by Lexi Blake
His clever hand made its way down my body. He slid his palm over the flat of my belly and teased his way past the band of the thong. With firm pressure, he began rubbing circles all around my clitoris. I let my head fall back against his shoulder as he continued to lecture me in the nicest way.
“I’m speaking to you as your trainer and your lover, Kelsey.” He kept his thumb on my little nub while his long fingers gently thrust up into my pussy. He filled me with his fingers. My breaths were ragged as I approached that sweet spot he was steering me toward. “Are you listening?”
“Yes.” I was pretty much going to agree with everything the man giving me the orgasm said. I’ve found it’s a logical course to take. I would have agreed with almost anything the man said because he was amazingly good at finding my G-spot.
“Excellent,” he murmured, curving his fingers up. “This is important. I’m an old-fashioned man, my mistress, but even in my human life I thought the entire idea of death before dishonor was ridiculous. You do what you have to. You survive by any means necessary. If that includes fucking your way out of a situation, then I expect you to spread your legs and when you’re done, you come home to me.”
I bit my lip and thrust my hand back into his silky hair. The pleasure burst over me. I twisted to the right and was able to get my mouth over his. He quickly took charge of the kiss, thrusting his tongue into my mouth.
He dislodged his hand and turned me fully into the cradle of his body. “Do you understand me, Kelsey?”
“I do, baby,” I replied. “Always come home to you.”
Marcus worked the belt of his slacks, and I realized he wasn’t patient enough to wait until we got home tonight. He shoved aside the string of my thong. Then my back was against the plush wall of the elevator. Marcus pushed his way inside me. He sighed as he seated himself and began to thrust deeply. His pelvis was grinding sweetly against me, and I started to come all over again. I held on, locking my legs around his waist while he rode me.
Marcus’s body stiffened when he rammed into me one last time. He kissed me as he emptied himself and murmured love phrases in Italian. When he was finished, he set me down on my feet and straightened his clothes. Gently, he took off his own coat and wrapped it around my shoulders. I should have known he wouldn’t want me wearing Sloane’s clothes. When he was sure we were presentable, he hit the button to continue our journey. He picked up Sloane’s coat and laid it over his hand.
“I’ll return it to him tomorrow,” he promised. “I will be sure to express my gratitude for his care of you.”
“You won’t start a fight or anything, will you?” I was worried at the thought of my boyfriend and my ex having a sit-down.
Marcus smiled. “Bella, have you ever known me to be less than a gentleman?”
I let him lead me out of the elevator, where he’d proven he could play the bad boy. “Please remember he’s bigger than you. If you get in a fight with him, don’t let him hit your face.”
The vampire opened the door, and I was surprised at the fact that this place already felt like home. “I will endeavor to retain my beauty for you.”
I yawned and after a long shower, finally went to bed. Outside the snow fell, and the world was wrapped in winter.
Chapter Ten
“Kelsey, wake up, you totally have to see this.” An excited voice broke through my peaceful slumber, dragging me out of sleep. Lucky for him, I recognized his voice or baby boy might have found himself on the floor with my hands around his throat.
We really needed to work on our security.
“Go away, Lee,” I muttered and tried to turn over. I reached for Marcus and was met with only an empty pillow where he should have been. I pulled the comforter over my head and prayed my little friend would take the hint.
“I think she went back to sleep,” an unfamiliar voice said.
I brought the comforter down only as far as my chin. I was kind of naked here and Lee had brought a friend. “Who are you, and why are you in my bedroom?”
The small blonde girl with big blue eyes smiled brightly.
“Hi, I’m Mia,” she said as though that should explain everything. She was the same size as Lee and they looked like they weighed roughly the same. I noticed this because I thought briefly about how much effort it would take to toss them both bodily from my rooms. Then the door opened, and I thought about how poor Gulliver must have felt when all those irritating Lilliputians interrupted his sleep.
