Rana realized she’d probably said way too much. “Ugh, I know you asked, but you probably didn’t expect to get the unabridged version. I shouldn’t have dumped all that on you. It’s been on my mind so much recently, I even thought a man I saw in the alleyway this morning was my dad, but it turned out to be no one I knew.”
“I asked because I want to get to know you, Rana.” Twirling noodles with his chopsticks, he asked, “Do you think the lawyer will be able to talk sense into your father?”
“Mom thinks so.” Rana snorted. “Tigers don’t change their stripes, just the angle they plan to attack from. I’m worried for my mom. She’s grown so strong. I don’t want my father ripping that away from her.” She tapped the other end of her chopstick against her temple. “He could really mess with her mind if he put his energy into it. And believe me, getting a portion of Jack’s estate would be worth his effort.”
Moving the soup bowl in front of her, Rana took a cleansing breath and forced a smile. “But enough about me. How about you? Who were you visiting at the cemetery? Did you recently lose someone?”
Lucian shook his head. “I was saying goodbye to someone I knew a long time ago.”
He didn’t seem to be in the mood to elaborate, so they moved on to discussing a varied range of subjects once the dessert and tea arrived. From his description, she learned that the book collection Lucian owned rivaled her own private one.
“Do you have any siblings?” he asked before taking a bite of dessert.
She shook her head. “What about you?”
“I have a sister.” He chuckled as he set his fork down. “Sabryn’s a force of nature. If she can’t sway you with her charm, she’ll employ imperceptible battle tactics like a skilled strategist, and before you know it you’re fooled into thinking the plan was your idea all along.”
Rana grinned as she cut into her piece of cake. “I think I’d like your sister. She has an unusual name. I recently met a woman named Sabryn.”
His eyebrows elevated. “Really?”
She nodded as she waved her left hand. “I bought this ring from her a couple of days ago.”
Clasping her hand in his warm one, he inspected the ring. “Unusual design.”
“I thought so, too. And for some reason, once I put it on, I didn’t want to take it off.” She laughed. “And now, I couldn’t blast the darn thing off my finger if my life depended on it.”
He smiled as he slid his fingers down to caress hers. “I like it. The ring fits like it was made for you.”
She smiled back, feeling warm all over. Lucian had set her at ease once more. How did he do that?
Dinner was over way too soon and after Lucian had taken care of the bill, he walked her outside. His eyebrows rose as they approached the electric blue sports car.
Laughing, she answered his unspoken question. “It was my grandfather’s. Jack was much more flamboyant than me.”
He clasped her hand. “I think it fits your personality well.”
She gave him an are-you-nuts look. “Yeah, right. That’s me, wild Rana.”
“You’re a very passionate woman, Rana.” His expression turned serious. “One I want to get to know better.”
The crisp fall wind whipped around them, making her shiver. Lucian pulled the lapels of her coat closer together. His caring, thoughtful gesture melted her heart and made her smile. She’d told Lucian more about herself and her life than she’d ever told anyone. And because of it, she felt even closer to him. When he ran his fingers slowly along her jaw line as if memorizing the contours of her face, then tilted her chin toward his, she held her breath.
“May I kiss you?”
If you don’t, I’ll kiss you. She nodded.
He smelled so good, his aroma alluringly exotic. An exact description eluded her, but the scent was like walking through a forest filled with pines and spicy, unusual plants.
He cupped her face, then threaded his fingers through her hair. As he pulled her close, he murmured, “Just a taste.”
When his lips met hers, Rana grasped his winter coat and opened her mouth under his persuasive kiss. His warm tongue took one long sensuous stroke against hers before coming back for a deeper, bolder claiming. It was just like the kiss from her dream—intimate and thorough.
He tasted like the peppermints the waitress had handed them at the end of their meal, refreshing and cool. Mixed with hot male desire, it was a stimulating combination. She returned his devouring kiss, needing the contact, reveling in it.
Lucian pressed her against her car, his hips pinning her in place. “You taste better than I imagined,” he whispered hoarsely while he trailed his lips over her jaw.
