Chloe glowered at Bridget as she moved, cradling Zack’s upper body until Bridget took hold of him herself. Chloe did her best not to touch her as she gave up her hold on Zack. She swallowed as she got back to her feet.
Bridget hid a smirk as she got comfortable on the cold concrete path and pulled the unconscious human onto her lap. Chloe hovered over them, her gaze never moving from his face. It was just pathetic how much she still cared for him. Bridget licked his bite wound to heal it, savouring the taste of his blood and fighting the urge to drink from him. His pulse seemed steady. He hadn’t lost too much. He’d be fine. As the tension drained out of her shoulders, she realised how worried she’d actually been.
“Is he okay?”
Chloe’s clipped tone made her jump.
“He’ll be fine,” Bridget said, not looking up. He just looked like he was sleeping.
“You let this happen,” Chloe said.
There was nothing Bridget could say to that, so she said nothing.
“The Council needs to know about this.”
“Good luck with that,” Bridget said, knowing Kenny would block Chloe’s path.
“Bitch,” Chloe spat out. “You let him get hurt again and I’ll—”
“You’ll what? Force me to obey your every word? Go ahead.” She squeezed Zack’s shoulder as he started to stir. “This won’t happen again.”
Chloe snorted. “If it does—”
“If it does, I’ll be replaced,” Bridget snapped. “You’ve served your purpose here. You can leave.”
Chloe glared at her. Her gaze fell to Zack, and Bridget knew she’d succeeded in torturing the girl by bringing her here.
“If anything happens to him, I’ll kill you myself.” Chloe then walked away.
Bridget watched her go and wondered what exactly she was going to report to her superiors. Either way, she was going to have to call Rick, and soon.
Zack groaned. “What the…”
He sat up swiftly, grimacing and rubbing at his head with one of his gloved hands. “What happened?”
Bridget got to her feet as a sudden breeze stirred up the dead vampire’s remains at her feet and the black ash swirled upwards. “You were bitten. I need to get you home.”
He stumbled as she helped him to his feet. “My head is kind of fuzzy…”
“You lost a little blood.”
He shuddered, but he didn’t speak as she guided him away from the house.
If the close call had shown her anything, it was that Zack was weaker than she’d thought. She wondered if he was really worth saving at this point. He’d had another episode when the vampire had attacked him. He was so broken inside, she wasn’t sure how much was even left to salvage.
He moaned softly, rubbing at his neck as he pulled away from her. She let him stagger alongside her without touching him. Her hand went into her pocket, fingers brushing her phone. She really needed to speak to Rick.
***
Chloe walked to Larry’s flat, where she’d been headed before Bridget sidetracked her with the curveball from hell. What the hell had happened out there, exactly? She’d been too pissed to stay and ask questions and too afraid to see Zack wake up and look at her the same way he had the morning after his original attack.
She chewed on her bottom lip as she tried to think of something she could do to keep Zack safe from the vampire bitch who’d been assigned to protect him. She’d never trusted Bridget, and she never would. Wild animals couldn’t ever really be tamed. Something would set her off. Zack would never be safe around her.
The location snuck up on her. She realised she’d walked past the flat after a few aimless seconds passed. The building was four storeys tall and looked new. The door remained wedged open because of a little girl’s bike stuck in there. Larry wouldn’t even need to know she was on her way up. The element of surprise was probably a good thing, considering she didn’t know what kind of state she’d find him in.
She went into the corridor and shivered. The day hadn’t been particularly warm, but the hallway struck her as icy-cold and kind of dark. She glanced up; the lights were off. Taking the stairs two at a time, she made her way to Larry’s flat.
The keys in her hand weren’t just keys to the arcade. She was assuming the others were to the flat and his car. They might not be, but right now it didn’t matter. Finding out what had happened to him was what she’d come here for.
She raised her fist to knock and thought better of it. Announcing her arrival might not be the best idea. Her hand fell to the doorknob. It turned, and the door opened when she pushed it. The dark hallway smelled of smoke. She took a step inside and closed the door quietly.
The floorboards creaked lightly as she moved, making her wince with every carefully placed step. She really hoped she wasn’t about to catch the teenager doing anything weird. Pausing outside a closed door, she asked herself what the hell she thought she was doing. Doubt crept in. Larry was probably fine. What would he think if he found her in his flat? She groaned.
A creaking inside the room made her freeze in place. Shit.
“Chloe?” He sounded dazed, as if he’d just woken up.
She should just drop his keys and run, but something didn’t feel right. She had to make sure he was okay. Swallowing, she pulled herself together and forced a smile.
“Larry, are you okay?” Her voice sounded a bit shaky, but she managed to take a step forward and push at the door gently.
His hand caught the edge and pulled the door open all the way. Her gaze found his surprisingly muscular and entirely hairless naked chest and she struggled to force it upwards to take in his face. A gasp fell from her lips as she saw the change in his skin and hair. The acne was gone, his hair shiny without looking greasy. His blue eyes seemed brighter against the prettier background. He had thick eyelashes. She hadn’t even noticed that before. Good bone structure, too. She bit her lip. Asking him if he was okay right now seemed like a stupid question.
