He was barefoot, wearing jeans and an untucked, pale blue tee. Under different circumstances, she’d consider flirting with him, the end goal being a few hours in bed. Instead, Morgan frowned. “How long do I have to stay here?”
No answer, unless she counted his placing the plate on the kitchen table as one. A mug of coffee, glass of orange juice, and plate of toast were already waiting. Thane gestured at the chair before turning back to the stove.
Morgan sighed and sat down. At least she wouldn’t be going hungry and, after testing a bite, had to admit he could cook. The were-liger joined her a few minutes later. She swallowed and said, “This is good. Thanks.”
He nodded, tucking into his own breakfast. Returning her attention to the food, she wondered why he didn’t talk. Calhoun had said Thane didn’t talk much. That was different from “not at all.” Another thing: even before she’d become a full-fledged Were, there’d been a couple of instances of small wounds spontaneously healing. Yet she’d seen scars on Thane’s back the night before.
She obviously wasn’t going to get any answers out of him if he wouldn’t talk. Morgan finished the omelet and sipped her coffee, watching him eat. He did so neatly and quickly, though sitting hunched over his plate. Her eyes narrowed. She’d seen men recently out of jail who ate like that. They had to eat fast, covering their food to keep others from taking or doing something else to it.
Calhoun trusts him. Where that thought came from, or why it mattered, she didn’t know. What did was whether or not she trusted Calhoun. Right now, Morgan wasn’t sure. Why trust someone who’d used her own tactics so successfully against her?
He’d gotten what he wanted. Had used her and dumped her on someone else the second it was convenient. Had probably taken blonde Patty to bed right after she’d been sent out the door. A rush of hot jealousy swept through Morgan’s mind and she unconsciously bared her teeth.
What the hell is wrong with me?
She did not get attached to men. Doing so only led to heartbreak and hardship. Been there, done that, got the goddamned T-shirt.
A soft buzz broke into her thoughts and Morgan startled as Thane left the table. She followed, holding her coffee mug, and watched him answer the door. She wasn’t able to see what buttons he pushed on the keypad before he stepped back while opening the door.
The visitor was a woman, carrying an electronic tablet. She smiled at Thane before focusing on Morgan. “Hi. I’m Jana, and I’ll be your guide for your first few days here. Thane’s not really good at that particular job.”
Morgan didn’t respond immediately, taking her time to look Jana over carefully. Shorter, brunette, rather plain. I could take her. “My guide for what?”
Jana’s smile didn’t falter at her rude tone and she wasn’t shy about looking Morgan right in the eyes. “I’ll show you around the complex, tell you what your training schedule will be. I’ll be introducing you to your trainers today.”
“My trainers?” Morgan’s lips twisted into a sneer. “What the hell are they going to try and train me for?”
The first response was Thane’s purr rolling out. She shot him a hard look. “Quit doing that.”
“He’s only trying to help you remain calm. Awakening is a confusing time for each of us and the confusion doesn’t end immediately. The training is all intended to be helpful, allowing you to grow accustomed to the new you. You’ll learn how to command the change and how to use your improved senses.” Jana broke eye contact to look at her tablet and tapped something on it. “First, you’ll need to get dressed, then we’ll need to meet with...”
“I’m not doing shit until I talk to Calhoun, and probably not after either. You people have no right to lock me up like this.”
“Well,” Jana met her eyes again, smile completely gone. “I can put in a request that the First speak with you, but that’s up to him. All of us go through this training, Morgan. It helps us adjust more quickly.”
“So everyone’s a prisoner at first.”
The other woman immediately shook her head. “No, you’re not a prisoner.”
“Then I can leave.” Morgan took a few steps away from the kitchen’s entrance. Thane shut the front door.
“I’m afraid that’s not possible, until you’ve completed the basic training.”
Morgan growled. “Then I am a prisoner.”
Jana sighed. “Look, I know this is difficult. No one likes having their movements curtailed. But you have to have some time to learn about what you are now. You need to learn to control changing, so you don’t do it out in public.”
