by Renee Rose
Nursing the fresh sting of our lingering argument, I follow Theophilus out of the office and down to the club’s main floor. With Karina in his arms, he leads me to the coat check room, and I pause. This can’t possibly be where he intends to keep her. A coat room? But the handsome Spaniard with the name tag Armando glances around before revealing a hidden door to a descending staircase.
Ah, the dungeon. Clever.
The scent of Karina’s blood deliciously blends with the new aromas of more blood, hot bodies, and sex, and as the door closes behind us, the pounding tech music muffles. The stairs empty into a vast room of BDSM scenes, and cries from orgasms take over as the new symphony shrouding the music from the upstairs club. Bodies are strapped to spanking benches, a St. Andrew’s Cross, and stockades amongst a chic bordello décor that appeals to the Victorian in me. Two decorative thrones are in the center of one wall. Red lights, red velvet, and the thick perfume of pheromones dominate the senses. The atmosphere is tempting but a reminder of the loneliness I’ve harbored for decades.
I increase my stride to catch up to Theo, who waits at a door along the back wall.
“Here, take this.” Theo waves the key he holds in the hand around Karina’s shoulders and I use it to unlock the door.
“What a cozy setup.” My attempt to lighten the tension falls flat when I get no response from Theo. I put the key and bag of supplies on the dresser, where I lean my rump against the edge.
Theo carries Karina to the king-size bed, where he gingerly lays her on the mattress. He presses his lips to her brow and brushes her bangs from her eyes.
He’s obviously replaced me. Maybe it was a mistake coming here.
His gaze is hard. “Do you need anything else?”
“I’ll do what I can with what I have.” I jerk my chin toward the door in the back corner of the room. “I’m assuming that’s an ensuite bathroom?”
He nods.
“Then I should be fine for now.” Guilt pricks my conscience, but I’m not ready to admit defeat just yet.
Theo and I shared many women during our intense eight-month affair, but I don’t recall ever seeing him so affectionate with any of them. “How much do you care for this human?”
He strides to the door and pierces me with his sky-blue eyes. “Enough that I want you to help her. But if you’re asking if we’re in a relationship, that’s none of your business.”
I nod. He’s right. I don’t deserve his trust yet, but maybe helping her will earn some of it back.
He exits the room before I have the chance to catch my breath.
Chapter 2
The tension in the space fades after Theo leaves. I could hardly help the wounded girl with him glaring over my shoulder, and guilt weighing down my heart. I know I hurt him, but at the time I didn’t feel I had much of a choice. I had asked Bartholomew to be released so Theo and I could be together, but the fury that blazed in the King’s eyes told me his answer.
Why I expected Theo to be more receptive, I honestly don’t know. I foolishly hoped time would heal those wounds. Although the depth of pain in his eyes proved our relationship had meant more to him than I dreamed, it also meant I might have damaged it beyond repair.
I amble to the bedside of Theo’s sub. He said her name was Karina. Admittedly, a pretty name to match the sleeping beauty who might be my barrier to Theo’s heart. But if I want to win Theo back, helping her might be my only option.
The scent of her blood is sweeter than anything I’ve experienced. If she got mugged or was running for her life, that would explain it. The genuine fear at the base human instinct of fight or flight can hardly be reproduced at this potency with BDSM techniques. Adrenaline and cortisol are pumped through the bloodstream in abundance when a human is genuinely afraid, and it’s cortisol that releases sugar into the bloodstream to give the body the energy it needs to flee or defend…and that’s the very thing vampires strive for to sweeten the blood of their victims.
Karina’s veins are most likely flooded with this chemistry, and it perfumes the air like baked cupcakes or cookies. I close my eyes and my fangs extend, pressing against my bottom lip. My mouth waters.
My saliva will serve its purpose to assist her injuries, so I’m inviting my thirst to the surface. But I bring the bloodlust under control and my fangs recede.
