Bones ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. “Is that what this whole bleedin’ thing was about? Your mum telling you I’d turn you into a vampire? Bloody hell, Kitten, when did I ever force you to do anything you didn’t want to do? You should have trusted me. I trusted you. I never saw it coming when you ran away without a word.”
I had to look away at that.
He began to pace in short, angry strides. “Did you truly believe I couldn’t handle whatever it was your government tried to do?” he went on. “Blokes like that have chased me most of my undead life, yet I’m still here while they’re not. But no, you had to be a hero and take the fall. Do I still love you? You don’t deserve to know, but I will tell you this.” Suddenly he was so close that the breath from his words fell onto my lips. “I still want you, Kitten. When I look at you… all I want to do is rip your clothes off and hear you scream while I’m inside you.”
“I’m engaged,” I blurted out to cover my skyrocketing pulse. I couldn’t stop looking at the chiseled planes of his cheekbones or how close his mouth was to mine. That mouth twisted at my reply.
“Yeah, I know. Threw me good one, it did. Is that why you didn’t come to Chicago back in April? Because of that pet vet?”
The derisive way he spoke about Noah stiffened my spine. “You mean when you kidnapped and murdered Danny Milton? You swore to me that you would never touch Danny, but I don’t suppose he’s off in Mexico sipping margaritas, is he?”
Bones straightened. “You made me swear not to kill, cripple, maim, dismember, blind, torture, bleed, or otherwise inflict any injury on Danny Milton. Or stand by while someone else did. You should save your sorrow for someone worthy. Danny gave you up like a bad habit straightaway. You know that brainwashing rot doesn’t hold up under a Master vampire’s eyes. At least the bugger was finally useful. He told me where you lived. Virginia. I had you narrowed down to three states, and he saved me some time. That’s why I told Rodney to kill him fast and painless—and I didn’t stay to watch.”
“You bastard,” I managed.
He shrugged. “Takes one to know one, luv.”
I lowered my head and rubbed it, thinking of Dave. How needlessly he had died. How absolutely it was my fault, first by my rescuing Danny instead of killing Lazarus, then by my shouting at them not to fire. I might as well have ripped Dave’s throat open myself.
Bones stared at me. “You’re actually grieving over that wanker? That sod would have gotten you killed one day, make no mistake about it. I couldn’t let him live. Your boss might have done a bang-up job hiding you away, but I found him in three days.”
“It’s not grief over him.” My voice was thick with self-recrimination. “I lost a friend that day. And for the record, I didn’t know about Chicago until a month ago. Don had given me some time off to deal with my guilt, so he sent someone else to Chicago when Danny went missing. He only told me about it when Ian got away.” I gave a dry, humorless laugh and looked at him. “When I heard, I demanded to see all the evidence from the hospital. I found the watch and knew it was from you. I’ll say this; I didn’t worry about Danny after that.”
Bones held my gaze, and I shivered even though the outside air was warm. There was a sense of unreality to standing here and talking to him. Some part of me thought I’d wake up and this would all be a dream.
“Would you have come?” he asked softly.
That was a dangerous question, but he deserved a little honesty, even if I couldn’t tell him most of what I was feeling.
“The state of mind I was in, chewed up with grief and looking for any source of comfort, yes. I would have come to you. It would have been a mistake, of course, because nothing about our situation has changed and everything would have gone to shit, but yes. After I got engaged to Noah, no. I made a commitment, Bones. That means something, despite…”
“Despite the fact that you don’t love him?” he finished brutally.
“That’s not true! Anyhow, it doesn’t matter. You and I are over.” The words tasted vile, but I said them. The next ones positively choked me, but they had to be uttered too. “I…” I looked away. “I don’t love you anymore.”
“There you are!” Noah called from across the patio. “Darling, people were wondering where you were. What are you doing out here?”
The lies came quickly. “My ankle was bothering me from my slip down the aisle. I was just stretching it out, didn’t want to make a fuss.”
