[2016] Muti Billionaire's Desire

by PN Books

  I remembered our last goodbye. “What's done is done” I answered him, “I do not wish to dwell on the past any longer. I have let the past rule me.” Once again then my immortal lover rose to his feet and approached me. I watched him warily.

  “I have missed you,” He said, raising his hand to entwine it in my long black silken hair. He fondled my hair carefully as his eyes locked on mine. I could hear his strong heartbeat. “It has been too long my love.” I was trembling I knew I was. He was weakening me already, trying so hard to seduce me and I was allowing it to happen. But what did it matter how hard I resisted him? He was my maker, my lover and I loved him still.

  “Can you forgive me for the death of your brother?” The mention of my brother pierced my heart like a knife. I had not expected him to mention the death of my brother here, yet he had, and he looked sincerely sorry.

  I tried to turn away from Everard's strong gaze, tears rising. It had been over two centuries now since my brother's death, yet to a vampire, it only seemed like yesterday. The hurt would never cease.

  “Everard please” I began, but he cut me off, pale hand rising to my face gently caressing me like a long lost lover. I bowed my head trying to hide my face, but he was no fool.

  “It hurts you still what I did does it not?” He whispered softly. A strange thing for him. He is always so angry, so cold and cruel. But that was only the façade of the vampire; the mortal lord before me had been so different and so loving, not a monster.

  “I need to know that I have your forgiveness for your brother.” He whispered gently, forcing me to look into his eyes. I could see that he was genuinely sorry for my brothers death, but I was uncomfortable with being begged by Everard for my forgiveness. I sighed heavily, trying to be strong. I was a vampire; we are not born to weep. It was hard to tell if I had even forgiven my lover for what he had done after all the years I had spent apart from him. Did I forgive him? Could I forgive him? If I stood any chance of surviving, I had no choice but to forgive him.

  Looking into his preternatural eyes I whispered the words, “I forgive you.”

  Silence. As he stared into my eyes he swiftly leaned down and stole a rough kiss from my lips. I allowed him to kiss me, a fool’s weakness. I now knew how my lover’s victims felt when under his spell.

  He pushed me against the stone wall, and I succumbed to him. Gently his fangs bit into my lip just enough so that my blood bled into his wanting mouth. I felt his tongue lap at the tiny wound, tasting me ever so softly before he looked into my eyes once more. My blood painted his bottom lip red.

  My heart was racing now from both excitement and fear. What was I doing allowing this raven-haired god to treat me in such a manner? I had walked into his home a strong and determined vampire, and now I was a mess. Weak at the knees for my maker, my lover, my one true companion.

  “I’m thirsting” I suddenly whispered. The words had escaped my mouth before I had a chance to think about what I was saying. I saw Everard brush his thick black hair to the side as he revealed a long, sleek pale neck to me. Oh, it was enticing. So tempting, and I stared at the artery, listening to the rush of blood that swirled around inside of his perfect body. Thirsting and wanting, wanting to taste him more than ever now, I suddenly realized that I had not hunted for days. Now my blood lust was consuming me; my animal side making itself known.

  “There isn’t a village for miles.” He purred, leaning against my fragile form. I could smell the scent of his hair, the perfume that only a fine young man would wear in this day and age. He smelled divine. Same old perfect Everard.

  “Oh, how I want you.”

  Looking into his eyes, I was blood crazed. Just the smell of him ignited my fury for his blood. I wanted to feel him running through me, and suddenly I wanted to know what it was like to be one with him again.

  Slowly, taking my hand, my maker walked slowly to the red velvet armchair, never taking his eyes from mine as I hazily followed him. He sat down and pulled me into his lap. Placing a slender finger underneath my chin, he guided my face to his before consuming me in a passionate kiss. He nipped at my throat playfully, and I gasped at the sensation. Then I tore my lips from his and drove my fangs deep into his bare slender neck.

  It started instantly, the low thrum of his heart against mine as I drew the blood to the surface lapping at the sweet, thick nectar that flooded my mouth like a red fountain. The images came to me.

