Colin the Conqueror

by Rhiannon Neeley

  He wasn’t getting anywhere.

  “Where did you go?” Colin asked for the third time. “You must remember the name of some town or city.”

  Ramsey blew out an exasperated breath and leaned forward, hands on his knees. “Listen Colin—let me tell you something here. The only thing I remember about being gone is whether it was a blond, brunette or redhead and whether they were good or bad. You all had me locked up here with no outlet for my manly desires.” He slapped his knees, raising his eyebrows. “I needed a bit of female companionship. It that so wrong? So hard to figure out?”

  Colin narrowed his eyes. Ramsey was the type of man that made any other man who had any sense of morals at all, want to punch him right in the face. “You knew that you weren’t allowed out without an escort. We need to know where you are at all times to protect the Unkindness,” Colin said through gritted teeth. He was getting angry. Ramsey being free as a bird put something that was close to Colin’s heart in jeopardy—Heather.

  “Colin,” Ramsey said, still leaning forward. “You of all people should know … you can’t hold someone prisoner. It’s against the law.”

  John stepped forward. “Didn’t you agree to stay here? That was my understanding.”

  Ramsey looked up at him. “After the first few days … yeah. I did. But damn, John, you all have your women. I’ve got zilch.”

  Colin shook his head and rose from the chair. “I don’t believe one word that is coming from his mouth.”

  “Neither do I,” Holt said.

  Ramsey stood and threw his arms wide in the air. “Okay. You would think that since I came back, it would mean something but I guess not. So, lock me in my room again. Hold me prisoner. Whatever.”

  John looked at Colin. His look was questioning, very off for the head of the family.

  Colin shrugged. “True, locking him up as an unwilling prisoner is illegal but he asked us to do it. Besides, when he first came here, we locked him up without his permission and performed medical testing on him. We broke the law then.” Colin nodded his head toward Ramsey but kept his eyes on John. “Who would believe him if he went to the police? Could he tell them that he was being held prisoner by vampire hunters and still stay clear of the nearest mental hospital? I think not.”

  John nodded. “Holt—lock him up.”

  * * * *

  Heather sat in the main kitchen with Casey, waiting for Colin. He was late for lunch but she knew why. The word had spread among the women of Ravencrest like wildfire, Ivy striking the first match by running from one to the other with the news—Ramsey was back.

  Heather picked at her turkey sandwich. Thoughts of Ramsey floated through her mind. Ramsey on the yacht, Bloody Hell, where she had been kept by the vampires. Bad things had happened while she was on that yacht. Very bad things. Heather had seen so much death and destruction that, by the time Colin and the others had arrived to rescue her and destroy the vampires, she had withdrawn into herself, becoming barely a shadow of what she once was—a fun-loving, ‘I’ll try anything once-twice if I like it’ kind of girl.

  If it hadn’t been for Colin, patiently by her side from the time she had been brought here, Heather knew she would have succumbed to the insanity that threatened to take over.

  Colin. She truly loved him. It wasn’t one of those burning hot flames that quickly turned to ash. No, she thought, this is deeper. This love goes all the way to my soul.

  “Hey,” Casey said. “Stop thinking so hard. You’ll bruise your brain.”

  Heather looked up from her picked apart sandwich and smiled. “I can’t help it.”

  Casey took the last bite of her own sandwich and flipped her long black hair over her shoulder. Her dark chocolate eyes searched Heather’s face intensely. “Something happen between you and Colin?” she asked.

  Heather felt heat rush into her face. Thoughts of last night drifted through her mind, making her tingle. “Why would you ask that?”

  Casey sat back in her chair, a knowing smile on her face. “Well, I guess that answers my question.”

  “What?” Heather draped her napkin over the destroyed sandwich. She felt a bit wiggly under Casey’s scrutiny.

  Casey laughed. “I can tell by the look on your face that you and Colin finally got a little bit more than friendly.” She slapped the table with her hand. “It’s about time.”

  Heather sputtered. “I didn’t … I just…”

  “Oh Heather,” Casey said grinning from ear to ear, “don’t try to look so innocent. We could all see it.”

