by Lauren Dane
“Before you fill me in on what you found out today, I wanted to talk about this entire mess with Hunter Corporation and the recent developments with Roth.”
She sighed hard, taking a few bites of her sandwich while he had some melon.
Clive knew she’d found shelter in Hunter Corporation when she’d run from the Keep when she’d been sixteen. They trained her and she’d bonded with them in a way he was quite certain she had no idea she had.
“Roth betrayed you. He betrayed the Hunter Corp. He betrayed the oath he took to uphold the Treaty. That’s untenable and it won’t continue. He tried to harm David, also untenable. The move to table this issue while you’re out in the field risking yourself on their behalf—again—that’s different. That’s betrayal on a wholly different level.”
Her breath had gone shaky for a moment. He took her hand, running the pad of his thumb over her ring. “You understand my fealty to your father. To the Vampire Nation and my people. You have your own loyalties and allegiances. Despite all that, you and I belong to one another. I wish to be your safe harbor. It hurts to see you so devastated over this.”
She frowned, her brows knitted. “If you know I’m devastated why are you making me talk about it?”
“You don’t always have to be strong. You don’t always have to pretend you’re impervious to getting your feelings hurt.”
“It hit me as I was getting ready to kill Enyo just how much pain and near deathing I’ve been dealing with and how it could have been avoided, at least most of it, if Hunter Corp. had truly had my back. I have been loyal to them from the moment they opened their door to me in Paris all those years ago. I lost count of how many bones have been broken. How many times I’ve been bruised and battered to do my job. And I accepted that because it was part of the deal.” She held her coffee cup close enough to breathe in the steam to comfort herself.
He got a little closer, close enough to brush his thigh against hers.
“I never could have imagined this. Not then. Not even before the Joint Tribunal. It’s just sad because I’m going to London when I’m done mopping up the mess here and I’m going to throw down with these assholes once and for all. And I don’t know if I’m staying either way.”
“Because you shouldn’t have to go to London. They should stand up for you as you deserve.”
She rolled her eyes, but he was right.
“You’d leave Hunter Corp. then? And go out on your own?”
“I just know that Hunter Corp. made me feel like nothing. Like my life wasn’t worth it to make someone else on the staff uncomfortable. ‘Oh that Rowan, she’ll make due. We’ll just ask her to not force us to face this horrible problem at her expense. She always does that.’”
He kissed her shoulder.
“I sound like such a petty whiner. Ugh.”
“Darling, you’re not a whiner. You can be petty, I won’t lie to you about that. But you’re not being petty with this situation in any way. That you’re still here despite this situation speaks volumes about you.”
She harrumphed.
“Being on my own would work. I don’t much like taking orders or having to run my activities by other people. I have training. I have the contacts. I might lose my staff like Carey and David, who are both paid by Hunter Corp. That would be...they’ll have to make that choice. But this is all just talk until I get there so I can look them in the face when I present all my evidence.”
Clive just wondered if anything Hunter Corp. could do or say would make this enough for her to stay. “I’m just waiting for you to realize they need you a lot more than you need them. And I doubt very much that Carey or David would leave your employ. You have the resources to pay them yourself.”
She polished off one of the sandwiches, not saying more about it for another five minutes or so. “I need to brief the Vampires on everything we’ve learned today.” One corner of her mouth tipped up as she put her plate and empty coffee cup on her bedside table. “I need to shower first. You should come with me.”
“Are you trying to avoid the discussion?”
She got up and let the robe drop to her elbows as she stood at the doorway to the bath. She gave him a look back over her shoulder. “I’m quite capable of telling you I’m done with a topic. I just wanted you inside me before we then have to spend time dealing with more politics, betrayal, death threats and other assorted bullshit.” She let the robe drop, bent to pick it up but he was there, handing it to her, ushering her inside.
It took a bit but by the time he’d gotten undressed and she’d retrieved towels and made sure they had toiletries, the water was hot.
“I’m not sure if you noticed, but the water tank here is very large.”
“The reasons I love you are myriad.”
She ducked her head under the water and he joined her, the heat of the spray loosening his muscles. “The first time I had you was in the shower.”
She put shampoo in her palm and slid up the front of his body to massage it into his hair. He closed his eyes as his soap slick palms gripped her ass and held her close.
“I remember. You were so mad that you wanted to fuck me. Which made you even more irresistible. I’m a terrible person.”
He laughed, getting close enough to kiss her. “It is uniquely Rowan to get aroused when I’m annoyed. I was mad because I knew once I gave in and tasted you everything would change.” He switched so that he massaged her scalp, her head tipped back, exposing her neck to him.
She smiled, her eyes closed. “And did it?”
