Blood Feud

by Heather MacKinnon

  In fact, I was so used to stepping back and letting someone else tell me what to do, it was a habit by now.

  Ashton pulled me ahead of him and gave me a little nudge. “Go ahead. I’ll follow you.”

  His confidence surged through me as I led us down the hall. The man’s scent was still strong as I followed it to the elevator doors. “Looks like he got in here. I don’t know which way he went though.”

  Ashton stepped forward and pressed the downward facing arrow. “Let’s start down there and see what happens.”

  We loaded onto the elevator in companionable silence, but that all changed the moment the doors closed.

  The hairs on my arm stood on end as I felt the overwhelming heat radiating off Ashton’s body. I remembered vividly how it felt to have his searing warmth on my bare skin and shivered again.

  “Are you cold?” he asked, his voice so deep it rumbled right through me.

  I shook my head. “I don’t get cold.”

  He took a step closer, and I swallowed loudly. “Then why are you shaking?”

  I turned to meet his eyes and got lost in them immediately. “I don’t know,” I whispered the lie.

  Ashton stepped closer until he was crowding my body but not quite touching me yet. He reached out slowly to wrap his big hand around my arm, his eyes never leaving mine. He must have seen something in my gaze because his lit up with a fire I felt down to my toes.

  He stepped even closer, and I gasped softly, pulling his clean scent into my lungs. “Millie,” he rasped.

  I looked up into his eyes and let him see everything.

  My desire.

  My longing.

  My trust.

  Because despite the fact that I’d just met him, I already felt like I could trust him.

  He blew out a rough breath and dipped his head to my ear. “When you look at me like that, you make me want to take you back upstairs and do something about it.”

  My heart stuttered in my chest, my breaths choppy. I opened my mouth to tell him I was okay with that when he pulled away and shook his head.

  “But we need to find out where this asshole went, so save the bedroom eyes for later.”

  I giggled, and he shot me a smile that sent a bolt of longing right through me. Ashton grabbed my hand and nudged me forward as the elevator doors opened. I tried to shove thoughts of him out of my head so I could concentrate, but that was damn near impossible with his warm body so close to mine.

  I lifted my nose in the air discreetly and caught the scent right away. I pulled Ashton behind me as we walked through the main lobby to the front doors. It was less noticeable here, but I was still able to follow it onto the sidewalk and past a couple buildings before I lost it completely.

  I stopped in my tracks and turned to Ashton. “I can’t follow it anymore. It’s too mixed up with all these other smells out here.”

  Ashton cursed again and looked away, his jaw tight. “I’m going to have to let Hausle know about this.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said as I winced.

  Ashton turned incredulous eyes toward me, and I looked away. Apologizing, even for things that weren’t my fault, was so ingrained in me that I did it without even thinking.

  “What do you have to be sorry for?”

  I shrugged, my eyes still on the dirty city street beneath our feet. “That I lost his scent?”

  He cupped my face and tipped it up until I could meet his eyes. “Hey, we got a hell of a lot further with your help than I would have alone. There’s nothing to be sorry about.”

  I read the sincerity in his eyes and let it fill me with strength. I nodded and he let me go, but not before shooting me another one of his devastating grins.

  “Let’s go back upstairs and finish what we were doing. Hopefully that asshole scurried back into whatever gutter he crawled out of.”

  I let Ashton lead me into the building in silence, his warm hand never leaving mine. When we got back up to Alexander’s apartment, he released me so he could go look for another suitcase for all the new body parts we had to dispose of.

  While he did that, I got busy tearing them apart. I must have got caught up though, because I didn’t notice Ashton until I heard him gulp beside me. I turned to see his face was several shades paler than usual.

  “Remind me not to get on your bad side.”

  I laughed. “This is nothing. You should have seen the time I dug my hand into a man’s chest and ripped out his heart.”

  Ashton was still pale, but he chuckled anyway. “Scorned lover?”

  The amusement died inside of me instantly. I shouldn’t have brought him up. “Yeah, something like that,” I said as I turned around to finish what I was doing.

  Ashton rolled a suitcase over and unzipped it next to where I was working. “This one should fit them both.”

  I nodded but kept quiet as we loaded the pieces into the luggage. Thankfully, my hands didn’t need my mind to continue doing what they were doing because it was swimming with eighty-year-old nightmares.

  We finished in silence and stood together. “Did you have a plan for these suitcases?” he asked.

  I nodded. “I’ve got a boat. I’ll go drop them in the Atlantic somewhere.”

  He turned to me. “A boat, huh?”

  I shrugged. “Yeah. I got it a few years ago when I got the idea to take up sailing.”

  “Had you ever sailed before?”

  “No. And I haven’t since.”

  He laughed, and I turned to watch him. “What happened?”

  “I fell in. A lot.”

  He laughed harder, and the sound was doing something funny to my insides. Like warming them up and making them crazy at the same time.

  Ashton bent down and predictably picked up the bigger suitcase. “You have a car?”

  I nodded as I grabbed the other one. “Yeah. It’s parked in the garage.”

  “Let’s get these down there then.”

