The Bodyguard

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

  “Shit,” she hissed under her breath, regaining her wits about her but overly aware of how swollen her breasts felt. Her hard nipples rubbed against her bra, as if suddenly the constraint was too confining. Her pussy swelled, eager and anxious to try out this human and see if he was as good at fucking as he was at foreplay.

  Her skin prickled, the tiny hairs on her body standing at attention. Jenna imagined Seth somewhere near, watching her, stalking her while she plotted doing the same to him. There was something about him having the upper hand with her, proving to her he was male enough to take her on, that excited her even further.

  There was no bigger turn-off than a spineless male. Werewolves were fighters. They were carnivorous, aggressive, and dominating, regardless of gender. Jenna wouldn’t take crap off anyone, not even her littermate, and she respected the hell out of him, loved him more than she loved any other living creature. She honored Jeremy, but spoke her mind when he was wrong. Most of the time he listened, and on a rare occasion even admitted to being wrong. He would be less inclined to listen about Seth. But once she told him, Jeremy wouldn’t be able to howl that her plan wasn’t solid.

  Jenna slowed at the intersection, watched the cars, then hurried across the street. A breeze, warm from the sun, caught her hair and blew it off her shoulder. As she grabbed it at her nape, she walked across a convenience store parking lot. The back of her neck prickled and it wasn’t from perspiration. Just as she reached the next sidewalk, the sound of brakes squeaking grabbed her attention.

  Jenna turned, knowing it wasn’t a motorcycle but still feeling a wave of disappointment when she didn’t know the car that pulled up alongside her. It came up next to her on the passenger side and she jumped out of the way when the passenger door opened.

  “Get in, little bitch.” The familiar snarl made her blood curdle, causing her heart to stop beating in her chest and create a pain that swelled quickly when she couldn’t catch her breath.

  Jenna stared into the cold, menacing eyes of Tray Long. “What do you want?” she growled, glancing past his car only for a moment as she searched the area. All she saw were humans, but none of them the one she wanted.

  “The same thing you do, I’m sure.” Tray was a big werewolf in a small car. He leaned over, pushing the door open farther so that it almost hit her. “Get in and we’ll talk about it.”

  “You don’t have shit I want,” she snarled, stepping around the open door and heading to the sidewalk, at the edge of the parking lot.

  She heard the door slam shut but then jumped when a cold, clammy hand wrapped around the back of her neck.

  “You give it to that human male, you sure the fuck can give it to me.” He squeezed the back of her neck so hard she couldn’t catch her breath. As he dragged her backward, his own breath almost turned to wheezing, as if the thought of having her damn near sent him into some kind of asthmatic attack.

  “Get your paws off me.” Her words were a hoarse whisper, but the rest of her wasn’t incapacitated. Kicking backward, she found incredible satisfaction when her heel hit bone and the cracking sound was enough to make her eyes water.

  His grip loosened as he snarled behind her, sounding more like an animal than a man, although she knew he wasn’t trying to change. Tray might be insane, but he wasn’t so far gone he would rip his clothes off his body in broad daylight and drop to all fours. At least she hoped he wasn’t. Either way, she didn’t want to find out.

  The second his grip loosened, Jenna took off running. Ignoring the stream of curses Tray let out behind her, she darted around the convenience store. She needed to head in a direction where he couldn’t follow her in his car.

  Jenna cursed under her breath. What the hell was this male’s deal? She needed to ask Jeremy if he’d done something to Tray that made the male want to get even with him. Why else would Tray be sniffing her out? Unless it was pure coincidence that he ran into her, which she doubted. The insane rogue had sought her out for a reason other than he simply found her irresistible.

  At the other end of the parking lot, she hesitated, shoving her hair over her shoulder as she checked behind her. Then sniffing the air, she didn’t hear or see anyone approaching. It would still be a good idea to cut through a few yards, put distance between her and that asshole before he figured out where she ran. A rumbling motor grabbed her attention and she darted toward the street. It was a motorcycle, but it wasn’t Seth.

