“Better,” she mumbled.
Wolf ran a hand over the soft, bare skin of her hip. “Modore insinuated David was the Culper Ring’s agent and when he died, they got scared and sent the shape shifter to watch you.”
“But that shifter tried to kill me.” She screwed up her eyes, tried to sort through all the implications piling up in her head. Oh, God.
“I know.” Wolf’s aura pulsed quicker.
Loti bolted upright, sick to her stomach. “So, you’re saying Modore didn’t send the shape shifter? This organization did? The one you used to work for? And David was an agent for them.”
Wolf watched her, waiting, braced. “Yes.”
“You’ve been keeping this from me for two months? What the hell, Wolf?”
She jumped out of bed and threw her black kimono on, jerking the sash tight as she fled the bedroom. The sunset blazed through the windows, but Wolf followed her into the living room, despite the sting of it on his bare skin.
“Seriously, you didn’t think I needed to know this kind of information right away?” Loti stalked into the kitchen with Wolf on her tail.
“What information? That David was an agent for an organization that isn’t supposed to exist? That I’m sworn to keep secret? On the pain of death? And that said organization may have tried to assassinate you?”
Wolf grabbed her arm and spun her around. “I was told one thing, and one thing only: that David was an agent. And by a madman; an insane vampire who wanted to kill me and take you for his own. I was supposed to believe him?”
Wolf gripped both her arms as she stared wide-eyed up at him. “I haven’t been able to follow up on it all. I still don’t know if what he said was true.” His eyes both pleaded with her and accused as he shook her one firm shake. “That’s what I was supposed to tell you? To what ends, Loti? To scare you, worry you, or break your heart all over again?”
“So why did you tell me now?” Tears welled and she strained her neck to turn her face away so he wouldn’t see the them spill down her face.
“Loti,” Wolf murmured, gathering her into his arms. “Because you needed to know. I’m sorry I kept it from you in the first place. I just didn’t want to be the one to tell you such an awful thing was possible.”
She buried her face in his bare chest. She trembled in his arms, his touch quieting the surge of adrenalin, the anger, the fear. The heartbreak. Wolf squeezed her tighter and she whimpered.
“How much of my life had been a ruse?”
“I don’t know.” He lifted her chin, kissed her lips. “But I think it’s about time we find out.”
She looked up at him with a furrowed brow. “How?”
I’m going to talk to the man in charge.”
“What? Who?” She pulled slightly back.
He sighed as he kissed her eyelid. “The Ring. I got a message from the Culper Ring to report in.” He kissed the other eyelid. “And it’s time we found out the truth and what their angle is.”
“Can you tell me what the Culper Ring is?” Loti had already lived that life with David and didn’t relish reliving it with Wolf.
“I’m not supposed to tell you,” Wolf said. “and if circumstances were different, I probably wouldn’t. But you need to know, and I don’t want to keep secrets from you. I quit because I didn’t want to have to keep secrets anymore, or do things I didn’t agree with.” Anger flashed in his eyes.
Loti pulled back, studying his furrowed brow, his disquieted eyes. “You quit, so why do you have to report in?”
“If I were human, I would have been given my walking papers and told not to go to certain places, ever. But,” he shrugged. “That doesn’t work for the immortal. There’s a new lord of the –” he stopped abruptly “-head honcho and he needs to flex his muscles.”
Wolf rolled his eyes. “They already know about you and me, so they’ve at least been watching you that long. If, and this is a big if, Modore was telling the truth, then they have been watching you for some time, maybe even before David.” He released Loti and rubbed his eyes with both hands.
Loti went still, a thought brewing that she didn’t want to formulate.
“Don’t start going down that path...” Wolf gripped her shoulders. “Listen to me. You told me what David said to you before he died. And again when you saw him in the In Between. He said he always loved you.”
But Loti was already there, already chewing on the idea and it clung to her thoughts like a bitter caramel sticking to her teeth. She couldn’t get the taste of treachery out of her mouth.
