Authors: Katie Reus
on her mother’s bad side. And Amelia
Rodriguez had a serious temper. No one
liked to provoke her, especially her mate.
Even though her mom hated the idea of her
dating a vampire she’d never tell Melina
she couldn’t. Probably because she knew
Melina would fight it even more.
Right now she just wanted the chance to
get to know Kiernan, to find out if the
crazy attraction between them had the
possibility to be more. Something deep
inside her ached with a hot, burning need
every time she was near him and she
simply couldn’t ignore it. Part of her
wondered if it was what shifters
considered the mating call. Then she
dismissed that idea. He couldn’t be her
mate; he was a vampire.
Even so, her family’s vendetta with
Kiernan’s coven was ancient history as far
as she was concerned. It was time to put
the past where it belonged.
* * *
his living room, but that wasn’t what
bothered him. It was the fact that he’d let
Melina go last night. The most primitive
part of him had wanted to throw her over
his shoulder and make a run for it.
His logical side had known how stupid
that would have been. Her brothers sure
as hell hadn’t planned to hurt her. They
just wanted to protect her. Something he
understood completely.
He still hadn’t heard from her though
and it was making him edgy. He hadn’t
wanted her to find out this way that her
brother had killed his. He’d planned to
tell her eventually, he just hadn’t wanted
to do it too soon. Especially since she’d
thought he was using her or some shit.
Yeah, he’d love to use her body, please
her, pleasure her, but not
use
her as a
means for revenge.
A chilly wind whistled through the
broken glass door that led to the balcony.
The sun was just starting to peek over the
horizon, creating a glittering rainbow
across the glass-strewn tile.
He should have cleaned up last night
but he’d been too annoyed to stick around.
And too hungry. Normally he could go
weeks without eating but he also didn’t let
other people feed from him. Miami had
feeding places with live, willing donors
open 24/7. His coven had well-paid
donors living on the premises, humans
who usually lived among them for a few
years before moving on with enough
money to last them a lifetime.
He’d have preferred to feed from
Melina, but that was something he’d have
to work her up to. His feedings had
always been impersonal, a need for
survival. But now . . . he wanted to taste
everything Melina had to offer.
At the sound of the front door opening,
he tensed until he scented his brother
Ronan. Striding out of the room, he headed
down the long hallway to find his oldest
brother shutting the door behind him. With
dark hair, dark eyes, and a similar build, it
was obvious they were brothers. Though
Ronan usually wore custom made suits
and shoes expensive enough to fund a
small country’s food supply for a month.
“You look like shit,” Ronan said as he
pulled him into a tight hug. Not all
vampire covens were close, but the Doyle
coven was—especially Kiernan’s
brothers. As the youngest, they thought he
needed checking up on even though he was
two hundred years old.
“Thanks. What are you doing here?”
A shrug as he stepped back, then peered
down the hallway. “What do I smell?”
Before Kiernan could answer his
brother was gone, using his supernatural
speed to cover the distance to the living
room.
“What the fuck happened in here?”
Ronan’s voice dropped a few octaves,
taking on an almost inhuman growl. His
fangs had extended and he had murder in
his eyes.
Kiernan rubbed a hand over his face,
regretting that he hadn’t cleaned some of it
up the night before. “It’s not important.”
His dark eyes narrowed. “Not
important? Have you told Father about
this?”
“No, and you’re not going to either.”
“What the—”
“Drop it,” he snarled. If Ronan called
their father he’d launch a war with the
Rodriguez pack and that was the last thing
Kiernan wanted.
His brother shoved his hands in his
pants pockets and rocked back on his
heels as he assessed the room again. “I
smell a group of shifters, mostly male, but
one female. A very sweet scent.”
Kiernan was silent, not wanting to give
away more than he had to. Not yet. When
his phone buzzed in his pocket he nearly
jumped, hoping it was Melina, then cursed
himself for the reaction. He wasn’t some
randy teenager with his first crush, even if
that’s what he felt like. He didn’t
recognize the number, but it was a Miami
area code so he answered immediately.
“Yeah?”
“Is this Kiernan Doyle?” An unfamiliar
male voice asked.
Disappointment was a sharp blade
through his chest. It wasn’t Melina on the
other end and he didn’t bother to hide his
annoyance. “Who’s this?”
“Uberto Mazzoni, second in command
to Abel Mazzoni.”
Kiernan paused, wondering why a wolf
shifter from the Georgia region would be
calling him. He glanced at Ronan, who he
knew could hear the conversation, and
lifted his eyebrows. Ronan shrugged,
obviously not knowing anything about it.
Instead of responding, Kiernan was silent,
waiting.
The other man cleared his throat. “It’s
come to our attention that you are
acquaintances with Melina Rodriguez.”
There was a questioning note in his voice,
as if he wasn’t quite sure.
“What about her?” Wondering if the
call had anything to do with the night
before, Kiernan kept inflection out of his
voice.
“My pack would be willing to pay you
if you deliver her to us.”
Something dark jumped inside Kiernan,
but he shoved it back down. “I don’t need
money and I’m still amusing myself with
her.” Harsh, untrue words he hated saying,
but if he wanted the guy to keep talking, he
couldn’t show emotion.
