Where the hell had he materialized from? She’d just come from that direction and hadn’t seen—or smelled—him.
Jayna darted a glance left and right, expecting to see a million cops descending on her, but all she saw were normal, everyday people going about their business. Even more puzzling, she didn’t sense anything bad coming down on her. Ever since going through her change, she’d been able to feel when things were about to go sideways, like they had back in the warehouse. But right now she wasn’t getting that sensation, and it worried the hell out of her. Could an alpha like this SWAT cop somehow block her senses?
She looked back at him, expecting to see him coming toward her. She was surprised to find him still standing exactly where he’d been before, looking way too calm and casual for her taste. In a pair of faded jeans, black motorcycle boots, and a pullover hoodie, he looked good. Damn good. He was even grinning.
She had to admit he had a nice smile…for a cop. His scent was also a lot more interesting than she’d remembered. Had he smelled that delicious back in the warehouse?
Jayna took a small step back and almost fell off the curb. She caught herself, resisting the urge to look around to see how many people had seen her. There was no way she was going to take her eyes off him.
The smile slowly slipped from Officer Hunky’s face, and he took a step in her direction. Panic gripped her. She really liked it more when he smiled. It didn’t make him any less intimidating, but at least she could tell herself that he wasn’t measuring her for a prison jumpsuit.
She slowly edged to the right, but he angled to intercept her. She moved faster, still afraid to take her eyes off him. He moved with her, taking a longer stride, and she gulped at how much ground he was able to cover with those muscular legs of his. What the hell? Why was she thinking about how hot he was? He intended to arrest her and send her to prison for the rest of her life!
Maybe he saw the panic in her eyes or smelled it in the air. Whatever it was, he picked up the pace and in three strides nearly cut the distance between them in half.
The hell with this!
Jayna turned and took off running straight down the middle of the one-way road. She had to dodge around a few angry drivers, but it was better than trying to race through the crowd of people on the sidewalk. She crossed over the next street against the light, running even faster.
Boots thumped the pavement behind her, but she wasn’t too worried. No way in hell could a guy as big and muscular as Officer Hunky catch her. She’d been a fast runner before going through her change, but now she was a freaking gazelle.
Four blocks later, she darted through an alley, then sprinted down the sidewalk on the other side. She glanced over her shoulder and nearly screamed in surprise. The SWAT cop was only a few yards behind her, running with an easy stride and that same lazy grin on his face. With the wind in her face, she hadn’t been able to pick up his scent.
She dug deep and put on every shred of speed she had, not caring who saw. Liam had told her to never run this fast in public, but she doubted Liam had ever been chased by a mountainous werewolf cop who was apparently half-cheetah as well. Screw the rules.
The farther she ran, the more industrial the area became and the fewer people there were on the street. As a criminal running from a cop, that shouldn’t have bothered her, but as a female beta running from an alpha big enough to eat her, it terrified the crap out of her. If she couldn’t get away from him, maybe she should head back into a more crowded area.
She glanced over her shoulder again to see the blue-eyed SWAT cop in the exact same position he’d been in before.
“You’re pretty fast, but I’m faster,” he said. “And since I could do this all day, you might as well stop so I can talk to you.”
Stop so they could talk? He must think she was stupid.
Jayna should have called his bluff and kept running, but she was so pissed off, she stomped on the brakes, forcing him to dodge to the side to avoid crashing into her. She got some satisfaction from the fact that it took him five feet to bring himself to a full stop, and even then he still almost fell on his ass. But he quickly got it together and spun around to face her. She backpedaled as he came toward her.
He immediately stopped and held up his hands. “I’m not going to hurt you—or arrest you. I just want to talk.” He lifted the bottom of his hoodie. “See? No gun.”
There might not be a gun, but there was a mesmerizing expanse of muscles there. Thank God he lowered his shirt or she’d still be staring at them.
“Why aren’t you turning me over to your cop friends right now?” she demanded.