They arched and strained together, hands everywhere, mouths devouring, tasting. Through it all, he was infinitely tender with her, careful of her wounds. She, too, avoided his bandages, but everywhere else was fair game. And when they came together, it was a promise, a homecoming. A prelude. He kissed every inch of her, telling her what he loved about her all the while.

It was the sexiest, sweetest experience of her life.

Afterward, panting and sweaty, they lay together. Holding each other, basking in the moment, the first real love either had ever known. This was unconditional, she knew. This was forever.

"You were really going to give up your job for me," she said, still awed by that fact.

"Hell, yes. You're the most important thing in my life."

A cell phone suddenly rang, echoing off the walls. Sean cursed under his breath, planted a kiss on the base of her throat, and rose to dig the phone from his pants pocket. "Sorry, but I have to take this. It's the agency's ringtone." He pressed the device to his ear and settled back into the bed. "Agent Walker."

Gabby curled into his side, more content than she'd ever been.

Frowning, he said, "Just a moment," and handed the phone to her. She didn't have to place it to her ear because he'd pressed "speaker."

"Yes?" she asked, confused.

"We'll see you at oh-eight-hundred hours tomorrow morning, Miss Huit," Bentley said, "when you'll begin training for your first mission." Click.

She and Sean stared at each other for a moment, and then he began to smile.

"You're in," he said.

"Wow. That was fast."

"Well, like me, they obviously know a good thing when they see it."

Holy hell. They really were going to work together. Be together. Did life get any better than that?

"Getting the job's a treat, but I'd rather talk about something else." She traced her fingertip around one of his nipples, then the other, before sliding her hand down and gripping his cock. "It's my turn to tell you everything I love about you. So settle in, because this is going to take a while."

HUNTING.

TEMPTATION.

Lorie O'Clare.

CHAPTER ONE.

Seth Gere walked around a tree and paused, refusing to show his surprise. "Why don't you agree to meet in a bar like normal people?"

Jeremy Drury had appeared out of the shadows. Seth was sure of it. He'd agreed to meet his friend here, in the woods north of town. Call it his ego in full force, but he wouldn't let Jeremy see how this place gave him the creeps.

"I'm not normal people." Jeremy didn't give any indication he was joking.

Jeremy was a character, possibly a street person, not that Seth would ever ask. Jeremy was one hell of a contact. And Seth needed answers.

He gave a tight laugh, not willing to insult the man but unable to argue his statement, either. "So what can you tell me about Tray Long?"

"He's an asshole." Jeremy stood in the shadows, making it hard to see his expression, but his growl proved he was being polite.

"I already know he's a waste of flesh." Seth glanced around them, getting the oddest sensation they were being watched, although why anyone else would be in these woods on a moonless night beat the hell out of him. "He killed three people, did his time, and is out on parole. Now he's skipped out and we've got two murders with no leads and his signature all over them. We'll have DNA matches here in a day or so."

"You know he killed them." Jeremy's dark expression became visible in the shadows. His thick, almost black hair hung straight to his shoulders, but he didn't look unkempt. If he did live on the streets, he had access to a shower. Jeremy rubbed his unshaven face and stared at Seth with steel-blue eyes. "Be at the Golden Grill tomorrow night around ten."

Seth glanced around him again, the uncanny feeling someone watched him making the back of his neck itch. "What's happening tomorrow night at ten?" he asked.

Jeremy was gone.

"What the . . ." Seth looked around him, not even hearing a branch crack. "How the hell does he do that?" he grumbled under his breath, turning and heading out of the woods and back to his bike.

No matter his efforts, walking around the trees was impossible to do without dead leaves crunching under his boots. Seth slowed, standing still, and strained against the darkness as he listened. There was someone watching him. He'd bet his next paycheck on it. He continued focusing on the darkness, willing something to move. The only satisfaction he had as he continued standing in dark, damp woods was that whoever watched him couldn't see him any better than he saw them at the moment. His eyes were almost useless.

"This is ridiculous," he growled, breaking the silence around him and stalking back to his hog. It wasn't exactly a lead, but he'd be at the Golden Grill tomorrow night, although he'd be damned if he knew why he was supposed to be there.

He straddled his Harley, staring at the wet, gray cement in the small parking lot off the state park entrance, then raised his attention to the row of foreboding trees lining the edge of the parking lot. Paying attention to his gut feeling about things helped him in his line of work. Too often, following a hunch to where someone he'd been hired to find might be hiding out paid off more than pursuing a tangible lead from a reputable source. Seth wouldn't go as far to say he was tuned into his senses. He wasn't the sissy type. Seth had his reputation to uphold. And although women said they loved a man in tune with his inner self, they didn't really. They sure as hell didn't like a guy who admitted to such a thing.