“Fuck you, fuck Calhoun, and fuck him,” Morgan threw her now-empty mug at Thane, who caught it and continued purring. “Stop making that goddamn noise!”
“All right, I guess we’ll give you a few days more.” Jana backed toward the door. “I’ll see if the First will speak with you.”
Thane turned to unlock the door and Morgan rushed forward. Jana yelped, her eyes widening and changing color. The gold sunburst in hers spun fast enough to make Morgan dizzy, but it didn’t keep her from reaching for Jana’s neck.
The were-liger moved, silent and sure, to catch Morgan. She found herself over one of his broad shoulders and pounded on his back while cursing at the top of her voice. He pinned her legs to his chest, turned, and let Jana out.
Once the other woman was gone, Thane turned away from the door and put her down. Morgan launched herself at him, fingers spread and ready to claw at his face. He caught her wrists and avoided her attempt to knee him in the balls.
She burst into hysterical tears, straining against the were-liger’s hold.
Chapter Eleven
“Boss?” Jake’s query opened Cal’s eyes and sent his three bedmates diving to cover themselves while squealing with embarrassment.
“What?” Covering a yawn, Cal sat up to look at Jake, who’d opened the door barely wide enough to poke his head through. He absently patted the bare ass closest to his hand. It promptly wiggled under the covers. “They’re going to need breakfast and rides home. See to it, will you?”
“Sure thing, but ah, there’s a call I think you should take.” Jake was frowning as he displayed a cell phone. Cal couldn’t tell whether the face was in response to the phone call he’d mentioned, or the complaints from under the covers.
A hand slid up his thigh and he stopped it before it reached its destination. Giving it a pat, Cal removed it from his leg. “Fun’s over, ladies. Time for me to get to work.”
He gestured for the phone. Jake opened the door wider and brought it to him. “It’s Lucas.”
Cal instantly groaned, knowing the call had to be about Morgan. He’d done his best last night to wipe her out of his mind. Here she was being shoved right back into his face the next morning. He tossed the covers aside to swing his legs off the bed, resulting in more squeals and one angry curse. “Sorry, ladies.”
Taking the phone, he jerked his chin toward the bed. Jake nodded and began gathering the clothing spread all over the room. Cal bent to grab his jeans before heading out to the hallway. He tucked the phone against his ear, holding it in place with his shoulder while yanking on his jeans. “What is it?”
“Your new recruit scared the holy shit out of Jana and may be trying to beat the hell out of Thane right now. He’s not answering the door. There’s a lot of noise going on in there.”
“Morgan is feisty.”
Lucas snorted. “Well, she also demanded to speak to you before trying to rip out Jana’s throat.”
He scowled, zipping his jeans. “Is Jana all right?”
“Thane stepped in, got Jana out before she was hurt, but she’s badly shaken.”
Damn it, Morgan. Cal grabbed the phone, running a hand over his hair. “It’s not the first time a new Were has lost it. Jana’s usually able to handle...”
“She is clean freaked the fuck out. Said something about the new woman being more dominant. Jana’s refusing to handle her.”
That put an entirely differ
ent complexion on the issue. Jana was one of the most dominant women in the home pack, the reason she normally handled new recruits. She could handle them with little trouble, whether they were male or female. “Thane...”
“I’m relatively certain he’s ducking furniture right now, if the crashes are any indication of what’s going on in there. We’re going to have to tranq her.”
“No, don’t do that,” Cal immediately said. “It won’t do anything but give her more reason to be mad and it sounds as though she’s already angry enough to chew steel.”
Lucas sighed. “So what do we do? I’m not going to let her whale on Thane until she gets it out of her system.”
“He can handle her until I get there. I’ll be on my way in a few minutes.” At least, he hoped Thane could. The were-liger was hell on wheels in battle, against vampires. Unfortunately, Thane had a respect for women that wouldn’t be doing him any favors where Morgan was concerned. He would not intentionally hurt a woman, even to save himself pain. Cal sighed. “Just stand by. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“All right.”
