Wolf Untamed (SWAT - Special Wolf Alpha Team #11) - Paige Tyler Page 0,27

him, and he tried hard to keep the stupid grin off his face as she put her information in his phone. He was trying to think of something romantic to say when Brandon ran up to them.

“Are you leaving?” he asked. “Right now?”

“About two minutes ago, actually,” Diego pointed out. “But yeah, I have to go.”

Brandon frowned, clearly bummed. “You’re going to be at the party Saturday when I meet Jayna’s pack, right?”

Diego grinned. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

The kid smiled so big Diego was surprised he didn’t hurt himself. “Okay, I’ve got to get out of here. If you need to talk to me, I gave your mom my phone number. You can call or text me anytime—whatever you need. Okay?”

Brandon nodded.

Bree said something to him about being careful, but Diego was already running for the response SUV where Trey was waiting for him. He had to admit, having a woman concerned about him felt damn good.

Chapter 4

Bree and Brandon took the stairs up to their fourth-floor apartment rather than wait for the elevator. It wasn’t because the elevator was slow, or they were in a hurry. It was because they still had bloodstains on their clothes, something Bree hadn’t realized until they’d left the SWAT compound. The idea of being trapped in the confined space of an elevator with one of their neighbors was more than either of them wanted to deal with.

Thankfully, they made it to their apartment without running into anyone. Brandon held onto the bags of takeout from Keller’s Drive-In as Bree fiddled with the key. She’d barely gotten it in the lock when her sister jerked the door open so fast Bree nearly fell face-first onto the tile floor of the entryway.

“Where the hell have you been?” Beth demanded. “I saw on the news that some psycho with a gun held up the diner and took everyone hostage. I’ve been calling and texting you nonstop, and when you didn’t answer, I called the police and every hospital in the city. No one would tell me anything. I’ve been losing my mind for hours.”

Brandon handed Bree two of the bags, gave her a look that said “Good luck!” then headed for his bedroom with his burgers.

“Wash your hands before you eat!” she called after him as he disappeared inside. “And remember to feed Finn!”

Finn was Brandon’s ferret. The little guy was simply precious, but he could get fussy if they made him wait too long to eat.

Closing the door behind her, Bree placed the bags on the kitchen table, then walked down the short hallway to her own bedroom, her sister at her heels. She took one look in the full-length mirror on the inside of the closet door she’d left open and grimaced. She couldn’t think of eating until she took off her bloodstained clothes. As she exchanged her jeans and top for a pair of shorts and a T-shirt, Beth leaned against the doorjamb with a frown.

“It didn’t help that Brandon decided to leave his stupid phone in his room when you guys left,” she grumbled. “Why didn’t you answer any of my calls or texts? Didn’t you think I might be worried?”

Bree sighed, ashamed to realize she hadn’t considered her sister might have heard about what happened at the diner. Finding out her son was a werewolf on top of the two of them almost getting killed had kind of preoccupied her.

Ten years younger than Bree was, Beth had moved in with her and Brandon during Dave’s trial. After the divorce, Bree had put the house they’d lived in with Dave on the market and gotten this three-bedroom apartment, wanting to put her ex and that part of their lives behind them. Moving back East to be near family probably would have been easier, but Brandon had already gone through so much crap with his dad that Bree hadn’t wanted to take him out of a school he loved and away from friends he adored. But she wouldn’t have been able to do any of it if her sister hadn’t been there to help with Brandon while Bree worked full-time.

In a word, Beth was awesome.

Giving her dark-haired sister a small smile, Bree walked over to hug Beth. “I’m sorry. I had my phone in my purse on vibrate when we went into the diner, and after that, things got kind of crazy.”

Beth nodded, but didn’t say anything. Her gaze strayed to the clothes Bree had left on the floor, her face going a