Wicked Bite by Rebecca Zanetti
Nessa leaned down and signed a piece of paper. “I hereby resign from my position of Guard Commissioner,” she said, standing straight again.
Simone took the paper and shook Nessa’s hand. “On behalf of the Council of the Coven Nine, your resignation is accepted. Thank you from a very grateful nation.” Simone’s lips trembled, and she cleared her throat. “You have served with honor and great bravery.”
Nessa smiled. “Thank you.”
They looked at the camera. The light on top flickered from green to red. They both visibly relaxed.
“Well,” Simone said. “I could use a bloody vacation.”
Nessa chuckled, her gaze seeking Bear’s over the camera. “Me, too.”
Something dinged, and their attention swung to one of the screens. Simone waved and then moved out of range, walking by Bear and patting his arm. Her mate was waiting at the doorway, more than a little insistent that she now get some rest.
Nessa smiled. “King Kayrs. What a nice surprise.”
Bear lifted his eyebrows but couldn’t see the screen from his vantage point.
“Nessa, that was a lovely speech,” Dage said, his voice clear.
Nessa frowned. “How did you—”
“I’m the king.” Dage sighed heavily. “Have you made a decision about my job offer?”
Bear straightened away from the wall. Job offer? Weren’t couples supposed to talk about that kind of stuff? He’d said he loved her, for Pete’s sake.
Nessa nodded. “I have, and I’m honored, I really am. But I must decline.”
Bear lifted an eyebrow.
She held her hand beneath camera range with a finger out. Fine. He could give her one minute.
Dage very loudly cleared his throat. “Nessa, you’re crazy. This job is tailor-made for you, coordinating among all nations for the Realm. I’ll give you ten million a year plus bonuses. You’d write your own ticket with the job.”
Bear frowned. Why the hell was she turning that down? Even from Dage’s brief description, it seemed perfect for her.
Nessa sighed. “Thanks, but relocating is a deal breaker.”
“Living in Idaho is nice, and you’d only be one state away from your mate,” Dage said tersely.
Nessa’s gaze met Bear’s over the camera, and then she focused back on Dage. “That’s too far. Sorry. No deal.”
“Fifteen million dollars, multiple bonuses, and you draft policy. Your agenda,” Dage countered.
“No.” Nessa didn’t even pause.
Dage was silent for a moment. “You’re telling me that you’re choosing Beauregard McDunphy, the most introverted shifter ever born, over the opportunity of a lifetime?”
She looked up at Bear again, her eyes clear, love in them. Yep. That was love. “Aye, King. I choose Bear.”
The words nearly floored Bear. His legs wobbled. Nobody in his entire life had chosen him first. Never. He started to shake his head, to tell her to take the job. He could move to Idaho. What was the big deal? Man, he’d hate living with the Realm top brass. But for Nessa, he’d do it. He stepped forward—
“Oh, all right,” Dage said. “You can live there and do the job.”
Nessa breathed out sharply. Her face lit. “Are you serious?”
“Sure,” Dage said.
“King,” Nessa said, shaking her head, her eyes twinkling.
The interfering sonuvabitch. Bear couldn’t help but smile, even though he tried really hard to keep his frown in place. Nope. He was smiling. Damn it.
Dage continued, “You’re good at negotiating, Nessa. So you’ll take the deal? The one caveat is that I want you here once a month for a day of meetings. It’s only a five-hour drive or a thirty-minute plane ride from there.”
Nessa clasped her hands together. “Twenty million a year, the right to create policy, and a plane. I’d like a plane.”
Dage was quiet for two seconds. “Are you kidding?”
“No.” She waited.
In that moment, Bear couldn’t have been prouder. His witch was a badass negotiator.
“Deal,” Dage said. The light on the panel blinked off.
Nessa looked up at Bear.
Yeah. That was definitely love in her eyes.
