by Celia Kyle
“Nothing.” She returned the half-smile. “But he hasn’t had much luck with his cars. Especially after Anna had trouble with doors and kitchen cabinets.”
Van reached past the bars and cupped her cheek, stroking her skin with his thumb.
For some reason, she liked it, liked this big man touching her so tenderly. She refused to look at why, refused to think about the reasons behind her instant trust.
“You’re a fierce little hell cat, aren’t you?” His voice rolled over her, stroking her with invisible hands. And those eyes, those dark brown eyes, were black now. Like midnight lived within him and peeked out from the shadows. Slowly he withdrew and she fought against the desire to follow his touch, keep their skin connected for as long as possible. “I’ll speak with Davies and his attorney. Hopefully we’ll have you out in a couple of hours.”
Van ran his fingers over the back of her hands, his callused digits scraping her. The touch, the contrast between the tenderness of the gesture, warred with the fierce expression he wore.
“You’ll get medical attention when you get out of here. I can take you—”
She shook her head. “No, I appreciate the offer, Officer Abrams, but I’ll be fine.”
“Your truck’s at the Davies’s house.”
She shrugged. “And I have two feet. The clinic is down the street. I’ll call Martin when I’m ready.”
He pulled his hand away and gripped a bar. A low, animalistic growl surrounded her and cut off as quickly as it’d sounded. “I’ll—”
“Van?” A deep baritone voice echoed in the room and she tore her gaze from the man before her.
A man larger than Van stood in the doorway. His uniform screamed “cop,” but there was also this… powerful aura that flowed from him. Like a roaring storm, it bowled over her, sending her gently swaying and she tightened her grip to remain standing. While Van scared her with her own attraction to him, this man flat out scared her.
Van snarled and turned toward the newcomer. “What?”
“Excuse me?” The stranger raised a single brow.
Van stilled, his entire body freezing in place. “Apologies. What can I do for you?”
“We need to discuss the issue in Boyne Falls.”
“Of course, Ita—” Van cleared his voice. “Of course, Ty.”
Ty now raised both eyebrows to his hairline. “And do we need to discuss this?” He wiggled his finger back and forth, indicating her and Van.
“There’s nothing to discuss.” Van’s voice was firm, and a tiny part of her cracked with his words.
She’d obviously read more into that tender touch than she should have. Better get that through her head now. Besides, she didn’t have time for a man in her life, or even an unrequited crush. She had Anna to think about, not some gorgeous cop who made her knees weak.
Right. Maybe she’d believe that in a day or two.
Van turned back to her, his eyes brown once again. Weird. “I’ll be back after I speak with Ty and then Davies.”
Lauren shook her head. No, it was a bad idea to see him again. She needed to nip this little crush in the bud. “Just send someone with the agreement for me to sign. You’re obviously busy.”
“I’ll—”
“Van!” Ty’s voice sliced through them.
Black eyes stared at her. “Fuck.”
“Just go.” She stepped away from the wall of metal. “Thank you for your help, Officer Abrams.”
It shouldn’t have hurt when he turned and strode from the room.
It shouldn’t have, but it did.
Chapter Three
It shouldn’t have taken Van a full day to find Lauren, but it had. He’d scoured half the town, going from one end to the other, hunting her. She’d been released yesterday morning and the business with Boyne Falls kept him occupied well into the night. Now, in the light of a new day, his beast demanded he search for her.
The address on her license didn’t match the address on her registration, which didn’t match the address she’d given when they’d brought her in.
The woman was like a ghost. A dozen people had seen her, but no one knew where she was. By the time he questioned the tenth person, he’d recognized a nice little pattern. Then he’d come to an annoying yet warming conclusion—the town was protecting one of its own.
No, not like the bears, not like those in his clan, but the humans had obviously adopted her as a treasured daughter, grandchild, or niece. Young or old, no one gave him her exact location.
Equally annoyed and hungry, he stopped at the local diner and snared a table while he let his problem roll through his head: Lauren Evans. Specifically, the way his bear wanted Lauren Evans now and not later.
