The Vampire's Father's Day Present

by Caitlin Ricci

  This vampire is finally ready to face his past, but only with the help of the sexy werewolf at his side.

  Adam was turned against his will in 1920 and was forced to leave behind his wife and young son for fear of killing them in his need to feed. Nearly a century later, he wants to know what became of his family and whether he has any descendants left in the world. Puck, the alpha werewolf letting him live in his territory, knows a great investigator, but Adam has been warned—Lucius doesn’t play by anyone’s rules but his own, and he’ll ask for a price that has nothing to do with money.

  Lucius is interested in helping Adam. He’s always up for solving a good mystery, but when things turn romantic, Lucius quickly realizes Adam isn’t interested in casual sex. Too bad that’s been a pillar of Lucius’s existence for years. Pleasure has never been complicated for him, but this vampire seems interested in getting him to change his ways.

  The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  The Vampire’s Father’s Day Present

  Copyright © 2017 Caitlin Ricci and A.J. Marcus

  ISBN: 978-1-4874-1101-5

  Cover art by Angela Waters

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

  Published by eXtasy Books Inc or

  Devine Destinies, an imprint of eXtasy Books Inc

  Look for us online at:

  www.eXtasybooks.com or www.devinedestinies.com

  The Vampire’s Father’s Day Present

  Puck’s Pack

  By

  Caitlin Ricci and A.J. Marcus

  The Vampire’s Father’s Day Present

  Father’s Day was never a good time for Adam. The commercials got to him, the greeting cards at the stores were a problem, and his heart especially hurt when he saw all the werewolf kids running around the pack with their dads. At times it was like a stake to the heart.

  Vampires couldn’t have children, not once they were turned anyway, but he’d had a child once. Michael had been two. His wife, Isabella, had been twenty. And they’d only been in New York for a few short months when he’d been grabbed on the way home from the market. The mangled scar on his neck hurt every time he thought about the family he’d lost, and what Isabella, a poor immigrant with an apparent runaway husband, must have had to do in order to survive that life.

  He’d wanted to go back so many times, but in those early days, whenever he’d been around humans he’d been too tempted to feed from them. He’d been turned and dumped, left in an alley and thought to be dead by everyone. It had taken him years to get himself under control enough that he knew he would no longer be a danger to his family, but by the time he’d gone back to their little home, they’d already moved on and no one knew where the young woman and her son had gone. They were just two more immigrants lost in the droves that were swarming New York at the time. Even though he had their names, it wasn’t enough to track them down. Back then, it was so easy for people to just disappear, and unless they wanted to be found, they wouldn’t be.

  Adam had tried to forget about them, to move on and hope they’d had a good life somewhere out there in the world, but the years were getting to him, and the not knowing was becoming harder than ever with the passage of time. Unlike a lot of vampires, he couldn’t lose the past in a sea of blood and sex.

  He finally decided he was going to do something to find out what happened to them and whether there was anyone left in the world he could trace back to his human life. His own life was more stable than it had been since that time. Maybe that was what drove him to so desperately want to find the links to his past.

  But to do that, he needed Puck’s help. He waited until ten p.m. to slip out of his house and walk the half mile over to the main pack house where Puck and his vampire lover lived. Adam didn’t know Armand well, but he’d helped open the door for the werewolves and vampires to live together, and for that Adam was grateful. With the werewolves, he didn’t have to fight for food or deny himself a meal. He wasn’t in danger in their enclave. The only rules he had to follow were that the werewolves were never on his menu and that he had to obey whatever Armand said, which was hardly anything most days. Although Adam had only been a member of the community for a year, he felt at peace with them, more than he ever had out in the human world. He would never do anything to threaten his time there with the werewolves.

  He knocked on the front door of the main house. He expected Puck to answer, but instead, Armand was there, silently ushering him in.

  “You’re out early,” Armand said as he led Adam to the living room.

  Adam nodded. “I’ve got a lot on my mind, with today being Father’s Day and all.”

  Armand gave him a sympathetic look. “I didn’t realize you still thought about your child. That’s rare among our kind.”

  Adam knew it was. Most vampires either killed their human family or ran so far away they never had to be bothered with them again. And that was the ones who were abandoned like he’d been. Those who ended up in covens had new families and rarely went back to their old ones. The pack Armand had found and integrated into was like a family. “Is Puck here? I was hoping he’d know someone who was good at looking at family trees and following clues. I get bogged down and don’t have any idea of what I’m really doing when I try.”

  “He’s upstairs. Wait here, I’ll go get him.”

  Adam took a seat, and Armand went to tell Puck he was there.

  Moments later, Puck came down. He looked tired at first, but he perked up right away when Adam stood up to greet him. “Hi,” Puck said. He sat, and Adam did as well. Armand stayed standing behind Puck. It was his usual place. as if he was looking around for anything that might pose a threat to his werewolf.

