Why shouldn’t I? It’s not like you’re cheating on me to go learn how to kiss. Also, could you please do that thing with your left hand again?
His hand, which had slipped down into the bodice of my dress, was currently engaged in tormenting my right breast, his thumb gently stroking my nipple while his fingertips grazed the underside of my breast.
“You must stay here,” he said, his mouth hot on my jaw and neck. “I’ll know you’re safe if you’re here.”
“But I can help you. Oh, grape juice, not the spot behind my ear. That’s ... it’s like kryptonite. My knees go weak when you nibble there.”
He nibbled, his arms strong around me when my legs gave way. He turned so that my back was up against the wall of the elevator, the cold of the metal on my back a stark contrast to the hot man pressing against me.
I won’t be able to do my job if I’m worried about your safety, he said.
I don’t know why you’re so convinced that someone is going to want to harm me, but I appreciate it. I also dispute it. Let me help you, Merrick. Let me help find my dad’s cousin so he can be locked away where he can’t hurt anyone. Let me do something good. Let me into your life.
You are in my life, he said with a growl, and instantly, I was filled with hunger, a need for him, for us to be joined together, for the life to flow between us.
You say that like it’s a problem. Bite me!
His teeth pierced the flesh of my neck, that fraction of a second’s pain fading instantly away to a heat that flowed down my neck and settled deep in my belly.
I squirmed against him, both hands now desperate to touch all of him. His hands left my breasts, and slid down my hips to my thighs, where they found their way under my dress.
“You don’t—we’re not—you can’t—oh, merciful joy of all beings, yes! You won’t hurt your back doing this?”
I writhed against him as his clever, clever fingers managed to divest me of my underwear. His mouth moved around to my shoulder, where he bit a second time, pushing me almost to an orgasm just by the pleasure that he was feeling from the act.
Luckily, he managed to get his fly undone, because I was a mindless ball of erogenous putty in his hands.
Wrap your legs around me, he instructed, lifting me up a few inches.
I’ve never done this standing up, I managed to babble into his mind, locking my feet together around his back. This is so ... so wicked! Can I bite you?
His eyes flashed a pale icy blue at the moment he slid into my body. Bite me where?
I don’t care. I want to do the blood exchange, Merrick. I want to be your Beloved properly. I want all the steps.
He kissed me, his hips working hard against me, the thrusts making the elevator shimmy a little. My tongue twined around his, one hunger diminished while the other raged unchecked. I dug my fingers into his shoulder muscles, my back arching when he increased his pace until I slipped over the edge. My legs tightened around him just as my intimate muscles did the same, which had him groaning with pure pleasure as he gave back the life he’d taken from me.
I held him tight as little aftershocks of pleasure swept over me, my brain having a hard time coming to grips with the sensations that he poured into it, acting like an echo of my own experience.
“That’s amazing that you can do that standing up,” I said in between gasps for air. I was pleased to note that he was breathing just as hard, feeling that if I was going to be totally wiped out by our lovemaking, it was only fair that he was, as well. “I’m not sure that I could hold up another person like that. I feel like my legs are made of gelatin as is.”
He held on to my hips while I unlocked my legs and let them slide down until I was standing again. My inner thighs felt especially quivery.
“It’s not my preferred venue for seduction, but it did the job,” was all he said.
I stood with my hands still on his shoulders, looking deep into those eyes, now a dark sapphire blue. “Let me be your Beloved, Merrick. Let me redeem your soul from wherever it is—C. J. Dante was never very clear about that in his books—and make you whole again. You know as well as I do that what we have isn’t something you can set aside. We were meant to be together. I feel that to the tips of my toes.”
He said nothing, but an interesting array of emotions passed over his face, from male smugness to regret, longing, and finally anger.
“Merrick, don’t do this,” I warned, feeling his intentions if he said nothing. “Don’t close me out. I can help.”