  A flash took me back to the time when we had been mortal, and I could see him upon his bed with me beneath him as he thrust into me as we made love. Another flash took me to Paris on the night of my change and for the first time, I saw properly how confused and crazed my lover had been that night.

  I saw myself as a young mortal girl sitting by a dresser writing in a journal that I so loved, my free hand caressing the swell of my belly as I wrote. I was smiling. Another image after that showed me lying upon the Rue Chavern's floor screaming wildly, lashing and thrashing as I was turning, my chiffon nightgown stained red from between my legs as our child bled out of me as I died.

  His heart was weakening, and I knew that if I held on any longer that I would kill him but he did not protest. It was then that I felt his gentle hand on my head, then guiding me as I retracted my fangs to look into Everard's eyes. For a long moment, he looked into my eyes before leaning up and placing a gentle kiss upon my lips, licking the blood away. “You belong to me, my love,” Everard whispered into my ear. “You always have.”

  THE END

  Another bonus story is on the next page.

  Bonus Story 3 of 15

  Scared Straight

  Asha tried not to react as her latest student attempted to destroy her office.

  “Bitch!” Letitia yelled as she pulled a row of books off the bookshelf. Asha watched from behind her desk. The key was not to react.

  The walls shook and Letitia screamed with rage. She stomped her feet on the floor. Asha knew that everyone’s eyes were on them. Her office was a fishbowl, all the walls made of glass. Everything in this school office was transparent, along with cameras mounted high in every corner. Asha could see the blinking red light out of the corner of her eye. She also saw the security officer in the corner of her eye. He could also see the cameras back at his station. That was probably why he was in the office right now. Asha shook her head slowly. She didn’t need the security officer. Not yet.

  “You think you’re better than everyone else!” Letitia yelled, throwing another book on the floor. She tried to rip down one of the cork boards but she couldn’t get it down. Instead, she grabbed Asha’s nameplate from her desk and held it in her hand like a weapon.

  “You think you’re our principal,” Asha said, smacking the nameplate into her pal. “You think you can help. But you’re just like everyone else.”

  Letitia raised the nameplate over her shoulder. It was a nice sized piece, quality, made of real metal and wood. If Letitia hit her with that, it would hurt. Still Asha didn’t flinch. Then the security officer burst through.

  “That’s it, you’re coming with me,” he said. Asha tried not to breathe a sigh of relief as Greg slid his arm through Asha’s and restrained her arms behind her “We have a zero tolerance rule here.”

  Asha finally gave a weary sigh as Greg pulled Letitia out of the room. She felt the adrenaline finally hitting her body, a buzz that traveled all the way down to her toes. Her hands were shaking, her feet started to jump. Asha bit her lip hard and lifted her butt so she could sit on her hands and take a nice, deep breath.

  “You should let him in sooner, next time,” Raelynn said, coming to stand in the doorway of Asha’s office. “We were taking bets on who was going to have to call 911.”

  Raelynn’s words were half-joking but her face was all business. Asha took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Raelynn walked over to her desk and grabbed the chair that Letitia upended, setting it upright again before she took a sheep.

  “I don’t know why you want to be such a martyr,”
Raelynn said.

  “It’s about not giving up control,” Asha said calmly. She could feel her heartbeat starting to slow down and she was grateful. “I can’t reward bad behavior.”

  “Acting with the instincts of an actual human being is not rewarding bad behavior!” Raelynn said. Raelynn was their main administrative assistant but she still had a lot of opinions. “One day you’re going to be sitting here, trying to not stir up shit and one of these little kids are going to pull out a gun and shoot you!”

  Asha shuddered at the thought. The students at Wayland High School weren’t children but Asha wouldn’t be surprised if one of them showed up with a gun one day. The violence in the school was getting worse and she was genuinely at a loss for what to do.

  These were the types of things that kept Asha up late at night. She hated to see her school falling apart.

