by Terry Spear
He figured the best way to get rid of the guy in the kitchen and protect her from the possible threat to her well-being was to lay claim to her—in a pretend way, of course. She and he had butted heads enough in the past when he and Hunter had returned from missions that he wasn’t going down that vine-twisted path. She was under the mistaken impression that he had always talked Hunter into another mission after they had left the Navy. But half the time, Hunter had sought him out to conduct another privately contracted undercover operation.
Finn headed into the bathroom, started the shower, and entered the glassed-in stall. He figured any scenario would work to his advantage as he quickly soaped up, using her vanilla-scented bath soap—wondering just how enticing it would smell on her skin—rinsed off, and grabbed a towel. The two of them had to have heard him taking a shower. Either she would send Joe in to investigate, or they’d both check him out. In any event, they’d find her lover waiting for her—in the bedroom, for better effect. If they didn’t investigate, he’d quickly remedy that.
He walked out of the bathroom towel-drying his hair, naked, water droplets dribbling down his shoulders, his chest, and his thighs, and found a slack-jawed Meara staring at his body. Which made his loins react as if on cue. Hell.
She was as beautiful as ever. Her dark hair curled over her shoulders in a cascade of silk tresses. Black denim fit her hips and legs in a seductive way, and a turquoise satin blouse accentuated her pert breasts. He finally managed to pull his gaze away from her and consider the hulking black-haired man who was aiming a rifle at him. Joe looked at home holding the rifle, as if he’d used one in military operations, and as short as his hair was, he did look like he was in the military. That made Finn question who the guy really was. Although, if Joe had been the assassin, he’d already have made his move.
“Meara,” Finn said in a deeply seductive way, his gaze shifting back to hers as if the armed man didn’t worry him in the least, “I didn’t expect you back from the airport so soon after seeing Hunter and Tessa off. You must have missed me.” He gave an inviting wink, telling her just how much he’d enjoyed being with her.
He slipped the towel around his waist as if it was an afterthought, but he noted that Meara had been taking her fill of his nakedness, her enticing lips still parted in surprise. Even though their kind shifted and it wasn’t that big a deal to be seen naked by others in a pack, he wasn’t of her pack, and he wasn’t shifting. He thought that explained some of her reaction.
Then he turned his attention to Joe. In a dark way that left no doubt he was worried she was already throwing him over for someone else, Finn asked, “Who’s he?”
Chapter 3
“Is this guy a close friend of yours, Meara?” Joe asked, still pointing the rifle at Finn, his brows furrowed with menace.
Despite Joe’s alpha-wolf posturing, Finn swore that the man wasn’t an assassin. But a hint of something else lurked beneath the surface. This guy truly was interested in Meara, Finn suspected.
Although he scoffed at himself. Why wouldn’t Joe be? She was attractive, intelligent, and even a pack leader’s sister. She was an unattached female, and if Joe was looking for a mate, she wouldn’t be a bad prospect for someone who was willing to be tied down. That bothered Finn more than he was willing to allow.
Finally finding her voice, Meara asked Finn, “What are you doing here?”
Her words had a whispered, breathy quality, but they weren’t dismissive. She chewed her bottom lip and appeared worried, maybe figuring the only reason he would be here was that something was wrong. He had considered that she might think he had another mission for Hunter, since she wouldn’t let go of the notion that Finn, not Hunter, arranged them. Under normal circumstances, Finn would never have come on to her like this—even in a pretend way. Not only that, but if Hunter had initially contacted him for another undercover operation, Finn would have known Hunter wasn’t here.
She had to realize the situation was really bad if he was putting on a show of being her lover. But she also had to know he wouldn’t say what the trouble was in front of Joe.
“He’s… Joe Matheson is renting the blue cottage,” she said, answering Finn’s question rather than Joe’s.
“You didn’t mention that last night…” Finn motioned to the disheveled bed. “…but then I must have distracted you.” He cast a purely wicked smile at her.
