To Catch a Snake: Book Three - Supernatural Bounty Hunter Romance Novellas

  To Catch A Snake

  (Book Three, Supernatural Bounty Hunter Romance Novellas)

  By E A Price

  Copyright ©2014 by Elizabeth Ann Price

  All rights reserved. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.

  Thank you to Linda Garrison Gray for editing suggestions.

  Disclaimer

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Front cover

  All images used to create the front cover have been deemed to be in the public domain, and available for reuse and modification. No offense is meant in the use of them.

  The palm tree wallpaper was found at http://www.public-domain-image.com/nature-landscapes-public-domain-images-pictures/sunrise-public-domain-images-pictures/sunrise-palm-trees.jpg.html

  The male figure was found at http://www.cardioworkoutsguides.com/six-pack-abs-pictures/

  The handcuffs picture was authored by Evan-Amos, and was found on Wikimedia Commons at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Handcuffs-Black.jpg

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter TwentyOne

  Thank you

  Chapter One

  “Okay, okay… one second… mon nom est Ling Ma… erm… hold on… mon amant… son nom est Myron Sanders…”

  Ling Ma flipped through her French dictionary.

  The receptionist rolled his eyes. “Mademoiselle, I do speak English,” he said in a crisp, French accent.

  Ling let out a sigh of relief. “I ‘ave come ‘eer…”

  The receptionist gave her a sour look. “I can understand your American accent; you do not need to put on a French accent.”

  She blushed furiously. Of course, she didn’t, she was just so damn nervous, and she wasn’t thinking straight. Jeez, she must have sounded like Inspector Clouseau.

  Ling Ma was a red panda shifter. For the last four months, she had been dating her boss, and gorilla shifter, Myron Sanders.

  Everything was going great, until a little over a month ago, Myron announced he would be working at the Paris branch of the firm for three months. Ling, at first, had been excited; she assumed that, as his personal assistant, she would be going, too. Alas, no. Myron insisted she remain in Playa Lunar, and keep an eye on things for him. He said it was so important that she couldn’t even come to Paris for a visit.

  Ling argued and argued while her panda let out little growls, but all to no avail. When Myron left, he told her he would miss her, and Ling huffily admitted she would, too. They talked on the phone often, and indulged in plenty of phone sex, but it just wasn’t the same.

  Now, five weeks since he left, Ling couldn’t contain herself and decided to surprise him. She had loads of frequent flyer miles piled up and was due vacation days, so she decided just to go for it. She figured Myron might be a little put-out, but she was certain she could find something to distract him.

  So, after an agonizingly long, boring flight, she was in Paris. And she was loving it! Her panda was bouncing up and down with excitement.

  The taxi ride from the airport to Myron’s hotel was divine; she couldn’t wait for Myron to take her out and do some sight-seeing, after they’d caught up of course…

  The snooty receptionist gave her a look.

  Ling sighed. As much as she was enjoying her time in Paris, she was kind of tired from the long flight, and not in the mood to put up with any crap. “Look, I’ve come all the way from America to surprise my boyfriend, we’ve been apart for five weeks and I want to surprise him. My name is Ling Ma, and I called ahead to have my name added to his room.”

  He softened a little. “Yes, I can see your booking here. I will get you a key, and arrange for your luggage to be transported to the suite.”

  Ling smiled and was pleased when he beamed and winked at her in return. She preened as she always did when a man flirted with her. Yes, she loved Myron, and was hopeful that he would ask her to marry him, but she wasn’t dead.

  Myron, like her, had previously been married. When Ling started working at Carver Industries, Myron and his wife were still together. Although Myron had been very taken with Ling from the beginning, and made overtures to her, she had been adamant that she wouldn’t have anything to do with a married man. Having been on the receiving end of a cheating partner, she wasn’t keen to put Myron’s wife through that either.

  However, Myron and his wife broke up anyway, and after a respectable amount of time, Ling agreed to go on a date with him. Now they were well on the way to marriage.

  After her first marriage, Ling was a little gun-shy, but Myron was worth the risk.

  Admittedly, she was a little saddened by the fact that Myron had a vasectomy. He already had two kids, now terrifying teenagers, and after they were born, he decided he didn’t want anymore. Ling had hoped to have her own kids one day, but at least she could be an auntie to her brother’s kids, and her best friend Carly’s, too. Of course, if Carly’s kids turned out like Carly’s mate, an asshole wolf shifter called Jackson, she might rethink that.

  Maybe Ling was just a teeny-weeny bit jealous that Carly met her true mate. As great as Myron was, he wasn’t her true mate. But, he was good looking – even though he was sort of running to fat, he was rich, charming, funny and good in bed. So, he was as good as a true mate.

  The receptionist passed her a key and motioned for a bellboy to take her luggage. “I hope you enjoy your stay, mademoiselle.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Ah, merci.”