At the moment, he kept telling himself he was following up on her injuries and to see how her friend Anna was doing. It didn’t matter that Martin gave him the rundown that morning.
He spied several of the humans he’d questioned throughout the day sitting toward the back of the diner, talking low amongst themselves. The cop in him recognized their actions. They were exchanging information, all of ’em worried about Lauren, about why he was looking for her.
He had to hand it to them, they banded together like a clan to care for one another, not destroy. Something he never associated with humans. It made him think, made him wonder, made him question…
So focused on that group, trying to hear the whispered conversation, he nearly jumped out of his skin when a body fell onto the seat across from him.
Keen, his youngest brother and biggest pain in the ass, sprawled in the booth. “Hey.” The boy—the man now— grinned at him. “How ya doin’?”
He glared at his brother. “Fine.”
“Uh-huh.” Keen snared a menu and opened it.
“What d’ya want?” He glared at the back of the menu, wishing it were Keen bearing the brunt of his expression.
“Well—” Keen cut himself off as the waitress approached.
They gave their orders, opting for meat and zero greens. The moment she was out of hearing range, Van asked his brother again.
“What do you want?” He was busy, damn it. He was on a hunt. He was stopping long enough to eat and then he’d continue his search for Lauren.
“There are rumblings about you in the socialsphere.”
Van raised a brow and curled his lip. “The what?”
“The socialsphere.” Keen placed the menu in its holder against the window. “You know, all of those social networks humans use.”
“Social networks?” He scrunched his eyebrows.
“You’re kidding, right?” His brother gave him a blank look. “You really don’t…?” Keen shook his head. “Never mind. The point is, the ‘town,’” his brother made air quotes, telling him without words that he was referring to humans, “is aware you’re looking for Lauren. They’ve decided that until you explain yourself, you’re going to be chasing your tail.”
“They’re obstructing—”
Keen shook his head. “You keep thinking of the world as us against them. Van, you need to—”
The waitress approached again and gently placed Keen’s plate on the table. Van’s? Not so much. She plopped it down, ignoring that his burger nearly went over the edge.
Van glared at the woman’s retreating back.
“See? That right there?” Keen pointed at him with a fork. “That proves they don’t like you.” His younger brother leaned forward and lowered his voice. “You’re our Enforcer, Van. You’ll always have our respect. We know about structure, hierarchy. We’re taught all that as we grow up.” Keen stared at the table for a moment before continuing. “They’re different. Because you can kick anyone but Ty’s ass, you’re the Enforcer. Their social structure is based on the person inside them. They love Lauren. They’ve watched her grow up, they’ve seen her go through hell, and they’ve seen the way she protects Anna.” Keen sat up. “Unless you give them a reason to trust you, you’re not getting anywhere.”
Van absorbe
d Keen’s words, rolling the concept through his mind. He took a moment and let his gaze wander the diner. He took in the distrustful stares, the whispers, the way attention danced to him and swiftly left.
Yeah, they were different. He was beginning to realize that different didn’t mean bad.
In some ways they were the same. The whole town, all of the humans, banded together against a common enemy. Hadn’t the bears and wolves done that for Ty and Mia’s cub, Parker? But, in others, they were complete opposites. In their clan, Mayor Davies would have been exiled while in the human world, “agreements” were made and the man escaped punishment.
With a shake of his head, he grabbed half his burger and brought it to his mouth. “So, who do I have to talk to? What do I need to say?”
He took a bite and grimaced. Cooked well-done—almost shoe leather done. Ugh. He looked to Keen, specifically his burger, and noticed the bright pink of his meat. Rare as hell and probably delicious. When he glanced toward the kitchen, he spied the cook glaring at him.
He needed to do something.
“Start with Nellie behind the counter. That woman spends more time on social networks than anyone in the town, plus she owns the diner with her husband Edward. She talks to everyone in town when they come through for coffee. You win her over, you’ll be fine.” Keen took another big bite and Van did the same.
