Page 20 of Protected By Her Mate

CHARLIE

“No,” I say stubbornly, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’m not a child and I’m not staying in the truck.”

He stares at me, his eyes reflecting a brittle hardness.

I can see his thoughts, see that he wants to physically tie me to the car so I can’t come with him. “What’s the deal anyway? It’s a business, just like any other. They aren’t going to dismember me in Paddington HQ, are they?” It’s a joke, but his expression remains stony. “Seriously, Lennox. That’s not going to happen.”

“You’re not walking into a world you understand,” he growls, shoving a hand through his hair, ruffling it. It’s almost shocking to see the always impeccably groomed man with chaotic hair. “This is my world, it’s too harsh for…”

“Me?” I ask offended.

He nods. “A human.”

“I’m going.” I shove my door open and step onto the street. “This is just as much my investigation as yours. I’m not sitting it out.” I’m already on the sidewalk when he gets out of the truck. “Plus, you telling me this is your world tells me these people are shifters. Am I right? Which just makes me that much more intrigued to meet them.”

“Shouldn’t have said that,” he grumbles.

I grin at him as he opens the door to Paddington Inc., waving me through first. “Yeah, I don’t miss much. If I did, I’d be a pretty piss poor investigator, wouldn’t I?”

As we approach the reception desk for Paddington Inc., Lennox shows the security officer his badge. “We’re here to see Duncan Sharptooth.”

“Do you have an appointment?”

“Tell him Detective Lennox Wolven-North and Investigator Charlie Lopez are here.”

My gaze swings to the guard who stares stonily back and a shiver goes through me. The guard looks as big as Lennox, if not bigger, which would make him a giant. As big as a grizzly bear… oh… Paddington. I get it now. They’re bear shifters.

I wonder who would win in a fight, bear or wolf shifter?

“Wolf,” Lennox grunts.

Weird, it’s like he knows what I was thinking.

“You’re not in the system,” the guard… bear… says. The man needs a name tag.

Lennox shakes his head in annoyance. “Tell Duncan thatPrinceLennox Wolven-North is here to see him.”

Ha, he pulled the prince card! I love this guy. My eager gaze swings back and forth and I find myself wishing I had popcorn for this show. Shifter posturing is so awesome.

The guard stands up and I gasp, jumping away from the reception desk. He’s not just huge, he’s a monster! Dwarfing me by a good foot and a half. Even Lennox has to crane his neck.

“I know who you are,” the shifter growls, showing his teeth. “No appointment means no entry. Not even King Lock Wolven-North himself could walk in here and…”

BOOM!

A muffled explosion stops the conversation and all three of us grab the desk as the room rumbles beneath our feet.

Lennox and I look at each other. “Could’ve been a bomb,” I say, a shot of fear racing through me.

Lennox straightens and grabs the guard. “Open the fucking door and let us in. If that was a bomb, we need to see what’s going on.”

When he looks skeptical, I add, “You have a police detective and a firefighter on your doorstep, now would be the time to use us.”

He nods briefly and picks up his phone, hitting a button. “It’s Greg,” he says to whoever answers, then he listens for several seconds before saying. “The police are already here. Lennox Wolven-North.” He replaces the phone and says to us, “There was an explosion in the mailroom. No one was hurt. Boss wants you down there right now.”

“Duncan?” Lennox clarifies.

The guard nods and hits a button on his desk. The glass doors next to us buzz and Lennox rushes through, me behind him. We follow the smell of smoke down a flight of stairs to a basement in chaos. People are running for the stairs, one person is fumbling with a fire extinguisher, while another flings themselves from the billowing smoke pouring into the hallway, coughing, tears streaming down their face.

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