“I’m fine,” he said, smiling brightly.
She’d had no idea how cute he could look when he smiled. Larry was actually hot. Who would have guessed? She blinked and tried to think straight. This wasn’t the awkward teenager who liked pushing his luck with her and every other girl under thirty in the arcade. He’d never gotten a date from any of them. Somehow, she didn’t think that was going to be a problem for him anymore.
“Uh, Larry, how are you feeling right now?” She supposed she had to deal with the reality of the situation sooner or later.
“I feel great,” he said, stretching and drawing attention to his newly developed muscles.
Her gaze dropped and she shook her head.
“I can see that.” She jingled his keys. “I found these in the arcade. Someone broke in last night.”
His face dropped. “Shit. Am I fired? What happened?”
“What happened to you last night, Larry?”
He frowned. “I… don’t remember.”
She concentrated to confirm her suspicions, gazing into his pretty blue eyes. “Repeat after me, ‘I am Larry, and I am a vampire’.”
He gazed at her slackly for a second before he spoke in a toneless voice. “I am Larry, and I am a vampire.” He blinked. “Wait. What?”
She sighed. “You’re dead.”
“I am?”
She nodded, wishing he didn’t look so good. Vampirism had its benefits, she supposed.
Confusion clouded his expression, making him even cuter than he’d been before.
“Have you looked into a mirror lately by any chance?”
He shook his head, his eyes widening. “What are you saying? Do I not have a reflection now?”
He started to move out of the room when he seemed to realise she was blocking his path. There must have been something in her gaze because he stopped and stared back, his new sexy body inches from hers.
“I knew you liked me.”
He didn’t wait for her to confirm or deny it; he just dipped his head down and
kissed her on the lips.
She kissed back on reflex. His mouth opened wider as his lips worked against hers. She pushed him back when his saliva made the skin around her mouth wet.
Wiping at her mouth, she frowned at him. “That so wasn’t…”
He cringed. “Sorry. I don’t know what I was—”
“Wait,” she said, placing her hand on his chest.
His heart wouldn’t pump blood until he drank some. That weird technicality was what allowed vampires to have a sex life. She scrubbed the thought from her head. She wasn’t so attention-starved that she’d jump into bed with Larry, even if he was sexy as hell now. “You won’t get anywhere with girls if that’s how you kiss.”
“Girls?” He looked crestfallen. “But I thought you liked me. I’m sorry I kissed you. I should have asked you out first, but you always say no… Well, not no. You always say you’re doing something else. But…”
“Larry, shut up and pay attention.” She slipped an arm around his neck and brought his lips to hers. The impulsive decision to straighten out his technique had nothing to do with how desperate she was getting for physical contact. At least, that was what she was telling herself.
He immediately started to do the same thing he’d done before, and she broke away.
“Don’t try to cover my whole mouth with yours. It feels weird.”
She didn’t wait for him to say anything else—she just pressed her lips to his again and he let her lead him into the kind of kiss she really wanted, slowly and softly. It made her heart rate spike being so close to a man like this. It had been more than six months since…
“Wow,” he said with a sigh when she withdrew.
“Now, that’s how you kiss a girl.” She folded her arms as she stepped back.
What was she thinking? Their first kiss should never even have happened. The second one had been pushing it. Larry gazed at her dreamily, and she felt her face flush. It would be far too easy to use Larry to make her forget about Zack. As tempting as it was, she didn’t have those kinds of feelings for him and she’d only end up hurting him.
“You know I’m like, in love with you, right?”
She smiled. He was too young to know what love really was. Now that he’d morphed into a total hottie overnight, she guessed he wouldn’t be a stranger to it for much longer. She ignored the infatuation in his eyes. “You’ve got far bigger problems right now.”
“Far bigger… Oh, right. I’m a vampire?”
She nodded. “Right. You’ll be getting hungry soon, and it’s not exactly legal for a newly hatched vampire to be without a guardian.”
“What’s a guardian?”
She sighed. It was going to be a long night. “Just go take a shower and check the mirror. I’ll be back soon with your dinner.”
He beamed, and she could practically tell what he was thinking before he spoke.
“Dinner? So this is like a date.”
She didn’t bother to correct him, just concentrated as they locked eyes. “You will not leave this flat until I say so.”
“I will not leave this flat until you say so.” He shook his head. “Man, you’re bossy.”
She managed a wry smile as she headed for the door. “You don’t know the half of it.”
Chapter Eleven
Zack lay in bed, wondering if he’d imagined Bridget’s tearful eyes as she’d told him what exactly had happened. The vampire attack had come back to him, bit by bit, after he’d regained consciousness. He wished that had happened the first time he’d woken up disoriented after a traumatic event, even though his mental state apparently hadn’t been able to take it as all the doctors who’d diagnosed his amnesia had told him. So much for second opinions; he’d had four of them singing from the same hymn sheet.
He sighed. He was shattered and weak, and sick of not knowing why he was under protection.
