by I. T. Lucas
Stifling a laugh, she called after him, “Wait!”
When he turned to look at her, there was fear on her warrior mate’s face. Poor thing. He probably thought she’d changed her mind and wanted him to stay.
“Take the go-cart,” she said, pointing at the vehicle parked a few feet away.
“Is it ours?”
“Of course. The keys are in the ignition. When you get there, look for Paul, he’ll show you around.”
“Sounds good to me.” He loaded their things into the go-cart, kissed her cheek, and was out of there with screeching tires. Well, not really screeching—only in her imagination.
“Did everyone find their suitcases?” She waited a couple more minutes while the last few stragglers located their luggage. “Follow me.”
The hotel itself was no doubt lovely, and Amanda couldn’t wait to see it, but it would have to wait for later. Right now she was more interested in the employee quarters, where her charges would begin their new lives.
Per Vanessa’s instructions, no one was there to show them around. Instead, the chaperones had familiarized themselves with the layout by studying the blueprints.
The four three-story buildings were located behind the sprawling parking lot in the back of the hotel, further inland. No ocean view, but other than that fabulously appointed. Every apartment had four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a living room with a kitchen. Outside, the four buildings shared a private swimming pool and a large grassy area for employee use only.
Since the hotel wasn’t due to open for another month, her girls were the first personnel to arrive. That would give them an entire week to themselves before the other employees showed up.
In preparation for the long and grueling task of thralling her charges one at a time, Amanda commandeered the manager’s office, and Vanessa the currently empty employee lounge.
It was going to be long and exhausting. The script they’d come up with was designed to fill several weeks of lost time. Not something that could be accomplished quickly or with more than one person at the time.
In fact, the plan called for two stages.
Amanda was going to do the heavy lifting with the lengthy scenario, adjusting it to fit each girl. Vanessa was going to take it from there and check if it had been absorbed and hadn’t created undo confusion. Gertrude’s job was to escort each girl, starting with Amanda’s office, through Vanessa’s approval, and out to the other side of the building. The ones already thralled and those who were still in line were not to mix until the last one had gone through the process.
Three and a half hours later, Gertrude escorted the last one out, and Amanda collapsed, clutching her head. The last time she’d suffered a headache that bad had been after her vodka-drinking competition with the Russian crew of the Anna.
Fates, she hoped the surly bunch was okay. Amanda had grown fond of Geneva, the captain, and the others weren’t so bad either, especially when drunk.
“You look like shit,” Vanessa said as she entered the office.
Amanda grimaced. “Thank you.”
“I mean it. You should go and get some rest. Gertrude and I can handle it from here. The bus will arrive in a few minutes, and there is no need for you to come eat dinner with us.”
“What if someone has a relapse? This was tricky as hell.”
“I can handle it, Amanda. You’ve done your part.”
Well, she had done the right thing and offered, but she wasn’t going to keep arguing when all she could think of was the beautiful bed waiting for her in the presidential suite, and Dalhu’s capable hands massaging her all over.
“You’re right. I’m exhausted. I don’t think I could perform another thrall if my life depended on it. I’m all tapped out.”
With a smile and a hand wave, Vanessa left and closed the door behind her. Enjoying the quiet, Amanda rested her cheek on the desk for a few moments, then pulled out her phone and called Dalhu.
“I’m ready to go.” She added a sigh.
“You sound awful.”
“I feel even worse.”
“I’m out the door.”
She’d known Dalhu would drop everything to come get her, he always did. “I’m waiting.”
This time she was pretty sure she heard the screech of tires a moment before Dalhu burst through the door with a frosty can of Cola in his hand.
She hoped it was as cold as it looked. “Sweetheart, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”
“Me or the Coke?” He handed her the can.
“Both.”
As Amanda popped the lid, the fizzing sound of the soda was the sweetest she’d heard all day. She drained the entire can then produced a very unladylike burp. “Sorry about that.”
Dalhu waved his hand in dismissal, and she realized he’d picked up the gesture from Kian. The two were getting closer. They were almost friends; a miracle, considering her brother’s initial vehement hatred toward Dalhu.
“How are you feeling?” Dalhu asked.
“Much better, thank you.”
“Are you hungry? Do you want to grab something to eat, or can you wait a little?”
Hmm, she wondered what he had in mind. If it was a tangle between the sheets, she didn’t mind postponing dinner for an hour or two. “I’m still full from lunch.” A little white lie so he wouldn’t insist she had to eat first.
His face lightened with a big smile. “Sunset is in fifteen minutes. Paul explained it’s very precise here. You have to be on time or you’ll miss it. We can take a walk on the beach and watch it.”
After the grueling day she’d had, there were a number of things she would’ve preferred doing other than walking on the beach, but this was Dalhu’s first visit to Hawaii, and he deserved to get his fill of its beautiful sunsets and sunrises.
She smiled at her mate. “Sounds lovely.”
Chapter 35: Carol
“Is he still out?” Brundar asked ten minutes into the drive.
With his head resting on her shoulder, Robert’s deep breaths were tickling her neck.