“My father has counseled me on many occasions that it’s better to flee from a sleeping woman than to wake one,” Sean Quinn said as he and Rhys joined the crew. I noticed that both the boys had chocolate bars in their hands. Marcus was somewhere, and he’d sicced this bunch on me. “Father believes that when a woman is asleep, this is the best time to take one’s leave.”
I heard Mia sigh and saw the slight roll of her angelic eyes. Smart girl. She was wearing a thick coat and had a hat on her head. She greatly resembled the shrink I’d met the day before. She had his eyes and the set of his mouth. I was betting her last name was Day.
Rhys took a bite of his Snickers and shrugged off his uncle’s advice. “My papa says that if I ever want to have a goddess of my own, I should never, ever listen to your father.”
“What time is it?” I was not going to lie here listening to dating advice from nine-year-olds. Though from what I’d seen and heard of Declan Quinn, Rhys was probably right on.
“Nine o’clock,” Mia supplied helpfully.
“Shit,” I growled. I shook my head when I realized I had an audience with tender ears. “Sorry.”
“It’s all right,” Lee said. “My mama says stuff like that all the time. I’m allowed to curse, too.”
“Only if a shark bites off your arm or you’re getting chased by dinosaurs,” Rhys clarified.
Lee nodded as though he looked forward to both incidents. “Yeah, but then I’m allowed to say the F word.”
“I can’t believe Marcus let me sleep all freaking day,” I muttered, sitting up. I pulled the covers around me and tried to figure out how to get rid of the gang of children in my room.
“It’s nine o’clock in the morning,” Mia corrected.
I hadn’t been aware that morning had one of those, too. I snuggled back down under the covers. “Then go away. Come back after noon.” I thought of something. “Aren’t you supposed to be playing basketball or something?”
“It got canceled because of the snow,” Lee explained. “See.”
He shoved a mittened hand at my face. The small snowball slipped out of his palm and went straight under my covers. I screamed and used that word Lee is only supposed to use in the event of a dinosaur attack.
“Guys,” Liv said from the doorway in her best teacher voice. “I told you to wake her up, not put her in a killing mood.”
“Make them go away,” I begged. If my boyfriend hadn’t been completely incapable of fathering children, I would have checked to make sure my birth control was up to date.
“Sorry,” Lee mumbled.
“Breakfast is ready,” Liv announced. “If you want French toast and bacon, I would eat it before the bottomless pit there gets her hands on it. Go.”
The Lilliputian crew ran out of my bedroom in search of food. I rubbed my eyes, still sleepy. I do not do well on short sleep. Liv walked over, carrying a mug of coffee. The aroma was heavenly and my will to live was on the rise. She was dressed in jeans and a thick sweater, her hair pulled back in a ponytail.
“Well, good morning, sunshine.” She grinned as she passed me the coffee. “Did you have a rough night last night?”
I took the coffee and thought about Italy. No one ever invaded my bedroom in Italy. No one sent small children in to torture me with snowballs. “I did, in fact, which is why I should be sleeping now.”
“Ain’t happening, Kels.” Liv sat down on the bed. She giggled as she peeked under the covers. Like I said, the supernatural world doesn’t have the hang-ups about nudity the hum
an world has. “And look, you’re all naked again. Seriously, this is a habit with you.”
I groaned. “I was wearing underwear last night, Liv. It wasn’t like I was running around the city nude. Wait, oh shit, is this already a story that’s going around?”
The supernatural world was big on gossip, however.
I didn’t like the amusement on Liv’s face. “Well, let’s just say that there’s a reason people fight over the security jobs in this building. It’s a cushy job where they take turns monitoring the numerous security cameras that cover almost all of the public places in the building.”
It took a moment to grasp what she was saying. I laid back and curled into a fetal position, carefully avoiding the already melted gift Lee had left behind. “Oh, god, I made a sex tape.”
Liv giggled viciously. “I can’t believe he stopped the elevator and fucked you. It was hot, Kelsey. I have to admit I’ve always thought Marcus was kind of scary, but I see the appeal now.”
“Tell me this isn’t happening.” Visions of my ass on the Internet flooded my brain. I would be a weird meme somewhere, a cautionary tale to all other Hunters.
