Chapter One Preview: Blackstone Ranger Hero

Preview: Blackstone Ranger Hero
Blackstone Rangers Book 3

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Chapter One

“C’mon, Rogers, don’t be such a pussy!”

Daniel Rogers breathed a sigh and took a sip of his beer. “I think you guys are doing just fine without me,” he shouted over the loud din of the music pumping through the speakers.

Anders Stevens rolled his eyes. “Seriously? You’re not going to play? Not even one lousy dollar for those hardworking girls up there?”

He lifted his head an inch, forcing himself to look at the three scantily-clad women on stage. One of them, wearing only sparkly nipple covers and a G-string, hung upside down from a pole. “They certainly are … talented.”

“Yeah, very big talents,” Anders added with a waggle of his eyebrows. “Look, the groom-to-be and Russel”—he jerked a thumb at the back of the room to where their two other companions, Damon Cooper and Gabriel Russel, were huddled by the buffet table—“aren’t going to be participating in the festivities anytime soon, so why don’t you just come up here? There’s three of them and two of us, so I think we can make the equation work.”

“Hey!” a feminine voice protested. “What am I? Chopped liver?”

Anders turned to their third compatriot, J.D. McNamara, the only female in their group. Though technically this was Damon’s bachelor party, one of the groom’s conditions was they include one of his best friends since childhood, even if she was a girl.

Currently, J.D. was waving dollar bills at the stripper on the pole. “I know you enjoy the show, McNamara, but I didn’t think you played for our team. Or are you thinking of taking me up on my offer?” he said with a glint in his eyes.

J.D. rolled her eyes. “If Rogers doesn’t want to participate in the fun, you don’t have to rag on him. I mean, these poor, hardworking girls could probably use the tips. Do you know Destiny”—she nodded at the brunette on the left side—“is almost done with her nursing degree? If you could spare her those dollar bills in your pocket, Anders, she could maybe afford her textbooks next semester.”

“Those ain’t dollar bills, sweetheart,” he said with an impish smile.

Daniel sighed once again and pulled his wallet out of his pocket, taking out half the bills and handing them to J.D. “Here, for Destiny’s textbooks,” he said before getting up from his chair.

“Giving up already?” Anders called.

“Jeez, stop acting like those clingy girls you kick outta your bed, Stevens. I gotta go to the john, all right?” Turning toward the exit, he walked out of the private VIP area and into the main room of the Pink Palace Gentlemen’s Club.

Of course, the outside was not much better than the private party rooms, if anything, they were worse. Though it was a “gentlemen’s club,” there was nothing very gentlemanly about the garish pink, red, and black decor, neon lights, or the various scantily-clad women onstage and the loud, jeering men who cheered them on.

Daniel was no prude, but he just wasn’t raised this way. Though he got ribbed a lot because he was polite and nice to everyone—men and women—he didn’t pay any mind to the criticisms. A gentleman—a real one—treated everyone else better than they would treat themselves, at least that’s what Pops always said. Beau Rogers was old-fashioned in that way and taught his only son the same set of rules he’d followed his whole life.

He wouldn’t normally have gone to this place, or even to Las Vegas, except that it was one of his good friend’s bachelor party. Pops also said that loyalty to one’s friends was important, so Daniel felt obliged to come to this weekend getaway, especially since Damon’s circle of friends was tiny. Actually, as far as he knew, it only consisted of the people who came to Vegas.

The four men had gone through the Blackstone Rangers training program together and a kind of bond had forged between them. Daniel admired Damon, who had risen up to the position of chief. Though Daniel himself had been eyeing the promotion, he knew Damon deserved it—he was a natural leader, and everyone looked up to him. Besides, there was a lot of responsibility that came with being chief, and he didn’t envy the long hours, paperwork, and the bureaucracy that Damon had to deal with. Nope, he was fine being a ranger, as he had been the last five years.

