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  A brief flash of a woman’s face moved through his mind so fast, it didn’t register, but a spike of fear followed so close behind, he knew they were connected. His thinking was so fogged by all the happy chemicals free-floating in his brain, Israel wasn’t sure he’d be able to fight his way out of a wet paper bag. Whoever she was, she needed to tread carefully. Threatening Bristol wouldn’t be tolerated—ever. The Adlers hadn’t become a force to be reckoned with by rolling over and playing dead.

  “Wow.” Bristol started to stir against him, but he tightened the arm he’d slung over her back.

  “Stay where you are, Beautiful.” He wanted to give their heartbeats a chance to synchronize. The fastest way he knew to deepen their connection was to let their hearts beat as one. A deeper link between them would bring her around faster—preventing physical distance was easy, stopping her emotional retreat was much more difficult.

  “Why did you think about Clovia Wilson?” Without the enhanced hearing of a shifter, Israel wouldn’t have been able to hear her whispered question. It wasn’t so much the query he hated as the defeated tone and raw pain he could hear in her voice.

  “I saw a flash of a face, but it was gone before I could make it out. Who is she?” The name sounded vaguely familiar, but his brain wasn’t fully online yet, so he hadn’t been able to figure out why the name would mean anything to him.

  “She’s a nurse in the OB ward at the hospital and a shifter. I’ve heard she is a member of the club, but I’ve never seen her there.”

  “Wait, let me check something.” Israel picked his phone up from the nightstand and checked his messages. Turning the phone to her, Israel showed Bristol the message he got hours earlier from Austin. “I’m not as worried about this message as I am the one from Bronx.” Turning the phone back to her, he felt her tense as she read the text.

  There was a woman standing outside the front entrance who said she’s your mate. Sorry, bro, but don’t think that sailor has both her oars in the water. My crazy meter pinged off the chart. You better pull up the security feed and check her out.

  When Bristol struggled to move, Israel let her go, but he wasn’t going to allow her out of his reach. Bristol turned to the master bath, intent on retreating, but he captured her wrist. Giving her a quick tug, so she was standing between his splayed knees, he brushed the backs of his knuckles over her lower jaw. Her knees barely touching his erection, and he was pleased when her eyes drifted closed, a pink tinge staining her cheeks.

  “Yes, I want you again, but you won’t be able to concentrate until we get to the bottom of this. I’d feel the same if our positions were reversed.” He gave her a reassuring smile but wasn’t convinced she bought it. “I’ll bring you something to wear. When you’re ready, come to my home office. I can access the outside security footage from my laptop.” She gave him a quick nod but refused to meet his gaze. When she tried to move away, he held tight.

  “No, Beautiful. That isn’t how this is going to go.” She didn’t respond for several seconds but finally lifted her face to his. Worse than the pain he’d heard in her voice was the self-recrimination he saw in her eyes. Fucking hell.

  “I’d like to get dressed and head home. You are more than capable of sorting this out without my help. I’m already embarrassed enough. Good heavens, I had sex with a coworker’s boyfriend.”

  Israel was shocked. Did she really believe his moral character was that despicable? Fuck, he wanted to pull her over his lap and paddle her until she understood how wrong she was, but that wouldn’t help him build the relationship he was striving for.

  “No, Sweetheart. I want you right beside me while I figure out what’s going on. I have not been in a committed relationship for several years, and even then, I knew she wasn’t my mate. We both knew it was a temporary convenience and remained friends after it ended.” Now that his head had cleared, Israel was convinced he knew who he was dealing with, but he wasn’t going to say anything to Bristol until he was sure. “You don’t know me well enough to know I’d never cheat on my mate—I understand that it takes time—but I assure you, I was raised to have more integrity.” Moving to the dresser, he picked up her phone and dialed.

  “Who are you calling?”

