Demetri’s laughter abruptly stops. “We will do whatever we want to do to him. Your job is complete. You will have your money. Now go home and leave the big boys to play.”
I walk over to Christien and stand in front of him. He meets my eyes and I can see the worry in them. “I want my shackles back. You want some, get your own.”
Once standing, I look into his eyes and make a decision. I reach up, embrace him tight against me and whisper in his ear. “Trust me.” I pull away from his ear and kiss him fully on his mouth.
He tries to pull away, but I will not let him. I deepen the kiss, letting my tongue brush across his teeth. The action causes his fangs to extend slightly. I scrape my tongue on his fang deliberately, causing his mouth to fill with my blood.
I step back from Christien, hoping against hope that he does not tell anyone what he found out about me. Even though I have betrayed him, I still believe he will not do anything to hurt me. I am betting my life on it. If he says anything to anyone, I truly believe that I would not survive the night.
I take a last look at Christien. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist. You’re just so hot!”
He smiles weakly, which I know must be a ploy.
If what my mother has been telling me for the past few years about a vampire’s reaction to my blood, he should be feeling remarkably better right now.
Barely louder than a whisper, I hear his reply. “Thank you.” He responds as if he is thanking me for the compliment.
I turn towards the limo, climb in, and demand the driver to take me home. Once at home, I pick up my flowers, wipe my address and the entire scene at the warehouse including what I look like from his memory. I put the suggestion in his mind that he stopped to ask me directions, but I do not live around here. He looks around for a moment, gets in the limo and drives away.
Chapter 22
It is almost 4:30 pm. The warehouse was farther away than I expected it to be, but I still have enough time to clean up, eat and prepare for my second contract’s dinner meeting at 8pm.
My face is a mess. I redo my makeup and stare into my bathroom mirror. On the outside, I look fine. On the inside, I feel miserable.
I go downstairs and check my email and voice mail. I have no voice mails and only one email.
Just as I thought there would be.
The client has deposited the rest of the money into my account from the contract on Christien.
I am sick to my stomach with worry regarding Christien. I wonder what they are doing to him, but I am trying my best not to think about it. I transfer the rest of the money into my offshore account and shutdown my laptop.
Suddenly nauseous, I lay down on the couch. After barely settling in, the doorbell rings. Opening the door after my usual checks, I am stunned to see Christien standing on the front steps.
Without a second thought, I fall against him.
His arms wrap around my back and waist and then I fall apart. He rubs circles on my back and whispers things in French softly in my ear, causing me to cry harder on his shoulder. When my crying starts to die down, he pulls back and looks at me.
After a hard, long look, he scolds me gently. “That was a very stupid and incredibly dangerous thing you did for me back there,
ma chatte petite
. What were you thinking?”
“It doesn’t matter. You’re safe now, so it worked right?” I look into his eyes, seeking forgiveness.
He groans, letting his face soften at my distress. “Promise me you will never do anything that insane for me again. They could have killed you. You have no idea how dangerous those vampires are.”
I can’t promise I won’t do it again so I say nothing.
“Well, I should go. They will be looking for me, if or when they recover. It will be safer for both of us if I leave now. I only wanted to say thank you again, for what you did for me. I know that was not an easy decision to make. You can trust me to keep your secret.”
He smiles. He leans down and kisses me thoroughly on the lips. After a few more passionate kisses, each one deeper and more urgent than the previous, he breaks the kiss. “
Ma
chatte
, either I leave or you will need to invite me in. We cannot continue this on the porch. It is not safe.”
He watches me imploringly, almost pleading for me to invite him inside my house.
Hesitating a moment, I ask an important question. “Are you here to drain me?”
“As tempting as that may be, my desire for you outweighs any advantages draining you will offer. I have told you before and I will say it to you again. I will not harm you. I am not a man who covets power. I am old enough to have gained enough power to protect myself.”
“Answer my question with a yes or no.” I demand nervously.
“No,
ma chatte petite
, I am not here to drain you dry. I am only here for you. May I come in?”
If I invite this vampire into my house, he will be able to enter it at anytime in the future without an invitation. Once that protection is gone, it is lost until I move. I am a private person. I have never invited anyone into my home, except my best friend Roman. Not even Tyler knows where I live. Therefore, for me to extend the only vampire in the world who knows what I am and has already tasted my blood, an invitation into my house is like me committing suicide. I would be a fool to invite him inside my house. I should not even be contemplating another answer besides no. I have risked my life for him already and I know nothing about this vampire. I have trusted him with my most guarded secret without any sacrifice on his part for me. My instincts crumble around him. All of the rules I have lived by my entire life has brought me here to this point. The man of my dreams stands right here in front of me, holding me in his arms, but he is also the boogeyman of my nightmares, a vampire.
“
Ma chatte petite
? Are you okay?” He rubs up and down my arms soothingly, chasing away the chills I am getting.
“Let’s go to your place instead, please?” I blurt out, hoping for a reprieve from his question. My body is shivering. Tears have stained my face and I have ruined my makeup, again.
He watches me curiously for a moment before responding to my request. “Where is your car?”
I let out the breath that I do not realize I am holding. “It’s in my garage. Meet me over there and I’ll get my keys.”
He nods then kisses me on my cheek and disappears around the side of my house. I rush back inside, snatch my keys, purse, lock up the house and meet him at the garage.
“I will drive.” He says reaching for my keys.
I hand him my keys as he opens the passenger door for me. I climb in and he shuts the door. Before I can reach for my seatbelt, he is climbing into the driver’s seat beside me.
