Forbidden Temptation

by R. L. Kenderson

  She had never really wanted to be anything other than her human self until that moment. It wasn’t as if she hated being human. She just felt that she would be an excellent shifter as well. The lifestyle didn’t scare her, and then, of course, there was this man in front of her. She’d get to be with him. There would be no shifter-human conflicts.

  Kenzie ran her fingers down the side of his cheek and over his neck.

  Sawyer frowned and put his hand over hers. “What’s wrong?”

  She attempted a weak smile. “Nothing.” She pulled her hand out from under his and rested her head on his chest. “I would just like to stay like this for a minute or two.”

  Sawyer wrapped his arms around her back in comfort. “Okay.”

  Kenzie listened to the beating of Sawyer’s heart and started to relax. She wished she could stay there forever. She didn’t want to go home, she didn’t want to look for a job, and she didn’t want to continue to drain her savings while she searched for work.

  She was almost asleep when there was a knock at the door, and someone tried the handle. By that time, she’d felt Sawyer’s barbs recede, and Kenzie knew it was time to get up and face reality. She grudgingly slipped from Sawyer’s embrace, making sure to kiss him one last time, and got up to put her clothes on.

  The knock at the door came again, louder this time. “Mr. Lennar?” the voice said from the other side.

  Kenzie straightened her last item of clothing and looked at Sawyer. “You ready for me to open the door?”

  He was covered again, this time to his chest, and he looked no worse than before, except for a little more tired. “Yep.”

  Kenzie went to the door, unlocked it, and swung it open. “Sorry,” she told the lady in the white lab coat on the other side. Kenzie didn’t offer any more of an explanation than that because she was only sorry to keep the vampire doctor waiting. She wasn’t sorry for locking the door and fucking Sawyer.

  Thankfully, the vampire was a professional and didn’t let on that anything had happened in the hospital room that shouldn’t have.

  “Good evening, Mr. Lennar. I see that you’re awake,” the doctor said as she came in the room. “How are you feeling? I heard what happened to you a few weeks ago. Are you having any memory loss?”

  Kenzie sat in the chair next to Sawyer’s bed as he shook his head.

  “No. At least, I don’t think so. I remember everything up until what I assume was getting hit on the head. We were outside the house, I felt pain, and I blacked out.”

  The doctor nodded. “Good, good. I’m glad your memory loss didn’t come back.”

  “Me, too.”

  Kenzie half-listened to the two of them discuss a few more things. Being that the doctor was a doctor for vampires, she gave him the best advice she could but told him to follow up with his shifter doctor to see what he or she recommended.

  “Is there anything else?” the doctor asked.

  Sawyer frowned. “Yes. I’m a little dizzy, but I don’t have much pain. Isn’t that odd?”

  The doctor smiled. “Sorry. I forgot to tell you that I gave you a pretty strong painkiller. It’s a narcotic, so you might not feel like yourself. I’m glad to see that you’re pretty in control of yourself. I have some patients who get a little goofy on the meds. Some are affected more than others and in different ways.”

  Of course, Kenzie thought. How could I have been so stupid?

  She must have made a noise because Sawyer and the doctor both looked at her.

  “I’m sorry,” the doctor said. “I forgot to ask if your mate had any questions.”

  Kenzie held up her hand and shook her head. “I’m not his mate,” she said quickly. “And, no, I don’t have any questions.” She stood and grabbed her coat and purse. “In fact, I think it’s time for me to go.”

  Sawyer frowned. “You don’t have to leave.”

  Kenzie smiled sadly. “Yes. Yes, I do.”

  Sawyer didn’t get it yet, but she did.

  “Thanks, Doctor, for taking care of him.”

  The doctor looked confused but didn’t say anything besides, “You’re welcome.”

  Kenzie left the room and made sure to shut the door behind her. She leaned against the wall and held her coat up to her face. She really, really didn’t want to start crying right there in the hall.