Rana gave a soft sigh and let her head fall back, exposing her neck for his tantalizing kisses. When they didn’t come, she opened her eyes, worried she’d somehow done something wrong. His jaw flexed as he stared at the expanse of her neck, his entire body tensed against her.
She chuckled. “It’s okay, Lucian, I don’t bite.”
Flashing a primal smile, his eyes met hers. “Oh, but I do, sweet Rana.”
His dark, sexy look made her shiver in anticipation. God, he played the predator well. “As long as you don’t draw blood, I’m fine with love bites.”
His hand on her hip flexed and the other closed around her hair as his gaze flamed with desire. Tugging gently on the handful, he tilted her head, exposing her throat. “You tempt me more than you’ll ever know.”
Her throaty laugh turned to a gasp of pleasure as he trailed blazing kisses down her neck. His hot tongue laved her skin and his hold on her tightened as he settled his hips against hers, his rigid flesh unmistakable.
The yearning within her became more than she could handle. She pushed back, a counter to his masculine pressure. He growled low in his throat, his teeth grazing her skin. When goose bumps scattered across her skin, she moaned and dropped her hands to his lower back, pulling him even closer.
Sudden laughter penetrated her foggy brain, yanking her back to reality. A group had exited the restaurant and was joking loudly amongst themselves as they made their way to their cars. She tensed, but Lucian’s grip on her tightened and he clamped his teeth on her neck, pinning her still.
Rana whispered his name. His response was to pull her even closer. She had to say his name twice, the second time more forcefully to grab his attention. Finally, he lifted his head. Lucian’s gaze was totally focused, his body tightly coiled. Rana didn’t want him to think she didn’t enjoy kissing him, so she placed her hand on his cheek to let him know. Shaking his head, he came back to the present.
“My apologies,” he said as he released her and stepped away. “You had me so caught up, I forgot where I was.”
She laughed softly. “Well, that makes a girl feel good.”
But Lucian’s stepping away was a good thing. Now that he wasn’t warming her all over, the cool air cleared her brain so she didn’t make a hormonally driven statement like, “Come home with me so we can finish what we started.”
She wanted whatever was happening between them to take time, even if it was a slow, simmering burn. That way, she’d be sure the intense passion they seemed to share was real and not because she was using him to fill some emotional gap left open by Jack’s death.
Lucian grasped her hand and brought it to his mouth. His silver eyes searched hers as he placed a kiss on her palm. “Will you come dance with me tomorrow night?”
Dancing would be a safer date. She couldn’t possibly let things go too far too soon with tons of people around. Rana grinned. “That sounds wonderful. Let me give you directions to my house.”
Lowering her hand, he laced his fingers with hers and shook his head. “I’ll find you.” The warmth of his confidence spread through her like the first rays of spring sunshine, taking her breath away.
Rana felt giddy with the knowledge he wanted to find her and not have the information so freely given. She was unlisted. This should be interesting. It’ll certainly show his l
evel of determination. She withdrew her hand and opened her car door. “See you tomorrow night around seven-thirty?”
“I’ll be there. Good night, sweet Rana.”
As she drove off in the rumbling car, her thighs tingled and her body still throbbed in unfulfilled desire. How long would she be able to hold off in order to assure herself what they had was real? And what would it be like when they finally came together? Rana squirmed in her seat, because in her heart she knew—it would be mind-blowing. Kicking the car into a higher gear, she punched the gas. The ‘Vette’s humming speed built at a rapid pace as if it were tuning into her racing thoughts of Lucian. Smiling, she gripped the wheel tighter. She’d never felt so free yet completely grounded. Now I get why you loved this car so much, Jack!
Chapter Five
Lucian hadn’t felt this good in a long time. His evening with Rana had gone well. He’d literally felt her energy pulling against his, as if time had intensified their mutual attraction. They would be together. And this time, I won’t make the mistake of waiting through a long engagement to make her my mate. Locking his car with a determined punch on the key fob, he headed for the Lion’s Lair, while various seduction scenarios played out in his mind. He’d convince her. Soon.
