Go Fetch

Chapter Two

“So is Conall picking you up at the airport?”

Miki’s hands balled into fists over her keyboard and her teeth clenched together. How many times were Sara and Angelina going to mention that man? It was bad enough she couldn’t forget him. Bad enough she was jacking off to him in her sleep. The hardest thing she’d ever had to do was walk away from him that night at the rave. But she knew what guys like him could do. Guys with innocent smiles and all the right words. They came into your life, turned it completely upside down, and then left you. Alone, pregnant and bitter. At least that was how it had worked for her mother.

“If you mention that motherfucker one more goddamn time I am going to kick your ass all over this fuckin’ airport.”

Angelina calmly stared at her over her sour apple martini. “Hmm. Those sound like the tense cuss words of a woman that needs to get laid.”

Miki snarled. She seemed to do that a lot around Angelina these days. Mostly because she wouldn’t stop mentioning “Sweet, adorable Conall”.

How anyone could think that man was sweet was beyond her. Not with those eyes of his. Those beautiful blue eyes were anything but innocent. The man was a marauder. A conqueror. And he was looking at Miki like unclaimed territory in ancient China.

“We’re not having this discussion again.”

“Okay. Fine.” Angelina was silent. For about fifteen seconds. “But you do know that a vibrator can’t really be your boyfriend.”

Miki dropped her head into her hands. “I will not discuss Mr. Happy with the likes of you.”

Angelina sighed. “I find the fact that you named your vibrator disturbing on so many levels.”

“Best relationship I’ve ever had.”

Angelina sipped her martini and eyed Miki over her glass. Miki picked up her Shirley Temple and stared back.

“I didn’t know insanity ran in your family, Kendrick.”

“We got it from yours, Santiago.”

Angelina crossed her legs and Miki immediately looked around to watch the men watch Angie. Remarkable. The woman had the ability to distract every man in the room and she never seemed to notice. Or care.

“So, did you talk to Sara today?”

Relieved Angelina decided to back off the Conall discussion and not wanting to hit a beautiful woman in the face with her laptop computer, Miki answered, “Like four times. You’d think I wouldn’t be seeing her in a few hours.”

“I don’t know why you’re going to her house first. Why aren’t you flying straight to Seattle?”

“Sara booked the tickets. She arranged this little stopover. I guess she misses me.”

“Well, you’ll like her place. It’s nice. Just needs a porch.”

Angelina had already been to Sara’s new home in Northern California. Miki hadn’t gone, instead opting to stay in Texas and plow through her thesis rewrites. She knew Sara understood, but she also knew Sara had been hurt. She missed her two friends, almost as much as they missed her.

“Whatever. At least I’ll have a place to relax before I head up to Seattle. I’m already so stressed about all this shit. I keep rereading my notes and analyzing my thesis.”

“And writing lists.” Angelina gave her a warm smile. “Don’t worry, Mik. You’re going to be great.”

“And what if I blow it, Angie?”

“What if you do? So? The world won’t end.”

Close enough. She had her whole future riding on this. Angie would never understand. Everything always came so easy to her. And Sara, being the canine that she was, never really asked for much. Miki, however, was being left behind and she knew it.

But not anymore. An assistant professor position at the university was hers once her dissertation was completed. She simply had to make sure she didn’t blow it. The fact they wanted her at all still amazed her. She and her Seattle friends were infamous. Not only in the university where she got her undergrad and graduate degrees. But in schools across the country. From the time she dumped her clothes on the dorm room floor her freshman year, she’d been up to all sorts of hijinks and shenanigans.

Surprising to many, Miki only got busted once. In high school. The judge could have sent her off to juvenile detention or even tried her as an adult, but her mother had died the year before and the entire town turned out to make a plea on her behalf. Sara had even shown up using crutches. She’d never used crutches before in all the years Miki had known her up to that point. But there she stood in front of the judge, making a tearful plea for Miki while leaning on her pitiful crutches. It was quite the display and Miki would have laughed her ass off if she hadn’t been scared to death she was going to prison.

In the end, she got one year of house arrest and three years of no computer or phone use. You would think that would have been enough to get her to keep the hijinks to a minimum once she got to college. Yet when you’re eighteen, you always think you’re untouchable. And for some unknown reason, she had been. The Feds couldn’t find anything to nail her with and they’d tried. Then Miki disappeared. Okay, not really. She just went home. She had only begun working on her graduate degree when her grandmother became ill. At twenty-one she had no idea what the hell she wanted to do with the rest of her life anyway and could easily finish her degree long distance. She thought a year home would help.

