by Crissy Smith
Clint gave him his best innocent face.
“I’m not a moron,” Perry told him. “You know Deputy Gibson is involved. Right now he has your girlfriend with him. If anything happens to me she will disappear.”
Clint jerked against the hands that still held them.
“But that is nothing compared to what will happen to your partner. As we speak Carter’s boys are driving Kurt to Dan Carter. If everything goes as planned, I will call them back. If not…” Perry shrugged. “He will be delivered to Carter and his men.”
“And where exactly is that?”
“Not something you need to worry about.”
Clint wasn’t sure where he should go from here. If he bit Perry and the man wasn’t turned into a shifter, they would all be killed. If he killed Perry, then that put Sara and Kurt in danger.
“So what’s it gonna be?” Perry asked.
He had to take the chance. Had to trust Kurt and the Alphas to stick with the plan and have everything handled. He hated to have to depend on them, but with Sara in danger, he had no choice.
Because no matter what Perry Costa wanted, Clint was not able to turn him into a shifter.
Clint nodded.
Perry motioned to the other two men and one of them came up in front of him with a knife and sawed the rope off him.
Then his ankles were unbound.
Clint stretched to his full height and was pleased when Perry took a step back. He knew his bulk was intimating and he planned on using everything in his arsenal.
“I’ll need to shift,” Clint told him.
Perry backed up against the wall once again. Clint angled his body so he could keep all three men in his eye line. Shifting would put him in a dangerous position while transforming, but he had to trust his instincts. And he firmly believed they wouldn’t attack him as he shifted.
Perry Costa wanted something from him.
Clint started to remove his clothes, not tearing his gaze from the others. The men with him didn’t even have the decency to look away. They just stared back.
Clint shook his head, crouched and started the transformation.
Within moments, he was shaking off the change and faced the three men as a large wolf. In his wolf form all of his senses were sharper and the smell of fear filled the room.
The two men with Perry were terrified. Perry himself was visibly shaking with fear.
That was good. He could play with that.
Clint took his time to stretch, knowing he was adding to the men’s terror. He opened his mouth wide making sure they got a good look at his sharp teeth.
When he was ready, he started to stalk toward Perry.
The man didn’t look so sure now that he was faced with the animal. Perry held up a hand and spoke slowly.
“Just one bite. If you attack me, my men will shoot you and Kurt and Sara will also suffer.”
If Clint could smile in this form he would have. He kept heading toward his prey.
He stopped right in front of Perry. He heard the cock of the gun behind him and turned his head. The other two men had stepped close to one another and one of them held a gun on him.
Clint wasn’t worried. Not only was he faster in this form, but the man’s hand was shaking so bad Clint didn’t think he could hit anything he was aiming for.
He turned his attention back to Perry and eyed him.
He didn’t plan on killing the man. That wasn’t his job. Oh, he would if it came down to it, but really, Perry and his men needed to be taken and arrested.
Clint lunged for Perry’s arm and bit down hard.
Perry screamed. The sound echoed in the small room.
* * * *
Sara walked into the kitchen and stopped short when she spotted Cecil in Ryan’s arms. The two men were locked together in a passionate kiss, so she tried to back out quietly. Cecil moaned and wrapped his arms around the older man’s shoulders while grinding against him.
Holy shit!
She must have made a sound because Ryan pulled his mouth away from Cecil’s while keeping hold of him.
Ryan glanced over at her and grinned.
Sara knew her mouth was hanging open, but that scene had been unexpected. She knew Cecil had casually dated a few guys he’d met at school, but with Cecil being so shy it made it hard for him to get close to anyone.
Ryan started to chuckle while Cecil buried his head against his chest.
Sara rocked back on her heels and grinned. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt anything.”
Cecil pulled away from Ryan, blushing, and offered a small smile of his own.
Sara was very happy for her friend. She’d suspected for a while that Ryan had a crush on Cecil and was thrilled he was finally making his move. It had certainly taken him long enough.
Ryan was one of the first shifters that had started to come into her coffee shop on a regular basis. Every time he was there, he tried to engage Cecil in conversation.
She’d wanted to encourage Cecil but had decided to let them work out their feelings by themselves. Now she was glad she had.
“Coffee?” Cecil asked, hurrying around the counter.
He was obviously embarrassed and she winked at Ryan before strolling to the counter. She wouldn’t tease Cecil. This time anyway.
“That would be great,” she said instead as she sat on one of the stools.
“Ryan?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Cecil flushed and turned away to mess with the espresso machine.
He started to grind the beans just as Ryan’s cell phone rang. Ryan stepped away and Sara was able to watch Cecil. Her friend might be shy, but he was obviously very pleased with Ryan’s attention. He had a spring in his step as he worked.
Ryan came back to the counter and Sara glanced over at him. The tension on his face was obvious.
“What’s wrong?”
“They are having trouble finding Clint. He’s not at the location we thought he’d be taken to,” Ryan told them.
Sara gripped the counter hard. “What’s that mean?” She was afraid of the answer.
“It’s okay,” Ryan placed his hand on her shoulder. “We have help in locating Clint. And Clint is one of the strongest wolves I have ever known.”
