That was what she told herself, but deep down she knew the truth.
She’d known that night at the bar when she’d spotted him for the first time after all these years. He’d looked the same, but he’d felt different. He’d had an intensity about him that hadn’t been there before. A strength that had seeped into her and stirred the most provocative images.
Or so she’d thought.
She’d dismissed the cut lip and the strange thoughts as her overactive imagination, but they’d been real. Those moments in the back alley had been real. He’d been real.
A bloodsucker.
A vampire.
The word echoed in her head, along with the roar of an engine. But suddenly the truth didn’t bother her half as much as the notion that she would never see him again.
She wouldn’t.
The knowledge crystallized as she rushed to the window and watched his truck disappear down the road.
Relief. That was what she should be feeling at this moment. That and pure joy because she was still alive and breathing.
Instead emptiness settled in the pit of her stomach. Regret slithered around her and yanked tight.
Because Rayne Montana was gone again and she knew as surely as she knew that she still loved him, that there was no coming back this time.
12
RAYNE SWERVED into the parking lot of the Qwick Pick and slammed on the brakes. It wasn’t a crowded bar or a busy diner, but it would do.
She would do.
He stared through the window at the girl who stood behind the counter. She wore a paisley print handkerchief tied around her head à la Axl Rose from Guns N’ Roses, a Qwick Pick name tag and a bored expression.
Rayne wanted to see more, to catch her attention and stare into her eyes, but that would take too long and he couldn’t wait.
He could only feel. The pain eating him up. The hunger yawning inside. The bloodlust roaring through his veins.
Now.
In the blink of an eye, he stood in front of her. Her surprised gaze caught his a split second before he reached over the counter.
“What the hell, mister—” The words faded into a choked gurgle as he caught her by the throat and pulled her forward.
He heard the frantic staccato of her heart, smelled the rich, ripe scent of her blood. Both were like a drug and he was a junkie who’d gone too long without.
“Don’t do it.” The deep voice was like an ice pick penetrating the roar in his ears.
But Rayne couldn’t stop on his own.
He growled, lowering his mouth, his lips closing around her throat as he sank his fangs deep. The first few drops touched his tongue, but it wasn’t ecstasy that bolted through him.
Pain exploded in his skull. He released the clerk and stumbled backward. He whirled and his vision shook. Through the blur, he caught sight of a man wearing jeans and a T-shirt that read, Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy. A pair of blazing-red eyes met his and shock jolted him.
His legs gave out and he slammed into the floor. His head snapped back. A knifelike sensation sliced through the base of his skull.
And then the lights went out.
“NOT AGAIN,” Lucy cried, staring at the mess that had once been her laundry room.
The giant-size box of laundry detergent she’d bought at the local Walmart had been shredded and it looked as if a blizzard had erupted inside the small room. The plastic laundry basket had been chewed within an inch of its life and her favorite jeans, which had been hanging on a nearby rack, were now in a shredded pile. It was just past midnight and she’d spent the past hour trying to convince herself that what she’d seen and heard had been a great big figment of her imagination.
The result of desperate hormones.
And an overloaded work schedule.
And the stress of having a dog possessed by the devil himself.
Her gaze riveted on Cupid, who stood atop what was left of the jeans, his tail wagging, his tongue lolling. “You’re supposed to be helping me, not making my life a living hell.”
The dog flipped onto his back and did a quick twist as if pleased with his efforts.
“I should call Ellen,” she declared. “And hand you over.”
But she wouldn’t. She knew that and so did Cupid. She needed him now more than ever because her love life totally sucked.
Literally.
A vampire.
A tiny part of her brain still protested the truth, even though she knew deep inside it was true. She couldn’t forget the stroke of his fingers up and down the beer bottle and how she’d felt the touch directly on her back. The frown on his face when she’d called Andre, as if he’d heard her proposition across the crowded, noisy bar.
He had heard. Just as he’d touched her.
Just as he’d come this close to sucking her blood tonight.
Regret wiggled through her for a split second before she reminded herself that she didn’t want him to suck her blood.
Nor did she want to know what had happened to him to turn him from the man he’d once been to the vampire that he was now.
Had he been attacked? Had he crossed over willingly?
She shook her head. She wasn’t going to think about the dozens of questions that raced through her mind or the fact that she would never know the answer to any of them. Now more than ever she needed to do what she should have done years ago—forget Rayne once and for all and get on with her life.
Reaching for the dustpan, she spent the next fifteen minutes cleaning up Cupid’s mess.
And then she did the only thing she could think of—she grabbed the dog, crawled back into bed with him, and cried herself to sleep.
WHERE THE HELL WAS HE?
Rayne swept a gaze around the large windowless bedroom. The walls were paneled in dark oak, the floor a gleaming, polished wood. A large plasma TV hung on one wall and a kick-ass stereo system filled the shelves on the adjacent wall. Above him, the rafters were open with dark beams criss-crossing, making the room seem larger than it actually was.
He pushed against the soft king-size mattress and tried to sit up, but his head hurt too damned much. He closed his eyes against the throbbing and forced his brain to do a rewind.
