The ill-fitting headphones did nothing to dispel his theory that technology was of the devil and only complicated mankind, rather than helped it. If the damned things continued to get wound up in his hair, all while pinching his ears, he was going to return them to PSI in pieces.
While his hearing was off the charts in comparison to a human’s, zeroing in on what was happening within the dwelling across the street was a bit out of his capabilities. In fully shifted form, he’d hear much more, but even as a bear, he’d only pick up on someone shouting or yelling within Liberty’s house.
At the thought of that happening, his bear stirred.
Rurik’s concern for the young woman as well as his inability to stop thinking about her was worrisome. He had a job to do—one that involved spying on her—but he was close to telling his higher-ups to go fuck themselves.
She wasn’t a threat.
Neither were her friends.
Isobel was still on her date. Daisy was at the conference. Liberty was home alone, and Rurik had to keep fighting the urge to go to her, to take her in his arms and ravish her.
Focus.
He moved his head side to side, as if the motion would somehow dislodge the endless loop of thoughts centering around Liberty from his head.
It didn’t work.
All it did manage to do was make the already uncomfortable headset get caught in his hair more.
“Fucking things,” he muttered, doing his best to unwind them from his hair while resisting the urge to crush them.
He aimed the dish toward one of the many front-facing windows and glanced down as he focused, trying to sort out the sounds coming through the headset. After a few seconds he managed to do just that. The first thing he heard was all the fans. The next was a blender or mixer of some sort. Over the loud noise he could faintly hear Liberty humming a lighthearted tune.
His cock took notice and did its best to point in the direction of the house as well. It’s like the appendage understood exactly where the object of his desire was located. Had it been free from his jeans it would have been at full mast. Before today, it had been a while since that had happened.
A long while.
Oddly, sex had been a major part of his life at one point and then it had just fallen off his list of priorities or needs. It was evident the need was back and with a vengeance. Though he didn’t want to fill the void with just anyone as his bed partner. He wanted one woman and one woman only.
The one he was eavesdropping on.
I’m an asshole.
With his head still tilted downward, Rurik did his best to ignore the continued sound of the kitchen appliance in order to focus fully on the humming.
He wasn’t proud of the fact he was turned on by what sounded a lot like the national anthem, but it was what it was, and his dick didn’t much care one way or another. It simply wanted the person doing the humming.
Another pang of guilt moved through him at the idea he was violating Liberty’s privacy even with as turned on as he was. Part of the conflict came from his unnatural pull to her. There was something there, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on about her. It was as if he’d known her all her life and had been just waiting for their paths to cross once more.
That was absurd.
He’d never met her before his current mission. Forgetting her would have been impossible. He’d remember her and the taste of her lips long after this assignment was over. When she was nothing more than a footnote in a report that he’d no doubt run behind on filing with the home office.
He closed his eyes, already mourning the loss of her in his immediate orbit when it had yet to even occur. The idea of never seeing her again jarred him, leaving him yanking off the headset and tossing it onto the bed near him. He put the microphone down a little gentler but not by much. He didn’t care how expensive the equipment was.
Rurik pulled a hand over his face as his stomach tightened. Briefly, he feared he’d be physically ill, yet he couldn’t understand why the thought of being away from Liberty would cause such a reaction in him.
The smallest of niggles started in the back of his head and then things began to line up for him. It was as if his brain had finally deemed him worthy of seeing the information he’d been soaking in the entire day.
The unnatural pull to her.
The instant attraction.
The inability to get her out of his mind.
The fact that his cock was locked in on her location as if it were ready for a missile strike.
The insane way he’d reacted when he’d gotten the note from Bill informing him Liberty was in danger.
Rurik’s eyes widened as a line of Russian came flooding from his mouth.
He’d seen a number of his brothers-in-arms meet their mates in recent weeks. Each one had seemingly lost their minds upon meeting the women they’d been destined for—their mates.
His gaze snapped up, his attention going directly to one of the windows across the street. Could he be on to something? Was he showing the same signs of mating insanity?
No.
If Liberty was his mate, he’d know, right? He’d have the urge to claim her.
As the notion entered his mind, the bear in him made itself known, causing his gums to burn with a pending shift, as if his teeth were totally on board with the idea of sinking into her tender flesh while he drove himself into her.
“Fuck,” he spat, taking a large step back as he swung his arm out wildly, hitting the equipment he’d tossed