“Was everything I thought I had with David a lie? Make believe? Did he trick me? Did he fake it?” Her chin trembled.
“He didn’t, Loti. Don’t think it.”
But she pulled out of his arms, walked away, clutching at her stomach. Her head ached and the world seemed lopsided. As if in a trance, she picked up the tea kettle. Water from the faucet ran into the kettle with a hollow splash.
“Do you want some coffee?” Her voice was empty.
“I’m not letting you do this to yourself.” He pried the tea kettle from her fingers and it clanked into the ceramic sink. “He loved you.” And he kissed her, letting his shields down and they merged.
His warm chest pressed against hers as his hands ran over her and she let him in. His being reached deep into her, where he found the sadness wrapped in the darkness of fear. Had all of it been an elaborate betrayal? She wouldn’t, couldn’t let the thought go and now it was growing roots. Wolf tugged at it, tried to yank it free, but it wouldn’t budge.
“Loti,” he spoke into her mouth. “Don’t let this poison you.”
She sobbed. “I can’t. It’s too late.”
His kiss turned fierce, and she held the back of his neck as he picked her up, gathering the robe up around her waist. He set her bare backside on the cold granite and she opened her to him. He slide between he legs.
“Yes, you can.”
He untied the robe, sliding it off as he kissed her neck, her shoulder. Her nails trailed lightly down his back and he moaned, filling her, taking her. Loti lost herself in Wolf’s warm the, his mouth, his hands, his strength. And when they reached the edge, he bit her neck, hard, gulping her blood. They shuddered together as the pain gave way to pleasure.
“Wolf,” she moaned.
He carried her to the bedroom, laid her on the bed and crawled over her. “Wrap your legs around me,” he murmured. “Hold on tight.” And she did.
He rolled over so she was on top and she laughed, the sound like wind chimes in a slight breeze as she leaned over him with her hair falling on his chest. He cupped her face in his hands, pulled her to him, kissed her swollen lips. When he pulled away, her blue eyes sparkled with little flecks of gold, dancing with magic.
Her face glowed, literally, a halo of white and violet above the crown of her head. But he said nothing, just watched the play of pleasure on her face as she moved over him. Her body wound tight, closer, and he pulled her down, slid his arms around her, gripped her tightly to him, and bit the other side of her neck. This time, he drank in long, languid pulls as they came in each other’s arms, lost in the magic of them.
Loti relaxed in degrees, softening into his body. He wrapped her in his arms, and the whirring of the air conditioner mixed with the sound of their breathing.
She didn’t want to move. She didn’t want to break the spell. She didn’t want to leave the comfort of his body. Or his mind. In this moment, there was no pain, no past, no suffering. There was just the glitter of their love making: smooth skin against skin, the glisten of sweat, and clean smell of his hair. He gave her neck one final lick, and then tucked her face into his, settling in. She fell asleep just like that.
She didn’t know how long she had slept, but she was in the exact same position when she woke. He hadn’t moved her while she slumbered. She reluctantly lifted her head to peer at him with hazy eyes.
“Hey, sleepy head.” He smiled up at her, brushing the hair from her face. She
smiled back, her heart full and at ease.
“Coffee?” she asked with a hopeful lilt.
“Coffee.” He chuckled as he kissed her nose. She stroked the side of his face, wondering what she had ever done to deserve this kind of happiness.
Back out in the kitchen, Loti stood on tip toe, leaning into the counter as she reached for something on the top shelf of the cabinet. Wolf brushed up against her backside as he put the kettle on the stove to boil. They glided through the mundane tasks of making their coffee in sync, he reaching over her for the tin of coffee beans, she taking the lid off the grinder. They ground beans and measured them into the French press, moving around and with each other flawlessly.
