“I will,” he promised, spinning around with a giddy grin. He was going to rush off, but Emmett caught his shoulder, his expression exasperated.
“Hold it. You’re not going there without me. Gimme a second, will you?” He turned to Kian, lifting the file Kian had shown him. “Can I take this? I’m going to bring it to my alpha. Kyle is pack, unfortunately, and Ronan should know he’s been acting like this. He’ll keep the idiot in line better than anyone else might.”
Kian narrowed his eyes on the file and snapped his fingers. Another file appeared in his hand and he set it down on his desk with a shrug. “There. I made a copy. I’ll bring mine to SR, you bring yours to your alpha. Let him know the next time he messes with one of my temps, he’ll be facing me, and I won’t be nice about it.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Slow down,” Emmett chuckled as Jonah practically speedwalked to the elevators that would lead them to the IT floors. “It’s not going anywhere.”
Jonah made a face at him over his shoulder. “I’m already late. Hurry up. I know you werewolves are faster than–eep!”
He yelped when Emmett lunged at him, snatching him around the waist and out of the way of the giant he’d nearly walked into. He ended up plastered against Emmett’s chest, his heart pounding wildly and acutely aware of the body pressed against his as the giant grumbled out an apology and sidled past them.
His libido sat up and took notice, and his voice went all breathless as he said, “Thanks.”
Emmett didn’t respond at first, tightening his grip on Jonah just enough to remove those scant centimeters between them. Jonah was horrified to feel himself harden in his jeans and felt his blush burning the back of his neck as he tried to keep his hips away from the werewolf who’d only grabbed him to keep him from getting injured. It probably would’ve hurt to get bowled over by a giant, and it would’ve been entirely his fault for not paying attention.
It was when he noticed Emmett’s nose near the crook of his neck drawing in a deep breath that Jonah finally pushed his embarrassment aside long enough to squeak, “Are you sniffing me?”
“You smell good,” was Emmett’s growly reply.
Oh gods, that didn’t help with Jonah’s tight pants issue. If anything, it made it worse, and goosebumps popped up along his neck where Emmett was sniffing him. Maybe he needed to reevaluate his thought process on dating while still living at home. His family hadn’t found out about him working at Spellbound yet. Would they notice or even care if he started seeing someone? As long as he didn’t bring Emmett home, it would be fine, right?
Emmett’s phone going off caused them both to jump apart, Jonah looking anywhere but at the werewolf as he fished his phone out of his pocket and put it to his ear.
“Yeah?”
Jonah couldn’t hear the other end of the phone, but Emmett’s voice went serious when he replied to whatever they were saying.
“I want to be there, but I need to bring Jonah up to IT first. Give me fifteen? I’ll take the stairs on the way down so I won’t have to wait for the elevators. Yeah. Yeah.” Jonah glanced over just as Emmett’s lip lifted in a snarl. “I won’t unless he gives me a reason to– Okay, okay. I won’t. I still want to be there. Yes. Okay, bye.”
When he hung up, Jonah cocked his head curiously. “What was that about?”
“Tasha was calling to tell me my alpha would be having a meeting with Kyle. Apparently Kian wasn’t kidding. He’s fast when it comes to protecting his people. I want to be there for that confrontation. Let’s get you upstairs so I won’t be making them late.”
He put a hand on Jonah’s lower back, guiding him to a short line waiting for the elevators. Luckily, the morning rush had already died down, so when the next elevator appeared, it wasn’t too crowded once they got inside.
“Are you sure that’s necessary? I was probably just overreacting. Do other humans even react like that?” Jonah asked uncertainly. He didn’t like that the werewolf had intimidated him, but he didn’t want to cause trouble either. Especially for Emmett’s pack, who’d done a lot in making him feel comfortable around supes already. One bad experience wasn’t worth all the trouble.
“You weren’t overreacting. It might have been a little more intense because it was your first time experiencing it, especially after being so isolated, but intimidation is nothing to just sweep under the rug. It’s a big deal, and he needs to face the consequences for that. Besides, it wasn’t just you, remember? He’s done this before. If we want to make sure he doesn’t do it again, we need to address it now.”
Jonah’s shoulders slumped. He hated that Emmett was right. And since it wasn’t only him, it made him feel a little bit better about his reaction.
“Will I get used to it now that I’ve experienced it?” he queried as the doors opened and a few of the passengers shuffled out.
“I don’t want you to have to get used to it,” Emmett growled. “Just let me handle Kyle. And if anyone else makes you feel uncomfortable, I want you to tell me immediately. I’ll come set them straight.”
Was it wrong to be a little turned on by the protectiveness? Jonah had never had someone so determined to have his back before.
It almost seemed like Emmett picked up on that thought because he leaned closer, doing that sniffing thing again that made Jonah shiver. He was lucky the elevator opened onto theirfloor before he could pop a boner. Meeting his new coworkers while aroused wasn’t the kind of impression he wanted to make, especially with the IT department, where he might potentially find permanent work in the future once he got a little experience.
Hustling out of the elevator, he took a shaky breath, heading for the reception desk where a woman who looked human but probably wasn’t sat behind it. She was looking down at something and not paying attention to their arrival until Emmett cleared his throat to get her attention. Her head whipped up, and she was too slow to hide the magazine fully under her keyboard, her fanged smile strained as she greeted them. Definitely not human.
“Good morning, gentlemen. How can I help you?”
Stepping forward, Jonah offered her the paper Kian had given him. “I’m Jonah, a temp from Charmed Away. Kian sent me.”
Taking the paper, she scanned it, nodding slowly. “Okay. I think someone mentioned requesting a temp last week. Did Kian say what you were going to be doing?”
