“Take care, my angel,” she murmured and kissed the slack lips. Reluctantly, she slipped from the rumpled bed and the naked limbs of her lover to get dressed. She stealthily crept downstairs to the deepest, darkest recesses of Cleaver Keep, its concealed dungeons.
†
The faint click of the door closing woke her and Jessica stretched dreamily. The events of the previous night rushed through her mind and she rolled over to find the place next to her empty. She reached out. It was still warm.
She threw off the duvet and rushed to the door. The hallway was empty and quiet. How’d she move so fast, she thought vaguely, as she closed the door again. Disappointed, she returned to bed and threw herself down, punching the pillow. What she would’ve given for a hot quickie before she started the day.
Photo-shoots were arduous; with many hours spent getting the models ready for the shoots, changing costumes, adjusting the lights, moving the sets. She loved her job, but today, she wished she could just stay in bed with her … She sat up quickly. She didn’t even know her name or her number. How was she going to get hold of her? Where would she start?
The alarm went off and Jessica sighed. Maybe that was it. Maybe it was intended to be a one-nighter. If not, she would’ve left a note or a telephone number. A feeling of unease came over her at the thought that she might never see the woman again. Never run her hands through those soft, gold-spun locks…
Groaning, she rolled onto her back and pulled the sheet away, baring her naked body. She would have to help herself or walk around today with an uncomfortable throbbing between her legs. Closing her eyes, two heated brown eyes immediately swam into focus. Gently, she stroked her flat stomach, working her way down toward the incessant pounding between her legs. Her mind conjured up the slow purposeful hands of her dream lover, her silken touch and her whispered words of praise. She gasped softly when she made contact and sighed deeply. She was incredibly wet and swollen.
“Are you up, Jess?”
Cursing, Jessica reached for the alarm clock and flung it against the door.
“I’ll take that as a yes. I brought two alarm clocks just in case something happened to yours,” Howard called out before she heard him rushing down the hallway. She flung herself off the bed and padded over to the en suite.
†
The girl stormed off in tears and Howard carefully approached Jessica. The photographer’s hair was disheveled from the countless times she’d raked her fingers through in frustration. She followed Howard’s hesitant approach where she sat, dragging on a herbal cigarette. She’d given up smoking eons ago, but at times like these she craved a smoke. Lucky for her, one of the crew was trying to quit and had a packet of herbal rolls on him.
“What’s bothering you, Jess?” Howard asked and sat down next to her.
“You tell me,” she snapped back. “They all look stiff and hungover. Get me Morgana and Sadé. I want to know where and what these girls were up to last night.”
“I was with them and they were all in bed before ten. I can vouch for them,” Howard said quickly, his blue eyes wide. Jessica took a long drag on the cigarette. “What happened between last night and this morning? You woke up in a terrible mood.”
Jessica crushed the cigarette in the ashtray nearby and came to her feet. Looking at the sky she frowned. It would be dark soon and they still had a lot to do.
“Break’s over, guys. We only have a few more hours of daylight left.” She scanned the set and located the costumer and makeup artist. “Morgana, Sadé, get the swimsuit girls ready. It will be too cold later to have them parading around in skimpy swimwear.” She turned to Howard. “I didn’t sleep well because of that stupid haunted castle story you spun me last night. Could you please track down the girl who ran off the set in tears? I want to talk to her.”
Howard nodded and rushed off.
“Are you still satisfied with the lights, Jess?” Grant called out and she gave him the thumbs up sign. The rest of the crew tried to avoid making eye contact with her and Jessica suddenly felt ashamed of her behavior. She was moping around like some horny, teenage boy, because she had hoped that last night was more than a one nightstand. Now, everyone had to suffer because of her delusions. It really wasn’t fair to take it out on the crew. She saw Howard coming toward her with a gangly girl in a dressing gown following him. The girl looked apprehensive as she approached and Jessica shook her head. She looked so young without makeup on.
