Frost Burn

by Erica Stevens

  A friction of resentment slid over her skin, goose bumps broke out across her arms. Her teeth clamped together and she hissed her words at him. “I’ll do what?”

  He must have realized what he’d sounded like as he shook his head. “Sorry,” he muttered and ran a hand through his hair. “I need you to take me to find those men, and if they’re not at any of those places, then you’ll have to let me know where to find them.”

  “What do I look like the town yellow pages?” she retorted.

  The smile slid away from his face, he stared at her for a minute before leaning toward her. “You look like a highly pissed off vampire right now. You have to understand, what I felt from that person wasn’t good, and they’re going to kill again. Soon. They’re hunting women and children.” Her stomach twisted sickly at the idea, her blood ran cold as she gawked at him. “Children are the main thing they’re hunting, and what they take the most pleasure in torturing and killing.”

  All right, she had to admit that was far more important than the fact that he was an arrogant, exasperating ass. “I’ll help you find as many of them as I can.”

  “Thank you.”

  “We can’t really do anything now anyway.” She gestured toward the blinds covering her window and the rays of sun beginning to peek around them.

  “No, but at sundown. You’ll have to call out of work.”

  “I have the night off.” She rose to her feet, snatched up her wrappers and walked over to toss them in the trash. “I don’t suppose I’ll get lucky enough to get you to stay out of my hallway today?”

  He grinned at her and shook his head. “Hate to disappoint. You’re stuck with me for the day again. Even if vampires can’t move about in the day, I’m not leaving you unprotected.”

  Uneasiness slid through her, she glanced around her small apartment. She couldn’t have him spending another night in her hallway. The neighbors hadn’t complained last night, they would if he continued to sit out there though. They may call the cops, which could become ugly if one of them tried to drag Julian outside into the day. But if he came in here, he could learn everything about her.

  He was already sitting in her chair, at her table, she reminded herself. Touching her things and yet he’d mentioned nothing of her past. There would be no keeping silent about it if he knew the truth, he would confront her on it, she was certain of that.

  Had he lied about his ability in an attempt to get her to spill her guts? Or was he keeping silent on the things he’d learned and just waiting for his chance to pounce on her? Or maybe touching her things didn’t give him detailed images and memories from her but only glimpses?

  Either way, the damage had already been done. She’d make sure not to touch him again, but she didn’t see the harm in allowing him to crash on her couch. It was the far better option to having the cops storming her hallway or her neighbors calling the landlord to complain. She didn’t have much money, this was the only decent place in town she could afford, and she couldn’t lose it.

  “You can stay on the couch,” she muttered.

  He did an exaggerated double take and lifted his right hand to his ear to pull it toward her. “I’m not sure I heard you right.”

  She made a disgusted noise and shook her head. “I’d prefer not to lose my place or see you dragged out by the cops. As much as I don’t like it, you’ve left me no choice.”

  “Let’s get this straight Dewdrop, I’m going to make sure you stay safe, but you always have a choice.”

  “My neighbors…”

  “I’ll stay in the supply closet at the end of the hall.”

  “With the plungers and whatever else the landlord keeps in there?”

  “Tools, I’ve already snooped through. Believe me, I’ve slept with worse.”

  “Oh I bet the plunger probably beats out a few of the things you’ve slept with,” she replied with a smile.

  “You do have some claws; I like it.”

  “I’m thrilled,” she deadpanned. “There’s an extra blanket and pillow in the closet.” Before he could say anything else, she turned on her heel and walked out of the kitchen. It took everything she had not to look back at him as she hurried into her room.

  “Hello, Dewdrop.”

  Quinn barely heard Julian’s words. Her attention was solely focused on the brand new, tan couch sitting in her living room. It hadn’t been there when she’d gone to the bar to grab the stub for her paycheck. She had automatic deposit; banker’s hours didn’t exactly work for her, but she’d decided to check with Clint and Angie and make sure she hadn’t missed anyone from the fight last night. They hadn’t mentioned anyone she didn’t already known was there.

  She hadn’t been gone an hour, but he’d been extremely busy. “What is that?” she demanded.

  “It’s a couch.”

  Her eyes shot toward him. “I know it’s a couch. What’s it doing in my living room?”

  “I wasn’t spending one more night on that death trap you scavenged.” He rubbed at his neck to emphasize his point. “I texted Chris earlier to find me something comfy to sleep on. The delivery guys dropped it off while you were out.”

  “How convenient. Did my couch break your neck?”

  “No.”

  “Then I don’t see the problem.”

  “It was hideous and less comfortable than a board of nails. By the way you could have warned me that I was literally sleeping on a death trap.” He gestured to the three stakes sitting on top of the milk crate. She’d placed them strategically through the couch. One had been under a cushion, another on the floor beneath the couch, and the third in the springs under it. “One of them kept poking me.”

  “Not hard enough,” she retorted.

  He chuckled as he ran a hand through his tussled hair. “I think it left a bruise.”

  “What are you, the freaking Princess and the Pea?”

  “No, I’m definitely all man, but I do enjoy sleeping.”

  Her teeth grated together, it took everything she had not to start swearing at him. “Who said you were going to stay here again tonight?”

