by Rena Marks
The slightest wisp of cool air brushed against me, and a lock of hair was lifted from the back of my neck. Cool lips pressed against the curve of my skin.
“Leo,” Julian said, his voice smooth. “Downstairs awaits one of my human employees who dropped a glass and sliced her skin. It’s not bad, but when you have a minute, will you check on it?”
“Of course,” Leo said, quite agreeably.
I knew why he and Julian were getting along so well. There were no humans able to visit the downstairs headquarters. Julian was actually letting Leo know that Luc was safe downstairs, and that Leo could have a visit with our son tonight.
I dropped my arms from Leo’s neck and said, “Well, I guess we should get Victor seated then. Victor, what will you have to drink? Follow me.”
I led the way to our private table behind the stage, set apart by huge, billowing curtains.
Julian followed behind me as I took Victor and his women to the table, Leo having disappeared for the magical back entrance.
“Do you think werewolves and vampires are actually co-mingling here?” Victor asked excitedly. “Like a real relationship? Where they’re actually fucking?”
“I’m sure,” I murmured, trying not to be appalled by his vulgarity.
Originally, the only co-mingling couple should have been downstairs guarding my son. But Julian, clever as he was, realized that Victor would want a show, and instead put Chen and Gigi on guard duty, leaving Anna and Rhett free to snuggle in the bar.
Gigi wasn’t too pleased to be stuck with Chen.
“This is magnificent,” Victor said, pinching the rear of one of the blondes. “I’m so glad I came. Look, look. There’s a vampire with a werewolf now.”
In his excitement, he lightly smacked his companion's butt, and then rubbed away the sting.
I followed his gaze and sure enough, Anna and Rhett danced. They swirled around, exaggerated movements meant to catch Victor’s eye.
“Wow, she’s hot. For a vampire, you know,” Victor said, wrinkling his nose slightly.
Too bad we couldn’t delete prejudice at the door.
“Rhett, the wolf with her, is a cousin of Leo’s best friend, who was killed several years ago while recruiting me,” I said, with as much enthusiasm as a tour guide.
Julian caught Anna’s eye, and motioned her to us. Her full lips quirked up and I held back a groan, wondering what she had in store for us.
Rhett escorted her to the table with a hand to the small of her back.
When they reached us, she leaned in and kissed me full on the lips. Once upon a time it would have surprised me, but she’s done it way too often for that.
To my right, I heard a gasp and remembered it still surprised others.
“You called, mistress?” she said throatily.
I tried not to sigh. “Just wanted you to meet Victor Covas. He’s an ambassador werewolf from his father’s estate in Spain, here to delve into the intricacies of wolf/vampire relationships.”
“Yeah?” she asked, wide eyed and turning toward Victor. “I’ll tell you what, if I knew how lusciously large you wolves could be, I’d have taken on a pack centuries ago.” Her eyes had settled at his crotch, and this time I did stifle the groan.
Victor looked like he might have a heart attack, and began to fan himself wildly. “We are larger than most,” he agreed smugly.
“And the taste,” she said gleefully. “I could drink from my sweetie Rhett all day long!”
Victor paled. “You bite him?”
“Uh, huh. He likes it. Sometimes we stick an earring through where I bite. He’s pierced everywhere, ya know?” Her eyes drifted down again to Victor’s groin.
Victor looked green. Rhett was casual, neither reinforcing nor denying her outlandish statements. He just smiled at her indulgently, as if she were the best thing since sliced bread.
“Excuse me,” I murmured. “I’ll just go check and see what’s keeping Leo.”
Julian quirked an eyebrow at me, and then thought at me.
“Chicken.”
“What? I’m just checking on our son.”
The slight play at the corner of his lip let me know that he knew I was totally escaping.
I made my way across the bar and down the back stairs. I walked through the masked, magical opening into another world.
A dark, cavernous world. A place that might have scared me once, if some of the happiest times of my life hadn’t been spent here.