Joining the Blackstone Rangers seemed like the natural career for Daniel. For one thing, his inner grizzly bear loved the outdoors, and the job allowed him to spend most of the day roaming the forests and mountains. And of course, it was in his blood. Before retiring to Texas on his ranch, Beau had been a ranger for over forty years. It had done his old man proud when he decided to join after graduating from college with his forestry degree.

Daniel made his way to the men’s room, did his business, and then exited. He walking down the dark hallway that led back to the main room when he saw two shadowy figures ahead.

“Please … sir, you can’t—” a pleading voice cried.

“I’ll do whatever the fuck I want,” came the gruff reply. “I’m a paying customer.”

Daniel’s hackles rose and his inner grizzly let out a guttural sound. His protective instincts were sounding an alarm, and he strode toward the two figures. “Excuse me,” he said. “Is he bothering you, miss?”

His shifter vision immediately adjusted despite the darkness, and the larger of the two figures—male, of course, stinking of cheap cologne and liquor—whirled around to face him. “Wha—who the fuck are you?”

Ignoring the man, he looked to the woman pressed up against the wall. Much like many of the girls here, she was scantily-clad, and her face was caked with makeup, but the wide, frightened look in her eyes made her seem much younger. “S-sir, you should go back to the main floor.” The tension and fear rolled off her in waves.

The man’s face turned up into an evil grin. “See? Me and Candy here are conducting business. And you should mind your own.”

Daniel huffed. “See, normally I do mind my business. But you know what I hate the most?”

“What?”

“I hate bullies.” He unleashed the barely controlled anger within him, grabbing the man by the collar, and slamming him up against the wall. Candy let out a squeak and turned, dashing away from them.

The man struggled, but it was no use. Daniel’s shifter strength allowed him to lift the man off the ground. Opening his mouth wide, he bared his teeth, letting his incisors grow out, his eyes glowing with the presence of his inner bear.

“What the—” His eyes went wide. “You’re one of them!”

He let out an inhuman growl, then dropped the man, who crumpled to the ground. “You bet,” he said, looking at the pathetic man in disgust. “Now get the fuck out of here. If I see you approach any woman here—I’m going to hunt you down and make you regret it.” Not bothering to look back at the man, he marched out.

By the time he entered the private room again, he and his bear had sufficiently calmed down. In fact, the mask of calm he put on his face belied his earlier rage. He hated losing his temper, but he also couldn’t stand it when strong people took advantage of weaker ones. And just because the young woman chose to work at a strip club didn’t mean she was fair game.

“You all right?” Gabriel asked as he came over to the buffet to pile a plate high with food.

“Yeah, I’m fine. How’s the groom?” he asked, looking slyly over at Damon. The chief’s back was turned to them as he hunched over while fiddling on his phone. “Does he feel as miserable as he looks?”

Gabriel guffawed. “What do you think?”

According to Gabriel, Damon had been strong-armed into this outing, as he didn’t want to be away from his mate and future wife, Anna Victoria. Daniel could understand, even though he didn’t have a mate himself. His parents were fated mates, so he knew how special that could be. Damon would not only have no interest in any other woman around, but it would also pain him to be away from her. “Remind me again why we’re here?”

The lion shifter huffed. “I owe Anders a huge favor, okay? I’ll tell you more some other time. But right now, keep him distracted so he doesn’t shit on either Damon or me. I promise, this will all be over soon.”

Daniel knew the “secret” plan of course, which was one of the reasons he’d consented to come here in the first place. “All right.” Taking his plate of food, he wandered back to the mini-stage in the center of the room and sat down next to J.D., munching on wings, pizza, and French fries.

About fifteen minutes later, the DJ’s booming voice interrupted the playing music over the speakers. “And now we have some special entertainment just for the groom,” the disembodied voice of the DJ announced.

The strippers all stopped dancing, picked up their cash from the floor, and disappeared through the curtains at the rear of the stage.

“Hey!” Anders protested as he waved a fistful of bills. “Where are you going?”

