Remus (2 page)

“It needs a little cleaning but doesn’t look like you’ll need stitches.”

Jenna nodded as she thought on his words. His face softened a little, and he patted her hand.

“Give me my one cup of coffee a day, and I’ll try to eat healthy,” he said quietly. “I know you worry, but it was just a mild heart attack. I’m fine.”

It hurt to frown. The lines in her forehead creased over the torn flesh.

“I don’t think the words ‘mild’ and ‘heart attack’ belong in the same sentence,” she said. “I just don’t want you to put any more stress on your heart.”

Uncle Dave leaned back and sighed. He rubbed his hand over his face and gave an odd sort of chuckle.

“Nearly forty years in, and I don’t think I’ve ever had this much growth.”

It occurred to her that he was sporting the start of a very silvery beard. She hadn’t even noticed with everything that had been going on, but as long as she could remember, he’d always had a clean face. Of course, the Army required it, but he shaved even on vacation.

“I’m getting out,” he said and looked out the farm window. The sun was just making its appearance on the horizon.

Jenna frowned.

“You think you’re ready to go outside?”

She supposed she could set him up on the porch. It might do him some good to get fresh air, and she could change his sheets.

He shook his head and stared directly at her.

“Not outside,” he said. “I’m retiring.” His jaw twitched as if saying those words made him angry.

The world around her sort of tilted, and she struggled to hold on.

“Retiring?” she repeated.

He nodded. “I think it’s time for me to move on,” he said as if he had been practicing what he’d say. “I just don’t think I can do this knowing that I put those men in danger.” He shook his head.

“You know that’s not true.” Jenna leaned forward. “The hybrids are lucky to have you there, and your men love you.”

He raised a brow. “We both know that’s not the case. Like I said, trust is all we have.”

She shook her head. “Those traitors weren’t your men. They were plants by Woods. Your men stayed and fought. It’s because of them that we were even able to hold the Glycons back.”

Her uncle cleared his throat. He’d avoided talking about the nasty senator and his part in all this. It was a reality he would have to face and not really one that she wanted to push. The government he had spent most of his life protecting seemed to have no problem screwing him over, and she knew that had to hurt him more than he’d ever say.

Jenna looked at the clock on the wall. It was nearly time to go. She had a mission. Titus needed her.

“Somewhere to be?” her uncle asked. His observant eyes never missed much.

“No,” she stumbled. “I mean yes.” Jenna took in a deep breath. She could do this. “I’m going shopping.”

She didn’t like lying, but Titus was depending on her. Luna Lodge was depending on her.

He stared at her for a moment before standing.

“Looks like we’ll have to table this discussion for another time,” he said.

She watched, somewhat surprised, as he made his way through the kitchen. When he got to the door frame, her uncle paused.

“Jenna,” he said and looked back at her.

Her heart thumped in her throat. She’d been found out.

“Yes?” she asked.

He paused for a moment as if he wanted to say something, but shook his head.

“Don’t forget to clean that,” he said, pointing to her head.

Jenna nodded and let out a sigh when he was out of the room.

She hated lying and keeping secrets. She’d never been good at it, and things hadn’t really changed much.

Not wanting to waste time, she grabbed the broom to get the cup mess sorted before it was time to go. Thanks to the stupid door, she was going to have to spend more time on her make up.

Jenna sighed. Nothing could be simple.

Chapter Two

Jenna glanced up at the mirror on her visor. The cut didn’t look too bad. At least it had scabbed over a bit and didn’t sting as much. She frowned at herself. This whole thing was stupid.

She glanced down at the coordinates and time. Eight hadn’t seemed so early, but that was before she knew it was about an hour hike to where she needed to be. Despite what she’d been told of the danger, she debated moving closer in but decided it wouldn’t do them any good it she got caught.

