by Nina Bangs
“I never drink cow’s blood.” Eric paused for effect. “Only human blood.” He’d give her credit. Other than growing a little paler, she didn’t react.
“Instead of feeding negative stereotypes, tell me about the real you.” She sipped her coffee. Her hand was steady on her cup. He applauded her courage.
“What if the real me lives down to all your stereotypes?” Eric watched her eyes narrow and knew he was pushing her. Why? It didn’t make sense.
If he really scared her, she’d raise holy hell when he told her he’d be staying with her until Taurin was located. And if Brynn and Conall scoured Galveston without finding out where Taurin had gone to ground, then he’d help them search. But he’d take her with him, because she wasn’t leaving his side.
She took a sip of her coffee and then raised her gaze to his. “Then I’ll know what to do. Tell me, Eric.”
Know what to do? What did that mean? Suddenly it hit him. She could go home. No. His instant denial resonated in places that had nothing to do with great sex. A surprise, because he’d thought it was all about mind-blowing sex.
He leaned back and stared at his water glass. “Look, this place is about to close. Let’s go to your room to talk.” No way would he take her to his room, because they’d have to pass the dungeon to get there. She didn’t need any reminders of tonight’s disaster. Question was, would she go anywhere alone with him?
She studied her napkin. Finally she sighed. “Sure. Let’s keep a positive flow going, though. Sweetie Pie and Jessica are sad. I guess I loaded them down with tons of negative energy tonight.” She looked up and offered him a weak smile. “That means no changing into vampire form or nuzzling my neck. Absolutely no neck encounters of the bloodsucking kind.”
Now she’d ticked him off. “I only feed once every few weeks.” He offered her his most seductive smile, the one he knew from centuries of experience few women could resist. Then he met her gaze and let her see every sexual act he wanted to visit on her body. “And the encounter is always of the erotic kind.”
11
As Donna opened her door, she tried to organize scattered thoughts that were like pop-up ads on her computer screen. They kept getting in the way of what she should really be thinking about. Why . . . POP—sexy male lips guaranteed to make any female wet and wanting. Was she . . . POP—eyes hot with promises of what he’d do after he stripped her naked. Bringing a . . . POP—strong muscular thighs showcased in soft worn denim. Vampire . . . POP—cut torso looking fine in snug black T-shirt. Into her room? POP—a sexual package that could deliver pleasure on a mythic scale. No use. Every time she closed one window, another opened up.
Vampires were supposed to be able to spin sensual webs around humans, making said vampires irresistible, weren’t they? Would that work on her? Nope. Wouldn’t happen. Her survival instinct was too strong. Okay, so it might work a little. Very little.
She watched as he closed the door and then stood in front of it for a moment.
“What’re you doing? And please don’t give me that high-tech power-grid garbage again, because I don’t believe it.” Kicking her shoes off, she settled into a chair and motioned Eric to the one Conall had sat in. Maybe all her sexual thoughts were getting in the way of her important revelation because there was no important revelation. No matter how much her mind tried to whip up a sense of impending danger to her neck, she couldn’t maintain it. She might be horrified by the concept of vampire, but she couldn’t believe he’d just walk over and sink his teeth into her. If he’d wanted to bite her, he would’ve done it while they were making love and she was at her most vulnerable.
“I put a protective shield across your door. I don’t think Taurin’s powerful enough to get past it.” Before joining her, he picked up his bag of chocolate-covered nuts. Sitting, he glanced around the room. “What happened to the rest of my candy?”
“Conall took it.” When all the important stuff was out of the way, she’d ask him about the candy. “Talk to me, Eric.”
He stared down at the bag in his lap, and for a moment she thought he wouldn’t answer. “I was born human but became vampire when I was twenty-nine. Until I became vampire I could be killed as easily as any human, and I ate what all humans ate.” A shadow of sadness touched his eyes. “I could father children.”