Ending the call, he handed the phone to Jake as he exited the suite with the three women in tow. “I’ll be gone for a while. Let you know how long once I’ve had the chance to assess things.”
“All right.”
Cal smiled and waved at the women. “Thank you for the wonderful memories, ladies.”
Two returned his smile, but the third narrowed her blue eyes and muttered “Asshole” under her breath. To his surprise, Cal couldn’t remember her name, but he did remember paying plenty of attention to her the night before. Her long hair was dyed lavender and he’d found it slightly exotic. “My apologies if you didn’t have fun.”
“It was fun, but getting woken up and kicked out sucks ass. So does having some other guy watching me get dressed. Don’t bother trying to pick me up again.” With a sniff, she lifted her chin, turned, and stalked after the others.
Ouch. Cal winced, watching her go. She had a nice ass. If he were remembering things correctly, quite the talented mouth too. I’m losing my touch. “Sorry.”
He shook his head and stepped back into the suite to finish dressing. Once at headquarters, he’d make certain Thane was okay, assess Morgan’s state, and make whatever changes were necessary to her roster of handlers and trainers. He wasn’t going to perform either role himself.
Something about Morgan had gotten under his skin. Acknowledging that fact meant that staying in close quarters with her any time soon felt like an extremely bad idea. He’d made that mistake a few times before, with other women.
“It’s been quiet for about ten minutes,” Lucas informed him when Cal halted outside Thane’s apartment door. “Pretty sure she trashed the place. Hoping she didn’t trash Thane.”
“He probably shifted. Wouldn’t matter how mad she is, she’d have the sense not to go up against him in liger form.” Cal wouldn’t forgive himself if Morgan had traumatized Thane. The other had dealt with more than enough shit for an unknown amount of time before he’d found the were-liger. Whatever had happened to Thane had left scars, physical, mental, and emotional. Cal had done what he could for the other Were, but some things weren’t easy to recover from.
“Stand back.” He keyed in the code for Thane’s front door, knowing it as well as he knew the code for his own. Reaching for the doorknob, Cal took a deep breath before turning and pushing it. It didn’t move. He had to put his shoulder into it, because broken furniture was piled against the other side of the door.
No sooner than he’d done that, a low rumble of warning sounded, and a silvery flash lunged from behind the overturned coffee table. Cal caught Morgan, her momentum knocking him backward. Where was Thane?
His hands grasped her neck in the nick of time, keeping her fangs from his throat. “Check on Thane!”
Lucas darted into the destroyed apartment, leaving him to deal with the enraged wolf. Foam splattered onto his face, and Cal gritted his teeth as Morgan dug at his chest with her forepaws. “Okay, okay, you’re pissed. Got it.”
She continued snarling and trying to bite him. Her hind feet were stomping all over his balls. Not the best feeling in the world.
“You’re going to have to calm down and change back, if we’re going to talk.” He grunted as she deliberately slammed one hind paw into his crotch, nailing his left nut. “Come on, darlin’. Let’s not get nasty.”
Morgan snapped and shoved upward, trying to free herself. Both hind paws stabbed his groin. “Ouch, I’m serious...”
Lucas reappeared, coming to stand beside them. “Thane’s okay. He took cover in his bedroom.”
“Smart man.” Cal groaned when Morgan switched to digging with all four paws. “A little help here.”
Lucas, a short, sturdy Were with dark blue eyes, grabbed her scruff with both hands to haul her off him. Morgan went completely berserk, snapping and kicking, twisting in his grip. “What the hell did you do to her?”
“Me?” Cal managed to roll over, one hand checking that she hadn’t clawed off his balls. “Why do you always blame me?”
“Because you’re the boss. All blame ultimately lies at your feet.” Lucas staggered as Morgan’s twisting resulted in her body smacking against his. “You can have her back whenever you’re ready.”
He didn’t want her, not in the mood she was in. “I’ll give you a raise if you’ll take her to one of the isolation rooms.”
Thane appeared in the doorway as Lucas laughed. “No way, boss. I have the feeling she’s the type to hold grudges, and this isn’t winning me any favors with her as it is.”
