“I like that idea,” Xander agreed.
“Jessi does so much for us,” Brandon replied. “You need to be nicer, Ashley.”
Ashley rolled her eyes. “I didn’t do anything this time.”
“I did,” Xander said. “Of the three of us, I’m pretty sure she’s pissed at me.”
Brandon looked up at him. Xander suspected the protective older brother was about to say something to him about upsetting Jessi. Both were Naturals. Brandon was much like Jessi: undetectable from more than three feet away with a mind Xander was unable to penetrate. He’d have to test her reflexes to be certain, but Ashley was similar to Jenn: a warrior, only Ashley didn’t know it yet.
If Xander knew and Jule knew, so did Damian, the White God. Jenn was probably waiting for his guard to drop, so she could snatch all three.
Which pissed Xander off even more.
“You should just sleep with her and get it over with,” Brandon said at last.
“If it were only that easy,” Xander said with a snort.
Ashley appeared stunned then embarrassed.
“It’s kinda obvious, Ashley,” Brandon said.
Xander glanced at the kid, entertained. Brandon flushed, confirming the instinct that he wasn’t as pure as his cousin thought. Ashley, on the other hand, was still a virgin, and Xander guessed her brother was as responsible for that as Jessi’s lectures.
“Are you even dating?” Ashley asked him, confused. “She said you weren’t.”
“It’s complicated,” Xander replied. “She doesn’t know what she wants, and she’s trying to protect you both from some psycho vampire TV star.”
“Oh.” Ashley frowned. “Oh, Brandon, is that why she hasn’t dated since she took us in?”
“Probably,” Brandon replied with a shrug. “All she does is work.”
“It’s our fault.” The teen girl was pensive for a moment. “Xander, you have to date her.”
“Really,” he said. “Why’s that?”
“Because she’s probably lonely, and I feel bad that we’re the reason she doesn’t date,” Ashley rationalized. “So you should date her.”
“He can’t just date someone because we want him to,” Brandon objected. “Do you even like her?”
“Most of the time,” Xander said. “Right now, not so much.” Especially if she was about to betray him to Jonny.
Jessi reached the door to the exterior. They were close enough that she heard the last exchange. She glared at him over her shoulder before stalking out. His anger had settled enough for him to admire the flush of her cheeks.
She waited for them at the car. Ashley unlocked the doors, and Jessi climbed into the tiny backseat, followed by Brandon. Xander sat up front.
“I know where we’re going to eat!” Ashley said, excited. “It’s a surprise!”
The teen girl began talking. Xander half-listened, distracted by his thoughts and trying to overhear the exchange between Jessi and Brandon. The two were talking about school. Xander focused on Ashley then where they were going.
Ashley pulled the car into an Italian chain restaurant.
“It’s Jessi’s fave. Since you’re buying …” she side, giving him a sidelong glance. “We don’t go out much.”
Xander nodded in approval. “Works for me.”
He climbed out and offered his hand to Jessi. She ignored it. Irritated with her, he took her arm to hold her back. The cousins hesitated, but Xander tossed his head towards the restaurant. He waited to speak, not wanting the cousins to overhear.
Jessi looked up at him, her clear eyes troubled. Xander brushed her cheek with the back side of his index finger. The skin of her arm was against his. She didn’t move away from him when he released her. She was gradually accepting his touch, a subtle sign of a thaw she probably didn’t realize she was doing.
He did. He’d hooked her and was gently reeling her in.
“Enough of the cold shoulder,” he said firmly.
“For once, I got to you.” She didn’t sound satisfied like he thought she would.
“I’m not the issue. I’m the target.”
“I’ll figure out a way not to make anyone the victim,” she replied with a deep breath.
“I’m growing on you.”
“No,” she said, a flash of her fire back. “You made it clear you know where I live. Like I’m going to piss you off!”
“Go on. We’ll talk later,” he said. She was okay, if she was spitting fire at him. “You’re staying with me tonight.”
“In your dreams!”
He swatted her ass as she walked away. Jessi shook her head. Xander trailed her. She relaxed some over dinner, even joking with her cousins. While she didn’t shake her distraction completely, she was at least engaged. And not giving him the cold shoulder.
He never realized he hated that, before she did it, maybe because no one else ever had the ability to shut him out so completely.
He sensed the Guardians when Ashley pulled in front of the old apartment building where they lived. It was in a crowded, shady side of town, the type of place he’d go to hunt down dinner, if he wasn’t a kept vamp.
“Are you guys coming up?” Ashley asked as she passed him the keys.
“It’s seven. Probably not. We’ve got an after-party,” Xander said.
Jessi cursed quietly. He climbed out of the car to let her out and saw she was texting furiously.
“You sure?” Ashley asked hopefully.
“Yes, we’re coming up,” Jessi said and shoved her phone in her pocket. “We’ll go straight there.”
Xander said nothing, uneasy with the idea after Jenn’s warning. Jessi was hiding something. If nothing else, he doubted Jessi’s home was in trouble, not with all the Guardians nearby.
He followed them into the worn down building, senses alert. Jessi hesitated as they reached their floor.
“I didn’t clean,” she said nervously. “It’s a bit crowded.”
