I gave another nod, but my mind was far from the car. Between the guilt for my selfish choices and replaying Sebastian telling me that because I was unable to have children I was more valuable dead than alive, I felt like I could snap any second.
Aren touched my thigh. I turned, his gaze holding mine. “Are you all right?”
I shrugged. “Not really. I mean, I knew my life was on the line, but having it confirmed…” I bit off my words and prayed he wouldn’t push any further. My emotions swelled, but crying in front of someone was
Aren pulled up to a red light. “You didn’t tell him I was hiding your sister.”
“No. Sebastian’s father is business first, family second. They fight a lot and Sebastian’s relationship with his dad is definitely love-hate at best, but if he found out about Nadya, eventually his father would too. It would only be a matter of time.”
“I’m guessing since he hired this werewolf, he doesn’t trust his son either.”
“Sebastian is Severino’s oldest son, but he’s not the only son. He’s got to watch his back at Nero just as much as anyone else does. Maybe more.”
Aren nodded and drove through the intersection, watching the rearview mirror. I took a long slow breath, relieved as the emotional tidal wave subsided a little.
Outside, another light turned green as we approached. Aren gave the Lotus a little more gas, and my head pressed against the headrest. “Thanks for following my lead in there.”
“We’ve got to get back to Reno.”
I don’t know why I was expecting him to ask about the “notations” in my file, but the change in subjects surprised me. It took a second for my brain to shift back into gear.
“No, we can’t.” I shook my head. “It’ll lead them right to my sister.”
“No.” Aren’s gaze hardened. “It’ll lead him to my Pack. I can call Adam and have him take Lana, Nadya, and the twins out of town. One werewolf, even Special Forces, wouldn’t be a match for the group of us. We need the numbers. If this guy really is a Green Beret you and I can’t do this on our own. We’re going to need help.” Aren gripped the steering wheel tighter, every muscle in his arms contracting. “I know jaguars pride themselves on working alone, but there’s nothing stronger than a pack of werewolves. We’ll all work together and get him.”
I peered over at him, studying every line and angle of his face as he drove in silence. After all I’d done to him and his family, how could he possibly want to help me?
It had to be an act.
He pulled into the parking lot of our hotel and gave my hand a squeeze. “You’re awfully quiet over there. Are you waiting until I park to tell me to fuck off?”
Laughter bubbled out of me unexpectedly. “Am I that much of a witch?”
He parked and stared into my eyes. “I could get used to hearing you laugh.”
He kissed me then. It wasn’t the hungry, urgent kisses we shared after my shower. This time his lips caressed mine, savored them. He drew back before I was ready and whispered, “I could get used to kissing you too.”
A red-alert air horn went off in my head. I’d promised myself tonight would be a one-time-only scratch-an- itch kind of thing. We couldn’t be “getting used to” anything.
Aren got out of the car and was around to open my door for me before I could move. I took his hand and got out, annoyed to find my knees a little wobbly. Aren’s kiss was a dangerous weapon. Seeing the hint of a smile on his face tempted me to kiss him all over again, but I fought the urge. Apparently his smile was just as lethal.
“We should get inside.” I scanned the shadows of the parking lot. “We’re too exposed out here.”
Without a word, his fingers twined with mine, and we watched each other’s backs while we headed through the front door of the hotel. Nothing seemed out of place as we made our way to the elevators, but I couldn’t relax until we were inside. The doors closed, and I took a deep breath and met his eyes.
“
The elevator doors opened, and we walked down the hallway. He waited until we were in our room to answer. “I’m not promising it will be easy. In fact, I’m positive it’ll be ugly and a huge pain in the ass, but Adam will come around. The rest of the Pack will follow their Alpha’s lead.”
“Even if they don’t want to?”
His lips curled into a half smile. “Family is there for family. We’re a Pack through thick and thin.”
“You bringing me to Reno would probably stretch it thinner than ever.”
He took a step closer, his broad chest almost touching my body, and I felt my stomach flip-flop. “We’ll make it work.”
There was that “we” word again. My back pressed against the door as his hand came to rest at my hip. I started to tilt my chin up toward him, unable to resist the lure of his lips. His breath brushed my skin when he suddenly pulled back, frowning.
“What the hell is that?”
I turned and spotted a small red dot sliding down the wall toward my head. “Get down!” We crumpled to the floor just as a bullet sliced through the window and embedded in the thick hotel room door.
“Dammit!” Crawling on my elbows, I drew my Glock and peered over the windowsill. I held my breath, watching for any movement from the adjacent hotel. Finally, a shadow darted across the roof.
“Shit. He’s too far away.”
Aren already had the Beretta in his fist and was reaching for my hand. “He knows where we are. We need to get out before he’s inside the hotel.”
I glanced at his hand. “I thought you didn’t like guns.”
“They’re not my weapon of choice, but I’ll shoot if I have to.”
“Good to know.” I snagged my bag with my laptop and fake ID and hustled out. He nudged me toward the stairwell, but I hedged. “Your ankle.”
Shaking his head, he threw the access door open. “We can’t risk the elevator. I’ll live.”
Racing down the flights of stairs, I should’ve been thinking about our next move, weighing the possibilities of making it to Aren’s car if our attacker was waiting for us at the bottom. But instead, I kept wishing there was another way so that Aren wasn’t punishing his injured leg.
What was wrong with me?
By the time we hit the ground floor, he was right behind me. His face looked pale, covered in a sheen of perspiration, but he was there, jaw set, ready for our next move. I couldn’t ask for a more tough-as-nails partner when the chips were stacked against us.
“Can you run?” I asked. He raised his arm and wiped his brow on his bicep, then met my eyes and nodded. Drawing my gun, I reached for the door handle. “All right. Then we’ll run for the car. If he’s waiting for us, we’re going to have to take him out. Aim for his chest, it’s the easiest to hit.”
He tightened his grip on the Beretta and nodded.
“And don’t get shot,” I warned.
“Good plan.” Aren gave me a half smile that shored up my confidence. “Let’s do this.”
I flung open the door, sweeping the area with my gun as we scrambled for the car. Aren already had the locks free and jumped behind the wheel. I climbed in, and the side mirror exploded, showering me in glass.
“Go-go-go!” I shouted.
The Lotus roared, tires squealing as Aren ripped it out of the parking space. Burning rubber stung my nostrils as the front end of the car swung around. I could see the guy’s outline now, his face shadowed by the lights from the hotel behind him. As he readied for another shot into the windshield, Aren gunned the engine and we flew straight toward him.
I kept my eye focused down the barrel of my Glock. Waiting. Patient. Just a little closer.
I tightened my finger on the trigger and squeezed off my shot, but he dove to the side at the last second. My kill shot ended up grazing his shoulder as we blew past him.
But we were still alive. I checked Aren for any signs of gunshots.
He glanced at me. “No injuries here. You all right?”
