by Lynn Hagen
Joelle walked out of the salon, hating that Kivani had followed him all day. His mate hadn’t gone inside any of the shops, choosing to stay in his Lexus, but Joelle felt the strain nonetheless.
He walked over to Kivani’s car as Kivani lowered the driver’s window. “I feel like I’ve got an FBI tail on me.”
Kivani’s smile erased some of Joelle’s irritation. It was just so damn sexy. “I don’t mean to make you feel that way, but at least I know you’re safe.”
“And how long can you keep this up?” Joelle leaned a hip against the door. “I work crazy hours, Kivani. You have a life, and a job to do.”
After their talk at his parents’ house, Joelle had mulled things over the entire night. He’d barely gotten any sleep, but came to the conclusion that what Kivani did was important. Joelle didn’t think it right that Kivani’s kind were killed just because they weren’t human.
It was like a race war, only the murders were about species, and that kind of shit made Joelle’s teeth grind. Hatred, no matter what form it took, was ugly as hell.
“Get in and we’ll go have dinner.”
Joelle was hungry. He’d skipped lunch to help out when one of the stylists had called off. Being able to style hair again had put Joelle in a good mood, until he remembered he had a babysitter.
Not that Joelle wasn’t grateful for Kivani’s need to protect him, but he felt like he was taking Kivani away from his job. That meant fucking with Kivani’s money, and Joelle felt like crap for doing that.
He slid into the passenger seat and Kivani pulled away from the curb, turning the radio on to a light jazz station. Joelle had no idea where he was taking him, but became confused when he headed for the highway. “Where exactly is this restaurant?”
Joelle’s heart fluttered when Kivani took his hand, entwining their fingers together. “Thought we could get out of the city for a bit.”
That sounded wonderful. Joelle loved road trips. He didn’t often take them, but there were times when he hit the road with no destination in mind. Joelle particularly loved the countryside. All his problems seemed to melt away whenever he drove down backroads, simply enjoying nature.
“Where’re you taking me?”
“A little town called Brac Village.”
“The countryside?”
“It has a country setting.”
Joelle pulled his hand free from Kivani’s, then slid it over his mate’s crouch. “I love the smell of country air.”
One of Kivani’s brows arched as his voice thickened. “Oh yeah?”
Joelle lowered his head to Kivani’s lap and mouthed his mate’s hard dick through his jeans. He pulled back and unfastened them, then fished his thick, long cock out.
Kivani hissed. “What’re you doing down there?”
“Having an appetizer.” Joelle slid his tongue over the slit of Kivani’s cock.
The car swerved slightly.
“Don’t drive us into a damn ditch.” Joelle started to lift his head to look at the road, but Kivani placed a hand on his head and kept him in place.
“I promise we’re fine. Go back to your appetizer.” Kivani let the seat back a bit and Joelle noticed that the car had slowed some, too.
Too bad he couldn’t get Kivani’s pants all the way off. Joelle was dying to lick his balls.
“My dick doesn’t bite, so stop staring at it and go back to what you were doing,” Kivani growled.
Joelle grinned before taking the cock into his mouth, lashing his tongue over the hard flesh. He got onto his hands and knees and rocked as he sucked at the head, lapping up the pre-cum and slowly stroking Kivani as he enjoyed how good he tasted.
“Shit, boo. That feels fucking good.” Kivani slid his hand through Joelle’s hair. “That’s it. Use that tongue, baby.”
The car swerved again.
“I got it,” Kivani said when Joelle pulled off his cock. “You worry about my dick and I’ll worry about the road.”
“Just don’t kill us.” Joelle licked a long path up Kivani’s cock, then suckled the head.
Kivani punched his hips upward, his hand on the back of Joelle’s head. From the noises Kivani was making, Joelle could tell he was close. He stroked Kivani faster, hollowing his cheeks for better suction. Kivani’s cock slid in and out, driving deeper down Joelle’s throat.
“I’m there, baby. I’m there.” Kivani groaned as his cum splashed the back of Joelle’s throat. Joelle tried his best to take it all, but it was too much and some cum hit his chin and cheek.
