by Lynn Howard
“Don’t come back here,” she warned, turning with the keys in her hand.
“I have to. I check on Janie a couple times a month.”
He’d been this close to her home on several occasions. That both freaked her out and excited her.
And wasn’t that screwed up.
“I’m Brax. Braxton Scott.”
“Two first names,” she said before she could stop herself.
“What?” Brax asked.
“Never trust a man with two first names.”
Wait. Was she teasing him? It almost felt like she was flirting with this man. Not a man. An animal. She didn’t flirt with Polo. Why the hell would she flirt with Brax?
“Ha! That’s funny.” He stood watching her expectantly. “Well?”
“Well what?”
“I told you mine. It’s your turn to tell me yours.”
Show me yours and I’ll show you mine. That was the kind of line she’d heard from boys when she was in high school.
Fuck it. He already knew where she lived.
“Campbell.” That’s as much as she was willing to give him.
He saved me.
What did that mean? She had an inkling of an idea, but she’d never been one to assume. Besides, it went against everything she believed about his kind.
“I like it,” he said. Then looked around. “Where’s that killer bike you were riding last night?”
“None of your business.”
Campbell finally got the key into the lock and pushed into her house, tugging Polo behind her.
Once she was behind the closed door, she looked through the peephole in the door and watched as Brax shook his head, that crooked grin still in place, and headed next door to Janie’s.
Why was he grinning? And why was he shaking his head? And why the hell did she care about either of those questions?
Letting Polo off the leash, Campbell clicked all the locks into place. And then she wandered over to her window and looked next door. Brax stood on the stoop of Janie’s house, nodding, his lips moving as if he were talking. Did he not ever go into her house? If he’d been there so many times, why hadn’t Campbell ever noticed him? Even if she’d looked past the man, she should’ve at least noticed his American steel parked on the curb.
Then again, if he was visiting her during the day, Campbell would normally be sleeping or working out at her martial arts gym. She’d already tried Tai Kwon Do and Brazilian Jujitsu. She was currently working with a Krav Maga instructor and fricking loved it. Where the others were great when she ended up on the ground and had to grapple her opponent, Krav Maga helped her to disarm anyone who might have a weapon as well as inflict maximum damage to the person she was fighting.
She had to make sure to avoid Brax. There was a strange feeling in her gut when she thought about him and she didn’t want to even entertain the idea that she was attracted to a fucking werewolf.
****
Brax was damned near skipping when he left Janie’s house. He’d held it in the best he could while he checked on one of the women he’d saved from being sold off like cattle. But the second the small blonde closed her door and Brax was on his way down her steps, that grin stretched back across his face.
He knew his sexy Ninja’s name. And where she lived. Best day ever.
Glancing up at Campbell’s window, he could’ve sworn he saw movement as he lowered into his dad’s Camaro. Well, his Camaro now. Dad had given it to him when him and Mom moved across the state. Daxon got the old Chevy truck.
Bringing Black Betty to life with a rumble, he lowered his head to look up at Campbell’s trailer again. Whether he saw movement or not didn’t mean it was his Ninja. Could always be that big dog watching through the window.
Didn’t matter. He was enjoying the thought that Campbell was looking down at him, fantasizing about his body.
Probably not.
There had been a hell of a lot of hate and anger all over her face. Her dark eyes had been hidden behind even darker sunglasses. He’d wished the whole time they’d been talking that she’d take those glasses off to argue with him, yell at him, anything. As long as he could see all of her and decide what shade of brown filled her irises.
With a nod, Brax pulled the Camaro onto the road and aimed it toward home. He knew where Campbell lived. He knew where to find her. And he decided then and there to visit Janie more often in hopes of seeing his Ninja more often. Like, every week. As often as it took to get to see a smile on that pretty face.
All the guys were home, lounging on ratty ass lawn chairs in front of the trailer.
“What are you grinning about?” his brother asked.
“You’re never going to believe who I saw today,” Brax said, taking the last empty chair.
Daxon handed him a beer. “Janie.”
“Nope. My Ninja.”
Mason’s eyes narrowed with a frown. “Who?”
“You’re shitting me,” Aron said, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. “That chick from last night? Where? How?”
“She lives next fucking door to Janie. I shit you not.”
“No fucking way,” Daxon said, tossing his head back with a loud guffaw. “What did she say when she saw you?”
Brax regaled his Pride with the events that had unfolded. Including how her dog appeared as if he wanted to rip Brax’s throat out. Bad ass chick with a bad ass dog and a bad ass bike.
“I’m in love,” Brax said, dropping his head against the rusty back of the chair.
“Shut the fuck up,” Daxon drawled, picking up a stick at his feet and tossing it at Brax’s head.
He successfully ducked it before it smacked him in the forehead.
“Dude. You should’ve seen her. She was in these tight ass workout type pants and a hoodie. I almost didn’t recognize her at first. But her scent…” Brax dropped his head back again and grinned at the sky. “Fuck, she smelled good.”
“You’re already on my nerves,” Aron said. Brax glanced up at him to find him shaking his head but smiling. “How’s Janie doing?” he asked, going all serious.