But it was eight years and two master’s degrees later and Miki was still trying to figure out what the hell she was going to do with her life.

“Trust me,” Angelina insisted. “You’ll be fine.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Angelina grinned. “You know a massage would really help you relax.”

Miki liked the sound of that. Maybe she had a few extra bucks in her tragically poor bank account to hit one of those fancy spas up near Sara.

“And dirty, filthy monkey sex with a hot guy like Conall is good, too.”

Miki slammed her drink down on the table. “All right, let’s analyze this, shall we?”

Angelina’s head fell back. “Oh, God. Not the analyzin’.”

“Let’s say I go and have hot monkey sex with the Viking.”

Angelina looked at her. “Who?”

“Conall.”

“Okay. You do. You work him out of your system and then it’s over. And then everybody can go about their day and you can learn to fuckin’ relax.”

“Problem is that unlike you and Sara, I have a problem with fucking whatever comes along.”

“Hey! I think I was insulted. Bitch.”

“No, really. I get attached. Emotionally. It’s this flaw I have. So, then I’ll have to see this fucker every holiday I go up there. He and his wolf buddies will nudge each other and give me that ‘I had her’ look, while I’m forced to pretend that I’m okay.”

“You have analyzed this.”

“That’s what I do, Angelina.”

“Fine. You wanna live life alone and bitter, be my guest.”

“Trust me. Fucking the Viking isn’t going to change the living alone and bitter thing one bit.”

“Whatever.”

Miki heard them announce final boarding for her flight and the relief nearly floored her. Hopefully by the time Angelina arrived in Northern California, she’d have found a new topic. Miki really would hate to have to kill such a close friend.

“Come on, sassy girl. Let’s get your ass on a plane.” Angelina finished off her drink.

Miki slipped her computer into her bag and stood up.

Angelina did the same and slammed into a businessman trying to step around their table.

“Sorry, darlin’.” Miki felt that voice. She looked up and continued to look up at what her grandmother would have termed “a tall drink of water”. Once her head was firmly all the way back, she finally saw his face. He was breathtakingly handsome. Dark, dark hair with hints of red and a few streaks of white, but was definitely their age, maybe a year or two older. Gold eyes with green flecks, the lids slightly slanted. And a sexy smile. Basically, trouble with a penis. But he was well groomed. Clearly wealthy if his ten-thousand-dollar titanium watch and alligator-skin briefcase were any indication. And, not surprisingly, he was interested in Angelina. What was surprising was the two men with him. They looked exactly like him. All brothers apparently. Which meant that somewhere out there a couple existed who created these three gorgeous specimens. Amazing.

“You all right, sugar?” Didn’t help that sexy voice was Southern. Miki would place him around the Carolinas or Alabama. Georgia maybe. Wherever he hailed from, guys with Southern accents did things to her and her two friends that any other accent simply couldn’t touch.

Angelina stared. “Uh…”

Miki’s eyes widened. Never, ever, in the twenty years she’d known her, had Angelina been at a loss for words over a man. Any man.

Miki slung the bag over her shoulder. “Sorry about that. We need to get to my plane.”

“No problem. Y’all can slam in to me any time.”

He may have said “y’all” but he clearly meant only Angelina. Who still hadn’t quite found her voice yet. They called Miki’s plane again. She had to go or she’d miss her flight and never hear the end of it from Sara.

She couldn’t leave Angelina, though. Not with this one. Definitely not with all three.

“Hey, Ang. We need to go.” She grabbed her friend’s arm and tugged. When that didn’t seem to work, she yanked.

Angelina snapped out of her stupor. “Uh…oh, yeah. Yeah. We better get moving.” She glanced at Southern Charm. “Sorry.”

“Not at all.” Then he and his tailor-made suit walked off. Miki knew it was tailormade because they simply didn’t make suits in that size for off-the-rack. His two brothers, with a leer at Miki, followed.

“You all right?”

“Yeah.” Angelina shook her head. “Yeah. I’m fine, dude.”

“I couldn’t leave you with him, ya know.”

“You think every tall guy is either Pride or Pack.”

“I don’t know what he is. But Sara and her Pack have pissed off some major players.”

“And yet you’re trotting off to Seattle by yourself.”

“First off, I don’t trot. Second, I can take care of myself. Always have. Always will. I don’t need babysitters. Besides I’m not the one in danger of becoming the love slave of some shapeshifter.”

Angelina finally snapped back completely. “You’re kidding, right? With Lassie on your tail?”

“Shut up.”

Conall checked his watch. Again. Soon his personal wet fantasy would be here. He wondered if it would be inappropriate to tackle her in the hallway as soon as she arrived and drag her up to his bedroom. Probably. Damn human etiquette.

