He entered with a single thrust. Angelina’s body jerked as she clamped her thighs over his hips. His mouth moved to her breasts again. He sucked on one, then the other, thrusting harder and harder until he was jackhammering into her. Her whole body shuddered. Her legs trembled, and an explosion rocked through her.
Angelina lay panting for a moment before she remembered her phone. She snatched it up, reading Taylor’s message.
I cry out your name as I finish into your hot, welcoming depths.
Shame swept through her. Half of it was that she was doing this at all… The other half that she was still imagining Rainer. What was wrong with her? There was no future for her and Rainer! She wasn’t going to just go around and imagine having sex with him all the time.
I finish, too.
She’d give him that much. Angelina turned off her phone then, not wanting to talk to him anymore. She was as angry with herself as she was ashamed and lay on her back, her fingers sticky from pleasuring herself during her fantasy. She’d taken off her clothes and now the cool night air made her shiver. But suddenly she was too tired to get up and put on pajamas.
Angelina rolled over, staring at the dark ceiling as she hugged her pillow. Right now, more than anything, she wished it had been Rainer she’d been sexting with just now. No… she wished he was with her, right now. That after giving her that completion, after finding the pleasure in each other’s bodies, they were now holding each other. Whispering sweet nothings in each other’s ears as they slowly drifted to sleep.
Instead, she was alone, wishing for him, as she lay awake listening to the silence of her room.
***
Wilhelmina Angelo.
Rainer could look her up in the system. She said she worked at his company. It’d be easy enough to look her up, see what she looked like. But that would mean confirming that she wasn’t Angelina. It had amused him at first, to imagine that Angelina would sign up for the paranormal dating agency under a fake name that was so similar to her own. On impulse, he’d set it up to start some dirty talk, to see if it was her…
The way she had taken his start and run with it; it was just proof that Wilhelmina was not Angelina at all. Angie was far too reserved, too shy, to have acted like that. That hadn’t stopped him from fantasizing that it was her who was sitting on his face last night as he ate her out, tasting her delicious juices as they ran down his throat.
Rainer read over the messages again, giving himself a final tug as everything seemed to explode inside of him. His tense muscles relaxed as spurts of milky white liquid fell over his stomach and thighs. He let his head fall back, panting as the pleasure of release coursed through him. This little minx had filled his thoughts all night (he had caught himself many, many times picturing Angelina and by the end of the night had decided to just embrace it) and now…
Well, he wasn’t going to look her up. Starting off a relationship like that wasn’t going to work if he was looking for something long-term. At least he knew that he could find pleasure virtually. That might help in the future… He hadn’t ever tried sexting before, convinced it wasn’t going to be as good as a real woman’s lips stretched around his cock. And he was right, it wasn’t as good, but it was still fun.
Wilhelmina hadn’t messaged him since last night. He’d sent her a quick message asking her how she was doing this morning, but he doubted anything would come of it. When one was looking for a lasting relationship, you didn’t jump into sex so fast. This was just a bit of fun for her. She wasn’t looking for someone to share her life with.
So, in a way it was good that he’d started off so fast—now he knew that Wilhelmina wasn’t a good start for his fake human girlfriend. Or maybe not so fake. Human lives were quite short, after all. Why not go all the way and marry her? Give her short, flash-in-the-pan life the fame of being the first human queen of a vampire king.
Jennifer’s face flashed through his mind, and Rainer abruptly got to his feet. No. He was not going to do that. It would be disrespectful to her memory… When she was dying, she made him promise to marry someone he loved. And if he married someone he didn’t love, that would be breaking his promise to her.
Marriage was off the table. But he could still have his human girlfriend to help make him king.
An alarm went off on his phone and he grabbed it, foolishly hoping that it was Angelina—Wilhelmina—answering him. But no. It was a reminder.
He had a meeting with Judge Valerie Gilson in less than an hour.
“Shit!” Rainer tossed the phone back down and raced for the shower. He’d forgotten all about that! See, this was why he didn’t want the complication of having a full-time relationship. Why his ‘girlfriend’ had to be an understanding, not real. Why Angelina was completely off the table. It was a distraction and then his work didn’t get done.
He forcibly shoved all thoughts of women and sex and Angelina from his mind as he showered, then dressed in something a little more casual than he normally would wear.
Luck was with him, though, and there was no major traffic on the way to the judge’s house, where they had arranged to meet. He arrived with five minutes to spare and quickly made his way up her walkway and rapped on her door. It wasn’t as fancy as he had expected since Valerie was quite wealthy. The house looked nice, though, and there was a small yard that was well tended.
Valerie’s expression was perfectly poised when she answered. There was a hesitancy in her eyes, a wariness that spoke to having dealt with criticisms and needing to prove herself for many years. It wasn’t surprising, seeing as she was the one of youngest judges to be sworn in in the U.S. Plenty of people called her too young.
“Mr. Weiman,” she greeted, as she led him into a sitting room. “Can I get you some lemonade?”
“No, thank you.” His throat was feeling a little parched at that. Rainer tried to ignore it. He just needed to find someone to drink from the vein here soon. It wasn’t getting to be an urgent situation, but the reminders were cropping up more often. “Thank you for seeing me.”
