by E A Price
Raf arched an eyebrow. “He was miniscule, wasn’t he?”
“I forget that most humans don’t like it when we growl.” She made a clawing motion with her hand for emphasis.
“Didn’t bother me.”
“No, it didn’t, did it?” she mused, looking him up and down. It was obvious that he wasn’t overly familiar with shifters, yet she turned into a total psycho bitch and her human detective didn’t even bat one of his long, black eyelashes. Ugh, her kitty was almost drooling over the pretty, pretty man.
“So, you know why I called you out here. Did something happen to get you in that grave, or did you mistake it for a swimming pool or something?”
Was it wrong how much she was enjoying the playful lilt of their conversation while standing over the grave of a now armless corpse? Well, if it was wrong, she didn’t want to be right. “Actually something pushed me in.”
Raf sucked in a breath, and his handsome face turned solemn. “Shit, we looked around, but we couldn’t find anyone. We thought whoever did this was long gone. Fuck, Isis, you could have been seriously hurt.”
Isis had to stop herself from grinning as her tiger swished her tail. Ooh, angry Raf was hot, too. “Whoever it was, they were strong. If they wanted to hurt me, they could have. Instead, they just pushed me into a hole – that kind of fall wouldn’t hurt the weakest of shifters.”
“You think they knew you were a shifter? So what? Another shifter?”
“No.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“Knocked me on my ass, didn’t it?” She wriggled her peachy, round rear for emphasis, and her tiger mewled as Raf actually took a long, hard look at it. Be they shifter or human, no one could resist her derrière. “Shifters aren’t that fast.” She took a long sniff at the air and tried not to gag at the dead body. “I’m not getting any scents other than the dead bodies. So, if I had to guess, it was a vampire.”
“V… vampire?” gulped Collins, who had chosen that moment to return leading a team of crime scene technicians who immediately started setting up lights.
Isis had a brief panic about her appearance. After being drenched earlier, she’d reapplied her makeup before she arrived at the cemetery, applying waterproof mascara and a much more hardy lipstick while pulling her hair back into a braid. She just hoped it stood up to the blinding lights. Three… two… one… boom.
An infectious smile burst over Raf’s face on seeing her – truly seeing her – for the first time. And yeah, well, her pride certainly didn’t mind that. Okay, so her pride was pretty overinflated like a helium balloon before she met him, but it just seemed important that he, above any other man, find her attractive. Tons of other men did, and told her so on a regular basis, but she could care less what any of those half-wits thought.
“Uh, vampire?” repeated Collins. “Do we need to get out of here?”
Isis knit her brows together. “Why?”
“In case the vampire’s hanging around,” he said slowly as if she were a two-year-old. “In case he’s hungry.”
“If a vampire was hanging around,” she said in a matching patronizing voice, “and they decided they wanted you for their late night snack, you’d be dead, on the ground with a chunk of your neck and all your blood missing.”
Collins paled, and Raf shot her a look of disapproval that, fuck it, actually made her feel bad and had Ms. Kitty hanging her head in shame. Damnit, why did she have to care how he felt? He was just a random human, just a totally ordinary, random human. Mate. Shut up!
“Look, honey,” said Isis in her sweetest tone, which she’d been told was akin to a serial killer but she couldn’t help it at that moment. “In spite of TV and movies, the majority of vampires don’t just go around killing people at random. They’re just like humans. To simplify it, some are bad, but most aren’t. I don’t know why one was hanging around here, but if they wanted to hurt us, they could have, but clearly they didn’t.” Isis then gave the officer the full effect of her fluttering eyelashes, almost blowing him away in the process, and he softened under her charms. Sucker.
Collins seemed mollified, and a little in love with her. Raf, with a slight grimace that her tiger happily believed was down to jealousy, sent the young officer away to help the technicians. “Happy?” she asked him.
Raf gave her a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”
“See, I’m not a total bitch. I can be nice when I try.”
“I never expected anything less.”
Well, he’d be the first. “Okay then, Raf, what’s your next step?”
