Final Choices

by Lydia Parks

  She turned the fire back on under the kettle and glanced over her shoulder. “Still want tea?”

  “No, thank you.”

  The approach of dawn ached in his bones and Nathan covered a yawn.

  Terra leaned back against the kitchen counter, narrowed her eyes, and studied him. “Why did you come here?”

  “Must I have a reason to see you?”

  Her eyes narrowed even more. “No, but you do.”

  Nathan straightened. “I see. Our connection works both ways to some extent.”

  She shrugged. “I just know something’s bothering you.”

  He paced a slow circle, studying the black and white tile floor. “I experienced a strange sensation earlier tonight that left me…perplexed.”

  “Really? What?”

  “I felt as though I were being followed.”

  Terra responded to the kettle’s whistle by removing it from the heat and filling a mug. Then she carried the mug to the small kitchen table and sat, dunking a teabag in the steaming water.

  Nathan sat across from her, although he had little time left to visit. Perhaps she was right. Perhaps he had come to her for a reason other than simply companionship. He certainly hadn’t meant to drink from her or take her to bed, but something had sparked the beast to raise its head. He tried not to imagine what would have happened if he hadn’t been able to rein it in at the last moment. He would rather fry in the midday sunshine than hurt his beloved Terra.

  “Haven’t you ever been followed before?”

  Nathan turned his attention to her question. The memory of a dozen running footsteps accompanying angry shouts and threats suddenly overtook him. He shook his head to return the memory to the past. “Yes, but not by someone or something I couldn’t identify.”

  “Something?”

  “If I were being followed by a vampire, I wouldn’t be able to see him, but I’d be able to feel his presence. A mortal I would have seen.”

  She sipped from her tea, then looked up at him again. “What are the alternatives?”

  “Alternatives?”

  “You know, werewolves? Demons?”

  Nathan drew himself up. “Are you mocking me?”

  “You’re telling me werewolves don’t exist?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m telling you.”

  “How do you know?”

  Nathan rose, anger suddenly flaring inside him. “After all these years, I would have seen one.”

  “Oh, I see. So if you don’t know about it, it isn’t real.”

  He glared at her.

  Terra sighed. “Look, Nathan, I’m just saying don’t discount other possibilities. Three years ago, I didn’t believe vampires were real.”

  He softened as he saw the kindness in her eyes. Then he glanced at a window where the night sky had begun to lighten to dull gray. “I must go before it’s too late to leave.”

  “You’re welcome to stay, if you want to.”

  Nathan walked to Terra’s chair and bent to kiss her warm, sweet lips. Then he straightened and smiled down at her as he stroked her cheek with his thumb. “Thank you, my dear. I know how difficult it can be to have a vampire sleeping in your room.”

  She smiled up at him and shrugged. “No big deal.”

  Nathan slipped on his jacket and walked to the door.

  Terra followed, and stopped him with a hand on his arm. “Nathan, be careful.”

  He patted her arm. “Do not waste your concern, my sweet. I’m quite safe.”

  After one more tender kiss, Nathan left Terra’s apartment. He stopped outside just long enough to be sure he was alone on the street, then dashed home using his best speed to beat the sunrise.

  Alone in his bed, surrounded by darkness, Nathan thought about Terra’s statement. Don’t discount other possibilities.

  What other possibilities should he consider?

  The one he wished to avoid—one that had always terrified him—was that ghosts of his victims might walk the earth for revenge. By sheer numbers alone, they would have the advantage. Would they tear him apart? Or drag him into the sunlight to watch him suffer?

  “No.” His voice echoed through his bedchamber.

  If ghosts were real, he would have seen one by now.

  Chapter Two

  Terra marched to her desk, sat, and huffed. She’d been tempted to take the night off, but she had two cases she really wanted to work on. One was that of a middle-aged woman kidnapped and murdered, and the other was of a young man found in a park less than a quarter-mile from her own apartment. She had precious few leads in either case, and was determined to go over both with a fine-toothed comb. She must have missed something somewhere. Shedding her jacket, she opened the first folder and started from the top.

