Prophylaxis - 2. Chapter 2

We'd waited outside until things calmed down. If I'd had my little Kia my ass would have been out of there. I could fill everyone in on the details later. Preferably by phone or email. But no, my driver said wait, so we waited. The Thorpes finally came out. They had wiped most of the blood off themselves, which was thoughtful of them.

I reported my end of things, trying to be as detailed as possible. I really didn't want to have to go through it again later.

Apparently, the man I'd seen was Chrissy's second or third cousin. He was number two in the pack. He'd decided number one looked more appealing. He'd been planning to get Thorpe to stand down and hand over the reins, by force if necessary. He wanted Chrissy to agree to be his mate to make his power-grab easier to accept by the rest of the pack. I had no idea if that would have flown, I didn't know what the age of consent was for mating in werewolf-land. Really, though, I didn't give a shit. That girl was thirteen, I'd been in her head and it was the mind of a thirteen year-old. The idea of that child having to be the mate of a grown man was icky as hell.

He'd threatened Chrissy, trying to get her to agree. She had kept quiet at first, but when she had tried to leave in the last vision she had told him that she was going straight to her mom about the whole thing. In the end he raped her and threatened to kill her parents while she was watching if she said anything or didn't go along. What a bastard. I took some satisfaction in the fact that he would be paying dearly for his actions, they had pulled a few strips off him but had left him alive in the warehouse.

Chrissy would be ok, too. My untangling hadn't just let us find out about the problem. I'd soothed her psyche, I guess is the best way to put it. Her thinking would be clear, not muddled with fear and shame. She still had a lot of things to work through, but she could do it now with a calm mind.

The Thorpes had thanked me vigorously and promised me a fat bonus. Shiny.

I convinced my driver to stop at a convenience store on the way back to the hotel. I snagged a pop, some plastic zip-locks, and ibuprofen. I could use the plastic bags to make an ice-pack back at the hotel. I'd take the ibuprofen right away. I walked back to the car and plunked into the front passenger seat. I held the soda between my knees as I fought desperately with the packaging on the pills. It shouldn't take the jaws of life to free a couple of painkillers from their little plastic prison. The package was suddenly not in my hands. I looked at the man behind the wheel. He'd snagged the pills away from me and fiddled with the package for a moment before handing it back. Yay, the pills were free. I slugged them back with my pop and then rested the cool drink against my forehead.

The engine turned over and we backed out of the parking spot.

“You alright now?” He asked me, keeping his eyes on the road.

I leaned my head back onto the head-rest and let my eyes half-close. “Peachy-keen, Jelly-bean.”

That was less than true. I felt drained and hungover, not just from untangling Chrissy. The emotional fallout had been harsh. Emotions had run high and they'd gotten all over me. I hoped my magic combo of detergent and borax could get the mess out of my favorite shirt. I didn't want to feel wild wolfy emotions everytime I put it on.

I felt physically hungover, too, with an aching head that felt wrapped in cotton. Ibuprofen, a shower, clean clothes, and an ice bag should help.

My shoulder hurt like a bitch, too, but I knew I was lucky as hell that was my only physical injury. The sore shoulder was a direct result of the man sitting next to me grabbing my arm and practically flinging me behind him when the office had erupted into violent growls and gnashing teeth. He'd dragged me out of the room and out of the building. The last thing I'd seen was a spray of blood coming from the tangle of bodies that had jumped on the man I'd seen attacking Chrissy in the vision.

My driver snorted and glanced at me, but didn't say anything. At least he wasn't stinking the car up with his grumpies anymore.

“Anyway, thanks for not letting anyone chew on me back there.” I said. See? I could be nice.

“It's my job.” He said. “Although it would have been a little easier if you hadn't stared that asshole in the eye and called him out. Did you want him to take a bite out of you?”

“Nope, I'm just really good at being an idiot.” I said dryly. “I even practice in front of a mirror sometimes.”

“I can tell, you've got it down pat.” He smirked, then frowned. “Although, really, they shouldn't have brought in someone as young as you. It's not right to put a kid in danger. Christina's presence couldn't be avoided, but they shouldn't have called you in with just me as a guard.” There was a hint of the anger that had been there on the ride to the warehouse. Was that why he'd been pissed? He thought he was taking a baby into a wolf-den?

