by Hart, Lane
"You only have what, twenty or so months? It'll take at least nine months to conceive, and that child could be a female."
"I know how conception works, Ryan. I'm not a fucking idiot."
"Of course not, sir, but that just leaves you with two chances if you act soon. You need to wed, but if any of the visiting prospects find out about your affair with a human whore you'll lose even more support."
I raise an eyebrow in warning at his completely out of line remark at the same time as I drop him to his knees on the office floor. I'm sure he would've never thought of saying something like that to my father who fucked whores as often as some people smoke cigarettes. He needs to remember who the hell he's talking to because I'm not going to put up with his or anyone else's shit. His head stays bowed, eyes down.
"If you ever say something that disrespectful to me again, you'll find yourself running on four legs instead of two for the rest of your fucking life. Understood?"
He nods once since I've silenced his tongue as well.
"Now get the fuck out of my sight!" I order loud enough to shake the windows.
What the hell do these people want me to do? Start an in-house breeding operation? Fuck and impregnate as many shifter women as possible, and then marry the first one who lucks up and has a boy? These are children we're talking about, not a litter of puppies that can be discarded and given away if they're all girls.
I don't get a minute's peace before I'm interrupted again. The asshole doesn't even bother knocking.
"I'm bored. When do I get to munch on your girl again?" Heath asks when he strolls in, running his hands over everything he passes like he owns the place.
"Tonight." I sigh, sitting back down behind my desk. Now that the endorphins are fading, I'm not as amenable to Hope's request. But hell, I've already agreed, so I can't back out now. "She wants me to fuck her while you suck her."
"Do I get to fuck her, too?" he asks, burying his hands casually in his jean pockets like we're discussing plans for dinner. In a way, I guess we are.
"No."
"So I just get to watch you fuck her even though I'll actually be the one making her scream while squeezing your cock?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"That's so fucking unfair!" he whines.
"Tough shit. And you will neither fuck her nor tell her what I am without my permission. Now leave," I command.
His feet start walking him backwards per my sheer will. He reaches for the handle of a filing cabinet, pulling out a drawer and almost tipping it over to try and halt the progress. "Fuck you! You didn't say how I had to leave. I'm going out your motherfucking window, you jackass!"
With his acquiescence the compelling force against him lessens, allowing him to walk on his own volition to the window. He's determined to defy me anyway he can. I could make him use the door but say to hell with it.
Shoving back the heavy crimson curtains, he unlocks the latch and shimmies the window open. "Take that King Cunt!" he exclaims, flipping me off with both hands before folding his large frame in half to climb out of it. Even though I abhor the bastard, and hate him insulting me with the same crude name we used to call my father, I'm helpless to prevent the grin from spreading across my face because of his ridiculous antics.
…
Hope
I'm in the kitchen making the boys roast beef sandwiches for lunch when Heath strolls in barefooted and dressed casually in baggy jeans and a black rocker tee. He grabs a bag of chips and leans against the counter, popping chips one right after the other into his mouth. I can feel his eyes on me as I move around the room, like a predator stalking his prey. The chips serving as an appetizer before the main course - my vein.
"Can I help you with something?" I finally give in and turn around to ask.
A slow cocky smile stretches across his gorgeous, carefree surfer boy face. "Goddamn right you can," he mutters, his milk chocolate gaze dipping down to my breasts.
"Watch your mouth!" I warn him since the boys are in the dining room a few feet away, just on the other side of the swinging door.
"King Cunt said you want to watch my mouth on you tonight while he's—" Still holding the big yellow bag of chips, he clenches his fists and counter thrusts his hips forward and back a few times to demonstrate without words. I suppose that's better than saying the f-word in the earshot of the twins, although, I despise the c-word.
My cheeks start to burn by the visual. This guy is something else since it's not easy to make a whore blush.
"Yes, I do," I admit. "Is that a problem?"