Not that Seth cared what women thought of him. At least he didn't care what they thought of his mind. All he needed was the physical attraction. A good lay every now and life was good. The first sign he saw of a woman trying to figure him out, get under his skin, and he was gone.

There wasn't anyone around to see him stare at what appeared to be nothing more than cement and the edge of the forest. He didn't hear or see anything other than the dark woods and an empty parking lot. Jeremy had called Seth earlier, told him to meet out. Seth wasn't sure what he expected when he arrived. It was always a hard call with Jeremy. The man had helped him crack more than one case in the past, though. Apparently Jeremy wasn't coming back. Seth sat alone on his bike, still listening. He didn't have a clue how to fine-tune his senses. What a hell of a trick, though, if he were ever to pull it off.

I would see whoever is out there hiding and watching me.

As he dug his gloves out of his leather coat and put them on, the prickling under the back of his collar intensified. Damn it. Was Jeremy watching him? And if so, what the fuck? Jeremy wasn't nuts. The guy was different, but not in a "whacked in the head" way. Whoever it was, they weren't coming forward, and Seth had shit to do. Kicking his bike into neutral, he roared it to life and pulled out from the edge of the small parking lot, then headed back into town.

Jenna Drury lay with her tummy flat against the cold, damp ground. The chill of the earth helped soothe the heat burning inside her. Her brother had met with this human in the woods more than once now. If she came out and asked Jeremy why he was talking to the human male, Jeremy would lie to her, indifferent of how the lie would stink.

Jeremy wasn't a werewolf to mess with, but his preoccupation with the human worked to her advantage. She'd followed Jeremy this time and listened. Did he think Tray Long would be at the Golden Grill tomorrow night? And if so, why not kill the rogue werewolf and be done with it? The longer Tray Long hunted humans, the worse off he would make it for all of her kind.

Jenna shifted her attention back to the human when his motorcycle roared to life and he drove out of the parking lot. He was tall for a human and muscular, too, built almost like her brother. She'd never thought she would find herself sniffing after a human, but this one had her intrigued. He looked rough with his black leather and his sandy curly hair falling past his collar. The leather coat he wore made his shoulders look even broader, and roped muscle bulged under his blue jeans. He was dangerous-looking, forbidden, and a mystery. Add good looks to that and Jenna lay with her body pressed to the forest floor, damn near drooling.

When she couldn't hear the rumble of his motorcycle anymore, she stood, sniffing the air to make sure she was alone. Jeremy had already headed back, so distracted with his reasons for being out here that he didn't notice her. Damn good thing. Maybe she'd confront him about the human, but only after she figured out why they were meeting. Better she sniff her brother out than he sniff her out. Jeremy could be annoyingly unreasonable at times, even now that Jenna was grown. Sometimes her brother forgot she was twenty-three years old and treated her as if she were still a cub.

Jenna didn't smell anyone around her, but she shook her coat out silently, wagged her tail slowly, and perked her ears up, twitching them to hear all sounds around her. Then taking off, she trotted through the forest, heading the opposite direction from where the human had gone, toward the land on the other side of the state park her pack owned.

The moonless night created a setting for a good, hard run. She picked up pace, tearing at the earth with her claws as she raced across the land. The trees grew sparse and the open space around her stretched on for miles. Night dew clung to her coat, but her insides simmered with a growing heat she doubted would subside. Images of the human, Seth Gere, talking to her brother, lifting his long, muscular leg over that loud, large bike of his, and his searching gaze, when he sensed her watching him, continued playing in her mind.

She slowed when her den came into view. Jenna's clothes were where she had left them, under a rock next to a group of trees near her backyard. The den she and her brother lived in and the few dens stretching along the highway as far as she could see, as well as on the other side, were all occupied by werewolves. Her pack. The chill in the air conflicted with the burning desire growing inside her, an ache to chase down the forbidden. Even with her pack in their dens nearby, the comfort and security of being near those who cared about her didn't offer the usual solace. Tonight she'd made a decision. If her brother found out, or anyone else in the pack, they would throw a fit.

Her brother's bedroom light flashed on. A minute later her cell phone started ringing. Like she would rush through the change and endure the pain just to answer it before it went to voice mail. She didn't need to dig the phone out from her clothes to know it was her brother demanding to know where the hell she was. As open-minded and respected as he was among her pack, one word of her out running unescorted and suddenly he turned into a barbaric, overbearing pain in the ass.

She straightened to two feet, her human flesh soaked in sweat and a cruel chill making her shiver uncontrollably. Jenna struggled into her jeans and then fought with her sweatshirt, turning it right side out before pulling it over her head.

"Is there a reason you didn't answer my call?" Jeremy growled.

"Crap!" Jenna yanked her sweatshirt over her head, glaring at her older brother when he stared at her, his expression hard and his muscular arms crossed over his chest. "You scared the hell out of me."