“Fuuuck,” Kivani moaned.
It wasn’t until Joelle pulled back that he noticed they’d stopped. They hadn’t pulled to the shoulder. They’d just stopped right there on the highway. Thank fuck no other cars were around.
Kivani blew out a long breath, wiping his hand over his face. He maneuvered the car to the shoulder, then put it in Park. “Get over here.”
Joelle laughed as Kivani hauled him into his lap. He let the seat back all the way before pulling Joelle’s throbbing cock from his pants. Joelle ground his ass against Kivani’s thighs as his mate jerked him off. He lay against the steering wheel, and the horn blared as Joelle writhed under Kivani’s assault.
Kivani slid his free hand down the back of Joelle’s slacks, probed at his hole, then pressed the tip of his finger into Joelle’s ass.
Joelle cried out as he came, then collapsed against Kivani, shuddering with each tiny aftershock.
Until someone knocked on their window.
Joelle looked up to see a stranger staring wide-eyed at them. “I was gonna ask if you needed help, but…I think you two have this under control.”
The man hurried away.
Joelle looked at Kivani and burst out laughing. His mom had said that he should let his life get messy, but Joelle was pretty sure she didn’t have road sex in mind.
Groaning, Joelle tried to untangle himself, but the steering wheel got in the way. He nearly knocked the gear shift as he climbed back to the passenger seat.
Kivani chuckled. “Think he would have helped us out if we’d needed it?”
Joelle shoved at Kivani’s arm. “Don’t even joke like that.”
Kivani grabbed Joelle’s nape and pulled him close for a searing kiss. “Wouldn’t fucking share you anyway. I’m a very jealous guy.”
“And so am I.”
“Then let’s go feed our green-eyed monsters.” Kivani stuffed his cock back into his pants before righting his seat, and Joelle tucked himself away, too. As they got back on the road, Joelle was unable to stop smiling.
While Kivani showered, Joelle took the elevator down to the garage. He’d forgotten his paperwork in Kivani’s car, and he needed to finish it and hand it in by tomorrow.
And it was a ton of work. Joelle should’ve gotten on it right away, but he’d been unable to pass up dinner with his mate. He just hadn’t planned on staying in the small town so late. But a few of Kivani’s friends had joined them for dinner, and Joelle had enjoyed Maverick and Cecil’s company.
When the elevator doors swooshed open, Joelle stepped out and hurried to Kivani’s car, keys in hand. He looked around the garage, remembering the conversation he’d had with Kivani about Hunters.
He wasn’t too happy about having to watch his back now, but Joelle tried not to think about it. He was starting to fall hard for Kivani. His mate’s line of work, not so much, though.
Joelle reached the car and used the fob to unlock it. He saw the shadow seconds before he was grabbed from behind and a hand slapped over his mouth. Screaming was useless, but Joelle thrust his elbow backward, tried to kick whoever had him, and twisted like crazy, but the person had an iron grip on him.
“Come quietly or I swear I’ll snap your fucking neck.”
Joelle dropped the keys and nodded.
A silver sedan pulled up behind Kivani’s Lexus. The guy hauled Joelle to it, then shoved him into the backseat. Joelle tried to scramble out the other door, but the man grabbed him and pulled him back. H
e turned, ready to fight for his life, then stilled.
He knew the guy.
Ethan, the hottie who’d shown up at his apartment. The one Kivani had choked the shit out of in the elevator. Oh, this was bad. Joelle needed to find a way to escape. His cell phone was in his back pocket, but he couldn’t use it. Not when Ethan sat right next to him, a gun in his hand.
“Go,” Ethan said to the driver.
Joelle blinked. The driver couldn’t be more than seventeen or eighteen. Were Hunters that young? Jesus Christ. He was just a baby. At least that was what Joelle thought, until the driver turned and glared at him. The killer look in his gray eyes said he wouldn’t have a problem shooting Joelle and burying his body.
The car sped forward, and they were out of the garage in seconds and careening through the city. Kivani was gonna kill him for leaving the apartment. If Ethan didn’t kill Joelle first.
