problem. He is not someone who would assimilate as an Essential into our Pack, which is the only option left to him other than death.”
He was right. Ray would never assimilate willingly. But I still didn’t want to kill him. If I killed Ray, which would be relatively easy because he’d been a constant headache of mine for years, each human after him would be less of an issue.
I didn’t want killing to ever be easy.
If I didn’t try to change Ray’s mind, no other headstrong human would ever have a chance of escaping this fate. So why not start with Ray? “What if I can get him to assimilate? You have to admit he would be a great asset to Pack. He’s been a police detective for almost twenty years. We’d have someone on the inside, and as a bonus, he could make all the issues of my case vanish in one day.”
My father arched a critical eye at me. “He doesn’t leave this building unless I’m satisfied.”
Short of a lobotomy, there was no way I could change Ray’s mind that fast. “How about if…” I hemmed. “If I can’t get him to swear in the next half hour”—What in the hell was I going to do with him if he didn’t swear? He was so not going to swear—“I take him… with me?” Not a good plan, Jessica. My wolf growled and snapped her muzzle, telling me exactly what she thought of my ingenious idea.
“With you?” my father echoed.
Ray had a death sentence if I left him behind. “Yep. I’ll take the asshole with me if I have to.”
3
“Hello, Ray.” I smiled pleasantly as I entered the small suite located across the hall from our offices. It didn’t technically belong to Hannon & Michaels, but since it hadn’t been leased in years we’d taken it over, using it mostly for storage. “Looks like you fared okay last night.” I nodded my head, acknowledging the two other guys in the room.
“Good morning.” Danny winked, his cheerful English accent bringing levity to a stressful situation. “Just so you know, your man and I are getting along splendidly. We had a real Hart-to-heart last night. Didn’t we, mate?”
Ray’s eyes narrowed. I was certain his night with Danny had been less than pleasant. For a police officer, very little would suck worse than being held hostage. After all the training, a cop would know the chances were slim to none of making it out alive. “Very funny, Danny,” I said. “No need to harass the prisoner any more than necessary.”
“You know, humor is the hallmark of a brilliant mind.” He tapped the outside of his head and gave me a toothy grin. “Without it, we’d suffer the days away in endless monotony.”
As well as being the resident jokester, Danny was strikingly handsome. He had high cheekbones, a strong chin, and brown locks that fell perfectly into his blue-green eyes, making your fingers itch to brush it out. Accompany that with the body of a pro athlete and it was a wicked combination for any woman.
It was a good thing I’d always preferred my men rough around the edges.
Extremely rough.
Rourke roared into my mind with his hard, taut body, jet-black tattoos, honey-colored hair, and a perfect layer of stubble running along his strong jawline. My wolf growled. I know. I know. But we have to be careful or Danny will think those smells are for him, so keep a lid on it.
I glanced at the other wolf in the room, pulling myself together with effort.
I’d never met him before. He stood on the other side of Ray, who was currently tied to a folding chair. Ray had thankfully lost my pantyhose gag from the night before, but had what appeared to be a white dish towel tied around his mouth. It might be time to invest in some quality interrogation supplies; the ordinary household supplies were looking a little ragtag. “Hi, I’m Jessica.” I reached my hand out to the unknown wolf.
Hesitation lit in his eyes for a few beats before he extended his hand back to me. Selling myself as friendly to these guys was going to be a huge battle after so many years of fear.
“Tom Bailey,” he replied, dropping my hand.
“Good to meet you, Tom. If you could, I’d like you to wait outside.”
He glanced at Danny, who gave him a curt nod, and then left without looking back.
“One of your guys?” I asked as the door clicked shut behind