The Trouble With Vampires (An Argeneau Novel)

by Lynsay Sands

  Both of them stilled, and then Pet sighed and whispered, “That will be the pizza.”

  “Of course.” Santo’s voice was rough with emotion, and then he cleared his throat and stood up, snatching up her bra and handing it to her as he did. Leaving her to put it on, he moved around the desk to answer the phone.

  Quickly replacing her bra, Pet listened as he greeted the caller. Finishing with the task, she grabbed her shirt and turned to peer at him in the silence that followed, and saw when he looked down at the phone with confusion. Knowing he was trying to figure out how to let the delivery person in, Pet said, “Press the number sign below the button with nine on it.”

  She waited to see that he pushed the right button, and then shifted her attention to her shirt. It was inside out, and as she started to turn it right side out, Santo set the phone back in the receiver and glanced at her. A smile tinged with regret tugged at his lips, and then he said, “I will get the door while you finish dressing.”

  “My purse is on the island,” she said. “Just grab some money out of my wallet.”

  “I shall pay,” he said firmly, before opening the office door and slipping out of the room.

  Pet watched the door close and then turned her attention back to her shirt with a sigh. She supposed she should feel bad that she had canoodled with someone she didn’t know very well and who was an immortal to boot, but mostly she just felt disappointed that they’d had to stop. The man was like a drug . . . and she wanted more of it. She wanted all of him. She wanted him moving inside of her, his arms enfolding her, and his breath mingling with hers as they kissed and the world melted away around them.

  Instead, she was going to get pizza and possibly a Disney movie on her computer, unless they set up Parker’s television and connected her computer to it so they could watch it on the bigger screen. She had an iTunes account. Buying a movie shouldn’t take more than a minute.

  Damn, Pet realized suddenly. The television and Parker’s gaming gear were all still down in the trunk of her car. Hmm. How had she forgotten all about that? The same way she’d forgotten that there were still groceries sitting on the counters in the kitchen, waiting to be put away, Pet thought wryly as she stepped out of the office and saw the evidence of everything she hadn’t done yet. Man, throw one hunky beefcake into her life, and she became one useless creature, Pet thought with self-disgust.

  Well, time to change that, she told herself firmly and walked over to her purse to dig through it for her car keys.

  “Wow! Really? Thanks, man. That’s an awesome tip.”

  Santo grunted at the delivery boy’s gratitude, and holding the three pizza boxes in one hand, started to close the door with the other, only to pause and glance down with surprise when Pet suddenly ducked under his arm and hurried out into the hall.

  “I forgot the television and gaming gear in the car,” she called out as she rushed off toward the elevator.

  “Wait, I will—damn,” Santo muttered when the elevator door opened and she disappeared inside.

  “Women, right?” the delivery boy said, shaking his head. “You can’t live with ’em, and you can’t tie ’em up to keep them where you want them.”

  “So Marguerite says,” Santo growled, and then closed the door and quickly carried the pizzas to the island. “Parker!”

  “Is the pizza here?” the boy squealed with excitement as he rushed out of his room and ran into the kitchen.

  “Sì. Get plates and napkins ready and decide what you want to drink. Your aunt has gone down to retrieve your television and gaming system and I am going to help. Do not start without us, and do not let the cat out until we return,” he added firmly and then swung around and hurried out of the apartment.

  The delivery kid was waiting by the elevators when Santo stepped out into the hall. When the teenager smiled and waved, he nodded but turned to the stairs rather than wait for the elevator. Santo didn’t bother holding back on speed. He didn’t see cameras in the stairwell, so raced down the thirteen flights to the underground parking level at an immortal pace.

  He and Parker had helped gather the groceries from her car earlier, he knew Pet’s parking spot was actually on the other side of the elevator banks, so rather than take the door into the parking garage on this side, he took the door that led to the elevators. A frown claimed his lips when he spotted the hunched figure waiting at the end of this short corridor, peering around the corner of the hall. They were both in a short hall that turned left into a longer hall which ran in front of the elevators to a second short hall that turned back behind the elevators to another set of stairs on the other side, and another door leading out into the parking garage there. The figure was an old man who presently held the pose of a mischievous boy about to play a prank.

  Curious, Santo slipped into the man’s mind as he approached, his interest giving way to anger as he read the thoughts in the mind of the old pervert. It was the apartment manager, and he had been watching the camera displays in his apartment, so had seen Pet rush into the elevator. Suspecting she was going down to her car, he’d hurried out of his main floor apartment and down here in the hopes of scaring the bejesus out of that snooty little China girl who thought she was so much better than him. He’d show her. Maybe he’d scare her so bad this time, she’d burst into tears and he’d have to comfort her. And maybe he’d get to cop a feel of those pretty little titties of hers as he did.

  Pausing behind the old degenerate, Santo poked him in the back and glowered down on the man when he shrieked and whirled around to gape up at him wide-eyed.

  “Go home, turn off your cameras, and do not even think of spying on or bothering your female tenants again or I will find out and pay you a visit.”

