She arrived at the doorway in time to hear a giggle from inside and her blood started to boil. Her jaw clenched tightly as she remembered the other woman giving Sebastian blood. That she'd suggested it pissed her off more and she closed and opened her fists continuously as she tried to reign in her anger.
The door opened and he came back out, followed by the still giggling Adrianna. The other woman glanced up at her and let out a gasp. Fear poured off of her like a seductive caress against Charlotte's skin and she cocked her head to the side in an inhuman gesture. Sebastian moved to block her view and she frowned, her gaze rising to his.
“Excuse us a minute, Adrianna. I need to have a word with Charlotte.” With that he grasped her elbow again and yanked her away from the blonde. He stopped a short distance away and said shortly, “Your eyes are purple.” She blinked. “I just told everyone downstairs that you aren’t an animal so get yourself under control, Charlie. You are not getting a taste of Adrianna, ever. Or anyone else. You're getting bagged blood and me. Nothing else.”
Feeling equally ashamed and guilty, she forced her darker side away. It took several minutes for her to get herself back under control and she found herself tired from the effort.
“Right, come on.” Sebastian turned away and headed for the lift once more, gesturing for Adrianna to come too. She did so warily, her eyes glued to Charlotte during the ride up to the top floor. Then came Adrianna's refusal to have Charlotte at her back as they climbed to the roof.
By the time they got upstairs, Charlotte was pissed off and slammed the door a little too hard as they exited the stairs. It didn’t end well for the door, which splinted into pieces as it hit the door-frame too hard. “Oops,” she said dryly and turned to face the other two.
Sebastian didn’t seem happy and directed her to stand in the middle of the roof. She did as she'd been asked and folded her arms across her chest. Then watched as he walked Adrianna over to the edge of a square air vent and she sat on the edge, making a big deal of crossing her long bare legs.
After several minutes he came back and stood in front of her, his lips curving slightly at the corners. “I like that you're jealous.”
“I am not—” she started to protest.
“Yes, you are. It turns me on knowing you're that possessive of me. But Charlie? I'm not interested in anyone else. I want you; I have for a really long time and now that I have you, I'm happy. As fun as it is seeing you all pissed off Adrianna, first, she does nothing for me and second, I really can't let you kill her for flirting with me.” Capturing her face in his palms, he placed a simple but possessive kiss on her lips. “Now how about we carry on with this training?”
Charlotte was slightly dazed from his words and the kiss, but nodded and they spent the next hour going through how good her hearing was and her ability to filter sounds, so she was able to recognise the difference between heartbeats and different levels her colleagues were on.
It turned out she was pretty good and Adrianna was able to leave about halfway through the lesson when Charlotte was able to pick up heartbeats that were on lower levels quickly.
She was grinning like an idiot as the lesson ended. “So I'm good?”
Sebastian seemed to think about his answer and she shoved his shoulder playfully. “Yeah, you're good. Better than I was expecting, actually.”
She grinned, happy at his words. “So now what?”
Settling his hands on her waist, he leant close to whisper, “Now, I was thinking we could have some fun.”
Her face lit up and she bit her lip. “Sounds like a plan.”
Chapter Twelve
Charlotte climbed in the car with Sebastian and stared out the windscreen into the growing darkness as they left the garage behind and drove out onto the busy streets.
She had no idea where they were heading and every time she'd asked, he'd told her to wait and see.
It had been an hour since they'd left the roof and Sebastian had told her to dress warm but comfortably before disappearing to his own room to do the same.
She'd decided on her favourite pair of black jeans, and layered a dark red, long sleeved top with a battered leather jacket that she'd owned since she was eighteen. Sitting on the edge of her bed, she'd swapped her usual black combat boots for some low heeled black boots with gold studs at the back and then stood to admire her reflection, wanting to look good for Sebastian.
His eyes had drifted down her body in a lazy perusal as she'd opened the door of her room to him a little while ago. Tucking his index fingers into her front pockets he'd tugged her forward and kissed her at length.
Her lips were still tingling now.
They stopped at a red light and she turned to face him in her seat. Sebastian glanced across at her, “What?”
“Why won't you tell me where we're going?” She asked.
He shrugged. “I want it to be a surprise.”
Pouting, Charlotte leant forward and turned on the radio. Rap blared through the speakers and she turned it down before switching channels to something that sounded a little calmer. When that song finished, another filled the confines of the car and she sang along quietly as they entered into an industrial area.
They came to a stop a few seconds later and she looked around the empty streets before turning to face Sebastian with a questioning brow raised.
He was watching her with an undefinable emotion in his eyes. “This is a nice song.”
“I've Had the Time of my Life,” she told him. “From Dirty Dancing.”
Sebastian nodded and turned the engine off, cutting the song off mid-verse, then climbed out of the car and she quickly followed his lead, meeting him on the pavement. Taking her hand he led her down the street and then between two large warehouses. They stopped beside a metal ladder that ran up to the roof of the warehouse and he gestured for her to go first.
