The Awakening: Britton (Entangled Covet) (15 page)

High Council may just make your reprieve permanent.”

He snorted. “Yeah, right. That’s as likely to happen as it is that these people will get what they want. Be

real, Val. This is the take-no-prisoners High Council.”

“Even they can change, Britton. If I didn’t believe that somewhere deep inside me, I wouldn’t be able to

work for them. As for this case, I don’t believe for one minute the kidnappers truly
want
to expose shifters

to the human world. They probably will if forced to, but surely this time limit comes from a place of hope.

Hope that if they give the council enough time they will eventually wave the white flag. You need to hold

on to some hope, too.”

He turned to look at her. “You really think so?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I do. Solve this case, and they have to see how valuable your abilities are to the

shifter community. They wouldn’t dare take them away again.”

The bleak look on his face, the pain in his eyes, nearly broke her heart.

“I hope to hell you’re right.”

…

Val scrunched her nose at the two backpacks sitting by the front door now stuffed to near-bursting

zipper with everything from food and water to clothes and camping gear. Britton apparently camped a lot.

She’d left the packing to him as he’d expertly spread out everything that needed to go into each bag, then

organized it all for easy access.

Returning from today’s hike, they’d found the package on the porch bearing the council’s distinctive

seal. Britton had immediately ripped into it and drawn out two pieces of clothing. A blouse that belonged to

Meagan, which smelled of spice cake, and a T-shirt from Ben, smelling of steeped tea leaves. Neither of

which had been among the scents of the group in the woods. Britton hadn’t hidden his frustration at the

confirmation that Samantha Mills’s extended family was not involved.

Which really left them with MASK.

But that still didn’t feel right to Val. Someone else must be behind all of this, but until they made visual

contact, the scents were all they had.

Britton let Harwood know that the Mills family was in the clear. Val heard Harwood’s blustering from

all the way across the room, which only increased when Britton informed him of the demands in the letter.

The elder had refused to cave and told Britton he would continue on the case. The councilman swore they

were working diligently on their end to find any possible leads that would aid in identifying the group

involved, and actually thanked them for all the work they were doing on their end.

The councilman’s gratitude gave her hope that the reassurances she’d given Britton earlier might really

happen for him.

“I suggest you enjoy a hot bath now,” he said. “It’ll be a couple of days before you have another one.”

She cringed at the idea of being without a shower for a couple of days. She wasn’t prissy, but roughing

it was as appealing to her as eating a slug. Making a face, she asked, “How long do you think we’ll be out

there?”

“Depends on which way the scents lead us. If we veer this way then we can come back to the cabin, but

if it’s the opposite direction, we may be out there until Saturday.”

D-day. Great.

Okay, girl. Suck it up. Think of this as an adventure
.

“If this is my last night of comfort for a while, I’m going to wallow in it.”

“Whatchya thinking?”

She winked. “There’s a hot tub that has been calling my name since we walked in the door on Monday

afternoon.”

…

Hot tub?

Britton blinked as Val closed herself in the bedroom. And she didn’t even lock the door this time.

Oh, this was not good. Not good at all.

The last thing he needed was Val in a bathing suit. The tight workout pants she wore to hike in drove

him nuts. Val practically naked would drive him right over the edge.

He wouldn’t look. He spun and stormed into the kitchen, keeping busy by surveying the contents of the

fridge.

A few minutes later, the bedroom door opened.

Don’t look. Do. Not.

But he couldn’t stop his head from turning. A gust of relief shot past his lips. She was at least wrapped

in a towel. Only the smooth skin of her bare shoulders and legs was visible to torture him. He could handle

that.

Barely.

Completely unaware that she held his complete and undivided attention, she opened the door and went

out onto the deck. He straightened, watching her. As she entered the chill of the night air, she hugged her

arms around herself. Yeah, he’d like to be those arms right about now. Feel her back meet his chest. Her

hair tease the skin of his shoulders.

As she let the towel fall to puddle around her feet, a strangled groan caught in his throat.

Fuck.

No bathing suit. All red lace. Was that what she wore every day under her drab clothes?

She turned to climb into the tub and caught him staring. For a moment their gazes held, then she

shrugged. “Sorry. Don’t have a suit. Panties and bra will have to suffice. Besides, there’s hardly any

difference between these and my bathing suit.”

Not fucking likely. A bathing suit covered. This…this silhouetted. In all the wrong spots. Make that the

right
spots.

He gulped at the flat expanse of her stomach, the low…so very low…panties that barely covered

anything. The lacy bra wasn’t much better, as it displayed the darkened areas that were clearly her nipples.

His cock tightened.

Holy shit.

Jerking his attention back to the fridge, he called out, “I’m going to find something for dinner.” It came

out as a strangled croak.
Shit
. The splash as she entered brought teasing images to mind of water lapping

around her body, kissing her skin, touching her in places—

Squeezing his eyes shut, he shook his head.

Food, Townsend. Think food.

But her blissful sounds of pleasure tormented him. A sigh here, a low moan there. He could imagine her

head reclined against the edge of the tub, eyes closed as the jets of water soothed her feet and limbs. And

stimulated other parts of her body…

His beast stirred. And the urge to join her increased.

What would it hurt? He deserved a little rest and relaxation, too, before things got serious tomorrow.

He’d just stay on the opposite side of the tub.

Yeah.

Decision made, he closed the fridge, went into the bathroom, shed his clothes, and grabbed a towel.

When he got to the hot tub, he said, “Scoot over.”

