by Nina Bangs
Eric glared at Asima. Nothing had been decided yet. “Wait just a minute, I—”
“She’s gone.” Donna sounded amused. “I wish I had her talent for getting her own way.”
“But you do, talk-show lady. You most certainly do.” He knew his gaze was heat and sexual need, but he didn’t care. “We’ll talk about it.” He yawned. “When I wake up. I can’t keep my eyes open. Don’t worry about sleeping beside me, because I won’t be dangerous until late afternoon.”
“Comforting. I’ll set my alarm on that promise.” Her gaze followed him as he reached her bed, stripped off his clothes, and collapsed onto his side of the bed.
His last memory before sleep claimed him was of Donna retrieving her bag of candy and popping a chocolate-covered cherry into her mouth.
Once again, Donna sat cross-legged on her side of the bed watching Eric sleep. Naked. Very naked. She’d had to leave him that way because he’d fallen asleep on top of the covers, and she wasn’t strong enough to pull them from underneath him.
Why didn’t knowing he was a vampire blow an icy blast of reason across her sexual hot spots? The ones that continued to register burning whenever Eric was near. Was someone not clear on the concept? Hello? There was no such thing as safe sex with a vampire.
The sad truth? Reason came in a distant second to her attraction for Eric. All that black hair spread across his pillow, those sinfully long dark lashes, his sensual lips relaxed in sleep, and that unbroken expanse of smooth warm skin over hard-muscled maleness left her heavy-lidded and breathing hard from her multitude of sexual fantasies.
Just sex? Was feeling more alive than she ever had in her life just about sex? Was worrying about him, wanting to be with him, and rethinking lifetime beliefs just about sex? She didn’t have the definitive answer on that, but she was getting close.
And about those lifetime beliefs. Before Eric, she’d been certain she knew what was best for her family. But a few minutes ago she’d found herself saying things like, “Go for it, Trish. If he makes you feel so good you can’t think straight, then take the chance. So what if you don’t have much in common. Viva la difference.” Trish had offered to let Donna stay at her place while she was on her medication.
Donna had called Mom next. There’d been extended silence on the line after Donna said, “You know, Mom, I hate to see you and Dad go your separate ways, but I respect your decision. Maybe it’s time for both of you to spread your wings.” Mom had offered to take her temperature and then make her some chicken soup.
Nate? Well, her brother had never been much for long speeches. When Donna had agreed that “Not going on the cruise is no big deal. Take the kids to Disney World, and then Trish and I can baby-sit while you guys lock yourselves in your bedroom for a weekend of hot loving. Oh, and I have something really sexy you can do with chocolate-covered cherries.” Nate had just chuckled.
Donna glanced at the clock. Time to wake her vampire protector so he could remove his shield from her door. She was starved. Hmm. How to wake him? Asima had done it by singing. But then, Asima’s singing could reach alien civilizations on far distant planets.
Reaching over, she shook him. Nothing. She whispered in his ear. Nothing. She shouted, “Priest with cross and chef with garlic cloves at door!” at the top of her lungs. Nothing. Finally she gave up. She still had a few of Lola’s cookies and his candy left. No way was she eating any more of her cherries.
Climbing from the bed, she grabbed her robe and headed for the bathroom. “Fine. You sleep while I take a shower. Jeez, what a slug.” Her muttered protest died away as she tried to close the bathroom door only to have it pulled from her grasp.
“Sorry. No closed doors between us until Taurin is taken care of.” He stood in the doorway, his naked male glory almost blinding her.
Would he think it strange if she got her sunglasses from her purse? Yeah, he would. “So what woke you, O Mighty Prince of the Night? Oh, and I shower alone.”
His smile was a white slash of sexy male amusement. “The word shower. Make sure you leave the bathroom door open enough for me to hear and see if Taurin decides to do a shower snatch.” He walked away from the door before she could comment.
Donna frowned. Hadn’t Eric told her that Taurin wouldn’t rise until sunset? Then what were the chances he’d materialize in her shower while the sun was still shining its little heart out? She narrowed her gaze on the door. If she were the suspicious sort, she might suspect ulterior motives here.