“Like a light.”
“Tell me if it seems like he is waking up.”
“I will.”
Carol felt strange about the unexpected role reversal. Holding Robert’s big, unconscious frame from slumping forward, and adjusting his lolling head so it would rest on her shoulder and not hang loosely from his neck, she felt protective of him. Her inert motherly instincts must’ve flared into life. He was her charge now, and she would take care of him the way he’d taken care of her.
A frown creased her brow when she realized that during their time together she’d grown accustomed to relying on him. Not that it had been evident in their day-to-day life in Vegas. She had money, and he didn’t, she was familiar with the environment, and he wasn’t. And yet, having him around had made her feel safer than she’d ever felt before.
Robert was a warrior, big and strong, and although he didn’t exhibit violent or aggressive tendencies, quite unusual for an immortal male, she knew he must’ve possessed them to survive the numerous battles he’d fought in. If the need arose, like it had when she’d fallen victim to the sadist, Robert would be there to protect her. There was not a shred of doubt in her mind that he would fight to the death to keep her from harm—even though he didn’t love her.
She wasn’t his fated mate, and yet he treated her as one.
Would it be so bad to keep him? Even exclusively?
With her natural inclinations and her colorful past, she couldn’t imagine what life would be like with a single male, and one as unexciting as Robert to boot. But dependable and loyal had its merits. Besides, she’d survived these last few weeks without her addiction to sex and excitement kicking into hyper-drive.
Come to think of it, none of her other addictions had bothered her either. Not once had she felt like getting high, or numb, which was surprising given how incredibly bored she’d been. And things with Robert hadn’t been so great either. They’d argued and bickered like some old
human couple.
A bump in the road had Robert’s head slide off her shoulder, and she pushed it back, cupping his cheek to hold it in place. Hanging from his slightly parted lips was a drop of drool, and she absentmindedly wiped it off with her thumb. Poor guy. He’d allowed Brundar to render him as vulnerable as a newborn kitten, basically putting his life in her hands.
Carol tried to figure out what was it about having him around that soothed her soul—enough to forgo her assorted variety of crutches.
Not being alone?
Carol hadn’t felt lonely before; she had plenty of friends and relatives after all, to hang out with. They were all single and destined to remain that way, so there was never a shortage of people to talk to, or invite over, or go out and have fun with.
Having a ready and willing sex partner at her disposal?
She’d never suffered a shortage of those either.
Then what?
Someone to always have your back, she heard a voice whisper in her head. She had a whole clan to rely on. But it wasn’t the same, was it? Having a mate, even not a fated one, was different.
“Still out?” Brundar asked again.
“Yes. How long?”
“Less than five minutes. Are you sure he is not faking it?”
She chuckled. “He’s not.” Robert would not have known how.
He was still unconscious when Brundar parked the car in the clan’s underground parking, kept sleeping through the wheeled gurney ride to the basement, and rolled to his side with a sigh when Brundar lifted him off the gurney and put him in bed.
Carol was starting to get worried. “Wasn’t he supposed to wake up already?”
Brundar shrugged and headed for the door. “Everyone reacts differently,” he said before stepping out and locking her inside with Robert.
If she wanted out, he’d told her she would need to call security, and someone would open the door for her. Until Robert was proven trustworthy, this was how things were going to be.
Not fun.
She glanced at the bar and sighed. There was an under-cabinet fridge, a microwave to heat things up, and even a Nespresso machine, but there was no stove and no pots or other utensils to cook with. Cooking would have to wait for now. A pity, she was in the mood to whip up something amazing and show Robert what she could do, maybe even invite Brundar and show off a little.
Other than the lack of proper kitchen, however, this place was a palace compared to the tiny solitary-confinement cell Kian had thrown her in after her last drunken tirade in a bar. It looked like one of the luxury suites in an upscale hotel, the kind she’d stayed in only when she’d scored with some rich dude who had footed the bill.
This one, though, had some additional perks. Like a PlayStation and a bunch of games stacked high in the entertainment cabinet, or the narrow bookcase loaded with what looked like hundreds of movies. She pulled out a few, checking for titles she hadn’t seen yet. Most were action flicks she had no intentions of watching, Robert would probably have fun with those, but she found a few romantic comedies too. She was about to search the next shelf when she heard a groan from the bedroom.
Robert was waking up, and by the sound of it, his forced respite hadn’t been pleasant.
Peeking into the bedroom to check whether he was indeed awake or groaning in his sleep, she saw him lying on his back and clutching his head.
“Do you have a headache?”
He answered with another groan.
“Let me see if I can find some painkillers,” she said even though there was a fat chance she would. Immortals didn’t normally suffer from headaches, but she’d often felt achy after a workout and had taken some Motrin for it. She probably wasn’t the only one who didn’t like to tough it out. Incredibly, she found a bottle of Motrin in one of the drawers in the bathroom. The vanity was stocked with a good variety of items she was planning on checking out later.
“Here you go, sweetie.” She handed Robert a bunch of pills and the glass of water that she’d filled up in the bar.
He took the pills and looked at them as if they were poison. “What is it?”
