Free Werewolves in Love 1: Kiss and Kin by Kinsey Holley

take some time for her to adjust.”
    “I was trying to tell her she could have all the time she needed. She doesn’t want me, Nick, I think that’s pretty obvious.”
    “Don’t be stupid. Sounds like she wanted you all night, and I think she’s wanted you a long time. She just needs—”
    “You said you came over here to talk about Kuba.”
    He probably shouldn’t interrupt his Alpha so abruptly. Nick fixed him with a narrow-eyed stare for a beat, clearly trying to decide if it warranted a more thorough throat-crushing, but he crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. “What?”
    “Kuba. The Czech wolf. You said you came over to talk about him.”
    “So we’re not going to talk about your mate anymore?”
    “No point. It’s over, I’ll deal with it.” Cracks had been repaired, the barrier restored.
    He’d let the pain seep through later, a bit at a time. “What about Kuba?”
    Nick shook his head and sighed with resignation. “Okay, fine. A wolf out in Channelview says one of his buddies saw the Czech wolf in a dive bar. He snapped a picture of Kuba on his phone.”
    “Nick, that’s huge!” He eagerly latched on to the one thing that could push Lark out of his mind for a bit. “Who was it? You have the photo? When did—”
    His Alpha held up a hand. “Whoa, hold up. I don’t have anything yet—I’m still waiting to hear from the wolf himself; he’s a roughneck, moves around a lot, he’s supposed to call me.”
    “When did he see Kuba?”
    “From what I was told, the day I sent out the photo you gave me, so what—Monday? Yeah, I think so. But there’s more. Another wolf who doesn’t want me to give his name plays in some big poker games around town—he’s an attorney, and there are a few high stakes games around right now.”
    “Yeah, yeah, I know—I wouldn’t try to bust one up or anything.”
    “That’s what I told him. Anyway, he’s pretty sure he saw Kuba at a game this week. Naturally he didn’t try to take a picture or anything, but he said it looked like the picture I sent out, and the guy had a thick accent and played huge—he walked away with something like fifteen grand that night.”
    “Okay, that’s good. That’s good,” Taran said half to himself, mind racing. He felt the itch coming on—the wholly irrational but highly accurate signal telling him a case was moving, clues were popping, maybe this thing had some legs after all. He started to prowl restlessly across the deck again. “Your guy’s gotta me get into one of those games, Nick.”
    Nick started to say something, and Taran cut him off.
    “Tell your guy I don’t give a shit about the poker game. My captain won’t, either—if I bring Kuba in, no one’s gonna care where I found him. Would you talk to your wolf and tell him I want in? I know they’re always looking for more players and I’ll spend money. No one will know I’m a cop.”
    Nick nodded. “He’ll do it if I tell him to. I want these assholes off the streets and out of my town.”
    “I wonder if I should take someone along. Maybe Denardo.”
    “Who?”
    “Rookie, officer from Oklahoma. Wants to get on SHIU. He hasn’t been here long, so he wouldn’t be recognized either.”
    “Oh yeah, I’ve talked to him on the phone but we haven’t met yet.”
    Any wolf moving into an area with an established pack had to meet with the Alpha at least once, to pay respects and acknowledge the Alpha’s authority, even if the wolf chose not to join the pack. In cities like Houston, with large wolf populations, the process was much more informal than in smaller cities.
    “He seems like an honorable wolf, real dedicated.” He stretched and sighed. “All right. Shit. I need a drink. Can I go back in my house now?”
    Nick laughed shortly and threw an arm around him. “Yes. I’ll go see if I can help Lark out of here, and then you and I can get drunk for a little bit, if that’s what you want.”
    “Yeah. Yeah, I think it is.”
    When they went