Donna made sure she was standing out of Eric’s line of vision if he was still near the partly opened door and then yanked her nightshirt over her head. Sure he’d seen her naked before, but it was the principle of the thing. Slipping into the roomy shower stall, she slid the door closed. He still might see her outline through the frosted glass, but not the important details.
She adjusted the water temperature to comfortably warm and then reached for the soap. Turning her back to the spray, she started to soap her washcloth . . . and uttered a startled squeak.
Eric lounged on the shower’s small seat. He watched her from hot predatory eyes. His large bare body seemed to fill the stall, his wicked intentions evident in the hard length of a body part that spoke its mind. “You’re a beautiful woman.” The deep huskiness of his voice was liquid sex, sliding over her body and coating her with desire.
“Uh-uh. Isn’t going to happen, vampire.” She purposely invoked his official status to remind them both of how much things had changed since last night. Had she gotten over her panic? Yes. Did he still terrify her? No. Was she ready to make love to him in the shower? Not yet. She’d leave the possibility open for future consideration. “My shower is a sex-free zone today.”
“Understood.” He lifted his arms above his head and stretched, tightening and delineating everything that could be tightened and delineated in his muscular body. “No sex in your shower.”
Did that make her feel all safe and secure? No. He’d agreed too easily. “You can leave now. And while you’re waiting for your turn in the shower, why don’t you get rid of the door shield and order me something to eat?” And put some damn clothes on. Not ready to make love with a vampire? Who was she kidding? When she looked at Eric Mackenzie, she didn’t see a deadly creature of the night. She saw the sexiest man she’d ever known and someone she wanted to spend more time with. Maybe if she saw him doing a few authentically evil or disgusting vampirish things, like biting Holgarth’s neck—a service to all mankind, actually—or turning into a bat, eew, she might do some attitude adjusting.
“Why don’t we leave together?” He reached out and took her hand.
Donna didn’t have a chance to mount a verbal assault because suddenly everything blurred. Sheesh, he made her so mad she really couldn’t see straight. She put her free hand over her eyes to try to clear her vision.
“You can look now.” His voice was a murmur of amused anticipation.
“When I take my hand from my eyes, you’d better be gone from this shower.” She was almost afraid to take her hand away, because the blurred vision could only mean two things. Either anger had driven her blood pressure sky high and she was in danger of a medical crisis, or Eric the Evil was messing with her puny mortal mind again.
Slowly, as though if she looked in small increments everything would be okay, she took her hand from her eyes. She sucked in her breath so she’d have enough oxygen left until her heart started beating again. “Tell me we’re not floating in the clouds? Naked?”
“You don’t like it?” He rolled over onto his back and stared up at the bright blue sky above the clouds. “You said the shower was a no-sex zone, so I took you someplace else.” His lips turned up in a small self-satisfied smile.
“Are we really in the clouds or is this just happening in my mind? And shouldn’t it be colder up here?” It was a testament to the week’s weirdness that she could discuss this with some degree of calmness.
Looking around, she felt like all her senses would explode with th
e pure exhilaration of experiencing total beauty and freedom. A sky so blue it hurt her eyes, white fluffy clouds shading to light gray, air so cold and clean that she couldn’t stop breathing it in huge gulps, and best of all, no clothes to filter out all the sensations.
He turned his head and raised one expressive brow. “Cold? You’ve talked to people who floated naked in the clouds, and they told you this?” He waved away her concern. “I guarantee you’ll never be cold when you’re with me.”
She believed him.
He sat up, reached out, and pulled her to his side. “Relax, enjoy the view, and play with me.”
Donna cast him a suspicious glance. “Define play.”
Kneeling, he scooped up a fluffy section of cloud and dropped it on her. She gasped. It felt like tiny ice crystals touching her body, shocking yet . . . stimulating.
And then he leaned forward and touched his tongue to one of the crystals on her shoulder. It was more than a momentary sensation of heat against her skin. The warmth slid into her, reaching spots far removed from her shoulder.
Before she had a chance to recover from his first touch, he moved on to other crystals melting in more strategic spots. Eric flicked the tip of his tongue over an icy crystal on her nipple, and she waited expectantly for steam to rise.