He heard the glass doors leading to the back of the house slide open, and then he heard Zach. “Either you control that mutt or I’ll have him go play fetch on the freeway. Your choice, woman.” He slammed the door shut.

Zach walked over to Conall and, with a heavy sigh, sat down on the bench beside him.

Conall wasn’t buying it for a second. “Don’t even try and pretend like she annoys you.”

“She’s making my life a living hell.”

“She’s the best thing to ever happen to this Pack. And God knows, she’s the best thing to ever happen to you.”

“Yeah, I know.” Sara Morrighan had only been Zach’s mate and the Pack’s Alpha Female for six months, but it had been the best six months the Pack had known for years. She wasn’t normal. Even by wolf standards. But her odd view of everything was infectious. The females worshipped her and feared her in equal amounts while the males knew not to push her patience. Still, they appreciated that she took the jagged edges off Zach. He was still a ball buster, but a much friendlier one. She’d even gotten the respect of the older wolves who didn’t live in the main house, which was usually damn near impossible.

Conall checked his watch and Zach chuckled.

“How long before she gets here?”

“Two hours. Six minutes. And thirty-four seconds.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re not all wound up about it.”

Oh, I’m wound all right. Tight. He never stopped thinking about her. Wanting her. He was dying to know exactly what kinds of things got her off. Sucking her nipples? Licking her clit? Or something more simple? His hands in her hair? His tongue in her ear?

Zach had thrown every available female from the club scene at him. He wanted Conall to lose interest in what he termed “Sara’s big-mouthed friend,” but none of the women held his interest. Conall only wanted Miki. And he couldn’t wait until he had her tight little butt naked and on his lap.

“She’ll come around,” he stated with as much conviction as possible.

“She’s human, Conall. You should go for a nice wolf girl.”

Conall looked over at his best friend and the Alpha Male of the Magnus Pack. Bite marks and bruises riddled the man’s body. And Conall knew from when they shifted after hunting that claw marks covered the man’s back. It was true, Sara rocked Zach’s world. But she also chewed the shit out of him while doing it. Conall would rather have sex that didn’t involve bloodletting. At least not as much. “I’m not looking for marriage here, Zach. I just want to fuck her until one of us dies.”

“Well…that’s a goal. But if you ask me she’s rude. Loud. Short.”

“She’s direct. Confident. Petite.”

“Man, do you have it bad.”

Conall didn’t bother denying it because they both knew it was true.

“By the way.” He decided to change the subject since talking about Miki only made him hard. “We had some visitors on our property last night.”

He could feel Zach tense next to him. His only objective was to protect his mate. Zach would destroy anyone who threatened her.

“Who?”

“Not sure. But it’s the same scent as the one from the rave.”

“Great. Just what I fucking need.”

“They weren’t here long. Jake’s stupid but he was on them pretty fast.”

“On who pretty fast?”

Conall and Zach looked up to see Sara standing in front of them, a stack of mail in her hand. She’d really gotten stealthy lately, learning how to stay downwind.

“Nothing,” Zach grunted.

Sara sighed and squeezed in between the two of them on the bench. “You’re lying to me. I really hate that.” She laid her head on Zach’s shoulder. “You might as well tell me now, mate. I’ll just get it out of you later.”

“I’m never sure if those are threats or promises.”

With a low growl, she bit Zach’s shoulder. Zach winced as she drew blood. “It’s both.” She retracted her canines.

Conall knew if he didn’t say anything he’d have to witness the Alpha pair’s idea of foreplay—wrestling. All they were missing were the ring and the announcer.

“Something in our territory last night. Not sure what, though.”

“Bunnies?” she asked hopefully, and Conall heard Zach growl.

He laughed. Sara always made him laugh. She was a wacky girl.

“Probably not. Not too many bunny shifters.”

“So you say. Well, whatever was in our territory should be dead. Are they dead, Conall?”

Zach and Conall looked at Sara, then at each other. The woman was dangerous. She didn’t tolerate outsiders on the Pack’s property. She didn’t tolerate threats to her Pack. She didn’t tolerate anything she deemed a danger to who and what she loved. She wasn’t a hunter like Conall or Kelly or any of the other Pack members. Sara Morrighan was a stone-cold killer. She knew it and she liked it.

“No, but Jake scared them off.”

“I want Angie and Miki safe when they’re here.”

“They will be,” Zach assured her.

“And you better stay close to Miki for me, Conall. You know, for safety.”

Zach groaned. “Very subtle, mate.”

