“I won’t come into you,” he whispered, his brown eyes soft and caring. “You’re too tender. But let me love you.”
Seduced by his tone, Darcy let her legs fall apart, splayed wide for his hot gaze.
Joe’s hands cupped her knees and glided along her inner thighs, pausing inches from her pussy. He leaned down and blew on her heated flesh. His fingertips rubbed briefly around her opening then halted. His expression grew dark. “You’re bleeding.”
“Not much,” she answered quickly. “It’s just…it’s been a long time.”
“He hurt you. Why did you lie for him?”
This was the one person in the world who deserved the truth from her. “Because I liked it.”
“Why him?”
The growl in his voice made her look away. His disappointment burned a hole in her stomach. “I don’t know. Watching him with that other woman…”
“If you were horny, why didn’t you turn to me?”
Crassly put, but honest. Darcy couldn’t give him anything less. “I didn’t know you wanted this. With me.”
“Who’s watched your back for three years?” His voice rose. “Who held you when you cried your eyes out after Manny left?”
“We’re friends, Joe. It’s what friends do. I thought that was all you wanted us to be.” Darcy sighed deeply. “It isn’t like you haven’t had other women. You told me all about them.”
“Maybe I wanted to see whether being with them bothered you.”
“You were testing me?”
He raked a hand through his hair—evidence of his frustration. “If you’d given me any indication you cared…”
“I do.”
“Not the way I want you to. Hell, you’d let me fuck you, now.”
Past tense? “Aren’t you going to?”
He glanced down at his cock, a look of disgust twisting his mouth. “You may not want me the way I want you to, but I won’t refuse what you offer.”
Regret tore at her heart. “I’m sorry, Joe.”
“For fuck’s sake. Don’t apologize.” He shook his head. “I’ll really feel pathetic.”
“You don’t look pathetic from where I’m lying. And this isn’t a pity fuck. We’re friends. I love you.”
“Don’t look at me that way. I was just…surprised. When I heard you in there…with him…I thought he’d forced you.”
Darcy drew a calming breath. “Well, he didn’t.”
Joe’s eyes closed briefly. “Why a vampire? We kill them. Was it his cock? Did his size fascinate you?”
“It wasn’t…just that. I wanted him. He makes me insanely angry, but at the same time, I’ve never been so…turned on by a man.”
“And now? You want me?”
Darcy blinked. Stated baldly, she sounded like a whore. She stroked his skin. “Yes.”
“Will you have him again?”
She shook her head. “I shouldn’t. I know that. But I don’t know. He pulls me.”
Joe took a deep breath, and his gaze raked over her body, coming to rest on her open legs. “You’ve got a gorgeous cunt, Darse. Especially now—pink and wet.” His hands clasped her knees again, but he pushed them closed.
Darcy’s mouth fell open. “What are you doing?”
“Being a good friend. Get some sleep, Darcy.”
*
Quentin woke to the rumble of male voices outside Darcy’s bedroom door. The SU team had arrived. He stretched and turned to his stomach, rolling his face in her flower-sprigged, pink pillowcase. The sweet scent of her shampoo and natural musk filled his nostrils.
Darcy had been quite a surprise. As surprising as the feminine décor of her bedroom, which contrasted with the Spartan iron bed dominating the center.
Darcy Henry had been delectable.
He’d expected tensile strength and endurance to match his. But her lithe, willowy body had been unexpectedly feminine. Nor had he expected her passion—his back still bore the marks where her fingernails had scored his skin.
Just this once. She’d said it with her eyes clouding with desire. Quentin hadn’t a doubt in the world she’d be back in his bed before morning—unless her partner put a spanner in the works.
He regretted her humiliation. A super-cop caught with the enemy. That wouldn’t go down well with a straight arrow like Joe Garcia. And Quentin hadn’t missed the hot look the other man had swept over her naked body.
Well, he could look all he wanted. Quentin wasn’t sharing this one. Although, he wouldn’t mind if Joe watched. He’d rather enjoy rubbing the other man’s nose in his jealousy.
