by Nina Bangs
This was so not comfortable. “Hey, no problem. You have to go and take care of those precautions you talked about. Wouldn’t want Taurin to slither in through a crack in the wall.” Get out. Now.
His gaze darkened. He’d gotten the message. “I’ll send Brynn up with your lemonade.”
She shrugged. Whatever. Leave it to a man to think a drink could make everything okay. He wasn’t going to even offer her a hug. Insensitive jerk.
A smile tipped up the corners of that expressive mouth. “If I touch you now, I’ll probably stay. That wouldn’t be a good idea for lots of reasons.” He opened the door and then paused. “What else do you know about this telepathic cat that you didn’t tell your listeners?”
Donna shrugged. “Asima likes opera. She’d probably appreciate a CD next to her cat food bowl. That’s it.” She deliberately turned her back on him. Two could have secrets.
She heard his soft laughter as he closed the door behind him.
7
As dawn approached, Eric fought his body’s demand for rest. The vampire’s deep rejuvenating sleep might call to his body, but his brain thought he had too many things to worry about to waste his time sleeping.
He’d asked Brynn to take lemonade up to Donna. Brynn had agreed to stay with her a short while to make sure she was okay. A very short while, because Brynn knew the consequences of staying with Donna for more than an hour.
He’d like to think his choice of Brynn was random, but his ploy was pitifully obvious. He’d chosen Brynn instead of Conall because Brynn would have less time to get to know Donna. He wanted to be the only one getting to know her. Eric couldn’t even begin to figure out the implications of that. Besides, he should be concentrating on defeating Taurin, not thinking about Donna.
He reached his room and removed the shield from his door. Donna would be safe until sunset, when Taurin rose from sleep. Eric had the advantage over Taurin there. Even powerful night feeders couldn’t rise before sunset. But Eric could function in the late afternoon as long as he didn’t expose himself to daylight. He’d be sluggish, but able to protect Donna if he had to.
She hadn’t been in danger tonight because Eric had been with her every step of the way on her short walk out to the parking lot. And Taurin knew it. No, Taurin would choose a time when he could lure Donna away from the castle without Eric knowing it. Then he’d use her as bait the same way he figured Eric had used him to lure his brother to his destruction.
Taurin thought he was as powerful as Eric, that all he had to do was to get Eric away from Brynn, Conall, and Holgarth in order to destroy him.
He smiled grimly. Taurin had no idea what Eric could do when he was mad, and the rogue vampire was really ticking him off. He pushed his door open and then grew still. The lights were on. Someone had bypassed his powerful mind shield to enter his apartment. Eric only knew of one person with that kind of power.
“Okay, Holgarth, where are you?” Walking into the room, he glanced around and groaned. “I’ll kill you for this.”
“Idle threats. Of course you won’t.” Holgarth emerged from the bathroom still dressed in his wizard’s outfit. Eric suspected he slept in it. “I just finished bringing some order and ambience to that horror you call a bathroom. I’ve seen more attractive outhouses.”
Eric drew in a deep breath of patience. He didn’t need Holgarth messing with him right now, not when he had Taurin as well as the mysterious invasion of Lola and Asima to think about. “Bathrooms don’t need ambience. And you’ve painted my walls, changed my furniture, and organized the hell out of the whole place. You’ve done enough damage for one night. Don’t you need some sleep to renew your creative genius?”
Holgarth waved his hand to indicate how exhausted he was and dropped into a strange-looking yellow chair. “I tried to replace that archaic figurehead of yours, but the protection you put around it was too strong even for me. It’ll just have to squat there, a bull elephant in a room full of gazelles.”
“Don’t. Ever. Touch. My. Dragon.” For a moment Eric was tempted to vent his anger on Holgarth, but the resulting battle would destroy the castle and the contented life he’d built here.
Holgarth got the message. He waved Eric to the chair opposite him. While Eric was sitting, Holgarth touched the glass table resting between them and replaced Eric’s longboat sculpture with a floral display and a scattering of books. “I put the boat in your closet. The flowers say sensitive, and the books say intellectual. The longboat said Viking barbarian. Women prefer sensitive and intellectual.”
