“Yes, sir.”

Too late for careful. Diego walked out of his captain’s office with his file, reflecting that he’d just thrown away the excuse he had to visit Cassidy every day. He didn’t like the thought that she might not want him to keep visiting now that she wasn’t under restriction. Or Eric might not want Diego there. Eric had tolerated Diego because he didn’t want to cause trouble for Cassidy. Diego was under no illusion that he and Eric were now friends.

He got a taste of dashed hopes when he called the Warden house to give Cassidy the good news. Cassidy wasn’t there. Jace, who answered the phone, told Diego that Cassidy was over helping Torey and his new mom. But Jace would pass on the message. Jace also thanked Diego warmly for helping Cassidy out, then he hung up.

That was that. Diego stared at his cell phone a long moment in disappointment before he flipped it closed. Yep, he’d moved a long way past careful.

Diego’s hopes rose again when his cell phone rang as he entered his apartment. He dropped the plastic bags of groceries on the counter and flipped open the phone. “Yeah?”

“Diego?”

Everything in the apartment seemed to brighten, but he kept his voice casual. “Hey, Cassidy, what’s up?”

“Thank you.”

Diego wanted to stand there and drink in her voice, the way she sounded truly grateful. He made himself start putting away the food, which mostly meant beer, along with some eggs and tortillas for breakfast.

“No problem. Just keep your nose clean, all right? The shitheads in Shifter Division are still jonesing to arrest you.”

“I’ll be careful.” She kind of blew through the phrase, which wasn’t reassuring, but for now he didn’t care what Cassidy said. He only liked listening to her voice. “We’re going to Coolers tonight to celebrate me getting sprung. Want to join us?”

Hell, yes.

Coolers was a Shifter club—that is, a human-owned club Shifters frequented. Thinking about Cassidy there, dancing in that tight blue dress, made his heart beat double-time. This is why I’m glad I’m a man.

“Diego?”

“What?” Diego shoved the fantasies aside. “Sure, I can meet you.”

“Excellent. Ask Xavier to come too—Lindsay will be there.” Cassidy laughed. “She only reminded me about ten times today to ask you that.”

“Xavier. Right.” Not as good as Cassidy begging him to meet her somewhere alone, somewhere dark, somewhere romantic, but he’d take what he could.

“I can’t wait. We’ll be there around ten. See you, Diego.”

She hung up.

Diego stood staring at the phone, his heart beating off the scale, the plastic bottle of milk he held warming in his hand. When condensation rolled down his fingers, he jumped, shoved the milk into the fridge, closed the door, and hit his speed dial.

“Xav. We’re going to Coolers tonight. Don’t argue, just be there at ten.” Diego clicked off in the middle of Xav’s startled, “Sure thing.”

CHAPTER NINE

By ten that night, Cassidy was so wound up she thought she’d have to shift and run around the parking lot to work it off. She settled for dancing, shimmying around the middle of the floor with Lindsay while male groupies drooled on themselves.

Coolers was one of the few clubs in town that let in Shifters. Most club owners didn’t like the “element” Shifters drew, preferring to cater to rich tourists, but the Shifter-admitting clubs did a bang-up business.

Shifter groupies were humans who wore fake Collars, dressed in skimpy clothes or biker leather, painted on whiskers, and lived for contact with Shifters. Most groupies were happy to simply stand near a Shifter; others wanted full-on sex. Shifters, both male and female, were libidinous as a rule, so the sex seekers didn’t always go home disappointed.

Cassidy did her best to ignore the groupies who wanted her in bed—or in a car or against a wall in the alley. She’d learned long ago that most of them didn’t truly care about Shifters. They wanted the thrill of being with one, nothing more. A lot of the Shifters didn’t mind—hey, if these humans wanted sex, fine—but Cassidy cared.

She understood the difference between sex for the thrill of it and sex with love wrapped around it. The absolute joy of the second type made sex for the thrill of it empty and unfulfilling.

So, why was she was all charged up and excited about seeing Diego tonight? She was acting as giddy as a cub. Maybe because when Diego came tonight, he wouldn’t be the cop checking up on her; he’d be a man coming to a club to unwind after work. A hot man who’d shared beer with her brother and with whom she’d talked about things close to her heart.

The air in the club changed. Cassidy knew, even before she turned in the dance, that Diego Escobar had just walked in the door.

He wore jeans and a leather jacket, definitely off duty, and he’d brought Xavier with him. Cassidy didn’t miss how both of them slowed to check every part of the room before walking farther inside, at the same time taking care they weren’t silhouetted against the open door.

“Oh, yes,” Lindsay shouted to Cassidy. “Diego for you. Xavier for me. We compare notes in the morning, girl.”

Cassidy wanted to yell back, I didn’t ask him here for sex! But the thought of having Diego’s tall body in her bed, if only for one night, sent the mating heat crawling up and down her body.

Diego and Xavier moved through the dark crowds on the dance floor to where Eric lounged against the bar. Diego walked with his usual ease, aware of every single thing around him while appearing to be relaxed. Xavier again was more restless but just as aware.