Laughing aloud, Pete turned into the driveway after hitting the automatic gate opener, and sped to the house.
We stopped at the garage to wait for the door to open. I shifted in my seat and wondered what this was all about. At the same time, I didn't want to know. I watched the light disappear as the garage closed. I sighed ready to steel myself for an attack...
I knew it was absurd but stranger things had happened to me in recent weeks. I was ready for Pete to throw himself at me.
He didn't. He just got out and walked to the connecting door into his house, leaving me to trail in behind him.
I opened my door and walked through the door, and into a quaint little kitchen done up in yellow and pastel blue checker pattern.
I glanced around and had to smile. I would never have guessed that Lieutenant Pete Jones would have his kitchen decorated in checkers.
I noticed an outset window with a breakfast nook, a table for two in a honey colored stain. I was jealous. It seemed that Pete might have a significant other who was probably human. It was hard for me to accept the fact that Ian was a vampire. To me it wasn't very sensible for the Reaper to be with a vampire.
I heard him walk towards me from another room. I froze, and waited for him in his kitchen. I felt out of sorts and out of place in such a nice kitchen.
As Pete walked through the open doorway, he was wearing a pair of jeans and nothing else. In his hand, he had two crystal glasses and a decanter of something that looked like scotch.
He paused to look at me, and I looked at him. When I let my eyes trail lower, I found that he had a nice chest, not excessive but still built. When I hit his stomach, my loins stirred as I saw the muscles. He had an eight pack, I had to pause there and count. He definitely had the sexiest abdomen I had ever seen. A guy with a six pack is sexy, but to get those last two abs to stick out was impressive.
I resisted the urge to whistle. Instead, I felt myself starting to blush. Christ, I must be on hormone overdrive if all I need is a half naked, sexy albeit, but none-the-less, half-naked guy holding a bottle of scotch to get me going.
Pete laughed, not a loud guffaw, but a low sexy growl that made my stomach flutter. When I heard the clink of the glasses; I felt weak kneed.
What the hell was I going to do? I didn't want to open the marks of my bond with Ian to give me strength. He would be out here as soon as the sun set. That was asking for problems.
I glanced at Pete with heat in my face. I thought a direct approach would be best.
"So you gonna show me your gun?” I rolled my eyes and thought, crap, that came out wrong.
His smile broadened when I stuttered to keep going, “I mean I only came out here to borrow a gun so that I can go take care of whatever is in my home.
"I think,” he paused as if searching for the right words, “I think you should stay here, tomorrow morning I will give you whatever firepower you want.” When he handed me a glass, I could smell the Glenlivet, and wanted to slam the whole thing. In fact, I did, and if that decanter would have been in my hands I would have taken a pull off the bottle.
"Okay Pete, what is going on?"
"I thought it would be nice if we got to know each other before I started handing out my guns.” He replied in a calm tone.
"I am not sleeping with you.” I burst out in embarrassment.
"I never asked you too, I don't know what it is about you Ariana, but I feel drawn to you,” advancing on me, he continued to talk as he closed the distance, “I want to touch you, I just want...” He trailed off as he leaned in for a kiss.
Unable to stop myself I kissed him back, and let there be fireworks, it was incredible. I thought Ian, hell I thought Raif was a good kisser, but neither of them had anything on Lieutenant Peter Jones.
CHAPTER TWENTY
"Pete I can't do this right now,” I gasped as I pulled away.
Point for him, he didn't try to kiss me again.
"I am not in the habit of one night stands and I hardly know you, I have to think ... you need to put on more clothes, because I can't think with you looking so damn sexy."
He gave that low, sexy, growling chuckle, and again I felt butterflies in my stomach.
God, what the hell was wrong with me? As if my life wasn't complicated enough, now I was falling for a human that was a cop, and probably a vampire hater.
"Listen Peter—Pete, I want to tell you..."
Pete interrupted me, “Please call me Peter. I don't like that name but you make it sound good."
