Slade, Book 1 in Team Greywolf Series Page 9

  “I already faxed him the details. His team is on their way to Colorado.”

  Slade’s curiosity piqued. Did Enforcer Dominic take his human mate and Cricket’s best friend with him? A wolf rarely strayed too far from his beloved mate.

  “Read over your assignments. If you have any questions or concerns, speak up now.”

  Slade opened his manila folder, which included a driver’s license, and a credit card. His false ID read, Slade R. Smith. His bio detailed his current job: bar bouncer. On vacation, travelling with his girlfriend to unearth info on her brother Randi. Slade’s real pack surname was Frederickson, a name that would disappear into oblivion if he never took a mate. Even more reason to play it cool around team member Cricket. His confused feelings about her had to do with sexual frustration, and nothing remotely close to being mates.

  Trevor leafed through his docs and then addressed Rylee. “Any reports from Cricket?”

  Rylee opened her laptop. “No lycan DNA found on their premises, but that doesn't clear any possible contacts outside their usual haunts. You'll have to nose around. This includes any humans they might have had contact with. A lost hiker, a postman, or anyone who came through their territory. You have carte blanche to follow any lead no matter how insignificant.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Trevor gathered his documents. “Anything else?”

  “No, that’s all.”

  They all stood.

  “Prince Slade, stay.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  After the team left, Rylee narrowed his eyes at him. “This first mission will be a test.”

  “Meaning?”

  “If you can’t keep your fangs in and your claws withdrawn, you’ll need to return. Possibly for retraining.” Meaning the Enforcer’s discipline.

  “Commander Fist says I’m ready. He doesn’t anticipate I’ll have problems with humans.”

  “So he says. Dr. Warner agrees, but you are to follow Cricket’s lead.”

  “Understood.” Who knew he’d someday have to take orders from a runt?

  “While in the field, and in the company of humans, only use your alpha influence sparingly to gather information. Humans are weak minded and will obey your every command, so don’t let that go to your head.”

  “No problem.”

  “Most importantly never display wolfish alpha status behavior toward Cricket around humans. They’ll think you are in some sort of abusive relationship.”

  “Commander Fist explained our roles outside wolf territory. As difficult as it will be,” he grinned, “I’m a fast learner and a good actor.”

  “Good. Your biker gear and Harley are on our plane. You and Cricket will fly to a local airport in Watsonville and then head toward Santa Cruz. The GPS is built into your motorcycle.”

  Slade looked forward to the type of adventure he’d always enjoyed. Not that he’d ever expected to mingle with humans, but he enjoyed escaping the confines of his pack territory. His father hated all things human. He must be growling in his grave at Slade’s new career with the LIA. “I’ll follow her lead.”

  “There is one more thing about why I chose you to team up with Cricket.”

  “Yes?”

  “You are to protect her from an unforeseen danger.”

  Slade had no problem agreeing with her command. “I will protect her with my life.”

  “Hopefully, it won’t come to that. I don’t want to lose any team members, but Cricket is special. She has human sensibilities, which makes her an ideal spy. Unlike us, she can go months without needing to shift.” Most weres remained full wolves two days a month to avoid shift trauma.

  “My pack must shift every two weeks,” he said mostly to himself. Yukon werewolves were unique in that they could only go one or two days without shifting. One of the reasons he could leave his pack and travel was he had always been able to hold out for two days. More if he had sex. “Could it be because she was born a runt?”

  “Possibly, Dr. Becker our human doctor and research scientist, thinks she was tiny, not because she was weak, but because she was more human than wolf.”

  “A runt perhaps meant to be born human.” He regretted calling her a runt, but that’s what she was.

  “Let me make this clear. I don’t give a rat’s ass what other pack members, including her family pack thinks. On my team, Cricket is a beta.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Is that clear?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Slade had the urge to ask her why Cricket’s alpha would throw her out of his pack, but refrained. It was none of his business. Didn’t matter. What mattered was proving to Rylee she’d made the right choice in allowing him to join Team Greywolf. And most importantly, protecting Cricket.

