A SEAL in Wolf’s Clothing (13 page)

Joe was smiling at her like a cat that had cornered a mouse, and she frowned back at him as she punched a button to automatically dial Hunter’s number. She had no clue what he could do for her when he was in Hawaii. Maybe relay a message to Finn or Paul—who was on his way but would be too late to do her any good.

She hadn’t thought to program her phone to include Finn’s number. But Mr. Wolf-Man Spy hadn’t, either.

Even so, she wasn’t afraid of Joe, figuring he wouldn’t risk trying to move her out of the lobby, considering the fight she’d put up. Maybe she should be more afraid. What if he shoved a gun in her ribs and told her to come with him or else? She’d be dead if she went with him. No matter what, she wasn’t leaving here with him.

Would she have been better off in the Hummer? No. He could have forced her out of the vehicle, and no one would have even noticed. Except maybe the man by the pine tree.
If
he was still there.

She felt safer in the well-lit lobby, although at this late hour, it was empty. The same lone clerk stood behind the counter, speaking on the phone to yet another potential customer and oblivious to the menace approaching Meara.

“Meara! What’s wrong?” Hunter asked over her cell phone. She gave a start when she realized he was speaking to her over the phone, having forgotten she’d punched in his number. How many times had he already asked her what was wrong without her hearing him?

Joe reached her in a couple of lengthy strides. Towering over her, he stretched out his hand, palm up, and silently asked her to give up her phone.

She hesitated to speak to her brother as Joe slowly shook his head at her, his eyes dark and his expression even darker, warning her not to say anything.

“Meara?” Hunter said again, only this time his voice was even harder and more anxious.

“What do you want?” she asked Joe, still not handing over her phone. “You can’t take me hostage with all the people hanging around here.” There, she’d let Hunter know what was happening. He was probably wondering what had happened to Finn.

Joe smiled at the reference to the nonexistent people hanging around the lobby. Maybe also because she’d defied him by letting Hunter know what was going on, although technically she hadn’t spoken to her brother on the phone. The man had to know she was warning someone about his threatening presence, yet he remained cool and didn’t seem the least bit worried about Finn arriving to save the day.

A trickle of worry slid down her spine. What had happened to Finn? Was he hurt or worse? And Anna? What had Joe done to her?

Meara would not show how terrified she was that they could be injured or worse. Already adrenaline was shooting through her icy veins, preparing her to do everything she could to fight him, should Joe try to remove her bodily from the lobby.

Hunter was silent, and she knew he had to be worried sick about her and Finn. Angry, too, that anyone might be threatening either of them.

Joe pried the phone from her fingers, ended the call, and handed the phone back to her. “Don’t try to lose me again.” His words were spoken with dark emphasis.

Then as if he wanted to make sure he’d impressed her with his serious intent, he crouched in front of her with his hands on her knees, firm and caressing. When she tried to jerk them free, he tightened his grip. As if he could read her thoughts, he said, “I wouldn’t need a gun to encourage you to come with me.” His eyes were nearly black with promise.

Yet, something else flickered across them. Intrigue, sensual desire. She had to be mistaken.

Then without another word, he leaned forward and kissed her on the lips, soft and warm and honeyed. Not pressuring, just a sampling of what he could provide if she took him up on it.

Shocked, she didn’t react to his impudence like she would have, had she been thinking clearly. He leaned back and smiled a little to see her lips parted in surprise. Then he stood, winked in a most maddeningly self-assured way, and strode off into the lounge.

It took her a moment to recover, to think of what to do. Hell, she didn’t even know his name. Not that she figured he was going to give it to her. But she wanted something to call him other than Imposter Joe, should the need arise. And she hoped she could delay him long enough that Finn might catch up with him, if he was able to reach her anytime soon. From the way this man had treated her, she assumed he wouldn’t have harmed Finn or Anna. Or maybe that was damned wishful thinking.

“Wait!” she called after Joe, standing, her legs surprisingly weak and her stomach weaker. “What’s your name?”

But he didn’t say a word or even glance in her direction, leaving her torn between chasing after him or finding Finn and Anna. She didn’t have a clue which room Anna was staying in, though. She hurried after Joe. “Wait!”

He cast a knowing smile at her over his shoulder. Like a pied piper, he opened a dark door, luring her toward the darkened hotel lounge, which was filled with people, she noted with surprise as she drew closer. Joe was right. He hadn’t needed a gun to get her to go with him. Although she wasn’t going with him exactly, but rather following him. Maybe she could ID his car’s license plate number, get the make of his vehicle, and learn more about him when he left. Not that she was going anywhere outside with him. She would peek out a window, though, and try to determine what his car looked like and its plate number.

Then she’d tell Finn what she’d learned.