  “Detective Ryan.”

  Terra jumped at her name and looked up to find Captain Vetter and a stranger watching her. She closed the file and rose.

  “Detective Ryan, this is Detective Austin Williams. He’s here from Los Angeles on a case.”

  Terra shook hands, studying the man before her. He was tall, blonde, late twenties or early thirties, and incredibly good-looking with wide, strong shoulders and a sturdy build. His chocolate-brown eyes glistened mischievously as he smiled at her and held her hand a moment longer than necessary.

  “I’ve assigned you to be Detective Williams’ partner while he’s here,” the captain said.

  “What?” Terra frowned at her boss. “I have two open cases.”

  Captain Vetter sighed. “Everyone has open cases. What you don’t have is a partner. I want you to work with Detective Williams. Maybe he can help you on your cases, too.”

  She glared at Williams and would have been angrier if he hadn’t been wearing such a charming smile.

  “Let’s show the detective some of our Southern hospitality, okay?” Vetter patted Terra’s back as if soothing a fitful child and left before she could answer.

  Terra tried to smile back. “Look, Williams—“

  “Call me Austin.”

  “Look, Austin—“

  “What should I call you? Ryan?”

  “Terra.”

  He nodded. “I like that. Terra.”

  She liked the way he said her name, with his sexy, masculine voice.

  Mentally shaking herself, she motioned to the desk facing hers. “You can have that one while you’re here.”

  “Thanks.” He sat and looked at her across the desks.

  She glanced around, her face warming under his gaze. “So, why are you here?”

  “Serial murderer on the loose. We’ve had two leads out of several hundred suggesting he’s here. I was sent to follow up on those leads.”

  “On the night shift?”

  “Yeah. My guy only works nights, so witnesses tend to be scarce during the day.”

  “You think the leads are legit?”

  He shrugged. “Probably not. My guess is he’s too crazy to run. He’s probably sitting in his apartment watching the cops scramble on TV and enjoying every second of it. But, hey, I’m not going to turn down a free vacation.” His smile turned devilish. “And I’m sure as hell glad I didn’t turn it down, now that I’ve met my new partner. It just may take a while to follow up on these two leads.”

  Terra clenched her jaw. “Look, Williams, while we’re on duty, I’m just one of the guys. Got it?”

  He raised his hands in surrender. “Got it.”

  “Good.” She turned her attention to signing out a car.

  “Think maybe we could have a drink after work?” he asked. “You know, just a friendly get-to-know-your-partner thing?”

  Terra fought to keep the color from rising in her cheeks. “Maybe.”

  “Good.”

  * * * *

  Nathan found himself on the verge of nervousness all night…very odd for one of his kind.

  He spent an hour or two at the hospital, in spite of having just restocked the night before. Then, surrendering to the restlessness, he took to the d
arkened streets.

  But roaming the night wasn’t enough to shake off his odd thoughts of demons, ghosts, and eternal debts. And he considered the strength of his attachment to Terra. He knew better than to allow a mortal close.

  The whole thing siphoned his energy.

  Cool air, ripe with water, vegetation, and human sexuality called him into a small park not far from downtown. Trees planted around a pond produced soft circles of grassy shadows in the moonlight, one of which was occupied by a man and woman.

  Nathan moved silently to the tree closest to the couple, stretched out on the grass, and watched.

  The man, perhaps eighteen years of age and shirtless, was fair-haired and thin, and sported a raging erection inside his jeans. The young woman, shapely and dark, wore a bra and short skirt. Discarded clothes formed a semi-circle around the spot where she lay on her back and he stretched out beside her, his weight on one elbow and his hand covering her breast. They kissed with all the enthusiasm and clumsiness of youth.

  “Come on, Viv. This is perfect. There’s no one around.”

  Nathan smiled and rolled to his back where he could listen to the exchange and watch the moon move through evergreen branches.

