by Amy Kyle
De’Massier nodded. “I understand. And, in light of your honesty, I also have information. One of my men is missing. The investigation leads right to your doorstep.”
“We don’t have your vampire,” Brent said instantly.
“I believe you,” he said smoothly. “But I believe that someone is trying to place a wedge between us.”
“Who?” Jackson demanded. “Are you seeking to update the treaties for all the territories? All the shifters? The witches? The humans?”
De’Massier cocked his head. “We have not extended the same courtesy to the witches. We’ve never had an issue with them. And of course, the federal government upholds the peace with humans. And yes, we’re updating the treaties for all the shifters. I want my people to feel safe. I want others to feel safe around my clan.”
“We’ll contact the other packs in Woodland and see if anyone else is having any problems. In the meantime, I think we should postpone the signing of the treaty. It’s not that I don’t want to sign it, but I want to get to bottom of this first,” Micah said sternly. “I hope you understand.”
The vampire nodded his head. “I do. Please keep me informed. I will do the same.”
Brent hesitated. “De’Massier. How old is the vampire that’s missing?”
“He’s been a vampire for nearly seventy years,” de’Massier said after a moment. “He’s the youngest in the clan.”
“Did you father him?”
The vampire leader shook his head. “It is forbidden to continue to create vampires.”
Brent nodded, satisfied. “We’ll be in touch.”
As they were escorted to the neutral territory in the woods, Micah passed a questioning look to Brent. When they were alone, his two friends stared at him. “Why did you ask him his age?”
“Most clans of vampires are connected by blood. Whether they share direct blood or they share meals, their blood ties them together. If one goes missing, someone in that clan should be able to track him. The only reason they wouldn’t is if the vampire is too young. And even though seventy years isn’t a long time to a vampire, it’s enough to create a bond,” Brent explained.
“You think de’Massier is lying.” It wasn’t a question. Jackson was trying to figure out the implications.
“He has to be. Either the man isn’t missing at all, or the vampire is too young. And that would break all kinds of laws.” He cocked his head. “Jackson, didn’t Gratsky mention that Natalie’s ex was injecting witch’s blood in his veins?”
Jackson nodded. “It gave him a temporary boost of power, but it didn’t last long. Why?”
“What would shifter blood do to a vampire?”
Micah shook his head. “Why go through the charade of a treaty and put yourself right under our noses?” he demanded. “If de’Massier is behind it, he has to know that we would suspect him just because he’s always around.”
“You’re not wrong. But it doesn’t make his story any less believable.”
They pondered in silence as they walked through the woods. “Does that mean that Tara is off the hook?” Jackson finally asked.
“No,” Brent said harshly. “I don’t know what her connection is, but I do know that there is one.”
Was she guilty? It seemed less and less likely, but Brent was willing to let her go just yet.
Unfortunately, he didn’t know if it was to watch her or to protect her.
Or maybe it was simply because he liked having her around.
* * *
She heard the door open and shut. For a split second, she considered closing her eyes and pretending to sleep. But she had some words she needed to say to him. She hadn’t slept since the moment he left the condo, and the few hours that he was gone only built up the anxiety inside her. Tara needed to clear the air.
She pulled her sweatpants on and tiptoed to the door. He was already stripping out of his suit, and for a moment, she was tempted to just watch. Just his act of undressing was already making her wet. She stifled a moan and flung the door open. This was not the time to get all hot and bothered.
His head swiveled around, and his hands froze at the second button of his shirt. “Tara?”
“I can’t sleep,” she said as she crept along the wall. As his intense eyes focused on her, she suddenly wondered if confronting him was the best idea in the world.
“I have guards at every entrance. You’re safe,” he said as his arms dropped to his side. She was almost disappointed that he didn’t continue to unbutton his shirt.
“That’s not the point,” she said harshly. “I shouldn’t be here, and I think you know that.”
“I’m not completely willing to discount your innocence,” he muttered finally.
“Discount my innocence?” she laughed at the absurdity of the idea. “Look at you. You can’t admit that you made a mistake. You can’t admit that you dragged me into this mess.”
“I didn’t drag you into this mess. Your ex-boyfriend did,” Brent pointed out.
She reddened. “He’s not my ex-boyfriend,” she snapped.
“Oh. So you still plan on dating him once you find him? Nice. Real nice,” he growled.
“No.” She rolled her eyes. “That’s not what I mean. I barely knew Matthew. Actually, I didn’t know him at all, but the information I thought was true was fairly sparse. I had a last name and a number. I met him in the bar, and we went out a few times. That’s pretty much it. I can’t tell you anything about him family or his career or hobbies.”
“So it was just sex?”
She growled at him. “There was no sex.” She shrugged. “Although it wasn’t for want of him trying. But we never went to his place and he never came to mine. We always met in public. I wanted to break things off with him long before now.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. It’s hard to explain. When I was with him, he was mesmerizing. And I thought that we’d be good. But as soon as he was gone, the chemistry was no longer there. When I thought back to our dates, I found him flat and boring.”