The stairwell door opened with a loud thunk that resounded through the lobby. Meara whirled around. Finn hurried toward her, Anna on his heels, both looking like they were ready to have heart attacks, their gazes dark and worried. Relief flooded her that they were both okay.

“Hell, Meara, you’re all right,” Finn said, his voice threaded with concern. He frowned at her when he noticed she’d been headed away from her chair toward the lounge.

She quickly motioned at the door of the lounge, which was closed again. “Joe went that way.”

“
Damn
it
, Meara. What were you doing? Following him?” Finn turned to Anna and said harshly, “Stay with her.”

Meara didn’t like his tone of voice, as if she had been a disobedient child and he was leaving a keeper with her to make her mind.

“When I offered before, you didn’t want me to watch her.” Anna tilted her chin up, defying him to deny it and sounding testy.

Meara was surprised to hear Anna talk back to him, as harshly as he’d spoken. She figured both she and Anna were in the proverbial doghouse. The notion was even more insulting to a wolf.

He gave Anna an irritated look, stormed off toward the lounge, and said over his shoulder, “That was before this Joe tied you up, and you thought he was pretty good looking.”

Shocked, Meara switched her attention to Anna.

Anna raised her brows at Meara’s questioning look. “He was handsome. Don’t you think?” Anna asked Meara, giving a tiny shrug.

“He tied you up, and all you can say is that he was handsome?”

“Come on,” Anna said to Meara in a rushed tone as Finn disappeared into the hotel lounge. “Let’s go back up to the relative safety of my room. You never know when the real bad guys might show up again.”

“Who was he?” Meara asked, hoping that Anna had learned more about Joe, although maybe not, considering the way he had tied Anna up. She glanced at the lobby door as she pondered asking if Anna was armed and if they could check out the pine tree where the man had been standing.

“Joe’s a deep undercover operative, I figure. On our side—for now.” Anna looked in the direction of the door and said, “What?”

“Are you armed?”

“Yes.” Anna growled her response, and Meara wondered why. Then she realized Imposter Joe probably had disarmed her, and Anna was still sore about it.

“I saw someone outside and thought maybe… I might know him. Would you mind if we took a walk out there and checked?”

Anna gaped at her. “Seriously?” The way Anna said the word revealed her disbelief that Meara would consider anything of the sort. Then Anna raised her chin and narrowed her eyes a little. “He’s not a former lover, is he?”

“Forget it,” Meara said and headed toward the elevators in the hall.

Anna quickly joined her. “Well, is he?” She sounded more curious than annoyed.

“No.”

She and Anna took the elevator to the sixth floor, and Meara appreciated the fact that Anna wasn’t treating her with as much animosity as when they’d first met on the beach. But she got the distinct impression that Anna didn’t like the idea that Meara might have a former lover hanging around outside the hotel.

Anna unlocked her door and pushed it open, then turned to Meara and said, “Why would your
friend
be here?”

“He might not be. I just wanted to see if it was him.” Meara’s lips parted as she saw the mess Anna’s room was in—the overturned table, the lamp on the floor, and the upset seat cushions on the couch in the living area.

Meara’s phone rang, and her heart seized. She jerked her phone out of her pocket, saw the caller ID, and her heart fluttered—
Hunter!

“I’m all right,” she hurried to say, instantly remorseful that she hadn’t called him as soon as she knew she and the others were safe.

“What the hell happened?” His dark voice was strangled with worry.

“A man was following us, but he turned out to be one of the good guys. Well, kind of a good guy.”

He
had
tied up Anna, and he
hadn’t
allowed Meara to talk to Hunter to let him know what was going on, and he
had
kissed her
without
her permission, which made him kind of not a good guy.

“Let me talk to Finn. You’re not making any sense, Meara.”

“He’s not here,” she said, exasperated.

“You’re alone?”

She envisioned Hunter wringing Finn’s neck. “No. He’s talking to the guy in the lounge downstairs. Anna’s here with me in her hotel suite. Anna Johnson. I’m okay, all right?”

Silence.

Knowing he wasn’t going to let this slide until he had every detail of what had happened, although no way was she going to mention to him or anyone else that Joe had kissed her, Meara let out her breath with a heavy sigh. “Hunter? I’m all right.”

“Who is he? Why did you hang up on me?”

“He wouldn’t let me talk to you and ended our call. Anna says she thinks he works as a deep undercover operative.”

“
Hell
. You were alone? With him?”

“I was with him in the lobby. Full of people.”

Anna smiled at Meara’s little white lie.

“I didn’t hear anyone conversing in the background, Meara. It’s late there. The damned place was probably empty. Don’t cover for him. Where was Finn?”

Meara should have realized that with his wolf’s hearing, Hunter would have known the truth. “Finn was making sure Anna was safe,” Meara said.