“Maybe not, but one can never have too
much money. . . . And we know of your
coven’s history with her pack. That’s why
we were surprised you intervened last
night. You killed two of our pack
members.” There was a touch of anger in
those words, the first sign of any sort of
emotion.
So the Mazzoni pack had gone after her.
“I told you, she’s an amusement and I’m
having fun pissing off her pack with our
relationship. You should have contacted
me before going after her in my presence.”
The lie was bitter on his tongue, but this
shifter was calling for a reason and
Kiernan wanted to know what it was.
“So you are fucking her because of your
coven’s hatred for her pack.” Not a
question.
Walking outside and away from his
brother, he leaned against the balcony,
staring out at the flat ocean. Not everyone
knew of the violent history between the
Doyle coven and the Rodriguez pack.
They’d battled each other long before
technology took hold in the world, long
before territories by supernatural beings
had been carved out, and long before
sweet Melina had even been born. That
history had been buried not long after the
death of his brother, Corey. “You have
good sources.”
“We do.” Uberto gave away nothing
else, much to Kiernan’s annoyance.
“How much will you pay for
her?”Kiernan asked. Then the shifter
named an obscene amount, and ice chilled
Kiernan’s veins, but he kept his voice
calm. “She is young, likely the weakest of
her pack. Wouldn’t you prefer someone of
more worth?”
“You either want the job or you don’t.”
Again, he gave away nothing of why they
wanted her.
“I’ll take it, but I want to know why you
want her so badly and I want half the fee
up front. I’ll be putting myself at great
risk.”
“The fee is no problem, though we
require her immediately. Tonight if
possible, tomorrow at the latest. Why we
want her is none of your concern.” There
was no room for argument in his voice.
Kiernan kept his expression bland on
the off-chance someone was watching
him. “Once you wire me the money, she’s
yours.” Taking money from the bastards
who’d tried to hurt her made him smile
inside. He was going to take great
pleasure in screwing them over.
“Give me the bank details.” Cool, curt
words.
After Kiernan gave him an account
number his family held in an offshore
account, he continued. “Try to double-
cross me or skimp on the rest of the fee,
and you’ll find yourselves at war with my
coven.”
“Understood.”
As soon as he disconnected, he returned
inside to find his brother staring at him, an
odd expression on your face. “That was
very . . . mercenary. I expect it from
Bryson, but not you.”
Kiernan snorted. Saying their middle
brother was mercenary was definitely an
understatement. “Good to know I sounded
convincing.”
“Are you really fucking a
shifter
?”
Without realizing he’d moved,
Kiernan’s fingers wrapped around his
brother’s neck. Considering Ronan was
older and stronger, it said a lot for how
much he’d surprised him. Instantly
Kiernan let go, but he didn’t put any space
between them. “It’s not like that between
us.”
“So, Melina Rodriguez? Miguel
Rodriguez’s little sister?” he asked, biting
anger in his words.
“Yep.” He wouldn’t apologize for who
she was or her familial ties.
Ronan’s dark eyes narrowed a fraction,
a trace of bitterness in them. “So it’s like
that?”
“Yep.” Melina was his. He might not
have a grasp on what she meant to him or
have a clue what their future held, but she
was his.
Right now he needed to move quickly
before the Mazzoni pack got impatient, but
something else was bothering him. “Why
are you really here?” Yes, Kiernan was
the youngest, but it had been a long time
since his brothers had actually checked up
on him.
His brother was silent so long he
wondered if he’d answer. Finally Ronan’s
shoulders lifted casually. “I received a
call from Tisha. She said she saw you out
with Melina Rodriguez but I didn’t
believe her. Wanted to see with my own
eyes.”
Tisha.
The annoying redheaded
vampire who’d tried to stop him at that
restaurant with Melina. He hadn’t seen her
in decades and something told him she’d
been the reason for Melina’s questions
about the death of his brother. She’d had a
brief thing with Bryson years ago and had
seemed to think Kiernan would be
interested in her too. Not fucking likely.
Coldhearted bitches weren’t his style. “I
need your help tonight.” Now that he knew
exactly who was after Melina he planned
to take care of the problem.
Ronan sighed. “You really want to help
a wolf?”
“I’m going to help my female.”
Sometime in the past few months during
his weekly visits to her clinic, she’d
wormed her way under his skin. Hell,
she’d done it a year ago and had never
left. Right now, everything inside him
demanded he take care of what was his.
Chapter 6
As he parked, Kiernan surveyed the empty
lot outside the warehouse Uberto had
wanted to meet at. It was close to a
rundown marina in a part of town that
hadn’t seen any new business in years. No
police presence and no one to call the
cops if things got bloody. The perfect
place for a meet.
Some humans were nearby. There were
a handful of heartbeats in the vicinity—
probably a few homeless people, and
definitely members of the Mazzoni pack.
He scented wolf, but couldn’t tell how
many were waiting.
Kiernan shut off the engine and got out.
He’d tried contacting Melina’s Alpha—
who hadn’t taken any of his calls. He had
tried her at the clinic, but the woman
answering the phone had refused to put
him through to talk to her. He wasn’t sure
if it was because of Melina’s instructions
or her pack’s. Either way, he was doing
this tonight.
To protect her was a driving need
inside him, pushing and shoving him
onward. There was a full moon tonight,
illuminating the water about thirty yards
from where he stood. Overgrown weeds
and grass covered the empty lot next to the
warehouse.