Quentin’s stomach growled, and he recognized the aroma of steaks frying on a grill. He rolled out of bed, intent on halting the group from cooking the essence out of a perfectly bloody steak.
But there was the problem of a lack of clothing. He refused to contemplate donning the rumpled orange uniform he’d tossed in the corner of her closet. And there wasn’t any sign of his bags. He grabbed a towel from the bathroom, knotted it around his waist, and headed for the door.
As soon as he swung the door wide, all heads turned to him.
“Now, that’s your color,” the large, beefy man named Max said, biting the side of his lip.
Quentin swept the room with a glare and hitched the pink bath towel higher. He spotted his bags next to the door. As he retrieved one, he heard chuckles follow him. Quentin stalked toward the privacy of the bedroom to change when the door to the kitchen swung outward and Darcy strode into the room.
Her gaze raked over him, and her cheeks flushed.
Joe followed her out, with his arm curved around her waist. By the interested stares from the rest of the team, his gesture wasn’t a common occurrence. Joe intended to mark her as off-limits.
Quentin smiled and let go of the towel.
Darcy froze, but her gaze dropped to his cock.
Quentin took his time unzipping his bag. He pulled out a cotton shirt and blue jeans and took his time putting them on.
Darcy glanced away and folded her arms over her chest. Her mouth drew into a tight line.
If not for the spots of bright color on her cheeks, Quentin would have thought she’d been unmoved by the sight of his naked body.
“We don’t hold with vampires flashing their privates in our homes,” Max said, his rough-hewn features hardening to stone.
“Since, my privates have been a subject of prior scrutiny by this group, I didn’t think you’d mind,” Quentin replied to Max, but his gaze didn’t leave Darcy.
Max cleared his throat. “We’re having steak and potatoes before we head out for the night. That artist will be over here shortly to get your description of our perp.”
“Yummy,” Quentin replied.
“The steak or the artist?” Darcy asked, her chin lifting.
“Neither.” His gaze swept over her, telling anyone who looked he’d much rather have her.
Every male back in the room stiffened.
Darcy turned to the door and opened it wide. “Come choose your steak,” she said between gritted teeth.
Quentin moved to follow, but Joe stepped into his path.
“The lady invited me,” Quentin said.
Joe’s gaze narrowed. “I’m in charge of the fire. I’ll be right behind you.”
“Going to make sure I fall on a stake?”
Following Darcy’s straight back through the kitchen and into the yard, Quentin knew the two had a bone to chew. His hopes for a rollicking night between the sheets with the lady cop were dwindling.
When the outside door closed behind Joe, Darcy rounded on Quentin. “I’d appreciate it if you’d keep your sexual innuendos to yourself.”
Unable to resist, Quentin stepped close. “Why so bothered, Darcy?”
Her glower could have scorched the sun. “I have to work with these guys. If they knew—”
Quentin caught a whiff of an aroma other than steak coming from Darcy’s person. He stepped even closer and inhaled. “If they knew what? That I fuck
ed you senseless in the shower, and then you crawled in bed with your partner?”
Her eyes widened and her chin inched higher. “I didn’t—”
Quentin raged. She’d turned to another as soon as she’d left him. A human male, at that! “In case you didn’t know, vampires can’t impregnate a human. We have other means of procreation. We also don’t carry disease. The ultimate safe sex, wouldn’t you agree?”
“What the hell does that have to do with any of this?”
“I’m just reminding you there are certain advantages to a vampire lover.” Quentin’s face hardened to stone. “How could you go to him with the scent of me still on your skin? My come dripping from you?”
“That’s enough.” Joe shoved Quentin away from Darcy.
“Joe.” Darcy’s stricken gaze held her partner’s for a long moment.
Disgust was written in the sour curl of his lips. “I’ll be in the kitchen. Yell if he needs killing.” Without a backward glance, Joe left Quentin and Darcy alone in the back yard.
Darcy’s eyes narrowed, and she pointed her finger at him. “Now, look here. We fucked. That doesn’t give you any hold over me. I could screw an entire football team, and it wouldn’t be any of your damn business.”
