Teddy didn’t respond at first. He could usually spot a lie a mile off, and Ms. Argeneau was lying . . . about something. The problem was he wasn’t sure what she was lying about exactly. What she said seemed reasonable enough, but he had to wonder why she hadn’t admitted all of this when he’d first mentioned Marguerite.
“Of course, if you hadn’t known, your reaction to my claiming to be in enforcement for a century would have told me and I would have acted like I was joking or something,” she added in a rush as she reached for her coffee.
Teddy narrowed his eyes further as he watched her sip from her mug. The way she was avoiding his eyes and the sudden rush of words just confirmed it in his mind that she was lying. He was about to call her on it, when she wrinkled her nose over the taste of the coffee and set it back with a grimace.
“Ugh. You can’t start your day without this stuff?”
“It tastes better with cream and sugar,” he said absently, pushing them both toward her. He was about to ask what exactly she was lying about and why, when he suddenly knew the answer. After his mentioning her aunt, Katricia had probably read his thoughts and learned he knew about their kind. She was lying to keep him from being uncomfortable with her reading his mind.
“Oh, yes, this is much better.”
Teddy glanced to her to find that she’d doctored her coffee with the sugar and creamer and tried it again . . . and apparently enjoyed it this way. She was actually gulping it down eagerly now.
“I’d go slow if I were you,” he cautioned with amusement. “Some immortals can’t handle caffeine.”
“They can’t?” she asked with surprise.
Teddy shook his head. “Victor does all right on it, and DJ can handle a cup or two, but Alessandro is wired when he drinks it. Starts going ninety like he’s on some kind of vampire speed or crack, and then passes out.”
“I know DJ is Uncle Victor’s friend, but who is Alessandro?” Katricia asked curiously before downing the rest of her drink.
“Alessandro Cipriano,” Teddy explained. “He’s another immortal who lives in Port Henry.”
“Ah.” She nodded, but had twisted to peer toward the coffee pot on the counter. In the next instant, she was on her feet and snatching up both their cups.
Teddy just shook his head and continued eating his soup, but his gaze was on her as she crossed the room to pour them both a fresh cup, specifically on her behind. The woman might be over a century old, but she had the body of a sweet young thing and the tightest little behind he’d ever seen. She definitely didn’t have any panties on under those leotards of hers, he thought as he watched her butt cheeks shift with each step. If he peeled the leotards off, he was sure he’d find nothing but her pale, perfect flesh.
“Unless you’re ready to show me your gun, you should really stop looking at me like that.”
Teddy forced his eyes from Katricia’s behind and up to find her peering at him over her shoulder. He flushed first at being caught staring so rudely at her butt, then reddened further as her words sank in. Damn, that definitely sounded like a proposition. The problem was he didn’t have a damned clue how to respond to it, and suspected he’d stutter like a schoolboy if he tried. The women he knew just weren’t so . . . er . . . forward . . . or comely, for that matter. Not that there weren’t attractive women in Port Henry. He’d been attracted to plenty of women there, many of them his own age. But it had been a while . . . and there was just something about Katricia that— Well, basically, his gun was loaded and half-cocked just from looking at her . . . and wasn’t that the saddest thing in the world? If he took her up on what he suspected was an offer, he’d probably empty his barrel before he even took aim . . . so to speak.
“My gun’s in the drawer there if you want to see it,” he said finally, turning his gaze to his soup as she started back across the room. “So is my badge.”