“Hell, he knows better than to leave you by yourself. I’m returning home on the next flight out of here.”

“No! Hunter, you can’t. It’s your honeymoon. Enjoy it with Tessa. I’m fine. Anna’s with me, and Finn will be back any minute. I won’t hear of your ending your honeymoon over this. Stay there!”

Anna was chuckling to herself.

“Got to go, Hunter. It’s late. Kiss Tessa for me, won’t you?” Meara quickly said.

“Don’t. Hang. Up. On. Me. Meara.”

“’Night!” She ended the call, her pulse pounding.

She was certain he’d have words with her over this as soon as he came home. Then again, by the time he returned, his anger would have settled. She imagined Tessa would help calm him, too. At least Meara hoped she would.

Anna turned away, but not before Meara saw a glimmer of a smile on her lips. She was probably used to Hunter being in total charge and expected his sister to bow down to him like so many people did. Anna probably hadn’t expected Meara to tell him what to do. Meara knew Hunter would call Finn next and give him hell about what had happened. She almost felt sorry for Finn, but she figured he was used to it and could stand up for himself.

“Did the man hurt you?” she asked Anna, wanting to think of something other than how angry her brother was.

“A bruise here or there, I’m sure,” Anna said as she and Meara began righting the table and lamp. “A little roughhousing never hurt anyone, if neither was trying to kill the other.”

“Weren’t you? Trying to kill him, I mean?”

“Nah. At first, I reacted pretty violently, figuring he intended to kill me, and I planned to do it to him first. But I could tell by the way he forced me down, countering all my lethal moves with blocking maneuvers and attempting not to hurt me, that he didn’t intend to harm me permanently. At least I didn’t think so.”

“But he tied you up.” Meara righted the couch cushions.

“With… nothing that hurt. And he was trying to keep me from injuring him. I imagine he’ll have a few bruises, but our werewolf genes heal them quickly.” Anna grinned at her and headed for the bedroom.

Meara followed her in there. Anna probably considered the confrontation between herself and Imposter Joe to be nothing more than a good workout.

Meara stared at the two pairs of black sheer panty-hose lying in a pile on the bed and the black silk scarf near the footboard. “He tied you up with your own clothes?” But not just with Anna’s own clothes. With her sexy, sheer panty hose.

Anna grabbed them and threw them in her suitcase, which was lying on the floor on the other side of the bed. Anna’s clothes were strewn all over the pale blue carpet.

“I wasn’t easy on him when he tried to confine me. We usually go into a situation packing light. If we can, we use the other’s possessions like this so we don’t leave any evidence behind.” Anna began to gather her clothes: black lace panties, black leather miniskirt, strapless black heels, and a black negligee.

Meara would have thought Anna was goth because of all the black clothes, but she didn’t have any piercings or heavy makeup, and her hair was a rich auburn color. Not that werewolves would have any piercings or wear heavy makeup. It just wasn’t done. Meara could just imagine seeing one panting as a wolf—the only way to cool off since wolves don’t sweat—with a miniature diamond barbell centered on the wolf’s tongue.

That
would be easy to explain to a hunter if one caught a werewolf in wolf form.
Not.

Meara’s gaze swung back to Anna, and she asked, “Did you… knee him in the crotch?”

Meara
had intended to, or at least to swing her leg up between his to incapacitate him, until he’d kissed her and turned her to stone.

Anna harrumphed in a dark way. “Tried to, but he was damned quick and seemed to know what I was going to do before I attempted to retaliate.”

Just like he seemed to know what Meara was thinking when she worried he might hold a gun on her and try to force her outside.

“Did
you
try to knee him in the crotch?” Anna asked, her brows raised.

Meara felt her face grow warm, which irritated her. She wasn’t about to tell Anna that Joe had kissed her and that she hadn’t done anything about it, like slap him or something. At the same time, she hadn’t kissed him back.

“Hmm,” Anna said, as if she’d just witnessed some deep, dark secret. The intense gaze of a wolf gave others the impression he or she had the ability to see into a person’s soul—and right now, Meara felt as though Anna had done just that.

Anna finished resettling her clothes neatly in her bag and then set it on the luggage rack. “He didn’t catch your interest, did he?” This time she eyed Meara with suspicion.

Was it because Anna was drawn to Joe and worried he might have a thing for Meara? Or was she concerned that Finn might be hurt if Meara threw him over for Joe?

“Of course not,” Meara said too quickly and way too vehemently. Hell, she figured both Joe and Finn were in the same line of work, one where they wouldn’t settle down and take mates. Anna didn’t need to worry about her interest in either man.

“No,” Meara said again, and wished she hadn’t as Anna eyed her speculatively.