  Adam thought Puck could probably protect himself well enough, so he didn’t necessarily need a vampire bodyguard, but Adam didn’t want to cause trouble within the pack by pointing that out. As much as Puck welcomed the vampires, he knew not all werewolves felt comfortable having them around, even those in the pack. That was why Adam mostly kept to himself. Things were easier that way. He only interacted with the werewolves or even the other vampires when he had to.

  Puck yawned. “Did you need something, or were we just here to stare at each other for a while?”

  Adam’s cheeks heated, and he knew he was blushing, or as much blushing as a vampire could do, anyway. He was only really able to blush when he had recently fed, and it had been a day and a half since he’d hunted down one of the criminals Puck sent the vampires after. Overall it was a great arrangement for the local community and the vampires who lived with the pack. “Do you know of anyone who’s good at digging up information?”

  Puck’s eyebrows rose. “Such as an investigator?”

  “Someone like that might work.” Adam shrugged. He really wasn’t sure what he was
looking for, and going to a human was out of the question. If they found photos of him or something definitive from his lifetime, or if they even guessed at what he was, then that could be disastrous. The supernatural community went out of its way to stay off the humans’ radar.

  Puck leaned toward him. “How come? What do you want to know?”

  Adam took a breath and wondered what it was like to be as young as Puck was, to be at an age where he could have had children if he wanted them. He’d never been jealous of a werewolf before, but he wasn’t surprised by the feeling, either. There was a lot in his life he knew he’d missed out on because he had been turned as young as he had been. He often wondered what his life would’ve been like if he’d never been turned. “I would like to know what happened to my family after I was bitten.”

  “You haven’t looked before now? Joined one of those websites or something?” Puck made it sound so simple.

  Adam shook his head. “No, I haven’t been ready before now, and I’d like someone’s help. My turning wasn’t...” He wasn’t used to talking to werewolves about such things, and for most of his vampire life, the very idea of doing so was forbidden. They were the enemy, and they were not to know vampire secrets, even as benign as this one. If he was part of a coven, he could be killed for even talking to a werewolf, but since he was mostly a loner, he didn’t have to worry about that. “I wasn’t given the choice,” he simply said.

  Puck lifted his lips in a snarl. “I’m sorry. I really hate forcing anyone into anything. Free will is not as understood as a lot of people would have it.”

  Adam rubbed the scar at his neck. It hurt, despite its age. Bite scars were the only type of wound that would never completely go away for vampires. There were more than a few who surmised they were a way to remind vampires of the damage that had been done to them, even if a vastly different life wasn’t reminder enough.

  “I know a guy,” Puck said. He took out his phone and began typing. “I’m sending him a text now. Lucius belongs to another pack. He used to be in this one when I was growing up, but he was given a choice, and he chose to leave rather than change his ways. He’s still a great investigator though.”

  “Is he dangerous? Is that why he was asked to go?” Adam wasn’t sure if he wanted help from a dangerous werewolf.

  Puck chuckled and put his phone away. “No, he’s not. His problem is that he wouldn’t stop having sex with everyone in the pack. Mates were becoming upset, and he was asked to stop but chose not to. His view of pleasure is that it should be freely given and there’s no reason to limit or deny yourself as long as what you’re doing makes you happy.”

  Adam could deal with that. He certainly wasn’t going to become involved with someone like that, and besides, he had very little interest in being with other people in general. He did just fine on his own, keeping to himself and letting the world go on around him. A loose werewolf wasn’t going to be a problem for him.

  Puck’s phone beeped and he dug it back out of his pocket. His gaze danced over the small screen. “Lucius says he’ll be here in a few hours. He wants to help.” Puck put his phone away again then rubbed his hands over his face. “Adam, did you need anything else? The hunt yesterday has me exhausted, and I really need to get some rest.”

  Adam shook his head. He was getting help, and that was what he’d needed from Puck. “Thank you, I’ll be fine now. I appreciate your help.” Puck got up, and Adam rose as well, making Puck smirk. “Goodnight.”

  “Night. You know, you don’t have to be so formal with me. I’m really not that kind of an alpha.”

  As often as Puck had told him that, Adam was still unwilling to show him anything that might be considered a sign of disrespect. The peaceful life with the werewolves was something he didn’t want to risk over anything. He thought it was better to be polite than not. “I await your call that Lucius is ready to get started.”

  Puck nodded and headed back upstairs. Armand showed Adam out of the house, and he walked back to his place in the dark. He was anxious about what the werewolf would find, if anything, but it was time he knew more about his family and what had become of them.

  The next evening, Adam woke up to someone knocking on his door. Groggy and with a headache coming on rapidly, he got out of bed and came downstairs. The sun had set, so he had no fear of being burned as he opened the door.

