Page 127 of Awakened
Giggling, she took my hand and pulled me closer. “Beth Cooper. It’s nice to meet you.”
Oddly enough, Beth had dated Sarah’s cousin for a couple of years. They’d even lived together for a few months, but I’d never met her.
Her pictures on social media do not do her justice.
I whispered in her ear, and her breath hitched. “I’m here to take you home, Beth.”
“Let’s go then.” She nibbled my earlobe, sending chills through my body. Leaning back, my nose brushed hers, and her eyes zeroed in on my lips. Closing the distance between us, she brushed the gentlest kiss against my mouth. It was just a peck, but I could see exactly how much game this woman had—a fucking lot.
Taking her hand, I led her down to the edge of the dock where my paddle boat was tied up. Quickly untying the rope, I hopped in and looked up at her.
She shook her head with a huge grin on her face as she climbed in.
“What?” I asked, checking our surroundings to see if anyone noticed me taking off with the Senator’s daughter.
“Nothing. This is just the cutest pre-hookup ever.”
She had the wrong idea, but it’s easier to catch a hot lady with the promise of sex than with boring promises of home. Right?
PART 3
TWENTY-FOUR
The phone in my pocket vibrated. Turning away from the girls, I quickly scanned the message.
SCD
They’re on their way back from the meeting with Blue Moon. You have ten minutes to get Hope and Chastity out of the house and find Stewart’s jump drive.
Got it. The girls are ready to move.
“I need you to listen closely. You need to go out the back door. Zach’s waiting in a van for you. I have to double-check the house. I’ll be out in two minutes.”
Brandon and Aiden had kept up their end of the bargain by drawing the Crescent Moon Pack off their territory for a mediation meeting with the Regional Powers. In the months following The Gathering, non-Cornerstone packs had to learn to play nice while still picking up gains. One such gain was getting Chastity away from those assholes.
After The Gathering, the Old Church Packs went into lockdown. With few exceptions, they didn’t leave their territory or let anyone in. It had taken the middle ground packs demandingmediation to draw them out. I never expected them to bring the very person I hoped to save to the orchestrated distraction. My only guess was they were too scared to leave the women alone and thought they were safer with them.
Fools.
Quickly moving up the familiar pack house stairs, I hurried to where Matthew Stewart was staying—Seth’s old room. Shaking off the negativity I felt smelling Matthew in a space he did not belong, I started digging through his bags.
The Howlers told me he kept the small jump drive in a travel-sized toothbrush holder.What a weirdo.If his bag had any organization to it, I could’ve been in and out. But no, he was a slob of epic proportions. His toothpaste was left uncapped with his clothes. In the grand scheme of things, this shouldn’t have been such a sticking point. After all, the dude was a murderer, so why wouldn’t he also be the dirtiest man in the Midwest?
I held my breath as I gingerly sifted through his belongings.
Under a stack of dubiously clean underwear, I hit pay dirt. In a black toothbrush holder, covered in white minty goop, was a small jump drive. I shoved it in my pocket and tried arranging the nasty bag as it had been. He would know I had been there, but I would be long gone.
As I twisted the door handle, the burner buzzed. I shut the door quietly and took the phone out of my pocket.
SCD
Go out the window. They’re coming up the street, and there’s no way you’ll make it out the back door. You’re going to want to pull yourself onto the longest branch and shimmy down.
I bit back a laugh.
Like I need someone to tell me how to sneak out of the pack house.
I was lucky Seth’s old room faced the back where Zach was parked.