“We haven’t met,” Bones said, and held out a hand to Noah. I glared at him, remembering how he’d crippled Danny’s hand this same way. “My name is Cris. Cris Pin.”
Cris. Pin. Why hadn’t I clearly looked at the invitations when I helped mail them?
“Noah Rose,” my fiancé replied, shaking Bones’s hand. I breathed a sigh of relief when he let go and no bones were broken. “This is my wife-to-be, Cristine, in case you haven’t met.”
“We’ve met before,” Bones said with a knowing look my way. “In fact, she was just telling me the history behind her last name.”
I groaned inwardly. Noah frowned. “Russell? I didn’t know there was a history behind your last name, Cristine. What is it?”
Well, what did I expect? I had practically named myself after Bones when I switched identities. Did I think he wouldn’t mention it?
“Um, er… Cris’s mother’s maiden name was also Russell, that’s all. You said people were looking for me? Let’s get back to the party. My ankle feels better.”
I walked away so fast that Noah had to trot to keep up. Even still, Bones’s voice chased after me, too low for Noah to hear.
“Kitten, when you said you didn’t love me anymore… you were lying.”
***
Dinner was a living hell. Felicity kept up a stream of suggestive chatter with Bones that had me digging my nails into my palms until I drew blood. Worse, her hand kept finding its way onto his thigh whenever she leaned in to whisper to him. And he did nothing to stop her.
Unable to watch anymore, I turned and speared my dinner roll viciously. From the corner of my eye, I saw Bones glance at me and chuckle.
“I have to go powder my nose. I’ll be right back,” Felicity cooed, brushing her breast against his shoulder when she bent to retrieve her handbag.
He winked at her when she walked away, the bastard. I twisted my knife into my helpless dinner roll and imagined it was his heart.
“Trying to warn me about something?” he asked with a knowing glance at my roll.
“Just wishful thinking,” I shot back evilly.
Bones took his own dinner roll and split the center, buttering it. Then, lowering his head, he ran his tongue along the center until he’d licked away every drop of moisture. The air left my lungs in a rush as I watched.
“Wishful thinking,” he murmured, giving me a heated look.
I stood so hastily my chair upended, and my face burned with a full crimson blush that had nothing to do with causing a distraction among the wedding guests again.
“Um, a toast to the bride and groom,” I improvised. “Denise, Randy, may you always remember the commitment you made to each other today. Marriage is the pledge you make that come hell or high water, you will stand together and not be knocked over by what life throws at you. Today and always, I wish you the strength, courage, and tenacity to overcome any obstacles that threaten your relationship. Once again, congratulations.”
A smattering of applause sounded, with more than a few sideways glances. Okay, so maybe I sounded like a drill sergeant, but I was trying to keep my head above water here.
Randy came over to give me a kiss, as did Denise, and I sat back down feeling slightly better. Then Randy stood and raised his glass.
“I’d like to thank Cristine for strongly reminding everyone of the seriousness of marriage. Since she’s usually armed, I’m not going to disagree with her.”
His statement garnered genuine laughter and applause. Most of the guests knew that I worked for the government i
n some capacity, and they knew it wasn’t secretarial duties. Poor schmucks, if they had any real idea.
“But let me deviate a bit,” Randy went on. “Denise and I have known each other for just six weeks, a very short period of time, many would say, and they would be correct. We have different backgrounds, different upbringings, and different religious beliefs. None of that matters. The first night I met her, I knew she was the one for me. The night before I asked her to marry me, I had a talk with my friend, Cris.”
Randy gestured to my right and I tensed, afraid to listen further.
“Most of you don’t know Cris, but we met six months ago, and I asked him if he thought I was rushing things by proposing to a woman I’d only dated for two weeks. I want to share with all of you what Cris said, because I think it bears repeating.”
Randy moved to stand behind Bones, and my knuckles whitened on the edge of the table. Something told me I didn’t want to hear what was coming.
“He said, ‘Randy, mate, don’t bother about how long you’ve known this girl if you love her. Time has no dominion over love. Love is the one thing that transcends time.’”