She let him get away with pretending to misunderstand and simply set his coffee cup in front of him and settled on the floor across from him to fix her own. But the thought was in his head now, and he couldn’t look at her without his mind running along rather X-rated lines, starting with peeling off those damned leotards and running his hands over the firm flesh beneath. His hands, his lips, his tongue . . . Hell, he’d never been a biter, but Teddy had a sudden urge to nip one of the round cheeks and see if it was as firm as it looked, and then—
A sudden ache between his legs brought Teddy’s attention to the fact that he was no longer just half-cocked. He now sported a full-fledged erection that was pressing against his jeans, begging to be released. Christ. He was reacting like a twelve-year-old boy who just found his dad’s stash of porn magazines . . . and the woman was fully clothed, for God’s sake. How pathetic was that? Obviously, he needed to keep a tight rein on his eyes and his thoughts, Teddy decided grimly. In fact, since she was immortal and could read his thoughts if she wanted, he should have been doing it already. The realization made him glance warily to her expression. Katricia was smiling slightly, not looking offended. She hadn’t read his mind, he decided with relief. Still, he determined not to even look at her again while he finished his soup and second cup of coffee.
The fire was dying down by the time they finished and carried their dishes to the kitchen sink. Teddy then returned to add several logs to the blaze and rearrange them in the flames for maximum benefit. He then considered the logs left in the dwindling stack beside the fireplace and moved to begin donning his coat and boots.
“Where are you going?” Katricia asked with surprise.
“To fetch more wood for the fire,” he answered, doing up his boots.
“I’ll help.” She was immediately donning her own coat and boots.
“There’s no need in both of us getting cold,” he said quietly.
“Why not? The fire warms both of us,” she said with a laugh and simply pulled on her gloves.
Teddy frowned, but let it go. He’d learned from dealing with Elvi and Mabel over the years that there was really just no use arguing with a strong woman. Most women would have been happy to leave him to it while they played little housemate inside, but Elvi and Mabel wouldn’t have, and he suspected Katricia was made of the same velvet-covered steel that his two friends were. A woman didn’t work in law enforcement, whether it was mortal or immortal, without a solid backbone.
“The air may be cold, but I don’t think I’ve ever breathed anything so clean,” Katricia said as they started off the porch.
Teddy smiled faintly. “I suppose there isn’t a whole lot of clean air in New York.”
“Too many cars for that,” she said wryly.
“Do you like the city?” he asked curiously as they crossed the yard to the small shed with the tarp-covered wood stacked beside it.
“Not really,” she said easily and laughed at his surprise. “I suppose you’re now wondering why I stay there then?”
“You’d suppose right,” he said mildly.
Katricia shrugged as they paused and pulled the tarp back to begin gathering wood. “It was exciting when I first settled there. The place to be. Life can get boring after a couple of centuries, but New York seemed alive, vibrant, with loads to do and see.” She smiled wryly. “It’s why most older immortals gravitate there, and a lot have settled there over the decades.”
“Really?” he asked curiously, waiting as she shifted her load and tugged the tarp back into place.
Katricia nodded. “New York and Los Angeles are the most popular places for our kind in the States, and Toronto and Montreal hold the most immortals in Canada.”
“The most populated cities,” Teddy murmured as they started back toward the cottage.
Katricia nodded. “The more people there are, the later things stay open and the more things there are to do to entertain yourself . . . and, of course, back when we had to feed off the hoof, the more possible donors there were around t
o choose from.”
Teddy grimaced at the reminder that immortals had at one time fed off his people. Now that there were blood banks, they were restricted only to bagged blood and had laws against biting mortals except in cases of emergency. Katricia had been alive long enough to have had to feed off the hoof at one time, he realized and glanced at her curiously, imagining her roaming the streets of New York in search of victims.
“Stop that,” she said on a laugh.
“What?” he asked, forcing his gaze away as they mounted the stairs to the cottage.
“Stop looking at me like you expect my fangs to sprout and me to fall on your throat at any moment,” she said dryly. “We don’t do that anymore.”
Teddy remained silent as they entered the cottage and shed their boots to carry the wood to the stack beside the fireplace, but once they’d laid down their burden, he asked, “So you moved to New York for the excitement, but don’t enjoy it anymore?”
She shrugged and turned to walk back to their boots. “New York has its charms. I like the theater, and it has some great clubs, but there are just some things it doesn’t have.” She started to undo her coat, and then paused and asked, “Do you want to walk up to the road and see if the snow removers have arrived yet?”
