by Raine Miller
“Why change her name to Tessa?”
“It is decreed that vampires must not live in one place longer than twenty years, and we must change our identities. That way our slowly progressing appearance, which to humans seems unchanging, doesn’t give us away. In 1836 she changed identities with the help of her medical attendant and executor. He took care of the necessary documentation and the burial of an empty coffin. She’s been going by Tessa ever since, but changes her surname frequently.”
“Has she ever been caught?”
Arie smiled almost to himself. Nevertheless, he answered the question in a dismissive tone. “The only one of her escapades on record made the newspapers in London during the summer of 1988. An unknown woman picked up at least six men in the Soho section. After she returned home with a victim, she slipped drugs into his drink. While he lay unconscious, she cut his wrist and sucked his blood. Or at least that’s what the papers reported. They never disclosed the bite marks. She never did get arrested. It was a really dull, hot summer, and she got bored.” Arie shrugged.
I gulped. I wasn’t sure what to say to that, but I suspected I’d have to get used to this sort of thing if I wanted to be a part of it. Be a part of Arie’s world, and maybe one day spend an eternity…
“Besides, they were all womanizers that would have otherwise never been punished,” Tessa said from the doorway of the office. She leaned on the frame while drinking from a wine glass filled with a burgundy-colored substance. “That’s why my infractions were forgiven when I went before the Court. But you leave out all the best parts. You didn’t tell the girl who I really am.”
I practically hit the ceiling from her abrupt appearance. She sauntered to the damask wing chair behind her desk, carelessly placing her wine glass on top of a book on its surface. Droplets spilled on the expanse of the desk as she took a seat.
A Cheshire Cat smile curved her lips. She reached out a manicured finger to wipe up a drop, which she sucked from her finger. My mouth felt like a desert, and words failed me. Tessa propped her feet, still clad in thigh-high gauntlet boots, on the desk.
“I used to be a famous hetaera, a courtesan, and I am one of the oldest and strongest vampires remaining. I am an Ancient, and a ruling member of the Legacy. I was born in Greece in 308 BC, but my name then was Thais,” she said.
“So you’re older than Arie,” I said, fishing for information.
“He’s got about two hundred years on me, don’t you, Arie?”
Arie glared across the desk at Tessa. “Would you excuse us? We have some business to discuss. Wait in the lounge just across the hall.”
I wanted to protest, but thought better of it, pausing only momentarily before seeing myself out. I’d crossed a boundary when I fished for more details about Arie’s age. While waiting in the lounge made me nervous, at least I wouldn’t be below in the hedonistic playground on the second floor. And it didn’t make me half as nervous as staying here. They were shooting daggers at each other with their eyes. Hastily, I exited the office, leaving them to sort out their differences. I left the door open a crack and stood just outside it so I could listen.
“I brought her with me to keep her safe. Someone broke into her apartment. But do you think it’s wise to divulge your age or mine?” Arie asked.
“I can see why you like her. The resemblance is uncanny. Perhaps there’s a familial link. Did you consider that?”
Arie shrugged. “I can’t be one hundred percent certain she’s not related because she’s adopted. Her last name was not always Ellis. I haven’t had a chance to dig into her family history. But after spending time with her I can tell you that I don’t see as many similarities as I once did.” Arie paused. “She’s…different. There’s something about her…”
“You’re falling for her.” Tessa’s eyes narrowed. “Adopted? That would explain why her records are sealed.”
“What do you mean her records are sealed? How do you know that?”
“Victoria mentioned you’ve been frequenting a certain coffee shop and that the girl who worked there reminded her of the keepsake hanging in your old apartment.”
Arie’s jaw clenched. “I’ve been meaning to get rid of that.”
“I did look into it, but I haven’t heard back from the connection that I have investigating the girl’s history.”
“Why would you meddle in this?”
“Arie, how long have I known you? I don’t want to see you get hurt. But the girl could be useful, despite the uncanny resemblance. I saw her aura. Perhaps I should offer her a job. The pay would be considerable for someone with her skills.”
