Kathi S Barton - [Aaron's Kiss 04] (7 page)

Sam parked her car in the private garage and got into her little sedan that she had parked just down the street. She loved to drive, and she did it very fast. Too fast for those who rode with her sometimes. And when she was upset or pissed as she was right now, she also drove a little recklessly.

Her first stop was to the station house. She asked to see David Wolff and was granted permission from the large man at the desk to go back to his office. He was never too busy for a pretty girl, the Entry Control Chief told her; no one should ever be that. She thanked him politely and went back. The moment he stepped around his desk to greet her, she drew back and slugged him square in the nose, slamming his body against the desk and knocking him to the floor. David wisely stayed where he was.

“You set your watch dogs on me again and I will use my gun for things you will be very aware of. I don’t want, don’t need, nor do I require your help. Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal. But it was…” He shut up the moment her foot lifted off the floor and swung back as though to kick him in the head.

“I will hurt you. You had no right to send pack members to follow me. You do not own me, nor do I answer to you. Do it again and I will not be content to just put them out of commission for a few hours.” He fell into a deep sleep as soon as she touched his forehead.

A few minutes later, nursing a bruised hand, she stormed out of the station house.

Next, she went to the pack house. Going to the top sometimes got one better results than going through the middle man. And Sam wanted results. The longer it took her to get there, the more pissed off she became. By the time she was racing up the drive, she was ready to shoot any and all the men she had to deal with.

When she arrived at the pack house, Bradley was on the front porch. Good, she thought. He looked as if he hadn’t a care in the world. She sat in her car for a minute trying to regain control of her temper and finally said fuck it. He was going to get it with both barrels. He had been forewarned by David after he woke up, Sam figured.

~~~

Bradley was casually leaning again one of the posts with his hands in his pockets.

His men had returned just under an hour ago, embarrassed and mad. He didn’t blame them; it really hurt to be bested by a woman, especially one as beautiful as this. Bradley put out his hand to her, smile on his face when she stepped out of the car.

“Miss Hunter. How nice of you to join us. I hope you’ll be staying for supper. You’d be surprised at the way the cook feeds us.” Bradley had to smile. She was fuming, he could see that from where he stood, and if that was in doubt, her next sentence left no doubt whatsoever.

“You mother fucking, cock sucking son of a bitch. If you ever, and I do mean ever, send someone to tag me again, I will personally come here and blow your fucking nuts off. I have never been so angry in my entire life! What do you think would have happened if her husband had come home and found Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb there? Do you think it’s easy to get an abused woman...” She slapped her hand over her mouth and stared at him with her eyes wide open.

“Do go on. Please don’t stop now. It was just getting interesting.” He leaned back against the house. “You were saying how you rescued an abused woman today. I’m sure your mate would want to know about that as well. How you go into houses and help these women out, help them pack up their memories. What do you do when the husband shows up? Ah, the gun. Now I understand.”

Bradley could smell the vampire all over Sam, and he also knew that the vampire was close to her, but not as close Bradley was. He started advancing toward her, to do what he wasn’t sure. Shaking some sense into her head came to mind. Then he stopped suddenly when she pulled out the Glock and pointed it at his chest.
Shit!

Her hand was steady and straight. Bradley figured she knew how to use it and wouldn’t be the least bit hesitant about doing so. He knew from talking to David that she had one in the chamber, and quite a few extra clips. Bradley took a few steps back.

He had stupidly thought he could handle one little human and had sent his bodyguard in the house. If she shot him—no, when she shot him, he knew he would be dead long before anyone would be able to rescue him. He raised his hands up and faced his palms out.

“Don’t do it, Sam. I…David and I just wanted to make sure you weren’t doing anything stupid.” Her look made him very nervous. “Not that you’re stupid, but things could get out of hand, especially with guns.”

He took two steps back until his heel hit the bottom step of the porch he had stepped off of. He was not going to give her any reason to put a bullet in his head. He could smell the silver and cursed his own stupidity once again.

“Do I look like I can’t handle a gun, alpha? Don’t take another step or I will shoot you, have no doubt. Right now I’m mad enough to shoot you just to watch you bleed. I don’t think I’ve ever been this mad before.” She took one step toward him. “What the fuck were you thinking, if you were at all? That the little woman couldn’t possibly survive without the big bad man to save her? I don’t need your fucking help.”

“I can see that now. I’m not moving, Sam. Please don’t shoot me. You know as well as I do that you won’t get away. There are several hundred pack members that will track you down in minutes.” He hoped that wouldn’t be necessary. He really wanted to live. But he was partly responsible for pissing her off.

“Threatening me right now isn’t conducive to calming me down, asshole. And if I shoot you, no matter how many pack members come after me, you’ll still be a dead dog.”

He decided now was probably not the time to point out he wasn’t dog, but wolf.

“All right, you’re right. I apologize. What can I do to reassure that we are all friends here?”

Her snort was not making him feel warm and fuzzy.

Bradley reached out and found the vamp about a hundred yards to the West. He sent him a plea to come and calm his mate. His reply from him was anything but helpful. Bradley wished like hell he’d never heard of the woman in front of him.

“She isn’t aware of me, not as her mate, nor as a man. I can’t make myself known to her without bringing harm to her. I have contacted Aaron, the master of this realm, and he is on his way. Hold steady until he is able to get there.”

“How can she not be aware of you? I can smell you all over her.” Bradley was going to stake the bastard. “And what do you mean she isn’t aware of you as a man? You do realize she has a gun pointed at me and the shot is silver. I’m not too terribly fond of dying right now. Get your ass over here and defuse the situation.”

“Hold steady, he is nearly here.”

Tucker was closer to her now too. Only about ten feet away, Bradley estimated, but it didn’t help him if she shot. Tucker would take her out of harm’s way if needed, but nothing more than that, Bradley knew. It was the way of mates. You couldn’t do anything but protect them no matter how pissed off you knew it was going to make them. He just hoped he got the opportunity to do that with his own mate someday.

Bradley could feel Aaron’s presence immediately after he entered his territory. Christ, he was never doing this again.