“Just Motrin. They will help with the headache.”
He shook the pills in his hand. “Why so many?”
“You’ve never taken any?”
He shook his head.
“You’re a big guy and an immortal. We need way more booze than humans to get drunk, and the same is true for pills. Don’t compare these to those you’ve given me. They are not in the same league. Motrin is a very weak painkiller.”
He cast her one more suspicious glance before throwing the eight pills she’d given him down his throat and chasing them with several big gulps of water. Putting the empty glass on the nightstand, he started fumbling with the buttons of his shirt—his fingers clumsy and uncoordinated from either the headache or the side effects of whatever Brundar had injected him with.
“Let me help.” She swatted his hands away. His shirt was off in seconds, and Carol continued with his belt and his zipper. “Lift up,” she commanded, pulling his pants off when he complied.
“Now get under the covers.” She waited until he did and then tucked him in.
“Aren’t you coming to bed?” he asked groggily.
“I’m going to grab a quick shower first.”
There was no response other than Robert’s breathing getting deeper.
Chapter 36: Robert
Robert woke up with Carol’s curvy body pressed against him, her back to his front, her sweet butt a perfect cradle for his morning stiffness.
She hadn’t always slept in the nude.
The first few days after their escape, she’d slept in what looked like men’s pajamas. It had been one of the first items she’d purchased. The top, which was a couple of sizes too big, was long-sleeved, checkered, and buttoned in the front. The long pants pulled on the floor and had caused her to stumble more than once. She’d forgone those first, sleeping only in the long top and panties, then the top had been replaced by a T-shirt, and then nothing at all.
That had also been the first night they’d had sex.
He’d taken it as a sign of recovery, or maybe her trust in him, when she’d admitted she liked sleeping in the nude and snuggled up to him.
Eyes still closed, he smoothed his hand over her soft skin, following the dip of her waist to the curve of her hip. She was so small. When awake, Carol seemed bigger for some reason.
She sighed and turned around, planting a closed mouthed kiss on his lips. “How is your headache?”
Headache? “What headache?”
She chuckled. “Good. I’m glad you’re feeling okay.”
Carol had thought he’d been joking, but he really didn’t remember anything. His last memory was shaking hands with Brundar, after Carol and he had arrived at her house late last night. Then he remembered the syringe. Was it last night?
And where the hell was he?
Robert lifted his eyelids and looked around the room. The lights were off, and if there was a window in the room it was tightly covered, but he could still see well enough in the dark to appreciate the luxury.
“This is nice,” he said.
Carol chuckled. “Yeah, I know. They gave us the royal prison cell.”
“This is a cell?”
“Not exactly. It’s more like a luxurious apartment with a locked door. From the outside.”
Yeah, he’d been prepared for confinement. Not a crappy cell and iron bars, after all he’d saved one of their own and deserved some gratitude, but not something as luxurious either. Apparently, the rumors about the clan’s wealth hadn’t been exaggerated.
“How long have I been out?”
“Long. We got here at about three in the morning, and it’s after nine.”
Six hours of sleep. Must’ve been the effect of whatever Brundar had injected him with. He was surprised no one had paid them a visit yet. They must’ve known he and Carol were still sleeping.
As Robert lifted his
eyes up to the ceiling and saw the camera, anger bubbled up from somewhere deep in his gut. The fuckers watching the feed had seen Carol naked.
“There is a camera up there,” he pointed.
“I know. I saw it when Brundar brought you in. It’s off. But the one in the living room is on.”
“How do you know it’s off?”
“Someone spray-painted the lens with black paint.”
Robert felt the tension leave his shoulders. “I need to thank that someone. Other than me, no one should see you nude.”
She snorted and slapped his chest. “Don’t be silly; they are all my cousins. They can see me naked all they want.” And to prove the point, she got out of bed and sauntered to the living room where the camera was on.
“Where are you going?” Robert called after her.
“To bring a change of clothes. Brundar just dumped everything in the living room, and I was too tired to put it away last night.” She brought two duffle bags and dropped them in the walk-in closet. “Aren’t you going to help?”
Not bare-assed, he wasn’t. Robert pulled on his jeans and followed her to the living room. “Leave it. I’ll take care of the rest. Go get dressed.”
She cast him a look he found hard to decipher, shrugged, and sauntered back to the bedroom, her round bottom swaying enticingly with every step. He would’ve followed her if not for the damn camera.
She was naive if she thought her clansmen were oblivious to her feminine charms just because they were related. Humans married their cousins, so that couldn’t have been too big of a no-no. Not to mention the stories about sexual abuse by fathers or uncles or even brothers.
Robert couldn’t fathom anyone doing such a thing to his own blood, but there were plenty of perverts out there, and as proven by the sadist, immortals weren’t immune.
He picked up their two other bags and carried them to the closet when the phone rang. Carol picked up the one in the bedroom.
“Yes, sure. Give us fifteen minutes.” She hung up.
“Brundar called to say they are coming to ask you some questions.” Pretending to search for something on the floor, she avoided looking him in the eyes.
