by Unknown
It was very guardian-like.
She didn't enjoy that thought at all.
Nuzzling his neck as he lowered them into the water, she touched his mind to thank him, only to see the fleeting glimmer of his emotions. The words, which popped into her mind, were ‘je t'aime’.Jolie paused as she searched for it again to be sure, but it was gone.
Slipping back out, she took the sponge that he offered her.
“Get working for that forgiveness, Mistress,” he teased, kissing her on the lips before turning his back to her. It was a good thing because she was speechless. “By the way, I also have a confession.”
Her heart stopped in her chest and for the first time in her life, she had hope.
“Oui?” Would he say his feelings out loud, so that she could claim him as mate? It was the final step, and Jolie knew that he had to make it, unpressured.
“I also cheated.”
“What?” She was confused by his words.
“I had Chloe help me dress.”
“Oh.” Jolie was disappointed and tried to hide it. “Then, I guess you will be washing my back next.”
“I think I can do better than just wash your back,” he offered, grinning over his shoulder as his hand snaked up her thigh to warmer, softer places.
“Oh, really?” Jolie let the hurt go, so that he could have his fun, working off his punishment.
After all, she didn't want to scare him away.
∞ ∞ ∞
Forty-five minutes and plenty of creative water logged activities later, Jacques carried her to her bed, placing her on fresh sheets that he had ordered for them while they were in the bath. After leaving a gentle kiss on her forehead, he covered her up.
While he didn't want to leave her, he knew the truth. Tonight had been his one moment. Now, it was back to the reality of it all. Jolie was his heart, but she was also his mistress.
When it came down to it, the primus couldn’t take a lower mate, like a guardian. He was expendable and just her hired killer. His job was to ensure that she was safe and nothing more. While being a guardian entitled him to certain benefits, it didn't guarantee him her heart. Jacques only prayed that when she did find the man to share her love with, he could handle the pain and hell it would bring.
It wouldn’t be anyone’s fault but his own.
He broke the rules and fell for a woman he couldn’t have.
Running his fingers down her cheek, his heart ached. Walking out of that room was going to be the hardest thing that he ever had to do. There was no way he could stay there with Jolie, and he knew it.
He was madly in love with her, but he was expected to take the path of duty, not love.
As he headed to the door, he glanced back one last time at her resting on the bed. He knew she would be slipping to death soon, and he wanted to tell her how he felt.
Instead, he took the safe route.
“Thank you for tonight, Jolie. You’ve given me something that I’ll carry forever.”
When she didn't reply, he assumed that she was already in death’s hands.
Now, he would retire to his quarters as he prepared to face the hell which was coming. Tomorrow, he would be nothing to her once more. His one night in heaven was over, and much like the other fallen angels, he was excommunicated.
The best day of his life had just become his worst.
This was his fear.
Now, he would live it alone.
Jolie was so exhausted that she never felt him leave the room. When she finally mustered enough energy to fight off death, she reached for his body and its glorious warmth. The second she realized that he was gone from her bed, worry filled her.
This was what she didn't want to happen.
Reaching for him, Jacques was already in his bed and death had claimed him. “Damn him!” she exclaimed, irritated that he was beginning a hasty retreat.
Her body was sluggish and tired, since it was well past dawn. She understood him going to death, but why did he leave her bed?
What else could she do to make it perfectly clear?
Throwing on a robe, she headed out of her room before calling to her donor.
“Chloe!”
“Yes, Mistress?”
“I’ll be in Jacques’s room at sunset.”
“Yes, Mistress. Will you need to feed?”
“Yes, I will. We have the council meeting tonight, so please bring Louisa with you when you come.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
“And, Chloe, in my car is a walking cane. Get it engraved this morning for me.”
“What would you like it to say?”
She gave her the details, “I want to surprise Jacques with it when he wakes.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
“Thank you, Chloe.”
Standing outside his door, she paused in worry. If he woke with her in his bed, would he be upset? Jolie wasn’t one hundred percent sure how he really felt. This was a first for her, since she never slept anywhere but her quarters.
If this didn't tell him everything that he needed to know, nothing would. They would be beyond hope.
Taking a deep breath, she unlocked the doors with her mind. Once in his dark room, she was overwhelmed with emotion. There he lay, naked and covered only to his hips with white silk.
Heat flooded her as the memories all came back.
Jolie climbed into the bed beside him, tossing her arm and leg across his body.
“I’ll teach you to sneak away,” she smiled, brushing her lips across his shoulder. She called for death and hoped that when they woke, everything would be perfect.
∞ Chapter Eight ∞
Before late afternoon had even arrived, they had company. Louisa opened the front door of the sprawling home and found two humans waiting there. Seeing them, her heart skipped in her chest. Immediately, Louisa knew they were the police. In her mind, she called out to all who were awake, warning them.