“At the risk of your own life?” He shook his head, and put me out of the elevator. “I might be many things, Tempest, but I am not a man who willingly risks the life of innocents. And you, sweet goddess, are very innocent. The monster Victor would destroy you simply for the pleasure of corrupting your soul.”
“If he wanted to do that, he could have done so earlier,” I protested.
“He didn’t know who you really were,” he answered, and punched a button on the elevator.
“Who am I?” I asked him, confused about what he was saying. “His cousin, you mean? Or your Beloved?”
He didn’t answer, the doors closing with a near-silent whoosh, but I felt the echo of thought in his head.
You are the hope that I cannot have.
Chapter Nine
The texts started almost immediately. I just knew Merrick wouldn’t be amused by them.
To: Merrick
You may think you can run away after having extremely fabulous sex in an elevator—something I hadn’t even thought of adding to my bucket list, but which I’m putting on now just so I can cross it off—but you can’t deny the connection we have.
From: Merrick
Fifteen minutes. I’m surprised you lasted that long before using my phone number. What part of “don’t contact me unless it’s an emergency” was unclear?
To: Merrick
This *is* an emergency. I need to know where you are going.
From: Merrick
Why?
To: Merrick
Because I’m your freakin’ Beloved, that’s why. Well, almost. I would be if you had let me bite you.
From: Merrick
I’m going to Nice. That’s all you need to know.
To: Merrick
Oooh. Nice is on the places-to-visit list that Ellis and I made up before I left. What are you doing there?
From: Merrick
Following leads and trying to find a thief taker.
To: Merrick
A what, now?
From: Merrick
It’s the Otherworld equivalent to bounty hunter.
To: Merrick
Wow. You guys have that? Cool. Wait, are you driving while texting? You know that’s super dangerous, right?
To: Merrick
Also, don’t think I didn’t notice you continue to refuse to address the connection issue. Re: us. Stuffing me in your fabulous villa on the gorgeous Italian Riviera isn’t a solution.
To: Merrick
Your pool is seriously awesome, though. Kelso and I had a dip in it. Do you have the number of your pool cleaner handy? Kelso’s shedding a bit.
The response to the last was something in Italian.
To: Merrick
I ran che palle through the translator, and I agree. What balls indeed. Hadn’t figured you were the braggart type, though.
From: Merrick
Stop texting me, woman!
Fine. We can do it this way instead. Hey, what’s the distance limit of mind-talking?
A sigh echoed in my head. I have no idea.
Merrick, we really do need to talk about this.
No, we don’t.
I understand that you feel it necessary to protect me—
This conversation is over. If you think driving while texting is dangerous, try driving while grinding your teeth.
Hrmph.
The balance of the day consisted of me taking naps, receiving the grocery delivery that Merrick had obviously arranged for Kels
o and me, floating in the pool while trying to mind-talk to Merrick (he didn’t answer, so either he was ignoring me or he was out of range of my mental transmitter), and exploring the house.
“Let’s go see Merrick’s room,” I told Kelso that evening, after we’d watched a gorgeous sunset over the water. We had explored the grounds, and now turned our attention to the house. The room Merrick had given to me was done in shades of delft blue and white, while the other guest room was papered in pretty pale olive wallpaper.
“I’m interested to see what his room says about him. I bet it’s all monochrome modern furniture with straight lines and no curves, and possibly the heads of the bad guys he’s captured mounted on the
walls.” I opened the door to the master suite, flipped on the light, and promptly sucked in almost all the air available.
The furniture was a dark wood, mahogany most likely, while the soft furnishings were done in a simple black-and-white stripe theme. Very minimal, very clean, and utterly emotionless, as I expected. Only the walls belied the true passionate nature that Merrick clearly hid from others: they were covered in trompe l’oeil paintings depicting the glorious view of the Riviera coast directly outside the windows.
“This is ... hoppin’ hippos, this is just beautiful,” I said aloud, slowly turning in a half circle to take in the artwork. “I wonder if it exactly matches the view.”