“Anders, c’mon,” J.D. said as she jumped to her feet. “Let’s go to the main room.”

“Main room? But we were having fun in here,” Anders complained.

Daniel followed J.D.’s lead. “Sounds like a plan.”

J.D. hooked her arm around the tiger shifter’s. “Dude, I think I saw a bachelorette party out there. Bet they’re a lot of fun. And looking for some company.”

“Really?” Anders’s face lit up. “Well then, what are we waiting for? You can be my wing woman, McNamara.”

J.D rolled her eyes as she led him out of there, Daniel right behind them. As he followed the two, he couldn’t help but feel like someone was watching him. Turning his head, he looked around, but there were too many people around them to pinpoint anyone looking at him. His grizzly seethed, yowling at him to investigate. Normally, he would have followed his bear’s instinct, but they were in a strip club, not deep in the mountains. So instead, he sat next to J.D. at their new table, which was right by the stage.

“Yeah, baby,” Anders exclaimed. “Right by the action.” He glanced around and saw the group of women at the table next to them, which, based on the crowns and sashes they wore, was the aforementioned bachelorette party. “All right! this is better than being trapped inside with those tight-asses anyway. Hey, baby!” he hollered to one of the women. “Nice tats. They’re a piece of art, and so are you. Want me to nail you to the wall?”

J.D. rolled her eyes. “Cut it out, Anders,” she said. “They’re tryin’ to have a good time. Besides, they’re not the entertainment.” She grabbed his ear and tilted his head toward the stage. “That’s what we’re here for.” She sent an apologetic look to the women.

The lights dimmed as a slow, sensuous beat filled the room. A woman wearing a feather boa entered the stage, and everyone clapped and cheered. With another deep sigh, Daniel settled back, arms folding over his chest. When was this going to end? Neither J.D. nor Anders seemed keen on stopping any time soon. He glanced back toward the private room where he guessed Damon was finally enjoying his bachelor party. After all, Gabriel did secretly fly Anna Victoria all the way here. And the lion shifter was nowhere to be seen, which meant he probably snuck out. Lucky bastard.

“Sir?”

“Huh?” Whipping around, he saw one of the cocktail waitresses leaning toward him, drink in hand. “This is for you.”

He glanced down at the drink. It looked innocuous enough; it even had a cherry in it. “I didn’t order this.”

“One of the girls sent it over,” she said. “Candy. She says it’s a thank you gift for earlier.”

“Oh.” It was a nice gesture, but he really didn’t need it. “Um, can you take it back? Or I could pay for it.”

“Oh no.” She shook her head. “Please, I couldn’t.” Before he could protest, she turned on her heel and walked away.

Glancing at the drink, he took a sniff. It smelled like gin and tonic, the flowery bouquet of the liquor tickling his nostrils. However, there was something about it—

A movement caught his eye from the corner of his vision. While everyone had their attention on the stage, someone at the table next to them stood up. He didn’t know why, but he just had to look at who it was.

It was one of the females from the bachelorette party. She walked around her friends with an unsteady gait, grabbing onto the back of a chair to steady herself. When she did, she proceeded forward and something about the way she moved made it difficult to tear his eyes away from her.

He took a nervous sip of the drink in his hand, barely tasting the alcohol. His hand trembled as he pulled the glass away from his lips, but his gaze never left her.

The world around him slowed down, his focus pinpointing on the woman. Continuing forward, she came close to their table, but stumbled forward.

He lunged toward her, grabbing one of her arms before she could hit the ground. She let out a yelp as he pulled her upright, a dark curtain of hair covering her face.

“Are you okay, miss?” Thanks to his shifter reflexes, he didn’t even spill the drink in his right hand.

Wobbling on her feet, she brushed the hair from her face. “Yeah, I’m good. Did you—” She stopped as their eyes met. Velvelty brown eyes, the color of milk chocolate, widened in surprise.

Mine.

