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  Mercury Rising 7

  Better than Perfect

  After finding his boyfriend in bed with another man, Leslie's is talked into revenge sex. Only, his plans don't work out quite the way he expects. Not only does he run his date off by crying over Ian, but his date and his ex show up at Leslie's job at the same time. Talk about having a bad day. But a possessing demon, a feral panther, and a wolf shifter who claims Leslie is his mate all add up to Leslie thinking he's losing his mind.

  Brady might live in a small town, but he hopes never to run into Leslie again. The guy just broke up with his boyfriend and was now crying over it. But fate draws them back together, and after a night of fun, Brady realizes Leslie is his mate. Unfortunately, after getting Leslie pregnant, the male kicks him out and never wants to see Brady again. That's too bad because Brady has a demon after him, and he's determined to keep Leslie and his unborn child safe.

  Genres: Alternative (M/M, Gay), Paranormal, Romantic Suspense, Shape-shifter, Vampires/Werewolves

  Length: 28,436

  BETTER THAN PERFECT

  Mercury Rising 7

  Lynn Hagen

  

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  Better Than Perfect

  Copyright © 2018 by Lynn Hagen

  ISBN: 978-1-64243-409-5

  First Publication: September 2018

  Cover design by Emma Nicole

  All art and logo copyright © 2018 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  If you find a Siren-BookStrand e-book or print book being sold or shared illegally, please let us know at [email protected]

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lynn Hagen loves writing about the somewhat flawed, but lovable. She also loves a hero who can see past all the rough edges to find the shining diamond of a beautiful heart.

  You can find her on any given day curled up with her laptop and a cup of hot java, letting the next set of characters tell their story.

  For all titles by Lynn Hagen, please visit

  www.bookstrand.com/lynn-hagen

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  BETTER THAN PERFECT

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  BETTER THAN PERFECT

  Mercury Rising 7

  LYNN HAGEN

  Copyright © 2018

  Chapter One

  "I will not cry." Leslie looked at his reflection in the mirror. "God, you look awful." His eyes were puffy and his nose was red from the rough tissue he'd used to wipe at it. "Don't you dare shed one more tear over Ian. He's scum. Remember that."

  As brave as Leslie tried to be, his bottom lip quivered as tears rolled down his cheeks. He hurried from the bathroom, wiping at his nose as he fell onto the couch and bawled his eyes out. He'd thought his relationship with Ian had been fine, but catching his now-ex-boyfriend in bed with another man said otherwise.

  At least Leslie had had the willpower to throw Ian out on his ass instead of listening to him try to smooth-talk his way out of it. And Leslie had almost fallen for the begging and lame-ass excuses Ian tried to throw at him.

  But as much as he wanted to believe that rotten bastard, Leslie's self-esteem wasn't that damn low. Now he just had to get through the heartache of breaking up with a man he'd stupidly fallen for and he could get on with his life.

  Leslie needed ice cream, tissue, and a good movie to cry through. He also needed his best friend. With those weapons in his arsenal, he was sure to get over Ian.

  Pulling himself up from the couch, Leslie grabbed his cell phone, and called Jimmy. As soon as he answered, Leslie fell apart again.

  "He cheated on me!" he sobbed, falling to his back on the cushions.

  Jimmy clucked his tongue. "I knew this was coming. I told you he was a no-good prick. I'll stop at the store, then be over. Don't contemplate revenge until I get there."

  "Hurry." Leslie tossed his phone aside and curled into a ball. Why did betrayal have to hurt so much? Why couldn't his emotions be a faucet so he could turn them off and on at will?

  He lay there drowning in misery until his doorbell rang. Leslie didn't have the energy to get up. "Come in," he shouted, uncaring who it was. If it was a burglar, hopefully the guy would rob Leslie of his heartache.

  "You're a complete mess," Jimmy harrumphed. He took the bags into the kitchen, then returned with two bowls of ice cream and a box of Kleenex. After setting the bowls and box down, Jimmy dropped onto the couch. "Sit up so we can watch a movie and you can cry all over my shoulder. Though I would prefer you didn't. This is a Gucci jersey and I don't want snot all over it."

  "You're such a name-brand whore." Leslie sat up and wiped at his nose.

  "It took me a month to save up for it!" He slapped Leslie's thigh. "If you ruin it, I'll…" Jimmy frowned. "Threatening a man who has puffy eyes and a watery nose just isn't right. I'll simply be pissed at you."

  "But I loved him," Leslie wailed.

  "No, you loved his dick," Jimmy corrected, "because the rest of him was a complete asshole."

  Maybe he should have left Jimmy out of his arsenal. Leslie didn't like hearing the truth. He wanted his best friend to candy-coat it all and tell him some bullshit lies.

  "Eat your ice cream," Jimmy said. "It's butter pecan, your favorite." He winked. "Never say I don't love you. I even splurged for the good tissues that won't leave your nose all dry and red."

  Leslie set his bowl on the coffee table. He didn't feel like eating ice cream or watching a movie. He wanted to be left alone to wallow in misery. He also wanted to hunt down Ian and torture the bastard. After all Leslie had done for him, Ian hadn't appreciated a damn thing. Too bad crushing someone's heart wasn't illegal because Leslie would have Ian locked up.