Valerie smiled stiffly at him as she seated herself in an armchair. Though she attempted to lounge, she looked stiff. Like she was expecting a trap.
“You know why I’m here,” Rainer said, trying not to show that he could read her. “Do you mind if I record this conversation?”
“If I ask you not to, will it make a difference? I know about the case against you.”
Rainer shrugged and gave a small chuckle. “Hey, it’s not my fault that the warden was a racist asshole, is it? He was using slurs and starving vampires. Was I supposed to ask nicely to record him doing that?”
A smirk crossed Valerie’s face. “I’ll give you that one. Honestly, I was pleased that particular case was assigned to Judge Benjamin Nibbler. He’s a fair man and has a lot of respect in our circles.”
“I’ll be glad when paranormal beings are no longer being unfairly locked up.”
Valerie leaned back, her gaze sharpening. “Yes, I thought that might come up. You’re here because of Kavan McBride, aren’t you?”
Rainer spread his hands. “I wasn’t going to pretend otherwise.”
“I’ve spoken with McBride. Here is a statement from him allowing me to do this.” She handed over a paper, waited a moment for Rainer to glance over it, and then held out a thick file. “This is his case. Everything that was released to the media and everything that was not. You can take a look at that and then tell me that I was being prejudiced to take him off the streets.”
“Well, this is going to be very helpful. Thank you.”
Valerie nodded. “I hear that you’ve got a bid in to be king of the Starlight Mountains. I guess a media empire just isn’t enough. Is that right? You need to have more than what you’ve got.”
She was baiting him. Rainer smiled politely, wondering what that was about. Was it just that she was feeling defensive about the case? Or was there something else in the works? He glanced around, looking for anywhere a camera could be hidden. He d
idn’t see anything, not that it really meant anything. With the way technology was developing, there as probably a camera out there small enough to fit in her contact lens.
“You never said yes or no about being recorded.”
“No.” Valerie folded her hands over her knees. “I do not consent to this conversation being recorded, especially since we are in my home. Is that understood?”
“Of course.”
Valerie watched him for a moment before the tension in her shoulders eased. “Also, know that I do not consent to anything I say being quoted or otherwise shared unless I specifically say otherwise. I know that’s not entirely enough… but you have a good track record yourself. I believe that you will respect my wishes.”
Rainer was impressed with how direct she was. He smiled, nodded and offered her the same courtesy. “You were the judge for Kavan McBride’s case. Now, there is a lot of talk going on. They say the trial is in danger of being overthrown entirely due to mishandling of evidence. But I was under the impression that he plead guilty halfway through, meaning that the evidence was moot.”
“You’re quite right.” Valerie scowled as she smoothed her slacks over her knees. “But let’s call this as it is, Mr. Weiman. You’re not interested in whether Mr. McBride pled guilty or not. You’re not interested in the legalities of the case. I know what your angle is. And in most cases, I would say that your point is a valid one. But McBride is a known criminal. He is involved in organized crime and has admitted to me privately that, were he released, he would go back to it. This isn’t a matter of human bias. It’s a matter of keeping a criminal off the street.”
Rainer considered her for a moment. The file he held in his hands would be proof enough of that if it came to it. But there was something in her tone, an almost defeated sigh, that piqued his interest. He leaned forward, keeping his gaze locked on hers.
“So how do you feel this particular case compares to other paranormal cases you’ve tried?”
Valerie’s jaw clenched.
“And what about your peers? The other judges that are trying paranormal cases. You said that you were glad to hear Benjamin Nibbler was taking my case because he’s fair. Do you think the majority of your fellow judges are not fair? Is that what you’re meaning?”
Her eyes glittered as she gave him a tight-lipped smile. “You don’t really expect me to answer that, do you?”
“Why not?”
Valerie rolled her eyes. “I’m one of the youngest judges in the country. I also have made some very controversial rulings. The McBride case is less about him and more about smearing my name. He walks, then it’s my fault for allowing mishandled evidence that, in the end, didn’t even matter because he pled guilty. If he is put back in jail, then the hero who kept a dangerous criminal off the street is whatever man they’ve decided to appoint to his second trial. And with the way the media is flinging mud all over me…”
The tension returned to her shoulders and she breathed in deeply. There was something in her eye. Something that said she had spoken more than she meant to. Rainer kept quiet, waiting to see how she would continue. It surprised him that she was being this open, really, and not talking in circles to relieve herself of the responsibility of answering.
“I love my job. I feel like I am making a positive difference in people’s lives. I’m not going to jeopardize that by answering your question.”
Rainer had to smile as he leaned forward once more. “So that answer would be nothing that they want to hear, then.”
No answer.
“It’s alright. I won’t quote you on that. Thank you for the file. I’m sure I’ll be able to find a use for it.”
Valerie sighed as they both stood. “Mr. Weiman, the system is not perfect. Far from it, in fact. It’s made for private business rather than the good of the people, and that is pretty sick. It’s not going to change unless people in the system try to change it. Unless there are people who can step up and expose what is being hidden. I can’t do that if I’ve been disbarred for talking crap about my peers.”
