by Kathy Love
“But I thought I knew once before.” He’d followed Lilah blindly through two centuries.
Rhys nodded. “How do you feel about Jolee?”
Christian watched her as she talked with his family. The family she’d returned to him.
“I love her,” he answered simply.
“How did you feel about Lilah?”
Christian considered that. “Wanted her. I would have done anything to have her.”
Rhys nodded.
But Christian’s own words sank in, defining in his mind. “But with Jolee, if she didn’t want me, if she couldn’t accept me, I’d let her go. I’d love her forever, but I couldn’t force her to be with me. I love her too much to ever hurt her.”
“Well, there you go,” Rhys said.
And Christian knew his brother’s blandly stated words said it all. He looked back to Jolee. There you go— there’s your true mate. He was humbled by the emotion coursing through him. Love. Family love. True love. It was all so overwhelming and something he hoped he got the chance to never take for granted again.
“Thanks for coming,” he said, knowing the words were too inadequate for the feelings inside him. But he couldn’t seem to manage more.
“I’m glad you are back to being the Christian I remember.”
Christian was, too. And he had Jolee to thank for that. He looked over to her. He only hoped she could accept the truth. That she would still want him.
Jolee waved to Christian’s family as they disappeared into his trailer. Christian remained with her.
“Are you sure you don’t want to go with them?” she asked, not wanting him to feel obligated to stay with her. He’d spent years separated from his brothers; he must want to spend as much time with them as he could.
“Trying to get rid of me?” he teased, pulling her into his arms.
She smiled. “Not a chance.”
He kissed her possessively.
She sighed as he broke the kiss. “How do you do that?”
“What?”
“Make me totally desperate for you with just a kiss.”
He caught her hand and started toward her trailer. “Believe me, love, you do the same thing to me.”
He barely had her inside the trailer before she was back in his arms, and he was kissing her senseless.
He walked her backward down the hallway, his lips pressed to hers, his hands busily working their clothing off. By the time they reached her bedroom, they were both nude and he’d only broken his kiss twice, once to remove her shirt and once because he tripped on his pantleg.
“You’re pretty darn good at this,” she said, collapsing onto the bed, pulling him with her.
“You, too.”
She grinned, and then she moaned as he began to touch her.
His lovemaking was slow and leisurely. He worshipped her with his mouth. With his hands. With his whole body. And once he was buried deep inside her, he just remained still, looking down at her, caressing her face and her hair.
“Jolee?”
She nodded, gazing into his pale eyes, reveling in the feeling of his weight on top of her, his thick length inside her.
“Thank you.”
She smiled and stroked his cheek. “I want you to be happy.”
“I am.”
His words made her heart flip. “I know how you feel.” When she was with Christian, she simply knew everything would be all right. She’d never known that feeling. Never really felt safe until him.
“Jolee, I want to give you forever.”
Jolee’s heart stopped mid-flip. Was he saying what she thought he was?
“Do you want that? Me? Forever?”
She nodded immediately. “Yes.” She threw her arms around him. “God, yes!”
He began to move inside her until they came together, and Jolee had never believed that such ecstasy could be hers.
*
“Can you contact Dr. Fowler?” Christian asked Rhys as he poured a beer.
Rhys stopped watching Sebastian and Jolee as they fiddled with the new karaoke system that Christian had insisted on buying for Jolee. He knew she still didn’t feel comfortable when he spent money on her, but he’d brought up the fact that they were going to be together forever, and she needed to get used to his help. She’d relented.
Now, he just hoped they had forever.
“Sure,” Rhys nodded. He got out his cell phone. “I can make some calls and try to find him.” He gave Jane a quick kiss, then headed outside to make some calls.
Christian watched him leave, hoping Dr. Fowler would have an answer. Christian hadn’t partaken of a blood bank repast in two days, and while he could feel the hunger building within him, he knew he couldn’t feed from Jolee. His fangs hadn’t appeared— not once.
