In the Company of Wolves (SWAT, #3)(35)

Becker glanced at Jayna. She was gazing out the window, unaware that he was watching her. The sun highlighted her naturally blond hair, making it look even silkier, and he had to resist the urge to run his fingers through it. Usually he hated being stuffed into tight places, but right then, being squeezed into the seat beside her was pretty close to heaven. Even though he’d been on the go nonstop since he’d infiltrated the pack and hadn’t gotten to spend nearly as much time with her as he would have liked, he was still having a good time. For now, being under the same roof was good enough for him.

Yesterday, they’d been able to compare notes in the privacy of his apartment on the information they’d been able to get to Cooper, but unfortunately, there hadn’t been a repeat of that magical moment from his first night at the loft, when the sparks had zipped between them. Everything about that moment, from their private conversation to the feel of her warm, soft hands on his skin, made all the risks he was taking seem worthwhile. Controlling himself had been tough though. Being that close to her without kissing her had been pure misery, especially because he’d been able to tell she’d been experiencing the same sensations he was. The delectable change in her scent had been a dead giveaway.

But he’d also sensed something else coming off Jayna—hesitancy verging on downright panic. Something was holding her back when it came to her giving in to the same feelings and emotions that were rushing through his body every time he was around her. Until he figured out what that something was, there was always going to be a wall there. It was frustrating, but he wasn’t going to push.

That didn’t mean he couldn’t daydream though, and sitting with her in the cramped backseat was definitely in the daydreaming category. She smelled so good, it was all he could do not to lean over and lick her like a puppy. He was just wondering if anyone would notice if he scooted closer and buried his face in her long hair when the Escalade turned into an alley, pulled up behind a small building, and stopped.

“The store will not open for another thirty minutes,” the Albanian driving the SUV said in thickly accented English. “The old guard will be in the break room, still drinking his coffee.”

Becker felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up as the Albanian repeated the instructions Kos had given them earlier. He and Jayna would be responsible for dealing with the guard and herding any other employees into the break room with him. The Albanians would disable the internal video cameras, then stand guard in front of the small jewelry store. The two omegas would be responsible for getting the female manager—the shop owner’s daughter—to open the safe and turn over the diamonds. That was the part of the plan that made Becker uneasy. He’d seen the glint in the omegas’ eyes when Kos said they could do anything they wanted to the woman as long as she opened the safe. Man, he hoped SWAT got there before the whole thing went down and he had to blow his cover.

“No messing around in there,” the Albanian added as he pulled a black ski mask over his face. “Get the diamonds; then get out.”

Becker grabbed Jayna’s hand and gave it a quick squeeze, then lowered his ski mask and pulled on his gloves. He listened intently as he got out of the SUV and headed for the back door with the others, hoping to hear sirens approaching. If he had heard sirens, he could have convinced the Albanians to give up on the diamonds and get out of there. But no such luck. That didn’t mean anything though. If Cooper had gotten the text in time, his SWAT teammates could have been out there, waiting to take them down the second they went in the building. That would be great for the innocent people in the shop—not so great for him and his goal of helping Jayna and her pack.

He wondered for the hundredth time if the plan he and Cooper had cooked up had any chance of working.

But as one of the omegas kicked in the back door and went in with a howl that bordered on maniacal, Becker decided to put all the what-ifs aside. He had enough problems to deal with right now.

Once inside, the Albanians immediately ran down the hallway to the front of the store, while the omegas made a beeline for the manager’s office. Becker hesitated, torn between following the two werewolves to make sure they didn’t hurt the woman, and sticking to the plan. Jayna gave him a questioning look, clearly worried too. He nodded and jerked his head in the direction of the break room.

He and Jayna rounded up the two female employees and the nice, old security guard in fifteen seconds. The Albanians disabled the security systems and video camera just as fast. Now he had to hope the store manager cooperated.

A woman’s scream echoed from the back of the building, followed by the distinctive sound of material being torn.

Shit.

The two women that Jayna had herded into the break room tightened their grips on each other’s hands, their faces white. The security guard started to get to his feet, but then took one look at the guns Becker and Jayna were carrying and thought better of it.

One of the Albanians shouted something from the front of the store in his own language, following it up with an order to the omegas to stop wasting time and get the damn safe open.

Becker ground his teeth. He should have simply kidnapped Jayna and her entire pack. Then he could have just walked into the loft and shot every one of these idiots—twice.

“Watch them,” he told Jayna, motioning to the security guard and two women. Turning, he left the break room and jogged down the hallway toward the back of the building.