  She calmed herself down enough to put on her coat and leave the building. On the way, she saw Saxon, but she didn’t have time to stop. The calm before the storm was only going to last so long.

  She hurried past him. “Thanks for calling me. I gotta go.”

  Saxon stood but didn’t follow, and soon, she was out the door and headed to her car. She got inside, locked the door, turned on the ignition, and only then did she let the tears fall.

  She was so stupid.

  Of course, they had given Sawyer pain meds. Of course, that was why he’d been acting different. Of course, that was why he’d wanted to have sex with her. She’d known he was off, but she hadn’t realized how much she had hoped he’d had a change of heart until the doctor mentioned the pain meds.

  Why do I keep doing this to myself? “Kenzie, he will never want to be with you. Ever. Stop hoping that he will change his mind.” And stop having sex with him.

  She would never be able to move on as long as she thought about and had feelings for Sawyer.

  She wiped off her cheeks, blew her nose, took a deep breath, and made a decision.

  This would be the last time she saw Sawyer. At least for quite a while. It was just too hard.

  It would be awkward with Naya being mated to Vaughn and Vaughn being good friends with Sawyer, but Kenzie could do it. She had to do it. At this point, her heart was on the line, and she had bigger things to worry about in her life. She didn’t need stupid man troubles when she didn’t even have a job.

  Kenzie put the car in drive and pulled forward out of the parking lot. She was determined to be strong, but she couldn’t stop the longing look she gave as she took one last glance toward the hospital.

  Chapter Twenty

  LEXINE STOPPED WHEN she saw the sign for the bar. A drink was exactly what she needed right now.

  Her phone buzzed in her pocket again. This was the fourth time, and it was getting on her nerves. But that was probably what—she pulled out her cell and looked at the screen—her brother was aiming for. She let the call go to voice mail and then pulled up her messages. She sent a quick text, telling him that she was fine and to leave her alone. Then, she put her phone on complete silence—no ringer and no vibrate.

  Lexine pulled open the big wooden door and entered the bar, letting the warm air surround her. She’d left the hospital to take a walk and clear her head. At the time, the cold had felt good, but December in Minnesota was freezing, and one could handle it for only so long.

  The bar was semi-full. Since it was close to the clinic, it was owned and frequented by vampires, but the occasional human would come in every once in a while. It would be nice to have vampire-only stuff, but that was pretty tough when humans outnumbered vampires. It was hard enough to hide a clinic, so there was no way they’d be able to hide a bar.

  Lexine looked around for a vacant spot. She didn’t feel like making any conversation tonight, so the farther away she was from everyone else, the better. She found a spot near the back, and the minute she took her seat, a server came over to see if she needed anything. It was perfect.

  She ordered a shot of tequila and the largest beer they had on tap. She probably wasn’t going to leave the bar sober tonight, but as long as she didn’t think about Dante and Phoenix, she would be okay with that.

  After about an hour or so, she knew she was on her way to getting drunk, but she had not succeeded in tuning out all thoughts of Dante. She just didn’t get it. She didn’t understand what he saw in that cat-shifter and why he wasn’t interested in a vampire who would willingly and happily give herself to him.

  Lexine knew she was pretty with her shoulder-length blonde hair
and green eyes. Maybe it was because they worked together. Maybe she should quit. But she loved being a Guardian, and quitting wasn’t a guarantee. No, she needed to do something to get him to notice her.

  She wasn’t sure if the group of females near her got louder or if she was suddenly unable to tune them out due to the alcohol, but Lexine could hear them bitching about the very thing that had brought her to the bar in the first place.

  Lexine turned to them and said, “Men suck.”

  The three women, all vampires, stopped talking and looked at her.

  “Excuse me?” the one with short brown hair said.

  “I said, men suck. You’re not the only ones with guy problems.”

  The one with long dark hair spoke up, “Would you like to join us?”

  The short-haired one scowled at the speaker, but Lexine didn’t care.

  Lexine shrugged and said, “Why not?” She moved from her seat to their table.

