Vampires' Consort: Magical Menages, Book 2 (3 page)

“And the alternative?” Curiosity glittered in her eyes—and something more, an awareness of him on a sexual level. He could practically taste the pheromones emanating from her warm body. “What exactly
is
your offer, Mr. Kaspan? I don’t think I can stand waiting to find out any longer.”

“You’re direct. I appreciate that. But first why don’t you tell me a little more about yourself?”

“I think you already know the details. A man like you would research before dealing with a stranger.” Her almond eyes narrowed as she studied him. “My question is, why did you choose
me
for whatever this is?”

He’d carefully considered how to introduce his outlandish proposition, but in the end, there was no way to sugarcoat the truth. “Your bloodline, Ms. Massri. You come from an ancient lineage, although your family is no longer aware of it. You’re descended from Ra himself. You are special.”

Her eyes widened and she laughed. “That’s your line? Does it often work for you? So this is some bizarre, rich-guy game—lure a woman with a mysterious invitation then convince her she’s ‘special’ so she’ll have sex with you. Hey, you could’ve picked up any chick at a bar without half as much trouble or expense.”

“It’s not a line, I assure you, and I’m not interested in having sex with you.” Well, that wasn’t strictly true. Visions of her body naked, her face twisted in the throes of passion as she writhed beneath him, had definitely floated through his mind since the moment she’d stalked into the room like a lean, long-legged cat.

“What then? No more bullshit, Mr. Kaspan. What is it you want with me?”

“All right. Cards on the table, then. I need a very singular woman to bear my child. I know you’re at loose ends in your life right now and your financial situation is not good. I am willing to pay an extravagant amount for you to perform this service.”

She didn’t laugh this time. Her lips parted, but no sound came out.

He dropped another coal on the fire. “It sounds preposterous, but you will be well-compensated, I assure you. Afterward, you may return to your life with no encumbrance and enough money to support you in whatever endeavor you choose. You would never need to work again, if that’s what you decided.”

She looked out the window at the rolling surf for a moment before returning her gaze to him. “I don’t even know what to say to that, Mr. Kaspan. What makes you think I would be so shallow and heartless as to have a baby for money? Clearly you know nothing about me. Besides, I thought you said your proposition didn’t include having sex.”

Valarian drew a breath before he chucked the last coal into the flames burning in her eyes. “Not with me. Unfortunately, I am sterile. You would have intercourse with my surrogate, Jacob.”

Both of their gazes turned toward Jacob, who stood near the bookcase apparently trying to blend in with it. His cheeks were a fiery red. On his neck the mark of his thralldom appeared silver against his flushed skin. His brows drew together in a deep frown. “I told you this was a terrible idea.”

Chapter Three

Akila felt like she’d tumbled down the rabbit hole and everything was skewed in crazy, funhouse angles. She’d imagined a request for sex, maybe even kinky sex. That wouldn’t have surprised her in the least. In fact, she’d come prepared for that and, once she got her first look at Kaspan, had been rather excited by the prospect. But this was beyond belief.

Naturally she combated her anxiety with attitude. “If you’re so desperate to have a child, why don’t you adopt? There’s a world full of orphans you could play Daddy Warbucks to.”

“Yes, but they would not be mine.”

“They would be if you thought of them that way.” She didn’t understand his motivation. He’d just admitted he couldn’t procreate, so this wasn’t a situation in which a man was determined to have an heir from his own bloodline. “You could learn to love any little one you treated as your own.”

“That is true, but you don’t understand the entire situation.”

“Then why don’t you explain it to me?”

He gestured toward several armchairs that faced the ocean view. “Please, Ms. Massri, won’t you sit down? I’ve been a terrible host, launching straight into business without attending to the amenities. Perhaps you’d care for a drink.”

“Water would be fine.” She wasn’t at all certain she wanted to sit down with Kaspan and his flunky. She should reject the offer and march straight out of the room, but curiosity overwhelmed common sense. She had to hear the rest of the story.

She crossed to the chair and sank into buttery soft, amber-colored leather. All of the furniture, the carpet and window treatments in the room were in subdued shades ranging from gold to taupe. The bright, tropical day outside the window was a turquoise-and-white contrast to the quiet color scheme. Akila realized the windows were tinted, diminishing the harsh light so it didn’t flood the room.

