Page 29 of Pixie Problems
“But,” Finn continued, “the restraining order gets upgraded to a protection order, and we do those quite differently than the world at large. For one, we extend them to everyone, regardless of whether the person threatening another person is someone they live with, and two, we strap an anti-magic and tamper-proof device to their ankle. It zaps them when they misbehave.” His grin was savage in its pleasure, and I could tell he’d been waiting for Hux to make his move, too. If the ankle monitor worked like it was supposed to, it would offer me greater protection. I’d heard through the grape-vine that they were able to input my DNA into the ankle monitor, and anytime Hux came near me, he’d get zapped into incapacitation until the police came around and scraped him up. But what about his lieutenants?
I glanced up at the growling coyote. I didn’t know whether I should be impressed or horrified that Hux had made such a pitiful opening gambit. I mean, I wasn’t one tocomplainwhen enemies made dumb mistakes, but come on! He’d just waltzed in, expecting no repercussions? And IknewFinn had already spoken with him, as had Draven and the PNW council.AndI happened to know, because I had a secretary in the Sheriff’s Office that thought I was awesome, that they’d given him a warning about violating the restraining order on him, letting him know he wouldn’t like what happened if he did.
Which brought me back to my thoughts when he’d walked in. Was it possible for a shifter who could switch back to their human form to go feral? I thought that was only for shifters who’d sunk too deeply into their alternate halves and couldn’t switch back to being a human.
But, just to be sure, I thought I’d better research it.
I escaped Rhys’ arms and grabbed the coffee pot. I was feeling sorry for Finn because he kept yawning widely, vainly trying to wake up, so I filled a mug to the brim for him. I even nudged the creamer and sugar his way because I was a pathetic softy.
“Here, old man. You have no stamina.”
He eyed me over the mug, his hands busy dumping a ton of cream and sugar in, which I personally thought would taste really gross if I had shifter DNA, but what did I know? “You” Finn said with a growl, “are one troublesome pixie.”
I made a motion with my hands, likewho meand he rolled his eyes, then took a scalding sip and sighed in relief. “Thanks. Rhys makes good coffee.”
Rhys, who was standing almost on top of me he was so close, and who had placed a warm hand on the small of my back as soon as I’d come back in physical proximity to him, sighed. “You’re right. Sheistroublesome,” he said.
“Hey!” I protested. “No ganging up on the pixie!”
They chuckled and I scowled at them.
Aren was right. Males were more trouble than they were worth.
I grumbled as I went back to refilling the ice, only to find that it had melted all over the floor in a huge puddle, creating a huge slip hazard.
I sighed as I went to hunt up a mop and bucket, thinking longingly of when I’d get off work for the morning. I was going to hunt up some amazing take-out, take a long, relaxing shower, and then sleep all day.
And then—I made a face—I guess I’d go the Sheriff’s Office again and make a formal statement about what had happened tonight.
I groaned.
Chapter9
Dice
“Please tell me that I just misheard you,” I told the sheriff the next day. We were sitting in his office, and he had preemptively shut the door, probably because he knew I would be furious. “My restraining order was against the whole pack, Finn. What good does it do me for Hux to have an ankle monitor if the rest of them don’t have them?”
Finn, looking more tired than I’d ever seen him, slumped back into his seat with a sigh. “I told the council that. But you have to understand, human and paranormal laws are not strictly interchangeable. Hux, because he made a move, is getting collared, but the rest of his pack weren’t there and didn’t follow him. Because of that, the council wants to hold off on the ankle monitor for them. They haven’t done anything wrong yet.”
My stomach was churning, and I felt like I was going to throw up. “It will be too late if they come after me, Finn,” I whispered. “Youknowthat.”
He nodded. “That’s why Draven is assigning you some bodyguards. It’s something Mia requested as well, but he was already planning on doing it the moment he heard that Hux made a move on you.”
Puppy . . . and Draven? My heart went gooey again, and I tried valiantly to come up with on-the-spot indigestion or something else debilitating so I could distract myself from the suspiciously hot and prickly feeling behind my eyes.Don’t you dare cry, Dice! Don’t do it!
But Finn, sleep-deprived and sweet-alpha Finn, couldof coursesmell the chemical change in my body as I fought back tears and smiled softly at me. “They’re good people,” he said, giving me time to get a hold of myself.
I cleared my throat and nodded. “I will go by later and thank him for the guards.” I thought about my morning so far as I’d run the different errands I’d had today. I tilted my head in thought, trying to remember if I’d seen anyone looking guard-ish around me today. Nope, not that I could remember.
“Are they already assigned to me?”
Finn shuffled some paperwork around on his desk, signing some of the documents that Lucky had brought in earlier. “Yes. It’s a shifter and vampire duo. They’re discreet.”
Yeah, likeinvisiblediscreet! “Can I meet them and thank them?”
Finn’s eyes glowed in humor, and I just knew the next thing out of his mouth would not make me a happy pixie.
“They’ll introduce themselves later.”
