Sol: Luna Lodge #1
Read Sol: Luna Lodge #1 Online
Authors: Madison Stevens
Tags: #paranormal romance science fiction romance alpha male genetic engineering
Luna Lodge: Sol (Luna Lodge #1)
by
Madison Stevens
Erica Scott is good at sniffing out embezzlers, frauds and other financial criminals, or at least she was when she had a job.
After an unfortunate lay-off, her options are limited. One path is to work with a narcissistic creep, her best friend's boyfriend. The other is Luna Lodge, a place controlled by the mysterious hybrids, the super-soldier products of a horrific genetic engineering project.
Sol, a hybrid and the head of security at the lodge, doesn't know how much he can trust Erica. Suspicious that the woman may be a spy for his former masters, the sinister Horatius Group, he is determined to keep an eye on her, but his body wants a lot more than that.
When someone targets the lodge, the suspect list quickly grows. Sol and Erica will have to fight against their burning passion and keep their focus to save themselves and the lodge.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents depicted in this work are of the author’s imagination or have been used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locations, or events is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved.
Copyright 2013 Madison Stevens
No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without the prior written permission of the author.
Chapter One
Erica had an outfit for every occasion, except for today’s little trip.
“Move your ass,” Kate called from the living room.
She knew that Kate would probably bury her in the backyard if she didn’t pick out something soon.
“I can’t find anything,” Erica said, sifting through the clothes buried deep in the bowels of her closet.
“What?” Kate rounded the corner of the closet. Erica, still on the floor, looked up.
She knew she looked stupid sitting there with her peach-colored bra and matching thong, hidden barely by the broomstick skirt that had ridden up her pale thighs. She quickly wrapped her arms around her midsection to cover the slight bulge.
Kate narrowed her eyes and looked as though she was going to say something but shook her head instead.
“You really are a mess without me,” Kate said as she stuck out her hand. Erica took the offer and stood. Of course, this didn’t help her body issues. Where Erica was short and round, Kate was tall and lithe. Her blonde hair seemed to almost sparkle in the sun, which really annoyed the hell out of Erica. She scrunched her nose at the reflection to her right and sighed. If Kate had been anything short of an amazing person, Erica would have hated her with every fiber of her being.
“Do I really have to go?” Erica said as she silently cursed the way her rear stuck out.
Kate frowned slightly at Erica’s reflection.
“You know, not that many people are offered the chance to get in the lodge. This is a pretty big deal.” Kate turned to the racks of clothes and started sorting through them, her irritation indicated by her swift sliding of clothes.
“Yes, but—”
“No buts,” Kate said. “Mark was given an opportunity, and he chose to share it with us. This is huge.”
Kate turned with a black mini Erica had bought on a whim when she had been feeling daring. Today, she was anything but daring.
“This.” Kate handed over the dress. “And these.” She leaned over to snag the black pumps on the floor.
“Too short and those shoes cut off the circulation to my little toe,” Erica said. She could hear the whine in her voice but did little to stop it.
“That’s the price we pay. Now move it.” Kate pushed her toward the bathroom and didn’t stop until Erica grabbed the bathroom doorframe.
“But what about the rest?”
“I’ll pack. You get ready.” After one final push, Kate strolled back to the closet. “Mark will be here soon, and you know how he loves to wait,” she said with exaggerated sarcasm in her voice.
Erica set her things on the counter and looked in the mirror. It was hard to suppress the eye roll that followed the mention of Mark, the hotshot who not only knew he was hot but also knew he was a flaming ass and enjoyed it. She still couldn’t understand what attracted Kate to him. She was bright and fun and everything you found on a sunny day. Erica had come to the conclusion that the man must be one fantastic lover. Maybe he was hung like a horse. She shuddered with revulsion. It was not something she wanted to dwell on.
She set to work on her makeup. She had always hated her skin tone. Having deep auburn hair meant she was cursed with a peachy flesh tone and a smattering of freckles. She would never be able to wear the bright colors that she wanted and was instead left with boring earth tones. Not being a fan of her having hair down, she twisted it shoulder length on top of her head. A few hairs wisped along the nape of her neck, and she knew that by the end of the evening, they would be wound into tight curls. She couldn’t explain why, since her hair was straight, but she was prone to the formation of little ringlets around her face. Her mother used to tell her she looked like a sweet cherub, not really the look you wanted to go for as an adult. Men weren’t into hot flings with women that reminded them of sweet, chubby little angels.
Erica sighed as she resigned herself to the task at hand.
“So what’s the deal with this weekend?” she asked.
“Mark will pick us up,” Kate said from the other room. “He’s got the invites. So that should all go smoothly.”
There were already reports in the media about groups opposed to the recognition granted to the tribe and the land, both in and outside the government. It wasn’t setting up to be a warm welcome. Perhaps that is why they were so secretive and reclusive.
“What’s it supposed to be like?” Erica shouted from the closet.
“It’s just like any other lodge I guess. Well, except for the whole new tribe thing.” Erica peeked around the corner only to catch the cat-like glint in her friend’s eye.
Erica stepped into the room and plopped down on the bed next to the suitcase.
“I wonder what they are like.” Erica threw herself back on the bed.
Kate paused from packing to zip the case. “Have you seen their leader on TV?”
