He chuckled—a sound that did nothing to lessen the hysteria threatening to bubble from her throat.
“You’re amusing—I think I will keep you for a while.” His fingers closed around her upper arm, and he pulled her behind him, through the crowd dancing in the large living room and down a darkened hallway. “You and I do not need the light, do we?’
He opened a door to a bedroom and pushed her inside. “Now, take off your clothes.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“You are here, uninvited. There can be only one reason for your rude behavior.”
“I want to take off my clothes?”
“But of course.”
Frannie shook her head—Gunter was very odd man indeed. No wonder Niall kept his file in his secret drawer. Creeps like this needed padded cells. “I-If it’s all right with you, I’d like to keep my clothes for now.”
He shrugged and quietly unbuttoned his cuffs. “I like a little modesty. Have you been at this for long?”
At what? She smiled weakly. “Not at all. A few days…”
“How delicious you are.”
“Not really, I’m Italian—I eat lots of garlic.”
He chuckled again. “Please, you must make yourself comfortable.” He gestured toward the bed—a very large, bed with the covers already turned back.
Frannie’s eyes widened with alarm. “I’m—I have to pee,” she said, her voice squeaking.
“I understand. You may use my bathroom,” he said nodding behind her.
Frannie hurried to the door, wondering whether there was a lock, or if he’d lose interest if she made really disgusting noises from inside. She closed the door behind her and let out the breath she’d been holding.
She nearly shrieked when a hand closed over her mouth.
“Not one bloody, goddamned word,” a voice whispered into her ear, and then he lowered his hand.
“Niall!” She whirled and flung her arms around his neck. “I’m so glad to see you,” she hissed into his ear. “How did you get in here?”
He nodded to an adjoining door opposite the one she’d entered.
“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go.”
“We can’t leave that way, there’s another couple inside. They came in after me.”
“What are we going to do? Gunter’s in the other room.”
Niall’s shoulders bunched beneath her hands. “We have to go through the window.” He pushed her away and turned to raise the small window.
“Are you crazy? We’re four floors up! And your shoulders will never fit through that postage stamp!”
He gave her a grin. “Do you trust me?”
“Always,” she said, nodding, wondering whether he was planning to stuff her through the window.
“Then close your eyes and think light wispy thoughts.”
“Huh?”
He shook his head and clucked. “You said you trusted me.”
“I do!”
“Then close your eyes, love.”
He was going to give her one last kiss before he crammed her through the window. She really ought to warn him, she didn’t think her hips would fit. But she closed her eyes—at least partway.
Through her slitted eyelids, she saw Niall’s body shimmer then dissolve into mist. Shocked to her toes, Frannie slammed her eyes closed. Think wispy thoughts! Quicker than she could scream, her body grew light, and she floated. Niall’s essence tugged her though the window, and then she was wafting toward the sidewalk.
Once there, her body tingled, and she found herself facing him with both feet on the ground—and they were entirely naked!
He grabbed her hand. “Run for the cab!”
Frannie forgot how to work her feet and stumbled after him. “Niall, we just turned into smoke!”
“Mist, love; there’s a difference.”
“But that was the most amazing thing! Do you do that a lot?”
“No! It takes too much energy.” He ran faster, leaving her huffing in his wake.
“But I didn’t know vamps could do that.”
“Not all can. We all have our talents. But since I made you, I hoped you inherited at least that one gift.”
“And if I hadn’t?”
“I’d have stuffed your ass through the window anyway.”
Frannie was too winded to continue the conversation, but she kept close to his heels. “Why are we running? Do you think he’ll follow us?”
“No, but he’ll likely pull up stakes and move again. We have to get home quick so I can make a few calls. Get someone else to keep an eye peeled, since he’ll have my scent.”
The cab was parked on the far side of the street, next to the corner farthest from the apartment doors. Frannie tried not to think about what her feet were stepping in—this was New York City after all.