“I know clairvoyance is a rare and valuable trait, but there are others.”
Tessa sipped from her wine glass. “Fine. You can keep your pet to yourself for now. But we both know how rare it is to find someone like her. Tell me; in your many centuries, how many clairvoyants have you known? I could use another seer.”
Arie looked away. “Including Holly? Only three,” he said with a sigh. “Actually, I came here to see François. I sensed the presence of an Ancient that I haven’t seen in years. I think there’s a connection, and I wanted to see if he had information on any illegals, someone not registered in your Court.”
“François…his term here is over. He transferred to serve on the Council of the New Orleans Court. You know how much he enjoys the French Quarter. But perhaps I can help you.”
“The girl works over at the Coffee Grind, and I felt the powerful presence outside the café. I sensed no morality or logic from the creature. It felt sinister and mad, but it was strong enough to block my signal. I couldn’t search it out. I have not felt such a presence since…”
Arie appeared lost in some distant memory as he failed to finish his sentence. I hated to see that pained expression. There were so many pieces to Arie and I knew it would take an eternity to find out everything about him. It made me wish I had an eternity to figure him out. There was so much more to him. Our chemistry was only part of it.
“You know me better than anyone, except perhaps for Victoria. I haven’t thought about the past in a long time. Not until I met Holly.”
It was painful to know that thinking of me called up what I imagined from the look on his face were unhappy memories.
Tessa studied him quietly. “I’ll put a call in to him. I know what you’re thinking. But no one has seen or heard from her. She will not abide by our decrees or be confined by society. I find it unlikely that she’d turn up here, especially with me in command. I am older, stronger, and higher-ranking. And she has a lot to answer for. The Council does not tolerate disobedience.”
“Of course, you’re probably right.”
She toyed with the exquisite yet unusual ring adorning her finger. I’d noticed it while in her office—the setting had an elegant swirling pattern and held a dark green stone. “I don’t know why you waste your time thinking about that skank vamp. You are responsible for the clairvoyant while she is in my Court. Understood?”
I gathered from their conversation that ‘Court’ must equate to territory in addition to referring to those who dealt out judgments, because they’d mentioned it in reference to their friend who went to New Orleans.
“Fine. One last thing.”
Tessa arched an elegant eyebrow.
“I know you want a seer, but please leave her out of it.”
Tessa flicked a polished fingernail. “I make no promises.”
“You know seers end up dead unless they’re turned. Once turned, what’s to say she won’t go crazy? Like someone else we both know?”
“Arie, you really need to let it go. She seems a lot spunkier than your little skank vamp. I’m sure she’s fine. If you really believed otherwise, would you have brought her here?”
Arie sighed. “No. But it’s not like I had much of a choice. If it’s who I think is behind this, then Holly is safest if I keep her close.” He paused. “Do you remember what happened the last time I got involved with a mortal woman
?”
“I do, Arie. But you really need to stop blaming yourself for what happened.”
He nodded at Tessa and rose from his seat. I tip-toed across and sunk into one of the seats in the lounge with information to process that left me with more questions than answers. My first question being, who was this ‘skank vamp’ Tessa referred to? Why was Tessa concerned enough about Arie associating with me to pull my records? And what the hell did my family history have to do with anything?
CHAPTER 7
Arie drove me home and kept looking at me as if he expected me to start an inquisition. Wait. Does he know I was listening at the door? I was about to launch into a million questions about what I’d overhead him and Tessa talking about when Arie surprised me with his proposition.
“I think I should stay the night,” Arie said.
“I’m sorry. What?”
“An Ancient is after you, Holly. Let me stay.”
I thought about it for a moment and realized that he had a point. More than that, I knew that I really wanted him to stay.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
Just the prospect of him sleeping over made my toes curl. Sleeping was the last thing on my mind.