  Heather blinked. Had she been that obvious in her attraction to Colin? “See what?”

  Casey shook her head. “All of us have known for awhile that you two are in love with each other. We even thought about taking bets on when you would finally jump each other.”

  Heather’s mouth dropped open. “Jump each other?”

  Casey tilted her head. “There you go with that innocent act again.” She leaned forward like a conspirator. “None of us are ‘innocent’ when it comes to dealing with the men in this house. You included.”

  “Did I hear someone say ‘jump me’?” Colin said from the doorway.

  Heather caught the twinkle in his eyes when their gazes locked. The idea of jumping him definitely sounded more appetizing than the mauled turkey sandwich that lay beneath her napkin.

  “There will be no jumping anyone in this kitchen,” Casey warned. She beckoned to Colin, waving her hand for him to join them. “Come. Sit. Tell us about Ramsey.”

  Heather watched Colin’s face. He instantly sobered at the mention of Ramsey’s name. He sighed and crossed to the table, sitting down beside her. “There’s not much to tell,” he said, his voice bland.

  Heather instinctively knew that there was anger boiling under the surface of Colin’s calm expression. “Did he say where he went? Or why he came back?” she asked.

  Colin shook his head, raking his fingers through his thick hair. “He’s not giving up much in the way of information.”

  Heather liked the way his hair now looked ruffled. “He had to have been somewhere. That just makes no sense.”

  “He’s evidently hiding something,” Casey said.

  “Well, he’ll be hiding it while he’s locked in his quarters,” Colin said. “He’ll have to stay secured in his room until we’re sure that he hasn’t got something up his sleeve.” Colin reached over and patted Heather’s thigh. “I’m sorry I’m late.”

  Heat spread through her blue jeans from where his hand lay on her thigh and ran straight up her leg directly to her core. Now that she’d had a taste of him, she wanted more.

  “You had more important things to do. Lunch with me isn’t all that important,” she said.

  “That’s where you’re wrong,” Colin said, tapping the tip of her nose playfully with his finger. “You are the most important thing.” A smile spread over his lips, melting her insides.

  “Oh, puhhhleease,” Casey said dramatically. “Get a room.” She pushed back her chair.

  Heather laughed. “I think we’ve made Casey sick.”

  Colin laughed with her.

  “I’m going to go work on my research,” Casey said, gathering her dishes. “You two can do … well … whatever.”

  “How far back have you traced the Raven family tree?” Colin asked.

  Heather was interested in Casey’s research, too. She’d never realized that you could go so far back in time, discovering your ancestors and how you came to be who you are, until she’d come across Casey doing genealogical research on the Internet one night. Casey was good at digging up the past. After all, that’s what she had done for a living before Dirk had brought her back to Ravencrest. Now Case was focusing on the Raven family line and the legend behind the Unkindness of Ravens.

  “Yeah,” Heather said, “tell us. Have you traced them back to the beginning of time?”

  Casey rinsed her dish in the sink. “Not quite. I’m back to about the mid-1700s.” She turned, placing her hand o
n her hip. “I’m right at the point where this ‘legend’ of the vampires began. It’s also the point where one name starts to pop up.”

  “What do you mean?” Colin asked.

  Casey crossed her arms and leaned her back against the sink. “Digging back through the old family stories that I’ve found—which aren’t many, let me add—there’s a name that keeps coming up.” Casey’s forehead creased in a frown. “But it’s not the name of someone who is a blood line of the Ravens.”

  Heather shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

  “Well, you see,” Casey began, totally in her element it seemed to Heather, “when you do genealogical research, you can only go so far back with birth and death certificates. In the earlier days, such things didn’t exist. So, you have to start getting your information from wills, land deeds and church records. Things like that.”

  Heather was starting to understand the process but would be lost if she tried it herself. “Is that where this name comes in?”

  “Yes. It’s the strangest thing. It’s usually in the wills. In a codicil.”

  “What the heck is that?” Heather had never heard the word before.