“I doubt whoever did this – whether they are the vampire you suspect was here or not – is coming back. So, for now, I’m going to let the techs do their work while I take the official statement of the groundskeeper.”
Isis nodded. “What can I do?”
He hesitated slightly before replying. “Forget the fact that you believe a vampire pushed you into that grave. Do you think a supernatural creature could have stolen our dead guy’s body parts?”
“I’m positive it was a vampire, but unless they’re working for some nefarious schemer…”
Raf’s lips quirked in amusement. “Nefarious schemer?”
“Nefarious schemer, yes, then I can’t see a vampire stealing spare parts. Corpses are no good to them. However, corpses could possibly be used for spells and incantations. So a witch or a warlock isn’t out of the realm of possibility.”
He rubbed the back of his head and Isis bit back a smile. He did that when he was nervous. “What do you think the odds are of the SEA actually allowing me to keep this case?”
Isis narrowed her eyes at the implication of his words. Ms. Kitty was not going to like what she was about to say. “What do you think the odds are that the LLPD won’t just throw the case at us because they can’t be bothered to investigate it?”
Raf’s lips tightened in annoyance. “Now hang on…”
“No, you hang on!” Not her best come back, but she was dealing with a howling tiger that kept sending her the word mate. “You’re implying that we steal your cases. The truth is, the moment the word shifter pops up in an investigation, you guys can’t send us the case fast enough. As for this case, no one’s been hurt, and no one’s been murdered. So far all that’s happened is that the corpse of a shifter has been defiled – I can’t see your superiors giving a flying fuck about that. And as for spending money and wasting resources on this? Forget it, the LLPD will decide that because it’s weird, it’ll just be a freaky shifter thing, and they’ll slide it on over to us.”
He folded his arms and jutted his chin, and despite her ire she wanted to bite and lick every inch of him. Yes, yes, his angry side was delightfully sexy. “We’ll see. I’ll take this to my superior.”
“As will I,” she breathed, half way between fury and flirting. Hey, it was furious flirting. If there weren’t about ten people all gawking at them, listening in on their conversation, she might have already dragged him to the ground and shown him how furious her lust can be. Because, hell almighty, the shuddering warmth ripping though her body wasn’t just because of her oncoming heat.
“It was nice meeting you,” he said in a hard yet sincere voice.
“And you,” she growled in return before stalking away.
Isis was actually quite pleased with how well that went. Considering her other dealings with LLPD officers, that had ended remarkably well. But then Detective Rafael Silva wasn’t just another LLPD officer. No, he was her mate.
Ms. Kitty roared in delight while Isis cringed. No, there was to be no mating of any kind, so her damn cat could get that idea out of her thick head straight away. Okay, yes, he appealed to her more than any other male he had ever met. And yes, he just happened to be the sexiest creature ever to walk the earth – it wasn’t like she’d seen the whole earth, but she had a good feeling that it was true. Plus, he actually seemed like a decent guy, unlike the other LLPD dopes. But that was no reason to lose her head and do something drastic
like – cue, ominous music – allow him into her life as something more than a quick fuck or even a lengthy fuck.
She also had to remember the fact that he was a human. She didn’t exactly have a problem with humans per se. Although in her experience they tended to either be scared of her or hate her for what she was. But, he wouldn’t have a shifter’s strength, or speed, or their healing ability. Humans were breakable – too breakable. She’d never actually been with a human. Vampire - yes, shifters of numerous variety – yes, but human? No, just no. Having met Detective Rafael Silva, she was starting to wonder why. And of course, she couldn’t forget the fragile male ego. Would a human even want to be with a woman who could bench press double the amount he could? In her experience men didn’t like that sort of thing. However, how would she know what a human wanted or what he was like in bed until she took one for a spin? One who happened to be a sexy detective who purrs at her to call him Raf… Yes, she could see herself howling that name as he filled her over and over. That is, if she got the chance to see him again.