  “God, you’re an idiot,” she cursed herself. What was she going to start doing now, chasing motorcycles?

  Jenna didn’t make a habit of running through neighborhoods. It was rude and an invasion of privacy trotting across people’s property, even if they were humans. She chewed her lower lip, staring at the yards to her right, then glanced again over her shoulder, searching for that small car, a two-door that was a rusty brown color, and swore every vehicle that moved matched that description.

  Getting too jumpy would make her senses unreliable. Breathing in a mixture of car exhaust and the rich, greasy smell of chain fast-food restaurants from across the street, she focused on the yards to her right. Jenna needed to remember her reason for seeing Seth. The more facts she gathered on Tray Long, the better job she’d do helping Seth take down the jerk.

  “Please be at work and remember that there is a leash law.” There wasn’t anything worse than a stray dog getting confused by her scent.

  Jenna bolted between two houses, using the combined driveway they shared as her path. She headed down the street on the next block, then cut again through yards, very aware that she moved closer to Seth Gere’s neighborhood. When she’d made it two blocks from where Tray Long had tried grabbing her, she paused again, breathing in the air and smelling nothing but roses and honeysuckle and the stale lingering smell of humans.

  Odd she’d never considered Seth’s aroma stale. Maybe he’d managed a way to release his emotions. Most humans didn’t possess the ability. They were unable to change like she could, which gave her the opportunity to shift into a more primal state, a condition where only the rawest of instinct prevailed. It was a cleansing state, and one she ached to change into now. The gift werewolves possessed allowed them to release the many feelings and emotions humans carried around with them for life. Hence, the stale smell.

  Jenna walked the next four blocks, relaxing as she did, until reaching the intersection and staring down the row of houses where Seth lived. Her attention immediately shot to the motorcycle in his driveway. Seth was home.

  “Crap,” she whispered, sucking in another breath and creating a game plan. Her idea of lying in wait until he returned to his house wouldn’t work. “You could always knock on his front door, inform him we’ve got unfinished business.”

  In spite of the insanity of the suggestion, not to mention standing on a street corner in a quiet neighborhood talking to herself, Jenna’s insides swelled, an eagerness to explore uncharted territory damn near making her come. There was only one way to handle this matter. Putting one foot in front of the other, she headed to his house. No one ever accused her of smelling shy.

  Maybe once or twice her curiosity in the past got her in trouble. But something told her the only trouble Seth might bring her would be emotional. He was human, though. That saved her the worry of losing her heart to him. Seth was a curiosity, an unknown. And he didn’t appear the type of male who would fall in love with a female anyway. He was older than she was, and unmated. There wasn’t the smell of another female on him, or in his home. So there wasn’t anything to worry about.

  A car came around the corner when Jenna was a couple houses down from Seth’s. Her heart exploded in her chest. She rubbed her palms against her jeans, irritated with how jumpy she was.

  “Relax,” she hissed under her breath when the car passed her and kept going.

  Something deeper gnawed at her. It didn’t matter what species he was. Seth turned her on, and she appealed to him, too. She wanted to explore that, and reminding herself who he was didn’t make her any l
ess anxious to see him.

  She stared at the driver as the car passed her, certain she looked out of place and that was why the guy in his business suit, possibly heading back to work after coming home to eat the same food he ate every day for lunch, stared back at her. Suddenly she couldn’t wait to be inside Seth’s home. Hurrying across his yard, she came to a halt at his front door and knocked.

  Jenna heard him approach from the other side of the door, took deep, long breaths as his scent grew stronger. But then almost choked on the air in her lungs when Seth opened the door and stared at her, with no shirt on, barefoot, and wearing faded jeans that were unbuttoned at the waist.

  “Crap. Jenna, what’s wrong?” Seth looked past her toward the street and opened the door farther. “Come in. You look like you’ve been running for miles. Are you okay?”

