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“Thanks. That means a lot.”

He shrugged. “Far as I’m concerned, she’s safer with you than alone ’cause you’ll take care of any threat.”

“I’m just a lab geek. I’m not sure how much good I’ll do against bad guys. I know better than to show my bear to strange humans, because if I do, I’ll have to kill them.” Or pay a vampire to erase their memories.

“Most of our enemies aren’t human.” Meaning if humans weren’t around watching, I could go to bear and handle them.

I nodded. “Yeah. Okay. Thanks for your trust.” I hesitated. “And thanks for being good with Matty.”

Another shrug. “He’s okay, and I’m happy he and Daisy are close. You take care.”

He backed away and left, and I headed upstairs to figure out what I was going to wear tonight, and what change of clothes I should pack for tomorrow. How many days should I pack for?

Chapter 11

Micca

I ended up packing two pairs of jeans, a skirt, and five shirts that would mix and match with all the bottoms. It meant four pairs of shoes plus the ones I’d be wearing tonight, but it all fit in a small carry-on sized bag, along with my makeup and conditioner. I could use most any shampoo, but the conditioner was important.

An hour and a half later, McGyver texted me that he’d just let Will and Davy through the gate, and their security escort was waiting outside the gate.

I thought security was driving us all, so that was a surprise, but I texted back a quick thanks and then checked my makeup one last time in the mirror. I’d decided on a slinky charcoal sweater dress that came to just above my knees, and slightly darker charcoal heels. My ID, a credit card, and two twenty-dollar bills were in the little compartment in my phone’s case, and my regular purse with everything else I usually carry was stowed in the bag.

My hair was down in soft waves, and I’d gone with heavy eyeliner and crimson lip dye, with the rest of my makeup in neutral tones. I didn’t quite look like myself, and yet, I did.

Underneath, I wore a lacy little matching thong and bra set, and I was looking forward to the part of the night where they came into play.

Will came to the door to get me, and his eyes told me he liked what he saw. The man bun was a little disconcerting, and his eyebrows seemed, I don’t know, wrong. He’d been the loose-and-crazy cool rocker the other night, and now he was more…groomed. He didn’t look like the same person, but then, I remembered I looked different, too.

Without a single word spoken, he pulled me to him and his lips told me without a doubt he liked what he saw. How he looked no longer mattered because our night together came back to me in a rush, and my clit reminded me how much we liked this man. His lips controlled mine, one hand holding my body in place while his other hand grasped my head, and I was glad I’d gone with the lip dye instead of lipstick.

Then there were no thoughts.My arms wrapped around him, our tongues tangled, my heart raced in my chest, and my clit throbbed, but I released him when he ended the kiss, and I tried not to act like I wanted to throw him on the floor and ride his dick like a girl on a crazy mechanical bull set way too fast.

“Wow.” His eyes gleamed and I decided maybe it was too soon for me to reach to feel his cock under his pants. Besides, I could clearly see his hard-on under the suit pants.

Which brought me to what he was wearing — a silk blend black suit with what I believed was a silk tee under it, also black. I touched his tee and confirmed my suspicions. “Fancy. Is it okay if I pet your shirt all night long?”

“You can pet whatever you want, darling Micca.”

“We should go before we have sex on the floor and leave poor Davy outside by himself for an hour or so.”

He chuckled. “Speaking of which, Davy’s under orders to use the same kind of speech rules with you as he does for me, which means he doesn’t use honorifics when outsiders might hear, buthe uses them around our security. You good with him calling you Sir in front of men I think might be your coworkers?”

“Yes, but thanks for asking.” I lifted my phone and overnight bag. “My bosses told me I can confirm I work for Drake to you and Davy, but they said we’d talk in a few months about anything else I can tell you. At that time, I’ll list the things I want to tell you, and they’ll decide what they’re comfortable with from my list.”

“When do you go back to work?”

“Officially, I don’t work for Drake, and it’s important you don’t tell people I do. I go back to work in two weeks and three days.” I didn’t want to lie, especially since there was a chance — if this worked out — that Will would eventually know the truth, so I tried to explain my absence in a way that was the truth without telling him I’m a bear shifter now.

“Something unexpected happened on a mission, and it meant some…” I sighed. “Not really rehab, but it’s the closest I can come to describing it, so we’ll call it rehab. An expert was called in to get me back in shape, and that’s the goal date for when I should be ready to go back. I’m capable of handling the job now, but I guess the experts want me to settle back into my life a little first. I’m good. Fine. Better than before, I think, and I was chomping at the bit to get back to work, but now I guess I’m glad I have some time.”

I armed my alarm, urged Will outside, closed the door, listened for theclickthat told me it locked itself, and then walked to the car with Will, who said, “Thanks for telling me probably a little more than you should’ve.”

The trunk opened as we neared, and I put my bag into it. “You’re welcome, and yeah, you’re right, but it feels important to be as honest as I possibly can up front.”

Will opened the passenger side door for me, and I turned and met his gaze. “There are some big things I can’t tell you. Huge.I’m sorry for it, and hope to be able to if this works out, but there would be serious repercussions for both of us if I tell you now.”

“Okay. Noted. When I find out whatever it is later, I can’t be mad at you for not telling me now, right? That’s what you’re saying?”