STORY EXCERPT

“Well, we have a name now. He’s been refusing to speak,” Stevens said as he took notes. “He mentioned you murdered two people, planned on killing Silas Caddell because he saw your face, and him as well. How long is your list?”

Shadow clenched his hands. “I would never hurt Maxwell’s family,” he said firmly. “I don’t care that you don’t know how to do your job. I didn’t do it.”

Stevens raised his bushy brows. “You did, Shadow. You were in control of everything.”

“I didn’t,” Shadow said with a glare.

“You did.”

“I said I didn’t,” Shadow growled out and stood. The handcuffs burst open and scattered to pieces all over the table and the floor. “I might be a piece of shit, but I’m not a liar.”

Stevens leaned back in surprise, staring at Shadow’s wrists.

Oscar stood, drawing Shadow’s attention. “Detective Stevens, wait outside for a few minutes,” he said, and Stevens shook his head. “I need a word with him. Only a few minutes.”

Shadow watched as Stevens left the room. He sat back on the metal chair and crossed his arms. “Don’t bother me. You’re already annoying.” He needed time to think. His plan had gone south the moment he’d hired people to help him.

“Remember the harbor?” Oscar asked, and Shadow nodded. “You ordered that guy to shoot at the bidders, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t,” Shadow said with a sigh. “What’s going on with people around me acting on their own? I had to deal with Maxwell almost dying, and some guys started using me to pin their crimes on me. You can sentence me for what I did to Maxwell and getting the thief killed, but nothing else.”

Oscar nodded. “Sure. What about the poison?”

Shadow glanced at Oscar. “I paid Takashi to get a sedative vial for Maxwell and a poison vial for Jason Montgomery,” he answered. “For some reason, he used the poison on the forger and tried to kill Silas Caddell. Who knows who else he got rid of.”

With a hum, Oscar drew Shadow’s attention again. “Takashi used the deadlier poison on Maxwell first, but it didn’t work, so he used the other one to sedate him. The other substance would’ve melted Maxwell’s insides, just like what happened to Jason Montgomery and Fredric Baudin. Good thing he’s a werewolf.”

Those words took Shadow aback. “He what? He tried to kill Maxwell?” he asked aloud, and Oscar nodded. “I’ll kill him. I’ll kill that bastard!” He made his way to the exit, but Oscar got hold of his upper arm. Shadow thrashed to get away and shoved at Oscar’s chest, but Oscar didn’t waver. Nothing else worked, so Shadow began to shift into his werewolf form.

“Stop,” Oscar told him and held Shadow’s jaw. He pushed Shadow across the room and pinned him against the wall. “Don’t shift here. There’s a camera above you, and you’re already giving me enough trouble. After this I’ll have to ask the higher-ups to delete the footage of you breaking the handcuffs, so just stop.”

“You don’t want humans to know about beings like us?” Shadow asked with a scowl, and Oscar nodded. “I don’t care about—”

Oscar shifted only from the neck up and moved Shadow’s jaw to make him look farther up. Very few werewolves could change only part of themselves. “Do you think humans will be fine if they see something like this? We can barely contain the rumors.”

Shadow shoved Oscar’s hand away. “How do you expect to normalize anything by hiding? We’re willingly showing humans we’re not normal, you idiot. Or are you angry they’ve been using you to solve their cases?” He tried to shift again, but Oscar pressed his shoulders against the wall.

The door swung open. “Oscar, what are you doing?”

Oscar turned back but kept his hands on Shadow’s shoulders. “Zack, close the door. He’s trying to shift.”

“And you think it’s a good idea to do it yourself instead?” Zack asked with a scowl. “What if I wasn’t the one seeing you? They told me he broke the handcuffs.”

Shadow remembered that face. “You’re the one who took Days Gone By from me at the harbor.”

Zack approached him. “The painting didn’t belong to you, so of course I did. You fractured the sternum and two ribs of a human detective. He’s still at home recovering because of you.”

“He was in my way, so of course I did,” Shadow mocked. “That’s the point of escaping.” He realized Oscar’s and Zack’s scents mixed together, but it was faint. It became obvious they were partners.

Oscar released him. “Zack, Shadow already confessed. We have to book him now. There’s a lot of evidence to present in court.”

Zack nodded. “We’ll let you know if we need your help. Thanks.”

Shadow raised a brow as Oscar left the room with a scowl. From what he’d heard, Oscar Boss only participated in cases whenever asked. Shadow regarded Zack. “I’m not going to repeat myself,” he said and sat at the table. When he looked at Zack, he saw Zack’s attention on the open door.

Stevens came in. “Well, Oscar just left. He didn’t look happy,” he said and sat across from Shadow. “Anyway, you told us you didn’t do anything beyond Maxwell Caddell and Jason Montgomery. We’ll make sure to confirm whether that’s true or not.”

