by C. L. Quinn
Olivia slipped off the bed as Will pushed to the edge, his feet on the floor. She reached for a bottle of water and leaned against a cabinet.
“You came here for a reason. Sorry I messed that up. What did you need to see me about so urgently?” Her lips turned up again as she glanced between Will’s legs. “Or was that it?”
“Yes. No. I know you were returning to Vegas when you rose tonight. Do you still plan to?”
Cautious, girl, Olivia reminded herself. Don’t force him to decide something he isn’t ready to do yet. No pressure.
“Yes, I do. I’ve business I need to attend to, and Corri just texted me that my security guy has some concerns. You saved Corri when someone kidnapped her and left her to die in the desert. Which, by the way, thank you. Corri is family and means the world to me, so thank you for protecting her.”
“I was in the right place at the right time. I’m glad I was, Corri’s a sweetheart.”
“She is. Well, Sam, my head of security, has found some anomalies and is concerned that the situation isn’t over. I need to head home to see what’s going on. We had already realized we were probably facing another threat to our community.”
“I should go with you.”
“No. I have a great team of both humans and vampires helping me, and you, Will, have a life here. That’s why you came to see me today, isn’t it? To discuss you and me. And Brigitte.”
“What if you need help?”
“Stop. We are not in any danger in Vegas, okay? Once we find the asshole who is doing this, he or she will be neutralized instantly. You need to take care of Brigitte.”
That haunted look returned to his eyes. “I hate to break her heart.”
Olivia moved closer and dropped at his feet, hands on his knees, her eyes lingering at his crotch now at eye level, then lifted her gaze to his eyes.
“Will, do what you need to do. If we are meant to be together, if it is our destiny, then we will be. Whatever you feel is best, you’re a good man, then it is what you must do. Will, I’m not going anywhere. If or when you are ready, come to me.”
Placing a hand on his cheek, she smiled.
“I have it on good authority that you know where I live.”
Will pulled Olivia up and onto his lap. “How can I let you go?”
“You’re a powerful man, you can do anything.”
One last time, she wanted to feel his lips on hers, her lips on him, on his skin, on his neck. Curling her fingers into Will’s thick unruly hair, she kissed him so lightly, he barely felt her touch, then slid her tongue along his lips and gently into his mouth. Moving her fingers lower, she followed with her lips and licked along his collarbone before she moved back under his hair and nipped at his neck. She broke the skin, had intended to, and swirled the drop of blood onto her tongue.
This would have to do. For now, it was goodbye.
Lifting off him, she backed up until she felt the support of the wall behind her. “You’d better go, or I’ll break the promise I made to myself not to fuck you.”
The frozen smile he offered held such sorrow, she almost backslid on her promise.
He didn’t move. “I can’t bear the idea of another man inside you.”
“Then perhaps it won’t take too long for you to come to me.”
“Brigitte told me that you’re a playgirl. That you like sex, a lot of it, both men and women.”
It surprised Olivia that they had discussed her. That Brigitte had told him some of her history.
“It’s true, Will. I’m vampire with hundreds of years of lovers behind me. Vampires and sex are nearly synonymous, you know that. But Biker…” Olivia closed her eyes and made herself stay away from him. “I have never been in love before.”
The admission nearly broke him. Will was on her in a split second, his hands buried in her hair, his tongue inside her mouth, the kiss almost brutal in desperation.
“Liv…” His voice cracked and he couldn’t finish.
She couldn’t take a second painful goodbye.
“Just come to me when you’re ready.”
Olivia disappeared using air displacement, leaving Will alone in her room to process the last few moments. He realized the choice had been taken out of his hands; Olivia had made it clear that he should take his time resolving his relationship with Brigitte.
And that he and she were not finished.