Jacob abruptly appeared by her side, offering bottled water and startling her from her examination of the room. As she took the bottle from his hand, she looked up into his face. Their eyes met and she knew he was thinking of exactly what she was. It was impossible not to think of sex—of them having sex—after the scenario Kaspan had posed.

Her mysterious host dropped onto a gold upholstered chair across from hers, long legs sprawled before him, one ankle crossed casually over the other. He oozed confidence and masculinity that perversely attracted her even as she was repelled by his arrogant suggestion.

“I know this is a lot to take in at once. Perhaps I could’ve broken it to you more gently, but I decided it was best to bring you here and present my proposal directly.”

“And you actually expected me to accept?” She unscrewed the cap on her water, noting that it was sealed so likely not drugged. At the edge of her consciousness lurked horror movie scenarios in which a woman was captured and imprisoned by a madman. She didn’t get the crazy vibe from Kaspan, despite his insane scheme, but neither did she think he was normal.

“I didn’t expect, but hoped you’d consider it,” he said. “This plan has not been undertaken lightly and there are important reasons behind it you couldn’t imagine.”

“Try me.”

He sighed. “You’re going to make me tell you everything all at once. I’d hoped to show you around first, offer you a meal and some small talk and work our way up to this.” He gazed at her with dark, luminous eyes that sent a shiver of mingled fear and lust through her. Her attraction to the man was disconcerting to say the least, but it was as if there was a magnetic field around him and she was a piece of metal drawn inexorably to him.

“Very well. It is extremely important that a child be born from my bloodline. A prophecy has indicated that such a child will have an important role to play in the course of the world.”

Her already-racing heart thumped even harder. Prophecies, now. This was getting even weirder. “How would your, uh, friend having a child fulfill such a prediction?”

“Jacob is more than my friend. He carries my blood in him.”

“Your brother? Cousin? Nephew?” Akila raised an eyebrow and stared back, refusing to let his powerful gaze quell her. “You two don’t appear to be related.”

“Not by birth, only by blood. Here’s the last part, and you’re really not going to like it.”

“Oh, I don’t like much of anything I’ve heard so far. I doubt it could get any worse.” But she braced herself, literally, planting her feet on the floor and gripping the bottle so hard, water sloshed from the top.

“Jacob carries my blood because he is my thrall.” Valarian continued to stare into her eyes and Akila wondered if he was able to hypnotize by the strength of his gaze alone. She shifted in her chair, fighting the desire to bolt from the room, or cross the floor to kneel at his feet. What kind of mojo was he working?

“I am a vampire.” The way he pronounced the words made them not sound ridiculous at all.

Akila waited for a punch line that didn’t come. Instead, his stare challenged her to dare disbelieve him.

“Vampirism is not as it’s depicted in folklore,” he continued. “We are not the dead brought back to life. The disease, for lack of a better word, is a contagion of the blood cells spread by an exchange of blood. There are levels of infection. Jacob, for example, is not a full-blooded vampire, but he is bonded to me.”

“Oh.” It was all she could come up with when he paused, waiting for her response.

He leaned forward, and Akila automatically shrank back into the chair.

“You won’t believe unless you see, so if you will permit me, I will demonstrate.” Kaspan opened his mouth wide, a creepy display of all his teeth, which appeared perfectly normal to Akila. And then, right before her eyes, a pair of fangs descended from his gums right above the incisors—long, curved, pointed fangs that looked sharp enough to tear through metal, let alone vulnerable human flesh.

Akila jumped up from the chair, dropping the bottle and backpedaling until she ran into Jacob’s solid body behind her.

He grasped her arms lightly. “It’s all right. He won’t harm you. His thirst for blood is well under control.”

“G-good to know,” she stammered, somehow comforted by the hands holding her rather than feeling imprisoned by them.

“Everything he says is true, including the prophecy. This is not a trick or illusion. Vampires are real.”

