by Jaye Wells
They all sang into their champagne glasses. No one was on key, of course, but no one seemed to care.
What the hell, I decided, belting out the next line with gusto.
And the weird thing was, after four hundred years, I felt like I finally was having the time of my life.
Chapter Eighteen
At four a.m., the limo pulled smoothly back into Kira’s driveway. Geraldine was passed out in one of the seats with Jorge’s snoring face on her shoulder. Poor mortals couldn’t keep up with us vamps when it came to liquor consumption.
Lucky for them, we were strong enough to carry them out of the last bar to the limo. They’d done pretty well, though, each lasting long enough to make asses out of themselves during a duet of “Islands in the Stream.” Jorge did a mean impression of Dolly Parton.
To be fair, Miranda, Sydney, and I were dragging as well. The night had been a total blast, though, with lots of laughter, booze, and horrible renditions of Top 40 songs. After several drinks, they finally convinced me to do my worst on stage.
Let’s just say, I will never be able to hear “Like a Virgin” again without cringing.
The Hummer rolled to a stop. Syd, who was sprawled out next to me with her veil askew, perked up.
“Am I home?” she slurred.
“Sorry, this is me,” I said, gathering my boa and purse. “Miranda’s going to make sure you get home okay.”
I looked at Miranda for confirmation. She nodded slowly. Laughing, I took in her smeared mascara and wild hair.
“Syd, just a word of advice,” I said. “You might want to drink some Lifeblood before you hit the sack. You won’t have a hangover, but dehydration is almost as bad.”
“Oh, that’s a good idea,” she said, hiccupping.
“I hope you had fun,” I said.
“It was a blast. I need to get married more often.”
I laughed and gave her and Miranda quick hugs before stepping out, careful not to wake the sleeping beauties.
Miranda rolled down the window and poked her head out.
“Raven, I’ll make sure the mortals get home, too.”
“Thanks,” I said. “By the way, I’m excited Syd asked you to be in the wedding.”
She smiled sleepily. “Me too. I hope she remembers it in the morning.”
“She will,” I said with a chuckle. “Call me tomorrow?”
She waved and ducked back inside. I went to the front of the car to take care of the bill with Lance.
“Thanks,” I said, handing him his fee plus a large tip. “It was great.”
“I’ll say. This is the craziest bachelorette I’ve handled in a long time.”
I laughed. “Really?”
“Sure, I’ve never had anyone flash passing cars from the sunroof before.”
“I think Geraldine had a few too many Cosmos,” I said, laughing.
He joined in for a moment before sobering.
“Listen,” he said, clearing his throat. “You wouldn’t want to grab a drink sometime, would you?”
His offer took me off guard. Lance was a good-looking guy. Plus, he’d proved he had a great sense of humor putting up with us all night. Yet, I hesitated. As nice as he was, he paled in comparison to a certain golden-haired sex god.
I was about to politely turn him down when a deep voice stopped me cold.
“Say good night to the man, Gabby.”
I swung around, finding Callum standing not five feet away with his arms crossed. He’d obviously heard us pull in.
“Callum! I didn’t see you there,” I said, feeling flustered. I didn’t have anything to feel guilty about, but I couldn’t help feeling that way.
“Obviously,” he said, staring me down.
I turned to Lance, about to explain that I couldn’t go out with him. However, he beat me to the punch.
“Geez, sorry. I didn’t know you were married. You weren’t wearing a ring, so I figured . . . Anyway, my mistake. Hope you have a good night.”
My mouth fell open. He thought Callum was my husband?
“No,” I started to explain, but stopped myself. What was the use? Even though I wasn’t married—yikes—to Callum, he was still the reason I wasn’t interested in Lance.
“I mean, yes, sorry about that. Take care of my friends, okay?”
“Sure thing,” he said.
I stepped back as he put the Hummer into gear and pulled away. Delaying the inevitable, I watched it all the way down the driveway until I could barely see the taillights in the distance.
The thing is I knew what had just happened looked bad. Callum’s frown and crossed arms spoke volumes. I resented feeling defensive when I hadn’t done anything wrong, though.
He cleared his throat, managing to make the sound angry. Pasting a big smile on my face, I turned to face the music.
“Hi! How was your night?” I said, trying to sound oblivious to his anger.
“I had a good time, Gabriella,” he said, walking toward me.
Uh-oh. Using my full name wasn’t a good sign.
“It appears you had a good time too,” he said, stopping in front of me. “The question is: how good of a time?”
“Excuse me?” I said, offended by his implication.
“It seems limo boy took quite a shine to you,” he said, his voice hard. “And you him.”
“Look, you ass, you’re jumping to some pretty idiotic conclusions here.”
“Am I?”
“Yes, you are. However, I don’t feel the need to justify my actions to you.”
I started to walk away, high on getting the last word. His hand grabbed the back of my shirt, swinging me around.
“You’re not going to deny you were flirting with him?”
I sighed, pulling my arm from his grasp. “Callum, green isn’t your color.”
His eyebrows lowered. “I’m not jealous.”
“Ha, ha, hahaha, I say.”
