Wouldn’t you know it, the caramel cow answered instead. “Guardian division. Jack Parnell’s phone.”
“Sal, it’s Riley. Where’s Jack?”
“In a meeting with the Director. What do you want?”
For you to get back into whatever annoying coffin you crawled out of. I cleared my throat, and said, “I need a car and clothes at my current location.”
“You lost your clothes?” Amusement crawled through her cool tones. “Though I suppose it wouldn’t be the first time. You wolves do tend to get careless about such things.”
“Maybe, but not this time. It was done to prevent me working a case.”
Sal sniffed. It was a superior sound if ever I’d heard one. “I’ve located your call position. We have a car in the area and I’ve sent an order for them to pick you up. They’ll take you home to retrieve some clothes.”
Better than nothing. Though if the increasing edge of amusement in Sal’s voice was anything to go by, she wasn’t being as helpful as it seemed. “Can you transfer me to the following cell number?” I reeled off Jin’s number. “I need to call my target and explain why I’m late.”
“Consider it done, wolf girl. I shall tell Jack of your predicament.”
And enjoy every moment, undoubtedly. “Tell him it was Quinn, and that I’ll report once I make contact with my target.”
She didn’t answer, just transferred the call. As I waited, a teenager walked by and almost broke his neck doing a quick double take. I gave him a wave and he grinned, his feet seemingly glued to the spot as he got out his cell phone and began dialing. Given the grin, I very much suspected it wasn’t the cops he was dialing, but his mates. I suppose it wasn’t every day a teenage boy found a naked woman standing in a phone booth. What were the odds I’d soon have an audience?
I smiled and, as he pointed the phone at me, gave him a thumbs-up. The answering wows and ahs were audible even from where I stood.
“Hello?”
Jin’s easygoing tones came on the line, and I snapped my attention back to my job. “Jin, it’s Riley.”
There was a brief pause, the squeak of a chair, then footsteps and a door opening. Then he said, “Hello, dear Riley.”
His voice had dropped several levels, and slid across my skin as smoothly as silk. A warmth that was part desire, part trepidation flooded my senses, as if just by speaking he could call to the wildness within me.
“When you didn’t answer your phone,” he continued, “I began to fear I’d scared you off.”
“I’m not that fragile.” Despite the fact that accurately described my state when I first woke up. “I misplaced my phone, that’s all.”
“Ah. I’m glad you rang, then.” He paused, and I heard voices in the background. One male, one female. Accompanying them was a slapping sound that sounded an awful lot like a leather belt against skin.
And given the business cards I’d found, it probably was.
“I’m afraid when I couldn’t get you earlier,” Jin continued, “I agreed to work. But we could go out afterward, if you like.”
“I’d like,” I said absently, trying to tune in to the soft noises behind him. The slapping sound was now accompanied by soft sounds of distress rather than enjoyment, and there was something about it that just snagged at my instincts. “Where would you like to meet?”“I’m not entirely sure what time I’ll finish here, as we’ve a bit of work to do yet.”
Yeah, and I was betting it wasn’t serving customers alcohol.
“I could just wander into the club and wait for you to finish.”
Though if he was at the Hellion Club, I was backing out. Slapping and biting and even being restrained I could handle, but torture and humiliation just didn’t rock my sexual boat.
“I’m not at the Cattle Club.”
I swore internally. What was I going to do to get out of the date tonight? There was no way on this green earth I was going to go anywhere near the Hellion Club. I wasn’t that damn dedicated to the job.
“I’m at the Hunter’s Club,” he added.
Curiosity stirred. The Hunter’s Club was a fitness club, so what sort of exercise had people making choking noises? “Well, I can come along and watch all the pretty men exercise while I’m waiting for you.”
“Or you could come along for a massage and spa treatment. On the house.”
“So you don’t want me watching all the pretty men?”
He laughed. “To be perfectly honest, no. Besides, watching men sweat will probably get boring after a while.”
Not for a werewolf. I grinned. “What time do you want me there?”
