by J. K Harper
A beam of sunlight fell in through the tent door. Louis sidestepped it and moved over to the darkest corner.
"Do you have one more blanket I can borrow? I'll need to cover up to get out of here."
"Oh. Yeah, of course." Isabel found one, but it was made of a light weave with a pattern made of holes. "Wait, this won't work. Here. This one is thicker." She handed him a rough woolen army blanket.
"Thank you. I'll return it at nightfall."
"Just leave it in the supplies building. I'll pick it up from there."
He held out his hand to shake hers. She took it hesitantly.
He was cool to the touch, yet her hand prickled with heat.
"It's been a joy, tiger. You're such a beautiful animal. And a beautiful woman."
"You're a smooth talker. I guess you learned a few things about charming ladies over the last couple centuries."
"Well, what can I say? Eternal life has to be good for something."
She smiled at him. He was even more good-looking, now she'd gotten to know him a little. Tall, dark and handsome, with eyes the color of slate. His long limbs lent him a manly kind of elegance. Like a male model crossed with a rock star.
His twinkling smile lit up his face. But he had a dark brooding quality that turned her insides to mush.
She hated how much she wanted to touch him.
Man, she really needed to find some other dude to take out her sexual frustration on. Vampires were not the kind of guys you had one night stands with. Even if you did just crave a few hours of of no-strings-attached fun.
Plenty of living men out there for fun, Prowse. Wind your libido in for a second and kick this killer to the curb.
She walked him over to the tent door, as a not-so-subtle hint that he needed to leave now.
"So you said back there that you don't like being a vampire?"
"No. I don't." He didn't elaborate. "Do you like being a shifter?"
"Yeah. Of course. Mostly." She thought about it for a moment. "Besides, I was born into it, so I didn't get a lot of choice."
"It's a little like royalty, isn't it? Big cats are the aristocrats of the shifter world."
"Pretty much. And hey, you're real royalty."
"French royalty. Doesn't even exist any more. I'm basically a VCR in a digital world."
She laughed. Just as she needed him to go, he was starting to be fun company to have around.
"So you don't always like being a shifter?" He was clearly pressing her for more information.
"Well, I don't know. Sometimes I wish I didn't have to battle my emotions to stay human. If you lose control and get really angry, or have any other strong emotion, you shift without warning. It's harder when you're a teenager. Happens constantly then. Adults can control it to an extent, but never completely."
"I can identify with that. The unwanted surges of emotion, the pressing physical need ... yes."
"Wow. Never thought my kind had anything in common with vampires before."
"We're all freaks, doctor. The humans don't know how lucky they are."
"I guess."
Isabel had only just realized he was still holding her hand.
He looked down at the same time she did. "No ring. You're not married."
"Not anymore."
"Divorced? Widowed? What happened?"
Why was she considering sharing her life story with this blood-crazed maniac? Still, she was.
"I married an old friend, to keep my parents happy. We got an annulment a little while back. He found the love of his life."
"And you didn't?"
The air around them seemed to grow heavy.
"No. I didn't."
"And he let you go for some other woman." He laughed curtly. "What an idiot."
She bit her lip, trying not to react.
"It's okay, really. We weren't into each other."
He pierced her with his hungry stare. "If you were mine, I'd never let you go, in a million years. And I have a million years to spare, so I know what I'm talking about."
Isabel's mouth fell open a little. My God, he's too hot.
And he was totally coming on to her.
And she was loving it.
Time to wrap it up, before she got herself in trouble.
Be businesslike. Professional.
"Thank you for sparing your time tonight, Duke. You've been very helpful. Please don't steal any more of my blood supplies, or I will kill you."
He shook her hand, smiling wryly. "I'm sorry for diminishing your supplies, Dr. Prowse."
She liked the way he said her name. The silver-tongued monster.
"So what happened back there anyway? Why blood bags instead of live prey? Is it, like, convenience food? Did you run out of necks to bite, or what?"
He rubbed his face, looking suddenly weary. "I rarely feed on human blood, but it was a full moon. If I hadn't taken the blood in the bags, I would've been tortured with the urge to kill for it. And I don't do that any more."
"You don't?"
"No." He stepped back another inch, as more sunlight crept into the tent. "I'm kind of a reformed character."
"But you're still a vampire! I don't see how a bloodsucker could ever be reformed."
"It must seem very strange to a big cat shifter. You people are all about the morals, aren't you?" He said it admiringly, almost. But there was a hint of bitterness behind it.
"We try."
"Yes, you do. Well, many of us do. Not all of us have your genetic advantage, though."
He looked her up and down again as he said this. His eyes were clouded with what looked like desire.
"Can I ask you something?" She couldn't stop herself. "Is there... Do you vampires do something to people? Like ... I don't know, hypnotize them? Make them want you? So then you can feed off them?"
"Hypnotize them?" A slow smile played across his chiseled face. "How do you mean?"
"Like, I don't know. Put a spell on them, or something? So they're attracted to you? And then they let you do anything you want with them?"
