Shift Happens (A Carus Novel Book 1) by J. C. McKenzie Page A

of the games.” He spoke the truth. John and I split the wins pretty much fifty-fifty, leaving poor Ryan out. He sucked at cards. Luckily, he wasn’t a sore loser. This last week in captivity would’ve been unbearable if I had to deal with two Werewolves having snits.
    “Purge you,” John said, but it lacked heat.
    Biting back a laugh, I shuffled the cards. John and Ryan were good friends and bickered like an old couple.
    I dealt the next hand and ignored John’s brooding look as he picked his cards up. Lousy poker face. Guess he blamed my dealing for his bad hand.
    The slamming of the front door startled the cards out of my grasp. They sprayed out in all directions. Turning in unison, the three of us watched Wick stalk around the corner. Ryan and John stood up, while I remained in my seat, one of those oversized armchairs. I sank into its plush cushions and waited.
    Wick stopped in front of me. I tried not to be impressed by his dominant, attractive appearance. I failed.
    Wick looked me up and down. His brow furrowed.
    “What?” I asked.
    “Try to look pathetic,” he said. “And…”
    The sound of the front door opening and closing cut him off.
    “What the hell?” I asked.
    Wick waved me off. Biting down a terse response, I looked at the other Weres. Their muscles tensed and their weight shifted to their toes. If they’d been in wolf form, their hackles would be raised.
    The unmistakable scent of dried blood and dead meat hit my nose before a solid Asian man walked into the room.
    “Vampire,” I breathed.
    “Lovely welcome,” the Vampire’s smooth voice rolled over my skin and raised goosebumps. He floated farther into the room. “I don’t know what I was thinking, expecting house manners from dogs.”
    John’s chest rumbled. One look from Wick stopped his growling. The Vampire wiped his hands off, as if touching the doorknob had soiled him. He looked around the room with obvious distaste and sneered at John. “It appears you still need to house train some of your pack.”
    I frowned. The Vampire stole lines from my insult book, though it didn’t sound so witty coming from him.
    The need to defend the Weres concerned me more. They’re not pack .
    Eyeing the Vampire, I decided he wasn’t Lucien, but probably high up in the horde hierarchy. He was also one of the biggest Asian men I’d ever seen. Not sumo wrestler big, either. His muscles strained under his well-tailored suit. Black hair cut short and chiseled features made him more handsome than he deserved.
    The Vampire moved to stand in front of me, beside Wick. “Are you going to introduce us?” he asked.
    I stood after he spoke; not out of respect, but necessity. Sitting down wasn’t a good defensive position.
    “Allan, this is our prisoner, Andrea.”
    Wick used my full name. Thank the beast Goddess! I didn’t want to be on familiar terms with Allan.
    “Allan?” I asked.
    He dipped his head in acknowledgement. His gaze travelled up and down my body, assessing me.
    “Doesn’t exactly inspire a lot of fear,” I stated.
    Allan flashed his fangs. A Vampire smile unnerved me no matter how many times I saw one. “Is that what you would like, little girl?” His voice offered promises I didn’t want.
    I shrugged and refused to look away.
    “Do you have a Chinese name?” I asked, purposely making a mistake. With his high cheekbones, strong jaw and large eyes, his features appeared more Japanese. I bit my tongue from laughing at his expression. He looked like he’d bitten into a rotten apple.
    “I’m Japanese,” he said with a flat voice.
    “Oh? I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.”
    All three Weres snapped their heads to me, scenting both lies. Wick wasn’t pleased. He stepped forward, like he wanted to throttle me.
    Allan’s hand on Wick’s chest stopped him. “Easy, Wick.”
    Wick glanced down at Allan’s fingers like he wanted to bite them. He must’ve thought better of it because he rested his weight on his heels.
    Assured of