Cody (4 page)

M
IRANDA TRIED TO REACH
for her tank top which rode her waist, but Cody’s hands covered hers, flattening them against the wall as he pressed his body against hers. “Don’t move,” he breathed.

“Are you kidding me?” she whispered. “What if they see us?”

“What if they do?” His lips grazed her ear as the other couple groped each other. Their laughter drifted above the muted thud of the popular Katy Perry song blasting inside the club. “Would it be so bad to have an audience?”

Yes
. That’s what she wanted to say. She’d spent far too many years doing the right thing and saying the right thing to stop now. She didn’t do things like this. No back alleys. No audience.

At the same time, that was the point entirely.

She didn’t do things like
this
, with a man like this, which was why she’d never had an orgasm during the actual act.

That was all about to change.

“Don’t think about them,” he murmured. “Close your eyes and think about me.” He pressed a soft kiss to her temple and added, “About my cock thick and hot inside of you.”

One hand slid up her abdomen to her breast and he caught her nipple, and she did just that.

She closed her eyes and her senses zeroed in on him. The way he pinched the ripe tip of her nipple and played her until need sizzled up and down her spine. A gasp parted her lips.

“You’d better watch it or they’ll hear you. Then they’ll notice us for sure.” He slid his left arm around her, his fingers skimming her rib cage as he caught her other nipple. Now both hands plucked and rolled the sensitive tips until her knees went weak.

He squeezed at the same moment that he thrust into her and a cry curled up her throat. She caught it before it slipped past her lips and clamped her mouth shut as he started to move.

In and out. Back and forth.

She quickly forgot all about the couple, their voices fading in the clamor of her own desire.

She arched against Cody, drawing him deeper, holding him longer when he tried to pull away.

The pressure between her legs stretched tighter and then
poppppp!
Sensation drenched her and she exploded around him. Her head fell back into the curve of his neck, her lips parted and she couldn’t help herself then. She cried out.

He caught the sound with his mouth as he moved faster, plunging harder, deeper, stronger. Convulsions gripped her. She milked him, her slick folds clenching around his throbbing penis until a growl sizzled across her nerve endings.

Wait a second. A
growl?

The realization pushed through the lusty fog and zapped her back to the present. The cool brick wall and the muted music. Her ears perked, but she heard only the sound of her own breathing.

Duh.

She’d obviously deprived herself for so long that when she’d finally gone for the gusto—that is, a forbidden cowboy—the rush of sensation had been like a cattle prod to an electrical box. Her brain was fried.

He buried himself one last time and leaned into her. His body flattened hers against the brick wall. The rough slab rasped her overly sensitive nipples and desire speared her again. Every nerve in her body sizzled. She closed her eyes, relishing the aftershocks of her release which swept through her and filled up the emptiness inside.

Thank you
.

The words whispered through her head and she caught them just before they spilled past her lips. The last thing she wanted was for him to think that she’d been desperate.

Why not?

Desperate was good. Desperate meant she wasn’t half as experienced as her mother and sisters. Desperate meant that Miranda Rivers was every bit the good girl she’d been pretending to be over the years.

Not that she’d ever had a doubt. She was nothing like her mother or her sisters. She wasn’t a slave to her lust and she certainly didn’t share their addiction to cowboys.

This was a one-time thing only.

She ignored the regret that whispered through her,
clamped her eyes shut and simply enjoyed the sensation still rippling through her body.

“Thank
you
,” he murmured against her ear after a long, heart-pounding moment, his words echoing her thoughts.

He pulled away and the sudden breeze against her bare skin sent a shiver through her. Or maybe it was the fact that he’d practically read her mind.

“They’re gone.” His voice whispered through her head, distracting her from the crazy notion.

“That’s a—”
relief
died on her lips as she turned to find the alley empty.

Really empty. Not only had the groping couple disappeared, but her tall, dark and luscious cowboy had already cut and run, too.

And she hadn’t heard a thing.

No rustle of denim as he’d fastened his pants. No slap of boots against the pavement. No lame excuse to get away without asking for her phone number.

Nothing. As if he’d vanished into thin air.

Or back into the building.

The rear exit was the closest doorway. Chances were he’d made a hasty retreat back inside for another drink. Another woman.

So?

It wasn’t as if she expected anything more from him than the past few moments.

He was a cowboy, for heaven’s sake. Definitely the
last
man she’d pin her expectations on.

This wasn’t about him. It was about her. Her moment of indulgence. A chance to stop fantasizing and experience
the real thing with a real man before she pledged herself to the right man.

She drew a breath, ignored the disappointment that whispered through her and gathered up her purse. It was over. Done with. Mission accomplished. Time to go home, forget her stupid fantasies and get on with her life.

She blinked against the sudden tears that burned the backs of her eyes as she headed for the back parking lot and her car.

H
E
’
D ERUPTED LIKE A
fucking volcano.

The truth followed Cody as he inched past a couple feeling each other up in the back hallway of the club and pushed through the doorway leading to the men’s room.

His nostrils flared and his gut ached. The scent of warm cherries and sweet sex clung to him. His dick still throbbed and the craziest sense of satisfaction bubbled through him.