“I understand.” Rainer nodded once to her. “Thank you.”
She saw him to the door and Rainer walked away, considering the situation. It had to be hard for her… And she did give him more than he’d expected.
As he got into his car, he checked his phone. No messages from Angelina—Wilhelmina. Not that he expected any. He sighed as he headed back to work. He’d have to see Angelina there… and for some reason he couldn’t quite name, he felt almost… guilty. As though the phone in his pocket was burning a hole, telling him that he should not be using that dating app at all.
Chapter Eight
There. No more adverbs. Angelina leaned back in her chair, grateful for that to finally be over. If she had to look over this article one more time, she’d scream. She had thought the job was done an hour ago until she realized in her zeal, she’s changed the actual interview. So then it was undoing everything she had done and going back to the beginning.
Now, though. She was finished. Quickly, she did a few stretches and checked her email, to see if she had received any more work that needed to be done today. Nothing.
Satisfied, she sat back at her chair and took another look at her list. She had accomplished everything she needed to today with some time to spare. So the question was, did she go ahead and get some stuff started for tomorrow, or did she leave work fifteen minutes early?
The elevators dinged open and Rainer came through the door, typing one-handed on his phone while frowning intently at it. He looked up at her, meeting her eye briefly before looking away quickly. Angelina dropped her head. The memories of her fantasies last night came back to her, and shame crept hot into her cheeks. Even though she knew she shouldn’t be ashamed for having a sexual encounter (virtually, no less) with someone other than Rainer. It wasn’t as though they were dating or anything!
Or maybe it was shame over fantasizing over him when she was the one pulling back in real life?
Rainer tucked his phone into his pocket as he entered his office. Angelina gulped and turned back to her computer. It was fine to leave a little early. For one thing, she’d been getting to work a little early and leaving a little late from the start of this job. One day would just even it out.
Her phone dinged. Angelina jumped, having thought her phone was on silent and pulled it out. It was a message from Taylor. Her stomach twisted as she gazed at it.
Did I scare you off last night?
Oh, how did she explain this? She pulled up the app, considered for a moment, then typed. No, it’s not you. I just made a mistake.
Moments after she sent it, a faint chime came from Rainer’s office. She looked over her shoulder. He typed something and put his phone down.
And hers dinged.
Rainer’s head jerked up. Their eyes met and Angelina felt the blood drain from her face. She snatched up her phone again and, holding her breath, typed, Are you in your office right now?
Sent. Chime.
Rainer let out a strangled sort of sound as he jumped to his feet. He came out of the office and dropped his phone on the desk next to hers. Side-by-side, the messages shone from the two phone screens. Angelina stared, blinked and burst out laughing. Well, now she knew… it had been Rainer she was fantasizing about the previous night after all! And now she felt like an idiot.
“So. It was a mistake again last night?” Rainer wasn’t laughing. “Guess I’m glad it’s not just me. Or did you know it was me?”
Angelina’s laughter died in her throat. It was what she had done, wasn’t it? Sleep with him, or sext with him and then freak out because she decided it was a mistake. She pressed her fingers to her temples and stared at the phones, both of which had gone blank by now. Wilhelmina Angelo. When she signed up, she wanted to protect her identity. Changing her name a little seemed like the right way to do it. After all, it’d be easy enough to explain if any of her relationships got to the point where they met.
“Did y
ou know it was me?” She asked him, looking up with sobriety.
“I…” Rainer fidgeted on the spot. “I thought at first, maybe. But then I thought that would be way too much of a coincidence. Plus, I mean… I thought if you were giving a fake name, you’d do something more clever than that.”
“I didn’t want to lie too much! I was looking to see if I could find a, you know, stable relationship! And last night was a mistake because I don’t think it’s possible to have a long-term relationship that jumps right into sex before anything else. If ‘Taylor’ was real, all we’d be is virtual fuck buddies, I would never be able to just go see a movie and hang out without thinking he was thinking he was going to get lucky.”
Rainer rolled his eyes. “How very puritan of you.”
Angelina stood, furious. He didn’t know anything about her! “I have my reasons when it comes to sex, okay? I don’t owe you an explanation and just because you have to fuck everything with breasts—”
“I do not fuck everything with breasts. I’ll have you know that I only fuck humans, vampires or shifters. There are plenty of other animals out there with breasts.”
He gave her such a smug smirk that all Angelina could do was glare at him. What right did he have to be so smug about this? She clenched her fists and opened her mouth to start yelling at him, but he caught her hand in his and kissed her palm before she knew what was happening. Angelina gasped.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m glad it was you.”
Heat rushed to her face. Her mouth went dry and Angelina stared at him, uncertain about what to say now.
“I signed up with that agency because my people like me dating a human, it makes it more likely that I will be able to be king. But last night, I hoped it was you. I imagined you. I even felt bad because I didn’t think it was you.” His smug smirk faded into a more tender smile. He threaded his fingers into her hair and moved a little closer. “There is something about you. From the moment I set eyes on you, I’ve craved you. I feel like I’ve known you forever. I don’t know what it is.”
In Bed with the Vampire Page 9