I opened a pair of French doors and stepped out onto a small balcony, then leaned back inside to look at the walls. The landscape perfectly matched the paintings. They depicted a gorgeous sunny day, complete with the busy little port town down below, boats dotting the water, and seabirds wheeling overhead.
“What a clever idea for a man who can’t go out into the sun. And it’s just more proof that there’s a whole lot more depth to Merrick than he likes people to know.”
Kelso jumped on the bed, and curled up at the foot of it.
I pursed my lips at the sight of the bed, thought about my blue and white room, and two minutes later, having locked the doors and turned out the lights, snuggled down into Merrick’s bed, the faint scent of him rising from the pillow.
Good night, wherever you are, I sent out into the Merrick-sphere.
There was no answer.
Three days later, I was zipping along in a red convertible, on a road leading from Genoa toward the French border, the wind whipping my hair around my face. “You’re probably tired what with the jet lag and all, huh? We can find a hotel once we get to Nice.”
“Nice?” Ellis looked around us as if he’d just noticed we’d left Genoa proper. “I thought we were going to stay in Genoa for a few days, then go to Florence?”
“Change of plans. We’re going to Nice.”
“Why?”
“I need to find someone who’s supposed to be there. At least he was as of last night’s text, when he admitted that he had trouble finding someone he was looking for, but that the person was supposed to roll into town today.” I gave Ellis a sympathetic look. “You can take a nap while I’m trying to find my friend, if you like.”
“Darling, I slept on the plane almost the whole way, thanks to my friend Brady’s handy way with look-alike pharmaceuticals.” Ellis stretched and leaned back against the car seat. “This sun is heavenly, though, just heavenly. It was raining when I left home. And isn’t this road pretty! When did you learn to drive? I wouldn’t imagine your overprotective papa would have allowed it.”
“I had a lesson after Papa died,” I told him, whipping around a corner, enjoying the speed and power of the car. Merrick certainly had excellent taste in vehicles, although I doubted if he got to use a convertible much.
“A lesson? Was that enough to get your driver’s license?”
“Nope. I was supposed to do the whole course to get ready for the driver’s test, but I got distracted by this trip.”
The sound of the wind rushing past us was the only noise for the count of fifteen. “Pull over!”
“What?” I risked a glance at him. “Why?”
“Do as I say!”
Figuring he might suddenly be carsick, I pulled out onto one of the many overlooks that allowed people to take shots of the glittering blue water. “Are you feeling sick? I have some water in a cooler in the back with Kelso.”
Ellis got out of the car and marched around to the driver’s side, pointing at the seat he’d just vacated. “Move.”
“Why?” I repeated, frowning.
“Because you don’t have a license.”
“So? I drove all the way to Genoa without a problem. I picked you up at the airport, and that traffic was brutal. I’m driving peachy keen, so I don’t see why you’re making such a big fuss.”
“Move!” he said louder, his lips narrowed in obstinacy.
I sighed, and moved over to the other seat. “You’re awfully bossy now that you’re on the other side of the world.”
“Self-preservation is not bossiness. Since I see you’re puffing up to tell me that your driving wasn’t going to kill us, I’ll ask you instead how your visit went to your auntie’s friends. Did you meet all the vampires in Europe?”
“Just two of them, actually,” I said, looking over my shoulder to check on Kelso. I’d managed to find a pet store in Genoa that sold not only dog seat belts, but also canine goggles intended for rich people’s dogs, all of which meant that my white furry friend was now strapped securely into the backseat, his blue goggles giving him a particularly dashing appearance as he happily snuffled the air while we zoomed along on the coast road.
“You’re kidding!” Ellis turned a startled face to me, the sun glinting off his dark glasses. “Darling, this is me, your oldest friend. You don’t have anything to prove to me. I’ve seen your coochie glued to a bath mat—there’s nothing to be ashamed of just because you’ve found out that the books you love aren’t based on reality.”