  “Mitch, I told you I can’t. I could get pregnant.”

  “I got a rubber. I swear, you won’t get pregnant.”

  Nathan closed his eyes as a familiar voice filled his head, echoing Viv’s sentiment, and he saw events he hadn’t thought about in years.

  “What if I get pregnant?”

  The woman in his arms had hair the color of ripened wheat, and breasts that heaved against his chest as she sucked in fast, shallow breaths. “I’m not too old, you know.”

  “You won’t get pregnant,” he told Alexandra. “Of that you can be sure.”

  “But—“

  “Trust me, my dear. Pregnancy is the one thing that will not result from our union.” He raised her face to his and kissed her mouth again, enjoying the heat and promise of ecstasy.

  Her lips, rosy red and swollen from his attention, turned down into a pout as she looked up at him. “Nathan—“

  “My dear, if you wish to discontinue this activity, you need only say so.” He stroked the tender side of her neck with his fingertips. “I would prefer, however, to bring you to a magnificent climax here in the shadows.”

  She swallowed hard. “What if someone sees us?”

  He smiled, entranced by the way the vein in her neck rose and fell quickly, matching the beat of her heart as it echoed through his head. “Risk adds to the excitement, don’t you think?” He slid his hand down to her full breast, pushing the hardened nipple in a gentle circle through thin fabric.

  Alexandra drew in a sharp breath. Sensuality seethed from her every pore, and he loved the way she responded to his touch. Tonight would be magnificent—their first time together. He’d worked his way up to this night over the course of a week, and without even a single intrusion into her thoughts. He decided, as he nipped at her bottom lip, than he liked the awakened sexuality of the seventies.

  Nathan drew her blouse up to reveal her breast to his touch, and then his mouth. She leaned into him as he suckled and traced lines up the backs of her thighs with his fingers.

  “Not here,” she whispered, her voice thick with lust.

  “As you wish, my dear.” Nathan straightened and followed Alexandra to her house, but he stopped at the doorstep and waited.

  She unlocked the door, then motioned with her head. “Come on in.”

  He had not yet visited Alexandra’s home, and since he had also not yet tasted her blood, he enjoyed trying to discern her personality by the furnishings. The house was tastefully decorated, sporting bookshelves full of books. He’d already discovered that she was well read, so this didn’t surprise him.

  What did surprise him was finding a copy of Interview With the Vampire on the coffee table. He lifted it and looked at her. “Have you read this?”

  She nodded, her face reddening at the confession. “Yes. It’s quite good.”

  Nathan huffed in disgust. The book threatened his very existence. If the world started believing in vampires again, he was much more likely to be discovered. Anne Rice. Damn her to the fires of hell. Hopefully, her book would pass into obscurity unnoticed.

  Shaking off his anger, he returned his attention to his prize—a woman whose sexual nature had lain dormant for many years. She’d told him of the husband who’d expected his monthly romp in the sack and had done nothing to ensure her pleasure. The man’s death had been her release, although she did not yet know just how much of a release.

  Nathan intended to show her tonight.

  Smiling his most seductive, he backed her slowly to the wall, running his hands lightly over her body as he did.

  “My bed’s in the next room,” she said.

  He raised her blouse off over her head, tossed it to the floor, and brushed his lips across her bare shoulders. “I have no need of a bed just yet, my dear. Perhaps we’ll consider it for the third or fourth round.”

  She shuddered in response.

  As she stood, shaking, he removed her garments one at a time, caressing her skin with his mouth and hands as he exposed it. Her body was rounded, full, soft—not as firm as one younger, but much more responsive. Her womanly curves reminded him of days gone by, and he responded by growing harder than he had in ages.

  Her hand stroking him through his pants drew a growl he was unable to suppress, and she groaned in response as he took her mouth with determination.

  His fingers between her legs found her hot and wet and wanting him, and he teased her to the edge of a climax.

  “Nathan,” she breathed, “take me. Now.”

  “Not yet, my dear. First you must prove your desire.”

  “How?”