His scowl deepened. “I’m not. I was merely under the impression that our arrangement was exclusive until we decided to end it.”
Of course, I thought that, too. It thrilled me a little to hear he agreed. But I couldn’t let him off that easily. It was so fun seeing him jealous.
“When did we decide that?” I asked, examining my fingernails.
“Oh? Great, then. As a matter of fact, I have the number of a very flexible stripper in my pants pocket as we speak.”
I stopped picking at a cuticle and looked up.
“What?”
He nodded. “Candi is working her way through college by stripping. She wants to be a kindergarten teacher.”
My eyes narrowed.
“Show me the number,” I demanded, holding my hand out.
His eyes widened. “You don’t believe me?”
I snapped my fingers, too angry to speak.
Grinning, he pulled a cocktail napkin out of his pant’s pocket and held it up. “You mean this?”
I snatched it away from him before he could react.
Sure enough, written on the crumpled napkin was a phone number. “Candi” was written underneath. The slut actually dotted the i with a freaking heart.
Without hesitation I ripped the napkin into about a thousand tiny little pieces. Callum didn’t react—even when I tossed the remains into the air like confetti.
“That was mature,” he said, brushing errant napkin bits off his shoulder.
“Fuck maturity.”
“Not so easy when the shoe’s on the other foot is it?” he asked, crossing his arms with a smug smile.
“This is not the same at all, and you know it! Lance asked me out without any encouragement from me. Candi-with-an-i rubbed her tits all over you.”
I was whisper-shrieking by then. The thought of some bimbo flirting with him made me want to kick something. “Furthermore, I was about to turn him down when you interrupted. But you,” I continued, pacing now. “You come home with a phone number in your pocket!”
“Gabby,” he said calmly as I carried on.
/> “And how dare you act all jealous when what you did was twice as bad!”
“Gabby!”
“What?” I yelled, not caring if woke up the entire neighborhood.
“Candi gave the number to Logan, not me. He passed it to me as a joke. I forgot it was in my pocket until just now.”
“Oh,” I said, feeling stupid but still suspicious.
“Furthermore, she was not a stripper, but a cocktail waitress at Bella Lugosi’s. We didn’t even go to a strip club.”
His lips started twitching as I stood there feeling like a total ass. So I hit him on the arm.
“I hate you.”
“No, you don’t,” he said, smiling.
I couldn’t resist smiling back, relieved I didn’t have to go kill Candi. Plus, he looked kind of adorable standing there.
“So, I guess we’re both kind of idiots, huh?” I said.
He ran a hand through his hair.
“You make me crazy, you know that?”
“Yeah, I do,” I said, grinning like a loon.
“So,” he said, slipping his hands in his pockets and rocking back on his heels. “Wanna go get naked?”
“Damn straight!”
Life was busy for the next few weeks. In addition to volunteering three times a week at the blood bank, I also was helping Sydney make final preparations for the wedding.
Logan and Callum had decided to use the wedding as the official launch of Lifeblood. It would be served at the reception along with the traditional wedding fare. Therefore, Callum was busy finalizing the plans for Lifeblood’s debut along with the big roll out, which would happen the week after the wedding.
Despite our busy schedules, we managed to spend almost every night together. After our silly argument the night of the bachelorette party, things seemed to fall into a comfortable routine. After everyone had gone to bed, one of us would sneak into the other’s room. We’d give the mattress a thorough work out, and then we’d talk about our day. Sometimes we talked about our pasts.
We never talked about the future, though.
I’d held firm to my decision to take things one day at a time. So far it had been working, too. The only complaint I had, really, was that each morning Callum would rush off to work and I’d go do my thing, never being alone again until late at night. We’d managed to keep things a secret, being polite but reserved in the company of others. But after a while that seemed to wear on me too.
A week before the wedding, I was just getting off my shift at the blood bank. Usually Hannah or Alaric came to pick me up, but that day I walked outside to find Callum waiting for me. His hair glistened in the late-afternoon sun as he leaned against his car.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” I asked, smiling when I saw him.
He straightened from his slouch and walked to the passenger door, opening it with a flourish.
“You’re chariot awaits,” he said.
His eyes sparkled with mischief as he helped me into the car. Sliding into the driver’s side, he turned the key, making the engine roar to life.
“I thought you had a meeting this afternoon,” I said, wondering what was up.
He slid his sunglasses onto his nose.
“I do.”
“Oh,” I said, disappointed he was going to have to rush back to the office.
“With you,” he said, shifting the car into gear and sliding into traffic.
“And just what are we meeting about?” I asked, getting the gist of things.
“I have an extensive oral presentation I’d like to give you.”
A flare of lust shot through my body. By goddess, he was sexy. I decided to play along to see how far he’d take this.
“Is that so?” I asked. “I don’t believe I have you on my agenda.”
“Really? I’m afraid I must insist. The matter is of utmost urgency,” he said, slipping his warm palm onto my thigh.
“I suppose I could make an exception. However, I must insist on thorough dick-tation.”
He sent me a heated look over the rims of his Revos. “That can be arranged. As a matter of fact, I insist.”
