by Michele Hauf
“I’m strong.”
“Yes, I noticed that last night.” He tilted forward a shoulder and looked over it. “The claw marks are no longer there, but you do like to dig in and hold on, don’t you?”
“You loved it.”
“Of course I did. You are exuberant and fiery when properly aroused. And wow. Red is really your color.”
She blew out a breath and shook her head. He was baiting her, and she should not take the hook. Again. It was just another line in his Casanova script, she told herself. He probably said the same thing to every woman he fucked.
“What is your reason for stealing the egg, if you’ll share with me?” he asked. “I would guess the monetary reward, but really, we both know fencing that thing will prove a bitch. It’s too famous. A lost Fabergé egg?”
“It’s worth millions,” Kyler said. “Why wouldn’t I want the thing?”
“So you’re a professional thief, are you?”
No belief in that question whatsoever. She set back her shoulders with as much confidence as she could muster. “I am.”
He eyed her soberly.
Kyler felt her bravado slip. The man could read her like a book. And that stare was 100 percent seduce and master.
She wandered to the end of the bed. “I’m not going to give details. In my profession, that’s never wise.”
“Of course not. So it’s a profession for you? I’m so glad I stepped aside to allow the professional to handle the details.”
“Damn right.”
“So you’ve a fence or buyer lined up?”
“Maybe.” She leaned against the wall and crossed her arms.
“And where does this friend come in? I thought you said you’d picked up a piece of art for him. Or was that a lie you made up when we met at the bar? It is a him, yes?”
“It is. And it wasn’t a lie. But how can you know the art I told you about was the egg?”
“You’ve committed two heists since arriving in Venice?”
Kyler shook her head. The man was insufferable! “Just the one. What about you? You said you were casing the place the same time as me. You don’t strike me as particularly in need of pin money.”
“I am quite well off, thank you.”
No kidding. The palazzo must be worth a fortune, and she bet the suits set him back a couple thousand per outfit. “And I recall you said you weren’t a thief? I don’t get it.”
“There’s nothing to get, Kyler. I wanted the Nécessaire egg. I devised a way to obtain it, via you.”
“How’d that work out for you?”
“I can’t argue the night ending on a high point with you pierced by my cock.” He stroked his jaw. The move was so sensual Kyler’s body heat rose a few degrees.
Neither could she make the argument. And just the sound of it—pierced by his cock—ooh, it gave her a good shiver.
“And I do love a good adventure. Such as werewolves,” he continued. “They provide a challenge. Keeps an old vamp on his toes. And in this case, I’ve also the pleasurable challenge of dallying with a very pretty vampiress thief who wishes to thwart my mission.”
“I’ve never thwarted anything. I’m not a thwarter. But I will win this one. I don’t care why you want the egg. It was mine. I had my hands on it. And I will have it again.”
“Do you know what the egg does?”
She shrugged. She had a good idea what the egg could make happen, and she understood it wasn’t the actual egg, but something inside it. But she wasn’t about to lay down all her cards before this guy.
“I thought it was a woman’s cosmetic kit inside the Nécessaire egg?” she said. “That’s what was advertised on the auction profile.”
“Right. Filled with combs, nail files, a mirror and so on. But beyond what the public knows...let’s say it is important I obtain the egg. For the safety of many.”
Kyler rolled her eyes. “Too vague. You didn’t win that argument.”
Dante tilted his head back against the headboard and slid a hand down his abs. The action took her out of her cautious reluctance and into a wanting desire for what was not-so-cleverly hidden beneath the towel.
“Fine,” he said. “We’ll play this game of cat and mouse. I like games. Especially one matched against a beautiful woman.”
“I never mix business with pleasure,” Kyler said quickly.
“Too late,” he said in a singsongy tone. “I’ve tasted your sweetness. Everywhere.”
Her shoulders dropped. Yeah, tell her about it. She hated the man. But she also found him irresistible. And she hated herself for being interested in him. This was exhausting.
“So what will we do with ourselves until my clothes arrive?”
“I’m not waiting for clothes,” she said. “Perhaps I’ll step out and see if I can pick up the trail.”
“That wouldn’t be wise.”
“You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
“I would only wish to do such when you are naked and wanting before me.”
She bristled and turned her head quickly to hide the sigh that crossed her lips.
Dante leaned forward. “Have you experience with werewolves, Kyler? With fighting them? We do know the ones we heard on the bridge are armed with stakes. And they have our scents. How many times have you faced down the pointy tip of a stake?”
She’d forgotten about that. Her answer was never, and please, never let it happen anytime. Soon enough she wouldn’t have to worry about a stake being her end. But if she wanted to maintain any sort of advantage in this game of Dante’s, she couldn’t let him see her bluff.
“And what is your experience with fending off wolves?” she countered. “Are you some kind of trained killer? A werewolf slayer?”
Dante chuckled and swung his legs off the bed. As he stood, he ran his fingers through his hair, which had already dried; the short strands stuck up ever so invitingly. “Over the decades I’ve picked up some defense skills. Werewolves may be strong, but they’re slow. We vamps have speed and agility going for us. And I’d like to think we have the brains, as well. The dogs are stupid. But if they are part of a pack, then we have to be careful. Two or even three werewolves shouldn’t present a problem. A whole pack? Then we’ve got issues.”
