by Lynn Hagen
Vince chuckled. “I’m starting to feel like you’re my new boss.”
Dillon was starting to feel that way, too. “Just get your ass to Werth’s.”
“Already here.” Vince walked outside as he tucked his phone away. “What’s going on?”
Dillon nodded toward Maltese. “I need you to take him to pick up some paperwork. Don’t let the slick bastard out of your sight, and bring him back here when he’s got it.”
Vince looked Maltese over. “I think I can manage to keep him in line.” He patted the gun in his holster. “Can I shoot him if he tries to get away?”
“Just as long as you bring me the paperwork, be my guest.” Dillon grabbed Max’s hand and pulled him inside the house. As soon as they entered, Newt launched himself into Max’s arms, tears in his eyes.
“I was so worried about you. I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you.”
Werth stood behind his mate, giving Dillon an approving nod.
“You did save him,” Dillon pointed out. “You told us what happened and that led to his rescue.” Not directly, but he had to erase that sad look on Newt’s face.
“I’m fine.” Max patted Newt’s back. “But I’m gonna get a couple of broken bones if you don’t stop squeezing me.”
“Sorry.” Newt released Max. “Is it over? Did you guys catch Taren?”
Dillon shook his head. “He got away.”
“Maverick’s already got some of his sentries patrolling the woods and house. If Taren or any of his goons try to come here, they’ll regret their decision,” Werth said.
“What about Duke and Baby Girl?” Max asked.
“The vet called,” Newt said. “They’ll be fine. They’re just bruised, and Baby Girl won’t stop hissing at Dr. Beckett.”
Dillon would have to send the vet a thank-you basket for dealing with her and rushing into the clinic to help the injured animals. Duke might be a pain in the ass, but if Max loved him, then so did Dillon.
“Dillon?” Max looked at him with fear in his eyes. In the next second, he shifted into his wolf and went limp.
Chapter Ten
“It’s not like whipping up a batch of cookies,” Maltese complained as he worked in Werth’s kitchen. “Delicate recipes like this take time.”
“We don’t have much time,” Dillon argued.
The way Max had looked at him right before he shifted and passed out had made Dillon’s heart freeze. It was as though Max knew he wouldn’t be returning to his human form, as if saying Dillon’s name was his way of saying good-bye.
Dillon’s chest felt like it was caving in, and he found it hard to breathe. “How long is this gonna take?”
“I can’t pop it into the microwave to make it go faster,” Maltese complained. “At the very least, an hour for it to blend together, and that’s if the liquid turns red. If it doesn’t, we have to give it more time. If Max takes this potion before it’s ready, it won’t work, and he’ll more than likely end up puking his guts out.”
Dillon still had to figure out a way to give it to his mate, considering Max was in dog form and unconscious.
Newt wrinkled his nose as he stood next to Maltese and watched him work. “That stuff stinks.”
“Go in the den, Newt,” Werth said as he glared at Maltese.
“He’s not gonna do anything,” Newt argued. “Not with you two here.”
“I’m not gonna anything at all,” Maltese said. “I’m not the bad guy everyone is making me out to be. I told Max in the beginning not to quit this stuff but to wean himself off, and he didn’t listen. Had I known I would’ve checked on him.”
“But he missed his last meeting with you,” Dillon pointed out.
“I thought he was weaning himself,” Maltese defended. He sighed. “Look, I’ll accept being the enemy, and I’ll leave once Max takes the potion. I’m not going to keep defending myself.”
Dillon looked toward the kitchen door. Vince stood there with his arms crossed, studying Maltese. From the intent expression on his partner’s face, Dillon wasn’t sure if Vince wanted to choke Maltese or fuck him.
Vince looked at Dillon and then walked away.
“Now we wait.” Maltese covered the bowl with a hand towel. “Whatever you do, don’t touch it.” He left the room, too.
Newt opened the back door. “I gotta air this place out. It smells like butt cheese in here.”
When Dillon looked past Newt, he saw a wolf walking through the backyard. It was one of Maverick’s. The wolf stopped and stared at them, as if waiting to see if there was trouble. Dillon nodded, letting him know they were okay, and the wolf moved on.
He stood there staring at the backyard, scanning, although the wolves had things covered. Even so, Dillon moved to the door and stepped outside, inhaling the night air as he watched the breeze ruffle the leaves in the surrounding trees. The clouds slipped by slowly, unveiling the moon before it was covered again.
The night felt…eerie. A chill made Dillon shake slightly.
“What’s wrong?” Werth asked as he joined Dillon. “Smell trouble?”
