The Mercenary and the Shifters (The Turning Stone Chronicles) Read Online Free

a lot for one person.”
    She grabbed the tumbler and gulped the amber liquid in one swallow. Then she set the glass gently on the granite counter.
    “Do that often?” Mike asked, amazed at how smoothly the whiskey went down for her.
    “A bit more now than I used to.” She moved the empty glass closer to him, indicating he should refill it. “What’s next? Do we call the cops?”
    “Considering your history, and your current mix-up with someone who is possibly on the illegal side, informing the police may not be good. You might be implicated more than the shooter. In fact, I’m surprised all the gunfire hasn’t caused law enforcement to descend on us already.”
    “The neighbors are far enough away they probably think fireworks are going off. From Labor Day through July we hear a lot of fireworks in the area. Sometimes they even start earlier.”
    “In that case, I suggest we clean up the mess in the room, call the glass company, and order a new window. If no one’s the wiser, it gives me time to figure out who’s after you. In the meantime, you need a safer place to stay.”
    “I could stay in the guest house. The windows are intact and the doors lock. What about the house?”
    “I’ll stand guard tonight. Tomorrow I’ll get some wood from the local home improvement store and board the windows until you can get them fixed.”
    “And afterwards?”
    “Once you’re secured, I’ll go to my hotel.”
    “I’d feel safer if you stayed.” She lifted the tumbler he’d filled. The liquid trembled in the glass.
    Mike studied her. Fear etched her face. Something flickered in her eyes that he couldn’t read, and he looked deeper into the green depths. A man could get lost in eyes like hers.
    She’s a job , he reminded himself. Nothing more. I’m not rescuing her for some altruistic reason, so nothing’s going to go wrong here. Cold hard cash is my commitment. As long as I stay on the path, all will be well.
    “You could bunk in the east wing. It would be easier to keep track of whoever’s installing the security system if you were here, wouldn’t it?”
    Now she wants a security system, after the damage is done . But she had a valid point, and she had hired him to update her security.
    “We’ll see.”
    Her face brightened, the panic in her eyes flickering out for a moment. She smiled at him, her expression sucking him into the vortex of her charm.
    Cold, hard cash , he repeated. Cold, hard cash .
    Mike’s presence in her bedroom as she gathered overnight items for the guesthouse comforted Fiona. It also set jitters off in her stomach. The man was hot and muscular and very alpha. He’d removed a sword and gun from his duffel bag and slung them, along with a bandolier of ammunition, over his shoulder after they’d been attacked. The sight of his weapons and his protective behavior did unfamiliar, disconcerting things to her.
    “Does the guest house have a phone?” he asked over her shoulder.
    Fiona jumped and slammed her palm to her chest. “Jeez, don’t sneak up on me. I didn’t hear you cross the room.”
    “Sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
    “After what happened tonight, it won’t take much to make me jump. And, no, it doesn’t. But I’ve got my cell.”
    “I’ll need the number.”
    “Ditto, on yours.”
    “I think you need to take your gun. The one you pulled on me.”
    “After tonight, I’ll sleep with that baby under my pillow.”
    Mike studied her. “You’re certain you don’t have an idea who might want you dead? What about the group you’re dealing with? What was the name again?”
    “OmniWorld? I think I’m more important to them alive, at the moment.”
    A knowing smile flashed across Mike’s face, and she realized he’d tricked her into revealing the name of the cartel she’d withheld earlier.
    “At the moment?”
    She thought about the cargo Mr. Swindell’s associate had forced her to ship. Had he’d lied about the cigarettes? If he had, she needed