  Santo hadn’t really meant to control him but wasn’t displeased when the man’s face went blank and he walked to the door to the stairwell Santo had just come out of. Santo watched him until he heard the ding announcing the elevator’s arrival. He then turned and walked over to stand in front of them so he would be the first thing Pet saw when the door opened.

  “Oh, hi,” she said with surprise as she stepped out. “How did you—oh, yeah, immortal speed, right?”

  Pet didn’t wait for an answer, just smiled and shook her head as she led the way around the corner to the door to parking.

  “I thought maybe we could watch a Disney movie with Parker while we eat our pizza,” Pet explained as she opened the door marked Parking and led him into a large dim concrete garage full of vehicles all lined up in their allotted spots. “But then I realized I left his television and gaming gear down here in the car, so thought I’d just nip down to get them. Hopefully, it won’t take too long to set up. I wouldn’t want the pizza to get cold, but I remember pizza night when I was a kid and it was always pizza and a movie, so . . .” She shrugged the rest away as she reached her car and moved around to the trunk.

  “You didn’t have to come help me,” Pet continued as she unlocked the trunk. “That’s really sweet of you, though. You’re kind of a sweet guy under all those grunts and stuff, huh? At least I know that about you.”

  Santo frowned slightly at those wry words. It made him realize that despite the fact that he was finally talking, she still didn’t really know much about him other than that he was a civil engineer who split his time between Canada and Italy and that he played drums. That, of course, was because all they’d talked about so far was Dressler and Mr. Purdy. He’d have to rectify that, though, Santo decided, and as quickly as he could, since Marguerite insisted he let Pet get to know him before he started any immortal life mate sex. He didn’t think he was going to be able to go long without making her his, physically. The woman had a hell of a lot of passion in that petite little body of hers, and his body was roaring to explore it.

  If not for Parker and the pizza delivery, they’d probably have already explored it and be passed out on the island right now. And while he’d told himself he wouldn’t touch her in the office, that hadn’t gone quite t
o plan either. He’d given up the not-touching-her thing pretty quick to latch onto her nipple once it was on display, and was sure if they’d had a couple more minutes he would have given it up completely and would have had her naked on the floor under him . . . and probably would have suffocated her when they both passed out as true life mates usually did when first coupling.

  That was something to keep in mind for when they did finally mate, Santo thought grimly. She’d have to be on top.

  “I should have brought a bag down to put the controls and speakers in.”

  Santo forced his attention to Pet as she scowled down at the items in her trunk. He considered them briefly, then urged her out of the way and picked up the television. He flipped it so that the face of it was down, then pressed the edge to his chest and said, “Put the game box and speakers on top. Then you can handle the controllers and doors.”

  “Oh. Aren’t you clever,” Pet praised with a grin. She lifted the game box out to set it and its cord on the back of the TV as he’d suggested. The speakers followed, and then she gathered the controllers and closed the trunk.

  “Does Parker know where we went?” she asked as she led the way back to the door.

  “Sì. He is getting plates and napkins and drinks. At least his drink,” he added, turning sideways to slip through the entrance with his burden when she opened the parking garage door and held it for him.

  “You must have tipped the delivery guy big time,” Pet commented as she scurried around him in the hall to get ahead of him and push the elevator button. “I heard him thanking you so profusely as I came up behind you.”

  Santo grunted noncommittally. He always tipped big. He appreciated good service and had no problem paying for it, plus the kid had been quick, friendly, and polite. He wouldn’t have bothered otherwise, Santo thought as the door opened and he turned sideways to move onto the elevator.

  Pet glanced both ways up the hall, he noticed, before following and pushing the button for her floor.

  “What were you looking for?” Santo asked, suspecting he already knew.

  “Oh, the apartment manager usually likes to jump out and try to scare me whenever I’m coming or going. But I didn’t see him when we arrived earlier either. It makes me wonder if everything is okay with him.”

  “Does he?” Santo asked, and when she glanced up at him, added, “Scare you?”

  Pet snorted at the suggestion. “That old geezer? I could take him with both hands tied behind my back. Although,” she added with a wry smile, “he did manage to startle me the first couple of times after I moved in.” She shrugged. “I’m used to it now, though.” Pet frowned before adding, “I do worry about the other ladies here, though. There are a couple of old biddies I suspect are terrified of him and I’ve been thinking maybe I should write a letter to the owners of the building and let them know what he gets up to. I swear he spies on everyone coming and going, which isn’t so bad. I mean, no one’s likely to get in without his knowing, but I think he needs to lay off the tenants. If he did that, he’d be the perfect manager.”

  Pet started to chatter about some of the other tenants in the building then. Santo suspected she was just babbling a bit because she was a little uncomfortable with him after what had happened between them. He listened to her with half an ear, but a good portion of his mind was now considering her words, and he was wondering if he should have given the manager the order to go home, turn off his cameras, and not bother his tenants again. It did poke a big hole in the security set up in this place.

  He’d stop at the man’s door and have a word with him on his way out tonight, Santo decided. Have him turn his cameras back on and watch them as he apparently did normally.

  “Here we go.”

  Santo shifted his attention to the doors as they began to slide open, but let Pet get off first before turning sideways and following.

  Eleven

  “Well?”

