by Tamsin Baker
I could drink my fill and lick her clean afterward, closing the wound and at the same time sending her into raptures of delight when the orgasm rips through her body. She may feel light-headed from the effects of my bite, though that would be the only downside, unless I chose to drain her fully.
You promised. The whisper through my mind sounds like Aleah’s own voice. Low and husky, hardly there at all, and yet all-encompassing in my head as if she has actually invaded my soul.
I hear you, Aleah. I hear you. My growl erupts from the deepest reaches of my chest. Fuck. I did promise to behave. It’s unbearably difficult to turn away from that slow, steady beat, but finally I manage it, only to encounter two sets of accusatory eyes as a pair of Siamese cats watch warily from their perch on the dresser across the room.
“I won’t. I promised her.”
One of the cats continues to stare unblinkingly, but the other narrows it’s eyes as if judging me and finding my response wanting.
I don’t hate cats, nor do vampires feed on any blood other than human, but right now, with the strength it has taken to turn away from the enticing delight in front of me, I might just transfer my anger elsewhere if they don’t hurry from my reach.
“Go. Get.” I release a long low hiss and both arch their backs and race each other to the exit. At the door they turn as if one and hiss right back at me before disappearing down the hallway. I have to admit, their combined hiss is slightly more impressive than my own.
The soft curve of Aleah’s hip is the perfect resting place for my heat-filled cock. At least, it would be if I knew we were soon to sate its hunger. My God, but I want this woman badly, and in so many different ways. And yet it seems as if we’re fated to remain unconnected in every respect, unless I break my word and seduce her with a vampire blood call. A call we would both be physically unable to resist, and a call for which I doubt she would ever forgive me.
Chapter Four
Aleah
I stretch my arms and legs, arching my back and enjoying the gentle popping sound of stubborn joints loosening up. The stiffness is an unfortunate downside of my human half and the inevitable physicality of working a country property alone. I open my eyes and encounter a pair of icy blues staring down at me. “What the—”
Luc. I try to roll sideways but his arms are wrapped around me and our limbs are somehow all tangled up together. In my bed? Yep. This is definitely my bed. Skin against naked skin. Naked? What the actual fuck? For an instant I don’t remember how this happened, but then the memories begin to return and I stifle an involuntary sob. Darrie. Gwen. I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I didn’t reach you in time.
His arms tighten briefly as if sensing my rush of anguish, and then he releases me and sits up. His skin is pale and smooth, the muscles of his torso and shoulders clearly defined and definitely far sexier than I expect. His chest is hairless and I’m not sure why that surprises me. Perhaps the thickness of the tousled mess atop his head caused me to make assumptions about the rest of his body. The faintest line of dark decorates his abdomen, spearing downward to points south somewhere beneath the coverlet. Points south. My cheeks heat and I briefly look away to try and regain equilibrium.
He shifts the pillow to a more comfortable position and leans back with his arms folded behind his head, looking all the world as if he truly belongs in that spot. I shuffle sideways to put some distance between us. “What time is it?”
“It’s late. You slept through the night and most of the day. I watched over you while you were out cold. Most of the time, anyway.”
Well, that’s not creepy at all. “Um, thanks?”
“Except when I slept, too, of course.”
“So, you slept here, with me? In my bed?”
“Comfortable mattress.” His grin is smug, and for an instant he looks young and carefree, like a man without a worry in the world. I almost forget he’s not human. The urge to lean over and mess up his tousled hair even more almost overtakes me, until all the memories from the previous night suddenly come rushing back in to overwhelm me. Rogues. Loups. Death.
“Do you know what happened to my friends? I need you to explain it to me. Exactly.”
His face changes from carefree to serious. “Yes. I slipped back out near dawn to check on the situation. I had just called in the attack when you stumbled into their yard, so I had to choose between sticking around to secure the scene, following the scent of the loup, or ensuring your safety.”