Quentin drew in a deep breath to let loose on her, and then realized he was truly angry—over a woman. He’d shared dozens—no, hundreds—of women in his lifetime. Why was the thought of sharing this one so repellent? Then he realized what she’d just said. “While I share your bed, there will be no footballers anywhere near you.”
“Footballers? Football players, jerk. And I didn’t say I would be sharing your bed.”
Quentin stepped closer and caught her by the waist, pressing his lower body hard against hers. “Aren’t you?”
“You arrogant ass—”
“Such language! Mustn’t let your temper fly, love.”
She wriggled to escape his hold, but he held her fast.
“That’s it! I’m gonna take you down. You and the batwings you flew in on!”
Quentin kissed her.
She pushed against his chest, but her lips told a different story. They melted beneath his.
He lifted his head. “Are we having our first row?”
“You bet your ass!” Her hands tugged at his hair and pulled him down for a second kiss. She parted her lips and thrust her tongue into his mouth where it lapped the tip of his.
Quentin grabbed her arms and held her away from his rapidly hardening body. “I won’t share you with your partner.”
Darcy’s gaze fell from his. “Nothing happened.” She looked up. “Nothing important.”
He raised one eyebrow. His sense of smell never let him down.
“Not really,” she said quietly. “He stopped it.”
Disturbed she hadn’t been the one to halt the love play, Quentin’s hands tightened around her arms. “You’ll share my bed.”
She held up a hand. “Only until the investigation is over. And the bed’s mine, by the way.”
Satisfied she’d surrendered to his will, he said, “Not while I occupy it. I’m in charge of that particular fire.”
Chapter Four
‡
Later, armed with the sketch of Nicholas Powell, their serial-killing target, the SU team hit the known vampire haunts—the “blood bank” bars and the streetwalkers’ corners. Joe, Quentin, and Darcy, however, were headed to the seedier destinations—accessed by invitation only—vampire escorts required.
Places the team had only dreamed of infiltrating before Quentin provided entry.
The first was a nondescript house in an average subdivision. Passing swing sets and manicured lawns, Darcy exchanged a glance with Joe. This could be her neighborhood. Suburban Vero Beach hid dark secrets.
“How’d you find this place?” Joe asked, as he turned onto a long gravel drive. The house wasn’t visible from the road. Chain-link fencing surrounded the yard, which was overgrown with vines and an occasional palm tree. The drive ended in a circle, with vehicles parked bumper to bumper in a long row.
“Tessa told me where I could find a meal,” Quentin said quietly.
Darcy fumed. Tessa had been the blonde-haired vamp who’d rubbed her body all over Quentin’s while they’d danced in a dark corner of the Piki Tiki bar.
“What do we need to know?” Joe asked, all business as he parked the car.
“Just follow my lead and do whatever I tell you.” Quentin glared at Darcy for a moment.
She wondered what that glare meant.
The trio exited the car and approached the front door, which was illuminated by a single naked bulb. A low thrumming rhythm sounded from within the small, square, one-story house.
Quentin ignored the doorbell and pushed open the door.
Joe raised his eyebrows and shrugged, and then indicated Darcy should precede him.
The smell within the house was pure sin.
Sickly-sweet opium, cannabis smoke, and stale sex hung in the warm air. Music with a heavy, grinding Latin beat emanated from deep within the house.
Darcy’s fingers itched for her bow, but they had come weaponless.
A woman approached them. She wore a pareo knotted at one hip, and nothing else. Her gaze roamed over Quentin, and she flicked her long, bleached-blonde hair over her shoulder to expose her full breasts. “Hey, stranger. Need a pick-me-up?”
“As a matter of fact, I brought my own,” Quentin murmured with a nod to Darcy and Joe.
Her lips formed a moue. “Well, if you need a foursome…” Her fingers trailed across his chest as she passed them.
Darcy wanted to break her fingers, but Quentin’s sardonic glance kept her expression neutral, even as her chin lifted in defiance. She couldn’t really blame the girl. Dressed in a long-sleeved cotton shirt, blue jeans, and sandals, he was a sun god—golden-haired, golden-skinned. Too beautiful to believe.
