by ERIN BEDFORD
Chapter 19
Piper
Blood. The sharp tang of it filled every orifice of my being. I stood in the dining room once more the trash bag in my hand but alone. Those cups I'd picked up weren't filled with the residue of the alcohol they'd been drinking but instead were overflowing with syrupy dark red liquid.
I glanced down at my hands and gasped, dropping the trash bag. My palms were coated red and shined from the freshly spilled blood. My pulse pounded in my ears, and I tried to rub it off on my pants, but it wouldn't come off.
Spinning on my heel, I raced to the kitchen. At the sink, I flicked on the sink. Putting my hands beneath the scalding water, I rubbed at my hands until they were raw, but still, it wouldn't come off. I cried and yelled out. I kicked the lower cabinets and sunk to the ground, burying my face in my arms and knees.
“Why, Miss Billings?” Antoine’s accented voice purred, and my head peeked up. “Why are you crying?”
Letting out little gasping sobs, I held my hands out. “I can't get it off. No matter how much I scrub it won't come off.”
Antoine knelt at my side, his pale hair falling over his shoulder and he bent his head over my hands. “I see,” he mused and then smirked at me, a hint of a fang showing. “I think I can take care of that.”
Without warning, his tongue darted out and lapped at my hands. The warm wet muscle stroked along my palms in a strange but somehow erotic manner. I squirmed in place but didn't take my hands away from him. For some reason, under Antoine's attention, the blood was coming off where the soap and water had done nothing.
When he pulled one of my fingers into his mouth, my lips formed an o-shape. My thighs rubbed together, and I begged the aching need forming there to dissipate. Antoine's nostrils flared, and his eyes flashed up to meet mine, a low growl coming from his throat as he moved in closer.
“Don't be so greedy, brother,” Wynn appeared at my other side, taking my other hand from his brother. His pouty lips parted, and his tongue darted out, trailing a line from my hands to my elbow. He seemed to care more about tasting every inch of my skin than the actual blood on it.
I sighed and wiggled a bit closer to Wynn. I wanted his mouth on me, those lips pulling on flesh far lower and aching with each touch of their ministrations.
Another low growl pulled my attention from the dark-haired Adonis to Rayne, who jumped over the island and landed before me. His ember eyes flashed red as he prowled up to me, his fingers closing in around my ankles, pulling my legs down and apart. His head dipped, and his eyes closed as he inhaled.
“Now that's what I call a wet dream.”
My eyes blinked at him, and my head cocked to the side. “What?”
The scene blurred around me, and my lashes fluttered open. A part of me sank at the realization that Antoine and Wynn weren't really there. That part was quickly replaced with relief at the absence of blood covering my hands and arms where I laid on my bed.
I let out a heavy breath. Well, it didn't take a genius to figure out what that dream had been all about. Vampires and hot men. Double trouble. A shiver of desire rippled through me, and I realized the need in my dream had passed over to the real world.
What was it that Rayne had said? I giggled a bit, shifting to my side to face the wall. Wet dream indeed.
Checking the time on the clock by the bed, I figured I had a bit more time before I needed to hunt down something to eat. I allowed my eyes to flutter shut once more, hoping to recapture the image of the three of them coming onto me all at once. Sure, Rayne was an ass, but a hot ass. And it's my dream! He doesn't need to know what I flick my bean to.
With a secretive smile, I slid my hand beneath the covers and dipped them between my legs, letting out a ragging groan as my fingers found my clit.
“Would you like a hand with that?”
My fingers stilled at the sound of Rayne's voice, my eyes shooting open. I sat up, utter mortification engulfing my very being. The bed shifted, and I twisted around to see Rayne's amber eyes inches from my face.
“What are you doing in here?”
Rayne's lopsided grin made my clit pulse, and I scowled to myself. Down, girl.
“It's not my fault you don't know how to lock your door.” Tipping his head to the side, his red hair fell over his eyes, his nose brushing along the curse of my neck. “I was walking back to my room and could hardly resist those sweet, needy whimpers you were making.”