Keen’s moan of pleasure was followed by Van’s groan. Damn, he needed rare meat.
“’K, tell me more about their socialsphere.”
Keen sighed. “Really?” He rolled his eyes and lowered his voice. “You know I’m working on WereWeb? A way for everyone to connect, share information, pics, and stuff?”
Van nodded. “It’s a good idea. Letting us share status updates and crap. People should be doing that shit.”
His brother looked at him with something akin to pity and sighed. “I’m not the first person to think of it. There’s dozens of sites like that for humans. Probably hundreds.”
Van paused in mid-bite. “Seriously?”
“You need to get over this hang up, man. You’re missing out on so much.”
Hang up. Nice way to label his distrust and near-hatred for humans. It was hard to let it go. Hard to release the anger and rage. There’d been so much blood, his and his uncle’s. And the men… The human men had…
Van shook off the memory, swallowed back the bile in his throat, and brought the burger to his mouth.
“Yeah, yeah.” Van sank his teeth into his well-done sandwich and let his gaze shift to the world beyond the diner. To the parking lot across the street. To the small, curvy blonde woman arguing with a man a hell of a lot taller and stronger than her.
“Shit.”
Lunch forgotten, Van jumped from the booth and bolted for the door, racing through the diner, anxious to get outside. His bear added speed and strength to his human body, allowing him to move faster than the average human male. He dodged customers and wove past waitresses. The pounding of his brother’s booted feet told him he wasn’t alone. Keen didn’t ask questions, just raced after him.
That was the thing with brothers. They didn’t need to know what the hell one of them was doing, just that one of them needed help.
Van burst through the door, sending it banging against the wall. He didn’t slow when he hit the parking lot, didn’t bother lessening his pace as he raced across the street. Distantly he heard Keen yell for him underscored by the blaring of car horns. He only had eyes for Lauren.
He kept his gaze on her as she pointed at Bryson Davies, as she raised to her tiptoes to get in his face, as she poked him with said finger.
Van couldn’t hear the words past the roaring in his ears and the bellowing of his bear, but he could see. Specifically, when Davies raised his hand as if to strike Lauren.
He pushed a little harder, ran a little faster, and shoved his way between her and Bryson.
Without a hint of effort, he caught the man’s fist in the palm of his hand, stopping the strike in its tracks. The man’s eyes widened, the whites stark against the hazel irises. Van gripped the balled hand, tightening his hold in tiny increments until the male winced.
He sensed Keen’s rapid approach, the heavy pounding of his run as the distance between them lessened. “Van?”
He was sure he should explain himself to his brother, but he couldn’t tear his gaze from the human male. “Good morning, Mister Mayor.”
*
Adrenaline filled Lauren, forcing her heart to race faster and faster. Bryson cornered her on the street, caught her while on the way back to Martin’s home. Martin had wanted to drive her to the pharmacy since Mayor Asshole had her car towed from his house and impounded. But she wanted him to stay with Anna, watch over and protect her, if needed.
Now she realized she should have called a damned cab. The ache in her side reminded her she also should have filled the pain prescription yesterday after being released.
Of course, then she had to let her mouth get away from her as she spewed insults and told Bryson exactly what she thought of him. And poked him. Couldn’t forget that.
When he raised his fist, she figured another trip to the urgent care clinic was in her immediate future. She stared at Bryson, took in the wild look in his eyes, the bright red hue of his skin, the sweat coating his brow, and the pure hatred covering his features.
Distantly, she saw his arm cock back, fingers balling. The muscles hidden by his button down shirt flexed and prepared to strike. Then it lowered, racing toward her face. She waited for the pain, the agony that’d fill her due to the powerful hit.
Then, it didn’t come. Instead, she was pushed back as a massive body stepped between her and Bryson. She stumbled a step, hands flailing until a set of unfamiliar strong arms encircled her, saving her from sprawling on the ground.
