by R A Baker
I brought my head forward to watch as Sven bit into Todd. I could feel Todd shiver as the first wave of pleasure filled him. Todd pulled his mouth from me and cried out in pleasure. Sven ran his hands across Todd’s chest and held him more securely as he drank from him. I could feel Todd’s body responding quickly to Sven’s bite. I couldn’t help the small moan that escaped my lips at seeing them together.
Todd’s hands carved thin bloodless lines down my back as it became too much. Sven pulled back a moment before Todd cried out and pressed his forehead against my chest, breathing heavily.
Sven licked the wound and moved back from Todd. Todd was still shivering against me. “Are you okay, Todd?” I asked against the top of his head.
He nodded. “I forgot how good it was,” he murmured against me.
I looked at Sven, he was still licking his lips and a faint smile played along his now ruby lips. “Do we have any plans today?”
“Nope. We’re just going to celebrate your homecoming and let tomorrow take care of itself.” I smiled. Perfect! I slid off of Todd. He lay back against the pillows and sighed happily.
I looked at Erick. He was playing his hands along Sven’s neck and into his hair. I pulled the towel up and walked around to Trace. I laid a gentle kiss on his forehead. He pulled me onto his lap and held me loosely. I watched as Sven turned into Erick. Todd had his eyes closed. Erick hugged Sven to him. I inhaled sharply as Sven’s mouth ran across Erick’s neck.
Sven’s fangs slid down and slipped into Erick’s skin. Erick took in a sharp breath as Sven started to suck. Erick’s hands were wound tightly in Sven’s hair as he fed. It took Sven less time to bring Erick since Erick hadn’t been fighting the bite. Erick whimpered as Sven licked the wound and kissed his neck. I wondered what Sven thought of this. I was certain that he liked the power but I didn’t know if he was actually into the whole thing.
Erick and Sven untangled and lay side by side, gasping. Trace tightened his grip on me as Sven’s hand accidentally rubbed against his leg. I patted Trace’s shoulder. He looked into my eyes and smiled. I kissed him. I heard three distinct soft snores come from the guys. Trace and I were the only ones awake. I chuckled softly.
Trace slid me off him and joined me to stand beside the bed. We looked at our men snoozing. Trace pulled me into the bathroom, and filled the tub with warm water.
When the tub was filled enough he disrobed and pulled the towel from my body. He slid me into the warm water and followed. I leaned against his chest, running my hands along his legs. He moaned softly. I sighed as his hands ran along my stomach and breasts.
He turned me to him and lifted so that I was straddling him. I felt him hard against me. I shivered as I felt him pressed tight against me. He gripped my hips and lifted. I slid onto him. We made love in the tub until the water turned cold.
We got out of the tub and dried off. Trace pulled me to him and kissed me deeply. I sagged against him as my legs went weak.
We pulled back gasping, then stepped out of the bathroom and found that they were still asleep. We crawled into bed and fell asleep too.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I woke up to kisses on my shoulders. I opened my eyes and saw that both Trace and Erick were kissing me awake. Sven was sitting up watching and Todd was leaning against Sven. I sat up and was smothered with kisses. I giggled as their kisses tickled me. The sun was still shining around the curtains. “How long did we sleep?”
“A couple hours,” Trace said between kisses.
My stomach grumbled. I guess I was hungry. “It’s time to eat.” I didn’t want to leave the warmth of the bed but my stomach wasn’t going to let me forget that it needed sustenance.
I slid out of bed and slipped into some pajamas. I tossed some clothes to the guys and walked out of the room, and into the kitchen. I looked in the fridge and found that there wasn’t a whole lot of food. Didn’t anyone go shopping?
I snagged salads and juices and set them on the table. The guys ambled into the kitchen and sat at the table with me. Sven was the only one that didn’t eat, of course.
We ate our salads in silence. When we finished, we tossed our plates and wandered back into the bedroom.
It didn’t feel as odd to have Sven with us as I would have thought. He made a nice addition to our already eclectic group. He pulled me to him as I walked past and held me tightly in his arms, his tongue tracing circles on my neck. I shivered and pulled away.