Her tiger mewled pitifully at the thought of never seeing the gorgeous detective again, and Isis couldn’t help but soothe her love-struck beast. She said she wasn’t interested in mating him, she didn’t say she wasn’t interested in getting to know him. Mating was a big no-no. But casual sex… that was a whole other kettle of fish. She wasn’t into the whole biting and making a guy hers forever, but that didn’t preclude a little nibbling.
If she played her cards right, the two of them could work very closely together on this case. Just because she didn’t want to keep him, it was no reason why she couldn’t enjoy his company. No reason at all.
Chapter Four
“Damn, Raf, you look like shit.”
“Thanks, Barnes,” snapped Raf. Barnes looked like the cat who ate the fucking canary. He really didn’t want to visualize what he might have been eating last night. Dickwad.
It had not been a good night for Raf. Or rather, it had been a good night – too good – but it had been a sleepless night. He had been plagued by visions of a fiery-haired tiger shifter doing unspeakably saucy things to his body all night. He’d never known himself to get so hard so many times in one night. But, by the gods, he’d never met a woman who turned him on half as much as Isis Martin. Alternately flirty, scary, angry and pouty – she left him breathless and had his arousal hard enough to pound freaking nails. It had to be her; she was doing something to him – did tigers give off pheromones? Because the way he was feeling, the inability to think straight in her presence was not normal.
Raf slumped into his chair and closed his eyes. Lo and behold a vision of the redheaded temptress came to mind. Her eyes sparkled with the yellow of her animal while her wicked, red lips curled upwards. He gripped the edge of his desk as the memory of her curves under his touch made him shudder. What he wouldn’t give to have that sinful mouth wrapped around his…
“Raf, you okay?” asked a cool voice. “You’re sweating.”
He opened his eyes to peer at Detective Ethan Miller. The interest in the other detective’s face told him that he was kind of hoping it might be a coronary or something else equally unpleasant.
“I’m fine. Long night.”
Ethan nodded. “You know, not everyone’s cut out for this job. The stress can cause all sorts of problems with marriages…”
“I’m not married.”
“And health problems…”
“I’m in perfect health.”
Ethan gave him a patronizing look that pretended to be concerned. “I’m just saying that maybe you should take it easy. It’s so easy to burn out.”
Raf scowled. “Jeez, the way you’re talking, you think I’ll be dead by Friday.”
“Well, at least if you do die, the department will pay for your funeral. At least that won’t be a burden on your family.”
“Yes, I imagine that’s a load off his mind,” purred an achingly familiar voice.
Awareness flooded Raf’s body seconds before the owner of the silken voice came into view. She tossed her flaming red hair over her shoulder as her eyes scanned up and down Ethan’s slight frame. Her upper lip curled into a sneer as she placed her hands on her shapely hips. Raf clamped his mouth shut to stop himself from drooling. She looked fantastic the night before when wet and cold. But, now, she looked like she’d just stepped off the elevator from Mount Olympus. She was tall and slim, yet she rocked an hourglass figure and her skin was starkly pale against the brightness of her lips and hair. Her eyes though, the ever changing mixture of yellow and green were at turns dazzling and intense. She was dressed simply in a pair of black pants, kitten heel boots and a red shirt. But damn, did she shine brighter than a thousand suns compared to the shlubby guys in his precinct.
He was too caught up in her to notice that everything was quiet – startlingly quiet. Everyone – all the cops, all the witnesses and all the perps alike – had stopped what they were doing to look at this incredible exotic creature. It was like a – well, a tiger – had wandered into a meter maids’ convention.
Isis gazed around the room, and there was a collective intake of breath as every guy in the room sucked in their guts. Her lips quivered as she held back a smirk. “Raf,” she cooed as she held out a hand for him. “Pleasant night?”
