HUCK

"You have to show them."

I almost laughed. Now who was the risk taker? I wasn't sure whether to be proud or concerned. I'd known from the moment I agreed to this mission that this would have to happen, but I hadn't told Brooke because she was supposed to be against dumb ideas. Dominic wasn't going to give me shit without something big to persuade him. It was the only reason I'd agreed to bring her here dressed the way she was. Having her surrounded by lascivious men was just the push my wolf needed to drag his ass out of limbo.

I turned inward, fighting for a connection, but it was like trying to use a cell phone in the valley.

The minutes ticked by, and Dominic's amusement was fading. One thing I'd learned about dealing with him was to keep him entertained. It was the only reason he hadn't killed me long before this moment. Like it or not, he liked me, but it wouldn't take much to change that.

Brooke's unease grew like a flower that only existed in silence. Her fear filled my lungs. I closed my eyes and focused on her, remembering every danger she'd ever been in: the night she'd first entered those castle gates, a masked man in an alley, a mountain lion about to pounce. Titan.

My fangs erupted. My claws emerged. "Stand back," I warned, my voice guttural. My wolf rose with a low growl. Letting him loose wouldn't bode well for the asshole behind me, and there were way too many guns in this room. Horror, sweat, and piss permeated the air.

"Don't shoot!" Brooke cried out.

I opened my eyes—my wolf's eyes—taking in the pale, stunned expressions of every man within the room. Every one of them had their weapon aimed; some had more than one.

Dominic looked long and hard at the bottle of liquor sitting on the table, then he took in his cigar and snubbed it out into the ashtray. "Tell me you assholes are seeing what I'm seeing."

Slow nods circled the table.

"He won't hurt you," Brooke said.

She seemed so sure.

"Would it be okay if we put down the guns?" she asked.

Dominic's attention shifted to her, and his gaze did a slow slide that made me bare my teeth. He lifted a hand, and the men reluctantly lowered their weapons and sat down.

Brooke released a subtle breath. "I understand this may come as a shock. Our kind's existence is only known by an elite group of humans, all of which benefit greatly."

"Then what do you need me for?" Dominic asked. His hostility was gone, and if his interest kept us alive, we were practically immortal now.

Brooke hesitated, seeming to think over her answer. "Because another of our kind has stolen control over our assets."

"So you want me to fund a war to take them back?"

Brooke nodded. "Once we regain power, we will pay you back three times your investment, as well as make you our most valuable partner in future endeavors."

"And if you don't win?"

I shifted back into human form. "Since when have you seen me make a bet I can't win?"

Dominic grunted, studying me like the oddity I was. He relit his cigar and took a long, thoughtful drag. After several long moments, he finally said, "Little, Red Riding Hood stays here."

My jaw tightened. "That isn't an option."

He lifted a brow. "Then how am I to know you won't just disappear?"

"I can leave one of my men."

"Something tells me the girl is more valuable."

"She is, which is why I won't risk her."

"Could you give us the night to think about it?" Brooke asked. "We traveled all day to get here."

Our eyes met, and—I'll be damned—she wanted to do it. Had she lost her mind? No way in hell was I leaving her anywhere, least of all here.

"Johnny, get 'em a room," Dominic said. "We'll talk again in the morning."

Johnny didn't grab me the way he had before. Neither of the men did. They waved us on and then kept a lead as if we had a disease they didn't want to catch. We took the elevator down one floor. The hotel suites. He wanted to impress her. Dejavu took over me. I thought I was done competing with luxury, but something told me that would never happen with a woman like Brooke. My hands fisted, and I took a slow breath. I'd known this shit would happen. I'd expected it. But I hadn't thought she would actually consider staying behind with them.

The doors dinged, the men exited, and then they hurried ahead and opened the door to room 1022.

"Could you get Huck some clothes?" Brooke asked as we caught up to them.

Johnny nodded, and no sooner had we stepped inside than the door was slammed shut behind us.

Brooke flipped on the light and took in the immaculate accommodations. "This is nice," she said softly.

"You aren't staying here."

She stepped deeper into the room, feigning interest in the furniture. Her back was to me as she lightly ran her hand over the back of the plush sofa. "We can't win a war without supplies."

"What makes you so sure you'll be safe here? Do you have any idea who that man was? Any clue what he does to keep his power?"

"If anyone can navigate powerful men, it's me."

