Authors: Leia Shaw
He gave her a weighted glare that irritated her. As if
she weren’t already doing everything he told her!
“Also,” he continued, “we will be traveling to Colorado.
Together.” Then he was inches from her face so fast she flinched. “And as I
said before, you do not leave my side!”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes, sir.”
She’d meant to be sarcastic but he smiled and said, “Now
you’re getting it.”
Rolling her eyes again she watched him walk to the window.
With graceful movements, he opened the curtains and stared into the night. It
wasn’t just his looks that made her breath hitch and her knees tremble, it was
his very presence. Powerful. Confident. He took over the room and everyone in
it with a quiet sort of strength. It sucked you in and held you captive as you
found yourself ready to do everything and anything he asked with no question or
hesitation. It was dangerous.
He
was dangerous.
Marcelo turned back around to face her, surprising her
with the depth in those chocolate brown eyes. Rich and deep, swirls of midnight
black threaded through the tawny brown. “How did Sage know the sorcerers were
interested in you? Did they try to hurt you?”
She shook her head. “Two of them came to my apartment.”
She had known they were up to no good straightaway. They had been too friendly.
No one dressed up like FBI agents but acting like preschool teachers should be
trusted. Jimmy had convinced them she wasn’t home though she’d stood just inside
the door, listening to every word. “They said Sage was in danger and needed my
help. I knew it was a lie. Sage would never send for me if it involved danger.
We’ve always protected each other. Plus, she can take care of herself.” Marcelo’s
brows shot up. “Why do you look so surprised?”
His lips curled up on one side. Whether it was in
amusement or disgust, she didn’t know. With Sage, it could go either way. “I
happen to have an interesting history with your sister.” Before she could
question him, he asked, “How’s your head?”
She lowered the icepack. “Cold.”
His lips twitched. “Leave the icepack. Let’s go get your
car.” He opened the door to the hallway.
“Right now?”
“Yes, right now. The faster I get you to Sage, the faster
I can get on with my life.”
Well, when you put it like that…
“Look, it’s obvious you don’t want to be here. Just take me to my boyfriend. He
can bring me to Colorado just as easily.” She shook her head roughly, then
muttered, “Not that I even believe Sage is th –”
“That will not be happening.”
She arched a brow. “Why? Because of the danger?” When he
nodded she insisted, “Jimmy can keep me safe.”
Marcelo let the door slam shut and took one intimidating
step towards her. “Really? Did Sage tell you about werewolves?”
She shook her head. She’d only heard about sorcerers and
witches – her sister was both. Sage had also told her to stay away from anyone
too good looking to be real, and anyone who gets furry on the new moon.
Vampires and werewolves. It hadn’t taken much for Erin to believe her. Ever
since Sage had begun blowing things up with a single thought and making
thunderstorms appear in sunny skies, Erin had begun to believe that anything
was possible.
Marcelo took another step closer, making an exaggerated
effort to loom over her. In a dark voice he explained, “Sorcerers are known to
hire werewolves to hunt their prey.”
Prey? She shuddered.
“Werewolves are just under seven feet tall with shoulders
wider than that doorframe.” He gestured with his eyes towards the door. “When
they turn to their crinos form, half wolf, half human, they get even bigger.
Their fingers turn into claws with nails five inches long and as pointy as daggers.
They grow upper and lower fangs and their jaws extend big enough to fit my
entire fist in their mouth. They are fast and unbelievably strong.” His gaze
roamed her body in a disturbing way. “Strong enough to snap you in half like a
twig. And vampires are no better. They are just as deadly, only worse because
they often look like ordinary people. You wouldn’t even know if you were talking
to one.” His eyes twinkled with amusement. “That’s who’s hunting you,
querida
. Still think your boyfriend can keep you
safe?”
Erin stared at him, careful not to show any fear. Sage
may have sent someone who wouldn’t hurt her but that didn’t mean Erin was
stupid enough to believe everything that came out of his mouth. And this guy
looked like trouble.
He looked deep into her eyes, seeming to search her very
soul. It was more unsettling than the visual of the werewolves he’d just given
her. Averting her gaze, she stepped back and dug into her pockets for her
phone. They were empty.
