Jake awakened, instantly on alert. Something wasn't right and whatever it was jolted him out of a deep slumber. Shayna shifted position beside him, momentarily distracting him as he caught a glimpse of her bare breasts before she turned onto her side away from him. He reached out to pull her to him then froze as it hit him: there was another male shifter nearby...very near.
Carefully easing off the bed, he looked around the room but saw no one there. The window was open to catch the late spring breezes but a quick check confirmed the window screen was intact. Still naked, Jake left the room to check the rest of the apartment for any signs of an intruder. Although he saw no one, the scent of the unknown shifter was pretty strong which meant he had been inside Shayna's home very recently.
Pissed off and spurred into action, Jake hurriedly dressed and locked Shayna's bedroom window. She was still soundly sleeping, curled onto her side, with her hair all over the pillow. He gently brushed her hair aside and placed a soft kiss on her lips then went about checking all the window locks in the apartment. When he walked into the living room, a slight movement on the balcony caught his attention. Just as he slid the door open, a large man moved out of the shadows and jumped over the railing, adeptly landing on his feet, and took off running.
Jake immediately followed suit but the man hopped onto a waiting motorcycle and sped away. Jake gave chase for several blocks and would have caught him if he'd been able to shift, but that wouldn't have been a good idea on the busy streets of D.C. Besides, he'd left Shayna alone in the apartment and he couldn't risk anything happening to her.
Jake abandoned his pursuit of the shifter and backtracked to Shayna's praying she was okay. He hoped the shifter hadn't created a diversion for him in order for someone to cause her harm. He couldn't imagine why another shifter would be interested in her but he was determined to find out. For now though, he needed to get back to her to make sure she was safe.
When he reached her building, he realized he didn't have a door key. The only way in was the way he left. After looking around to be sure no one was watching, he quickly scaled the balconies below Shayna's until he reached her fourth floor apartment. He berated himself for leaving the sliding door open and his heart pounded in his chest as he rushed to her bedroom. Shayna was still sound asleep in the exact same position as when he left. He breathed a sigh of relief and went back into the living room. Nothing seemed out of place but the shifter's scent still lingered in the apartment. It angered him to no end to know that someone had gotten this close before he sensed them.
Stepping onto the balcony, he looked around for signs of anyone watching the apartment. He didn't sense any other shifters nearby and figured the guy must have come alone. As far as he knew, D.C. was neutral territory just like every other major city. All kinds of beings blended in undetected by the human population but they were all pretty much aware of each other and respected each other's space. That said, he couldn't figure out why someone would bother with them.
Jake looked at the time. It was almost 8 o'clock in the evening so he guessed Sebastian would be home by now. Digging his cell phone out of his pocket, he pressed the speed dial number to call his brother. When Sebastian answered, Jake asked him to fill him in on anything important. Sebastian didn't really have anything of interest to relay other than their father was pissed that Jake took off the way he did. And the St. Simon thing was stalled at the moment. Their father had asked Gerard St. Simon to meet with him this coming Friday but had yet to receive a response to the invitation.
Jake took all this in, his mind turning a mile a minute. He was quiet while Sebastian spoke as was usual, but his brother could tell something was up.
"What's going on?" Sebastian asked. "I can tell something's wrong so spill it."
"Someone was in Shayna's apartment a little while ago," Jake answered, not bothering to beat around the bush. "A wolf. No one I know."
"What happened? Did he try to attack you or Shayna?" Sebastian sounded just as angry as Jake felt and he most likely was.
"No, no. He came into the apartment while we were asleep but I don't think he was in here long before I sensed him." Jake sounded much calmer than he felt. "I chased him but I didn't catch him. I wanted to beat the daylights out of him but that left Shayna alone in here. I couldn't be sure there wasn't someone else lurking, waiting for a chance to get to her."
"Why would anyone come after Shayna? Or do you think you were the intended target and maybe he wanted to lure you to a more secluded area?" Sebastian asked the very questions that were running through Jake's mind.
"I have no idea. I just hope I don't have to wait too long to find out." Jake paused then said through gritted teeth, "And when I do, I just might do some major damage."
The brothers spoke a few minutes more about taking some necessary precautions then Jake clicked the phone off. He stood on the balcony looking in the direction the intruder took off, wondering who he was and what he wanted. He doubted his intention was to attack because he ran away instead of confronting Jake. But then he could have been trying to lure him into a trap somewhere. There were too many unknowns for his liking and he couldn't risk anything happening to Shayna. He was going to have to wake her and convince her to go back to New York with him. That was his home base and he could protect her better on his own turf.
Jake went back into the bedroom and watched her for a few moments as she slept. She was so beautiful and so pure that his beast raged in his chest, impatient to truly mate with her and claim her as his own. The thought of anyone coming near her, harming her, made him see red for a moment before he came back to his senses.
Kneeling beside her, he ran his hand along her neck and shoulder as reassurance that she was okay and made a silent vow that he would keep her safe no matter what happened. He wondered how he was going to explain everything to her as he traced random patterns on her arm down to her fingertips. Although it wasn't his intention when he initially touched her, his manhood began to stir as he slid his fingers over her smooth skin. Running his hand along her hip and down her thigh, Jake watched her face for any signs of awakening. She continued to breathe evenly and deeply, not stirring the slightest bit. However, even in sleep she responded to his touch as evidenced by the warm, sweet scent of her arousal emanating from within the curly thatch of hair before him.
Easing her onto her back, Jake hooked his hands behind her knees and opened her to his hungry gaze. Already her juices were coating the pouty inner lips of her sex compelling him to sample her flavor once more. Shayna's delicate aroma drew him in as he lowered his outstretched tongue to capture the dew escaping her opening. She moaned in her sleep as he worked his tongue in slow circles along her lips up to her swollen clit where he licked the sensitive flesh before drawing it into his mouth. Shayna moaned louder, slowly coming awake, as Jake alternately nipped and sucked her lips and clit. His cock strained against his jeans, aching to plunge into her body, but he wanted to take his time. Forking his tongue, he licked back down to the source of all that sweetness and proceeded to lap up every drop.
