The Undead in My Bed

by Katie MacAlister; Molly Harper; Jessica Sims

  He landed in a pool of weak sunlight, and his skin immediately began to smoke. I groaned and dragged him back to the shelter again. My wrist was bleeding profusely, so I ripped a strip from his shirt for a bandage.

  “Totally crossing vampires off the dating list,” I muttered as I bound my wrist.

  —

  The day passed slowly. As the sun grew higher in the sky, the warehouse became oppressively hot. I didn’t mind it, because of my cat nature, but I did mind the stagnant, dirty air. Michael’s phone was nowhere to be seen, and I didn’t even know if he carried one. Mine had been taken with my purse, so we were effectively stranded. I longed to go check on my apartment, to see if they had raided it after discovering my purse, but I couldn’t exactly cross town naked—or in my jaguar form. I could get away with being a big cat in the night when the shadows hid me, but in the daytime, people tended to call animal control on you.

  Plus, I was tired. I’d been up all night watching over Michael, and my strength was sliding away. I curled up near his body and catnapped through the day, waking at the slightest sound. Shifters had incredibly keen hearing, so I’d be alert the moment someone came near the building.

  I woke up late in the afternoon to the sound of a rat scurrying over the floor in the next room. I sat up, and my stomach growled, reminding me that I hadn’t eaten in almost a full day. The rat moved again, and my stomach rumbled once more in response, reminding me that if I was in my cat form, vermin made a nice snack.

  I decided I’d go without for a bit longer.

  I did shift to my cat form to do a quick reconnaissance of the area while waiting for the sun to go down. No new scents in the area—good. Our hideaway had yet to be discovered.

  I returned to Michael’s side as soon as the last of daylight disappeared. Not wanting to startle him, I shifted back to my human form and waited for him. Would he wake up? What if he’d died while sleeping? I placed my hand to his forehead, which felt cool to the touch. That was a good thing for vampires, right?

  At my touch, his entire body jerked, and his eyes flicked open. He grabbed my bandaged wrist before I could pull it away. His nostrils flared, and I watched his teeth extend out of his mouth, as if the very scent of blood made him lose control.

  I twisted my wrist in his grasp, gently but firmly. “Let go of me.”

  He did so at once, his dilated eyes blinking rapidly. Then his teeth retracted, and he looked at my face for a long moment, as if struggling to comprehend where he was.

  “You’re awake,” I said, hiding my relief.

  His gaze slid to my bare breasts. “You’re naked.”

  “Long story. We can get to that after you tell me why you’re being chased by a bounty hunter.”

  He continued to stare at my breasts, as if entranced by their close proximity and their free-hanging state. “Bounty . . . hunter?” he repeated slowly. His fingers twitched, and I wondered if he was wanting to reach out and touch me.

  The thought made unwelcome heat flare through my body, making my nipples tighten. I snapped my fingers in front of my face. “Eyes up here.”

  He broke from his trance, looking up at me. Then he looked a bit chagrined. “Sorry. You were saying . . . bounty hunters?”

  I nodded. Would it be totally obvious if I pulled my long, curly black hair over my shoulders to cover my breasts? Probably. I resolved to ignore his fascinated gaze, which was even now creeping back to my naked body. “Do you want to tell me why other vampires are trying to kill you? It’s put both of our lives in jeopardy.”

  He frowned, thinking, and sat up in the little fort I’d made him. Michael ran a hand down his face. “All I remember was heading down the alley. Someone jumped down from the roof and landed on me and jabbed the needle in my throat. I think we struggled. The last thing I remember is pain.” He grimaced, placing his hand on his neck. “Lots and lots of white-hot pain.”

  “So you don’t know who he was,” I stated.

  “No.”

  “Or why he came after you?”

  This time, he was silent.

  “You do know why he came after you?” A surge of irritation flared through me. “What were you thinking, going out on a date in public if you knew someone was hunting you? How could you put my life in danger like that?”