“I was not,” I pushed him back with a glare, “and that still doesn't give you a right to come into my room without permission.”
“Actually, it does.” Rayne smirked at my confusion. “I'm your boss. I can go and do whatever I want. That includes...” He looped his fingers around the strap of my tank top and pulled it down over my shoulder. “... you, and now that you're staying, we'll have plenty of time to get acquainted.”
What the fuck was wrong with this kid? Did turning into a vampire make him lose all his sense of decency? I wasn't some piece of meat he could take a bite out of any time that he wanted.
You weren't singing that tune just a few moments ago, now were you?
Shut up. Dream Rayne and real-life Rayne are two totally different creatures.
My hand lashed out on its own. My fist collided with the side of Rayne's face. The pain was sharp and explosive. I gasped and jerked my hand back, glaring at him and his stupid face.
“Did you just punch me?” Rayne gaped, his face hadn't even moved when my fist crumbled against his face. “I can't believe you just hit me.”
“You!” I shouted, jumping from the bed. “You broke my hand.” I held my injured hand out for him to see and then grimaced, holding it close to my body.
Rayne scoffed, waving me off. “You should have thought about that before you decided to punch a vampire.”
“Just because you suck blood and have granite for skin doesn't mean you can harass me whenever you want.”
“Oh, come on, don't act like you didn't want me to.” He leered at me, and I had the urge to hit him again, even with my broken hand.
“What's going on here?”
Both our heads jerked to the door where Wynn stood in all his gloriously delicious self. His flexing biceps shifted beneath his button-down black shirt. He had braided his long black hair, and it hung over his shoulder, making him look even more the forbidden temptation.
“She hit me.” Rayne pointed an accusing finger at my fist with a sneer.
Wynn didn't even spare his brother a glance, his blue eyes immediately going to my hand where I clutched it to my chest. “You're hurt.”
He stepped quickly across the room until he stood before me. With compassion in his eyes, Wynn reached out and cupped my hand. I inhaled sharply and clenched my teeth. His fingers stroked my skin where it had already begun to turn purple and blue.
“Rayne.”
The single word made the redhead rush to Wynn's side. Rayne's mouth barely opened to spout whatever excuse he had before Wynn's spare hand whipped out and hit him across the face. The sudden impact sent Rayne flying into the wall, knocking over my side table and the lamp that went with it in the process. The sound of glass breaking made me wince, and my head turned away from Wynn to where Rayne crouched on the ground.
His amber eyes flashed red, but unlike in my dream, they weren't full of lust but anger. His eyes locked onto me as he swiped his thumb against the side of his mouth, coming away red. I swallowed hard. I was going to pay for that later.
“Come, let's get your hand taken care of.” Wynn wrapped an arm around my shoulders and turned me away from Rayne, leading me out of my room. Over his shoulder, Wynn told Rayne, “Clean that up and then make yourself scarce before I tell Antoine what you've done.”
I could feel Rayne's eyes boring into my back as we left, and I turned my head to Wynn. “Thank you. I'm sorry to be such a bother.”
“Nonsense. Rayne has a big mouth and has years to go before he will fully mature. We hope.” He winked, and I giggled despite my
pain.
“I have to say, even though he deserved it, I am regretting hitting him.” I flexed my wrist and hissed. “I didn't know vampires were so... hard.” I flushed at my wording and flicked my gaze over at Wynn, but if he had noticed my slip up, he didn't show it.
“There are many things about us you will have to learn if you are going to continue working here,” he mused, leading me down the hallway.
I realized after a moment that we weren't going to the kitchen but only gave it a brief thought before asking, “And what else should I know?”
Pushing the door open to his bedroom, he flashed me a fanged grin. “You will have to learn for yourself.”
I hesitated at his doorway, my mouth falling open slightly. Did he really want me to go into his room?
Wynn urged me forward with a reassuring nod.
