ChapterOne
For Silas, the difference between a good day working as a detective and a barely tolerable one often hinged on the quality of the coffee.Today, it seemed, was tipping toward barely tolerable.He twisted his lips, his cheeks puckering at the semi-tepid bean water trickling down his throat.He managed a swallow only to have a long, cinnamon-tainted finish burn on the way down.
Humans.
He could always tell when one of the non-supernaturals working with him in the Carlton City Police Department made the coffee.The shit was weak, barely discernible from tea, and weirdly flavored.He swirled the concoction in his cup.Thin.Translucent.He could see the crack at the bottom of his favorite mug—the one with a dachshund on the side that saidDon’t Be a Weiner—right through it.The crack, which probably harbored all sorts of nasty bacteria, reminded him he should have replaced the thing months ago, a fact he could have ignored one more day if the coffee had been brewed correctly.
He looked both ways before dumping the pot down the little sink in the break room.In the CCPD, supernaturals and humans worked side by side, although the latter were unaware that their coworkers sprouted tails or cast spells during their time off.Human detectives were assigned to human cases; Silas, as the only supernatural detective in the department, was assigned to the supernatural ones.Humans outnumbered supers in the PD in the same proportion as they did in the city’s population.And with the local demigoddess witch, aka a Hecate, Grateful Knight, also policing the supernatural community in the area (at least when it came to supernatural involvement with humans), he usually had no problem keeping up with his caseload.
Silas liked humans for the most part.His best friend, Logan, used to be human.But he was glad his captain was fae.Made it easier on everyone when he needed accommodations for his condition, namely three days off a month to shift into a werewolf.
“What the hell?I thought Wendy said she brewed a new pot.Someone drank it all already?”A woman Silas had never seen before stood in the doorway to the break room looking peeved, an obscenely large mug dangling from her fingers.The thing was practically a soup bowl with a handle.His werewolf nose twitched as his supernatural olfactory senses sorted out her scent.Coffee grounds, coconut hair conditioner, generic dryer sheets, a crumb of orange-vanilla scone that clung to her shirt, and an undercurrent of something gamey and wild.
His inner wolf roused, and Silas drew a deeper breath.He had the strongest urge to bury his nose in her hair.Tall, with an athletic physique, the stranger sported blue jeans, low-heeled boots, and a white cotton blouse that looked freshly ironed.She was square-jawed and solid-boned, but it was her deep red hair that fascinated his wolf, the unusual color catching the light and toying with his senses.
Silas cleared his throat, both embarrassed and shocked to catch himself staring, his fingers twitching to touch her.“Did Wendy send you back here?This is the employee break area.There’s a separate coffee station up front for the public.”He pointed out the door.“Although, if you hang out for a minute, I can fill you up.”Fill you up?Yeah, he’d like to fill her up.
She folded her arms across her chest, one side of her mouth lifting.“He didn’t tell you.”
“He who?Didn’t tell me what?”
“Captain Manahan… Patrick.I’m new.Meredith Turner.”She extended her hand.“Nice to meet you.”
Her voice rang low for a woman, although not at all masculine, with a gritty quality like she’d been a smoker at some point in her life.After shaking her hand tentatively, he gave his palm a good sniff under the guise of scratching his whiskers.A gamey scent was evident.Not human but not wolf either.For the life of him, he couldn’t quite place what she was, although usually he excelled at discerning supernaturals.His wolf, however, wasn’t concerned at all with her species.His inner beast practically leaped inside his torso, his wild side urging him to grab her and grind himself against her.Weird.It wasn’t even the full moon.He shoved the instinct down.
“Is this the part where you try to smell my butt?”she asked.“I heard you werewolves were into that.”
Shocked speechless, Silas did a double take.His jaw popped open.The lupine side of him was, in fact, extremely interested in her ass at the moment.
He was relieved when Meredith laughed.“No offense.Just breaking the ice.Let me put your curiosity to rest.I’m bispecies.Dad’s a werewolf.Mom’s a skinwalker.”
Half wolf.Hmm.“Do you shift?”His voice came out abnormally low and gritty and he cleared his throat.It was a personal question, but since she’d been forthcoming with her heritage, he couldn’t help but ask.
“Whenever I get the urge, and only into a fox.”She smiled again, this time flashing a few beautifully symmetrical teeth.“I don’t participate in the compulsory three-day wolf fest your kind does.”
“Interesting.”Silas turned to the sink and began filling the pot.He’d heard they might need another supernatural officer, although he was surprised she was in plain clothes.Maybe a secretary?Goddess, he hoped she was a secretary.No one would say a word if he dated a secretary.“So what exactly will you be doing here at the CCPD?”
She worried her bottom lip.“Maybe Patrick is the right person to tell you.”
Silas snorted.“Why?What’s the big deal?Is it some supersecret new role I’m not supposed to know about?”
“No…”
“Well, then just tell me.”
“I’m a transfer from Merrimack… where I was a detective.”
Silas paused, the spoon he’d used to shovel coffee grounds hanging over the paper filter.“Detective?What will you be doing here?”He snapped the lid closed and stabbed the Brew button with his finger before pinning her with a questioning stare.
With a shrug and a resolved sigh, she announced, “I’m your new partner.”
Meredith Turner hadn’t expectedto be the one to break it to Silas that he was getting a new partner.She definitely hadn’t expected his presence to be so… overwhelming.Sure, she’d known he was Alpha of Fireborn Pack, and with that role came certain self-aggrandizing tendencies.But his physical effect on her, considering she wasn’t a member of his pack, was nothing short of surprising.
He was big with a deep voice that made her knees turn to water when he spoke.It was all she could do to stand her ground.And she must stand her ground.Because Silas Flynn was not going to like taking on a partner, especially, she guessed, a female one.All these alphas were misogynistic assholes.The hell if she would let him ruin this assignment for her though.She was here for a reason, and she wasn’t going to let him shove her around.
Pushing past her, Silas stomped across the department and barged into Patrick Manahan’s office without an ounce of respect for the uniformed officer already sitting in the chair across the desk from the captain.Silas practically vibrated with annoyance.
Meredith rolled her eyes and murmured, “Here we go” before following him.
