Chapter 6 #2
“One other thing,” Steel said, “the last thing Jackson needs right now is something happening to your mat…who must come first in your life. Making sure he’s getting plenty of sleep is part of what you should be doing.
And spending downtime with David is just as important, so he feels free to express his opinions and concerns to you.
You know what your mate has been through, so it’s ingrained in him not to make waves, but just go along with what you want.
This last week, while you were spending hours on your computer, David was worrying about you and you ignored his feelings. That’s not fair to him.”
Zane’s face turned red with embarrassment.
Looking back, he knew his reasons for ignoring his mate’s worries, which had grown stronger each night, were selfish; using his mother as an excuse for neglecting his mate’s needs, made him feel small.
The Fates entrusted him to protect David, not take advantage of his gentle personality.
Mentally kicking himself, Zane knew he owed his mate an apology but more than that, Zane needed to make sure he never acted that way again.
“You’re right,” Zane said softly. “I’ll apologize to David. ”
“That’s a good start,” Steel agreed. “But promising not to marginalize him again in your relationship will also mean a lot to him.”
“I intend to do that, too.”
“Good,” Steel replied, opening the door to Jackson’s study.
~/~/~/~/~
His handler, the Hare, sidled up to the bar, ignoring him, ordering a whiskey and soda before turning his head to speak to the man next to him.
Glenn turned his back to the bar, leaning against it while surveying the motley group sitting at the scarred, wooden tables, huddling close, their voices low, trying to conceal what they were saying.
Though his acute animal hearing allowed him to listen to every conversation—even those in the far corners of the room—none of that interested him right now.
Shifting slightly to the right, he kept the Hare within his sight, tuning into his conversation with the dude sitting next to him.
Something is up or the Hare wouldn’t be here .
Glenn’s last mission had been completed, reports submitted, and he was officially on his month-long vacation—a demand he’d made two jobs ago.
Now, the sudden appearance of his handler signaled his very-much-needed time off was probably going to be scrubbed.
He already knew what the Hare would say—life and death, the only agent he could count on who had the skills the mission called for and all the other B.S.
he’d heard so many times before. And if none of that worked, out would come the Hare’s pièce de résistance—that Glenn was the only agent he could trust to save someone—guaranteed to work since it appealed to his soft spot.
He quietly snorted before taking a sip of his Coors.
Yeah, I’m a sucker for someone in danger .
Listening to their banal chatter, Glenn frowned slightly.
Nothing he heard gave a hint as to why his handler was standing at the bar in bumfuckistan, freezing his ass off while discussing the latest World Cup odds.
But there was a problem—all his senses told him so.
Deciding he had enough of this shit, Glenn turned back to the bar, making sure his body pushed the Hare into the man next to him.
“Hey, fucker, watch what you’re doing! ”
Glenn looked over at the man who was giving him a dirty look while using a stack of bar napkins to wipe up the drink the Hare had ‘accidentally’ spilled on him.
“Sorry,” he growled. Seizing the opportunity, Glenn moved, putting himself between the man and the Hare.
“Here, let me help you.” Grabbing a bar towel from behind the counter, Glenn began to mop up the rest of the drink.
As he was busying himself with that, he felt a hand slide into his jacket pocket and heard a rustle of paper as it was withdrawn.
Now in a hurry to leave so he could find out what it was all about, Glenn threw some money down on the bar in front of the man.
“Buy yourself a couple of drinks, on me.” Then he turned to speak to his handler, but the Hare was gone.
“Sonofabitch,” Glenn cursed, under his breath, before striding out the door and heading for his hotel.
Staying in the shadows, he shoved his cold hands into his pants pockets, eager to shift and let his fur warm him but, obviously, that was not an option in town.
Walking down the dimly lit hallway to his room, Glenn let his senses flow around him, keeping alert for anyone who might be hunting him.
Relieved when he detected nothing out of the ordinary, he stopped in front of his door, slipping his hand into his pocket, withdrawing the key to his room.
Pausing, he glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was around, before inserting it into the lock.
After turning the key slowly and hearing the deadbolt retract, he opened the door very quietly.
Stepping inside and quickly closing the door behind him, he first checked to make sure no one had been in his room, before sitting down at the desk and switching on the lamp.
Pulling the paper out of his jacket pocket, Glenn read it once.
Then twice. His face filled with fury. “No fucking way!”