  The one with long dark hair introduced them, “I’m Michelle. This is Dani”—she pointed to the short-haired one—“and Analeigh.”

  Analeigh had long blonde hair and seemed to be the quiet one of the group.

  “I’m Lexine.”

  “Hi, Lexine,” Michelle said. “So, what is your guy problem?”

  “Unrequited love.”

  Dani rolled her eyes, but Analeigh nodded in understanding.

  “Unrequited love is a bitch,” Michelle said. “Does this guy know how you feel?”

  Lexine shook her head. “No. I was just thinking that I needed to do something to get his attention and make him see me as more than a coworker.”

  “What do you do for a living?” Dani asked.

  Lexine took a drink of her beer. “I’m a Guardian.”

  The three women exchanged looks and sat up straighter in their seats.

  Lexine waved her hand. “Look, if you’re into something illegal, I don’t care, especially tonight. I just want to sit here and relax.”

  Michelle shook her head in protest. “No, it’s just that we’ve never met a Guardian before. Sometime, you’ll have to tell us all about your job.”

  Lexine opened her mouth to tell them that she couldn’t share much when the door to the bar opened, and three guys walked in. They were loud as they seemed to be arguing about something. Lexine hoped they planned to sit far away from them, but to her surprise, they headed straight for the table where she was sitting with her new acquaintances.

  “Guys. Guys,” Michelle said, trying to get their attention.

  The three males were still fighting when they reached the table.

  Michelle had to practically yell at them to get them to stop, “Guys!”

  The three stopped.

  One of them turned and yelled, “What?”

  Michelle shot him a look. “We have someone new with us tonight.”

  Now, all three males looked at Lexine as if they were just seeing her there for the first time.

  “This is Lexine,” Michelle continued. “She’s a Guardian.”

  The way Michelle had pointed out what Lexine did for a job rubbed her the wrong way for some reason, but she couldn’t pinpoint why. And she soon forgot about it as the men each reached out to shake her hand.

  The short blond guy stuck out his palm first. “I’m Steve.”

  “Hi, Steve,” Lexine said as she shook his hand.

  She let go and watched as Steve pulled a chair up next to Analeigh. He kissed her on the cheek before throwing his arm over her shoulders. The two were obviously a couple.

  Next was the tallest of the group with brown hair. “Hi, Lexine. I’m Mathis.”

  The two shook hands, and then Mathis sat down next to Dani. Thankfully, it was not too close, and Lexine felt relieved. She was beginning to think that the six of them were couples, and she’d have to make an excuse to leave. After everything tonight, she didn’t want to be a third wheel—or, in this case, a seventh wheel.

  Lexine finally looked at the last of the three guys and sucked in her breath. The vampire was hot with black hair that was about a month overdue for a haircut and deep brown eyes. In a way, he reminded her of Dante with his dark looks, yet the cool attitude he projected couldn’t have made him more different.

  Lexine held out her hand to him to shake, but the guy ignored it.

  He did give her a nod and a quick, “Hey,” before sitting down directly across from her.

  Michelle pointed to the dark and handsome one with her thumb. “That is Lucas, and he’s too cool for school.”

  Lucas snorted and gave Michelle the finger.

  “So, what are you ladies talking about?” Mathis asked.

  “Nothing much. Just making conversation. What took you so long?” Analeigh asked.

  Steve shrugged. “Nothing. We just took our time.” He glanced at Lexine for a second before looking back at Michelle. “We can talk about it later.”

  Lexine wanted to ask questions, but she had just met them, so she kept her mouth shut. Instead, she asked how they had all met.

  Several hours later, they were all laughing, and Lexine was beginning to feel like part of the group when they decided it was time to go home. Lexine was disappointed but took that as a good sign that she’d had a good time.

  “So, Lexine, did you drive here? Or can we drive you home?” Michelle asked.

  Lexine needed to check her phone and go back to the clinic. If Lennox had already gone home, she’d call him to come get her. “No, thanks. I already have a ride.”

