from my grasp and onto the ground, sliding under the car. “Damn it!”
“Here, I’ll get it,” Nate said, his chivalry completely predictable.
The minute he bent down to pick it up, I brought my arm down hard, hitting him on the back of the neck. He went down without even flinching. I glanced around quickly, then opened the back door to his car and somehow managed to lift the top half of his body into the backseat. Unable to push him any farther, I ran around to the other side and pulled him the rest of the way in. As soon as I had him situated as comfortably as possible, I picked up his fedora and set it on his chest. Then, on impulse, I reached out and brushed his thick hair away from his brow.
“I’m sorry about this,” I whispered. Then, giving in to another impulse, I bent and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “It’s for your own good.”
Hating to leave him there unconscious and vulnerable, I lingered just a moment more, letting my conscience gnaw at me. I was running my fingers through his hair, marveling at how soft it was, when something caught my eye. I leaned in closer to get a better look.
The same tribal tattoos I’d seen on his forearms were hidden under the thick locks. On closer inspection, I saw they weren’t necessarily tribal in origin. In fact, they looked more like black flames licking at the nape of his neck and disappearing down the collar of his shirt. Frowning, I briefly traced the designs, wondering what they meant. I could have stayed much longer, letting my fingertips drift gently across his skin, but footsteps a few rows over made me jerk my hand away and slam the door. If Nate was still speaking to me after this, I’d have to ask him about his incredible ink.
After locking the doors, I fished my phone out from under the car where it had fallen when Nate went down, then headed for the main entrance to the office building where Vlad operated his various business ventures.
I’d met Vlad after he came over in the Great Lit Migration of 1985. He’d been one of those characters who’d had difficulty adjusting and soon had gotten into trouble when it came to his need for blood. That’s when he got assigned to me. And let me tell you, it’s not an easy task to bring in a guy who could shape-shift, vanish into thin air, and seduce you with nothing more than a look from startlingly pale blue eyes.
Our months-long game of hide and seek was, in a word, exhilarating . I hadn’t had that much fun in decades! Vlad wasn’t the first vampire I’d dealt with—folklore from all over the world is filled with variations on the theme—but he was the first literary vampire I’d encountered. And I hadn’t been prepared for that. Thanks to the metamorphosis of vampires from monsters to sex symbols, Vlad had undergone a transformation as well. He wasn’t the horrible creature Stoker had originally envisioned anymore—he was brilliant, handsome, suave, and sexy as hell. Finally, as eager as I was to bring our game to its explosive conclusion, Vlad had let me catch him.
Fortunately, after Vlad’s rehabilitation at my careful (ahem) tutelage, he had managed to find a respectable way to feed and put his talents and charisma to better use, becoming a billionaire within a few short years. Now, in addition to owning the world’s largest casket company, his empire consisted of three Fortune 500 companies and numerous other lucrative enterprises. In fact, it was hard to find an industry that Vlad didn’t have some connection to.
Since our original whirlwind romance, Vlad and I had had an on-again/off-again relationship that would give you whiplash trying to keep up. I think we both knew that it would never really go anywhere. Vlad had an obsessive need to bed as many women as inhumanly possible, and I had an obsessive need to stay unattached. And yet we couldn’t seem to get enough of each other. I would break things off, only to give in to his persistent entreaties again a few months
“Here, I’ll get it,” Nate said, his chivalry completely predictable.
The minute he bent down to pick it up, I brought my arm down hard, hitting him on the back of the neck. He went down without even flinching. I glanced around quickly, then opened the back door to his car and somehow managed to lift the top half of his body into the backseat. Unable to push him any farther, I ran around to the other side and pulled him the rest of the way in. As soon as I had him situated as comfortably as possible, I picked up his fedora and set it on his chest. Then, on impulse, I reached out and brushed his thick hair away from his brow.
“I’m sorry about this,” I whispered. Then, giving in to another impulse, I bent and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “It’s for your own good.”
Hating to leave him there unconscious and vulnerable, I lingered just a moment more, letting my conscience gnaw at me. I was running my fingers through his hair, marveling at how soft it was, when something caught my eye. I leaned in closer to get a better look.
The same tribal tattoos I’d seen on his forearms were hidden under the thick locks. On closer inspection, I saw they weren’t necessarily tribal in origin. In fact, they looked more like black flames licking at the nape of his neck and disappearing down the collar of his shirt. Frowning, I briefly traced the designs, wondering what they meant. I could have stayed much longer, letting my fingertips drift gently across his skin, but footsteps a few rows over made me jerk my hand away and slam the door. If Nate was still speaking to me after this, I’d have to ask him about his incredible ink.
After locking the doors, I fished my phone out from under the car where it had fallen when Nate went down, then headed for the main entrance to the office building where Vlad operated his various business ventures.
I’d met Vlad after he came over in the Great Lit Migration of 1985. He’d been one of those characters who’d had difficulty adjusting and soon had gotten into trouble when it came to his need for blood. That’s when he got assigned to me. And let me tell you, it’s not an easy task to bring in a guy who could shape-shift, vanish into thin air, and seduce you with nothing more than a look from startlingly pale blue eyes.
Our months-long game of hide and seek was, in a word, exhilarating . I hadn’t had that much fun in decades! Vlad wasn’t the first vampire I’d dealt with—folklore from all over the world is filled with variations on the theme—but he was the first literary vampire I’d encountered. And I hadn’t been prepared for that. Thanks to the metamorphosis of vampires from monsters to sex symbols, Vlad had undergone a transformation as well. He wasn’t the horrible creature Stoker had originally envisioned anymore—he was brilliant, handsome, suave, and sexy as hell. Finally, as eager as I was to bring our game to its explosive conclusion, Vlad had let me catch him.
Fortunately, after Vlad’s rehabilitation at my careful (ahem) tutelage, he had managed to find a respectable way to feed and put his talents and charisma to better use, becoming a billionaire within a few short years. Now, in addition to owning the world’s largest casket company, his empire consisted of three Fortune 500 companies and numerous other lucrative enterprises. In fact, it was hard to find an industry that Vlad didn’t have some connection to.
Since our original whirlwind romance, Vlad and I had had an on-again/off-again relationship that would give you whiplash trying to keep up. I think we both knew that it would never really go anywhere. Vlad had an obsessive need to bed as many women as inhumanly possible, and I had an obsessive need to stay unattached. And yet we couldn’t seem to get enough of each other. I would break things off, only to give in to his persistent entreaties again a few months
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