Rocked by a Vampire: Billionaire, Rock Stars, Vampires (Immortal Hearts of San Francisco Book 3)

by Susan Griscom

Who was Seth?

  I’ll call you back later. Can’t wait to see you, cuz.

  I looked at Lane. “It sounds like she brought a guy with her and they’ve checked into the Holiday Inn.”

  “Good. Now come back to bed. I need more sleep.”

  “What time is it?” I asked, but Lane looked as if he’d already slipped back into dreamland. I glanced at the newly installed mirrored window, it was daytime. Then I glanced at my phone. It was eleven o’clock. But it was Sunday, so I didn’t need to work. I crawled back into bed and snuggled up against Lane. “Since you asked so nicely,” I whispered.

  He mumbled something incoherent and draped his arm lazily over my chest, and I closed my eyes, happy to be next to him.

  A few minutes later, my phone rang again.

  “Christ. Can’t you just turn that damn thing off?”

  “I’m sorry.” I looked at the caller ID. It was Jillian again.

  “Hey,” I answered with a whisper and got up, searching around for something to put on my naked body quickly so I could walk out to the hallway or back to my room to talk. Jillian’s voice shrilled in my ear. It was too early after last night. “Hold on, Jillian. Give me a minute.” I went into Lane’s closet and grabbed a dark blue-and-white-striped long-sleeve button-down shirt that I’d seen him wear once or twice and put it on. It came down past mid-thigh, which was perfect. I picked up my jeans, top, the skimpy thong I’d worn, and quietly left Lane’s room. I padded my way down the hall, hoping no one would discover me tiptoeing out of Lane’s room. When I reached my room, I swung the door open and quickly slipped inside to talk.

  “Okay. I can talk now. Who is Seth?”

  “He’s my boyfriend.”

  “Oh. You didn’t tell me he was coming with you.”

  “I didn’t know until just the other day. We broke up a few months ago, but last week we got back together. He said he wanted to come with me, so we decided to get a hotel room and then look for an apartment so we wouldn’t be imposing on you.”

  “Oh. Okay. That works out great because my apartment is being renovated and I’m staying with friends right now.”

  “Oh, okay. Then I’m glad we got a hotel. I can’t wait to see you, Vanessa. It’s been like, what, fifteen years?”

  “Something like that.”

  “Shhhh,” she said and whispered to someone, probably Seth. The sound was distorted, as if as she’d placed her hand over the phone’s microphone.

  “Where you are? Can we come over there?”

  “No!” I practically shouted as her request caught me off guard. “I mean. Not right now. I’ll come to your hotel. We’ll have lunch.” I couldn’t let her and some guy I didn’t know come over here to a house full of sleeping vampires. Hell, I didn’t really even know Jillian all that well. As she’d said, it had been fifteen years since we last saw each other. We were just kids then, maybe seven or eight. I barely even remember her. I’d been excited when she’d first contacted me, telling me she was coming, but now, I feared I’d made a mistake. Especially now that I was living here in the mansion. Especially now that I’d slept with Lane. Did that mean things would change between us? At least Jillian and her boyfriend had their own hotel room now. That was a plus. “Jillian, which hotel?”

  “The Holiday Inn.”

  “Right, you said.” I quickly remembered. “There are three here in the city, which one?”

  “The one by Fisherman’s Wharf. We’ll be at the bar.”

  Of course. I should have guessed that. Everyone who came to San Francisco wanted to visit Fisherman’s Wharf.

  “I quickly hopped in the shower and instantly regretted it. Washing off Lane’s scent wasn’t something I’d wanted to do right away, but it was too late. I rinsed off quickly and got ready to go.

  I picked up the rhodonite crystal from my dresser and held it tightly against me. It had given me so much courage each night before I sang, I was so very grateful for its presence in my life. Everything would be fine. No need to worry, I thought, as I placed it back on the dresser in the center of all the other crystals.

  I thought about peeking in on Lane and saying goodbye, but that wasn’t something I’d ever done before, and I wasn’t sure if it would be welcomed or not so I just left. I’d probably be back before he even got up anyway.

  I drove to the Holiday Inn.