“What do you want with me?”
“Me?” Ethan snarled. “Nothing. But someone else wants to meet you.”
The driver snickered.
“Apparently you’re a valuable commodity.” Ethan glanced out the window, and Joelle noticed the hand without the gun was bandaged.
“What the hell does that mean?” Joelle couldn’t stop shaking or sweating, and he kept glancing at the handle on the door next to him. He could try to jump, but at this speed, he might die. Then again, he might die if he didn’t try to escape.
“It means you’re leverage,” the driver said.
“Shut the fuck up,” Ethan snapped. “Your only job is to drive.”
The guy glared at Ethan through the rearview mirror but didn’t say another word.
Joelle frowned when they pulled in front of a tall office building in the business district. He’d expected them to take him to some run-down house or a closed-down storefront. Anyplace other than a fancy building that was only a few blocks from his apartment.
When the driver parked, Ethan pulled Joelle from the car. He kept a tight grip on his arm as he shoved the barrel of the gun into Joelle’s side. “Make a run for it, make a sound, and I’ll shoot you.”
There were still people on the street, passing by them, unaware of the danger Joelle was in. He walked stiffly through the marbled lobby as Ethan hauled him to the shiny bank of elevators. Joelle tried to catch the security guard’s eye when they passed his desk, but the guard was busy with someone else.
Joelle didn’t see a way out of this. A stone settled in his gut as Ethan pulled him onto an elevator and the doors slid closed.
Saul Capezio exited the elevator and headed through the lobby to the sleek Lincoln waiting out front for him. He slowed when he saw his hairstylist coming through the lobby with two men. Joelle’s features were pinched and he was sweating as they escorted him onto an elevator.
That was when Saul saw the gun pressed to Joelle’s side. He started to head toward Security, but what if that caused a standoff that got Joelle killed? With his phone, Saul discreetly snapped a few pictures of the guy at Joelle’s side before the doors closed.
Then he stood there, watching to see what floor the elevator stopped at. Eight.
Unsure what he would do when he reached that floor, Saul rode a car up. He was a goddamn businessman, not the cops. What was he gonna do, confront the gunman?
Saul wasn’t sure, but he couldn’t just stand by and do nothing.
When the doors slid open, Saul stepped into a cushy waiting area and spotted the men taking Joelle into a room at the end of the hall.
“May I help you?”
Saul turned to see a woman behind a reception desk. The sign on the wall behind her read Kovachi Enterprises. He gave her a tight smile. “I mistakenly got off on the wrong floor.”
She smiled pleasantly at him. “What business are you looking for?”
“Oh, this is the eighth floor. That’s right. I needed the seventh. Sorry, have a nice evening.” He took the elevator down, went to his car, and slid into the back.
“Home, boss?” Jacob asked from the driver’s seat.
“No,” Saul said. He looked up Kovachi Enterprises on his phone. The generic website had only two pages, and neither told him what the company was about. When he tried to click on one of the links, it was broken. He tried another one and found it dead, as well.
He knew a fucking dummy corporation when he saw one. The Capezios had their hands deep in shell corporations, among other illegal things, after all. But what was Kovachi Enterprises a front for?
He startled when his phone rang, then scowled. He didn’t startle easily. Not when he ran a billion-dollar law firm and dealt with the most unreasonable clients. He was always cool and collected. He had to be.
“Saul Capezio.”
“I need your services.”
Saul suppressed a groan. “I’m kind of busy right now, Maverick.”
If it wasn’t for the hefty retainer fees Maverick Brac paid, and the cost when he actually needed Saul’s help, Saul would have dropped him as a client years ago. Every time he turned around, someone Maverick was associated with was in trouble.
Like Saul didn’t have enough problems keeping his own family and friends out of jail.
But working for the preternatural padded Saul’s bank account. He’d be a fool to turn them away.
“Then get unbusy,” Maverick said. “A friend of mine has been arrested and I need you to get the charges dropped.”
Saul not only provided legal services to preternatural leaders, he helped them clean up messes too dirty for the law to see. He was one of the few humans—who wasn’t a mate—who knew they existed. One of the few who went above and beyond to ensure their secret stayed buried.
