by Kate Wendley
Tangled emotions swept through her. She’d been worried he only saw her as a ‘maybe we should hang out’ girl, but the feeling she had right now was that she was way more important to him.
His hand on her back gently kneaded her flesh while he held her close, and his chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. Finally he gave her a tight squeeze, then jerked and released her. “Sorry. I forget how strong I am sometimes.”
Looking into his concerned eyes made her chuckle. She ran a finger down his chest, thrilled to be freely touching him like this. “It’d take a lot more than a hug to hurt me. I’m not human.”
He froze where he was and his eyes sparked brighter than she’d ever seen them. What was going on? Oh crap. It was like a hard knock to her head when she realized what she’d just said. According to Zach, Vince had never spent time with shifters, so his only experience with women would be with humans. Weak, fragile humans. She’d feel sad for him if he didn’t suddenly look like crazy thoughts were storming through his mind.
She moved slightly and his eyes followed her like prey. His breathing was heavy as he stared her down, slowly, slowly pulling his hands away from where he’d been grasping her by the arms. He took a small step back, his chest rising and falling with anxious eagerness.
The vampire guard, whom she’d never bothered learning his name, quietly said, “Miss? Is everything ok?”
Vince snarled and jerked his head in the man’s direction, though he never took his eyes off Penny.
She carefully said, “I, uh…”
The sound of her voice seemed to make Vince even more anxious, so she shut her mouth. Truthfully, she wasn’t sure if she should be scared, or wildly turned on.
The vampire stepped closer and Vince finally turned and growled at him. It was less than a heartbeat before the vampire looked down in submission, and Vince turned his attention back on Penny. She froze as she stared into his eyes, wondering why she didn’t feel the need to look away like everyone else seemed to.
Looking like it was taking a lot of effort to speak, Vince nearly panted when he said, “I have to go. Can I call you tomorrow?” He took a step forward looking like he’d grab her up in his arms again, but he shakily stopped himself.
Her heart beat in anxiousness, her voice practically a whisper. “Yes.”
He rose a shaking hand to her face, and she closed her eyes as he trailed a finger down her cheek. She didn’t move as she felt him step closer, his masculine scent making her wish she could drag him home with her. His anxious breath on her neck made her shiver, and his warm tongue and lips gently kissing her made her knees go weak. When she felt the gentle touch of teeth, she tensed in anticipation. He immediately pulled away, though.
She opened her eyes to him watching her just as carefully as before, and his rough voice sounded strained when he said, “You’re going to have to leave before I can walk away.” He pointed up the stairs to her place.
She’d laugh at him if he didn’t look so serious right now. Had she ever dated someone who acted so crazy about her? And she didn’t actually want to leave him, but he said he had to go, and she finally believed him that he didn’t want to. She might regret not taking advantage of him tonight by urging him on, but then again she might. He was a nice guy, after all, not some jerk that was purposely toying with her. She hoped not, anyway.
She kept her eyes on him as she slowly moved towards the stairs, and he took another step back, briefly nodding to urge her on.
“Go. Please.”
“Why?”
He looked out the corners of his eyes towards the guards and she definitely did smile then. He was jealous and territorial.
“Ok. Goodnight.”
She didn’t hurry, but she didn’t drag it out longer than necessary, either. She kept her eyes on him as long as she could as she made her way towards home, and he watched her the entire time. Before she rounded the corner and cut off her view, she stopped and just looked at Vince. His eyes shone, his chest rose and fell like he was exerting himself while his gaze roamed her body, including her ample behind, and he still looked like he was about to race up after her. She felt sexy and anxious, and totally crazy about him as she forced herself to round the corner so he could finally leave for the night.
Chapter 13
Vince stared at the empty stairwell until another couple walked in front of him and took the same path Penny had. A brief panic raced through him because he’d never let himself get so far gone before, at least not in front of other people. Sometimes after a frustrating night with a human woman he’d go for a walk on a dark street to cool off, but this felt like way more energy than he’d ever had before. He was in Brookhaven, though, so this kind of thing should be normal… sometimes… maybe.
He needed to get out of here. He could feel that he was going to crash hard after all this so he turned and headed straight for the door, not wanting to collapse in the entryway.
“She’s not wolf, but with that booty, I think I could make an exception.”
He didn’t even have time to think. Maybe he hadn’t. He simply punched the shifter smirking wickedly at him before he realized what he was doing. The dude slammed to his knees, quickly catching himself before he face planted into the ground. He gave a quick jerk as he cleared his head, then glared up at Vince. The vampire guard grabbed him just as he lunged for Vince with murder in his eyes.
“Quinn! Control yourself. Quit trying to rile people up.”
Vince growled as he stared Quinn down, finally realizing both these guards were the same guys who were up here the first night he’d come to the club.
The shifter struggled fiercely to break free from the vampire, and Vince fumed as he watched the two, wanting so badly to punch the asshole again. He knew he should get out of here and go home, but he was too worked up, or maybe his non-existent animal was, so the best he could do was just stand here and not go after him again.
