She opened her mouth to tell him all of this, but as soon as she was within reach, he took her hand and pulled her toward the back door. “Talk to Alon,” he told Marc, and then hustled her out into the parking lot behind the dojo.
“Talk to Alon about what?” she asked, having to hurry to keep up with his long strides. “And hello to you, too. Rude.”
Christian glanced down at her, and she realized he wasn’t being rude. He was angry.
Natalie felt her own temper rising up to meet his, but told herself to stay cool. She’d expected this. And maybe he wasn’t angry at her. There were all sorts of things going on, lots of plans and conspiracies afoot. Maybe his anger had nothing to do with—
“Why’d you go there?” he demanded, as soon as they were outside.
So much for the idea that he wasn’t angry at her. The temper she’d banked while trying to be reasonable, flared hotter than ever. She shook her hand loose from his. “I had stuff to do. Didn’t you get my note?”
“What good is a fucking note if I’m dead to the world while you’re skipping right into the heart of the enemy?”
“Dramatic much? I was hardly skipping, because I’m not an idiot. And I left before sunset.” Although some of the fight went out of her, because she believed that he really had been worried. And, given recent events, he probably had a reason to be. But that didn’t change the fact that he was being a bully. “I don’t owe you an accounting of my time,” she said defiantly.
Christian moved closer, taking outrageous advantage of his greater size and strength to loom over her. Natalie backed up until she hit the brick wall next to the door. This was apparently exactly what he wanted, because he leaned down to put his face right in front of hers.
“Did it occur to you that I might have been worried?” he asked. He sounded so sincere, his deep voice filled with real concern, that Natalie felt guilty.
For all of two seconds. Then she remembered that vampires were masters of manipulation. And there was something just a little bit sly sparkling in his eyes.
“I left a note,” she reminded him. “And I had my cell phone with me. You could have called.” She squawked in surprise when he grabbed her cell phone from her hand, and held it up to her face.
“Your ringer is turned off,” he said, glaring down at her.
Uh oh. Busted. “I turned it off so no one would hear it ring,” she said stubbornly. “I was being stealthy.”
Christian’s luscious mouth twitched slightly. Natalie was pretty sure he almost smiled.
“I’m sorry,” she said placing her hands on his chest and leaning in. “But if you’ll just listen—”
“Promise you won’t do it again,” he demanded, doing an excellent imitation of the brick wall at her back.
Her eyes narrowed in irritation. “I’m trying to—”
“Promise.”
Natalie had never wanted to be a vampire, but right at this moment, she really wished she could growl like one. “Fine,” she said, willing to be the adult. “I won’t . . .” She frowned. “Wait. What am I promising?”
“Not to go waltzing into the lion’s den with no idea of the danger—”
Fuck that. “First I’m skipping, and now I’m waltzing? I’m not a child, Christian. I’m a reasonably intelligent adult, and I know how to protect myself. I know that estate inside and out, and it was daylight. I was trying to help you, damn it.”
That shut him up. But not for long. “Help me do what?” he asked, scowling down at her.
“I have access to Anthony’s private files. I knew I could—”
“Jesus, Natalie. Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“It’s my job,” she insisted. “I know what I’m doing, and I’m a damn sight better at it than you are!”
“You’re an accountant, for fuck’s sake.”
“I’m a forensic accountant, you ass. What do you think I do all day? I work on computers, identifying patterns, establishing trails, and following them to the truth. I dig out information that other people hide! And I don’t need your permission to do a favor for a friend!”
Christian’s expression changed abruptly, becoming darker, his eyes gleaming slightly in the mostly unlit alley. “Is that what I am?” he asked in a rough whisper, closing her in with his body, one arm braced on the wall next to her head. “Am I your friend, chére?”
Her body reacted instantly, his voice and overwhelming presence bringing back the weight of him on top of her, the delicious stroke of his cock between her thighs. She shivered at the memory, and saw the knowledge in his eyes. He knew what she was thinking, knew what he was doing to her. But even knowing that, she couldn’t help her reaction.
“No,” she said, then gulped nervously. “I mean, yes, but—”
“But what, sweet Natalie?”
“I don’t know. Stop looming over me!”
He chuckled softly, and she sucked in a breath to yell at him some more, but then he was kissing her, his tongue stroking her lips into opening for him, and then probing further until she could feel the hard points of his fangs pushing against her upper lip. His arm swept around her waist, tugging her against him, and Natalie rose onto her toes. She knew he was seducing her, knew she should resist. But she didn’t want to. She’d missed him, damn it. Ever since sunset, she’d been waiting for his call, wanting to hear his voice, to see him again. Hoping he felt the same way, that he wanted her again, too.
They kissed until they were both breathless, until their bodies were hot and aroused, his cock hard against her belly, her pussy trembling and wet. She stared up at him, her heart racing.
“I didn’t mean to worry you,” she whispered, brushing his hair off his forehead.
“I know,” he said, his fingers were tender against her cheek. “And I do trust you. You’re familiar with the estate, and smart enough to know how far to push it. But I still worry.”
