Free Taming The Alpha - BBW Paranormal Romance by Adriana Hunter

table. There
were murmurs from the other pack members.
    Jax
shook his head, pulling out a chair, sitting down beside Bec. “It’s
not from around here. No other pack has said anything about this, and
I’m pretty sure even our rivals would have said something.”
    “ There’s
something off about it. The scent, for one thing.” Jax grimaced
at the memory. There was something tugging at the edge of his mind,
but he couldn’t quite place his finger on what it was.
    “ Jax,
was the scent familiar to you?”
    Bec’s
brow furrowed. “No. It smelled bad, terrible.” He ducked
his head and Jax let it pass. No use letting Bec’s pack know he
had turned tail and ran.
    “ There
was something there, something familiar. But I don’t know what
it was.” Jax shook his head. “Maybe I’m just crazy,
but I have the feeling I know what that thing is.”
    “ If
you knew what it is, would you know how to kill it?”
    Jax
looked up. Finn was looking at him intently, as were the rest of the
pack members.
    “ Yeah,
probably. Everything has a weakness. It’s just knowing what it
is.” He ran his hands through his hair, tugging at his
ponytail.
    “ It’s
just trying to figure out what the damned thing is…and what it
wants.”

    *

    “ Hey,
wake up.”
    Someone
was shaking her and Nikki wanted them to stop. Her head ached
abysmally and her body hurt. She swatted at the hand on her shoulder
and the hand swatted back. Groggily she opened one eye.
    Lori
was sitting on the edge of the bed, still dressed in her street
clothes, holding the ever-present cigarette and a glass of juice.
    “ Here.”
She held out the juice toward Nikki.
    Nikki
smiled, sipping the juice. “Thanks. What time is it?”
    “ After
three. You’ve been out like a champ for hours.”
    “ Have
you even slept?”
    “ Yeah,
I think so. Maybe. But you were mumbling and whining in your sleep,
so, you know, that kept me awake.”
    “ Liar.
I never talk in my sleep.” She set the glass on the bedside
table, sitting up against the headboard, pulling the sheet over her
chest.
    “ So
what the hell really did happen last night?”
    “ Honey,
I have no idea. You thought you’d made a new best friend out of
a wolf and I thought we were going to be torn to shreds.”
    The
words hung in the air, both girls staring wide-eyed at the other.
    “ Oh,
shit. China…and her boyfriend. You don’t think…could
it have been that thing?” Lori spoke first.
    “ I
don’t want to think about it.” Nikki solemnly shook her
head. “No way. Not going there. Too many bad things live in my
head already. I’m not putting a wolf in the mix.”
    Nikki
sat up. “I need to go home. Move.” She poked at Lori with
her foot.
    Lori
stood up. “You calling a cab or walking?”
    “ Cab.
There’s no way I’m ever walking anywhere in this city
again. Besides, my head is killing me.”
    “ I’ll
call one for you while you get dressed.” Lori left the room and
Nikki pulled on her clothes. They smelled funny, like rotting food.
It made her stomach turn and she decided it must have been from the
alley. She’d be home soon and take a long hot shower. Maybe
even get in a nap before work.
    “ Cab’ll
be here in about fifteen minutes or so. You want something to eat…”
Lori stopped, laughing. “I take it by the shade of green you’ve
turned, that’s a no?”
    “ Yeah,
no. And never let Sam make you a drink on the house. I think that
thing was straight up, no mixer. Strong.” Nikki shivered.
    “ You’re
such a light-weight, Nikki. Here…” She extended her
hand. In the palm were two white pills.
    Nikki
looked at them suspiciously. “And they are?”
    “ Aspirin.
What’d you think I was giving you? You said you have a
headache.” Lori shook her head as Nikki took the pills.
    “ Listen,
my only vices now are cigarettes and men, sometimes a drink, nothing
worse. Well, those are bad enough, but that’s it.” She
held up three fingers.
    “ Scout’s
honor, Nikki. Not for