****
Amber’s hand shook as she picked up the phone. She had a solution to this little problem. It would mean that Lance would have to bend his rules a little but hey, if he wanted to keep…doing her, for lack of a better word…then he would meet her half way on this.
She should just go home, she really should. If she was smart, she’d pack her bag right now, but the thought of cutting her time here short was…it just didn’t seem right. She’d made it into the next round of this heat. Go figure!
His admission about not having been with anyone else had come as a shock. It was something at least. The thought made her feel lighter somehow. It didn’t change things. It wasn’t like she was going to actually fall for Lance. He was an ass, and a jerk, and a serious pig. It wasn’t happening. He was also seriously hot and great between the sheets so as long as he agreed to…
“Good afternoon, Amber, can I assist you with something?” It was the lady from reception. Amber recognized her voice. The one who liked Lance.
“Please can you put me through to Lance.”
There was a long pause. “Certainly.” Not quite as friendly as before.
Amber held the receiver and breathed deeply, trying to calm her nerves.
“There is no answer.” A sing-song, happy voice. “Would you like me to try his cellphone for you?” Her fake friendliness was nauseating.
“Yes, please.”
“One moment.”
After about half a minute, the receptionist was back. “I’m so sorry.” She sounded ecstatic. “He’s not answering.”
Damn.
“Thank you.” Amber hung up the phone. Oh, well. She’d try again later. He might be a bit upset that she’d made him wait. Guys like Lance weren’t used to waiting for anything. There was a good chance that he’d moved on. An even better chance that he would laugh in her face.
There was a knock at the door.
It couldn’t be. Surely not.
Lance had his hands on the top of the door frame. His arms were above his head but his elbows were still bent. They were big, these vamps. That was for sure. He smiled at her, his eyes narrowed as they landed on hers. He wore his leathers. There was a sword in a sheath on his back and a knife strapped to one thigh. It was like her throat closed a little because she struggled to get air in.
“Are you going to invite me in?” He spoke in a hushed tone. “Someone might see me.” His tone was clipped.
She nodded, moving to the side. Now that he was here, she wasn’t so sure. Maybe she was being silly. No doubt about it. She knew that she was being a bit over the top but surely if he really wanted to continue with their agreement, he could do this for her.
You can do this, Amber.
“I ran into Brynn outside.” Lance looked amused. “He said something about us dating. I’m not sure where he got his information…” He gave a half-hearted chuckled. “But there is no—”
“I told him that we are going to date,” she blurted.
“What?” His eyes seemed to darken.
“Please come inside and sit down.” They were still standing in the entrance hall.
“No. We can talk about this here.” Lance folded his arms. “I don’t date. I told you that. I meant it.”
“I told you that I don’t do this. I don’t”—she licked her lips— “sleep around.”
“You’re hardly sleeping around,” Lance pointed out, his patience running thin. “It’s exclusive fucking after a three and a half year dry spell. I don’t know how many times we need to go through this. You don’t like me, right?”
She nodded. “No. I would never normally date a guy like you.”
A look of hurt flashed in his eyes. Then he smirked. “Exactly. You wouldn’t want anyone to know. You said that yourself. You wouldn’t want to take me home to meet mommy.”
She felt her eyes widen and her heart beat faster. “God, no. My folks would probably disown me.” They didn’t think anyone was good enough for their little girl. Her dad was bad but her mom was a disaster. She would nitpick about everything. A vampire. One with a dirty mouth. One as arrogant and egotistical as Lance? No way. They would forbid it.
Lance chuckled some more. “You look horrified. That’s great. You see, you wouldn’t date a guy like me. Would hate to spend any time actually talking to me, so why start now? No…this continues as is. Nothing needs to change. So what if the others know? I don’t give a fuck and neither should you.”
“I do though. Whether you like it or not, I care.” She stood taller. “I know I shouldn’t but I do. I appreciate that you’ve already broken a few of your precious rules. All I ask is that you go on a few dates with me over the next few days. That way, no one has to know that I jumped into the sack with you so easily. A few measly dates over the next three or four days and then we can get back to…the good stuff.”
“If you’re implying that we not only need to date but that I have to keep my hands off of you for that time then I say fuck that.” He was frowning deeply.
“Okay. I understand.” Amber walked to the closet and pulled out her suitcase. “It’s probably better that we stop this insane nonsense anyway. Everybody knows that no strings doesn’t work long term. One of us is bound to get hurt.” She turned back towards him. He was still in the hallway with his arms crossed. His eyes looked haunted somehow. “This isn’t a ploy to get you to change your mind. I’m not playing games with you, I swear.” She huffed out a breath. “I’ll leave…it’s for the best, Lance. It’s for the best.” She repeated because she meant every word.
“Fuck that.” His arms dropped to his sides and he took two strides forwards. “You hate me…no one is going to get hurt.”
“I was referring to you being the one to get hurt. Not me. I think maybe you’re starting to develop feelings for me otherwise you wouldn’t be so scared to date me.”
