Mutton for Dinner

Tension sweeps through me, followed by an overwhelming sense of unease as I stare at the man on the other side of the fence.

Shadows hide his face, and his black clothes blend into the tree line at his back, but there's no mistaking it. He stares right at us with an intensity that sends a shiver down my spine.

I grip Tris's arm tightly, my heart pounding. "We're being watched."

"What?" Tris pulls me to his chest, shielding me from view as he scans the pool for any sign of danger. "Where?"

"Behind you," I whisper against his wet skin, the hot tub's bubbles no longer fun. "On the other side of the fence."

His golden-brown eyes narrow as he twists around to look, but when his body moves, the man is gone.

My hold on Tris tightens as I search the shadows. "He was there a second ago."

"I believe you." Jaw tight and face grim, Tris lifts me onto the ledge, and the cold air raises goose bumps on my overheated flesh. "Cover up. We're going back inside."

The freezing cement numbs my feet as I hurry over to the lounge chair where I tossed my robe and pull it on. Splashes come from behind me as Tris climbs out, and he rakes his hands down his body to whisk away as much water as possible.

Realizing we hadn't brought any towels, I offer the edge of my bathrobe.

"Thanks, but I'm good." He places a hand on my back, hustling me toward the door back into the hotel. "I'll dry off when we're back in our room."

Nerves rattle through me, and I peer over my shoulder, suddenly conscious of how alone we are out here.

Our feet slap wetly on the ground as we enter the tiled hallway, and Tris keeps a protective arm around me as we make our way to the elevator, his eyes darting back and forth for any sign of danger.

Tension hums through every muscle in his body as we wait for the doors to open, and once we step on, he stabs at the door-close button until they slide shut. My stomach drops as we lift to the second floor, then rises when it comes to a stop seconds later.

In the carpet-lined hallway, Tris moves me to the side farthest from the stairwell entrance, and worry tightens his features as he jams the keycard into the lock on our door.

He practically throws me across the threshold and would have slammed the door, if not for the quiet-close hinges. The latch catches, and he slots the secondary deadbolt in place. I hover next to the bathroom door, shivering and dripping onto the floor.

Haut appears at the end of the short entryway, coming from the direction of Levi and Aspen's room. When he sees our expressions, he rushes forward. "What's wrong?"

Tris chafes my arms to warm me. "Rowe saw some guy perving on us from the bushes."

Haut's expression turns thunderous. "Who?"

"What's going on?" Aspen steps up behind Haut, Levi beside him. "We expected you two to be gone longer. Our pizza hasn't even arrived yet."

Having heard Tris from the other room, Levi focuses on us. "Did you get a look at the man?"

"No." Tris peers down at me. "You?"

I shake my head. "He was wearing all black, and he had his hood up."

Haut's hands ball into fists. "What was he doing?"

"He was standing there, staring at us." A shiver wracks my body, and my teeth chatter. "He wasn't trying to climb the fence or anything. Just standing still and watching."

Levi and Haut exchange glances, some silent communication moving between them, and they brush past us to head for the door.

"Stay here with Aspen." Haut points at us before they disappear through the door.

"Why don't you go wash off the chlorine?" Tris nudges me into the bathroom. "I'll grab you some pajamas to wear."

"Thank you." Grateful for the distraction, I close the door, strip off my robe and wet bathing suit, and step into the shower.

Warmth envelops me, chasing away the chill and soothing my frayed nerves.

Hot tubs and I are oh-for-two on happy experiences, and I'm not sure I want to ever try again.

My mind races with questions as I scrub my body. Could I have been mistaken that we were being watched? Maybe I looked up at the wrong time and someone was simply passing by? Could he have been one of the hotel staff? I mean, Tris and I were making out in a public space. What if the guy didn't vanish and was actually coming to chastise us?

But I can't shake the feeling that it wasn't so innocent.

"Your pajamas are on the counter." Tris pokes his head around the curtain. "You okay in here?"

"Yeah, almost done." As I wring my hair, my gaze catches on his bare chest. "Grab me a towel and I'll trade places with you so you can wash off the chlorine, too."

Grinning, he steps into the shower, bathing suit and all. "You don't want to help me scrub down?"

My eyes drop to his cherry-covered swimming trunks, where the hot spray of water molds the material to his hips. His cock twitches with interest, and I lick my bottom lip before shaking my head. We can't be getting frisky in here when Haut and Levi return, and Aspen's right outside the bathroom.

I reach for the curtain. "You'd better wash up on your own."

Tris hooks his thumbs into his waistband, slowly pushing them down. "Are you sure I can't tempt you to stay?"

"You know you're tempting." I step out onto a folded towel on the floor, courtesy of Tris, since I didn't have the forethought to put it down before hopping into the shower. "Hurry, so we can snuggle."

He reaches for the soap. "Yes, ma'am!"

Closing temptation inside, I grab one of the bath sheets to dry off, wrapping my hair into a turban. Sleepy sheep and numbers cover the royal-blue, silk shorts Tris brought in for me, with Zs peppering the blue top.

