Breathe Into Me (4 page)

“I asked you a question, now where were you?”
he snarls.

“Stop
pestering the poor boy, Jamie. At least let me get some food into him before you start the interrogation.”

I can always count on Grace to defuse a situation.

“Now sit down and let me feed you. I want to hear all about the woman who’s kept you out all night.”

I shake my head at her. “I’m not hungry
, Grace, but thank you.”

The look she g
ives me stops me in my tracks. “Sit your butt in that chair. You’re a growing boy who needs food.” She raises a brow in challenge.

I stifle my laughter and quickly take a seat at the kitchen island. I’ve learned it’s best to give into her demands. That woman is tough as nails, and stubborn as a mule. Of course, she’d have to be to put up with the likes of us
. There’s no need to point out that I’d stopped growing centuries ago.

“Good now that everyone’s happy can I get some fucking answers? You pulled some major shit last night. Way to stay under the radar
, asshole. Now every shifter in town knows we’re here.”

I sigh and contemplate how to explain this cluster fuck of a situation. I decide to go with the truth. “I’m sorry for exposing us
, but it was going to happen anyways, James, we kind of stand out.”

If anything Lincoln’s presence gives us away. The man stands at a
towering six foot eight with three hundred pounds of muscle.

“You didn’t have to engage those fucking coyotes. Y
ou could have just removed the girl and been done with it, but no, you decide to go all Chuck Norris on them and draw the attention of everyone there.”

I turn to give my friend an incredulous look. “You
’re giving me shit for getting into a fight? Do you know how hypocritical that is?” If anyone should understand, it’s the man before me. Jamie Trudeau is the biggest hot head I’ve ever met.

“Showing off just
isn’t your style kid. Usually you can talk your way out of anything. I’ve never seen you act like that.”

He’s right of course. I usually use force as a last resort. “I couldn’t help it Jamie, he put his hands on her, and I saw red. Be hap
py I didn’t shift and tear his throat out like I wanted to.”

“You stepped over the line and you fucking know it, and for what, a
piece of ass?”

Before I realize
what I’m doing, I find myself holding my best friend against the wall by his throat. “She’s my mate, and if you fucking disrespect her again, I will be forced to forget our long history.”

Jamie looks at me as if I’m a stranger. I’ve never struck one of my brothers out of anger before. “Unless you want to spend the rest of the day growing another hand I suggest you let go.”

I know he’s trying to rein in his temper, which is usually impossible for him. I remove my hand and back away from him before he retaliates and sets my ass on fire.

“Settle down boys, you know my rule about fighting in the house.”

I roll my eyes at Grace’s attempt at humor. The poor woman shouldn’t have to deal with so much testosterone.

“I’m so happy for you
, baby, I can’t wait to meet her.”

I give Grace a warm smile. Ten years ago, we saved her from a werewolf attac
k and she’s been with us ever since. She’s more like a mother to us than a housekeeper and cook.

“I can’t believe how fucking calm you are. Do you have any idea what this means?” Jamie shouts.

“What is your problem? I thought you’d be happy for me.” God knows I’d be happy for anyone of my brothers. Every one of them deserves to find love.

“How the fuck, can I be happy about this? Not only are you goi
ng to be distracted, but you’re also bringing death to her doorstep. The last thing I want to do is bring your body to your father or stand by your side while your mate is being buried.”

The thought of anything happening to Andy makes my blood boil.

“Nothing’s going to happen to either one of them, James.”

I turn to see Micah, Jamie’s older brother. I
watch as the rest of my brothers file into the kitchen. Lincoln pulls me into a bear hug, which is appropriate since he is one.

“Congrats
, brother.”

I pull out of his embrace only to be pulled into another hug, this time it’s
by, Cass. If it weren’t for their height differences and the fact that they are different types of shifters, you’d think Linc and Cass were biological brothers. They both possess golden hair and have the same laidback personalities.

“Dude
, you lucked out, that female of yours is hot. Can you imagine if your mate had turned out to be a dog?  Ha! Get it, because you’re a wolf.”