He stood up and eagerly grasped her hand, surprised at both the strength of her grip and the warmth of her skin. Not to mention the thrill he got out of touching her. Ugh, he was starting to sound like a pervert. There was a thin line between jerking off thinking of a hot woman, and hanging around her trying to get a sniff of her hair or a touch of her skin. Or god forbid, a pair of her panties. He’d never actually been dirty enough to masturbate with a woman’s panties, but if any woman could push him over the edge…
He cleared his throat. “Isis, nice to see you again. It was great, if you enjoy spending your night arguing with eighty-two-year-old mole shifters.”
Her eyes twinkled. “That seems like an odd hobby to have, but then I used to date someone who collected stamps, so what do I know?”
He grinned, ignoring the interested looks from everyone around him. However, he didn’t like all the attention she was garnering. He could understand it, but he didn’t like the sleazy eyes of his colleagues dirtying up his tigress. Hey, he saw her first, and unlike some of the men in that room he could actually be a gentleman… when the occasion called for it. He wasn’t naïve enough to think that a creature like her would be interested in a human, but he could dream while making sure other perverts stayed the crap away from her.
Isis stared at Ethan, pointedly. He gaped at her in return, unsure how to react. After a few moments, she rolled her eyes. “Go away,” she said boldly. Stunned into silence, Ethan actually did. Raf was a little stunned himself – too stunned to even let loose the guffaw at the look on Ethan’s face. The bossiest, most argumentative detective in the precinct had just been stumped by two little words from a woman. Admittedly a woman who could turn into a man-eating tiger, but… he really had no point to make there. She oozed devilish predator on every level, and a part of him wouldn’t mind being her prey. Not one bit.
Isis perched her pert rear end on his desk as he sank down into his chair. “I’d tell you that I’m not usually this rude, but I don’t like to lie so early on in a relationship.”
“Really?”
“Yes, usually I prefer to give it a week or two and then start weaving an intricate web of lies that is un-unravelable.”
“Un-unravelable?”
“Un-unravelable.” She gave him a preening smile before noticing that everyone was still staring at them. “Shouldn’t you be working?” she barked, allowing a throaty growl into her voice. Everyone jumped and with matching red cheeks looked everywhere but at Raf and Isis. Idly, she picked up a letter opener and toyed with it. “So, any further along with the case?”
Raf tapped his watch. “It’s only 9.15.”
“Ummm hmmm, shall I just take the case files and go
now? Or would you like to indulge in some more small talk?” Isis grinned, showcasing an alarming amount of teeth. Yep, he had no trouble believing that she could sink those chompers into a zebra. Damn, why did that turn him on?
He leaned back in his seat, artfully crossing his legs to make sure his erection wasn’t too prominent. “I wouldn’t be too hasty if I were you.”
“Oh?”
Raf tried not to look too smug, but it was really hard. Honestly, if Isis hadn’t showed up at the crime scene he probably wouldn’t have fought so hard to keep the case. Yeah, it always rankled when cases were taken away from him, but he was hardly invested in this one. And stealing dead bodies? While both sick and wrong, it was hardly as pressing as murder or assault cases. However, Isis had stirred something in him. Not a competitive side, more like a yearning to give her a reason to stick around. After all, if he just handed her the case he wouldn’t see her glorious round behind for dust, and a deep clutching in his chest told him that would be bad.
So, yeah, early that morning – after a distinct lack of sleep – he had hit the gym, eaten a truly awful egg white omelet and had arrived early at the precinct to bend the ear of his captain. The captain always came in early on a Tuesday. He put in an appearance and then swanned off for his weekly golf game with his brother-in-law. All Raf had to do was make some noises about the uproar that it would cause if people found out that their loved ones were in danger of being mutilated. Raf hadn’t liked himself for it, but he had pushed the shifter hating angle. It wasn’t hard for the captain to imagine that humans would be pissed to know that the SEA was investigating it and not the LLPD. The captain was prejudiced enough to believe right off the bat that a supernatural creature had done this – he couldn’t fathom what a human would want with dead body parts and there was no way that Raf was going to explain it to him. And the thought of angry complaints that the LLPD weren’t doing anything to protect their deceased loved ones… it was enough for the captain to push back his golf game, by an hour so that he could sort out the jurisdiction issue.