“If you’re coming for a treatment, how about in an hour? It takes a few hours to go through both.”
“Are you going to be my masseur?”
“You can bet on it, babe.”
Anticipation thrummed through me, and suddenly it was all I could do to remember that this boy was bad, that he could be dangerous, and therefore had to be treated with caution. And that caution should be applied equally to the club, especially if those odd noises were anything to go by.
“I’ve gotta go home and change first, so I might be longer than an hour.”
“I’ll be here waiting,” he said simply, and hung up.
I replaced the receiver and turned around to discover my teenage ogler had gained a couple of mates—all armed with phones. A wise werewolf would have been discreet and shifted shape but I couldn’t see the harm in giving a few boys a cheap thrill.
A blue Ford pulled to a halt beside the phone booth and for a moment I thought my flashing days were about to be cut to a sudden halt by the long arms of the law. Then the passenger door was flung open and a rough voice said, “Get in.”
And suddenly I understood Sal’s earlier amusement. The voice belonged to Cole. Obviously, she didn’t realize she was actually doing me a favor. Grin widening, I blew the boys a kiss then climbed into the car.
He took off before I was even buckled in. “Those boys are going to have wet dreams for the next fortnight.”
“If it’s only for a fortnight, I’ll be most disappointed.”
He chuckled softly, and I raised my eyebrows. “The shifter is amused, not annoyed?”
He glanced at me. Despite his amusement, wariness still held sway in his pale blue eyes. “Oh, I’m pissed off about having to rescue a damn wolf careless enough to lose her car and her clothes, but at least I’ll get overtime.”
“So I’m not going to get a lecture about wantonly flaunting myself in front of a couple of young males?”
“I was a teenage boy once myself, you know. Those kids are going to be heroes to their peers.” His gaze swept down my body, lingering long enough on my breasts to send a warm flush through my system, then he looked back at the road. “There’s a coat in the back if you’re getting cold.”
“I’m aroused, not cold.”
“I know.” He glanced at me. “I’m just being polite.”
“Are all wolf-shifters as uptight as you?” I twisted around to grab the coat, making sure my breast brushed his arm as I did so.
His eyes narrowed slightly, but all he said was “You want to punch your address into the nav-computer?”
“Before or after I cover up?”
“Before.” He looked at me, amusement twitching lips that suddenly looked lush and kissable. “I never said I wasn’t enjoying the view.”
“So there’s hope for you yet?” I leaned forward and punched my address into the computer, aware all the while of his gaze lingering on my breasts. The shifter was a boob man, obviously. Just as well I wasn’t built in the stick-thin mode of most weres.
“There’s always hope for me. But for you? Not a chance.”
I grinned and leaned back, curving my back a little to show off my assets to full advantage. “Never challenge a werewolf, Cole. You’ll always lose.”
“In this, I think not.”
“Game on, then.”
He looked at me, clearly amused. “It takes more than a good set of breasts to get into my bed.”
“So the challenge is to discover what else it takes? I think I’ll enjoy that.”
He shook his head and didn’t reply. The rest of the trip was spent in silence. I didn’t bother putting on the coat, just draped it over my lap and legs to keep them warm. The atmosphere in the car was pleasant, and yet filled with an underlying tension that was all arousal and desire. The shifter might not want to want me, but he did. While I took great delight in knowing that, I didn’t push things. Cole obviously was going to be a long-term project—but one I had no doubt I could win over.
He pulled to a halt in front of my place, leaving the car running as he glanced up at the old warehouse building. “Looks as though you have plenty of room up there.”
“We do. And big windows.” And a great big bed you’d look good lounging naked on.
He met my gaze, the scent of his lust spiking sharply. “In which you undoubtedly flaunt yourself.”
“And why not? The neighbors don’t complain.”
“No surprise there.” He looked away. “I’ll see you at work sometime.”
“You will, shifter. I’ll make sure of it.”
He looked at me again, but didn’t reply. I climbed out of the car and walked up to the steps, aware of his gaze following my naked butt and this time working it for all I was worth.