Dirty Looks (Dirt Track Dogs: The Second Lap Book 1)

The Dirt Track Dogs are back with a brand new crew, and the dust is about to fly! So, hang on to your bra straps and get ready to be taken for a ride. This the Second Lap.

Aaron Redman has been caught in a paranormal war. As a shifter hunter, he’s seen a lot more bad apples than good. But when he learns his sister has mated into a pack of werewolves with a penchant for dirt track racing, and that those dogs aren’t the type to orchestrate a hostage situation or use him as a chew toy, it’s enough to make him question everything he thought he knew about the people who can transform into wild animals. Now he’s coming home to Cedar Valley a new man, and hoping he can rebuild relationships he once damaged.

Fox shifter, Lexington, is on the run but she’s not alone. Her crew of females is looking for a forever home to call their own. One nothing like where they came from. And they know just the pack. The Dirt Track Dogs have a reputation for loving hard and racing dirty. Now Lexington and her vixens have set out to get their attention by bringing motocross to Cedar Valley. What she doesn’t count on is meeting a human that makes her inner fox giddy for a happily ever after. A human shifter hunter with secrets that might be darker than hers.

The vixens meet the dogs in this standalone spinoff series of the original Dirt Track Dogs by P. Jameson!

Dirty Looks

By P. Jameson

Dirty Looks

Copyright © 2016 by P. Jameson

First electronic publication: July 2016

United States of America

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, redistributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in any database, without prior written permission from the author, with the exception of brief quotations contained in critical reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this work may be scanned, uploaded, or otherwise distributed via the internet or any other means, including electronic or print without the author’s written permission.

The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

P. Jameson

www.pjamesonauthorbooks.blogspot.com

Other books by P. Jameson

Ouachita Mountain Shifters

A Mate’s Wish (
Holiday Prequel
)

Deliciously Mated (
Book 1
)

Ouachita Mated (
Book 2
)

Merrily Mated (
Book 3
)

Secretly Mated (
Book 4
)

Shadow Mated (
Book 5
)

Brother Bear Mated (
Book 6
)

Dirt Track Dogs

Racing the Alpha (
Book 1
)

Racing the Beast (
Book 2
)

Racing Home (
Book 3
)

Racing Hard (
Book 4
)

Racing Destiny (
Book 5)

Home for the Holidays (
Book 6
)

Dirt Track Dogs: The Second Lap

Dirty Looks (Book 1)

Ozark Mountain Shifters

A Mate’s Denial (
Book 1
)

A Mate’s Sacrifice (
Book 2
)

A Mate’s Revenge (
Book 3
)

A Mate’s Submission (
Book 4
)

Sci-fi Fantasy Romance

Starwalker (
Amazon
)

Chapter One

Lexington Taylor peered at her crew from the top of the highest mound of Mac’s track, and the little bubble of pride in her chest grew from peanut sized to watermelon. They were ready. Finally ready to make the move that could mean having a home, a skulk to belong to.

Skulk. She hated the collective term for foxes. It made them sound like creepy old men hovering in bars waiting to follow some unsuspecting female out to her car. As Barb liked to say,
hashtag GROSS
.

But if they succeeded, if they could catch the attention of the small rag-tag group from Cedar Valley, they wouldn’t be part of a skulk. They’d be a pack. And pack was definitely more normal sounding than skulk.

Mac hollered from the center of the track, waving his arms in the air in a frustrated way that reminded Lexington of a donkey trying to buck a rodeo rider. “You got a goddamn death wish, Rae? What the hell was that?”

Lexington snickered because his reason for flailing was dumb. Ragan, her right hand, best friend, and littermate, had taken her dirt bike up the wrong ramp, showing off, and managed to pull off a Shaolin Backflip. It was difficult and dangerous but if she’d crashed and burned—as they all had in the beginning—her animal would’ve healed her. Sure, she might’ve been sore, but dead? Naw.

“Calm down, Mac,” Lexington called down at him. “How many times do we have to tell you? We aren’t fragile. Foxy, remember? The beast inside keeps us from losing our nipples if we crash.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered, stomping over to give Ragan a one-on-one tongue lashing. To which she simply settled her helmet on the tank of her bike and crossed her arms to wait out the lecture.