Jesus!

After that, he couldn’t quite describe what happened next—it was kind of like being punched in the gut. But in a good way, if there was such a thing. His bear roared from within him, its massive paws beating at the ground. They had found their mate.

“Sorry about that,” she said. “Too much to drink … normally I can handle it but … special occasion, you know?”

“Special occasion,” he echoed.

“Well, uh, thanks for the catch,” she slurred as she patted him on the arm. “Whoa … you must work out. Your biceps are like rocks.” She gave them a firm squeeze, which made blood rush out of his head and down to … well, his other head. “Er, thanks again.”

He watched her pivot on her heel and walk away from him, unable to move or say anything. The room seemed to have quieted down, and the only thing he could hear was the pounding of his heart in his chest.

His inner grizzly, however, roared at him and slammed its paws at his insides as if saying, go after her, you idiot!

“Shit!” He snapped out of it. I have to go after her! She was their mate. But what would he say? Or do? Or how could he explain? Based on her lack of animal, she was obviously human.

Panic rose in him as his bear paced back and forth, probably wishing it could talk. What would Pops say? But his mind went blank. Crap!

His hand gripped around the glass he was still holding. C’mon, Rogers, think. Raising the glass to his lips, he downed the entire drink without thinking. The alcohol ran smoothly down his throat, warming his insides.

I should just go after her. His bear agreed, nodding its block head. Slamming the glass down on the table, he strode toward the direction of the restrooms.

Whoa.

A wave of dizziness hit him as he made his way to the back of the room. As a shifter, alcohol didn’t stay in his system very long, and it took a lot to get him drunk. Did he drink too fast? Or was there something—

His bear growled for attention as it pointed its snout forward. There she was, it seemed to say excitedly. Quickly, he caught up to her before she entered the ladies’ room and blocked the door.

“What the hell—oh!” she exclaimed. “It’s you.”

“Yeah,” he said. “It’s me …” Why the heck did his tongue feel like it was going numb?

She straightened her shoulders, and planted her hands on her hips. “Can I help you?”

If she said anything after that, he wasn’t sure. He couldn’t stop staring at her—his mate was gorgeous. Her long, dark hair reminded him of those chocolate commercials where they swirled the dark liquid with caramel. She was wearing a sleeveless dress that showed off her tawny skin and an intricate tattoo of what appeared to be a stained glass window on her upper arm. And her body … damn. Curves everywhere. It made him want to get on his knees and thank whoever up there deemed him worthy enough to have this goddess as his mate.

“Hello?” She waved a hand at him. “Dude, are you okay?”

“I am now,” he said dreamily. “Now that you’re here.”

She rolled her eyes. “Uh-huh. What do you want?”

You. Only you from now on.

Her eyes went wide. “Excuse me?”

Crap. He said that out loud. “I mean, uh …” God, why the hell was his brain so foggy? Was that an effect of meeting his mate? “I just … wanted to make sure you were okay. You seemed to be unsteady on your feet.”

“Yeah, five vodka cranberries will do that to you,” she said sheepishly.

“I know,” he lurched forward, backing her up to the other side, pressing her against the wall. He braced himself with his forearms before he crushed her fully. Shit, shit, shit!

“Oh.” She didn’t protest though, or push him off. In fact, if he didn’t know any better, he swore he saw the glitter of desire in her eyes and smell her arousal. “So,” she said, her voice low and throaty. “Do you think … maybe we should, uh, get out of here? Find some fun of our own?”

“I’ll follow you to the end of the world if you ask me to, baby doll.”

* * *

Maybe it was the throbbing in his head. Or maybe it was the sun streaming in through his lids. Whatever it was that woke him, Daniel only knew that when he opened his eyes, a dreaded feeling filled his chest. It was like his stomach was filled with ice, and he didn’t want to get up.

What the fuck happened last night?

He blinked and took a deep breath. “Ugh.” His mouth tasted like shit. Groggily, he pushed himself up and—

“Where the fuck am I?”