“Thank you,” he spoke quietly against my neck.
I frowned. “Why do you say that?”
“I haven’t been with a woman in twenty-five years. I’m ecstatic that you allowed me into your bed.”
“You say you haven’t been with a woman in twenty-five years. How exactly did you…uh…?” I stopped speaking.
He chuckled. “I haven’t found a woman for me until now. I’ve been with men for the past twenty-five years. I enjoy both. I just wasn’t able to find a woman who was strong enough for me. Men, I didn’t have a problem finding.”
I could feel the color of embarrassment run up my neck. “So, are you going to leave when you find someone stronger?” I left out the fact that Cyril was probably as strong as all four of us put together. And if Sven was looking only for power then that vampire would be it.
“Why would I? You four are the strongest people I have ever met. And if you think Cyril’s strong, he hasn’t tasted you. If he did, he’d know just how powerful you all are.”
“He’s tasted me, Sven. He knows that I’m not as powerful as he is.”
Sven waved off my comment. “He knows. That’s why he won’t fight fair. He’s afraid you’ll best him in a fair fight.” Sven kissed my throat. “Enough talk, Katja.” He took my mind from any thoughts except what he was doing to my neck.
His fangs slid into the tender flesh of my neck. I gasped as wave after wave of pleasure filled me. I cried out as an orgasm hit me. Holy shit. He pulled back and smiled, licking a small drop of blood from his lower lip.
My men were sitting up in bed watching. They all had glassy eyes. Sven shut the door to the bedroom and carried me to the bed.
A few moments later a knock at the door interrupted us. “Housekeeping, Ms. LaMond.” I groaned and untangled myself from Sven.
I walked to the door and opened it. My housekeeper, Sharon, didn’t bat an eye at the men in the room. “If you’d be so kind, gentlemen, to wait outside while I cleaned up in here?” They got off the bed and filed outside. “Thank you,” she said with a happy lilt to her voice.
Sharon and her husband, Harold, were in their early fifties and have been with me since I inherited the hotel, apartment building, and real-estate office. She came with the inheritance. I liked her and her husband immediately, so I’d kept them on as housekeeper and groundskeeper. They don’t bother us and keep to themselves, as they stay in the guest house that was recently put in for them.
Damn. Speaking of housekeeping. I had to do shopping. I don’t have Sharon do the shopping since we have such varying eating habits in the house. I waited until she was finished in the room and then started to change. The guys groaned in unison. I looked at them. “What?”
“Where are you going?” Todd asked.
I sighed and let my shoulders sag for a second and then stood up straight. “I have to get food. We’re almost out.” Another round of groans. “I know, I’m horrible, right? I’ll only be gone a short time. I am not eating salads for the next week. Beatrice and Ardeness might be into this whole vegetarian diet thing but I’m not. I like my meat.” That got a chuckle from the men. Yeah, yeah, double entendre and all.
I finished changing and found that Sven had changed, too. “Are you my escort?” I looked at him, taking in the jeans and t-shirt that fit his body to perfection. I suppressed the pleased sound as I took him in. He might be the shorter of the men but something about that was all too appealing.
I saw him check me out too and smile. I was wearing jeans and a stretchy black t-shirt with ‘prin
cess’ written in cursive and pink glitter. He chuckled as he read the words.
“Let’s go. I want to get back before dark.” He held out his arm but before I took it I gave my men kisses.
I looked at Sven and took his arm. He escorted me out of the house and guided me into the passenger seat of Todd’s truck. Lucky guy, he still had a vehicle. I was still upset about losing my five minute old X3.
>< ><
Sven drove us to the grocery store. He grabbed a cart and followed me around. I bought salad stuff and other vegetarian items then I got down to regular shopping. I bought cereal, milk, meats, and pizzas. Sven cringed at my choices. “Hey, if I die tomorrow who the hell cares about cholesterol?” He just shrugged. I placed a few extra prepared meals and easy fix meals into the cart and we were done.