Just before the water boiled, Wolf lifted the kettle and poured it over the coffee. Loti broke the spell by leaving him to get the cream out of the fridge. When the coffee was ready, Wolf poured it and she added the cream, neither of them taking sugar. Taking their mugs to living room, she sat in his lap, legs over the arm of the over-stuffed chair, both of them sipping coffee in silence. He ran his hand through her hair and she settled back.
“Okay, so tell me about the Ring and what it means if David was an agent for them.”
Wolf sipped his coffee while he organized his thoughts. Loti waited in the calm trust of the one thing she could never doubt: Wolf.
“The Culper Ring is black ops. Doesn’t exist, if you were to ask.” He stared straight ahead, and the absurd image of an android’s head twitching as he accessed his data banks came to Loti’s mind. She tightened the corners of her mouth against the threatening laughter. Wolf raised an eyebrow at her and she waved a hand for him to go on, clearing her throat.
“The original mission was as a spy ring during the Revolutionary War, but it morphed over time. Mostly, they protect the United States from supernatural espionage and terrorist attacks.”
Loti considered that. “So, what the heck do they want with me?” She set down her coffee mug and commenced to chewing on the side of her thumb.
“I’m not sure.”
“Why do you think they’ve been watching me and what about David? If they sent him, why?” Why go to the elaborate effort of seducing and marrying her, for God’s sake?
Wolf guided her hand away from her mouth and she scowled, but tucked her hand under a thigh. “If the Culper Ring is involved, you can bet someone thinks there’s a threat to national security.”
“Are you kidding me? How in the world am I threat to national security?”
Wolf blew out a breath. “I don’t know, but if the Culper Ring knows Modore wants you, then that’s probably enough. The’ve been after him for a long time. I went on a few of those missions.”
He took another sip of coffee, his eyes clouding over. “But I’d rather not guess at the answers to your questions. We both need to hear them from the source.”
Loti swallowed back the fear and frustration, nodded. “I think you’re right. How do we go about this?”
Wolf narrowed his eyes for a moment, then set his coffee mug on the table and rose up with Loti in his arms. “You’re going with me when I report in.”
Chapter Eight
Child.
Christian shivered in his sleep. His eyes popped open.
Sire.
I need you to get inside the ashram.
Christian stared unseeing at the dark ceiling. If Modore was using their telepathic link, he must be close.
It’ll look suspicious if I ask to go there.
Find a way and find it now.
Where are you?
Our lair in Richmond.
And Modore was gone from his head. Christian sat up and rubbed his face. He glanced over at the emptiness beside him. Heather wasn’t on his sleep cycle, yet. He wondered how long it would take for them to sync up and for them to be able to hear each other’s thoughts without trying.
While Heather had some telepathic ability as a witch, it was not the same as a bonded pair’s. He knew that was part of why Modore wanted him to bond with her. And when it happened, they would be permanently bound to one another.
He threw the covers back and hung his legs over the side of the bed. Was it worth it? He felt her coming close and he held his head in his hands. What had he done? Secrets, choices, and consequences loomed over him like a dark storm cloud.
A key slid into the lock at the front door of the condo—a sound only a vampire, or a dog, would notice from another room. The combination of vanilla and jasmine greeted him as the door opened. It wasn’t her perfume; it was just her. He waited, listening to her keys clink into the bowl by the front door.
After a moment, the refrigerator door opened and closed. She must have opened a cabinet and he heard the soft sploosh of liquid being poured into a glass. He grimaced at the lump in his throat. He had been so sure he could detach himself from the feelings. The fridge opened and closed again and she padded over to the living room. The couch creaked.
Not that she heard those noises—only he did.
The sun had set, but true darkness wouldn’t fall for another twenty minutes or so. He was too young to face the light, yet. Those damn feelings invaded his mind and heart, and he grit his teeth. He’d never bonded with anyone before. He hadn’t been prepared for the intense need, and he certainly hadn’t wanted to love her. Anger and lust, affection and repulsion all warred in his stomach.
“Heather,” he called out.
“I’m here,” she answered without a pause.
“Come to me.”