“She’s good. Still not sleeping well. And still skinny as fuck. But she said her appetite is back,” Brax said.
All four panthers went quiet.
Little Janie had been a mess when they’d found her. The traffickers had her for three weeks before the Pride had found her. She’d had several assault attempts, but had successfully fought them off. Not that a human woman was strong enough to fight off full grown Shifter males, but she’d kept them off her long enough for their leader to catch them. Their leader was an asshole psycho piece of shit for what he did to women, but at least he kept her from being raped by his own Pack.
And that was only because he didn’t want the merchandise damaged for fear of losing money in the sale.
There were groups of Shifters who’d rebelled against the new laws. When the Shifter Council deemed Shifter females had the right to refuse pairings, they’d created groups of like-minded assholes and began snatching human women. They’d then sell them to different groups, who would then force an animal into them. If the woman survived her first Shift, she’d be forced into a pairing.
Each asshole had three to four mates in hopes of populating the planet with more assholes who’d continue with this abhorrent behavior.
Since the night Janie had finally returned home she’d been a bit of a mess. She’d refused to go to therapy for fear of slipping and telling the shrink that it had been Shifters who’d kidnapped her.
Only two outcomes would come from something like that: she’d be locked up in an asylum or the therapist would believe her and could subsequently make the rest of the humans aware of their presence. If history had told them anything it was that humans feared the unknown. They’d either try to destroy the entire species or would try to experiment on them like some kind of scientific specimen.
“Keep checking in on her. Maybe we can take turns,” Aron said.
“Nah. I
’ll do it.”
“Yeah. He wants a reason to stalk the Ninja,” Daxon said.
“Dude! I totally called her that and she looked at me like I was nuts,” Brax said with a chuckle. “I don’t think she likes us very much, though.”
“What makes you think that? Because she kicked all three of your asses?” Mason said with a shit eating grin.
“That, too. No. I mean I don’t think she likes Shifters.”
“How the hell would she even know about us? She’s human,” Aron said, leaning forward again, his beer cradled between his hands.
“Well, for one thing, all three of our eyes were glowing when we found her. You really think she missed twin flashlights burning from our faces in the dark? And two, we didn’t bother hiding our speed when we showed up or when I kept her from shooting Dax in the face.”
Aron nodded. “Yeah. She had to have seen our eyes. And she didn’t act scared. She wasn’t freaked out today? Didn’t say anything about it?”
Brax shrugged and shook his head. “Acted like I’d hunted her down. Told me not to come around again. Thought I was lying when I said I was checking on someone next door until Janie stepped out and said my name.”
But then it sure as hell seemed like she’d teased him or flirted with him or something. It was fleeting and she’d run into her house with her beast of a dog still growling at Brax, but it had happened.
Or maybe he’d hoped she’d been flirting. He sure as shit had been.
Why didn’t she like Shifters? And how the hell did she even know about them? Had she been a victim to one? That would explain her hatred. But it didn’t explain why she wasn’t terrified or why she hadn’t tried to get evidence of their existence to turn over to the government.
Or what the hell she’d been doing in the woods alone so late at night.
“You realize if you stalk her she’s going to kick your ass again,” Mason said, that grin still wide on his face.
“And it would be totally worth it,” Brax said.
Campbell’s face ran through his mind, each expression she’d made from the moment he’d found her in the woods to this morning. Damn, she was sexy. And beautiful. He couldn’t see a stitch of makeup on her skin. She had a soft dusting of freckles across her tan cheeks, her nose was pert, and her lips were a little on the thin side, but it only added to her appeal.
Especially when she’d pursed those lips in disdain and obvious hatred toward Brax.
Didn’t matter. He’d win her over. He’d make her see how cool he was. And then he’d make her fall in love with him.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Aron spoke up, trying as he always did to be the wise leader, the strong Alpha. But he was just as screwed up as the rest of them. Aron was only Alpha because the other three refused the role. No way did Brax want to be in control of a group of screwy, crazy as bat shit Shifters.
“Why not?” Brax asked with a frown.
“She hates us for a reason. Just because she hasn’t told anyone yet doesn’t mean she won’t report some strange dude stalking her,” Aron said.
“If I’m checking on Janie like I’ve done the last few months that’s not technically stalking.”
“But she can still report it as such. And then we’ll have the cops to deal with.”
They already dealt with a few cops, but not anyone with any authority. There were a handful of police officers in Jefferson County who knew what they were and what they were doing. It wasn’t a big town, but it was larger than the surrounding areas. And for some reason, the traffickers had begun to target smaller areas in hopes it wouldn’t make national news.
Made no sense to Brax or any of them. Less people in the area meant more notice would come to those who vanished.
It had definitely caught the eye of those few officers working alongside Ravenwood.
She could call the cops and report Brax as stalking. And the odds of the few cops they knew personally being those on call were slim.
As much as he hated it, Aron was right.
“Shit,” Brax said, dropping his head back against the chair again.