He pulled into an empty spot in front of my building. Walking toward my apartment, all I could think about was my pent-up sexual frustration from the club. I unlocked the door and tossed my keys on the coffee table before flopping onto the sofa. Arie sat on the opposite end, almost as far away from me as he could sit without sitting on the floor.
He looked at me as if he could read my mind, despite his assurances that he couldn’t. And he looked like it took a great deal of restraint to keep from acting on his arousal. His muscles were tense, his arms were crossed. Was it that embarrassingly obvious that I wanted him? If he wanted me just as bad, I didn’t understand why he fought against it.
“Arie, I…”
I wasn’t sure which one of us moved first. I found myself straddling his thighs—half from launching forward and half from him pulling me onto his lap.
One hand was up my shirt and under my bra while his other hand cupped my ass, grinding me into his cock. “Is this what you want?”
“Yes.”
His mouth crushed mine. His kiss was truth, and everything else, a pretense, a lie—him denying what he really wanted. Our tongues tangled as he pulled my top over my head. Somehow my bra found its way to the pile where my top had already landed while I struggled to unbutton his shirt.
“Screw this.” I tore the ends of his shirt apart.
My hands moved over his chest and around his neck. I welcomed the wet, demanding heat of his tongue, the bite of his teeth, sucking at my nipples. He lifted his head from my breasts. “Holly, tell me what you want.”
His voice was raw and desperate, almost like he expected me to tell him I’d changed my mind. “I want you. I want all of you.”
“I need to hear it. I need you to tell me exactly what you want.”
“I want you to fuck me.” I cupped his cock through his jeans and squeezed.
Arie groaned.
Then he kissed me, hard, his fingers biting into my shoulders as he pushed me off his lap. He put just enough distance between us to unbutton my jeans and yank them to the floor along with my underwear. He’d undressed me in one graceful movement and pinned me to the sofa in the next. Despite the hammering of my heart against my ribcage the press of his body incited with his jeans brushing my pussy, I managed to fumble his zipper down. Before I could push his pants past his hips, his fingers were inside of me, his thumb on my clit, and I wanted to feel his cock buried there instead.
“Fuck me, Arie. I want you to fuck me. I want that to happen.”
If he needed to hear me say what I wanted, what exactly I wanted, then I’d make it clear in no uncertain terms. I pushed his jeans over his hips.
With a grunt Arie muttered what distinctly sounded like, “Oh, fuck it,” but I couldn’t be sure, and then his cock was inside of me. His head dropped so that it rested on my shoulder as he slid deeper. My hands slid up his muscled chest, but when I reached the cords of muscles at his throat, he gripped my wrists, pinning them above my head. There was a strangled, involuntary sound that I didn’t recognize. He pulled out only to slam into me harder and I realized then that the strangled moan came from me. In mid-stroke a hissing sound came from above my head and a gray paw batted Arie in the face. Mystic didn’t stop batting at Arie until he rolled off of me. He yanked his pants back up.
“I’m sorry about my cat.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Most cats don’t like vampires. They get that we’re unnatural. I am unnatural, Holly.”
When I touched his arm, he jerked but I didn’t pull away. “We can take this to the bedroom.”
His eyes searched mine. “God, I want you, Holly. I’ve never wanted anyone the way that I want you.”
I slipped my arms around his neck and straddled his lap again. Then he was kissing me. Our kiss wasn’t frantic like it was before, but slow and steady as his tongue slid against mine. He wrapped his arms under my thighs, lifting me. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried me to the bedroom. My heart hammered against my chest.
I propped myself up on my elbows and watched Arie undress after he placed me on the bed. My mouth went dry. He had the most amazing body, and watching him take his pants off made me hot. When he bent to pick them up and drape them over the foot of the bed it gave me a prime view of his ass. Then he was on top of me and inside of me and all around me. Consuming me. His arm pinned mine over my head as he kissed my neck. There was a twinge of discomfort as his teeth scraped my skin. Something about that twinge and him pinning me really turned me on.
