In the Company of Wolves (SWAT, #3)(29)

Crap.

“Who is this and what the hell is he doing here?”

Liam brushed past the Albanians and omegas to take a confrontational position in front of Eric, his eyes flashing and the tips of his canines showing. He was probably trying to be intimidating, but after seeing Eric’s version of scary, Liam didn’t carry it off as well. It didn’t help that he was a good five inches shorter than Eric and forty pounds lighter.

She was about to answer Liam, but Frasheri spoke first.

“This is Eric Bauer. Jayna met him and thought he would be a good fit for the pack.”

Jayna had just enough time to wince before Liam turned to glare at her. Oh yeah, he was pissed.

Liam frowned at Frasheri. “And you’re willing to hire him, just like that?”

“I haven’t decided yet,” Frasheri admitted. “Jayna obviously saw something she liked if she brought him back here. And I can always use more werewolves in my employ.”

Liam glanced at Eric, eyes narrowing as if trying to figure out exactly what it was Jayna saw in him. Eric regarded Liam without any outward expression.

“If we’re going up against those SWAT werewolves, we’re going to need omegas who know what the hell they’re doing in a fight,” Liam told Frasheri. “How do we know this guy can handle himself? Just because he’s big doesn’t mean anything—except that he’s probably slow and stupid.”

“Possibly,” Kostandin said. “But it’s easy enough to find that out.” He motioned with his hand. “Move the chairs and tables aside.”

Jayna’s heart thumped as she figured out why the Albanian would want a space cleared in the middle of the lobby. He wanted Eric to prove he could fight. Right here, right now.

That shouldn’t have worried her. Eric was trained for this kind of stuff. And even if he wasn’t, why should she care? It wasn’t like he was a member of her pack. But if that was the case, why was she so freaked at the thought of him getting so much as a scratch? She was practically on the verge of hyperventilating.

Her heart wasn’t the only one going into overdrive. Liam’s was beating pretty hard too. Was it in anticipation or something else? She couldn’t tell by the expression on his face, which seemed more annoyed than anything as he looked at Frasheri.

“You don’t expect me to fight this idiot do you?” Liam demanded. “I’m an alpha. He’s not. What good would it do to see me tear him apart?”

Kos regarded Liam for a long, drawn-out moment before lifting a brow. “Of course not. As you say, what would be gained by having you fight this mere omega?”

“Right,” Liam agreed.

Clearly, her pack leader hadn’t realized the significance of the question mark at the end of Kostandin’s statement. Jayna had the feeling Kos would enjoy seeing Liam fight Eric. To tell the truth, Jayna wouldn’t have minded seeing it herself.

“Perhaps you could select someone more appropriate for Eric to fight,” Frasheri suggested. “Someone who wouldn’t tear him apart, as you say.”

Liam seemed to miss the subtle undertone of Frasheri’s words, much as he’d done with Kostandin’s. He turned and looked at Brandon. “Would you mind showing this outsider how a pack werewolf handles himself?”

So now Brandon was part of their pack? The thought made Jayna ill. She wasn’t shocked by Liam’s selection though. If he had a pet among the omegas, it was Brandon. And the lead omega was definitely one of the few werewolves in the room who would be a physical match for Eric.

But then Liam did something that shocked her. He turned to another one of the big omegas who’d been playing pool when she and Eric walked in and motioned him forward. “You too, Caleb.” He glanced at Frasheri and Kos. “You want to see how the new omega handles himself, let’s see.”

Jayna was so focused on Eric tossing his backpack and leather jacket on the floor to face the omegas that she barely noticed Megan and Moe had come to stand beside her.

Brandon and Caleb snarled and launched themselves at Eric without warning, fangs extended and claws out. Jayna expected Eric to get out of the way or leap at one of the werewolves—something. But he only stood there with a slight smile on his face. He hadn’t even shifted to protect himself. It was like he was frozen.

Jayna didn’t realize she’d moved until Megan grabbed her arm. Not that she could have done much to help Eric anyway.

Smelling an easy victory, Brandon went in low at Eric’s right side, while Caleb attacked from his left.

She cringed. This is going to be bloody.

But at the last second, Eric darted to the side and punched Brandon in the chest. The blow stopped the omega’s forward momentum cold, knocking him ten feet back across the lobby.

In the same motion, Eric turned and snatched Caleb out of the air. The omega’s claws dug into Eric’s chest and shoulder before the SWAT cop tossed him across the room, crushing several chairs and a sofa in the process.

Eric spun around to focus on Brandon. Jayna was shocked see that the cop hadn’t shifted yet. If it wasn’t for the four tracks of blood marring his shirt, she would have thought he was just playing around.

Brandon growled but went at him more cautiously this time. Eric blocked most of the openhanded swipes Brandon threw but didn’t go on the offensive himself. Jayna frowned. Why wasn’t Eric attacking?