“It’s possible that Aimee just spread that rumor to make people think he’d dropped the whole thing. He never actually said he was going anywhere, from what I heard. And I’d have to agree that he hasn’t quite accepted reality yet.” There had been too much spite and rancor in the enforcer’s voice.
She could say one thing for certain—Grant no longer wanted her. Not now that she’d allowed another male to leave a permanent mark on her. It would be one thing for a shifter to allow such a thing when they’d never actually found their true mate. But in Grant’s eyes, Aspen knew she was his mate yet had chosen another male over him. That wasn’t something he’d forgive. Which was why she couldn’t dismiss the idea that the whole car crash thing had been a stunt.
Relaxing against Camden, Aspen rested her hands on his chest. “Thank God you had tip-top alibis. It might not have bothered you if the pride gave you the cold shoulder, but it would have been the last thing you needed right now.”
“Many of them might still view me with suspicion. Like Grant said, I could have hired someone to do it for me. A lot of people could believe that.”
“I hope not. You might not care what people think of you, but I do.”
Camden drew her closer. “I care what you think.”
“Who wouldn’t? I’m fucking fabulous.”
Camden felt his lips quirk. “And so humble.” He kissed her, slipping his tongue into her mouth, feeding on her taste and swallowing her little moan. He smoothed his hands down her back to palm her perfect ass and gave it a light squeeze.
“Damn whoever was behind the Grant incident. I was having a pretty good evening until he appeared. All that crap sobered me up. I had plans to enjoy drunk sex with you.”
“Funnily enough, I had the same plans.” He kissed her again as he backed her toward the bedroom. “We can still enjoy the sex part.”
“Hmm, you make a good point.”
Soon, they were both naked and she was riding him hard, impaling herself on his cock over and over. Their releases soon swept over them, and it must have quieted his mind enough for him to drift off to sleep, because he was soon out cold. But their sleep was cut short when her cell phone began urgently beeping.
Camden woke with a start, double-blinking … and realized he could also hear a distant blaring. His tiger shot to alertness, his ears pricking up.
She knifed up in bed, pressing the screen of her cell—stopping both sounds. “Someone tripped the alarm for my apartment.”
He momentarily froze, and then they both jumped out of bed. She tugged on a long tee while Camden pulled on sweatpants as they rushed through his apartment and out into the hall.
He expected to find her front door open. It wasn’t. It was locked shut. And there’d be no kicking it open—these doors were made to withstand shifter strength. “Key,” he said to Aspen, his entire system strung tight.
Bailey stepped into the hall just as Aspen ran back to his apartment. “That was the alarm, right? I wasn’t hearing things.”
“Someone tripped it, but the door’s locked,” Camden told the mamba, noticing that other people were now also peeking out of their doors. His gaze snapped to Aspen as she came racing back to him holding both a key and her cell.
“I pressed the panic button on my phone,” she told him. “We’ll have reinforcements soon.”
He unlocked the door. “Wait here with Bailey.”
But of course she didn’t. Both females joined him in searching the apartment, even as Aspen took a call from Havana and informed her of the situation. Deke also turned up and aided with the search.
“Nothing,” Aspen said as they all re-met in the living area. “There’s no sign of anyone here. No lingering scent of an intruder.”
There were sprays that could cover scents, so that didn’t mean no one had broken in. But … “None of the windows are open. The fire exit is also firmly shut. No locks have been tampered with.”
She perched her hands on her hips. “Well something or someone set off the alarm. It had to have been Wayland, I just don’t know how he got in here.”
Bailey gave a little shudder. “Jesus, it’s freezing in here.” She crossed to the wall. “Thermostat’s on its coldest temperature setting.”
Aspen frowned. “I switched it off when I moved my stuff to Camden’s place. I know I did.”
“You did,” Camden assured her, barely resisting the urge to grind his teeth. “I remember.” Frustration spiked through him and his cat. None of this made any sense.
It wasn’t long before the Alphas appeared, along with Luke and Farrell. They closed the door behind them, blocking out the many eavesdroppers in the hall.
“It’s so cold you’d think all the windows had been open for days,” remarked Havana.