She shook her head. “It doesn’t just sound crazy. It is crazy. There has to be some other explanation. We can’t be werewolves. If we were, we’d only be able to do the things we do when the moon is full.”
Dixon laughed. “That’s only in the movies. Which is a good thing since the incidents my team and I go out on don’t follow the lunar cycle. And before you ask, no, silver won’t kill us. But a regular bullet will if it hits something vital, like the heart.”
Khaki ran her thumb over the diner’s logo on the mug, trying to wrap her head around what Dixon had told her. It still sounded crazy. But it would explain why she was suddenly superhuman. And as insane as his claim was, she needed something to help her make sense of things right now.
“And you said the entire SWAT team is made up of…werewolves?” she asked.
He nodded. “All sixteen of us.”
“Sixteen,” she echoed. “Wow. It sounds like you’ve already got a full unit. Why recruit me?”
“Human resources said we need to add a woman to the team to fill our diversity quota,” he said, then quickly added, “but that’s not the only reason. I was going to offer you the job regardless. HR’s demand just moved up the timetable. You’re a good cop, one I’d be honored to have in the Pack.”
“Pack?”
His mouth curved up in a smile. “As in wolf pack.”
Right.
Dixon regarded her in silence. “I know this is a lot to take in, and I don’t expect you to give me an answer now.” He dug his wallet out of the pocket of his jeans and took out a business card, handing it to her. “At least think about it.”
Khaki glanced down at the card, then looked at him. “What about HR? Aren’t they going to expect you to hire someone pretty quick?”
“Don’t worry about them. Take whatever time you need.”
She studied his business card again. She’d been a little disappointed when he told her he was offering her the job because human resources thought it would be good PR to have a woman on the team. But she believed him when he said he’d already planned to recruit her regardless. Ultimately, she didn’t care what had brought the commander of the supposedly all-werewolf SWAT team to her figurative front door. Dixon was here and he was giving her the perfect opportunity to get away from her ex-boyfriend and a job where no one liked her or had her back. As far as she was concerned, it was a dream come true. She might not believe she was a werewolf, or that he and his SWAT team were either, but they were freaks like her, and that was good enough.
“I’ll take it,” she said.
Dixon paused, his mug of coffee halfway to his mouth. “Are you sure? I don’t mind if you want to take a few days to think about it.”
She nodded. “I’m sure.”
“Okay.” He took another swallow of coffee. “In the interest of full disclosure, I should let you know that you’re going to have to earn the respect of the Pack before they fully accept you, and that might not be easy. The guys are all alpha werewolves who have never seen, much less worked with, a female werewolf before. There’s no handbook on this. We’re going to have to figure it out as we go. If they treat you like every other newbie on the team, they’ll probably be tough on you until you prove yourself.”
“I can handle tough,” she said and meant it.
If there was anything these past few months had taught her, it was that she was stronger than she’d ever given herself credit for.
* * *
Even though Dixon told her she didn’t have to report for duty right away, she told him she’d be able to start work in a few days. Now that she’d made the decision to quit her job, there wasn’t any reason to hang around Lakefront. Her parents and sisters still lived in Chicago, so she had no family in the area. And thanks to the debacle with Jeremy, she didn’t have any friends here anymore either. As far as her apartment went, the lease was coming due, so all she’d lose was her deposit. The place had come furnished and whatever didn’t fit in her two big suitcases, she’d mail to the SWAT compound down in Dallas.
Maybe the fact that she had so little attachment to this place explained why it felt so right to accept Dixon’s job offer.
Now the only thing to do was make it official. By that, she meant telling her boss at the Lakefront Police Department she was quitting. In one way or another, she’d worked for Sergeant Aaron Silver the whole eight years she’d been on the force, and other than the fact that he seemed oblivious to what had gone on between her and Jeremy, she’d always liked him. She almost felt bad telling him she was leaving, but even he knew it was time for her to have a fresh start somewhere else.
She was just thinking she might be lucky enough to get out of there before Jeremy showed up when he stormed into the bull pen.Crap.
Khaki pretended not to see him as she put the last few knickknacks from her locker in the box she was packing, but she saw him coming toward her out of the corner of her eye.
“What the hell is going on?” he demanded. “Carpenter called on the radio and said you’re quitting to take a job at the Dallas PD. Is that true?”
She carefully tucked her favorite coffee mug into the box before meeting his gaze. Anger flashed in his gray eyes. How had she ever mistaken this arrogant jerk for a nice guy when he was demeaning to the other cops, abusive to suspects, disrespectful to his superiors behind their backs, and most telling of all, controlling when it came to her?
“I’m packing up my locker,” she pointed out. “What do you think?”
He clenched his jaw so hard she thought he might break something. “So you’re leaving me, just like that?”
