Tempted by Blood

by Laurie London

  “Who said I’m going out carousing?” As soon as he said it, he realized he hadn’t protested the reference to Arianna being his woman.

  That gorgeous woman of mine?

  Mine?

  He…he liked the sound of that.

  “Let me repeat myself,” Dom said. “I’m not an idiot. With those urban-cowboy boots you have on and that hint of cologne, it looks to me like you’re on your way to the Pink Salon. And that can only mean one thing.”

  Jackson reached into the refrigerator, grabbed the milk and took a swig out of the carton. “I can’t get all my blood and energies from Arianna. My needs…” He had to be careful how he worded this. “Well, they’re a little more than what I’m comfortable taking from her. She’s too new to all this. And, for your information, these are not fake wannabe boots. They’re the real deal.” His Luccheses were so comfortable, he could sleep in them.

  “So you’re going to f—” Dom caught himself, shifting his son to his other arm. “Be with some stranger at the club? You think that’s going to help?”

  “Well, I…”

  “Listen.” He covered Miguel’s tiny ears as if a kid that age understood what adults were saying. “Don’t fuck things up with Arianna. Women like her come around once in a man’s life. If you’re worried about the fact that she’s human, well, you don’t have to look any further than Mackenzie and me.”

  Not that that was a relevant comparison any longer since Mackenzie was now a changeling. No, he hadn’t dared to think that far ahead in their relationship because they had no future. What was the point in thinking about shit like that? You get your hopes up for nothing. Till reality kicks you in the teeth again, reminds you that you have no future and tells you to smarten up or you’ll be sorry.

  He could still hear the shrill tone of his mother’s voice. It’d been several months since his sister’s death and he had just passed his Time of Change. After being out with his buddies one night, he’d come home to find a single suitcase sitting near the door.

  “What’s this?” he’d asked.

  His mother stood in the kitchen, arms folded, no flicker of love in her eyes for her only son. Just cold, hard resignation. She looked old that day, he remembered. Much older than he’d ever seen her. But then sadness and disappointment tended to do that to a woman. “Your things.”

  His things? Were they kicking him out? Wide-eyed, he turned to his father for support. “Dad?”

  He father wouldn’t look up. Just kept cleaning that pipe of his. “You heard your mother, son.”

  “But I don’t understand.”

  His mother flicked a dish towel over her shoulder and pointed at him with an accusatory finger. “You may be able to enjoy your life, Jackson. Go out with friends, carry on like nothing has happened, but we can’t. We’ve done our duty as parents, and you’re old enough to be on your own. That day you let your sister die was the day we stopped being a family. So go on. Get out of here. Go ruin someone else’s life, now that you’ve ruined ours.”

  Usually he was pretty good about locking up those memories in a far-off compartment of his heart. He shouldn’t have been thinking of them in the first place. Didn’t do him a damn bit of good. He took another swig from the milk container and shoved those depressing thoughts from his head, focusing, instead, on the present…and the fact that he wasn’t going to let himself have feelings for Arianna.

  “I’ve seen how she looks at you and—”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Jackson interrupted. He didn’t want to hear it. There was no way he was talking to Dom about why it could never work out between Arianna and him. Once the field team leader heard the word revert, things would be all over, and it’d be bye-bye-Jackson time.

  “But more important,” Dom continued, “I’ve noticed how you look at her. I’ve never seen you like this, Jacks.” He kissed the top of his son’s head and Jackson was struck by how easily Dom had taken to being a father. He held the boy as if he’d been doing it all his life rather than just the past few months.

  “Sorry. Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Dom rolled his eyes. “You remind me of myself when I first met Mackenzie. Confused and unsure of the feelings you’re having. Willing to rip someone’s head off if you think they’re either moving on your woman or not respecting her. I know I’m hard on you sometimes, but I do that because I expect more from you. I know what you’re capable of handling and I know that I can count on you. Shit. You’re one of the most loyal guys I’ve ever worked with. Unreliable sometimes? Yes. But I’ve never questioned your loyalty. That little redhead seems to know what makes you tick, inside and out, and I think that deep down, you know it, too. You’re just too scared to admit it.”

  Scared? Dom had no fucking idea. “I am not.” Damn. The only way he could sound more childish was if he’d said, You’re not the boss of me, but then again, the guy was. He looked at the carton of milk in his hand and put it away.

  “Oh, and before I forget, that list she sent us of those missing young people? Well, Cordell cross-referenced it and two of them were on our list of known sweetbloods. They were from that group we saved at the Night of Wilding party. I’d wager a bet that the others are Sangre Dulce, too.” Dom often used the old-world term, having grown up in the Cantabrian Mountains in Spain.

  “Four sweetblood humans missing at the same time? Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

  “Yep, Darkbloods are cooking up something. Lily and Kip are going out at nightfall to the Devil’s Backbone to see if they can pick up the scent trail. If we can track their location, maybe we can save them.”

  “Arianna will be thrilled to know this.”

