Protection: A Bad Boy Stepbrother Romance (25 page)

His unwanted companion fell silent. The other man sped up to catch the girls and join in their conversation. Jace was left stomping along behind them, furious but unwilling to draw more attention to himself by making a scene.

Tessa had just manipulated him as if it were second nature. Not to mention the fact that she’d turned his own rules against him. Yet again she’d proved her intelligence, but in Jace’s mind it echoed the danger she could present.

This was unacceptable. Jace had to be in control of the situation, not a fool wrapped around some female’s finger.

Jace would see to it that she understood the rules soon enough. He would show the little temptress the error of her ways, and enjoy every second of it.

T
essa’s
beat a million miles an hour, threatening to leap from her chest. First she’d kissed Jace – that in itself had been ridiculously thrilling. There had been a moment, just before the neighbors had broken the spell… Tessa couldn’t explain exactly what had happened, but it was like some long-hidden part of her had awakened. There was a strange friction in her heart, an intense feeling of no longer being alone in her body; it was almost as if someone was watching her every move, but from inside.

The weirdest part was that instead of freaking out and launching herself into another panic attack, Tessa felt good. Not just good, amazing. As if she had been missing a piece to a puzzle for ages, and she’d found it in an odd place. In that moment, she’d slipped the piece into its corresponding slot.

Jesus, she was losing her mind. Was this how schizophrenics felt? But crazy people didn’t know they were crazy, so Tessa was probably okay. Or was that just another part of the disease? She chased the thought around and around, getting nowhere.

Shaking her head, Tessa decided she’d just have to sit on the existence of her new inner companion for the time being. Maybe it was part of this whole wolf thing. Something normal, if any of this could be called that.

Tessa could feel Jace’s eyes burning into the back of her neck as she walked. She followed Lesley out of the neighborhood and into a busier area, acting for all the world as if this were a comfortable stroll. The street signs indicated that they were now on Magazine Street. According to Tessa’s very minimal research into New Orleans, this was supposed to be a hip shopping district.

The street was lined with boutiques of every shape, size and color; Tessa was hard pressed to let her gaze settle on any one place. Historic oaks arced gracefully across the street here and there, unharried by all the traffic.

At the moment the intersection was packed with people streaming in every direction. Alone and in groups, people were dressed in a motley assortment of styles. Tuxedos, jester hats, even a group of women dressed as mermaids. It struck Tessa that these people were out and celebrating even though there was no actual parade in sight. She supposed they must be early.

“…so daiquiri or cocktail?” Lesley asked Tessa.

“I’m sorry?” Tessa said.

“I asked if you wanted a daiquiri, or a cocktail?” the woman asked, presenting it as an either/or question.

“It’s like… one in the afternoon,” Tessa remarked, eyebrows raised.

Lesley laughed.

“Oh, you’re not from around here,” Lesley said, giving Tessa a big smile.

She steered Tessa toward an open door with blaring music and brightly colored signs declaring that it was a bar called Ms. Mae’s. A twenty four hour bar, if the signs were to be believed. Who would want to go to a twenty-four-hour bar?

Tessa shrugged. When in Rome, right?

“Hey Lesley!” Lesley’s husband called, a few paces behind them.

“Yeah babe?” Lesly asked over her shoulder as she began to force her way through the crowd at the bar.

“Can you believe that Jason here has never had a daiquiri?”

“That’s tragic. We’ll remedy that ASAP,” Lesley chirped. She elbowed her way to the bar, her movements those of a seasoned expert.

Tessa glanced back at Jace, trying to keep it casual. His face was murderous; his gaze slid between Tessa, Lesley, and Lesley’s husband in turn, as if Jace couldn’t decide who was going to get it first. Tessa cleared her throat, pretty sure it was going to be her.

She felt that inner presence again, the distinct and separate being in the back of her mind. Her silent companion was interested in Jace; somehow her new friend kept drawing her gaze back to him, even though he was staring daggers at the moment. Looking at him, something clicked in Tessa’s brain.

Her first thought had been correct. Her visitor had something to do with being an Ascendant, she was pretty sure. Hadn’t Jace said something about this in his story? The wolf and the king lived together in one body, she remembered. This must be something like that. Her very own wolf had come to settle in her body, and she was making her wishes known.