Erica nodded. Of course she had seen him, who hadn’t? The man was tall, muscular and had an air about him that made everyone stand at attention. His shoulder-length black hair, slightly tanned skin and brown eyes always gave her a little shiver.
On the whole, the tribe were a secretive lot. The leader she had seen on TV was so well-formed that he seemed like some sort of statue. Larger than most men, he rippled with strength. She shook her head to clear the arousing thoughts.
Kate caught her eye and grinned.
“I wonder if he is large all over,” Kate said.
“Oh, Kate.” Erica tossed the pillow next to her at her best friend’s head.
“What?” she said. “Like you weren’t thinking the same thing.”
Erica rolled her eyes as she sat up. “Not all of us can be pervs like you.”
Kate winked and pulled out her lip gloss.
“I wonder why we don’t see any of the others in the tribe?” Erica said.
“I heard that they don’t really like the media attention,” Kate said and smacked her lips. “They are supposed to be a really reclusive bunch. Most reports say they don’t even know for sure how many are even in the tribe.”
“What about his name? The leader that is. Titus.” Erica looked over at her friend, who seemed puzzled. “Well, it seems more Roman than anything.”
Kate rolled her eyes. “Yes, because every Native American must have some animal-related name or something. Really.” She stood and huffed. “Heritage has nothing to do with his name.”
Erica opened her mouth to reply just when she heard the knock at the door.
“That must be Mark,” Kate said. She grabbed Erica’s hand to yank her to her feet. “Let’s go.”
* * *
The trip was extra bumpy crammed in the back of the tiny Porsche. It didn’t help that Erica’s overnight bag was digging into her side. She gritted her teeth and tried to remind herself that this was a once in a lifetime trip.
“So, Mark,” Erica leaned toward the middle of the seats to be heard, “how did you get passes to the grand opening of Luna Lodge?”
“I’ve done a lot of work for some people on the committees for all this,” he said. The muscles in his jaw twitched. “It’s a good opportunity to make some connections.”
Erica frowned. Why did everything he said always seem so rehearsed? Just one more thing to add to the list she was building against him. Not that she would say anything. He wasn’t bad. He was just a dick, and that wasn’t enough to step in. Kate knew her feeling, and that was all that needed to be said. But if he screwed up, Erica would be all over that.
Kate turned to look at her.
“Mark has a lot of friends in the military and government.” She smiled sweetly when she turned to look at him.
Erica wanted to gag. It wasn’t really hard to be popular among those groups when you were a member of one of the top financial analysis firms that allegedly helped the government identify wasteful contractors.
She turned to stare out the window to slow her creeping irritation.
“How’s the job search going for you?” Mark asked. She could hear the smirk as he spoke.
“Fine,” she said tightly. She might not have people beating down her door, but the severance pay was still in place for another three months. Surely, that would be enough time. There was also the nice little nest-egg she had been saving. She could always fall back on that.
Mark sighed loudly. She had the urge to smack him on the back of the head.
“I’ve told you before,” he said. “My company would love to have you.”
“I’d much rather boost a company than help shut them down,” she said tightly.
Kate shot her a pleading look. Erica rolled her eyes but plastered a sickening smile on her face.
“But thanks again for the offer,” she said sweetly.
Mark stayed quiet and switched on the radio, silencing any more conversation.
Erica looked out the window at the leafless trees and light dusting of snow. She groaned inwardly. This was not how she wanted to spend this cold day, driving an hour away from home to be stuck at a lodge with a bunch of stodgy asshats at some boring conference.
* * *
Sol glared at his reflection in the mirror.
“Want to explain to me again why they fuck I have to do this?” He turned and watched as Titus slipped in the brown contacts.
“Because people don’t have yellow eyes,” Titus said, blinking a few times as the contacts slipped into place. “And their eyes don’t glow, mad or not.”
“No, the whole thing. Why can’t someone else do it?” Sol ran a hand through his chin-length pale blond hair.
Titus sighed. “Because no one else is TV ready.” Titus crossed his arms across his wide chest. “And, you’re my second in command. Now quit being such a pussy and put on the suit.”
Sol frowned. He really didn’t want to stand in front of everyone and wanted to wear a suit even less. Not to mention the contacts made his eyes burn and dulled his senses.
He groaned and grabbed the suit off the hanger.
“I wouldn’t have asked, if we weren’t under pressure,” Titus said at the mirror. “If we want to establish our freedom, we need to make a name for ourselves. People are already suspicious since I’m they only one they see.”
Sol buttoned up the crisp, white shirt and tucked it into his slacks.
“I still don’t like the whole thing. This is a bad idea and puts us in the public eye. I don’t see how we’re going to stay a secret if we’re mixing with people,” Sol said. He held up the tie and glared at it.
“That’s the point.” Titus took the tie and wrapped it around his neck. Sol watched as his leader twisted and looped until the tie took shape. After pulling it off, Titus handed it back to Sol. “We’ve been over this before. We aren’t going to be able to hide ourselves from the public for long and when that day comes, I want to make sure we’ll be in the best position possible.”
Sol slid the tie over his head and tucked it under his collar. “Do you really think they will ever accept us?”
Titus shrugged. “Many of Carver’s men have gotten used to us now and even hang out with some of the men on off-duty.”