“Go.”

“What?”

“With your brothers. That’s them, isn’t it?”

Not even close, but he wouldn’t expect her to know that and he didn’t want her to worry.

“Go.”

“You sure?”

“Are you going to France?”

“What? No.”

“Then fuckin’ go,” she spoke without any malice or anger. Instead, she rolled on to her back, wincing a bit as the sheets rubbed against her wounded ass. “Go. Do. Whatever tigers do at night. When you get back, I’ll be here.”

She didn’t cling. She didn’t need him to hold her through the night until she fell asleep. In fact, he got the feeling she wanted some time alone. It suddenly occurred to him this woman didn’t need him. She wanted him, but she didn’t need him. She didn’t need him to survive. She didn’t need him to make her life better.

Angelina Santiago where have you been all my life?

***

Nik straddled her hips, “You’re amazing.”

She stretched, enjoying how he looked at her. Really enjoying how he felt on top of her. “Aren’t I though?”

He kissed her and for a second she thought he wouldn’t be going anywhere. He pulled away, giving her one more kiss on the neck. “One sweep around, maybe a deer, then I’ll be back.”

“A deer?”

“I told ya. I get hungry after that kind of fuckin’.”

“Charming.”

“Yeah. You are.” He kissed her again. Then shifted. Right on her lap.

“Okay. If that becomes a habit, you’re going to start freakin’ me out.” Nik licked her cheek, dived off the bed, and out the window.

Angie turned over, the sheet wrapped tight around her.

Well, she’d gone and done it. Fallen for a shapeshifting hillbilly who had no desire to attach himself to one woman. And since she didn’t share…

Whatever…she wouldn’t worry about that now. Not with that hand slapping over her mouth. And she barely had time to struggle before they sprayed her face with something smelling like peppermint. The last thing she saw…eyes reflecting at her in the darkness.

***

Nik followed those growls. He smelled tiger, but he couldn’t place it as any kin or even a neighbor. Something wasn’t right, which meant Angie wasn’t safe.

He hadn’t gotten far from the house when he found it. A top-of-the-line portable CD player with surround sound and next to it a modified scent dispenser.

Staring at it for only a moment, Nik turned around and started back to the house. But he didn’t get far because they came out of the trees. Quietly. Moving as if they had all the time in the world. She-wolves. Smart. Mean. And one look at them told him they were asvicious as they come.

They didn’t move on him, though. They watched him as he watched them. But he couldn’t ignore that scent. Not the wolves. Not even the manufactured tiger scent. Something else all together.

A gestating female. A human one.

He spun around. She stood there. A black girl. Cute. Short. She looked familiar. And in front of her a good-sized black wolf. It took him a moment to realize scars covered one side of the she-wolf’s face.

“Hey, sunshine.” The black girl shook her head, causing her mass of shaggy curls to drop into her eyes. “All I can say is… your boys snatched the wrong girl.”

She raised a rifle. Nik let loose his threatening growl, charging the wolf protecting her, preparing to drop them both on their asses. But like Angie said, her friends were fast and brutal.

An explosion in his brain flipped him back. Then nothing.

Chapter Sixteen

She forced her eyes open. Her head throbbed. Her back hurt. She felt a slight pain in her upper shoulder. She sat up, slowly, and kept her eyes turned away from the large windows that had bright morning light streaming through them.

She waited until she felt like she could look around without throwing up, then she took in the room. It was her room. In Sara’s house.

“I’ll kill her.” She’d kill them both.

She dragged herself out of bed, stumbling as soon as her bare feet touched the carpet. Leaning against the bed frame, she took a few seconds to let the nausea pass. Who knew what wacky, untested, non-FDA-approved shit Miki Kendrick had used on her. She reached up and touched her head. Thank God. She still had her hair. She glanced down at herself. Gold sweatpants and T-shirt. Well, at least the bitches got the color coordination right.

She took several steadying breaths. Once she had herself under control, she walked out of her room.

Angie didn’t have to seek her friends out. She only had to follow the yelling. Not surprisingly, they were in the kitchen where the wolves seemed to congregate.

No one noticed as she walked in, so she let the swinging door close, and leaned against the doorjamb. She waited.

“Tell me where he is, Sara. Now!”

Angie recognized that look on Sara’s face. Her “I’m not budging” look. Zach could yell until he was blue in the face, but it wouldn’t make a difference. Sara wouldn’t tell Zach anything until Sara wanted to.

Conall slammed his hand on the kitchen counter. “Tell him, Miki!”

“I said I don’t know!”

Zach turned on her. “How could you not know?”

“Cause I don’t know!” Miki wasn’t lying. Angie could tell. Sara kept her out of at least that much so this wouldn’t blow up between her and Conall.