He glanced at where Jolee watched Sebastian connect some of the wires. She asked questions, and Christian knew that was because she wanted to know every detail. If anything happened to this sound system, Jolee would know how to handle it. She was determined. And she was strong.
But was she strong enough to accept the truth about him? Even if Dr. Fowler could help, his aid might be a moot point. If she couldn’t accept him, then he would let her go. It would kill him, but he would. Given her family and background, she craved to be normal. No black clouds hanging over her.
Vampirism was a big black cloud; it certainly didn’t make a person normal. And it didn’t lend itself to an average life.
Then he looked at Jane, sitting talking to Jed. The old man glowed under her attention. For all practical purposes, Jane looked like a normal human. She was kind and sweet. Vampirism hadn’t seemed to change her. Maybe if he used Jane as an example…
He looked back to Jolee. She and Sebastian now beamed at each other. He assumed the karaoke installation was going well. Then Sebastian strode across the room, smiling at a number of the female customers.
“You know,” he said in a quiet voice once he reached the bar, “you went from being one of the evilest vampires in the world to a sideshow for horny women. I admire that.”
Christian shook his head. Sebastian would admire that.
He gestured to the box on the floor behind Christian. “I need that cable.”
Christian handed the black cord to him.
“Oh,” he added before he headed back to Jolee. “I was looking for a towel in your bathroom, and I found something called a Popiel Pocket Fisherman and a Thigh Master. Should I be worried?”
Christian shook his head again. Sebastian should have been worried, but now Christian was fine. Or he would be.
“And I’m not even going to ask about the Being Human list on your fridge.” Sebastian raised an eyebrow at that. “Bro, you are one odd dude.”
Christian smiled as Sebastian left to return to Jolee. Imagine if he knew about the blog.
A few moments later, Jolee announced, “Karaoke is now open.”
The patrons cheered, but Christian suspected many of the women at the tables nearest the stage were really cheering for Sebastian rather than the karaoke. Several ladies had been watching him quite avidly all night.
The bar was crowded, and none of the patrons seemed to mind that all they could serve was draft beer. The new liquor supplies would be delivered tomorrow. If Vance had intended to bring Leo’s to a screeching halt— although it had almost seemed that way— his burglary had only created a minor delay.
Sebastian, ever the ham, picked up the mic and announced he’d be the first singer of the evening. The women cheered. Then he started singing “Pour Some Sugar On Me” by Def Leppard, and the women started waving their arms and hooting, and looked ready to pounce.
“He’s crazy,” Jane stated, watching him with amused amazement. Christian laughed, thoroughly amused, too.
“Some of those women are going to attack him if he isn’t careful,” Jolee said as she joined Christian behind the bar.
“If anyone can handle himself with the ladies, it’s Sebastian,” Jane said.
&nb
sp; “I have no doubt.” Jolee laughed. She left to call up the next singer. Sebastian was immediately surrounded by admirers as he stepped away from the stage.
Jolee returned to the bar once Hitch was at the microphone screaming “Carrie Ann” by the Hollies. Rhys also returned from outside, although Jolee’s presence didn’t allow him to do more than give Christian a nod, which he assumed meant that Rhys had located Dr. Fowler.
“Poor Hitch,” Jolee said, watching the women circling Sebastian.
“Why? Because he’s obviously in such pain?” Rhys asked as he slid onto his bar stool.
“Be nice,” Jane warned, elbowing him. He slipped his arm around her under the guise of avoiding being nudged again.
“No,” Jolee said with a smile. “Even his screaming can’t get any attention tonight.”
“Sebastian has that effect,” Christian said as he filled another mug of beer.
“Not just Sebastian,” Jolee said, jerking her head to a group of ladies watching him.
As if on cue, the she-clown, who’d pinched his ass that first night, approached the bar. She openly admired him— and Rhys— as she ordered her drink.