“What I want to know,” Niall shouted over his shoulder, “is what the hell were you thinkin’ going off half-cocked into a vampire’s den?”
“Half-cocked?” She stopped in the middle of the street, digging in her heels. “If you didn’t notice—I almost got the whole cock!”
He rounded on her with a fierce scowl. “Oh, I noticed all right. Maybe you were wantin’ to stay?”
“Of course, I wasn’t. He gives me the willies.”
“Then get to the damn cab.”
A car sped by and honked. A shout sounded from across the street, “Hey, get a room!”
Frannie screeched and jogged to the gleaming, yellow taxi. “Niall Keegan, I’m going to kill you!”
*
Several weeks later, Niall Keegan reached out the window of his cab and adjusted the mirror. He couldn’t miss Kowalski’s exit from his mistress’s apartment.
Satisfied with the angle, he sank lower in his seat and braced his feet on the floorboard.
“Did we miss him again?” Frannie asked, lifting her head from his lap.
Niall threaded his fingers though her hair and pushed her face back down. “No, love, we’ve time.”
Frannie’s wicked mouth returned to her meal. She devoured his cock, lapping his shaft like a lollipop, sucking him like a vacuum until he orgasmed so strongly, he felt like she’d wrung it from his toes.
A shrill whistle sounded from outside, and Frannie jerked upright. “Fuck! That’s him!” She turned the ignition, flicked on the headlights, and slammed the cab into gear. “You so owe me, buster.”
“I promise I’ll return the favor later.”
She pulled a U-turn in the middle of the road and stomped on the gas, barely cutting off another cab to slide neatly in front of Edgar Kowalski and his girlfriend.
Frannie threw the man a cheeky smile. “Where do you folks wanna go?”
That’s my girl! Niall smiled sleepily, still fighting the drugging aftereffect of his orgasm.
“You familiar with the Lizards ’n’ Suds?” Kowalski asked, as he slid across the seat.
Niall cast Frannie a wicked grin. “We know it well. It’s where I met my wife.”
“Yeah, it was love at first sight,” Frannie said, her smile a little thin.
“That’s nice.” Kowalski’s smile was more of grimace. Was he feeling a little guilty? “How long ’til we get there?”
“I’ll have you there in a flash, sir,” Frannie said, gunning the engine. In minutes, she pulled to a halt in front of the bar.
Niall glanced back at Kowalski and smothered a grin. The man was a little green around the gills. “That’ll be fifteen bucks.”
Kowalski fished the cash from his pocket and handed it to Niall. Then he and his girlfriend quickly exited the cab.
“Did you get that girl’s license number?” Kowalski said to the woman clinging to his arm. “She’s a menace.”
Niall shook his head. “It’s a good thing you don’t drive a cab for a living, love.”
“I get where I’m going,” she said smugly, turning off the meter and driving further down the street to park.
“That you do. Well, there’s an
other case closed.”
“Not until we have the pictures to prove it.” She reached for the small duffel behind the seat and drew out a palm-sized camera. “Do you think our old seats are empty?”
“Feeling nostalgic?”
Frannie snorted and opened her door. “For that dive?”
He climbed out and followed her down the sidewalk then froze when he realized where he was.
Frannie stepped over the place on the pavement where she’d died without ever looking down.
“Do you ever think about it?” he asked.
Frannie looked over her shoulder, and then down, appearing surprised to be standing on that exact spot. “All the time.”
His hands curled into fists. “If I’d only acted quicker…”
She walked over to him and slid her arms around his waist. “If I hadn’t followed Vinnie…”
Niall crushed her to his chest and hugged her with all his might. “I would have spared you the pain.”
“What pain? The bus didn’t hit me. And you may have knocked me silly, but I didn’t feel a thing. Now, this hug is another thing entirely.”
Niall loosened his hold immediately. “Really? You didn’t feel a thing?”