I turn on the lamp at her bedside and my vampire vision enhances what I see. I remove her glasses and set them on the nightstand. She’s pale, so I know she’s lost a lot of blood for her petite size. Her clothes are now stiff with it. Obviously, I don’t have spare blood lying around, but I do the next best thing I know that can help. I let my fangs extend and bite into my wrist. Holding up her head, I let my blood dribble into her mouth just enough for a mouthful or two. Her reflexes take over and she swallows the blood. I snatch a couple sheets of tissue from the box on the nightstand and wipe her lips. Though vampiric blood won’t replace the blood she’s missing, it will speed up her healing process, thereby producing the blood she needs.
Using the scissors from the first aid supplies, I cut the blouse and skirt off her body to give me the freedom to work. The quick bandage I put on her in the office is already soaked.
With a washcloth, I wipe her skin clean, toss the ruined clothes and bandages into the rubbish, and remove her bloodied underwear, rendering my patient naked and a temptation in more ways than I anticipated. Her injury is open and weeping. I dip my head to her waist, inhale the fragrance of her life essence and lick her wound, fluttering my tongue along the cut.
Pure heaven.
My limbs shudder as her nectar explodes across my tastebuds. My shaft hardens and a moan escapes my lips before I’m aware enough to stop it. Fuck. I could easily lose control with this girl.
With long strokes, I pass my tongue around her wound, trying to avoid the center of the sliced flesh, lapping up the crying blood until the bleeding stops. Heal her too much, and I risk exposing her to the supernatural. I try to leave just enough laceration to show she was indeed cut, but healed enough to get her out of danger.
My fangs press through my gums again, and though I am tempted to sink my teeth into her succulent flesh, I pull back, trembling, resisting the urge to dive into her bounty. She can’t afford to be fed from. Not now. But I can certainly see why Theo chose her.
I finish dressing her injury, ensuring I use plenty of wound wash and antibiotic ointment to keep out infection. And after I’ve thrown away the opened packages and tidied up this makeshift exam room, I wash my hands and do my best to remove the blood from her brassiere and panties, which I hang to dry in the bathroom.
Unfortunately, Theo’s expensive suit jacket is ruined, but I inhale his scent mixed with Karina’s blood and my shaft fills again, aching for both. Still, I set the jacket aside to give to Theo later, and stand at the bathroom door to examine the room.
To my left, a rack of toys adorns the wall—dildos, butt plugs, floggers, leather-tipped cat-o-nine-tails, and other delights. A spanking bench is shoved against the adjacent wall. Beside it, there’s a wooden chair and the dresser next to the door. To my right, a cushioned chair, a mini-fridge, a nightstand and the king-size bed, complete with chains, straps, and cuffs bolted to the ceiling above the mattress. Everything has the bordello décor theme, demonstrating the money that went into outfitting this vampire haven.
Drawing up the wooden chair, I settle myself at Karina’s bedside, gazing at her innocent-looking face dotted with freckles. Her long auburn hair is splayed across the pillow. Her plump lips are parted in slumber. I let my gaze rake over her nakedness—full breasts, pink nipples, flat belly and rounded hips, slender legs that seem to go on for miles despite her tiny form.
I’m torn in two directions. Desire and jealousy. Has this little mortal replaced me? Or is she just one of many through the decades? The fact that she’s mortal tells me Theo is either guarding his heart because he has not turned his sub, or he hasn’t known her long enough to make that commitment. Either way, I might
still have a chance to win him if his heart has not been lost to her.
Or perhaps he would be interested in sharing her. Her blood certainly makes the notion tempting.
I pull the sheets over her body, but resume my station in the chair to watch over her for any signs of medical distress.
Two raps at the door interrupt my ‘medical study’ and I rise as Theo steps into the room.
“How is she?” He shoves his hands into his pockets and stands at the foot of the bed, concern for her in his gaze.
“So far, she’s doing well. She’s healed enough to be believable.”
“Good. Thank you.” Theo’s eyebrows pinch together over his Roman nose. “Is she nude?”
“I had to remove her garments to tend to her injuries. It’s a perfectly acceptable procedure.”
He smirks, and my heart trips clumsily. “You can hide behind your profession all you want.” He inhales deeply through his nose, and sighs. “Delicious as always.”