“Not a fuck.” He looked pissed. “I’m not scared. I just don’t want to date. Not you. Not anyone.”
“You’re the one who said that you don’t mind my company. I find you difficult to be with at the best of times. If dating is going to be a hardship on anyone, it’s me. Three or four days and then we can pick up where we left off.”
“That’s a long time without rutting.” He looked so sad that she almost felt sorry for him.
“Take it or leave it.” She knew she was being hard about this but…she just didn’t want to be a notch on his belt. Even though she technically was…she didn’t want to be just another one. She couldn’t stand the thought. “I should go.” She began placing items of clothing into the bag. Amber had never been more torn about anything.
“It’s been over a year since I went any length of time without sex. Fuck!” He snarled the word. “I enjoy rutting you, Amber. It’s as simple as that. I don’t know how I feel about being around you without being able to…” He let the sentence die, raking a hand through his hair. “I might not even want sex with you after spending time with you.” Then he looked her up and down and his gaze heated up. “Okay… I probably would but I don’t want to date.”
“Do you realize that you sound like a baby?”
“More like a teenager. I’ve never had to work so hard to get into a pair of panties before. Fuck!”
“You’re welcome to go elsewhere.” She narrowed her eyes.
“That won’t work. We’re exclusive,” he growled.
“Well, now we’re unexclusive.”
“We’re fucking exclusive.” A dangerous growl.
Something he said popped back into her mind. “What happened a year ago to make you stop having sex?” Why had she asked that? It wasn’t important. It wasn’t any of her business.
His gaze moved to her, his expression dark.
“Forget I asked,” she blurted. Throwing a pile of sweaters into her suitcase.
“Stop packing for a second.”
She sighed and turned to face him.
“My mate left me for a beast.”
“A beast?
“Yeah, I was mated. We used to have a lore that stated if a male and female drank from each other during a new moon while rutting, that they would be mated. Our people had the very occasional accidental mating. In some cases, the mated couple would make it work, or they were lucky and were true mates.” He rolled his shoulders. “In others. Cases like my mating, the couple would become estranged. It was back in a time when our two covens were divided. We were no longer in full blown war but neither were we on friendly terms.”
“You still had sex with each other though?” She could hear the shock in her voice.
“It happened from time to time. There is something enjoyable about having the forbidden.”
Amber felt a small pang inside her. She folded her arms.
“Stephany and I accidentally mated. We agreed to stay in our respective covens and not to speak of it, but according to our lores at the time, we were mated. Even after the covens were…mingling more…we kept our distance.”
“So you were only together that one time.”
Lance nodded. “Yeah. Twenty years passed. We would see each other from time to time but we remained apart. It is something that I later came to regret. The kings were both trying to win the human chosen, Tanya. It was a turbulent time and we were vulnerable. The wolves and elves formed an alliance. Their resolve was to overthrow the vampires as the species rulers. They attacked the castle intent on stealing the future queen for the alpha wolf. If they succeeded, they would cut off all future heirs for both kings, in order to weaken our species. It would’ve destroyed us.”
She gasped. “What happened? Did the wolf get to the human? Did he take her for himself?”
“Don’t you read the paper? Or watch the news?”
She shook her head. “I read books and watch movies. I also work a hell of a lot. Tell me. What happened?” This whole thing sounded like something from a fairy tale.
Lance shook his head and smiled. “I’ll save that story for another day. The wolves and the elves arrived at the castle in order to steal the queen but instead, they took Stephany.”
“Your mate.”
He nodded. “My estranged mate,” he corrected. “I was there. In the thick of battle. I watched as a wolf grabbed her. The bastard punched her. He knocked her unconscious and ran with her.” His eyes were wide. Amber could see that he was reliving the moment in his mind’s eye. “I went after her. It took me straight into range of the elven archers. I didn’t give a fuck. I needed to save her. I guess a part of me felt ashamed for never acknowledging her as my mate.” His chest heaved.
He remained still for a long time. “What happened?” she finally asked. Her voice was barely above a whisper.
“I failed. I was a stupid youngster when things began. I failed her in all ways.” He swallowed thickly. “I vowed to get her back. I stopped fucking around with the other females. I vowed to find her and to spend an eternity making it up to her but I was too late. She wouldn’t have me. Stephany had moved on.”
“That’s so sad. No wonder you’re such a mess.”
His eyes darkened. “Don’t pity me. I deserved everything I got. I should’ve been exiled or put to death for the shit I caused. I’m lucky. I learned a few truths recently. One of my close friends took a human mate. It made me realize some things.”
“Like?” She shouldn’t be asking him all these questions but she couldn’t help it.
“In short, I have demons. I’ve learned how to deal with them.” The barest hints of a smile tugged the ends of his sinful mouth. “You’re not making things easy for me.” She was sure she heard him mumble something about having to sniff more roses but that couldn’t be right.
