Accidentally Wolf (37 page)

“
Harris, don
’
t,
”
I said firmly as he stepped closer to me. His thighs brushing mine as he moved one hand to my hip.
“
Don
’
t do this, Harris. Work is the only thing going well in my life and I won
’
t complicate that.
”

“
You
’
ve had sex tonight and more than one man has touched you intimately, Sera.
”
He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. When he opened them again, they weren
’
t human eyes but his cheetah eyes.
Intensely yellow with
the small black dot of the pupil in the center
.
His kitty
really
wanted to come out and play.

And then the strangest thing happened. My
s
iren took my side. I felt the flare of her power
,
but it wasn
’
t to minionize Harris but shock him in
to realizing that we weren
’
t a toy for his amusement. He jumped and stepped back, shaking his head. I got a good look at what he wanted though. Harris wanted to not only be loved, but respected. He
’
d had relationships before
,
and
,
while the women might have loved him, they saw him as the goofball, the pushover.

He wanted to be with someone serious who could take
him
seriously. And then I got a glimpse of his worst fears. He thought he was bad in bed and that
’
s why his
ex
’
s had thought him a joke and left. Harris didn
’
t have as much experience as I would have thought
,
and he truly believed he didn
’
t know how to please a woman. No matter how many books he
’
d read on the subject.

It gave me insight that there was much more to Mike Harris than the playful, flirty guy he came off a
s. But I wanted to know why my s
iren had helped me instead of taking advantage of him.

We might not agree on how to handle things and what we want
,
but we are still one in the same,
she answered me.
If you crack under all the pressure and stress you are under
,
that doesn
’
t bode well for me either. And while you might not see it yet, I am your protector just as much as your wolf is.

She seemed almost sympathetic to my multiplying issues
,
and it gave me hope that I would
n
’
t
spend the rest of my life fighting her. I gave her a mental thanks and focused on the man in front of me.

“
Go home and don
’
t pull this shit again, Harris,
”
I
growled
.
“
I don
’
t care if I walk around you naked. Control yourself.
”

“
Okay, Chief,
”
he replied quietly
, his eyes having returned back to their normal human coloring,
before turning and practically running away from me. I sighed, but not in relief. I hadn
’
t meant to hurt his feelings but he needed to learn some restraint. I got in the car and turned it on. After I check
ed
around me to make sure it was all clear, I pulled out on
to the street.

As I drove back to Vlad
’
s
,
I thought over the case. Something had been bothering
me
in the back of my mind, like I was missing something. It hit me when I got off the exit to get back to his club… We never smelled the killer. I never felt a lingering aura or smelled shifter, just the vic and all the blood.

So he was either strong enough to mask what he was or too weak of a shifter to even register as one to us. But it had to be the first one if he was able to shift in
to his half and half form. At least I now had what was another piece of the puzzle settled in my mind.

I pulled in
to the parking lot next to the club, making sure I parked the car in the same spot I
’
d gotten it from. I mentally groaned when I walked up to Vlad
’
s
offices
and saw Noah.

“
May I speak with you a moment, Chief Thomas?
”
h
e asked quietly, shyly almost.

“
I think we
’
re past formalities, Noah. You can call me, Sera,
”
I answered with a nod.

“
You were right that I was being greedy when you were upfront and said you wanted just a taste of what I could do. I concede that point and I
’
m sorry. That being said, a man wants to know that the wom
a
n he
’
s kissing is there for the right reasons and not just to make someone else jealous. I thought you wanted to kiss me, not make Tristan jealous. You used me and I had reason to get upset.
”

I thought about that a moment and he was completely right.
“
I
’
m sorry, Noah. You
’
re right. You
’
re a very handsome man
,
but I don
’
t normally go around kissing strangers. I
’
m just starting to learn how to control my
s
iren and she was pissed at Tristan for hurting us. She wanted to make you mine to replace him
,
but I talked her in
to making him jealous by kissing you. It was wrong
,
and you
’
re not a toy to use in whatever issues Tristan and I have.
”

“
You
’
re a
s
iren?
”
His eyes went wide and I could smell the desire pouring off of him in waves. Shit. Hello big mouth!