“Sure,” he agreed easily. It was better than sitting around inside, he supposed as he joined her to redon his boots. Once they were headed out of the cottage again, he asked, “So what are the things New York doesn’t have?”
“Stars at night,” she said at once. “I couldn’t believe it when I got up here and saw all the stars in the sky. I’d forgotten there were so many.”
Teddy nodded in understanding. The closer you were to a city the fewer stars there appeared to be in the sky. You saw a lot of stars in the sky down in Port Henry, but even there you didn’t see as many as up here. They were too close to London, he supposed.
“And the fresh air,” Katricia added solemnly. “Sometimes it feels like you’re sucking on a muffler in New York.”
Teddy chuckled at the image that put in his head.
“And the peace and quiet. I mean just listen.” She suddenly paused, closed her eyes, and raised her head in a listening attitude, and Teddy did the same. Silence immediately surrounded him and then he became aware of his breathing, hers, the soft sounds of small creatures moving through the snowy woods, the soft thud of snow sliding off a branch or something else nearby and hitting the snow-covered ground. It was as close to absolute silence as a body could get, he acknowledged.
Katricia sighed almost blissfully. “No traffic, no hum of engines or factories, no chatter of people. Nothing. You can never find silence in New York.”
Teddy opened his eyes and nodded solemnly. Even in Port Henry it was rare, though not impossible to find. They began to walk again, as if by agreement, and he asked, “So why don’t you move?”
“I just might,” she said lightly. “Are there any openings for law enforcement in Port Henry?”
Teddy chuckled at the question. “Actually, there will be soon.”
“Really?” she asked with interest.
Teddy nodded. “I’ll talk to Lucian and if he gives you a good recommendation, we’ll see what we can do.”
When she didn’t respond, he glanced over to see that she was grinning. It seemed she didn’t mind the idea of giving up New York for small-town life, but he cautioned, “Port Henry isn’t nearly as exciting as New York. You have to travel half an hour to get to the nearest movie theater or play, and there isn’t a single night club there.”
“Sounds good to me,” she said lightly.
Teddy smiled faintly and shook his head.
“So, have you always lived in Port Henry?” she asked.
“Born and bred,” he said quietly, and then admitted, “Though I left for a bit to join the army.”
“And how did you like that?” Katricia asked curiously.
“It had its good points and bad points I suppose,” he said slowly. “They taught me discipline and how to handle myself. Made me a man, I guess. And I got to see a bit of the world, but I missed Port Henry.”
“You sound surprised,” she teased lightly.
“I sort of was,” he admitted with a laugh. “All the time I was growing up in Port Henry my feet were itching to get me out of there, see the world, do things, go places.” He chuckled at his younger self and shook his head. “I guess it took leaving to appreciate what I had in Port Henry.”
“Isn’t there an old saying, you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone?” she asked with amusement. “Or maybe it’s song lyrics.”
“Or both,” he said quietly. “Whatever the case, it’s true. Or it was for me.”
She was silent for a minute and then asked, “Have you ever been married, Teddy?”
He shook his head. “Never had the pleasure. You?”
She chuckled wryly. “No. But then that’s not unusual for my kind. We can go centuries or even millennia before finding our life mate.”
“Ah yes, the immortal’s life mate,” Teddy said quietly. “That one person that an immortal can’t read or control. The one they can relax and be themselves around.”
“It’s more than that,” Katricia said solemnly. “Everything is better with a life mate. Food tastes better, colors are brighter, everything is just . . . more . . . and, of course, we can experience shared dreams and shared pleasure, which is supposed to be better than anything ever.” She released a gusty little sigh. “I can’t wait.”
Teddy took in her happy smile and chuckled. “You need to talk to Marguerite, then. I hear she’s like some kind of mystic matchmaker for your people, the queen of immortal hook-ups. She’ll have you experiencing that shared pleasure in no time if you put yourself in her hands.”
