With Caution

anyway.
    Now it was getting dark and he blended in.
    Raising his nose, he sniffed, trying to find his target. The soft, wild and fresh, almost evergreen scent was easy to find. It was getting stronger.
    The back door opened and Sterling clambered out, holding a bowl of something.
    Milk. It smelled like milk. Looking left then right, he hurried down the porch steps and into the grass.
    What was he doing? Rhys crept closer on his belly trying to see.
    Glancing back at the house, Sterling set the bowl on the ground. “Come on, boy, it’s okay.” He stared toward Rhys.
    What? Can he see me? Rhys looked around him, fairly certain he was concealed by the dark and the tall grass.
    “Oh, there you are.” Sterling turned his attention to his left.
    A small orange tabby cat wandered up and meowed a greeting. He went right to the bowl and began drinking.
    Sitting down in the grass, Sterling talked to the cat like he was a long-lost friend.
    If Rhys had been in human form, he’d have smiled. The kid would talk to anyone or anything. It was endearing.
    Lying there, Rhys could see that Sterling was unharmed. Dirk Lassiter’s scent lingered around the home, but it was faint. The man wasn’t in residence. The tension in Rhys eased and he closed his eyes, listening to the smooth cadence of his mate’s voice, content that the kid was all right.

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    J.L. Langley

Chapter Eighteen
    “Goddamn it, Jake, get out of my way.”
    “No. You are not going over there by yourself. You told me your mom said everything was fine and Sterling was safe. If you think you have to go, I’ll take you, but you’re only going to make him madder.” Jake leaned against the door and crossed his arms over his chest. Remi was being completely unreasonable. After the phone call from his mother informing him Dirk no longer wanted him around Sterling, Remi got up and grabbed his helmet and keys. He was intent on going to check on his brother, which was probably exactly what that asshole, Lassiter, was counting on. No way in hell was Jake letting Remi go near Dirk Lassiter after what had happened.
    Jake was trying his damnedest not to get mad at his mate, but he was nearly at the breaking point. It amazed him how quickly Remi could go from sweet and lovable to growling and snapping. Sometimes it was like he was two different people.
    “I can’t take you with me. I have to make Dirk think I’m doing what he wants.”
    Remi looked down at the helmet in his hand, then back at Jake. “Jake, please.”
    “No.”
    Remi’s eyes shifted as he snarled at Jake. “I just want to make sure he’s—”
    Someone knocked on the door.
    Holding up his hand, Jake stalled Remi and inhaled deeply. Pack. It was their guys.
    Jake recognized their scents. He turned and opened the door, letting them in and ignoring Remi for the moment. “What are y’all doing here?”
    “Son of a bitch.” Remi stalked further into the living room.
    Dago’s eyebrows rose as Zack pushed past him into the apartment. Dago came in behind him, his eyes zeroing in on the blood-splattered wall to the left of the door.
    “Whoa.”
    Jake shut the door.
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    With Caution
    “We heard what happened and came to check on Remi.” Zack walked around Remi, studying him. “Are you okay?”
    Jake grinned, not at all surprised. They’d taken to Remi as quickly as he’d taken to them. Following the guys into the living room, he extracted the helmet and keys from Remi’s hands. He set them on the coffee table and sat on the couch, crooking his finger at Remi. “Come sit.” He looked at Dago. “How did y’all find out?”
    “Listen, guys. I’m fine, but I need you to go. You can’t come here. If I’m seen around all of you—” Remi stopped when Jake turned back to him.
    Immediately, Jake felt the unease in the air. The men were reacting to their omega.
    “Remi, come here.”
    “He’s having me watched, somehow. He knew about me going to the bar. I bet you anything he’s paying those homeless men we keep seeing around here to report back to him.” Pinching the bridge of his nose, Remi closed his eyes for a minute. He dropped his hand and glanced at Jake. “He knew about you and I running into my mom at the grocery store. If he finds out about all of them”—he waved his arms around, indicating the room as a whole—“here, he’s going to keep Sterling from me.”
    Which was a moot point as far as Jake was concerned