The Wolf Prince

CHAPTER 6

Surlock stared into the bathroom mirror. What had happened in there? For a moment, he’d been someone else. No, something else, and that something else had tried to take over his body. A deep shudder washed over him.

The humming grew louder in his ears. Not as loud as before, but enough that he knew it was there. Maybe he was crazy. Maybe the blow to his head had affected him more than he’d thought. Maybe … He scraped his fingers through his hair.

Who the hell was he?

He turned on the water, splashing some on his face. He didn’t belong here. He could feel it all the way to his bones. Could he be this secret agent man like the James Bond character? He’d remembered he was a hunter, but not much else.

Was he one of the good guys? There had been killers in the movie as well. Darcy had said they were the bad guys. If he could be one of the good guys, couldn’t he be a bad one just as well?

He jumped when someone tapp ed on the door of the bathroom. “Yes?”

“Are you okay?” Darcy asked.

He patted his face dry on the hand towel, tossing it on the counter. When he opened the door, he was in control again. “Yes, all better.” He smiled.

“You look worried,” she said. She took his hand and squeezed.

Worried? Surlock had thought he could hide what he felt from Darcy. Apparently not. She had easily picked up on his emotions. Again he wondered at the bond between them.

“I’ll find out who you are, don’t worry. The doctor said your memory would come back naturally. He said the humming you’re hearing might be from trying too hard to remember.”

“He’s probably right. There’s no pain now.”

His gaze swept over her. Darcy was fresh from the shower. She smelled sweet. He’d loved mating with her. She’d given as much as he had. By the gods, he didn’t want to hurt her if it turned out he was a criminal.

He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. Her skin was smooth, soft. She smiled and his pulse quickened. “Am I one of the good guys?” His voice sounded raspy.

“Of course, you’re one of the good guys,” she said softly.

“But how can you be sure?”

She stepped closer, and his arms automatically went around her, settling on her hips.

“You’re one of the good guys because I’d know if you weren’t. I have fantastic instincts. Besides, remember what you said? You’re here to protect someone, not hurt them. What kind of bad guy would protect someone?”

He sighed, knowing she was probably right. “I don’t feel like one of those killers in the movie.”

She leaned back and looked him in the eye. “Exactly.”

Her lips were too soft and inviting. He lowered his mouth to hers, then pulled her closer as he deepened the kiss. She was sweet and hot all mixed together, and he wanted her again. But he wasn’t sure he could go through another episode where it felt as though something was trying to possess him. He ended the kiss.

She took a deep breath, stepping out of his arms. “Wow, you’re a good kisser.”

He smiled.

She shrugged one shoulder. “Well, you are. I have a tendency to speak what’s on my mind. Unfortunately.”

“I like that about you.” He studied her for a moment. She was beautiful, sexy and very tempting. “Why did you need me to pretend to care about you? Men should be falling all over themselves to be your boyfriend.”

She abruptly turned and went to the machine that had played the movie, removing the disk. “Most of the men I’ve dated seem only interested in my money. The ones who haven’t been, well, they didn’t work out.” She put the round disk into the case and snapped it closed. “My parents will be joining me here in one month. I told my mother I had a boyfriend.”

“And this is important to your mother?”

She walked back over to where he stood. He liked the way she walked—smoothly, gracefully.

“Oh, yeah, it’s real important. My mother wants me married. She wants me to be a social butterfly.”

“You don’t want this?”

She shook her head. “I want to get my hands dirty. Do you know what I’m saying?”

He didn’t, but her expression said she hoped he would agree. “Yes,” he lied.

She exhaled a deep breath. “I’ll find out your identity, too. It’ll be the first real job I’ve ever had.” She glanced at her watch. “Ms. Abernathy should have lunch fixed. Let’s eat, then we’ll run down to the sheriff’s office.”

“You enjoy running?”

She smiled. “An expression. I’ll drive us in my car.”

He followed her out of the room. “What is at the sheriff’s office?”

“Jillian’s brother works there. She’s one of the maids. She called her brother and he said we could drop by this afternoon. He’s going to run your prints. If you’re in the system, we’ll know who you are.”