“I’ve got my own problem going on right now.” Saul usually never turned down money, but he wasn’t a coldhearted bastard. Most of the time. Okay, he was, but Joelle was in trouble, and Saul needed to figure out a way to help him—without involving his family.
Joelle was one of the few guys Saul actually liked. He was amazing at his job, fun to talk to, and always had Saul smiling by the time Joelle left his penthouse.
Without his smile having anything to do with sex.
“Then let’s swap problems,” Maverick said. “Maybe I can help you.”
“A favor for a favor?” Having a wolf shifter’s help wouldn’t hurt. Maverick was a loose cannon, but he was intelligent—and effective. Saul had been dealing with him for years, and he’d learned long ago that Maverick got the job done.
“Okay,” Saul said. “No fees involved. We’re just doing each other a solid.”
“Lay it on me.” He almost sounded bored, and that irritated Saul. How many times had Maverick called him with problems a lawyer closer to home could have handled?
One that didn’t charge an astronomical amount like Saul did.
“I need you to check your phone. I’m gonna send you something.” Saul sent the pics to Maverick. “You know this guy?” Saul stared out the window, looking at the last rays of sun setting behind the buildings and the stray passersby as he waited for Maverick to look the pictures over.
“Fuck,” Maverick finally said, sounding startled now instead of bored. “I just had dinner with Joelle and Kivani at the diner in town a few hours ago.”
“You know Joelle?” It was a small world.
“Joelle is a mate, Saul,” Maverick snarled. “Send me any info you have. I’ll have to get back to you about my problem.”
“No info to send,” Saul said. “They’re in the office building where my firm is located. Two men took Joelle to the eighth floor.”
“I’ll handle this.”
Saul scowled. “Tell the Santiago brothers not to blow the fucking building up.”
“I’m not coming,” Maverick said. “The Dark Knights are in the city. I’m calling Kivani.”
“He Italian?” Saul asked. The name Kivani sounded Italian.
“How the hell do I know?” Maverick hung up.
Saul tossed his phone aside, thankful th
e Santiago brothers weren’t on their way. Seventy percent of the time, it was one of them who needed legal help. Those sons of bitches loved blowing shit up, or setting things on fire.
But what Maverick had said had piqued Saul’s curiosity. Who the fuck were the Dark Knights, and did they own a rocket launcher?
“Where to, boss?” Jacob’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.
Saul looked up at the building, wondering why Joelle was there in the first place. He ground his teeth at the thought of the guy getting hurt and hoped Kivani got here before anything happened to Joelle. “Nowhere. We stay put until help arrives.”
Chapter Seven
Joelle’s shower was small and tight, with barely any room to move. Worse, the water kept fluctuating between perfect, tepid, then freezing, before repeating the cycle. Kivani turned the water off, stepped out, and wrapped a towel around his waist, wondering if Joelle had an extra toothbrush.
After searching the cabinet and under the sink, Kivani sighed. No luck. He arched a brow as he stared at Joelle’s toothbrush sitting in the holder. Kivani thought about using it for all of two seconds before dismissing the idea.
He’d have to settle for mouthwash only.
After rinsing his mouth Kivani stepped from the bathroom, rubbing a towel over his damp hair. “Hey, Joelle. Bring your sexy ass in here.”
Kivani gazed at the bed. He’d yet to claim Joelle, and he planned on rectifying that. He grabbed his cock through the towel, groaning as the thoughts of what he wanted to do to Joelle raced through his mind. “Hey, Joelle.”
No answer. Brows furrowed, Kivani walked into the living room. From where he stood, he could see right into the tiny kitchen, and Joelle wasn’t in either room.
His gaze slid to the coffee table. Kivani’s wallet and cell phone were still lying there, but his keys were gone. What the hell? He swiped his phone from the table and dialed Joelle. The call went straight to voice mail. Kivani tried again but got the same results.
Maybe he had to run to Ryan’s apartment for something. But why would he need my keys for that? He’d started to dial Devil when his phone rang. Kivani answered. “Hello?”