“It’s all right, Kels,” Liv assured me. “I only got a copy because Scott is drinking buddies with the security guy, who got his ass kicked by your uncle when he realized what he’d done. Zack has spent the majority of the morning erasing everything and threatening to kill anyone who forwards it. He’s making Quinn do a system search to make sure all the copies are gone. That’s how I got stuck with kid-sitting duty. Quinn’s running around making sure your dignity is maintained, and the queen is nursing a sick friend. So, I get the kids. I tried to explain that I teach high school, but they didn’t listen. They were too busy talking about candy and how cool you are.”
“I’m never leaving this room again.” I could totally live right there. It was a nice room, and I never had to face anyone again.
“If it makes you feel any better, Quinn didn’t see the problem. He said he and the queen have been caught doing it on tape all over the building.”
Yep, this never happened back in Italy. I sat up because it was obvious I wasn’t going back to sleep. “Tell me something, Liv.”
She knew exactly what I was going to ask. That’s what happens when you’re friends with someone for a long time. “Your butt looked great.”
I sighed. I would have to be happy with that. I put aside all the fun stuff because Liv and I needed to talk. It wasn’t something I was looking forward to. I hadn’t been successful the night before, and Scott was in more trouble than I could have imagined. “I talked to him last night.”
Liv’s face fell. She braced herself. “He wouldn’t come home, would he?”
I reached for her hand. “I don’t think he has a choice, Liv. He’s in deep. Whatever is going on in that club, it’s bad. I think he’s hooked on the same drug Alan was on.”
Big fat tears sprang from her eyes. “Alan died last night. Henri Jacobs wants you in his lab in an hour. That’s why I woke you up.”
“Shit,” I cursed. “Liv, I’m so sorry. Just because Alan…”
She held out her hand to stop me. “I know. I know. Kelsey, you tried. Promise me that if you can save him, you will.”
“I promise,” I said solemnly.
Liv got up and walked to the window. I could see it was still snowing, big flakes turning the world into an icy wonderland. “I don’t love him anymore, you know.”
I wasn’t sure about that, but I kept my mouth shut. She needed to talk.
“I haven’t loved him for a long time. I know he’s a shit, but he wasn’t always like that. He was…so sweet when we first met. He got comfortable and decided he didn’t need to woo me anymore. I let it happen. I was comfortable, too. I hate dating. When he asked me to marry him, I said yes.” Liv laughed hollowly. “He didn’t actually ask me, you know. He said we should probably do it, and then when I would try to set a date, he’d come up with excuses. I haven’t tried to pin him down in eighteen months. I knew it wouldn’t work. I know I shouldn’t have watched that tape of you and Marcus.”
“It’s fine, Liv.” I meant it. I’m honest with myself, at least. If someone had sent me a tape with Marcus fucking, I would have watched it.
She turned back and brushed away her tears. “I should have respected your privacy, but I sat there and watched it and realized I want that for me, Kelsey. I want someone who can’t wait to have me. I want someone who needs me the way Marcus needs you. He’s passionate about you. I was so envious of you.”
“Liv,” I started.
She shook her head. “I don’t love Scott anymore, but I can’t leave him to fate. Let me help you, Kelsey. I need this so I can move on.”
“Of course,” I said immediately. “You can come with me to see what Henri found out.”
Liv nodded and gave me a watery smile. “I’ll be good, I promise. I remember how to play Watson. Now, you better grab a shower. I’ll go make another round of breakfast. I’m sure the kids ate everything. They’re like locust. Marcus gave them a big bag of candy and they inhaled it.”
I got up and started to make my way to the bathroom. “Where did Marcus go? Is he helping Zack erase the tape?”
“No, he told me he had a morning appointment to make,” Liv explained. “He also told me to keep you out of trouble.”
“He’s meeting with Sloane.” Sneaky bastard had left me sleeping because he knew damn well I wanted to mediate.
“Okay,” Liv said, her eyes wide. “I’d love to be a fly on that wall.”