"You must have been mighty distracted not to smell me approaching." He didn't appear sympathetic. "Who have you been out with all night?"

"Damn it, Jeremy." She bent over to put her shoes on, then clipped her phone to her jeans. "I'm not a cub. I don't ask you where you've been, or who you've been with." She yanked her hair out from under her sweatshirt and marched past him to their den. "Should I be concerned about where you've been all night?"

Jeremy howled to all who would listen that he was a progressive werewolf, determined to take their pack into the twenty-first century with a modern outlook. He followed her to their den, not saying a word. Jenna didn't press the matter, knowing in spite of her brother claiming males and females were equal, he didn't necessarily hold those views when it came to her. As stubborn and relentless as he could be, Jeremy drove her nuts out of love.

Jenna entered through her back door, leaving it open for Jeremy to follow. She headed to her bedroom, hearing the lock click into place when he secured their den. They were both fully capable of protecting themselves and each other, and their pack lived in peace, but that didn't mean challenges didn't exist. And even though she wasn't supposed to know about it, if Jeremy was helping the human sniff out a rogue werewolf, tough times might be around the corner for all of them.

One thing she knew: tomorrow night she'd be at the Golden Grill. It might take some planning, but the human, Seth Gere, intrigued her. There was something about him she wanted to check out further. Jenna collapsed on her bed, grabbing a strand of hair and twisting it around her fingers as she stared at her ceiling. Were humans into rough and wild sex the way werewolves were?

CHAPTER TWO.

Seth entered Payton Investigative Services late the next morning. He nodded at the receptionist, Hannah McDowell. "Is John in there?"

"Well, if it isn't the prodigal son," she teased, then nodded to the closed door. "He's been on the phone most of the morning."

If that was a hint for him to leave John Payton alone, Seth ignored it. "Sounds like he needs a break." Seth winked at Hannah, then entered John's office before she could stop him. He closed Payton's office door behind him, nodding when the older man held up a finger and continued with his phone call.

"Mrs. Shore, if you want me to follow your husband, my fee is the same as it always is." Payton dragged his fingers through his silver hair, lowering his head and leaning against his hand as he stared at his desk. "You bring in the check and when it clears, I'll get started." He let out a silent breath, picking up his ballpoint and scribbling in the corner of his notepad. "Yes. Yes, cash is fine. Drop it off here at the office. . . . Thank you, Mrs. Shore. If he's cheating on you again, I'll find out for you."

Seth couldn't do what John did for a living. Being a private dick was a grossly misconceived line of work. So many thought it glorious and Hollywood glamorized it, but truth be told, it sucked. The lines engraved deeply on John Payton's forehead and dark circles under his eyes were proof of the stress and long hours.

John hung up the phone and reached for his coffee cup, realized it was empty, and stood.

"How close are you to bringing in Tray Long?" John asked, heading for the coffee pot in the corner of his office.

Seth wouldn't mention the Golden Grill. Maybe it was superstition, but talking about a lead might fuck it up. "Shouldn't be long now," he grumbled, moving in to pour himself a cup.

"Good. I got a phone call first thing this morning. Came in before I got here. Hannah took the message." John ran his hand over the papers scattered on the desk, found what he wanted and handed it to Seth. "There's an APB out on this one and word on the streets is the FBI is interested as well."

Seth stared at the handwritten message. "Elaine Gold. Why does her name ring a bell?" He snapped his fingers, pointing at John before the older man could answer. "That's right. There was a special on the Golds. Robbed a handful of banks. Harry Gold was arrested, but his wife went MIA."

"Rumor has it she's here in Omaha. Slap Happy sent word about a hot number staying over at the Motel 6. This one has your name all over it."

Seth didn't want to guess why John might think that. John didn't usually take high-profile jobs. He stuck to bad checks and cheating spouses and made a show about complaining that Seth had all the fun. Truth be told, John didn't have the balls to do the serious undercover work. Seth knew John hadn't always been like this. Either age was catching up with the sixty-year-old, or something along the way in his career had made him gun-shy. Seth didn't ask questions. He appreciated John setting him up with cases he didn't want. It paid the rent. And beat the hell out of Seth having to find work himself.

"I'll talk to Happy." Seth stuffed the message into his jeans pocket and drank the semi-hot coffee. "Anything else for me?"

"Huh?" John looked up from the papers on his desk. "Umm, no." He slumped into his office chair, staring at whatever he'd just been looking at. Then clearing his throat, he picked up what looked like a fax, crumpled it, and threw it in his trash. "Let me know when you're close to nailing Long."

"Will do." Seth downed his coffee, left his cup next to the coffeepot, and let himself out of John's office, closing the door behind him.

