“Can I help you with something?” she asked.
There was something about her voice that caused the hair on his arms and legs to stand at attention. He could feel them rise even under his lab coat and his denim jeans. Clenching his teeth, he ran his hands down both sleeves.
Lyra pointed to the computer. “Do you know how to get into the system? We need to run this shoe print through the catalog.”
With a half smile on her face, Tala walked around the counter to stand in front of the keyboard. Jace noticed how graceful she was when she moved. Unfortunately, he also noticed how well her khaki pants fit around her legs and rear end.
With apparent ease, her fingers raced over the keyboard and the partial print was transferred into the system. On-screen, Jace could see that the search had started.
She stood back and smiled. “There you are.”
“Thank you, Tala.” Lyra swung around and smirked at Jace. “You see, Jace, she’s not useless.”
Tala swiveled around and glowered at him. Whoa! It felt like he’d been hit by a tree trunk right across the head. He felt the need to take a step backward in retreat.
“You said what?” she demanded.
Jace put his hand up in defense and took a distancing step away. “Hey, I didn’t say anything like that.”
“What did you say then?” Her brow arched in question. Although she looked angry, Jace found he couldn’t tear his gaze away. There was something so appealing about the woman. It wasn’t that she was gorgeous, because she wasn’t.
Her eyes were certainly stunning, a green reminiscent of fresh spring days. Her face and nose were thin, almost too thin, as was her body. Willowy would be what some would call her, he guessed. Long legs, slim hips, high pert br**sts. She had a model’s figure, not that Jace was complaining.
Her cheeks were flushed as she continued to glower at him and her lips were slightly parted. He wondered what she would do if he suddenly took her in his arms and kissed her.
The urge to do so jolted through his system. It took everything he had not to cross the distance between them and satisfy his growing hunger. Damn it! He wished he had mated before he came to San Antonio. Why did he have to get the call from the lab right before tussling with one of the pack females? Life just wasn’t fair.
Shaking his head to dislodge the unwanted erotic notions racing through his mind, Jace glared at Lyra. “I didn’t say anything about you. The witch is a troublemaker.”
“I am not.” Lyra stuck out her lower lip in a pout, but Jace could see the twinkle in her eye. She was purposely pitting him and Tala against each other. Egging on the tension between them.
He wondered if Lyra felt it as fiercely as he did. It was so strong it was almost palpable.
“Are you still trying to get back at me for putting that snake in your boot last summer?” he asked Lyra.
“No. Don’t be an idiot.”
“Oh, I’m an idiot now, am I?”
Lyra smirked. “Jace, you’re always an idiot. You can’t even see what’s in front of your face.”
What did she mean by that? Before he could ask, Caine walked into the room with Eve and Hector trailing behind him.
He looked from Lyra to Jace to Tala and back to Jace. “I see everything’s as normal as ever.”
Lyra smiled innocently and turned toward Caine. “Tala was just showing us how to work the computer system so we could check for matching shoe treads.”
Jace watched as Caine took thorough stock of Tala. He took a step forward, intent on protecting her from the vampire’s gaze. But he stopped himself before he could move any further. What was with him? The predatory urge to protect Tala surged through him. Foolish to say the least, but the sensation would not go away, even when Caine turned that steely gaze onto him. Something was up. Jace could see concern in Caine’s eyes.
“We have, yet again, a big problem.”
“What else is new,” Jace grunted.
“We got an ID on the victim.” Caine ran a hand over his face. “It turns out she’s Samantha Kipfer, the only daughter of Andrew Kipfer, a local television personality.”
Jace cursed vehemently.
Caine nodded. “Well put, Jace. That’s exactly how I feel right now.” He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms. “So, be warned that the press is going to be all over this case. If we go out, we have to make sure there is local law enforcement with us at all times. The last thing any of us needs is more scrutiny.”