Bear’s human assistant, Matt, set the tray of snacks in the middle of the table. The scent of cranberry muffins, garlic bagels, and cream cheese wafted through the conference room, mixing with the aroma of fresh-brewed coffee and herbal tea. Then Matt left us to our discussion, closing the door behind him.
I settled back in my chair with his departure. That left me, Bear, Rory, and Dominic, my second in the security division. Shifter business was for shifters only.
“So we don’t know yet who was behind the abduction of Becky.” Bear’s voice was calm as always. He appeared relaxed after a week alone with his new human mate. But I’d known him long enough to recognize the displeasure hidden beneath the calm.
“No,” I admitted coolly, hiding my embarrassment at not having any results for him. I’d planned to have things wrapped up before he returned from his honeymoon. I should have had results.
Rory, sitting at Bear’s side, rumbled deep in his chest.
I ignored him. He’d been competent when we’d rescued Becky, but he was a new shifter and his emotions were engaged. He’d mated with Becky, another human. It was starting to feel like the whole Northern California clan was going human-crazy.
I would not be one of them, despite the recurring memory of a certain human’s soft flesh against my body. I knew the dangers of getting too close to humans, even if Bear failed to see it. I’d just have to work a little harder to compensate for his blind spot.
Bear put a hand on Rory’s shoulder, soothing his bear. “What did you learn?” he asked me.
“My contacts with the known California wolf packs—the Skull Biters, the Ministry, and the Beast Brawlers—say these wolves aren’t theirs. The Fang Posse in Oregon doesn’t claim them either, and none of them have any idea who they are. Or so they say. I haven’t heard back from the Nevada or Arizona packs, but they’re a long shot anyway. Both of them are tightly integrated in gambling and wouldn’t tolerate the ineptitude shown by Becky’s abductors.”
Bear knew most of this already, but I liked to make my reports as complete as possible.
“Your conclusion?” he asked.
“A new pack,” I said promptly. “Which makes them unpredictable. I’ve got people assigned to watch Becky at all times. They won’t get her a second time. And if they try, we’ll have them.”
Bear selected a blueberry muffin from the tray. “Keep on Nevada and Arizona. Other than that, good work.”
“Thanks, Bear.”
I took a bagel. Looking up from spreading cream cheese, I grinned at Rory. “Looks like we’ll be invading your privacy a little longer.”
He shrugged, unfazed. It must be nice to be mated. Too bad he’d picked a human.
That last thought came back to haunt me when I got to the apartments where Becky lived.
The shifter guarding Becky at work would go off-duty after making sure she arrived home safely. I would take over then. Arriving early to check out the grounds before Becky got there, I smelled a tantalizing scent. Before I even recognized what it was my cock got rock-hard.
Oh hell, there was Becky’s sister sauntering down the stairs from Becky’s apartment. She was wearing a tight neon green swimsuit with a little skirt that swayed over her luscious thighs when she walked. The perfect brown roundness of her breasts nearly overflowed the top half of her suit.
I wanted to fuck her. That’s all it was, just overwhelming horniness that made me want to pull out my cock and ram it into her sweet cunt there and then, no matter who was watching.
I took a long deep breath. Not going to happen. Even if she hadn’t been human, I was there to work. I pushed down my bear, refusing to hear any nonsense it might spout, and forced my swollen cock and the heavy weight of my balls to the edge of my consciousness.
Staying out of view, I followed the girl on the walkway between buildings to the swimming pool. She wasn’t a target of the rogue wolves, but they might take her to get at Becky. When the mail carrier came, I decided that, between him and the mother in the pool, there were enough witnesses the girl would be safe for a few minutes.
I slipped back to the apartment and up the steps. No scent of wolf. I tried the door. She’d locked it. Within seconds I had it open and stepped inside. The apartment was full of the girl’s scent. It was strongest in the spare bedroom, where clothing was strewn across the bed. A bright splash of pink caught my eye. Her panties. Without thought I lifted them to my face and breathed in her rich scent.
What the fuck was I doing?
Dropping the panties back on the bed, I stalked through the rest of the apartment. Becky’s scent and Rory’s scent were both strong, if unalluring.
The glass slider to the balcony was open. I closed and locked it, but the pin for the secondary lock was broken. We’d have to get that fixed.
I needed to get back to the pool. Door relocked, I slipped back down the stairs and found a vantage point.
The girl was swimming laps. The water thrown up by her powerful strokes shimmered in the bright sunlight. I had an urge to dive in with her, to swim with her side by side, and to hold her close while my cock slipped inside her.
I shook my head and rubbed my eyes, trying to drive away the intense yearning. Obviously it had been far too long since I’d taken care of business. I’d have to handle that little problem as soon as my shift ended.
Because humans couldn’t be trusted. And that’s as far as I’d let those thoughts go. Those memories belonged in the box where I kept them. Bringing them out only brought pain. But I wouldn’t forget they were there.
The girl climbed out of the pool. She wrung the water out of her dense curls. Droplets slid down the sleek skin of her arms and thighs. Remembering that she was human, I was able to observe her without being moved, despite the sexiness of that wet green suit clinging to her body. My hard-on would go away soon enough.
The girl, along with the mother and twins, started back to the apartment. I followed at a distance. The others disappeared inside an apartment across from Becky’s, and the girl continued up the steps.
God, that ass of hers under that flippy skirt was sexy.
Then something smashed against my head and I lost consciousness.