that told Rochelle not to press the point. Jarrod went on, “If you want to go out anywhere, you let one of us know and we’ll come with you.”
“Okay,” she said. Since she had only just convinced them to let her work, she wasn’t about to rock the boat.
Jarrod led her inside, introduced her to a very heavily pregnant Trudy, and then left for his office. Malcolm and Braxton went to their own desks to begin work.
By the end of the day, Rochelle had picked up the workings of the police radio and how to fill in the paperwork necessary for each 911 call. She was to work with Trudy for the rest of the week, just so the other woman knew she had a handle on everything.
There had been several calls regarding accidents, which Malcolm and Braxton had attended to, but other than that the day had been relatively quiet.
Just as they were packing up for the day, a man walked into the office and demanded to see the sheriff. Rochelle didn’t like the look of him. Not that she could have said what it was about the man that gave her the willies. It was just a gut feeling. She let Jarrod know that a man calling himself Harold James wanted to see him.
She watched surreptitiously as Jarrod led him to his office before she went back to helping Trudy set up for the night dispatcher. Harold left Jarrod’s office looking a little more than pissed off. As he walked past her desk, though, he slowed. It looked like he was sniffing the air. He turned and pinned her with his cold, dark eyes, and the grin he gave her looked more than a little malicious.
Rochelle stepped back even though he wasn’t close enough to touch her and then cursed herself for showing any weakness in his presence. An evil gleam flashed in his eyes, and then he left the office.
“Are you ready to go, darlin’?” Braxton asked as he entered the office from outside. “Malcolm is waiting in the truck. Jarrod is going to be another hour before he can get away.”
“Okay,” she squeaked.
Brax walked toward her and studied her intently. “Are you all right, Rochelle?”
“Fine. I’m just a little tired.” And imagining weird things. She must be getting used to hanging around weres if she thought people were smelling her.
“Come on, then. Let’s get you home.”
* * * *
Over the next week Rochelle became proficient at and more comfortable with her new job, and instead of Trudy doing the work, she did. Trudy was more than happy to let her take control. She hadn’t seen any more of that creepy man, Harold, and even though she had wanted to ask Jarrod about him, she didn’t. She figured she was just being paranoid. There had been no reason for her to take an instant dislike to a stranger.
Returning home on Friday evening, Rochelle joined the other women in the living room for a glass of wine. Malcolm and Braxton had gone out for a run. Even though she would have loved to go outside and watch them change into their wolf forms again, there had been other males with them, and one thing she was definitely not ready for yet was to see other men naked.
Looking down when she felt small hands on her calves, she smiled and reached out to help Stefan to his little feet. Stefan was the Alphas’ child, and he was so cute she couldn’t resist picking him up. He gave her a cheeky grin and then tangled his fingers into her hair, giving a good tug. Rochelle didn’t mind though.
Keira was currently nursing her six-month-old daughter, Emma, and Talia was burping her two-month-old son, Riley, and she wondered if Samantha was pregnant, as she was sipping a cup of tea instead of drinking alcohol. Michelle had been mated to the Alphas for over two years and Keira and Talia for a little less than that. Samantha was still relatively new to the family, having been part of the pack for only six months. But all the women seemed to have become fast friends, and Rochelle envied them their close camaraderie.
The pack members doted on the newest arrivals to the family, and