Chapter 34
Nessa stepped out of the river house in jeans and a sweater, her boots flat and her hands covered with gloves. Hanging up her uniform had filled her with nostalgia, but she couldn’t just go around wearing it all day.
Snow drifted down again—soft and pretty. Shifters worked furiously around her, repairing the house and making it secure.
She looked across the deck to see her cranky bear barking orders left and right. Should bears bark? Humor bubbled through her, and she made her way toward him.
He lifted his head, sniffed, and then turned her way. “Go,” he said to the three men he was ordering around. They moved off quickly, obviously not even thinking of hesitating or asking any questions. Relief trailed in their wake.
She smiled and reached him, running a finger along the barely closed gash in his head. “The brain wasn’t the right place to attack you.”
His lip quirked. In one smooth motion, he grasped her clip and tugged it free. Her hair fell around her shoulders. “That’s better,” he said, tangling his fingers in the mass.
She swatted him. Fire flew from her fingertips.
He yelped and patted out his wrist. “What the hell?”
She gasped, delight rushing through her. “I made fire. Bear. I made fire.”
He frowned. “Wonderful.”
She laughed out loud and tried again. Nothing. “I guess it’ll take practice.”
He looked gingerly at the burn mark on his wrist. “I feel like you should be sleeping.”
“Not without you.” She snuggled into him, secure in his strength. “If I stay and take that job, we’ll have witches, vampires, and demons around. A lot.” Aye, she probably should’ve discussed the job with him first.
“I’ve already been overrun by witches.” He took her hand and led her into the trees. “There’s a billion of them at Lucas’s secret hideaway going through all the data there. They’ve found warehouses of Apollo, the distribution line, and even the hired guns all over the world. Soon, the entire operation will be a thing of the past.”
She stepped carefully over a bunch of snowy branches on the ground. “That’s wonderful. We should come up with a plan to hand over evidence to the DEA so they stop freezing your accounts. Something that doesn’t lead back to us.”
He sighed. “Sounds like subterfuge.”
“It does, doesn’t it?” she asked happily, already planning. By the time she was finished, the DEA would think the Grizzly MC was squeaky clean, and Bear would have his money back. Then she’d decorate his cabin for him. “Is Grace Sadler still in the cabin?”
“No. Several Guard soldiers took her to the hospital in Vancouver,” Bear said, his gaze darkening. “What will happen to her after that?”
Nessa thought it out. “She’ll be tried for treason.”
They reached the frozen bank. The water rushed by ten feet below them. Bear looked down at her. “I’m surprised you’re not in the thick of things right now, dismantling Lucas’s war room.”
Oh. Aye. “Jasper and my uncle can direct the job.”
Bear lifted his eyebrows. “Will one of them be named commissioner?”
She tried not to smile. “Can’t tell you. However, I do think that my uncle plans to stick around here for a while. Help secure the area.” In fact, he was angling for a job with Dage, and that meant Nessa would get to work with her uncle again. She gave a happy hop. Jasper would make an excellent commissioner, and of course she’d be able to stay in touch with him via her new job.
“I sure hope your uncle doesn’t have to leave,” Bear said, trying too hard to make the words sound like truth.
The poor guy really couldn’t lie. Not at all. Aye, she loved him for that. She turned and slid her hands up Bear’s very nice chest. “Are you letting Garret
t and Logan stick around?”
Bear sighed. “Yes. They want to stay, and I kind of owe them for saving my life. So they stay.”
“That’s sweet,” she murmured, her heart feeling so full she barely recognized the feeling. “I’m thinking I can put them to work for me. They both have excellent connections, and I trust them. Of course, the jobs don’t start until next week.”
“I know,” Bear said softly, brushing snow off her cheek. His honey-brown eyes mellowed. “I’ve been negotiating with Dage the last hour. He would like to build a command center for you that’s separate from mine, considering mine is just for the shifter nations. He wants to put it next to one of the garages.”
That made sense. “You said no?”
Bear grinned. “I said yes, but I’m charging him an arm and a leg for leasing the land.”