Although the compliment to her stings a little, I can’t argue. “She smells like cupcakes.”
“Hrmm. What a delightful nickname for her. All strawberries and cream, with her red hair and fair skin.” Desire smolders in his eyes and I stifle a moan.
As I stand, his expression becomes guarded again. “You were right,” I say. “I didn’t give you or Lucius a chance to speak with Bartholomew. I was young and inexperienced, in life as well as the vampire world. I feared the worst, and I was afraid of Bartholomew. I thought if you hated me, it would protect you, and you wouldn’t try to fight for me.”
Theo sighs, his eyes on my mouth. “Well, you were right about that. But what’s changed? I thought you were beholden to Bartholomew until 2041.”
The fact that he knows the exact year my servitude was up gives me a sliver of hope. “He got bored of me. He turned someone new a few years ago, and when I had been ignored long enough, I took a chance and asked to be released. He agreed, and I left before he could change his mind.”
Theo frowns. “How long did you wait before coming here?”
“Long enough to find you and make arrangements to leave London.”
He drops his head back and sighs.
“I have no hidden agenda, Theo.” I dare to step closer. “I just want a second chance.”
“Your timing couldn’t have been worse.” But his eyes search my face. A touch of hope glimmers in his gaze. “I don’t know how much time I have to give, but I could use your help in caring for Karina. And I’m not going to throw myself wholeheartedly into a relationship with you. You’re going to have to show me you want this, and then I’ll have to think about it.”
“I understand. Fuck me. Punish me. Use me. Toss me aside. It’s the least I deserve.” I venture closer, enough for the heat of his body to scorch me. “But let me prove to you I’m yours to do with as you will.”
His hand reaches for the back of my head, where he fists my hair and pulls me down for a possessive kiss. Hard. Wet. Seeking. His tongue plundering my mouth. His hardon grinding against my thigh. God, yes! I have dreamt of Theo for so long, and to taste him once more is a high I never want to come down from.
Moans and panting rouse me from a lonely blackness, and I slowly become aware of my surroundings. My side aches, but my body is cool, caressed by a thin, soft fabric. The moans. The heavy breathing. The sensuality of the deep whimpers and sexuality of the grunts has my kitty mewing for attention. I flutter my eyes open and, though the world is slightly blurred—I obviously don’t have my glasses on—I still recognize the muscular and commanding frame of Theo.
He reaches down and grabs the bulge of the tall man he’s kissing, who groans and grabs Theo’s ass, grinding into him. I know Theo likes men as well as women, but this is the first time I’m actually seeing him in such an intimate and…oh my God…arousing encounter with a man.
Jesus! My pussy throbs and aches so hard, I moan.
The two of them stop their heavy petting and kissing, and turn their gorgeous faces toward me.
“Don’t stop on my account,” I breathe.
The taller man chuckles, and Theo smirks. “Is my pet enjoying the show?”
I drag my bottom lip between my teeth and squirm under his blue gaze. “Yes, Sir.” But the movement of clamping my legs together to ease the ache between them makes me realize I’m naked under these thin, soft sheets. The straps and chains over the bed tell me we’re in one of the private rooms at Toxic, where Theo and I have had a few scenes together, and that brings all manner of erotic memories to mind.
I try to sit up, but my side explodes with pain and I gasp, putting my shoulders back to the mattress. “Where are my clothes?”
Tall, dark and handsome moves to the wooden chair beside me and hands me my glasses. “I’m sorry about that, Karina. I had to cut your garments off to tend to your wounds.”
I put on my glasses. Okay. Holy shit!
With the British accent rolling off this David Gandy doppelganger, I’m about ready to orgasm, and these two haven’t even touched me yet. The perfection of these men is more than I can stand. Theo’s British accent is a bit lighter than his friend’s. And his looks and persona have always reminded me of the actor James McAvoy, so I’ve just been thrust into the fantasy of a lifetime. What’s a girl to do?
“I’m not complaining one tiny bit, so you don’t need to apologize.”