At the moment though, Tessa couldn’t focus on that little development. She had spent the whole morning trying to figure out how to sneak away and call James to check in, to assure the Legion that she was holding up her end of the bargain. Well, all morning except the all-too-brief soul-drenching kiss she’d shared with Jace. No time to think about that now. This was her best chance to call James without Jace finding out.

“Here you go. Best hurricane daiquiri in the city!” Lesley said, passing them out. She had to force the white foam cup into Jace’s hand. In return he merely gave her a spiteful roll of the eyes.

“Uh, thanks,” Tessa said, taking an experimental sip from the bright red straw. It was kind of like frozen fruit punch, with deep notes of cheap rum. All in all, not bad.

“You like?” Lesley’s husband asked Tessa.

Tessa nodded and took another sip, trying her best to avoid eye contact with Jace.

“Lesley!” came a loud voice from the other side of the room. A young woman was waving her arms enthusiastically to get the neighbor’s attention.

“Sam! Omigod!” Lesley squealed, and pushed into the crowd with her husband in tow.

Tessa started to follow, only to stop short when a huge hand gripped her by the back of her neck. It wasn’t painful, but she couldn’t have broken the hold easily either.

Tessa rolled her eyes up to look at Jace, who had divested himself of his drink. He looked, if anything, even more pissed off.

“We’re leaving,” he ground out through gritted teeth.

“But we just got here!” Tessa protested, feigning surprise.

“We shouldn’t be here in the first place. It isn’t safe for us to be in a crowd like this. We’re completely exposed.”

“Who can find anyone in this crowd? Look, Lesley is already long gone. We’re hiding in plain sight. People camouflage,” Tessa argued.

“That is a very poor method of defense. We need to return to the safe house right now. I’ll carry you back if I have to,” Jace insisted.

“Alright Mr. Security Consultant,” Tessa mocked. “We’ll go. But can I at least use the ladies’ room first?”

Jace narrowed his eyes, suspicious.

“Can it wait the five blocks back to the house?” he asked, sarcastic.

“Nope! Be right back!” she said, pushing into the crowd toward the restroom sign. There was a short line, so Tessa waited until it was her turn. Then she slipped inside the bathroom and locked the small door after herself, glad that this was a single-person restroom.

Tessa pulled out the cheap prepaid cell. The Legion had given it to her as a way to contact them from the field. James picked up on the second ring.

“Where the hell are you, Tessa?” James hissed into her ear. Tessa sighed. James was even more of a buzz kill than Jace. How a bad guy could be such a worry wart was beyond her.

“I found one of them. Jace Copeland,” she said, trying to keep her voice down even though the bar outside was as loud as a riot. Who knew what Jace was capable of hearing?

“Are you safe?” James asked. He sounded concerned. Tessa snorted and rolled her eyes.

“I’m fine. I can handle him.”

“You have to be careful, Tessa. They’re powerful and very dangerous. Give us your location and we’ll bring him in today.”

Tessa paused, biting her lip.

“There is a chance that he’ll take me to the pack compound,” she said.

James was silent for a long beat before responding.

“The council will want all of them, if it’s possible. You can have more time in the field, but you need to check in with me as often as possible. You have to keep yourself safe.”

“Sir, yes, sir,” Tessa snapped, irritable at being leashed.

“I mean it, Tessa. If you mess this up or try to delay, the Council will kill your sister. Don’t try to put off the inevitable. Do it in one clean shot,” James warned.

“Is Camilla okay?” Tessa asked. She could hear herself, hear how small and frightened her voice had become.

“She’s… she’ll be okay,” he hedged.

“What the hell does that mean?” Tessa asked, feeling tears at the corners of her eyes.

“Just make sure you report to me, Tessa. Like clockwork. Do what you’re supposed to do. If you screw this up, all three of us are dead.”

The line clicked to signal that James had hung up.

Tessa cursed and wiped at her eyes, sticking the phone back in her purse. She hurried out of the bathroom, getting glares from the women in line for taking so long.

“Sorry,” she apologized as she squeezed her way back to the bar where Jace waited, looking pissed off.

When he caught sight of her, his eyes narrowed again in that now-familiar expression of suspicion. Still, he didn’t say anything about Tessa’s probably-puffy face and reddened eyes. Tessa was relieved.

