Predator (Copper Mesa Eagles Book 1) Read Online Free

the mystery government project going?” Zach asked, writing something down on a sheet of paper, then leaning back and looking at his older brother.
    “It’s moving along,” said Seth. “We got the frozen alien bodies today, so we’re locking those in the bunker tomorrow.”
    Zach snorted, rubbing his eyes.
    “What is it again, really?”
    “Some kind of electrical bunker for the hydro equipment they’re putting in across the Elk,” Seth answered.
    “I like the aliens answer,” said Zach.
    “You got class tonight?” Seth asked.
    Zach was in his second semester at Southern Utah Community College, two hours away in Blanding, Utah, studying pre-engineering.
    “Nope, tomorrow night,” he said, lifting his arms over his head and stretching. “Tonight I gotta finish these problem sets, then I’m up early tomorrow to open the store.”
    Zach ran the bakery section of Obsidian’s single, tiny grocery store. He had to be there by five every morning, and between that, homework, and classes, Seth was amazed that his little brother ever slept.
    Of course, once he got his degree and was making triple was Seth made, he’d be laughing all the way to the bank, but he had at least a year of community college left before he could even transfer out to a four-year college.
    Seth knew he’d miss his little brother when he left. Their corner of Utah didn’t have any four-year colleges, so he’d have to move away from home, though if Zach was worried about being the only twenty seven year old in the junior class, he didn’t say anything.
    “Is there anything for dinner?” asked Seth, his stomach rumbling. He’d eaten his lunch, two peanut butter sandwiches, an apple, and a bag of chips, hours and hours ago.
    “That meatloaf I made last night,” said Zach. “And I think there’s peas in the freezer, though you gotta check.”
    Then he looked at his brother’s face closely for a long moment.
    “What are you so happy about?” Zach asked, his eyes narrowing.
    Seth shrugged, but he couldn’t help grinning.
    “You get a raise?”
    “Nope.”
    “Somebody bring donuts into work today?”
    “Nope.”
    Zach just shook his head.
    “Well, shit, man, I’m out of guesses — wait, did you meet a girl? ”
    Seth couldn’t help his pleased smile.
    “ Where? ” asked Zach. “Is she new? Is she eighty?”
    “Yes and no,” said Seth. “She gave me a ride to work today, and she’s a geologist working on a mining project out in the desert.”
    Then he squeezed his eyes shut, making a face.
    “The truck broke down again, by the way,” he said.
    “Fuck,” muttered Zach. “If you need the car, I can probably walk to work tomorrow, but I gotta use it to get to school.”
    “Brad said he’d drive me,” Seth said.
    “So, this girl got a name?”
    “Juliana,” Seth said. Her name felt like honey on his lips, sweet and viscous. “Jules for short.”
    “She sounds cute.”
    “She is. I got her number and said I’d show her all the good times that Obsidian has to offer.”
    Zach laughed at that.
    “All two of them?” he asked.
    “I’ll work with what we’ve got,” Seth said. “Not that I have a choice.”
    He walked into the kitchen and pulled the meatloaf from the fridge, then got the peas out of the freezer.
    “You want some?” he called to Zach in the next room.
    “I’ll have some later, I gotta finish this,” Zach called back.
    Seth loaded meatloaf and peas onto a plate and put the whole thing into the ancient microwave. It was so old that it had a dial on it instead of buttons, and he cranked it to four minutes. Even that probably wasn’t going to be long enough, but he was always a little nervous that the thing was going to catch fire.
    As the microwave hummed, Seth let his mind wander. It wandered mostly back to Jules, and he spent the minutes thinking about undoing the buttons on her shirt one by one, revealing the pale, freckled skin below, her curves soft in his hands. She looked like she’d