He should have followed the loup. He knows it, too. His smug grin has long disappeared and the scowl that replaces it transforms him straight back into predatory hunter. Still, there’s a little part of me that enjoys the fact he chose me ahead of duty.
“The emergency services are likely still on scene. It…will be a lengthy clean-up, I’m afraid.”
Oh-kay.
“It was definitely the same vamp I’ve been tracking. I recognized the scent.” He traces a finger around my jawline. His touch is light and strangely welcome, and for some reason I don’t pull away. “I’m sorry, Aleah. He got the human female—”
“Gwen. Her name was Gwen. And her husband was Darrie. They were real people, with names…lives…”
“Yes.” Luc’s voice softens. “He got Gwen first, I think. She was furthest away from the house. Looks like she ventured outside, perhaps to check on a noise? The male—Darrie—was found nearer the back door. There was a loaded shotgun beside his body. Silver bullets, too. Unfortunately, he must have been felled pretty quickly as the shotgun hadn’t been fired.”
“He may have been felled quickly, but his death wasn’t fast, though, was it?”
“I think…” He hesitates, and then adds, “No. I don’t believe it was a quick or easy death for him. Unlike Gwen’s, which I think may have been close to instantaneous. Darrie may have been disabled relatively quickly, but the rest of what happened wasn’t either of those things.”
“No.” I felt death coming, and I felt it take them and eventually leave. It took a while, particularly for one of them—Darrie as I know now—and it was agonizing. My only small comfort is that the couple are now together in death as they once were in life. “So, you went back there while I was asleep, and then returned here instead of continuing your… tracking? Hunting? Whatever you call it.”
“Hunting. And yes, it’s part of my job, to liaise with the local cops. Your town policeman—Bernie—seems to be pretty clued up about the situation already. Apparently, there have been a few cases of livestock being taken in the past weeks, and he’d already been liaising with my unit about the vicious nature of those attacks. Add to that the young boy who was taken a couple of nights ago...”
A young boy? That must have been the death I experienced the other night. A remembered pang sets my heart thumping painfully as Luc continues talking.
“It’s the reason the department sent me here in the first place.”
“And returning here…to my bed?”
“Well, you know. I just wanted to…check on you again.” If I didn’t know for sure that vamps can’t blush, I’d think he had a touch of pink in those angular cheeks. “And then it was morning, and…yeah. I couldn’t venture out in the daylight, of course.”
“Of course. And how did undressing me—and yourself—right down to our underwear factor into that?” Now my cheeks start to heat up. At least he left my knickers on. I don’t wear a bra so I can’t exactly blame him for that one.
“You were covered in dirt and mud, and you were freezing to the touch. I wanted to put you beneath the comforter, and it seemed like the right thing to do, to get your clothing off first.”
I raise a brow. “Mm hmm.”
“And of course, I couldn’t leave you without helping you warm up, and the best way to do that was… with this.” His tone is conceited as he waves a laconic hand, indicating himself, before swinging his legs to the side to perch on the edge of the bed.
“There’s no way a snuggle under the covers with a vamp would make any diff
erence to my core body temp—yikes!”
He didn’t bother to leave his own knickers on. He conveniently ignores my comment—and my no doubt goggle-eyed stare—as he calmly moves around the room collecting his clothing. I try to look anywhere but at his manly package, though I can’t help but continue to sneak a glance or two his way. He seems to display no hint of embarrassment whatsoever and honestly, if I had a body as perfectly proportioned as his, I might not be embarrassed to show it off, either.
Surreptitiously, I slide the comforter right up to just beneath my chin.
Who knew a naked vampire body could be quite so alluring? Who knew a vampire’s rear end would be shapelier than any I’ve ever seen in my life? Not that I’ve seen many. His arse is tight and firm and my mind fills with images of that tight ass squeezing and pumping hard as he thrusts into someone in a frenzied and sensual coupling.
He turns at that moment and my breath hitches in my throat. Holy moly! Who knew Luc was hiding that much tackle in his trousers?