  He folded his arms over his broad chest, crossed his legs and leaned against her wall. “I just assumed you would continue to be an inviting ball of sunshine.”

  There were angels who would have gladly jumped on him and beaten him to death. She most certainly wasn’t an angel. “Where is my couch?”

  An irritated sound escaped him, but there was no way he was more aggravated than her. “I had Chris put it where it belongs.”

  “If it’s in the dump…”

  “It is.”

  “Damn you!” she snapped. “I don’t care what you say, or what you think. I want you out of my life!”

  His body uncoiled, he closed the distance between them in three lengthy strides. The thunderous look on his face almost made her retreat a few steps, but she refused to give him any more than he’d already taken from her. She tilted her head back to look up at him, and defiantly met his icy stare as he rested his hand on the wall beside her head and leaned closer.

  The inside of her body came alive, her ability itched to taste the waves of power he emanated and feast on him. Stay under control, she told herself, but the tempting vibrations of his body against hers were almost more than she could stand.

  “You can curse me, damn me, do whatever you want to me, but I’m not leaving until there is no more threat to you. It could be a very long time before I walk out that door and out of your life, but we can fight about it later; we have something far more important to deal with first. Now, tell me you know for sure all the people who were involved last night.”

  She folded her arms over her chest. “I do,” she reluctantly admitted.

  His face eased. “Good.”

  “I’m going to help you with this, but don’t get rid of my things or try to take control of my life like this again.”

  “Whatever you say.”

  “Don’t patronize me!”

  Her body relaxed
when he dropped his hands down and stepped away from her. “I’m not patronizing you.” He ran a hand over his face, pulling at the dark stubble lining his cheeks.

  A tired air surrounded him. For the first time she realized what he’d seen from the killer was wearing on him. “What you saw last night was really bad, wasn’t it?”

  “It was,” he confirmed. “You should get ready to go.”

  “Yeah,” she murmured.

  Despite her persistent urge to yell at him, a part of her would like nothing more than to console him in some way. Shaking her head at the ridiculous thought, she walked into her room and closed the door behind her.

  Her hair hung in wet tendrils when she cracked open her door and poked her head out. She’d spent the past hour trying to get herself ready to deal with him again. When his head emerged around the doorway of the kitchen, she knew there was no way she could ever be prepared for him. Not with that face and the attitude that came with it.

  His icy eyes skimmed over her, a smile quirked the corners of his mouth as he leaned against the doorframe. “Little over dressed for a strip club,” he remarked.

  Her eyes skimmed over her gray, Killers t-shirt barely visible beneath her zip-up black hoodie, blue jeans, and calf high black boots hiding her stakes. The hoodie helped to keep the stake and knife strapped to her waist hidden. They might not be hunting vamps tonight, but she never left home without being fully prepared to kill something.

  “I’m not a stripper,” she replied.

  “Still, you should try to blend in.”

  She scowled at him as she pulled at the sleeves of her hoodie. “This is as undressed as I’m getting.”

  The twinkle that came into his eyes made her stomach do little flip-flops as his gaze leisurely perused her body. She was tempted to try and cover herself; he didn’t have x-ray vision though and the only bare parts of her were her face and hands. It didn’t matter, she felt as exposed as if she were completely naked before him when he looked at her like that. A lazy grin spread across his mouth as he met her gaze again.

  “Let’s hope not.”

  It took all she had to keep her mouth from dropping over those words. Somehow, miraculously, she kept her face impassive and her mouth closed. She’d never met anyone who made her as unsettled as this man did. The sooner she could get him out of her home, and her life, the better off she would be.

  “Let’s get this over with,” she muttered.

  “Can I shower first?”

  “Oh, ah, yeah.” She stepped out of the doorway to her bedroom so he could use the bathroom.

  “Chris and Melissa will be here soon,” he told her.

  “What about the others?”

  “Luther is going to take Lou and Zach back to the bar to keep watch for vampires who might be searching for you.”

  Her mouth pursed. “Almost forgot about that fun little nugget of detail.”

  “Lou and Zach will also let us know if any of the fighters return to Clint’s tonight.”

  “They won’t. Clint’s temper is legendary, but they know he’ll forgive anything after a week or two. They’ll wait.”

  “I’d still prefer to have them there,” he said before vanishing into the small bathroom off of her bedroom.

  The apartment seemed emptier without his large frame taking up so much space. She stared at her faded blue comforter and the small bureau sitting beside her bed. For the first time she realized how sad and lonely it all looked, but then she’d been alone for years now. She rubbed at her chest as a sharp pang stabbed her heart.

  The sound of the water turning on brought her attention back to the bathroom. Her eyes widened when she realized he hadn’t completely shut the door. Through the mist filling the room, she spotted his reflection in the mirror, without his shirt on. The blood rushed out of her head as she was confronted with his very broad, chiseled chest. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from him when he turned away to present her with his corded back. There was no saliva left in her mouth as he reached out, grabbed hold of the shower curtain, and stepped out of view.

