The Bodyguard

by Adair, Cherry; Showalter, Gena; O'Clare, Lorie

  When she couldn’t hear the rumble of his motorcycle anymore, she stood, sniffing the air to make sure she was alone. Jeremy had already headed back, so distracted with his reasons for being out here that he didn’t notice her. Damn good thing. Maybe she’d confront him about the human, but only after she figured out why they were meeting. Better she sniff her brother out than he sniff her out. Jeremy could be annoyingly unreasonable at times, even now that Jenna was grown. Sometimes her brother forgot she was twenty-three years old and treated her as if she were still a cub.

  Jenna didn’t smell anyone around her, but she shook her coat out silently, wagged her tail slowly, and perked her ears up, twitching them to hear all sounds around her. Then taking off, she trotted through the forest, heading the opposite direction from where the human had gone, toward the land on the other side of the state park her pack owned.

  The moonless night created a setting for a good, hard run. She picked up pace, tearing at the earth with her claws as she raced across the land. The trees grew sparse and the open space around her stretched on for miles. Night dew clung to her coat, but her insides simmered with a growing heat she doubted would subside. Images of the human, Seth Gere, talking to her brother, lifting his long, muscular leg over that loud, large bike of his, and his searching gaze, when he sensed her watching him, continued playing in her mind.

  She slowed when her den came into view. Jenna’s clothes were where she had left them, under a rock next to a group of trees near her backyard. The den she and her brother lived in and the few dens stretching along the highway as far as she could see, as well as on the other side, were all occupied by werewolves. Her pack. The chill in the air conflicted with the burning desire growing inside her, an ache to chase down the forbidden. Even with her pack in their dens nearby, the comfort and security of being near those who cared about her didn’t offer the usual solace. Tonight she’d made a decision. If her brother found out, or anyone else in the pack, they would throw a fit.

  Her brother’s bedroom light flashed on. A minute later her cell phone started ringing. Like she would rush through the change and endure the pain just to answer it before it went to voice mail. She didn’t need to dig the phone out from her clothes to know it was her brother demanding to know where the hell she was. As open-minded and respected as he was among her pack, one word of her out running unescorted and suddenly he turned into a barbaric, overbearing pain in the ass.

  She straightened to two feet, her human flesh soaked in sweat and a cruel chill making her shiver uncontrollably. Jenna struggled into her jeans and then fought with her sweatshirt, turning it right side out before pulling it over her head.

  “Is there a reason you didn’t answer my call?” Jeremy growled.

  “Crap!” Jenna yanked her sweatshirt over her head, glaring at her older brother when he stared at her, his expression hard and his muscular arms crossed over his chest. “You scared the hell out of me.”

  “You must have been mighty distracted not to smell me approaching.” He didn’t appear sympathetic. “Who have you been out with all night?”

  “Damn it, Jeremy.” She bent over to put her shoes on, then clipped her phone to her jeans. “I’m not a cub. I don’t ask you where you’ve been, or who you’ve been with.” She yanked her hair out from under her sweatshirt and marched past him to their den. “Should I be concerned about where you’ve been all night?”

  Jeremy howled to all who would listen that he was a progressive werewolf, determined to take their pack into the twenty-first century with a modern outlook. He followed her to their den, not saying a word. Jenna didn’t press the matter, knowing in spite of her brother claiming males and females were equal, he didn’t necessarily hold those views when it came to her. As stubborn and relentless as he could be, Jeremy drove her nuts out of love.

  Jenna entered through her back door, leaving it open for Jeremy to follow. She headed to her bedroom, hearing the lock click into place when he secured their den. They were both fully capable of protecting themselves and each other, and their pack lived in peace, but that didn’t mean challenges didn’t exist. And even though she wasn’t supposed to know about it, if Jeremy was helping the human sniff out a rogue werewolf, tough times might be around the corner for all of them.

