by Terra Wolf
Lydia pushed her empty plate away from her and flung her hands up in the air. “And how long is this cover supposed to last? I get that we have to create an airtight story, but why can’t we just get this whole hospital visit over and done with?”
I gripped the side of the table. I didn’t want to yell at her because she wasn’t used to this type of life. But she was getting upset over something that I could not control.
“Lydia, I know you aren’t used to this. But creating a whole new life for an undercover operation isn’t just something that happens overnight. If we go in there unprepared, both of our lives could be at stake. We have no idea what this hospital or Purest, Inc. is capable of.”
Lydia let out a huff and pushed herself up from the table and walked out of the kitchen. I shut my eyes tightly. Why did she have to be so stubborn? A second ago, everything was fine, and now she was fighting me over this. She knew what she was getting into when the department explained the job to her.
Anger bubbled in my stomach. Maybe we should have found another cop to do this job with me. That way they would at least be used to the job and understand what we had to do. I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed Marco’s number.
“Hey man, what’s going on?”
“You need to talk some sense into your sister.”
“What the hell happened?”
“She’s fighting me and getting frustrated with this whole process.”
I heard her stomp up the stairs up to her bedroom and slam the door shut. Fuck. I guessed I wasn’t being too discreet with this call. I was used to living on my own, and not having someone else in the next room.
“Shit, Marco, I think she heard me talking to you.”
“Dude, you’re fucked. Good luck reasoning with her now.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Look man, she’s a spitfire that hates just sitting around. So right now she probably feels cooped up and frustrated. She’s sweet when she has her way and is active, but sitting around and waiting is just not her thing. Give her stuff to do and to work on.”
“Thanks, Marco.”
“Anytime, man.”
I pushed the end button on my phone and placed it on the table. I let out a small groan as I got up from the table and made my way upstairs to her room.
I reached her door and lightly knocked.
“Go away, Shane.”
“Come on, Lydia, let’s just talk this out.”
“There’s nothing for us to talk about. You felt the need already to call my brother to handle me, so I get where my place is.”
“Lydia, don’t be like that.”
Silence filled the space between us. I leaned my head lightly against the doorframe and let out a long sigh.
“Look, I was a dick for calling Marco. I’m just used to being on my own, not having to explain the reason for everything when it comes to the job, and I’m sorry for that.”
There was nothing but silence on the other side of the doorway. I looked underneath the frame and noticed that her light was still on, so she couldn’t have gone to bed. I knocked on the door again.
“Lydia, did you hear me?” I moved my head up when I heard her footsteps near the door. The knob turned and the door opened.
She was standing there in yoga pants and sweatshirt. She crossed her arms across her chest, and she honestly could not have been more adorable.
“Yes, I heard you. And I’m sorry for being frustrated. I guess I just didn’t realize how intense this whole undercover operation would be. I stupidly thought it would be over in a couple of days.”
I gave her a small smile. “I’m sorry we didn’t prepare you enough for this. Sometimes, these ops can take weeks to accomplish. I’m just trying to give us the best chance of getting in, and to set us up so we can find out what we need to eventually take down the hospital.”
She slowly nodded, and let out a yawn.
Without thinking, I reached up to her face, and pushed a strand of honey colored hair behind her ear. Her soft skin felt warm to my touch. After I moved the hair, I let my hand linger slightly on her cheek. I felt her body freeze under my touch and her brown eyes quickly shifted up to mine. Fuck, I wanted to kiss her. I wanted to make all of her frustrations melt away. But deep down, I knew I couldn’t do that. It would compromise our cover.
“Go get some sleep, and we can work this all out in the morning. I’m here for you, okay?”
She smiled. “I know you are.”
9
Lydia
Shane kept his hand on my cheek and looked down at me intently. I stared up into his deep blue eyes. I was completely captivated by his strong gaze.
The air around us felt thick with energy, and time around us seemed to stop. I forgot how frustrated with our situation I was. My anger seemed to evaporate and all that mattered was the feeling of Shane’s touch on my face.
I bit my lip and slowly let my face lean into Shane’s hand. I closed my eyes and saw the expression in Shane’s face change.
He wasted no time and crushed his lips into mine. I grabbed the bottom of his shirt and quickly pulled it off of him. Shane’s hard muscles were even better than I had imagined. He slowly started to move me back toward the dresser on the opposite wall and lifted my legs up. I wrapped my legs around his and he ran his hands slowly up and down my bare legs up to the yoga pants I had changed into.
Shane moved his hands down my body and slowly teased the hemline of my pants. Every touch of his left a trail of fire over my body and I couldn’t wait for him to be inside me. His strong hands ran up underneath my pants and slowly started to tease me by flicking the elastic on my lace thong. I felt shivers run through my body in anticipation of his touch.
He moved his face down and started to kiss and gently bite my neck. Shane’s fingers moved quickly underneath my thong and lightly grazed his fingers over my slickness.
“You are so wet,” he growled.