Her flustered expression quickly changed from startled to worried and finally to the way he always remembered her whenever he dropped by to see Hunter about another mission—annoyed—as she crossed her arms beneath her breasts. His gaze lingered on the silk blouse she wore, and he swore her nipples were ripening into mouthwatering peaks right before his eyes.
She cleared her throat. “We need to talk.”
“Just what I had in mind. As soon as you tell Joe where his cabin is and he settles in there, we’ll have that little talk.” He strode to the other side of the bed and lifted his duffel bag as if he’d already moved in. Which he had, whether she liked it or not. Setting the bag on the bed, he unzipped the zipper and then glanced at the two of them. Meara was still staring at him in disbelief, while Joe’s expression indicated that he’d gotten to the party a little too late.
“The blue cabin is the closest to this one heading north, Joe,” Finn said to get the ball rolling, having already scoped out all of the cabins and memorized their names and locations, according to the listings in Meara’s notebook. All of them were empty, ready for occupancy. And he was past ready for Joe to move along.
Finn pulled out a fresh pair of boxer shorts, khaki shorts, a tank shirt, and a pair of flip-flops.
“Who is he?” Joe asked again, his voice rough with contempt, and yet Finn could have sworn he heard a ribbon of amusement in Joe’s tone, as if his actions were all a show.
That didn’t make sense. Or just maybe, the guy was so damned cocky that he figured Finn wasn’t any competition.
“An old friend of the family’s,” Meara begrudgingly replied. “Come on, Joe.” She sounded resigned, but Finn knew when she returned, she’d be anything but prepared to accept this arrangement.
Finn would deal with that the best he could. While Hunter was away, he felt it his responsibility to protect Hunter’s sister. Mostly because the reason for the attack on their teammate, Allan, had probably been Finn’s fault. Damn it to hell.
Their last mission had almost been a complete abortion. They had all suspected that someone had tampered with their explosive devices before they arrived on the island to rescue the hostages. Someone who had wanted the rescue to fail. Someone who had known their plan. But Finn was at fault for not checking the bag one last time before they hit the beach.
He listened while Meara tried to smooth things over in the hallway with who she probably hoped was a prospective mate. That curdled the remains of Finn’s hastily eaten lunch, a fast-food burger consumed earlier in the day.
“I’ll just show you to your cabin and—” she began as she walked Joe down the hall.
“No need,” Joe said, sounding somewhat aggravated as Meara trailed along behind him.
“I’ll get you the key. But your meal isn’t ready, and well, don’t mind him,” she said, motioning back to the bedroom, her tone and actions dismissive.
Finn smiled and wiped off some droplets of water clinging to his chest. If Joe was here on vacation like he said he was, the guy had to realize that Meara wasn’t going to dismiss Finn as insignificant.
Joe stalked down the hall toward the living area. “Sorry, Meara. I told you I was here on vacation. It looks like your friend has already staked a claim to the territory.” His inference being that she was part of the territory.
She gave an audible snort at that. Finn smiled at her spunk.
Not to be dissuaded, Joe continued, “So I’ll mind my own business and enjoy whatever else the area has to offer in the line of recreation in the meantime.”
Meara sounded peeved when she said, “He’s not staying
. Here’s the key to your cabin. If you need anything else, just let me know. There’s just been some misunderstanding about the sleeping arrangements around here. That’s all. We weren’t together last night. And he’s leaving as soon as I have a word with him.”
Joe didn’t say anything in response, and Finn wondered if the guy was reconsidering making a play for Meara. Finn would have to put a stop to that pronto. The man was too cool, too confident, too… Finn couldn’t put his finger on it exactly. But he didn’t entirely trust Joe.
The back door shut and for a moment silence ensued. Was Meara looking at the door where she’d lost her prey? Or considering the bedroom and what she’d say to Finn as soon as she got angry enough?