"Hell no. As long as I get to see you naked," he says with a wink and I'm powerless to stop the warm fluttering low in my belly. "So what's the deal with you two?"
I turn my back to him, focusing on my chore of adding mustard and cheese to the sandwiches. "I'm his paramour."
"Ha!" he barks out a deep laugh. "Classic King Cunt! He's such a pussy. He always does everything half-assed."
"Meaning?" I ask curiously, also wondering about the King reference, but figure he just means he's the biggest c-word there is.
"Eric won't commit to anyone or anything. Never has, probably never will."
"Why not?"
"Because that way he can never fail. He's also a lazy son of a bitch."
I spin around and slap my hand over the tall vampire's mouth, reaching my limit after the seventh use of profanity in less than a minute. Of course I can curse with the best of them, but I never do it in front of my four-year-olds!
"You and your potty mouth are about to get kicked out of this kitchen!" I warn him.
The jerk grabs my hand and then bites the shit out of my wrist, making me gasp in a harsh breath. Oh, but after the pain comes the pleasure.
Heath's arm quickly wraps around my head, slapping his palm over my mouth before my first moan escapes. He presses me against the kitchen island with his hard body before shoving his thigh between the two of mine. Within seconds, my eyes close when the blissful waves start rolling through me. I shamelessly hump his leg like a freaking dog.
Coming down from the euphoric high, as soon as Heath removes his hand from me I haul back and slap the shit out of him. "Don’t you ever do that again near my boys or without my permission!"
"I won't have to," he says, looking just as arrogant and completely unaffected as before. "You'll be begging me to do it because you know he won't ever be able to give you what you need."
With trembling hands, I spin around and grab the two plates of food, escaping to the dining room. Arrogant freaking vampires!
I barely sit down at the table when surfer boy joins us. I narrow my eyes in warning at him before he opens his mouth.
"Hey, tiny Carrot Tops. How's it going?"
The boys blink identical green eyes at him suspiciously but don't respond.
"I'm Heath," he says and continues to be met with silence. "Do you have names or should I just call you Ginger One and Ginger Two?"
"I'm Riley." He finally speaks up around a mouthful of food.
"I'm Noah."
"Riley and Noah. How do I tell you two apart?" Heath asks, looking back and forth between them.
"You can't," Riley replies with a sigh.
I've never had a problem telling them apart, but I'm sure everyone else does. It's their eyes that gives them away. Riley's have always been more confident and observant while Noah's are hesitant and shy.
"Have you boys found the pool yet?" he asks, and now has their undivided attention.
"There's a pool here?" they say simultaneously, while I shudder. I'm terrified of water, especially when it involves my two little boys who can't swim. Actually, neither can I.
"Sure is. King Cu...I mean Eric's dad had an indoor pool added on just a few years ago."
"Do you have a dad?" Riley asks the man, making me cringe when Heath looks at me with a sad smile.
"I do."
"Our dad's Batman," Noah tells him, making Heath laugh before he can catch himself.
; "That is awesome. I bet he stays busy, saving people and fighting crime, right?" He goes along with the story for the boys.
"Yeah, that's why we've never met him," Riley mutters.
"Being a superhero is a big responsibility-" Heath starts and then pauses mid-sentence, squinting to look closer at the boys and then over at me. "How old are you guys?"
"We'll be four on Saturday!" Noah and Riley exclaim in unison.
I start to get concerned when the vampire begins counting something out on his fingers and then curses under his breath when he looks back up at me.
"You know what? I saw Batman at a party almost five years ago," Heath tells the boys.
Oh shit!
"Really?" the twins ask with wide-eyed excitement.
"Really. I think I also remember someone mentioning that Catwoman was there, too."
Double shit!
"He said she had long, red hair and green eyes just like your mom."
"Can I talk to you, um, in the kitchen for a minute?" I ask, getting to my feet and yanking Heath up by the front of his Metallica shirt when I walk by him.
"They don't know?" he asks softly as soon as the door swings closed.
