Page 1 of Guardians of the Assassins
CHAPTER ONE
There was a werewolf standing in the middle of her driveway.
That wasn’t such an unusual occurrence given Morgan was part of a pack of werewolves. What was unusual? She didn’t recognize the colossal giant. He was huge, like he’d been bottle-fed steroids as a baby. It gave him the appearance that he’d been put together wrong—muscles grafted on top of muscles, as if sewn together by a mad scientist.
The ogre kind of looked odd not being green.
She was so distracted by the hulk that she missed the massive wolf that trotted out from the tree line to stand in the middle of the driveway, playing chicken with their truck.
Kincade cursed, slamming on the brakes as they pulled up to the coven. Everyone flew forward when the back wheels kicked out, gravel pinging the undercarriage as they skidded to a stop. Ryder wrapped her in his strong arms to keep her from launching into the windshield
The SUV stopped just inches from the wolf and his human counterpart.
They didn’t even flinch.
Morgan wasn’t sure if they were that confident the truckwould stop in time, or if they thought they could catch a two-ton SUV with their bare hands.
The aggression in the vehicle ratcheted up until the air felt like soup. Ryder held her so tight that his growl vibrated in her chest, something she felt more than heard. She didn’t need to look at him to know his teeth and claws were on display.
Draven held two knives in his grip, his bright blue eyes dark as he contemplated murder and where he could bury the bodies.
Morgan sighed when the rest of the guys appeared just as pissed. Steam rose from Ascher, his hellhound wanting to come out and play. Kincade had partially turned to stone, all the better to knock someone’s head off their shoulders. While Atlas looked the calmest, it was a lie. Even though it was still daylight, a pale lavender tint spread across his skin, the dark elf in him wanting blood.
The guys had been on edge since they learned that her grandfather, an honest to goodness god, was alive and hunting for her.
Which left her to be the reasonable one.
Fuck.
We are so screwed.
With a grimace, she wiggled out from Ryder’s comforting arms. He tightened his hold, resisting letting her go—no doubt the strange wolves in his territory were freaking out his wolf. She was actually surprised he managed to maintain his human form.
She knew better than to even bother asking the guys to stay in the vehicle. She suspected something like that would get her locked in the trunk—thankfully, they didn’t have a trunk.
“Let me do the talking.” She waited for all the guys to acknowledge her before opening the door. As soon as her foot hit the ground, the guys were out of the vehicle and she was surrounded.
She tried to peer around them, even going so far as to rise on her tiptoes, but got nowhere. She considered herself lucky to be able to breathe with the way they crowded her. The necklace shewore warmed, the metal twisting and turning, leaving a stunning, snarling wolf dangling on the end of the chain.
Not very helpful.
She waited for a sign or intuition to strike, but the magic left in a rush.
While she knew they were wolves, she wasn’t sure if that made them friend or foe.
“Guys—move.” It was like they couldn’t hear her, and she began throwing elbows. Draven grunted when one landed in his kidney, then he reluctantly stepped aside and allowed her to observe their visitors.
The wolf, now in human form, stood with his back to her as he pulled on a pair of jeans, the muscles of his back flexing. Ascher growled at the display, while Kincade wrapped a possessive arm around her waist and tugged her back against him.
Morgan rolled her eyes before throwing a look at him over her shoulder. “I have seen more than enough ass in my life with you guys strutting around naked. I’m not going to keel over with the vapors.”
Draven snorted, his blue eyes stormy as he glanced at her. “It’s more due to the fact that he was presenting himself to you.”
“Hardly.” It was her turn to snort at the absurdity. “He’s a shifter. I’ve been told many times over the last week that being naked is very natural to them.”
Draven pursed his lips like he’d tasted something sour, but Atlas spoke before he could say anything. “It’s one thing for your pack to act that way, it’s different when another pack does it.”
She narrowed her eyes on the new arrivals. The man had turned and smirked at her in a way that raised her hackles. Her cuffs melted down, forming a single short sword in her hand.