“But they are! No, really, don’t give me that pitying look—I met two vampires. Look, see where Merrick bit me last?” I lifted the hair from my neck, showing him that spot near my ear that made me weak in the knees when Merrick nuzzled it.
Ellis glanced quickly. “There’s nothing there but neck, adorable one. Who’s Merrick when he’s at home?”
“He’s one of the vampires. He’s ... for lack of a better word, he’s my boyfriend.”
Ellis gawked at me, although he managed to keep his eyes on the road while he did so. I made a mental note to practice that, since my driving lesson hadn’t covered the art of safety-conscious gawking. “You didn’t!”
“I sure did,” I said with no little amount of smugness.
“You hooked up already? Did you meet him on the plane or something?”
“Nope. Saw him for the first time ...” I counted back. “About a week ago. But he was unconscious that time. I saw him again soon after, and that’s when I realized that he was a vampire, and I was his Beloved, and just as soon as he’s willing to admit that, he’ll fall in love with me, and we’ll live happily ever after.”
“There’s nowhere for me to stop,” he answered. “Do me a favor and feel your forehead. If you are feverish, you may want to lie down in the back with your furry friend. You didn’t tell me how he came to join our party, but that can wait until we find out what recreational drugs you’ve imbibed.”
“None, and I don’t have a fever, nor am I insane, which I know will be the next thing you suggest. Merrick is a vampire, a bona fide vampire, and he’s mine, although he doesn’t quite want to admit that yet.”
The look Ellis slid my way spoke volumes. “Sweetness, far be it from me to suggest that you’re having some sort of PTSD thing going on after your time in the bizarro cult, but do you know if there is a mental health facility in Nice?”
I gave him a succinct version of the events of the last five days, leaving out the intimate details.
By the time we hit the French border, Ellis was fully briefed. “Lordisa, girl! Your life has suddenly gone all Hollywood. We should write this down
and sell it to HBO. If only it was real! The cosplay alone for the vampire culture—but no, let’s not think of that until we sell the rights to your life story.”
“Well, I think it’s been an interesting few days, but obviously, I’m biased. Oh, good, that sign says Nice isn’t too far. We’ll be there by lunchtime.”
He cast a shrewd look my way. “Is your supposed fangy boy toy the one we’re going to meet?”
“Not so much meet as find,” I said, wrinkling my nose a little. “And there’s nothing supposed about him, as you’ll see. But yes, that’s the idea. I think you’ll like him. He’s a bit ... intense ... when you first meet him, but I think all the vamps are that way. C. J. Dante almost had me trembling—he was so ... rawr!”
“Rawr?”
“Yeah. Scary as heckbeans. I could totally see him enslaving people just like it was nothing, except I think he’s probably too nice for that. And Allie, his wife, wouldn’t let him. She’s very nice, although she has mismatched eyes. Merrick is scary, too, but in a different way. He’s more like the feeling you get when you turn into a dark alley in the middle of the night, and it looks empty, but you just know something is lurking down at the end.”
“Hoo. Sounds fascinating.”
“Did I mention he’s taken?” I asked. “As in, mine?”
“Subtle,” he drawled, flashing a smile.
“Just reminding you.”
“So what are you going to do about your father’s bad cousin? And just what is this organization he runs?”
“I don’t know, exactly. We’re not even sure he is Victor.” I worried my lower lip for a few minutes while I turned my mind to that subject. “I gather they are targeting the Dark Ones, and doing something horrible to them like killing them off. Kind of modern-day vampire hunters, only the vampires are the good guys, and this Revelation group is definitely the opposite. But why they’re doing it other than they don’t like vamps, I don’t know. I also don’t know how I’m going to help Merrick find Cousin Carlo. Merrick says he’s going to find a supernatural bounty hunter to look for him, but I feel like I should be able to do more than a stranger can. I mean, he’s Papa’s cousin.”