I playfully push Cass away.
That’s another thing about him. Most days his sense of humor is hit or miss. “Yeah, I get it, Cass, you’re very clever.” I focus my attention on, Micah. At over four hundred years old, he’s the oldest and the first of us to be picked for this life. Micah leans his six foot five frame against the counter and appraises me with his sapphire eyes. The man is the epitome of calm. He’s always watching and waiting, learning the best way to take down his opponent. The wolf is amazing to watch when he’s in a fight.

“I’m happy for you
, kid, but my brother brings up some good points.”                                                              

“Thank you, finally someone who agrees with me. This whole thing is a bad idea.” Jamie sighs with relief.

“I didn’t say it was a bad idea, just that you had a point.”

Jamie looks at his brother as
if he’s lost his mind. “We’re Enforcers, we’re not supposed to have girlfriends, let alone families, Micah, it’s too dangerous.” Jamie growls.

Before I know i
t the room fills with arguments. I decide to let them fight amongst themselves for a while. I need to figure out my next move.

“Enough!” The room falls silent and the focus is now
on the severely ticked off human woman.

“I want all of you to listen to me
, because I’m only going to say this once.  I know that most of you didn’t choose this life, but it is what it is. There is no rule that says you have to give up on true love to keep the world safe. You all deserve happiness.” Grace holds her hand up to silence Jamie’s interruption. “Don’t even think about it, James. It’s the truth. You’ve all kept me safe for years, so there is no reason to think that you can’t do the same for your mates. I love you boys as if you were my own sons and just like any other mother, I want to see you all happy.” She’s met with a chorus of “awe’s”. This does nothing to soften her mood. “Now, I want you to leave the poor boy alone and do whatever you can to help him.” Grace gives Jamie a motherly glare.

He rolls his eyes like a defiant teenager. “Yes
, Ma’am.”

I shake my head at the room. “I hate to spoil all the love
, but there are a few more things I have to tell you.” I take a deep breath and begin to explain the idiotic lie I had to tell this morning.

Cass and Lincoln erupt with laughter while Jamie throws his hands in the air in surrender. Micah looks mildly amused. I’m glad I can entertain them. Micah finds his voice first.

“While I applaud you on your choice of occupations, it’s of no consequence. She’ll find out what we really are soon enough. As for the other thing, don’t worry about Gary, I’ll talk with him.”                                                                                               

“Don’t you think
that I should be the one who talks to him?” At the very least, I should try to calm his fears about Andy’s safety.

Micah shakes his head. “No you have enough to worry about at the moment. I hate to say it kid
, but this couldn’t have happened at a worse time. The Omegas are increasing in numbers and the body count is growing.  I need you to get her on board then focus on the job.”

I nod in agreement.

Omegas are shifters who kill humans and threaten the very existence of our species. The more humans they kill the closer we become to being exposed. Some kill for fun, others do it because they believe humans to be inferior to us. As if we’re so god damned special. No matter the reasoning behind it, it’s still murder and that’s why Enforcers are needed.

Unfortuna
tely, there are more of them than there are of us and they aren’t our only enemies.

“I’m taking her to dinner tonight
, but I can patrol afterwards.”

Again, Micah shakes his head. “I want you guys on surveillance, get as much info as you can on the shifters and vamps in town. Since the only place open after dark in this town is the bar
, that’s where I want everyone, at least for the next few nights.” We all nod in agreement. The Boondocks seems like the obvious choice to find prey.

“Let’s try to blend in
, shall we? If you’re going to kick some ass, at least do it away from the humans.”

All eyes fall on me.
I knew I’d catch shit for that little stunt. The aroma of pancakes and bacon capture my attention. A plate is set in front of me and I happily dig in. The room clears and I’m left with my breakfast and the looming presence of my best friend.

“Do you have something
else to add, James?” I try to hide my annoyance with him, but it’s hard. Out of all of my brothers, I thought he’d be the one to have my back in this.

“Yeah, once Micah puts us back on patrol you’re going to be my permanent partner.”

I’d ask him if he were drunk, but it’s early even for him.