Where was he taking her?
Nevertheless she climbed the ladder quickly and stepped aside as Sebastian reached the top. Twining their hands together, he tugged her across the roof and then looked across at the next building, through its large windows to be exact, and the people dancing below.
Charlotte's brow furrowed and she glanced back at her fellow vampire to see the rapt enjoyment on his face as he watched the twirling couples. Turning her own attention back to them she watched as they danced what looked like the waltz; their bodies swirling in hold as they moved about the room.
A teacher stepped forward, hands clapping to get her student's attention and then said something which had them all changing holds.
A snort escaped Sebastian's lips diverting her attention from the now tangoing couples and she let out a squeak of alarm as she was spun into his arms, their hold that of a formal dance. “Now that isn’t dancing. This is dancing,” and guided her across the roof in a series of turns and steps. She let him guide her and with their advanced balance and co-ordination they didn’t falter once; not because of the uneven surface or because of her lack of dancing experience.
Sebastian raised his right hand above her head taking her hand with it and twirled her in a circle, making her laugh, before taking her back in hold and moving around the roof some more until he bent her backwards over his arm with a flourish.
Charlotte knew she was grinning like an idiot but she couldn’t help it. That was the most fun she'd had in a long time.
Her eyes locked with Sebastian's and she saw the tenderness in his blue eyes as he took in everything about her right then, his gaze roving her face. He slowly brought her upright, his arm still around her waist, faces a mere inch apart.
“I didn’t know you could dance,” she said softly.
Lips quirking, he said, “There's a lot you don’t know about me.”
“I'd like to know everything about you,” she admitted shyly.
Seb searched her face before pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. “Come on then.” Dropping his arm from around her waist he grabbed her hand and tugged her towards a metal vent and
they both sat down. “It's probably about time I told you a bit about myself.” He let out a harsh breath. “I was born in seventeen-ninety-nine to a poor family. The second of seven children: four brothers and two sisters. It was tough for my parents to try and feed us all and unfortunately for my youngest brother, William, he got sick and passed away when he was just four years old.” Charlotte gripped his hand tightly and squeezed, offering silent comfort. “It was after his death when my elder brother, James, and I realised we needed to help bring in money so none of our other siblings would die like Will. James was a skilled carpenter and managed to make money from that. I, on the other hand didn’t have a useful skill. I did however have this,” and he indicated his face. “Working women in our village would call me handsome all the time and one particular nobleman's wife took a fancy to me. She seduced me one night after my seventeenth birthday and then paid me the following morning, telling me she'd enjoyed it and wanted to do it again. It was then I realised how I could help my family. Sleep with women, give them pleasure for money.” Charlotte drew in a swift breath, only now understanding where this was going. “The noblewoman introduced me to other women and I became well known in the area. One night a few years later I was approached by a lady who offered me a lot—and I mean a lot—of money if I'd spend the night with her. I agreed knowing the money would do unimaginable things to help keep my family fed. The lady was wild and during the sex she bit me and drained me before making me like her. It was so unexpected, the attack, that I didn’t fight her, even as I felt my life draining away.” He paused in his tale, his eyes hardening. “Marielle kept me as her plaything for half a century, making me do unimaginable things to her enemies and people who slandered her before I managed to kill her. I despised what she'd made me into and hated the fact I had to consume human blood to survive but I also knew that denying myself would make me into even more of a monster so I did what I had to. And here I am today.”
“That sounds rough.”
He shrugged, “No rougher than what you went through with your family.”
“Did you ever see yours again?”
Sebastian took so long to answer she turned away to watch the dancers again, thinking he'd had enough of talking about his past. Something she could understand.
“I went back after killing Marielle to find my parents were dead, which was to be expected after half a century. The death of my youngest sister, however, was not. It seems she was a victim of some disease which couldn’t be treated at the time. I have no idea where my other siblings ended up.”
“I'm sorry,” she said.
Sebastian's eyes went unfocused for a second and then he stood up, tugging her with him. “Let's stop talking about me and go back to the Agency and see the Director about you. We need him to give the okay for you to go out on missions and I need to suggest he pair us up so you can keep me company.”
Charlotte rolled her eyes, “You mean so you can keep me under control.”
In the next second his finger was pressed to her lips, his eyes more serious than she'd ever seen them. “In. So I can help you keep in control. I have no desire to control you, Charlie. I love you just the way you are.”
A smile had grown on her lips during his speech and she playfully nipped at the digit pressed against her mouth. His eyes darkened and in a blink, his hand was at her nape and his lips were hot against her own. She moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck.
It was a while before they left the roof.
Chapter Thirteen
It was nearly ten when they arrived at the Director's office. Sebastian knocked twice and waited.
“Come in.”
He gave her a reassuring smile before pushing the door open and walking inside. She followed him at a slower pace and felt the Director's attention on her as soon as she entered. Raising her gaze to meet his, their eyes locked for a second and it was her who looked away first, unable to cope with the intensity of his stare.