  One thing she knew: tomorrow night she’d be at the Golden Grill. It might take some planning, but the human, Seth Gere, intrigued her. There was something about him she wanted to check out further. Jenna collapsed on her bed, grabbing a strand of hair and twisting it around her fingers as she stared at her ceiling. Were humans into rough and wild sex the way werewolves were?

  CHAPTER TWO

  Seth entered Payton Investigative Services late the next morning. He nodded at the receptionist, Hannah McDowell. “Is John in there?”

  “Well, if it isn’t the prodigal son,” she teased, then nodded to the closed door. “He’s been on the phone most of the morning.”

  If that was a hint for him to leave John Payton alone, Seth ignored it. “Sounds like he needs a break.” Seth winked at Hannah, then entered John’s office before she could stop him. He closed Payton’s office door behind him, nodding when the older man held up a finger and continued with his phone call.

  “Mrs. Shore, if you want me to follow your husband, my fee is the same as it always is.” Payton dragged his fingers through his silver hair, lowering his head and leaning against his hand as he stared at his desk. “You bring in the check and when it clears, I’ll get started.” He let out a silent breath, picking up his ballpoint and scribbling in the corner of his notepad. “Yes. Yes, cash is fine. Drop it off here at the office. . . . Thank you, Mrs. Shore. If he’s cheating on you again, I’ll find out for you.”

  Seth couldn’t do what John did for a living. Being a private dick was a grossly misconceived line of work. So many thought it glorious and Hollywood glamorized it, but truth be told, it sucked. The lines engraved deeply on John Payton’s forehead and dark circles under his eyes were proof of the stress and long hours.

  John hung up the phone and reached for his coffee cup, realized it was empty, and stood.

  “How close are you to bringing in Tray Long?” John asked, heading for the coffee pot in the corner of his office.

  Seth wouldn’t mention the Golden Grill. Maybe it was superstition, but talking about a lead might fuck it up. “Shouldn’t be long now,” he grumbled, moving in to pour himself a cup.

  “Good. I got a phone call first thing this morning. Came in before I got here. Hannah took the message.” John ran his hand over the papers scattered on the desk, found what he wanted and handed it to Seth. “There’s an APB out on this one and word on the streets is the FBI is interested as well.”

  Seth stared at the handwritten message. “Elaine Gold. Why does her name ring a bell?” He snapped his fingers, pointing at John before the older man could answer. “That’s right. There was a special on the Golds. Robbed a handful of banks. Harry Gold was arrested, but his wife went MIA.”

  “Rumor has it she’s here in Omaha. Slap Happy sent word about a hot number staying over at the Motel 6. This one has your name all over it.”

  Seth didn’t want to guess why John might think that. John didn’t usually take high-profile jobs. He stuck to bad checks and cheating spouses and made a show about complaining that Seth had all the fun. Truth be told, John didn’t have the balls to do the serious undercover work. Seth knew John hadn’t always been like this. Either age was catching up with the sixty-year-old, or something along the way in his career had made him gun-shy. Seth didn’t ask questions. He appreciated John setting him up with cases he didn’t want. It paid the rent. And beat the hell out of Seth having to find work himself.

  “I’ll talk to Happy.” Seth stuffed the message into his jeans pocket and drank the semi-hot coffee. “Anything else for me?”

  “Huh?” John looked up from the papers on his desk. “Umm, no.” He slumped into his office chair, staring at whatever he’d just been looking at.
Then clearing his throat, he picked up what looked like a fax, crumpled it, and threw it in his trash. “Let me know when you’re close to nailing Long.”

  “Will do.” Seth downed his coffee, left his cup next to the coffeepot, and let himself out of John’s office, closing the door behind him.

  Hannah was typing at her computer but stopped when Seth headed out of her office. “Seth?” she asked, glancing at him over her small reading glasses. “You got a minute?”

  Hannah was a pretty woman, petite, with straight brown hair that curved around her face and fell to her shoulders. Seth didn’t really go after older women, but if he did, Hannah would be a perfect candidate. The low-cut sweater she wore with jeans that hugged her slender legs and showed off her narrow waist probably caught the attention of any man who walked into this office. Hannah looked like the kind of woman who needed protection, not the kind of woman who could protect a PI’s office if some derelict started giving her grief. The kind of people who entered this office weren’t the best, or the safest, to be around. She also did a lot of John’s fieldwork.

