At least not the one he’d accepted. The one his lovely rabbit had compiled was so close to perfect that he’d been forced to bury it.
She walked by him, glancing up with a small, tight smile. She was beautiful. Perfect golden hair and legs that went for miles. She’d gotten a bit fat for his tastes, but there was still a loveliness to her that called out to him. She seemed so perfect from the outside. Smart.
Elegant. Lovely. Of course, underneath it all she was just like the rest of them. Just like his mother and his dearly departed wife. Women were whores. They couldn’t help themselves. If you offered them a cock, they took it.
And if Special Agent Kincaid and that idiot Briggs thought they were the only ones she was fucking, they were fooling themselves.
She had obviously been with that obnoxious SEAL and perhaps the deputy as well. The deputy had a mouth on him. He would love to shut that mouth, but it would have to wait.
Need clawed at his belly as his rabbit ducked away. Briggs tried getting close to her again, but she shook her head.
“I need some air, Cam.” She slipped outside.
“Give her a little time.” Kincaid stopped his former partner with a firm hand on his shoulder. “We know she’s not going anywhere.”
“Yeah, she made that clear.”
A very large man with scars covering some of his rough face walked in the door carrying two large bags with handles. “Food, anyone?”
Ah, the luncheon. It was coming from some bar. Yes, that would likely be lovely. He forced himself to smile and join in the general drivel about how good a burger would taste.
He needed something more than a piece of meat. His hunger was growing, and he was going to make a mistake if he didn’t do something about that. The last five years he’d been very careful, culling only what he needed to get by. He’d performed his rituals, but in a truncated way that never seemed to feed his beast. He would have to do it here, too. His rituals required time and space, neither of which he had, though a plan was forming in his brain. He’d listened in on the ants and their talk. He knew there was at least one private home that wouldn’t be occupied for a while. Something about aliens and taking cover. Once he knew where that space was, he could start planning.
But for tonight, a quick fix would have to do.
“Kincaid, Briggs!” The small-town sheriff barked like he had something important to say. The man stood in his office doorway with a ferocious frown on his face. “Seriously? I thought you were going to use my office to talk to her.”
Kincaid had the decency to flush, but Briggs was right back to grinning. “Words were said.”
“Yeah, I can imagine what was said. Hope, we’re going to need some Lysol,” the sheriff yelled. “And you, Briggs—get in here, and we’re going to have a serious lecture on respecting your new boss’s office. Why don’t you step in, too, Kincaid. I have a couple of things we can go over.”
He didn’t like the way that sounded. The last thing he wanted was that pesky sheriff nosing in where he didn’t belong.
He needed a distraction. Perhaps he could serve his needs in multiple ways. He could distract the sheriff, feed his need, and put a little fear into his rabbit.
All he needed was a few moments alone with a lovely lady. He had his pick in this town.
Chapter Twelve
Cam settled into the seat beside Laura and slid his hand around the back of her chair. She was tense, her shoulders set in a way that made him want to get behind her and rub until she relaxed. He wanted to take her home and coddle her until the tightness around her eyes softened and she let him hold her. He and Rafe could take turns.
“Don’t cause more scandal than you already have, Cam,” Laura murmured low as she moved his hand away from hers. “I can have you thrown out of here.”
He frowned. “No one seemed very scandalized.” Cam wasn’t upset. Let them all know. If he could, he would have broadcast the whole thing so there was absolutely no question to whom she belonged. He would have made damn sure that fucker Wolf Meyer had a front row seat. Why was he still here? He was hanging around the sheriff’s department when he didn’t have a real place here. The ex-SEAL still looked at Laura like something he needed to protect. Bastard. And Cam hadn’t missed the way all of the feds looked at her. She was a gorgeous woman, but did they all have to look at her like she was the second coming of Marilyn Monroe?
They needed to get their own superintelligent, funny, blonde bombshells. This one was his. And Rafe’s. He and Rafe had things to work out, but Cam wasn’t going to fight him. It hurt Laura, and damn it, he liked having Rafe around.
She slid a glance his way. “The boys from Bliss might not care, but I assure you, everyone from DC was shocked at what happened.” Was she worried about that? Cam didn’t give a shit what any of them thought. He’d never fit in with them. He’d always been that weird mix of nerd, country boy, and aggressive asshole that no one had liked in the Bureau. No one except Laura and Rafe. “Well, they don’t count. The guys from Bliss were just pissed that I hadn’t cleaned up. I received very explicit instructions on how to have sex in public places. The sheriff has a pamphlet. I’ve been assured that if I don’t follow the rules, he’ll shove me in a cell. There’s only two, you know. He told me what happened the last time he put Rachel and Max Harper in jail.”
There it was. That smile that made his heart skip a beat. Laura’s smile lit up his whole fucking world. “Yeah, that particular incident had the gossips going for a day or two. Rachel has a problem with jaywalking. And being very mouthy. Nate was in a bad mood at the time. Max sacrificed himself to go to jail with her. He threw a punch at Nate. Needless to say, they had fun while they waited for Rye to post bail. It was very late, and it was their date night. They didn’t let the little fact that they were in jail stop them.” Now see, that was information he was interested in. There were a couple of trios in this town, and Cam really wanted to know how they worked. “They have date nights?”
Laura nodded. “She goes out with each one at least once a week. I believe Callie, Nate, and Zane do it, too. I can imagine it’s a good way to keep the relationships intimate. Conversely, I know the boys have boys’ nights out.”
The door to the interrogation room opened, and Brad walked in, followed by Rafe. Rafe’s face was set in dark lines. Cam knew he wasn’t happy to be on the other side of the table, but for now, it was their best choice. They needed to know what was going on from the inside. Joe and Edward followed. The all looked grim and gray, file folders in hand.
Cam remembered what this felt like. There was a certain adrenaline that pumped through any agent’s veins before an interview. Even if the agent knew the person in front of him wasn’t who he was looking for, there was a certain amount of power that came from being on the right side of the table. Cam definitely felt vulnerable.
Laura’s spine straightened. Cam suddenly wished he already had the badge and gun Nate Wright had promised him. There was paperwork to be done even in a small town. This wasn’t his dream job. Far from it. Cam wasn’t sure he had a dream job. He wanted Laura. That would be enough. If he could marry her and provide for her and find some time on the side to write his code, he would be happy. Still, he’d feel safer when he could legally kill someone again.
It would make defending Laura so much easier.