The rasp in his voice only made me want him more, and I tightened my legs around his hips. Shane trailed his kisses down my collarbone down to the straps of my tank top and he slowly removed them. Shane moved his mouth down to my bra line as he used his thumb to slowly rub my clit and pushed his fingers inside. A rush of pleasure ran through my body as I rolled my hips onto his hand.
Shane moved his left hand around my back and unclasped my bra and pushed my tank top down to my waist. He cupped my breast and gently started to suck on my nipple. I let out a slight moan and heard him chuckle. He started to move his thumb and his fingers a bit faster inside of me, causing shivers to run through my body. I felt the tingling sensation start to build and knew that he would soon take me over the edge.
He grazed his teeth lightly across my nipple and added a second finger inside me.
“Oh God, Shane,” I said as I felt the tingling sensation explode across my body. I let out a loud moan as I she felt the release of my orgasm.
“Keep coming, Lydia,” he grunted as he pulled my body closer. He pulled his hands from me and unbuckled his pants and pulled down the zipper. He quickly pulled me off the dresser and turned me around so that I was facing the mirror that was attached to the dresser. I heard his pants drop to the floor and let out a loud moan when I felt his hard length push into me. I grabbed the dresser for support as he used my tank top, that was still around my waist, to pull my body toward his.
Shane pumped his hips into mine and with each thrust, I felt a pressure begin to grow. He tangled his fingers into my hair and gently pulled my head back, which pushed me toward my breaking point. With another hard thrust, Shane threw me over the edge and I let out loud moans as I felt my whole body release and melt into his.
Shane flipped me around again, and crushed his lips into my own. Shane then picked me up and wrapped my legs around his hips as he took me over to the bed. I threw my hands up and grabbed onto the headboard for leverage and tightened my legs around his waist. Shane grabbed my hips and started to pump inside me again. I felt the be
d frame rattle, but I didn’t care. All I wanted was Shane deeper inside me.
I unwrapped my legs from around his waist and used them to push his hips up from the bed harder into my own. Shane let out a low growl and grabbed my body and flipped me around so that I was on my knees. I continued to hold the top of the headboard as I arched my back, thrusting my hips up to meet his. He pushed inside me and wrapped his right hand around my waist.
Shane used his fingers to rub my clit as he grabbed onto my round hips, guiding himself inside me. I felt the pressure start to mount again with his touch. His fingers started to move faster with his hips and I knew that I would not be able to last much longer. I turned my head back toward him.
“I want you to come with me,” I said. He let out a growl as he nodded and pushed his hips harder into me. I felt my whole body start to shake and knew that I could not hold the pressure in any longer. I felt him move faster behind me and let myself fall over the edge. Loud moans escaped my lips and I felt myself tighten around him. He let out a loud growl and I felt him release. My orgasm grew stronger as I felt him release along with me.
Once we were finished, we collapsed next to each other. I turned to face Shane and I felt my bear bristle underneath the surface. In that moment, I felt a strong connection to Shane that I couldn’t understand, but I knew it was something that I never wanted to let go.
10
Shane
I squeezed my eyes shut as the sunlight shone into the room from the window. I slowly opened them and felt Lydia’s warm body snuggled up next to me. A slow smile spread across my face. God, she was fucking beautiful.
Last night had changed everything. After fighting my bear for the last few weeks, I had finally given in. Lydia was mine and nothing would change that now. I let out a sigh and felt Lydia stir slightly next to me.
I closed my eyes and breathed in Lydia’s scent. I felt my bear rumble inside my chest. There was something about her that completely captivated me and calmed my nerves. I was just about to fall back asleep when my phone jolted me awake.
“McAbbot.”
“Shane, it’s Marco.”
Fuck. There could be only two reasons why Marco would be calling me while we were undercover. Either everything had fallen apart, or they were ready for us to go into the hospital. I moved Lydia to the side and pulled my arm out from under her head.
“Hang on a sec,” I whispered into the phone.
I slowly moved out of the bed and tiptoed across the room to the bedroom door. I looked back at Lydia as I cracked the door open. She looked so innocent, and I hated that I was bringing her into all of this. I closed the door and walked down toward the living room.
“What’s going on, Marco? I know it can’t be good if you’re calling.”
“Another body of a shifter has been found dumped in an alley.”
I growled.
“Are we sure it was the hospital that dumped it?”
“We can’t prove it legally, but the guys and I all agree that the body came from the hospital. It seemed that they tried to burn it, so that he would be unidentifiable. The coroner is looking into his dental records now. However, after examining him on site, the corner was able to spot several puncture wounds on his skin, and several areas where incisions were made on his body.”
I gritted my teeth. The hospital seemed to have moved forward in their experiments. Instead of the strange side effects that Sarge in Seattle experienced, they seemed to now be doing a lot more than just putting shifters under.
“Have you found anything you can use?”
Marco let out a long sigh. “No. We’ve had a surveillance team on them since you and Lydia went undercover. They seem to be running like a completely normal hospital. However, there have been some more recent complaints to authorities about their treatment of patients.”
“What kind of complaints?”