He reached out and cupped her cheek with his hand. Isabel sensed how hot her face was, pressed against his cool skin.
"Are you telling me you're attracted to me? And it scares you?"
She ignored the question. "Well do you? Do you have that kind of magic?"
Louis threaded his hand into her hair and bent his head down to her neck. "Let's see what you're really asking." His nose touched her throat. "Am I going to do whatever I want with you? Is that what you want me to tell you?"
She felt his breath on her neck. It was cool, like a mountain spring.
Yes. Do it.
Where did that dark impulse come from?
She tried to be sensible, and calm. But she couldn't.
All she knew was that she wanted him, right now. Her eyelids grew heavy with longing.
As he kissed her neck softly, she moaned.
"No," he whispered. "We don't hypnotize anyone." He kissed her again, just below her earlobe, and pulled away.
She whimpered with disappointment. Don't go, she suddenly longed to say.
He stood up to his full height. "I hear the other doctors coming over the bridge. If you need me tomorrow night, you should just call."
Then he threw the blanket over his head and swept out of there.
Isabel stared after him, still breathing heavily.
What the fuck just happened?
She was still staring at the tent door, her heart pounding, when a breezy "Good morning!" made her jump. It was the day shift doctor and nurse.
Isabel forced herself to snap out of it.
"Hey guys," she said, smoothing her hospital scrubs over her borrowed shirt. "Let me fill you in on last night."
Shelter
Once she'd passed on all the handover information, Isabel set off toward her temporary home in the local village.
It had been a hell of a night.
She was still reeling from her unexpected vampire encounter. On
top of that, treating her own nurse Jerry had shocked her a little. His wounds were serious, and she knew he'd have to fly back to Montana when he recovered. No more field work for him.
She had walked for fifteen minutes or so toward the village, when she was stopped. The narrow roadway into the rural area where she was staying had been blocked up. It was now an armed checkpoint.
That wasn't there yesterday, she thought.
"Nobody's permitted to walk through here, ma'am," came the American voice. "Only military."
Isabel liked hearing her own language. It happened so rarely once she was out of the camp.
"What happened? How come there's a checkpoint here now?"
"This village took a direct hit last night. I'm afraid there's nothing standing now. Just wreckage."
She clapped her hand to her mouth. Oh God. Not here. The villagers had made her so welcome.
"Everyone ... okay?"
The soldier looked troubled. "I'm afraid not everyone, ma'am. We evacuated as many as we could, but we lost a few."
Tears stung the corners of her eyes. In the three weeks she'd been on this assignment, her hosts had always taken great care of her. They insisted that the children play elsewhere during the morning so she could sleep. In the afternoons, they woke her with delicious food and mint tea. They did everything they could to make sure she was refreshed for her night shifts.
She really hoped they were among the safe people. But bombs didn't respect kindness, or hospitality. They didn't care at all.
And she knew the army wouldn't release any information just yet. And she really needed to sleep, or she'd be no use to anyone.
"Look, I'm the emergency doctor working at the field hospital. I'm just finishing up a night shift, and I guess I have nowhere to stay now. Has the army set up a shelter for refugees from the village?"
He stepped away for a moment and spoke into his radio. Then he returned.
"Ma'am, you're to head back to the British army camp and find Lieutenant Clark. He'll give you a cot in one of the old stone buildings out back."
She thanked him and headed back the way she had come. It was pretty unlikely the other villagers were getting the same treatment, and she felt a little guilty about it. But she needed to rest, so she could help those same people.
Reluctantly, she knew she had to follow orders this time.
Shading her eyes from the intense morning sun, she set off to find the Lieutenant.
* * *
She had only walked for about fifteen minutes when her nose told her there was trouble ahead.
"Not again."
This was a really sucky night. And she knew exactly what her nose was telling her.
Wolf. That distinctive scent was back again.
She looked all around. A prickly tree up ahead quivered slightly.
"Oh, for God's sake. Come out, Milo."
Sure enough, Milo Craven stepped out from behind the tree. He was wearing an army uniform and crew cut hair.
She frowned. "Wow. You enlisted?"
"No. I'm in disguise."
"It's a terrible disguise. You're clearly still Milo-the-Wolf-Who-Can't-Take-No-for-an-Answer. What the hell are you doing here? This isn't most people's idea of a great vacation spot."
"You know why I'm here."
He tried to smolder at her, but he just looked constipated.
Oh, man. Why did her stalker have to appear now, after a busy night shift? When she'd already lost her blood supplies, and her dignity in this damn shirt, and almost her nurse?
She needed her bed so badly. And she sure didn't want Milo in it.
"Milo, I have nothing else to say to you. Please go home and find yourself a nice wolf girlfriend. Or a hobby."
Milo growled softly. "I know you think wolves are below you. You're an uptown tiger doctor and I'm a blue collar pack animal. Not good enough for you. Right?"