It took a few seconds, but slowly the memories started to replay.
He saw Lucy staring up at him. Heard her shocked gasp. Felt the beast take control.
Fast-forward to the Qwick Pick. He’d been about to rip the throat out of the clerk, to sink his fangs deep and taste her sweet, sweet blood and then…
He shook his head, trying to push aside the throbbing pain and think. He needed to see everything. To know what had happened. What he’d done.
“Don’t do it.” The deep voice echoed in his head and he saw the man.
“You’re awake.”
The deep voice pulled him from his thoughts. Rayne blinked and focused on the man standing in the open doorway. It was the same man from the convenience store. He looked to be in his late twenties. Tall. Toned. Blond. He wore the same T-shirt and worn jeans and a calm expression, as if he wasn’t the least bit afraid Rayne would find his strength and attack.
“Sorry I had to knock you out, but I didn’t have a choice. As frenzied as you were, it was the only way to get you out of the store before you committed a major felony.”
The truth shattered the throb in his skull and Rayne’s gaze widened.
He actually smiled then. “I know you’re some hotshot Navy SEAL, but you weren’t yourself a few hours ago. You were hungry, and that makes the best of us extremely stupid.”
“Who are you?”
“Not who. What.”
Rayne shook his head and tried to make some sense out of what was happening. The hunger still coiled inside him, clenching at his insides, making it hard to really focus. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Don’t you know?” His gaze narrowed as he stared at Rayne. “You don’t know, do you? How old are you?”
“Thirty-two.”
&nb
sp; “I mean when were you turned into a vampire?”
Surprise skittered up Rayne’s spine, quickly replaced by a rush of shock when he saw the strange shimmer in the man’s gaze. Realization crashed down around him and his head hurt that much more. “Holy shit. You’re a vampire.”
“The fact that you didn’t know tells me you can’t be more than a month or so old.”
Panic bolted through Rayne and every cell in his body screamed for him to get the hell out of here. Now.
At the same time, his instincts—the ones that had saved his ass time and time again overseas—told him this vampire posed no threat. If so, he would have killed Rayne while he was unconscious and vulnerable.
“Two weeks,” he heard himself rasp. The effort made his jaw throb. His throat burned and he tried to swallow.
“That explains it then.”
“What?” he croaked.
“Why you didn’t feel me in the store. That and the fact that you were out of your head with hunger. How long has it been since you fed?”
“Last night.”
The man gave him a knowing look. “I’m talking blood, not sex.”
“Almost two weeks.”
“No wonder you flipped. You’re lucky I was driving by. I knew there was a new vampire in town, but I didn’t know who you were until I saw you get out of the truck. I smelled the frenzy and I knew you were about to go over the edge.” The vampire shrugged. “Don’t worry. It happens to the best of us. You just have to learn how to deal with it.”
But Rayne didn’t want to deal with it. He wanted to forget. Forget the beast gnawing inside him. The blood on his hands. The realization of what he’d done.
He’d almost attacked Lucy.
“The name’s Cody. Cody Braddock.”
“Rayne Montana.”
“I already knew who you were.” He indicated the dog tags sitting on the nightstand before holding up two plastic packets. “Here.” He tossed them at Rayne. “I poured some down your throat last night to calm you down, but it wasn’t nearly enough. You need more.”
An image rushed at Rayne, of the blood streaming into his mouth and easing the pain for a few blessed moments.
“Drink up,” Cody added.
Rayne stared at the bags of sustenance and hunger sucker punched him. His fangs throbbed. Desperation rushed through him. Before he could stop himself, he punctured one of the plastic bags with his teeth and inhaled the sweet ambrosia. It filled his mouth and warmed his throat and he felt his muscles relax.
“Where did you get this?” he gasped when he finally finished the first packet. He set it on the nightstand while his other hand tightened on the second, like a starving man holding onto the last piece of bread.
“One of us has connections to a blood bank in Austin.”
“Us? You mean there are more?”
“Skull Creek has several vampires.” Cody shook his head. “You would have known that if you hadn’t been so starved. It’s one of our powers. We can sense each other. Detect friend or foe. It helps make up for the fact that we can’t read another vampire’s mind. That only works with humans. We can do a whole shitload of other things, as well, but we’ll talk about that later, when you can think a little more clearly. Drink,” he said, turning on his heel. “I have to head out for a little while, but I’ll be back before daybreak.”
“What time is it?”
“About 3:00 a.m. You should go ahead and get some sleep. You can stay here today. This evening you can meet the others.”
But Rayne didn’t plan on sticking around long enough to meet anyone. Just because there were others like him didn’t change the fact that he’d almost killed Lucy last night.
He would have because once he sank his fangs deep, he could no longer think. The beast took control and forced him to do the unthinkable.
He wouldn’t put her in that kind of danger.
She’d turned her back on him for his own good the last time, so that he could have the kind of life he’d always wanted. It was his turn to return the favor.
Rayne waited until he heard a door close overhead and a truck start, and then he forced his legs over the side of the bed. Pulling on his boots, he pushed to his feet, shoved the second bag of blood into his back pocket and headed back to his place.