“You didn’t just come here to destroy my place. Let’s hear it.” He looked at the flowers with distaste.
Holgarth eyed Eric’s jeans, T-shirt, and boots critically. Eric gave him a warning glare.
“Fine. If you want to look like biker-dude, who am I to stop you?” He finally met Eric’s gaze. “The owner is worried about Taurin. You can’t fight him anywhere near the castle. It might put guests in danger. Do you want me to destroy him?”
Maybe Eric was as archaic as his dragon, because the warrior in him rejected Holgarth’s offer loudly and vehemently. “Taurin is my problem. I’ll take care of him.”
Holgarth knew better than to argue this point with Eric. “Taurin sensed your interest in Donna. He’ll try to use her to get to you.”
What was going on? How could Taurin and Holgarth sense something that wasn’t there? Want to run that lie past me again, pal? All right, so he wanted to have sex with her. That didn’t mean he’d let his body rule his brain.
Eric nodded. “I’ve figured that out. She’ll be safe until sunset. And tonight I’ll make sure one of us is always with her.” Which might be tough. “She’ll be doing her show from midnight until four, so whichever one of us isn’t taking part in a fantasy at the moment can slip out to watch her.”
From sunset to midnight would be the dangerous time. She could be wandering anywhere. He’d have to get one of the subs to play his part in the fantasies until midnight, and then he’d need an excuse to stay with her. And if he couldn’t think of an excuse, he’d have to cloak his presence and sneak around after her. He didn’t do sneaking well. In the parking lot, he hadn’t been able to resist the impulse to announce his presence with the cold wind.
“The owner has decided on a way to keep her safe from sunset until midnight, at least for tonight. The owner will be contacting Donna’s boss today insisting she play a part in tonight’s fantasies so she can tell her listeners what it’s like. The owner felt Donna would be less resistant if the order came from her boss.” Holgarth seemed fascinated with Eric’s boots. “You and the others need to get together to plan how to fit her into your fantasies. After tonight we’ll only need to come up with a plan for two more nights. But I think Taurin will make his move before she leaves. Once she’s gone, he’s lost his bait.”
Eric nodded. Sounded good to him. He refused to admit he liked the plan because it would allow him to spend more time with Donna. He watched as Holgarth stood, and he didn’t even blink when the wizard disappeared in a puff of smoke. Holgarth loved the drama of being a wizard as much as he liked the power.
And Eric wasn’t surprised when he glanced down to find he was wearing a pair of sandals. He hoped Holgarth hadn’t hidden his boots.
Stripping, he showered and then climbed into bed. But not before returning his longboat to the table. He left the flowers there, too. Just in case Donna liked that kind of stuff.
He assumed his body’s need for rest would do its normal thing. Wrong. As he tried to sink into the dreamless sleep his body craved, his mind stubbornly kept on pulling up nightmare scenarios. Taurin fooling everyone and coming for Donna as dawn broke or before sunset. Taurin hiring someone to kidnap Donna from her room. Conall thinking that someone should stay with Donna after Brynn left. Conall staying and staying and staying.
An hour and a half later Eric dragged his resentful body from the comfort of his bed to check on Donna. He was almost out the door when his phone rang. Who
would call him now? Donna? Worried, he hurried back to answer it. He didn’t know whether to be angry or relieved when he recognized Holgarth’s voice.
“I was almost asleep when I remembered that Brynn hadn’t given me the plans for this week’s Vampire Ball. I thought I’d give him a quick call while I was thinking about it. No one answered. Do you have any idea where he might be?”
Damn. Eric dropped the receiver without answering Holgarth and put his preternatural speed into high gear.
Donna owed Brynn big time. He’d stuck around to talk to her without being asked. Not that talk would make her forget the night’s horror, but at least it gave her something else to think about for a while.
Brynn was funny, understanding, and all things wonderful. That on top of being the most beautiful man in the world. He was simply perfect.
