I chuckle half-heartedly. “So are you a supe too? My boyfriend wanted it to be a supe who fucks me.”
The man grins. His teeth are sharp.
I swallow.
“Shifter. So do I get the job?”
Something about this feels off. A vibe? The way he’s staring at me with a predatory look? I shift in my seat, but rather than show my discomfort, I force a smile onto my face. “Let me just go freshen up, OK?”
I slide from my stool, hoping Adam is there watching like he said he would and gets the message that I want to check in with him. I was excited when the shifter first came over, but nowI’m anxious. I feel more like a deer in the headlights than an empowered woman about to get what she wants, and I hate that.
Around back where the bathrooms are, the bar is even darker and only the bass of the music carries through the wall. The door to the corridor closes behind me, muffling the sounds of the bar further and making me feel like I’ve been wrapped in gauze.
There’s no one else around, so I make my way slowly toward the women’s bathroom, unsure what else to do. I hope Adam doesn’t just think I need the restroom. Where is he anyway? I haven’t spotted him since he left our seats at the bar.
The music from outside grows louder for a moment as the door opens, and I let out a sigh of relief. But when I turn, it’s not Adam stalking toward me down the darkened corridor. It’s the shifter. His eyes glow in the dark enough for me to catch a glimpse of teeth bared in a sharp grin. He’s almost on top of me. “Couldn’t wait. You smell so ripe.”
My breath catches in my throat, and I take a hasty step back, but he’s too quick. Suddenly he grabs me, moving so fast I’m not prepared for it. He pins me to the wall, and his breath on my face makes me shrink away from him. “Look, I think you have the wrong idea.”
He leans closer, inhaling audibly. “Your scent says otherwise. Your cunt is hungry to be filled.”
What the fuck? Before I’ve even considered the ramifications, my knee finds a soft, squishy area between his legs that makes him double over for a moment. I guess shifters are just as sensitive in the balls as regular human guys.
He snarls and I shriek, ducking under his arm to get away from him.
The door opens again, but I barely register it because I’m running from the shifter who is staggering after me.
I trip, stumbling forward only to be caught in familiar strong arms. Adam whirls me around so he’s standing between me andthe angry shifter. “I get the impression my girl isn’t interested in being touched by you,” he says, his voice flat and solid as a brick wall.
The shifter lets out a low growl. “Didn’t seem that way a moment ago.” He advances further.
What if he tries something? Is he dangerous? Did we make a mistake even coming here?
Adam just laughs. “Tell me again you don’t know the first thing about women. She changed her mind. They do that. Now back the fuck off.”
The shifter seems to grow two inches, his eyes glowing ominously in the dark. His ears lengthen and grow into pointed tips, and his face elongates into a snout. Instead of backing away, Adam steps forward until his nose is pressed against the leopard shifter’s snout.
“I said back. The fuck. Off. I don’t know if you realize this about me, so let me spell it out. I’m already dead. I don’t need to eat, I don’t need to sleep, but I’m guessing you do. And if you don’t turn around and walk out of here right now, I’ll use all that free time I’ve got on my hands to find you and make your life a living hell. And I will never stop. You got me?”
There’s a horrible pause where my belly feels like it drops through the floor while I stand and wonder if the shifter is going to fight Adam despite what he said. Then, suddenly, his glowing gaze drops and he turns. He stalks to the other end of the corridor, a door opens, and he’s gone.
I hold my breath for another few moments, then let it out in a rush.
Adam crushes me back against his chest and presses a kiss to my head. “Sorry. Fuck I’m sorry, Jen. I blinked and you were gone.”
I’m shaking, though I try to hide that from Adam. He catches up my hands and holds them between us until the shaking stops,pressing kisses on my knuckles. “Shhh. You’re safe. What a fucking jerk.”
“Yeah.” I sniff. “I think he was extra mad cause I kneed him in the balls.”
Adam laughs. “Atta girl. Course you did.” His knuckle under my chin lifts my face to look at him. “Hey, let’s go home, huh?”
“Yeah. Let’s go home.”
TWENTY THREE
Jen
In the car on the ride home, I can’t get warm. Adam shrugs off his jacket and wraps it around my shoulders, but it doesn’t do any good. My teeth are chattering as I unlock the door, and I fumble the keys before I finally get the job done.