As I button up the front, the water cuts off. I step to the side to get a fresh towel for Tris, passing it to him when he pushes back the curtain. He scrubs it over his sandy-brown hair and pats his body before slinging it around his hips to stride out of the bathroom once more.

When I emerge a moment later, he wears a matching pair of sleepy-sheep pajama pants and a clingy white T-shirt.

Aspen sits near the window, gazing out into the night with his brow furrowed in concern.

Tris pulls a wide-toothed comb and blow dryer from the open bag on the bed and points to the empty chair across from Aspen. "No going to sleep with wet hair."

The words bring a twinge to my chest. Ros usually helps me with my hair, and I do the same for him. It's only been half a day, but I miss my fanged mate.

I unwind my turban and settle onto the soft cushion. "Any sign of them out there?"

Aspen shakes his head. "They went over the fence into the woods and haven't come back out."

Worry rises, but I tamp it down. Haut is a powerful wolf shifter, and Levi's a big, strong man who can handle himself.

Tris lifts the bottom of my hair to work the tangles out. "They'll be fine."

The reassurance doesn't stop the sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach, though. The memory of that man's stillness fills me with a sense of dread I can't shake.

Aspen's cool blue eyes shift to us. "Where were your wands? You could have stunned the man, Tris. You've learned the spell."

The comb moves higher. "It was in the pocket of Rowe's robe, but the guy was gone before I even turned around."

My spine straightens in surprise. I hadn't even felt it there.

Aspen's focus shifts to me. "And yours?"

Guilt pricks at my conscience, and my gaze jumps toward the bathroom, where I left my wand sitting in its sheath on the counter so the chlorine wouldn't damage it.

Aspen sighs. "You need to be prepared at all times. Both of you. What if you'd been attacked while in the hot tub, and Rowe summoned lightning without an outlet to funnel it through? She could have fried you."

My shoulders hunch. "I've only summoned lightning once, and there was a storm."

Exasperation fills Aspen's voice. "The more magic you learn, the easier it comes to you. I've said this before. You're learning fast now that we know your designation. Which means you need to be even more careful."

"Sorry," I say meekly. "It won't happen again."

The comb drags against my skull. "So, you're saying we're not allowed to have fun because there's a chance we might be attacked?"

Annoyance underscores Tris's words and finds an echo in my heart. I don't want to live my life constantly on the alert. That would make me miserable.

Aspen stares at us for a long moment as if we're missing the point. "No, I want you to be vigilant because we're heading toward Silver Hollow with Levi. His town is under attack by an unknown enemy who is most probably against him bringing in outsiders to help fix the problem."

Oh, I guess we are missing the point. "Sorry."

"No more mini-adventures." Tris sounds equally contrite as he squeezes my shoulder. "We'll stay with the group from now on."

The lock whirs, and the door opens as Haut and Levi return to the room, our pizza delivery in their hands.

The comb pauses in my hair. "Did you find anything?"

"Nothing." Haut's jaw sets with frustration. "We tracked him to the parking lot and then lost it."

Levi shuts the door and flips the secondary latch. "The scent wasn't familiar, so the person's not from Silver Hollow."

"Wolf shifter?" Aspen's focus remains on the pool below. "Or werewolf?"

Haut hesitates. "Not sure."

Levi's brow furrows. "The scent was too faint to tell, but we'll be able to track him if he makes another appearance."

"Is there a chance he was one of the hotel workers?" I nibble on my bottom lip.

Levi walks over to set the pizza boxes on the dresser. "We made a pass through the lobby, and the only other person working this late is a security guard who doesn't match the scent."

"A pervert getting his rocks off, then?" Tris rubs my shoulders in comfort. "Couldn't resist a little creeping when he saw our Rowe in her little bikini?"

Haut growls low in his throat. "Your next bathing suit will be one I pick out."

His gaze shifts from me to Tris. "What's with the matching pajamas?"

"Jealous?" Tris snickers as he goes back to brushing my hair.

I wiggle in my chair. "Does the big, bad wolf want little sleepy sheepies, too?"

"You two are pushing all of my buttons today." Haut stalks toward us. "Mutton is starting to sound a lot better than pizza."

Aspen and Levi exchange a knowing look before Aspen stands and Levi picks up their pizza boxes. "We'll take our dinner to our room. Don't stay up too late. Five o'clock will be here all too soon."

The wolf enters Haut's eyes as he strips out of his shirt and pops the button on his jeans.

"Uh oh." Tris drops the comb next to the blow dryer. "Daddy's mad."

A shimmer blurs Haut's body, and I rise from the chair. "What's the plan?"

"You go left, I go right." Tris edges toward the beds. "Bathroom is the safe zone."

The shimmer dissipates, and a giant, gray wolf stands in Haut's place.

"Sorry, sparky." Tris, my BFF and eternal spark, shoves me at Greyson. "Take one for the team!"

"Traitor!" I shriek as, with a quiet woof, the wolf pounces on me.