  Jimmy patted his leg. "Let's go out. That'll cheer you up. The men at Grizzly's are hot, and taking a random guy home would do you some good. You need to fuck Ian right out of your system."

  Leslie stared at him in disbelief. "I found Ian in bed with another man three hours ago and you want to take me out for a hookup?"

  That reminded Leslie. He needed to burn the sheets.

  Possibly the bed.

  Too bad Ian wasn't still in it.

  "I'm not taking no for an answer." Jimmy hopped from the couch and grabbed Leslie's hand. "If anything, you can cry over a mug of beer while I get something to eat."

  Leslie didn't want to go to Grizzly's. He'd fooled around with the bartender, and showing up might make him look like he was stalking Darius. But where else could they go? It wasn't as though Mercury had nightclubs. He'd met Ian at the freaking laundromat when Leslie's washer had broken down.

  He should have seen the signs when Ian had asked if Leslie could finish his laundry because he had a lunch date. Leslie had been so enraptured by the gu
y that he'd agreed.

  Ian hadn't even left him quarters for drying.

  This is what you get for being so desperate that you put up with his bullshit.

  "You know what?" Leslie stood and wagged a finger at Jimmy. To hell with running into Darius. "You're right. I'm over Ian."

  Not really, but hopefully having sex with a hot guy would help him heal quicker. Leslie wasn't going to sit around and weep over a piece-of-shit guy who'd never appreciated him to begin with. They'd been dating only a month. Leslie shouldn't be this devastated. Revenge sex was just what he needed.

  "That's the spirit!" Jimmy's smile was dazzling. If he was Leslie's type, he would have been all over that. But Leslie wasn't into twinks. He liked his men brawny and tall. Ian was built like a quarterback but had the personality of a leech.

  Leslie showered, dressed, and fussed with his hair in the mirror until he declared himself ready, though on the inside he was still hurting. He cleared his throat and blinked back tears as he met Jimmy at the door.

  He squeezed Leslie's upper arm. "I know it hurts, hon. But you'll get over him. I promise."

  Leslie gave him a wobbly smile. "Thanks for understanding."

  "I don't, but I'm still here for you." He swatted Leslie's ass. "Now get moving. You have a stud out there somewhere with your name on him."

  Feeling better already, Leslie had a bounce to his step as he walked out the door.

  * * * *

  "I don't give a fuck if you have work in the morning." With his fingers curled in the leopard's shirt, Brady shook him until the guy's head was rattling back and forth. "You have a capture warrant, and I'm taking you in."

  "But I didn't do it!" Randall screamed as he swatted futility at Brady's hands. "I swear. I'm innocent!"

  "That's what they all say." This was Brady's third warrant in less than twenty-four hours and he was exhausted. At least he didn't have to kill this one. The last two had been damn bloody, and all Brady wanted to do was sit for five seconds and enjoy a drink. With half the bounty hunters mated, that put a lot of the work on the other half.

  But at least Brady was getting paid well for the warrants. That was the only reason he wasn't bitching about having to go after so many assholes.

  He shoved Randall into the backseat, then slid in beside him as Hennessey pulled away.

  "I swear," Randall kept going, "it wasn't me. I don't even know what I'm being arrested for."

  Brady rubbed his forehead. "If you don't shut up I'm gonna shove you in the trunk."

  "It wasn't me!" Randall shifted so fast he caught Brady off guard. The leopard yowled before he attacked, clawing at Brady before he tried to jump through the half-open window.

  "Don't you dare let him rip up my upholstery," Hennessey threatened. "That's real fucking leather!"

  Brady wished everyone would stop shouting at him. Not only did he have a migraine, but now he had a wild leopard to contend with. Shifting into his wolf form, Brady tackled the cat and sat on him, pressing a paw against the leopard's throat. He growled in warning, but the leopard kept fighting, wiggling and slashing his claws at Brady.

  Hennessey stopped the car, opened the back door, grabbed the leopard by his throat and shook him. "Stop this shit now. You beat up your partner and put him in the hospital, then attacked a cop. Your ass is getting locked up for that, so calm the fuck down before I snap your neck."

  Brady sat in the backseat, snarling, wishing Randall would attack Hennessey so he'd have an excuse to kill the prick.

  "And it wasn't the first time you kicked Sonny's ass," Hennessey went on. "Men like you give the rest of us a bad name. I should tie you down and let your partner stomp your balls into the ground."

  Brady shifted back into his human form while Hennessey continued to threaten the leopard. He got out of the car, opened the trunk, and grabbed the preternatural handcuffs from the small box. He cuffed Randall and threw him into the backseat, uncaring if he whacked his head or not.

  "That's brutality!" Randall hollered as he wiggled to a sitting position.

  "We ain't cops," Brady said as he leaned his head into the back of the car. "We'll brutalize you all we want. Call it payback for what you did to Sonny."

  Randall bared his canines, no longer defending himself. Instead of getting into the back with Randall, Brady got into the front seat, uncaring that he was naked, and slammed the door closed. "If I have to sit back there with him I just might shoot him."