  Chapter 9

  Cricket sat on the soft leather armchair couch and buckled her seatbelt. The LIA plane felt more like a living room with wings rather than a packed sardine like most domestic human flights. Several soft leather chairs rested near the window, enough for thirteen passengers. Once the captain gave the okay to walk around, a lounge and kitchenette offered them the comforts of home, even a bedroom in the back for longer flights.

  The captain sat in the cockpit doing last minute checks. The co-pilot stood by the open door. Thus far, she was the only passenger.

  Cricket stared out the window. Where was Slade? Maybe he changed his mind. How could the over the top bossy alpha tolerate having her, a runt, in charge of the investigation? Since she returned, he seemed aloof. Probably kicked the I-need-a-lower-rank-wolf-to-calm-me mojo. Slade hadn’t insisted she room with him. Then again, his temporary quarters were only three doors away. Odd, he didn’t prefer staying at his luxurious premier guest quarters being a royal and all. Jesper would have joined him. Anyway, maybe it sunk into Rylee’s head sending an unstable alpha on a mission had dire consequences. Is that why he stopped in front of her apartment? To tell her he’d sit this mission out.

  Cricket recalled the moment that brought a tingle down her spine as well as other erotic places below her pelvis. A beyond foolish reaction. Wishful thinking to the max. No romp in the den for them.

  She’d prepared the report for Rylee and had just hit send when the raw masculine scent of alpha testosterone invaded her nose and aroused the horny female part of her brain to wag her tail. Goodness, the entire compound of alpha and beta kickass males reeked of testosterone twenty-four/seven. The other three females, including Rylee joked about what they called Team Greywolf Cologne. But the scent beyond her door smelled of fresh untamed Alaskan forest. Primal. More wolf than human. Slade. Part of her demanded she slam the door open and drag him in for some forbidden sex, especially since she caught a whiff of his wolfish desires.

  Cricket hesitated, but lost her good senses and opened the door. He left, leaving her sniffing in every bit of his remaining molecules, like a cat stoned on catnip on top of going into naughty feline heat.

  No wonder he quit the mission. Forbidden or not, their sexual tension would ignite a fire in drought ridden California.

  She bit her lower lip. Who would take his place? She turned to the copilot. “Hey Sam, are we still waiting for Slade or somebody else?”

  “Slade is the only other passenger listed on the manifest.”

  Punctuality was Rylee’s thing, not hers, but they were supposed to have left five minutes ago. What if she told Captain Camilla to take off without him? Cricket had gone on several undercover missions solo. Should be safe enough. The only werewolf DNA they’d found on the scene was the warden’s and in Randi’s case, his girlfriend, who flew in a month ago frantic with worry for her lover. Odds were, his biker friends were just normal humans. She may not be the strongest were, but her Glock evened the odds if some werewolf hunter turned out to be the culprit. Unlike Randi and the other missing weres, she prepared to meet danger head on.

  Sam looked out the window. “There he is.”

  Cricket rolled her eyes. Great. His bossy royal pain in the ass prince is going undercover after all. The real work would be
keeping him from going wolf rather than finding out what happened to Randi. One headache of a distraction.

  Slade boarded. “Sorry for the delay. I had a dinner meeting with Rylee and Lunara.”

  Cricket put her tablet down. Oh, wow. Dressed in a leather biker jacket, over a black t-shirt that accentuated his broad muscular chest, blue jeans that fit like a glove over thick muscular legs made him a hot star for the next blockbuster action movie. The song, Bad to the Bone echoed in her head. His thick blond hair combed back. His face, scruffy and unshaved. If females had boners, she’d be shamefully exposed. She whistled a wolf call. “Might as well turn around.”

  He winked, all cocky and smug. “Yes, ma’am.” His biker moniker showed a stylized wolf’s head with fangs dripping blood that read, Rogue Wolf.

  “That’s not subtle.”

  “Glen found an extra large for me.” He shrugged. “Unfortunately, mine wasn’t cool enough.”

  Sam secured the door and smiled. “Buckle up. Camilla might decide to make up for lost time by ordering you to parachute out.”

  “I don’t have a problem parachuting,” said Cricket. Might be the only way to cool her burning flush.