A few signatures and he was out of here for good.
13
“WE HAVE TO TALK,” Miranda declared when she barged in and interrupted Lucy’s pity party an hour later.
Lucy stared at her youngest sister standing in the bedroom doorway before glancing at the clock on the nightstand. “It’s four in the morning. Don’t you think whatever it is can wait until tomorrow?”
“There’s something I need to tell you.” Her gaze collided with Lucy’s. “It’s about Cody.”
Lucy’s misery faded in a rush of panic and she struggled to a sitting position. “Don’t tell me he broke up with you.”
“Of course not. It’s not about us. It’s just about him. Now I know this is going to sound strange, but I need you to work with me on this.” She stopped pacing and stared at Lucy. “Cody’s not just a retired bull rider.”
“Okay, so he’s not a retired bull rider. So what?”
“I didn’t say he wasn’t a retired bull rider. I said he’s not just a retired bull rider. He’s more.”
“A construction worker? A poet? What?”
“A vampire. I know it’s crazy and unbelievable—” she rushed on before the words could fully sink in “—and I don’t expect you to believe me, but it’s true. I haven’t told you because I didn’t want to freak you out. You’re not freaked out, are you?” She waved a hand and blurted, “Stupid question. Of course, you’re freaked out. You probably think I’ve flipped my lid, but I swear it’s true. Vampires do exist and Cody is one. In fact, there are several others right here in Skull Creek. There’s Cody’s brother, Brent. He’s a vampire. And Jake and Dillon and Garret over at Skull Creek Choppers—they’re all vampires. And Garret’s wife. She’s an ancient vampire. And, well, I just want you to know that it’s not the end of the world that Rayne is a vampire—”
“I know.”
Miranda did a double take. “You do?”
“We were…” The words trailed off as she remembered their lovemaking. Her eyes watered. “He was here tonight and we were sort of together.”
Miranda arched an eyebrow. “Sort of as in a movie and popcorn? Or sort of as in, Oh, baby?”
“Number two,” she admitted. “One minute he was fine and the next his eyes changed colors and he grew fangs.”
“And?”
“And nothing. He realized I was looking at him and he left.”
“He didn’t bite you?” When Lucy shook her head, Miranda added, “No wonder he was in such bad shape when Cody found him.”
Panic bolted through her. “What are you talking about?”
“Cody found him at the Qwick Pick, half-starved and out of control.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe he didn’t bite you.”
“Who cares about that? Is he okay?”
She nodded. “Cody saved him and gave him a few bags of blood that he gets from some blood bank in Austin.” She smiled. “It comes in handy once in a while. Especially for a new vampire. It can help him learn to control the hunger so he doesn’t feel so frenzied. He can learn to pace himself and basically live a somewhat normal life. After hours, that is. But I’m getting ahead of myself, aren’t I? I should probably slow down and let you digest all of this.”
Exactly, but her mind was still stuck on Rayne and the fact that he’d been sick. Starved.
“He’s at Cody’s place?”
“Not anymore. Cody left him to come and pick me up, but by the time we got back, he was gone. That’s when we came here. We thought you would want to know what happened.” She stared at her sister for a long moment. “You let him go once without a fight. You aren’t making the same dumb mistake again, are you?”
“I had to let him go. He neve
r would have been happy stuck here. He would have blamed me every day for standing in his way.”
“But he came back,” Miranda pointed out.
“Only to sell his place.”
“He could have done that long distance. He came back for you, Lucy. Can’t you see that?”
“Did he say something to Cody?”
“He didn’t have to. He obviously loves you, otherwise he never would have found the strength to pull away from you tonight. Trust me, feeding is everything for a new vampire.”
“Unless he’s in love.” The comment came from the handsome man who appeared in the doorway. “He found the strength to resist what he is because of you. Because you’re the one.”
Cody’s words echoed in Lucy’s head and for a split second, she actually believed them. She’d seen the struggle on Rayne’s face. It had killed him to pull away tonight. But he’d done it anyway.
Because he loved her?
“Exactly,” Cody said, and Lucy’s eyes widened. He shrugged. “One of the perks of being a vampire. I can read your thoughts.”
“If you let him,” Miranda added. “But you can keep him out if you want to. All you have to do is focus and, bam, instant privacy. It’s like a wall going up.” She must have noted the tremble of Lucy’s lips, because she added, “Sis, I know all of this is a lot to take in right now.”
“It’s crazy, all right.”
“And scary,” Miranda added. “But trust me, Rayne would never hurt you.”
But she wasn’t afraid of him. Rather, she was more afraid of herself. Of the feelings warring inside her.
Not because she’d done the unthinkable and fallen in love with him again. Truthfully, she’d never stopped loving him in the first place.
She loved him and he was leaving and it was the past repeating itself all over again.
All the more reason for her to ignore what Miranda was saying, bury herself back under the covers and forget everything. It wasn’t as if he could stick around and give her the happily-ever-after she so desperately wanted.
Blazing Bedtime Stories, Volume IV Page 8
