Lights were on at Eli’s place, but he wasn’t answering his door. Was I supposed to let myself in? Or should I knock again?

As I debated what to do, the door swung open, startling me. I opened my mouth to say something, but bit back my words the second I noticed Eli was before me almost naked.

He stared down at me from where I was on the second step with a look of amusement flickering in his green eyes. He wore nothing besides a tattered towel draped around his waist and a smirk. My lungs forgot how to breathe. My heart forgot how to beat. All I could do was stare.

“Sorry. I thought I’d have enough time to jump in the shower before you got here,” Eli said as water dripped from him. Droplets landed on my forearm jolting me awake from the trance I’d been put under at the sight of him. “Let me get dressed and then you can fill me in on everything.” He stepped to the side so I could come in. My legs wobbled beneath me as I climbed the remaining steps.

Words wouldn’t come. I watched his retreating form, practically salivating. His skin had grown darker since the last time I’d seen him, and I knew it was because he’d been working outside. Shirtless. There wasn’t a single tan line across his back. In fact, the upper portion was blood red from too much sun.

“You should really put some aloe on. It looks like you got a bad burn today,” I called down the hall after him, grateful I’d been able to find my voice at all.

“Tell me about it,” he shouted back. “I’m definitely feeling it.”

“Gran makes a spray and a salve with aloe. I can get something for you if you want it.”

Eli stepped into sight, tugging on a white cotton T-shirt. He’d pulled on a pair of khaki cargo shorts, but no shoes. His hair was still dripping wet and disheveled. From where I stood, I could see droplets sliding down his neck and wetting the collar of his shirt.

“Nah, I’ll be fine. You know as well as I do this will be gone by tomorrow morning,” he said.

The whole Moon Kissed thing did have its perks. “Right.”

“So, what’s this about Glenn?” Eli asked as he stepped into the kitchen and opened the cabinet beside the refrigerator.

I knew what he was going for—the moonshine he always kept there. I wondered if he was still drinking the apple pie batch from the other night, or if he’d bought something else. Not that it mattered. I wouldn’t be drinking with him again. Not after what almost happened last time.

I had enough guilt pressing down on me. I didn’t need to add any more.

“Long story short, I overheard part of a phone conversation Taryn was having earlier. She was telling her sister she thought Glenn was missing. Apparently, they’d been drinking and got into an argument. She took his keys so he wouldn’t drive away, and instead, he shifted and hauled ass to the woods,” I paused, watching as Eli took a healthy swig of moonshine. His Adam’s apple bobbed in the process. I waited for him to pass the jar to me next, but he didn’t. “That was on Friday night. She claims she hasn’t seen him since.”

“Has anyone?” Eli’s brows furrowed.

“According to her, no.”

“You think the wolf in the woods Friday night was Glenn?”

“Yeah, I do.”

Eli smoothed a hand over his face. “Did she talk to my dad?”

“Yeah, sorry to say it, but he wasn’t much help to her either.”

“They fight too much for her fears to hold any clout. Plus, he’s been busy with something else,” he said as he scratched at his brow.

The mysterious words caused the fine hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end. “Oh?”

Eli ignored my question. Probably because whatever it was his dad was busy with was pack related, and Eli wasn’t at liberty to tell me. “Did Taryn call around at all?”

“Yeah, no luck. She filed a police report labeling him as a missing person, too.”

“I’m sure that didn’t do a damn bit of good.” Eli took another swig of moonshine. He held it out to me afterward this time. “Want some?”

I shook my head. “No, I’m good.”

“Oh, come on,” he pressed. “I can tell you want it.”

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever.”

“It’s true. Desire for it is oozing from you.”

His words had my heart stalling in my chest. It wasn’t the moonshine I was desiring.

“Take it,” he said as he inched the jar closer to me. “Just one sip.”

I took it from him and sighed. “You do realize you’re contributing to a minor, right? I’m only eighteen.”

Eli shrugged. “I know. And I think saying someone has to be twenty-one before they can drink legally is bullshit.”