A smile came as he thought of the promise she’d offered that if they were meant to be, they would be. The days between now and then would seem endless. That she’d left him behind in her wake felt harsh, but it was the right thing to do. Another few moments of breathing her scent, watching her smile brighten, her eyes sparkle, and he’d have abandoned all his fine intentions and fucked her right there against the wall.
Turning, he hurried back through the compound, grateful that Edward wasn’t still waiting at the gate, straddled the seat of his bike, but didn’t move.
Life, all of its wild turns, the insanity of these powers he was born with, the unexpected future…he didn’t know how he deserved it, but thanks to the universe, he was grateful for every bizarre moment.
Firing the engine, he gunned the bike as he flew over the narrow road back to Ife’s place to confront the life he’d built down here.
After sunset at Dez’s compound
Olivia hugged Zach and then Dez, holding on a little longer to her grandmother. “You guys need to come see me in Vegas. Soon. You need to meet Corri.”
“We will. Next week, I’m finished with the new project for Luka’s community and we’ll fly up.” Dez watched Olivia too closely. “Sure you’re okay?”
“Really, I am.”
Zach touched her arm. “What’s happening with Will?”
She tilted her head down and smiled.
Zach rolled his eyes. “Never mind. It looks like it’s all good.”
“It is. We’ll be together, but perhaps not for a while. I’ve learned patience, my family. Fly safe when you come to see me. Namasté.”
“You too, my love. Fly safe.” Dez stepped back, tugging Zach with her as Olivia moved toward her waiting jet. Moments later, it lifted off and banked to the left.
As it continued north, Zach wrapped his arms around Dez. “She’s in love.”
“Miracles happen. We’re proof.”
Zach nodded. “Yup.” Yes, thank the gods, his hot-tempered girl had finally come for him.
But it hadn’t been easy.
Mid-day outside Ife’s compound
Continuing their new habit of getting out of the compound during daylight, Dani and Will sat, full, spent, after a day of exploring the area and a picnic with too many good food choices. Lying beside the picnic basket, an old-fashioned acoustic guitar that Dani had owned since her life in New Orleans waited for her to play some tunes as they watched the sun go down. Now they sat on a rock ledge overlooking a valley already thriving with new foliage, resting against the front of the stone face.
Dani rubbed her belly.
“Ugh. I really gotta stop eating like this. I’m going to be too fat to fit into my superhero outfit the next time we’re called up.”
“You’ll be fine, although I think that both of us may need a siesta before dinner.”
“Dinner? You’re crazy.”
Silent now, they watched the sun dropping lower, shadows lengthening around them.
“I’m going to tell Brigitte when she wakes tonight. God, I’m sick about it.”
Dani turned to look at Will, who still searched the sky.
“Brigitte’s a big girl. Yes, it’ll hurt, but I promise you, we all need the truth. Anyway, she has to have sensed that you don’t feel the same way. She doesn’t have to be empathic, she just has to be a woman in love. It won’t be as big of a surprise as you think it will.”
Dani moved close to tap Will’s forearm.
“Vampires live for centuries. She would have learned a long time ago how to deal with disappointments and love affairs that don’t go h
er way. Tell her, straight up, honestly, how you feel. Let her know that you adore her, but that you are in love with Olivia. If anyone needs to live honestly, it’s the earth warriors. We understand the truth of the world better than anyone.”
“Thank you, Dani. Your wisdom helps. You’re right, of course, Brigitte’s going to be fine. Hell, as gorgeous as you ladies are, none of you would ever be alone long. I include you in that group.”
“Ha! I haven’t had a good date since all this began last year. In fact, the last date I had with a promising guy was with Jackson, and he just asked me to dinner so he could reveal that I was this magical earth warrior. And sex? Good God, how long has it been? I can’t even remember.”
“Poor Dani. That’s on my list. As soon as I get to Vegas, I’m going to find you a hot vampire, so you can…”
Dani cut him off, laughing. “Get some?”
“Yeah, get some.”
Pitching the water bottle she held at Will, she suddenly shot up. “Ow!”