Nessa threw back her head and laughed. “I like that.”
A helicopter hovered above and then set down in a clearing next to the river house. “Who’s here now?” she wondered.
“Who the hell knows?” Bear’s exhale was heated.
The door opened, and three of the Enforcers jumped out. “Kel-lach, Daire, and Adam Dunne,” Nessa said, her eyes widening. The brothers scouted the area and then assisted their mates out. The three women looked around, moving quickly toward the house upon seeing Simone at the door. The greetings were boisterous and full of love.
“They’re probably here to finish with the intel,” Bear said, his voice a low rumble.
“They’re here to celebrate,” Nessa said quietly. “I’m sure Moira Kayrs, the remaining Enforcer, will be here soon, too.”
Bear groaned. “The Kayrs family are like rabbits. When one shows up, they all show up.” He shook his head. “Why me?”
“Because I love you.” She looked up and gave him everything she had.
He lost the frown, his gaze softening. “I love you more.” Ducking beneath a branch and tugging her along, he grasped her hand again. “I just received a communication from my brother. Flynn and a couple of his buddies should be arriving within the hour.”
Nessa’s eyes widened. “Dragons are coming to Seattle?”
“The mere fact that your sentence makes sense shows how completely out of control our life has become,” he sighed. “The answer to your question is yes. The dragons will land soon. For now, come on,” he whispered.
She followed him, fighting a chuckle. “Where?”
He led her down a barely there trail toward the river, turning at the last second into an alcove that faced the rushing mass. A hand-carved stone bench sat inside, protected from any storm by natural rocks showing the minerals of the area. “Bear,” she breathed.
He sat and tugged her onto his lap. “This is our secret place. Only ours. Got it?”
“Aye,” she said, enchanted. “Just ours.”
“Let’s sit here a moment before we go back.” He held her close, his lips wandering across her forehead. “I love you, Nessa. We’re gonna have a good life.”
She tilted her head and nuzzled beneath his hard jaw. Though she hadn’t figured out how to throw fire as of yet, she would. For now, her crazy scheme of mating the big bad bear had worked. Who knew she’d end up happier than she could’ve ever imagined? “I love you too, Bear.”
Her bear.
If you’ve enjoyed Rebecca Zanetti’s REALM ENFORCERS,
read on for an excerpt from the first book in
Rebecca Zanetti’s blazing hot romantic suspense series,
THE REQUISTION FORCE,
Hidden
Hot alpha males band together
in a secret government agency
to combat threats to American security.
The day he moved in next door, dark clouds covered the sky with the promise of a powerful storm. Pippa watched from her window, the one over the kitchen sink, partially hidden by the cheerful polka dotted curtains. Yellow dots over a crisp white background—what she figured happy people would use.
He moved box after box after box through the two-stall garage, all by himself, cut muscles bunching in his arms.
Angles and shadows made up his face, more shadows than angles. He didn’t smile, and although he didn’t frown, his expression had settled into harsh lines.
A guy like him, dangerously handsome, should probably have friends helping.
Yet he didn’t. His black truck, dusty yet seemingly well kept, sat alone in the driveway containing the boxes.
She swallowed several times, instinctively knowing he wasn’t a man to cross, even if she was a person who crossed others. She was not.
For a while she tried to amuse herself with counting the boxes, and then guessing their weight, and then just studying the man. He appeared to be in his early thirties, maybe just a couple of years older than she.
Thick black hair fell to his collar in unruly waves, giving him an unkempt appearance that hinted nobody took care of him. His shoulders were tense and his body language fluid. She couldn’t see his eyes.
The damn wondering would keep her up at night.
But no way, and there was absolutely no way, would she venture outside to appease the beast of curiosity.
The new neighbor stood well over six feet tall, his shoulders broad, his long legs encased in worn and frayed jeans. If a man could be hard all over, head to toe, even in movement, then he was.
He was very much alone as well.