When he was within thirty feet of the nightclub entrance, he heard scuffling and then a grunt as if someone had been punched. Lucian slowed his steps and focused his hearing. He picked up two super slow heartbeats and one that sounded like a rabbit cornered by a hungry wolf.
Tensing, Lucian tugged his coat collar down with a snap as he picked up his pace, heading straight for the alleyway beside his nightclub.
As soon as he rounded the corner, Lucian gritted his teeth. Kraid held a human by his neck high against the brick building, while William—his ever-present sidekick—stood by watching the spectacle with amusement in his dark eyes. Lucian was surprised Drace wasn’t with them. He was usually knee-deep in whatever chaos his brother initiated. The human’s gaze jerked to Lucian, pleading for help. He kicked and gasped for air as he clawed at Kraid’s death lock on his throat.
Lucian crossed his arms and spoke in a steely voice, “You’re not doing yourself any favors, Kraid. Release him.”
Kraid glared at Lucian over his shoulder, then dropped the man as if he were a piece of trash. When the human scrambled to his feet and started to run, Kraid grabbed his shoulder and embedded his razor sharp nails deep, tearing through the man’s jacket as he jerked him around to meet his gaze. “Stay put, you sack of shit.” Turning back to Lucian, he growled his annoyance. “This is none of your business. He attacked me. The hunter deserves to die.”
Lucian would lay money Kraid had a hand in provoking the attack. The vamp wasn’t the type to go about “minding his own business”. He probably flashed the human his fangs the moment he figured out he was a hunter. Kraid invited trouble.
Lucian narrowed his gaze. “Not on my property and not by your hand.”
Kraid’s eyes flashed red and he snarled, “I make my own decisions who deserves to die and who doesn’t.”
“Stupid actions like that will get you killed,” Lucian said calmly.
Kraid bared his fangs and dug his fingers deeper into the man’s shoulder, causing blood to pool on his canvas jacket. The man grunted in pain. “Shut it,” Kraid hissed, then slowly turned back to Lucian. “Is that a threat?”
Lucian held his gaze. “It’s a promise.”
Tonight had opened an old wound between he and Kraid. It was no secret the volatile vampire hated hunters, but his hatred had grown into something far worse and dangerous—an obsession. Eight decades ago, a hunter had tortured his mother in an effort to get her to divulge the location of their clan headquarters, then he’d killed her. By the time Lucian had caught up to Kraid, the hunter no longer looked human. Instead, he resembled a quivering mass of hamburger meat. Lucian put him out of his misery, and for that crime—because he took away Kraid’s “power” to land the final kill blow—Kraid had never forgiven him. Yet somewhere along the way, Kraid’s fury had morphed from revenge against hunters to an all-consuming need to hold power over others in general. Lucian doubted Kraid gave his mother a passing thought any more. The vamp craved power like a live wire whipping around for someone to fry.
Tonight had come down to a staring contest between them. “Let him go,” Lucian commanded.
Kraid tilted his head and studied Lucian for a second, then grunted and shoved the human toward him. “Fine, you take care of the trash.”
As the man stumbled forward, Lucian put his hands out to steady him. He was shocked when searing pain lashed his wrist as the dark-haired man fell into his arms. “All vampires need to die,” the man roared as he raised a knife to jam into Lucian’s chest.
The combination of pain and betrayal fueled Lucian’s adrenaline like a match thrown into a gas tank. He couldn’t stop the beast that flamed through him. Grabbing the man by his jacket, Lucian shook him like a puppet. The knife clattered to the ground as he whipped the man against the building and glared into his eyes. “You will leave this alley now. You won’t remember any of what just happened. I’d better never see your face around my club again. Am I clear?”
The tension in the man’s body eased and he nodded, mumbling, “I’m going home now.” Lucian lowered him to the ground, then watched him stumble-walk away.
The sound of Kraid and William slowly clapping set Lucian’s nerves on edge. As soon as he turned to them, Kraid spoke.
“If you were voted the new Vité, I’ll bet your first order of business would be to invite all the humans over to dinner.”