Jenna stepped out of the truck and slipped on her windbreaker. She’d decided on jeans and hiking shoes. If she needed to make a fast getaway, she wanted to be ready. She slung her backpack on. It held everything she might need. She strapped her gun on and just hoped she wouldn’t have to use it.

“You got this,” she whispered. “It’s just a nice walk in the woods.”

She jumped when something rustled in the brush near her. Jenna pulled out her gun and waited. A squirrel ran up the tree near her and chided her from a branch.

“You better run,” she said.

The door clacked shut, and she offered a silent prayer before setting off.

At least spring was starting to peek out. Crocuses popped through the ground, revealing little bits of purple and yellow. The ground was still soggy from all the rain they’d been having, but she was glad to have it over snow.

She carefully made her way. The chances of someone hearing her were greater than ever before, and it had never been more imperative she keep quiet.

Periodically she would pull out the GPS and check her location. When she was about half-way there, Jenna leaned against a tree and drank from her container. She listened as the birds chirped happily in the trees above her. Under other circumstances, it might have actually seemed like a nice walk.

She sighed. After everything that had happened, going through with this meeting seemed like the worst plan ever. She could always quit, especially now, knowing that her uncle wasn’t planning on going back. But maybe that was the problem.

In her heart of hearts, she really didn’t want to quit. She liked the people at the lodge. They treated her with respect, and she had a place there despite trying to distance herself from them. Being at the lodge was like being with family, and after all she’d been through, that felt damn good.

Jenna blinked a few times as she thought about it.

She’d already come this far. She might as well see it through. Besides, she had some things to clear up.

Pushing off a tree, she used the momentum to propel herself further along the course. It wouldn’t be much longer.

The closer she walked to the meeting point, the more anxious she became. It was only then she realized the silence around her. No birds chirped. No animals stirred, like they knew the predators lurking nearby. She swallowed hard. If the birds didn’t want to get any closer, then what the hell was she doing?

She moved far more cautiously than before. One loud snap could end her short life.

The area turned from forest to slightly more rocky terrain, and she struggled to maintain her footing as the land started to slope.

She looked down at the map. She was close, but she still needed to make it up the steep drop above her. Then she would be there.

Jenna glanced behind her and cursed herself for looking back. If she fell, it wouldn’t really matter how far the fall was, they would find her, and it would be all over.

Painstakingly slow, she climbed up the small cliff. Her arms shook as she ascended, but she just pushed harder. Her glasses started to slide down her face, and she nudged them back with her shoulder. It was then that her foot slipped a little, and the ground around it crumbled.

She clamped her mouth shut and just prayed that wasn’t enough to draw their attention.

“Hello, Jenna.”

She looked up to the source of the voice that seemed to haunt her at night and felt that all-too-familiar tingle whenever he was around. His bright green eyes stared down at her.

“Rem,” she breathed out before her mind could tell her to stop. Jenna snapped her mouth closed and struggled to find the footing she so desperately needed.

“Give me your hand,” he said quietly and reached down to her.

She sighed and reached out. A heat spread through her as her hand slipped into his.

He lifted her like it was nothing. And in truth, it likely was. Jenna had seen the reports on Rem. He surpassed all the others in just about every way. He wasn’t just a hybrid. Rem was
the
hybrid.

“I got you,” he said and lowered her back to the ground.

Her legs shook after all the walking and the effort from climbing. She took a step and stumbled into his solid chest. The muscles beneath her hand shifted, and she could feel the strength that she knew lay under his black t-shirt.

She had never been this close to him. Or at least she tried to not be. It was hard when they were working together. Allowing herself to get close to anyone meant something, and she just didn’t know if she could.

“You okay?” he rumbled. The tingle she had been feeling ran a little deeper to the center of her body, and she shivered at the warm feeling.

When she looked up at him, his eyes glowed an eerie green that entranced her where she stood.

She opened her mouth to say something but stopped when he took a step back and turned around.

“We should get out of view, so we aren’t spotted,” he tossed over his shoulder before walking around the corner.