A scar curved in a half-moon shape over his left eye, and some sort of tattoo, a crest of something, decorated his muscled left bicep. She tilted her head, reaching for the curtains to push them aside just a little more.
He paused, an overlarge box held easily in his arms, and turned his head, much like an animal rising to attention.
Green. Those eyes, narrow and suspicious, alert and dangerous, focused directly on her.
She gasped. Her heart thundered. She fell to the floor below the counter. Not to the side, not even in a crouch, she fell flat on her ass on the worn tile floor. Her heart ticking, she wrapped her arms around her shins and rested her chin on her knees.
She bit her lip and held her breath, shutting her eyes.
Nothing.
No sound, no hint of an approaching person, no rap on the door.
After about ten minutes of holding perfectly still, she lifted her head. Another five and she released her legs. Then she rolled up onto her knees and reached for the counter, her fingers curling over.
Taking a deep breath, she pulled herself up to stand, angling to the side of the counter.
He stood at the window, facing her, his chest taking up most of the panes.
Her heart exploded. She screamed, turned, and ran. She cleared the kitchen in three steps and plowed through the living room, smashing into an antique table that had sat in the place for more than two decades.
Pain ratcheted up her leg, and she dropped, making panicked grunting noises as she crawled past the sofa and toward her bedroom. Her hands slapped the polished wooden floor, and she sobbed out, reaching the room and slamming the door.
She scrabbled her legs up to her chest again, her back to the door, and reached up to engage the lock. She rocked back and forth just enough to not make a sound.
The doorbell rang.
Her chest tightened, and her vision fuzzed. Tremors started from her shoulders down to her waist and back up. Not now. Not now. God, not now. She took several deep breaths and acknowledged the oncoming panic attack much as Dr. Valentine had taught her. Sometimes letting the panic in actually abated it.
Not this time.
The attack took her full force, pricking sweat along her body. Her arms shook, and her legs went numb. Her breathing panted out, her vision fuzzed, and her heart blasted into motion.
Maybe it really was a heart attack this time.
No. It was only a panic attack.
But it could be. Maybe the doctors had missed something in her tests, and it really was a heart attack. Or maybe a stroke.
She could
n’t make it to the phone to dial for help.
Her heart hurt. Her chest really ached. Glancing up at the lock, a flimsy golden thing, she inched away from the door to the bed table on her hands and knees. Jerking open the drawer, she fumbled for a Xanax.
She popped the pill beneath her tongue, letting it quickly absorb. The bitter chalkiness made her gag, but she didn’t move until it had dissolved.
A hard rapping sound echoed from the living room.
Shit. He was knocking on the door. Was it locked? Of course it was locked. She always kept it locked. But would a lock, even a really good one, keep a guy like that out?
Hell, no.
She’d been watching him, and he knew it. Maybe he wasn’t a guy who wanted to be watched, which was why he was moving his stuff all alone. Worse yet, had he been sent to find her? He had looked so furious. Was he angry?
If so, what could she do?
The online martial arts lessons she’d taken lately ran through her head, but once again, she wondered if one could really learn self-defense by watching videos. Something told her that all the self-defense lessons in the world wouldn’t help against that guy.
Oh, why had Mrs. Melonci moved to Florida? Sure, the elderly lady wanted to be closer to her grandchildren, but Cottage Grove was a much better place to live.
The house had sold in less than a week.
Pippa had hoped to watch young children play and frolic in the large treed backyard, but this guy didn’t seem to have a family.
Perhaps he’d bring one in, yet there was something chillingly solitary about him.
Of course, she hadn’t set foot outside her house for nearly five years, so maybe family men had changed.
Probably not, though.
He knocked again, the sound somehow stronger and more insistent this time.
She opened the bedroom door and peered around the corner. The front door was visible above the sofa.
He knocked again. “Lady?” Deep and rich, his voice easily carried into her home.
She might have squawked.