“I don’t know.” Dillon looked at his boss. “I got this strange feeling in my gut, and I don’t know why.”
“Taren’s powerless,” Werth said. “He can’t just pop in here. He’ll be on foot if he comes.”
“Unless one of his fanatics helps him.” Dillon looked over his shoulder. “Why did you take Taren through the Black River?”
Maltese lifted the towel to check the potion. It hadn’t been nearly an hour yet, so he’d done it to avoid looking at Dillon. “Taren had a knife to Max’s throat. He threatened to cut it if I didn’t take him.”
Dillon’s blood boiled hot at the image that entered his mind. Max had been that close to dying at Taren’s hands. “Why didn’t he kill you both when he got what he wanted?”
He still didn’t trust Maltese, no matter how much Max did. Dillon had begun to realize that Max was a little too trusting when he should be a lot more cautious.
“I honestly don’t know, and I didn’t bother to ask,” Maltese said. “I was just grateful he didn’t.”
Dillon could understand why Taren had kept Max alive. The demon had wanted his revenge, and clearly he’d wanted to take his time. Keeping Max in the apartment gave him that insurance that he could torture Max later.
But why keep Maltese? Once Taren had breached the demon realm, Maltese had been of no more use.
“Is there something you’re not telling me?” Dillon demanded. “Right now would be a good time to confess.”
One of the wolves outside howled.
And then another.
Maltese gazed at the door as he swallowed. “I’m telling you the truth. I don’t know why he didn’t kill me once he got what he wanted from me.”
Vince came back into the kitchen and stared between Maltese and Dillon but remained quiet.
Werth closed the kitchen door and locked it as the wolves continued to howl. Dillon moved from the kitchen and hurried down the hallway to check on Max.
He stepped into the bedroom to find his mate still asleep, but the guest bedroom window was open, the curtains swaying with the breeze.
Dillon hadn’t opened that window. He turned, and the bedroom door closed. Taren glared at him, his hand still resting on the knob. “One shout to your friends and I’ll gut your mate.”
That was when Dillon saw the serrated knife clutched in Taren’s hand. The metal gleamed under the bedroom light as he twisted it over and over with his fingers.
“Why are you so fixated with Max?” Dillon asked, buying time while he tried to figure out how to get the knife away from him.
Taren was closest to the bed and could get to Max before Dillon could stop him. In Max’s weakened state, he might not survive the stabbing, especially if Taren had dipped the blade in either silver or poison.
He wouldn’t put it past the demon to do something like that.
“Why?” The skin under Taren’s right eye twitched. “He ruin
ed my plans. The demon warriors think they’re so perfect, think they’re above everyone else. Who are they to ban me from my own home? They deserve to get dethroned, and I’m the one who’s gonna do it.”
Dillon heard one of the wolves move past the window.
“Why’d they ban you?”
Maltese must’ve wanted his revenge against Max because he’d gotten what he’d wanted, to be in the demon realm, yet here he stood, ready to end Max’s life. This was one dumbass, twisted motherfucker. Dillon saw the craziness in his eyes, saw the twitch continue under Taren’s eye, and knew he was right.
Taren was off his rocker.
“That doesn’t matter. There’re a lot of men who feel the same as I do. They’re ready to join my cause. I just have to get back there, and you have the key I need.”
“Maltese.”
“I feared something like this would happen. That’s why I didn’t slice his pathetic throat when we got to the demon realm.” Taren looked smug, as if he was smarter than Dillon.
“You’re insane if you think you can take the warriors down.” Another wolf passed under the window.
“I’m not crazy!” Taren scratched at his temple. “I kill Max, take Maltese, and finish what I started. The men the demon warriors defeated were only a handful of my followers. I have plenty more where they came from. But I’m not gonna start my war until Max is eliminated. I would’ve killed him in the demon realm, but you just had to interfere.”
Dillon’s heart thumped wildly when Taren took a step toward the bed. His knuckles were white as he clutched the knife.
“I’m not gonna let you do that, man,” Dillon warned. “Step away from him.”
Max stirred but didn’t open his eyes, unaware of the danger he was in.
Taren raised the knife, and Dillon tackled him just as the bedroom door burst open. He slugged Taren repeatedly, taking out his anger and frustration on the demon. They tussled for the knife, Dillon making sure the blade didn’t touch him.
He kneed Taren in the nuts and then snatched the knife away, plunging it to the hilt in Taren’s chest.
“No!” Taren’s eyes were wide as he gasped for breath.
The naked men stood in the doorway, watching but not interfering. They parted when Panahasi walked into the bedroom.
