6. Flint

Tony stood at the top of the stairs, fear in his eyes. Since we met, he’d been sassy and shouty, curious and contrary, and any hint of fear had been replaced with spunk. But staring into the basement, his body trembled. Did he think I was going to off him here? It wasn’t beyond the realm of possibility, but no, it was a place to keep him until I’d thought this through.

And when I’d tried to connect with him on a human level, sharing something personal about myself, he’d misunderstood. But that wasn’t fair. I’d misjudged what he was saying. I’d assumed we were doing the “sharing is caring” thing humans were fond of repeating.

You really messed up. My wolf sighed.

Until I met Tony, my beast and my dad were the only ones who called me out on my shit these days. But I refused to admit how crushed I was when Tony shouted at me. Also, anyone who yelled at me, other than my dad and brothers, never did it again. Except this guy.

But I was humiliated, and as much as I wanted to inhale his scent, I needed space from him, and the aroma of his shampoo, body wash, and deodorant, while in the background, nestled his natural scent, the one my body craved. He represented chaos, and my life was about rules and order.

“Lights on.” Tony’s body jolted as I barked out the order. The system responded to my voice, but only mine, and the stairs lit up.

The basement was a fully functioning apartment, a place I often spent the night, though my personal items were in the main part of my home. I had the whole house at my disposal, but wandering around those rooms, empty of life, illuminated how lonely my life was. I was always surrounded by business associates, friends, or family, and yet at the end of the day, it was just me, staring in the mirror.

Thanks to the door and thickness of the walls, no wifi or phone signal could penetrate the basement. I did have an illegal wifi jammer but hardly used it, except when conducting important meetings. That was rare, as this was my private domain and I hated it being invaded by outsiders.

“Warn me next time.” He gave a good impression of a snarl before stumbling down the stairs.

Not bad. My wolf was impressed with his wild-animal imitation.

I checked the fridge was fully stocked. But I needed his phone, just in case he was a tech wizard and managed to send a message.

“It’s in my locker at the club,” he replied when I asked him to hand it over.

But I couldn’t take the chance he wasn’t telling the truth.

“I have to frisk you.”

He narrowed his eyes. “You’re going to put your hands all over me?”

This guy. He had the ability to get under my skin, and I hated it.

You don’t hate it. Sometimes I wished I could mute my wolf.

Of course I do. I’m the La Luna Noir boss, the pack Alpha, the most powerful mafia shifter pack in the entire state, maybe the country.

You’re not being honest. My beast closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.

Perhaps I wasn’t, but my judgment was fuzzy when I was close to Tony.

“Spread your legs.” I’d wanted to say those words from the moment we met, with both of us naked, his slick-covered ass pushed up waiting for me to plow in.

Despite the work I did, I had a moral compass. I wouldn’t fuck him if I didn’t have his permission, and…there were so many obstacles, I almost wished I’d told Emilio to deal with him.

You don’t mean that!My wolf was aghast, his hackles rising.

Tony was still cuffed, so I had him raise his arms in front and patted along them. Next I went down his sides, and he winced. I said, “Sorry,” without thinking and checked he had nothing hidden around his belt. Then the legs. I started on the left, but as I ran my fingers over his upper thigh, I encountered a bulge. He had hidden something before Emilio caught him.

I glanced up. “You’re packing.”

His lips curled as if he was stifling laughter. “That’s a strange way of describing it.” He shrugged. “I was always told I was big.”

I froze, my hands still pressing into him, unable to move, my fingers clawed like from arthritis. “This is?—”

“Me. It’s all me.” Now he grinned, a huge smile from ear to ear.

He’d outmaneuvered me. Me, the guy with a weapon, a lethal one that would result in a through and through.

“Did you find what you were looking for?”

“Enough!” I yelled, my voice echoing around the windowless basement, and he reacted as if I had shot him. He shrank away, his jaw clenched. I arranged my features and glowered at him, but what I desired was to hold him in my arms, pepper kisses over his face, tend to his wounds, and beg for his forgiveness, while telling him he was my mate, the love of my life.

And even if he did fall for me after I’d kidnapped him and he lost his entire life, how could he love me when I wasn’t human and he didn’t know my kind existed? And there was the little matter of him snooping at La Luna Noir, not to mention he thought my family killed his father. And my line of work probably didn’t align with his values. Fuck!

“There’s plenty of food.” I waved my hand toward a bowl of fruit. “And ummm, bananas.”

“Bananas are my favorite.” He sauntered to the table, licking around his mouth. “A good banana fits perfectly in your hand as you strip the peel off.” He picked up one and peeled it. “And you wrap your fingers around it before taking a bite.” He snapped his mouth closed, lopping off the top of the banana.

There was something seriously wrong with Tony. He was acting like he didn’t give a shit what happened to him. I was annoyed that he’d put me at a disadvantage, and despite his scent clogging my nostrils and making me dizzy, I wanted to get out of the basement.

“What are your plans? For me? Why are you feeding me and giving me a place to stay? Are you fattening me up?” He was much smaller than me, though perfectly well proportioned, except for the bit I’d felt up. That was huge. “Like in the fairy tales. The wicked witch liked to fatten children before… you know.”

I teetered between being furious he thought I wanted to eat him and him comparing me to a wicked witch, though I’d eat his ass in a heartbeat.

I hadn’t decided what to do with him, but I wasn’t telling Tony I was wavering. My signature move was gathering information and making a quick decision. No flip-flopping, no umming and ahhing.

I pointed to the bedroom and bathroom. “There are clothes in the closet, and the lights in each room are controlled by a switch.” I turned on my heel and put one foot on the stairs. If I didn’t leave, I’d grab him, stick my tongue down his throat, before asking if he wanted another pat-down.

“Haven’t you forgotten something?”

I paused, wondering if he could read my mind.

“Like what?” I didn’t turn around. “Oh, the first-aid kit.” I grabbed it and ice packs from the fridge. I went to put a pack over his lip, but he reared away, snarling that he could do it himself. “What then?”

“Cuffs, or am I supposed to go about my day with them on?”

I dug in my coat pocket for the keys and grabbed the cuffs, deliberately not looking at him, though his prominent bulge was hard to ignore. My hands shook. That was what he did to me. I hated that I couldn’t control myself around him.

“Is there a problem?”

“Yes,” I raged. “I have an employee who broke the rules but who doesn’t seem to understand the seriousness of the situation. He’s more snark and sass than… than…”

“Groveling and fawning? F that.”

I straightened my spine and drew myself up to my full height which was a head taller than him. “It’s called respect. I’m your boss, the person who clawed their way up to that position.”

“Garbage.” He spat out the word like he was trying to get rid of something disgusting. “You got handed the job because of your alpha father and grandfather. And I’m pretty sure it’s former boss.”

He was partly right. I had been destined to take the role of Alpha, but my father made me work for it. I’d washed dishes, cleaned toilets, and tended bar on my way to the top. Sadly, that training was cut short. Papa was murdered, and I was Alpha in my early 20s.

“You know nothing about me.” I put my hand inside my jacket, feeling for my gun.

“I know enough. I did my research before getting the job at La Luna Noir.” He was treading into dangerous territory. “But you can do one thing before deciding if I live or die.”

It was late, my head hurt. I needed to eat and sleep, and tomorrow I’d figure out the mess I was in, how deep it was, and if I could crawl out and still be the same person.

He pulled out a wrinkled photo from his pocket. “Please find out who killed my father.”