"No, of course not! I didn't even know who Eric Last-Name-Unknown was until a few days ago."
"No wonder he's so protective of you. You...you're that Hope, and you're his babies' mama!"
"Shh! Eric doesn't know! And please, I'm begging you not to tell him!" I whisper frantically.
"What do you mean he doesn't...the man can add and subtract, right? I mean he told me all about you after that night. He was fu-freaking pissed at his old man for screwing him over when he kicked him out and he didn't even know your last name."
"He-he did?" I ask in surprise. Eric had said as much, but I just thought he was feeding me some bullshit.
"Yeah he did. And even after he flew back to school in New York, he made some calls around town to try and find someone who knew the beautiful redhead named Hope."
He really did want to find me. If only he had...
"Heath, please don't say anything to him."
"Why not? If nothing else, he'll be good for all the financial support you'll ever need for them," he says, crossing his arms stubbornly over his broad chest.
"We don't need his money, and we don't belong here in his fancy life. As soon as the vampires who threatened me and the boys are dead then we can leave."
"Vampires threatened you? What vampires?" he asks seriously.
"Simon Kellum, the owner of Heaven, and a Mr. Drake that came in the other night. Do you know them?"
"Yeah, I know Bron Drake," he snorts. "The soulless asshole wanted to know just for shits and giggles what would happen when a vampire and a shifter mate and reproduce together."
Shifter? I'd heard the term before after someone explained to me how vampires came to be. The group no longer wanted to be shifters, being able to transform into freaking animals, but in the process they turned into blood drinkers instead.
"And? What happens?"
"You get me," he says sadly gesturing to himself. "I'm a blood-drinking wereleopard. Bron Drake is my father."
Oh. My. God.
"You're..."
"Mommy, can we have some dessert now?" Noah asks when he strolls into the kitchen.
"Ah, yeah. I think Marjorie said there's some leftover banana pudding," I say, trying to hide my fluster. I'm in a kitchen talking to the son of the man who I'm pretty sure wants me dead. I tell Heath, "We can discuss this later."
"I don't think they'll be a lot of talking going on later," he replies, waggling his eyebrows before he finally leaves.
I let out the breath I was holding the whole time that man was near me. There's something about him, probably what it is he can offer, that has me craving more. I want him to sink his teeth into me anywhere. Everywhere. Why does that make me feel guilty? It's not like there's anything special between me and Eric. I'm his live-in whore and he likes fucking me. If that's all I am then he shouldn't mind sharing me.
Pushing away all those thoughts, I serve the boys their pudding, then lift the kitchen phone off the receiver and dial the main number for the hospital. I need to check on Kayla, especially since I lost all of yesterday and haven't talked to her since the day before.
"Eden Memorial Hospital, how can I help you?" the pleasant elderly lady's voice asks.
"Kayla Harrington's room please."
"Just a moment," she says before the phone starts ringing again. It's on the third one when she picks up.
"Hello?" My shoulder's slump at the weak sound of Kayla's voice.
"Hey, Kay! How are you doing?" I feel so damn guilty that she's laid up in a hospital from trying to protect my boys. I owe her more than I can ever repay.
"Oh I'm great. I don't know why they won't let me go home," she responds, sounding grumpy. That makes me think she might actually be all right.
"If they won't let you leave then it's because you need to be there."
"It's just bumps and bruises and a little anemia, but I swear I never want to see another bloodsucker again for the rest of my life," she whispers quietly.
"I don't blame you one bit, sweetie."
"So how are you?" she asks.
"Me, I'm great now that you kept my boys safe and Eric brought them back to me. I'm worried about you. You're going to come stay here when they release you, right?"
"You mean hang out in that huge mansion with you and get waited on and pampered like royalty? Hell yes!"
"Good."
"I mean, there are no vampires there, right?"
"Um, no, of course not," I say, and make a note to tell Heath to stay the hell away from Kayla when she gets here.