Let’s not mention how enticing his rippling muscles and smooth skin looks as he reaches for his discarded shirt and pulls it back on over his head. Let’s definitely not mention the warmth that instantly rushes through me, pooling between my legs and making a mockery of my previous comment. Clearly there’s more than one way for a vampire to impart warmth to another being.
I sit up and adjust the bed cover to ensure I continue to retain at least a small degree of modesty.
Luc’s grin widens. The bastard does enjoy stirring the pot, that’s for sure.
“I like your choice of underwear, Aleah. Pink was not what I expected.”
“God damn it!” This whole situation is beyond uncomfortable. At least—as far as I can tell—he didn’t sneak any of my blood. I decide the best path is to pretend to ignore the no-clothes issue for the moment. “Tell me more about these rogues. Have you been tracking them for a while? Are you an official hunter? You’ve mentioned your department a few times. I assume…an investigative one?”
He nods acquiescence. “I have been tracking both the vamp, and his rogue partner, for several months. They were in Melbourne, causing havoc out in some of the more affluent suburbs. We lost track several weeks ago until we got the call about unusual livestock butchery near Hatton Grove. I suppose I am an official hunter, though we call ourselves vampire police these days.” While he talks, he pulls on a pair of jeans and bends to lace his boots. When he straightens, he raises a hand and runs long fingers through already messy hair. It gives him a rakish look that adds to the sexiness. I decide to ignore that too, though the squiggle of desire that feels a little bit like butterflies in the belly once again makes a liar of my intentions.
“Vampire police. That’s a real thing?”
“Oh, yes, we’re real. I work for SUDAP—otherwise known as the Supernatural Division of the Australian Federal Police.”
I try to stay away from the mainstream, out here on the farm, and don’t really keep up with the news or general politics. But even I’ve heard of SUDAP. It stands to reason they would be just as likely to employ preternaturals as humans—probably more so, I guess—but I hadn’t really thought about that before now. And if he’s employed by SUDAP, Luc really must be one of the good ones. Their vetting process is supposedly more rigorous than that required for the standard police. “So, you’re a vampire detective.”
“Sergeant.”
“Sergeant Durand.” His lips quirk briefly as I try out the name. It suits him. “How did you come to be in a job like that, Luc? And for that matter, how old are you?”
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-nine.”
“Ah.” He smiles gently, and I sense rather than see the implicit weariness behind the smile. “You’ve never known anything other than the Accord years.”
I shrug. He’s right. I was born a year after the Accord came into being, though fat lot of good it did for my poor father.
“I’ve been on the Force since they opened it up to my kind twenty-seven years ago. You would have been two.”
“Well I’m all grown up now.” I have no idea why that popped out. I duck my head to avoid the humor in his stare.
“So you are.” His voice hums with awareness, forcing my gaze back to his. “But I’m still a damn sight older than you.”
At my raised brow and silence, he capitulates. “Two hundred and eighty-six. I was turned the night of my thirty-sixth birthday.”
“Whoa. That must have sucked.”
He snorts gently. “Yes, it did. Literally and figuratively.” Then he shrugs. “It gets easier the longer it goes on. I can hardly remember my human life anymore.”
I know vamps can live hundreds, even thousands of years, and their power grows with time. Technically, like hybrid fae, they’re close to immortal, but their violent nature often means they don’t live out their potential. At more than two hundred and eighty years of age, that most likely makes Luc one of the more powerful of his kind.
A shiver runs through me, even though I’m certain by now that Luc has no intention of hurting me. It’s not a shiver born of fear.
His sharp gaze catches my tremble even though the comforter still surrounds me. His mouth twists. “You’re safe, little banshee. I fed again last night, before I returned here.”
He busies himself rummaging through my chest of drawers and I’m so distracted by what he’s just admitted that I don’t bother trying to stop him, even though he has probably just seen my extra stash of wooden stakes and the silver knife I keep buried in my top drawer.