Lifting a hand to reach toward the back of her right shoulder, Dani searched around with her fingertips.
“Something bit me!”
“What?” Will pushed from the ground so he could help her and felt a sharp sting in the center of his back.
“Fuck! What is it?”
As he reached for Dani, he noticed her eyes close and, gasping for breath, she began to fall.
“Dani!” He called before dizziness began to overtake him, felt like he might lose consciousness. He knew then what was happening…someone had shot them with tranquilizer darts. His fingers closed around the dart, confirming his fears, as he crashed to the ground, crushing Dani’s guitar.
Shortly after sunset at Ife’s compound
She came awake easily, her eyelids lifted, and sadness intruded right away. Sitting up, Brigitte looked around the room. He wasn’t there, but when he came, she knew. He would try so hard to let her down kindly, an impossible task, to let her know he wasn’t in love with her. While she knew it would hurt him to tell her that they were through, she couldn’t find the sympathy right now. Tears welled in her eyes and spilled to track down her cheeks.
Well. Staying here wasn’t going to change anything. Hungry, Brigitte pulled on a tee shirt lying on the bench at the foot of the bed and reached for her shorts. First meal was serving now and the dining room would be busy. She could have it delivered here, but at this moment she needed to be surrounded by friends and family.
“Moving forward,” she whispered and stepped from Will’s room for the last time.
Entering the noisy dining room minutes later, Brigitte lifted a plate, her eyes searching the myriad choices on the breakfast buffet. She was hungry, but nothing appealed tonight.
Arms slipped around her from behind. Ife’s scent struck, and Brigitte laid the plate down to curl her fingers around Ife’s wrists. Leaning back, she sighed.
“Hi, sistah.” Ife’s quiet greeting told Brigitte that she knew about her sorrow.
“Hey, sistah. Thank you, I need this.”
“You always have it. And a whole bunch more. Shani’s coming next week.”
Brigitte closed her eyes. “You called her?”
“Of course I did. This is hard, Bridge. You need your sisters.”
“Bless you.”
“Now I know nothing is going to seem appetizing, but you need to eat, so sit down and let me select the tastiest of everything.”
“Yeah, okay.” After a pause, she touched Ife’s arm again. “Have you seen him?”
“Not tonight. Dani and he are together. She left a note with Scottie that they were going on a picnic.”
“Ah. All right.”
Brigitte joined a table of exuberant blood-bonds, wiping back moisture that threatened to come again. Ife brought a plate heaping with all the breakfast classics and handed her a fork with dramatic flair. “Eat.”
“I appreciate this. I’ll eat every bite.” Poking the fork into a western omelet, she stabbed a bite and put it into her mouth. The flavors struck her immediately; it was delicious, but pleasure didn’t come. She lifted her eyes.
“Ife, do you know if Olivia is still at Dez’s?”
“Dez told me she was leaving at sunset. She’s probably gone by now.”
“Huh. You think maybe Will just hopped on board?”
“Will wouldn’t do that to you, so, no, I don’t.”
Nodding, Brigitte put all her attention on the plate of food and did as she promised. She ate every bite.
Ife, who had been working the room to make sure everyone knew their assignments for the night, plopped into the chair beside Brigitte. “Why don’t you join me and the team? We’re re-introducing another batch of indigenous flower varieties that went extinct fifty years ago.”
“Sure. Yeah. Um, I’m not in any hurry to have my tête-à-tête with Will. A few more hours of delusion sounds good.”
Blessedly, Ife stayed by her side the entire time, telling ridiculous stories, making fun of silly events that they’d created over their years together, trying to keep the day fun and Brigitte’s attention off her looming conversation with Will.
Exhausted, dirty, elated, the team of eight blood-bonds, Scottie, and Brigitte followed Ife home as sunrise neared. Last meal would be served and they would all fall into bed and sleep well.