I no longer lost my way through the barely lit, winding, twisted passageways. Vampire eyesight was a lot clearer than human eyesight, and I now had the best of both worlds.
I rapped on the door of the master chamber before pushing it open. Leo sat in rocking chair with my baby in his arms.
“Ma,” Luc cooed, raising chubby arms.
“Mmm, snuggle-bunny,” I said, kissing sweet-smelling folds of fat in his neck, and making him giggle. The scent of baby lotion drifted up.
“Anjelia, you know Julian and I don’t like when you call him prissy nicknames like snuggle-bunny.”
But his smile belied the words.
“My little Gummy-bear doesn’t even know what it means, huh, sugar-stuff?”
Luc babbled, a string of nonsensical words that had no meaning. I glanced around the room. Chen had Gigi tugged into a corner, obviously taking a break since Leo had arrived for a visit with the baby.
Gigi was protesting something, and the angry flush in her cheeks made her absolutely beautiful. Chen obviously thought so too, because the dark head ducked and silenced her with the press of his lips to hers.
The kiss lingered, and he pulled her tiny form to his, like a huge warrior protecting a dainty flower. For once, she didn’t pull away, but curled slender fingers around magnificent biceps.
“Hmm, I guess we should make our way back upstairs?” Leo asked.
“Yeah, I left when Anna and Rhett were introduced to Victor.”
Leo winced. “Anna? That can’t be good.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I think he likes her.”
* * * * *
They were still gathered around the table where I'd left them.
“Dr. Hunk, I didn’t know you were here,” Anna’s voice seemed genuine, as if she were really happy to see Leo. She’d had about a half hour of Victor now, so chances were—she was. “Julian tells me you were fixing up a barmaid downstairs.”
Leo winced. “I’m not here in the professional capacity. So, no breast exams, please.”
She grinned and I felt like chuckling over the memory of her baring her breasts at Leo, insisting that she felt a lump and he needed to check it out.
“Honestly, I missed you,” she insisted. Her eyes drifted over to Victor, who stared without blinking. She looked back to Leo and said, “Rhett and I are out of here. We’re heading downstairs. To fuck,” she said loudly, for Victor’s benefit.
I winced. But the shift of her eyes told me she’d guard Luc.
“Downstairs?” Victor piped. “Is that where the child is kept?”
“My son is with his cherished aunts, remember?” Leo said.
Anna glowed with the compliment.
He continued on, killing her glow. “The three ancient hags, if you recall?” Leo said. “The vampire hags equated to the mythology of the Greek Fates?”
Anna looked slightly insulted, but this time Leo’s smile was genuine. “Anna, always a pleasure to see you. Rhett, take good care of my girl.” He leaned in and kissed Anna’s cheek. She looked about to protest before Rhett pulled her away.
Leo and I sat down, me next to Julian. Julian’s voice was always a delight when he spoke, smooth as silk and sexy as hell. “Victor was just telling us of all his sightseeing plans. It should take several weeks to accomplish them all.”
“Weeks?” Leo asked.
“Yes. When will Anjelia return to the mansion?” Victor asked slyly. “Maybe I’ll get to see her and the baby there after all.”
“I was actually scheduled to ta
ke my tour of duty in France, and bringing the family. Sorry,” Julian said.
Leo nodded. “I will arrive later, but everyone takes a turn.”
Chapter Twelve
Now that we’d made plans, we had to follow through on our decision. Chen was waiting for me when I went to pack my bags.
“I need to talk to you about female matters.”
A ton of strange thoughts involving monthly bleeding ran through my head. Apparently he caught on because he hurried continued. “Gigi, I mean. I have chased the woman for eons, and still she avoids me.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “Chen, stop trying to force her. Gigi is a powerful vampire, but you still treat her like a human weakling.”
“Why do you say that?”
“What would happen to her if you were staked tomorrow?”
“Her life would continue. She could hunt, she could feed. But she would miss me,” he said arrogantly.
“She could hunt and she could feed,” I repeated. “So why would you think she cannot hunt by herself now?”
“She can.”
