Slater heard the front door slam as Brock got home from work. Brock sounded more cranky than usual as he stomped down the hall to his room.
“The fuckwit got let out for good behavior and never having a criminal record before this. I say we go and kill the bastard before he comes near our mate again. I still don’t believe the idiot didn’t have anything to do with the shifter killings. I’d know if my partner Kegon went on a killing spree.”
“Crap. When was Greg released?”
Brock raked his fingers through his black curly hair. “This afternoon.”
Slater pushed past Brock, not caring that he was only in his black dress pants. “What the fuck are you standing here telling me this for? We need to get to our mate before he gets to her.”
“I’m not stupid. Sandy and Susie are at her house now. The babies and their men are with them. Jake was there when I got the info. He told Sandy, and she told Susie. Our dinner date is probably canceled. Gwen and Jane are there also. Jake left work early to accompany Sandy to Sammy’s house. He wasn’t supposed to be at work anyway, and there was no way he was letting Sandy and the babies go to Sammy’s place without protection. Jake’s scared because Sandy almost killed the shifter killer, and Zack did kill Greg’s partner. He’s terrified Greg will come after them. He wasn’t, isn’t, willing to risk anything.”
Slater nodded and grabbed a shirt. He needed to go check on Sammy. Right now he didn’t care about the date. He just wanted to make sure his mate was okay. “Get showered and changed. Cancel the limo and meet me over at Sammy’s place. I need to know she’s all right.”
“I showered at work. If you’re going over to Sammy I’m coming, too. I just thought with all her girlfriends around there you would want to leave her be.”
“Why the fuck would I want to do that? I’m not the anti-social motherfucker. You are. And if you want to be with Sammy you might want to get over some of that. She’s been friends with Sandy and Susie since primary school. Before Greg, they used to do everything together. Sammy was usually the life of the party.”
“How the hell do you know that?”
“I asked Sandy and Susie. Even Gwen has told me some stuff.”
“When on earth did they tell you all this?” Brock crossed his arms over his chest trying to intimidate him, but Slater wasn’t the least bit threatened by Brock.
“I’ve been inviting the girls for free meals at some of the restaurants I own. Because I’m part owner, I have the luxury of leaving the kitchen and sitting and enjoying lunch with the women.”
“You’re only telling me this information now?”
He shrugged and walked down the hall to the front door. “Yep. I had no idea at first if the two of us could work together, and I needed every advantage. Now that I know we can share I thought I’d help you out and tell you.”
Brock left his room and went into the room next door to Slater’s. Slater heard him muttering about having to put up with a wanker, and that his only redeeming quality was that he could cook. Chuckling Slater went to his car, got in, started it, and drove to Sammy’s house.
****
Sammy knew she should feel scared and be worried, but with all her friends around her and four massive bear shifters scanning the windows, well five, if you counted Gwen, she felt like the safest woman in the world.
Her doorbell rang, and Gwen smiled. “I wondered how much longer until they showed up.” Gwen got off her sofa and answered the door. “I thought you two would have been here sooner. I’ve been here for hours, and so have Sandy, Jane, and Susie.”
The smell of honey and chocolate surrounded her before Slater’s growled answer. “I only just fucking found out. Brock came home and stomped into my room and told me. Trust me, if I’d learnt sooner I would have been here.”
Sammy knew she’d been testing Brock and Slater. She compared everything they did to what Greg would have done. They had passed almost every test with flying colors, so why after months was she still scared to give them what Sammy knew they wanted?
They’d been in her house; she’d gone out to dinner with them and talked about what they’d been up to, or snuggled up to them as she watched movies. Sammy had been with them at Sandy’s wedding and the birth of Susie’s twins, and she’d felt comfortable, happy, and safe.
Was it too late now? Would they think she’d decided to give in to them because Greg had got out of jail and she was terrified? Sammy hoped not.
Sammy half listened to Susie, Sandy, Jane, and Gwen as they talked and tried to keep her calm as soon as they’d arrived. The problem was she wasn’t calm. As soon as Sammy had found out Greg had been released she’d wanted her men to come and see her, be with her. She wanted to feel safe, and she did when she was with Brock and Slater.