“Listen, lady. I, ah, saw you fall and just wanna make sure you’re all right. You don’t have to answer the door.” His tone didn’t rise and remained perfectly calm.
Simone took the paper and shook Nessa’s hand. “On behalf of the Council of the Coven Nine, your resignation is accepted. Thank you from a very grateful nation.” Simone’s lips trembled, and she cleared her throat. “You have served with honor and great bravery.”
Nessa smiled. “Thank you.”
They looked at the camera. The light on top flickered from green to red. They both visibly relaxed.
“Well,” Simone said. “I could use a bloody vacation.”
Nessa chuckled, her gaze seeking Bear’s over the camera. “Me, too.”
Something dinged, and their attention swung to one of the screens. Simone waved and then moved out of range, walking by Bear and patting his arm. Her mate was waiting at the doorway, more than a little insistent that she now get some rest.
Nessa smiled. “King Kayrs. What a nice surprise.”
Bear lifted his eyebrows but couldn’t see the screen from his vantage point.
“Nessa, that was a lovely speech,” Dage said, his voice clear.
Nessa frowned. “How did you—”
“I’m the king.” Dage sighed heavily. “Have you made a decision about my job offer?”
Bear straightened away from the wall. Job offer? Weren’t couples supposed to talk about that kind of stuff? He’d said he loved her, for Pete’s sake.
Nessa nodded. “I have, and I’m honored, I really am. But I must decline.”
Bear lifted an eyebrow.
She held her hand beneath camera range with a finger out. Fine. He could give her one minute.
Dage very loudly cleared his throat. “Nessa, you’re crazy. This job is tailor-made for you, coordinating among all nations for the Realm. I’ll give you ten million a year plus bonuses. You’d write your own ticket with the job.”
Bear frowned. Why the hell was she turning that down? Even from Dage’s brief description, it seemed perfect for her.
Nessa sighed. “Thanks, but relocating is a deal breaker.”
“Living in Idaho is nice, and you’d only be one state away from your mate,” Dage said tersely.
Nessa’s gaze met Bear’s over the camera, and then she focused back on Dage. “That’s too far. Sorry. No deal.”
“Fifteen million dollars, multiple bonuses, and you draft policy. Your agenda,” Dage countered.
“No.” Nessa didn’t even pause.
Dage was silent for a moment. “You’re telling me that you’re choosing Beauregard McDunphy, the most introverted shifter ever born, over the opportunity of a lifetime?”
She looked up at Bear again, her eyes clear, love in them. Yep. That was love. “Aye, King. I choose Bear.”
The words nearly floored Bear. His legs wobbled. Nobody in his entire life had chosen him first. Never. He started to shake his head, to tell her to take the job. He could move to Idaho. What was the big deal? Man, he’d hate living with the Realm top brass. But for Nessa, he’d do it. He stepped forward—
“Oh, all right,” Dage said. “You can live there and do the job.”
Nessa breathed out sharply. Her face lit. “Are you serious?”
“Sure,” Dage said.
“King,” Nessa said, shaking her head, her eyes twinkling.
The interfering sonuvabitch. Bear couldn’t help but smile, even though he tried really hard to keep his frown in place. Nope. He was smiling. Damn it.
Dage continued, “You’re good at negotiating, Nessa. So you’ll take the deal? The one caveat is that I want you here once a month for a day of meetings. It’s only a five-hour drive or a thirty-minute plane ride from there.”
Nessa clasped her hands together. “Twenty million a year, the right to create policy, and a plane. I’d like a plane.”
Dage was quiet for two seconds. “Are you kidding?”
“No.” She waited.
In that moment, Bear couldn’t have been prouder. His witch was a badass negotiator.
“Deal,” Dage said. The light on the panel blinked off.
Nessa looked up at Bear.
Yeah. That was definitely love in her eyes.
Chapter 34
Nessa stepped out of the river house in jeans and a sweater, her boots flat and her hands covered with gloves. Hanging up her uniform had filled her with nostalgia, but she couldn’t just go around wearing it all day.