Between gasps of pleasure, she fought to get in a few coherent words. “Not fair. Let’s alternate. Me, then you.” Not giving him a chance to object, she grabbed a large handful of cloud and flung it at him. She licked her lips at the thought of all that warm male skin exposed for exploration before touching her tongue to a crystal low on his stomach.
He sucked in his stomach and murmured his appreciation. Then he found a crystal on her stomach to lick into submission. Hey, this was great. Body parts that had a vested interest in his mouth waited impatiently.
Laughing, she wrapped her arms around his waist and rolled, taking him with her. Then, as soon as she released him, she scooted down to find the perfect crystal glistening on his sex. Her laughter died and she swallowed hard as she realized how serious Eric took his play. The length, breadth, and hardness of him triggered a heavy rush of warmth low in her belly. Before she could ruin the play by straddling his hips and lowering herself until she felt the head of his cock stretching and sliding into her, she smoothed her tongue over the crystal and retreated.
His soft laughter mocked her. “Coward.” He rolled onto her, driving her into the soft cloud. As she fought to the surface, he took advantage of her distraction by pushing her legs apart, and lifting her bottom so he could reach the icy drop that had conveniently nestled on her body’s most sensitive hot button.
What were the chances that a single crystal would score a bull’s-eye? “You planted—” But as he glided the tip of his tongue over that tiny but amazing center of her sexuality, she completely forgot what he’d planted. She moaned. Had he planted turnips? She lifted her hips and spasmed as he slid his tongue smoothly into her. Sweet peas? Oh, who cared? He could plant a Kansas wheat field for all she cared.
It took her a minute to realize he’d moved away. His eyes were heavy-lidded with desire, and his mouth . . . Well, his mouth definitely qualified him for the Sexual Hall of Fame.
“This was play, Donna. You’re not ready for what comes next.” He sat cross-legged watching her. “Now that you know I’m a vampire, the playing field has shifted. Next time we make love, I hope you can accept that part of me.”
She met his gaze. He wanted to bite her. Wasn’t going to happen. There was nothing sexy about someone biting her neck.
“Wrong. It’s one of life’s most sensual experiences.” He gazed past her into the distance. “But it also demands that you give up complete control and trust me in every way.”
Give him complete control? She didn’t think so. “Uh-huh. And you’re in my mind again.” What was he staring at? She turned to follow his gaze. Nothing but an endless sea of clouds.
“I’ve been in your mind from the moment we left the shower.” He sounded distracted. “There’s a plane coming.”
“A plane?” Her voice was a horrified squeak. “Do you mean a big old jumbo jet is going to fly past us?” Desperately she looked around for somewhere to hide. “Hundreds of people will be glued to their windows watching the naked chick and her vampire hottie?”
Eric smiled what he probably thought was a calming smile. “I can see it now. It isn’t a jumbo jet. In fact, I think . . .”
She saw it, winging its way toward them. Ohmigod!
“Yeah, I’m sure of it.” He looked pumped. “That’s Air Force One.”
“Air Force One?” Horror clogged her throat. “The president’s plane?”
He didn’t have to answer, because the plane had reached them. It seemed to fly past in slow motion. “Hey, look. There’s the president. He’s waving at you. Wave back.”
Donna gaped. The president smiled at her and waved. Weakly, she waved back. “Hope he doesn’t find out I voted for the other guy last year.” This was absolutely the most embarrassing moment of her life. Did he recognize her? Please, God, no.
As the plane disappeared into the clouds, Donna turned to Eric. “The president saw us naked.”
Eric shrugged, and then smiled at her. It was his bad-boy smile, guaranteed to make mush of any female foolish enough to try to resist him. “You’re cute when you blush all over.”
“I want to go home.” Home as in the cozy crazy Castle of Dark Dreams where no public officials would see her naked.
He simply nodded. And as her vision blurred again, she thought deep thoughts about sex, control, and playing naked in the clouds.
When her vision cleared, she was standing in the shower with warm water flowing over her, and Eric was still lounging on the seat. She closed her eyes for a moment to center herself and then opened them. “How’d you do it?”