I shook my head and went off to take a long shower.
* * * *
Kim Jacobs waved us into her apartment. She was a beautiful brunette who always dressed like she’d stepped off a runway in Milan. I found her intimidating because I couldn’t put together an outfit to save my life. Lucia put pants and the proper tops close to each other in my closet so I couldn’t screw up. In the past, I would have simply picked out whichever black T-shirt smelled like it was the cleanest and called it a day. Today I was fairly presentable in straight-legged jeans, a cashmere sweater, and fashionable boots that I could kick a little ass in.
“The mad professor’s in his lab,” Kim cracked as she pointed the way through the apartments. This particular unit was two apartments connected through a short hallway. There was a living area for Henri and Kim attached to the small hospital the complex maintained. “Hugo’s in there, too. They’ve been chatting all morning about how fabulous you are. It’s like you’re a rock star.”
“More like a…” Liv began.
I knew where that was going and elbowed her. Liv managed to shut her mouth.
“I’ll try not to sing,” I promised Henri Jacobs’ companion.
“Kelsey.” Henri walked out of his lab dressed in his customary slacks and dress shirt, but minus the coat and tie. He’d exchanged them for a heavy apron and surgical gloves. He was far more animated than I’d ever seen him. His face was lit up with what I would have called glee. “You’re just in time. I was about to begin my autopsy.”
I was so glad that I didn’t have Lee with me. It had been a close thing. Mia’s mom, Sarah, had shown up to take the kids to her apartment with the promise of movies and hot chocolate. Lee had tried to explain that he had work to do. Before I could set him straight, the blonde girl had given him a pointed stare. Needless to say, Lee was watching movies and I wasn’t having to argue about taking a nine-year-old to an autopsy. It was good to know there was one person in the world who could control Lee Donovan-Quinn. While Lee would have wanted to join me, I had no such problem with Liv.
“Um, Kels. Maybe I should sit this one out.” She turned a rather sick shade of green.
“Why don’t you sit with Mrs. Jacobs?” I offered. “Did you talk to Alan at all last night?”
The companion nodded sadly. “I stayed with him for a few hours. I’ve been with Henri long enough to have picked up some nursing skills. He was pretty out of it, but I’ll tell you wh
at I remember.”
“Excellent.” Henri practically shooed them off in his excitement. Dude really liked autopsies. “Come, come, we are waiting on you.”
I gave Liv a wave and followed the vampire through the short corridor that led to the hospital.
“We?” I asked curiously. Marcus was out and Sharpe wasn’t an academic, so he should be safely in a dead stupor by now.
“I would like to introduce you to the newest member of our team,” Henri said as we passed through stainless steel swinging doors. The smell of formaldehyde assaulted my senses.
“Wow, that’s a ridiculously strong odor,” I complained as I entered the small room that was currently serving as a morgue. I couldn’t miss the dead body on the table. Hugo was asleep at the desk, his head laid across his arms. He muttered some very British things in his sleep.
Academics are different. On almost every level, they prove a bit strange in the vampire world. There are different classes of vampires, but mostly this describes the vampire in terms of strength and power. The majority of the vampire ranks can be placed in a category called the warrior class. In the warrior class, there are subclasses with the power to call wolves or some other wereanimal. There are warriors who can fly and some who can shift their shapes. There are other classes. Just a few months before, I’d met a magician. He could form illusions so real you would swear you can touch and taste and smell them. I had, up to this point, avoided the class known as the primals. These were vampires whose DNA got screwed up and when they turned, they regressed into something ancient and terrifying.
For the most part, all of these classes follow certain rules. During the day they’re in a dead stupor, unable to walk, move, or communicate. It’s when they’re vulnerable. If you were in the room with one, you would swear you were viewing a corpse. Not so with the academic. For some reason the academic needed no such rest. When they slept, it was in a normal human fashion. Marcus often woke up looking for his share of the blankets because I was a cover hog. For Hugo Wells, it meant talking in his sleep and snoring lightly.