She nodded. “And I was right about what to look for. It was worth it.”
His mouth tightened, and she knew he was on the verge of disagreeing, and starting the argument all over again. So she changed the subject. “What did you mean when you told Marc to talk to Alon? Talk to him about what?”
His scowl took on a different note. “Is there something between you and Alon?”
Natalie had to fight not to laugh. He was jealous. The idea made her happy, even if there was no cause for it. “I told you. Alon’s my best friend in Houston.”
“You two never dated?”
“Once, when we first met. But we didn’t click that way. So, what’s up?”
He eyed her thoughtfully, as if wondering how much to tell her. And Natalie stared right back at him, challenging him to tell the truth. He shrugged.
“Alon is curious,” he said. Which told her exactly nothing.
“Curious about what?”
Christian gave her a patient look, as if she was being dense. “About becoming a vampire,” he explained slowly. “He’s a strong man, and a natural warrior, at the height of his power.”
Natalie was stricken. “But wouldn’t he have to die first?”
He doubled down on the look that said she was being dense. “Am I dead, Natalie?” he asked, cupping her ass and grinding his still stiff cock against her.
She blinked in confusion, trying to think past the sexual hunger that always seemed to swamp her around him. “No, of course not,” she insisted. “But I always thought—”
“What? That we haunted hospitals and battlefields looking for potential vampires? Helpless victims to bring over to become our minions?”
Natalie opened her mouth to protest, but he continued.
“Actually, you wouldn’t be far wrong. Many of us were turned under exactly those conditions as recently as a hundred years ago. But not anymo
re. Not with vampires more out in the world than ever before. We have people coming to us now, asking to be turned.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “Some see our evolution as an opportunity, a chance to live forever. Always young, always strong. Of course, there are others who think it’s the work of the devil.” He smirked, his feelings on that subject obvious. “The truth is, however, that only a relative few of us are strong enough to bring someone over, and we tend to be selective in whom we choose. After all, immortality for them is immortality with them. And even then, not everyone survives the process. Nor can you choose what the transition will do to a particular individual. A corporate tyrant today could find himself the lowest vampire minion tomorrow, with no measurable power of his own. And then every vampire is beholden to his Sire, no matter who he was before, or how much money he has.”
“What about Alon?” she asked.
“No matter what vampiric powers he ends up with, he will always be a warrior, and an asset to his Sire. But it’s still not a decision to be made lightly.”
“Will you tell me what you decide?”
“No. That is for Alon to share.”
Natalie pursed her lips unhappily, but he only grinned and kissed away her unhappiness. “Come on, Marc wants a workout.”
NATALIE SAT ON the floor, legs crossed in front of her, her back against the wall. Christian and Marc had just emerged from the locker room in identical black gisGIs, with plain black rank belts. They crossed the room on bare feet and exchanged a few words with Alon, who made a sweeping motion with his hand, giving them the floor. There was only one class scheduled, an advanced judo class taught by Alon. But, like everyone else in the dojo, the five men and one woman saw what was happening, and faded back against the wall to the watch the show. It was rare that Alon surrendered the mats to anyone, so the class members knew something was up.
Alon himself came over and sat next to Natalie, close enough that his shoulder was touching hers, close enough that it drew Christian’s attention. He caught her gaze, his own shifting downward to the point where their shoulders met, and then back up again to meet her eyes, with one eyebrow raised in question. Natalie would have laughed, but there wasn’t any humor in Christian’s expression. They were barely a couple, and already he was going all super possessive on her. She’d heard that about vampires, especially the powerful ones. They were instinctively territorial, and that instinct didn’t end with control over real estate. It extended to everything and, especially, everyone in their lives.
She returned Christian’s stare, opening her eyes wide, and giving him a silent “What?”
He grinned finally, which elicited a gasp from the lone woman in the judo class, and from one of the men, too. Christian simply returned his attention to Marc. They exchanged a couple of words, then bowed briefly to Alon, as the dojo master, and more deeply to each other. Natalie held her breath when they started to move, circling slowly, hands and feet in constant motion. She didn’t know what to expect from this encounter. She’d seen Christian fight Noriega, had seen him kill with impunity. But this was completely different. It was a purely physical match, no vampire magic involved. And Marc wasn’t his enemy. Still, vampires were so much stronger than humans. Could they pull their punches to avoid damaging each other? And would they bother to appear human since they had an audience?
Christian said something in French, too low for her to pick up. And in the blink of an eye, the fight was on. Everyone in the dojo was leaning forward, focusing hard, trying to follow the blur of hands and feet that was the two vampires fighting. They were using Krav Maga; she knew that much. But she’d never seen anything like this. The flow from one attack to the next was seamless, their every move graceful and deadly. And, no, they weren’t bothering to pull their punches. The sound of fists and feet hitting flesh was so loud that Natalie could almost feel the impact, so loud that it reverberated over the floor and off the walls. The two vampires shook off blows that would have snapped human bones, bounced up from throws that would have left a human writhing and crippled on the floor.