Jenna glanced around. He was right. She couldn’t go making mistakes like that if she was going to make it out of this alive.

She followed him around the corner and was surprised to find they were in the opening of a cave. During all their talks, Rem had always been very vague about the meeting spot. It had to be close enough to where he would be, but still not something that could be easily found.

Lights flickered from far in the back, and she wondered if this was an entrance to their lair.

She frowned at the word but didn’t really have a better name for it. After all, it was where the bad guys lived. Well, mostly bad guys lived.

Jenna turned and found Rem staring at her. She swallowed.

Saying that Rem was a good guy would be a bit of a stretch, but he didn’t belong with Romulus and his men. She wasn’t really sure where he belonged. Part of her kept expecting him to fling off his shirt and live up to his playboy image.

She stared closely at him. He looked different in just the few weeks he’d been gone. There were faint circles under his eyes, and his face looked a little paler.

“Looks like you didn’t have issues getting here,” he said and continued to look her up and down.

Jenna crossed her arms over her chest. She wasn’t excited by him. Well, not in that particular moment. It was the damn cold, and there was no way she’d let him think otherwise.

She jumped when he stepped closer.

“Who did this?” he asked and touched the marks on her forehead from earlier. His face was close to hers, and she could smell the soap he had used. It was fresh and more inviting than she remembered.

Rem furrowed his brow and stared at the red mark on her forehead.

She stepped back a little. Having him so close was making it difficult to think.

“I just hit a cabinet,” she said and tried to collect her thoughts.

He was staring so hard at her she could feel the blush grow with just the weight of his stare.

A sound echoed off the walls in the back of the cave. Something flickered in the light way in the back.

Like lightning, Rem was pressing her into the wall of the cave behind her. He wrapped his massive arms around her and pressed hard against her body.

If she wasn’t shaking with fear, it might have crossed her mind how entwined they were. But at that moment, his protection was the only thing keeping her safe, and she wasn’t about to step outside the safety of his arms.

Rem relaxed his body after a few moments and pulled his head back to look at her.

“They’re gone,” he whispered, his face firmly fixed on her own.

Jenna waited, expecting that he would step away. When he didn’t, she frowned.

“Do you mind?” she asked quietly.

The playboy smile she’d become so accustomed to lit up his face, and for a moment, he was the Rem she knew.

“I do,” he said with a grin. His eyes flashed bright green again. Her breath hitched at the sight. “You never asked about it.” He leaned his head a little closer.

Her heart seemed to be on a never-ending loop going four times faster than normal.

“Asked about what?” she said and licked her lips.

His eyes followed her tongue and narrowed a little.

“Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten,” he murmured to her. “You really know how to wound a man’s pride.”

She knew what he meant. The thing she’d thought on over and over since he’d left, the kiss that kept her up at night and made her weak with desire when she was able to dream. Oh, she hadn’t forgotten. It was near impossible for her to forget.

Her insides quivered just thinking about it.

His smile grew, and she cursed his sensitive nose.

Jenna waited for it, half wanting him to close the distance between them.

Then he was gone and standing several feet away as if nothing just happened.

“You reek,” he said and took in another deep breath. He turned away from her yet again.

Jenna leaned her head to her side and smelled. Maybe a little soap, but she’d done what he said. No scents. No scented clothing. Boring shampoo.

She gasped when his shirt smacked her in the chest, his skin bare for her to see. His tight muscles rippled as he gestured to the shirt.

“Put it on,” he said quickly.

Jenna stared for a moment at him, mesmerized by the sight of his naked chest. She’d seen plenty of men with their shirts off. Being at the lodge had cured her of that embarrassment. Still, this was the first time she was excited to see something like that.

She blushed and looked down at the black shirt.

Jenna slid off her pack and pulled the shirt over her head. It smelled like him, slightly woodsy, a bit of soap and something a little minty.

“Sleep with it,” he said and stared at her.

All the light jesting from earlier was gone.