An orgasm. He’d had an actual
orgasm
.

He flipped on the faucet and shoved his hands beneath the cold water. A few punches of the soap dispenser and he lathered up, desperate to erase the scent, the feel.

Her.

Because he didn’t want
her
. She could be any woman. Every woman.

So why had he come this time and not the countless times before?

The question struck and he scrubbed harder. Deprivation, he reminded himself. Forty-eight sexless hours. That was enough to make any vampire a little wacky. He hit the dispenser again and lathered up some more. The
less she lingered on his skin, the easier it would be to forget. Her gasp of surprise. Her heartfelt gratitude. Her delicious body which had fit him so perfectly, as if she’d been made for him and only him. His unexpected release.

It had been a helluva long time since he’d reacted that way with any woman.

Try never
.

At least not since he’d turned vampire.

The truth weighed down on him as he rinsed his hands.

It was a fluke. The right time. Right place.

The right woman.

He ignored the last thought and ducked his head to splash some of the cool liquid onto his face. He caught his dripping reflection in the mirror. Bright purple rimmed the edges of his pupils. His hands tightened on the sink and the color shimmered hotter, brighter.

As satisfied as he felt, he was still hungry. He needed another woman. Now.

Raking a hand through his hair, he grabbed a paper towel, wiped his hands and then headed back out to the bar.

Maybe then he could get the sound of her breathing out of his head. The disappointment that followed her to the car. The fear—

His thoughts careened to a halt as a surge of emotion went through him. In a split second, he saw Miranda standing in the back parking lot. He smelled her terror and felt her surprise as her eyes fixed on the scene unfolding near her.

And for the first time since he’d opened his eyes as a vampire, Cody Braddock was scared shitless.

“P
LEASE
,”
CAME THE CHOKED
gurgle.

Miranda’s gaze pushed through the darkness to the two shadows wedged between a pair of parked cars. Shock and disbelief whirled through her. A reaction that had nothing to do with the woman who sprawled on the ground, blood gushing from her throat, and everything to do with the man leaning over her, lapping at the crimson heat.

The man’s head lifted and his furious red gaze collided with Miranda’s. His lips pulled back. Blood drip-dropped from a pair of lethal looking fangs. A growl bubbled past his lips and sizzled through the air.

Miranda blinked, but he was still there.

Still a…

No
.

Denial rushed through her, followed by a quick burst of raw terror. While there had to be an explanation—no way was this guy a real bloodsucker—he was still dangerous. Murderous.

He took a step toward her and she stumbled away from him. She turned and urged her feet to move.

In a heartbeat, he caught her by the hair and yanked her backward. Her legs went out from under her and she landed flat on her back between the two cars. Her head slammed against the pavement. Pain exploded in her skull and blurred her vision. Not enough, however, to obliterate the man’s vicious red glare as he loomed over her.

“Well, lookee here. A two-for-one special.” He smiled, revealing his blood-stained teeth which matched
the crimson of his eyes. “I’ll definitely be shopping here again.”

A nightmare. The thought struck and she grasped at it, holding tight. None of this was real. Not the choked gurgles of the woman nearby. Or the vicious vampire leaning over her.

None of it.

But then he hissed, his fangs grew sharper and longer, and Miranda braced herself for a very real death.

C
ODY REACHED THE YOUNG MALE
vamp just as he was about to sink his fangs into Miranda’s neck.

“She’s mine,” he growled. He caught the vampire’s shoulder and the man’s head snapped up. Blood trickled from the prick points on Miranda’s neck, but it didn’t gush. The vampire hadn’t bit deep enough to hit the artery and claim her as his own.

Yet.

The notion bothered him a helluva lot more than it should have considering he wasn’t the least bit interested in keeping Miranda for himself. Even if she had been one of the best lays he’d had in a long,
long
time.

Cody shifted his attention to the woman sprawled on the pavement nearby. Her chest rose and fell and tears streamed down her cheeks. The bite marks at her neck pumped blood out onto the pavement. She wasn’t dead. Yet. “Haven’t you had enough?” he asked the young vampire.

A smile twisted his lips. “There’s no such thing.”

Damn straight. Cody had just had incredible sex, yet his insides still tightened and clenched. His nostrils flared with the decadent scent of blood. His dick
throbbed with the memory of Miranda surrounding him, making him come.

He braced himself and eyed the younger vampire who held her in front of him like a shield. “How old are you?”

“Twenty-four.”

“Not your age. How long have you been a vampire?”

The red glint in his eyes cooled just a little and impatience flashed. “Eight months. What does that have to do with anything?”

“The fact that you don’t know shows just how disadvantaged you are right now. I’ve got years on you and a century more experience.” His gaze dropped to Miranda. Her eyes were wide open, pure fear swimming in their depths. The urge to protect her surged through him and shook him to the core. “You’ve had your fun tonight. Back off.”

“Or else?”

“Do you really have to ask?” Cody flashed his own fangs and the vampire hissed.

Shit.

The last thing he wanted was to get into a pissing contest with a wet-behind-the-ears fledgling. They could be unpredictable, which made the situation far more dangerous than usual.