Ragan was the quiet type. A wallflower, an observer. She’d listen to advice, just like she listened to Mac’s warnings, but in the end, she did what she wanted.

Like a true vixen.

Barb, Seraphina, and Sally parked their bikes at the edge of the track and Lexington made her way down to them, dust kicking up under her black leather boots.

Sally whistled low, as they stared at Mac and Ragan arguing. “The human’s in a bad mood today. What crawled up his cootch and did the nasty with his ass hairs?”

Barb nodded and Seraphina grimaced, but no one was surprised at Sally’s colorful description. Sinful Sally as they liked to call her, was the baddest bitch of them all. Sweary and blunt and not the least bit ashamed of her forwardness when it came to those of the male species. Very few people knew she harbored a downy-soft side under all those rough sandpaper layers. And right now, it was coming out even if she wanted to pretend it wasn’t. Because she’d been just as grouchy as Mac these past few days, and Lexington knew why.

“He’s going to miss us,” she murmured.

Barb nodded some more. “He’s sad, ain’t he?”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t want us to leave.”

“Nope.”

Seraphina, with her delicate china-doll features, tilted her head looking so much like her animal with the action. “I don’t want us to leave either. Can’t we just stay here with Mac and have our own family group?”

Of the five fox shifters, she was the most reserved. The most submissive. Sera was a lover, not a fighter. Until she needed to be. Then she could shred you to ribbons, spit on your weeping flesh, and walk away laughing.

As they’d all done in the past.

But now the past was coming for them, and they needed the strength of numbers a pack could offer. They needed an alpha to claim them as his people so their people couldn’t call dibs.

Currently their choices for potential clans were limited. The biggest numbers belong to the Ozarka pack, but even years after being freed from an abusive alpha and under the rule of a more level headed female, they were still working out kinks. Not to mention, they were tucked away so deep in the mountains things like cell service and wi-fi weren’t part of the deal.

There was the smaller, but still impressive Ravendale pack that resided along the Missouri-Arkansas border. But they weren’t exactly approachable. It wasn’t like the vixens could fill out an application to join. And they didn’t have anything to offer Ravendale in return either.

But Dirt Track Dogs however…

Small in numbers, tucked away in a valley south of the Ozarks, and known for accepting shifters of all species, they were the vixens’ hope. They’d started out a group of five male werewolves with a racing gig on the side, but now their numbers included several humans, a bobcat, and a panther. And even more importantly, the foxes had something the pack could use thanks to Mac’s guidance.

“We have to go,” Lexington murmured. “Unless we want to end up like Ragan, we have to go.”

“She’s right,” Sally said, gruffly.

“Besides, we want a future of our choosing, don’t we?” Not one where males fought to the death for rights to them.

“Ragan should have been allowed to choose hers,” Seraphina mumbled so quietly a human wouldn’t have been able to hear it, but the others did.

What had happened to their friend was still a painful memory for all of them. Sometimes when Lexington looked at the sixth member of their group, Ragan’s little boy, Kit, she teared up over the sadness of their circumstances. But things were going to get better for them now. For all of them.

They had a plan. And phase one was coming to an end.

Mac stalked over to them, his limp more pronounced than it was a few hours earlier. Stress seemed to make it worse. Ragan followed, looking dull behind the eyes. He stopped before Lexington, crossing his scarred up arms over his broad chest and assumed his typical stubborn stance. His bearded chin jutted forward as he announced, “Y’all ain’t ready.”

“Bullshit,” Lexington argued. “We trick out better than some pros can, and you know it. Hell, you yourself never even pulled off a Shaolin Backflip, but Ragan did just now.”

Mac’s silver gaze narrowed until she could barely see his eye color. He’d been a pro rider himself until an injury put him out of commission. One of the best.

“And it was dangerous and irresponsible. Don’t care what you say about your magical juju foxy shit.”

“Animals. You mean our ability to turn into animals.”