“I’ve got you.” The voice was warm, low, and comforting.
The next voice was decidedly… not.
“Good morning, Mister Mayor.” The tone, the threat hidden beneath the words, sent a shiver down her spine.
“You’re fine.” The man holding her murmured, and she realized she was still held captive by his embrace.
Lauren wiggled and pushed away from him, stepping out of his arms and putting space between them. His hold felt… wrong. Made her skin itch and parts of her cringe. He hadn’t done anything to make her feel that way, but she didn’t want to be cradled in his arms. No, she wanted Van—
She cut off that direction of thought.
“Officer Abrams, I’m glad you’re here.” Bryson sounded so smug, so full of himself. Abusive prick. “I’d like you to arrest Miss Evans for assault.”
“What?” She practically screamed the word. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
She stomped toward the mayor only to have her path blocked by Van. He stepped to his left, giving her his broad back. So she stepped right and was met with the stranger’s back. While not quite as broad as Van, he was still big enough to keep her from her target.
Then she noticed the similarities between them. The curl of dark brown hair, the shape of their bodies, and even the curve of their asses…
Okay, she wasn’t staring at asses. Especially not Vans. And she wasn’t going to fantasize about nibbling it either.
“Assault? I find it hard to believe Miss Evans would assault anyone.” Van’s low rumble vibrated through her.
“Really? After yesterday when…?” Bryson sputtered.
Lauren shifted enough to see Van’s face, to catch sight of his reaction to the mayor’s response.
“Yesterday? Well,” Van rubbed his jaw, palms scraping along his cheeks. “Well, from what I recall, Lauren didn’t do much of anything yesterday except sign an agreement that nothing happened and you two don’t know each other.” Van shook his head and she heard the good old boy tone once again. “At least, that’s what I recall. I tend to forget things, though.” He glanced at her and winked before turning his attention to the man she didn’t recognize. “That�
��s what I told you yesterday though, Keen. Right?”
“Yup.”
Bryson’s face glowed red. “I want her arrested. You saw her assault me.”
“Did I?”
“Abrams…” The mayor’s voice was low, threatening. “I’ll have your badge for this. I want her arrested for assault.”
“Uh-huh.” Van shoved his hands in his pockets, his whole body seeming relaxed. But she saw his fists balled beneath the fabric. No, he wasn’t relaxed at all. “I didn’t see anything, Mister Mayor. Not a thing. Keen? You see anything?”
“Nope.” Keen shook his head.
“Well, there ya go. Sorry, Mister Mayor.” Van shrugged, but there was no way he was sorry. She saw it in the tension that lingered in his shoulders and the way he leaned forward just a tiny bit. He was ready to pounce.
Bryson glared, first at Van, then Keen, and finally at her. A loud bang, the diner door swinging open roughly once again, reached them and the mayor’s attention shifted to the diner across the street. He pointed at the gathered crowd. “They saw her. One of them saw her!”
“You think?” Van shrugged, still feigning nonchalance. He jerked his fists free and cupped them around his mouth. “Did any of y’all see Lauren assault the mayor?” he yelled across the expanse and as one, the customers crowding the lot shook their heads. Smiling, her savior turned back to Bryson. “Well, there ya go.”
The mayor’s face grew even darker, pure hatred directed at her and her alone. She saw the promise of retribution in his gaze and she fought to stay strong, not let him see that inside, she shook like a leaf.
Without another word, Bryson spun on his five hundred dollar heels and stomped to his waiting luxury car. The man spent thousands supporting his “lifestyle” while Anna lived with worn clothes. Oh, in public he dressed her friend in fine clothes, but everything else was threadbare.
The three stood together, watching the mayor slide behind the wheel and tear into traffic.
Finally, Keen spoke. “You should pull him over for reckless driving.”
Van snorted and shook his head. “I’m in enough trouble with Ty.” The man froze and then slowly turned toward her. “Speaking of trouble, what were you doing? Taking on a man like Davies. You know what he’s capable of.”