I sighed. Here we go. “How old do you think I am?”

He glanced at me. “Well, can you even get into a real bar without a fake ID?”

“Yes.” I answered him, scowling. “I can. Especially since I'm thirty.”

“Bullshit, shorty.” He snapped. “There's no way you're older than me, and I'm twenty-four.”

“Sorry, my mommy and daddy were getting busy to make me six years before your mommy and daddy were getting busy to make you.” I sighed. “And was the short jab really necessary? I'm five eight, hardly ready to help Dorothy in Munchkinland.”

He shot me a look with a raised brow. “You're serious.”

“As a heart attack.” I said.

“Jeeze, I wouldn't have smacked Jamie so hard if I'd known you weren't a kid.” He grumbled.

“Oh yeah, the guy who couldn't keep his nose to himself.” I remembered. “What the hell was he doing anyway.”

“He's young, he doesn't have the best control of his instincts. He was interested in your smell and couldn't hold back.” He shrugged.

“Next time I'll be sure to roll in something unpleasant before I go play with werewolves.” I took another swig of my pop. “I wonder why he thought it was interesting.”

I saw my escort stiffen before I felt the awkward discomfort. Hmm, must be some embarrassing werewolf thing. I let it drop.

“So, what's your name?” I asked him. “Or should I just call you 'Driving Guy'?”

He looked at me sharply, then back to the road. “Actually, that is my name.”

It was my turn to snort. “Your name is Driving Guy?”

He made a face. “Just Guy. My name is Guy.”

I blame my headache and the fading adrenalin from the excitement at the warehouse for my next comment. “Your name is actually Guy? Sounds like a porn name.”

He glared at me. “Ok, Mick.” He drew out my name suggestively. “Like that's not a name for cheap pornos.”

He actually wasn't too far off the mark. Mick Williams wasn't a porn name, but it was kind of like a stage name for me. I'd chosen Mick because my real last name is Miklas. Mick was a nickname I was used to. I thought it would be good to pick a name that I'd answer to naturally. It's never good if someone calls your name and you don't respond. Looks fishy. I'd gotten Williams from the internet. I'd looked up the most common surnames in the U.S. Number one had been Smith. Yeah, no. What a cliche. The number two name had been Johnson. I'd rejected that because Mick Johnson totally did sound like a porn name. Number three was Williams. Sounded good to me. Mick Williams it was.

“Hey, my pornos are great.” I said, feigning offense. “I won a porno Emmy last year. You're just jealous you only got honorable mention.”

He rolled his eyes. “I guess I missed that one.”

I didn't notice his hands tightening on the wheel or the growl in his voice. I was the worst empath ever.

“What did you win, best soundtrack?” he asked, sounding irritated.

We were pulling into the hotel parking lot as I grinned. “I gave the best blow-job,” I couldn't stop myself from saying as I pushed the release button on my seat-belt.

We jerked into a parking spot. I opened my eyes and took the cool drink off my forehead. My headache was getting better, thank God. I suddenly realized that the feeling swirling around in the car wasn't fading grouchiness or embarrassment. What socked me in the gut when I sat up and looked at Guy was lust, and it wasn't coming from me. Fuck.

What the hell was I doing teasing a werewolf? Was I suicidal?

Then he was on me, leaning over the stick-shift and yanking me to him. His mouth caught mine, his tongue swooping in as I yelped in surprise. It slid against mine then tickled the roof of my mouth. His hand gripped the back of my neck, forcing the kiss deeper. He suddenly released my lips to drop nipping kisses across my jaw and down my throat. The nips got harder followed by his hot tongue to sooth them. Under different circumstances it would probably be nice, right now I was a little worried for my safety.

I awkwardly cleared my throat. “Guy... Guy!” His eyes flicked up to me. Well what do you know, they bled to green, not brown. No labradors here. “You gonna eat me, Guy?”

A growl rumbled in his chest. “You really smell good.”