Kaspan retracted his fearsome fangs and closed his mouth, as casually as a man putting away his wallet. “Again, I’m sorry to assault you with all this information at once, but I didn’t want to keep you here under false pretences or use my powers to get you to accede to my will. I’m a businessman and I’d hoped we could conduct this as a transaction. But I see now Jacob was right. The subject is too delicate to approach that way.”

Oh right, the baby-making scheme. Seeing a man turn into a vampire in front of her very eyes had kind of knocked that part right out of her head.

She dragged her gaze from him to look up at Jacob standing behind her as she stepped away from him. “What does it mean exactly to be a thrall? Do you drink blood too? Are you his slave?”

“He’d like to think so.” Jacob cast a look at the man he called master and Akila felt the cord pulled taut between them as if it was a physical thing. “I have longevity, although nothing like a vampire’s. I haven’t preternatural strength, but I’m healthier and stronger than the average man. I can go out into the world during the daylight hours and accomplish the tasks my master cannot.”

That last bit had a ring of smugness to it, revealing again Jacob’s conflicted feelings about his role. A vampire’s servant and stud; what an unusual occupation. It was on the tip of her tongue to say so, but for once she held back the snark.

“This thing about my bloodline… If it’s even true, how did you learn about it? How did you find me?” His claim she was a descendent of Ra seemed almost more unbelievable than the fact he was a vampire, or that vampires existed. “Did you do a locator spell or something?”

Kaspan’s full-throated chuckle rumbled through the room. “No. You’d be surprised at the information you can track down with unlimited resources and a few trips to Egypt. I have no magical powers. I can’t fly or take the shape of a bat.”

“Good. I’m not fond of bats.” She was suddenly breathless, her head spinning as if she might faint. The spacious room closed in on her. She was on information overload and wanted to run away. “I—I can’t deal with this right now.”

Kaspan rose fluidly from his seat. Suddenly he was right in front of her and she hadn’t even seen him move. He took her hand and looked into her eyes, pulling her strings with his mesmerizing gaze.

“It’s only natural you need some time to think about everything. But don’t be afraid.” The last was a command she couldn’t refuse. He smiled, and Akila felt her reservations melting away like the last bit of snow from a spring-warmed rooftop. With his fangs retracted he was really very charming.

A deliciously warm, soothing feeling suffused her, softening her stiffened muscles, calming her racing heart. Anxiety still galloped around the edge of her consciousness, but it couldn’t enter this corral of peacefulness. It was all right. Everything was good. Valarian meant her no harm. She had a compulsion to lean into him, let his arms wrap around her and hold her, let his mouth cover hers, searching and demanding before drifting to her neck and…

Akila blinked, breaking the insidious spell. Jesus! He
was
dangerous. “I’ve got to go outside and get some fresh air.”

“I’ll talk with you again over dinner,” the vampire said. “I’m afraid you must at least spend the night. If by morning you wish to cut your visit short, you’ll be flown back home. I don’t want you to feel like a prisoner, Ms. Massri.”

“I think we’re past formalities now. Call me Akila.”

“And you must call me Valarian.” He clasped her hand and squeezed lightly. An electric charge shot up her arm. “Please consider my request, but in the meantime try to relax and enjoy your stay here.”

Oh yeah, like that would be easy to do after the bomb he’d dropped. The world contained vampires and one of them wanted her to be his baby-mama. What could be more conducive to a relaxing weekend getaway?

“That went well,” Jacob said dryly after Akila had fled from the room.

“As well as could be expected under the circumstances.” Valarian’s tone was abrupt. “Go after her. Show her around the island and get to know her a little.”

“She wants to be left alone.”

“Being alone will make her think of more questions. She needs someone to give her answers, and this will be a good opportunity for you to get closer to her.”

Jacob bit back his immediate negative response. It wasn’t that he disagreed with his master. He understood the need to fulfill the prophecy and was aware of his critical part in it. But recently, he chafed under the yoke of serfdom. After decades of showing his appreciation for what Valarian had done for him, he was scraping the bottom of the bowl of gratitude.

“Yes, sir.” He turned on his heel without waiting for more instruction and hurried after Akila.

He caught up with her at the bottom of the stairs. “I’ll show you around, if that’s all right.”