  “I didn’t know that part,” he said, raking a hand through his hair and making it stick up like a sexy tumbleweed all over again. “I didn’t know that Angelo was actively seeking to have me eliminated because of Mariah’s infatuation.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest, both gratified and annoyed that his gaze immediately went there. “Who are Angelo and Mariah?”

  “Other vampires.”

  “The ones who turned you?”

  “No, the one who turned me was Gemma.”

  A pang of pain shot through me. A woman had turned him? “But you know why you’re being hunted?”

  “Angelo wants Mariah to be his blood partner.” At my blank look, he continued. “Blood partners are a symbiotic couple—they need nothing but each other and can feed on each other eternally. Mariah doesn’t want that relationship with Angelo, and the best way to send a message that you’re not interested? Acquiring a blood partner.”

  “You?” I guessed, my tone scathing.

  I could have sworn he looked a little bothered. “Not everyone finds me as repugnant as you do.”

  Repugnant? Did he really think that? Flustered, I pulled my hair over my breasts, not caring if the move was obvious. “So this Mariah wants you to shack up with her, and her wannabe boyfriend is trying to kill you?”

  He nodded. “A blood partner is greatly prized, and Angelo’s had his eye on Mariah for a long time. I guess he feels that he’s put in enough time that he doesn’t want to lose her to someone else. I don’t think it’s love as much as pride.”

  “And did you sleep with this Mariah?” I asked, and then was glad the darkness hid the uncomfortable flush on my cheeks. Why did I care if my ex-boyfriend slept with some skanky vampire chick?

  “I have never approached her,” he said in a low, soft voice. “Never had any interest at all, never encouraged her. Nothing. This is all Mariah. I changed my name and went into hiding, figuring that if she had a few decades to forget about me, then I could reenter vampire society, but she is making things . . . difficult.”

  “I’ll say,” I said. “And this Angelo guy, is he powerful?”

  “He’s the head of the vampire clan in this area.”

  “That’s a yes, then.”

  An awkward pause fell. After a moment, Michael peeked up at me again. “You saved my life? How?”

  The gleam in his eyes was a little disconcerting. Was that affection? Lust? Unrequited love still burning after four long years of misery? Or was I just imagining it?

  “I heard you gasp, and something told me to check it out. So I did what anyone would do—changed to my shifter form and scared him off.”

  He reached out to brush a stray curl off my shoulder, his cool fingertips gliding over my skin. “Not anyone. He could have hurt you.”

  “Actually,” I said in a light, breathless voice as his fingers moved down my bare arm, “he probably couldn’t. Apex predator and all.”

  Michael snatched his hand away from my arm. “Of course. Were-jaguar.” He glanced around the warehouse. “And you somehow managed to bring me here?”

  “I did,” I replied firmly, wondering why it bothered me so much that he’d jerked away as soon as the were-jaguar thing was mentioned. I mean, heck, he was freaking undead, and you didn’t see me panicking and going all to pieces, did you? No, you did not.

  “I owe you a debt of gratitude,” he said in a soft voice.

  I squirmed a little, uncomfortable at the thought of him owing me. Me, who had kept secrets and stomped on his heart. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

  “At the very least, I owe you an apology,” he said softly. “I wasn’t kind to you at dinner. The blindfold was cruel. I’m sorry.”


  I waved off his apology. “I’ve hurt you, too. I guess we’re even, right?”

  “I don’t want to be even,” he said in a low, husky voice.

  “Yet you wanted to hurt me once you found out that I was in the agency database. When you figured out I had lied to you about what I was.”

  “I did,” he admitted, his green gaze on me. “But I’ve changed my mind.”

  I raised an eyebrow at him. “Already?”

  He brushed his fingers over my cheek, confusing me with flutters of feeling all over again. “You saved my life. And what we had before . . . it was good. I’ve missed you. I want to be friends again.”

  My heart skipped an excited beat even as I was crestfallen. After all the heartbreak and the agony, all he wanted was to be friends? Could I be friends with a man I’d once loved?

  And really, had I ever stopped loving him at all?

  “Friends,” I repeated with a forced smile, and stuck my hand out.