Hannah was typing at her computer but stopped when Seth headed out of her office. "Seth?" she asked, glancing at him over her small reading glasses. "You got a minute?"

Hannah was a pretty woman, petite, with straight brown hair that curved around her face and fell to her shoulders. Seth didn't really go after older women, but if he did, Hannah would be a perfect candidate. The low-cut sweater she wore with jeans that hugged her slender legs and showed off her narrow waist probably caught the attention of any man who walked into this office. Hannah looked like the kind of woman who needed protection, not the kind of woman who could protect a PI's office if some derelict started giving her grief. The kind of people who entered this office weren't the best, or the safest, to be around. She also did a lot of John's fieldwork.

"Sure. What's up?" Seth asked when she stood and walked around her desk.

Hannah leaned against the front of it, studying him with her pretty green eyes. "It's John," she said, lowering her voice to a near whisper. "I'm worried about him."

"Oh yeah?" Seth didn't mention that he'd noticed John looked distracted just now. "Why are you worried?"

"I think something is going on with him, but he tells me he's fine."

"Then he's probably fine."

She shook her head slowly. "He's lying to me."

"Then what's wrong?" Seth had learned a long time ago not to try to understand women's logic. Straight, cut-and-dry questioning was the best.

"I don't know. I just told you that," she said. "Do me a favor, please. Will you find out what cases he's working on without letting him know you're trying to find out?"

"Don't you know all of his cases?"

"I always have. But he's working on something he isn't telling me about and you know as well as me that isn't safe. I know he's hard-pressed for money sometimes, but he needs to tell me where he is for his own protection."

It wouldn't surprise Seth if Hannah's concerns for John were a bit more personal than she let on. John would need to be hit over the head with a brick to notice if any woman was interested. Which might not be a bad idea where Hannah was concerned. She was pretty, hardworking, and loyal. John couldn't do much better than landing a girlfriend like Hannah.

Seth nodded, reaching for the door handle, and winked at Hannah. "I'll see what I can find out. In the meantime, put a GPS in his cell phone. More than likely he's just getting forgetful and doesn't mean to not keep you posted."

Hannah didn't react to Seth casually flirting with her. "I like the GPS idea if I can get him to remember to carry his phone with him."

"He's a tough man, but if anyone can train him, you can." Seth headed out the door, raising his hand and waving good-bye before letting the office door close behind him. He doubted he needed to track John. More than likely, Hannah would be able to do the work herself. There wasn't time to question why she had sought Seth out about it. He had a killer and a missing bank robber to find.

Slap Happy was a small man, not even five and a half feet tall. One leg was shorter than the other, so he walked with a limp. Add thick, bushy fiery red hair to that and the man was as unique as his name. Happy worked as a custodian downtown in one of the larger office buildings and kept his ears and eyes to the ground. For years he'd been a solid informant for the police department as well as for John. When Happy saw Seth approach him just outside the main set of bathrooms off the lobby, he straightened. Happy was scared of Seth, always had been. But there wasn't any running away, since Seth had cornered him and his mop bucket.

After hanging out in the guys' john for almost half an hour while Happy explained the word on the street, Seth headed across town to the Motel 6. There wasn't an Elaine Gold registered, so Seth camped out in the coffee shop across the street, watching the parking lot and waiting for her to show up until it got dark. Stakeouts weren't exactly his cup of tea. It was boring as hell. Once it got dark it was too hard to tell who came and went from the motel. Besides, he needed to head home and get ready to go out tonight. He would have to find Elaine Gold tomorrow.

By ten, Seth pulled in to the large shopping center parking lot where the Golden Grill was. The bar and grill had been around for years and not too long ago switched ownership. The new clientele seemed a bit darker, more his age, and the place was known for its occasional bar fight. Seth parked his Harley, taking in the fairly crowded parking lot.

A woman grabbed Seth's attention. She appeared from around the corner, as if she'd walked there, and started across the lot, weaving slowly through the parked cars. He'd always had a fondness for long hair on women, and this lady's dark hair flowed to her ass. The breeze lifted it, making it flow around and behind her as she moved with a quiet air of confidence that made her appear to almost float. When the streetlight caught her in its circular glow over the asphalt, he got a better view of her facial features. Within the next moment she was enveloped in darkness. Seth swore she looked directly at him. But he knew too well that the night was good at making things appear as they weren't.

The lady shifted her attention to the Golden Grill, which meant she'd at least been looking his way, if not at him. And she was alone. If she spotted him, it didn't make her leery. She continued with her slow, confident pace, her arms relaxed at her sides and the snug, sleeveless shirt and skirt she wore hugging and showing off one hell of a hot body.

Seth climbed off his bike and headed across the lot. He picked up his pace, reaching the door to the Golden Grill at the same time she did. She smelled good. Her hair was thick and shiny under the awning lights.