  I could only guess at what my cousin looked like now. Plus, I didn’t really remember what she looked like when we were kids. But there was a guy and a girl about my age sitting at the bar, and the girl had gorgeous, long, blonde hair so I guessed that was her. I walked up and stood behind them. “Jillian?”

  She turned around. “Vanessa! So glad you’re finally here.” She jumped up and threw her arms around me, squeezing tightly. I hugged her back, not quite as enthusiastically, though. She may be family, but ever since high school, I wasn’t so free with the touchy-feelies with strangers, and with the span of time we hadn’t seen each other or spoken, she was exactly that.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Lane

  Spending time with Vanessa had both surprised and excited me. Every day with her turned into a thrilling new adventure. I loved the way she smiled, the way her eyes twinkled. The passion inside her released a glorious sentiency I’d never had the pleasure of experiencing before. I’d wasted so many months despising her. No not her, just what she was. A witch. Witches had certain powers that vampires didn’t possess. Sure, vampires were strong, fast, ferocious, and some loved to kill their victims. But like any other creature, we had a vulnerablity. A witch had magic beyond our capabilities. Magic that could potentially destroy us. But, I had to admit, their magic could also aid us, like V had done.

  I thought about my fatuous attacks of every opinion Vanessa had ever voiced over these past months in an attempt to destroy any and all notions of lust for her, only to find she was exactly what I needed to defeat the ghost of my father and the influences of the monstrous Jewels. May they rot in their own hell.

  I reached over to snuggle against my newly found love interest, only to find the bed next to me empty. I sat up. “Vanessa?”

  I glanced around my room. Her clothes that had been on the floor were no longer there. She was gone, no wonder she hadn’t answered. I flopped back down, threw my arm over my forehead, and sighed. Where the fuck did she go?

  I reached for my phone, noted the time; three in the afternoon. I shouldn’t have been surprised to find her gone. She was human, after all. She wasn’t used to sleeping all day. I’d kept her up most of the last several nights. My cock grew with those sensual memories. It was Sunday so I thought perhaps she’d sleep all day with me, in my arms. I fingered the screen of my phone, debating whether to call her or not, then I remembered, she’d received a call. Several annoying times if memory served. In my groggy state, I recalled her answering, then…nothing as I fell back to sleep, she must have left to talk and never came back.

  I grabbed a quick shower and threw on a pair of loose-fitting shorts and a black, ribbed, sleeveless undershirt. I flashed to the kitchen to grab some blood, hoping to see her there, but the room was empty. Only the humans were up at this hour of the day around here. I went to the living room and sat at the piano, pulling out the music sheets I’d hidden underneath a pile of old songs inside the bench.

  I read the lyrics I’d written before, made some changes, added some notes and mixed things up. The lustful words were still there, along with the regret and pain, but the verses of love that I’d struggled with for so long came easily to me now, pouring from my lips as if they’d been there all along. My fingers flowed over the ivory keys as I sang the words. Softly. This was Vanessa’s song. It had been all along, only I never knew it until just this moment.

  Where was she? I dug my phone out of my pocket and called her.

  “Hello?”

  “V? It’s Lane.”

  “I know, silly. I do have caller ID. This is a smartphone after all,” she giggled at the goofy joke. She’d be
en drinking.

  “Where are you?” I tried to keep the possessiveness out of my voice, but I didn’t like the idea of her out drinking without me.

  “I’m down at Fisherman’s Wharf, at The Franciscan, with my cousin. She and her very hot boyfriend arrived this morning. They’re staying at the Holiday Inn, so you don’t need to worry about them staying there.” Then she whispered, “They want to come to the mansion to see it. Is that okay?” She giggled some more, and I wanted to squeeze her adorable drunk self against me.

  “I don’t see why not. Have them come for dinner. I’ll alert the masses.”

  “What about…you know.”

  “Don’t worry. We know how to act around humans, sweetheart.”

  She giggled again. “I like that…sweetheart.”

  “V, did you drive there?”

  “Yes.”

  “Wait there. I’m coming to get you.”

  “You can’t, it’s not dark yet,” she whispered.

  “Fuck. Just stay put. I’m sending Ari for you with the limo.”

