Once he was on the highway leading out of San Francisco, some of his pent-up nervousness dissolved. He knew the High Council could easily track him to the city, but then the trail would go cold. By that time, the car he handed over to his friend would be crushed into to a cube of metal and loaded onto a container ship which would be on its way to some foreign port.
Running his hand over the steering wheel in the car his buddy had swapped with him, Josiah grinned, imagining the reaction of his nephews when the Council gave them the news of his “escape.” Instead of having the satisfaction of seeing him in jail, it wouldn’t take long for Jackson and his brothers to figure out they still were in his crosshairs. Imagining their faces, Josiah laughed loudly. He could live with that—for now.
After leaving the highway, he turned onto a County road, heading east. It was going to be a long drive?longer than using the Interstate, but it’d be a route without any cameras. Just one more obstacle for anyone who wanted to find him.
As the miles whizzed by, Josiah contemplated the information the Alpha of the Rolling Hills Pack had wanted to sell him about Jackson. According to their brief exchange before the Alpha abruptly backed out, he now felt it might be something worth the price and give him an edge. He’d not pursued it because Rudy assured him it was probably a waste of time since it was impossible for his nephews to prove they were in Las Vegas at the time of their parents’ death and that’s all they needed.Another fuck up!
In fact, as far as Josiah was concerned, Rudy bore full responsibility for Josiah’s plan going off the rails, so leaving him to face the High Council enforcers alone was perfect payment for his Second’s continual screw-ups. In the meantime, he’d continue east to meet the Rolling Hills Alpha, after which he’d find and kill the witness, robbing Jackson of the proof he needed. Then, after the High Council dropped the complaint against him, Josiah would finish what he started that night by killing his nephews.
~/~/~/~/~
Alex stared out of the jet’s window, marveling at how tiny everything looked down below. He’d been nervous boarding the jet, grasping Sawyer’s hand for support, unsure what to expect since he’d never flown before, but his trepidation disappeared when he saw the interior of the plane. Stunned, he stood in the doorway, his eyes ping-ponging around the luxurious cabin. The colors were soothing?and the furnishings, upholstered in real leather and fine fabrics tempted him to run his fingers over them. But nothing prepared him for the bathrooms and bedrooms in the rear of the cabin. Sinking down on one of the beds, he giggled at the picture of the three of them in it, knowing sleep wouldn’t be on the agenda.
Glancing up at Sawyer, Alex saw the smirk on his wolf mate’s face, knowing he was thinking along the same lines. “How long will we be in the air? Cause I’m thinking it won’t be long enough for everything I want my mates to do to me.”
“Oh yeah?” Sawyer pushed his mate back on the bed until he was lying down. Then, straddling Alex’s groin, he dropped down on his hands, his lips above his mate’s. “Exactly what are your plans for us?”
Reaching up with his hand, Alex ran a finger along Sawyer’s jaw, aroused now by his mate’s eyes darkening with desire. “Uh-uh…you are just going to have to wait.”
Chuckling, Glenn joined his mates, running his hand over Sawyer’s ass, squeezing a cheek before giving it a resounding slap. “I know what I’ll be doing tonight.”
Looking over his shoulder, Sawyer growled at Glenn. “Sounds like what I have planned for you.”
Paul knocked on the cabin door before sticking his head in. “We’re ready to leave, gentlemen.”
“Thanks, Paul, we’ll be right out,” Glenn said.
Giving Alex a quick kiss, Sawyer stood up. “C’mon, sweetheart, time for me to buckle you in.”
Alex was reluctant to leave the love nest but his mates pulled him up, leading him to the main cabin. Taking a seat by the window, he smiled as Sawyer and Glenn took their seats, choosing the ones closest to him. The feeling of being protected again filled him with joy; he was thankful he came to his senses and agreed to mate with them. Hearing the closing of the plane door, he turned his attention to the activity outside his window.
Sawyer watched Paul going through the pre-flight tasks, waiting until he finally took his seat for takeoff. Then knowing the steward was out of hearing range, he caught Glenn’s eye and asked the burning question in his mind. “How close are you to Paul?”
Raising an eyebrow, Glenn studied his mate, trying to determine the reason behind the question. There were too many possibilities, especially since Sawyer had an excellent poker face. So, opting for a short answer, he said, “When the agency needed me to get somewhere in a hurry for an assignment, Dire Enterprises would often offer one of their planes for use.”
“Including Paul?” asked Sawyer, trying to hide his suspicion. After seeing the greeting Paul gave to Glenn and his mate’s response, he was sure they knew each other quite well. How well was what he was trying to figure out.
Frowning, Glenn stared at Sawyer, picking up on the slight edge of anger in his mate’s voice. “Yeah, he comes with the plane…works for Dire full time.”
“But what does he do for you?”
“The same he does on every flight.”
Turning around, Alex grinned at Glenn, deciding to step in before another misunderstanding morphed into a shitstorm. “Holy Moley, tiger mate, you are missing the point of wolf mate’s question. He wants to know if you had sex with Paul.”
“What-t-t?” Shaking his head, Glenn quickly shifted his gaze to Sawyer, finally seeing the green flame of jealousy reflected in his eyes. “No, I never did…I mean…” Stopping when his mate’s deep growl hung in the air between them, he then continued. “Nor did I want to. Paul’s a friend, nothing more.”
Grasping Sawyer’s clenched fist, Alex said, “There, now you can relax and stop shooting daggers at Paul. He isn’t after our mate.”
Letting out his breath, Sawyer, nodded briefly.Fuck, I need to get a grip. I gotta stop this bullshit.
Leaning forward, Glenn placed his hand on top of Sawyer’s, murmuring, “You’re perfect for me, wolf mate, and I’m so lucky the Fates gave me someone who makes me happy and who loves a very grouchy tiger.”
“You are,” smirked Alex, “grouchy, that is, but I figure the more the three of us spend time in bed, the less grouchy you’ll become.”
A bark of laughter escaped Sawyer. “So more sex will solve everything, huh?”
“Uh-huh. I read that in a book one summer, though I didn’t know what they were talking about since it was before I learned about what it was…but now I know so it makes perfect sense,” Alex said, grinning.
“How young were you? And where did you get a book about sex?” asked Glenn.
“Eight…or nine, I think. It was in the restricted area of the library. All of the students were gone, so I was the only one left. The librarian liked me so she didn’t pay attention to any of the books I read. It was quite enlightening…and that’s how I know sex will cure tiger mate’s grouchiness.”
“Sounds good to me,” Sawyer said. “What about you, tiger mate? How much sex do you think it’ll take to get rid of your crusty exterior?”
“I think both of you are going to be trouble with a capital T,” Glenn muttered, sitting back in his seat as the jet rolled down the runway.
Letting out a “Wow!” when he felt the jet leave the ground, Alex turned to the window, watching everything below fall away. Gripping the arm rest tightly, he hoped the excitement of his first flight would distract him from his worry about meeting his brother?at least until they landed in France.