“Yeah, but…” Oh, God! She couldn’t even say the words.
“They know what they’re doing,” Ryan tried to assure her. “This is what they do. They are already heading out to meet their contact. They just wanted to make sure all was well here and that we kept an eye out.”
Sara nodded. “That was Kurt?”
“Yeah.” Ryan nodded. “And trust me—Kurt will find Clint.”
Cecil set a vanilla latte in front of her and Sara wrapped her hands around her mug. Clint would be okay.
He had to be okay.
In such a short time she had really started to care for him. Hell, more than that, she could see herself falling in love quickly.
So he needed to be okay.
She sipped the rich, strong espresso and started to pray.
Chapter Eleven
Clint dropped Perry’s arm and the man fell to his knees, grasping his injured limb, tears pouring down his face.
Yeah, Clint had bitten him hard. He’d made damn sure that it had hurt. The man had asked for a bite and Clint had delivered.
The other two men in the room had gone pale and Clint turned his attention to them. He made a big show of licking his mouth where he knew there would be blood.
Then he launched himself.
He knocked one man down while he clamped his jaw on the gun hand of the other. The weapon clattered to the floor and the three of them went down.
He let go of one man’s hand, turned and bit the other on the leg. He was pushed but held tight to his target.
Perry was yelling, but with the blood that was dripping from his own wound, he was unable to stand and help his men.
“No! No!” the man who had held the gun yelled. “I don’t want to be a monster.” He climbed to hi
s feet and ran for the door. Clint didn’t try to stop him.
Clint let go of his current opponent, who scrambled up and away. He wasn’t chasing the man, but obviously the man thought Clint was since he was shouting at Clint to leave him alone. They raced through a narrow hallway and out of the front door.
Trees surrounded the area. And several people were running his way. He threw his head back and howled.
A sheriff’s truck sped around the house then slid to a stop close to him. Clint ducked low and bared his teeth, not knowing who was in the vehicle.
“Clint!” Kurt called to him.
Sheriff Webb climbed out of the truck and Clint relaxed.
Kurt hurried over to him and dropped to his knees. “You okay?”
Clint moved his head in confirmation and looked toward where the other man had run.
“We’ve already got him,” Kurt confirmed.
Clint rose and headed back toward the house.
“I got it,” Austin said as he and Gage hurried past them.
“Let’s get you to an area to shift,” Kurt suggested and Clint followed him toward some trees.
Once they were out of sight, Clint started to shift back to human form. He panted from exhaustion with everything that had taken place. Kurt stood by his side as he rested his hands on his knees and hung his head.
In just a few minutes, he would have to tell everyone what had happened. He looked up at his best friend. “You okay?”
Kurt laughed. “Yeah, man, I’m fine.”
Clint shook his head. “They said they had you and Sara.”
“Nope.” Kurt grinned. “Ryan and Cecil are with Sara. I spoke to them not long ago. And as you can see”—he waved his hand up and down his body—“I’m still just as handsome as before.”
Clint snorted and accepted Kurt’s hand to help him rise. Kurt swung the backpack off his shoulder and tossed it to him. Inside he found jeans, a T-shirt, socks and shoes. He quickly dressed.
“How’d you find me?” he questioned once he was dressed and they’d started toward everyone else.
“Colt,” Kurt explained. “Damn, that guy is good. As soon as Sara found your phone in the alley and called me, I called Tony and he got hold of Colt.”
Clint started to search the house for the sheriff. It was now swarming with people.
“Colt hadn’t heard anything about you being taken and started to nose around,” Kurt continued. “When he couldn’t find anything, he cornered that guy Rudy who he had been hanging with.”
Clint nodded. Sara had been worried the man would go after Cecil.
“Colt told him that if he didn’t tell Colt what was going on that he’d tell everyone that Rudy was gay. Said he had proof to back him up.”
“What?”
“Yeah, Colt had seen him with one of the other young men of the Church and had snapped some pictures with his cell phone. He wasn’t going to use them unless Rudy got out of hand, but he couldn’t think of any other way to find out where you were. He really doesn’t want to out the man.”
“Wow!” Clint exclaimed. “Guess I was lucky Colt knew how to play him.”
“Yeah,” Kurt agreed. “Colt says he is not such a bad guy. Or not the worst of the bunch. I guess his parents are deep in the Church and since he’s been told as soon as he was able to talk that homosexuals were evil, he is scared to death that someone would find out. But he’s also young and horny, so it’s a fine line he’s walking.”
“That does suck.”
“Colt’s going to try to help him while he’s undercover. He told Rudy he wanted to know because he didn’t like to be left out of things and didn’t like Perry. He said Rudy seems terrified of Perry and wonders if Perry knows what Rudy’s hiding and using it against him.”
“Damn, this is all…” Clint waved his hand around. “They think shifters are evil, but Perry wanted me to bite him so he could become one of us. These people… I will never understand why they act this way. Does it really matter if a shifter lives in town? Why are those the biggest worries anyone has?”