Finn had never known Meara to stomp. She’d always moved gracefully, sensually, more like a feline than a canine, even when she was irritated whenever Finn had showed up in Hunter’s life after they’d left the Navy. This time she stomped down the hall toward her bedroom. He skipped getting dressed, climbed onto the bed, her bed, propped her pillows behind his head, and lay there, towel around his waist, legs stretched out, waiting for the explosion.
He didn’t have to wait long. She stormed into the bedroom and saw him on her bed, totally relaxed and still not dressed, which again rendered her speechless. But she quickly overcame her surprise.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
“I came to see Hunter—”
“And you know he’s not here.” She crossed her arms underneath her breasts, which were rising and falling in rapid succession as she took steadying breaths. “If this is more private consulting work, Hunter isn’t here to go on the job. He’s mated now.” She waved at the door. “You can leave now that you know he’s not here. And for your information, he’s not available to go with you on jobs any longer.” Then she paused and narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re not staying here and waiting for him to return while I’m running the resort either, if you had that notion in mind.”
Wondering how Hunter would take it if he knew his sister was deciding what he would and would not do now that he was mated, Finn folded his arms across his bare chest.
Her gaze shifted to his towel. It wasn’t big as bath towels went, and his legs were spread in a relaxed, invitational way. Not that he was inviting her in any way, but he hadn’t crossed his legs at the ankles in a manner that suggested he was closed off to her. He swore that if she kept staring at the towel, it was going to begin to rise to the occasion. And he damn well would want to invite her for a closer engagement like the ones he’d only imagined having with her in their former encounters, which had been brief and heated—and not in a sexual way. Although he had to admit, any kind of interaction with her made him think of her in a sexual way.
“Hunter shouldn’t have left you on your own,” Finn said in a matter-of-fact tone.
He swore she stiffened even more regally at the comment. He loved it. Loved the way she was even more beautiful when her temper flared. Her eyes sparkled with heat, and her lips—even turned down—made him want to devour them with his own.
“I happen to be perfectly capable of taking care of myself, thank you very much. You still haven’t explained why you’re here.” Her lips parted a little as if she’d come to a surprise conclusion. “You’re not here at Hunter’s request, are you? He didn’t put you up to this, did he? Thinking you could baby-sit me while he was away? Afraid our pack sub-leaders couldn’t keep me under their thumbs?”
The notion of his thumbs caressing her nipples instantly invaded Finn’s thoughts.
“Baby-sitting you, Meara?” He gave a bitter laugh. “Guarding that sweet body of yours is more like it.” And he was definitely up to the task. He wouldn’t want anyone else to have that job.
Her eyes widened fractionally. She had to know how hot she was.
Eyes quickly narrowing, she blew out her breath. “Get out of here. Hunter had no right…”
Time to set the story straight.
Finn slid from the bed and stalked toward her. She stood her ground.
He loved the challenge in her darkened eyes, the way she wouldn’t back down, no matter how determined he was to take charge of this situation and of her. “Hunter doesn’t know what this is about. By the time I reached California and discovered he had moved the pack here, it was already too late. Knowing he’d sometimes come to the resort to see his uncle, I chanced coming here. Or at least figured I’d get a location from your uncle as to where Hunter had relocated the pack.
“But then I learned the pack had settled here and I’d missed seeing Hunter before he took off for Hawaii. Although I’ve called him on his cell phone, he must have it turned off because of the flight. In any event, you have one of two choices. Either I stay with you until he gets back, or I send you packing to be with them.”
“On their honeymoon?” The pitch of her voice rose with incredulity. “Are you kidding?”
But he knew she had to realize something was really the matter, something more than Hunter wanting him to baby-sit her.
“All right, so what is this all about?” she grudgingly asked.
“Someone tried to murder Allan Rappaport.”
“Allan?” Her voice was unsteady and her face turned ghostly pale. “Sweet Allan?”
Before she collapsed, Finn seized her arm and made her sit on the end of the bed. “The assassin nearly succeeded. Just an inch or two lower, and Allan would have died from the bullet wound to his chest.” Even though lupus garous healed faster than humans, a strike to a major artery could make them bleed out before their bodies could heal. “Thankfully, he received treatment right away and survived. We’ve got some SEALs watching over him now.”