Snow drifted down again—soft and pretty. Shifters worked furiously around her, repairing the house and making it secure.
She looked across the deck to see her cranky bear barking orders left and right. Should bears bark? Humor bubbled through her, and she made her way toward him.
He lifted his head, sniffed, and then turned her way. “Go,” he said to the three men he was ordering around. They moved off quickly, obviously not even thinking of hesitating or asking any questions. Relief trailed in their wake.
She smiled and reached him, running a finger along the barely closed gash in his head. “The brain wasn’t the right place to attack you.”
His lip quirked. In one smooth motion, he grasped her clip and tugged it free. Her hair fell around her shoulders. “That’s better,” he said, tangling his fingers in the mass.
She swatted him. Fire flew from her fingertips.
He yelped and patted out his wrist. “What the hell?”
She gasped, delight rushing through her. “I made fire. Bear. I made fire.”
He frowned. “Wonderful.”
She laughed out loud and tried again. Nothing. “I guess it’ll take practice.”
He looked gingerly at the burn mark on his wrist. “I feel like you should be sleeping.”
“Not without you.” She snuggled into him, secure in his strength. “If I stay and take that job, we’ll have witches, vampires, and demons around. A lot.” Aye, she probably should’ve discussed the job with him first.
“I’ve already been overrun by witches.” He took her hand and led her into the trees. “There’s a billion of them at Lucas’s secret hideaway going through all the data there. They’ve found warehouses of Apollo, the distribution line, and even the hired guns all over the world. Soon, the entire operation will be a thing of the past.”
She stepped carefully over a bunch of snowy branches on the ground. “That’s wonderful. We should come up with a plan to hand over evidence to the DEA so they stop freezing your accounts. Something that doesn’t lead back to us.”
He sighed. “Sounds like subterfuge.”
“It does, doesn’t it?” she asked happily, already planning. By the time she was finished, the DEA would think the Grizzly MC was squeaky clean, and Bear would have his money back. Then she’d decorate his cabin for him. “Is Grace Sadler still in the cabin?”
“No. Several Guard soldiers took her to the hospital in Vancouver,” Bear said, his gaze darkening. “What will happen to her after that?”
Nessa thought it out. “She’ll be tried for treason.”
They reached the frozen bank. The water rushed by ten feet below them. Bear looked down at her. “I’m surprised you’re not in the thick of things right now, dismantling Lucas’s war room.”
Oh. Aye. “Jasper and my uncle can direct the job.”
Bear lifted his eyebrows. “Will one of them be named commissioner?”
She tried not to smile. “Can’t tell you. However, I do think that my uncle plans to stick around here for a while. Help secure the area.” In fact, he was angling for a job with Dage, and that meant Nessa would get to work with her uncle again. She gave a happy hop. Jasper would make an excellent commissioner, and of course she’d be able to stay in touch with him via her new job.
“I sure hope your uncle doesn’t have to leave,” Bear said, trying too hard to make the words sound like truth.
The poor guy really couldn’t lie. Not at all. Aye, she loved him for that. She turned and slid her hands up Bear’s very nice chest. “Are you letting Garret
Bear sighed. “Yes. They want to stay, and I kind of owe them for saving my life. So they stay.”
“That’s sweet,” she murmured, her heart feeling so full she barely recognized the feeling. “I’m thinking I can put them to work for me. They both have excellent connections, and I trust them. Of course, the jobs don’t start until next week.”
“I know,” Bear said softly, brushing snow off her cheek. His honey-brown eyes mellowed. “I’ve been negotiating with Dage the last hour. He would like to build a command center for you that’s separate from mine, considering mine is just for the shifter nations. He wants to put it next to one of the garages.”
That made sense. “You said no?”
Bear grinned. “I said yes, but I’m charging him an arm and a leg for leasing the land.”
Nessa threw back her head and laughed. “I like that.”