~~~

Aaron appeared next to Tucker and pulled the shadows around himself just as Tucker had done. Aaron had been about to make love to his lovely mate when Tucker had told him he was in serious trouble and needed him to please come to the pack house. Thinking Bradley was hurt or worse, he’d left immediately. Tucker had told him that Sam, the woman from his home, was going to shoot the alpha for reasons he didn’t know.

“I know that you have claimed her. So why am I here?” Aaron demanded of the vamp.

He, too, could smell the vamp on the girl. Her scent was stronger with her anger.

Tucker should have been able to take control as soon as it had gotten out of hand.

“I haven’t made myself known to her. She isn’t aware of me, nor have I marked or mated with her, just bonded.” Tucker dropped his chin to his chest and then he dropped to the ground.

Aaron was furious. He didn’t want his people to be afraid of him, but he also needed them to respect the rules of the realm. If Tucker wanted to stay under his protection, then he was going to have to know that while Aaron demanded respect, he also gave it. Aaron reached out, took the man’s chin in his hand, and lifted it to look him in the eyes. He looked deep into them, seeing the man he could be.

“This is my realm and as such, my will is law. Do you understand me? You will come back to the mansion with me as soon as this is complete. I will not be put off in this. If you do not show, Tucker James, I will consider it a breach of contract and have you hunted down like an animal. Do you understand all that I have ordered this day?” Aaron hated making it a demand, but this man was hurting and in need of something desperately. Aaron could smell Sam on Tucker, and it was more than the healing feed he had given her a few days ago. He had had sex with her and that was as bonding as it got.

“Yes, my lord. I will come with you as soon as you make her safe. She…she is very angry and though you smell her around me, she isn’t aware…I took advantage of her while she slept. I didn’t harm her, but I took what was not offered from her.” Aaron didn’t understand that statement, but knew that he needed to rescue the alpha first. “I see. Actually, no I don’t, but you will explain yourself to me and to her. I will do my best with your mate, Tucker, but as I have had very little to do with this woman, I’m not sure how to handle her. But I can assure you that according to my mate, keeping her safe and out of jail will be a full time job. And not one I’m willing to help you with every day.”