Chapter Six
Eric
My hands were so sweaty they kept slipping off my fork during dinner. I don't even remember what I shoved into my mouth. Pasta of some sort? I was too busy looking forward to fucking Hope. It's only been two days, but I'm desperate to have her again.
The idea of a voyeur has propelled me way past throwing wood and into hurling steel beams territory. The part of tonight's agenda I can't get on board for is him participating. Seeing Hope being touched by another man isn't sitting real well with me. Especially not with the man that's at the moment waiting with me in my room for her, singing an old Ludacris rap song while doing shirtless pull-ups on my bathroom door frame.
"Maybe your girl and my friend can trade; tag team, off the ropes! On the ocean or in the boat! Factories or on hundred spokes!"
"That's enough," I warn him while I fidget on the sofa. I refuse to pace.
"What about up in the candy sto' that chocolate, chocolate make it melt. Whips and chains, handcuffs, smack a little booty up with my belt."
"Seriously?" I mutter.
"Scream help play my game; Dracula man, I'll get my fangs. Horseback and I'll get my reins, school teacher let me get my brains."
"Stop!" I yell, scrubbing a palm over my face.
When he sings through the first line of the chorus I look up at his raised blond eyebrow and realize my mistake.
"Stop singing!" That alpha command finally shuts him up.
"So are you still on this whole I can't fuck her trip?" he asks. "Cause that's bullshit. If it wasn't for me, she'd be sick as a damn dog and you wouldn't be getting any pussy."
"You're not fucking her."
"What if she wants to fuck me?" he asks. "You gonna tell her no? I'm pretty sure you'd give her anything she wanted."
"Shut the fuck up," I grumble.
"You didn't answer my question."
"No, I didn't." Because I don't want to admit the answer. What could I do if Hope wanted to fuck him? I don't have any claim to her even though I wish she was mine.
“I bet you a grand she’ll beg me to fuck her.”
“Whatever,” I scoff.
"We had a nice little chat today. Very educational," Heath says with a smirk, knowing I won't like that one bit.
"Wha
t? When?" I demand.
"Around lunchtime in the kitchen. Ginger One and Ginger Two are pretty damn cute, right?" he asks.
"Stay away from Riley and Noah. You're a bad influence that they don't need at such a young age."
"Why do you give a shit?"
"Because Hope's protective of them. She's had to raise them on her own since the asshole who knocked her up hasn't ever been there for them."
"Ha!" he barks out a laugh. "Got that right."
A knock on the door thankfully interrupts our idiotic bantering. I jump up to walk across the spacious room to open it for her.
"Hey," I say, instantly letting go of all my anger and annoyance when I see her beautiful, smile.
"Hey," she says in return. In nothing but a short cotton sleepshirt I can see her tight nipples taunting me, knowing I want to touch them and taste them. "Can I come in?" she asks after I stand there staring at her like a teenage boy with his first dirty magazine.
"Oh, sure." I step aside to let her through before shutting and locking the door again.
"Hello, darlin'," the jackass greets her with a lecherous grin. He does a few more pull-ups, flexing for her since she's watching him closely.
"Hi, Heath. You been practicing using a few words other than fuck, ass, hell, and bitch?"
"You know you can't wait to have my filthy mouth on you again. And here's a secret," he says before landing on his feet in front of her and lowering his voice. "I don't need to bite you for my mouth to make you come."
"Stop talking," I order and he growls at me because that's all he can do. "So how do you want to do this?"
"That's up to you, but I'd really like to have both of your mouths on me at the same time," Hope says, pulling her nightshirt over her head, leaving her naked. The only thing covering her is the long, wavy strawberry-blond locks streaming down her ivory shoulders. "Or my mouth on your cock while his mouth is on me."
Fucking. Hell.
Before I can respond, she's in front of me, kissing me for all she's worth before she hits her knees. Yanking my sleep pants and boxer-briefs down, my raging boner springs free while I stand there naked like an awkward virgin.