  “A codicil is like a special rule in a will,” Colin said, squeezing her thigh. “Special instructions. An example would be like this: you inherit one million dollars if you get married by the age of twenty-five.”

  “Ahh,” Heather said. “I get it. So it’s ‘do this or get nothing’.”

  Colin chuckled. “Sort of.”

  “Well, anyway,” Casey said, her face animated by their interest, “in some of the wills, it states what amounts to ‘search for Reicher’.” Casey raised her hands in the air, then let them drop to her hips. “But I’ve yet to figure out who Reicher is.”

  “Interesting,” Colin said.

  “I’ll figure it out,” Casey said with a nod. “Just give me time.”

  “Let me know what you find out,” Heather said.

  Casey flipped a hand at them. “See you guys later.”

  Heather turned to Colin. “Would you like a sandwich? There’s turkey.”

  Colin leaned closer. “I know something that is tastier.” Then he captured her lips with his.

  Heather melted inside. His lips moved against hers, soft and tender, stealing her breath. She opened her lips to him, inviting him in. He didn’t hesitate. His tongue slid inside her mouth, tasting, testing. Then with a groan, he pulled back, leaving her feeling empty.

  “Later,” he said, his voice thick with passion.

  “Promise?”

  “Guaranteed.”

  Heather cleared her throat, willing her heartbeat to slow itself back to normal. “I’ll make you something to eat,” she said, slipping out of her chair.

  She quickly made a turkey sandwich, working at the counter beside the sink. Turning, plate in hand, she found Colin leaning back in his chair, watching her. “What are you doing?” she asked, placing the plate with the sandwich in front of him.

  “Enjoying the view.” He grinned up at her.

  Heather slapped at him lightly. “What would you like to drink?”

  “Better make it ice water.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

  After getting his ice water, Heather sat down beside him.

  Colin dug into his sandwich, his hunger evidently overpowering his usual proper lawyer demeanor. “Mmm,” he murmured, winking at her.

  Butterflies fluttered in Heather’s stomach. She needed to talk to Colin about her fears. About how she was a little scared that their relationship wouldn’t last because of her recent past. Taking a deep breath, Heather figured it was better to talk about it now rather than a year from now.

  “Colin?” she said, gently laying her hand on his forearm, “Can we talk?”

  He took a drink of water, swallowing the bite of sandwich. “Of course. Sounds serious from your tone.”

  “It is.” She cleared her throat. “I want to ask you something and it’s really important that you think about it before you answer.”

  He put down his sandwich and turned in his chair, facing her. His eyes bored into hers. “Ask.”

  Here goes, she thought. “You know my past. When I was onboard Bloody Hell, I was there because I was interested in the sanguine lifestyle.”

  Colin nodded.

  “I don’t think you understand,” Heather said. “I wanted to be immersed in it. Including the blood thing.”

  “Maybe I don’t understand,” Colin said, frowning. “Why is this a problem?”

  “Because I want you to know that sometimes my sexual urges tend to be on the wilder side. I did things on that boat…” She took a moment to just breathe. “I had ‘contact’ with another woman while I was on Bloody Hell.”

  Colin raised an eyebrow. “So…”

  Heather took a deep breath. “More than one woman.”

  Colin studied her for a moment, his eyes traveling over her face. “You feel guilty.”

  Heather bit her lip. “Yes—and no.”

  Colin took her hand in his. “Explain.”

  Heather’s insides were absolutely trembling. She’d never been so nervous in her life. What if Colin rejected her over this? It didn’t matter. This was something that she needed to get out in the open. She didn’t want any secrets between them.

  “I feel guilty,” she said, squeezing his hand, “because I had never felt an attraction to another woman. It just doesn’t seem natural to me. I mean, yeah, there are a lot of things I’ve done and a lot more that I’d still like to try when it comes to sex, but that was never one of them.”

  “Go on.” Colin’s dreamy eyes were warm and inviting. Not accusing at all.

  “The biggest thing that makes me feel—strange—is that … I enjoyed it.” The last three words were barely above a whisper.