As a human donor, her duty was to protect the family who gave her a home and safety.
“Yes, may I help you?”
“I’m Detective Brogan and this is Detective Gress. We need to speak to Doctor Harcourte. She’s working on a case for us.”
“I’m sorry, Detectives, but she is away at a conference and isn’t home. Was she aware you had a meeting?” asked the woman.
Flynn Brogan was now suspicious. When they tried to corner her at her office, her secretary had said that she was home for the day.
Interesting.
“We were in the neighborhood and thought that we would stop by. May we speak to Jacques Degaul?” asked Gress.
“I’m sorry, Detectives, but when Doctor Harcourte travels, Jacques accompanies her. They’ll be returning tomorrow evening, but I can leave her a message or you may wish to call her cell,” she replied, stepping back to close the door.
It was obvious that she was dismissing them.
“Thank you, miss,” Gress said, as the door snicked closed.
“Well, that was useless,” said Brogan.
“Yeah, I agree.”
“So much for us catching them apart to play inquisition. I find it odd that Doctor Harcourte’s secretary didn't know that she was out of town. Don’t you?”
Gress looked at his partner and shook his head. “It’s odd, but I wouldn’t read too much into it. In fact, you should just ask the woman out on a date so you can get her out of your system. She’s making you a mess,” he stated, grinning.
The silence in the car was answer enough.
∞ ∞ ∞
Dusk
Jacques woke and something was definitely not right. At his first welcoming breath of life, he could feel a cold arm and leg lying across his body. Instinct reared up as he prepared to protect himself.
Glancing down, Jacques was startled to find his greatest desire in life was now beside him.
Here was Jolie.
Despite his trepidation, his body roared to life. When he had put her to bed and crawled into his own to
die alone, it was torture.
No, it was beyond that. It was the most difficult thing that he ever had to do. In his heart, Jacques knew that he wasn’t worthy of more than one night with her. Already, he was dangerously across the line, wanting her too much for his own good. The idea of waking alone had bothered him, but what choice did he have?
Now, there beside him was the sweetest dark angel on the earth.
Damnation!
What was he supposed to do now? For the first time, he was scared, worried, and clueless.
When she took her first breath, as life overcame darkness, his heart began pounding in his chest.
She opened her eyes. “Morning.” Okay, he was staring at her like she was a three headed alien.
When he still didn't reply, she pushed on.
“Please say something,” she pleaded, staring into the depths of his eyes. Then and there, she realized that this had been a mistake. What she felt for him wasn’t reciprocated.
He wasn’t ready.
Here came the pain.
“You’re in my bed.” It was a statement and not a question. “How did you get here?”
“I’m sorry, but you left me last night, and I wanted to wake next to you,” she answered, pulling the silk in front of her bare body to offer her some protection.
It was silly, but what choice did she have?
When he still said nothing, Jolie got the hint. She stood and grabbed her robe from the floor. “I’ll leave.”
It caught him off guard as he tried to process what it all meant. It was one thing to roll around naked, but her coming to him last night screamed of something so much more.
Could it be?
He watched her slip into her robe and walk away. When she paused at the door, his heart skipped in his chest as he fought to find the words.
“I see that I made a mistake. Don’t look so distraught, Jacques. I promise it’ll never happen again,” she added, as she closed his bedroom door behind her.
Now, it was time for the walk of shame.
Heading to her quarters, she was feeling so completely devastated and empty. There was only one thing that would fill her and make her feel whole again, and it was anger.
It washed over her, pouring darkly over her entire being. This she understood, and the comfortable familiarity beat back some of the pain.
The door to her chambers swung open and slammed behind her after entering. Well, she had taken a chance, and it was the wrong one. Maybe the words she heard in his head were her own.
For now, she needed to dress and forget about the events that had just occurred. She had to leave to be at her council meeting shortly, and it would now be a long miserable drive as her anger and humiliation were all she had to keep her company.
Damn him!
Jolie headed to her closet to mourn what she had talked herself into. Now, she saw how foolish she had been.
Duty called.
It was time to get ready for her evening.
Again, she donned the veneer of cold primus and swallowed the pain. Never again would she let her heart lead. It took her down paths which she has no business traversing.
From now on, it was strictly business.
Jacques sat there with his head in his hands, wondering what the hell had just happened.
When he awoke, there was one thing that he wanted more than anything.
Jolie.
She was a gift, and he had watched her walk out without begging her to come back. This was a terrible mess. He slid to the end of the bed and tried to figure out how to fix all of this. Part of him wanted to punch holes in the walls around him to get out all his frustration, and the rest wanted to run to Jolie, begging her forgiveness.
Then, he was reminded of the truth.
He was her guardian and didn’t have the luxury of pretending that they could have something more. All that he was entitled to was her taking his blood and sharing sex.