I couldn't handle that shit. I held my hand out for the bottle and resisted the urge to take a swig. Instead, I poured myself a full glass, taking a deep gulp. I exhaled with harsh sound as the liquor hit my stomach and almost sputtered.
I glared at Pete for snickering at me. I slowly sipped my next drink, and gave him my sternest look. He backed away and motioned me with his arm to precede him into the next room. I didn't know what was in store, so I walked past him with a hesitant stride. I stopped myself from tracing my fingers across any bare skin I could reach.
I sensed Pete following me. I made my way through a stark hallway that had whiter patches from where pictures used to hang. I resisted the impulse to inquire about the missing pictures. I continued on my way.
As I turned the corner near the end of the hallway, the wall of windows that looked out over the city lights took me aback. In a sparsely furnished living room, I was staring straight ahead at an eye full of city lights in the dimming dusk. I couldn't think of a prettier sight. I got a decent view from my house, but this was incredible. There was no way to describe it other than that it was worthy of a painting.
How to put to words this beauty? Imagine the perfect sunset; imagine the perfect sunset with a view, the air changes colors, to a pink, then a darker red and finally purpling. I sat in his living room still enjoying the view until all I could see was the dark sky and the city lights.
I took another sip of my drink. I turned and found him right behind me, still admiring the view. I wanted to jump into his arms, but instead I finished my drink.
"So you have a girlfriend I take it?” I asked out-of-the-blue, and watched him pale. “Its okay, I won't tell her. I just know that only a woman would decorate the kitchen the way it is decorated, I can only say that I don't think she has her hand in this living room."
He actually smiled at me, before he turned and sat down on the only piece of furniture made for lounging. It was a large sectional couch; I could tell that it had a pull out bed, and at one end, it had a chaise lounge.
Although he didn't stay put for very long, he did swallow the rest of his drink before he got up and went to the fireplace.
It had to be a joke; he had a nice house, good scotch and a roaring fire. God, he really was trying to seduce me, and damn-it-all-to-hell, it was working.
As I watched his chest flair to life with the light of the fire, I wanted to kiss him right between the shoulder blades. I wanted to trace those abs and lick my way down them—I wanted to do to him things I only do to my lovers, and that was not a good sign.
I took another gulp of my scotch, but found the last sip to be wanting for what I needed. What I needed was something stronger. Wild Turkey 101 sounded like the ticket. The harshness and alcohol content would help me to deal with what the scotch was making me want to do.
Pete didn't say anything after he started the fire. He just sat in front of it, and watched the flames. I knew, he knew, I was watching him. It disturbed me even more. The game he was playing started to get on my nerves ... Anger was something I could hold onto. I used it to fight my growing attraction. I walked to where he had left the decanter and poured myself another stiff drink straight up. I downed it in a single gulp.
It worked to add fuel to my fire of annoyance, almost turning it to anger; maybe one more drink would do the trick.
I poured one more stiff drink and sipped at it. While my anger grew I contemplated how long he was going to play hard to get.
"S
o Pete..."
"I asked you to call me Peter.” He whispered without turning around.
"Okay. So Peter what do you really want? And you never answered my question about your girlfriend. Where would you like to start?” I thought that maybe posing an actual question would get an answer.
I watched him draw in a deep breath. It did things to me that shouldn't have happened. I was practically oozing between my legs.
"Well, actually my wife decorated the house.” It was a flat statement and one that stopped my libido in a flash.
"So where is your wife?” I felt so stupid. How could I fall for his crap? As if I didn't have enough love life problems without falling for a married man. “I mean why am I here and she isn't?"
"I don't know what happened to me, it's why I'm a cop. She was abducted while I was hunting and I have no idea if she's dead or alive. But she left me without a word, and never came back.” I watched his shoulders shudder as he recounted an all too familiar story, bringing up sad and harsh memories from my own too recent past.