  “Sure. What’s up?” Seth asked when she stood and walked around her desk.

  Hannah leaned against the front of it, studying him with her pretty green eyes. “It’s John,” she said, lowering her voice to a near whisper. “I’m worried about him.”

  “Oh yeah?” Seth didn’t mention that he’d noticed John looked distracted just now. “Why are you worried?”

  “I think something is going on with him, but he tells me he’s fine.”

  “Then he’s probably fine.”

  She shook her head slowly. “He’s lying to me.”

  “Then what’s wrong?” Seth had learned a long time ago not to try to understand women’s logic. Straight, cut-and-dry questioning was the best.

  “I don’t know. I just told you that,” she said. “Do me a favor, please. Will you find out what cases he’s working on without letting him know you’re trying to find out?”

  “Don’t you know all of his cases?”

  “I always have. But he’s working on something he isn’t telling me about and you know as well as me that isn’t safe. I know he’s hard-pressed for money sometimes, but he needs to tell me where he is for his own protection.”

  It wouldn’t surprise Seth if Hannah’s concerns for John were a bit more personal than she let on. John would need to be hit over the head with a brick to notice if any woman was interested. Which might not be a bad idea where Hannah was concerned. She was pretty, hardworking, and loyal. John couldn’t do much better than landing a girlfriend like Hannah.

  Seth nodded, reaching for the door handle, and winked at Hannah. “I’ll see what I can find out. In the meantime, put a GPS in his cell phone. More than likely he’s just getting forgetful and doesn’t mean to not keep you posted.”

  Hannah didn’t react to Seth casually flirting with her. “I like the GPS idea if I can get him to remember to carry his phone with him.”

  “He’s a tough man, but if anyone can train him, you can.” Seth headed out the door, raising his hand and waving good-bye before letting the office door close behind him. He doubted he needed to track John. More than likely, Hannah would be able to do the work herself. There wasn’t time to question why she had sought Seth out about it. He had a killer and a missing bank robber to find.

  Slap Happy was a small man, not even five and a half feet tall. One leg was shorter than the other, so he walked with a limp. Add thick, bushy fiery red hair to that and the man was as unique as his name. Happy worked as a custodian downtown in one of the larger office buildings and kept his ears and eyes to the ground. For years he’d been a solid informant for the police department as well as for John. When Happy saw Seth approach him just outside the main set of bathrooms off the lobby, he straightened. Happy was scared of Seth, always had been. But there wasn’t any running away, since Seth had cornered him and his mop bucket.

  After hanging out in the guys’ john for almost half an hour while Happy explained the word on the street, Seth headed across town to the Motel 6. There wasn’t an Elaine Gold registered, so Seth camped out in the coffee shop across the street, watching the parking lot and waiting for her to show up until it got dark. Stakeouts weren’t exactly his cup of tea. It was boring as hell. Once it got dark it was too hard to tell who came and went from the motel. Besides, he needed to head home and get ready to go out tonight. He would have to find Elaine Gold tomorrow.

  By ten, Seth pulled in to the large shopping center parking lot where the Golden Grill was. The bar and grill had been around for years and not too long ago switched ownership. The new clientele seemed a bit darker, more his age, and the place was known for its occasional bar fight. Seth parked his Harley, taking in the fairly crowded parking lot.

  A woman grabbed Seth’s attention. She appeared from around the corner, as if she’d walked there, and started across the lot, weaving slowly through the parked cars. He’d always had a fondness for long hair on women, and this lady’s dark hair flowed to her ass. The breeze lifted it, making it flow around and behind her as she moved with a quiet air of confidence that made her appear to almost float. When the streetlight caught her in its circular glow over the asphalt, he got a better view of her facial features. Within the next moment she was enveloped in darkness. Seth swore she looked directly at him. But he knew too well that the night was good at making things appear as they weren’t.