“I get it. Your first date in five years,” he said.
“This is not a date!”
He stood close enough to feel her body heat and rested a hand on her hip as they waited for Ashley to unlock the door. Ashley was giggling at their exchange while Brandon pretended like he didn’t hear.
Xander entered the apartment behind them. It was crowded but bright and cheerful and smelled of cinnamon. Every inch of space was filled with something. Ashley slung her backpack on a chair. Jessi absently picked it up and placed it in a corner.
“It’s Thursday, Ashley,” Jessi reminded her cousin.
“Ugh. Fine,” Ashley said with an exasperated sigh. She stormed into her room.
Xander sat on the couch.
“You, too, Brandon,” Jessi said.
“But Xander’s here.”
“He’ll be here in ten minutes when you’re done cleaning your room.”
Brandon rolled his eyes before he disappeared down the same shallow hallway Ashley had. Xander watched as Jessi went through a routine of straightening the kitchen.
“You want coffee or anything?” she asked.
“I’m good,” he replied.
She crossed to the living room and tucked her legs beneath her as she sat across from him in an oversized, worn chair.
“Thank you for dinner,” she said.
They gazed at each other. Xander waited until he saw the pink creep up her face.
“You’ve done good with the cousins,” he said.
“Ashley’s not pregnant and Brandon hasn’t dropped out of school. Sometimes, it’s the little things,” she said with a sigh. “I was twenty two when I took them in. It’s been interesting.”
“They’re smart and happy. I’d say you’ve done really well.”
“Thanks.” Her smile was warm. “I really appreciate you taking time for them. They worship you.”
“You’ve given up warning me off?”
She looked away. “I’m trying a new solution to my issue.”
“You’re right. Ri
ght now, I’d like nothing better than to read your mind,” he said. “Especially because I want to know what’s going on tonight that has you spooked.”
“Nothing.”
“I can tell when you lie.”
“It’s none of your business.”
He hated that phrase as much as the cold shoulder.
“Look, can’t we talk like two normal people for once?” she asked. “Talk about the weather or what your plans are for your show or something?”
His gaze settled on a picture above the television. “What happened to their parents?”
“Car accident. They were killed on date night, of all things,” she murmured, following his gaze. “My parents – and me – were the only family they had left. Parents wouldn’t take them, which is no surprise, considering they never wanted the kid they had. So, I took them. Didn’t seem right to dump them in a foster home.”
“You put your life on hold.”
“Yeah. Not an issue, though. I got used to working two jobs. Put finishing college on hold for awhile,” she said without any sign of resentment. “They’re good kids. I’m happy I could help. Ashley was suicidal for two years after their deaths. I couldn’t have done it without Brandon. He’s always been protective.”
“You’d do anything for them.”
She said nothing. Her face was troubled again. He wondered what Jonny threatened to do to the teens, if she failed to do his bidding.
“You had a choice and didn’t take the easy way out. I admire that.”
“Okay, here’s a secret. I have no idea what to think of you sometimes,” she said, frustrated. “You’re being decent right now. Who the hell are you, Xander?”
Xander was quiet for a moment. Her gaze was intent. She was wrestling with herself over something, and he suspected it was the decision she was trying to make about betraying him.
“I was the first vamp, one of five Original Beings, born of parents who were not vamps,” he started. “My father was a high ranking political leader in the immortal equivalent of a political system. My mother was the daughter of a wealthy merchant. It wasn’t an honorable trade in my time, but money made up for it. Then I was born.”
Jessi was listening in rapt attention.
“There was no room for a freak in the political dynasty. My father disowned me and cast out my mother and me. Her family wouldn’t take us. No one would,” he said, remembering. “She worked the streets to keep me fed. When I was ten, I learned to use my unique set of skills to steal money for us. By then, she’d caught some disease and died soon after. Eden found me then. She was not what you’d call a caring mother figure.”
“Wow,” she murmured. “What about your father?”
“Long dead.”
“You didn’t kill him, did you?” She cringed.
“Along with his entire family. Not so much of a dynasty now,” he mused.
“Except for you, his only legacy.”
“When I say I admire you, I do,” he said. “I wouldn’t wish my upbringing on anyone else. Your turn for a secret.”
“You mean no one else knows your history?”
“No one outside the woman who adopted me and turned me into a killing machine.”
Her eyes widened. “I can’t believe you told me. Why?”
“I like you,” he said simply.
“I’m a bitch to you.”
“It’s a total turn on.”
Jessi smiled then laughed. “There’s something wrong with you!”
“You just now figuring that out?”
“You tell me you’ve killed six women, and I invite you into my house.” Bafflement crossed her features. “Are you certain you can’t manipulate my mind?”
“If I could, the scene at the mall today wouldn’t have happened.”
“I really got to you.”
“You did.”
She beamed. “Good. You always get to me.”
He chuckled.
“So, now that we’ve bonded, what happens if I’m not a total bitch to you?” she asked with some of her old spunk.
“I’m pretty sure you’ll manage. If not, I’m sure I can provoke you.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Done!” Ashley cried, dashing out of her room. “Now we can hang out!”