The vamp tightened his hold on Miranda and Cody stepped forward, his fangs bared, his fury
this close
to simmering over.

“Fine.” The vampire thrust her forward. “She’s yours.”

Cody caught Miranda and tucked her safely behind him.

Meanwhile, the young vamp turned his attention back to his first victim. “I’ve got my own.”

“No,” Miranda breathed, but her protest did little to stop the hungry vampire.

It was Cody’s hand that caught him by the shoulder and brought him up short. “You won’t make it another eight months if you keep being this stupid. All a vampire killer has to do is follow your trail of dead bodies and that’ll be the end of you.” Cody focused on the girl who lay sprawled in a fast-growing pool of her own blood. He could hear the faint beat of her heart and the slow draw of breath. She wasn’t dead, but she was close. “You took too much blood. She’ll live, but only if she gets medical attention right away.” He spared the vampire a glance. “Take her to the hospital.”

“Are you freakin’ kidding me?”

Cody tightened his hold on the vampire.
“Take her to the hospital,”
he bit out. “Or you won’t have to wait for the vampire killers to find you. I’ll end your miserable existence myself.”

“You wouldn’t do that.” The young vamp eyed him defiantly, but Cody didn’t miss the flash of fear in the younger man’s eyes. A few seconds ticked by and he seemed to deflate. “What the hell am I supposed to tell them?”

“You take her to the E.R., tell the front desk that you found her like this on the side of the road and then disappear. Don’t give any names or locations. Just drop her off and leave.”

The vamp nodded and scooped up the girl.

Cody watched the blur of shadows disappear before he turned toward Miranda. Her entire body shook and
her lips trembled as she stared at the far end of the paved lot where the vamp had disappeared with the dying woman. A strange wave of possessiveness went through him and he stiffened.

“Miranda?”

At the sound of her name, her head snapped up and her gaze met his. Relief flashed before she seemed to remember what had just transpired and exactly what she’d seen.

The blood.

The fangs.

The truth.

“
You
.” She stumbled backward, ramming her knee against a nearby car as she turned.

And then she bolted for her life.

GO, GO, GO, GO, GO, GO, GO!

The command echoed in Miranda’s head as she dove behind the wheel, slammed and locked her car door and shoved the key in the ignition.

Panic zipped up and down her spine and her heart pounded so hard she thought it was going to burst out of her chest.

No, she told herself.
No, no, no, no, no
.

Vampires didn’t exist.

But cold-blooded, psychotic killers did and that’s who she’d stumbled upon. Maybe the guy
had
been drinking the woman’s blood. But he was probably just some sick crazy. Or a cult member. Or a poor schmuck obsessed with the undead. That didn’t make him an eight-month-old vampire.

It was the shock. She’d freaked at the sight of all that blood and so she’d imagined things. Like the growling and the fangs and the bloodred eyes.

No way had she really seen a
vampire
, much less two.

Cody’s image rushed at her, his eyes a hot, bright red, his fangs bared. She shook her head.
No
.

It had been a trick of the light. A hallucination brought on by the trauma of facing death. Her own and the poor girl whose blood had spilled out onto the concrete.

Christ, she had to
do
something. Call someone.

Her brain raced as she revved the engine. She had her cell phone in her purse which she’d left in the glove compartment. Once she was a safe distance away, she could pull over and call 911. She shoved the car into reverse. Slamming her foot down, she stomped on the gas. The car jumped and swerved backward, tires screaming as loud as the denial in her head.

This couldn’t be happening.

Her hands tingled and she glanced down at the sticky red that caked her own fingers. She could feel the trickle of blood from her neck where the man had nearly ripped her throat open before Cody had stopped him.

Cody had saved her.

Or so she’d thought. But then she’d seen the truth. The rage in his eyes. The vicious curl to his lips. The fangs.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no…

Fear clawed at her, threatening to choke her. She swallowed. Her hands tightened on the steering wheel and she pressed on the gas, maneuvering down the row and barely avoiding the tail end of a Lexus that hadn’t pulled fully into its spot.

She hung a left at the far end of the row and found herself driving down another row. Her gaze bounced around, looking for a way out—

“
Easy
.”

The deep, masculine voice whispered through her head and her gaze snapped to the rearview mirror. She saw Cody standing in the middle of the lane several feet behind the car. His eyes gleamed a bright, brilliant blue.

Which made absolutely no sense because he had silver eyes.
Silver
.

A
vampire
.

The notion struck just as a loud whoosh echoed in her head. Her head snapped back around and just like that, he was standing on the pavement in front of her.

She slammed on the brakes. The car swerved around him. The right fender snagged an electric pole. The car lurched. The back-end slid around. Her forehead hit the steering wheel and pain exploded in her skull. A split second later, the airbag smacked her in the face, but not before she heard the driver’s door open and saw the large, strong hands that reached for her.

Her head lolled to the side and she forced her eyes open despite the blinding pain. She caught a glimpse of dark hair and gleaming silver eyes.

Silver, she reminded herself. Not the blue she’d seen a few seconds ago.
Silver
.

And then the pressure in her skull overwhelmed her and she slipped into oblivion.