Excerpt from Pack Balance

“Stop! Police!” Cooper Grainger shouted as he followed his suspect down the fire escape.

Of course, the idiot didn’t stop. Instead, the skinny moron glanced over his shoulder at Cooper, stumbling when he saw how close Cooper was. His eyes widened almost comically, and if Cooper wasn’t trying to intimidate the man he would have laughed. At six foot tall and a solid mass of muscle, Cooper felt like he was chasing down a kid instead of the thirty-five-year-old junkie. The drugs and alcohol Kenny had consumed most of his life had taken a toll on his physique. He couldn’t have weighed more than a hundred twenty pounds. He was severely underweight.

“Come on, Kenny!” Cooper yelled. “You know I’m going to catch you.”

They were almost at ground level. The four flights down hadn’t affected Cooper but Kenny was rasping and panting. Cooper stomped down in his black, beat to hell combat boots. He wore his usual uniform of faded jeans and a black T-shirt. Tonight he’d included a tactical vest, just in case someone decided to take a shot at him.

He knew his appearance sent fear into the men and women who were dragging his city into the gutters. He used it to his advantage as often as possible and the full impact when dressed like he was added to his dangerous stature. The creeps that he’d been dealing with lately needed a good scare. Cooper was determined to bring them all down.

“You’re just making this harder on yourself,” Cooper shouted at Kenny.

“Screw you, Grainger!” Kenny screeched. He turned his head again, causing him to miss the next step. Kenny shrieked as his arms flailed, and he went crashing down.

Cooper slowed, watching him fall. It wasn’t far enough to injure Kenny, but it would put an end to his stupid escape attempt.

Cooper stopped following and stood with his hands on his hips as Kenny lay sprawled on the ground at the feet of his partner. Josiah Burns looked up at Cooper with a familiar smirk.

“He ran?” Josiah asked in his deep southern drawl.

“He ran.”

Shaking his head, Josiah reached down and hauled Kenny to his feet. “Really, man? Every time?”

“I didn’t do nothing,” Kenny claimed, but his eyes were darting all around nervously.

Cooper had worked too long in the narcotics department of the Clear Creek, Missouri Police Department not to know the signs of a lying suspect. “Three dead.” Cooper stepped closer to where Josiah was holding Kenny up. “We want to know what new shit has hit the streets.”

“I don’t know!” Kenny wailed. “I swear!”

“Then why did you run?” Josiah asked, shaking him.

“I see cops and I run. It’s like…built in,” Kenny claimed.

Cooper met his partner’s gaze. The look that passed between them was one that had been practiced over many years. Kenny wasn’t being completely honest and they both knew it. While Josiah just had a really good ability to read people, Cooper used his wolf shifter senses to pick up on the signs that Kenny was showing and trying to hide. The nervousness and desperation was a bitter scent to his nose. They’d busted Kenny many times over the years, and while he did always try to escape, he was more anxious this time. Sometimes Kenny even gave them tips. The fact that he hadn’t even hesitated before taking off told Cooper a lot.

He growled, leaning his face closer to Kenny’s.

“Okay, okay. Maybe I heard some stuff,” Kenny said as he held his hands up. “But I don’t have nothing to do with any of it.”

Cooper didn’t bother correcting Kenny’s grammar. Kenny was actually more together than most of the poor souls that had given their lives over to drugs. “Why don’t you tell me and I’ll decide how involved you are.”

“Sure, man, I’ll do that,” Kenny promised.

Cooper didn’t like the way his eyes rolled from side to side. Breathing deeply, he concentrated on the scents around him. Not an easy thing to do with the stink of the dumpster mixed with piss and vomit from the back of the bar.

There… He could smell someone approaching. He jerked his chin at his partner. “Backup?” Cooper asked Kenny.

Kenny’s eyes widened even more and his jaw dropped open. 

Excerpt from Pack Investigator

The rumble of the fire-truck engine that surrounded Garrett Sullivan was so familiar to him that in his exhausted yet hyper state Garrett felt at peace. There had been no injuries from the fire that the crew was returning from. He’d never worked with such a flawless team.

They pulled into the bay of the central fire station in Clear Creek and he grinned. He wanted a nice hot shower and it wasn’t his turn to clean up the gear or to replace supplies in the trucks. He could head straight to the locker room.

After he jumped down from the truck, he strolled through the open garage, taking in the differences between his current station and his old one. Garrett was glad he’d made the move three months ago. Even better, his two best friends, Tom and Steve, had transferred with him, although their reasons had been quite different from his.

He nodded as he passed a couple of the guys before he pushed open the swinging door and entered the locker room. Even the rundown facilities there didn’t bother him. Garrett had wanted a fresh start, to leave the city of his birth for the first time, forge ahead in his career and hopefully find love.

Garrett pulled his sweat-soaked T-shirt over his head and dropped it onto the old tiled floor. He glanced up as Tom walked in. Garrett lifted his chin to his best friend. Tom looked better than he had in months. Tom and Steve had wanted to connect with the local wolf shifter Pack and Garrett had been able to help them achieve that goal. In Kermit they’d been lone wolves as there hadn’t been enough shifters to form an effective Pack there. They’d tried but with no Alpha or Beta, all the shifters had fought for dominance. Garrett was human, but luckily he had an in with one of the local shifters in Clear Creek. His sister’s shifter boyfriend, Cooper, had been happy to help get Tom and Steve connected with the local Pack.

“I’ve never seen a fire spread so quickly,” Tom stated as he walked in.