  “Prairie Winds.” She looked surprised but didn’t say anything. “You trust Kent and Kyle West, right?” Submissives seemed to naturally gravitate to the two club owners. Both male and female submissives respected the Club Masters, instinctively trusting the pair to keep them safe. Israel knew Kyle and Kent considered all the club’s members as their responsibility, but they made it clear to everyone, the subs were under their personal protection.

  “Yes, I trust them. Their screening process was so intrusive, it was actually reassuring. I also respect them. I’ve never seen them look at any submissive the way they look at Tobi. Every submissive I know admires them. They are always willing to listen, and I don’t think the club would be the same without their guidance. I’ve heard subs describe them as their best friend’s big brothers. You can talk to them about anything.”

  He’d heard other submissives at the club make the same observation. Israel was happy she’d had someone at the club she trusted. He belonged to clubs all over the country and could say with complete confidence, safety was the make-or-break element for a successful kink club. The best way to ensure safety was good training and mentoring programs.

  Pushing the last number, he wasn’t surprised to hear Kyle’s concerned greeting.

  “Bristol, are you alright? Are you in a safe place?”

  “Bristol is fine, my friend. This is Israel. She’s with me at Adler Oil. We’ve had an issue come up, but I’ll explain more later. I’d like you to answer any question she asks you about me with complete honesty. It’s important she knows who she’s dealing with. I’m handing her the phone, then leaving the room.” Israel put the phone in Bristol’s hand, kissed her on the forehead, and walked away.

  Chapter Eight

  Clovia paced the length of her luxury apartment’s balcony, barely resisting the urge to throw her damned patio furniture over the edge. Watching it shatter on the sidewalk wouldn’t be near as satisfying as heaving it across the street. After Israel’s brother refused to help her enter Adler Oil, she’d been confronted by a member of the building’s security team. Had he really thought she was going to hand over her identification? Not fucking likely.

  She was growing tired of waiting for Israel to figure out they were fated to be together. She’d known immediately when she’d seen him, but after they shared a scene, Clovia was shocked he hadn’t felt the connection. During aftercare, he’d been polite but distant, leaving her as though his mind was somewhere else. She’d been relieved when she heard his sister had been in some kind of danger. Clovia didn’t give a rat’s ass about his sister but was damned happy to find out why her mate had been so distracted.

  Clovia knew how lucky she’d been to find a luxury apartment directly across the street from the building where her future mate lived. When she’d realized the apartment’s balcony faced Israel’s, she’d willingly agreed to the seller’s outrageous asking price. Tapping into her trust fund was a paperwork nightmare, but it had been worth the effort. Walking back to her building after picking up dinner, Clovia heard a woman’s scream of passion.

  Enhanced hearing meant she could make out nuances of sound others missed and heard things they couldn’t—the limitation was being able to determine where the sound came from. It took her a few seconds to zero in on Israel’s suite since she hadn’t been expecting him to take Dr. B home with him. All the subs at Prairie Winds knew Master Israel only played at the club. She overheard them discussing him on several occasions, and the small group of women seemed amazed he never took a sub home for a night or weekend of play.

  Clovia moved back inside, stepping behind the section of her glass doors with the privacy screening. The high definition telescope she bought was perfect for looking into Israel’s windows, and the addition of the s
creen meant she could see out, but no one knew she was watching them.

  “Seriously, people need to learn to close their damned curtains if they are going to have sex with their neighbor in their living room.”

  Hell, she’d taken enough pictures to net a fortune. A banker and his physician wife living in the building next to Adler Oil, both paid her for the pictures she’d taken of them fucking other people.

  Focusing on the windows directly across from hers, Clovia wondered where the two had gone. They were no longer on the balcony, and she didn’t see lights in any of the other rooms. Israel rarely closed the curtains, and she’d enjoyed watching him moving around nude in the moderately sized space. You have to love shifters and their lack of inhibitions regarding nudity.