I placed the jar to my lips and willed myself to take a swig of the stout-smelling liquid. Fire coated my throat instantly, but it wasn’t as potent as the last time. Was I already building up a tolerance to the stuff?

“Why is that?” I choked out the words and flew into a coughing fit.

Nope. Hadn’t built up a tolerance yet.

“Because if a person can legally go to war, ready to die for this country, I think they should be able to buy themselves a damn drink legally.”

He had a point. “I’ve never thought of it like that.” My tongue felt numb as I handed the jar back to him. I leaned against the kitchen counter. “But, to get back to what we were talking about before, no. Filing a police report didn’t do anything to help. They didn’t send out a search party or anything. All they told Taryn was that he’d come back when he had cooled off enough.”

“Figures. She probably would have been better off if she hadn’t mentioned the argument at all,” Eli said as he hoisted himself onto the countertop.

I did the same and noticed when he set the mason jar between us. “Yeah, but then she’d look guilty or like she had something to do with his disappearance, wouldn’t she?”

“Maybe, but they also might look further into the whole thing.”

“Candace is coming, so I’m sure they’ll be looking into things a lot harder soon. You know how she can be,” I said.

“Candace? Jesus, Mirror Lake had better watch out.”

“She was a real piece of work, wasn’t she?”

“Hell yeah, she was. Can’t believe she’s stepping foot in town again.” Eli reached for a bag of tortilla chips near him. The bag crinkled as he opened it. It was loud, but it was nothing compared to the sound of him crunching on the chips next to me. I couldn’t stand hearing someone eat, especially when it was something crunchy. “You know, I used to have a thing for Candace.”

His sudden admittance surprised me enough to make me deaf to the sound of him eating. “Really?”

“Yeah, why not? She was pretty, smart, driven. All the qualities any man would want in a woman.”

“Yeah, but…” I stalled as I tried to think of a nice way to tell him they were the exact opposite of each other. “Y’all have nothing in common. And I do mean nothing. Candace was pretty, smart, and driven, but she was also hoity-toity and high maintenance. Definitely not someone I’d ever picture you with.”

“Is that so?”

I nodded. “I can’t believe you ever thought you had a shot with her.”

“Never said I thought I had a shot with her. All I said was that I used to have a thing for her.” Eli reached into the bag of chips and pulled out another handful of crumbs. “If you don’t picture me with someone high maintenance and hoity-toity, as you put it, then who do you picture me with?”

My mouth grew dry. He’d put me on the spot. Who did I picture Eli with? Honestly?

Me.

I was the first person to come to mind when I thought of him being with anyone. It was wrong of me, so wrong of me, but it didn’t change the truth to it.

What the hell? Where was all that distance I used to keep between us? How could I be having thoughts like that about him?

“I, uh,” I fumbled for words as I tried to think of anyone who might be a decent match for him. No one came to mind.

“Someone like you maybe?” His lips curled into a half smile.

My heart thundered against my rib cage, making it hard for me to breathe. He had to hear it. It was so loud it was the only thing I could hear.

“No.” I squeezed my eyes shut. My voice was too breathy sounding. It caused my heart to pound so hard my fingertips tingled. “I don’t know. All I’m saying is that Candace isn’t your type.”

“Glad you know my type so much better than I do,” he said. His words weren’t harsh, but they still had an effect on me. I opened my eyes to glance at him. He held the bag of chips out. “Want some?”

“If you had guacamole, yeah. I can’t eat them plain like that, though. It’s gross.” My nose wrinkled with disgust, but secretly, I was glad we were talking about something else. The conversation had steered into dangerous territory.

“How is it gross? It’s salted chips,” Eli said. He stared at me as though I’d grown two heads.

“Anyway,” I dragged the word out and reached for the jar of moonshine. “I have a hunch about what might have happened to Glenn.”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve got a feeling Alec’s friend, Shane, and his brothers took him,” I said before placing the jar to my lips. It didn’t burn nearly as bad this time. In fact, it went down smoothly. Apple pie moonshine was all right. “I told you they hunt there year-round. Becca said they were out there Friday night, the same night I heard a wolf in the woods and the same night Taryn and Glenn fought.”