“Yet you bring her humans.”
“She would choose only handsome men if she had her way.”
“You choose beautiful women for yourself, right?”
The look in his dark eyes was unsure. “Yes, but they mean nothing to me.”
“And beautiful meals would mean nothing to her. You have double standards and Gigi is a modern woman. If you want her, you’ll have to bend.”
“Bend how?”
“You have to cater to her.”
“I do,” he said arrogantly. “I hunt for her. I take care of her.”
“You have to do what she wants. Not what you want.”
He blinked incredulously.
“Try it my way. Just for a while, okay?”
“Which way is that?”
“Allow her some freedom. That’s all. She’ll love you if she’s not forced into it.”
“But she is mine. There are so few Asian vampires, and she knows she belongs to me.”
“Have you ever asked her?”
“Of course not. Like I said, she knows.”
“Woo her, Chen. Love her. Don’t force her. Women are not beautiful birds to be kept in captivity. A gilded cage is still a cage.”
He still looked puzzled. “You think it will work?”
I smiled. “Trust me.”
I finished packing my bags. Normally, I didn't need to pack to go back and forth between homes any longer, but this way looked like I was packing for my France tour.
I chuckled. The idiot troll probably had spies watching.
I was going to make a production of dragging my lightly packed bags as if they were heavy, but I'd wait until I arrived upstairs and grabbed Luc from whichever vampire guarded him.
I headed out of our quarters, dragging the bags up. I dropped them off near the door and went back downstairs for someone to bring Luc.
I sat in the darkened entry and waited. Unaware of me sitting behind the curtains, Chen approached, the dainty Gigi under his arm.
She struggled, but his strength was too much for her.
“How dare you manhandle me? Ogre. Monster. Monsoon, let me go.”
“Woman, for once will you just listen? You are meant to be with me. For me, no other will do.”
“I saw you with the she-wolf.”
“I talked with her. Nothing else, Gigi mine.”
His voice was husky now, and more gently, he pulled her close. “I would survive on your blood alone if you allowed it.”
Gigi closed her eyes briefly, pain on her face.
“I cannot do this, Chen.”
“Give me one night, my love. It is not like we have never shared the night.”
I could almost taste her temptation, the heady, rich taste of it heavy on my tongue. I held my breath, wondering at her answer.
“One night, and nothing will change tomorrow?”
“Nothing will change. Give me one night with which to worship you only.”
“You will permit me to hunt my own meals?”
“Will you hunt your own?” His voice dropped to a whisper. “When you have me?”
He brought her up to his chest, and lowered his mouth to hers. I watched their lips meet, and their breaths mingle. The lust in the room rose, and I wanted to tear my eyes away, to give them privacy. But I couldn’t—not while stuck in the middle of a live soap opera.
“Come with me, please,” his voice was pleading, and never before had I heard Chen’s voice hold that tone. It was heartbreakingly wrenching. I hoped for his sake that Gigi couldn’t possibly turn him down.
“No promises past this night, my love.” Her voice was harsh, but the endearment belied her tone. My love, she called him, and she cradled his face in her hands.
His face had such a look of gratitude that I wanted to weep before he lowered it to take hers in a kiss that rivaled the passion between Julian and Leo and me.
Then, he picked her up and carried her to his quarters, and shut the door firmly behind him.
Only then, did I allow myself to smile. He finally got it.
Dammit. I had just become a vampire voyeur.
* * * * *
I bounded up the steps to the mansion.
“Leo!” I called. “We’re home! We're starved.”
The wolves were in the dining room. Leo approached quickly, wrapping Luc and I in his arms. He buried his face in my neck. “Hmm, I missed you,” he murmured, kissing my ear.
“Da!”
Leo mock-growled, and nibbled Luc’s chin. “I love you, too, son.”
Pressing a kiss to my forehead, he led me to the table.
One of the werewolves pulled the high chair out, and Luc began squirming in my arms, trying to get to the chair. I handed him to the eager wolf, who belted him in.