He gripped the railing on the staircase. “I need to keep my identity a secret.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Eddie will be discreet.”

His world felt as though it was unraveling around him. He wasn’t sure discreet would matter.

If he was supposed to keep his identity a secret, he was doing a great job. Even he didn’t know who he was. He had a feeling he needed to fill in the blanks as quickly as possible. Maybe Darcy could make it happen.

Darcy glanced at Surlock from the corner of her eye. He was hesitant when he got out of the car. Right now he looked at the sheriff’s building as if he was about to go to jail. She only hoped that she was right, and that Surlock was one of the good guys.

“It’ll be okay,” she told him. “I’ve known Jillian and Eddie a long time. Her brother will be careful when he runs your prints.” Of course, all bets were off if Surlock was wanted by the law. Eddie would have Surlock picked up and behind bars before she had a chance to get him out of the country.

She missed a step and stumbled. Surlock grabbed her elbow to steady her. Crap, would it come to that? Would she end up just as much a criminal?

No, that wouldn’t happen. She refused to even think about it as a possibility.

“It’ll be okay,” she said, more to reassure herself.

He nodded, but he still didn’t look too sure about any of this. Her instincts were usually spot on, which was why she wanted to open her own agency. There was no way Surlock could be the bad guy.

But who was he?

If he was supposed to protect someone, then who? Could he have been trying to do his job and maybe been captured? Robbed of everything he had, including his clothes? Had he somehow escaped? Great, then when he’d stepped out of the woods, she’d whacked him over the head, and added to his problems.

She only hoped the person Surlock was supposed to protect was okay, maybe in hiding. She’d hate to think she’d caused someone to be in more danger, or worse, killed. Ack, she didn’t even want to go there.

They stepped inside the dim interior of the building. It was a typical small-town sheriff’s office. The dispatcher’s cubicle was behind glass panels. There was a short hallway, the doors on both sides closed. On the other side were locked double doors that led to the jail and fingerprinting area.

Darcy knew the doors were locked because she’d been here before. If her mother ever found out, there would be hell to pay. Ohmygosh, her daughter had been near bad guys who were locked away because of the crimes they’d committed.

Usually the only crimes committed around here were minor. This wasn’t the big city. Summerville was only fifty thousand in population. It did have a nice country club and a few really good restaurants. But hardened criminals? Pftt… no.

“It’s like the receptionist at the doctor’s office,” Surlock said as he looked around the department.

“Similar, but with much different jobs.”

The glass window slid open. “I’m here to see Eddie,” she told the dispatcher.

“I’ll buzz him,” she said, then slid the glass closed again.

“What do they do here?” Surlock asked.

“They maintain order. Make sure the town is safe and secure.”

He nodded. “My brother Kristor does that.”

They looked at each other. “You remembered something.” She grinned. “That’s great. If your brother maintains order, then I bet he’s in law enforcement, and I really doubt you’re one of the bad guys.” She noticed he looked relieved by her observation. So was she.

There was a loud click and the heavy double doors opened. Eddie smiled at her. He was a nice-looking man. Tall, with bright orange hair, but the color seemed to suit him.

“Hey, Darcy, I haven’t seen you in a while. How’s it going in the P.I. business?”

She grimaced. “It isn’t.” Just as quickly, she brightened. “Until now. Surlock is my first case. I’m trying to help him find out who he is.”

Eddie nodded. “Oh, this is the guy you walloped.”

She inwardly cringed.

“I scared her,” Surlock spoke up. “She had a reason to knock me out. Next time, I’ll make sure I don’t step out suddenly in front of someone.”

Eddie laughed. “I don’t know, there are a lot of guys around here who wouldn’t mind if Darcy hit them over the head, especially if she nursed them back to health.”

“Are you one of them?” Surlock asked conversationally, but there was a rigid set to his jaw.

And the testosterone flowed. Sheesh.

“Nope, my wife would kill me if I looked twice at another woman. Not that I would. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

Surlock looked at Darcy with a question in his eyes. She realized he didn’t know the term wife. “A wife is like a … a mate. They’re bound together by love.”

Surlock relaxed and they went to the back. The light was dim, and apparently the prisoners had been cleaning because there was a distinct smell of disinfectant in the air.