“
Yeah, I found out right before I jumped you,
”
I admitted guiltily with a one shoulder shrug.

“
Sera,
”
he whispered, stepped closer and cupping my cheek gently.
His hand was warm and comforting.
“
You can jump me anytime you want, even if it
’
s just a one
-
time, uncomplicated thing. I just deserve you to be doing it because you want me and not just anyone who can prove a point.
”

“
Would it matter to you that I enjoyed it immensely and thought you were attractive before she was pushing me for revenge?
”

“
Yes, it would actually
.
”
Noah chuckled. He brushed his lips against mine and smiled.
“
I
’
ll see you around, Sera. And my offer if you ever need anything still stands. You are like no woman I
’
ve ever met before.
”

“
I get that a lot
.
”
I snickered, rolling my eyes. I stepped away from him and opened the door. I walked in
to Vlad
’
s disguised house and was glad that the party was over and everyone was somewhere else. All except Tristan and Riley
,
who were sitting on one of the couches lost in their own thoughts. They both looked up at me
,
and their facial expressions were like yin and yang.

Riley smiled brightly
, no longer staring blankly in to space,
while Tristan looked as if he might start crying.
“
Let
’
s go home.
”
I set the
borrowed
keys on the table and decided I could give Vlad the jacket back another time. They both stood and walked over to me. I studied Riley closely and he didn
’
t seem loopy anymore.
“
How are you feeling?
”

“
Reality has returned if that
’
s what you
’
re asking
.
”
H
e chuckled and gave me a quick kiss as he hugged me.

“
And yet you
’
r
e
happy to see me?
”
That was surprising.

“
You didn
’
t do it on purpose. Even when you called me to you from the stage
,
I knew something was wrong, Sera. I could have fought it but I didn
’
t. It happened and I
’
m not placing blame.
”

“
Thank you,
”
I sighed, leaning my forehead against his.
“
Riley Greyson, I release you from your promise. Have as much sex as you w
an
t from whoever you want and seek as much pleasure as you desire.
”

My
s
iren let me know she wasn
’
t a fan of what I
’
d just done and we
’
d be talking about it. I agreed, but needed sleep first. Then she settled back down and I gave another sigh of relief. Maybe she really wasn
’
t the enemy.

“
Thank you,
”
he whispered against my lips. He turned us back toward the door, his arm wrapped around my waist as he took my purse from me. The Riley I knew was back. Thank. Fuck.
“
So we
’
re moving this weekend? What can I do to help?
”

“
I
’
m sure lots
.
”
I snickered as I leaned against him. I just wanted my bed
,
but there was one thing I had to know first.
“
Why were you here tonight? Don
’
t take this the wrong way because I
’
m not judging
,
but I never saw you as the type to strut around as practically naked waiter boy and
be in a
live sex show.
”

“
I owed Vlad a favor,
”
he answered with a shrug as we walked. I knew Tristan was right there w
ith
us
,
and I could feel his despair as if
it was
my own sadness
,
but too bad. He made his own bed. He could lie in it.

We left the office building
,
and I blew Noah a kiss as we
passed
him. He laughed good
-
naturedly and gave me a nod. I mulled over what Riley had said as Tristan opened the car
door for me
. I wasn
’
t going to be such a bitch and sit in back with Riley
,
so I slipped in
to the front seat. When Tristan pulled the car out on
to the street
,
I had finally figured out what I wanted to say to Riley.

“
So Vlad collected his favor in the form of sex? Did he force you?
”

“
No, nothing like that, Sera,
”
he answered with a chuckle. I turned in my seat so I could see him, leaning my cheek against the headrest.
“
I
’
m a nurse and someone found out what I was.
”

“
And wolves can
’
t work in any profession involving blood just like vampires.
”
Personally, I always thought that rule was stupid. I mean, I ate more as a
l
ycan
thrope
but it wasn
’
t like I saw the dead body tonight and thought,
mmm, dinner
. The FBI was the only exception to the rule since we were policing our own.