They entered the living room, which was lit by a single table lamp. Most of the occupants were naked, or in the process of losing their clothing. Wearing jeans and a halter, Darcy felt conspicuously overdressed. Most were also engaged in various sexual acts. “Quentin?” she began, uneasy with the tableau.
His hand pressed the small of her back, urging her toward a plaid-upholstered couch in the dingy room. “Let’s play,” he whispered in her ear.
Darcy sat on the edge of the seat, her gaze darting to the darkened corners. The couple on the sofa opposite theirs disengaged their lips, and the woman knelt in front of the male vamp to take his cock in her mouth. Would he expect her to do that in front of everyone? “Quentin,” she hissed. “If you expect me to—”
Quentin pressed a finger to her lips. “Do you know these people?”
She shook her head.
“Do you think they’ll recognize you on the street?”
Again, she shook her head.
“Then, hush.” He sat next to her and indicated that Joe should sit on her other side. He leaned behind her and whispered, “Start to undress her. We have to look ‘engaged’ or we won’t be approached.”
Darcy glared at Joe, who only shrugged. And then reached for the clasp at the back of her neck.
He leaned into her and whispered, “We have to play by his rules. I won’t let this go too far.”
She snorted. Fine for him to say. He wasn’t the one whose boobs were about to be exposed to a group of vampires and sluts with double-Ds. The straps of her top loosened. Her hands caught and held the material to her breasts for a panicked moment. And then, because she knew the act was silly—both men had seen her nude, and no one in the house would even care—she let the top slide to her lap. “Why is it you vampires can’t go to a drive-thru? Does everything come down to sex?”
Quentin played with the hair next to her ear. “Our bloodlust feeds our sexual hunger, and vice versa. It’s just the way we’re made. Relax.” He turned in his seat to kiss her, his hand gliding over the breast nearest him, and then he nodded to Joe. “Don’t enjoy this too
much.”
Joe’s hand cupped her other breast, and he kissed her shoulder. “This is gonna kill me.”
Darcy wanted to protest. She was the one dying here. Both men’s mouths worked on her flesh and lips while their fingers tweaked her nipples.
Quentin glided his mouth along her jaw. “I need blood,” he said, “or they won’t believe I brought you here to feed.”
Darcy pushed the hair from the side of her neck, but he shook his head. “It’s too soon. Joe, give me your arm.”
Joe knelt in front of her and lifted his arm to Quentin.
Quentin licked once, and then pierced his wrist.
“Fuck!” Joe hissed. A moment later, his head sagged onto her shoulder. “Sweet Jesus.”
Darcy understood the tensing of Joe’s body. Her gaze locked with Quentin’s as she pushed down Joe’s head until his lips grazed her breast.
His mouth latched onto her nipple and drew hard.
While she told herself this was just for the job, her body exulted. Her eyelids fluttered, and her legs opened to let Joe press against her.
Quentin’s hand slid between their bodies, and he cupped her sex through her jeans. Mine! his angry gaze said.
Joe moaned and burrowed his head into her breast, alternately nipping her swollen flesh and licking to soothe. His thighs straddled a leg, and he pumped his erection against her.
Darcy grew alarmed as tension built in her belly. Coming for the two of them wasn’t in her job description. And who the hell would she give the credit? Knowing Quentin, he’d demand it.
Surrounded by both men’s scents and warm skin, she was overwhelmed. Sweat broke on her forehead and upper lip. Her hips rubbed against the heel of Quentin’s palm as he ground it into her cunt.
Darcy’s hand curled around Joe’s head to encourage him to suckle.
Joe drew her nipple between his teeth and suctioned hard.
The snap to her jeans popped open. The zipper eased down. Quentin’s hand slid inside, and his fingers found her clitoris.
Darcy moaned and her head fell back against the cushion. Forgotten were the mission and the other occupants of the den. With her free hand, she pushed her jeans farther down her hips to expose her pussy.
Truly, Madly...Deadly (a vampire romance) (Night Fall Book 2) Page 4