Yes, this.
This was what I’d been waiting for.
A myriad of sensations thrummed through my body, stroke after stroke. I felt his body tense and I wrapped my legs around his back until all those sensations exploded. We melted in a heap, his weight on top of mine. I wasn’t sure how long we stayed that way, but I knew then that there was nowhere else I’d rather be.
***
The restaurant where we were seated offered the best Sunday Bloody Mary brunch in town. Except that today was not Sunday. I looked over the menu while Arie watched people from under the cover of his tinted glasses, which he wore despite being indoors.
He had spent the night at my place. He didn’t like the idea of me being alone in the apartment after it had been broken into. To be honest, I didn’t like the idea of me being alone in my apartment, but I didn’t share that with Arie. He could be controlling enough without knowing how vulnerable I felt. A chipper blonde waitress walked up to our table to take our order.
“What can I get for you?”
“I’ll take a Bloody Mary and Eggs Benedict. And keep the Bloody Marys coming.”
“I’m sorry sir, but that special only runs on Sundays,” she said politely.
Arie focused on the waitress’s eyes, his eyes flashing silver. “I want a Bloody Mary, and keep them coming, and Eggs Benedict,” he said, his voice soft and firm.
The waitress looked at him with eyes that were glazed and empty-looking. “Of course, sir. And what can I get for you?” She turned to take my order.
“Steak and eggs please. And some coffee.”
She left the table.
“I wish you wouldn’t do that.”
“What? Dazzle her?” Arie asked.
“I don’t like how you manipulate people to get what you want. You dazzle people like it’s an entertaining diversion.”
“And it is…mildly, at least.” He paused. “Did you hear anything interesting at the club?”
I blushed. “What do you mean?”
“Last night at the club, when you were listening outside the door.”
I looked out the window. Shit. Of course he would have known I was standing there. He balanced his fist on his chin. A similar-looking ring made from a dark green stone with red specks encircled
his finger. “Your ring…the stone is like the one I saw Tessa wearing,” I said, hoping to change the subject.
“I need to wear this to protect me from the sun—it’s bloodstone.”
The waitress returned with coffee for me and a Bloody Mary for Arie. He sipped his drink and bit off a chunk of celery.
“So the whole sunlight thing isn’t a myth?”
“I see you’re going to avoid the fact that I caught you snooping.” Arie sighed. “I told you we are more like humans than you think. We carry a disorder that causes an allergic reaction to sunlight, and a type of anemia not yet discovered.”
“Okay, so where does the bloodstone come in?”
Arie laughed. “I guess we have time for a story. Legend claims that in 945 A.D., a midwife or wise woman, sage-femme, in a rural town just outside Paris, France, had a daughter near death from St. Anthony’s fire.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s caused by ergot poisoning, a fungus that grows on rye bread in cold, damp conditions. Her mother was a renowned healer. Someone told her that a cure could be found if she took her daughter to St. Mary’s church in Paris, where Duke Hugh the Great, the Count of Paris, nourished the ill with his own store of ‘holy’ grains. When she took her daughter home the girl came down with the sickness again, only worse than before, and she now lay dying. Her inconsolable mother bewailed the cruel fate.”
“That’s terrible. And she died anyway?”
“Not exactly. So swept up by her emotional display of devotion, a vampire passing through observed the girl was of rare beauty. Desiring a consort, in empathy, he turned her. The girl’s mother, horrified at her allergy to sunlight, discovered bloodstone when a gypsy passing through traded her one in exchange for some herbs. She soon noticed that wearing the gem worked as a protective shield. We were known as Night Walkers.”
“Where did you get the ring? It’s beautiful.”
Arie took a sip of his Bloody Mary. “Most vampires have a jeweler fashion bloodstone into wearable pieces like earrings, piercings, bracelets, rings, or watches so they cannot easily be removed. Before that we were destined to walk in darkness.”