Bridget came into his room with a tray. She seemed short with her heels off, but he supposed it could also be because he was lying down. He sat up, looking at the tray and not really wanting any of the food. It didn’t matter that he’d bought the cookies from Cassandra. Right now, the thought of eating anything made his stomach turn.
“It’ll help,” she said, putting the tray on the bedside table. “The sugar, I mean, with the blood loss.”
He hid his gloved hands under the covers, knowing how weird it would look. He’d reluctantly removed the sunglasses when they got into the house, but he wasn’t in any kind of state to remove the gloves. Shivering at the thought, he smiled weakly at his nurse.
“Thanks.”
She sat down next to him. “You know I would die for you, Zack.”
He stared at her. “Is someone asking you to?”
She smiled. “No. It’s just something that could happen. I’m here to protect you at all costs. I wasn’t sure I could do it, not at first, but…” She took a breath he was sure she didn’t need. “I started to see how much you needed me, and I got to like working with you. I would die for you now, and it wouldn’t be out of duty.” She leaned forward and brushed his hair out of his face. “You should get some rest.”
“Are you going to stay tonight?” He didn’t feel so weird about asking after her admission. She actually liked him? He never would have guessed it.
She nodded. “I’ll be in the other room if you need anything.”
He thought about asking her to share his bed, but he was tired as hell and she was too quick to leave the room to allow him the chance. Knowing she’d be close by to protect him while he slept was enough to make his body stop fighting his exhaustion.
***
Bridget went into the kitchen to call Rick. Zack wouldn’t hear her. He’d likely pass out soon, and if he wasn’t tired, the sleeping pills she’d crushed into his milk would help him along. She tapped her nails off his tiny kitchen table as she waited for her boss to answer. He let it ring almost a dozen times.
“Bridget?”
“The Winter Clan know where Zack is. They sent someone.”
He sucked in a breath. “What happened?”
“I dealt with it. Relax. I need to know what to tell the FBU. We need damage control.”
“Damage control,” he murmured.
She rolled her eyes. As usual, she was going to have to work out what to do on her own.
“Tell them nothing,” he said.
“If Winter keep sending vampires—”
“Inform me if they do. I’m going to make some calls.”
“I’ve got a check-in coming up, Rick. If they think Zack isn’t safe with me—”
“When is the check-in?”
“Next week.”
“How’s Plan B coming?”
“It’s been started. Might be a slow burner. He’s one of those shy types.”
She cringed at the thought of doing anything sexual with him. Not to mention that Kenny would bash Zack’s brains in if he even suspected anything was going on between them. The thought made her shiver in delight. Her lover’s primal side was one of the reasons she kept going back to him.
Rick made a ‘hmm’ noise. “Should we skip that stage?”
“No,” she said quickly. “It’s essential. Your instincts were right. This is what he needs to blind-side him.”
“Keep me up to date with it. If the FBU gets in contact, let me know.”
She agreed and hung up. She had one week to make Zack think she was in love with him. One week to execute the plan. She tapped her nails off the table. As soon as Zack was asleep, she’d head next door.
Chapter Twelve
Larry was naked on the couch when Chloe came back with a bag of butcher shop blood. He grinned at her, though his eyes didn’t meet hers when he looked up. She closed her eyes, mostly to stop them from wandering.
“You said not to leave. You didn’t say not to be naked.”
She heard him move and opened her eyes, stepping back as he made to kiss her. She held out a hand.
“I’m not over Zack,”
she said sharply. “So don’t go thinking we’ve got something just because I showed you how to kiss a girl properly.”
He frowned, and she got the distinct impression that he knew she was attracted to him now.
She cursed inwardly. “Never should have told you to check a mirror.”
“You kissed back, the first time, I mean,” he said, covering his private parts with his hands. He glanced down. “Anyway, I don’t think my dick works right anymore. I couldn’t get more than a semi in the shower. I just kind of wanted to check…”
She rolled her eyes. “Okay, here’s the deal. You’re a vampire now. That means you died. Which means your heart doesn’t beat, which means your blood isn’t getting pumped around your body, which means your man parts don’t work like they used to.”
“Aw, man,” he said. “This is like the only time I was ever getting a chance to get laid and I can’t?”
“You had no chance of getting laid,” she told him, starting to regret the kiss.
“That’s not what I meant. I meant I look okay now.”
“You look hot now,” she corrected, catching his smile and trying not to encourage it. “And I’m not saying you can’t get laid. I’m saying you need this to get your heart going, and that’s the only way you’ll be able to, you know…”
His eyes widened. “What is it?”
“Clothes first.” She stepped back from the doorway, and he darted to his room.
A minute later, he came out in jeans and a T-shirt that hid his new drool-inducing physique. She breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing she needed was a fling with a nineteen-year-old vampire. Controlling herself around him wasn’t going to be easy. It had been so long since she’d kissed a guy, let alone… She shook her head. She was so not a cougar.
“So what is it?” He looked at the bag.
“Blood, what else?”
He screwed up his nose. “Oh, right.”
“Come on, there are different kinds. You can see what kind you like best.”
“Kinds?”
“You know, pig, cow, sheep.”
Amnesia Bites (Shady Arcade Book 1) Page 8