  He led the way back to the elevator after locking up Hausle’s apartment. When the doors were closed, Ashton pulled a shiny black cell phone out of his pocket, tapped the screen a few times, and brought it to his ear.

  I listened to it ringing on the other end before the call was forwarded to voicemail.

  “Damn it,” Ashton said as he stuffed his phone back in his pocket. “I’ll have to try him again later.”

  “Alexander?” I guessed.

  Ashton nodded. “Yeah. I figured I should tell him his apartment’s trashed before he comes home and finds out on his own.”

  I nodded as the elevator doors opened, and we stepped into the underground garage. We were quiet, but that only made the tension between us more noticeable, and it all stemmed from Ashton.

  I didn’t know what was going on with him, but with every step he took, his shoulders got more rigid, his posture straighter. It was almost like he was gearing up for something, I just didn’t know what.

  When my car finally came into view, I reached out to touch Ashton’s arm, enjoying his warmth for another stolen moment. “This is me.”

  He walked toward the trunk while I dug out my keys and unlocked the doors. Ashton loaded his suitcase in the car before heading back for mine. I wanted to remind him that I could carry it on my own, but I didn’t bother. I knew he remembered, just like I knew he was enough of a gentleman to do it anyway.

  Ashton turned to me and leaned against the closed trunk. “So, do you wanna get a cup of coffee or something?”

  My heart skipped in my chest as I tried to hold back a smile. “I don’t drink coffee.”

  “Tea?”

  This time I couldn’t control it. “You know what I drink.”

  He nodded slowly. “How about a movie?”

  I shook my head and bit my lip. “I don’t think so.”

  “Okay. If you don’t like the human stuff, you can pick a vampire date for us to go on. It doesn’t matter to me.”

  I laughed as I took a step back toward the driver’s seat. “I don’t date.�
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  “Maybe you haven’t dated in the past, but you haven’t tried dating me yet.”

  My smile was so wide it was starting to hurt my cheeks. “Sorry. No.”

  He groaned, his head falling back on his neck. When he tipped it forward again, a new determination lit his eyes. “Okay, can I get your number at least?”

  I stopped walking. “What do you need my number for?”

  He shrugged. “In case I want to talk to you again?”

  My grin was back. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  He blew out a deep breath, his shoulders slumping in defeat. But that only lasted a moment before he straightened out again and smiled at me. “What if I need help disposing of another body?”

  I threw my head back and laughed, my chest lighter than it had been in a long time. “Sorry, Ashton. You’re on your own,” I said as I turned around to get in my car.

  I slid onto the leather seat and tried to pull my door shut, but Ashton was suddenly in the way. “What now?” I asked, but there was nothing but humor behind the words.

  He crouched down until we were eye-level, that devastatingly handsome smile back on his face. “I just wanted to remind you that you know how to reach me if you change your mind.”

  I arched a brow at him. “And how is that?”

  He grinned even wider. “Hausle. He’s got both my numbers.”

  I rolled my eyes as I tugged on the door again. “Goodbye, Ashton.”

  He stood up and stepped out of the way. “Don’t forget what I said.”

  I shook my head as I fired up my engine. Just as I put the car into drive, there was a knock on my window. I bit my lip and rolled it down, knowing I was at the absolute limit of my self-control. If he asked me one more time for my number or to do something with him, I’d have no choice but to say yes. He was just too hard to resist.

  But when I finally got the window rolled down, all he said was, “Even if I never get to see you again, tonight was one of the best nights of my life.”

  My eyes were still wide and my jaw hanging open as Ashton tapped the roof of my car twice and turned to walk away. I watched him for a long time. Longer than I should have. But just long enough for me to remember why I wasn’t giving Ashton a chance.

  And then I spent the whole drive to the marina wondering if I was being as stupid as I felt.

  Chapter 5

  Millie

  “Millie girl! Where the heck have you been?”

  I winced as I locked my apartment door and hurried down the hall, phone pressed to my ear. “Hey, Allison. Sorry for the radio silence.”

  “It’s been over a week! You know that’s not allowed.”

  Her voice was full of humor, but I still felt bad because she was right.

  Allison was the first person I ever changed into a vampire, and we’d always been close. We’d spent long periods of time living together, but also decades living apart. Despite the distance, we’d agreed a long time ago to catch up every week, no matter what we had going on in our lives.

  And I’d broken that pact for one simple reason: I was keeping a secret.

  I continued to rush down the hall, already late for work. “I know, I know. I’m sorry, Allie.”

  She was quiet as I stepped onto the elevator and pressed the button for the basement. Finally, she said. “I was starting to get worried.”

  I winced again, my heart squeezing in my chest.

  Allison was my progeny, but she was more like a sister. The fact that I’d made her worry hurt way more than not talking to her had. I just hadn’t wanted to tell her about what happened between me and Ashton that day, and I knew if anyone could get that information out of me, it was Allie.

  So, I’d been sending her calls to voicemail and feeling like an ass every time.

  “I know. I’m sorry,” I said softly.

  “Where have you been?” she asked, her voice still full of hurt.

  “Um. Well. I took the boat out for a couple days.”

  She was quiet for a long time before speaking again. “Did you fall in again?”