“Well, I felt your first bite.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“I’m not. I died with that last delicious memory to carry me over.” Frannie tilted her head. “What is it with you tonight?”
Niall cupped her cheek, stroking her lower lip with his thumb. His chest ached, and his jaw was tight. “I guess, I just remembered I forgot to tell you I love you.”
Frannie’s eyes filled with tears, and she laughed. “You think I didn’t already figure that out? I’m a PI, remember?”
Niall felt moisture gather in his own eyes and smiled ruefully. “Oh yeah? Then tell me what clued you in?”
Frannie leaned back in his arms and stared into his eyes. “When you told me you knew all about me before you ever met me—but you were still there to hold me when I needed you most.”
Niall’s heart clenched at the sweetness of her smile. “You think you’re not easy to love?”
“I’m a pain in the ass, Keegan. Admit it!”
“That you are, Frannie Valentine.” He gave her a cheeky smile. “But your ass is all mine.”
“You told Kowalski I was your wife.”
“That was part of the cover story.”
“Or a slip of the tongue.” Her gaze narrowed. “Means you’ve been thinking about it.”
Her gaze slipped away just as her smile began to fade. All her bluster had been just that. And Niall couldn’t let her wonder any longer. He hadn’t the heart to tease her. “I have been thinkin’ about it.”
Her gaze was glued to the center of his chest. “Because you need a partner and it’s convenient having everything tidy?”
Niall tucked a finger under her chin and raised her face until she couldn’t avoid his gaze. “Frannie, there’s nothin’ convenient about you, girl.”
She pursed her mouth. “Guess we should follow our marks inside.”
He didn’t move. Simply waited until a hint of fire entered her gaze again.
Her chin rose sharply. “Well, are you gonna ask me?”
“Frannie, we’ll need to call your mom and that cranky old aunt of yours. Think they’ll meet us at the city clerk’s office in the mornin’?”
She beat a fist against his chest. “That’s your proposal?”
“Did you want me on my knee?”
“No, but you might at least have asked!”
Niall waggled his eyebrows. “Does it matter?”
She huffed a breath, then let a smile spread across her face. “She probably already has a wedding dress stuffed into my old closet.”
“Your mother doesn’t take anything for granted,” he murmured.
“The clerk will have to shout so Zia Mia can hear.”
Niall began to laugh.
She hit him again. “Are you laughing at me?”
“No, love,” he said, hugging her close. “I’m just happy.”
Frannie tucked her face into the corner of his neck. Her breath gusted warmly against his skin, and then he felt the edge of her sharp teeth rake the side of his neck.
“We have a job to finish, Niall,” she said in his ear. “I’ll expect a honeymoon, and those photos will pay for it.”
He gave her ass a swat then pushed her back. “Got the camera?”
She opened her hand, but quickly closed her fingers around it when he reached for it. “I take better pictures than you do.” Then she tossed back her hair and stepped past him.
With his gaze on her swaying hips, Niall stood rooted to the spot where her life had ended and his happiness had begun. Life with Frannie would be filled with surprises. She’d keep him on his toes. Frannie Valentine-Keegan. He said the words in his mind and liked the sound of them. He didn’t feel the least bit itchy. And he had no doubt she’d insist on one of those hyphenated names. She was an independent woman. Something he’d continue to nurture in her—no matter how scary the thoughts of where her stubborn nature might take her.
At the door of the bar, she glanced behind her, raised both eyebrows, and mouthed, “Well?”
Niall stepped out smartly, not a twinge of regret remaining. Forever no longer seemed dauntingly lonely. Forever, Frannie—that’s how long you’re stuck with me.
About Delilah Devlin
Delilah Devlin is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of erotica and erotic romance with a rapidly expanding reputation for writing deliciously edgy stories with complex characters. She has published over a hundred-fifty erotic stories in multiple genres and lengths, and she is published by Atria/Strebor, Avon, Berkley, Black Lace, Cleis Press, Ellora’s Cave, Grand Central, Harlequin Spice, HarperCollins: Mischief, Kensington, Kindle, Kindle Worlds, Montlake Romance, Running Press, and Samhain Publishing.