  “Yeah, so think about what you’re getting ready to do. I get the sense that she’s very different from most of the women you’ve been with. She’s not going to take any kind of bull from you. Once you blow it with her, it’ll be over. She’ll see it in your eyes, smell it in your kiss, sense it in your touch, and she’ll leave your sorry ass. If that’s what your intention is—to get her to break things off with you—then don’t let me stop you. But frankly, she doesn’t deserve that. If it’s blood and energies you’re after, you can easily take it from a stranger in an alley. You don’t need to be fucking around to get it.”

  “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t teach our son to curse before he even says mama.”

  Both men snapped their heads around to see Dom’s wife, Mackenzie, entering the kitchen. She must’ve been working in her studio, because she wore an old shirt—probably one of Dom’s—with rolled-up sleeves, her jeans were spattered with paint, and she had a smear of orange on her cheek. Evidently, Dom hadn’t known she was there, either, because he had a guilty-as-hell look plastered to his mug. Miguel turned when he heard his mom’s voice and broke into a toothless grin.

  “Yeah, it’s real funny, isn’t it, mister?” she said to Miguel, smiling. “But your daddy has a potty mouth and Mommy isn’t happy.” She pointed a finger at Dom. “If he says the f-word before he says, ‘Mama, Dada, I love you,’ I’m going to kick your…behind.”

  Jackson started to laugh, until she added, “And that goes for you, too.”

  ARIANNA FELT JACKSON SLIDE into bed next to her but she stayed curled on her side, the down comforter pulled up to her neck. She was surprised that he’d rebuffed her when they got to the room after everything that had happened in the computer room with all the other Guardians. But this was his issue, she told herself. Not hers. He needed time and space to figure things out on his own. He didn’t need her input.

  But that didn’t mean he hadn’t hurt her feelings. He’d gone from fierce protector to stay-away-from-me in a matter of minutes. Determined not to cry with him around, a skill she’d learned when dealing with her father, she held it together until she heard the door close when he left. She allowed hersel
f a few tears before she wiped them away and toughened up again.

  After soaking in the tub until the water went tepid, she’d searched his bookshelf for something interesting to read. She’d found several epic fantasy novels mixed among the military nonfiction books, memoirs and the stacks of DVDs. Assuming the most dog-eared book had to be his favorite, she’d climbed into bed and read for almost an hour before she fell asleep, when she’d dreamed of realms, kingdoms and quests.

  The sheets rustled and she felt his hot breath on the back of her neck. Was he going to kiss her? She smelled alcohol and the faint scent of sandalwood cologne. Had he gone out?

  He lay there a minute, not saying or doing anything. She could almost hear the wheels in his head turning as he was trying to figure out what to do. Would he touch her as she so desperately wanted him to do or would he roll over and go to sleep? She kept her breathing regular and slow.

  “I’m sorry.” He whispered so softly that she had to strain to hear him. “I was an ass and…and you didn’t deserve to be treated like that.”

  When she didn’t respond, the bed shifted again as he rolled over. He must think she was sleeping.

  “You matter to me, Arianna. So much. That’s what scares me.”

  Then, so quietly that she almost wasn’t sure it was him and not the whispers of a dream, he said, “I love you. Now, what the fuck am I going to do?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  THE XTARK OFFICES WERE ABUZZ with activity. Pizzas from one of Mitch’s favorite restaurants sat on a long table in the center of the room. Coolers were filled with cans of soda and bottles of water. Bite-size candy bars were scattered on all the tables. From the napkins to the paper plates, notepads, pencils and key chains, everything was emblazoned with the Xtark logo.

  A man with a broken leg hobbled up in front of the group of about twenty people and started talking. Pointing to the computer stations set up around the room, he explained that if tonight was the only time you could come in, that’d be fine. But if you could come every night for the next week to beta-test, that’d be even better. The goal was for them to try to break the game now, so that the code could be fixed before it became available to consumers for purchase. As the guy continued to talk, Mitch slanted a glance to Arianna. She dipped her chin slightly in response to his unanswered question. This was the Tony whose unsecured computer was the one Mitch was going to use.

  After Tony finished explaining how things worked, he added, “And feel free to grab a Hollow Grave T-shirt either right now or on your way out when you leave.”

  As the other testers were helping themselves to the food and picking out their shirts, Arianna motioned Mitch over to where she was standing with a tall, thin man.

  “Carter, this is my friend Mitch,” she said. “He’s a friend I met at the gym. I knew he played Hollow Grave so I brought him along.”

  This was the guy who was taking a medical leave of absence? He’d obviously been an athletic man at one point in his life, so his condition must be difficult to accept. Mitch started to say, “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” but Carter just gave him a quick head-to-toe glance and kept talking.

  “Where’s your cousin? I thought you were bringing her in with you.” He ignored Mitch’s outstretched hand, so Mitch stuck it back in his pocket and his fingers closed around the hilt of his blade.

  He didn’t like the guy. Not one damn bit.

  “She couldn’t make it.” Arianna waved to someone and strolled to the other side of the room.

  Oh, sure, he had the sympathy vote, but he gave off an air that rubbed Mitch the wrong way. The faint look of desperation behind his eyes that said he’d be willing to do anything if the price was right. Like the suburban husband who embezzled money in order to keep his house from being foreclosed. These guys didn’t intend to make bad decisions, but life got in the way and forced their hand.