Then why did her thoughts keep drifting to Mr. Not-So-Perfect? Eric the Deserter. He was probably sound asleep, sprawled across that magnificent bed. Sprawled naked across that bed? Hmm.
“Wow, I didn’t realize how late it was.” Brynn glanced at his watch and then stood. “It was so great to find someone who liked talking about sci-fi movies, I lost track of the time. If you think you’ll be okay, I’ll let you get some sleep.” He looked nervous as he strode to the door.
Donna frowned. What was this all about? She watched him reach for the doorknob and pull. Nothing. He yanked again, this time harder. Still nothing. He turned desperate eyes toward Donna.
“Help me get the freakin’ door open.” All of his surface charm had disappeared, and panic seemed to be his emotion of choice.
The door wasn’t locked, so it must just be stuck. Even as she added her weight to the effort, reason told her if the door was stuck, Brynn could’ve jerked it open with one pull. They both yanked together. The door stayed shut.
Donna turned toward the phone. “I’ll call the switchboard and have someone come up to get this door open.”
“Never mind. It’s too late.” His voice had changed, become deeper, more sensual.
“Huh?” Surprised, she looked at him.
Ohmigod, what was happening? Right in front of her he was changing. Not like Taurin, but just as scary. He’d pulled the leather strip loose that held his hair back, and it flowed around his face, a shining temptation for some woman to thread her fingers through its silky strands. His face was the same yet different. The gold in his eyes seemed almost to glow, but that had to be her imagination. They were heavy-lidded with sexual invitation, and she wasn’t imagining that. His lips looked fuller, eager to taste a woman’s body. He caught his lower lip between his teeth and then released it. Instinctively she knew she was watching a sexual animal being born. And she was locked in the room with him. Eric!
Even as he ripped his shirt off, he stalked her. Hard muscle rippled beneath golden skin. She backed against the door and prepared to scream her lungs out.
“Take my body. Use it any way you want. Tell me what makes you scream with pleasure, and I’ll do it.” Lips slightly parted, he enticed, promised.
Even scared and wishing for Eric, she felt Brynn’s erotic pull. And rejected it. Since he hadn’t leaped on her and dragged her onto the bed, she decided against the scream. She was about to make a dash for her phone when she looked directly into his eyes.
And saw pain and self-disgust there. She mentally shook her head to clear it, but when she looked again she saw the same emotions. What was going on? She drew in a deep calming breath. “I don’t want your body, Brynn.”
That quickly, the sexual creature was gone. Brynn picked up the leather tie for his hair, stuck it in his pocket, and then pulled on his shirt with shaking fingers. He didn’t meet her gaze. Without a word he turned toward the door.
“Oh no you don’t.” Donna put her hand on his shoulder, and he actually flinched. Something was awfully wrong here. “Sit down and tell me what just happened.”
Brynn hesitated and then sat on the chair next to the plants. “Are you going to add this to your tales of the bizarre you’ll use to entertain your listeners tonight?” He sounded like he might choke on his bitterness.
Donna slumped onto the floor next to his chair. She rubbed eyes burning from exhaustion. “No. I don’t barter in people’s pain. But I’d like to understand.”
He nodded. “Eric wouldn’t want me to tell you, but I figure since you already saw a vampire change in the parking lot, my story won’t send you screaming from the castle any faster.”
She remained silent, giving him space to tell her in his own time.
“Specifics? I’m a five-hundred-year-old demon of sensual desire.” He paused, probably waiting for her to race for the door and do some more tugging and yanking. “I don’t know who created me, but I do know my purpose. If I stay more than one hour with the same woman, I have to offer her my body. If I try to resist the compulsion, I suffer excruciating pain. And yes, through the centuries I’ve tried every way I can think to escape.” He shrugged. “There is no escape.”
Demon? Five hundred years old? Maybe this was a little more specific than she wanted to get. Okay, she’d survived a ticked-off vampire, so she could deal with a demon of sensual desire. She drew in a deep, calming breath.
“No offense, but your delivery’s a little abrupt. Most women would have the same reaction I did.” Even as she said it, she wasn’t sure she believed it.
