell is human and half is animal, fused together.”

  “Agreed,” Mari said. “Which is really close to how shifters and humans intertwine physically. To go from one form to another, both cells need to be readily activated. Thus, cells being fused together makes shifting complete and whole.” She switched out a plate. “Now, look at these.”

  Charli stepped forward and leaned down to the eyepieces. “Holy shit, Mari.” Marika remained quiet, letting Charli fathom the meaning of what she saw. “The new sample is Barry’s blood, I bet.”

  She clapped her hands together and did a happy dance. “You are correct.”

  Charli pulled away and paced, brows deeply drawn. Barry bent over the scope. “My blood sort of looks like a human’s, except something is attached to each cell. Yours was half and half, Marika, and mine are two stuck together. And what are the shiny things floating around? What does that mean?”

  Charli answered before she could. “It means you’re not human. Anymore.”

  CHAPTER NINE