Dirty Looks (Dirt Track Dogs: The Second Lap Book 1) by P. Jameson Page A

him.
    “No, not literally. But lording their power over humans, making them do things they don’t wanna do. Think mafia, but with the ability to become an actual beast. They’ve taken over Memphis and people are scared. The hunters helped keep the scales level. We were defenders of the innocent, not the other way around.”
    Drake’s frown deepened. “So why not just stay there if they need you so bad?”
    Aaron shook his head, his eyes briefly finding Lexington. She was staring at him like he was Hannibal Lecter. Like whatever fond conclusions she’d come to in their short time had been obliterated.
    Damn shame. Maybe he could change her mind later. Because the idea of the fox thinking he was a monster left him feeling ill. Sick deep down inside where no one had reached in a very long time.
    He sighed, pain making it hard to breathe.
    “Something happened in the last month. Power has shifted, no pun intended. The changers running Memphis… one group of them, the Alley Cats, have been crippled. No one knows how, but they can’t shift anymore. They’re no more a threat than any normal human so the hunters aren’t stretched thin anymore. They can handle things. And…” His eyes caught on Drake’s mate, Ella, where she stood next to Lexington. “I can’t do it anymore. Can’t be a soldier for that army. Not when I’ve seen how you guys live here, how you’ve cared for my sister. How you’re a family. The hunters mean well, they do, but they can’t see the difference between a peaceful shifter and what they’ve come to expect you to be. And I can’t be a part of that. Ya understand what I’m saying?”
    Drake nodded slowly, tonguing the inside of his lip that was clearly split. He glanced at Beast, the corner of his mouth eking upward a millimeter. “You boys were right,” he told him, and the dreaded up brawler lifted one shoulder as if to say of course .
    “Right about what?” Aaron asked, shoving the rag under his nose to catch the blood.
    Drake pegged him with his eerie wolf glare. “That you’d do the right thing in the end.”
    “Yeah, well, thanks for the faith, Alpha .”
    Drake smirked. “Please, asshole. Not killing you was my show of faith.” His voice dropped, serious. “I had to be sure. The pack is always my top priority. My mate and family. Always will be. If hunters were coming after us, I had to be ready.”
    Aaron nodded. He knew Drake had the responsibility of the pack on his shoulders. And he was glad he was a hardass. Made him a damn good alpha.
    “All right,” Ella spoke up. “So we’re calling this settled, right? You did your male thing and punched it out real good, and now it’s finished, right?”
    Drake grunted some kind of affirmation.
    “Sounds good to me,” Aaron agreed.
    “Great. It’s good to have you back, Aaron.” She grinned big. “Maybe you can introduce us to your friend now.”
    Her gaze went to Lexington, curious but friendly, just like she’d been the first time she’d met Aaron, even knowing his unreasonable bias against shifters. Those days felt like ages ago when really it was only a handful of months. But all the Dirt Track Dogs had given him a chance. They hadn’t judged him right out the gate, which went a long way to vouching for their character.
    Now Lexington and her vixens had the same chance. Whatever she needed from the pack, there was a good chance she’d get it.
    Aaron gestured for her to go ahead, but she just stared, her eyes dancing between him and Drake and the other two. She cleared her throat roughly, jamming her hands in the back pockets of her jeans.
    “I’m Lexington,” was all she said.
    He squinted through his swollen eye at her. She didn’t look afraid. She looked angry. Certainly not the way she had before Drake walked in. Before she’d seemed… hopeful . She’d looked how he wanted to feel. Like things were finally going to be all right.
    Ella popped her hand out and introduced herself as well as the others,