Free Black and White by Zenina Masters Page B

condoms were just as effective with a shifter as with a human because oral birth control wasn’t.
    She could still feel a gaze on her from somewhere in the bar, and after a few low looks from under her lashes, she spotted him. Damn it. Alatas Whipping, hunter of all things in the rodent family was sitting in a corner and slumped over with only his sharp, dark gaze giving the impression that he was not as hammered as the empty beer glasses indicated.
    He jerked his head toward her, and she did the same. So, the council had set both of them on this wild weasel chase. How surprising.
    They had been sent after the same prey many times before, but usually, Ty didn’t give a damn who brought the person in. This time, it was very personal and she wanted a nice long talk with Jeremy Wax.
    A young man took up the seat next to her. “I haven’t seen you in here before.”
    “Observant, aren’t you?” She grumbled and kept her head down.
    “Are you looking for someone in particular?”
    She turned and gave him a tired stare. “This doesn’t look like a singles bar. I came here to drink and this is the one place I know my ex won’t go back to.”
    The young man had sandy hair but a calculating glance, and her sense of smell told her it was dyed and that caught her attention like nothing else would, but she kept her bland expression on her features.
    She nodded to the bartender and another beer was placed in front of her. She hated beer but drank it anyway. It would take far more than a human’s intake to get her inebriated, but he didn’t know that.
    “Well, may I buy you a round? You look like a woman with things she needs to forget.” He raised his hand and the bartender paused for a moment before nodding.
    Ty watched out of the corner of her eye as the bartender spiked her next beer. Charming .
    She took the new beer with a nod of thanks and turned to her benefactor. “Thanks. It has been a helluva week.”
    “Have you been in the area long?” He moved closer to her, crowding in on her personal space. She felt the crackle of magic and the hair on the back of her neck stood up.
    “No. I am just passing through. After the breakup, I couldn’t stay in my hometown, so now, I am looking for a place that feels like me.” She slugged down the remainder of her second beer and took the spiked one in her hand.
    She ran it between her palms. “You should be out in search of that young blonde thing who is waiting for her taxi. She looks more your sort.”
    “She is a dime a dozen. You have a lovely exotic allure that captured my attention the moment I walked in.” He made himself sound sincere and that assured her that this was a setup.
    Ty laughed loud and long, sipping at her beer and wrinkling her nose at the taste.
    She made a face and pushed the beer away. “It tastes funny.”
    The bartender looked relieved and came over. “Is something wrong?”
    “I think you have a problem with your taps or there was something in the glass before you poured it. That beer tastes weird.”
    He smiled slightly as he took the beer away. “We are trying out a new microbrew. I figured since he hadn’t specified that I could put that out for the increased price. Sorry you didn’t like it.”
    She shrugged. “Can I have more of whatever it was you served me first?”
    “Coming up.”
    He was very attentive for a bartender at a dive bar, but since he was involved with her companion, there was probably a reason for it. She was being set up.
    Ty took the next beer with a smile and took a swig. There was still a chemical tang, but she sighed in relief. “Better.”
    The man next to her jolted and he seemed to be confused. “You like that one better?”
    She nodded. “Ah. Excuse me. I have to use the ladies’ room.”
    She hopped off her stool and went to the assault to the senses that was the restroom. She threw up the beer and shivered. From the pocket of her jacket, she pulled a bottle of water and slugged it back. When it was