“You know we rotate partners, you’d never have a night off.”

Jamie gives me a smile that can only be described as sinister. “I don’t need a fucking night off, I need you to stay alive and if you’re going to be distracted and risk someone’s life than it’s going to be mine. If you agree to this, then I’ll help you anyway that I can with your mate.” 

I take a minute to think it over. “If you can get Micah to agree
, then I’ll do it.” I’m going to need all the help that I can get.

He nods in agreement and slaps me on the back.
“Now what can I do to help?”

Chapter 3

Man this whole thing is a bad idea. I know I should stop being an ass
hole about this and just be happy for Adam, but I can’t. I wasn’t lying when I said that this situation will end in one of two ways and neither of them is an acceptable outcome. I refuse to lose my best friend, we are as close as real brother’s, and there is no way I can live without him. I’ve lost too many siblings as it is. Not to mention all of my brothers who were unlucky enough to find love. Our enemies always seem to go after our families first, which is why Enforcers don’t have them.

In the past, several have tried and every damn time tragedy has hit. Don’t get me wrong, I have n
o doubt that my best friend would do anything and everything in his power to protect his mate. Adam is one of the best fighters I have ever seen. Of course, when you come from a family full of legendary warriors, there is a certain expectation of greatness.

However bada
ss I believe him to be, death doesn’t care about any of that. He never does. Death is a bitch and once he sets his sights on you its game over, there’s not a damn thing that you can do about it. How do I know this? I know death personally as in I’m friends with him. I don’t mean it in the metaphorical sense, I mean literally. I’ve known the Angel of death for centuries. Azrael isn’t the only angel that deals in the collection of souls, but he is one of the few Angel’s who ever seems to want to hang with us.

Out of the five of us, I seem to get along with him the best. It’s probably because we have tons of shit in common, including our outlook on life. We both see the world for what it is, hard and unforgiving.
Some people see the beauty in this world, but not us. All we see is the deceit, pain, lies, and torment. I’m not going to sit here and bitch about how shitty my childhood was because it won’t change a damn thing. I was dealt a bad hand like so many others. I can either let my past hold me down, or I can shove it aside, flip it the bird, and tell it to fuck off. The only things that I can’t seem to get past are my mistrust in people and my unwillingness to express my feelings. Words don’t mean shit, its one’s actions that matter.

My brothers know
that I love them because I protect them with my life. I’ve bled for them, taken lives to save theirs and I do it with a fucking smile on my face. Those four males are the only things I hold dear in this world and if I have to do underhanded fucked up things to protect them so be it. My soul is as black as a midnight sky and I know I’m destined for hell, so why not walk the thin line of right and wrong as long as it leads me to my desired outcome?

I light up a smoke then lean closer to the sizeable brick
fireplace in my bedroom. Fire has always soothed me. I need it as much as I need my next breath. I inhale the smoky rich scent of the burning logs and feel a sense of calm wash over me.

When Adam told me that he had found his mate
, I was filled with an emotion that I rarely entertain, fear. It gripped me so tightly I could have choked on it. I hate feeling helpless. It reminds me of when I was a child. I close my eyes and try to dispel the bad memories that still haunt me to this day. Not fucking going there, I have enough shit on my plate right now without reliving the hell that was dealt to me by my father’s hand.

On top of this shit storm with Adam and ou
r never-ending battle with Omegas, I spotted the hottest piece of ass last night at the bar. She was sitting with Adam’s mate and a human male. I figured that he was her boyfriend, but then I overheard them talking and found out that she’s single. This information both delighted and baffled me. How can a woman like that be single? She was utter perfection. Despite being elated that she was without a man, I wasn’t thrilled with her being unprotected. If that female were mine, the only place she’d wear something that reveling would be when she was in my bed. She certainly wouldn’t have been out drinking at a rowdy bar without me. I don’t even want to contemplate all of the things that could have happened to her. The Boondocks isn’t known for its upstanding clientele.