  Hennessey glared at Randall through the rearview mirror. "I feel you. Men like him turn my damn stomach."

  They drove to the outskirts of town where the new prison stood. The brick structure resembled a utility building, and that was the way the preternatural wanted it. They didn't need any curious humans poking around. The foundation had been dug deep, and that was where the cells were located, underground and windowless.

  Hennessey called in the delivery before they turned on to a dirt access road and pulled up to the heavy gates. They were made of metal, and serpentine razor wire ran along the top of the fence. The gates creaked open and Hennessey drove around to the back of the prison where the "guests" were unloaded.

  "I'll get you back for this," Randall sneered as Brady pulled him from the backseat. "I'll get that bitch-ass Sonny, too."

  Snarling, Brady backhanded him, giving Randall a bloody nose. "You go anywhere near Sonny and I'll personally put a bullet in your skull."

  The guard hauled the naked Randall away. Brady slipped back into the front seat. "I need a fucking drink."

  "Then let's go get one," Hennessey said. "But first you need to get some clothes on. Your hairy ass is blinding me."

  Brady flipped him off. "Take me to the agency. I got some clothes stashed there."

  After they arrived, Brady got dressed and they headed to Grizzly's. He stepped into the tavern and sniffed at the smell of caramelized onions and pot roast. "I already know what I'm eating."

  "Me, too," Hennessey said in a way that made Brady turn. The bounty hunter was staring at a table where two men were seated. Hennessey was right. They were downright edible.

  "I got the blond," Brady said.

  Hennessey shrugged. "I don't care which one climbs into my bed. Fuck, I'll take them both at the same time."

  Working alongside Hennessey, Brady had learned the male was a top and a bottom. That didn't matter to Brady, but it shocked him, considering how much machismo Hennessey had. The guy was as lethal as they came—aside from Nick who was a bit touched in the head.

  Was Brady stereotyping Hennessey? Yeah, he was, and he dismissed his thoughts as quickly as they came. He didn't care what the brother did behind closed doors.

  But Brady seriously doubted either twink wanted to top. They looked like straight-up bottoms.

  Brady crossed the room and twirled the empty chair around before he sat. "Mind if we join you?" he asked.

  "I'm Hennessey and this is Brady." Hennessey scooted his chair close to the dark-haired guy, who looked them both over with furrowed brows, but a touch of interest in his eyes.

  "Depends," the dark-haired guy said. "What's in it for us?"

  "Jimmy!" The blond's blush was so deep his face should have caught fire. Brady found the blush adorable and wanted to know if the human turned red all over. The only way to find out was if he was naked, and there was a strong possibility of that happening since Brady was interested.

  "And you are?" Brady arched a brow. The blond smelled human, but the dark-haired man didn't. He was leopard.

  "He's Leslie," Jimmy said. "And he's a prude, so have patience if you plan on fucking him."

  Leslie's jaw dropped. Hennessey snickered. Brady grinned. "Is that so?" Brady said.

  The food and drink could wait if Brady had a shot with this piece of candy. Hell, he'd buy everyone at the table dinner if Leslie agreed to go back to the Pit with him. Brady was sure he could get Leslie to turn into a wildcat if given the right incentive.

  Leslie held up a hand, waving it at Jimmy. "I said I wante
d dinner and that I'd think about hooking up. Don't throw me under the damn bus."

  Brady glided his fingers under Leslie's jaw. "Sweetheart, I can promise you a good time."

  Leslie batted his hand away. "Stop that."

  This was starting to feel like a lost cause. Brady stood, ready to ditch them when Leslie grabbed his wrist. "Can we have dinner, just the two of us? I'd like to get to know a little about you before we hit the sheets."

  Brady wasn't against a conversation, just as long as Leslie didn't want to talk all night. He was dying to run his fingers through those blond strands as Leslie stared at him with those stunning green eyes. Of course, they would be naked and Brady would be pounding into his ass when that happened.

  "Sure." Brady gave Hennessey the peace sign. "Catch you later."

  Jimmy pumped his arm and did a happy dance in his seat, which made Hennessey lick his lips as he stared at the male with definite interest.

  Brady spotted an empty booth and waved Leslie toward it. "Dinner is on me."

  The male didn't look like he ate much, but Brady did have manners, and feeding the guy he was gonna fuck was only right.

  "I'm not really a prude." Leslie slid into the booth. "I'm just getting over someone, and I'm kinda down in the dumps."

  Brady paused halfway through sitting. He mentally sighed, then sat. He hoped like hell he didn't have to listen to Leslie whine all night about his ex. The guy's body was banging but wasn't enough for Brady to sit through torture.

  "Well, why don't we lift your spirits?" Brady waved the waiter over. With order pad in hand, Coral smiled as he approached. "I'll take a beer."

  Leslie wiped at his eyes. "Ian loved beer."

  Brady furrowed his brows as he turned back to Coral. "Make that a whiskey."

  Coral looked between them and nodded. "And you?" he asked Leslie.

  "Can I have a lemon water?"