We checked out and Sven waved off the grocery assistant and carried four of the bags. I grabbed the remaining two. He beeped the truck open. Guess who stepped from the shadows? Yup. Thorn. We stopped walking. Sven dropped the bags of groceries and was by my side in the blink of an eye. “What are you doing here, traitor?” he asked darkly.
“That’s not a very nice thing to say to your lover, Sven.” My mouth fell open. His lover? I thought Thorn was into the girls. I stepped back from Sven. He shrugged. I guess he had figured that I knew.
“What do you want, Thorn?” Sven put his hand on my back and pulled me closer. He leaned down and kissed my neck. I shivered and almost dropped the grocery bags. I clutched the bags tighter in my hands.
“I wanted to see how you were. I see you’ve made yourself at home.” He sighed and let his thin shoulders sag a bit.
“Now that you’ve seen, why don’t you leave?” Sven wasn’t playing either. He was pissed at Thorn. I wondered if he would side with Thorn if the cards were down or if he’d stay with us.
“I’m leaving. I just wanted you to know that we can find you wherever you are.”
I chuckled. “We aren’t hiding, Thorn. Tell that to Cyril. I’m sure that’ll make him happy.” Thorn smirked then took off.
Sven let me go and grabbed the bags. He put them in the cargo hold and grabbed the ones I was holding and slammed them into the back of the truck. He held out his arm for me and when I hesitated he looked at me. I could tell he was angry. “I’m sorry, Katja.”
“For what?”
“For that. Please take my arm, I won’t hurt you.” I took his arm and he gently escorted me to the passenger side. I twitched my mouth as he opened the door for me. I climbed in and waited the second it took him to get into the driver’s side. He started the truck and drove off.
We were silent for a long while. Of course, I was me, so I had to ask. “You and Thorn?”
“Yes. He might not be that powerful but he was lovely as a lover.”
I sighed. “Are you going to try and kill me if I have to kill him?” I cringed from the look I got. “I’m sorry, Sven, I have to know.”
“You’re right. I shouldn’t care about him. He chose his own path. But I do care for him. I love him even as I sit here with you. I crave his touch like I crave you and your men.” I gulped. This could go down very badly when we go after Cyril, and Cyril knows it too. “Cyril. Who is he to you?”
“He’s our maker, our sire. He made both Thorn and I. I’m sure others as well. When I was made I hated Cyril. I still do. The one thing he allowed for me was that I could be with whomever I chose. After a while women became too unsavory for me. They were always trying for me, using me, throwing me away.” He paused for a moment. Was I using him? I knew at first I was but now? Was I using him now? Did I care for him? Did I love him? Eek. Love? What the heck was I thinking?
“About ninety years ago I found a man, a young man, who wanted what I was and seduced me. After a time, I thought that the seduction would end but it never did. Cyril changed Thorn. I’ve always called him Thorn. I found him in rose bushes being thorned to death. I helped him from the bushes and refused to hear his real name. He was my Thorn and that’s what he stayed.”
I couldn’t help the smile that spread along my lips. Sven was smiling as well. “I’m sorry.”
He looked at me for a moment. “Why do you apologize?”
“I can’t believe that you’d give up your mate of ninety years to be with three men and a woman. People you think are strong. That we have divided you and your mate.”
“It is what it is, Katja. I love him but he has to do his own thing, I just hope that we can kill Cyril before he gets Thorn killed.”
I patted his leg. I hoped so too. Now that I understood their relationship better, I would try my hardest to keep Thorn alive.
We drove the rest of the way home in silence.
>< ><
We arrived home and off loaded the truck. I put them away as quickly as I could. Sven grabbed some waters and held out his arm for me. I rolled my eyes and took it. He guided me into the sitting room where my guys were. He tossed them a water bottle each and held one out for me. I took it and sat down in a chair, across from my guys.
“How was shopping?”
I looked at Sven. “We ran into Thorn. He was just checking up on us, that’s all,” I said quickly. They looked from me to Sven. I suppose we could tell them. We should but it was Sven’s deal not mine. If it became a problem, which I figured it would, we’d deal with it then.