  Slade sunk his bulk onto a good-sized armchair and dwarfed it. “Not on the itinerary.”

  “Yet.” She so enjoyed teasing him, but if he wanted to, he might nip her while still in lycan territory. There were parts of his body she wanted to explore and nip.

  Slade returned to reading his cell phone, and she forced her lust back in the den.

  The captain spoke over the intercom. “Seatbelts on. Under no circumstances, no shifting.”

  The engines roared down the runaway and in moments, they were airborne. Cricket opened her tablet, reading a travel book about Santa Cruz, ignoring the drop-dead gorgeous alpha. Impossible. The scent of fear-driven perspiration accosted her nose. His pulse raced. No powerful drugs on board could knock him out. If he went mad wolf, they were screwed. The cockpit was werewolf proof, but with his strength, he could rip open the emergency door. Was he reliving the moment when they forced tranquilizers on him or just afraid of flying? “Everything okay?”

  He gripped the armchair. “Once the seatbelt sign goes off, I calm down.”

  “We couldn’t be in better hands. Camilla has flown combat missions while being fired on.”

  “So I’ve heard.” He sighed and stared out. “Don’t worry, I fly all the time.”

  Not by the way your pulse is racing. Typical alpha. Hated being vulnerable. He wouldn’t be the only team member nervous to fly. Werewolves hated flight. The inner wolf preferred the soil beneath their paws. The no shifting rule while in flight had been established to resist the wolf’s primal instinct to remain grounded. She put away her tablet and took out a remote for the movie screen. “News or a movie?”

  The seatbelt sign turned off.

  “None.”

  His pulse calmed. Okay, so he hates take-offs and landings. She, on the other hand, loved the rush of taking flight.

  Slade stood. “I’m getting a beer. I give you permission—I mean—do you want one?”

  At least he tried not being so alpha; although, with no humans around he had no reason to curtail his dominance. “Sure.” Maybe they would be a good platonic team. Soon, he’d treat her like one of the guys. A step above treating her like a kid sister. And a staircase from treating her like a helpless runt.

  Slade handed her one. She smiled. “Thank you, sir.” Out of respect to the alpha, she waited for him to take the first gulp. He did and gave her a nod. Some lupine habits never changed.

  Cricket took a swig, and then raised her bottle. “To your first Team Greywolf mission.”

  “To my teacher.”

  She would have preferred, team leader, but at least he didn’t call her Little Wolf.

  They clicked their bottles together.

  His gaze raked her breasts. “You plan on wearing a skirt and tight sweater on the bike?” He smiled. “Not that I mind.”

  Dang. Her nipples eagerly peaked beneath her tight sweater as if invited to come out and play with the big bad wolf. “No. I have my own biker outfit.” She blushed. Damn stupid human trait. “I’ll change before we land.” She sat and stared out the window, hoping he didn’t notice her rapid pulse. Not from the fear of flying, but from his probing forest-green eyes and the scent of his obvious lust for her.

  Slade sat across from her and removed his jacket. His tight black t-shirt, two sizes too small, advertised his strapping broad chest. He crossed his hands behind his head and leaned back. “What do you think happened to them?”

  Cricket stared at his muscular biceps. “Huh?” She blinked. He didn’t play fair.

  “The missing werewolves.”

  Good. I can talk business. “My gut tells me there’s something fishy about the disappearances.”

  “How so?”

  “I don’t buy that three lycans, and if you count Raulf, four lycans just vanished within weeks of one another.” She shivered. “Something nefarious is behind this.”

  “I agree.”

  “Unfortunately, whether the perpetrators are human or werewolf, they know how to cover their tracks and are lying low, but trust me; they’ll strike again and soon.”

  “Then we agree; you must not leave my side.”

  “Umm. Not exactly. You watch my back, but that might mean from a distance. Not on a tight leash.”

  “Your safety comes first.”

  Okay, so much for working as a team to solve the case. Not that she didn’t appreciate him watching her ass in what could be a dangerous case. However, he might revert to big bossy overprotective alpha wolf and interfere with their mission. “We’re going undercover, which means, I might have to seduce men to get answers.”

  “There will be none of that.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “I won’t allow you to spread your thighs for some horny hairless ape.”