“I’ll take it from here,” he said. He placed a hand on Dillon’s shoulder. “He’ll remain in the underworld for the rest of his existence.”
The demon leader’s words penetrated Dillon’s mind. He looked down, expecting to see Taren’s eyes glaze over, but the demon was glaring at him with such hatred in his eyes that Dillon should’ve burst into flames from the scorching evil in them.
“How?” Dillon asked as he got up and moved a step back.
“He’s become quite the potion expert,” Panahasi said as he yanked Taren to his feet. “My guess is he took something that would protect him from death.” A gleam of malice entered Panahasi’s eyes. “Good thing Death and I are on speaking terms.”
“But he’s mine to deal with,” Dillon snarled. “You have no idea what he’s put Max through. He needs to pay for what he did, and an eternity in the underworld isn’t good enough.”
“I know more than you think.” Panahasi glared at him. He yanked the knife from Taren’s chest and held it up. “Would you suggest a quick death? Is that what he deserves?”
Dillon was seething, but he knew the demon leader was right. Death would be an easy punishment for Taren. Still, he wanted to tear the son of a bitch apart.
“No,” Dillon finally said.
“Trust me when I tell you this is the worst punishment anyone could suffer through.”
Panahasi opened a vortex and stepped through, taking Taren with him. Dillon felt robbed of his revenge. Then again, revenge wasn’t his style. But when it came to Max, Dillon would slay every demon that even thought of coming anywhere near his mate.
* * * *
“Are you sure you feel okay?”
Max wasn’t even sore. He felt like a new man. He wasn’t sure how Maltese had altered the potion, but the connection between him and his mate hadn’t dulled. In fact, it felt stronger than ever.
“If you ask me that one more time,” Max said in warning as Dillon parked in the driveway. They’d just returned from having dinner at Lucky Clover, and Max felt as though he was walking on clouds. He’d just gone on his first ever date.
“I can’t help it.” Dillon smiled at him. “I just can’t believe this is over.”
Max grabbed his box of cinnamon rolls, which they’d purchased at the bakery, and his bag of candy from the candy store. He told himself he wouldn’t eat all the sweats in one sitting, but that would be a lie.
As soon as they entered the house, Duke ran toward them, barking. Dillon snarled as Max pressed his hand against his mouth. He wasn’t sure what paperwork Duke had gotten ahold of, but it was shredded all over the living room floor.
“Damn it, Duke!” Dillon yelled.
Duke took off toward the kitchen and no doubt raced out the tiny dog door Dillon had installed.
“Stop yelling at him,” Max argued. “You’re scaring him.”
“That dog isn’t afraid of anything.” Dillon bent and picked up the scraps. Max set his box and bag on the coffee table and helped. After tossing them away, they collapsed on the couch, and Dillon reached for the remote.
Before he could turn the television on, Max crawled onto his lap. “Thank you for the most wonderful night of my life.”
Dillon rested his hands on Max’s hips and stared at him. “It was my pleasure.”
With Dillon back at work and Max finding a part-time job, their lives were busy, but his mate had promised him date night every Friday, and Max was gonna make sure that happened.
He was finally free to live his life the way he wanted, and Dillon was the way he wanted things. He pressed a kiss to Dillon’s lips to show his mate his appreciation, but with a deep rumbling purr, Dillon took him down to the cushions, placing Max on his back.
“Our date isn’t over,” Dillon said.
“It’s not?” Max teased.
“You still have to put out.” Dillon bounced his brows.
“I just did,” Max said with a laugh. “I gave you a kiss.”
“We can do better than that.” Dillon kissed along Max’s jaw, making Max’s eyes roll to the back of his head. “Who’s a good boy?”
A burp of laughter escaped Max. “I am.”
“You got that right.” Dillon reared back and stripped Max naked and then undressed himself. Before he returned to the couch, he reached into the drawer of the coffee table and grabbed the bottle of lube.
After stretching him, Dillon drove deep inside Max, making his toes curl and his heart kick up a notch. “I love you,” Max cried out as he arched his back.
“Love you, too, Max.” His mate bit into his shoulder, sending Max over the edge as he came.
Afterward, they sat in the kitchen, sharing Max’s cinnamon rolls—which were the best he’d ever tasted—as they talked through the night, laughing, sharing stories, and feeding each other the sweet treats as Duke slept under the table.
He wasn’t sure if any night could top this one, but Max was looking forward to spending a lifetime finding out.
THE END
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Table of Contents
HUNTING DANGER
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
rchive.