It looked like he was conceding. Couldn’t be. She was almost disappointed. Shit! She should be running away. This wasn’t an ideal situation to say the least. “Are you agreeing?” She could hear the shock in her voice.
“Yes, Amber, I am. I must be fucking certifiable but I’m agreeing. A few dates and then it’s back to the original arrangement. You won’t fall for me?” He looked so stern it would have been comical if his arrogance didn’t piss her off.
“I won’t fall in love with you.” She huffed, hands on her hips. “Just as long as you don’t fall for me.”
He rolled his eyes and gave her his signature smirk. “Not happening.”
She shrugged. “Okay then.”
“Good, it’s decided.”
“I suppose it is.” She should leave.
“When is our first”—he grimaced— “date?” He said the word like it tasted bad.
“This evening.”
“Where are you taking me?” he looked bored and she felt her blood boil. Infuriating vampire!
She felt like slapping that look off of his face. “Oh no! You’re the guy and I’m the girl. You can pick me up. Call me old fashioned. I’ll be ready in two hours…be here at six. Make sure you plan something good. We might have to date but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a good time.”
He frowned. “You said we needed to date. Not me. I’ll be here at six but that’s where it ends.”
“You’re an ass,” she shot back. “This was a bad idea.” Whenever he used his mouth for anything other than kissing, he ended up irritating the shit out of her.
“You’re right. Let’s just skip the dating and fuck.” His eyes actually lit up.
“No! If you want to fuck me ever again, you can pull your finger out of your pompous ass and take me out on a damned date. Be here at six and plan something for the evening or don’t bother coming at all. Remember, you want me more then what I want you.”
“Bullshit.” Lance glanced down at her boobs. That asshole’s smirk graced his handsome face. “What are those then?”
“None of your business.” She glanced down. Her nipples were hard, jutting points. Damn her body. Damn it for going against her brain at every turn. At least, at every turn where Lance was involved. Infuriating.
“You want me,” he said, so all-knowing and arrogant.
She gave a shrug. “So what? It doesn’t mean I’m going to give in.”
He smiled. “For the record… I like it when you say fuck. You should say it more often.” He winked at her. “I’ll think about it.” Then he turned and walked out.
What did he mean ‘he would think about it’? Was he going to think about where he was going to take her? Or was he going to decide whether or not he was even going to take her out in the first place. She would find out soon enough, like if he didn’t show up at six. She found that she didn’t like the idea of that.
She’d dated all of two guys and both of them had broken up with her. It sucked to be dumped like that. They didn’t have a relationship but if he didn’t come tonight, she would still feel rejected. She should just go. Pack her bag and go. Instead, Amber bent over her suitcase and started putting her things back in the closet.
Chapter 15
There was another knock at the door. Amber clasped a hand over her mouth. “Surely not.” This was crazy. She looked around the room. Every available surface was covered with flowers. There were lilies, roses, daisies, sunflowers, daffodils, tulips and a whole range of blooms she didn’t know the names of. Good thing she wasn’t allergic to pollen.
She opened the door, it was yet another guard, holding, yet another bunch of flowers. Big orange lilies with yellow roses in a ceramic vase. It was beautiful.
“Um…thanks….there’s still a space next to my bed on the far table.”
The guy nodded. He placed the vase on the table.
The vampire handed her something on his way out. It was a beautifully wrapped box with a card. Her name was scrawled across the paper. She tore it open and removed a plain white card:
Dearest Amber,
So, you’re really going to make us go through
with this whole dating thing?
; You could still change your mind and I would be
100% onboard with that.
The flowers, as well as any other gift I give you, are
for appearances only. They don’t mean anything.
They are to prove without a doubt
that you are not just another notch on my belt.
The gift in the box is totally from me to you though, it’s
straight from the heart…
You are most welcome!
Lance
She lifted the box and stared at it for a few moments. It was wrapped in beautiful black and white paper. Tied with a black velvet bow. Did she really want to know?
Yes.
Unfortunately, not only did she want to know what was inside but she needed to. Like a kid at Christmas, she ripped the paper from the box and pulled off the lid. Two packs of batteries and another wrapped box. She ripped the paper off of this one as well.
“Oh...” She had to snort out a laugh. Such a pig. There was a Post-it note attached.
Don’t even think about using this on yourself.
What? His message implied that he planned on using it on her. She read some of the text on the side of the box. Extra large, rubber penis. Three settings. Has a second smaller head designed for clitoral stimulation.
God!
What the hell.
Really?
Amber opened the box and pulled out the plastic see through container. The one that held the dildo. It was big. It did indeed have a smaller head and it was hot pink. She swallowed hard.
There was another knock at the door. She shoved the vibrator in the drawer next to her bed.
“There’s no more…” She sucked in a breath when she saw who it was. “I was going to say, space. There’s no more space. Are you nuts? It’s too much.”
“Yes. No sex for three days. I’m as crazy as they come.” His gaze slid down her body. “I like the dress.”
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