Page 18 of Oracles Always Win

Hiswords lit up my insides like fireworks exploding.

“Really?”

Henipped at my earlobe, gently tugging it between his teeth. “Really.”

Wasswooning a thing real people did?Orwas it just something that happened to characters in books?BecauseIwas ready to fall into this guy and have him carry me away.NotbecauseIwas a damsel in distress, but becauseIwas a man with goals.And, right now,Iwas closer to realizing one of my goals than ever before.

Thiswas the best day ever.

ButfirstIhad to finish this shift.

“Ineed to work,”Isaid asItook a step back from temptation. “Uh, is later okay?”

“Ofcourse,” he said with a nod.

Assoon as he was on the other side of the counter again, my body slipped into the familiar routine of filling his order.WhenIset the drinks on the counter,IfoundGagewatching me.Asexy smile played over his mouth.

I’dkissed that mouth.

AndIwas going to kiss it again.

Mycheeks heated at both the memory and the promise in his eyes.

"Thankyou,Jake," he said.AndIsworeI'dnever heard those three words sound so seductive before. "Ithink we'll be in town for a while,"Gagecontinued as he gathered the three pints in his big hands. "AndIhave a feeling you andIare going to get to know one another very well."

Iwanted to sayIthought so too, but now that he wasn’t close enough to muddle my thoughts,IrememberedIwasn’t the bold guyI’dpretended to be earlier.Allmy bravado was used up.Instead,Iogled him as he retreated to the table where his friends were seated.

Mycheeks were blazing hot as all the naughty and seductive thingsIshould have said to him whipped through my head.Myface had to be as red as the hot sauce some of my regulars liked to add to everything they ordered, butIwas incapable of doing anything about it.

"Ohlordy,"Sallymuttered again and wrapped her arms over her stomach. "You'vegone and broken him again."

Chapter Eight

GAGE

“It’sabout time,”Isaacmuttered as he grabbed his wheat ale from my hand.

Thisbar might be new to me, and the cutie behind the bar wasdefinitelynew—ifIignored howI’dalready had my tongue in his mouth—but the job wasn't.So, asIset the other drinks on the table,Iscanned the room.

“Sowe’re here to meet that same hellhound, right?Thepolice officer?”Nelsonasked. “Theone we met a few weeks back?”

AtleastNelsonwas looking better now that we’d been here for a while.He’dbeen a bit blurry around the edges earlier.

“Yes,”Isaid, speaking as quietly asIcould. “It’sthe same guy.Hisname isVanClark.He’stheChiefofPolicehere.He’sthe one who contacted us about those stolen magical artifacts.”

“Doyou think he’ll help us?”Nelsonasked, keeping his voice just as quiet.Wedidn’t need all these people hearing what we were saying.

“Hellhoundstend to see the world in black and white, but it’s worth remembering this is his town.Hemay not want to upset the status quo by going after the wolf pack if it means the town is negatively impacted.Adrianhas a good impression of the guy, and so far, our goals have aligned.Itmight be different if that changes.Hemight have different priorities than us.”

“Ihaven’t met a hellhound before.Well, other than that short interaction a few weeks ago.Isthere anythingIneed to know?”Isaactapped his fingers on the table.Healways had so much damn energy.

“Hellhoundscan tell if you are lying.”Thiswasn’t the first timeI’ddealt with a hellhound, but the last one was beforeIsaacjoined us. “Theyalso can’t lie themselves.Thoseare the most important things to remember.”

“Cool.”Isaacnodded.

Iasked for honesty from my team, soIdidn’t think the no lying thing would be an issue.

“Ourplan is simple:Checkin withAdrianand his mate when they get back.Meetthe hellhound again.Findout if he still wants our help and determine if he’ll be helpful or not.Ifit doesn’t work out, we run our own investigation without local support.”