  Ling giggled flirtatiously as her panda simpered. “Merci.”

  “Bon.”

  *

  Ling snorted awake as she heard loud voices. She blinked rapidly, looking around the unfamiliar room. She licked her lips as she remembered where she was.

  After getting to the room, she had a quick shower and then decided to surprise Myron. She stripped and laid on the massive king-sized bed, impatiently waiting for her honey. She must have been more tired than she thought, and had fallen asleep while waiting.

  A feeling of panic swept through her as she heard muffled voices. Shit! What if Myron’s kids were visiting?! She doubted Myron would be thrilled at his kids catching his girlfriend in the buff. Her panda whined.

  Ling had left her clothes in the bathroom when she showered. If she could just get to them, everything would be fine.

  As quietly as possible, she rolled off the bed and was tiptoeing to the bathroom when she accidentally fell over an, unfortunately, placed footstool. She crashed to the floor and let out a resounding ‘oof.’

/>   The doors to the bedroom burst open.

  “What the hell?” shrieked Jacinta, a gorilla shifter and Myron’s wife.

  Ling scrambled to her feet and grabbed a pillow from the bed, desperately trying to cover her abundant curves.

  The panda reddened. “Jacinta… what…”

  Myron hurried into the room. He looked at Ling in shock, before his naturally florid face turned puce. He quivered at the accusing stare of his wife.

  “What is your secretary doing, cavorting naked in your hotel room?” demanded Jacinta, frostily.

  “I… I don’t know…” spluttered Myron. “Maybe she’s lost,” he suggested, weakly.

  “Lost?” hissed Jacinta. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  Myron spread his hands out and started burbling.

  “Another secretary? Really? Myron, couldn’t you at least have the decency to cheat on me with a someone a little more distinguished than this cheap, little creature?”

  Ling’s panda yowled in displeasure. “Hey! I’m not cheap!” Alright, maybe that didn’t have the same gravitas as it would if she were clothed, but this woman had no right to speak to her that way.

  Jacinta let out a rumbling sound and Ling cowered. It was sometimes easy to forget the aloof, poised woman before her could actually shift into a hulking gorilla at will.

  “What is she talking about?” whispered Ling. “Why does she think you’re cheating on her?”

  Myron wouldn’t meet her eyes; instead, he chose to focus on his feet.

  Jacinta let out a cackling laugh. “Oh, let me guess. He propositioned you, but you said you weren’t interested in a married man, so hey presto, suddenly he told you he was getting a divorce and you were free to date him. I’ll bet he even told you that nobody at work could know, because relationships weren’t permitted between bosses and employees. And he only ever took you out to restaurants outside the city, because he didn’t want anyone to see you together for that same reason. Any of this ringing any bells?”

  Ling felt a deep flush flow through her. Yes, that was exactly what had happened.

  “Of course it does,” sneered the female gorilla. She looked to her cringing husband. “I’m going downstairs to the bar; you have ten minutes to get all traces of your slut out of here.”

  Jacinta strode away. As soon as he was sure she was gone, Myron turned to Ling.

  “Look, red…”

  “Don’t, just don’t.”

  She clutched the pillow to her and ran into the bathroom sobbing. Within a matter of minutes, she’d gone from being a happy woman, on the way to marrying her boyfriend, to a cheap mistress. Just when she thought her life was on track…

  *

  Two weeks later

  “Uh, Ling, can I speak to you for a moment?”

  Myron gave her a sheepish look before disappearing back into his office. Ling slammed the file she was looking at on the desk; she grabbed a pad and pen and followed him, huffily and grudgingly.

  After the incident in Paris, Myron cut his business trip short and came home. Things were, to say the least, tense in the office.

  Ling could barely bring herself to look at him. Yes, maybe she was running around, pouting and stamping her feet like a child, but she had good reason!

  She followed him into the office and closed the door behind her. She swung her hips exaggeratedly as she walked across the floor. She was wearing her tightest, sexiest office dress – just to show him what he was missing. Bastard.

  Ling perched on a chair and crossed her legs. She noticed, triumphantly his eyes dilated a little, and she scented his burgeoning arousal.

  She was also pleased to note he looked terrible. His eyes had deep bags under them; he hadn’t shaved in days, and his suit looked rumpled. He was a wreck. Good, she hoped he withered and died… alright, maybe that was a little harsh. Her panda mewled in protest; the bloodthirsty little beast thought it was spot on.

  Myron cleared his throat and watched her with sad eyes. “You’re fired.”

  Ling blinked at him in surprised shock. “I beg your pardon?”

  Myron gave her an anguished look. “I’m sorry, Ling, but you’re fired.”

  She spluttered at him. “You can’t fire me for sleeping with you!”

  He fidgeted in his seat. “I’m not; I’m firing you because you came to Paris…”

  Ling stood up, hands on hips. “So you’re firing me because your wife found out!”

