Hidden Passions (Hidden, #7)(42)

"I won't call anyone!" he protested. "I know no one's supposed to know we're here. This idiot needs to give me some credit."

Chris strode into the room with the now uncovered pool tables. Because the front windows were boarded up, most of the light came from the green-shaded cobwebbed bulbs overhead. The whole party, kids included, was spread out around the big space. Chris counted eight people on the wolf side and their own four tigers. The youngsters especially were round-eyed at the tension.

"Not 'upposed to say the 'F' word," Ethan pointed out from his mom's shoulder.

Chris's eyes flicked to Tony, a response he couldn't have suppressed to save his life. The wolf seemed all right. Though his cheeks were ruddy, he looked calmer than Chris felt. He didn't glance at Chris, though Chris didn't doubt he knew he'd come in. Whatever Chris might wish, they were linked enough for that.

"I'm not questioning your word," Tony said to Liam. "My alpha's wife--" he inclined his head in the direction of a petite woman with spiky red and platinum hair "--is a human Talent. Ari can shield the locator chips in your phones from being traced magically."

Liam's expression struggled. He knew this was reasonable but didn't want to back down.

"Give him your phone," Chris said in his deepest voice.

Liam turned partway to him but wouldn't meet his eyes. Maybe he suspected Chris's authority would override his will. "I'll give my ePhone to her," he countered childishly.

The alpha's neo-punkster wife rolled her eyes. Her small stature notwithstanding, she didn't seem intimidated by the rising testosterone. Then again, considering she was a human with naturally occurring magical abilities, she might have nothing to be afraid of. Depending on their particular gifts, human Talents could be more dangerous than supes.

"You okay with holding Kelsey?" Ari asked Tony. She made it a question and not an order, giving the baby she held a soothing bounce.

"Of course," Tony said. Smiling fondly at them both, he traded the plastic Holy Foods bag he'd been holding out for the wriggling child. Kelsey went to him like she'd done it before and knew that he was safe. Chris saw phones already in the sack. He prayed at least a couple belonged to his tigers, but that turned out not to be the case. Thankfully, Ari collected the rest without getting any lip.

"Thank you," he made a point of saying to the alpha's wife as he dropped in his own offering.

"Thank you," she responded with a mischievous little smile, obviously aware of the diplomatic nuances. "Our entire pack is grateful for your help."

"It's our pleasure," Evina said. She leveled her gaze on their recalcitrant underlings. "Maybe you guys could pull up your fangs and pretend you're civilized while Chris and I consult Tony on setting up watches."

Her words startled Chris. He was glad she was showing the young wolf respect. What made him less happy was that all his men's teeth had lengthened, rather than just Liam's.

That development didn't bode well for the near future.

~

Chris didn't think he or Tony had maneuvered the situation, but they ended up assigned together as part of the first watch team. Neither could protest when Evina suggested they pair up. Pushing Tony on someone else would cause problems.

Of course, Tony and Chris spending time together could be problematic too.

"There's a room on the second floor," Tony said. "It has good sightlines for monitoring rear approaches."


There was a joke to be made but Chris refrained. He was thankful no one else was near enough to pipe up.

"That's the poker room," he said, trying to match Tony's seriousness. "I'll grab some food and water so we can settle in."

The layer of dust on the floor of the upstairs room was pre-marked by Tony's sneaker prints. The wolf had explored the building apparently, doing the job he'd been sent to perform no matter what anyone thought of him. A different sort of admiration rose inside Chris for that. Tony might not like being treated the way he was, but he was no whiner.

The wolf preceded Chris into the room, fingers trailing across a large round table where old playing cards lay scattered. His hand dirty then, he smacked it on the side of his faded jeans. God, his butt was cute--not little exactly but tight and muscular. Chris watched it helplessly from his stance a few feet inside the door.

The straps of Tony's shoulder holster drew attention to his back's nice wedge shape. Probably it was immature of Chris to find his armed status arousing.

Unaware he was being ogled, Tony examined the plywood that covered the one window. He must have pried the side loose on his previous visit, because the nails didn't resist his pull. "If you turn out the light," he said, "it shouldn't matter if I remove this."

Chris smacked the switch and the overhead light went dark, leaving them with the overcast morning's dull sunshine. Tony yanked the board off and leaned it on the adjoining wall. He scanned the area outside like a professional.

He sniffed suddenly. What scent had caught his attention Chris didn't know.

"Magic," Tony threw over his shoulder the same as if Chris had asked. "The bars on this window have an old spell on them.

"Probably an anti-cop warning. I doubt the poker that was played here was legal."