Cassius, Stevens, Madison [moboreader txt] 📗

his nickname a tactical advantage before. Most hybrids kept the Roman-style names they were given by their creators, despite them being a painful reminder of their bondage. He didn’t mind being called Cassius, but things had naturally flowed toward CJ years ago, and the name made him feel freer.

Being able to go up to a normal human and give them a name that didn’t scream Ancient Rome or Greece helped cut down on suspicion. At this point, he wouldn’t have been surprised if any large man with such an old-fashioned name was automatically assumed to be a hybrid.

He’d heard on the news that the hybrids’ naming conventions had leaked over into the general public in some countries, including the UK, US, and especially Italy, where there’d been a surprising surge in babies with ancient Roman-style names in the last couple of years.

CJ chuckled and shook his head at the thought as he continued his run. He was trying to force out memories of a certain beautiful jogger and her body. It was almost like she was trying to entice him by stretching in her tight-fitting workout clothes to show off her sculpted shape and toned ass. If she had been, it’d worked.

He bit down a growl and imagined fieldstripping a rifle. If he let himself think too much about the delicious woman he’d run into, his loose shorts weren’t going to keep his cock in place.

“This is what I get for obsessing over Vestals,” CJ muttered. “Shit. Julius was right.”

The idea of bending Kendra over and making her howl with pleasure wasn’t unappealing, no matter who she was, and he still hadn’t decided what the Vestal revelation meant for him. On most days he thought he should continue waiting until his fated mate showed up. Now, he wondered if some short-term relief wouldn’t be so bad, especially with someone as enticing as Kendra.

“Damn it!”

He wasn’t supposed to be thinking about her or how he’d liked to rip off her sports bra and squeeze her tits. Like a lot of athletic women, she wasn’t busty, but he didn’t care. He could imagine running his hands down her front while she moaned and then skimming her sides until he squeezed her firm ass. He’d lift her and plant her on him.

A steady growl left CJ’s mouth now. A woman like that was bound to have a lot of stamina. She could keep up with him as he pumped away, staring up at him with those beautiful dark brown eyes, the light curls of her hair bouncing as he shoved himself in her again and again.

CJ broke from the trail and rushed over to a tree, his breathing ragged. His shorts were beginning to tent. The last thing he needed was someone calling the cops on the horny perv in the park. He held out his arms and braced himself against the trunk, taking deep, slow breaths and trying to imagine anything but Kendra’s full lips on his cock. He gripped the tree as tight as he could, digging into the hard bark with his nails and welcoming the small sting.

This was not the time to be distracted. Whatever else he decided about waiting for his Vestal, he couldn’t lose focus when on a mission. Angry and confused thoughts swirled in his head as he dropped his arms and continued staring at the dark tree trunk.

The brief hope that fate had smiled on him and delivered him his Vestal vanished. Kendra seemed annoyed with him toward the end. He doubted he’d run into his fated mate only for her to not like him. It wasn’t supposed to work that way.

“Problem?” came a quiet voice from behind. “Why didn’t you come all the way to the rendezvous point?”

CJ spun around, baring his teeth and growling, his fists snapping up. Julius stood behind him, a confused look on his face. The expression softened to one of amusement.

The aggression faded in CJ, and he turned his head. How long had he been standing at that tree to make Julius come looking for him? Yes, he wasn’t that far from their prearranged meeting point, but it was far enough.

“I don’t think they’re going to jump you in the park in broad daylight.” Julius chuckled. “This is what happens from spending so much time around Cornelius.” He tapped his forehead. “Caution isn’t the same thing as paranoia.”

CJ blinked and lowered his fists. He chanced a glance at his shorts. The mountain had returned to the sea. There was no way Julius wouldn’t have commented if he had noticed.

“Just jumpy,” CJ mumbled. He looked around. “Something about this place.”

Admitting that he was overly horny after meeting a hot woman would only lead to an annoying conversation.

Julius nodded slowly before leaning in closer and lowering his voice. “I didn’t see anything…” He smirked. “I’m not going to say I didn’t see anything suspicious because I saw a lot of that in alleys, but I didn’t see anything I’d associate with them, and I circled the entire Big Apple Sportsplex more than once. It’s mostly fencing you can see through. It doesn’t look like they’re trying to hide much.”

“Yeah.” CJ thought back to his patrol route. He’d earned looks from people both in the park and beyond, but a huge man jogging past was bound to set people on edge.

Kendra had almost run into him, but he doubted any spy with skill at all would let the prey get away without at least getting some contact information. Despite what Julius said, CJ hadn’t let complete paranoia infect him.

Their enemies might be dangerous, but they weren’t all-knowing or perfect. Hawaii proved that, and the fact Alpha Squad teams were all over the country looking into possible operations only established it further.

A trio of women jogging nearby all slowed, their gazes lower than appropriate. They smiled brightly at both Julius and CJ.

Julius moved away from CJ, waving at the women and giving them his own smile that somehow didn’t reach his eyes.

“Let’s head