His glance ridiculed her naïveté. “I can’t resist the compulsion, but nothing can force me to turn my ‘delivery’ into a seduction. I purposely make the whole thing as sleazy as I can. But you’d be surprised how many women accept.” He looked away. “I hate it.”
Donna believed him. What she’d seen in his eyes was real, and the agony she heard in his voice was just as sincere. She placed her hand on his knee in compassion. “Your brothers, are they all—”
He shook his head and smiled weakly. “We’re not brothers, Donna. We’re—”
Brynn got no further, because suddenly the door crashed open and Eric stood there, feet and chest bare, his eyes blazing as they shifted from Brynn to Donna’s hand which still rested on Brynn’s knee.
“What the hell? When was the last time you looked at your watch, Brynn?” He stepped into the room and then paused. “I mean, Donna needs her sleep and . . .” He stared at Brynn. “Did you ask her?” His voice bristled with barely contained violence.
Brynn stood. “Yeah, I did.”
Eric looked torn. His expression said he wanted to rip Brynn apart verbally and physically but was afraid to say too much in front of Donna. “Did she take you up on it?”
“No.” Brynn walked past Eric and paused in the doorway. “The door wouldn’t open. Both of us tried. How did you get it open?”
Donna watched the tension drain from Eric. He shrugged. “It was unlocked and I just walked in. Wait. The Siamese cat was sitting beside the door when I got off the elevator. She didn’t say anything, just walked away. You don’t think . . . ?”
“I think she purposely locked us in here.” Donna would cheerfully end one of Asima’s nine lives, but something good had come from the experience. She’d found out the truth about Brynn, and indirectly, more about Eric.
“I told Donna what I am, Eric. She promised not to tell her listeners, and I trust her.” He stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind him.
Eric stood in the middle of her room—big, beautiful, and still glowering. “Don’t let me stop you from packing. I thought I could convince you to stay by pointing out that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to interact with nonhuman entities. But I have to admit you’ve had a few too many interactions. I don’t blame you.”
Eric felt bad about her leaving. Bad? Just a few days ago he would’ve hired a band to celebrate the event. Just a few days ago all he would’ve worried about was what she intended to say on her show. Now? He was interested. But he couldn’t deny she might be in danger. If she went back to New York, she’d be safe. A lot safer than if she stayed here, because
even with all their precautions in place, you could never predict what a vampire like Taurin would do.
Donna padded to her bed on bare feet. Sitting on the edge, she rubbed the back of her neck. “No packing now. I need sleep. When I get up I’ll think about it. And I’ll have lots and lots of questions, Eric whoever-you-are.” She frowned. “Brynn said something about you guys not really being brothers. Good thing, because if you were his brother, that would make you very old and very . . . different, too. I’ve had all the different I can take for one week.” She made a shooing motion toward the door. “Now go away so I can crash.”
“I don’t shoo, Donna.” Moving over to the other side of her bed, he unbuttoned his jeans and slid them off. He hadn’t put briefs on before coming up here.
Her gasp was gratifying, but he was too groggy to enjoy it. Now that his adrenaline rush had worn off, his natural need to sleep was asserting itself. “I’ve decided you’re the castle’s weak link.”
“Weak link? And why are you naked?” She sounded a little breathless.
“Brynn, Conall, Holgarth, and I can all take care of ourselves. You’re high profile.” And Taurin knows I’m interested. “Taurin might decide it would be easy to snatch you, and use you as bait.” He turned to face her.
“You still haven’t told me why you’re naked.”
She surprised him. He’d expected her to turn red and keep her gaze fixed on his face. She didn’t. Sliding her gaze over his chest and stomach, she bypassed the body part that was really interested in her, to study his thighs and legs.
“If you’re talking to me, my face is up here.” Even through the familiar lethargy, with his arms and legs lead weights, and his eyelids drooping lower and lower, she stirred him.
Then she raised her gaze to his sex and focused. “Mmm. I figured if you got naked, you wanted me to look. I looked. Very nice. Now you can leave.” She climbed beneath the covers and reached for the switch on her lamp. “Please lock the door on your way out.”