I wanted to comfort him, and taking a long pull from my glass, I found myself picking up the decanter and filling it, not for me but for Peter.
As I approached his back, I crouched low and let my hand drop inches from his shoulder. I knew how he felt. Although, my situation had not really turned out for the best, it wasn't long ago that I had the same feeling that he must be feeling.
Bracing myself for the electric shock I knew would accompany the physical contact, I reached out again and touched his arm. It was just the barest skin contact, but we didn't need more. He turned towards me and I attacked him.
I threw myself into his lap. The glass fell from my hand, liquid spilled onto his carpet as I shoved my tongue down his throat. I ground my hips into his groin, I could feel his growing hardness and relished in the sensations. I couldn't stop myself from wondering how he would feel inside of me.
At this point, Ian forced his way into my head.
My drunkenness had made me forget to shield as hard. I screamed into Peter's mouth as Ian ripped under my skin.
Bones popped and I felt strangled by fur as my bones forced themselves to shift.
I had no other thought other than to make the pain stop. I threw myself away from Pete, and I could think again.
I curled up in the fetal position, ground my teeth and flowed with the pain instead of letting it swallow me.
Sikaoki, if you wanted this man, you could have told me. I would not deny you anything. However, by hiding from me and letting your shields down at this crucial point, I can only take it as an insult. I think that perhaps you are playing vampire games. I will be more careful when I deal with you from now on.
Know that we are bonded and we cannot harm one another without harming ourselves and I would rather face true death than to let you go. Ian mind spoke to me.
Not knowing how to respond, I could only do one thing as pain overwhelmed me. I screamed. Not a ‘fuck you’ scream, but a long ear-shattering scream that made me pass out.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
When I opened my eyes, Peter was crouched next to me, pumping my chest. He reached down to pinch my nose to give me a breath. I took in a shuddering gasp and tried to sit up, only to feel his hands on my shoulders.
"Well if that don't kill the mood. Christ Ariana if you were that bored you should have just asked me to take you home.” He said with sarcasm. I knew he was trying to lighten the mood.
He stared at me with serious eyes, his voice was grave when he said, “Your heart stopped, I don't know what happened but you have some broken ribs ... again, and both your shoulders are dislocated, do you want me to call an ambulance or pop your shoulders back?"
I felt sick to my stomach as I eyed him coldly. “Help me up,” I demanded and watched with no emotion as he used superior strength to manhandle me to my feet careful to avoid causing me further pain.
I glanced around his living room. I didn't see anything that could aid me. I stalked back down the hallway and found a door jam, if I hit just right I could pop a shoulder back in.
It sure as hell beat letting someone else cause me the pain I was about to feel. Regardless of his intentions, I was seeing red, and I had been drinking not good.
When I spied Peter's stainless steel industrial refrigerator, it seemed like a good enough place to do this deed. I heard Peter cry out in alarm when I shoved my right shoulder into the fridge. The audible pop that followed made my knees buckle.
I gasped with pain, my vision blurred and I saw Peter standing above me.
He didn't reach down to help me; he didn't ask if I was okay, he just stood there giving me a stern look. There was not a hint of compassion, concern or interest in his eyes. It made me think better of him. I registered the coldness in his eyes, I felt the lack of emotion in his stance, and I could feel the stillness in his body. It dawned on me, he wasn't just a cop he was a killer like me.
"You just gonna stand there or you going to help me up and pop my other shoulder back into place? None of this ‘just relax while I rotate your arm’ do it hard and fast and I might not deck you, though I probably will."
Without a word, Peter picked me up and before I could tell him to go, he snapped my shoulder back into place with a force that would rival a vampire.
"Can I ask you a question?” I waited for him to nod before I went on, “Do I look like food or just a colleague that needed your help?"
He laughed, not a comforting laugh, but something like one could expect to hear from me when I was ready to pull the trigger. A low sound, that bordered on hysteria, but there was no emotion in his eyes. No indication that he was losing it, just a cold calculated gaze that made me feel comfortable in a way.