“Good. Now, I want to contact my lawyer,” Shadow said. They would throw him in jail either way, but he wanted to find any possible way to get out as soon as he could. He needed to show Maxwell the new him.

ADULT EXCERPT

“I have a feeling the interrogation won’t be easy,” Shadow said as he followed Oscar into the apartment. He closed the door behind him and raised a brow when Oscar turned to him.

Oscar took a step closer. “Do you think there’s some truth to what Duke Augustus told you about Maxwell?”

Shadow shrugged. “Probably. By today’s standards, Maxwell would be considered ancient. His great-grandsons must be a couple of years older than I am,” he answered. He walked around Oscar, toward his bedroom. “Now, I’m going to take a shower and go to sleep. I’m exhausted.”

“You’re not going to eat anything?”

“You don’t have anything to eat in this apartment. The stores are closed at four in the morning,” Shadow said as he continued on his way. He looked over his shoulder at the sound of Oscar approaching him. “What do you want, Oscar?”

Oscar gazed into Shadow’s eyes. “Tonight was proof that you can be a good guy, don’t you think? You don’t have to create walls around you when you’re with people who won’t hurt you.”

Shadow looked at him for a prolonged moment. “You didn’t answer my question,” he uttered. He tilted his head when Oscar glanced at his lips. With a sigh, Shadow gripped Oscar’s shirt collar and pulled him closer. He pressed his lips against Oscar’s and moved away, his heart thumping. Oscar’s green eyes grew wide. “That was a thanks for saving me earlier, even if it was your duty.”

“That’s not how you should thank people, though,” Oscar said and leaned closer until their noses nearly touched. “Do you thank everyone like this?”

“Only you because you look at me like you haven’t eaten in weeks,” Shadow said with a grin.

Oscar bent down and picked Shadow up, taking him by surprise. He wrapped Shadow’s legs around his waist and pinned him against the wall. “I’d like to give you a reward, then. You helped us catch our main suspect.”

Shadow moved his head back when Oscar was about to kiss him. “Isn’t this a reward for you instead?” he asked with a chuckle. It wasn’t that Oscar’s intent focus on him bothered him. Quite the opposite. Oscar only nodded to his question, his attention on Shadow’s lips. Shadow touched Oscar’s cheek and slid his thumb along Oscar’s jaw. “Okay, why not?”

Snapping out of it, Oscar was taken aback. “Wait, are you sure?”

“If you want me to reject you, that’s fine with—” Shadow didn’t have time to finish, Oscar gave him a deep kiss. Their lips locked, and Shadow closed his eyes. He was still tired, so he rested his arms over Oscar’s broad shoulders. Oscar moved him away from the wall and carried him somewhere. “Won’t Zack get angry?”

“Don’t talk about him right now. You’ll ruin the mood,” Oscar said as he walked into a dark room. He lay Shadow on the bed and took Shadow’s pants off for him.

Shadow watched as Oscar worked on getting them undressed. He sat up while Oscar opened the top drawer of the nightstand and reached into it. Before he could comment on the awkward silence, Oscar climbed onto the bed and yanked him closer by the hips. Shadow’s breath got caught in his throat when Oscar engulfed his cock with his hot mouth.

Oscar spread Shadow’s legs farther to the sides as he bobbed his head. Shadow’s quiet moans fired him up. He teased a slicked finger against Shadow’s hole and pushed the tip in. As he thrust his finger, he came back up and kissed the curve of Shadow’s neck. He gathered Shadow’s wrists with his free hand and pinned them over Shadow’s head.

“You’re too much,” Shadow uttered, drowning in pleasure. Oscar nibbled his neck, causing a jolt down his back. Shadow tried to move his wrists, but Oscar kept them in place. That turned Shadow on all the more. He didn’t know how to handle Oscar and the intensity of his affection, yet he couldn’t help but like it.

Adding another finger, Oscar licked one of Shadow’s nipples and sucked on it. Shadow buckled underneath Oscar. Oscar pulled out and moved Shadow closer to him by the hips. He rested Shadow’s ass up against his thighs as he put a condom on.

Shadow’s heart pounded when Oscar looked into his eyes. Those eyes were enough to convince him that Oscar didn’t have Zack on his mind. “I don’t get it. Why do you like me this much?”

“Ask me that when we’re done and you can’t walk,” Oscar said, and Shadow gaped at him. Oscar guided the tip of his cock into Shadow’s hole and thrust forward. Oscar gave Shadow short motions of his hips until they pressed against Shadow’s ass.

Shadow gripped the bed covers under his hands as Oscar moved. His heart thumped. Oscar pulled halfway out and back in several times. Within a few moments, Shadow became comfortable, but Oscar maintained the same steady pace. Shadow placed his feet on the mattress and moved his hips against Oscar’s cock. Pleasure increased, and so did his breathing.