  Pet smiled faintly at Parker’s impatient demand the minute the credits began to roll, but admitted, “It was good. I really enjoyed it.”

  “I told you it was good,” Parker crooned, hopping out of the overstuffed chair he’d been sitting in and dancing excitedly around the room. “Guardians of the Galaxy rocks! I’ve watched it like thirty times and it’s still good every time.”

  “What?” she squawked, grabbing the couch pillow beside her and tossing it at her excited nephew. She missed him by a mile, but he did stop and grin at her. Shaking her head, she asked, “Why did you want me to buy it if you’ve already seen it? And thirty times?”

  “Because it’s an awesome movie,” her nephew said in a tone that suggested that should be obvious. “The second one is pretty awesome too. Not as good as the first, of course, but still good. Can we watch that now? Please?”

  Pet glanced at the wall clock above the gas fireplace and shook her head. “Sorry, buddy, it’s a school night. Bed for you.”

  “Ahhh,” he whined. “Tomorrow then?”

  “Maybe tomorrow,” Pet allowed with a small smile. She really had enjoyed the movie.

  “Awesome!” Parker squealed and then hurried back to the chair where he’d been sitting and snatched up Mrs. Wiggles from the huge cushioned footstool she’d been resting on in front of it. The poor cat had been sleeping. She woke at once and was obviously disgruntled at being jarred awake, but Parker petted her soothingly and headed out of the room, cooing, “Come on, Mrs. Wiggles. We have to get ready for bed. Tomorrow is a school day.”

  Pet watched him go, an affectionate smile curving her lips.

  “You really love him.”

  Pet glanced to Santo at that rumbled comment. He was slouched on the opposite end of the couch with his ankles crossed, feet resting on the coffee table, and his hands clasped on his chest. He’d been so still and unmoving through most of the movie that she’d been sure he was asleep. But every time she’d looked at him, his eyes had been open, and she was quite sure she’d heard him chuckle a time or two.

  “Of course I love him,” she said finally. “He’s my little man. And probably the closest I’ll get to having a child of my own.”

  Santo glanced at her sharply, his eyebrows rising. “Why?”

  Pet shrugged and sat up to begin gathering the glasses and plates on the coffee table from their pizza meal as she informed him, “I’ll turn thirty-seven next month, without a serious partner or even any real prospects in sight. And I’m not the type to do the whole test tube baby thing and raise a kid on my own. Although, I did consider it earlier this year,” she admitted, standing with the items she’d gathered and heading for the kitchen.

  Santo and Parker had set up the television and her laptop on top of the fireplace mantel in the living room and connected everything while she’d transferred the plates and napkins Parker had gathered to the coffee table and fetched drinks. She’d then brought out the pizzas as well before using her laptop to purchase Guardians of the Galaxy on iTunes at Parker’s insistence. It had been past seven when they’d sat down to pizza and a movie. Guardians of the Galaxy was two hours long. Of course, they’d finished eating well before the movie ended. But it had all been good. A nice family type night she thought they’d all enjoyed.

  “You considered having a child on your own?” Santo asked, following her with the remainder of their detritus from dinner.

  “Well, sure,” Pet said as she placed pizza crusts and napkins in the garbage and put the plates and glasses in the dishwasher. Straightening, she added, “I mean, I’m a realist. It’s getting late in the day to count on the right man coming along. And then you have to figure the time schedule.”

  “Time schedule?” Santo queried uncertainly.

  “Well, the guy’s not going to propose right away, so maybe you date a year, and then you’re engaged for at least another year. Plus, few men would want to have a baby directly after marrying. Couples need to adjust to each other before they bring a baby into the equation, so figure at least another year before you start trying
to get pregnant . . . And then there’s the nine months for gestation. Even if I met Mr. Right tomorrow, and everything went perfectly I’d probably be at least forty-one, maybe even forty-two before I squeezed the poor kid out.”

  She shrugged. “But that’s doubtful. Once you hit forty, fertility decreases, so I’m not likely to get pregnant on the first try. And then there are the increased risks for both the baby and the mother at this age. The risk of hypertension, gestational diabetes, and preeclampsia increase. So do the possibilities of miscarriages and chromosomal abnormalities.” She sighed at the thought of it, and then said, “But even if I did get lucky and I had a healthy baby on the first try . . .” Pet grimaced and asked, “Having a baby at forty-one or -two? That means I’d be a tired fifty when they’re an energetic eight, and I’d be sixty when they graduated from high school. And if they wait to forty themselves to have a kid, it’s fifty-fifty as to whether I’d even be around to see my grandchildren. But if I was, I wouldn’t necessarily be in the best physical shape to help out with things like babysitting and stuff.”

  Crossing her arms, Pet admitted, “So, I considered going IVF and having one right away.”

  “But you decided against it,” Santo said quietly.

  Pet hesitated, and then said, “I guess I’m old-fashioned. I believe a child should have two parents. I also believe a parent should have a partner or at least someone to back them up raising a child, and while I have my sister and my parents, they’re all doctors, always busy. They don’t have the time to be my backup. So . . .” She shrugged. “Barring a miracle, or an accident, I’m probably not going to have kids.”