Brent cocked his head. “But when you were with him, you found him dynamic and interesting?”
Tara flushed. “Yes. And before you start thinking that I’m strange, I’ll have you know that it’s not always the case. It just happened to be the case with Matthew.”
“I don’t think that’s strange at all,” he said slowly. He bent down and picked up his phone. “Callie? Do you have any photos of the vampire member? Great. Can you send them to me.”
Tara paled. “Vampire?” she squeaked. “No. There’s no way that Matthew was a vampire.” She froze when she thought back. “No,” she muttered as she shook her head. “No, no, no.”
Brent crossed the room and grabbed her arms. “Think. Did you ever see him in daylight?”
“No. We always met when I got off work.”
“Off work? Tara, you don’t get off until midnight. Why would he wait that late to see you?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I asked him about it once, and he said he worked odd hours too. It worked for him.
“Where did he work?”
She struggled to remember. “Christ, I don’t know. I’m sure I asked him, but I can’t seem to remember. It’s not a big deal. I obviously didn’t find it strange, or I would remember.”
“Did you ever see him eat or drink anything?”
“Of course, He was in the bar, so he must have been eating or drinking.” She thought back. She had served him, right?
Except that she hadn’t. Although he came in and flirted, she never remembered seeing a drink or a plate of food in front of him. She never served him anything.
“Okay, maybe not at the bar. But we went out. And I ate…” her voice trailed off. She always went straight to one of the late bars after she got off work because she was famished and tired of Dave’s food. But Matthew had claimed that he’d already eaten.
She started to feel dizzy, and she reached out to support the wall. “Okay, but vampires are col
d and pale. I touched him. I kissed him. I would have known if he was a vampire,” she whispered.
Brent regarded her grimly. “Vampires can glamour themselves. Not enough to change the way they look, but enough to change the way you perceive them. That explain why you were attracted to him when you were together but not when you were apart.” He ran his hands through his hair. “But why? Why trick you?”
“Maybe he thought I was sexy?” she asked tentatively.
He laughed hoarsely. “Baby, you are sexy. But there’s more to it than that. He lured you there. He planted your scent near the tunnel. So what part do you have to play?”
His phone beeped, and he looked down. He presented it to her. “Swipe through the pictures. Let me know if any of them look like Matthew.”
Tara took a deep breath and began to swipe through the photos. One by one, she grew colder and colder. It was obvious that the photos depicted soulless creatures, but none of them were Matthew. She almost sighed with relief. “He’s not on here.”
Brent frowned. “Damn. I thought we had the answer.”
“But you believe that I’m innocent?” she asked in a small voice.
He nodded his head. “You are a part of this, but I don’t think you’ve done anything purposely malicious.”
“Can I go?’ she asked finally.
“Do you want to?” he whispered. And just like that, the atmosphere in the room changed.
Chapter Five
The air sizzled. Brent tried to keep his breaths even as he watched her. He needed her to walk away from him. He needed her to leave right now so he could focus on the investigation.
He needed her in his arms so her could finally taste her.
“Is it safe?” she whispered.
He smirked. He couldn’t help it. “Are you asking if it’s safe for you in here or if it’s safe for you out there?”
“Both.”
He clenched his fists. “I don’t think it’s safe for you out there. I still don’t know who is manipulating you or what they’ll do to you.”
“And here?” He nearly moaned as the words curled around him. God, he could smell her heat. Her wetness. Her arousal.
“I won’t do anything you don’t want me to do,” he managed.
“Brent,” she whispered.
It was the first time she had ever said his first name. With it came a question. A promise. A desperate need. He crossed the room in four steps and hooked her wrists. As he pushed her up against the wall, he pulled her hands up so she couldn’t touch him.
“Are you hoping to seduce me?” he whispered just inches from her face. “Do you think I’ll believe that you’re innocent if you fuck me?”
Her lips parted, and he instantly hardened. Christ, what he wanted to do to her. But at his words, she immediately grew angry. “How dare you,” she hissed. “First you think I’m innocent, and then you think I’m seducing you. What the hell do you want from me?”
He closed his eyes. To take her now would be the most unprofessional thing he’d ever done, but he couldn’t keep ignoring his desire for her. “I want to be inside you,” he said hoarsely. “I want to taste you. I want to make you scream.”
She stilled at his confession. “Then why are you pushing me away?”
With a growl, he leaned in and captured her lips. Soft. Sweet. He was instantly drunk on her, and when he released her wrists, her arms circled him and drew him closer. “Tara,” he moaned. “Why can’t I stay away from you?”
“I don’t want you too,” she cried out. “God, I’ve needed you ever since I laid eyes on you. Please, don’t make me wait anymore.”
And then there were no coherent thoughts left in his head. She wanted him. He wanted her. That’s all he could focus on. The investigation, the danger, everything paled in comparison to the need that drove him to her.
* * *
Her hands were all over him. As soon as she knew that this was it, she had to touch him. Tara immediately placed a palm over his exposed chest reveled in the heat and muscles. His skin was taut and smooth, and she loved every single inch that she felt. His body responded to her, trembled under her, and she couldn’t believe the power that she wielded over him.