Speaking of slime balls
, it hadn’t escaped my attention that a local cop had also been lurking in the shadows. His eyes had been trained on the blonde goddess and her friends. Fucking, Tim Davenport, I’ve hated that S.O.B. since the day that I met him three years ago and if it weren’t against our laws, or the oath that I’ve sworn to uphold, I’d have killed him already. I can’t blame him for lusting after that woman, but he can’t possibly believe that he has a shot in hell with her?
MINE.
That word has been echoing throughout my head since last night.

“Get i
t together,” I sigh. That woman isn’t mine and she sure as hell won’t be officer Davenport’s. There isn’t one damn thing that’s special about him. Sure, he’s average height with an athletic build, golden hair and blue eyes, but so fucking what? Compared to me he looks like one of those anatomically incorrect dolls little girls play with. He can’t hold a candle to me, hell even on my worst day I would out shine him. Seriously, if that cop is my only competition, then bedding that woman will be a piece of cake.

There is just something off with that cop.
I can’t put my finger on it, but Davenport is no stranger to the dark side, I can see it in his eyes. I recognized it of course because I’m not a stranger to it either. Hell I’m a lifetime card-carrying member. The difference is I don’t try to hide it. I know what I am and couldn’t give a shit if people don’t like it. This guy hides behind his badge and an arrogant smile. There is evil inside of him.

I’d like to believe that little beauty would stay away from him, especially if he tried to hurt her, but human women confuse the hell out of me. They seem to forgive so easily and put up with mistreatment from males like its acceptable or some shit. That’s one main difference between human and shifter females. My kind wouldn’t take shit from us. If anything, they would give it back to us tenfold. That’s one reason how I know my mate will be a shifter. I want a woman who will fight with me and put me in my place, not one who will do whatever I say just to please me. Fuck that. I don’t want a robot that will cater to my every whim. I want a strong independent woman, one who is capable of dealing with my dangerous life and my insatiable appetite for sex. You’d think it would be easy to find a woman like that, but let me tell you it is damn near impossible. I haven’t managed to find a woman that can hold my attention for more than a few hours. Once the sex is over, I’m gone.

When I saw that smokin hot blonde, I felt a spark. Maybe it was because of the way she had looked at me. It felt like for once a woman saw the real me and not just the bad boy outer shell. The most likely scenario was she only wanted m
e because of said outer shell. That’s what happens when women see me. I’m the quintessential bad boy that will rock their world and bring them to new heights of pleasure. I won’t ask them for their names or make promises I have no intention of keeping. They don’t want hearts and flowers from me, just hard-core sex, and up until now, I’ve been happy to give it to them. I’ve always been the type of male who takes what he wants, regardless of the consequences. I play hard, fight dirty and fuck like a champion. I’ve never cared if a woman was married or dating someone else, it didn’t matter because it was just sex. I doubt it would take a lot to convince her to spend the night with me. Fuck, just imagining how good she would feel underneath me has my cock growing hard. I bet she smells amazing, probably something exotic, and intoxicating. Hell I’m not sure one night would be long enough to do all of the dirty things I want to do to her.

I idly wonder about the type of woman she is in the bedroom. There are three types of woman. Type one; they only like it soft and gentle. The thought of being spanked or being handcuffed to the bed turns them off and does absolutely nothing for my hard on. Type two; they only liked to be fucked hard, and fast. They are open to all forms of kink and rough sex and the former type of lovemaking turns them off. It also can get boring after a while if you want the truth. And finally type three, my favorite.  These women are the type who will allow me to love them any fucking way
that I want. Whether I want to hold them close and make slow passionate love all night or fuck their brains out until neither of us can stand they are up for either challenge.

Fuck me
, but I hope that she’s type three and if she’s not then I’ll just have to change her mind. I always get what I want in the end. I know she wants me, no big surprise there. I’m fucking irresistible to the opposite sex, and that blonde bombshell needs a real male in her bed and lucky for her I just happen to be available. I’m not going to mistake this for anything, but what it is. I’m not looking for a mate or a meaningful relationship. I won’t give my life for hers or demand loyalty from her. All I want is to get her naked and underneath me a few times. Once my lust for her is spent, I’ll move on to the next woman waiting in the wings. There is no reason to deny either one of us the exquisite pleasure that we would no doubt find together. I have a feeling that sex with her will be explosive. I’m sure it would be better than the sex that I had last night.

