by Austin, RB
He ignored the twinge in his chest. Then paused. Wait. Did she have a man in her life? Waiting for her? Lucas had not found evidence of one in his research, but . . . Unexpected anger flared. “Your friends aren’t worried.”
Emma flinched at his tone then straightened, “What do you mean? What’ve you done to them?”
“Do you have a man at home?”
She blinked. “What?”
“The question was simple, Emma.” He moved closer to the bed, towering over her.
Emma glared and pushed herself to the other side of the bed near the IV. Using the headboard for support, she stood, wobbled once.
“You need to sit down,” he grounded out.
“Tell me what you did to my friends.”
His hands clenched into fists, his reasoning out the window as he let go of the restraint he leashed upon himself centuries ago. He focused on her thoughts.
Cade blinked, paused, and tried again. Nothing. Not even a whisper. Perhaps the medication? Another side effect of the infection? Guilt washed through him. He was attacking her while she still dealt with the effects of the cut. What was the matter with him? Why had he come back to the room?
“What did you do with my friends?” Her voice and body trembled.
“They’re safe.” His anger vanished completely. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. Please. Sit back down.”
“I want you to tell me what you said or did to my friends. Right. Now.”
“One of my brothers spoke with them and convinced them you were safe.”
Emma jerked back, eyes wide. Had she expected him to refuse to answer or least put up more of a fight? He’d expected the same things from himself this whole time.
“My friends wouldn’t be convinced by strangers. They’d want to see me. To talk to me.” She dropped her gaze, biting her bottom lip.
“My brothers can be convincing.”
Cade could hear her heart rate accelerate. “Are they unharmed?”
“Yes I promise you. Your friends haven’t been, nor will be, hurt by one of us.”
She searched his face, frowned. “Fine.” Emma sat on the bed over top of the covers, staying as close to the edge as possible. Circles were deep and dark underneath her eyes. Standing had leeched the color from her cheeks. Cade cursed inwardly. He shouldn’t have upset her. Shouldn’t have sat next to her. It was time to leave. Let her rest. Have Martha watch her. There was an After Dawn Meeting to prepare for.
Cade lowered himself into the chair, stretching his legs in front of him.
Emma watched him, but didn’t appear frightened only wary. Good. He didn’t want her afraid of him.
“Do you like to swim?” Cade asked suddenly.
Her eyebrows rose then fell. She pursed her lips.
“It wasn’t a trick question.”
Emma studied him for another agonizing minute then spoke hesitantly. “Yes?” Her voice rose on the ending, making the word more of a question.
“Want to go?”
“It’s winter.”
“We’ve an indoor pool.”
Her gaze roamed over his face as if looking for some hidden meaning. “I don’t have a suit.”
“I could get you some different clothes to go in.”
“The port.” Emma lifted her arm attached to the IV tube.
He circled the bed in two strides. “I’ll cover it.
“Wait, wait.” She held her hand out of reach. “You actually want to go swimming?”
“Yes. Don’t you?”
She hesitated for a moment, shrugged, then gave him her arm.
Vetis was stuck babysitting the recruits. Again. Total waste of his talent.
The cattle were in line, each packing a large backpack. The provisions they’d need for the two-day trip placed on three long tables. Only quiet conversations filled the room since Pedophiler exploded into tiny bits. Thank fuck for small favors.
Vetis’s gaze roamed over the crowd. He furrowed his brows and swept it again.
“We’re missing a few.”
Kobal giggled. “Lilith’s missing, too.”
“Fuck.”
Another high-pitch squeal. “Probably.”
“Go tell her to get those recruits back here.”
Kobal nodded and pranced down the tunnel.
“Is everyone ready?”
Vetis startled. Sonneillon was at his side. How long had he been there? The Second in Command stared at him like he was reading his mind. Not bloody likely. Otherwise Vetis would be dead already.
“Yes. They have what they need for the journey ahead.” He pulled his hood farther down until shadows obscured his face.
Sonneillon surveyed the cell. “A few are missing.”
Vetis jerked his head toward Lilith’s room. Before Sonneillon could react Kobal bounced into view. “I stuck my head in her room. She said she’s coming,” he giggled at the double entendre.
Sonneillon’s jaw clenched as he pivoted and swept down the hall.
If Vetis were in charge, he’d keep a shorter leash on Lilith or have her spayed. He began to walk through the recruits, making sure they were packed and had finished their meal.
Sonneillon returned with Lilith and three recruits in tow. The Followers scurried in the room, grabbing the remaining items on the tables. Lilith’s gaze never left the ground. She stood in the entranceway, her shoulders curved inward. A large, red welt wrapped her neck in the shape of a hand.
“Take them to the back exit,” Sonneillon ordered Vetis. “I’ll meet them in five.”
Vetis called out to the Followers. “Grab your shit and follow me.”