“Whatever. You asked me to train you on the dirt bike, get you ready for competition, and I say you ain’t ready.”

Lexington eyed the others. Each expression was some degree of bittersweet. They knew it was time to leave the nest and go out on their own, even if daddy-bird Mac didn’t like it.

She sighed. “I already contacted the track owner in Cedar Valley.”

“So did I,” Mac said. “They ain’t set up for motocross. Take at least a few months to build a track, and he may not even want to put the time into it. They do cars over there.”

Lexington shook her head, a sideways grin sliding up her cheek. Mac thought he had this all figured out. Thought he was keeping them. Poor sweet bastard. Maybe someday, they’d all be together again.

“I talked to him, Mac. True, he isn’t set up for moto, but he liked the idea of us flat track racing. Thought it’d freshen things up, was the way he put it. He said if we bring in the dough, he’ll consider building up the middle for some stunts.”

“We’re going, Mac,” Sally murmured, and her sad words were echoed in the nodding heads of the others.

Mac’s shoulders slumped as his gaze hit the ground and he shifted most of his weight to his good leg. He was quiet for so long, Lexington began to wonder if he was giving them the silent treatment. But, nah. It wasn’t Mac’s style.

“I… I’m gonna miss you. All of you. With you and the boy gone, it’ll just be me and Ranger.” The old basset hound was Mac’s constant companion.

Barb put a hand on his shoulder to soothe him, her face scrunching up in shared grief, but he flinched at her touch. For the hundredth time, Lexington wondered why Mac didn’t have a female of his own. He was a decade older than them, in his early forties, and not lacking in the looks department. Tall and tan with a weathered face hiding under his beard. Kind eyes that were honest even when it would hurt. He had battle scars from his riding days, and maybe inner ones too, but no doubt he’d make some female happy someday.

“Thank you, Mac.” Lexington struggled to keep her voice from breaking. “You’ve done so much for us. We won’t forget it. Ever.”

“Yeah.” He brushed a palm roughly over his cropped hair. “Yeah, well… you’re welcome. So. Don’t mention it.”

Lexington smiled, the bittersweet emotions playing games with her tear ducts. “Never again. I promise.”

From the corner of her gaze, she noticed Seraphina quietly swiping tears from her eyes. Ragan’s head was down, her shoulder length hair shielding her expression. Sally had taken to pacing a three foot line behind them. And Barb who was almost never without a grin—either genuine or shit-eating—looked like she’d burst into tears like a baby who’d lost his bottle.

“So what do you say?” Lexington asked, scuffing the toe of her boot in the red-brown dirt. “Will you help us one last time? Help us get to Cedar Valley so we can show this pack our worth?”

Mac caught her gaze with a raised eyebrow that bled into a solemn scowl. “One look and they’ll see it. Mark my words. And if they can’t, then they don’t deserve you girls on their team.”

Lexington let her gaze touch each of her crew. They were strong. Bent by the past but not broken. They had a long road ahead of them, but they’d grown in wonderful ways already. This was a new beginning, their chance to be even better. Both in sport and in their creased but not shattered hearts. It was their chance to find a family and home, a place to raise Kit the right way, away from the violence of their people.

It was their
chance
, and by hell, they were taking it.

“Damn straight,” Sally muttered, nodding. Her agreement was for Mac, but Lexington couldn’t help thinking her friend’s words were in tune with her thoughts.

“All right, bring it in,” Mac groused, waving them close with both arms. The six of them linked shoulders and pushed their heads together, forming a loose circle. “We leave in the morning, sun up. I want to get to Cedar Valley early enough to scout the place and chat up the locals. Got it?”

They all nodded their agreement and Mac shook his head, the closest thing to a grin twisting his lips.

“Aw, those people don’t even know what they’re in for. Gonna light that small town up, aren’t ya?”

Their smiles grew with his compliment, until they were brilliant and blinding against the late day sun.

Yeah, Lexington thought, we’re gonna light ‘em up. And if DTD didn’t want to take them on, they’d find somewhere else to settle down. Because they could do anything. As long as they were together.