  A slow smile warmed Colin’s face. “That’s nothing to feel guilty about. There are lots of women—and men—who sample what sex is like with someone of their own gender. It’s a natural curiosity.”

  “Have you?”

  “Have I what?”

  Heather tilted her head. “Have you ever had sex with another man?”

  To her surprise, Colin laughed. “No. I don’t intend to either.” He held up one hand, palm facing her. “Not that I ‘look down’ on anyone who practices that. It’s just not something that I have an inclination to try.”

  Heather nodded.

  “You said yes and no about feeling guilty,” Colin reminded her. “Tell me the reason you don’t feel guilty.”

  The corner of Heather’s mouth quirked up. “That’s simple. The women were vampires.”

  Colin gave his head a quick shake. “Now you’ve lost me.”

  “Since they were vampires,” Heather explained, “I figure that they used some kind of mind mumbo-jumbo to seduce me. So, now do you understand why I feel guilty but then, I don’t?”

  “I think so.” He rubbed her hand that he held. “Why was it so important to tell me this?”

  “I’m worried that it will affect our relationship. I’m scared that with everything that I’ve done, you won’t think I’m worthy of you. And I don’t want any secrets between us—ever.”

  Colin raised his hand and cupped her cheek. “What you’ve done in the past does not affect how I feel about you. I love you, Heather Green. I love everything about you. Every single part of you. Nothing is going to change that. Ever.”

  Heather’s heart felt like it would burst. Wrapping her arms around Colin’s neck, she rested her forehead against his. “I love you, too, Colin Moore,” she said, rubbing the tip of her nose against his.

  Colin brushed her lips with a kiss. “Stop worrying okay?”

  “Okay.”

  Colin brushed her hair back over her shoulder. “And by the way,” he said, his mouth forming a suggestive grin, “I really like the fact that your sexual inclinations run a bit on the wilder side.”

  Heather flew slow heat begin to pool low, then spread up from her lower belly
to her breasts. “Well,” she said, “we’ll have to explore that later then.”

  “It’s a date.”

  Heather winked at him. “You’d better eat your sandwich. You’re going to need your strength.”

  Colin smiled, lifted his sandwich, and took a huge bite.

  * * * *

  Ramsey lay on the bed in his so-called bedroom. In reality, it was no more than a glorified jail cell. It was located beneath the first floor on Ravencrest—what most people would deem the basement. But Ramsey knew there was at least one more floor below him. If not more. The place was a fortress.

  His hands tucked behind his head and his feet crossed at the ankles, he felt as relaxed as he could be considering the situation. A smile bloomed on his face. Fortress, he thought. It’s not as secure as they think.

  Ramsey had managed to bluff his way through their third degree when the Ravens and their cohorts, Rogue and Colin had questioned him but he wasn’t sure how long it would be before they came back to do it again. He hadn’t really bluffed them completely and he knew it. At least he’d managed to buy some time and also get himself in the exact position he wanted to be in—locked in his room.

  He felt adrenaline begin to surge at the thought of what would happen in just a few hours time. Closing his eyes, he took slow, deep breaths in through his nose, blowing them out through his mouth. He needed to get some rest. If he didn’t he would be of no use to Nicolas later. And Ramsey definitely wanted to be in on the fun when Nicolas came to visit. But the Ravens wouldn’t just let Nicolas walk right through the front door.

  Ramsey shifted on the bed, trying to get as comfortable as he could. Just before closing his eyes to take a much-needed nap, he looked up at the one and only window in the room.

  It was a small rectangle, high up at ceiling level. The type of window that would be put in a basement, at ground level, the height of one cement block and as wide. There was a small crank that allowed it to open from the bottom edge about four inches to allow for airflow. Ramsey had it opened now and he could catch the scent of pine trees every so often when a breeze wafted in through the screen that kept out the critters.

  Ramsey eyed the open window, gauging the size of the opening. The screen was no problem. It could be easily taken out. Nodding to himself, he closed his eyes. Yeah, he thought. A bird will fit through that.