The Night Beat

teams to hook up with Ken and Amanda. Ken’s following a trail, Amanda and Maurice are trailing a human who could be the Prince’s current vessel. Or could just be a lucky drug dealer. We’re not sure yet.”
    “Understood. Sending Black Angel Teams One and Two to support.”
    “Thanks.” I turned off the com.
    “Black angels?”
    “Literally. The best day fliers around.”
    “Real angels? You’re serious?”
    I rolled my eyes. “You’ve seen everything else, or heard about it, and yet the existence of angels seems hard for you to fathom?”
    “I guess I didn’t associate them with --”
    He stopped himself, but I knew what he was thinking. “With ‘my kind’? Yeah, I know. They’re pure and holy and we’re the evil undead.” I tried to keep the hurt out of my voice. Figured I didn’t succeed.
    Jack stopped, grabbed my arm, and pulled me against the side of the building. “That’s not how I meant it.”
    “Yes, it is.” I tried to get away. “Look, we need to see the Chief.”
    “No. We need to get this straightened out, right now.” Jack was a lot taller than me and bigger all around. He was using his body to keep me in place and struggling meant I was rubbing up against him. I tried not to like it and failed completely. Of course, I had werewolf strength, but I didn’t really want to send him flying into the parking lot. Besides, feelings hurt or not, being this close to him made my senses go haywire. He was in a form of supreme manly-mode and it was all I could do not to start that doggy begging whine he seemed to be bringing out in me more and more.
    “There’s nothing to straighten out.” I tried to look away but he had big brown eyes and they were hard to avoid. They were also flashing.
    “I don’t think you’re evil,” he said through gritted teeth. “Or weird or frightening. I don’t even think you’re all that strange.”
    “What do you think I am?” This didn’t come out in the strong, authoritative voice I was shooting for. It came out like a little girl whisper. Sadly, I wasn’t covered with fur, so as I felt my cheeks get hot, I knew Jack could see me blushing like an idiot.
    He gave me a slow smile. “I think you’re one of the best cops I’ve even known. You’re smart, gutsy, funny and loyal, and you have the best instincts going. I also think you’re the hottest woman on two or four legs.”
    Then he bent and kissed me and I started blushing all over. At least, my whole body felt like it was on fire.
    Jack kissed me for a good, long while, until I wasn’t trying to do anything but hump his leg. Hey, there are some things you can’t help if you have a drop of canine in you. He pulled away slowly. “Now, are we past that?”
    “Ah, past kissing?” I was okay with moving fast, but even I had speed limits.
    Jack rolled his eyes. “No. Are we past you thinking I don’t like you because you’re a werewolf?”
    “Um, dunno.”
    He kissed me again. “How about now?”
    I really wanted to tell him I wasn’t sure again, because if his method of convincing me was to kiss me, I wanted to stay unconvinced forever. But we were in the middle of a case with horrifying ramifications and I’d been in law enforcement for several human lifetimes. “I guess so.”
    He stroked my face. “I think it’s kind of sexy.”
    “What is?”
    “You turning into a hot-looking wolf.”
    “I had no idea you were into bestiality.”
    “I’m not. Ken explained, it’s not the same thing at all.”
    As ex-boyfriends went, you couldn’t get better than Ken. “Um, what else did he explain?”
    Jack grinned. “That if I wanted to make a move, I had a good chance of not having my throat ripped out.” He let me go but took my hand. “Think we need to pretend that we’re still just professional partners, at least as far as the rank and file here are concerned.”
    “We’re an item?” I wasn’t arguing, but we were back to moving faster than I’d been prepared for.
    He pulled me to him and kissed me again. Okay, yeah, we were an item. My butt wagging was a clear sign.

Chapter 15
     
    Jack and I finally stopped making out and went into headquarters. I was glad I didn’t bother with makeup, because if I’d had any on it would have been all over my face and his.
    We supposedly looked the same as we always did. I mean, we’d straightened our clothes and fixed the hair and all before we went into the building. And I didn’t think we got a lot of looks from our fellow