After Adam left with his mate and her friends, I ran into an almost carbon copy of the woman currently holding my interest. Yeah so okay, she had blonde hair and she had the same petite frame
, but that’s where the similarities ended. Don’t get me wrong she was fucking hot, but she had fake tits, and she looked like she belonged in a slutty rock video. I swear I have hand towels bigger than the skirt she was wearing. All it took was one heated look from me to get inside her. No small talk, no buying her drinks, just one fucking look and she was more than happy to let me fuck her in a bathroom stall of a biker bar. In fact, she acted as if she had just won the lottery. Girls like that are a dime a dozen for me. What the hell was her name again? Gina, Gill, Gigi, hell all I know is it started with a G.

Regardless of her name and her lack of self-respect
, she got the job done. Although I had to take her from behind, I found myself longing to stare into a pair of green eyes, not gray.

Jesus
, what the hell is wrong with me?
Maybe it’s all of this mate business that’s got me worked up. I’d like to blame this whole situation on my best friend, but I can’t. Lately I’ve been feeling the loneliness of our world. To an outsider it might seem like an exciting life and sometimes it is, but for the most part it’s isolating. The five of us travel all over the world protecting the innocent, we fight for the just and the righteous. I’ve fought alongside Knights, Vikings, and hell even a former Spartan. Even though we have each other to rely on, there still feels like something is missing. I wonder if this is how Adam is feeling. Maybe I should help him win this girl over instead of hindering his attempts to find love. I just don’t want this to be another tragedy in the making. Adam is a sensitive kind of male who wears his heart on his sleeve and he would no doubt take it hard if he ever lost his mate.

I hear the sound of Adam’s Camaro roar to life, he must be leaving for his date. Maybe he’ll find out that he has nothing in common with this girl or he was wrong about her being meant for him. I highly doubt it
, considering the way he was looking at her last night. Fuck it, I’ll figure out all of this later. Right now, I need a drink and some answers from a badass angel. I grab my smokes and my keys and head for The Boonies.

***

“Hey Finn, give me a bottle of Jack, don’t bother with the glass.” I sit my ass at the bar and wait patiently for the Irishman to comply.

“What’s
wrong mo’chara, yer look like shit?” He slides the bottle in my direction and I proceed to drink a third of it.

“I’m fine
, just tired,” I lie.

Finn pops open a bottle of Guinness Black Lager and leans
his body against the bar. “Roi, let’s try dat one again. Tell ole Finn what tis botherin’ yer.” He tips the bottle back as I glance at the man that I met a lifetime ago in Dublin.

To say
that I was shocked to see him when I walked in here last week would be an understatement. Apparently, he ran into some trouble back in Ireland so he decided to try his luck here in the states. I hope it works out for him. Finnegan McDermott is a good man with a heart of gold. Not to mention he’s one hell of a fighter, well for his kind anyways.

“Tell me Finn, have you ever wa
nted something that you can’t have?” I take a huge swig from the whisky bottle while I wait for his answer.

“Aye so dis is abou
t a lassy den. Tell me, which one ‘as caught yer fancy?”

Oh hell no, I’m not about to point
out that little hottie to this man. Finn is a manwhore who will sleep with anyone and I do mean anyone. Male, female he doesn’t care as long as they are hot. I have no problem with him being bisexual, but it’s not my shot of whiskey. I’ve had my fair share of threesomes, but I’m not into having actual sex with other men.

“Look I’ll admit it’s a woman
, but that’s as far as I’m going with this.” All I’d have to do is point her out to Finn and he would work his magic until she joined him in his bed. And there is no way in hell I’m going to share her with the Irishman.

“Well I
’m guessin tis not de bitty yer screwed in de toilet, so yer would be meanin de other fair haired lassy dat was in here last noight. She’s bout five two, spunky an’ goes by de name, Kelsey.”