My teeth clenched, but I didn't deny her. I had no doubt she could have Dominic eating from her hand in a week. Goddess knew I'd never stood a chance. My gaze lowered—lingered. That nightgown was deadly. I growled softly. "I'm not leaving you here."

"We have to."

"The hell I do." I closed the gap between us and circled my arm around her waist, pulling her in so she could feel how badly I needed her.

She pressed back, and then spun around, sliding her hands up my chest and over my shoulders, giving me doe eyes that made it really hard to focus.

"Absolutely not."

"We need supplies, Huck."

"And your wolf? Wars don't happen overnight. You know what will happen if you stay here too long."

Her lip quirked, as she squinted up at me. "Then I'll just have to escape after we have what we need."

I huffed. "This place has more surveillance than the crown jewels."

"And I happen to know a very good thief." She leaned in, lightly dragging her lips across my chest.

Everything about me flexed, and a fire shot through my center. She was manipulating me, and fuck if it wasn't working. "Brooke—"

The tip of her tongue trailed over my skin. She was bad. She was brutal. She wasn't playing fair.

With a groan, I reached down, gathered the hem of her nightgown, and swiftly pulled it off of her. She gasped, and then she was in my arms, and I lowered her to the couch and took what I'd been desperately craving. This time, she didn't deny me.

Brooke clawed at my back, urging me onward as her lips and limbs fought for dominance. I loved her with every fiber of my being, but that wasn't what we were doing. Not this time. This felt more like a battle, and I'd never enjoyed conflict more.

I slid into her, pinning her to the cushions, and she bit my chest, drawing a hiss from my lungs. I bent my head, stole her mouth, kissed her hard, fucked her harder. She was frustrating. Fuck me, she was phenomenal.

Then she smacked my ass, and I froze. Her fierce gaze was electric; her smile was wide and so, so sexy.

"Did you just...spank me?" I growled in mock menace.

She bit her lip and nodded. "Did you like it?"

I rocked my hips, fixated on the way her smile fell open, and the tiny sound I drew from her lungs. "I don't think you're taking this situation seriously." I did it again, groaning low in my throat. "If anyone deserves a spanking, it's you." I'd meant it playfully, but my tone didn't match my intention. She did deserve a spanking. "You are my luna, and I won't sacrifice your safety for a handful of guns."

"Isn't a handful just one gun?" she breathed.

"Funny." I took her mouth with mine, and the conversation was buried beneath madness. Just the thought of being apart from her had my wolf close to insanity, and no matter how hard I fought to control him, there was punishment in my pace. Dominance in my kiss. Desperation in my touch. Mine.

I took everything she had with a greed I'd always loathed, and when it was over, I lay beside her, refusing to unlock my body from hers.

The clock on the wall read 3 A.M., and she was pliant in my arms, close to sleep, but not quite. I nuzzled her hair and drew in her scent, the breath shuddering within my lungs. "I only just got you back," I rasped.

"I know," she whispered. Her fingers trailed lightly over my ribs. "I don't want to be apart."

"You don't have to be."

"But I do." She shifted, craning her neck just enough to see my face. "I don't know how to explain it. This is needed. This is what was meant to happen, just like everything else that has happened."

"What if I can't get you back?"

"You can."

"I'm not so sure I can. This isn't the castle, Brooke. There are no hidden passageways, and there are cameras monitoring every inch of this place."

"You can."

My lips thinned, and I heaved a breath out of my nose. "You don't know that."

She was quiet for so long, I thought she wouldn't respond. "You're right. I don't know that."

"Which is exactly why I'm not—"

"But I don't know anything else either. I didn't know if we would be caught. Then I didn't know if I'd survive that horrible dungeon. I had no clue Titan would drunkenly race me down the mountain, or that the car would crash. I don't know if we'll win this war. But I do know one thing. I know that we have to think about more than just ourselves. It is our sacred duty to save our people, and shying away from hard choices won't supply our army."

My jaw tensed. She was right, and if it was anyone but her, I'd have already agreed. My attention drifted, taking in the room. At least she'd be more comfortable. Better fed. Safer. Dominic wouldn't hurt her; that much I knew for certain. But if I couldn't get her back to the mountain, he wouldn't need to. "Three days," I said. "That's more than enough time to get the supplies back to the pack. After that, be ready to go."

"How will you do it?" Brooke asked.

"Fuck if I know," I said. "But however I do it isn't going to be easy, and it won't happen without a fight."