The guards wrestled with each other, Quinn eventually throwing his hands up in surrender before storming off somewhere further into the building. Vince stood his ground and waited for the vampire to do something. He knew he’d stepped over the line by punching the other guy, and he knew fighting wasn’t allowed here, and probably especially not with the guards.
The vampire straightened himself up as his gaze wandered over Vince, almost as if he was avoiding looking him in the eye. Vince was ok with that. He was too amped up right now, and his animal side wanted action. Another confrontation could easily push his temper over the edge.
A heavy feeling built in the air around them, and it gave him the impression this vampire was older than Vince could possibly fathom someone being. He wondered if this was finally it, finally the time that one of the supers here would put him in his place like they so often did when he used to spend his days ignoring that he was one of them.
The guy was taller than Vince, and about as broad all over. Still, that didn’t tell him how strong he was. He was just learning that size didn’t always equate to strength in the supernatural world.
The man’s voice jarred his thoughts. “I’ve been wanting to do that for a very long time. Seeing someone else punch him will satisfy the urge for now.” He thrust his hand out and Vince stared at it in angry surprise.
He realized he was panting, his animal too close to the surface, though he knew it’d never break free. It never had and never would, so he shook the man’s cool hand and gruffed out, “Name’s Vince.”
“Benicio.” He kept his eyes lowered as they shook hands, then stepped back and held the door open for him.
As Vince passed over the threshold to the outside step, Benicio quietly said, “A word of advice. Watch your back around the wolves, and always know who your friends are. You never know when you might need them around here.”
He stared hard at Benicio, trying to figure out what his angle was. “And which are you?”
He smiled and finally raised his eyes to him. “Friend, of course. Any friend of my Master is a fr
iend of mine.”
“Your Master? You mean Anthony? I barely know him.”
Benicio looked surprised. “Oh?” A look of confusion passed over him, and then a small shrug. “Well the Master must have had a reason for nearly killing one of us vampires when he found out you and your mother had been denied help from the family, multiple times over the years. He even allowed Zach to tear into his flesh and drink his blood for additional repayment for the wrong. Believe me, a shifter’s bite is not in any way pleasant like a vampire’s bite can be, and it didn’t appear to be pleasant that night, either. The Master clearly cares what happens to you and your mother. I wouldn’t take that knowledge lightly, friend.”
Vince stared at Benicio, not quite sure how to process this information. He didn’t know his mom had come here asking for help. He wondered when that was, and it made him feel like crap, again, for being mad at her. “So you’re mad at me that he punished a vampire?”
Benicio smirked. “Hardly. Bethany is far from my favorite person in the family. Just remember who your allies are. It could come in useful when you least expect it. And vice versa.” He gave Vince a head nod, then let the door swing closed between them.
**
Vince’s adrenaline, and anger, quickly drained out of him as he made his way through the dark, quiet night to his car. The people here, and everything about this place was so different than how he’d imagined it would be, that he wasn’t sure if things were actually going good or bad.
So much had happened in such a short period of time, and the lure of not having to be careful about being himself around others was making him sloppy. It wasn’t like him to get so instantly enraged by a shifter being a jackass to him, which meant he was letting his animal urges get too close to the surface. In the past when he’d run into jackass shifters, usually at work, if they wanted to put him in his place, for the most part he just rolled over and let them. Here… he wasn’t trying to hide anything and it felt good to finally stand up for himself, but he should really watch who he tangled with. He still didn’t have a sense of who anyone was, or what kind of family politics went on in this place.
Penny’s face flashed through his mind and he shivered in need. She wasn’t human. That was going to play through his head the rest of the night. He didn’t have to worry about hurting her… he could kiss her, hold her… he stopped when he realized he was walking back to the front door and forced himself to turn around and get to his car. He wanted her, though. He needed her.
His hands shook as he fumbled with key in the lock. He finally got it open, then fell clumsily into the driver’s seat and slammed the door shut. His shakes got worse, and his adrenaline was crashing even though Penny was still ferociously on his mind. He wanted more than anything to go back in there and find her, though he had no idea which apartment was hers in the giant building. He growled in frustration at the dash of the cold car. He desperately wanted to feel free to let go of his constant worry that a girl would find out he wasn’t totally human. With Penny, that would never be an issue.
Except the opposite was now the problem. By full moon she’d know damn well he wasn’t totally shifter. Would she still want to hang around him when she found out? Worse, would she be disgusted to learn she’d gotten so close to someone as physically and magically messed up as he was?
He grabbed the steering wheel when a wave a dizziness washed through him, then closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. The crash was coming on strong this time. He’d forced his muscles to be stiff and steady for too long tonight, only to have a huge adrenaline rush from kissing Penny, and then the fight with the wolf. He was going to pay for pushing his body so hard, that was for sure. Tomorrow was going to be pure hell… He wondered if he should just call in sick so he could rest, but Shelly needed all the help she could get with Christmas almost here. Besides, he’d feel bad if he ditched her right now, especially with how flexible she always was with him the rest of the year whenever he was too sick or tired to come in.