  I laughed, the vice around my chest loosening. “Not this time. I didn’t even put the sail up. But I did get lost.”

  “Millie.”

  “Is it my fault there are no clearly labeled signs to mark which land mass is which?”

  She giggled. “Where did you end up?”

  I pursed my lips as I stepped off the elevator. “Rhode Island.”

  She laughed harder, the sound soothing me. “You’re a mess. Why don’t you sell that thing?”

  “Hey, it came in handy recently.”

  The words were out of my mouth before I could think them through, and now I knew there was no way I was getting out of this conversation without divulging about Ashton.

  “How’s that?”

  “It helped me return that favor to Alexander Hausle.”

  She was quiet for another long moment. “That’s the one who helped you out after him, right?”

  We didn’t speak about my ex-husband much, and we certainly never mentioned his name. This was about as close as it got.

  “Yeah,” I said. “That’s the one.”

  “So, who’d you have to get rid of for him?”

  “His girlfriend’s dad.”

  Allie whistled. “Yikes.”

  “I know, right?”

  “At least you two are even now. I know that weighed on you.”

  She was right, as usual. I didn’t like owing anyone a favor, especially a man. Because despite the near century that separated me from my past and the one that almost killed me, I still had trouble trusting them.

  And I certainly didn’t want to be indebted to one.

  “That still doesn’t explain why you’ve been dodging my calls.”

  I winced again as I pushed open the door that led to the underground parking garage. “I know it doesn’t.”

  She paused for a while, probably waiting for me to elaborate, but that wasn’t happening. Finally, she sighed. “Okay, Millie girl. Time to spill. What the hell is going on?”

  I blew out a deep breath as I hurried at a human’s pace through the maze of parked cars. “Maybe we should wait for a wine night to talk about this.”

  “Nuh uh. I want to hear it now. I deserve that much after you ghosted me for so long.”

  I slowed my step. “I really am sorry about that. I just wasn’t in the mood to talk about what happened.”

  She gasped. “So something did happen?”

  I sighed. “Yeah, something happened.”

  She squealed so loud I had to pull the phone away from my ear. “Is it a man? It’s got to be a man! Ooh, tell me, tell me, tell me!”

  I laughed. “Calm down, Allison.”

  “I will not calm down! How can I be calm when my best friend who’s been celibate for decades has a secret about a man?”

  “It has not been decades.”

  “Millie, women couldn’t even vote the last time you got some.”

  My laughter echoed through the garage. “Shut up. It has not been that long.”

  “Okay, maybe not that long, but you for sure had Aqua Net in your hair the last time you got laid and don’t try to argue otherwise.”

  I opened my mouth to do just that, but thought about it for a second and snapped it shut instead.

  “Exactly,” Allie said, responding to my silent answer. “I told you.”

  “Okay, well, the dry spell has officially been broken.”

  She gasped so loud my heart skipped a beat in my chest. “You slept with him?”

  I put my hand over my chest as my pulse restarted at a normal rate. “Allie, what is wrong with you? You just scared the crap out of me!”

  “I can’t believe you slept with him!” she continued like she hadn’t heard me. “I thought maybe you gave him your number or went out on a date or something. But you actually had sex with this guy?”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s not that serious,” I lied.

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nbsp; “Mildred Anne Lewis, don’t you try to lie to me.”

  I stopped dead in my tracks. Allie never pulled out my full name unless she really meant business. I leaned my back against a cement column and sighed.

  “Okay, okay. It’s kind of a big deal.”

  “Kind of?” she exploded.

  I sighed again and looked down the line of vehicles to my car and stopped short.

  My interior light was on.

  “Damn it,” I muttered as I pushed off the pillar.

  “What’s his name? What does he do? Was he good in bed? Did he give you an orgasm? Did he have a big schlong?”

  “Schlong, Allie?”

  She giggled. “Yeah, you know. Rumpleforeskin, pleasure pump, womb broom–”

  “Oh my God, stop talking.”

  She laughed louder this time, but I stopped listening as I approached my car.

  Now I could see why the interior light was on–the driver’s side door was ajar.

  “What the hell?” I whispered as my heart began to race again.

  Allison immediately stopped laughing. “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know,” I said as I approached the vehicle, my eyes darting around the garage just in case. “My car door is open.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “But you always lock your doors.”

  She was right. I did.

  “I know,” I said as I carefully pulled the door open and dipped my head inside.

  The interior looked untouched, but there was one thing I noticed.

  “Ugh,” I said as I straightened up. “It smells like shit in there.” Like stale beer and sweat. Like unclean man. My stomach instantly cramped.

  “In your car?”

  “Yeah. Whoever was in there smelled awful.”

  The scent prickled at some memory in the back of my mind, but I shoved it away. It brought me too close to thoughts of him, and I wasn’t going there.

  “Was anything taken?”

  I slid into the car and shut the door, making sure to lock it too. “I’m not sure,” I said slowly as I poked around.

  I found my leather driving gloves, my tablet, and the emergency fifty-dollar bill I kept in the center console. “Everything’s here,” I told her as I started the car and rolled down the window. “But, damn, it smells.”