  He looked at my extended hand in surprise. Then he smiled and shook it. “Friends, then.”

  My heart felt as if it was breaking into a million tiny pieces.

  Chapter Four

  Michael was still a little weak and slow-moving because of the poison, but he didn’t like that I was stranded there naked and that his bounty hunters likely had my ID and home address.

  “We can go to my house,” he said. “I’ve been living under an assumed name for quite a while now. I doubt they know it.”

  “They know something about you,” I pointed out. “Otherwise, how were they able to find you at the restaurant?”

  He shrugged. “Dumb luck? They know I’m in the area, they just don’t know where.”

  I frowned at him. “Then why don’t you leave the area and go somewhere safe?”

  He shrugged, glancing away. “I like it here. It’s home.”

  “Not if home gets you killed,” I retorted, and got to my feet. “What’s the plan?”

  His gaze strayed back to my nude body, pale in the moonlight, and then quickly flicked away again, as if he couldn’t help himself but was trying to be polite for the sake of our friendship. Already I hated that word. “We should scout the area, see if they’re still nearby. If not, we can head out.”

  “And go where?”

  “I have multiple safe houses in the area,” he said calmly. “One of them is bound to be secure.”

  We didn’t have any other options that I could see, but I didn’t like it. It felt like tempting fate. “Fine. I’ll scout the area, and once I know it’s clear, we can go.”

  “I can scout, too,” he said. He jumped to his feet and immediately swayed, reaching for a nearby crate to hold himself up.

  I went back to his side. He leaned against me heavily. “What’s wrong?” I asked, worried.

  He shook his head and righted himself. “Just a little residually weak from the garlic oil. It’ll be fine once I feed again.” He gave me a hopeful look. “Don’t suppose you’d volunteer for the task?”

  I shuddered, remembering those enormous teeth sinking into my wrist and the excruciating pain. “No, thank you. It’s not my thing.”

  “Most people enjoy it,” he said, his tone light and cajoling.

  I waved my bandaged wrist at him. “I already did my good deed for the week. Find some other sucker to drink from. It’s not my idea of fun at all.”

  Michael looked stricken, grabbing my wrist and pulling it forward to inspect the bandages more closely. “When did I do this, Ruby?”

  “When you were sick and the sunlight hit you. I thought you were going to die, so I offered my wrist.” A tiny shudder went through me again.

  He saw my reaction, his face pale and dismayed. “And it hurt?”

  “Yes.”

  He released my arm with a small sigh. “Then I owe you another apology.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” I said, not liking how hard he was taking this.

  “I must not have prepared you. I’m sorry.”

  No amount of preparation could have prepared me for four-inch-long fangs sinking into my wrist. “Like I said, the vampire thing just isn’t for me.”

  He looked tense. “No, I guess not.”

  Again, the uncomfortable silence fell. I gestured at the moonlight streaming in through the dusty windows. “I’m going out to have a look around. It’s safest if I go alone. You stay here.”

  He stripped off his jacket and began to remove his shirt. “Here. Take my clothes, at least.”

  I put a hand on his chest, stopping him. Okay, I hadn’t needed to touch him, but I couldn’t seem to help myself. “You keep it. I’ll just tear it when I shift.”

  He looked at me in surprised fascination. “Are you going to shift right now?”

  “I am. You might want to turn away,” I said, then stepped away a few feet and behind some boxes to prevent him from seeing the worst.

  A lot of people find shifting hideous. As we move from one form to another, our muscles bunch and redirect. Our bones become almost bendy and shift and flex with our bodies. I don’t know how it works in a scientific way—all I know is that our entire being rearranges itself, and it’s probably something straight out of a horror movie unless you’re expecting it.

  I looked over midchange and noticed that he wasn’t looking away. He’d moved so he could get a better look at my shift, leaning heavily against one of the nearby crates.

  When I was done, I stretched in my cat form, my tail flicking.

  Michael looked impressed. “That was amazing.”

  Flatterer. I blinked my cat eyes at him, then went back to his pallet, circled there twice, and then stared at him.