There were sentimental oohs and ahhs from the guests. I didn’t dare look to my right, because tears coursed a slow steady trail down my cheeks. How right Bones was. Love did transcend time, because my heart was breaking as much now as it had the day I left him.
“I would like to thank new friends and old, family and extended family, for sharing the happiest day of my life with the woman I love,” Randy finished.
Heartfelt applause broke out when Randy and Denise kissed.
When they broke apart, her eyes widened when she saw me over Randy’s shoulder. “Cristine! You’re crying. I’ve never seen you cry before.”
I smiled and lied through a throat almost closed off from emotion. “I’m just so happy for you, that’s all.”
***
Grimly I vowed to make it through the entire reception. But I sat closer to Randy than Denise did in my vain attempt to put as much distance between Bones and myself as possible.
Felicity, bitch that she was, took one look at the gin I kept guzzling and faked a shocked gasp. “Cristine, can’t you keep a lid on your drinking?” she hissed behind Bones’s back. “This is my cousin’s wedding, for heaven’s sake.”
Her prim tone made me squeeze my drink so hard that it shattered. Gin spilled on the front of my dress, and my palm started to bleed.
“Motherfucker!” I shouted.
Every head turned. Bones smothered a laugh by faking a sudden cough.
“Are you okay?” Randy looked worriedly at me and wrapped his napkin around my hand. He glanced at Bones, who gave him an innocent shrug.
“I’m all right, Randy,” I yelped, mortified.
Denise poked her head around her new husband. “Do you want us to switch the seats?” she murmured quietly.
They thought I was rattled because Bones was a vampire. That was the least of my concerns. His nearness was shredding my control, and the reception wasn’t over yet.
“Darling!” Noah came to the table and took the napkin off my hand. “Is it bad?”
“I’m fine,” I snapped harshly. His hurt face made me cringe with guilt. “Just embarrassed,” I covered. “First I trip, now I break glasses and scream obscenities. I’ll be okay. Go back to your seat. Let’s not make it worse.”
Noah looked mollified and he went back to his table. I gathered the shards of glass and began to pile them on the bloody napkin. “I’m going to the ladies’ room to wash this off and throw away the glass,” I told Denise.
“I’ll go with you,” she offered.
“No.” I gave a glance to my right at Bones and then back to her again. Her eyes widened, and she got the picture. Part of it, anyway.
“Cris,” she addressed him. “Would you mind going with Cristine and seeing if they have any bandages? Randy says…” She paused and then continued wickedly. “Randy says you have a great deal of experience with bleeding wounds.”
“Are you a doctor?” Felicity cooed.
Bones stood and gave Denise an appreciative grin at her choice of words. “Back in England I was many things,” he answered Felicity evasively.
“Keep Noah busy,” I whispered to Denise, and she nodded. God knew she would do a better job than my mother had.
I made a stop at the bar first. The bartender gave a wide-eyed look at my red-stained napkin.
“Gin. No glass, just the bottle,” I said bluntly.
“Um, miss, maybe you should…”
“Give the lady the bottle, mate,” Bones interjected, his eyes flashing green.
Without delay, an unopened gin was thrust in my still-bleeding hand. I twisted the top off, threw away my broken glass and the bloody napkin, and took a long swallow. Then I led Bones into the far corner of the parking lot where there were the fewest cars. He waited patiently while I drank again. I was smearing blood all over the outside of the bottle, but I didn’t care.
“Better?” he asked when I came up for air. His lips twitched with suppressed amusement.
“Not hardly,” I countered. “Look, I don’t know how long my mother will keep quiet, but in case you hadn’t noticed, she hates you. She’ll call in the troops and try to have you skewered over an open flame with a silver stick. You have to leave.”
“No.”