"I think you better take me back to my truck now Peter.” When I said his name, he seemed to snap out of killer mode and back into jovial, trying to seduce me, cop mode.
It chilled me to the bone. I now regret that I whispered my next words aloud. “What are you?” The change in his attitude had me thinking he was a vampire that could walk in the daylight. Or at least something supernatural and I didn't like it.
* * * *
On the drive back into town, he took another route. I couldn't help thinking it was probably his habit to keep his victim guessing. I wasn't playing anymore. I was determined to get to the bottom of this new found mystery.
He barely came to a stop to let me out at my Humvee, Peter gunned it as soon as the passenger door to his vehicle closed. He left me standing in a parking lot, in the middle of the night, with no gun and no shoes to fend for myself.
My ribs were already healing. The pain in my shoulders had subsided to a dull ache. I pulled my tired and sore body into the driver's seat of my SUV. I froze when a low growl emanated from the back seat.
I turned and found myself staring into the most beautiful turquoise wolf eyes. I threw myself over the seat and buried my face into the comforting smell and feel of Ian's fur.
"God Ian what the fuck is going on?” Sobbing into his fur, I felt him grow still, maybe with confusion, but I didn't care. He was angry. I felt it when he growled at me. By flinging myself onto him in sobs of frustration, I confused the wolf in him.
If Ian had been in human form, he would probably have comforted me. I was after all his bonded human. I was healing fast. I was totally out of control. I wanted to go home, take a long hot bath, and feel his arms around me.
These thoughts were foreign to me, well at least the me I became after Raif left. It wasn't immediate but it happened over time, and I was not used to having to rely on anybody but myself. Why and how Ian wormed his way into my heart was beyond me. Nonetheless, he was there, and it seemed there to stay. The one thing that upset me the most is that it seemed there was a small piece of Lieutenant Peter Jones there as well, and the closer Ian and I became the harder it would be for me to hide it from him.
I came to my senses and withdrew. Looking into a pair of intelligent wolf eyes I said words I th
ought I would not ever say again, “I love you."
I patted the wolf on the head with affection, and climbed back over the seat. I started up the truck. Put it in gear and drove home.
Halfway home on the Frontage road, Ian turned back to human form, “I love you too, Sikaoki. Now do you mind telling me what you were doing with that sex sucker?"
I pulled the truck over and swung my arm over the seat to get a better look at Ian, “I really have no idea what you are talking about, besides where the fuck are my guns? Damn it, Ian, there was someone in my house and I needed them.” I said. I was angrier at the fact that the wolf had registered my words, than that he was in my truck.
I was stunned when he held up my guns, still in their rigs, in one tanned hand and grinned at me. One of those evil little grins that makes you want to slap somebody.
"Sikaoki, they were in your truck the whole time. Now, I must insist you give me some clothes so that we may face your intruders together, or I suppose I can go furry again."
The look I gave him said I had things other than getting him dressed in mind, or for that matter, him going furry again, however; I really wanted a bath and could think of no other person I would rather share the hot water with than the man sitting behind me.
I shimmied out of the baggy jeans not knowing if they would fit him. But I had no other clothes.
As I watched Ian shimmy into the jeans from the rear view mirror, I smiled. I knew I wouldn't often get to see this, although, if he kept going furry on me I just might have to keep some extra clothes for him in the cubbyhole Better yet, I should keep a spare change of clothes for myself as well.
When we pulled into my circle drive, I could tell someone was in my house, no, not through any gut instinct, but because e the lights in my house were turned on.
When I opened the door, I could hear the George Jones coming at me from the night and knew it was Raif. The only acceptable outcome was his retreat or his death. That saddened and angered me at the same time. I hoped maybe he would sense Ian and take off before it got complicated; I was not very enthusiastic about this lover's triangle I found myself in and to add Peter in meant it was a whole new ball game.
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