Which probably meant he couldn’t father children now. The realization sort of made her sad, too. She frowned. Donna had absolutely no interest in his daddy status. Besides, it was none of her business. She’d ignore the comment and go on to more important stuff. “Umm, do you have any children?” This was scary. The more she was around Eric, the more her impulsive self overruled her sensible self.
His smile was self-deprecating. “No. I was too busy raiding, pillaging, and being a pain-in-the-butt to the rest of the civilized world.”
Time to get back on track. “I assume someone turned you.” Startled, she realized her interest in every detail of his life didn’t feel like objective scientific curiosity. It felt personal. A dangerous trend.
Eric continued to study the candy bag as though it held the secrets of the universe. “No. I belong to a vampire clan where everyone is born human and becomes vampire as they mature.”
“You were born in Scotland?” Eight hundred years ago. No wonder his raw primal sexuality drew her. Men born in modern times were too civilized, had too much of the basic male leeched from them.
He finally looked up at her. “I was born in Norway. I was a Viking, Donna. I raided the coast of Scotland. My clan eventually settled in the Highlands and took the name Mackenzie to blend in.” His smile was slow and wicked. “I have the best and worst of Viking and Highlander in me. The worst would intrigue you more.”
She wouldn’t ask what he meant, wouldn’t even think about what he meant. Until later. “Tell me about your clan.”
Donna could sense him sifting through information, trying to decide what to tell her first and what not to tell her at all.
“First of all, we’re not dead, just changed. We need human blood to survive, but not much. I feed about once every two weeks, and I don’t take enough to endanger anyone’s life. In fact, if I took too much it would destroy me.”
“How?” The thought of him being destroyed clogged her throat and made her feel sick, a reaction she didn’t expect. Good grief, she’d only known him a few days.
“Too much human blood taken at one time dilutes our vampire blood and heightens the blood lust. It becomes a death spiral. The vampire needs more and more human blood. He kills because the blood lust demands all his victim’s blood. Eventually he becomes a mindless killing machine.” Eric shrugged. “At that point the clan destroys him.”
Okay, didn’t want to hear any more of this. “Tell me about your powers.”
“We don’t start out with any real powers other than our immortality. We don’t get sick and minor wounds heal quickly. But someone can kill us without too much effort. If we’re wounded badly enough and don’t have a source of new blood to replace what we’ve lost, we can bleed to death.”
Donna thought about that. “It must be a catch-22 situation. If you take too much human blood to replace what you’ve lost, you go crazy and the clan offs you.”
He nodded. “And if someone takes our head, well, that’s it. Can’t generate a new head.” He opened his candy bag but didn’t reach inside. “As we grow older, we gradually accumulate powers. We choose which powers are important to us, and concentrate our energy on gaining those first. I’ve concentrated on powers that’ll assure my survival. Some clansmen choose to gain back human qualities they lost when they changed.”
“Like being able to eat candy?” The first smile-worthy piece of vampire info he’d tossed her way.
He almost looked embarrassed. “I like what I am. Once I changed, I never went all sentimental about the good old days when I was human. But the first time I smelled chocolate . . .” He lowered his lids and a hungry smile touched his lips. “It involved all my senses. I
wanted to feel it melt in my mouth, the smooth slide of it on my tongue. I wanted to experience the dark rich taste of it. The scent of it was almost erotic.” He raised his lids, and his gaze was soft with the remembered joy of chocolate.
Hmm. “So if a woman, say, dipped herself in chocolate, she’d drive you crazy with lust?” This question had no personal ramifications. This was absolutely a question asked in the interest of scientific discovery.
Before answering, he dug into his candy bag and put one chocolate-covered nut into his mouth. Riveted, she stared at his lips. The heat of his mouth would be melting the chocolate as he slid his warm wet tongue across the nut, slowly laying the nut bare while he let the chocolate linger on his taste buds. Then he’d grind the nut into delicious submission before swallowing it. Donna’s gaze dropped to his throat to witness the swallowing process.
“Here I thought I was the only one who liked throats.” He sounded hungry, in an arousing way. “If a woman I desired dipped herself in chocolate, it would drive me into a sexual frenzy. Nothing could stop me from licking the chocolate from every inch of her naked body. Should I elaborate?”