Well, that wasn't much of an answer. He continued his nibbling, his hand sliding up my leg then gripped my hip, holding me still. I fought back a moan as his other hand squeezed high on my thigh. I was drowning.

I grabbed his hair and tugged. “I'd rather you not bleed me, buddy.”

His eyes came back to mine and he blinked stupidly. I watched some awareness seep back into them.

“We should have left the window open on the way back,” he said, voice still growly. “You smell too goddamn good.”

“Then let's air it out in here," I said, reaching behind me to yank the door handle. I fell without grace onto the concrete.

I scrambled to my feet, sparing a glance to Guy on his hands and knees across the front seats. I'd like to say that my stride was sure and strong as I made my way to the hotel's side door and inside to my room, but I think it was more like a scurry. I didn't look behind me for Guy, I was out of there.

I had just managed to slide my key-card into the slot on my door when he caught me. My card stayed in the slot as he spun me around and slammed me against the door.

“You shouldn't run from a predator,” he growled as he pinned my hands above my head. My sore shoulder protested.

“It makes us want to chase you, catch you,” he breathed as he leaned into me.

His lust swirled around me, making me pant. “I'll keep that in mind for the future. Thank you for the tip.”

His thigh parted mine and pressed against me, making me moan. I could feel his erection at my hip and I knew he could feel mine. His eyes flashed green as he plundered my lips again. My eyes closed and I moaned into his mouth. His hands released my wrists and slid down my sides to grip my ass. He ground himself against me, making me gasp.

It wasn't until I felt his hands tugging my shirt out of my pants and fumbling with the buttons that I came back to myself. Firstly, we were in a hotel hallway, and I'm not an exhibitionist. Well, not usually. Secondly, I don't let people see me with my shirt off. It's just a thing I have, I have some... marks on me I don't let anyone see. It's sex with the lights off for me.

Guy trying to get my shirt off me in a well-lit hallway was as effective as a bucket of cold water.

“Guy, stop it.” I tried to catch his roaming hands.

A nail scraped over a nipple and I arched against him. “Fuck!”

“Yeah,” he said, “I'm trying.” Then he nibbled my shoulder and kept working on my shirt.

“No, no. Stop it, goddammit.” I yanked his hair again. It had gotten his attention last time. “I am not fucking you just because I smell like a goddamn chocolate-chip cookie to you or something!”

He blinked at me. “What?”

I reached behind me and got a hold on the key-card “Thanks very much for the escort and the help. But, you know, it's been a long day and I have to get up early in the morning.” I yanked the key-card out and turned the knob, praying the little light would turn green. “Please tell your Alpha that I appreciate the work and hope he will think of me should he need the services of an empath in the future.”

I felt the door give behind me. Success!

“I will be sure to look you up if I'm in Chicago again.” I let the door open, keeping hold of the knob. I ducked backward and shifted my grip on the door. “Thanks again, you have a good night.”

I slammed the door in his face and smacked the deadbolt home. Fuck, that was close. I had almost screwed some stranger in the hall of the Marriot, and I'm not sure if I would have survived the encounter. I jumped at a sudden banging on the door.

“Mick!”

Great, I had a sexually frustrated werewolf in my hall. He would probably have no problem busting that door into little toothpicks.

“Goodnight, Guy!” I backed toward the window, thinking I might be able to get out that way. “It was nice to meet you!”

There was another bang, which made me jump, then silence. I knew he was still there. I could feel his presence swirling. After what felt like an eternity, his presence finally retreated. I rubbed a hand over my face. Jesus fucking Christ on a crutch.

I checked the lock again and decided to clean up. Too many people's emotions were smeared all over me. I was also still painfully hard. Damn, Guy had been a hot son of a bitch. If only he weren't so, you know, able to kill me with a flick of his wrist. I might have let him jump my bones. No bone-jumping tonight, looked like it would be jerking off in the shower then watching bad hotel cable.

I stripped off my shirt, and pondered if I should move to a different room. I decided not to. Have I mentioned I'm an idiot? A little part of me kind of wanted Guy to come back and find me, as long as he promised not to eat me in anything but the euphemistic sense.

Yep, I'm definitely an idiot.