Deep laughter rumbles from Theo’s chest and moves through me from my toes to my nipples, which pebble against the sheets. “Did I not say she was delicious?”
Theo’s friend grins. “That you did.”
“Sweet Karina, this is Dr. Alexander Clay.”
“Doctor? Like the medical kind?”
Alexander nods.
“Wow, did I get lucky or what? Very pleased to meet you, Sir.”
“Ah-ah-ah.” Theo narrows his eyes. “I’m the only one you call Sir.”
God, I do love it when Theo takes control. “Am I going to be punished, Sir?” I grin and waggle my brows.
Alexander groans.
Theo steps behind his friend and presses his long erection to his back.
Alexander rolls his eyes with pleasure and sighs.
“You most certainly will be, young lady. But you need to be well enough before that happens.” Theo levels a serious gaze at me, but it softens with a touch of concern. “Can you tell me what happened?”
I close my eyes and cover my cheeks with my shaking hands. “I was walking to the club from work when some guy jumped me in the alley.”
Theo huffs, a disapproving glare in his blue eyes. “And this is why I keep asking you to drive here instead of walk. Why? I can send a car for you.”
I try to sit up again, only to have the wind knocked out of me from the sharp pain.
“Let me get you something for that.” Alexander rises from his chair and crosses to the pile of items on the dresser. “Are you allergic to any medications?”
Gosh, he is a doctor, isn’t he? “Um, no.”
“Can you take Advil?”
“Yes.”
“All right, good.” He grabs a small packet and heads to the bathroom, where he fills a glass with water.
Theo sits in the seat Alexander vacated and takes my hand. “Did you happen to see who accosted you?”
“No, I didn’t.” I pant through the burning at my hip. “He grabbed me from behind and covered my mouth.” I gasp as I recall another detail. “He had letters on his right hand. B-I-G. I saw them when he showed me the knife, like he was trying to scare me with it.” I point to the stretch of skin between my fingernail and the middle knuckle of my index finger. “Right here, on the first three fingers.”
“How in heavens did you get away?” Alex hands me a glass of water and two teal gel pills.
“Thank you. I elbowed him and ducked. Unfortunately, he cut me as I ran away. I made it out of the alley and into the street. I think with so many people around, he decided not to follow me because I didn’t see him when I looked b
ack.”
Theo scowls. “Well, I’m glad you’re out of danger. Alex is a good doctor. He’ll keep an eye on you.”
I glance around the room. “God, he didn’t take my purse, did he? I thought I still had it with me?”
Theo nods. “I saw Zoe with it when she asked about you.” He brushes his lips across my knuckles before standing. “I’ll get it from her.”
“I probably need to have her get me some clothes, too, don’t you think?” I clutch the sheets to my chin.
Theo stops at the doorway and raises an eyebrow at Alexander.
Alexander grins devilishly at me. “Clothes are overrated, cupcake.”
Theo laughs. “I’m inclined to agree with him. Besides, Zoe said something about a stalker finding her?”
“Oh, shit!” Phil. “How does that asshole keep finding us? Is she okay?”
“Yes. I believe the man showed his face here. Armando said he was going to take Zoe home with him to keep her safe. It might not be safe for you to go home right now, either. Let me see what I can do.” He jerks his chin toward Alexander. “Would you mind staying with her?”
“It would be my pleasure, Sir.”
Theo winks at me and exits the room.
I shiver under Alexander’s smoldering gaze.
“So, how do you know Theo?” I ask.
Alexander sits and crosses his long, muscular legs. “Theo and I were lovers some years back. I’ve come here to see if we can rekindle our relationship.”
He says it with a matter-of-fact air, but I can’t help feeling a little disappointed. Although I’ve only had a few scenes with Theo, I’ve been falling for him hard. I suppose it’s probably best we not get involved. If he finds out I’ve been spying on Club Toxic, I’d blow my chances with him anyway. What started out as a harmless passing of information to my old flame—who also owns a BDSM club in New Orleans—turned more complicated when I met Theo and learned he was the general manager.