  Michelle and a couple of the others looked disappointed but didn’t push.

  “Well, can I at least get your number, so you can hang out with us again?” Michelle queried.

  “Of course.”

  Lexine exchanged numbers with Michelle, and they promised to meet up again soon. Lexine waved as they all piled into their two vehicles, and then she took off for the clinic on foot. When she got there, everyone was gone, except Dante was still in the hospital room. But she had no desire to go down and talk to him again.

  Lexine pulled out her phone, expecting to see a bunch of messages from her brother. There were only two.

  After her text to leave her alone, he’d responded with a, Whatever.

  Two hours later, he’d told her he was going home, and if she didn’t come back, she could find her own way back to the compound.

  She looked at her watch. That was over an hour ago. Maybe she should have taken her new friends up on a ride home, but it was too late now.

  Lexine called her brother anyway.

  “What?”

  “Hey, Lennox. It’s me. Can you come and get me?”

  “Where are you?”

  “The clinic.”

  “Where did you go?”

  “A bar.”

  “Why? Why did you storm out of Dante’s hospital room? You’ve been acting so weird lately.”

  She was not about to tell her brother about her crush on Dante. Lennox would think she was silly and would never understand. He never had a girl he couldn’t get, and even if he did, he’d shrug it off as no big deal. He’d certainly never had a crush before.

  “I...can’t tell you.”

  “Can’t or won’t?”

  “Come on, Lennox. Will you come and pick me up or not?”

  “Not.”

  “What?”

  “You heard me. Not. Until you can talk to me and not be so secretive, Lexine, you can find another way home.”

  “Lennox.”

  “Later, Lexine.”

  “Lennox? Lennox!”

  It didn’t matter how many times she said her brother’s name. He was already gone.

  Lexine stared at the phone in disbelief. She never thought her brother wouldn’t come and pick her up. Now, what am I going to do?

  “Hey, Lexine.”

  She spun around at the sound of her name to see who had spoken it. It was Saxon. He was with Sawyer and her favorite cat-shifter, Phoenix.

  Oh, great.

  “
What are you still doing here?” Phoenix asked. “I thought everyone went home a while ago.”

  Lexine ignored the cat-shifter’s question about why she had been left behind. “They did.”

  “Do you need a lift home?” Saxon asked. “We had to wait around for them to discharge Sawyer.”

  Lexine thought about her options. She could call a cab or get a ride from these guys. It wasn’t going to kill her. “Sure. Why not? I suppose Phoenix is going to the compound anyway.”

  Phoenix shook her head. “Nope. I’m going back to the bunkhouse tonight.”

  Really? This was very interesting news. What happened to make Phoenix go home? Lexine had to fight to control her grin. “In that case, I would love a ride home.”

  “Come along then,” Saxon said. “We’d better get Sawyer out of here before he falls over.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “There’s the Sawyer I know and love. Pain meds wearing off?”

  “Fuck you.”

  Saxon just laughed and guided the injured cat out the door. Phoenix followed behind them with Lexine on her heels, beaming. No matter what else happened that night, she had already heard the best news, and getting ditched by her brother and hitching a ride home from three cat-shifters wasn’t going to ruin her mood for the world.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  KENZIE WALKED DOWN the stairs in her father’s house to the living room where her dad was sitting on his favorite old recliner. Next to him was her mother’s empty one. After Kenzie’s mom had passed away from breast cancer, Bruce Swanson hadn’t done anything to change the house where Kenzie had grown up.

  “Dad, what do you say we go do something tonight?”

  Her father grunted and kept his eyes on the TV.

  “We could go to a movie or go bowling?”

  Her dad sighed and looked at her. “Look, Kenzie, I just want to stay home and watch TV. I appreciate you coming to visit for Christmas, but I had a long day at the factory, and I don’t want to go anywhere.”

  “Right.” She didn’t know why she’d expected anything else from him.

  Her father hadn’t wanted to do anything when she was growing up, and it had only gotten worse since her mother’s death.