  Clovia was a wolf shifter who’d been raised in a household of mountain lion shifters. She never fit in and often struggled with the finer points of her special abilities. She enjoyed running free in the open spaces of her family’s large ranch but learned the hard way, not everyone appreciated her animal form. After her adoptive parents died, attorneys had quickly sold off the assets and set up her trust fund.

  Clovia was only nineteen years old when she found herself standing on the sidewalk in front of the law office, holding the key to a modest apartment across the street from the college where she was attending nursing school. The grisly old fart handed her a checkbook, a hundred dollars cash, and told her he’d make sure her rent was paid until she was gainfully employed. It had taken some legal maneuvering, but she’d gotten control of the money earlier than anyone expected. She surprised the court when she’d invested most of the trust, only leaving a small portion of the sizeable fortune liquid.

  The only large purchase she’d made was the condo. She’d been tracking the local real estate market and knew the property was appreciating. Once she and Israel were mated, she planned to sell her place and reinvest in a larger home out by the lake, where they could enjoy running in the woods. Clovia had her eye on a piece of real estate next to Master Cam’s, but no one seemed to know who owned it. She didn’t intend to give up until she owned the lot located adjacent to Cam and CeCe Barnes. It was close to Prairie Winds, so she and Israel would be able to utilize the club as often as they wanted.

  If she wasn’t scheduled to work in a couple of hours, Clovia would have happily poured herself a large glass of wine and settled back with her telescope. She needed to replenish her photo supply—after all, why should she use her own money when her neighbors were so willing to pay her for pictures, they didn’t want the world to see? A few of them had gotten smart, pulling the curtains before entertaining guests, their spouses or significant others didn’t know about, but several believed they paid for protection in advance. They hadn’t.

  Clovia considered her nursing career a temporary inconvenience. She’d planned to find a wealthy, well-established doctor to marry—unconcerned about his appearance or marital status, as long as he was rich—but meeting her mate changed everything. Israel Adler was a sexual Dominant, a shifter, owned his own security company, and fucking loaded—in short, he was perfect, and he was hers. Bristol Banks didn’t know who she was up against. Clovia had no intention of losing her mate to a woman who lived in a tiny studio apartment and drove a car older than her embarrassing wardrobe. Honestly, it looks like the woman shops at third-rate thrift shops. What the hell is she doing with her money?

  Moving to her bedroom, Clovia stripped out of her clothing, washed her face, slathered on moisturizer, and went to bed. Her upcoming shift at the hospital would be interesting—she was scheduled to work with Dr. B. Clovia vowed to stay close to her… maybe she’d be willing to talk about what happened after Israel Adler carried her to his car. The good doctor wasn’t known for sharing information about her personal life, but perhaps she only needed a little prompting.

  Bristol moved to sit in the chair facing Israel’s desk, but his frown stopped her before she could lower herself onto the soft leather seat. When she didn’t move, he shook his head before turning in his own seat and holding out his hand to her.

  “Come here, Beautiful.” Her bare feet moved silently around the desk without her mind registering the movement.

  “Thank you, Sweetheart. Did Kyle answer your questions?” Kyle texted Israel when he finished the call, assuring him everything had gone well but hadn’t gone into detail about their conversation.

  “I didn’t really need to ask any questions. I apologize for insulting your character… that wasn’t my intention. I was reeling from the news another woman considers you her mate.” Her fingers were laced together so tightly, they were turning white. Bristol’s hands were small enough, he easily wrapped them both in his much larger one.

  “We won’t always agree about everything, but there are a few things I can promise you without hesitation. Your safety and happiness will always be my number one priority, and I will never give you any reason to doubt my faithfulness—simply put, I’ll never cheat on you.” He gave her what his mom always called his boyish grin and added, “I won’t promise to never lie because birthdays, Christmas, and special surprises often require certain levels of deception.”

  Bristol’s posture relaxed, and Israel was relieved his reassurance had been on point. Time to move on.