  “All right. I’m going,” he said, unable to keep the smile from his face as he sat down.

  —

  Although the night breeze was brisk, the air was warm and carried with it numerous scents. I could smell exhaust and hear the movement of cars in the distance. I also smelled small rodents, reminding my rumbling stomach that I needed to eat just as badly as Michael did.

  I also smelled something else—a spicy, enticing smell that I was becoming all too familiar with.

  Vampire. And not Michael.

  I found the scent on the far side of the building and tracked it, but I could find no other traces of his scent in the parking lot. I checked the loading-bay doors on this side of the building, but the lock and chain were undisturbed. The windows were unbroken there, but on the other side of the building, where Michael and I were hiding, I’d broken a window. He’d be able to get in through it.

  I moved to the far side of the building and picked up another scent, and this one made my blood run cold.

  Werewolf. The vampire was using a tracker to hunt us.

  Shit. We were in trouble. The wolf would smell jaguar all over this building and know that I was hiding here. I padded back through the parking lot on quick, silent feet, heading for the window that led me back to Michael.

  A dark form crouched close to the window. I gave a low, chuffing cry of warning and watched the canine head turn toward me. The wolf raised his head, scenting the air. He hadn’t yet seen me, but he’d heard my warning and smelled me on the wind. I stalked out of the shadows and let him get a good look at my size. At my long, pointed teeth. I hissed, baring my teeth, my tail lashing.

  The wolf took one look at me and ran like the wind. He didn’t stand a chance, and he knew it. Wolves were strong when they were many in number.

  I was strong just being me.

  That took care of the bloodhound. Now to find the other vampire before he shot Michael full of garlic again—or worse. I climbed up to the ledge of the broken window, then dropped inside. I immediately lowered myself to my belly, tail twitching as I scented the area.

  I smelled Michael, his scent far too obvious. I also smelled a faint vampire spice with a different flavor to it, coming from my right. I moved through the shadows, grateful for the haunted-house props that let me slink through the room unnoticed.

>   Against the wall, I heard a piece of wood shift and fall.

  I heard Michael stiffen, his clothes rustling as he moved. I heard something rasp against his hand—a weapon, I hoped. “Ruby? That you?”

  I saw a figure rise from the shadows, raising something long to his shoulder. My haunches tightened, and I readied to spring.

  “Not Ruby,” the man said, and when he tilted his head, I realized he held a crossbow. I sprang with a cry, claws extended.

  My heavy weight dropped onto him, and I heard the singing whizz of the crossbow as it released. Something thunked into plywood nearby, and I heard Michael swear. The vampire beneath me struggled hard, and I smelled blood under my claws as I bent my head to break his neck, instinct strong.

  “Please,” he whispered. “Don’t kill me.”

  I stopped as my front teeth brushed against his cold flesh. I couldn’t kill a man in cold blood, however much of a danger he presented to us. I lifted my head, sniffing the air for other vampires as he squirmed underneath me.

  I smelled no one else, so I turned my attention back to the vampire below me.

  “Ruby?” Michael called again. “Ruby, where are you?”

  The vampire below me gave a violent twist, and I put my mouth against his neck in warning.

  He raised his free hand, and I saw that he’d somehow produced another gun. With a cold smile full of fangs, he held it against my shoulder and fired.

  I waited for the pain of the bullet to hit me, but all I felt was a sting. Then I saw the tranquilizer sticking out of my shoulder, two seconds before the world slid to darkness.

  Screw mercy. Next time, I was totally killing the bad guy. My last view was of Michael snarling, fangs extended, as he leaped onto the vampire.

  —

  “Ruby,” a voice said, patting my cheek. “Wake up.”

  I groaned at the throbbing headache behind my eyes. My mouth felt dry, and I was dying for a drink of water. I cracked one eyelid open and stared around.

  Michael hovered over me, his face lined with concern. His mouth had a cut in the corner, and there was a scrape on one cheekbone, as if he’d been brawling. He frowned down at my face, and I felt his fingertips stroke my jaw. “Are you okay?”