Jett growled loudly and menacingly at them. They were not taking his mate away to do god knew what to her. He was going to stop them if it was the last thing he did. Not because she was his mate, though that helped. Nope. It was strictly about doing what was right.
Taking stock of the situation and the cramped space they were in, Jett felt like a trapped animal. He couldn’t launch himself at them since the cafe was so small. He had to snap at their legs, snarling as he avoided the butt of one gun and a few kicks.
“Just shoot the fucker,” the woman called out.
“He’s a wolf,” one of her companions said. “Imagine how pleased the boss will be if we manage to get a witch and a wolf.”
While the woman pondered this, Jett took his chance. He lunged forward on his agile paws and bit into the bald man’s leg. Blood filled his mouth and he tugged at the flesh, doing significant damage. He wasn’t entirely sure if he had nicked an artery, but when the man fell to the ground, he was quickly circled by a large pool of blood. Jett spat out a large chuck of material and skin, refusing to swallow the vile piece of witch hunter.
The woman aimed at Jett and fired. He narrowly dodged the shot spewing from the shell. As she was working to aim at him again, Jett kept moving. He was banking on her having bad aim, and moving targets were always harder to nail down. It wasn’t like he could stand guard over Selene’s body. He was scared that if he was too close, spray from the blast would hit her.
Shit, he was doing a piss poor job of protecting her.
At least he had been at the cafe to intercept the attack. Had he not stopped for coffee, Selene would have been gone. Long before he even knew she had been taken. It was quite the coincidence he had decided to get coffee before going on his mission.
Jett’s mind was reeling as he dodged another shot. Now the woman had to reload her shotgun or use her knife. Jett was going for the large man and he would deal with the big knife after.
Sliding on the waxed linoleum floor, Jett skidded as he tried to launch himself at the witch hunter. A shot rang out, making his ears buzz. He was shaking his head to regain his composure when he saw the kid leaving the safety of the counter with a large silver pitcher in his hands.
With a loud grunt, the boy threw the contents of the pitcher toward the second man. The witch hunter immediately dropped his gun, his hands going to his face. It wasn’t until Jett saw the man’s burning, steaming red skin that he caught on. The barista had just thrown boiling water at the attackers. Jett was pleasantly surprised by the balls it had taken to do that. He yipped encouragingly in the kid’s direction as he gritted his teeth at the woman.
The boy grabbed the fallen gun and pointed it from one attacker to the other.
“I-I’ve c-called the cops,” he said with a squeaky, terrified voice. “You seriously messed up my parents’ shop and they are going to k-kill me when they see this. So unless you want to d-die, I s-suggest you drop your w-weapons.”
The woman cackled and lunged toward the kid with the knife. Terrified, the kid fired, shattering glass. Jett saw this as his chance. He bounded onto a table and threw himself at the woman. With the weight of him knocking her back, she fell to the ground. Jett snapped at her face, but her screams of terror were enough for him. She wouldn’t cause any more trouble for the time being.
Off in the distance, the sirens of the incoming cop cars were a relief. But Jett had to grab Selene and go. He knew the sheriff’s office in Salem was mostly wolf shifters and their enforcer was the one who had orchestrated this rescue mission for all the Bishop witches, but he had to leave. On the off chance that the officers who showed up weren’t in on the gig, he needed to get the witch to safety.
Jett shifted back into his human form and tried to put on what remained of his pants. They were ripped and in pretty bad shape, but at least he could cover his junk. Shifters were one hundred percent all right with nudity, but the barista was about a second away from joining Selene in the land of the unconscious, so Jett thought it would be best if he tried to dress himself.
“Think you can handle them until the cops get here? They must be only a minute out.”
The kid nodded. “I-I think so. What are you going to do with Selene?”
Jett looked down at the woman who was still passed out. His wolf was overjoyed that its mate was safe, but Jett wasn’t looking forward to taking her to his home. That was the order he'd been given by his alpha. Now that he knew who Selene was, it felt like an imposition.
It was too intimate, and it would only serve to confuse his wolf. He couldn’t have that.
“I’m taking her someplace safe,” Jett answered the kid.
The young man looked unsure. “Shouldn’t you stay here and give the cops your statement?”
“You can give them my number.” Jett jotted it down on a napkin and tossed it to the kid. “I’m working with Axel, the sheriff, so it’s all good.” Jett watched the young man take the napkin. Sweat rolled off him. It smelled almost as bad as his raging anxiety. “Don’t worry about her,” he tipped his chin in Selene’s direction. “I’ll take good care of her.”
His wolf would sure make certain of that.
“You did good, kid. You were really brave.”
The barista gave him a small smile as if he wasn’t used to being complimented. It made Jett feel bad for earlier when he had all but chewed out the kid for being slow with the milk steamer.
Jett slid on his shirt which was a torn mess, but better than nothing. It took very little effort to pick up Selene. He tried not to get caught up by the fact she was in his arms. Her curves were all soft and subtly calling his name. Her scent tickled his nose. It was a mix of vanilla and brown sugar, and it made his mouth water. She smelled like the most delicious treat.
But she was one delectable looking snack.
He was going to have a hell of a time trying to resist her.
Chapter Six
Selene
Selene had the sudden urge to run, but she didn’t know why. Her eyes were firmly closed and refused to open. She was seconds away from panicking, and her breath kept catching. Her mind swirled as she tried to remember just what the hell had made her so upset.
She had been at her favorite cafe. The cheese Danish she had so been craving was only a few feet away from her, locked in its display case. There had been Lester, struggling with the steamer. And Mr. Tall and Grumpy.
Oh.
Then she remembered.
The irate stranger had turned into a wolf. The man had actually disappeared to be replaced by a large black wolf with very intense brown eyes. Selene couldn’t quite remember anything after that. She had the sneaking suspicion she had fainted.
It had happened before when she was a little girl and her cat had almost been run over by a car. The way her head felt all woozy and her body had refused to cooperate then, too. It also happened every now and again when her blood sugar levels dipped between a certain level.
She slowly opened her eyes to realize she was in a speeding truck. Mr. Tall and Grumpy was at the wheel in ripped clothes. Selene tried to blink away the illusion. She must have taken a hit to the head if she was having a hallucination this real about being kidnapped. She pinched herself, hoping to snap out of it. Instead of waking her, it hurt like a bitch.