“So he’s gone?” I asked, as the food was brought out.
Everyone snickered. They all knew who I was talking about.
“Along with his entourage of Amazons,” Romeo said. “They traveled home immediately when they realized you were heading to France.”
“Did you get a load of the get-up he wore?” Braden said.
“What did he wear?” I asked, taking a bite of the delicious lobster on my plate.
“I’m not sure,” Leo said. “It was like a long skirt. I think. But it was also wide pants.”
The wolves looked at each other with equally confused and exasperated glances.
“It was ugly as fuck,” Romeo said. “He’s already short and thick. He looked about two feet tall, especially with those Amazonian women surrounding him.”
“He’s a strange duck.” I laughed.
“It’s a special occasion, Anjelia. Do you suppose Luc can have a bit of pudding?” Rhett asked.
I nodded and Luc clapped his hands, grinning at the werewolf.
Normally having voracious appetites, it was the first time the werewolves left their plates half-eaten. Instead they huddled around Luc’s high chair and took turns spooning the gooey mousse into his wide-open mouth.
Luc laughed at the first taste, spewing chocolate all over. The werewolves cheered and Leo smiled at me.
He and I continued to eat our meal. We were going to have a hell of a mess when Luc finished his dessert. He was going to get tired, crabby, and sleepy soon after the sugar high. Unfortunately, he was going to need a good dunk in the tub with some extra scrubbing.
When Luc finished, he pounded his little fists on the tray, demanding more. “I think not, Julian’s child,” Leo grinned.
He may as well have said Satan’s child.
Leo untied the restraints that Luc was in. “Come, little man. Let’s get you to the tub. In fact,” in one smooth move he lifted the chocolatey T-shirt over Luc’s head, leaving clean skin where only a mess had reigned. “Hmm. Maybe let’s strip you here, messy boy.”
The pants came off next, and then the diaper. Leo lifted Luc up against his chest, his little butt
ocks peeking up over Leo’s muscular forearm. Some of the unmated wolves winced, as if he’d pee all the way to the tub during his diaper freedom.
“What’s this?”
Luc’s socks were black, with white fangs. Julian’s idea of a joke. One of the wolves gasped.
“Hmm. Well, you will be wearing your socks with the full moons for your return to the other daddy,” he told Luc.
I smirked over the antics of two grown men.
Leo gathered up the squirmy Luc, and carried him upstairs while I stayed behind to gather the dirty clothes. The maid came quickly. “Madam? I can do that for you.”
I smiled my thanks.
Suddenly I had a bright idea. Tomorrow Julian, Luc and I were headed to France, and Leo would be along about a week later. I could have a private lunch with Leo before leaving. Just like old times.
“Rhett,” I said. “Julian’s limo is supposed to pick up me and Luc tomorrow at two. Do you suppose you can call Anna and see if you guys can pick Luc up a couple of hours before I leave? I’d like to surprise Leo with a goodbye lunch while he’s at work.”
“No problem. You know Anna won’t refuse getting the baby nugget.”
“Okay. I’ll wait for you guys tomorrow.”
I headed upstairs, where Leo and I bathed Luc in a smaller tub set inside our master bath. Our whirlpool tub was set on a raised platform with steps leading up to it, so it was pretty easy to sit on the edge of the raised floor without getting a backache.
I washed his hair, while Leo washed his torso. Luc was such a happy baby, he laughed and splashed the entire time. Raising his chubby arms into the air, he allowed the soap suds to trickle downward, encouraging Leo to wash his tickle spots. The front of Leo’s shirt was soaked from his splashing. Trying to be helpful, I lifted the wet fabric up over his head, exposing his muscular chest and tight abdomen. Dark hairs were sprinkled across his chest, and I liquefied at the sight.
Leo smelled my arousal. He always could. His eyes connected with mine, satisfied with what he saw. “I’ll put Luc to bed.” His voice was deep and gravelly, the voice that meant one thing for me.
He hauled our yawning baby from the tub, wrapping him in a towel larger than he was.