A helicopter hovered above and then set down in a clearing next to the river house. “Who’s here now?” she wondered.
“Who the hell knows?” Bear’s exhale was heated.
The door opened, and three of the Enforcers jumped out. “Kel-lach, Daire, and Adam Dunne,” Nessa said, her eyes widening. The brothers scouted the area and then assisted their mates out. The three women looked around, moving quickly toward the house upon seeing Simone at the door. The greetings were boisterous and full of love.
“They’re probably here to finish with the intel,” Bear said, his voice a low rumble.
“They’re here to celebrate,” Nessa said quietly. “I’m sure Moira Kayrs, the remaining Enforcer, will be here soon, too.”
Bear groaned. “The Kayrs family are like rabbits. When one shows up, they all show up.” He shook his head. “Why me?”
“Because I love you.” She looked up and gave him everything she had.
He lost the frown, his gaze softening. “I love you more.” Ducking beneath a branch and tugging her along, he grasped her hand again. “I just received a communication from my brother. Flynn and a couple of his buddies should be arriving within the hour.”
Nessa’s eyes widened. “Dragons are coming to Seattle?”
“The mere fact that your sentence makes sense shows how completely out of control our life has become,” he sighed. “The answer to your question is yes. The dragons will land soon. For now, come on,” he whispered.
She followed him, fighting a chuckle. “Where?”
He led her down a barely there trail toward the river, turning at the last second into an alcove that faced the rushing mass. A hand-carved stone bench sat inside, protected from any storm by natural rocks showing the minerals of the area. “Bear,” she breathed.
He sat and tugged her onto his lap. “This is our secret place. Only ours. Got it?”
“Aye,” she said, enchanted. “Just ours.”
“Let’s sit here a moment before we go back.” He held her close, his lips wandering across her forehead. “I love you, Nessa. We’re gonna have a good life.”
She tilted her head and nuzzled beneath his hard jaw. Though she hadn’t figured out how to throw fire as of yet, she would. For now, her crazy scheme of mating the big bad bear had worked. Who knew she’d end up happier than she could’ve ever imagined? “I love you too, Bear.”
Her bear.
If you’ve enjoyed Rebecca Zanetti’s REALM ENFORCERS,
read on for an excerpt from the first book in
Rebecca Zanetti’s blazing hot romantic suspense series,
THE REQUISTION FORCE,
Hidden
Hot alpha males band together
in a secret government agency
to combat threats to American security.
The day he moved in next door, dark clouds covered the sky with the promise of a powerful storm. Pippa watched from her window, the one over the kitchen sink, partially hidden by the cheerful polka dotted curtains. Yellow dots over a crisp white background—what she figured happy people would use.
He moved box after box after box through the two-stall garage, all by himself, cut muscles bunching in his arms.
Angles and shadows made up his face, more shadows than angles. He didn’t smile, and although he didn’t frown, his expression had settled into harsh lines.
A guy like him, dangerously handsome, should probably have friends helping.
Yet he didn’t. His black truck, dusty yet seemingly well kept, sat alone in the driveway containing the boxes.
She swallowed several times, instinctively knowing he wasn’t a man to cross, even if she was a person who crossed others. She was not.
For a while she tried to amuse herself with counting the boxes, and then guessing their weight, and then just studying the man. He appeared to be in his early thirties, maybe just a couple of years older than she.
Thick black hair fell to his collar in unruly waves, giving him an unkempt appearance that hinted nobody took care of him. His shoulders were tense and his body language fluid. She couldn’t see his eyes.
The damn wondering would keep her up at night.
But no way, and there was absolutely no way, would she venture outside to appease the beast of curiosity.
The new neighbor stood well over six feet tall, his shoulders broad, his long legs encased in worn and frayed jeans. If a man could be hard all over, head to toe, even in movement, then he was.
He was very much alone as well.