Eli reached for the moonshine; his fingertips brushed against mine in the process. Warmth bloomed through my lower stomach. I blamed it on the alcohol kicking in, but knew that wasn’t entirely true.

“I hate people who hunt year-round,” he said.

“I hate Taryn is having to go through this.”

Eli glanced at me. “We should do something about it.”

“Like what?”

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to do something; it was that I wasn’t sure what we could do. Contacting the police had already been done. Letting the Alpha of the pack know what was going on had already been done. Wasn’t that all you were supposed to do in a situation like this? It wasn’t as though I could head to the police station and tell them Glenn changed into a wolf from time to time, and I thought Shane and his brothers might have kidnapped him last Friday night during one of his shifts. They’d think I was nuts. On the other hand, I couldn’t barge into Eli’s dad’s place and demand he do something to help either.

“We should head to the woods and search for clues,” Eli said as he took another swig of moonshine. “It’s our duty, don’t you think? I mean, after all, we know more than the police at this point and my father is busy with other things. Maybe we need to take this situation into our own hands. After all, it is pack related.”

I thought about what he was saying for a minute. “I think you’re right.”

“Damn.” Eli chuckled. “I never thought I’d hear you say those words to me.”

I slapped him on the shoulder. Moonshine splashed on the kitchen floor when I jostled him. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make me laugh.

“What’s so funny? That’s alcohol abuse. I should totally cut you off,” Eli insisted with a grin.

“It is alcohol abuse, but it’s funny because the only thing I could think about was how that’s probably the cleanest spot on your floor. That moonshine is so potent it could kill anything it comes in contact with.”

“You’re probably right.” Eli chuckled.

While I wasn’t smashed, I was feeling tipsy. Eli had to be, too. I could tell from the glossy sheen to his eyes.

“You ready to take a hike through the woods and crack this case?” he asked, pulling me from my thoughts.

“Yeah,” I said, slipping off the counter. I landed on my feet and a puff of white floated up from the floor. Drywall dust was everywhere. I wiped off my bottom, sending more flying through the air. The countertop was covered in it. “Great, my butt is probably all chalky.”

“Turn around, let me see,” Eli said as he spun his index finger around in the air, signaling me to do as he said.

“Not a chance.” I knew he was only using the moment as an excuse to check out my ass. It sent a shiver through me that was hard to ignore, but I managed. “Come on; let me show you where I found the blood.”

Eli slipped off the counter without worrying about dusting his bottom off. “Whoa there, let’s get some supplies first.”

“Supplies? Like what?”

“Well, I for one don’t plan on using the flashlight on my cell phone. We’ll cover more ground if we have something with a wider range to it.”

“What are you planning on using, a freaking lighthouse?” The flashlight on my cell was perfect. I didn’t need anything else.

“No, but I have a good flashlight we can use. Plus, I should probably change into something else. You too,” he said, taking in what I was wearing.

The feel of his eyes on me had my stomach flip-flopping again. I glanced at my clothes, hoping to take my mind off the way he was looking at me. I had on my favorite pair of cut-off shorts and a white tank top with messy hair don’t care printed in black cursive lettering on the front. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”

“You’re going to stick out like a sore thumb in the dark.”

“What are you suggesting? I go home and change into something black so we can hit the woods in ninja mode?”

“Something like that, minus the you heading home part.” He started toward the back of his trailer. My gaze drifted to his dust-covered bottom. Lord, he was good-looking. “Come on. Let me see if I have anything black you can wear.”

I trailed behind Eli, heading down the narrow hallway with excitement sparking through my system at the thought of being in his bedroom. Immediately, I scolded myself for thinking that way. This was pack business. Even though I wasn’t Moon Kissed, this was still my pack. It always would be. No matter what. I wasn’t going into Eli’s bedroom to make out with him and do the dirty. I was going to prepare for a mission. I’d take him to the spot I saw the blood and we’d look for clues that might help us find Glenn. Nothing more, nothing less.