“How old are you?” she asked the girl and a soft blush formed on the girl’s cheeks.
“Seventeen,” she whispered and looked around nervously. A baby still, Jessica thought and looked around. She obviously had been lying about her age to the others thus the nervous glance to see if anyone else was eavesdropping on their conversation.
“Do you like modeling?”
The blue-green eyes of the girl began to sparkle and she nodded.
“I love my job.”
“Good. I’m not apologizing to you for telling you to do your job, because you’re getting paid to do that. I’m apologizing for making you cry in front of the others.” Her grey eyes studied the girl somberly.
Being a model was tough and she always had a soft spot for the younger ones. They are not only easy targets for many unscrupulous fiends in the fashion world, but also most of them crack so easily under the pressure of the job. This was not the first girl she’d driven to tears and would probably not be the last one, but she wanted the shoot done today so she could get away from this place and the mysterious woman who haunted her thoughts.
The girl nodded and Jessica grabbed her camera. “Now go get ready so that we can get this over and done with. Remember, you might be the youngest here, but you have just as much talent and personality as the others. Show me what you have, okay?”
“OK.”
Howard stepped closer, a huge smile on his face and Jessica considered ignoring him, but Howard knew her too well and would pester her until she caved in.
“What is it now, Howie?” she snapped, unconsciously reverting to her nickname for him
The blue eyes twinkled at her. “You are not only beautiful and sexy, but you have a soft side too. That makes you one of the sought-after bachelorettes according to Star News. I think they’re spot on.”
She pushed her fingers through her hair. She hated being discussed by a bunch of strangers who thought they knew her by reading about her in the tabloids and gossip columns. Howard, on the other hand, lapped up everything he saw and heard on Star News.
“I’ve told you to stop believing in the crap they sell on Star News.” She screwed a different lens on her camera. “Please, get the girls moving, Howard. We have two more sequences to finish before we lose daylight.”
Howard immediately snapped back into assistant mode and jumped to execute her orders.
†
Clarissa watched Jessica hungrily from where she stood, hidden in the shadows of the stable. Her heartbeat accelerated at the sight of those long slender fingers raking through the short hair. Jessica was alone, walking around the set, sipping from a bottle of water. The shoot had ended a few minutes ago and she could see that everyone was happy to wrap up and rush to their rooms. Even her woman was looking a bit tired.
She inhaled sharply.
Since when did she think about the photographer as her woman? Last night was supposed to be her last night, spent in the arms of a beautiful woman. But as soon as the sun had set this evening she’d raced at breakneck speed, just so she could see Jessica again. Maybe even touch her again. She’d taken the hidden tunnel leading from the dungeons to the stable. Her great-grandfather Louis Vermont, the Second Marquis of Cleaver had built the tunnel as an escape route for himself and his family, in case of an emergency. But it was never used and the tunnel had nearly collapsed as a result of disuse. She’d found it as a child and claimed it as her little secret playground.
Clarissa sensed another presence and stiffened when she saw a beautiful redhead, wearing
a short black dress, step out of the shadows to join Jessica.
“I just wanted to come and tell you how honored I feel to be able to work with you, Jessica. You’re not known as the StarMaker for nothing.” The girl put a hand on Jessica’s arm and Clarissa felt her jaw tighten.
“Thank you for the compliment, Greta. My success hugely depends on the talent I work with, too.” She heard Jessica speak in that unbelievably husky tone of hers.
“You’re absolutely right, you know.” The redhead giggled and took another step closer and hooked her arm around Jessica’s neck. Clarissa could sense Jessica’s discomfort from where she stood. She sighed in relief when Jessica took the girl’s hand and removed it from around her neck.
“Look, Greta, I know what you’re trying to do, and I’m really flattered, but I’m involved with someone.”
At hearing that Clarissa experienced an intense moment of elation, but the euphoric feeling disappeared just as quickly. Did she have someone back home who was waiting for her?