Chapter 7
Emma stood in front of a mirror. She looked ridiculous. The black shorts fell to her knees, the draw string pulled so tight she was pretty sure it was going to break, and the huge black T-shirt was gathered at her waist and tied in the back. Plastic wrap and medical tape covered her IV hand from knuckles to wrist. If she hadn’t seen the enormous pool herself she would have assumed that this was some trick. Cade leading her to the basement so he could finally kill her. She inhaled deeply than sighed, rubbing her forehead. It was getting harder and harder to stick with the theory that Cade meant her any harm. Everything that happened since she woke the first time in the room upstairs proved otherwise. And then when he sat next to her on the bed . . . Emma shook her head. He was not about to kiss her. That was an utterly ridiculous thought. Along with the wonder of what it would feel like to have his lips on hers. She groaned. It was waaay past escape time. The pool had turned out to be a great idea, she’d been able to get the lay of the land, so to speak. Emma knew where the front door was now.
After Cade had secured her hand, they’d left the room. She hadn’t fully comprehended the house’s vastness from the tiny part she’d seen. Ho-ly crap. Not that she was impressed. Okay maybe just a bit. The place resembled a museum with large doorway arches, marble flooring, statues, and framed paintings and pictures.
On the main floor she couldn’t help the small exclamation that escaped. “Is that a Van Gogh?” Was that a gold frame? “An original?” Her voice rose. No, it couldn’t be.
A double staircase led to the basement. Her hand trailed over the hand carved railing. Who’d install a double staircase leading to a basement? Or marble flooring and Van Gogh paintings?
When they’d passed a full size gym on the way to the pool she’d asked Cade how many people lived here.
Like before, he hadn’t answered.
Two glass doors opened to reveal the pool area. If the gym was overkill, talk about the pool. It was rectangular in shape and the size of two of her bedrooms. Lounge chairs and tables surrounded it.
Cade had handed her a bundle of clothing and pointed to one o
f the four mahogany doors on the far side of the room. “You can change in there.” After checking to make sure she wasn’t stepping into a torture chamber she admired the “locker room”. The name just didn’t do it justice. It certainly wasn’t any locker room she’d ever seen. Full size private showers. Huge lockers, practically the size of her bedroom closet. Private toilet-sink areas. A nice, floral scent in the air. No dirty, sweaty gym sock smell in here. Jeez. Was there such a thing as too rich? Nah.
Emma gave one last nose-wrinkling look in the mirror then headed out. A swift glance around told her no one had joined them.
He was in the pool already. She set her towel on a nearby table and walked to the edge. This was surreal.
“It’s heated,” Cade said, voice rising slightly so she could hear him. Thankfully he stayed where he was. All the way on the other side.
Emma dipped her toe in the water. It really did feel nice. She moved to the stairs that led into the water and walked in slowly. When she touched bottom the water brushed over the tops of her shoulders. It was cool and felt wondrous against her warm skin. Leaning her head back she wet her hair. Emma peeked at him out of the corner of her eye. He was still in the same spot. “This is terrific,” she admitted. “You must use it all the time.”
“I’ve never been in the pool until today.”
“What? How long have you lived here?”
An emotion crossed over his face. It was gone before she could decipher it. “Long enough to have made use of it.” He shrugged. “I’ve never had the desire to swim before.”
She gave him the desire to swim? Emma swallowed, liking the word desire a bit too much. She made her way to the opposite end of the pool, holding her wrapped hand over her head. Her other hand pushed through the water in front of her.
It took a while to reach the other side. This pool was huge. Once there she placed her back against the wall and used her arms to hold herself to the side, kicking her legs out in long smooth strokes. He still hadn’t moved from his side. She studied him. Since arriving, she’d been given food, medicine, a swim, and comfort in a way. Martha had been really nice and helpful, had said Cade wouldn’t harm her. Emma hadn’t been afraid of Martha for one moment. Had she feared Cade? Yes, in the beginning. But had that been about Cade or a left over reaction from the alley? She held in a groan. To say her feelings about Cade were completely and utterly confusing would be completely and utterly accurate. From pain to flashes of desire. Frustration to moments of happiness, she ran her hand through the water. Distressed to reassured that she was no longer ill. Fear to . . . trust. Emma didn’t know which emotions were right. Although wouldn’t it be safe to assume desire, happiness, trust, and reassured weren’t the right ones. Ding, ding, ding. What does she win, folks?
Any other person wouldn’t have a problem not letting a kidnapper get close. She apparently missed her last mental health check.
Had he really been going to kiss her? Emma ran her fingers over her lips. What would it have felt like? She dropped her hand with a splash. Gah. What was the matter with her?
“What are you thinking?”
Startled, she lost her grip. Before she could submerge he gripped her sides, holding her up.
“Thanks.” Her voice came out breathless.
“You’re welcome.” Moment of silence. “You were frowning,” he probed.
Avoiding his gaze, she looked around the spa-like pool area. Again blown away by how beautiful this room and the house were. It would be easy to get use to this.
Emma stilled. Careful girl. This wasn’t a date. She was held against her will because she’d become immersed in a world where men fight like karate movie actors and suck people’s blood like—
Stop.
“Won’t you tell me?” Cade tilted his head.