Granted, it was mind blowing, amazing sex, but she couldn’t be with him as anything other than her guardian. In the back of his mind, he was acutely aware that one day Jolie would find a human as a mate.
What his heart longed for didn't matter.
Duty was paramount.
Jolie needed to pick a human so she could keep their family bloodline going and give her children.
Damnation!
Why did he feel so empty now?
He wanted to thank the powers that be when he woke up, but instead he allowed her to walk away. There was a knock on the door, and he glanced up hoping it was Jolie. Even if she came back to scream at him, it was better than the distance between them.
When the door opened, his heart dropped.
“The mistress told us to come here in the morning and feed you,” stated Chloe, explaining their arrival.
Louisa looked around and stopped moving when she obviously heard something that they didn’t. “Excuse me, but the mistress calls me from her room.” Louisa hurried away to feed Jolie.
Chloe watched Jacques with carefully blank eyes. She knew what was happening. The whole house did. They could all feel it in the air. As much as she wanted to help until Jolie said otherwise, she wasn’t going to intercede. “Are you ready to feed, Jacques?”
“Yes,” he replied, feeling more miserable than he ever had in his entire life. He took her outstretched hand and began draining energy to refill his body. When he was feeling alive again, he released her hand.
“Jacques?”
“Yes, Chloe?”
“Your walking cane came back.”
“Came back from where?” he asked, confused as to where this conversation was heading.
“The mistress had me take it to be engraved this morning. I brought it in here when I returned.” Maybe that little clue would give the man a place to start. She hoped so, since all that she wanted was to see them both happy.
He sat up and looked around for it. “Where is it?”
“On your dresser,” she replied, opting to leave and let him work it out on his own.
Jacques stared at it ominously. What could she have possibly put on it? He was too afraid to look, and have it hurt more. Sitting there, he watched it from across the room, trying to build up the courage to face the music.
The sad truth was that he could battle ancient vampyres without weapons and have no fear, but the words on the walking stick scared the hell out of him.
It was as if his future rested right there.
“Oh hell.”
He knew what he needed to do.
∞ ∞ ∞
Jolie heard Louisa at her door. It flung open and the girl meekly walked in to offer her sustenance. As she approached the bed, Jolie knew that she saw the complete and utter misery.
Who couldn’t?
“Mistress, will it be energy or blood?”
“Blood,” she replied. If she was heading to council alone, she would need to have strength and power on her side.
Everything in their world was a matter of perception.
Usually, she only drank from Jacques but because she didn’t want to face him, she would use a donor. Just thinking about what else she could never do with him again, made her heart ache even more.
She missed him already.
“Yes, Mistress.”
“Can you help me get dressed first, please?” she asked, not wanting to be alone. There was a bitter chill taking over her body, and she was desperate to have someone near her.
Louisa approached her mistress and could feel the bad energy bristling around the room.
Helping her into the head to toe leather, Louisa only paused as she zipped up the back of her cat suit. “Mistress, do you want to talk about it? I’m here to listen if you need a friend.”
She didn't know if she did or not.
“I’m just very angry, Louisa. I did something really stupid.” It’s all she could get out before changing the subject. “I’ll feed now, so then I can leave,” she added, tipping the girl’s head to the side
as she sunk her fangs into her neck.
Slowly, she swallowed the life from her donor. When she could feel her spasm beneath her mouth, she removed her teeth from her neck. “Thank you Louisa.” She walked her to her bed to sit down. “I want you to remain here and relax. I need you to tell Jacques I went to council alone.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
“I’m going to take the Interceptor. I feel like enjoying the night.”
“Please be careful,” she warned. Everyone in the house knew that Jolie drove like a maniac.
Then again, it wasn’t like it could kill her.
“I’ll be back around dawn, and I’ll need to feed, but I want you to take a break, Louisa. Send me someone else.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
Jolie headed out of her room and past the family who were lingering around the stairs. By now, they had heard about her and Jacques coming home the previous evening and were trying to see if the rumors were true.
Well, they were out of luck.
Heading downstairs to the garage, she refused to talk to anyone as her mood darkened and the hurt began to resurface. Jolie fought hard to push it aside.
For now, she had a job to do.
After grabbing her helmet and riding jacket, she pushed her red Inceptor out of the garage.
It was time to focus on the night, and not her heart. Sometimes, it sucked to be the primus.
Tonight was one of those times.
∞ ∞ ∞
Jacques decided to face the music. Walking over to the cane, he picked it up gingerly in his hands. Before she took the time to have anything engraved, he already cherished it. Now, he could only imagine what was on the other side.
Turning it over, he ran his fingers delicately over the new engraving before he dared to read it. He had a feeling that it was going to change his life.
Finally, he bit the bullet and took a chance. When he read it the first time, he couldn’t believe what it said. Immediately, he reread it, slowly saying the words out loud, just to be sure.
“Shit.”