Lucian ignored his sarcasm. “You will be judged for your actions.”
Approaching him, Kraid gave an unconcerned smile. “When I become Vité, it’ll be my first order also…to have them over for dinner.”
William laughed and Kraid smiled. “See, you and I, we’re not that different, Lucian. I’ll take to the Vité role like a newborn Vampri with its first whiff of blood.”
The fact that Kraid would even mention the word Vampri so casually filled Lucian with a deep sense of dread. Vampri was a human turned by a Pureblood vampire. They were usually mates or others turned under special circumstances. Kraid didn’t have any connections to humans, so any Vampri he might create wouldn’t have deep ties to the vampire world. Their loyalties would be divided between the two worlds, potentially exposing the Kendrian vampires to those who sought to destroy them. Kraid’s power-hungry, destructive behavior would take all of them down with him.
Lucian couldn’t take the Vité position for three more days, but he’d damn well make sure Kraid would be judged for his crimes by the clan leaders at the summit meeting. In the interim, Lucian’s first decision as the new Vité would be to strip Kraid of his clan leadership role. Ian could keep an eye on Kraid’s activities until the meeting. They didn’t need any more bodies popping up between now and then.
When Kraid smirked and said, “What’s wrong Lucian? Worried?” as if he thought becoming Vité was a done deal, Lucian said in a cold tone, “We are nothing alike.” Hardening his stare, he continued, “You’re banned from the Lion’s Lair. Don’t come here again.”
Kraid stiffened, his amused gaze zeroing briefly to slits. “What do you think your human woman will say when she gets a glimpse of the beast lurking under the veneer of your civility?”
Lucian set his jaw, but kept his expression neutral. He didn’t like Kraid mentioning Rana at all, nor did he want to acknowledge his concern over her reaction when he revealed what he was to her. He didn’t want to think what it would do to him if she refused him.
Stepping close, Kraid continued in a cajoling tone next to his ear, “We are the same, Lucian. The only difference between us is that I embrace what I am.” Taking a step back, he continued, “Word of advice…you ah, might want to clean up before you head into the club.”
When he lifted Lucian’s coat collar with a low chuckle, Lucian smelled the hunter’s blood on the mater
ial. Knocking Kraid’s hand away, he growled, “Get the hell off my property.”
*
Lucian leaned close, his lips barely touching hers. “I want to touch you.”
The low timbre of his voice, so utterly masculine, raised goose bumps on her flesh as Rana ran her hands over his powerfully built chest. His skin felt warm and hard, his muscles strong and taut underneath her wandering fingers. He tilted his head back and closed his eyes, inhaling deeply at her touch.
She held her breath, uncertainty filling her. “Don’t you want me to touch you?”
Lucian’s silvery gaze glimmered with unchecked desire. “Your touch is almost more than I can bear.” He gave a tight smile. “But I wouldn’t have it any other way. Tell me what you want.”
Was she dreaming? This felt so real. May as well enjoy this while she could. Rana threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling his mouth to hers. “I want to finish what we started, Lucian.”
His lips captured hers in a hungry kiss. His chest flattened her breasts, rubbing her sensitive nipples through her nightshirt. In seconds, her shirt opened and his hair-roughed chest grazed her bare rigid peaks. She moaned in response to the titillating abrasion.
Lucian pulled back, his eyes burning with need. He touched her breasts, squeezing them gently. “They’re beautiful, filling my hands perfectly.” His words thrilled her beyond measure. He made her feel treasured.
When he twirled her nipples between his fingers, she gasped, arching her back, encouraging him, hoping he knew what she wanted without having to ask.
He chuckled and leaned over her, his warm breath fanning her breasts. “And these rosy nipples are just dying to be kissed.” Drawing a taut tip in his mouth, he flicked it with his tongue before he surrounded the edge with his teeth and gave a gentle tug.
The pleasure-pain sent a swift ache surging between her legs, followed by hot moisture. She rubbed against his thigh, seeking the hard contact, the friction.
Love's First Bite: Bad Boys and Alpha Vampires Boxed Set (6 book bundle) Page 50