Donna didn’t need to go any further down this path. Too many dangerous potholes. And when she got involved with thoughts of the sensual animal that was Eric Mackenzie, she tended to forget the point of the whole conversation. He was a vampire. Somehow the word didn’t send cold shivers of dread down her spine this time.
“What about Taurin’s brother? I’d like to hear your side of the story.” Back to the serious stuff.
Eric frowned. “A lot of what Taurin said was true. Dacian was one of the most powerful night feeders, and he hated us. He’d killed some of our clansmen, and we had to stop him. Yes, we used Taurin as bait, because he was Dacian’s only weakness.”
He paused to rake his fingers through his hair. “But we didn’t set that warehouse on fire. We don’t work that way. Dacian would’ve been given a sword so he could fight for his existence.” He set his candy aside. “We assumed he was destroyed in the fire because no one ever saw him again. But I’ve never been sure. Dacian was too powerful, and I can’t see him . . .”
Emotion touched his eyes. “The night feeders have always been our enemies, but once a long time ago, Dacian and I were close friends. I don’t know what turned him to hatred, but no matter what he became, I never would’ve destroyed him that way.” His expression hardened. “I don’t have any friendship bonds with Taurin. He’s threatened to take you, so he’s finished.”
Donna believed him. Not because she had any proof that he was telling the truth, but because her intuition gave him the thumbs-up. Good thing she hadn’t decided to be a lawyer. A jury wouldn’t be impressed with a my-gut-tells-me-this-guy-is-innocent defense.
Eric watched her eyes. She didn’t have a clue how to mask her emotions. So he knew the exact moment she decided in his favor, and he struck. “I have to stay with you, Donna. Here. And once you leave this room, Brynn, Conall, or I have to be near you at all times.”
She widened her eyes as she rushed into speech. “Why can’t—”
“No. Brynn can’t stay with you. You saw what happened when he’s with a woman for more than an hour. Conall’s immortal, but he doesn’t have the powers to match Taurin. It has to be me.” There. He’d taken away all her options. Except one. The one she should take to insure her safety.
The primitive part of him, the part that for centuries ruled his actions, shouted a resounding, “No! Mine.” Mine? When had he decided that? But his primitive self always seemed to be a step ahead when it came to possessing women. His more civilized self grimaced at having to deprive himself of what he wanted, but said what he knew he had to say. “You know, if you fly back to New York, you’ll be safe.”
“Not necessarily. If Taurin came to New York and took me, what would you do?” She watched him, her unblinking stare hinting that his answer was important.
He forced back the rage he felt whenever he thought of Taurin taking Donna. “I’d fly to New York, hunt him down, and free you.”
Her radiant smile told him he’d given the right answer. “There you go. Taurin could follow me anywhere I went, so I may as well stay here.” Her smile faded. “Besides, I want to stay. And that decision has nothing to do with my job. I need to know you’re safe.”
Something warm touched the spot where his heart used to be. Who was the last person to worry about his safety? He couldn’t remember. His parents, probably. Both had died before becoming vampire—his mother in childbirth and his father in battle. That was so long ago he couldn’t recall, though. He knew that Brynn, Conall, and Holgarth wanted him to stay safe, but they assumed he was so powerful that no one was a danger to him.
Celebrating her decision was selfish, but he couldn’t help it. And Eric vowed that Taurin wouldn’t catch her alone again. They’d find him and make a preemptive strike before he launched his attack. Eric clenched his teeth to hold back his anger. Every time Taurin threatened Donna, the thought of destroying him got easier and easier.
“Well, now that you guys have the vampire disclosure followed immediately by the horrified reaction over with, we can talk about a night on the town. Not that Galveston could compare with Paris or Rome, but we make do with what we have.”
“Thor’s bloody hammer!” Eric leaped to his feet and spun to find Asima sitting in regal splendor next to Sweetie Pie and Jessica. “That’s the second time you’ve gotten past my protective shield.” He fought for calm.