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If you loved Frannie and the Private Dick, check out the rest of Delilah’s Night Fall series!
Sm{B}itten
Love Bites!
Emmy Harris knows she’s not perfect. She has a little extra padding and isn’t the brightest bulb, but you’d think she was a sexy rock star the way everyone at a certain night club treats her from the moment she walks through the door. In fact, the two sexiest men there can’t seem to keep their hands off her, until one of them sweeps her away to his private domain. A girl like her isn’t going to waste a chance like that! So he’s a little rough and likes to take a nibble or two while he pleasures her. For a girl who didn’t know she’d never experienced a full-blown orgasm before, Dylan’s eccentricities are delicious!
Dylan O’Hara only wants a night of passion to slake his lusts, but finds Emmy is a full-bodied, red-blooded siren whose innocence and humor draw this Master vampire like a moth to a red-hot flame. When Emmy attracts the attention of a serial-killing vampire, Dylan vows to protect her, but he fears he’ll lose Emmy once she discovers he’s not human.
Truly, Madly…Deadly
Just this once…
On the trail of a serial killer, vampire Quentin Albermarle is mistaken for the killer by a police special task force. Once the smoke clears, Quentin finds himself in a delicious position—atop one of the unit’s crack officers, Darcy Henry. In need of Quentin’s access to the vampire sub-culture, the task force leadership invites Quentin to join the crime unit as a special advisor, much to the chagrin of the men in the unit, and especially, of Darcy.
Caught between opposing forces, vampire and hunter…
A no-nonsense cop with no time for romance, Darcy suddenly finds herself embroiled in a steamy love triangle between her mortal partner, Joe, an
d the handsome vampire. Going from abstinence to wantonness, she is unable to resist the two men’s relentless seduction or her own sensual curiosity about a vampire’s special “kiss”.
A hunger like no other…
When the real killer threatens the life of someone close to her, Darcy makes a choice that forever binds the three of them together.
Knight in Transition
A member of an elite police unit sworn to hunt vampires, Joe Garcia’s life is turned upside down when he’s transformed into one. On a quest for a cure, Joe’s search brings him to New Orleans in a last-ditch effort to recover his humanity.
Professor Lily Carlson, a renowned expert in vampire lore, has a condition of her own. Her sexual libido has been in hyper-drive for months. Her only defense is to hide behind her glasses and tweed suits and stay as far away from men as possible. However, she’s thrilled to discover vampires really do exist when Joe shows up on her balcony.
Although Joe deflects her attempts to make him a case study and confirm a few vampire statistics, he is drawn by her powerful allure. When werewolves join the chase and track her through New Orleans, Joe’s cop instincts tell him there’s a mystery to solve. Intent on protecting her, he must seek help from the last vampire on Earth he wants to ask.
While his hopes for deliverance from his fate dwindle, Lily’s life is forever altered by an unexpected inheritance.
Wolf in Plain Sight
To Super-cop Max Weir, the only good vampire is a dead one. Since his special police unit integrated with vampires, he’s had to suppress his natural hatred to work side by side with the undead to hunt down and terminate the deadliest killers. Now the unit’s hot on the trail of a new menace in town, a pack of werewolves prowling for vampires who don’t care whether humans get in their way.
When a stakeout goes awry, Max enters a bar looking for a fight or woman to help him blow off a little steam. What he finds is a winsome siren whose sexual appetites match his own.
Vampire Pia D’Amato is on a secret mission to take out Max—either by seduction or turning him. He’s become a liability to the Masters’ Council setting up jurisdiction in southern Florida, and she’s not leaving until she’s done the job. But Max is more man than she bargained for with a deadly secret of his own.
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