“Seriously. Martha escapes from her nurse all the time,” Amy repeated. “That’s crazy. Has she ever hurt anyone?”“I don’t know,” Ava answered. “I heard my parents talking about a time she shot at some guy for trying to date Aunt Amelia.”“That must be the Beta guy she mentioned,” Amy reminded me.“Aunt Amelia had a thing for a Beta!” Ava giggled. “Bet Grandma and Granny got all salty over that.”“Don’t say anything,” I requested. “She might be upset about us mentioning it.” But I wondered why Amelia didn’t tell us Martha shot at her Beta boyfriend.“I won’t say anything if you don’t tell anybody I was talking to you.” Ava stood. “I gotta go before my mom returns and catches me with you guys.”“Where is she?” Amy asked. “I’d like to meet Amanda.”“She doesn’t want to meet you,” Ava said. “She left by a side door when she heard you two were here. She can’t be caught talking to a hybrid.”Amanda sounded as horrible as Martha and Pat. But at least Amy had Amelia.“I’d like to stay in touc
Victor picked me up and carried me to his bedroom.“So, what did you want me to teach you?” he asked as he stood me on my feet next to his king-sized bed.“I want to …um, sort of, do what you did to me last time,” I said.I was nervous, but the thought of giving him the same pleasure he gave me made me tingle in my most sensitive places.“Do you know anything about doing it?” Victor asked.“I read about it in romance novels,” I said. “But I want to make sure that I do it right.”Victor folded me in his arms. “There is no right or wrong. You can do whatever you want to me, and I’ll enjoy it.”He peeled off his shirt and stood before me in his slacks. I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out and running my hands over his broad chest.The muscles were like granite beneath his soft skin that was lightly covered with black hair. My fingers played over his nipples until I got the urge to taste them.I licked the hard little points, enjoying his groan of pleasure. The groan gave me the coura
While waiting on the whiteboard, I dug my phone out of my pocket and called Amy.“What’s up, Daisy?” She sounded cheerful.“Are you busy today?” I asked. “I’m starting a whiteboard and want to start questioning suspects.”“A whiteboard?” Amy sounded confused.“You know. It’s a dry-erase board, so I can diagram evidence to keep it straight in my mind,” I explained.“Oh, yeah,” Amy chirped. “I’ve seen them used on real-crime shows.”“Yep. That’s what I mean. Amelia sent me her list of suspects with their names and addresses. I’m going to start talking to them and crossing them off the list. Do you want to go along?”“I can’t go until later,” Amy replied. “I’m going to a restaurant equipment auction with Dad. We won’t be back until about four o’clock.”“I need to find somebody else to go with me,” I said. “I promised Victor I wouldn’t do this alone.”“I’m sorry I can’t go, Daisy, but I promised Dad last month I would go to the auction with him today. I feel bad that you’ll be doing it wi
“Who is this?” I demanded. But the caller had hung up. “What a cowardly thing to do,” I mumbled.“Who was that?” Justin inquired. “You look upset.”“Somebody who’s not happy I’m asking questions about Deirdre.” I groaned. “But the cowards are resorting to anonymous notes and creepy phone calls.”Justin started his car’s engine. “What did the caller say?”“It was a shaky, whispering voice. They said to stop digging up the past, or my grave would be next to Deirdre’s.”“Daisy, you should go to the cops.”“We did go to the cops, and they wouldn’t do anything,” I explained. “I don’t have any real proof of any crime yet. When I find some, I’ll run to the police with it.”“I don’t want Amy involved in this,” Justin said. “And I’m sure Victor would feel the same about you if he knew about the phone call.”“Victor knows I’ve been threatened, and he’s been showing me some self-defense moves.”I turned in my seat. “Justin, knowing what happened to her mother is important to Amy, and it’s become
“Hey,” I yelled after the intruder. Anger made my heart pound, and my blood raced through my veins.Without pausing to take off my clothes, I called for Diana.The sound of material ripping and an explosion of fabric filled the air as I shifted into my wolf. Diana followed the reddish wolf over the balcony railing and landed on the ground running.I could smell the intruder, and we followed the scent through the darkness“It must be Amanda,” I told Diana. “Amelia must have told her about the whiteboard.”“Or Amanda was in the ladies’ room, too,” Diana suggested as we ran. “I sensed a hostile presence while you were there. There was hate in that bathroom.”We followed the scent to the road, seeing glimpses of the reddish wolf several times ahead of us in the dim moonlight.But the intruder made it to the road before we did, and we heard a car start before a red sedan peeled out and roared down the highway.Disappointment washed over me. They got away.“You know the intruder was a red-h
As I sat in my car looking at the Archer mansion, I knew Diana was right. You could feel the creepy vibes coming from the dark, hulking dwelling.It inspired me to text Victor to tell him I was at the Archer mansion with Jayden to talk to Amelia and Pat. Despite having Jayden with me, I felt better having Victor know my location.“Shall we go inside?” Jayden asked as I put my phone in my handbag.“Let’s get it over with,” I replied. “Do you have your badge ready?”Jayden patted his jacket pocket and smiled.We exited the car, walked to the heavy wooden front door, and rang the bell.Alfred answered the door almost immediately. “Hello, Miss Wilson. We were expecting you.” He looked pointedly at Jayden.“This is Detective Halverston,” I told him. “He also needs to speak to Amelia and Mrs. Archer.”Jayden flashed his badge at the suddenly nervous butler.“Miss Amelia is waiting for you in the parlor,” Alfred said and led us through the foyer. He announced us as we walked into the room.A
I panicked at first and tried to pull away. Then I remembered what Victor had taught me, and my confidence returned.“Where were you last night around ten thirty?” I demanded before flipping my arm in a circle against Amanda’s thumb.To her surprise, my arm came free of her grip.“Why do you care where I was last night?” she spat.“Because you broke into my home around ten thirty, didn’t you?” I replied.My words infuriated Amanda even more. “That’s it! I won’t stand by and let you ruin my family’s reputation. I’m warning you for the last time: mind your own business.”Victor appeared on the Archer’s porch steps. “Must I talk to Peter about you threatening my fiancée,”“Victor … I mean Mr. Klein …I didn’t mean to ….” Amanda stammered.Victor put his arm around my shoulders. “Yes, you did mean to threaten Daisy. And that was a big mistake. If anything happens to her, I will ruin your entire family and see that you are all penniless.”“I’m sorry. I would never physically harm someone. P
Victor’s POVI never thought I would love any woman like I do Daisy. She is my life. When I saw Amanda Devins grab her arm and threaten her, I had difficulty controlling my temper.At least I got through to Amanda. She wouldn’t be coming after Daisy anymore, and hopefully, she passed my words on to the rest of her family.If not, I would ensure they got my message loud and clear.I concentrated on pleasant thoughts of Daisy, and my body began to relax. But Daisy’s panicked voice soon woke me from a sound sleep.“Victor, the red wolf followed me here! It was watching me from the ground below your balcony. I'm going to follow it.”“Daisy, no. Wait for me,” I said as I pulled on a pair of jeans. “Honey, don’t go out there by yourself.”I caught up with her on the stairs and put an arm around her slender waist. “Sweetheart, let me go first.”Taking her hand, I pushed Daisy behind me and continued down to the garage, where I grabbed a flashlight. Then I opened the back door and looked arou