“I apologize,” the redhead said softly. “I was under the impression that you and your partner broke up a year ago. I didn’t know you were seeing someone again.”
“Well, I am seeing someone.” Jessica said firmly.
The redhead stared at her for a while before she spoke again.
“You’re not just saying that because you don’t want to get involved with the talent? Because if that’s the case I can assure you that I…”
Clarissa rolled her eyes at the girl’s shamelessness and stepped out of the shadows, making enough noise to wake her ancestors. Both women turned sharply toward her and Clarissa’s heart jumped when she saw the utter delight in the grey eyes. The redhead was staring at her with a petulant pout, obviously annoyed at the interruption. But Clarissa didn’t care. Her eyes were fixed on the tall brunette. When she reached Jessica she slipped her arm around the dark woman’s waist and pulled her close for a deep lingering kiss. Jessica returned the kiss with equal fervor. When she lifted her head, she saw that the grey eyes looked a little dazed.
“I’m sorry I’m late, sweetheart. First the plane was delayed and then I struggled to get a room at the B&B in the village. Are you ready to go?” She tried to sound as light-hearted as she could, but the nearness of the woman in her arms thickened her blood, making her voice deeper and darker. She turned to the redhead and smiled apologetically. “Hi, I’m Rissa, Jessica’s girlfriend. I hope I didn’t interrupt anything? I can wait until you two finish up your conversation.” She made as if she was about to step away, but Jessica’s arm snaked around her waist, pulling her closer.
The smoldering grey eyes searched hers intently.
“You have perfect timing. We’re done and Greta was just about to join the others for dinner.”
The dismissal in the voice was unmistakable and Greta, as stubborn as she was, seemed to recognize her cue to leave.
With a crisp goodbye the redhead turned and stomped off.
Clarissa was still looking at the retreating figure of the girl, when Jessica started to pull her toward the dimly lit stable. Probing the photographer’s thoughts, she knew exactly what Jessica had in mind, but still, she wanted her to express her intention.
“Where are we going?” she asked softly.
Jessica stopped once they were inside the stables and turned to look into her eyes.
“Are you scared of being alone with me in the dark?” Jessica asked gently, pushing back a wayward blonde lock.
Clarissa stared at her. If only you knew, my dear, she thought, you would run screaming from me. I am what goes bump in the night. But she shook her head.
“No, I am not scared of being alone with you. Just tell me what you are up to.”
Jessica laughed softly and the erotic sound reverberated through Clarissa’s already aroused body. She couldn’t hold back anymore and roughly pulled Jessica closer for a fierce kiss. The kiss went on until Jessica came up for air, gasping.
The grey eyes scanned the area and spotted an open stall with heaps of fresh straw in the corner. She dragged Clarissa in there and gently lowered her onto the straw. Jessica’s fingers gently brushed the hair out of her face and Clarissa felt like crying at the tenderness Jessica exhibited. After centuries of depravity, this tender touch was like a healing balm for her stained soul.
“I’m so sorry for bringing you here, but I couldn’t wait to kiss you again and my room seemed so far away.”
Clarissa slowly spread her legs and pulled Jessica down between them. The grey eyes darkened at the incitement and she smiled when Jessica started to undress them both with wild urgency. Finally naked, they started kissing each other feverishly. Never in four hundred years had she felt as desirable as she felt at that moment, with Jessica moaning loudly as she frantically worshipped Clarissa’s breasts and her neck. Jessica’s hands roamed blindly over Clarissa’s stomach and thighs.
“You drive me crazy. I couldn’t stop thinking about you the whole day,” Jessica murmured against her lips and kissed her deeply. She lifted herself on her elbows and positioned herself so that their mounds were pressing together. “I want to get lost in you.” She reared back until she was resting on her knees. For a moment, she just looked at Clarissa, her grey eyes unfocussed as they caressed her naked body.
Clarissa marveled at the hunger she saw in the pale eyes and spread her legs even wider. Jessica read the invitation and shuddered.