  I hung up and went to the kitchen to find Ari. After he’d left for the wharf, I went upstairs and slipped notes under the doors for my brothers about dinner. We were all pretty conscious about what we said whenever humans were around, but a little heads-up was always appreciated.

  It took a whole hour for Ari to return with Vanessa, her cousin Jillian, and Jillian’s beau, whom I despised the very moment I met him. His razor-cut short hair spiked at the top reminded me of dark, prickly needles. His eyes were small and too close together. The shirt he wore looked as if it had been starched too stiffly to go with the ripped and faded blue jeans he’d paired it with. Though it wasn’t his appearance that I didn’t care for.

  I had a sixth sense about the supernatural. Something my brother didn’t possess, nor did Gage or Elvis. But this guy, Seth, was a warlock, and why he was keeping it a secret from Vanessa and the rest of us, puzzled me.

  Vanessa was a bit tipsy, and I handed her a tall glass of water as we all sat down to eat. She sat beside me. Jillian and Seth across from us. Aside from the two guests, there were only seven of us for dinner. Chelle and Josh had decided to meet Chelle’s father at the diner where they’d first met.

  Besides talking too much, Jillian seemed to be a normal human female. But her chattering might be from the amount of booze she’d consumed while entertaining my girlfriend. I liked the way the word sounded in my head. Though I knew it was just a word, and words didn’t mean a whole hell of a lot when it came to relationships lasting.

  V had mentioned that her cousin possessed no supernatural gifts by birthright. But why take up with a warlock? It puzzled me.

  Vanessa had said she knew we were vampires the moment she first met us, but never mentioned it until she’d discovered Cian in her apartment the night he’d materialized inside it looking for Maggie. I wondered if that was just a trait V possessed like me, or if all witches and warlocks knew when they were in the presence of vampires. By the way Seth conducted himself, I couldn’t tell for sure, and I certainly wasn’t going to bring it up.

  Gage had had trouble keeping his eyes off Jillian from the minute they were introduced, and I considered letting Gage know about what he could be dealing with. But, hey, it wasn’t like he’d made a move on her or anything. Besides, I had no doubts that Gage could take care of himself.

  After dinner, Maggie and Vanessa took Jillian on a tour of the house. V had wanted to show off the sunroom and the library, as well as the room she called hers, but hadn’t slept in all week. I smiled at that.

  The rest of us gathered in the living room for some after-dinner drinks. I stepped up to Cian while he poured a golden liqueur into several crystal cordial glasses and whispered close to his ear. “He’s a warlock.”

  Cian nodded. “Good to know.”

  “Why do you think he’s hiding it?” I asked. Not wanting to draw attention to our conversation, I smiled and grabbed a couple of the drinks he’d poured, passing them around before Cian had a chance to answer me.

  When I returned to him, he whispered, “Maybe he’s not. Maybe he just doesn’t know you know, or that you are a vampire. Why would he announce something like that to a room full of strangers?”

  My brother had a point. “I still don’t trust him.” I picked up one of the drinks for myself.

  “Could be you just don’t trust witches and warlocks.”

  I shrugged. Maybe. But I decided to relax and enjoy the evening. Though there was still something about Seth that I didn’t like, and I didn’t want to let down my guard.

  The three women returned from their tour, and V sat down beside me. I was glad to see her happy to reunite with someone she had fond memories of from her childhood. It was nice to see her smiling and laughing.

  “Jillian, how long will you be visiting here in San Francisco?” Gage asked the question I’d been about ready to ask.

  “Well, we’d like to stay. Possibly move here. Of course, that depends on whether or not Seth can find a job. I was able to get a transfer, and I start my new job in two weeks. Tomorrow we’re going apartment hunting. Do you have any suggestions on which part of the city is the best to live in?”

  Ah, so the creep was planning to mooch off of his woman for a while.

  “It depends on how much you can afford.” I chuckled, unable to contain my smugness. When I didn’t care for someone, I found it difficult to be amiable. And the further into the evening we progressed, the less fond of Seth I became.

  “Mid-range,” Seth said. “We’re not as wealthy as you, but we’re not dirt-poor either.”