A scar curved in a half-moon shape over his left eye, and some sort of tattoo, a crest of something, decorated his muscled left bicep. She tilted her head, reaching for the curtains to push them aside just a little more.
He paused, an overlarge box held easily in his arms, and turned his head, much like an animal rising to attention.
Green. Those eyes, narrow and suspicious, alert and dangerous, focused directly on her.
She gasped. Her heart thundered. She fell to the floor below the counter. Not to the side, not even in a crouch, she fell flat on her ass on the worn tile floor. Her heart ticking, she wrapped her arms around her shins and rested her chin on her knees.
She bit her lip and held her breath, shutting her eyes.
Nothing.
No sound, no hint of an approaching person, no rap on the door.
After about ten minutes of holding perfectly still, she lifted her head. Another five and she released her legs. Then she rolled up onto her knees and reached for the counter, her fingers curling over.
Taking a deep breath, she pulled herself up to stand, angling to the side of the counter.
He stood at the window, facing her, his chest taking up most of the panes.
Her heart exploded. She screamed, turned, and ran. She cleared the kitchen in three steps and plowed through the living room, smashing into an antique table that had sat in the place for more than two decades.
Pain ratcheted up her leg, and she dropped, making panicked grunting noises as she crawled past the sofa and toward her bedroom. Her hands slapped the polished wooden floor, and she sobbed out, reaching the room and slamming the door.
She scrabbled her legs up to her chest again, her back to the door, and reached up to engage the lock. She rocked back and forth just enough to not make a sound.
The doorbell rang.
Her chest tightened, and her vision fuzzed. Tremors started from her shoulders down to her waist and back up. Not now. Not now. God, not now. She took several deep breaths and acknowledged the oncoming panic attack much as Dr. Valentine had taught her. Sometimes letting the panic in actually abated it.
Not this time.
The attack took her full force, pricking sweat along her body. Her arms shook, and her legs went numb. Her breathing panted out, her vision fuzzed, and her heart blasted into motion.
Maybe it really was a heart attack this time.
No. It was only a panic attack.
But it could be. Maybe the doctors had missed something in her tests, and it really was a heart attack. Or maybe a stroke.
She could
Her heart hurt. Her chest really ached. Glancing up at the lock, a flimsy golden thing, she inched away from the door to the bed table on her hands and knees. Jerking open the drawer, she fumbled for a Xanax.
She popped the pill beneath her tongue, letting it quickly absorb. The bitter chalkiness made her gag, but she didn’t move until it had dissolved.
A hard rapping sound echoed from the living room.
Shit. He was knocking on the door. Was it locked? Of course it was locked. She always kept it locked. But would a lock, even a really good one, keep a guy like that out?
Hell, no.
She’d been watching him, and he knew it. Maybe he wasn’t a guy who wanted to be watched, which was why he was moving his stuff all alone. Worse yet, had he been sent to find her? He had looked so furious. Was he angry?
If so, what could she do?
The online martial arts lessons she’d taken lately ran through her head, but once again, she wondered if one could really learn self-defense by watching videos. Something told her that all the self-defense lessons in the world wouldn’t help against that guy.
Oh, why had Mrs. Melonci moved to Florida? Sure, the elderly lady wanted to be closer to her grandchildren, but Cottage Grove was a much better place to live.
The house had sold in less than a week.
Pippa had hoped to watch young children play and frolic in the large treed backyard, but this guy didn’t seem to have a family.
Perhaps he’d bring one in, yet there was something chillingly solitary about him.
Of course, she hadn’t set foot outside her house for nearly five years, so maybe family men had changed.
Probably not, though.
He knocked again, the sound somehow stronger and more insistent this time.
She opened the bedroom door and peered around the corner. The front door was visible above the sofa.
He knocked again. “Lady?” Deep and rich, his voice easily carried into her home.
She might have squawked.
“Listen, lady. I, ah, saw you fall and just wanna make sure you’re all right. You don’t have to answer the door.” His tone didn’t rise and remained perfectly calm.