He wanted that human more than anyone he’d ever met. And it had everything to do with the fire he saw burning bright in her eyes. And the fact she’d been able to kick not one, but three panther Shifters’ asses.
Of course, had they been less honorable, she wouldn’t have had a chance. Unless she’d pulled that gun from the jump. Even then, they were all faster and would’ve been able to disarm her before she killed all of them.
He wanted her, but he’d have to forget her. He’d have to do everything in his power to avoid her if he ran into her again when he was checking in on Janie. And it was only a matter of time before Janie no longer needed their constant presence to feel safe enough to stand on her own two feet. Already, she was talking about going back to work. Her family had paid her bills up until now. They knew she’d been abducted by traffickers and rescued by ‘authorities’, but she’d kept the rest a secret. Which was all they’d ever asked of the human victims.
With a heavy sigh, Brax made up his mind. He’d leave the sexy Ninja alone. As much as he hated it, he’d have to pretend she was simply another victim. And there wasn’t a chance he’d ever flirt with one of those women.
“Fuck. You’re right,” Brax conceded, lifting his head so he could take a swig of his beer.
It wasn’t so much that he needed to get laid. That had never been all that important to him.
Okay. Yeah. Sex was probably the best thing in the world, but women were held with the highest honor among panthers.
They were queens, not simply someone with whom he could sate his needs.
They were to be protected, cherished, placed on a pedestal to stay.
And he would’ve put Campbell on the tallest, most beautiful pedestal in history.
Might as well get that shit out of his head. Wouldn’t happen. No matter how hard he wished for it.
Brax pushed thoughts of Campbell aside and focused on the conversation building around him. They were heading back out in three days. Aron believed the rogues had gotten wind of Ravenwood’s presence and were slowing their efforts. As much as the whole slowing the efforts thing went, it was a good news/bad news deal.
Good news, because that meant they all got a break from the nightly runs.
Bad news, because that meant the bad guys would have to up their efforts if they wanted to make any money and build their numbers. That meant more women missing, which meant they’d all split up. It was hard to track people down when they were attacking different areas at once.
“How many of these assholes are out there?” Daxon said around a growl.
Brax wasn’t exactly proud of how many men they’d killed over the years. But they hadn’t all died at the hands of Ravenwood. Their Pride wasn’t the only ones out there trying to end this new threat to females.
It had been easier when it was only Shifter females; they could call in the female’s family Pride, Pack, or Clan.
Now that they’d become desperate and started going after humans, as well, it was getting more and more difficult to keep up.
“No way to tell. The fucked up thing is it’s no longer only men committing these acts,” Aron said, no doubt remembering the Fae female who’d attempted to help a group of Shifters attack a bear Clan they were friends with, simply because one of the bears had fallen for and mated with a Fairy. The woman was going after her own kind, trying to make money by imprisoning a female of her own endangered species.
“At least we’re back at home,” Mason said, reaching into the cooler for another beer.
Itd been months since Brax and Daxon had been back in Cedar Hill, and that was only to assist in the battle against the aforementioned psychotic Fairy. It had been almost a year for the other two.
They sat in the circle silently drinking beer until the sun began to lower. It was obvious Aron wanted to get back out there and do some more hunting. But he’d promised the group the
y could have a few days off.
Brax was both thankful for it yet dreaded it. Time off meant nothing to do. It meant silence.
Which meant his brain would play the game called Let’s See How Crazy We Can Make Brax and play every single moment Brax had spent with Campbell on loop. Already, her lips were on his mind and his dick twitched in his jeans as he thought about how soft those lips would feel against his.
Among other places.
“I’m going to bed,” Brax said, tossing his empty bottle onto the pile of the others.
“Gonna go whack off?” his twin said with a chuckle.
“I just might. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you can hear every minute of it,” Brax said to Dax.
In all reality, he probably would end up rubbing one off, not that he was overly proud of that. But there had been something about Campbell that was making him crazy.
And now he had to stay away from her instead of doing what he really wanted: Claim her as his own.
Chapter Three
It had been two weeks since Campbell had run into and beat up the Shifters who hadn’t bothered to fight back.
It had been two weeks since she’d seen Brax climbing from the vintage Camaro.
And as ashamed as it made her, she’d been disappointed she hadn’t run into them again.
Not them. Him. Brax.
He was a Shifter. She shouldn’t be intrigued. But she was. God help her, she was.
Pulling up to her home, she almost dropped the bike when she spotted that same Camaro she’d been thinking about mere minutes ago. Her heart rate kicked up and excitement sent butterflies abuzz in her belly.
Campbell hesitated on her motorcycle, squinting her eyes at the dark vehicle.
He wasn’t in his car. Wasn’t on the stoop leading to Janie’s house.
Why was he there at night? Granted, she’d quit her hunting early because one of those bastards had gotten a lucky swipe at her thigh with their claws. But she’d never seen his car parked out there at night. Had she?
Moving as fast as she could with a six-inch gash on her thigh, Campbell hobbled to her steps and hopped on one leg up each stair. Keys in hand, her breathing came fast as she fumbled to get the key free from the others.