I laughed then, unable to resist. Callum continually surprised me. When we’d first met, I would have bet cash money the man couldn’t screw his way out of a paper bag. However, I was quickly becoming addicted to his body along with his wicked sensual humor.
“So, Mr. CEO, where will this meeting take place?” I asked, knowing that Kira had a bridge game at her house that day.
“I thought we’d go to my place,” he said casually.
I hesitated. For some reason, the idea of seeing his home felt significant—like we were taking things to a new level. Plus, while we’d had a couple of quickies during the day before, this was the first time we’d be able to take our time and enjoy ourselves without the cover of darkness.
“Gabby?” he asked, shooting me a concerned look. “Is that all right?”
“What?” I said, shaking myself from my paranoid thoughts. “Yeah, that’s great. I have to admit I’ve wondered what sort of place you lived in.”
His lips quirked. “I’ve almost forgotten myself. The only time I’ve been back in the last couple of months was to pick up clothes and mail.”
Part of me felt bad that I was the reason his life had been disturbed. Why, I had no idea. He was a big boy, after all.
Still, some feeling niggled at me as I watched him, admiring his strong profile with the bright afternoon sun behind it. He glowed with vitality—a man with a purpose and direction.
Suddenly, I knew what the feeling was—affection. An overwhelming urge to give him a hug came over me.
The car swerved.
“Hey, careful,” he said, gently extracting my arms from around his neck with one hand while the other righted the car from its swerve.
“What was that for?” He didn’t sound angry so much as confused.
“I have no idea,” I said, honestly.
He shot me an amused glance. “You like me.” A statement, not a question.
I shrugged. “You’re all right, I guess.”
His smile turned smug.
Feeling embarrassed about my sudden show of affection and the strange feeling swirling in my belly, I looked out the car window. Callum smoothly turned into a drive between two six-story red brick buildings connected by an ornate wrought-iron gate.
“Wow, you live here?” I asked. “It looks like we’re in Paris.”
He nodded. “The architects designed the buildings to resemble Second Empire architecture in Paris,” he said.
For some reason, I’d imagined Callum living in a modern condo building in the heart of Raleigh’s bar scene. Instead, this place was in an older, more historic section of downtown. Although new, the building had character and class. Kind of like the Callum I knew now, instead of the one I’d thought was materialistic and shallow a few months ago.
We parked underground and went up the elevator to the sixth floor. When he opened the door to his corner unit, my mouth dropped open. I’d expected a bachelor pad, but what greeted me looked like something out of Architectural Digest.
While the furniture was all done in dark leather, that’s where the bachelor stereotype ended. Beautiful hardwood floors gleamed in the light from dozens of large windows. Vintage artwork and sculptures were scattered throughout, lending elegance to the room. The living area opened onto a large kitchen with stainless steel appliances and green marble countertops. The man even had plants—large palms and airy ferns scattered through the rooms.
But the highlight of the condo was a large sitting area situated in one of the round towers I’d noticed from outside the building. Surrounded by double-paned windows, the spot was sun-washed and cheerful. In addition to more comfortable–looking leather chairs, a large telescope stood next to one of the windows.
I wandered over to it and took in the view of downtown Raleigh.
“It was the view that sold me,” Callum said, coming up behind me. “But if y
ou think this is good, you need to go upstairs.”
I looked at him curiously. Originally, I’d thought the condo was one floor, but looking over his shoulder, I noticed a spiral staircase leading up.
“Go on,” he said, urging me toward the stairs.
When I got to the top, I was shocked to find an even better view.
“Oh, it’s a cupola,” I said. “Callum, this is amazing.”
The space was the same size as the sitting area below it, but the panorama was even more spectacular since the room was above the main roof of the building—giving me a 360-degree view.
He came up behind me as I marveled at the gorgeous view. Beyond the modest skyline of the city, I could see the orange, yellow, and red foliage that was a hallmark of autumn in Raleigh.
“So you like it?” he asked.
Turning, I wrapped my arms around his neck.
“I have to admit I’m shocked. Your mother had to have decorated it for you,” I said, teasing him.
“She did not!” he said, shooting me a mock-offended look.
I narrowed my eyes at him.
“Okay, maybe she helped a little. But she didn’t make any decisions without my input.”
“Well, I like it so far,” I said. “But I’m afraid I must reserve judgment until I see the bedroom.”
“Don’t forget the master bath,” he said. “Did I mention I have a Jacuzzi tub?”
“No, you did not. How intriguing,” I replied, playing along. “Yes, indeed, we must conduct a thorough exploration there as well. If you think there’s time.”
All this verbal foreplay was making my blood heat. I wasn’t sure if I could make it back downstairs and all the way to the bedroom before ripping his clothes off.
“Did I mention Mother has an event to attend tonight?”
My eyes widened. “So you mean if we tour your house for hours and hours we won’t be missed?”
“If by tour my house you meant have sex in every room, then yes, you are correct.”
Our eyes held for a moment. I couldn’t stand it any longer. The need to have him had been building ever since I’d seen him outside the blood bank. Now that need was smoldering, threatening to consume me.
“Callum?” I said.
“Yes, Gabby?”