“Well, it seems that family members are staying in the hospital longer than people have originally thought.”
“How is that a complaint?”
“Well, for standard procedures, the hospital seems to be having a lot of patients with extended recovery times. The hospital has claimed that it was complications with surgery, and some of these families are not buying it anymore.”
Maybe this body was an extended recovery gone wrong. I knew that we had to get in there to get to the bottom of all of this. We had spent so much time building up our cover that we had to be solid by now.
“We need to get in there, then. Did you guys figure out how to pull that off yet?”
Marco let out an awkward laugh.
“Spill it,” I said.
“Well, we have to make it realistic. You can’t just fake an illness to get in. So we’re going to have to poison you.”
I felt the blood rush from my face. Poison me? How the fuck were they going to do that?
“How do you fucking geniuses plan on doing that without killing me?”
“Don’t worry, man. We got that all covered. This stuff should just make you really sick. Sick enough for them to warrant you being admitted to figure out what’s going on.”
Fucking fabulous. How the hell had I gotten signed up to do this again? I dropped my head into my free hand. I felt a hand lightly brush my shoulder and jolted my head up. Lydia stood behind me and smiled.
“It’ll be all right,” Lydia said. A smile slowly spread across my lips.
“Okay,” I said into the phone. “When do you want us to do this?”
“We sent a package over to you last night. It should be dropped off at your doorstep now. Follow the instructions in the box and once you start to feel sick, head to the hospital. We will be tracking you the whole time that we are able. We’ll have a surveillance team set up outside, and if things go wrong on the inside, Lydia will be able to reach us.”
I looked up toward Lydia’s face. After last night, I hated that I was putting her in harm’s way like this. My bear bristled underneath the surface with the need to protect her. My expression darkened and Lydia reached out toward my face. Her soft hand lightly brushed against my cheek. The simple comfort of feeling her skin on mine sent a sense of calm throughout my body. She slowly smiled at me. I stood up and walked toward the front door and opened it. There, on the ground, was a small white box. My bear was on high alert with the need to protect Lydia. My eyes shifted back and forth, looking for anything out of the ordinary to suggest that our cover had been blown. My bear only settled when I saw that the coast was clear.
I bent down and picked up the box. “All right, Marco. Let’s get these fucking bastards.” I ended the call and walked back inside. I placed the box on the table near the door and Lydia rushed into my arms. I pulled her body close.
“We can do this, Lydia.”
I felt Lydia’s head nod against his chest. My bear stirred restlessly underneath my skin. Fuck, I hoped I was right.
11
Lydia
I sat down on the couch in the living room and placed my head in my hands. The last twenty-four hours with Shane had changed everything between us. Before, I had just seen him as the boss. A very hot and sexy boss, but a boss for this undercover operation nonetheless.
After last night, the pull toward him that I had been fighting this whole time seemed to have intensified, and my nerves were starting to get the best of me.
Shane sat next to me on the couch and placed his arm around my shoulder, pulling my body close to his. I leaned into him and let out a sigh. I loved how protected he made me feel. I chuckled to myself. It was a strange to have the feeling of being protected and enjoying it. Normally with Marco and my dad it was just a nuisance.
Shane placed his hand underneath my chin and pulled my face up to meet his. He lightly pressed his lips to mine. I felt a spark run through my body and tightened my arms around him. Shane broke the kiss and stared down at my face. I was completely captivated by his bright blue eyes.
“Before we do all this, I want you to know how much I car
e about you,” Shane said.
I felt a rush of butterflies soar through my stomach. Deep down, I knew that Shane cared about me, but to hear him say it aloud made my heart beat wildly in my chest.
“I care about you a lot too.”
Shane smiled brightly. “After we finish what we’re set to do, we will figure this all out, I promise.” Shane pulled me close to his body. I felt his muscles tense around me. He broke the hug and looked down at me with a serious expression on his face.
“Until then, I have to keep you safe, Lydia. Promise me that the second you feel that you’re in danger, no matter what’s happening to me, that you get out of there and go directly to your brother.”
The butterflies in my stomach turned into a knot of nerves. “I won’t just leave you in there, Shane. Not when they’re killing shifters now.”
A low growl came from Shane’s chest. I watched as he tightened his jaw, restraining himself. The knot of nerves in my stomach turned into anger.
“Shane, I can take care of myself if something happens. I’m not some fragile thing that you need to take care of.”
The tension in Shane’s face dissipated. “I know you’re strong, Lydia, but I have to protect you.”
Lydia smiled. “I’m not the one that they’ll be testing on. So I have to protect you.”
Shane smiled. “You have a point. But promise me that you will get out of there if you feel that you’re in danger.”
I stared up into Shane’s eyes. In that moment, I knew that I would never be able to leave him in there alone. My heart belonged to him now, and if something happened to him in that hospital, I would never be the same.
“I promise I will go get help,” I said. “But you have to realize that I’m not going to let them hurt you. I will call for backup way before that even happens.”
“I know you will.” Shane leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. A jolt ran through my body and my hands rushed up to his back and tangled in his hair.