Free Enemy Mine by Katie Reus

glanced at Ronan, who he
    knew could hear the conversation, and
    lifted his eyebrows. Ronan shrugged,
    obviously not knowing anything about it.
    Instead of responding, Kiernan was silent,
    waiting.
    The other man cleared his throat. “It’s
    come to our attention that you are
    acquaintances with Melina Rodriguez.”
    There was a questioning note in his voice,
    as if he wasn’t quite sure.
    “What about her?” Wondering if the
    call had anything to do with the night
    before, Kiernan kept inflection out of his
    voice.
    “My pack would be willing to pay you
    if you deliver her to us.”
    Something dark jumped inside Kiernan,
    but he shoved it back down. “I don’t need
    money and I’m still amusing myself with
    her.” Harsh, untrue words he hated saying,
    but if he wanted the guy to keep talking, he
    couldn’t show emotion.
    “Maybe not, but one can never have too
    much money. . . . And we know of your
    coven’s history with her pack. That’s why
    we were surprised you intervened last
    night. You killed two of our pack
    members.” There was a touch of anger in
    those words, the first sign of any sort of
    emotion.
    So the Mazzoni pack had gone after her.
    “I told you, she’s an amusement and I’m
    having fun pissing off her pack with our
    relationship. You should have contacted
    me before going after her in my presence.”
    The lie was bitter on his tongue, but this
    shifter was calling for a reason and
    Kiernan wanted to know what it was.
    “So you are fucking her because of your
    coven’s hatred for her pack.” Not a
    question.
    Walking outside and away from his
    brother, he leaned against the balcony,
    staring out at the flat ocean. Not everyone
    knew of the violent history between the
    Doyle coven and the Rodriguez pack.
    They’d battled each other long before
    technology took hold in the world, long
    before territories by supernatural beings
    had been carved out, and long before
    sweet Melina had even been born. That
    history had been buried not long after the
    death of his brother, Corey. “You have
    good sources.”
    “We do.” Uberto gave away nothing
    else, much to Kiernan’s annoyance.
    “How much will you pay for
    her?”Kiernan asked. Then the shifter
    named an obscene amount, and ice chilled
    Kiernan’s veins, but he kept his voice
    calm. “She is young, likely the weakest of
    her pack. Wouldn’t you prefer someone of
    more worth?”
    “You either want the job or you don’t.”
    Again, he gave away nothing of why they
    wanted her.
    “I’ll take it, but I want to know why you
    want her so badly and I want half the fee
    up front. I’ll be putting myself at great
    risk.”
    “The fee is no problem, though we
    require her immediately. Tonight if
    possible, tomorrow at the latest. Why we
    want her is none of your concern.” There
    was no room for argument in his voice.
    Kiernan kept his expression bland on
    the off-chance someone was watching
    him. “Once you wire me the money, she’s
    yours.” Taking money from the bastards
    who’d tried to hurt her made him smile
    inside. He was going to take great
    pleasure in screwing them over.
    “Give me the bank details.” Cool, curt
    words.
    After Kiernan gave him an account
    number his family held in an offshore
    account, he continued. “Try to double-
    cross me or skimp on the rest of the fee,
    and you’ll find yourselves at war with my
    coven.”
    “Understood.”
    As soon as he disconnected, he returned
    inside to find his brother staring at him, an
    odd expression on your face. “That was
    very . . . mercenary. I expect it from
    Bryson, but not you.”
    Kiernan snorted. Saying their middle
    brother was mercenary was definitely an
    understatement. “Good to know I sounded
    convincing.”
    “Are you really fucking a shifter ?”
    Without realizing he’d moved,
    Kiernan’s fingers wrapped around his
    brother’s neck. Considering Ronan was
    older and stronger, it said a lot for how
    much he’d surprised him. Instantly
    Kiernan