As she walked away, she stopped to say to Jolee, “I like the new renovations. They are very, very nice.” She gave another significant look to both brothers.
Jolee and Jane both began to laugh after the woman returned to her table.
“Easy for you to laugh,” Christian said, “she’s never grabbed your ass.”
Jolee and Jane laughed harder. Even Jed chuckled around his cigarette. Sebastian joined them at the bar.
He sighed contently. “I like it here. I even like that guy singing.” He sighed again. “I think I might stay here forever.”
“Well, you would be great for business,” Jolee said, laughing again as more women wandered past the bar to admire the view.
As Hitch’s song neared its screeching finish, Jolee excused herself to go change the music, but Sebastian shot up.
“Can I do it?” he asked eagerly.
Jolee laughed. “Sure. As long as you can keep your fan club at bay.”
“Oh, I can handle it.” He walked toward the stage, a swagger in his step until the she-clown got him, pinching him right on the left cheek.
“I think you’ve lost your admirer to another,” Jolee laughed, nudging Christian.
“As long as I don’t lose you.” He pulled her against his side, kissing her.
Christian was still worrying about just that as they lay in bed later that night. Jolee snuggled against his side, her leg flung over his, her hand on his chest. He’d made love to her twice since they got back from the bar, and after the second time she’d fallen right to sleep, exhausted.
She’d had a busy night at the bar, and he knew he shouldn’t have been so demanding, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. Where his hunger might be dormant, his libido wasn’t. Even now, just stroking the smooth skin of her back, feeling the warm stir of her breath on his skin, he wanted her. His cock pulsed greedily, but he ignored its demand.
He had to tell her the truth. He had to tell her even before he talked to Dr. Fowler. Jolee needed to make the choice whether she could handle what he had to tell her. Tomorrow, he’d have Rhys contact Dr. Fowler again and tell him to wait. Then if Jolee wanted to be with him forever, they’d talk to the doctor together.
Jolee stirred, stretching, then opening her eyes to smile sleepily at him. “Hey, you’re still awake?”
He nodded.
“Sorry to fall asleep on you.”
“You’re tired.” He kissed her forehead, intense love filling him.
“Mmm,” she agreed, letting her eyes drift shut again.
He thought she slept, but then she said lazily, “I love your family. Your brothers are wonderful, and Jane is the nicest person I’ve ever met.”
He considered mentioning that Jane wasn’t quite a person but couldn’t do it. He couldn’t see revulsion in Jolee’s eyes. He couldn’t bear for her to pull away, frightened of him. Or nearly as bad, think that he was insane.
She opened her eyes and smiled at him. “I’m so glad I will finally have a real family. A family who loves and cares about each other.”
He nodded. A real family. A real undead family. Did the fact that they were nice trump the death factor?
She reached up and touched his cheek. “What is it? You look worried.”
He hesitated, then asked, “Remember we talked about all families having skeletons?”
She nodded, her eyes becoming less sleepy.
“Jolee…»
She levered herself up on her elbow to look at him more closely.
He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t tell her.
“It’s nothing,” he said, picking up her hand, which gently brushed his chest. He pressed a kiss to the palm, then simply held her fingers.
“Are you sure?”
He nodded. “I’m just being… silly.”
She frowned but accepted his explanation. He knew she realized there was more that needed to be said, but she didn’t pressure him. Maybe she didn’t want to hear the truth any more than he wanted to say it.
CHAPTER 28
As Jolee worked around the bar that next afternoon, putting away the large shipment of liquor, she thought about the previous night. What had Christian wanted to tell her?
He wasn’t exactly back to the hot/cold guy she’d first met, but he was acting… strange. Last night at the bar, he’d seemed almost edgy. Then they’d gotten back to her trailer and he’d made love to her with so much passion that she sighed just thinking about it. Then she sighed again, her body tingling at the memory. But underneath all the passion, she had the feeling he was holding something back.