He fed last night? “So, you went off and…had sex with someone? And then…” Returned to my bed? “Where?”
He stills for a moment, looking down into my drawer rather than back at me. The stillness exudes annoyance even though I can’t see his face. “Sex and feeding often go hand-in-hand, Aleah, though not always. And last night was pure sustenance. I fed only. No sexual pleasure involved, sadly.”
“Oh.” I wish I could sink right down under this coverlet to hide the acuteness of my embarrassment.
“As to where I feed?” He picks out a random top and a pair of sweatpants. “Back in Melbourne, it’s mostly at bars and clubs, where the prey is willing and able. Very willing and able, believe me.” He tosses the clothing my way. I quickly shuck on the top, grateful for the protection it affords. “Out here in the sticks it’s usually the local hotel. Do you know The Royal?”
“Yes, I have dinner there sometimes, after I’ve been into town to drop off my wares at the local craft shop.” Who from Hatton Grove would voluntarily go with a vamp? Someone I know? Has an altogether different kind of feeding been taking place, while I’ve been obliviously eating in the downstairs restaurant in the Royal Hotel?
“I have a room there for the duration of this investigation.”
These are people I might know.
His grin has no humor in it whatsoever. In this moment he looks exactly like what he is—a predator. “Perfect for someone like me.”
“Do you ever…?” I can’t bring myself to finish the question. He guesses my intent and answers anyway, his eyes flaring with irritation beneath furrowed brows.
“Despite what you might think, I don’t kill innocents, Aleah. I feed on willing participants, and I only take what I need to survive. I never take more than they’re able to give, and they always walk away satisfied afterward.”
Satisfied? In what way? I might not be able to admit to him that the reason for the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach stems from jealousy, but the least I can do is admit that truth to myself.
Until yesterday, I would never in a million years have considered taking a vampire lover, but since Luc stumbled into my life, I can’t seem able to stop thinking about it. After a moment of awkward silence, I nod. “I believe you.”
“Hmm. How generous.” His accompanying snort of annoyance is unexpected and the urge to grin rises up. It shocks me. I never feel anything close to enjoyment for days following a deat
h call, and for just a few seconds, Luc’s snippiness almost tips me over into laughter.
My burgeoning smile dies as the horror of what happened seeps back into my thoughts. The shift in mood must show in my features, because Luc is around the bed in a flash. He wraps one arm across my shoulders and squeezes tight.
“I’ll find him, banshee. I promise you that. And when I do…”
My heart thumps painfully. “When you do, I hope you kill him. Slowly.” I can’t believe I just uttered those words. Death is the worst thing I can think of and the one thing I would normally not wish even on my worst enemy. In this case, though, I can’t think of anything I want more than the slow and painful demise of the one who put my friends through such agony.
His grip tightens and his voice is fierce when he answers. “Oh, I will, believe me. I will.”
I rest my head against his shoulder. “Be careful. Your injuries the other night were pretty severe.”
“Thank you. I appreciate your concern. I know now how fast and strong these rogues are. Even though only one remains—as far as we know—they both displayed more strength than any supe I’ve ever seen, loup or not. It was as if they were being…”
“As if…what?”
“Never mind. Put some pants on, Aleah. Your scent is far too enticing.”
Now that sounds like a diversion to me. I tilt up my head to glare at him with narrowed eyes, but he just stares back unblinking, with the fake light of innocence giving a hint of green to the usual blue. Eventually I do as he suggests, dressing awkwardly beneath the covers in the sweatpants he threw at me earlier.
Darrie and Gwen were my friends, and if Luc won’t tell me all he knows, I’ll just have to find out for myself another way.
Something evil is going on in the Hatton Grove region, and I’m not four years old anymore. This time, I won’t sit back and watch while wicked things continue to happen to the few people in this world I care about. This time, I’m going to sound a warning in time, and even though my voice is defective as fuck, I’m going to make damn sure everyone who needs to hear my warning, does so in time to save a life.