“Persistent much?”
He smiled and her heart quickened. Knock. It. Off.
Cade stepped back. “Why do you look at me like that?”
Because she needed to leave this place and him. The emotions swirling inside her were making it difficult to think. “I’m trying to figure you out.” In hopes that what she found would stop her downward spiral that started the moment she’d woken in that room upstairs.
“Have you?”
“No. Not at all.”
Cade advanced a step. She retreated.
“I want to go home.” Needed to go home. For her sanity.
“Don’t you like it here?” He spread his arms to indicate the pool.
“Yes, this is beautiful and I like not being cooped up in the room with nothing to do, but I want to go home. I want my own bed, my own clothes.” She lifted the black T-shirt. It grew at least two sizes since she entered the water. “I don’t like being a prisoner.”
“You’re not a prisoner. Consider this your hospital. A place where you’re receiving the best possible care. I’ll take you home when you’re better.”
“Why should I believe you? All I know is that you’re a kidnapper.”
Cade ran fingers through his wet hair, frustration evident. “Would a kidnapper call for a doctor, bring you food, make sure you have clean clothes, watch over you, give you medication, never raise his voice to you even when you order him around?” He’d been advancing. She hadn’t realized. He was an inch from her body.
Emma inhaled shakily, raising her hand to ward him off, unintentionally or maybe not, pushing against his bare chest. “Stop it,” she whispered. Although who she was speaking to? She stared down at her hand that touched a body cooler than the water. It was not the right moment to notice he was built like a god.
Was that a tattoo on his upper arm? Mmm, sexy.
No. No it wasn’t. Emma willed herself not to move, not to glide over to the left until her fingers rubbed over his nipple. Stop. She jerked her hand away. He grabbed it and brought it right back. With his hand on top guiding hers, his gaze never leaving her face, she rubbed muscled chest, an erect nipple, slid down his side and underneath the water to ripple along the ridges of his abdomen. A whimper escaped as her fingers danced over the tops of his swim trunks.
She lifted her gaze, not sure if she was going to plead for him to let go or not to stop.
“I want to kiss you, Emma.” His voice was husky and oh, God, what it did to her insides.
She opened her mouth with no idea of what to say. A small half-squeak, half-moan emerged.
Cade listened to Emma’s heart race. His was just as fast. He never wanted anything more “Can I?” Was that pleading in his voice?
Her response was so faint, it emerged on an exhale, but he heard the word as if she’d shouted it. “Yes.”
His lips were on hers. Cade was unable to hold back the groan. It was just as he thought. Standing outside with his mouth open catching raindrops.
Emma stiffened. He immediately pulled away, but she threw her arms around his neck and pressed herself closer. Cade growled in approval. His arms branded around her. He plunged his tongue inside her mouth. She moaned. Shivers erupted down his body. Cade hardened, his cock pushing against the top of his shorts.
Her hands clutched his hair and she met his tongue with her own, sweeping against his in a motion that mimicked his desires. Heavens, please never let this stop.
Cade moved his mouth over her chin and jawline. Paused to nibble on her earlobe. She shuddered. He moved down her neck. Rubbed his nose against her skin. Emma’s blood pumped through the vein in time with her heart. His fangs ached to extend, but he was amazingly in control. Cade nipped, taking care not to break the skin. Her reaction was instantaneous.
“Cade,” she moaned, breathless, cupping his head to her neck. The sound of his name on her lips excited him more than her blood.
The scent of rain wafted to his nose as her arousal saturated the air. Ah heavens, it was pouring. Like the
Creator was sprinkling his goodness, his acceptance, his pleasure. Cade lifted his head and claimed her mouth hard and fast. He pulled her tighter until their bodies were lined, pressed together from chest to hip.
Emma broke off, running kisses along his face, over his scars.
“Chemda.” Emotions choked the word from him. He claimed her mouth again.
Holy shit, this man could kiss. Emma needed to breathe but didn’t want his lips to leave hers. If she was going to die soon, this was the way she wanted to go. He lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his waist. Then her back hit the wall of the pool. He was there, huge and hard in between her legs, hitting right where she burned. The sweet contact made her cry out softly.
“Ah, Emma,” he groaned, breaking away from her mouth. He kissed her cheeks, nose, and forehead before resting his head upon the top of hers.
“Why are you stopping?” She moved her pelvis. Cade cupped her buttocks, halting her. It only pressed her deeper against him. Simultaneously, they sucked in a breath.
“Why are you stopping?” Emma asked again, voice low.
“You don’t even like me.”
She blinked, not sure if she heard correctly. Wasn’t that the girl’s line? Pain flashed in his eyes, there one second and gone the next. Her heart skipped a beat. “What?”
“You consider me your kidnapper. How can I take advantage of you?”
“But . . .” She trailed off. Okay so maybe five minutes ago she debated that very thing but now she definitely didn’t think of him in that way at all. Had slowly been coming to that conclusion anyway. This just hurried it along. Emma lifted her head to find his gaze intent on her.