In bed, he’d started to talk about his family, and she thought he was finally going to share what was bothering him. But he stopped. And he made love to her again, and while it was wonderful, she had the feeling it was just another diversion from what was troubling him.
He’d told her earlier that he wasn’t a good person. That he was just as bad as any of her past boyfriends. She didn’t believe that, refused to believe that. But… but what if it was true? What if…
No, she just didn’t believe that about him. Or about his brothers and Jane. But he had mentioned the skeletons in his family’s closet. From what she’d seen, his brothers and Jane made her family look even more like the Mansons.
Rhys reminded her of the quintessential oldest brother, a little serious, but very caring. Sebastian was the carefree, charming baby brother. Jane was simply the nicest woman she’d ever met. She really liked Jane, and felt a kinship to her right away. The new friendship with Jane was as novel as having Christian’s love. She knew Jane could be a true friend.
She didn’t want to lose that. And she couldn’t lose Christian. She loved him. Madly. And she was petrified that he was going to end things with her. She didn’t know why, exactly. After all, he’d proposed.
She paused from cutting open a box of beer. At least she thought he’d proposed. That was all that “giving her forever” could mean, right? But now, she just wasn’t sure. He hadn’t said anything to his brothers about proposing. He hadn’t even said anything more to her.
She turned to start putting the beers into one of the coolers. She was so confused. Did Christian regret the suggestion? Was that what he wanted to tell her? She didn’t think so, but she didn’t know.
A noise pulled her from her fixating, and she looked up from her task to see a man in the doorway. He appeared to be in his sixties, wearing a brown tweed jacket despite the warmth of the day. He also wore a tweed golf cap and small wire-rimmed glasses. If he’d been smoking a pipe, he’d have made the perfect stereotypical professor.
“Hello,” he said, his voice deep. “Are you open?”
She wasn’t, but she didn’t really feel like being alone with her swirling, unanswerable thoughts.
“Sure. What can I get you?”
“Could I have a
scotch, neat?”
“Is Johnnie Walker all right?”
He nodded, sitting down on a stool across from her.
She searched through her boxes to find the newly delivered liquor. She cracked the seal and poured his drink in one of the new highball glasses that Christian had insisted on paying for. She placed it in front of the man.
“Thank you.” He took a sip, then nodded as if to acknowledge the liquor was acceptable.
“Do you know where Shady Fork Mobile Estates is?” he asked after his second sip.
The question surprised her. He looked as likely to be going to her trailer park as… well, Christian living there. Shady Fork Mobile Estates was obviously a surprising place.
“Sure. You make a left on the road, and it’s the first right. About a half mile.”
He nodded.
“Are you visiting someone there?”
“More business, really,” he said.
She nodded, wondering what kind of business he could have there, but she didn’t think it was polite to ask. She returned to stocking the beer cooler.
“I’m a scientist,” he said, and she stopped to look at him.
“Really? What do you study?” And what would he be studying at the trailer park?
He took another sip of his scotch, then said, very matter-of-factly, “I’m here to meet with a vampire.”
She laughed, but quickly realized he wasn’t sharing her amusement. “A vampire?”
“Yes, he lives in Shady Fork Mobile Estates.”
“Oh.” It was all she could think to say.
“I’m well aware of the fact that you probably think I’m mad. Many do. But vampires, werewolves, fairies, they all live amongst us.”
She nodded slowly, but didn’t speak. Maybe she should ask him to leave, but decided it wasn’t wise to irritate the man. He could be dangerous.
“This particular vampire has a problem in that he cannot bite. Not humans, anyway.”
“But that’s a good thing, right?” She couldn’t believe she was encouraging this conversation.
“Not in this case. He wants to mate with a mortal woman, which requires him to be able to bite. So I’ve come to see if I can find any cause for his inability. It’s the first time I’ve encountered such a case. It’s very exciting.” His deep tone didn’t change to show his enthusiasm.