Taking a deep breath, I took the final step into his room. Dark oaks decorated his furniture, from the tall armoire standing on one end of the room to the four-poster bed with its wine-colored sheets. I'd been in his room many times, getting his laundry and putting it back. However, I never had to make his bed. Any of theirs. I honestly didn't know what they had me around for other than to clean their clothes and pick up after their parties.
“Do you not sleep in your bed?” I spun around and covered my mouth, my eyes widening. “I'm sorry. That's not any of my business.”
Wynn's lips curled up slightly, his head dipping as moved in closer. “No, it's alright. It's not surprising you noticed we don't exactly keep the same hours as you.”
“Yeah.” I let out a nervous giggle. “The days are pretty quiet with only Darren for company. He's not exactly the talkative type.”
“My apologies.” He moved into his bathroom for a moment and then came back out with a first aid kit.
Gesturing for me to take a seat on the edge of his bed, I hesitated again. It was bad enough to be in Wynn's room but to sit on his bed? Get a grip. It's not like he's going to ravish you right there with the bedroom door open.
The mattress sank beneath me and the sudden urge to lay back on it was almost too much to ignore. Man, I thought my bed was soft. What a waste.
“What is it?”
My eyes jerked up from the bed to see Wynn watching me with a bemused look. I blinked rapidly, stumbling over my words as my face heated. “I was just thinking what a pity it is to have such a soft bed but not getting to use it.”
Taking my hand in his, Wynn opened the first aid kit. “I understand how you would see it that way, but believe me, it gets plenty of action.”
I flushed even hotter at his words, forcing myself not to picture the things he could be doing in the bed beneath us. What he could be doing in it to me. Turning my eyes away from the bed, I watched Wynn pick through the first aid kit. He pulled out a large wrap and a tiny vial of dark liquid rolled against the side of the box.
“What's that?” I pointed at the vial.
Wynn picked it up and held it up between his thumb and forefinger. “This is my blood.”
My brows furrowed. “Why do you have a vial of your blood in there?”
Shrugging a shoulder, he rolled the vial around on his hand. “We all do. For emergencies.”
“What kind of emergencies?”
Wynn sat the wrap back in the box and moved closer to me so I could get a better look. “Well, for instance. Your hand is very much broken. At least a few fingers. You'll need to get a cast on it. However,” he held the bottle out to me, “if you drank this, your hand would be healed in a matter of minutes.”
Astonishment filled my chest, and I stared far too long at the vial before turning to him. “What's the catch?”
Wynn grinned, wrapping his fingers around the vial and successfully hiding it from my view. “I knew I liked you.”
Ignoring the flutter in my chest at his words, I turned in place to show him I wasn't going to give up my questioning.
“If you drank this, it would heal your hand certainly.” His eyes dipped down to where my hand sat between us, his fingers trailing along the skin ever so slightly. It didn't exactly hurt, but it made my flesh feel hot and achy. “But then it would also give you a slight immunity to my... charms.” He grinned, his eyes peering up at me from beneath his lashes. “As well as other side effects.”
“Like? And is that immunity to just you or all vampires?”
“Well, aren't you a needy one?”
God, he had no idea. Still, I kept my mouth shut eager to hear what he had to say. If his blood would make me immune to all the others' charms as he said, I would down it regardless of any other side effects. I was already at a disadvantage, being one of the only women surrounded by all this raging testosterone. Now that I knew they were vampires, I was even more vulnerable to their whims as Rayne had almost shown me.
“Sadly, no.” Wynn's lips pursed together. “Only me and the side effects, while not unpleasant, might not be something you want to deal with.”
“But it'll heal my hand?” My eyebrows rose up in question. I didn't exactly have health care or dental for that matter. I couldn't afford a trip to the ER to fix my hand. If I could fix it for free and with little to no side effects, then I'd take it.
“Yes.” Wynn watched me curiously and then opened his hand offering me the vial. “Do you want it?”