The glass clinked on metal and she made her way to him. When she opened the bedroom door, dim twilight spilled into the room and he hissed. His arm covered his eyes as she quickly closed the door behind her. Was she an idiot? Why would she want to hurt him?
His clenched fists trembled as he sensed her wary mood through their blood bond. It contrasted against her love for him like a dark shadow gliding over the surface of a sparkling lake. He hated that she still felt the need to be guarded around him. And he was feeling much for his liking these days. Get a hold of yourself, old boy.
“Pull the blinds before you come in.” He growled and she hesitated, hovering over the edge of the bed as if she couldn’t decide to sit or bolt.
“I’m sorry. I keep forgetting.” She lowered herself to the edge of the bed, her hands tucked between her thighs. “The sun set and I didn’t think—“
In a blur of anger and motion he smacked her across the face. She yelped and jumped off the bed. Blood dripped from a cut over her cheek bone. “Christian! What the hell?”
His face flashed instantly from anger to horror. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” He said it in a rush, leaping to her side in an instant. “I don’t know what came over me.” But he did. Feelings were dangerous, any feelings at all seemed to open the well. And that well was filled, ready to explode.
Heather smacked his hands away as he tried to tilt her chin up to get a look at the damage he had caused. “Stop fighting me. Let me help.” He gripped her chin hard, digging his fingers in.
“Why are you always so contrary?” His anger swam to the surface.
“You’ve done enough.” She tried to yank her chin free, but he squeezed. Her eyes went wide and she held very still.
“I’m trying, Heather. My control is not the best.” He loosened his grip. “And you push my buttons.”
“I don’t mean to.” She blinked back the burning in her eyes. “Please. Let me go.”
Her voice shook and Christian’s face went slack. His chest heaved with regret, confusion. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. Or scare her. His hand fell away from her chin. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered.
She stepped back holding a manicured hand to her cheek. “You know…” she hesitated, her face contorting in her effort to control herself. “Katie says the vampires at the ashram are different, that most of them have mastered their impulses.”
Christian wasn’t sure if it was the hopeful lilt to her voice or the words of his sire coming back to
him that made his chest tighten. A part of him wanted to take offense at her implication that he couldn’t control himself, but he had just provided the proof. The other part of him wondered what twisted part of the Universe was helping Modore.
“How?”
She shook her head as she searched his face and body language for clues to what he would do next. “I’m not sure, but she said something about yoga and meditation. That’s what an ashram is, isn’t it? A place to practice yoga?”
Christian approached her cautiously, held out his hand. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make you feel safe with me.”
She tentatively took his hand. Squeezed it. When she smiled at him, he scooped her up in his arms and bounced them onto the bed. Rolling them to their side, he bit his wrist and offered the blood to her. She hesitated, glancing up at him, but his face and eyes glowed with a rare, childish hopefulness.
She smiled and took the peace offering. As she drank, the split skin along her cheekbone knitted back together and the bruise that was just starting to show, faded away, and so did the throbbing pain. Christian placed a tender kiss on the newly healed cheek.
“Ask Katie to introduce us to the ashram nest.” Heather cringed at the order. “Who’s the svami?”
“Svami?” Heather licked the blood from her lips. His wrist had healed.
“The head of the vampire nest.” Christian buried his face in her neck and breathed in vanilla and jasmine. She smelled so good and she was his. Only his. His naked body curled around her clothed one. Her apprehension eased and she relaxed into his embrace.
“I believe his name is Calisto,” she whispered.
“Ask Katie if there’s a good time to meet him.” He kissed her neck and she shivered at his touch.
“Okay.” She breathed the word more than she actually spoke it.
His head popped up, his eyes narrowing. “And be discreet.”
She rolled her eyes. “Of course.” She tensed suddenly, and shrank back just a fraction.
But his eyes held only a dark want as his fingers dipped under her sweater and skated along her belly. She caught her breath as his hand slid down. Christian growled as he yanked the sweater over her head.
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