“Indeed. To coin one of your phrases, you rocked my world. You continue to do so every day. My greatest challenge and my finest possession.”
* * *
The warmth his words left behind seemed to soak into her skin as his fingertips dug into her scalp. He stood so close he blocked out the lights in the ceiling behind him.
Avarice was sensual to Vampires. They surrounded themselves with beautiful things, beautiful people, lived in beautiful places. Their clothing tended to be of incredibly high quality. A delight to wear against the skin.
Rowan hadn’t fooled herself into believing part of her appeal wasn’t related to that. She was unusual. In Vampire terms, she was desirable. Vicious. Powerful. Connected to the most influential being in their world.
But it was more. In Clive’s tone she heard pride. Tenderness. Concern. That possessiveness was acceptable. It neither harnessed nor silenced. Rather it was nice to belong to him. In the very real way he belonged to her.
He backed her to the tile, the water hitting them from both showerheads. He poured soap into his palms and then drizzled it over her breasts and belly.
“Oops, I suppose I shouldn’t waste that,” he murmured and began to lather her up.
She hummed her delight. “My nipples must be really dirty.”
“My thoughts about them are.”
He made her laugh and then that laugh strangled into a moan as he tugged and rolled her nipples between his thumb and forefingers. She gasped, disappointed when he let go. Until he repositioned his hands at her waist and lifted her, rinsing her off and then licking to make sure she was extra clean. He kept her pinned here, his mouth on her breasts and her legs wrapped around his torso, hands on his shoulders as she writhed.
He let her slide down the wall, his cock entering her as he thrust up. She hadn’t expected it to happen so fast but she was coming hard around him as he snarled a curse but kept his pace slow.
“Warn a girl next time,” Rowan gasped, licking up his neck as he continued those long, delicious strokes up into her body.
“I fail to see the fun in that,” he said, nuzzling her neck, drawing his incisors down her veins, driving them both to distraction.
She laughed, moaning when he changed her angle so the stream from one of the showerheads hit
her pelvic bone. A few adjustments and her moan deepened when he got it directly on her clit.
He was so good at that stuff.
She slid her fingers into his hair, pulling to get purchase as she met his thrusts. Her inner muscles tightened as another climax began to build.
“You first, darling.”
“I already did.”
“You’re aware you’re arguing with me about coming. Just be quiet and have an orgasm, Rowan.”
Fine, then.
She concentrated and let it happen, the pleasure building at her toes, slowly taking over until she nearly shouted his name when she came. He wasn’t too far behind her, groaning as he slammed hard and deep.
“I’m going to remind you this is what you have to look forward to if we live together.”
“Rousing fucks in the evening or constant danger?”
He laughed, turning off the water.
“Both, I have a feeling.” He kissed her again, pleased with himself.
“There’s no way I’m living at Die Mitte.” The pretentious opulence of that entire Vampire Nation owned hotel casino would drive her to something drastic before the end of the first week there.
He got out, handing her a towel before getting himself one.
“I won’t always be in Las Vegas. The capital city the Scion of North America holds court in rotates every five years. In any case, we don’t have to live at the hotel. I suppose your penthouse is fine.”
She toweled her hair dry, got dressed and then braided it back. “If I leave Hunter Corp. I’ll have to give the penthouse back. And I don’t know if I trust them enough to keep living there even if I did stay. Though, as I say that, I feel like that’s the answer to the should I stay at all question.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Everyone else waited for them in the salon. “About time,” Warren grumbled.
“We were having sex. It takes time to do that right.” Rowan sat. “Let me tell you all about the day I had.” She explained to the Vampires about Giancarlo and how he’d been hooking the Blood Front Vampires up with lodging in Vampire Nation properties worldwide.
“Nadir tells me the human staff was able to halt outside access to many accounts but it’s hard to know just how much he had the chance to get into.” Over the coming months they’d need to go through all their properties to see if things had been taken. Look through all finances and the like. “I brought the things from his room at the estate so you can look through it. We should get over there so you can talk to him, Recht.”
“As soon as you tell us what the sorcerer said.”
“He was reticent to share at first. But we came to an understanding. Enyo made one of their number into a Vampire about thirty years ago. He was taught the soul stealing stuff by Enyo personally as he was growing up but until recently they only did it once a year. She travels around with three or four of them and about a year ago, the frequency of their working increased and sorcerers he’d never seen before started showing up. She was working with other people he never met. And I believe that.”
“Do you think it’s Roth?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. But I don’t think so. He wants to destroy all Vampires. I can’t see him working with them. There’s something more than stealing souls to keep young or whatever going on here. This isn’t about Enyo and Theo. The addition of magic into this particular situation is most distressing. Carey has been working on some of the computer data we found on various flash drives. Plans for buildings. Financial data though we don’t know for who.”