Where the hell –
“Looking for this?” he said, holding her phone in his
palm.
“You stole my phone?” Okay, the dictatorship is
officially annoying.
He shrugged. “I merely caught it as it fell from your
pocket while you were shamelessly dancing half naked on a table top.”
Lips pursed, she held back a string of profanities. “If
you think you can make me feel guilty about that, you’re wrong. Now give it
back!” She thrust her hand towards him, palm up.
“Not likely.” Was he holding back a grin? Amused by her
anger?
She lunged for the phone but he yanked it away at the
last second. With an irritated huff she gave up. Marcelo outweighed her by at
least one hundred pounds. She wasn’t about to fight him for it.
“You won’t allow me to at least tell my boyfriend I’m
okay?” she asked in her sweetest voice.
“Already did. Sent a text while you were sleeping. Now
get going.” He opened the door and held it with an arrogant smirk.
Just go with it,
she told
herself.
You’ll soon be rid of him and reunited with
Sage
.
Repressing a growl, she stomped through the door.
He was so silent behind her that she looked over her
shoulder to be sure he followed. When she saw his eyes glued to her ass, she
sighed.
Men!
“Eyes up, Lieutenant.”
***
Marcelo didn’t want to be staring at her ass but it was
inevitable with the way she walked, hips flaring perfectly from her tiny waist,
thin legs below an adorable backside. He wanted to squeeze it, pat it, massage
it, watch it bounce as he took her from behind. He wanted to grasp it in his
palms as she rode him from above.
He scrubbed a hand over his face, reining back the wild
images. Someone should smack him. He’d been long without a woman. Too long.
Outside he took the lead as they walked the four blocks
to the bar. The air was hot and sticky for June in northern New York. Marcelo
had spent several months in the area in 2004 hunting down a rogue demon that
had been wreaking havoc across the state. The demon had somehow managed to set
every New Yorker’s ring tone to “What’s New Pussy Cat?” by Tom Jones. The
suicide rate that year had been exceptionally high.
He hadn’t loved Albany in 2004 and he didn’t love it now.
But as he’d traveled most of the world in his eight hundred and forty three
years, there were worse places. Nebraska came to mind.
After several silent minutes he turned to check on his
protection detail. She was chewing on a fingernail and staring into the
darkness around them.
“Are you nervous?”
She shrugged. “A little.”
“Why?”
“Why?” she repeated. “Do I really have to spell it out?
Bad…
things
…are chasing me. I have no idea what’s
going on with my sister. I’m leaving everything normal behind me for who knows
how long. And I’m traveling across the country with a stranger.” She stopped
her escalating tirade to take a deep breath. “Speaking of,” she glared up at
him accusingly, “what are you?”
He cocked an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”
“Sage wouldn’t send a human to protect me from
supernaturals and you sure as hell aren’t a sorcerer.”
Marcelo snorted. “And what would you know about
sorcerers?” He shortened his stride so they were side by side.
“I know they are gentlemen. They are honorable and
noble.” She raked her gaze over his body. “You are none of those things.”
He held his arms out to the side in mock surprise. “I’ve
been a perfect gentleman. What have I done wrong?”
She put up a hand to count on her fingers. “You scared
the crap out of me when I first woke up. You broke down a door. You stole my
phone. You’ve done nothing but boss me around and –”
“All right,” he grumbled, running a hand over the back of
his neck. “You made your point. I’m not a sorcerer, as it turns out.”
“Which leads me back to my first question. What are you?”
“Guess.”
She nibbled her bottom lip. Why did he have the sudden
urge to take over with that lip? “Werewolf?”
He scoffed.
“Are you a witch like Sage?”
Another scoff.
“Well I don’t know! What else is there? A vampire?”
He had to give her an answer one way or another, but he
hadn’t been looking forward to this conversation. Staring down at the cracks in
the pavement he prayed to the gods she wouldn’t start hyperventilating again.
“Yes, I am vampire.”
“Great,” she grumbled. “That’s just great.”
“It is?”
“No!”
