“Ernie, it’s not working!” I yelped as Officer Jensen opened the door and pointed at me.

“Who is Ernie?”

I looked back in the passenger seat. Ernie was gone. Of course he was. I slid out of my seat and stood up. In my heels I was taller than Officer Jensen. I stumbled forward, one of my heels catching in a bump in the road. Jensen caught me with a grunt. I looked up at him, our faces only inches apart.

I breathed him in, and a strange sensation uncoiled inside me. A feeling as if I could see into Officer Jensen and everything he ever wanted in a woman. The need to be the one person a woman turned to. Different than what I’d done with Steven, but still . . .

Officer Jensen wanted someone he could rescue and play the hero to her damsel in distress. Someone he could save. I went loose in his arms and let him hold me up.

His eyes softened and he seemed to be drinking me in. “Alena.”

“Officer. I have things to do. I need you to let me go.” The words purred out of me. “I need your help.”

The words vibrated in the air, an undercurrent of tension that wrapped around Officer Jensen slowly, tightening until the hold I had on him was complete. His eyes never left mine.

“I can help you.”

“Thank you.” The words breathed out from my lips and into his mouth. He tipped his head as if he would kiss me. I turned my face to the side and the kiss landed on my jaw. “I have to go. You . . .” I was going to tell him to stop following me. But really, maybe having him on my side and with me wasn’t such a bad idea. “You tail me. Make sure no one sneaks up on us.”

He smiled and gently let me go. “I can do that. I can protect you better than—never mind.”

“Better than who?” I whispered, weighting my words with that same sensation of wrapping him up. He grimaced.

“Better than Remo.”

Well, that was interesting. “I thought he was your boss?”

“That doesn’t make him good at looking after his people. Especially not the women he chases. You deserve better than him. He doesn’t know how special you are.” He touched my face gently. I stepped away, not liking the direction the conversation was headed.

“I’ve got to go.”

“I’ll follow. You can count on me.”

I backed away, turned, and slid into the car. I slumped into my seat and Ernie puffed back into existence beside me. I glared at him. “Thanks for the help.”

“Well, there was nothing I could do to help you figure him out without shooting him with an arrow. Which you said you didn’t want me to do, right?” He lifted an eyebrow and I shook my head. I did not want him shooting anyone with his arrows. “I jumped ahead. Zeus is waiting for you at the club.”

I pulled back into traffic and drove the rest of the way to the club with a police escort. A few minutes later I stopped in front of Charlie’s Club. The majority of the people lined up were men. But not your regular, average-Joe men; no, these males stood out. Men dressed in leather and chains, some with masks on. Others holding long whips and leashes attached to others in the line.

I turned to Ernie, a slow-growing horror rising through me. A den of iniquity was what I was looking at, and I knew it. “What kind of club is this exactly?”

“One you’re going to stand out in like a sore thumb.”

Sore thumb? Oh, if only that were the worst of my problems.

CHAPTER 12

After parking the car and making sure Officer Jensen didn’t follow me into the club, I squared my shoulders and put myself into the line. The men around me swiveled to look at me, more than one giving me raised eyebrows and a frown.

The man immediately in front of me wore nothing but studded leather that included pants, shirt, and a face mask that covered him from his nose down over his chin. “You’re at the wrong club, sweetheart.” His words were remarkably clear considering his lips were covered.

I stood a little straighter. This was business, and I could do that. “I’m meeting someone, thank you very much.”

He tipped his head to the side. “You thinking of coming to the dark side?”

I frowned. “I don’t know what you mean.”

He flexed his arms. “I swing for both teams, I’d take you on if you’re looking for company. Show you the . . . ropes.” With a wink he held up a thin line of braided rope, quickly tying it into a complicated knot. “A tall beauty like you is hard to find.” I frowned and he laughed. “Oh, she’s cute when she’s angry.”

Cute when I was angry? I shot a hand out and caught him around the throat without a thought. I lifted him up off the ground as easily as I’d lift my purse to check for change. “I don’t think cute and angry go together in the same sentence with me.”

Ernie hooted with laughter while the man I held up kicked his legs and what I could see of his face purpled. The line around us pulled back, creating a perfect circle. But not one of them made a move to help their fellow leather-clad friend.

“Now you’re getting the hang of this, Alena,” Ernie said.

I dropped the man, more than a little horrified at what I’d done. “I’m sorry.”

He choked at my feet, and rubbing his neck he slid the lower part of his mask off and took a deep breath. A white grin flashed up at me. “You’ll fit in just fine here.” He waved a hand behind him as he stood. “Jimmy, let this one in. She’s going to be fun.”