Cal looked the were-liger over while climbing to his feet. No visible signs of harm. “What happened?”
A shrug was the only answer, before Thane began to purr and moved, reaching out to stroke Morgan’s back. She twisted and snapped at him, strings of drool flying.
Weres didn’t get rabies. Too bad, since that would’ve explained Morgan’s behavior. No, she was simply extremely pissed, and Cal didn’t know why. Sure, yesterday hadn’t gone exactly as planned, but she’d been worried about being lied to. Now she knew she hadn’t been.
He was going to have to command her, or they’d never get to the bottom of what her problem was. Suppressing a grimace, Cal resorted to doing just that, using the tone that implanted his commands into the brains of his wolves. “Morgan, stop.”
She went limp, her hind paws just touching the carpeted floor. Her ears were back and she was panting. But she obeyed, not having a choice. “Lucas is going to let go of you and you will be still.”
He nodded at Lucas, who slowly lowered her to the floor and released his hold. Morgan stood there, her sides heaving. Her narrowed eyes didn’t move from Cal’s. He frowned and she cringed, but continued holding his stare. That wasn’t normal.
Shit, had she actually gone mad? It was rare, but did happen. Cal racked his brain while watching Thane kneel beside her. The were-liger smoothed her ruff, removing the marks of Lucas’s grip and moved onto running his hand over her back.
Morgan was tensed, and Cal had no doubt that if he released her from the command, she’d attack him again. Her panting was slowing though, which meant Thane’s attempt to calm her was beginning to work. Which was fantastic, but Cal honestly didn’t know what to do next.
The anger she felt was allowing Morgan to maintain her stare into Calhoun’s eyes. She didn’t know what the son of a bitch had done, but she was physically incapable of moving. Thane’s purring and gentle strokes smoothing the raised fur on her back were beginning to have an effect.
For a few seconds, Morgan felt terrible about trashing the were-liger’s apartment. All he’d done was stop her from hurting Jana, and then himself. He’d released her the second she’d begun crying, and had tried to comfort her. She wasn’t sure exactly what had happened next, other than a red-hot rage flooding her. Couldn’t remember if she’d hit him, or exactly when Thane had disappeared behind a closed door.
&nbs
p; Morgan did remember finally beginning to calm down and realizing she’d totally lost it. Then the door had opened, and Calhoun was there, reeking of sex and multiple women. Cue losing it completely, again.
She felt her lips drawing up and back, baring her teeth, and watched Calhoun’s eyebrows rise. Bastard, I’m going to find a way to rip your smug face clean off.
Because seriously, how fucking dare he spend all that time with her and jump straight off into fucking other women the same night he’d kicked her to the curb?
A growl crawled out of her throat. Morgan felt the man who’d pulled her off Calhoun edge away. Thane stayed where he was, ceaselessly purring and stroking her back.
“Well, you are presenting me with one hell of a problem.” Calhoun’s eyebrows had lowered to scrunch together. “I can’t have you tearing up the place, or my people.”
Fuck you. It was getting easier to react in spite of his order to be still. Morgan illustrated that by snapping at him, her growl deepening.
He stepped closer, dropping to one knee before her. “Morgan, I don’t like forcing anyone to behave. Agree to calm down so we can discuss what’s going on.”
Oh, you don’t like it, but you sure haven’t hesitated. She drew in a good, deep whiff, and sneezed in his face. Calhoun closed his eyes. “Nice.”
He wiped the sneeze spray from his face and opened his eyes. “Come on. I’m sure you have a perfectly legitimate reason to be angry, but it’s not fair you’re taking it out on others.”
She did feel a little guilty about that. It wasn’t as though she’d really intended to hurt Jana, just scare her. But him... Morgan eyed Calhoun’s throat. I’m good with taking it all out on you.
“If you don’t calm down, I’m going to have to stick you in an isolation room until you do. You’ll stay there however long it takes.” His eyes had turned orange, the gold spinning around his pupils. “Don’t force me to be the bad guy. I may not like it, but I can absolutely be one.”
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