“Curious,” Warren said.
She told them the rest of what she’d learned before Recht and Warren headed to Giudecca to question Giancarlo, leaving her alone with Clive, David and Alice.
“I sent Carey pictures of the men who were waiting for me at the Hunter Corp. villa last night, along with shots of the sorcerer. One of the humans was a contract killer. One of the Vampire crime families has used him in the past, though goddess knows why. These guys were so inept.
“He ran their pictures, along with some of Roth and Hilary through his facial recognition stuff and there’s nothing we found with them together. However, my source found some financial transactions that match up with the payments that were made to the humans and sorcerers to take me out. And I found of a picture of David on the phone of one of the guys we killed at the estate yesterday.”
David’s face hardened for a moment. “We’re going to London when we’re done here? They want you to present evidence, we’ll present it.”
“Yes that’s what they want. And I will give them all the evidence. Because Roth and his friends are going down. But after that I don’t know.”
“Whatever we decide—”
Rowan interrupted David. “We?”
David’s resolve firmed up and he stood taller. “Yes. We. I’m your valet. Where you go, I go.”
“Even if it’s out of Hunter Corp?”
“Yes. Do you think I want to be in a place that put so little weight on my life and safety? On your life and safety? I serve you, Rowan. Not Hunter Corp.”
Panicked but strangely satisfied, Rowan stood, pretending she had something she needed to brush off the front of her pants. “Ugh. Let’s go already. I am all done with this sharing my feelings stuff and we have prisoners to interrogate. David, when you get the chance, please make travel arrangements to London. I won’t be staying at the usual hotel, but don’t tell them that. Then get us a flat or a house and arrange for a car. We have a lot more things on the list to finish up.”
“I have a home in London,” Clive said to David. “Get with Alice to make those arrangements. I’ll be coming too.”
“You have a continent to run, Clive,” Rowan said as people began to mill around and get working. “I’ll come back to Vegas when I’m finished in London. Though I’m staying at your flat. Mayfair?”
“Our townhouse. Belgravia. Would you like me to buy you a flat in Mayfair?”
He totally would because he was that way.
“I’m sure Belgravia will suit me just fine.”
“Excellent. I quite like the neighborhood. I’ll show you around while we’re there. Don’t argue with me, Rowan. I may not be staying the whole time depending on how ridiculous this situation is with Hunter Corp. But I will be accompanying you. I want you to meet my family, I want you to be in our townhouse.” He stepped closer and she allowed it, even smiling up at him briefly before she remembered to frown.
He grinned then.
“Let me show you the London I love. I want to be there with my wife. My mate.”
“Ooh, you’re so good at this. I don’t stand a chance, do I?”
He laughed, grabbing that bit of joy she gave him with both hands. “I’m not sure which one of us stands a chance, but I think perhaps, it’s both.”
She hugged him for a brief moment. “That works. Get cracking, Scion. We have stuff to do.”
“I do adore you.” He kissed her nose and she narrowed her eyes at him but didn’t try to punch anything so he stepped neatly away and got to it before she changed her mind. What a truly lucky Vampire he was.
* * * * *
For more information on Lauren Dane’s upcoming releases from Carina Press and Harlequin HQN, including the next Rowan book and a new paranormal romance series starting in late 2015, please visit www.LaurenDane.com.
About the Author
The story goes like this: While on pregnancy bed rest, Lauren Dane had plenty of down time so her husband took her comments about “giving that writing thing a serious go” to heart and brought home a secondhand laptop. She wrote her first book on it before it gave up the ghost. Even better, she sold that book and never looked back.
Today Lauren is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of over fifty
novels and novellas across several genres. Though she no longer has to deal with Polly Pocket and getting those tiny outfits on and off, you may catch her in a nostalgic moment when the house is silent because the kids are all in school and she can get work done. Just a moment though.
Visit Lauren on the web at laurendane.com
E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: @laurendane
Blog: laurendane.com/blog
You can write to her at: PO BOX 45175, Seattle, WA 98145
New York Times bestselling author
LAUREN DANE
When trouble comes to town in the form of bad-boy rocker Paddy Hurley, will Natalie Clayton give in to a little trouble?
A librarian in the small town of Hood River, Natalie Clayton’s world is very nearly perfect. After a turbulent childhood and her once-wild ways, life is now under control. But trouble has a way of turning up unexpectedly—especially in the tall, charismatically sexy form of Paddy Hurley...
Even after years of the rock-and-roll lifestyle, Paddy never forgot the two wickedly hot weeks he once shared with Natalie. Now he wants more...but there is a fine line between well-behaved and misbehaved—and the only compromise is between the sheets!
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