The first touch of Jessica’s tongue caused the air to explode out of Clarissa’s lungs. The next touch made Clarissa’s pelvis shoot upward, followed by a long, drawn out moan. Clarissa’s eyes became hazy and she quickly closed them not wanting to take the chance of Jessica seeing them glowing red.
Jessica murmured soft words of encouragement, as she planted wet, open-mouthed kisses on her thighs before tormenting her clit again and again with long, sensual flicks of her tongue. By the time she climaxed, Clarissa was almost sure that the straw must have caught fire underneath her from the heat her body had generated.
She felt Jessica slowly lick her way upward until she was stretched out on top of her. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw were the wayward strands of hair poking out on Jessica’s head. She grinned weakly. It was her handiwork for certain. She lifted a hand and gently tried to bring some semblance of order to the short, dark hair.
“Good to know I still have some hair left on my head.” Jessica murmured with her face resting in Clarissa’s neck.
“I’m sorry,” she said, guiltily and laughed when Jessica lifted her head, the grey eyes teasing.
“You animal,” she teased.
How close to the truth you are, Clarissa thought sadly, but managed to smile back. She silently cursed Tristan’s black soul for turning her into a monster, which every time it touched Jessica, was putting her life in great peril. Please, do not let me ever harm this woman; she prayed softly to the God of her childhood as she cupped Jessica’s beaming face. I can’t bear the thought of being responsible for causing her any kind of pain or death. She traced the beautiful lips with her finger.
“You bring out the animal in me,” she whispered huskily and saw the grey eyes darkening with desire. She quickly rolled over so that she was looking down into Jessica’s face.
“Well, let’s see then, what kind of beast you are hiding underneath this sexy veneer.”
The kind you wouldn’t want to encounter, Clarissa thought even as she reached for Jessica. By the time she was done with Jessica, she was stunned to find bite marks all over her arms and shoulders and Jessica snoring softly in her arms.
She lifted her arm and frowned when she saw that some of the wounds actually broke the skin and she closed her eyes tightly. Hopefully, the amount of blood Jessica ingested was miniscule and would not make a difference. She lapped at the marks to close them.
A faint gurgling sound made her look down into Jessica’s sleeping face; Clarissa smiled. Jessica must be famished. The human’s appetite must be ferocious if the
way she’d ravished her was anything to go by. The night was still young and her lover would definitely need some energy if they were going to indulge in more activities later. Maybe, she could go out and feed before going to the kitchen to forage food for her insatiable angel.
She disentangled herself from Jessica’s arms and legs, dressed quickly and disappeared into the forest.
Chapter 3
The forest was alive with night sounds, a familiar orchestra to her ears, as Clarissa purposefully glided forward. She knew where she was going, a few miles ahead she could make out the sound of a young deer walking through the forest. Using preternatural speed, she came to a halt a few feet away from the deer. Its head was turned away from her as it munched on the soft, sweet grass, unaware of the predator stalking it. The deer suddenly lifted its head. Clarissa frowned and her eyes flashed red. There were others in the forest with them.
Spooked by the foreign smell of the intruders, the deer dashed off and Clarissa grabbed an overhead tree branch and effortlessly hoisted herself into the thick, leafy cover of the tree. Three men came crashing through the trees. They were all dressed in black and were carrying cameras around their necks. Paparazzi. They came to stand under the tree she was hiding in and one of the men lit up a cigarette. Clarissa silently parted the leaves so she could have a clear view of them.
“Are you sure we’re not lost? It feels like we’ve been walking in circles for hours.” The man with the cigarette said. A second man was clutching a flashlight, which he used to read the wrinkled map in his hand. The third man swatted at an insect, cursing under his breath.
“Greta assured me that the castle wasn’t far from the village. I will kill the bitch if she has sent me on a wild goose chase.” The third man said as he grabbed the map from the other man and squinted at it.
A Guardian's Salvation Page 3