“How do you know if they are with a pack?”
He shrugged. “That is something we probably won’t know until it’s too late.”
Kyler scoffed at his lack of knowledge. “What about you? Are you in a tribe?” She knew vampires gathered in tribes. She remained independent—not for lack of wanting to be in a tribe but rather for not knowing how to approach one to join.
“Yes.” He strolled around to the end of the bed and stood three feet from her. Kyler’s neck heated. She could feel his electrically sensual draw prickle at her skin through the air. Her nipples hardened. She caught her breath before another exhale could escape. “Tribe Incroyables.”
“Seriously? The Incredibles? That’s kind of cocky, don’t you think?”
“We are rather incredible,” he said with all the boisterous pride such a statement demanded. “I didn’t name the tribe. It’s a tip of the hat to Dumas’s musketeers. Our tribe leader, Christian De Bareaux, was a musketeer in the seventeenth century. He’s a good man.”
“How many are in your tribe?”
“About a dozen. But no women allowed. Johnny Santiago’s sister wanted to join, and we wouldn’t allow it.”
“So an old boy’s club, eh?”
“Exactly, and we like it that way. What about you?” He took her in, assessingly this time. “You are tribeless.” He stated it as fact.
“I am, and I like it that way. I don’t care to have vampires telling me what to do.”
“What vampire has told you what to do?”
&nbs
p; She met his gaze and felt his delving intrusion deep in her being. It felt as if he peeled her open to expose the center, the secret parts she tried desperately to keep concealed. She fiddled with the shirt hem as he stepped closer.
“No one,” she said, looking away. And then, more testily, she argued, “None of your business.”
“Ah. So someone has told you what to do, and you’re rebelling against it ever happening again. Good for you, Kitten.”
“He didn’t tell me what to do. I want to do this for him. I owe him.”
“Ah? For what, may I ask?”
“None of your business.”
“But the he you mention is the same he you’ve stolen the egg for?”
“This conversation is over.” She turned to pick up the backpack, and he placed a hand against the wall over her shoulder.
“Since we can’t leave,” Dante said, “and since we’ve dispensed with the get-to-know-you bullshit, and you’ve set a boundary on conversation topics, I’m of a mind to make a suggestion for a new activity.”
She could make one guess what that activity was, but she wouldn’t—couldn’t—succumb to his seductions. No matter that this was the first time she’d seen him in daylight and noticed how clear his sea glass eyes were. Cool and mysterious, like the Venetian lagoon.
“And what is your suggestion?” she asked before she could stop herself.
“We can either turn up the volume on the television and zone out on some idiotic talk show, or...” He leaned in until his nose brushed her wet hair above her ear. “Despite the fact you’re fully dressed, I could nail you to the wall with this.” The heavy weight of his cock beneath the towel thudded against her hip.
Kyler maintained a modicum of strength. “I thought you liked the red shirt?”
He nodded and nuzzled his nose aside her cheek. “I do. The color makes your skin glow. But it’s a bit loose. It doesn’t emphasize your assets as something tighter would. I like your curves, Kitten.” He licked her skin. Shivers traced her spine. The vampiric shimmer sparkled into her belly. “All of them.”
Dante’s tongue had found her clavicle. And it had become less and less important to be strong when really, what would that get her but frustration?
“You’re perfect. Lovely. I like a woman who is abundant. I also love big breasts. And yours are—” he breathed hotly and heavily against her neck “—so voluptuous.”
Kyler sighed out her surrender. If he thought he could control her with sex and compliments—ah hell, she’d lost the battle.
After pulling up and off the too-loose shirt, she tossed it aside. Dante’s mouth landed on hers, and he lifted her by the thighs so she could wrap her legs about his hips.
“Good choice,” he said against her mouth. “You smell like jasmine.”
“You said you didn’t like that smell.”
“On me? No. On you? It is delectable.” He bent to lick the top of her breast, while he managed to unhook her bra with a deft move and pull it away. “And you taste even better.”
After spinning her around, he set her down gently on the bed, then tugged down her capris. He parted her legs and dove to kiss her there, where her curls began. His tongue traced the crease between her thigh and lower belly, slicking hotly. It was difficult not to squirm with delight.
Kyler threaded her fingers through his hair and pushed gently, indicating she wanted him to move lower, and he followed her silent command. A dash of tongue here, a long, luxurious lick there. And when he suckled at her clitoris a deep moan spilled from her mouth. The man didn’t waste time in going directly for the prize. She appreciated his determination.
“Purr for me, Kitten,” he said.
Kyler did. And her purrs vibrated through her being and coalesced with the spinning want and desire that had formed in her core. With Dante’s tongue lashing her to hip-rocking anticipation, she gripped the bedcover tightly as his fingers entered her and began their own teasing dance.
He’d mastered her so quickly, and with such ease, that she couldn’t manage to cling to calm and relax. And it didn’t matter, because as she tensed and released her muscles, the act of doing so increased the pleasure and just as his tongue lashed her pulsing, swollen clitoris one more time...
