Tactics and Tails: A Lion and Tiger Shifter Romance (The Protectors Quick Bites Book 6) by Keira Blackwood & Eva Knight

Author:Keira Blackwood & Eva Knight [Blackwood, Keira]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Paramour Press
Published: 2019-09-28T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Aubrey

I’d thought we’d gotten past cold, somewhere into lukewarm territory, hell even toed into straight up hotness here and there. But there I was, pacing a shitty motel room and feeling like the little moments of warmth and respect had all been figments of my imagination.

Oliver was my boss. No, he wasn’t just my boss, he was investigating my team. He was investigating me. Why should I expect him to let his guard down? Why should I expect him to trust me?

My throat felt tight. My chest, too. I wanted him to trust me, wanted him to throw away logic for me. It was stupid, a childish crush. Real world adulting didn’t work like that.

I dropped down on the mattress. It creaked, sharp springs stabbing up into my back. No way was I going to be able to sleep on this thing. I could’ve sworn the motel looked like the kind of place you’d see on TV when someone was fleeing from the mob. The only amenities were a spiny rock of a bed, a tube TV smaller than my laptop screen, and a yellowed print of an ugly painting.

I should have insisted on returning to headquarters, getting my own car, and driving home. It wasn’t that far, just one town over. But I wanted to be with him. Leaving felt like giving up, not just on this case, but on that imaginary warmth. I’d never been a quitter.

I pulled out my phone and called Jen. She’d have left operations by now, and hopefully she wasn’t asleep yet. It was getting hella late. My nerves were a fluttery mess. Oliver wouldn’t want me to call someone from work. He wouldn’t want me to reveal anything, but I hadn’t yet decided what I was going to say.

“Aubrey?” Jen answered on the first ring.

“Hey.”

“Where are you? Is everything okay? Tell me that Bossy Hot Britches didn’t kidnap or arrest you or something.”

I laughed. “Arrest me? Why would Oliver arrest me?”

“You’re on a first name basis...tell me everything.”

What was I going to tell her? What should I hold back? I bit my lip and stared at the splotchy stucco ceiling as if somewhere in the stains I’d find answers.

“Business first,” I said. “Then boys.”

Jen laughed. “Whatever you say, boss lady.”

“Any leads back at Operations on the away team?”

“Well rumor has it Cyrus is dead, and had to be picked up from a human morgue. I don’t know firsthand though. The other two haven’t been spotted yet as far as I know.”

“Any progress in cleanup on the Vrekalis job?” I asked.

“MAC Team Two did a sweep. All three of the major relics that we’d planned on recovering were already gone. Either the disciples ran off with them or—”

“Or Cyrus, Rossi, and Finch took them.” I knew for sure they’d taken the Scepter of Vrekalis. Did they take the Visage and the Codex, too?

“Yeah.”

“How about you?” Jen asked. “Have you been crazy busy hunting down Cyrus and company? Or have you been locked in your bedroom all day?”

“I can’t talk about the investigation.

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