Page 15 of Happily Undead in Dark River

I hummed noncommittally. I wasn’t so sure about that. Walker had iron control, honestly, I didn’t know how he did it, and he also had a very clear idea of how he wanted our first time to happen. But they’d definitely interrupted some good third base action, the bastards.

“I’m happy to pick up where he left off,” Judge whispered in my ear, sending heat straight to my belly. I looked up at his burning midnight blue eyes filled with promises of pleasure. It was a promise he kept every single time. I winked and sat down on the couch.

X was cursing up a storm under his breath. “There’s enough sex pheromones to start an orgy in a nunnery in here. Do you guys ever quit?”

I just grinned. “Don’t be jealous, Big Guy. Green is not a pretty color on you.”

I probably shouldn’t challenge him like that. Four men were enough, thank you very much. Except for that little part in the back of my mind with a direct line to my lady bits which whispered that five might be better. X was so wounded, hid his pain under all that sarcasm and innuendo. Maybe he just needed someone to see him, to love him. And god knows I found him sexy as fuck. That accent…

BAD RAINE. NO! Stop looking at the giant killer like he is a t-bone and you are a junkyard dog on heat.

I realized Judge and X had been speaking this whole time. Oops. “... Check out my new office tomorrow night. I can’t believe it myself. Thought for sure they were going to kick me out on my arse.”

“Wait, sorry. Hold up. The Council said yes? You can stay as the town’s doctor?”

X grinned. “That’s what I just said. Weren’t you listening, Love?” His knowing grin told me he knew exactly where my thoughts were, the big bastard.

I took a big gulp of wine. “What else did they want in return?” I couldn’t imagine them taking a risk on X without some kind of surety.

“They wanted Judge to put a ring on it too.”

“You’re taking the pledge?” I couldn’t keep the surprise out of my voice. He’d been hesitant to commit to the town, even if he did follow their rules while he was there. Judge was a drifter, a constantly moving storm. Deep down, I’d always been prepared for him to move on when it got too tough. But he was committing to staying?

All my thoughts must have played in my eyes because he looked at the floor. “They gave me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”

“Which was?”

“Pledge or leave.” He looked up at me with those haunting blue eyes. “I found that I wasn’t ready to leave, so I pledged. You’re looking at the newest citizen of Dark River, Sugar,” he said, his voice light. I wanted to pin him to the couch and make him tell me how he really felt about being forced to stay, or if he was happy about it because he was happy here. Because he was content with me and Tex.

“Second newest,” X corrected. “My first order of business is to give everyone in town a very thorough physical. Care to step into my office, Love?”

I grinned, shaking my head. “I’m undead. I’m pretty sure I'm the epitome of health right about now. But maybe you should start with Judge?”

X shook his head. “Maybe I’ll start with your Sheriff. See if we can’t extricate the giant stick that has become lodged in his rectal cavity.”

“Hey!” I said, defending Walker. X might be cute, but Walker had stood by my side through the hardest moments of my life.

X had the good grace to raise his hands. “I’m just kidding, Love. I actually like the grumpy bastard. And if I’m honest with myself for once, I think I might just be a little bit jealous.” He didn’t look like he was kidding at that moment.

I was saved from answering by the sound of the Impala pulling up in my driveway. I jumped to my feet, grinning.

“Brody and Tex are home!” I raced toward the door, bouncing on my toes. Sure, it had only been like twelve hours, and I was acting like a golden retriever who’d gotten into the Redbull, but I didn’t care. They were back safe, and they had a surprise. Basically, it was a double whammy of awesomeness.

The door opened in Brody’s grinning face lit up my world. He raced forward and kissed me as if he’d missed me as much as I’d missed him. For god sake, I was truly pathetic. “Where’s Tex?” I asked when he pulled away, and his smile got impossibly wider.

He stepped to the side and I screamed. “What the fuck is that?!”

Chapter Eight

Brody grinned as a huge motherfucking snake slithered into my house like it owned the place. I stood on the back of the lounge like a fucking sissy, hiding behind Judge and X.

“That’s your significant other,” Brody said, and I did a double-take at the snake.

“Tex?” I knew he was half shapeshifter, but I honestly didn’t think he’d have the ability to transform into a twenty-five foot long fucking Nope-Rope as wide as a goddamn tree trunk. “Tex turns into a freaking prehistoric Anaconda?”

I ignored the fact the X was laughing and softly singing about his anaconda not wanting ‘none unless you’ve got buns, hun.’ Instead, I was transfixed by the sinuously moving reptile in front of me.

“He’s not an Anaconda. He’s just a really huge python, I think?” Brody offered super unhelpfully. The snake, I mean Tex, stopped in front of me and reared back until it stood up as tall as a man. It curled its tail in so it was like a big round ball of snake. Then in transformed in a flash, back to Tex.

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