He uncoiled from the seat, all gleaming flesh and lithe animal grace. Gazing down at her, he smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “From here”—he touched the side of his head—“to here.” He placed his finger against her head. “I can take you anywhere. You can experience anything you choose, no matter how improbable. And in this case, without ever leaving the shower.”
“Why?” Why had he done it, and more to the point, why did she care? He’d probably just shrug her question off with a for-the-hell-of-it.
Eric quit all pretenses of smiling. His intense gaze seared her, exposing all her uncertainties, all her conflicted emotions where he was concerned.
“I needed to balance things. You have all these preconceived notions of what a vampire should be—dark, brooding, definitely not a fun guy to have around.” He traced her jaw with the tip of one finger. “I want to be around you, so I needed to show you that hanging with a creature of the night has some pretty spectacular perks.”
Since Donna couldn’t think of anything witty or meaningful to add to that, she silently watched him leave the shower. Then she grinned. He was right. What a rush. All past and possibly future boyfriends faded into the sepia tones of boring.
“Maybe we can try Mars next.” She hummed as she washed her hair.
12
“Tell me how Taurin became invisible. Can you become invisible? And what about Asima? How’d she get through the shield you put up?” Donna rattled on, hopefully keeping Eric busy answering her questions while she stared at him and occasionally remembered to wipe the drool from her chin.
“Taurin is visible. You just can’t see him.” Eric paced the room, his impatience making Sweetie Pie and Jessica nervous. They folded some of their leaves.
“Uh, yeah. Sooo, why can’t I see him?” She’d had Eric pegged for a jeans and T-shirt kinda guy, but wow, what a transformation. Black suit, white shirt, red tie, and hair tied back from that hard masculine face with its hot blue eyes and full sensual lower lip. Would he look like all the other men in suits tonight? Never. Suits would tame other men, label them as civilized and willing to bend to convention. Any woman who loo
ked at Eric would sense that on this man, a suit was meant simply as an outer shell, a shiny veneer that didn’t hide the dark, dangerous, and completely fascinating man who wore it.
“Taurin has mastered some mental powers that other night feeders haven’t. The power to cloak his presence is one. Your brain processes only some of the images around you. Taurin has the ability to manipulate minds so that your brain doesn’t include him in the things it chooses to ‘see.’ I saw him, but I decided not to follow him out of the castle because I was . . . distracted by your reaction to my vampire form.” He glanced at his watch. “Where’s the cat? She’s late. Maybe she won’t show.” He looked hopeful.
Donna wasn’t going to let him sidetrack her with a discussion of Asima’s lateness. “My reaction bothered you?”
He speared her with an angry glance. “We’d made incredible love, and then you were looking at me like I was a monster who’d just risen from the primordial ooze. Yeah, it bothered me.” He exhaled sharply. “Look, that’s the reaction I always get, so don’t blame yourself. Logically, I expected you to be freaked out.” His tight smile said he’d hoped she’d be different.
She watched him rub his hand over his face and sensed he was attempting to close the door on any more unexpected emotional discharges. Donna wasn’t quite sure what it meant, but she was glad her response to his vampire form had upset him. Why? Hadn’t a clue.
“You asked about Asima.” He continued to pace. “I don’t know what she is, but—”
“She’s here and she’s ready to rumble.”
Eric stopped pacing to stare at the bed where Asima sat in regal splendor with her tail wrapped around her. She wore a jeweled collar in honor of the night’s festivities.
Donna rose from her chair and walked over to the bed. “Your collar is stunning. Real diamonds, I presume?”
Asima offered her an offended cat sniff. “Of course. And since Eric didn’t have a chance to explain his theory of why I can bypass his puny shield, let me do it.” She used a paw to smooth down a hair that had the temerity to stick up on her smoothly elegant Siamese face. “I’ve existed for thousands of years, and I get my power from one who has existed for even longer. So don’t mess with me.” She tried to look fierce, but the effect was ruined by the almost childlike excitement gleaming in her blue eyes. “And I absolutely love your dress, Donna. Short, black, and sexy. Works for any occasion.”