It looked like a low-rent motel room, based on the cheap, worn furniture, the outdated decor and springy mattress underneath him. This was definitely not their suite at the Aria.

Slinking out of bed, he rubbed his aching temple. Glancing down, he realized he was shirtless, but still wearing last night’s jeans and socks, though his belt buckle was undone. An image flashed in his mind.

Red painted fingernails reaching for the buckle.

Yellow, blue, and red ink on warm tawny skin.

Pouty lips. Velvet brown eyes turning dark with desire.

Thick lashes lowering.

And—

Nothing.

A big, fat blank.

He sank back down on the bed and buried his face in his hands. Why did he feel like something was wrong? Like something was missing.

Christ, what did I have to drink?

As he tried to retrace his steps, a different, dreaded feeling came over him. That drink. It was the last thing he remembered consuming. Was it drugged? He didn’t doubt it. He should have burned off the alcohol in one gin and tonic in minutes. When he came out of the private room, his bear had been telling him something was wrong.

His inner grizzly roared, then tumbled over, covering its faces with its paws. For something to affect even his inner animal, it had to be bad. Bloodsbane, maybe? It was the only substance shifters knew to avoid. But who the hell would—

A loud, insistent ringing pierced into his skull and knocked him out of his thoughts. Scrambling around, he found his phone under the bed. Grabbing it, he quickly answered. “Hello?” Ow. Even talking made his head hurt.

“Rogers, where the hell are you?” came Anders’s furious voice over the receiver.

“I … uh, I’m not sure.”

“Well, wherever the hell you are, you better get your ass to the airport or we’ll leave without you.”

“What? What time—shit!” he cursed when he glanced up at the clock by the bedside. The digital display showed that it was four in the afternoon. “Damn it … I’ll get there as soon as I can.” He spied his shirt hanging from the corner of the bed and grabbed it.

“How long?”

“Just … wait for me, okay?” Fuck, fuck, fuck! “I’m gonna get into a cab now.”

After putting his shirt on and checking he still had his wallet in his pocket, Daniel practically flew out of the room. Maybe it was the adrenaline or the panic, but his system was starting to clear up as he made his way down the concrete stairs two at a time. Dashing out of the motel parking lot, he flagged the first cab he saw. “Airport,” he barked at the cabbie.

As he sank back into the seat, he swallowed a big gulp of air. The pain in his head was easing, but try as he might, he couldn’t put together the events of last night after they had left the private room. Bits and pieces, maybe, but he wasn’t sure what was real and what was a dream. The only thing he was sure of was the pit in his stomach was starting to feel like the Grand Canyon as the cab drove further away from the motel.

Think, Rogers. Think.

What happened last night? Where did he go?

Pink Palace. Private Room. Then the main room.

A drink. Someone sent him a drink. Candy.

His instincts told him it couldn’t have been her.

Maybe it was the guy that was hitting on her. He knew Daniel was a shifter, could feel the animosity from him. Being Vegas, he didn’t doubt it would be easy enough to obtain the right drugs to get a shifter intoxicated. Bloodsbane, most likely. Every shifter was taught about that stuff.

Surely nothing bad happened. His clothes were still on, his wallet was intact, albeit much lighter, and he didn’t seem to have any injuries. All he could remember was a sweet, delicate scent and something soft in his arms. Could he have been with a wo—

“We’re here,” the cabbie announced.

“Thanks.” He tossed the guy a bill. “Keep the change.”

As he made his way toward the private jet terminal, he pushed all thoughts aside from his mind. Damon would kill him if he missed his flight home and failed to show up for work tomorrow. The chief already had a lot on his mind, and he didn’t want his friend to worry, especially with his wedding less than a week away.

He’d have to forget about what happened last night. Of course, that wouldn’t be difficult seeing as he couldn’t remember anything anyway.

Blackstone Ranger Hero Releases September 2

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