“Wouldn’t you like to experience it too?”
Teddy glanced at her with surprise, and then reminded her, “I’m mortal. We don’t have life mates.”
“Mortals can be life mates to immortals,” she pointed out with a shrug.
“Yeah.” Teddy was silent, considering that. He’d seen it happen several times now, and in truth he was envious as hell over it. But he wasn’t foolish enough to hold out much hope of something like that happening to him.
“Hmmm.”
Teddy glanced around curiously at that mutter from Katricia to see that they’d not only reached the end of the driveway but had traversed the ten feet to the bend in the road . . . and it looked exactly as it had the first time he’d seen it. The trees still lay on the road, and the road itself was still snow-covered for as far as he could see. “Looks like we aren’t likely to be getting out of here any time soon.”
“Good thing we have food and firewood, then,” Katricia said cheerfully, turning away to start back.
Teddy nodded, but didn’t follow at once. Instead, he stood staring up the road, wondering how long it would take them to trudge up to the road if it wasn’t cleared in the next day or so. They weren’t likely to run out of firewood: there were several cords lined up along the shed, enough to last a hell of a long time. But the two boxes of food might not last all that long. Still, maybe they’d get lucky and the road crews would be along sometime today. And then maybe they’d get really lucky and the downed trees would be moved and the power lines fixed today or tomorrow. If so, they could head into town and buy groceries. He’d get a big turkey and all the fixings and they could cook up a fine Christmas dinner to share.
The idea made him smile, a nice, cozy Christmas dinner with Katricia. Maybe he’d buy her a gift, too. Something small, so she wouldn’t feel bad for not having a gift for him, and he could get stockings and fill them with chocolate and some thermal socks for her, and—
Teddy’s thoughts died as something smacked him in the back of the head and nearly startled him into falling on his butt. Managing to keep his feet under him, he
turned in surprise and gaped at Katricia as she bent to scoop up more snow into her hands.
“You looked like you’d fallen asleep on your feet,” she said with a grin. “I thought I’d wake you up.”
“Wake me up, huh?” he asked, eyes narrowing on the snowball she was even now forming in her hands. Teddy stood completely still until she took aim and loosed the ball, then ducked and snatched up snow of his own as hers flew overhead. “You made a big mistake there, little lady. I am a champion at snowball fights.”
“Yeah?” she asked with a laugh, scooping up more snow herself. “Bring it on.”
Four
“Gin!” Katricia squealed gleefully as she set down her cards.
“Again?” Teddy squawked, throwing his own hand down with disgust. “You have to be cheating.”
Katricia laughed at the accusation. “How could I have cheated? You dealt the hand.”
“Hmm,” Teddy muttered.
Katrina quickly added up their cards and marked down their new scores, then gathered the cards. As she began to shuffle, Teddy glanced at the fire and then leaned to the side to move the screen aside and toss on another log. Katricia watched him with a smile. After their snowball fight, which they’d decided had been a draw, they’d come in and warmed up by the fire with more lovely hot coffee before they’d heated up some sort of soup Teddy had called chunky something or other. Then they’d chatted and played cards through the afternoon, indulging in poker and rummy until dinnertime.
Another chunky-type soup had been dinner, but this time with some kind of dumplings made from the Bisquick that he’d cooked in it. Teddy had warned her the dumplings wouldn’t be as good as they should be, since he’d only had powdered milk to work with, but they had tasted delicious to her. After doing their best to clean up after dinner, a task that was made difficult by the need to heat water over the fire to get it warm enough to clean with, they’d returned to playing cards and chatting again. This time though, Teddy had decided to teach her gin, which she was quite enjoying since it was the first game she was winning every hand. With the other games, it had been pretty even, one winning a hand, then the other. But she was absolutely trouncing him in gin . . . and doing so with glee.
The Bite Before Christmas Page 4