  A blond werewolf leaned against the doorframe. He was naked, sweaty, and grinning. “You must be Adam. I’m Lucius. Puck sent me. I like puzzles.”

  Adam was fairly certain he was never going to get used to the easy, carefree nudity the werewolves had whenever they were out. Someone needed to figure out how to shift with clothing on and not have it ripped to shreds. It would save all of them a lot of embarrassment.

  He sighed and ushered Lucius inside while he awkwardly stared up at the ceiling. “Thanks for coming over so quickly. Puck said you’re an investigator?”

  “I used to be a detective. Then I retired. Now I help out other werewolves.”

  Adam closed the door behind him. “I’m not a werewolf.” There was no reason to tell Lucius that. The werewolves were famous for their sense of smell, and Adam had already been told many times by younger wolves that he didn’t smell like a werewolf.

  “Sometimes I do favors for werewolves and help people who can’t turn into wolves too. You know, you can look at me. The ceiling can’t be that interesting.” Lucius sounded like he was laughing at him.

  Adam didn’t really like that. He swallowed thickly. “I... I know. It’s just that...” He shook his head. “I come from a different time. One where people wore clothes when not bathing themselves.” He knew it was more than just the era he was raised in. It took a special kind of person to be as comfortable with their bodies as werewolves were. Of course most of them looked good naked, which helped. Most werewolves, like most vampires, were at the peak of physical perfection. Lucius was no exception.

  Lucius started laughing. “I hate to break it to you, but that point in time has never existed. Think about it. There’s always been sex, for starters and also places where people publically bathed together. Hot springs, bath houses, pools... you get the picture.”

  He did, and he felt silly for not realizing Lucius’s point sooner. “Fine. You’re right. You win. Can we get started?” He forced himself to look at Lucius. He was an absolutely fabulous specimen of manhood.

  “You might want to ask me what I cost first. While this is a favor to Puck, my help isn’t free.”

  Adam hadn’t even considered that. He didn’t have much money at all, certainly not enough to entice a werewolf to help him out. “I can borrow some money from another vampire in this pack, Armand. I think I can get him to help me. How much were you thinking?”

  Lucius came up to him and pulled his face down with a warm hand on each of his cheeks, forcing Adam to look at him. “Money is so trivial. I deal in something much more fun.”

  Adam was almost afraid to ask what. “And that is?”

  Lucius smiled. It was a look somewhere between lustful and hungry and sent shivers down Adam’s spine. “Whatever I want most at the moment. Right now, what I want is you. Can we make that happen?”

  Adam backed up in a hurry, hitting the wall behind him in his haste to get out of Lucius’s reach. “No.”

  Surprisingly, Lucius just shrugged. Adam didn’t think it would be that easy to give up the idea of them being together. “Eh. It was worth a shot. Are you going to be freaking out about me being naked the whole time I’m here, or can we move past that somehow?”

  “I’m really not comfortable with it,” Adam admitted tightly.

  “Then do you have something I could wear while I’m here helping you out?” Lucius spread his hands as if he was being magnanimous. “Perhaps even a bathrobe.”

  Adam gladly turned and headed into his bedroom. He was glad for the distraction of getting Lucius some clothes, as well as a moment away from him. He’d never before bee
n propositioned so boldly by anyone. His hands shook as he pulled out some items for Lucius to borrow. He couldn’t deny how hard he got at the mere thought of what Lucius had offered. When he had been human, sex was something to be cherished, but times had changed dramatically since then. He’d been a vampire through the whole free love movement, and he’d tried to stay away from it as much as possible, but some things were hard to ignore. He’d been tempted, but he’d always managed to avoid any entanglements. It had been too long for him since he’d been with anyone. Lucius was quite tempting with his lean werewolf body and the splattering of soft pale hair over his chest and stomach.

  Adam shook his head. He would not indulge himself in the fantasy that came into his mind. He couldn’t. Lucius was only there to help him, and then he would be gone. Adam just had to keep himself together for a little while longer, just until he could get Lucius’s help to find the information he was so desperate to have. Information he didn’t feel he was qualified to find on his own.

  He returned from the bedroom with a shirt and a pair of shorts for Lucius to wear.

  He took the shorts, and they fit well enough, but he ignored the shirt. “Wolves don’t wear any more clothes than we have to,” Lucius explained in response to Adam’s questioning look.

  Adam said nothing about Lucius’s continued state of undress and motioned for him to sit down on a nearby couch. “How does this work, then?” Covering Lucius’s groin had been helpful, but the rest of him was still on full display. Adam suddenly wanted to get their meeting done with so Lucius would leave and he could go fantasize about the werewolf.

  “Are you open to playing a game with me? For each piece of information I find about your family, you have to take off an article of clothing. No sex, but I do want to see you naked. You vampires are so uptight, and I’ve been curious about the ones Puck has been collecting in his pack.”