"Are you going to break into a Billy Joel song now?" She shook her head in dismay. "It has nothing to do with class or money. Wolves are great. All shifters are equal. I'm just not your fated mate, Milo. I'm not interested in being with you. And I can't help that. You should find the one who is meant for you."
Isabel paced forward, intending to walk around him.
Milo didn't move.
She glared at him. "Step aside, please. I've had a long night, and I need to sleep."
He folded his arms, scowling. "Sooner or later, you're going to realize what you're missing."
"Yeah, fine. Goodbye, Milo."
"It's not goodbye. You'll see me around. I brought a few of the guys with me. We'll be staying here as long as it takes."
Isabel sighed, exasperated. "Are you kidding me? You can't just hound me into being with you, Milo. That's creepy. You and your buddies need to book your plane ride home."
"I'm not leaving here without you, Isabel."
"Yes, you are."
He placed one hand on her arm, and she threw it off with force.
"Don't even think about touching me. I'm tired, and I've been on my feet for twelve hours, but if I have to fight you, I will. And I will not go easy on you."
Milo snorted derisively, but he still stepped back far enough for her to pass.
She strode past him, heading back to the army camp.
What the fuck sort of night was this?
First, an encounter with a hot vampire, like those exist.
Then her nurse was badly injured.
Now, her werewolf stalker from America had appeared.
She could sure use some peace and quiet. Hopefully the next twenty-four hours would be really boring, to make up for all of this.
The army camp wasn't far away. If she broke into a run, maybe she could be there again in five minutes instead of fifteen.
"You know I'm right," Milo yelled at her back. "We're meant to be, Izzy."
"Don't call me Izzy," she yelled back, as she turned the corner.
Hide
Isabel's new room in the old army building was dark, with only a semi-circular hole for a window. It had been shaded with a square of filmy fabric, but it kept flapping open.
As she walked in, a little brown bird flew out past her, tweeting.
"Hey there," she said.
You're talking to birds now, Prowse. Get some damn rest.
There was a battered-looking wooden chair in the room, and a khaki army cot piled with threadbare woolen blankets. They were a lot like the one she'd given Louis that morning, so he could shelter from the sunrise.
Thinking of him made her heart beat harder.
Whatever kind of spell he'd put on her, she wished he'd quit it. He told her vampires didn't do stuff like that, but there was no other explanation for it. Surely?
The only time a shifter was meant to fall madly in lust was when they met their fated mate.
And a shifter's fated mate was never a vampire. So it couldn't be that.
It was an inappropriate crush. That was all.
What would be the best way to stop thinking about him?
Sleep. Beautiful sleep. That's what she needed.
After a night on her feet, and a lot of worry over Jerry, she needed to rest like nothing else. And running into Milo had just made her even more exhausted.
She spread out the blankets, brushing away a lizard that had been lurking in one of the folds.
"Find your own bed, buddy. This one's taken."
She had no pillow, and no change of clothes, but she was too tired to care.
The cot was lumpy. It wobbled if she moved. The blankets were itchy.
None of it mattered.
She fell instantly into a deep sleep.
* * *
"Isabel. Ma belle Isabel."
She was dreaming. The impossibly hot bloodsucking freak Louis was calling her name, and talking sexy French to her, and stroking her hair.
She knew she should wake up. But it was a really nice dream.
"Isabel. It's time to wake now."
Something cool
and firm gripped her hand.
With a start, she opened her eyes. It was too dark to see.
Before she could do anything, a flashlight flicked on. Louis smiled down at her, with his deep gray eyes.
Oh my God. He smelled amazing now. Like waterfalls and old leather-bound books and ambergris and herbs.
And lust.
"Vamp? Are you really here?"
He laughed, a melodious rumble that made her smile back automatically. "Yes, I am really here, belle Isabel."
"Okay. Why are you here?"
"I came to help at the medical tent, but you weren't there. Some army corporal is keeping things going while you're gone. So I came looking for you."
"What?"
She sat up and scrabbled for her watch on the floor. Eight-thirty in the evening. She'd overslept by a lot.
"Oh God. I'm late. I am so late."
She shoved the blanket off and jumped up from the cot. Then she realized she had no clothes, no toothbrush, and no idea where the bathroom was.
"I'll give you some space," Louis said, turning away. "There's an army uniform on the end of the bed. And some soap and tooth brushing things hanging in a bag on the wall. Look."
He was right. They had probably been there all along, but she hadn't seen them in her exhausted state.
"Hey, thanks."
"I'll ask someone where the bathroom is, so you can do your ... human thing."
"No! Wait. You can't go out there and talk to people."
"Why not?"
"Because you don't have permission to be in here! This is a military camp. People can't just walk in off the street."
Louis nodded gravely. "I'm sure it'll be okay. I'll use my famous hypnotic skills on whomever questions me." His thundercloud eyes twinkled.
"The skills you claim you don't use? Right. Nope. I can handle this, French."
She tried hard not to smile again as she realized she was still wearing his shirt from last night.
Bare-legged and fluffy-haired, she set off down the concrete-floored corridor to find the bathroom.