Finn didn’t get why she would call the guy sweet, though. Allan was one of the roughest men on their team. At least he had been around the team members. Maybe he’d acted differently toward Meara when Finn hadn’t been around. That notion gnawed at him. He thought Hunter had made it clear he didn’t want any of his SEAL team members pursuing her. And Finn had been sure none of the guys had or he would have learned of it fairly quickly.
She sure as hell could make a man forget himself.
“And you thought… you thought the assassin was coming after Hunter?” she asked, very concerned now.
“Yeah. I’ve warned Paul Cunningham, the other of our teammates, and the only one who’s left is Hunter.”
“And you,” she said softly, frowning up at him.
“True.” Although Finn didn’t really count himself as one of the hunted. He was the hunter. “I’ve ensured that one of your pack members, who’s a former military man and currently on your police force, will take the next flight to Hawaii to warn Hunter and watch his back.”
She motioned to Finn’s clothes strewn on the floor and to the unmade bed. “So what’s this all supposed to be about?”
“I’m your lover for now, until we stop this bastard or until Hunter returns to keep track of you.”
Her lips parted in a totally sexy way, but then she frowned and pursed them. “Oh, no you’re not. No way am I going to let anyone think I’m mated with you.”
“You’ll have to do your mate selection some other time, Meara. This is serious business.”
She studied him for a minute and then frowned more deeply. “What makes you so certain this guy intends to target all of the men on the team? Maybe it was a fluke, or maybe Allan provoked some guy but it has nothing to do with the team.”
“He left a calling card. The Knight of Swords. And a cryptic note referring to the last mission we were involved in. But I can’t say any more than that.”
“The last mission,” she whispered, looking at the floor and then shifting her gaze to Finn. “The one where Hunter was injured.”
“Yes, he was badly injured. And so were Paul and Allan.”
“But… but not you.”
“No. Listen, I can’t really discuss it. Only that I’m sure this has to do with a traitor in the ranks.”
Her e
yes grew huge. “Not among the members of your SEAL team.”
“No. We’ve been like brothers. We’re all lupus garous. Someone who…” He shook his head. “We don’t know anything for certain. Suffice it to say, I’m staying here to protect you. Paul’s watching his own back since he prefers it that way. We’ve got friends protecting Allan. One of your pack members will be there to watch out for Hunter and Tessa, and Hunter will ensure he gets more coverage while he’s on the island. As soon as I can get through to him, I’ll call him again. But it would be too easy for whoever this is to target you and wait until Hunter returns, while using you as the perfect little hostage. Hunter would expect this of me.”
Finn knew there’d be trouble, as defiant as she always was with him, as soon as she stubbornly lifted her chin. “I don’t expect this of you! I’ve got two weeks to find a mate.”
“Think of it as a vacation. Two weeks away from Hunter’s rule, just taking it easy.”
“So I can be under your rule? No way. I’m not taking it easy while Hunter’s out of my hair. I’ve got the resort to run, and that’s just what I’m going to damn well do. Once the meal is done, I’ll take it to Joe and eat with him over there. You can…” She motioned to the front of the house. “…go back to wherever you came from.”
“All right.” His face turned hard as he gave up trying to reason with her. “Then I’m coming with you. I’ll eat Joe’s portion of the dinner, and you can share your portion with him.” He gave her a derisive smile. “Take it or leave it. If you don’t want my offer of protection, I’m packing you off to Hawaii, and I’ll wait here for the assassin alone. I’m sure it would be a safer bet for you anyway.”
She ground her teeth. “If you think I’m going to mess up their honeymoon… well, no way. Besides, what if whoever this is follows them there?”
“That’s a distinct possibility. And the reason I sent your pack mate to Hawaii to watch out for Hunter. As for you, I could send you to your uncle in Florida.” Finn was serious, too. Although he’d accompany her there if she decided she wanted to go to the Sunshine State.