“I don’t know what you mean. I’m only thinking about my friend’s safety.” If you didn’t know her, you would have thought she was being completely sincere.

Sara handed a stack of mail to Zach. “Here.” Then she handed a small, card-sized envelope to Conall.

Zach examined the stack in his hand. “Why are there bite marks on these?”

“Roscoe got to the postman before I could.”

There was that deep sigh Zach seemed to do a lot since Sara came into his life. He also rubbed his eyes with his palms, making Sara smile and wink at Conall.

“Did he bite the postman?”

“No. He just ripped the mail from his hand. And then the postman ran away—like a little girl.”

“Get rid of that dog.”

“No.”

Conall opened his envelope while Zach and Sara had their weekly fight over “the dog” as Zach called him. He glanced at the card, crumpled it up, and tossed it into the bushes. It took him a minute to realize he now had Zach and Sara’s full attention.

“Everything okay?”

Conall shrugged at Zach’s question. “It’s from my cousin.”

Just like that, Zach stopped caring. He knew Conall’s family, and he didn’t like them. So, he began to open the stack of bills. Sara, however, was a different story. You couldn’t put off her curiosity with a crowbar.

“What’s wrong with your cousin?”

“Nothing.”

“Again with the lying. You know I hate that.”

Zach grinned at that.

“What was the card about?”

“He wants me to visit the family. But I think I’d rather set myself on fire.”

“That seems extreme. And unnecessary. We’re your family. Fuck them.” Sara Morrighan was quite the delicate flower. “Do you want to go see them?”

“No.”

“Then I’m forbidding you to go. Because I’m Alpha Female and, apparently, I can do that.” Not that she ever would unless he wanted her to. Right now, though, he wanted her to.

“Damn you, woman,” he playfully chastised. “I guess I’m stuck here, huh, Zach?”

“I’m not facing those friends of hers on my own.”

“What did I say?” Sara snapped. “I want you to be cheery when you see my friends.”

“I don’t do cheery.”

“You will if you want to do me.”

To Zach’s annoyance, Conall laughed at that. The woman never gave Zach an inch. And Conall knew Zach wouldn’t have it any other way.

Sara turned back to Conall. “Now I’m insisting you be here because my birthday’s coming up and I expect a party. I’m thinkin’ Texas barbeque and line dancing.”

Zach growled again. “I am not line dancing.”

Conall nodded. “Then line dancing it is!” He ignored Zach’s glare as Sara bumped Conall with her shoulder and he bumped her back. The woman was like the psychotically dangerous little sister he never had.

Staring at the paperwork in his hand, Zach snarled, “What the fuck is going on with this friggin’ water bill?”

Miki stepped out of the limo and stared. “Are you sure this is the right address?”

“Yes, ma’am. I do all the pickups for Mr. Sheridan.”

“But this isn’t a house.” A mansion. A castle. A palace. But not a house.

“I’ll get your bags, ma’am.”

Miki nodded as she continued to stare at Sara’s new home. A huge building on its own sprawling range of land. Next to the house was an enormous garage filled to overflowing with choppers of every shape and description as well as a couple of pickup trucks and SUVs. She recognized Marrec’s bikes immediately. Seemed the Pack was giving Sara’s surrogate dad a ton of business.

She couldn’t believe this. How could Sara be living here? Sara who was happy with a book and soda. Sara who happily worked at Marrec’s place for fifteen years and “C’d” her way right through high school and junior college. How could that Sara now be living in a place where the drive from the gate to the house alone took almost ten minutes?

Miki remembered one of Angelina’s last comments to her: “You’ll like her place. It’s nice. Just needs a porch.”

A porch?

The front door opened and Sara appeared. Physically, she was a little different. Leaner. Her hair much longer, almost to her waist. But she was still Sara with her worn jeans, battered Harley-Davidson T-shirt, and old cowboy boots. Sara’s face lit up as soon as she saw Miki and Miki hated herself for waiting so long to come see her friend.

“Dude!” Sara charged down the stairs and straight to the limo, tackling Miki and knocking them both back into the vehicle.

Sara’s laughter and excitement were infectious and, before Miki knew it, she was hugging her friend back and squealing right along with her.

“You bitch! I thought you’d never come!” Sara stood, grabbed Miki’s hand, and dragged her back out of the car. She hugged her again.

At the same time they both said, “Your hair’s longer.”

Then they started laughing.

“Where would you like me to put the bags, Mrs. Sheridan?”

Sara froze, a vicious growl bubbling up from low in her gut. “The name is Ms. Morrighan. You call me Mrs. again and I will squeeze your balls until you’re dead. Now throw the fuckin’ bags in the hall.”