  Her mouth went so dry she couldn’t answer him. He thought she ran here because she was in trouble. Seth believed she ran to him for protection. Suddenly her heart hurt. He viewed her as some kind of fucking damsel in distress, unable to take care of herself and racing to him so he would save her.

  “Do you want some coffee? Sit down. Tell me what happened.” Seth closed the door behind her and already headed to his kitchen. “Do you not carry a cell phone? I guess I can give you my number,” he called out from the other room.

  She didn’t sit but followed him, cautiously, unwilling to let the view of his backside disappear from her sight. It was probably a damn good thing he was human; otherwise he’d trip over himself from the incredibly strong smell of her lust.

  Again she battled with how to answer him. Already he thought she ran here for help instead of to help. If she mentioned Tray Long, Seth wouldn’t see how she could help. Jenna needed to show him how strong of a female she was first, then Seth would be a lot more receptive to them running together.

  When her parents were still alive, Jenna remembered her mother swearing that in the end, the best way through a situation was honesty. Her mother had been an honorable female, killed in a challenge for another male a year after her sire died in a fire. She’d been fifteen at the time and left with her brother, who’d immediately found work at the age of eighteen, and kept their small den together. Jenna never cowered from any situation, knowing her mother had been the same. She wouldn’t take the easy way out now.

  “There’s no trouble,” she announced, standing in the doorway and watching Seth go through the motions of making coffee. He smelled good, better than she remembered him smelling. And with his tousled hair, she guessed she’d awakened him when she’d knocked. “I came by to see you.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Seth’s insides went from being racked with nerves to something stronger, darker, and more dangerous lunging forward. He almost spilled the water he was pouring into the coffeemaker when Jenna spoke. Her soft, alluring tone, telling him she simply showed up at his door to see him, stirred emotions inside him that would be better off left alone.

  “Don’t worry me like that,” he snapped, more irritated with himself for reacting to her words than he was with her.

  “Not all females are incapable of taking care of themselves.” She leaned against his doorway, her head slightly tilted and that long, dark hair of hers streaming down her back.

  “I’m sure you’re very capable of taking care of yourself. But already you’re showing me signs that you’ll step into a situation that could possibly be more dangerous than you’re aware.”

  The way her blue eyes suddenly glowed like sapphires told him she didn’t miss his meaning. “There are certain types of danger that are more exciting than others.”

  “Very true.” He liked her natural look, that she didn’t wear makeup. Her cheeks glowed with energy and life. Her thick, long hair wasn’t unkempt, but at the same time the slightly tousled look made his fingers itch to mess it up more. “You must not have much excitement in your life.”

  Her gaze darkened, and he wondered at the emotions he’d triggered with his comment. Seth didn’t get the reputation he had of being a damn good bounty hunter by not knowing how to read people. He was very good at it. And Jenna was a wound-tight ball of emotions, each one parading across her pretty face as she experienced it.

  “My life is fine. That doesn’t mean I won’t seek something out if it appeals to me.” She shifted her gaze from his to her surroundings. “And it’s worth exploring when it’s mutual,” she added. Her gaze shot back to his just as he was taking in the narrow cut of her blue jeans.

  “Are you always this open with men?” he asked, intrigued with her fresh attitude about him, about them. It sure as hell beat playing the games so many women wanted him to play just to get laid.

  “Not many males appeal to me.” She used an odd choice of words; he’d noticed that about her the other night. “I’m very good at telling if someone is good or bad. The truly bad don’t deserve to love.”

  It wouldn’t surprise him a bit if Jeremy insisted Jenna stayed home most of the time, which led Seth to believe possibly her brother didn’t know where she was right now. In fact, Seth would bet good money on it.

  Her cell phone rang, and she jumped, her expression turning frustrated. Seth turned to focus on the coffee and to hide the smile that threatened his lips. Jenna wasn’t as confident and cocky as she wanted him to believe. He liked her open nature but guessed she experimented with it. That appealed to him even more. She didn’t treat all men like this, which meant she wasn’t a slut. At the same time she was probably bored and craved excitement, which meant he needed to be very careful.