“Dammit, Bones!” My temper exploded. Why did he have to be so gorgeous, why did he have to stand so close, and why did I love him so much still? “I work for the government killing vampires, ghouls, and even humans when necessary. They own my ass for another thirteen years if I don’t die first, and that’s a big if. You cannot be here. I told you I don’t love you anymore. I might have some—some residual feelings of attraction for you, but it’s only because I have eyes and you’re breathtaking. Now please, before this turns ugly, will you just leave?”
He tilted his head. A slight breeze ruffled the curls in his hair, and in his tuxedo, he was more than breathtaking. He was devastating. “You don’t love me? Then why didn’t you kill Ian? You had a knife in his heart. All you had to do was twist. You said it yourself, your job is to kill vampires, yet you let him go. You might as well have sent me a bloomin’ valentine.”
“Sentimentality.” I grasped at straws. “For old times’ sake.”
“Right.” Bones let that go. “Well, luv, you should have killed him, because now he’s looking for you. You made quite an impression. While I would never force you to do anything against your will, Ian wants to find you to do just that.”
“What are you talking about?”
Bones smiled, but it wasn’t pleasant. “He’s enamored, of course. Ian’s a collector of rare things, and there’s no one rarer than you, my beautiful half-breed. You’re in danger. He doesn’t know I found you, but he’ll find you himself soon enough.”
I mulled over that while I took another drink. “Doesn’t matter. I beat Ian before and I can do it again.”
“Not the way he’ll play it.” There was something in his voice that made me look sharply at him. “Ian won’t just come at you one night and try to take you on in a fair fight. He’ll grab everyone you love first and strike a deal, his terms. Believe me, you won’t like them. Now, your one advantage is me. Because of your clever little description of our relationship, Ian believes you hate me and vice versa. Nice touch, that. Especially the money part. Still want a check?”
“I’ll write you one if you leave,” I muttered.
Bones ignored that and moved closer, holding out his hand. “Mind if I have a drop from your bottle?”
I handed over the gin, careful not to let my fingers graze his. Instead of drinking from it, he stared into my eyes as he licked my blood off the smooth glass surface. His tongue curved around every contour of the bottle, and heat flared through me as I watched, mesmerized. When there was not a red drop left on it, he passed it back into my suddenly shaking hand.
“Residual attraction?” His voice dee
pened. “Oh, Kitten, you’re only deceiving yourself.”
Think about Noah! my brain screamed. Think about anything but what that tongue felt like on your skin!
“I appreciate the warning about Ian.” I tried to sound firm, but my voice came out breathy. “But I will handle this myself. If need be, I’ll relocate with Noah and my mother. Noah loves me. He’ll go where I go.”
He gave a harsh, brief laugh and his eyes glowed green. Anger or passion, I wasn’t sure. “You hold Noah up like a shield, but he’s your weakest link. Let’s talk about your fiancé, since you’re so quick to mention him every time you feel your willpower weakening. Tell me, how did he take the news that you’re half-vampire? Supportive, was he? Or what about how you risk your life to slaughter the undead? Does he give you a kiss and tell you to stake one for him? Your mum has bigger balls than Noah does.”
“His balls are fine!” God, did I just say that?
He moved in for the kill. “Let’s talk about that as well. Little wonder you’re hot as a firecracker around me. The best shag you’ve had all these years has undoubtedly been yourself.” Then he leaned forward until his mouth was mere inches from my ear. “You know, luv, I’ve been wondering something ever since I found out you were engaged. Which is more frustrating for you? Having to hide your eyes every time Noah’s inside you so he doesn’t see their glow… or not needing to shut them at all?”
Bastard. I swung the bottle at his head, and he caught it in a blur of speed. As soon as I felt his fingers near mine, I dropped it, and it shattered at our feet.
Bones smiled with cruel satisfaction and stepped back. “That’s what I thought.”
“Bite me!” I snarled venomously and oh, how stupidly.
His eyes gleamed. “I’ve been dreaming of that for years. I’ll hold you to your offer.”
“Figure of speech, Bones,” I said as I backed away toward the safety of the clubhouse, although nowhere would be safe now. His expression told me that.