She glanced at him and was shocked to see him glaring at the two Albanians with eyes the deepest golden yellow she’d ever seen and fangs so long she wasn’t sure how they fit in his mouth. Even as she watched, his jawline broadened slightly, like it was trying to make room for more teeth.
Jayna blinked. Okay, that was freaking scary—but kind of cool too. Purely in a werewolf kind of way, of course.
The two guards took a step back, hearts hammering in their chests. Eric strode past them as if they didn’t even exist and swept into the lobby. She took a deep breath, doing her best to project the same calm attitude as she led him across the lobby. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Megan and Moe stop halfway down the steps, their mouths hanging open. The two omegas sprawled on the couch playing video games looked equally shocked. So did the Albanians playing pool. She’d made no secret of the fact that she didn’t like omegas, so everyone probably wondered what she was doing with one. Then again, maybe they were all staring because Eric was so damn big.
She ignored all of them, instead focusing on Frasheri and Kos, who were standing near the big planning table on the far side of the room. The two men eyed her and Eric suspiciously.
Luckily, Liam wasn’t around.
Kos gave her a cold look. “Who is your new friend, Jayna?”
“This is Eric Bauer,” she said, using the fake surname the SWAT werewolf had given her. “He approached me at the coffee shop, wanting to know if you’d be interested in hiring someone like him.”
“Someone like him?” Frasheri prompted.
She turned to the older man. Tall with salt-and-pepper hair and a perpetual tan, Frasheri looked younger than his sixty years. “Eric is an omega. Liam said you’ve been looking to hire more of them.”
“Yes, we are.” Frasheri studied her for a moment before turning his gaze on Eric. “I’m a distrustful man by nature, Mr. Bauer, but also curious. Tell me, how did you learn that some of your kind worked for us? Or where to find us, for that matter?”
Jayna darted Eric a quick look, hoping no one noticed the way her pulse spiked.
But Eric shrugged, acting as if he hadn’t picked up on the menace in Frasheri’s tone at all. “Word of what’s been going on in Dallas has been getting around. When I heard rumors you were using enforcers who have been tearing the local thugs and gangbangers to shreds, literally, it wasn’t difficult to put two and two together. Finding you once I got here wasn’t hard either. All I had to do was go to the one part of town everyone was telling me to stay away from.”
Kostandin’s eyes narrowed. “What makes you think we’d be interested in having you work for us?”
Eric’s mouth twitched, and Jayna was once again struck by how calm he was. She wished she could say the same about herself.
“I know the kind of stuff they do for you.” Eric motioned with his head toward the omegas on the other side of the room. “It’s nothing I have a problem with, and I can do it better than anyone you already have working for you.”
The corners of Frasheri’s wide mouth turned up, and it looked like he was about to say something, but just then Liam stormed into the lobby, Brandon at his side. They both looked like they’d smelled something rotten.
Crap.
“Who is this and what the hell is he doing here?”
Liam brushed past the Albanians and omegas to take a confrontational position in front of Eric, his eyes flashing and the tips of his canines showing. He was probably trying to be intimidating, but after seeing Eric’s version of scary, Liam didn’t carry it off as well. It didn’t help that he was a good five inches shorter than Eric and forty pounds lighter.
She was about to answer Liam, but Frasheri spoke first.
“This is Eric Bauer. Jayna met him and thought he would be a good fit for the pack.”
Jayna had just enough time to wince before Liam turned to glare at her. Oh yeah, he was pissed.
Liam frowned at Frasheri. “And you’re willing to hire him, just like that?”
“I haven’t decided yet,” Frasheri admitted. “Jayna obviously saw something she liked if she brought him back here. And I can always use more werewolves in my employ.”
Liam glanced at Eric, eyes narrowing as if trying to figure out exactly what it was Jayna saw in him. Eric regarded Liam without any outward expression.
“If we’re going up against those SWAT werewolves, we’re going to need omegas who know what the hell they’re doing in a fight,” Liam told Frasheri. “How do we know this guy can handle himself? Just because he’s big doesn’t mean anything—except that he’s probably slow and stupid.”
“Possibly,” Kostandin said. “But it’s easy enough to find that out.” He motioned with his hand. “Move the chairs and tables aside.”