“I’m ready,” she said.

Jace grasped her elbow and begun pushing his way through the crowd, pulling Tessa along behind him in his wake. When Jace moved forward, people worked hard to get out of his way. He might be a jerk, but at least he was good for crowd control.

Once they made it out of the crowd, Jace dropped Tessa’s arm and walked at a brisk pace that had Tessa half-running to keep up with him.

“Hey, not everyone has long legs here!” she protested, but her joke lacked conviction.

“Can we just get to the house?” Jace said, his voice cool as ice.

Tessa slowed a little bit in response, stung.

“Ass,” she accused.

Jace was silent as they turned onto the safe house’s block. Tessa gave a frustrated sigh and followed. She was so wrapped up in her anger that she actually smacked into his huge body when he stopped dead on the sidewalk.

“What—” she started, but Jace hushed her with a quick gesture. Tessa clamped her mouth shut, trying to spot whatever had him on high alert.

Jace stared down the street, and she followed his gaze. The safe house was a few houses down, quiet as expected. Tessa furrowed her brow, confused.

Jace motioned to get her attention, and then pointed to the door. It was ajar several inches. Tessa blinked; she had a specific memory of Jace slamming the door shut when they left.

Tessa lifted her eyebrows in a silent question: what now?

Jace pivoted and grabbed Tessa’s elbow again, leading her in the direction they’d just come. A couple of turns later, they were on Ronnie’s porch.

Rather than knock on the door, Jace rooted around in a small flower planter on the stoop, producing the keys he’d handed off to Ronnie earlier. He dug in his ever-present satchel for a high-end smart phone. Rather than dial, he spoke his command into the phone.

“Call Shaw,” he commanded.

Placing the phone between his ear and his shoulder, he went around the side of Ronnie’s house. Tessa followed him into a shaded backyard, bare except for a couple of the giant oak trees and a small steel shed that looked as if it might collapse any minute.

As Tessa waited, he began to discuss the situation with someone else. Shaw, he’d called him. Tessa was pretty sure Jace had labeled Shaw as the pack’s leader.

“Shaw, it’s Jace. Yeah, we’re blown. Someone is inside the safe house, but we didn’t stick around to see who. Yes.” Jace paused, listening.

“With your permission, I will bring the Ascendant.”

Another pause. Tessa tried to fill in the blanks of the one-sided conversation.

“Okay.”

Jace ended the call and slid the phone back into his satchel, then slid the bag off his shoulder and handed it to Tessa.

“Put this on. And this too,” he ordered, thrusting a helmet into her hands.

Tessa slid the strap over her head, hands shaking. She was too scared for humor, even. She pulled the helmet on as Jace threw open the doors to the shed, revealing his motorcycle. He wheeled it out and walked it back to the front driveway, Tessa following like a duckling.

Jace swung his leg onto the bike with practiced ease, starting the engine. Tessa was just settling herself behind him when a loud CRACK ripped through the air. Hot pain slithered up her arm. Tessa cried out, alarmed. Jace slapped her knee hard twice, motioning for her to hold on to him.

She slid her arms around his waist, trying to ignore the pain in her left arm. The second her hands were on him, Jace revved the engine and took off at an unbelievable speed.

Another CRACK, then CRACK CRACK as gunshots followed them. They were quieter this time, though. Farther away. Wonderful news, as far as Tessa was concerned.

Jace gunned the engine as they hit a straight stretch of road. He wove between cars as they went, blowing through stop signs and red lights. Tessa would have thrown up from fear in normal circumstances, but she was more focused on the horrible pulsing sensation from her injury. She could feel herself bleeding, and it was making her skin crawl.

Using her good arm, she stuck her hand in Jace’s satchel and felt around for something to control the bleeding. She managed to find a wad of scratchy paper towels, pressing them over the wound. Then she tugged his lightweight leather jacket from his satchel.

When they were forced to stop because of oncoming traffic, Tessa quickly slipped the jacket on over the satchel and her purse. At least this would hide the wound from prying eyes. It might also confuse her pursuers, if they were really dumb.

The last thing she remembered was willing herself to relax. She closed her eyes, praying that Jace would get them out of danger.