My alarm sounded, startling me awake. I reached out from underneath my blankets to pound the top of it and stop the incessant beeping.

It was early. Too early.

“It can’t be morning yet,” Eli grumbled from beside me. “What time did you set that thing for?”

“Six.” I yawned.

“Six? Why are you getting up so damn early?”

I sat up in bed and smoothed my fingers through my tangled hair. “I switched shifts with Pamela. Remember? One of her kids had something at school she needed to be there for this morning.” Another yawn pushed its way from me. God, why had I agreed to work her shift at Rosemary’s? Getting up this early was torture. How did she do this every day? “I’ll be back on the dinner shift after this. It’s only one morning. ” My last words were said more for my benefit than Eli’s. No part of me enjoyed getting up before the sun.

Eli’s arm snaked out to wrap around my waist. “You mean we won’t be able to cuddle before you go in today?”

“Nope.” I attempted to peel out of his grasp, but he’d latched on tight.

I had thirty minutes to get to work; I didn’t have the time to cuddle with Eli the way he wanted.

“Aw, man. Do we at least get to eat breakfast together?” Eli asked as he struggled to maintain his grip on me.

“Not this morning.” When I pried his final finger off my hip, he reached out for me again. I laughed. Mornings with him would never grow old. “I have to go. Seriously. You’re going to make me late. I need to shower, or else I’m never going to wake up.”

“Want some company?”

Temptation tingled through me, but I knew the wise answer to his question, even if my body wanted to say another. “Not a good idea,” I said as I slipped out of bed.

“Wrong. It’s a great idea.”

I glanced at him. Opting to humor him a little, I asked, “Why is that?”

“It saves water, which means we’re saving the planet one shower together at a time,” he said. A sexy smirk twisted across his face.

“Still not a good idea.”

“Give me one good reason.” His smirk grew.

“Because you have ways of distracting me, ways that make time cease to exist.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” His tone implied he was pleased with himself.

“When I have to get to work, it is. Leon already doesn’t care for me. I don’t need to give him another reason.”

I had no idea why the cook hated me so much, but he’d made it clear I was by no means his favorite person.

“How could anyone not like you?” he asked as his eyes skimmed my barely clothed body. “You’re smart, sexy, and sassy.”

I rolled my eyes, knowing what he was trying to pull. It wasn’t going to work.

“Why don’t you ask him?” I crossed to our dresser and gathered my uniform.

Leon was human. I could sense it. I could also sense he knew nothing of the supernatural world. He was a grouchy hick. One who seemed to loathe any generation younger than his.

I didn’t let it bother me much because I needed this job.

Hell, I wanted this job. I’d never been allowed to work a real job before. It was only because I’d imprinted with Eli that I was allowed to. Gran wouldn’t have approved of me working a part-time job while attending college.

Now that Eli and I were imprinted and living together, Gran didn’t have a say. Thank goodness.

“He’ll come around,” Eli said as he propped himself up on his elbows in bed. “You’re likable...when you smile.” He winked.

“What? I smile all the time.”

“Uh, huh. Like you are right now?”

“Whatever.” I chuckled as I headed toward the hall. “I smile all the time at work. It’s how I make such good tips.”

“No,” Eli shouted after me. “You’re hot. That’s how you make such good tips.”

I closed the bathroom door and peeled off my tank top and panties. Rosemary’s Diner wasn’t a place I’d ever thought I would work. It was too bright and busy. People weren’t my thing—nature and quiet places were—but out of the five places I’d applied they’d been the only one to call back.

It was a job—even if the cook hated me.

I ran through everything I knew about Leon as I stood beneath the hot water. He was older, probably close to the same age as Gran. His wife’s name had been Florence. She’d passed away a few years ago. I didn’t know him well enough to know if he’d always been a grump, or if her death had pushed him over the edge.

When I climbed out of the shower, I toweled off and dressed quickly. I swiped on some mascara and ran my fingers through my hair. My time was limited, so it would have to air dry. I left my dirty clothes on the floor, making a mental note to pick them up later, and I headed to the kitchen for something to eat.

Eli was on the couch, a bowl of cereal in his hand and Moonshine tucked into his side, when I stepped into the living room. The TV was on and the voice of a news anchor blasted through the trailer. If I hadn’t been awake after my shower, the sound of the reporter’s shrill voice would’ve done the job. She had one of those nails-on-a-chalkboard type of voices that had me gritting my teeth.

“Since when do you watch the news?” I asked Eli as I poured myself a bowl of cereal.

“Since my dad started hounding me about not paying enough attention to things happening.”

“Oh.” That made sense.

Sometimes, I forgot Eli was the son of our alpha. Moments like this, when he mentioned his dad asking him to do something that correlated with becoming alpha, made me remember.

“So, anything happening?” I asked as I poured milk in my bowl.

“Always.” I understood the bitter tone to his words. I’d never enjoyed watching the news. They never reported the good things that happened, only the bad. It was too much negativity for me to handle, especially first thing in the morning.

Against my better judgment, I tuned into what the reporter was saying. Her words shook as though she was upset when she spoke.

“Police were called at around 3 a.m. to Rightmore Street, just south of West Meadow, where another incident was reported two nights ago,” she said. “The bodies of Estelle Bright and Claire Holbrooks were discovered there. Investigators believe the two young women are the latest victims of the Midnight Reaper, who has been wreaking havoc across the nation since the beginning of the month.”

“Are you kidding me?” I muttered.

“I know. This guy is totally out of hand. He seems to be killing more frequently,” Eli said around a mouthful of cereal.

“What happens when he decides to move on from the city? Mirror Lake will probably be the first place he goes, considering its proximity.” My gut twisted. The more I thought about it, the more likely it seemed the killer would head here next.

“Even if he did, I doubt he’d be here long. Mirror Lake doesn’t have as much potential as the city does for new victims. It would be stupid of him to come here. I mean, he would most likely be caught in a day or two. We’re a small community. You can’t get away with what he’s doing here.”

Eli had a point, but my nerves still refused to settle. I had a bad feeling, and Gran always told me to trust my gut.

“Have they released how he’s killing his victims?” I asked, unsure if I wanted to know the answer to my question.

“I don’t think that’s something they release to the public. Knowing wouldn’t do any good. It would only cause panic.”

Something shifted across Eli’s face that made me think he knew more than he was letting on.

“I don’t see why that would cause a panic,” I said as I stared at him.

I understood he was the alpha’s son, but I was his wife, his mate for lack of a better word. He should tell me everything. Including pack-related issues he learned from his father. I hated when he kept me in the dark.

Hadn’t I proven over the last few months I was as dedicated to this pack as he was?

Eli’s green eyes lifted to meet mine. He’d caught on that I knew he was keeping something from me in regards to this case. “It’s a serial killer, Mina. You don’t give away their MO. It’s pretty much the only leverage the police have in cases like this.” His gaze drifted back to the TV.

My eyes remained on him as I took another bite of my cereal. He was definitely hiding something. I could sense it.

“Just like other victims of the Midnight Reaper, the young women’s bodies were found mutilated,” the reporter said.

I nearly choked. Mutilated? As in something had attacked them, ripping them to shreds? Something animalistic?

My mind shifted through everything I knew that went bump in the night in the supernatural world, and a shiver slipped down my spine.

“I don’t think she meant to say that,” Eli insisted, his gaze glued to the TV.

I didn’t speak; the reporter’s words were on a loop in my mind. She’d used the word mutilated. Was that her word to describe what the victims looked like, or was it one she’d heard a police officer use?

The unease in my gut spread. I had a feeling whoever, or whatever, had been tearing up the nation was supernatural. Not only that, but also that he was headed this way.