This woman was as confusing as they come.
“You’re going to drink my blood, aren’t you?” Before he
could answer she ground her teeth together and clenched her little fists. “I’m
gonna kill Sage for sending-”
“Will you be quiet?” he snapped. “I am not going to drink
your blood. I have ways of feeding that won’t involve you.”
She waited a moment before declaring, “I want a gun.”
His eyebrows shot up in disbelief. “For what?”
“Protection.”
“You have me. And trust me, I’m more effective than any
gun.”
“I want it for protection against you, clueless!”
Protection against me?
First, he was angry. After all he’d done she still thought he would hurt her?
And she planned to arm herself with a gun? Then a short bark of laughter
erupted from his chest. “
Querida,
a gun will not
kill me. It wouldn’t even hurt me. It’d be the equivalent of a bee sting.”
With an exasperated sigh, she said, “I know that. But how
am I supposed to protect myself if you attack me by accident? What if I get a
cut and you go all…vampire crazy?”
“Vampire crazy?”
“Yeah, like sharks in a feeding frenzy.”
It took all his restraint not to laugh out loud again.
Humans watch far too much television
.
“
Querida
, your imagination is out of control. I will
not drink from you, no matter how much you bleed. I give you my word.”
“That means jack-squat to me.”
“Jack who?”
“I’m saying I don’t trust your word.”
He sighed realizing she wasn’t going to let this go. When
he spied the necklace dangling on her chest he said, “Your necklace, is it
silver?”
She fingered it. “Yes.”
“Give it to me.” He put out a hand.
“Why?”
His voice softened. “So mistrustful.” She nibbled on her
nail again. “Do you want to know how you can protect yourself from a vampire?”
With a nod she unhooked the necklace – an oval locket
hanging from a platinum chain – and held it out to him. Muscles tensed in
preparation for the pain. He grasped the chain with his fingers then draped the
locket on his arm to demonstrate the effect silver had on vampires. He watched
her face to distract him from the blistering pain as the layers of skin began
to sizzle and peel away. She gasped then yanked the necklace away.
“Are you okay?” Taking his hand in her tiny one, she
pulled it close to inspect the wounds. Her hands were soft like velvet against
his course skin. It was almost worth the searing pain just to feel her touch.
When his arm healed before her eyes she gave him a stern
look. “Why did you do that?” Her concern for him was so heart-warming he had
the sudden urge to pull her into his arms and kiss the fear right out of her.
“To show you that you already have a weapon against me.
In case I go ‘vampire crazy’. Do you feel better now?”
She shrugged.
“Do you still have need for a gun?” He couldn’t stop his
lip from twitching in amusement.
She hesitated. “You promise to keep your fangs to
yourself?”
As much as he’d love to do exactly the opposite of that,
he nodded and put a hand to his heart. “I promise,
querida
.”
***
Erin knew any sane person would have been as comfortable
traveling with a vampire as with a self-confessed serial killer.
And she was probably the biggest moron in the
universe for placing her safety in the hands of a six and a half foot tall
vampire, but what other choice did she have? Besides, Marcelo didn’t seem like
he’d be taking no for an answer.
When they reached her car, an old beat up silver Hyundai
Accent, she went to open the driver’s side door. She barely felt him behind her
when a big palm landed on the handle. She looked up into the dark, predatory
face staring down at her.
“I will be driving,” he said, his eyes daring her to
challenge him.
“It’s my car.”
“You are a human. I would not put my life in your
incapable hands.”
She placed a hand on her hip. “Aren’t you immortal?”
He grinned, his white teeth gleaming in the darkness. His
lips may have been smiling but his eyes were warning. “I would not put
your
life in your incapable hands. I’m in charge of
your safety now, which means I am in charge of
you
.
I’ve never lost someone in my care before and I have no intention of starting
now.” He thrust his open hand towards her. “Now hand me the keys.”
Her chest tightened and she had to force air into her
lungs. Not because of a panic attack but for an entirely different reason. Anger
flooded her. She couldn’t hold back a response to his blatant disrespect, not
even if she had to tolerate him temporarily. They needed to get a few things
straight.