He took deep, even breaths, then narrowly opened his eyes, just enough to hit the call button for his mom.
She was laughing when she answered.
“Mom?”
She sounded absolutely giddy when she said, “Hi honey.”
He heard a deep rumble of a male voice laughing in the background.
“Are you and Ed hanging out?”
“Oh, we’re just watching a movie. Stop that!” More laughter from both of them.
He sighed inwardly. “You guys sound like you’re having fun. I just called to let you know I’m staying here tonight. Can you can ride the MARTA to work and I’ll pick you up after?” The public transit system wasn’t too bad.
Sounding more serious, she said, “Oh honey, you come on home. We’ll shut the movie off when you get here.”
He faked static noise. “You’re breaking up. Can’t hear you anymore. See you tomorrow.” He hung up and shook his head, then reluctantly smiled. Things were definitely changing in his life.
**
Vince wearily approached the outer door. Benicio opened it, standing tall and somewhat regal. He looked down his nose at Vince, but he got the feeling he wasn’t doing it on purpose.
“Do you feel all right? Is something wrong?” He glanced warily over Vince’s shoulder.
He waved him off. “Yeah man. I’m fine. I need to talk to Zach. I saw him in the club earlier.”
Benicio nodded and ushered him inside. Another shifter was now up here on guard duty as well. A tall, large man who looked more doughy than muscular.
Vince gave him a head bob and didn’t waste time heading down to the club. He tried to keep his shakes hidden on the way, but he couldn’t casually fidget enough without looking like a crack addict. It was late, anyway, so the club wasn’t as packed as before, but he still didn’t want the people that were here to think something was wrong with him.
Dammit, he didn’t want to be handicapped. There were plenty of disabled people in the world, and he never thought he looked down on them for their problems, but he also didn’t want to be one of them. He really, really didn’t want to be one.
Zach wasn’t anywhere in sight, but as he wandered around, he saw a light on in the office he’d first talked to him in. He made a beeline over there, peeked in the door, and did a double take. Anthony, and someone that looked an awful lot like Anthony, both turned to look at him.
“Whoa. There’s two of you. Sort of.” Only one of them had a giant scar on their face, but they both had long dark hair and similar features.
The doppelganger stepped briskly across the small room towards him. “You must be the new jaguar in the family. Vince, correct? I’m Isaiah Foster. Anthony’s father.”
“Father?” He’d never considered that vampires might have actual family. In a weird way, it made Anthony seem more human.
They shook hands, and of course it wasn’t long before Isaiah said, “Do you feel all right? You don’t look well. Please, sit down.”
Vince ran a shaky hand through his hair and took a seat next to Sebastian on the only couch in the room. “I’m fine. Just tired. I’m looking for Zach, actually. Do you know where he is?”
Anthony said, “Is something wrong? I’ll ask him to join us immediately.”
“I just need a favor.”
Anthony looked at him for a time, more like through him, then said, “He’ll be here shortly.”
Ok… not so human after all. He must have been talking head to head with Zach just now. That was… creepy. Still… “Thanks man. And thanks for inviting me in the first place. I hope Kaia isn’t too upset.”
Everyone looked at Anthony then, and Vince got the uncomfortable feeling he’d brought up something private.
Anthony somewhat tightly said, “She was surprised, and taken off guard to see you here, but I assure you she’s fine.”
Vince squirmed at the new tension in the air, but it quickly calmed when Anthony said, “I hope you and your mother will consider my offer of movin
g in. All your expenses will be taken care of, along with a generous monthly living allowance.”
Benicio’s admission to him earlier played through his head. Anthony was being awfully nice to him. Still, he had to ask, “What’s the catch?”
Anthony locked eyes with him. “I wouldn’t call it a catch, but I’ll admit I’m strongly inclined to do whatever I can for you and your mother. After all, it was one of my vampires that made your lives unnecessarily difficult over the years by not letting me know of the assistance your mother sought out so many times.”
At some point he really wanted to hear this story from his mom’s point of view, his curiosity now eating at him, but he was too tired to think about it right now.
“Also…”
Ah, here it was. The real reason Anthony was bending over backwards to help them.
“Kaia considers you a friend. I’ll be turning her vampire soon, and I’d like her to have as many friends as possible here. She’ll need them as she comes to grips with her new form.”
Whoa. “You’re going to turn her vampire?”
Zach appeared in the room just then. “Hey. What’s up?” His eyes landed on Vince and he frowned in worry. “You ok? You don’t look so good.”
He sighed. He was sick of people asking him that. He tried not to snap at him, though. “Yeah man, but I need a place to sleep tonight. Got a couch or something I can crash on? I work at eight tomorrow morning so I’ll be out of your hair early.”
“Did something happen? Are you and your mom fighting?”
“No. Nothing like that. She just wants the place to herself tonight. Can I stay here?”
A big grin spread across his face. “Sure. What about Penny’s? Yeah? No? Yeah?”
He scowled. “What? No!”