It wasn’t enough. As he continued to assault her mouth, drawing her into a dizzying dance of nips and licks, she unbuttoned the rest of his shirt and pushed it off his shoulders. Half naked, he was everything she imagined and more, and she couldn’t get enough of him.
His own hands were busy as they pulled at her t-shirt. She wasn’t wearing a bra underneath, and he rubbed his thumb over her distended nipped over the fabric. She gasped as pleasure seared through her. Sex had never been like this befor. Her whole body was aflame with need.
He broke the kiss long enough to pull the shirt over her head. She immediately went to cover herself with her hands. Why were the lights still on? But he grabbed her hands and forced them apart. Before she could react, he snagged her pants and pushed them down. She shivered as his eyes raked over her nearly naked body. She was sometimes ashamed of her curves, but there was only unabashed male appreciation in his eyes. “Beautiful,” he muttered. “Absolutely beautiful.”
As if he were afraid that his words weren’t enough, he captured her mouth again and proceeded to show her just how much he liked her body.
His lips were everywhere, and she struggled to keep up. As he licked his way down the column of her neck, she moaned and tangled her fingers through his hair. Sparks tickled her skin everywhere that he touched her. Never had her body had such a reaction to a man before.
He moved down her to her collarbone and finally at the base of her throat. Slowly, his fingers stroked her sensitive skin, and she pressed her body against him. Through his pants, his erection pressed against her stomach, but then his body slid down hers as he bent down to take a nipple in his mouth.
“Fuck,” she whispered as he slid his warm tongue over her.
“You like having your nipples played with?” he whispered as he paused.
She gazed down at him. There was something erotic about looking down on a man when he pleasured her. When Brent pleasured her. “I like it when you play with my nipples,” she said with a soft smile.
“I’ve wanted to touch them since the first day I met you. When you leaned over the counter, I could see straight down your shirt, and all I did was imagine them filling the palms of my hands. Jesus, Tara, you have no idea the affect you have on me. The things I’ve dreamed of doing to you.”
“Do them now,” she begged. “Do anything you want, just don’t stop.”
He reached up and pinched her nipples, and she cried out. She’d never really enjoyed the combination of pleasure and pain, but everything he did to her was pure magic. When he finally released her nipples, he moved back up to press his mouth against hers again. He reached down and clutched at her ass as he pulled her up against him. She wrapped her legs around his waist and rubbed herself on him as he carried her into the bedroom.
“Damn it,” he swore. “We’ll never make it if you keep doing that.”
“God, I don’t care,” she moaned. “Take me on the floor if you have to.”
He hissed but kept going. Finally they both tumbled on the bed. As soon as her hands were free, she reached down to undo his belt. “Too many clothes. Why are you still wearing so many clothes?” she demanded.
Brent lifted his hips, and she grasped the zipped and pulled it down. She didn’t even bother pushing the pants off his waist. She simply reached in and wrapped her hands around his cock. It was warm and pulsed in her hand as she squeezed him gently.
“Big,” she muttered in delight. “I want it.”
He groaned. “Baby, you’re not going to have it if you keep doing that.” She whimpered when he pushed her hand away. She wanted more. She needed more. But he wasn’t cutting her off completely. He shimmied down her body as he pushed the rest of his pants off. She lifted her head to see him, but as soon as she caught a glimpse of his naked body, he’d
pressed his lips to her covered mound. Through the thin scrap of fabric that dared to call themselves panties, she could feel the pressure and moisture of his tongue.
Crying out, she immediately widened her legs to give him access. He didn’t disappoint. Pulling the panties to the side, he slipped one finger deep inside her as he slid his tongue over her clit.
All that tension between them. All the adrenaline that was running through her body. All those dreams she’d had of him wrapped her body. It was too much. He’d barely just stared, but she was already falling apart around him.
He stroked her through the orgasm. She didn’t even have time to fall back to earth before he was building her back up again. “Wait,” she cried. “Brent.”
He stopped and lifted his head to stare at her. “Problem?”
“I’ve never…” she took a deep breath and blushed. “I’ve never had more than one at a time. I’m not sure I can.”
“Hey.” He immediately slid back up her body and positioned himself next to her. She shivered against him, and he curved a finger under her chin and forced her head up gently. “Don’t be scared,” he whispered.
“I’ve never felt like this before,” she admitted. “Maybe I could just suck you off?”
He let out a breath at her words. “That’s tempting. I’m sure your mouth would be amazing. But if you’re worried about me getting off, don’t.”
She stared at him. Never in her life had a man said that to her. “What do you mean? Don’t you want to finish?”
“I do,” he said in a neutral voice. “Trust me, I do. But if you’re scared and want to stop, we’ll stop.”
Did she want to stop? She didn’t. The feelings that she had for Brent were foreign and intense, but she had a desperate desire to see them through. Her hands shook as she reached up and stroked his face. “I don’t want to stop.”