“So make a better shield. I go where I choose to go.” Asima looked down her patrician cat nose at him and then shifted her gaze to Donna. “Excitable, isn’t he?”
This must be his night to be caught off guard. The thought worried him, and so he used anger to push it from his mind. “Who are you, and why’re you popping into rooms where you don’t belong?” Eric frowned. “You aren’t going into other guests’ rooms, are you?” He sat down again.
“I’m Asima, and that’s all you need to know. I’ve only visited Donna’s room. I’ve thought about visiting Conall. He likes cats. Have you noticed how he feeds strays at the service entrance to the restaurant after lunch each day? No, of course you haven’t. Noon is still vampire nap time.” She padded over to where they sat and leaped onto the small table between them.
“This isn’t a good time, Asima.” Donna got up to draw the drapes over the window where the first light of morning could be seen.
“Whatever you want, make it quick.” Eric could feel the heavy lethargic pull of sleep.
Asima narrowed her blue cat eyes at him. “Don’t you dare go to sleep on me.” She turned her attention to Donna. “We’re going to the Grand 1894 Opera House tonight. La Traviata is being performed, and tonight’s the last night.”
“No.” Eric had to stop this before it gathered steam.
“I can talk for myself.” Donna cast him an irritated glance before shifting her attention to Asima. “I’d love to go, but—”
“I know, I know. The great protector has to go with you.” Asima wrapped her tail around her. “And before you ask, yes, I know because I listened in on your conversation. If I didn’t spy, how would I know things?”
Couldn’t argue with that. Eric almost felt like smiling. Almost. “Right. I go where Donna goes. And I have to work tonight.” When he wasn’t so sleepy, he’d have to find out why Asima had chosen his castle to bless with her snooty self. Lucky him.
“No problem.” She raised one aristocratic paw and licked it. “I planted a suggestion in the mind of a woman at the registration desk. She called your sub and said you wanted him to work tonight. We’ll be back before midnight so Donna can do her show.”
“You what?” Eric didn’t usually thunder. Soft menace was more effective. But this called for thundering. “Who died and made you queen? I don’t want to—”
Asima put down her paw, padded to the edge of the table, and leaped into his lap. She stared up at him from gleaming blue eyes. “You have to go. Donna is the
only one I know here who appreciates opera.”
Donna’s grimace behind Asima’s back said she didn’t appreciate it as much as she should.
“Donna deserves a night out before she goes back to New York. Here’s your chance. You can take her to dinner—I’ll eat yours—and then on to the opera. I already have two tickets. Please, please, please.” Asima rubbed her head against his stomach.
Uh-oh. He could resist Asima, but Donna was starting to look sympathetic.
“Let’s go, Eric. It’ll be nice to get away from the castle for a few hours. I’ll be safe with you and Asima.” She stopped short of lying about how much she wanted to experience La Traviata.
Opera. Why would he want to sit through a couple of hours listening to people singing to each other in a language he didn’t understand? If Asima had already called his sub—and that had to stop—then he was free to spend the hours until Donna’s show exploring her uncharted wilderness areas.
Whoa, a disturbing thought. What if she was afraid to have sex with him now that she knew he was vampire? The thought upset him, and the fact that it upset him, well, that upset him even more. He’d spent his whole existence enjoying one-night stands. Sex was a lot safer that way. No messy emotional disconnects and no betrayals. A desire for multiple nights with one woman was cause for concern.
“You’ve locked me out of your mind, vampire, but I know you’re not thinking about my trip to the opera.” Asima dug her claws into his thigh to remind him who was important in this room.
Eric grabbed at one more escape line. “I guess you’ll be changing into human form, because you sure can’t go anywhere the way you are now.”
Asima actually purred. “I have to stay in this form as long as I’m on the job, but I’ve already figured out how to get around the problem.” She leaped from Eric’s lap, padded to the door, and waited as it swung open. “I’ll meet you guys here at seven.”