“Whoa!” I exclaim, startled by his speed.
“Is something wrong,
ma chatte petite
?” He asks as he starts the car.
“No. I’m just not used to being around anyone faster than me.”
He smiles at me affectionately and then backs the car out onto the road.
I don’t bother asking where we are going, which is a first for me. I am too busy thinking about how rapidly my life is changing because of the vampire next to me. We ride in silence. I fix my makeup in the overhead mirror to pass the time. Outside my window, houses, trees, people and buildings zoom by, but I am unable to recall anything I am seeing in front of me. Coming to a neighborhood rich with large trees and huge houses, things begin to come back into focus as we pull up to a gate to one of the smaller estates.
Christien punches a code into the security box beside the driver side window and the gates before us open silently. He drives down the driveway and pulls up to the steps leading to the front door then stops. He exits the car and has my car door open before I can blink.
Christien greets him pleasantly as he walks past him, going straight into his house. As I move to follow, I notice I am unable to cross the threshold. I blink in surprise, remembering that I need an invitation to enter a person’s home and pause at the door frowning.
Christien sees my hesitation and smiles at me. “Is something wrong,
ma chatte petite
?” An amusing glint fills his eyes.
“I’m unable to enter and you know why.” I growl at his teasing.
“I was wondering if it worked for you the same way. That is interesting to know. Jessica, you may come in.”
The resistance immediately melts away and I step forward, towards him. “It’s good to know that I am amusing you.” I do not hide the hurt in my voice.
His eyes narrow and he walks towards me, pulling me into his arms. “I am sorry,
ma chatte petite
. I do not mean to hurt your feelings. It has been a long day. Let us go and relax a little.” He dismisses the old man and guides me towards the stairs.
Anger forgotten, I am astonished at the beauty of his home. The paintings along the stairway wall are large and look very old. Some of them look as if they are 16
th
century, but most of them look older.
Christien leads me into a very large room with vaulted ceilings and marble floors. The cream-colored silk draping covering the walls give the room a softer and more elegant feel. The beautiful crystal chandelier in the middle of the room provides a warm glow to the room. There are several large, cream, leather, sectional couches expertly placed throughout the room, maximizing a seated person’s view of the room from any position. A large fireplace angled in the corner of the room, complete with a cherry wood mantelpiece seems to be the focal point.
Christien and I sit on one of the couches near the fireplace. The cushions are so plush, it seems the couch reshapes itself to comfort and soothe my body. I look at the clock near the door and see it is almost 6:00 pm.
Too bad, it is too late for a nap
.
Christien puts an arm around my shoulder, pulling me close to him. I lean against his firm body and sigh in contentment. He rests his head on top of mine, while running his fingers through my hair. I snuggle closer, trying to wrap myself in his comfort.
Suddenly, the doors open and a group of ten, good-looking men and women enter the room. All of them are scantly dressed in underwear or skimpy lingerie.
I jump up and put my back up against the wall. A dagger from my boot is already in my hand, ready to strike.
“Relax
ma
chatte petite
. It is only a snack before dinner.” He says reassuringly. I watch Christien stroll towards the group now lined up in front of the fireplace.
They all smell human so I relax a little, easing the dagger back into my boot. A woman with short, strawberry blonde hair kneels in front of Christien. He watches me as she glides her hands up his thighs towards his waist. That was the last thing I could remember.
One minute I was standing there watching her touch Christien, the next moment I am standing over the red ruin of her body saturated in her blood with both of my daggers bloody from hilt to tip in my hands.
Christien is talking to me, but I cannot hear anything past the roaring in my head. I shake my head, trying to clear it enough to hear what Christien is saying.
“What?” I ask, hoping he repeats himself. Finally, sound returns dull enough that I can hear crying and hushes coming from a group of humans huddling in the corner. “What did you say?”
“I said I apologize for my behavior. I was merely curious in what your reaction would be. I had no idea you would react so… jealously.” He motions what was once a woman on the ground in front of me.
I look down at what is left of her and see only raw, lumpy flesh and blood. I drop my daggers. They fall to the marble floor with a loud clank. I look down at myself and notice I am covered head to toe in blood.
I did not just kill the woman. There is no way I would have this much blood on me if it was quick. I must have sliced her to bits and pieces, slashing at her with my daggers repeatedly until I reached muscle and bone.
I look back over at the clumps of flesh on the ground around her body and lose everything in my stomach right there. I continue to gag long after my stomach is empty. Christien is holding me and keeping my bloody hair from slapping against my face as I dry heave.
He picks me up and carries me through a door into a bathroom with the largest shower I have ever seen, capable of allowing at least four people to shower together simultaneously. He turns on the shower, testing the temperature then stands me up in front of him. He gently removes my ruined jersey dress and lets it fall to the shower stall floor. I step out of my boots while resting my arms on his shoulders.
Tears fall endlessly down my face as I picture the woman lying there dead in a pool of blood and remains. The hot water runs down my body, washing away the blood, causing the floor to turn into a sea of red, not the pink I normally see when I wash blood off my body. He undresses himself before removing my bra and panties. I just stand there and let the water try to wash away the shame and remorse I am feeling. He lathers a washcloth with a sweet smelling soap and washes my body thoroughly. Removing pieces of flesh and gore from my hair first, he lathers my hair several times with shampoo, making sure all traces of what happened in the other room are gone from my body. When he is finally satisfied that I am clean, he turns off the water and wraps a thick, warm terry cloth robe around me. He grabs a thick towel and dries my hair. My tears have finally stopped.