“I heard the captain talking to the fire investigator. Lieutenant Haas told the cap that this was the third suspicious fire like this in the city in the past two weeks. The other fires were in the northern part of the city. He’s certain they have an arsonist,” Garrett said.

As soon as he’d seen the investigator and his captain with their heads close together, Garrett had known something was up. He’d crept closer even though he’d known he shouldn’t have been eavesdropping. It wasn’t like his captain wouldn’t tell him the truth if Garrett asked. He just wanted to hear it from the investigator’s mouth.

If he’d remained in Kermit, he’d probably have his certification to move into the investigating part of fighting fires. He knew that he’d made enemies by associating with the shifters and he was sure no opening would have been offered to him had he stayed. So instead of finishing he’d transferred as a firefighter. But even in Kermit, he’d heard how Lieutenant Haas was the best investigator in the state. Garrett hadn’t officially met the man but he’d kept an eye out for him.

When he’d spotted him speaking with the captain, Garrett hadn’t been able to resist. He might not have been part of the community for long but he was already invested in every soul that lived in Clear Creek. “They haven’t found a connection yet but they are sure it’s the work of the same person,” Garrett finished telling Tom.

“That’s weird,” Tom replied. “But I’ve heard good things about Lieutenant Haas and his team. I’m sure if anyone can find the person responsible it is them. I’ll be glad not to have to fight a fire like that again, though.”

“Julie promised it was never boring here in Clear Creek,” Garrett said. He unsnapped the watch from his wrist and set it inside his locker.

“She’s right there,” Tom agreed.

Tom started to undress so Garrett went back to preparing for his own shower. He still had another five hours left of his shift and he hoped there wasn’t another call. His portion of the city ran from the creek to the outskirts to the center of town. Mostly they handled small fires due to residents burning trash, out-of-control kitchen flames or traffic situations where they needed to get people out of their smashed vehicles with heavy equipment. Tonight had been the first fully engulfed home he’d fought as part of Clear Creek Fire Department.

Adrenaline still coursed through his body and he needed to work some of it out before he could get to sleep. He could have gone straight to the gym like some of the other guys but he didn’t want to be around everyone. He wasn’t going to get laid while on shift so he needed to figure out how to relax. First he was going to start with a hot shower, then settle on the couch with the latest thriller he’d picked up at the local bookstore. Once he finished his shift tonight he had the next two days off and planned to find someone to spend the time with him in his bed. He just needed to make it a few more hours. He dropped his pants then picked up his fallen garments. He dumped the rest of his stuff in his locker before he picked up his shower bag. He passed by the entrance to the showers, snatching a towel off the shelf as he strolled to the last cubicle.

The Clear Creek station showers were made up of single stalls so at least he had some privacy. He hung his towel on the hook outside the curtain and his bag on the inside before he yanked the curtain closed. He turned on the hot water knob, knowing that the water would start out warm and heat from there. He’d learned early on that there was no cold water available. Some mix-up with plumbing, but he’d rather have hot than cold anyway. 

Excerpt from Pack Law

Shelby Holt slammed her front door as hard as she could. The decorative windowpanes shook but she didn’t give a damn. With a scream, she launched her purse from the hall into the living room as she stomped farther into her home. A lamp crashed to the floor and she smiled. If she wanted to wreck her entire place, she would and no one could stop her.

“I hardly think throwing a temper tantrum is going to help anything.”

She whirled around, shocked at the audacity of the man who had followed her. Of course he wasn’t going to let their argument go. She should have paid attention as she’d driven home, and why hadn’t she locked the front door? Hands on hips, she glared at him. “I didn’t invite you in,” she snapped.

Mike Riley grinned—a wide grin with perfectly straight white teeth, which never failed to make her stomach flutter. Even as pissed off as she was at him, he still affected her. He stalked forward, and like prey caught by the big, bad wolf—because wasn’t that an accurate description?—she backed up slowly.

“Unlike vampires, I don’t have to be invited in but even if I did, you’ve done that plenty of times.”

Like she needed to be reminded! Shelby had no problem admitting her role in the disaster of their relationship, or whatever the hell was going on between them. Until now she’d enjoyed every minute of her time spent with Mike.

The only light came from the kitchen. She didn’t like coming home to a dark house, so every morning she left one room lit. In the dim glow, she could still see the scorching need in his gaze. Shit, just one look from him and she wanted to forget their fight and climb up his hard body. Mike was so damn solid and strong. At six foot one, with a body built from lots of hours at the gym—and his soft blond hair and bright blue eyes—he called to every part of her. But she wouldn’t give in so easily this time.

“Stop.” She pointed one perfectly manicured nail at him.

Mike raised an eyebrow then took another step.

“I mean it, Mike.”

“No, you don’t,” he said smoothly.

Christ, he was right. As angry as she was, Shelby still wanted him. “You should have told me.” It was a weak argument but she wasn’t going down without a fight.

“That’s not our deal,” he reminded. “Your rules. We get together whenever one of us wants but we don’t share the details of our lives.”

Shelby knew the agreement and didn’t appreciate him throwing it back in her face. “Well, you still should have told me!” she yelled.

Mike strode closer while Shelby backed up until she had run out of space. She either had to stop or sit in the large overstuffed chair. Shelby stopped—there was no way that she’d drop low enough to have his cock anywhere near her mouth. Not yet anyway.

“I’m just obeying your rules,” Mike said. He reached out and placed his palms on the sides of her neck.

She repressed a shudder. The heat from his touch warmed Shelby from the outside in. It was always like this when Mike had his hands on her.