“Sit, please,” the Director said waving at the chairs in front of his desk.
They sat and she waited for whatever he was about to say.
“She's stable?”
Sebastian answered in a calm voice, “She's as stable as she can be considering she has only been a vampire for five days; almost four of those were her recovering from the change and injuries she had at the time of her transition.”
“Senses?”
“We worked earlier this evening with the help of Adrianna to see how well she could differentiate between floors and hear pulses. She was very good. We haven’t managed to test her eyesight yet, but I have an idea of what we could do.”
“Blood?”
Charlotte flinched at the word and Sebastian found her hand and squeezed. “She is having some trouble in regards to blood. Half of her is repulsed by the act of feeding while the other half hungers for it. We're still working on it but in the mean time I suggest you pair us for missions until she's able to overcome it. I'm the only one who'll be able to keep her in control since I'd rather her trigger happy colleagues not shoot to kill.”
“How have they taken the news?”
“Terribly,” she said before Sebastian could.
The Director raised a brow.
“Charlotte's best friend hasn't taken the news well and basically told her to watch her back. Everyone else seems curious about her; probably wondering if she'll turn out an ally, like me, or an enemy, like Lucien.”
A hiss left her at the mention of that monster. “Like I'd let myself do the same as that monster did to me and my family.”
Their boss held up a hand. “I trust Sebastian's judgement of you and I'll tell Adrianna to put you back on rotation.” His eyes went between them before settling on Sebastian, “I'm trusting you to keep her under control. If you don’t, I'm afraid she'll have to be terminated.”
Her lovers grip tightened on her fingers, almost grinding the bones together, as he tried to fight whatever was warring inside him.
Surely what the Director said hadn’t come as a shock to him? They killed rogue paranormal creatures daily: it was their job. If she went rogue—and she was going to do her damnedest not to—then she knew she would die at the hands of someone she knew.
“I understand,” Sebastian finally growled and climbed to his feet, pulling Charlotte with him since he still held her hand.
“Dismissed.”
They quickly left his office and in a blink, Charlotte found herself sitting on the edge of Adrianna's desk, Seb between her spread thighs. His forehead was resting against hers and she could see his body vibrating with some intense emotion.
“Sebastian?” She asked softly. “Seb?” Her free hand came up to touch his cheek and his eyes caught and held hers.
“I can't lose you, Charlie.”
“You won't,” she said, with as much conviction as she could.
His head moved from side to side slowly, “I should never have turned you.”
“Then you really would have lost me,” she reminded him.
“Maybe. But as least I wouldn’t have—” he broke off and pulled away from her, shoving his hands into his dark hair.
Charlotte watched him warily, her chest aching, “At least then you wouldn’t have what?”
He cursed loudly and then turned back to her. “Charlie. There's still so much you don’t know.”
“Then tell me!”
“Vampire's can have mates; like shape-shifters, only it's a bigger commitment.”
When he didn’t elaborate, she thought it through in her head but couldn’t come up with anything. “Bigger commitment how?”
Sighing at length, he gripped the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. “Okay. Like I said: vampires have mates, too. The probability of finding him or her gets lower the older you get, though it isn’t impossible. A vampire can sense their mate, it's like a tingling under their skin, a prickling of their senses, whenever they're near”
Charlotte's brain worked overtime as his description sunk
in. He seemed to know a lot about it for someone who hadn’t experienced it. Suddenly it clicked. “You found her; your mate.”
“I did,” he agreed, meeting her gaze. “She was like a breath of fresh air, light in a world that had turned dark and gloomy.”
She wasn’t afraid to say she was jealous of the woman he was describing. “What happened to her?”
Seb's brows drew together as he stared at her, the look on his face almost what she'd class as confusion. “She changed,” he finally said.
Changed? What the hell did that mean? And where was she now?
Palms clasped her face and urged her gaze to meet his. “Charlie,” he sighed, sounding almost amused, “she was changed into a vampire by me. Almost two years after we first met and she came to work here. She was a bad arse before she was turned but now she's deadly. She's getting really good with her vampire senses and is going to become amazing at resisting blood that she doesn’t get from me or out of a bag.”
She gasped, realising he meant her.
His eyes roamed her face, his lips pulling up into a grin. “Yes, I mean you. I knew from the first time I set eyes on you that there was something about you by the way my senses went haywire. I wanted to drink from you and I wanted to protect you in equal measures.”
“I'm your mate?”
“You are. We, uh, bonded the first time we made love and that has complicated the mating somewhat. We've been drawn to each other from the first meeting. That's how it works. If you'd still been human at the time, you'd have protected me at all costs but if I'd died, you'd have felt pain but nothing you wouldn't have been able to get over. Since you were a vampire, it's more in depth and now, basically, if I die, you die and likewise.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh, God.”
“That's why I want us paired for missions, so I can watch your back for you from both enemies and supposed allies.” Blue eyes took in her expression, “You're okay with this?”
Charlotte & Sebastian Page 6