When He Was Bad
Page 17

Hell, even his sister noticed. Mainly because more than once hed walked away from her in the middle of one of their conversations to chat up a girl. But this morning . . . nothing.
When he complained to his parents, they only snorted and gave each other that look. The one every parental unit had down to a fine art. The let him suffer until he learns a lesson look.
In the end, though, Van refused to believe it. Irene Conridge, PhD, had absolutely no hold over him whatsoever. And she never would. If he wanted to sleep with a cold fish, hed have the mob cut his throat and toss him into the Pacific Ocean.
The back door to the shop finally opened and Van turned around to see the lovely lioness poke her head out. When she saw him, her expression went from welcome to sultry.
Hey, handsome.
See? Now that was warm and friendly. From a cat, no less. Christ, Irene Conridge was colder than a cat? Was that even possible?
Hey yourself, he replied gruffly. Now come here.
She smirked and sashayed over to him. Athana pretty much sashayed everywhere. Hed always liked that about her.
Gold eyes looked up at him from beneath pitch-black lashes. Yes?
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a strange feeling of guilt washed over him simply because he stood alone with a female in a back alley. Hed never felt it before and to say he wasnt happy about it would be a drastic understatement.
Snarling, he grabbed Athanas arms and yanked her close. Startled, her lips parted and he swooped in, kissing her hard.
After almost a minute, he finally pulled back and Athana stared up at him.
Wow, she finally said. Kind of like kissing my Aunt Gertrude when she comes over for Thanksgiving.
Van held her at arms length. What?
She actually pouted but didnt seem really upset. Damn. And you are so good too. The hyenas were running around saying youd mated with a full-human but I kept hoping the rumors werent true.
It doesnt mean anything.
Athana giggled. Come on, Van. Youre a wolf. You might as well accept your fate.
He shoved her away and paced over to a Dumpster. No. I refuse to be trapped by this.
Sweetie, its too
Before the word late could come out of her mouth, Van spun around and said, Lets get a hotel room and fuck.
Rolling her eyes, Athana headed back to her store. Forget it, Van. Ive never fucked around with another females mate, and Im not about to start now. Even if she is full-human.
But Im not interested in her. Oh, God! Did he just whine that?
She pulled the door open. If youre that convinced its a mistake, go to her and find out.
Go to her? His healed but scarred thighautomatically tensed at the thought . . . then other parts of him tensed for an entirely different reason.
Trust me, Athana sighed. If you kiss her the way you just kissed me, you are definitely not interested.
How do I look?
Irene looked up and nodded at her friend. You look amazing.
Thanks, sweetie. A car horn blew and Jackie grabbed her wrap. Sure I cant talk you into coming? These university events are so much more tolerable when youre there to mock with me.
I cant face it. Not tonight.
Agent Harris freak you out?
Well, he didnt make me feel at ease.
Should we stay?
No. You and Paul go. Have a good time. Irene tossed her lopsided ponytail off her face for the eighteenth time. Im going to work on these papers and watch some television.
Okay. Jackie started to walk out but stopped. Do not, Irene, take apart my Macintosh.
Irene looked over at the newest thing in computing. A three-thousand-dollar Steve Jobs joke, if you asked her. An overpriced toy. Still, Irene wanted to take it apart to see what Jobs had done. Damn Jackie for knowing her so well.
I mean it.
Yes. Yes. Isnt Paul waiting?
Jackie narrowed her eyes in warning one more time before swooping out.
Irene glanced at the off-white box sitting on her friends desk and forced herself to focus on the student papers before her.
A few minutes later the doorbell rang and Irene didnt move. She wasnt expecting anyone, so she wouldnt answer the door. She dealt with enough people during the day, shed be damned if her nights were filled with the idiots as well.
The doorbell went off again, followed by knocking. Irene didnt even flinch. In a few more minutes she would shut out everything but the work in front of her, a skill shed developed over the years. Sometimes Jackie would literally have to shake her or punch her in the head to get her attention.
But Irene hadnt slipped into that zone yet and she could easily hear someone sniffing at her door. She looked up from her paperwork as Van Holtz snarled from the other side, I know youre in there, Conridge. I can smell you.
Eeew.
Go away, she called back. Im busy.
The knocking turned to outright banging. Open this goddamn door!
Annoyed but resigned that the man wouldnt leave, Irene put her paperwork on the couch and walked across the room. She pulled open the door and ignored the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach at seeing the man standing there in a dark gray sweater, jeans, and sneakers. She knew few men who made casualwear look anything but.