  Myron spread out his hands. “No, it’s because… because I told you to stay here, and you came anyway. You didn’t request permission for time off work from your boss, me. You just upped and left.”

  She stared at him incredulously. “So, your wife wants me gone and you found a nice juicy loophole to string me up with.”

  He looked away from her. Yep, that was exactly how it was.

  “Am I supposed just to stand here and take this?”

  “I’ve made sure you have a very generous severance package, and I’ll give you an excellent reference…”

  Ling folded her arms. “You bet your ass you will! You’ve never had a better secretary than me; no one puts up with your crap like I do.”

  Myron sighed. “I know, red, I’m sorry to lose you, I really do love…”

  “Don’t you dare!” she snapped. “Don’t you dare start bandying words like love around, you have no right!”

  With that, Ling turned on her heel and marched out the door.

  “Wait, Ling!” he called after her.

  She was through the door and throwing her stuff, and all the office supplies she could carry, into her purse. The outer office was also home to several other secretaries to the firm’s top executives. They were now watching her in unadulterated interest.

  Myron sidled up to her. “Ling, I’m sorry…”

  In a sweet voice, she told him to cram it, eliciting numerous gasps from the other secretaries.

  “Ling…” he whined, plaintively.

  She heaved her purse onto her shoulder and picked up her potted plant. It was half-dead, but damnit, it was hers!

  She strode away to the elevator, before changing her mind and turning back. She smiled at him, and a look of hope stole over his features.

  “Just to be clear, Myron, I hate you. You’re not as good in bed as you think you are, and twice in one night is not a lot!”

  With perfect timing, the elevator arrived, and she quickly ducked inside, leaving a red-faced Myron standing amongst the giggling secretaries.

  Ling pressed the button for the lobby, and when the doors finally closed, she burst into tears. Her panda whimpered, and tried to console her, but Ling was unmoved.

  A tiny, teeny-weeny, part of her actually thought there might be a chance that she and Myron might get back together again. As selfish as it was, she kind of thought he might leave his wife for her. She felt guilty to acknowledge it, but it was there.

  That wasn’t going to happen now, however. Getting fired was the last nail in the coffin. God, how could he be such an asshole? How could she have been so wrong about him?

  Maybe she wasn’t meant to be with a man, maybe she was just meant to be alone. She’d never been a romantic creature, she never expected to find all-encompassing love, but she always expected to be happy, and find someone who loved and respected her. She was starting to think no such man existed.

  Chapter Two

  Three weeks later

  Marcus Blau leaned back in his chair and tented his fingers. Breathe in… breathe out… breathe in… breathe out… Marcus had learned long ago that losing your temper never solved anything. No matter how annoying the situation was…

  He was a boa constrictor shifter. Recently, he had celebrated turning 42, or perhaps celebrated was too strong a word. Instead of doing any celebrating, he treated his birthday like any other day, didn’t tell anyone of the significance, and just behaved normally. Overall, it had been one of his best birthdays yet.

  Marcus ran a bail bond agency. They specialized in
supernatural creatures, often taking on bounties that other agencies were too scared to take. Marcus started the agency about five years ago; in the beginning, he was the sole bounty hunter, and Alma Flores, a ballsy witch, ran the office. Since then, they had hired numerous other hunters, and now Marcus rarely took on any bounties.

  Sadly, Alma had also left. Recently, she left to be with her true mate, an old friend of Marcus,' who just happened to be a vampire. Alma had been turned into a vampire and was now trying to come to terms with her transformation. Marcus didn’t like to admit it, but he missed both his friends. Hopefully, they would return one day.

  They were quite a small operation, compared to other agencies in the city, in particular, their main rival, Supernatural Bounty Co., but they were successful. They just weren’t having much success at that moment…

  Right now, Marcus was in his office, staring down four of his regular hunters, or at least two of his regular hunters and two hunters in training. They looked somewhat disheveled, with torn clothes, ruffled hair and dirt rubbed into their skin.

  “Tell me again what happened.”

  “Well…” began Carly, the red fox shifter. She was originally hired to help out in the office, but she rarely spent any time there. She was desperate to be a bounty hunter, and harangued Marcus into letting her train.

  “I’ve got this, foxy,” interrupted her mate, and wolf shifter, Jackson.

  She folded her arms over her bountiful chest. “Why do you get to tell him?”

  “I could tell him…” offered Noah, a white fox, and the other trainee.

  Logan, a massive bear shifter, held out his hands, in placation. “We were on the trail of Norman…”

  “The camel shifter,” put in Carly.

  “And we found him, no problem. He was dealing weed outside the James Whale High School…”

  “Don’t worry, he was only dealing to the teachers, not the kids,” said Carly.

  Noah nodded. “So, we waited until he was about to leave…”