  “Then you should probably stick to the lower Pacific Heights area. It’s nice there. Moderately priced. But you’ll find that nothing in the city is cheap. And prices out here in California are much higher than back east,” Cian, the goddamn tour guide, supplied.

  “You should definitely check out the Presidio before you have to go back to work,” Vanessa said. “Oh, and don’t forget to go walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. And you have to ride the cable cars.” She laughed. “There’s a lot to see and do.”

  “You should come with us. Show us around,” Seth suggested, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I straightened, squaring my shoulders.

  “She can’t,” I said abruptly, and Vanessa—as well as everyone else—stared at me. “I mean. You have to work. Right?” My matter-of-fact statement wasn’t like me, and I stared at V, hoping she’d pick up on my attempt to try and convey my concerns. I didn’t want her to go anywhere with her cousin. Not as long as Seth was going.

  “He’s right. I do,” she said, and I relaxed my shoulders a bit.

  “That’s too bad. Maybe on the weekend, then,” Jillian suggested.

  “We’re going away this weekend,” I said, and once again, everyone stared at me. But I didn’t back down. Vanessa locked eyes with me as Cian took over the conversation, making suggestions about where else they should go sightseeing.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Vanessa

  “I get that you don’t like my cousin, Lane, but you didn’t need to be so blatant about it.”

  “Sorry, love. It’s not your cousin I don’t like. It’s her beau. Seth is a warlock.” Lane’s accent was more prevalent than usual.

  “What? How do you know?”

  “Same way I knew you were a witch when I sniffed you.”

  I laughed. “Do you sniff everyone you meet?”

  He grabbed me around the waist and drew me in. “Usually.”

  “You didn’t sniff me the first time you met me.”

  “I had…other…obligations on my mind then, and you weren’t entering my home. It wasn’t until you did that I picked up your scent.”

  “I see. Okay. Say you’re right and Seth is a warlock—”

  “I am right.” He brushed his lips briefly against mine.

  “Okay. Why didn’t I see it? I’m a witch.”

  I sighed. “I’m not sure. You were drinkin
g. A bit tipsy, I might add.”

  “Maybe. But why is his being a warlock a bad thing?”

  “V, don’t you find it strange or coincidental that your cousin comes to visit a whole three months earlier than she’d originally planned, and she brings a warlock with her without telling you what he is?”

  I walked to the window and stared out for a few seconds and then turned back around. “Maybe she doesn’t know.”

  “Does she know you are a witch?”

  “Yes. Everyone in my family knows. They were all there at the ceremonial ritual. Even the non-gifted.”

  “Then I’m sure he knows you are.”

  “What are you suggesting?”

  He turned me around, hugging my back to his chest so that we were both facing outside. He wrapped his arms around me. “It’s probably nothing. I just question why he didn’t say anything to you about what he was. Why he would be hiding it from you.”

  “He didn’t seem to realize he was in a house full of vampires. Maybe he didn’t know. Maybe he doesn’t have that capability.” I was beat. This conversation was draining me even more. I was too tired to care if Seth was a warlock or not. So what? He wasn’t the first warlock I’d ever met.

  “I have a headache. And…so I don’t wake up with one in the morning, I’m going to my room to get some ibuprofen. I’ll be back in a few minutes.

  I took off for my room and walked in, too tired to even flip the switch on the wall, I just waved my hand toward the lamp as it lit up the space with a soft glow. I went to my bathroom and grabbed the bottle of pills, popped two in my mouth, and gathered water in my hand from the faucet to help swallow them. I stared at my pale face in the mirror. This room was probably one of very few with an actual mirror. There were dark circles under my eyes. I looked sick. I needed to start getting more sleep. I turned to walk out when a sharp pain stabbed me in the stomach, and I leaned over the toilet, losing the pills I’d just swallowed as well as everything else I’d eaten for dinner.

  The pain in my stomach worsened, and I cried out in agony as the next wave of pain jabbed me, twisting like a knife. I purged some more. Vomit stuck in my hair and I didn’t have the strength to move it out of the way. I tried calling out for help, but I couldn’t make my words loud enough for anyone to hear. I retched again as another jolt of pain twisted in my gut.