  The lady shifted her attention to the Golden Grill, which meant she’d at least been looking his way, if not at him. And she was alone. If she spotted him, it didn’t make her leery. She continued with her slow, confident pace, her arms relaxed at her sides and the snug, sleeveless shirt and skirt she wore hugging and showing off one hell of a hot body.

  Seth climbed off his bike and headed across the lot. He picked up his pace, reaching the door to the Golden Grill at the same time she did. She smelled good. Her hair was thick and shiny under the awning lights.

  “Allow me,” he offered, reaching over her head and pulling open the door to the Golden Grill.

  Immediately the noise from inside made it hard to hear her response. Seth swore she said, “I planned on it.”

  He didn’t recognize either man standing just inside the door, who were checking ID, and possibly assuring the clientele allowed into the establishment met with their approval. The pretty lady disappeared into the crowd and the tall, muscular men at the door then turned their hardened stares on him.

  “Three-dollar cover,” the one to his right informed him.

  “Do either of you know that woman?” Seth asked, pulling out his wallet.

  “Ladies are in free,” the guy on the left growled.

  That didn’t answer Seth’s question, and he had a feeling by the way both of their gazes burned into his back after he’d entered the bar, they both knew that. It didn’t matter. He had a job to do. Unfortunately, the sexy long-haired vixen would have to wait.

  Seth took his time walking from one end of the Golden Grill to the other. Twelve huge TV screens hung from the wall, arranged so no matter where someone sat, they could see the screen. On nights when there was a basketball game, this place was insane. Tonight wasn’t one of those nights. The crowd was fairly thick, though. Quite a few leaned against the bar and he didn’t notice any free tables or booths. Both pool tables in the back of the room were being used, and a couple played darts along the far wall.

  When he noticed a vacant bar stool at the bar, Seth moved in and ordered a beer. Then leaning against the counter, he turned to give himself a view of the place and the people moving around him.

  Tray Long—the thief and killer he was after—was a big man, his brown hair once long but now trimmed close to his head, the prison cut. Seth couldn’t imagine the prick showing his ugly mug in this establishment. If there was another murderer running around town, they were damned smart and clever. Tray was suspect number one based on his M.O. His profile fit.

  The bartender brought Seth h
is beer and he pulled out his wallet and tossed a couple bills on the bar. The bartender picked up the money, then slapped a bar rag over the smooth, highly polished, wooden counter. He gave Seth the same hard look the bouncers at the door did.

  He wasn’t here to make friends. Sipping his beer, he turned his back to the bar and leaned against the counter, taking in the crowd. Seth pulled out his cell phone and glanced at the time. Ten thirty on the spot. Jeremy didn’t say what would happen here, but Seth prayed Tray Long would be here. Seth needed the money, and taking that bastard off the streets once and for all would be doing everyone a favor. The asshole was one sick motherfucker.

  The woman with the long, dark hair appeared through the crowd, standing on a ledge across the room, which served as a small balcony. There were tables behind her filled with people as well as others standing around her. It appeared she was alone, though. She didn’t talk to anyone. As she sipped at a mixed drink, she turned her attention to Seth. He swore she stared directly at him, watching him from across the room as he stared back. What was it she said to him when they entered this place?

  She brought her cup to her lips, sipping her drink and continuing to watch him over the rim. Seth loved how her long, thick hair fell over one shoulder, parting around her breast and curling in soft waves at her narrow waist. The shirt she wore hugged her figure, and damn, she was hot. Hot to the point of distraction. Seth forced his gaze away first, scanning the crowd. He wouldn’t let some hot temptress distract him from the reason he was here.

  Tray Long was a big motherfucker. As crowded as the Golden Grill was tonight, he wouldn’t be hard to spot if he was here. Seth also searched for Jeremy. Maybe the guy just wanted to meet him here. Possibly he had taken Seth’s comment about normal people meeting in bars to heart.