I licked my dry lips, my eyes moving from the vial to Wynn's eyes and back again. “Would you think badly if I did?”
“Of course not.” Wynn frowned. “I would have offered it right away had I thought you wouldn't be disgusted by it.”
Now it was my turn to frown. “Why would you think that?”
“Well, it's blood. My blood. You'd have to drink it,” he explained as if it were obvious. “Most would run screaming from the room or at least curse me for even suggesting it.”
I snorted. “I'm still here, aren't I? If you're being a vampire hasn't sent me packing yet, then I don't think a little blood will.” I didn't mention the fact that I already had tried to leave once, but since he didn't bring it up, I figured Antoine had kept it quiet.
“Besides,” I sighed, “I'd rather not have to deal with a cast. It's hard enough cleaning up after you all with two hands let alone one.”
“True enough.” Wynn nodded once and held the vial out to me. “Here.”
Taking the vial from him, I popped the cap and stared at it for a moment before giving Wynn a weak smile. “Salut.”
Chapter 20
Wynn
Antoine was going to kill me. Why had I given Piper my blood? I was already attracted to her, I didn’t need another reason to want to be near her.
Maybe you wanted to make sure you won.
So maybe not being able to use my powers was a bit irritating, but was I really so unsure of my own abilities that I had to make her want me?
The moment my blood hit her mouth, I wanted to reach for her. I wanted to show her that all the things she dreamed about could come true. I heard the way she touched herself in her room, we all did. She wasn’t exactly quiet, though I was sure she didn’t feel that way. In fact, if Piper knew how we all stared at the ceiling of our daytime resting place, she’d run away and never come back.
Women were strange that way. After all these years, I still hadn’t completely wrapped my head around their actions. Whether it be France or the U.S., the actions of women astounded me.
Like the way that Piper drank the vial of my blood without a hint of revulsion. Most women would have been disgusted by the thought. However, she also hadn’t quite reacted the way we had thought when she found out we were vampires.
There had been no attacking or threatening us. Piper had tried to leave, but a simple word or two from Antoine was all it took to convince her to stay. One could chalk that up to Antoine’s persuasive abilities, but it didn’t keep her from still interacting with us.
When I’d seen her in the dining room afterward, she hadn’t seemed afraid. In fact, if anything, she had grown even more of a backbone, as if
us being monsters somehow gave her even more reason to speak out against us.
I chuckled at that thought.
“What’s so funny?” Piper asked, her brows crinkling. “Did I do it wrong? Was I supposed to sip it?”
Shaking my head, I touched her hand, making her eyes drop to it. “No, that was fine. Don’t mind me, my mind got away from me for a moment. How’s your hand?” I stroked the line of her knuckles which had been purple and blue before, but now it was more of a sickly yellow.
Piper frowned and wiggled her fingers. “It’s healing, I think? I doesn’t hurt like before. It only aches some.”
“Good.” I bobbed my head, patting her arm before standing. I needed to put some distance between us before the blood in her took full effect. “Then you should be completely healed within the hour.”
“Really?”
The shock in her voice made me smile. “Would I lie to you?”
Piper seemed to think about it for a moment, her head cocked to the side. “I’m not sure. I don’t really know you all that well. So, you might be lying to me right this moment and I’ll be a vampire by morning.”
I snorted, barking out a laugh. “That is truer than you know but becoming one of us takes far more than a little vial of my blood.”
“Is that so?” The way her lips parted with an eagerness to learn made me want to teach her everything else I knew of being a vampire, including the more salacious aspects that only could be taught without clothing.
Turning my back on her so as not to jump her on the spot, I strode to the bathroom and replaced the first aid kit. “You should keep that wrap on your hand, at least for appearances sake. Rayne would run and tattle the moment he found out I gave you my blood.”
“Is that wrong?” Her voice closer than it had been before.
As I turned around to face her in the doorway of the bathroom, I was surprised she had snuck up on me so easily. Obviously, my mind was elsewhere, or that was what I told myself.