Flirting Under a Full Moon - By Ashlyn Chase Page 0,89
was painful and the drugs they gave me didn’t work at first. So they gave me more and that knocked me out for quite a while. When I finally woke up, I had to give the police my statement, pick some dudes out of a lineup, and talk to a DA about getting the judge to set no bail. My perp was a flight risk—literally.”
“You were shot in the… Oh, my shit! Where are you now?”
“At a cell phone store. My brother paid for the new phone with his credit card, and he’s wiring me some money so I can get home on the train. I called you as soon as I could.”
“What happened to your phone? And your money?”
Nick’s voice lowered to a whisper. “I had to shift to get away.”
“Away from what? Or who? The dudes in the lineup?”
“Yeah. Like I said, I’ll tell you everything when I get back.”
“I had Sadie do a reading and she said you were in trouble. That was two days ago, and I’ve been going crazy ever since. I wanted to send Kurt and Tory after you, but no one had the faintest idea where to look. Sadie suggested I use the law of attraction to think you into a safe situation, so I borrowed a book to learn how, but it’s easier to read about it than actually do it. I could barely think straight.”
“I’m sorry you were so worried. I’ll make it up to you when I get back. There’s just one thing I need to take care of first, then I’ll come straight to your place. Are you working tonight?”
“Yes. Thank goodness you called. I was so preoccupied last night I kept dropping stuff and couldn’t remember an order to save my life. The night before, I tried to occupy my mind by working in my makeshift darkroom, but I lost track of time and overexposed everything.”
He sighed on the other end of the phone. “I’m afraid my job is going to put me in danger from time to time.”
“Then get a new job.”
There was silence on the other end.
“Nick?”
“I’m here.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask…why do you always call me sweetheart? Not honey or baby.”
“Because you have the sweetest heart I’ve ever seen. People show who they are in a million little ways. An ex-cop notices these things. You’re the one who’ll grab the map from behind the bar and show lost tourists how to get around the city. You always speak up when you talk to Phil because you know he’s hard of hearing. You’ve even taken money out of your tips to help a customer pay her bill when she came up short.”
“Oh. You saw that stuff?”
“Yeah. The fact that you didn’t know anyone was aware is even more telling. You obviously weren’t doing it for brownie points.”
She chuckled. “I’ll never think about ‘brownie points’ in the same way since meeting the cleaning crew.”
“Yeah, they’re worth their weight in Pine Sol. I should go, though. We can talk about everything later. Meanwhile, I told my brother I need some clothes and he wants me to call him as soon as I have something picked out.”
“What? Did you say you need clothes? What are you wearing now?”
“The hospital loaned me some scrubs.”
“Oh.” She chuckled. “I pictured you at the cell phone store stark naked with your hands over your…you know.”
“Yeah, I know. That’s how I walked into the hospital.”
She gasped. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope.”
“Oh, my naked ape.”
“Hey. Are you calling me an ape?”
“Hell no. I just say the first thing that pops into my head. Sorry.” She lowered her voice. “Maybe I should have said, ‘Oh my naked wolf.’”
“Or, ‘Oh, my nude model.’”
***
Nick stood opposite his brother in Konrad’s Newton office. Mother Nature’s reaction to humans, especially those who knew about paranormals, had been bothering Nick for some time. He hoped Konrad could shed some light on the subject since his wife was completely human.
If Konrad had met Gaia before, he might know how to handle her. Konrad was always the brains and Nick the brawn.
“Bro, I’ve got to know how you cleared Roz with the Supernatural Council.”
“The what?” Nick’s brother leaned forward and clasped his hands on top of his desk.
“You’ve never heard of GAIA? The Gods and Immortals Association?”
Konrad’s brows knit. “No. Should I have?”
Nick stuck his hands in his pockets and paced. “Shit. I thought the society was just a rumor until I saw its members for myself. You’ve got to swear to keep what I’m about