“Back to my own room today,” Brigitte commented when she took a seat next to Ife and Scottie.
“I guess I’ll stop before I go and let Will off the hook.”
A few minutes later, everyone at the table looked up when Brigitte sighed and said, “Fuck.”
She pushed back her chair and stood. “I’ll see you guys later.”
Step by step, counting each one, she stopped in front of Will’s door, hesitating, her finger hovering over the notice screen. Finally, she touched the screen and waited for Will to answer. When he didn’t, she repeated the summons, but he still didn’t respond. Will always responded if he was there and he should be.
“Screw this.” Brigitte engaged the door and it slid back into the wall. The low lighting she hadn’t changed when she’d left hadn’t been touched. A quick search showed that not only was Will not in the room, there was no evidence that he’d been there since she had.
Had he gone with Olivia after all?
Heading back out, she started toward her room, but stopped abruptly. Retracing her steps, she went to another room and pushed the notice screen outside the door. No answer. A second try yielded the same results as Will’s. Once again, she released the door and entered. Dani had left mood lighting up, the ceiling glowing with pale blue lights. Her bed had been made and everything was in its place.
“Tidy. And you’re not here either.” She reached for her fone.
“Where are Will and Dani?”
Brigitte’s voice boomed into the dining room and everyone looked up. “Neither are in their rooms and usually they’re both here for last meal. Anyone know where they are?”
Ife stood. “I haven’t seen them since I rose. Anyone else?”
No one spoke, but shaking heads around the room answered the question.
Fishing her fone out, Ife pressed a button and listened for an answer.
“I already tried Will and he didn’t pick up for me either.”
Punching another button, she tried Dani, and heard only the voicemail kick in. Her pale blue eyes lifted to Brigitte.
“Something is wrong. Scottie, have José track their fones.”
Scottie disappeared as she reached for her own fone, bound for their business office in the back of the building. Suddenly it was imperative that she know where her friends were. Both were too reliable to take off without letting them know where they’d gone.
They’d learned that when something seemed to be wrong, it generally was.
Seven
IN LAS VEGAS…SERENITY TOWER
When she saw who waited on the other side of the door, Olivia touched the screen and said, “Get in here.”
&nb
sp; She hurried to meet Corri, who entered on a run and spread her arms and legs in a superman pose, her grin wide.
“What the hell?” Olivia started laughing.
“I thought I’d welcome you home properly.” Corri held the position. “Don’t you recognize the giant onesie, footed pajamas you had designed for me?”
“Yeah, I do, but I never expected you to wear it outside this apartment.”
Corri moved closer, pushed a loose strand of dark hair behind Olivia’s ear, the grin downgrading to a smile. “I thought you could use a laugh.”
Pulling her into a close hug, Olivia lingered with Corri, then took her hand to lead her to the main balcony.
“Laughs, yes, and booze. Lots of strong booze.”
“No shortage of either here, love. So, Dori from the new buffet downstairs will be here in a few minutes with a full first meal for all of us. We can do a girl’s only night tomorrow and you can fill me in on details.”
“That works for me. I need to talk with you.” Olivia shrugged. “About Will.”
“I figured, sweetie. I can read you like an open book. I’m sorry.”
“It’s the game. So, let me go get some cozies on,” Olivia said, her eyes on Corri’s onesie. “I feel overdressed.”
“Shut up. I’m running back to my apartment to change. Everyone is meeting us here in about twenty. Is that okay?”
“Absolutely. I’ll release the locks, and they can just come on in.”
“All right. I missed you, my friend.”
“Me too.”
After Corri left, Olivia dropped onto her bed, her eyes on the champagne ceiling, draped in satin from a central point to create a cascade of softness. Lighting was always kept low, doors to her private balcony nearly always open after dark to bring in fresh air and extend the space to the outside.
Here was where she rested, where she sought serenity and escape when it was needed. This room was also her special place for sensual blood meals and satisfying sex.