“How was staying at home?” They smiled at me. I guess it had been good. “What’s the plan for today?” I asked for a change of subject.
“I figure we could ravish each other but I’d like to wait a little while. How about we go out for an early dinner?” Trace suggested. I looked at the clock and found that the day had gone away. It was after five p.m. I nodded.
“Did you want to go with us, Sven?” He nodded.
I had lost both my cell phones, damn it. I walked into the kitchen and found Beatrice eating a salad. I grimaced. “Why did you send Thorn away?” she asked.
I turned to her. “I didn’t send him away, Beatrice. How old are you? Twenty-two, right? Well, start acting like it.” I grabbed the telephone and the phone book. I looked up a nice restaurant and made reservations.
Beatrice started to ask me something when Ardeness came into the room. She looked at Beatrice and the look shut her up quickly. “Ardeness,” I said on my way out of the kitchen. She bowed gracefully which got a snide comment from Beatrice. She was really getting on my last nerve.
I walked into the sitting room and told them we had reservations in an hour. They stood up and filed out of the room. I followed. I needed to change anyway. We were going to a semi-ritzy restaurant and I didn’t think my jeans and t-shirt would cut it.
I watched as the guys dressed in slacks, dress shirts, and dress shoes. They looked delicious.
I grabbed a custom made Armani black skirt suit with a dark teal blouse. I stripped in front of them and put my suit on. I grabbed some thigh-high hose and a pair of black pumps with three inch heels.
When I walked out of the room Sven was nearby. He looked at me and whistled. “You do dress up nice, don’t you?” I preened for him. He was the only one that didn’t know how well I dressed. I walked up to him and kissed him on the lips. We were the same height in my heels, which put him at five-eight. Throats cleared and I stepped back.
Erick held my purse for me. I sashayed up to him and grabbed it. He swept me into his arms and kissed me. He pulled back. I blinked at him and caught my breath. They looked stunning. I know I had just seen them in their suits but they looked sharp.
“Okay, guys,” I chuckled. “Time to go eat.” I walked past but Trace and Todd had other plans.
Trace grabbed me first and kissed me. “There, nice and rosy,” he said when he let me go. I inhaled and stepped back.
Todd twirled me around to him. I crashed against him, my purse flying out of my hand. He tipped me back and kissed me, his hand running along my chest and stomach. I moaned softly as his teeth grazed my bottom lip. “Who the hell wants dinner?” I whispered aga
inst his mouth. He kissed me again and then let me up. Erick held my purse out to me. I stepped back from Todd and grabbed my purse.
I looked at Sven. His eyes held desire. I looked immediately away. We would never get out of here if I continued to look at him.
Sven came up beside me and held out his arm. I lifted eyebrows at him and then slid my hand onto his arm. He patted my hand gently and escorted me outside. Todd had started the truck already.
I got in the back seat. Erick got in on the other side and Sven sat beside me. Trace sat up front with Todd.
>< ><
When we arrived at the restaurant, the valet almost passed out when he saw four men get out of the truck and then me. I could see him wonder who we were.
Sven and Todd escorted me into the restaurant. The hostess flushed red when we walked in. I gave her the name and she immediately walked us to the back room where a table had been reserved. As we walked by, the women in the sitting area stopped talking and turned as one unit to look at my men. I clenched my jaws tight as they became less upper class and looked like they wanted to drool.
Sven’s arm tightened around my hand. I looked at him. He was ignoring them and looking only at me. I turned to Todd and found that he was doing the same. They didn’t care a bit about the socialites.
The back room was really a section of the restaurant that was opened by a door. We were led inside. There was one other couple sitting at a far table. The hostess handed out menus. Sven and Todd guided me into my seat and then sat down themselves; Sven on my right and Todd on the left, Trace and Erick sat across from us.
We perused the menu.
A few minutes later our waitress came in and we ordered. We asked for a bottle of wine that would complement our meals. We stayed fairly quiet until the other couple paid their bill and left.