“Inspection first,” Jessi said sternly and stood.
“Jessieeeeeeeeeee!”
Xander smiled at the two. Ashley was so excited to hang out, she looked like she was in pain while Jessi wasn’t budging. The two went down the hallway. Jessi’s phone vibrated from its place on the stand beside the chair.
No part of him felt the need not to check up on her, not when he had no idea where her loyalties were. Xander leaned forward and grabbed it. The contact was labeled simply as J and his message simple.
Plan in action. Fix this now.
Xander scrolled to the message she’d sent to J.
I can’t do it.
Do what? Xander replaced the phone, trying to put the bigger picture together of what was going on. It didn’t take much thought for him to realize J was probably Jonny. Whatever Jessi was trying to get out of, she was in for a surprise. He liked her, more than he should, given she was working on betraying him.
She returned with Ashley, who had a shoebox in hand. The teen plopped down beside Xander and thrust it at him.
“I bead,” she said.
“Really well,” Jessi added.
“Done!” Brandon shouted.
“Coming.”
Xander sifted through Ashley’s colorful beads, uninterested.
“This is a bracelet, and this one will be a necklace.” Ashley pulled free the bright projects. Her eyes went to the ruby at his chest. She studied it for a few seconds before digging through the box for something similar. “Look! It’s the same color!”
“Yeah,” he said, looking at the round, flat crystal.
“I can make me and Moira one then we’ll all match. You think it looks like yours?”
“Close enough.”
“I have to tell Moira.”
Xander snorted as she texted her friend. He glanced up as Jessi and Brandon joined them in the living room. The teens entertained him, but he really wanted some more time to work on Jessi. He watched from the corner of his eye as she checked her phone. Her smile faded and her features grew pensive. After a moment, she texted a quick response and set it down again.
She let the cousins talk at him for a few moments before clapping her hands.
“Okay, guys, you know the drill. Dinner’s in the freezer. No girls, Brandon. No pizza, Ashley. We’re taking off. I’ll be home late.”
“She means, she’ll be back in the morning,” Xander said.
Jessi shot him a look. Ashley giggled and Brandon grinned. Xander winked at the flustered woman across from him. He held out his hand to Jessi. She accepted it this time and let him pull her up.
“I’m so jealous,” Ashley said with a sigh.
“Enough of that. I’m babysitting him, so he doesn’t get in trouble,” Jessi snapped. “You two behave.”
“You too, Jessi,” Brandon retorted.
“Don’t you worry about me, kid.”
“I’ll take care of her,” Xander said.
Jessi’s eyes sparked. She snatched her purse and strode to the door while the teens laughed. She was fuming in the hallway when he pulled the door closed behind him. She walked to the elevator.
“You shouldn’t say those things in front of them,” she lectured.
“They know more about sex than you do.”
She stared at him. Xander stopped close enough for their bodies to touch and punched the down button. He lifted her chin and kissed her fast and deep, until her body started to sway. The ding of the elevator drew his attention, and he realized he had pressed her against the door. Her hands were on his chest, her lips parted.
“I’m not sleeping with you,” she hissed.
“You’re also quitting again tonight, aren’t you?” He
wrapped his arms around her and backed her into the elevator.
“Dammit, Xander. You’re such an ass.”
By the time they reached the ground floor, she was putty. Her arms were around his neck, her hunger for him no longer hesitant. He relished the sensations of her hot mouth and soft skin, the scent of her arousal and the way her body molded against his.
Enjoying their game of tug-of-war, he released her.
“Still not sleeping with me tonight?” he teased, kissing her on the forehead.
“No,” she whispered in a husky voice.
Amused, Xander held her until she recovered enough to push at him. He swatted her ass as she marched past him out of the elevator.
They went to the car. Jessi refused to look at him and slid into the passenger’s seat.
“Do vampires get drunk?” she asked and pulled her door closed.
“Nope.”
“I’m assuming if I do, you’ll take that as an open invitation.”
“Without a second thought.”
She sighed.
Xander pulled away from the curb, pretending not to notice when she glanced at her phone. He wondered what she was planning with Jonny and just how bad it would be for him.
“I need to drop by the condo first,” he said casually.
“No,” she said too fast. “I mean, let’s just go to the party.”
“In a rush to get to some place you didn’t want to go a few hours ago?”
She was silent.
“Just for a minute,” he said.
“Xander, I don’t want to. Please? Call it a favor?” she pleaded.
“I like the idea of you owing me,” he debated. “But I’d prefer an explanation.”
“You just have to trust me.”
“Favor it is.”
The woman was so damn frustrating. Something was wrong. Was he walking into a trap at the after party or was his condo the trap? He was about to find out whose side she was on; he only hoped it didn’t piss him off.
“Oy. I have the feeling owing you is not a good thing.”
“You made your choice. Prepare for the consequences.”
Xander smiled to himself at her exasperated sigh. She sounded like Ashley. He drove them up the coast, past the exit to his condo and onward to the hills of Los Angeles. They were early for an after party, but he wasn’t concerned. He was still debating whether or not he’d need to find a substitute for dinner, if he was going to lose this round with Jessi again.
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