  “Like this,” he whispered into her ear. He worked his way slowly down her body, drawing lines with his tongue and teeth, tasting the need in her flesh. She writhed in response, moaning when he hit particularly tender spots, until he knelt in front of her and lifted one of her milky thighs to his shoulder.

  He nipped her thigh, then worked his way toward the center of her, finally reaching her swollen clit.

  “Oh, God.” She flattened her palms to the wall and hooked her leg around his shoulder.

  Slowly, carefully, he drew her closer, licking and sucking at her swelling cunt, and then, holding her buttocks, pushed her into bliss.

  She cried out, “Oh, God, no…ooohhh.”

  Nathan thrilled to the way she filled his mouth with her juices and held him to her with her leg. He pushed on, letting her scream her pleasure as he approached the limit of his own self-control.

  But he had no intention of allowing the beast to feed tonight. This first night was only for Alexandra—to show her the way to fulfillment. Perhaps another night he would seek his own release.

  He rose in front of her, enjoying the sight of her panting, holding the wall, watching him from under heavy eyelids. Her body glistened. He worked hard to ignore the sound of her heart singing to him, tempting him.

  Careful to keep his mouth closed while she studied him, he turned her around to face the wall where she wouldn’t see his metamorphosis as he fought to keep the demon in check.

  “Now, my dear, I believe you are ready.” He freed himself from his pants and wrapped one arm around her waist. But there was no hurry, so he kissed her shoulder and neck as he caressed her breasts, teasing the nipples to even harder points. In no time, she was whimpering, ready for him again.

  He lifted her onto his cock then, letting her slide down of her own accord until he was sheathed, dripping in her juices.

  “Oh, God,” she said. “How can you feel so good?”

  “As do you,” he whispered, holding her where he could withdraw and thrust again.

  He drew her hand down to her abdomen, covering it with his own. “Feel our glorious union, my sweet.”

  “Oh, yes,” she said, as the head of his cock bulg
ed from inside her against her palm.

  She began to tighten around him, grunting with her approaching release. When she turned her head toward him, Nathan took her mouth and matched her rhythmic movements. He didn’t release her from the kiss until he felt the first spasm and she pushed herself urgently against him.

  He closed his eyes, enjoying her climax, his fangs growing to their fullest as his cock did the same. On and on she went.

  “No!”

  The scream from behind him accompanied a sharp, burning pain that ripped through his chest.

  Nathan tore himself from Alexandra and turned to his attacker to find a boy who stood an arm’s length away, eyes wide.

  Nathan looked down at the wooden stake protruding from his chest and staggered back to the wall.

  Alexandra screamed…

  Nathan sat up with a start, holding his chest with one hand, and looked around at the dark Atlanta night.

  Ten feet away, the young man was just mounting his girlfriend, but the whole thing was over before he’d actually made it all the way in.

  Nathan rose quietly and left the two alone, trying to shake off the disturbing memory of Alexandra. Why had it come back to haunt him now?

  * * * *

  Terra glanced around the nearly empty diner, looked across a tattered brown table at her temporary partner, sipping her watery coffee.

  Austin smiled. “Coffee’s pretty bad.”

  She nodded. “Yep.”

  “You come here often?”

  “All the time. Makes me appreciate my own cooking.”

  An older woman with bright red hair piled high on her head approached the table. “Ya’ll want anything else?”

  They both admitted they’d had enough and the woman left the bill.

  “We didn’t make much headway tonight,” Terra said.

  “Oh, I don’t know.” Austin raised one eyebrow suggestively.

  “On the case.”

  He drank the last of his coffee and grimaced, then returned to his wolfish grin. “The case will work itself out. I’m more interested in public relations at the moment, like between the LAPD and a particular Atlanta cop.”

  Terra’s heart rate increased dramatically under his steady gaze, and she chastised herself. She knew better than to get involved with cops. Why did she find this one so attractive anyway? He was a little on the young side. Most of the guys she dated were in their late thirties, early forties.