AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Let’s go inside,” I said, not asking but telling.
The car was warmer than it had been a moment earlier, and the wave of pheromones hit me like a slap. I was dizzy with awareness of him, and if we didn’t get out of this car, I might undo his pants and climb on top of him right here in the parking lot of a police station.
And trust me, no one wants to have sex in the front seat of a Dodge Dart.
I let out a quivering breath and disengaged my hand from Wilder’s grip.
As much as touch helped keep wolves mellow and grounded, it could sometimes go too far. Right now we were a hop, step, and a jump away from full-on molesting each other.
Not ideal.
At least not here.
I got out of the car before Wilder could say or do anything to make me change my mind. One wry smile or wink would have totally undone me. I was craving a distraction, because every single aspect of my real life was a total disaster from one end to the other.
I jogged across the lot, a few steps out of reach of Wilder’s casual touches. When we were inside the building, a cold blast of air conditioning took my temperature down both literally and figuratively, dragging me back into the real world.
Magnolia was pacing in front of a small cubicle with wire-laced glass—most likely bulletproof—on all sides and a small opening that could fit a clipboard or personal belongings through. A tired-looking officer sat in a blue plastic chair, filling something out in the newspaper.
“Seven letters. Isla Española.” He chewed his pen, barely aware we’d arrived, and erased a letter on the puzzle.
“Majorca,” Mags responded without hesitation.
I could tell this wasn’t the first answer she’d given him.
“May-whata?”
I walked up to the cubicle and said, “It’s an island in Spain. Isla Española.”
The guard, who had a thin patch of balding hair on the back of his head but a full black beard that more than made up for the loss, didn’t look at me until he’d finished filling in the boxes. “Thanks.”
“Erasable pen is cheating.”
That got his attention. He lifted his gaze towards me, dark brown eyes shining like he was ready to fight me. Instead he must have seen something he approved of because he smiled thinly. “That’s what the blonde said too.”
Mags was standing next to me. “Brody, can you please give her a pass so we can go through?”
“Everyone has to sign in, Magnolia. I told you that.” He slipped a clipboard through the slot, and I noticed the form was almost entirely filled in already. Probably Mags’s doing. I signed where he pointed and passed it back to the man, Brody.
He removed the paper then pushed the board through once more and nodded towards Wilder. His form, too, was complete but for the signature. He followed suit, and we waited in silence while Brody mulled over a six-letter word for necklace.
“Amulet,” Magnolia said grouchily.
Brody gave us two paper badges in plastic holders with metal clips for us to affix to our clothes. A moment later he buzzed us through a door saying, “Don’t go far, blondie, I haven’t started the down list yet.” He held up the newspaper to show her the remaining blank spaces.
“Cassis, macaw, tithe, Lincoln, Hamilton, brusque, Cherokee.” She held the door open for us. “You should switch to the USA Today one. It’s easier.”
“But New York Times makes me look smarter.”
“No it doesn’t.” Magnolia smirked, and it was only then I realized she was flirting with him.
Interesting. Perhaps I should leave her alone more often.
Once we passed through the door, Magnolia guided us into a large open space filled with desks and fluorescent lights. My only previous experience with police stations—aside from the one I’d been locked up in—had been in New York. I was beginning to see their general layout and design didn’t vary wildly.
Boring, sterile, and mostly unwelcoming.
Detective Perry’s copper hair called to me from across the room. There weren’t many people working in the space, only a few other plainclothes officers at the desks. Perry was on the phone but noticed us approaching and gave a wave of greeting.