  Once he was out of her sight, the strange trance holding her finally broke. She closed her bedroom door and retreated from it hastily. Her mind spun, she tried to process the hated feelings of desire blazing to life within her as his image lingered in her mind. With nothing better to do, and looking to distract herself, she turned on the News before walking over to the sofa and perching on the edge of one of the cushions. No matter how inviting the plump cushions were, she refused to get comfortable on it.

  She really hoped they found whoever this killer was tonight. She was in the mood for a fight, and even if they were human, she’d enjoy kicking the crap out of someone who had murdered and tortured innocent women and children. It would be a good way to let out some pent up, excess energy.

  She had no idea what Julian planned to do when they found the guy; she highly doubted he would call the police. He couldn’t plan to kill the man. She didn’t know much about him, but if he traveled with a group of Hunters and Guardians, there was no way they would allow him to kill someone. Or maybe they would, what did she really know of them?

  A knock on the door pulled her attention away from her thoughts. The fresh scent of soap and the pounding of human hearts told her Chris and Melissa had arrived. She walked over to open the door for them. Stepping aside, she gestured for Chris and Melissa to enter the apartment. She wondered if Julian would have something to say about Melissa’s outfit as her gaze ran over Melissa’s jeans and blue turtleneck.

  “Hey,” Melissa greeted. “I hear we’re going to a strip club.”

  “We are, and apparently Julian would prefer it if we dressed like strippers too,” Quinn told her.

  Melissa chuckled as she settled herself onto the couch and fell back against the cushions Quinn had been resisting. “Of course he would.”

  “Has he always been so… ah… annoying?”

  Chris laughed. “This is his good side. He was a lot less fun when he was trying to kill us.”

  This time she was unable to stop herself from gaping. “He tried to kill you?”

  “A few times,” Melissa said as she draped her arm around the back of the couch. “Well, mostly Cassie and Devon.”

  “Who are Cassie and Devon?”

  “Cassie’s our best friend,” Melissa answered. “And Devon is our friend and Cassie’s mate.”

  Quinn had no idea how to process this information or what a mate was. “How can you be friends with someone who tried to kill your best friend?”

  “Life’s funny like that,” Chris said. “Sometimes what starts out as one thing becomes something entirely different.”

  “How did you go from being enemies to friends?” She glanced toward her bedroom door. She didn’t think he’d be able to hear her over the running water, through the closed door and the noise from the TV. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she was prying in some strange way, and she didn’t want him to know she had any interest in his life.

  “Cassie and Julian were kidnapped and imprisoned together by a bunch of insane men playing God. You would have heard of them as The Commission,” Chris replied. “They were trying to create a new line of Hunters using Cassie and Julian’s blood. All they created were monsters. It’s why they had to be taken out.”

  “Really?” Quinn blurted.

  She’d never thought about why The Commission had been decimated, and she hadn’t cared. She’d been hiding from them from the moment she’d been born; the loss of them had been a relief to her. It had been the same with The Elders.

  “Cassie and Julian were both different when they came out of there. They were friends, they cared for each other, and they had formed a bond. Julian was…”

  “He fell in love with her,” Melissa supplied when Chris’s voice trailed off.

  Quinn didn’t know why, but those words caused her deadened heart to twist in a strange way. He drove her completely nuts, what did she care who he loved? “I see. Where
is Cassie now?”

  “She and Devon are living with some other friends of ours. They’re taking care of, and training, the Hunters and Guardians we bring to them,” Chris answered.

  She wondered if Julian was still in love with this woman who had established a life with another man.

  “He changed a lot after their imprisonment,” Melissa said. “He stopped trying to kill us which made us like him a little more. Though there are times when I’d still like to stake him.”

  “I can completely understand,” Quinn said.

  Melissa laughed. “He has that way about him.”

  “He does,” Chris agreed.

  “He’s ok knowing the woman he loves is with another man?” She’d been trying not to ask the question, but it popped out before she could stop herself.

  “He didn’t have a choice,” Melissa said. “There is no separating Cassie and Devon. Julian knew that before he fell in love with her. But you can’t help who you come to love.”

  Quinn’s attention was drawn toward her bedroom door when she heard the shower turn off. Despite her every intention not to let it happen, the image of his carved chest reflected in the mirror filled her mind as she listened to him moving around the bathroom. She hated the heat creeping up her cheeks. With nothing else to do, she walked over and turned off the TV. Standing before the set, she tried to figure out how she was ever going to get through a whole night with Julian, and no customers to distract her.

  He was dangerous. He could learn everything she’d been hiding about herself her whole life. More than that, he could make her forget she had to be on guard around him. No matter how infuriating she found him, or how much she knew she had to stay away, she couldn’t help but listen to the rustle of the clothes sliding over a body she desperately longed to touch.

  Chapter Ten

  There were many things in her life she’d never considered doing; walking into Hawtie’s was one of them. It was everything she’d assumed it would be, and more. In fact, there was more everywhere she looked, or perhaps it was less. She wasn’t bashful, she didn’t embarrass easily, but she was fighting a burning blush right now as she gazed around the dimly lit room. The only real lighting in the place was focused solely on the stage and the three poles set up there. Poles that were all occupied by women wearing less clothing than she wore to sleep in at night, and just barely more than she wore in the shower.