  “Hey, give yourself a break, girl,” Raelynn said from across the table like she could read Asha’s mind, and it was quite possible. As soon as Asha began working at the high school, she and Raelynn became close friends. Sometimes Raelynn would take her out to a wine bar after work and they would just sit there, sipping wine and unwinding without saying a word. Asha thought that was the true meaning of a friend.

  “I just need a moment,” Asha said. Letitia wasn’t a bad girl. Asha knew that. She had watched her grow up over the years, from a small, timid freshman into a senior with a lot of potential. She just fell in with the wrong crowd.

  They all seemed to be doing that nowadays.

  “Look,” Raelynn said, leaning over and adjusting some papers on Asha’s desk. “We are going to clean this place up. No, I will. You sit back and relax. And then we’re going to go out. Get a drink. And we need to talk.”

  Raelynn gave her a serious look. Asha stared back, raising her eyebrows.

  “Talk about what?”

  “Greg, girl!” Raelynn said. She got up and began to busy herself with picking up Asha’s books. Asha watched her. The books were mostly for decoration. “He’s so into you. Why aren’t you hitting that yet? When he was watching you, he just had this look on his face. He was so serious about protecting you. He’s so cute. He’s like a six-foot bar of solid, dark chocolate. Girl, you need to take a bite out of that!”

  Asha couldn’t help it. She burst out laughing. Raelynn looked at her and gave her a wink. They both dissolved into giggles. And after a day like Asha’s, she could really use the distraction.

  Raelynn stuck out her hand once she was done cleaning up.

  “Come on,” she said. “Let’s get out of here.”

  *****

  Darrius stood in the doorway. The West Wing Wine Bar was a hopping place. It was barely seven in the evening but happy hour was going strong. The place was packed with well-dressed business women who would be sucking down half-priced bottles of wine for the next hour and chatting with each other. He couldn’t help noticing that some of the women were gorgeous, but that wasn’t what he was really after.

  Most of all, he was focused on the purses slung over the sides of their chairs.

  There was so much money to be had in this place.

  Darrius answered his phone.

  “Hey,” he said.

  “Hey, what it do?” Said his business associate on the other end. “How’s it looking?”

  “Real flush,” Darrius said in a low voice. He nodded at a couple of women passing by. He could see the tip jar at the bar from here. The jar was full. These professional women tended to be generous when they were tipsy. That’s what Darrius liked about them.

  “So what are you going to do?”

  Darrius looked around. He knew that on a casual trip to the bathroom, he could probably swipe at least five wallets. That would do for now until they come up with a better plan, something more comprehensive.

  “I’m gonna mix and mingle,” Darrius said.

  He hung up.

  The key was to look like you fit in. Darrius was good at that. He might not have been a woman but he was very charming. He walked in the bar, giving a nod to the hostess.

  “I think I’ll sit over there,” he said, gesturing to the bar. “I’m meeting someone.”

  The hostess looked up at him, starry-eyed. He had that effect on women. He’d never brag, but he knew from objective experiences that he was extremely handsome. He was tall, tall enough that he got asked if he was a basketball player by every little kid that passed him on the street if he was wearing a jersey. He had chestnut brown skin and close-cut hair. His eyes were almond shaped and a golden brown. People told him he looked exotic. They asked if he was mixed. But no, Darrius was just black. He couldn’t help his looks but they got him places.

  He took a seat at the bar.

  He wanted to take that walk but it wasn’t time yet. First, he had to blend in. There were women on each side of him. On one side, a blond woman was chatting with a couple of other women. They looked like they had come directly from that company across the street. He didn’t really like those women. They tended to just talk among themselves and they always talked about work. It was pretty boring. Darrius listened for a few moments and then turned away.

  On his other side, two black women had an animated conversation.

  “She tested positive for drugs and ain’t nobody saying anything about that,” one of them said. “But watch. If that was Serena everyone would be all over it. You know it. You know it!”

  The other woman chuckled, taking a sip of her wine. “I can’t even think about this right now,” she said.