Kyler surrendered to a shouting orgasm. “Yes!” And flung her arms above her head and stretched out her legs as the bone-tingling sensations wavered through her body. Had she been determined to keep the man off her? Silly kitten.
A knock on the door prompted Dante to grab the towel he’d discarded on the bed and wrap it about his hips. He glanced at her, panting, naked, uncaring who entered and saw her like that. Her cheeks felt flushed and rosy beneath a spray of dark hair.
“Sit tight,” he said with a sexy smile. “That’s probably my suit.”
Indeed, the tailor had delivered. Dante had already tipped the concierge, so he took the garment bag and closed the door.
“We are back in action,” he said, unzipping the bag. “Gray superfine wool. Single-breasted. Nice choice. And a calfskin loafer. Bless the man, he knows my style. You want to make another round of it before I pull on my clothes?”
Kyler laughed and shook her head. “I’m good. I’m back to hating you now.”
“Ah. Well, I guess I can’t get so lucky as to win you over with my charm and cock. What is it, exactly, that will impress you?”
“You placing the Fabergé egg in my hands,” she said plainly.
“Unfortunate. I really do like you, Kyler. But I guess I’ll have to live with your hate.”
Chapter 5
Dante paused near a building, stepping into the shade, and waited for Kyler to catch up. She seemed to be doing a bit of sightseeing, her eyes falling across the facade of the Doge’s Palace. The grand staircase never drew his eye. He tended to focus on the task at hand rather than zoning out on scenery, but Kyler’s fascination reminded him that a few seconds to take things in was permissible. He’d stayed in Venice every summer for decades, and he’d rarely taken the time to glance at the tourist sites or even wander inside Saint Mark’s cathedral.
He’d lived a life, yet had he noticed it? Weird thought to have.
His gaze swung 180 degrees. At the sight of a particular shop, he chided his lacking forethought to bring along a weapon. He signaled to Kyler he wanted to step into the antique weaponry shop, and she said she’d wait outside. Fine with him. He knew she wasn’t going anywhere, because, indeed, he was the one with the nose to scent out werewolves. Once inside, he asked about silver and the shop owner shook his head, but then he lifted a finger and described a blade he kept behind the counter.
It was a fine blade, a little dull, but when thrusting to wound it wasn’t necessary to have a supersharp edge. And while not a bargain, it was a weapon he needed should they face werewolves toe to—well, claw.
“I’ll take it, and—” he gestured to a pair of Ray-Bans propped on a rack behind the counter “—those, as well.” Dante handed over his credit card and minutes later, with his eyes properly shaded against the sun, he joined Kyler and led them toward the canal.
“The bridge where the wolves scented us is around the corner, so I suspect they might have a compound or hideout nearby. How are you?” He reached over to cup her cheek and studied her eyes. Bright and smiling. And yet...“You’re hot.”
“It’s July, and the sun is high. I appreciate that you’re walking in the shadows.”
A thoughtful lover would have purchased her a pair of sunglasses, as well. Bad vampire. “You know how to lower your body temperature, yes?”
“Maybe? I don’t use it much. Never really learned, I guess.”
“Now would be a good time.” Had she not been taught the ways of his kind? Then again, so many vampires came to the blood having been turned and left behind to fend for themselves. He knew
this firsthand. “If we can keep our bodies cool, the wolves won’t be able to scent us so easily. Just a few degrees will do the trick. I’m already there.” He pulled her hand up and pressed it to his cheek, and she nodded; indeed, he did feel cooler. “Your turn.”
“Give me a second.” Stepping into the shadows again, she closed her eyes and bowed her head. At her sides, her fingers wiggled and she shifted her hips, as if summoning up courage or...well, women tended to have a process for so many little things he’d stopped questioning decades ago.
It was a simple matter of focus for him. He hadn’t had time to do it last night before the wolves had gotten too close. Today he would not be so foolish. It was Kyler. She distracted him. But he’d strive to keep that distraction in the bedroom and not out in the real world, where a moment of inattention could cost him his life.
Smoothing his fingers along her cheek, he sensed a small alteration in temperature but not enough. “More,” he whispered.
“Seriously?” She pushed his hand away and flashed her gaze up at him. “You touching me is not helping.”
“Ah. Right.” With a smirk, he took a step back.
So she was hot for him? And yet she wanted to keep him at a distance. What was wrong with plunging in for the ride and letting the chips fall where they may? He loved a dangerous affair. And this one could prove to be just that.
On the other hand, perhaps she was the wiser of them when it came to getting involved. For the first time in ages, he was actually tempted to drink another vampire’s blood. What made Kyler so intriguing to him?
“All right, I’m good,” she said. Holding up her palm, she indicated he should high-five her.
So he did, and he held her fingers in a clasp for a few seconds. Yes, she was cool to the touch. Good girl. And she was eager to learn and prove herself. That’s what he found fascinating about her. Strong, bold and not afraid of her shortcomings, which, he guessed, were few.
“Let’s go this way.” He strolled between two buildings that hugged a narrow passage. “Do you sense them? They are in one of these buildings. Let’s try up on the rooftop. Can you make the leap?”