Eddie stopped at a desk. “I’ve got everything ready. I’ll get the prints, then call you when the results come in. Now, if we were in the city, this wouldn’t take long at all, but our equipment is a little dated. Still, it shouldn’t be more than twenty-four hours.”

Eddie took Surlock’s hand and inked a finger, then pressed it on the paper. When he finished printing all his fingers, he handed Surlock a tissue. “That’s it.” He closed the inkpad and casually asked, “You going to be around for a while?”

“Yes, I have nowhere to go.”

“Good.” His gaze met Surlock’s. For a moment they just stared at each other.

Darcy looked between the two and knew they were taking each other’s measure. Eddie suddenly smiled, relaxing. Apparently, Surlock had passed his test.

“As soon as the results come in, I’ll call Darcy,” Eddie repeated, then walked back to the heavy doors and opened them. “Take care, Darcy. Surlock, it was nice meeting you. We’ll do everything we can to help.”

They left the sheriff’s office and walked back to her car. Surlock was quiet.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

He stopped at the passenger door. “No, it wasn’t bad at all. I liked your friend.”

She grinned. “His wife is very nice, too.”

“What?”

“You were jealous.”

He frowned.

“Do you know the word?”

“Yes.” He opened the door and got in. When she was inside, he glanced across the seat. “I was jealous until I knew he had a mate.”

She hadn’t expected him to admit it. It was kind of nice knowing that he cared. “Want to get something to drink?”

“Yes.”

A man of few words. She eyed him as she backed out of the parking space. But sexy as hell.

There was a Sonic a couple blocks over. She drove to it, then pulled into a parking spot, and rolled the windows down before turning off the key. “What would you like?”

“I don’t know.”

She pointed to the menu. “This is what they have.”

He moved closer to her, close enough that she could feel the heat coming off his body. Their gazes met and held for a moment. She saw his mouth move, but her brain was in a fog and she didn’t hear what he’d said.

“What?” she asked.

His grin was slow and lazy.

Ass.

“I asked what was good,” he repeated.

She drew in a deep breath, but caught his earthy scent. She quickly turned to the menu. “I like the lemon-cherry slush.”

“Then that’s what I’ll have.”

She cleared her throat. “I just need to give them our order.” She quickly leaned out the window and pushed the button.

“Welcome to Sonic, I’ll take your order whenever you’re ready,” a pleasant voice announced over the speaker.

Darcy gave the girl their order. Surlock had already moved to his side of the car. A shame. She didn’t mind a bit that he’d been in close proximity. It had been very nice.

Damn it, she just had to discover Surlock’s identity. She sent up a silent prayer that he would turn out to be one of the good guys. But wouldn’t she know if he was bad? She hoped her instincts were that good.

Their drinks came and she paid for them, then handed one to Surlock. After the carhop left, she showed Surlock how to insert the straw. “Now you suck on it,” she said, then demonstrated.

He tried and managed to get a drink. “This is good,” he said, taking another big swallow.

“I like them,” she said.

Suddenly, he set his drink down and grabbed his head.

“The humming? Did you bring the eardrops?”

“No, no, it’s something new. My head feels as if it’ll explode. The pain is almost unbearable.”

“No! This isn’t good. I’ll get you to the hospital and …”

He lowered his hands. “It stopped.” He looked surprised. “It wasn’t like before. There was no loud humming.” He reached for his drink.

She chuckled when she realized what had happened.

“What?” he asked.

“I think you’ve just experienced your first brain freeze.” When he still looked puzzled, she explained, “You drank your slush too fast. The cold rushed to your head, which created a brain freeze.”

“My brain froze?’

“Technically no. It feels like it, though. Drink the slush a little slower.”

“I like the taste.”

“So do I, but I hate brain freeze.”

He picked up his drink again and took a slower drink this time. His expression turned solemn. “Do you think when Eddie checks my prints, he’ll find something?”

“I don’t know.”

He nodded. When he looked at her again, he was smiling. “But I do remember I have a brother named Kristor.”

“Yes, you do.” She could see the worry behind the smile. She worried, too, but for more than one reason. There was a muted humming in her ears. Why, after so many years, had it returned?