  His nostrils flared, and his alpha stare melted her iron will. Cricket whimpered, “Yes, sir.” She snapped out of his alpha mind trick. Her cheeks heated, not in humiliation, but in anger. “Seduction, not sex.”

  “Remember, we’re pretending to be a couple.”

  Pretending is right. “We are going to find out what happened to Randi, even if it means sweet talking one of his human friends.”

  He growled. “We’ll see.”

  Cricket stood. “I’m going to take a nap.” She cleared her throat. “If that’s okay with you, Prince Slade.” I can pretend to be a subordinate until we leave wolf territory.

  He gave her a curt nod. “By all means.”

  Cricket stalked toward the private suite and closed the door. Alone. Privacy. She sat at the foot of the king size bed. Ugh. He pissed her off. Why did he care who she seduced or even slept with? Shouldn’t he be more concerned about what his yet unknown alpha mate was up to? She rose from the bed, opened the bathroom door and thought about taking a quick shower.

  Cricket removed her shoes and then stripped off her clothes down to her bra and panties. She reached for her carryon luggage to lay out her change of clothes when the plane bumped and she plunged onto the bed. Shit.

  The seatbelt light flashed.

  Camilla spoke through the intercom. “Sorry about the turbulence. We’re going through a storm. We should be out of it in a few minutes.”

  Cricket dashed for the seat next to the bed and fastened her seatbelt. Another dip rocked the plane, but not too bad. “Fly them bronco.”

  A growl emanated outside her closed door.

  Slade. He better not go wolf. Great. Do I unbuckle my seatbelt to make sure he’s okay?

  The door opened.

  Slade’s feral eyes honed in on her. Fangs out. Ears furred.

  Cricket swallowed. Now was a very bad time to go wolf. “Take the other seat and put your seatbelt on.”

  Slade glanced at the empty seat. He narrowed his eyes at her as if she had asked him if he wanted salad instead of fresh meat. N
o werewolf ever said no to meat.

  Her breath quickened. The pang of her bouncing heart startled her.

  The captain’s voice broke the spell. “We are over it. Feel free to move around.”

  Cricket unbuckled her seatbelt, stood while covering her breasts, and smiled. “If you don’t mind, I need to dress.”

  Instead of returning to the main cabin, Slade stepped in and closed the door behind him. The entire time, his feral eyes kept her in a trance. That and the bulge in his tight jeans. Badass biker werewolf was ready to join the mile high club. At this moment, she’d do whatever he wanted. Or should she remind him all was well? Still. Wasn’t her duty to keep him from shifting? Even if it meant breaking pack rules?

  The minute turbulence rocked the plane, Slade’s stomach churned. Cricket. Had she decided to take a shower and bumped her head when the plane faltered? His wolf unleashed and opened the door. His heart steadied. She sat, the seatbelt strapped over her nearly bare body. She wore only a red bra and lacy red panties. His wolf howled. She looked so damn hot. He sniffed the scent of honey and rose petals. The sweet scent of wet pussy.

  Her deer caught in the headlights look heightened the awareness of his hungry predator. Slade licked his tongue over his fangs. His still furred ears flicked. Despite the loud drone of the plane’s engines, he listened to her heart. With each beat, his cock grew. Her pupils dilated into globes. Her skin flushed. His little wolf desired him. Sexy.

  Despite her low rank and forbidden wolf status, she charmed him to the point of no return. Beyond control. Did her ability to survive the change include sexual sorcery? His wolf demanded her. Demanded she never fuck other men, human or werewolf. Mine.

  Cricket trembled and then rubbed her delectable smooth bare arms. “I better change before we experience any more turbulence.” She bit her lower lip and reached for her luggage.

  Like a hawk swooping on its prey, he grabbed her and drew her in. His clawed fingers reached around her back and sliced through the red bra strap. It fell, pooling near her manicured red toenails. Her warm luscious breasts sprung out. Her peaked dark nipples submitted to his attention. His mouth salivated to nibble and suck each one until she screamed in ecstasy. He lifted her chin and focused on her tawny eyes. “The only turbulence you need worry about is my cock.”