  “What?” she said when she answered her phone, lowering her voice.

  Seth glanced over his shoulder, having pulled down two mugs.

  Jenna dragged her hand through her hair, pulling it from her face as she stared at the floor. “I can go wherever I want and do what I want,” she whispered, her voice taking a deadly tone he hadn’t heard out of her yet. “And you know damn good and well I can take care of myself.”

  Seth fought not to show any emotion when he clearly heard her brother yell into the phone. Every muscle in Seth’s body tightened, but if he reacted, the conversation would end. As much as it was a private family matter, he’d been pulled into this, and it was always to his advantage to know as much as possible about those who interacted around him.

  “These aren’t normal conditions,” Jeremy yelled through the phone. “That insane rogue wants your cute ass, little sister, and he can’t have it.”

  “Glad to know we still agree on something,” she growled, looking cute as hell when she wrinkled her nose. “Now maybe one of these days you’ll smell the truth and realize I’m grown and no one attacks me I don’t want to attack.”

  “Get your ass back here!” he roared.

  “Soon.” Jenna softened her tone, exhaling and then speaking, sounding breathy. “Jeremy, don’t worry. I’m safe.”

  “You went to see him again, didn’t you? I told you to stay away and you’re there right now.”

  Seth met her gaze, staring into her volatile expression. There was a side to Jenna he was just now seeing. One being she had a temper. Beyond being wild, willful, and damn near the sexiest woman he’d laid eyes on ever, it was more than her craving for an adventure that made her appear a bit on the wild side. Looking at her, hearing her brother yell through the phone, Seth saw deep into those bright blue eyes and saw a woman fighting so hard to be free from her brother’s overbearing protectiveness that she was blinding herself to the real danger closing in on her.

  “I’m right where I want to be,” she whispered, never taking her gaze from Seth’s as she pulled the phone from her ear.

  “Leave the human alone,” Jeremy yelled. Jenna hung up the phone.

  Seth raised one eyebrow. “Human?” he questioned.

  “He’s pissed,” she said, shrugging.

  “Huh.” Seth turned to the coffee, hating that he wanted her here. She was sexy, vibrant, and, whether she liked it or not, needed someone watching o
ver her. Jeremy saw that and so did Seth. What worried Seth was losing a damn good contact, and friend, if he started seeing Jenna.

  “You let me in when I knocked on your door,” she said behind his back. Jenna moved closer. His backside tightened, every muscle and tendon, every bone in his body acutely aware of how close she stood to him. “You didn’t turn me away,” she continued, whispering. “You didn’t need to hear to know my brother wouldn’t want me here. You saw it in his eyes last night. But you let me in. Don’t turn righteous on me now. Don’t pretend you let me in to protect me. I tracked you when you chased Tray Long.”

  Seth spun around and she straightened, strands of hair brushing against her cheek and streaming past her shoulders. The shirt she wore hugged large breasts, breasts he remembered pressed against his body when he’d kissed her the night before.

  “Do you always say what you’re thinking?” he asked.

  “Do you ever see something you want and take it?”

  “Most definitely,” he growled, and lunged without thinking about it.

  Jenna drew aggression out of him. She provoked him and he didn’t know the real reason why. Seth grabbed her, lifting her off the ground, then placed her on his counter. She didn’t fight him but opened her legs, wrapping her thighs around him when he moved in within inches of her face.

  Every bit of her appealed to him. He dragged his fingers through her hair, nipping at her lower lip. Jenna opened for him, letting out a slight cry. An unbearable urge to possess her, to take everything she offered and make it his—his to protect and possess. It was such an overwhelming sensation it damn near made him light-headed. An aggressiveness rolled through him, plummeting deep inside him. Seth didn’t want to hold back and something inside roared that Jenna wanted everything he needed to give her.