Read Big Game (The V V Inn, Book 3) for Free Online Page B

would be putting it mildly.
    “Oh yeah, let me do that.”
    Prick. I’m betting he’s hoping to catch me one day to see if I really will burn from the sun’s rays.
    A metallic whir and the clickity-clack of the descending exterior shades soon follow. A glance over at the fire extinguisher mounted in the closet leaves me wondering what safety precaution the rustic-looking cabins could possibly lack. No vampire, young or old, needs to worry about the sun burning them during the rare hours of twilight the winter does see or, thanks to the sprinkler systems, concern themselves with a candle mishap torching them while they sleep.
    “It’s cool, man,” Pat calls. “Come on out.”
    I enter the pristine cabin and glance around, once again amazed at how clean the place is. Two beer bottles sit on the table. Eric and Pat are spread out on the couch and recliner like they haven’t a care in the world. Sons of Anarchy is paused on the television, the surfer-boy, relaxed-but-messy looks of Jax in black leather are frozen in mid-grin.
    No dirty dishes, no open food containers, no dirty socks under the coffee table, just the two beers they are currently drinking. The young men were complete slobs when I left for the Army eight years ago. The government whipped their asses into shape and taught them what it means to be a man—one key point being that you pick up after yourself. You’d never know two guys in their early twenties lived here.
    “Haven’t you seen this episode already?” I ask, knowing they have watched the entire series at least twice.
    Eric nods and picks up his beer. “Yeah, but there’s nothing better on, and we needed to kill time before the gathering.”
    “I’m really surprised you’re not hanging out with your old pack-mates,” I say while heading into the room. “Jon was smiling and grinning like a jackass over something he read about cheerleader chicks.”
    “They’re hot as hell, sure,” Pat says. “But they want nothing to do with us.” He lets out a gut-wrenching burp. “Stuck-up bitches.”
    I look to my brother, who proceeds to shrug his wide shoulders. “I think he’s just bitter they shot him down… over and over again.”
    A smile lights my face as I join Pat on the couch, forcing the younger man to sit up and make way for me. “You were with Romeo’s pack, like, what—two months? You couldn’t help yourself from hitting on everyone there?”
    Pat flashes me an indignant look. “No, not everyone.”
    Eric laughs, “He managed not to hit on the guys or Elsa, Romeo’s wife.”
    “Glad to see you have some sense,” I say.
    “Fuck off, both of you. One of them might’ve said yes.” He sniffs and looks back to the TV. “And hell, you don’t know unless you try.”
    Typical of most guys, our conversation peters off after the ribbing is over. We watch the rest of the show in silence, each lost in our own thoughts. The peace of being near my brother never ceases to soothe me. It was never like this with our other brother, Justin. Our mom poisoned him to us long ago, using him to shield the world from her many flaws. He grew up being her staunchest defender, but was still too young to escape her selfishness when she took him and fled the country.
    It’s been ages since I’ve thought of him. Hell, before this winter I didn’t think I’d ever get to see any part of my family again. If someone had told me last year where I’d be at this moment I’d have thought they were smoking crack.
    My attention drifts from the show I’ve already seen, to the modifications made on the resort for the werewolves this summer. We’ve got an outdoor shower area set up in the hot tub grotto to wash off the bloody hunters fresh in from the chase—with strict orders from Vivian to not allow any wet wolves into the main building while in their furry form.
    My nose wrinkles in slight distaste. It would be hard to get their distinct odor out once they shook like wet dogs all over the carpet and