  “I want you to look at some of the security footage from the outside the building. My brother, Bronx, encountered a woman, trying to get into the building. She told him she was my mate, a claim he already knew was false, so he refused to allow her inside. He tipped off the security team, then alerted me. When the night staff confronted her, she refused to give her name and swore she didn’t have any identification on her. Since it isn’t illegal to stand on the sidewalk, my men had no reason to hold her or to alert law enforcement.” He brought up the footage, beginning with the woman walking up the street several minutes before Bronx entered the frame.

  “Clovia Williams.”

  Israel’s vision went red for a split second, and he felt a growl rumble deep in his chest. He took a deep breath, making a concentrated effort to calm his anger.

  “If she is claiming she’s your mate, why didn’t your brother believe her? How does he know it’s not true?”

  What the fuck? When I find out who betrayed her trust, I’ll rip them to shreds.

  “I’m sure Bronx heard that I met you at the reception. My brothers and sisters know I’ve been looking forward to meeting my mate, so word would have spread like wildfire. We are each other’s biggest cheerleaders and harshest critics, and none of us are swayed by the notoriety of any member of our family.” Her soft laughter was exactly the reaction he’d been hoping for. She was going to need a sense of humor to deal with the direction their conversation was heading.

  “I work with Clovia, but I don’t know her well. I’m usually dealing with families or trying to wade through mountains of paperwork when the nurses are visiting. It isn’t that I’m trying to be a snob, though it probably seems that way.”

  Re-reading Bristol’s file while he’d waited for her at the hospital had been enlightening, but listening to the nurses chattering down the hall had been even more so. As non-shifters, they never considered the possibility he could hear them. Most of the small group’s gossip centered around their plans for the next weekend—evidently, there was a hospital-sponsored picnic at the lake, no one wanted to miss. Some had already made plans while others were waiting to find out if they could find someone to cover for them.

  Only once had the conversation turned to one of their co-workers. Several expressed concern about Dr. B’s exhaustion, wondering if it was safe for her to drive. He vowed to find out which of the nurses said she planned to drive Bristol home. The young woman was going to find herself on the receiving end of a hefty bonus.

  The others reminded Nurse Considerate she was risking being fired for leaving the hospital before her shift was over, but she’d remained committed to making certain Bristol got home safely. He’d moved to the nurses’ station, hoping
to identify the sweetheart among them, but his sudden appearance silenced their conversation.

  “I’m waiting to drive Dr. Banks home. Can you tell me how much longer she’ll be?”

  Before her co-workers could respond, he saw her walking down the hall. Bristol hadn’t seen him, but he’d known two things. One, she was only a couple of minutes from tumbling ass over tea kettle into an exhaustion-induced meltdown, and two, she’d fight to her last breath to hold it together when she saw him. Damn it, he had five sisters and knew how they rallied if they thought a man they were interested in was watching. Bristol Banks was every bit as strong and stubborn as his sisters, and the minute her eyes met his, he knew he’d called it right.

  Returning his attention to the curvy armful sitting on his lap, Israel moved his hand in slow circles over her lower back, hoping she found the contact as soothing as he did. Listening as her mind tried to sort through the previous two days events, one word popped up time and again. Coffee. He chuckled, setting her on her feet.

  “Come. Let’s get you caffeinated, so you’ll be able to focus. I don’t usually drink coffee, so I often forget others do—much to my family’s disdain. It seems I’m the odd-man-out when it comes to the elixir of the gods, as Asia refers to it.” The suite he’d chosen wasn’t large, but he’d remodeled the kitchen before moving in.

  “Holy Martha Stewart. This kitchen is bigger than my entire apartment.” When he arched a brow in her direction, she read his doubt and nodded. “I’m not kidding when I refer to my hovel as small. It’s a studio apartment in a run-down building. I work a lot, so it doesn’t matter.” Israel wanted to laugh at her last comment, suspecting she used the simple explanation often.