“Yes, ma’am.” The driver hustled Miki’s bags away.

“Well, I’m glad to see you finally got your aggression under control.”

Arms around each other they walked back toward the house. “I think he does that shit on purpose.”

“What’s the big deal? You are going to marry him, right?”

“Why?” And Sara actually meant that. “I mean, we’re marked. It’s not like either of us is going anywhere. Besides…” She held up her right arm, a stunning tribal tattoo covered most of it. “We got matching ink.”

Sara and Zach were definitely an interesting couple. Miki was still recovering from Sara’s call five months before when she excitedly told her friend she and Zach had “done the deed”. Miki thought that meant they’d rushed off to get married. But leave it to Sara…they’d both gone to the hospital and gotten sterilized. Perfectly matched shapeshifters who never wanted to breed. It was kind of sweet in a bizarre paranormal kind of way.

“Such a beautiful declaration of love. You’re like rock stars now.”

“Sarcastic bitch. God, I missed that.”

Sara grabbed Miki’s jacket and dragged her into the house. Miki had never seen Sara with so much energy. And the woman couldn’t stop smiling. Finally Sara found where she belonged and Miki couldn’t be happier for her.

“So whatcha think of the house?”

“I think it’s a fuckin’ mansion.”

“Yeah, I guess. But it needs a porch.”

Once inside, Miki gawked, her mouth open in awe. It was more amazing inside than out. Their hallway actually had marble floors and mile-high ceilings. A winding stairway sat opposite from the huge oak doors that led into the sunken living room.

“Your room is up those stairs. Second door on the left. This is the living room. It’s got a gigantic TV. I watch all the football games on that.” Sara dragged her down the hallway. “This here’s the kitchen. Nice, huh?”

“Shame you can’t cook.”

“Excuse me, but I make a mean chicken and dumplings.”

“And that’s all you make.”

Miki suddenly found herself in another Sara hug. The girl had really gotten strong and clearly hadn’t quite learned how to control it. Much more and she’d crack Miki’s ribs.

“I missed you so much.”

“Sara—”

“And I can’t wait until Angie gets here. Then the three of us will be back together again.”

“You’re killing me.”

“Oh. Sorry.” Sara quickly released her. “Hey. I gotta introduce you to somebody. Hold on.” Sara ran outside and Miki looked around the stainless steel kitchen with its Italian tile. She whistled in appreciation.

“I’m glad you like it.”

She screamed and jumped back about three feet. “Fuck, Zach! Make some goddamn noise, why don’t ya?”

“Get used to it, sweetness. We all do it.”

They both sneered at each other.

Zach looked her up and down. “Nice boots.”

Miki picked up an orange from a bowl on the counter. She tossed it across the enormous room. “Go get it, boy! Go get it!”

Zach gritted his teeth, his eyes narrowing dangerously. She wondered what Sara had made him promise to keep him from coming across the counter for her. This could prove to be fun.

“So, Zach.” She grinned. “Where are your old Alphas, Yates and Casey? Or did you just kill ‘em, eat their carcasses, suck the marrow from their bones, and then roll around in your own filth in an orgy of blood and death?”

Zach glared at her.

“What?” She shrugged innocently. “I’m just askin’.”

“They’re in DC opening a new club, you psychotic little…”

Miki chuckled, ignoring whatever he was calling her and turned back to the glass sliding doors. She saw Sara calling something over.

“Oh, dear God!” Miki spun away, turning to Zach in horror. “What the hell is that?”

“That’s her dog.”

“Dear God, man, what were you thinking? You can’t let that thing in your house. It’s a mutant!”

“She found it on the side of the highway. Had to have it.”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“Nothing, really. Except for his short stubby front legs, his very long back legs, and freakishly large head. His sloping back. And, of course, he’s missing an eye.”

Sara returned, tragically with the dog. “And this is your Aunt Miki.” Miki stared down at the beast. “Mik. This is Roscoe T. Budsworth.”

“Roscoe T. Budsworth? That’s the best you could do?”

“That’s a wonderful name. It has prestige.”

Zach looked down at the dog. “No matter what you call him that is still one ugly fucking dog.”

Sara glared at Zach as she leaned over and covered up Roscoe’s long, floppy ears. “You be nice to him!”

“You’re lucky I’m being nice to her.” Zach glared at Miki. “Later, Tinker Bell.”

“Later, jackoff.”

With one last glare, Zach walked out of the kitchen.

Sara crouched down next to Roscoe and rubbed his shiny coat. “You told him to go fetch, didn’t you?

“I didn’t actually use those words…”