Anna pulled the desk chair around and sat down on it while motioning for Meara to sit on the end of the bed. “So then what exactly
did
happen between the two of you?”

***

Finn had expected to discover that Joe had slipped out a back door through the kitchen of the hotel lounge, but following the man’s scent, Finn found him sitting at a booth in the lounge, watching for him.

Or most likely not for
him
, but for Meara. Damn it to hell. She had been headed in this direction, following the operative and unconcerned about her own safety, most likely hoping to learn more about him so she could share her findings with Finn. Her impulsiveness would be the death of him.

He blew out his breath and stalked toward the booth. He should have known she wouldn’t stay put in the lobby like he’d told her to do. He should have left her at the safe house.

“I was expecting someone else,” Joe said with a half smile, lifting a beer in greeting. His expression was pure predatory wolf, and Finn had to reign in his combative nature before he took out the bastard.

Finn had seen the way Joe had seemed fascinated with Meara at her cabin, and Joe hadn’t hidden his animosity for Finn, either. He wouldn’t easily forget that the man had stuck his hand in Meara’s pocket, letting her know he was doing so as he left a bug there.

“She’s not coming,” Finn said abruptly.

“I gathered that when you showed up instead.” Joe motioned with his free hand for Finn to join him, although Finn wasn’t waiting for an invitation.

“At Meara’s place, you told her that you didn’t drink,” Finn said, letting Joe know he’d had an eye on him the whole time he’d been in her house.

“I lied. Some women are wary of a man who drinks.”

True enough. Sliding into the booth, Finn asked, “Who are you, and what’s your business?”

“Bjornolf Jorgensen…” He bowed his head slightly. “…at your service.” He gave Finn a look of conceited satisfaction when he saw Finn’s expression change to instant awareness.

“Bjornolf,” Finn said under his breath.
Bear-wolf.
The person known by that name served as a deep undercover operative, although many thought the man was a legend or a myth rather than someone real. No one was sure who the man really worked for. And he rarely revealed his identity. Many thought that those who bragged about knowing him were telling tales.

“That’s me.” Bjornolf waited for Finn to ask something further, then seeming to remember that Finn had asked what he was doing here, he added, “I’m here to watch your backs.”

“Ours,” Finn said softly.

“Yours, since you’re here, and Hunter’s sister’s.”

“And the others on the team?”

“They were merely a distraction.”

Finn narrowed his eyes. “The assassin nearly killed Allan Rappaport. How is that nothing more than a distraction?”

Bjornolf shrugged. “Fatalities can cause a pretty good distraction.”

Finn’s phone buzzed and he looked at it, noting that Hunter was calling. Finn hoped he wasn’t having trouble in Hawaii—the only reason he could think of for Hunter calling at this hour. He lifted the phone to his ear and asked, “Hunter, can I call you back?”

“What the hell happened, and who’s the guy you’re talking to?”

How in the hell had Hunter gotten word about this already?
Meara
had
to
have
called
him
.

Finn studied the man sitting across from him and said to Hunter, “I’m talking with Bjornolf Jorgensen.” He figured Hunter would be just as surprised since the man rarely revealed himself to anyone. Finn wondered who Bjornolf was working for now. “I’ll call you back in a bit. Meara’s safe with Anna Johnson.”

“Call me back ASAP,” Hunter said, his tone short and angry, and hung up on him.

Finn knew Hunter was incensed about the way he had handled the situation with Meara and Anna. It wasn’t the first time Hunter hadn’t liked the way Finn dealt with a situation, nor would it be the last. But there were times when Finn had felt the same way about Hunter’s handling of a mission.

Bjornolf was watching him with an amused expression, and Finn wanted to wipe the arrogant look off his face. Bjornolf was the whole reason Finn would have words with Hunter over this mess. “What if I send Meara to Hawaii to join Hunter?” Finn asked.

Without hesitation, Bjornolf said, “They’ll go after her there.”

Finn couldn’t believe it. “Why her?”

“She’s Hunter’s sister.”

Finn scowled at the operative. “I already got that part. But why go after Meara?” he repeated.

“You would have all been dead on your last mission if it hadn’t been for Meara. Didn’t you know that? That’s what this sick bastard intended. But when Meara thwarted him, he vowed revenge. At least I assume that’s the case.

“The fires that burned down Meara and Hunter’s home and those of their pack members? Who do you think set them? Neither Meara nor Hunter were supposed to have escaped that. As luck would have it, the winds were in Meara and Hunter and their pack’s favor. After Hunter and his pack relocated to the Oregon coast, they ran into all kinds of trouble. On top of that, a red pack leader named Leidolf was poking his nose into their business. The man in charge waited for a more opportune time to strike again—a time when fewer pack leaders could cause him trouble.”