Val’s eyes popped open. “W-what are you doing?” As her gaze dipped down his chest, he stood a little

straighter, letting her assess his body. But when her appraisal traveled even lower, to the boxer briefs he

had on in lieu of swim trunks, his cock stirred, and he quickly vaulted into the water before she saw

something she most definitely didn’t need to see.

“Joining you. The hot tub was a good idea. A little R & R is in order.”

She pushed up in the water, tension radiating off what had been a relaxed body seconds before. “Oh.

Um.”

Keep the conversation neutral
. “You ready for tomorrow?”

She sent him an are-you-for-real? look. “In my almost four years as head of SPAC, I’ve crawled under

houses, trekked over mountains, been in a couple of shoot-outs, but I have never had to camp.”

“It’s not that bad.”

“You did not just say that. I’m going to have to dig a hole to use the bathroom…like a cat.”

A startled laugh came out of his mouth. “Well, there is that.”

“And what if I have to use the bathroom at night? I’m going to have to stumble around with a flashlight

searching for a poison ivy–free zone to squat in. So, no, I’m not ready for tomorrow.”

“I’ll rig something up for you so you won’t have to do that.”

“Well, my ass is thankful for that.”

Again he chuckled, and he was caught off guard at how easily Val was able to make him laugh. Often,

actually. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d enjoyed being around a woman so much, and that was

saying a lot since he loved women. But Val was different. She put him at ease in the same way she

confused him.

Leaning his head back, he closed his eyes, just enjoying the water rippling around his body. Feeling at

peace and relaxed.

“Britton?”

“
Hmm
?”

“What about bears?”

Lifting his head a fraction, he peeked out one eye. “What about them?”

“Are you serious?”

“It’ll be okay.”

“How can you be sure? They don’t like us. Out of all the animals, they tend to be the most aggressive,

especially this time of year with the cubs. I haven’t been too worried during the day since they tend to be

more active early morning and night, but what if one comes across us while we’re asleep?”

“I’ve camped my entire life and I’ve never had anything happen.”

“Just because it hasn’t happened doesn’t mean it won’t. Freaking Peter from forensics went camping

with a bunch of guys a few weeks ago and had to pee after they went to bed. He walked a few feet from

their campsite to do his business and was welcomed by an irate mama bear. He had to shift to be able to

outrun the damn thing. I can’t shift, Britton.”

Brows puckered, she was staring at him with such vulnerable fear, a protectiveness he didn’t know he

was capable of surged up in him. “I won’t let
anything
happen to you.”

He held her gaze until the air between them started to thicken, and judging by the way her throat worked

on a swallow, she’d felt the change between them, too.

Definitely not a bear she’d have to have to worry about mauling her.

Yeah, jumping in the hot tub with this woman had been a decision of epically stupid proportions.

Forcing himself to break eye contact, he peered out over the mountains. “Have you never been

camping, Val?” Raw. His voice was fucking raw.

“No.” She cleared her throat. At least hers had been as hoarse as his. “Uh. Mom and Dad were hotel

people.”

“Your brothers never wanted to go?”

“Hello? Hotel people.”

Thankful she was trying to take the previous hot and heady moment into light and airy, he chuckled.

“Ah.”

“Dad always said he got to enjoy wildlife when he was out beating the streets during the day. When he

went on vacation he wanted comfort. I take it your family was different?”

She shifted her position and her foot floated up, lightly grazing his thigh. An electrifying reaction

walloped across his skin. He bit back a groan.
Fuck.

“Yep,” he all but croaked out.
Think dentist drills. Needles.
“Went on my first camping expedition still

in the womb, and never stopped.”

How he got that last sentence out was beyond him, but he was mighty proud of his damn self, especially

with that red lace bra teasing the hell out of him as the water lapped over the swell of her breasts.

Silence descended between them, making him all the more aware of the breathtaking water nymph

sitting in front of him. He practically vibrated with the need to touch her, to run his hands down the

exposed skin of her shoulders, then dip below the rippling surface to everything hidden beneath.
Dea
, he

needed something to distract him.

Val hesitantly asked, “Britton, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“I’ve heard the stories about—” She nibbled her bottom lip. “But I’ve never heard it from you. What

happened that night?”

Well, he’d wanted a distraction. Asking about the worst night of his life wasn’t so much a distraction as

it was a complete mood killer. “Other than me royally screwing up?” He couldn’t help the sarcasm.

Expression contrite, she studied him a moment. “I know I’ve given you some major grief about what

happened, rubbed your nose in my taking your job, but…everyone’s always said you were impeccable with

your investigations. You never slipped. Something must have happened that night. Something the High

Council is unaware of, or they don’t care.”

He ran his palm over his mouth. He hadn’t spoken about that night with anyone—not even Liam or

Aidan, his two best friends. The High Council knew very well how things had unfolded, but they weren’t

looking for good reason, all they were focused on was that he’d slipped. He’d never seen a point in sharing

the entire story.

At his continued silence, she murmured, “It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me.”

He drew in a deep breath, then released it. “There was a child.”

She frowned. “A child?”

“The kid was a surprise. There’d been a murder of a human an hour before. But the crime scene reeked

of shifter.”

Val made a face. “I hate those cases. So much deceit necessary to keep the murderer’s identity hidden

from the humans, just so we can punish the perp by shifter law. All those ‘unsolved’ cases, which have

actually been solved and justice served. Makes me feel so bad for the families who have no closure. But

that’s SPAC’s whole purpose. To conceal the truth.”

“Yep. And this time was no different. I had to clean up the crime scene, no fingerprints or other