  Mitch had learned from experience to trust his gut instincts. When he ignored them, bad shit happened.

  He did a quick scan of the room. No vampires…wait. There were two youthlings on the other side. Good thing Arianna hadn’t brought her cousin in. Mitch gave them a quick nod of recognition and the look on their faces said they knew he was one of them. Vampires had been living among humans for centuries and the look was one they all were used to giving each other. It said, Greetings, but keep your mouth shut.

  “I take it we’re testing the game’s multiplayer modes?” Mitch said, noting that most of the computers were clustered together in groups of two or four.

  “They are, but you’re not. You’ll be playing in here.” Carter pointed at a small room Mitch hadn’t noticed before. It was outfitted with a video camera on a tripod and a two-way mirror.

  “Our research people like to watch the reactions of those playing the game. We’d like to hook you up to a heart monitor, as well to assess your excitement level as you play.”

  Mitch thought about all the weapons he had hidden under his clothes and politely declined.

  “You know, testers are brought in for specific reasons. You should be grateful you get to see the version early and do what we need you to do.”

  What an asshole. “Do you want me to leave, then?” he challenged.

  Carter stared at him before pointing to an empty station. “Very well, then.”

  Remembering his promise not to let Arianna out of his sight, Mitch glanced over to where she stood, talking with one of the other employees. All the Xtark employees were wearing matching black T-shirts with the Xtark logo, except her. Were they required to wear such shirts all the time or was this something they did when they hosted these beta-testing parties?

  He turned his attention back to Carter.

  Mitch finally put his finger on what it was about this man that was strange. Despite his failing body, his eyes were bright with awareness. The kind of awareness that said he knew that Mitch was a vampire. But how was that possible? The guy was a human. The only thing he could think of was that when they’d first come in, the man had been talking to two security officials. Mitch hadn’t looked closely enough at them, but it was possible they were vampires. Had they seen that Mitch was one of them and alerted Carter?

  Maybe, maybe not. Most humans instinctively gave vampires a wide berth, but this guy didn’t. It was as if he was used to being around members of the race.

  In one of the classes Mitch once taught, a student had coined the term vay-dar, meaning vampire radar. Some humans had it, some humans didn’t. This Carter dude certainly seemed to have it.

  As he took his seat in front of the computer, he glanced at the video cameras mounted in all the corners. He’d have loved to have touched his wire and told Jackson about this interesting development, but he didn’t dare do it now.

  As soon as Carter left, Mitch hastily picked the first avatar on the screen and loaded the weapon. Arianna and Carter were now sitting down at one of the empty tables near the pizza. Tony was answering a question from the guy behind him.

  So far, nothing out of the ordinary, but as soon as he was able to take a break, he’d make an excuse to use the restroom.

  Mitch turned back to the game. Oh, great. For an avatar, he’d accidentally selected some blonde chick with huge tits wearing a skimpy black catsuit and stiletto boots. This should be interesting.

  Mitch had just made it to the second level when Tony came over.

  “Got any questions so far?”

  “No, but the graphics are awesome.”

  “Glad you like it.” The man laughed. “I see you picked Sylvia.”

  “What?” He was distracted, looking at the two goons by the door who were definitely vampires escorting people to the bathrooms. They weren’t Darkbloods in that they didn’t have the same smell, but they weren’t twin Goldilocks, either.

 
“She’s one of my characters. I designed her.”

  Mitch nodded. “She’s crazy hot. That’s why I picked her.”

  Tony took it as a compliment and clapped him on the back before he left. Mitch played another level for good measure then headed to the pizza table. He had eaten half a slice, when he suddenly realized Arianna wasn’t in the room. Had Carter taken her somewhere? He glanced around. Carter was gone, too.

  One quick sniff of the air told him that she was nearby, he just couldn’t see her. But he’d made the promise to Jackson, so he set off after her only to be stopped by one of the guards at the door.

  “Sorry, no unauthorized personnel beyond this point.”

  “But my friend went that way.”

  “Like I said, no unauthorized personnel, which means, no guests.”

  Mitch turned around and texted Arianna. She instantly texted him back. She was heading to Carter’s office and everything was fine. He asked her if she could distract the guard at the door so he could slip through.

  Sure, she texted. I’ll see what I can do.

  Soon the guard was gone and Mitch easily slipped through the door.

  ARIANNA TRIED TO BE PATIENT as she watched Carter shuffle the papers on his desk for the second time. Was he going to get to the point? She’d followed him into his office because he wanted to show her his ideas for the forums, but all he’d done was move a coffee mug to the other side of his keyboard, straighten a few files and wipe his monitor with a dust cloth.

  “I thought you were bringing your niece, not your boyfriend.”

  “First of all, she’s my cousin and second of all, he’s not my boyfriend.”

  She’d already told him this twice. Was the guy preoccupied or what? When they’d first headed to his office, she’d noticed that he’d really slowed down since she’d last seen him. His limp was much more pronounced. And now that he was sitting in his desk chair, he didn’t seem much more comfortable.