  “I think you’re right,” Darrius interjected, smoothly. “If it were Serena, it would be a totally different story.”

  “You see!” The woman said, pointing at him. “He knows what he’s talking about.” Then she paused and stared at him. Darrius smiled. It was used to this, as well. “Damn. You’re fine.”

  “Raelynn!” The other woman said, horrified.

  But Darrius just laughed. “Thank you,” he said. “That means a lot, coming from an attractive woman such as yourself.”

  “Oh shit, and he knows how to lie,” The woman — Raelynn — snorted loudly. A couple of people looked over with distasteful looks. That made Darrius smile.

  “I’m not lying at all,” he said though in some way he was lying. He offered his hand to Raelynn. “I’m Darrius.”

  “Raelynn,” she said, giving him the kind of shake that was meant for business meetings. “And this is Asha. She’s had a long day. Be nice to her.”

  “Oh, I’m nice to everyone.” Darrius looked Asha over. Raelynn was kind of short and her hair was in all sorts of bushy twists. Asha was more sleek and serene. Her hair hung down her back in loose curves. She wore a smart looking business suit. Darrius like the way it hugged her curves in a classy way. She looked like a school teacher but also way too dressed up.

  “It's wonderful meeting you ladies,” Darrius said. “What brings you here this evening?”

  “We are just relaxing after a long day,” the talkative friend, Raelynn said. “It’s definitely been a day. Asha almost got a chair thrown at her.”

  Asha scoffed. Darrius raised his eyebrows.

  “Where do you work?” He asked. “A jail?”

  He would know. He’d been to jail before.

  Raelynn laughed, rolling her eyes. “No, thank goodness. But it’s almost the same thing. We work at a high school for juvenile delinquents. They are some crazy kids at that school. So we need to have a little drink afterward. I’m sure you can relate.”

  “Yes, I can,” Darrius said. “On that note, let me get you ladies another round. What are you guys drinking? Red?”

  He signaled the waiter over to get them another round. Raelynn exchanged a happy look with her friend. Darrius smiled at them both. They were the perfect cover.

  He would speak with them further and case out the place. Then he’d take that walk to the bathroom and swipe some wallets on the way. After that, he would call his business associate and let him know what they
needed to do to pull off the ultimate heist. This was just a small bar. There wasn’t security and there weren’t a lot of cameras. It would be the perfect place to rob.

  Darrius thought about this while he made small talk with the ladies. Raelynn was loud and funny but Asha intrigued him. She didn’t say a lot. It was obvious she had a lot on her mind. Darrius wanted to learn more. But since he was also planning on robbing the place later, he couldn’t say too much. They didn’t need to know everything about him.

  “So what do you do?” Raelynn asked. It was the question that Darrius had been trying to avoid, but of course, it came up. Luckily, he was good at talking on his feet.

  “I’m an entrepreneur,” he said. “I forge my own path. I think that’s the best way to get through life these days. You need to look out for yourself.”

  The women seemed to be hanging on his every word. That was a good thing. Darrius needed the best cover he could get. He offered them another couple of drinks and ordered them from the bar. When they weren’t looking, he slipped the bartender a fifty and nodded. That should about cover it.

  A small price to pay for what was about to go down.

  “Ladies,” Darrius said. He nodded at each of them in turn. “I’m going to run to the restroom. I’ll be right back.”

  The women both gave him charming smiles. They had their drinks in hand. He had to admit, he liked making them happy, especially Asha. She seemed like a tough nut to crack and she had that smile on her face.

  Darrius tried not to focus on that.

  Instead, he had another mission in mind. He got off the bar stool and began walking casually to the bathroom. He wove a specific path between the tables, all of them low and pushed close together. Their purses hung limply over the back of the chair, out of sight, forgotten about.

  So he casually took their wallets.

  It would be easy to protect against this type of theft. Just close your bag. But people did not heed his advice. Many purses were left dangling over the chair, gaping open and vulnerable. He just reached right in and voila, there was the wallet.