“Yeah, it doesn’t make sense, but it’s been going on for so long I don’t see it changing any time soon either,” Kurt agreed. “Colt says that’s not even the tip of the iceberg with these folks, though. I guess that’s why he’s staying in longer. He wants to help the people who don’t want to be there. Wants to be able to get them out.”
“Well, I’d like to help if we can,” Clint told him.
“That’s what I said. Colt’s joining the chapter of the Church close by. That’s where Rudy is stationed and Perry was supposed to head it up.”
“So Dan Carter wouldn’t know that Perry was a shifter and Perry could still do his bidding.”
They stopped and watched as Perry and the last man came out in handcuffs.
“He bit me!” the man was crying. ”I’m going to turn all furry.”
Both Kurt and Clint laughed. Perry was glaring at him.
“It’s not going to work, is it?” Perry asked. He had a bandage over his arm that was already starting to bleed through.
“Nope,” Clint said with a grin.
Perry shook his head and his shoulders slumped.
Sheriff Webb came out of the house and strolled over to them.
“You need to pick up Deputy Gibson, too,” Clint informed him.
“Bobby?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, shit.” Sheriff Webb ran his hands roughly over his face.
Austin and Gage joined them.
“Thanks for the assist,” Clint said sincerely.
Gage laughed. “Damn, you could have at least waited for the rescue team. I never get to have any fun anymore.”
Austin slapped Gage on the back, chuckling. “I won’t mention that to Marisa.”
Gage mock growled and swiped his hand over the back of Austin’s head.
Everyone laughed as the stress of the day finally started to leave.
They might not have found Dan Carter, but they still had Colt inside. Perry and his cronies would be charged with kidnapping and assault. And everyone was safe and sound.
All in all, it had been a good day.
“I need to—”
“Go see your woman,” Kurt finished.
“I don’t want to hear this,” Sheriff Webb teased and walked away.
Clint just smiled after the man. He turned to Kurt and punched his best friend in the arm. “Driver! Get the car.”
Kurt flipped him off but led the way back to his truck.
* * * *
Sara was on pins and needles. Ryan had gotten word that Clint had been found and all was okay, but he hadn’t talked to Kurt or Clint.
Sara tried not to think about what Clint might have gone through. She suspected she would have to wait until the next day to see him and, while she understood, she really wanted run her hands over him and make sure he was uninjured.
She sighed and stood. They’d retired to the living room, but she just couldn’t settle. She grabbed the glasses they’d used earlier.
Ryan and Cecil were curled onto the couch together watching a movie, Cecil’s head on Ryan’s chest.
“Need help?” Ryan offered.
“Nah, I just…need to move.”
He nodded back. “I understand.”
She smiled a little as she went into the kitchen. She really liked Ryan and was glad he’d finally made a move on her friend.
She rinsed out the glasses and placed them in the dishwasher. She wiped down the already clean counter, her gaze traveling to the backyard.
So much had changed in the last several weeks. She found herself in a world she couldn’t have imagined. And Clint… She had strong feelings for Clint.
Movement outside the window caught her attention.
Clint walked slowly through the backyard toward the house.
She rushed to the door, hand already reaching to turn the deadbolt, then raced to him. He stopped at the edge of the deck and smiled at her. She paused,
wanting to throw herself at him but didn’t know if he was hurt.
“Hi.”
“Hey, baby,” he greeted back.
“Are you okay?”
He nodded. “I would be better if you came closer.”
She laughed and wrapped her arms around his waist. He sighed at the first touch and his body relaxed.
He embraced her and she tilted her head so when his lips came down they shared a sweet kiss. Just one touch had her blood pumping and she moaned into his mouth.
He gripped the back of her shirt, pressing her closer. They broke away from each other and she stared up at him.
“I didn’t think I would see you tonight,” she told him.
“I couldn’t go home until I checked on you.”
She ran her hands over his chest. “So maybe you can stay? We were supposed to have dinner, but we could change that to breakfast if you want.”
He licked his lips. “I want.”
She rose up to her toes and kissed him again. This time he was the one who moaned.
“Come inside.”
She led him back to the door by his hand. Ryan stood in the kitchen waiting.
“Hey, man. I appreciate you staying with them,” Clint said.
“Oh, I didn’t mind one bit,” Ryan confessed with a huge grin.
“Cecil?”
Ryan nodded.
“Good for you.” Clint slapped Ryan on the back.
“I’m going to take him home. Give you two a little privacy,” Ryan told them and headed back to the living room to collect Cecil.
Clint kept his arm around her shoulders while they saw their friends off. Once the door closed, he turned her to face him.
She was surprised with the emotion that showed plainly on his face and in his eyes.
“I know we haven’t known each other long, but I have to confess I want see where this goes. I want to be with you,” he said.
She cupped his face. “I’ve already started to fall for you. I want to be with you too.”
“I accepted a permanent position here. I’ll be staying.”
“I’m glad.”
“There’s still a danger,” he said seriously. “A chapter of the Church is opening close to here. You could be in danger.”
“Clint—”
“You need to think about that,” he interrupted. “I may always be a target. That means you will be too if we are together.”