Aaron walked up a few steps past the girl and stopped halfway between her and Bradley. Aaron felt her track him with her eyes and he was surprised by that. When shadowed as he’d been, humans were not able to see him. He materialized when he was standing between her and the alpha.

“Miss Hunter, always a pleasure to meet the new people in my realm. I understand that you and our esteemed alpha have had some issues today. Perhaps I can be of some assistance.”

Sam simply reached behind her and pulled out another Glock that she’d had hidden there. Before Aaron could blink, she had this one pointed at him. Aaron moved only to raise his hands up in much the same way that Bradley had done. The situation had just gone from bad to worst. Well, fuck.

“Oh, yeah, that’s helpful,” Bradley snarled from behind him. “Now she had two targets instead of one. Remind me again why you’re the bad-ass Master of the Realm.” Aaron growled at Bradley and almost laughed when he growled right back. This was so not amusing.

“Just so you both know, I’m a dead shot at any distance. I can and have taken out a man’s Adams Apple at seventy-five feet, centering six bullets point blank. That was using my left hand. My right is just as good, only I missed one and it hit him between the eyes. Bad shot, I guess, but only in making him die quickly.” She shrugged; Aaron shuddered. He didn’t think she was kidding. “I know that neither of you are human, not that I really give a rat’s ass, but these are silver shots. You, bloodsucker guy, you can help me by backing the fuck up. The dog and I are having a private conversation here and you were not invited.”

Aaron wanted to. He wanted to go home and go back to making love to his mate.

But before he could say anything, Bradley growled again.

“I’m not a fucking dog, damn it. You know, I think you need someone to paddle that ass of yours. I’m sick to death of this bull shit. Why the fuck am I even a target in this? Because I tried to protect you?”

“Bradley, let’s not piss her off any more than she apparently is.” Aaron was going to die, he just knew it. “Remember, she does have a gun on us both. Tucker, I think this would be a good time to make yourself known to your mate.” Aaron was a little nervous, but trying hard not to show it. Sam was not. All he could smell on her was Tucker and pissed off female. He could feel that she would shoot either or both of them without any problems or much more provocation. He wasn’t even sure what the hell had happened in the first place. And on top of that, he was going to have to punish the both of them. If he lived…he surely hoped that he would.

Tucker was suddenly in front of Sam. She didn’t even back up and didn’t seem to be afraid of him, which surprised him. They stared at each other for all of ten seconds before she turned and aimed both guns at his chest. He reached out and touched her forehead, said “sleep,” and caught her as she tumbled into his arms. Aaron took the first deep breath he’d had since coming here. And he used it to snarl at the vampire who held the young woman in his arms.

~CHAPTER SIX~

Sam woke up in the same damned bedroom she had been in before. Frustrated at ending up in this house again so soon after leaving made her want to punch someone, hard. So, kicking violently at the blankets, she threw herself out of bed and right into the arms of the man who had stood in front of her at the alpha’s house. Her first thought was that he was incredibly tall. Then she could smell him. She barely caught herself before she leaned in and buried her nose in his neck.

“You. Don’t you dare you touch me! What the hell...let me go you...you dickhead!” Embarrassment notched up her anger a little higher than it would normally have been.

She struggled to get away for few more minutes, and then collapsed against him.

As soon as he loosened his grip, she jerked her knee up, narrowly missing his balls. As he went to grab for her again before she hurt him or herself, she elbowed him in the ribs. As he clutched the bruised area, she snapped her head back and slammed it into his nose.

“Stop right now,” he roared. “Christ, woman, what’s wrong with you?” He was holding his nose with one hand and his ribs with the other. She took a step back. If he touched her again, she was going to claw his eyes out. Then maybe she’d smell him again.

“I want you to move out of my way. I don’t have any idea how I keep ending up at this house, but I damned well am going home.” She started for the door and stopped.