They were beautiful in their brutality. Two wild and powerful creatures engaged in a fight for survival. And having the time of their lives. Both were grinning like crazy people, moving back and forth across the mat, deftly shifting direction whenever they came too close to the observers, demonstrating a situational awareness that was amazingly acute, given the speed and violence of their encounter.
“Whoa,” Alon whispered, next to her. “That is kick ass.”
“Gorgeous,” she murmured.
“Which one?” he asked, his amusement obvious.
“Both of them,” she said quickly.
“Yeah, but you’ve got your eye on Blondie. You in love at last, Nat?”
Natalie shot him an annoyed glance. “Of course not. I barely know him.”
“That’s how it starts, babe,” he said, tossing a friendly arm around her shoulders. “And it’s overdue. You’ve been hiding behind that computer for too long.”
“Ssshh,” she hissed. “Pay attention.”
He chuckled softly, but she could feel his arm tightening around her as he strained to follow the action. He was barely blinking for fear of missing something.
With no warning that Natalie could discern, the action abruptly stopped. The two vampires each took a step back and bowed formally, but then grins split their faces and they embraced, pounding each other on the back. Alon jumped to his feet, and raced over to join them. The men and woman from the night class shuffled closer, but didn’t intrude, though whether it was out of respect for, or fear of, the combatants, Natalie didn’t know. Maybe a little of both, because she sure as hell was intimidated by the demonstration she’d just witnessed.
Intimidated, yeah, and maybe just a little turned on. Maybe even more than a little.
“Natalie,” Alon called. She jumped to her feet, and crossed the dojo floor, joining the three of them just off the mat. Alon put an arm around her, tugging her into their group, and she saw Christian’s jaw tighten as he focused on that touch.
Only his eyes moved as he met her gaze in a silent question. She was either his, or she wasn’t. But if she was, she didn’t belong in Alon’s embrace.
Natalie wanted to protest. Alon was her friend, and the embrace meant nothing else. But this was one of those fragile turning points in a relationship, where it could go either way. An unexpected bolt of desire shivered over her skin, and she knew which way she wanted it to go. Christian couldn’t have missed her reaction, but his expression never changed. The next move was hers.
Patting Alon’s hand where it rested on her shoulder, she ducked out from under his arm and crossed to Christian’s side. He stretched out a hand and pulled her in tightly, his arm circling her waist, his hand resting possessively on her hip. Natalie looked up and blushed at the amusement in Alon’s eyes. But then Christian touched his lips to her temple, and everything inside her relaxed, as if her body had known all along where she belonged. It was only her brain that had needed to catch up.
“I was telling Christian that he and Marc are welcome anytime,” Alon was saying. “Maybe he can convince you to take up the discipline.”
Christian glanced down at her. “You’re not in the class?”
She shook her head. “It’s a little beyond me.”
“We’re starting a beginner’s class in two weeks,” Alon informed her with a wicked smile. He’d been after her to take up the Israeli discipline ever since they’d met.
“I’ll think about it,” she said, although she didn’t mean it. Especially not after seeing what it looked like when practiced by vampires.
Alon’s grin turned knowing a moment before his assistant called to him from across the room, holding up the phone. “I’ll be right back.”
Meanwhile, Marc, who had slipped away to the l
ocker room while Christian spoke with Alon, emerged wearing a T-shirt with his giGI pants, and carrying two duffel bags. He stopped long enough to exchange a few words with the lone female in the advanced judo class, then walked over, dug out a T-shirt from one of the duffels, and held it out to Christian. The two of them exchanged an intent look that made Natalie suspect they were communicating silently. Christian’s next words confirmed it.
“We’re going home,” he informed Marc. He slipped out of his giGI jacket and quickly pulled the offered T-shirt over his head, but not before giving Natalie, and everyone else, a view of his deliciously muscled shoulders and perfect abs. She smiled smugly, knowing she’d be up close and personal with that body before the night was over.
Christian was bent over, shoving his jacket into the duffel, but he caught her smile when he straightened, and grinned back, as if he was thinking the same thing. He draped a heavy arm over her shoulders. “Are you ready?” he asked, his tone making it clear that he was talking about a lot more than just driving home.
She tried to ignore the way her entire body had tightened in response to his innuendo. “I have to change first,” she said, indicating the giGI she was still wearing. She ducked out from under his arm, and started for the locker room, but he pulled her back for a quick kiss.
“Make it fast,” he told her. “I’m not happy having you out in the open like this.”
She patted his cheek. “You worry too much. I’ll be twenty feet away in a closed room.”
Christian gave her a look that promised payback for the cheek pat, and she was smiling as she pushed through the swinging door.
CHRISTIAN WAITED until the door closed behind Natalie, then gave Marc a questioning look. “You talked to Alon?”
“I did. And he’s done his homework,” Marc told him. “I think he might know more about vamp stuff than I do at this point.”
“Does he have family?”
“On a kibbutz in Israel. Parents and two brothers, some toddler nieces and a nephew. His only sister was killed during a bombing in Jerusalem.”
Christian (Vampires in America: The Vampire Wars Book 10) Page 23
