Fanged Fury (The Adventures of Sydney Sedrick Book 3) (14 page)

I didn’t want to throw myself a pity party, but that’s how the night was going. I might even stop for another bottle of wine on my way home.

“Oh, I think we’re both aware of your current struggles, Sydney.” The slow way he spoke my name in his deep masculine voice sent a shiver down my spine with excitement. “You have been warring within yourself when men are around. Yet you don’t know why.” He smiled like the predator he was.

“How do you know that? You’re the one making me feel this way, aren’t you? Oh my sweet heavens, I knew it.” It didn’t make sense until that moment. The time of his arrival, his assignment to being my bodyguard, not being able to control my frenzied sexual reaction to men—it could all be connected, to him.

“Sydney, calm down.” Grabbing a fistful of my hair, Daire brought my face inches from his.

The instant his flesh connected to mine, I did what he told me. Calm filled me. The heightening anxiety receded into nothing. I knew what he was doing was not natural, but I relaxed against him as we sat back on the couch.

Taking a deep breath, I let the last bit of tension leave my body.

“You are the Selected with powers the vampires and werewolves want for themselves. It’s natural you are on the defensive, to distrust their motives, to suspect them of hiding secrets from you. You should. You would be a fool not to.” He released his hold on my neck but clasped his cool hand over mine.

The warmth from the wine buzz stayed with me as I contemplated his words. “So, you’re saying I can’t trust anyone, including my own bodyguard.” It wasn’t a question.

“I’m saying you have to know the boundaries of every relationship you have with the Others, because everyone has their own goals, including me.” He placed that devilishly sexy grin back on his face.

My toes curled inside the black, knee-high suede boots I tended to wear too often.

“Are you going to let me know what your goals are, or just keep me in the dark like everyone else?” I asked with a bit of malice.

“My goal is to keep you safe, for now. That’s all you need to know.” He stood from the couch then bent over to collect our glasses and the empty wine bottle.

When Daire had the glasses neatly packed back into his black bag, he swung the bag over his shoulder. “Sydney, you live in a hostile world. You’ve been chosen to be right in the middle of it all. Use your powers for good. Watch your step with both the vampires and the wolves. If you remember those two things, you’ll do fine.”

He grabbed my hands to bring me up against his firm body.

My breath quickened with his nearness. My head swam from the intoxicating scent of him combined with the two full glasses of wine I’d consumed.

“What is wrong with me?” I asked, not expecting an answer.

Daire placed his palm on the side of my face. “I don’t know, but it seems you’ve been doused with an erotic disposition.”

“Who could do such a thing? I know how I’m feeling isn’t normal. Someone did something to me, but I’m not sure that you’re not the guilty culprit.”

Laughing, he shook his head. “I haven’t had a hand in your situation, but I have to say I quite enjoyed the dream we shared. You have quite the imagination. We could make it come to reality if you’d like.” I pushed against him but he held me firmly in place. “Don’t. I can’t help the attraction between us any more than you can. I can assure you it has nothing to do with the curse or spell causing your body to react to men so strongly. Keep that in mind the next time you want to kick me out of your store.”

I lowered my head to give him a stern look over the bridge of my nose. “You said it yourself. I can’t trust you, or anyone else for that matter.”

When I pushed against him again he didn’t let go. Instead, he pressed the length of his erection against the lower part of my abdomen. My body clenched with need.

“Selected, I want you just as bad as you want me. I haven’t been affected by some outside source as you have.” His lips pressed against me as he ground our midsections together. His breath was warm, almost hot, as he invaded my mouth. Our tongues danced together erotically. He sucked on my tongue. Visions of him sucking on lower parts of my body sprang into mind causing me to groan with excruciating sexual frustration.

Daire finally let go so I could put space between us.

He strode to the front door, the bag still slung over his shoulder. “I’ll see you soon, Selected, whether it be here, your house, your bed, or in your dreams. I’ll never be far.” He lowered his eyelids to half-cover his red eyes, making his face appear even more seductive.

“Come back if you figure out what was done to me so we can fix this, otherwise don’t bother. I can’t live like a wanton much longer.” Then I mumbled more to myself but knowing he could still hear me with his vampire hearing, I added, “I’m likely to do something I’ll regret forever.”

He nodded. I was grateful he was not taking advantage of my situation. From how I felt at that moment, I was likely to let any man have their way with me. To my relief, he chose to stop before we went too far. For that I was thankful.

“Sydney, I’m here to help keep you safe, even if that means from yourself. We’ll figure it out. I’ll be in touch if I find anything.”

After Daire left, I blew out a sigh. My long bangs hanging over my forehead billowed out in front of my face before resettling over my eyes. I pushed them behind my ears as I headed back to sit behind the register. I still needed to tally up the day’s sales. It was almost closing time. I just wanted to curl up in bed, maybe do some reading from Grandma Maria’s journal then fall into an uninterrupted sleep.

While punching the numbers into the calculator, images of the day replayed in my mind. I was marked by a wolf who wasn’t Blake. Blake still insisted we were life-mates. Then there was Daire. The half-vampire, half-werewolf was right. A deep sexual tension coiled between us that I wasn’t sure was due to the ‘erotic disposition’ someone placed upon me. Besides the attraction, I had to admit I felt oddly at ease around him. He calmed me with his touch. I knew that came from his demon abilities. Blake calmed me, but his touch soothed me out of love and friendship. Daire’s was unnatural, but just as effective.

What was I going to do?

I thought I could be falling in love with Blake.

At least I thought I was.

Then in walks Daire, complicating my life, making my head swim with confusion. Not to mention Matt marking me with his wolf essence. Could Blake live with me having such a connection with another wolf from a different pack?

Now I didn’t know what I wanted.

Chapter 10

My cell phone rang and I glanced at the neon blue screen. Brianna.

“Hello, little sister, what’s up?” I tapped the pen I had being chewing on while tallying the last of the sales from the day before. I know, disgusting habit.

Brianna’s squeaky voice came over the line. “I just wanted to remind you I’m coming up this weekend. For some reason, Michael’s uncle is making him stay in Kenosha. So, since we were both going to come up anyway, I figured I might as well come by myself now and see what everyone’s up to.”

I heard the loneliness in her voice and felt sad for her. “Yeah, okay, um, I have to go to a meeting for the store again after work, but we could hang out after if you don’t mind it being late?”

A heavy sigh filled the line. “Okay, I guess I’ll take what I can get.”

My sister sounded near tears. I couldn’t wait until she knew the truth about Michael, and me. Once everything was out in the open we’d be able to speak freely of what was happening. We wouldn’t have to slink around anymore behind her back, because that’s what I felt we were doing.

“Brie, don’t be too upset. You know Michael wouldn’t leave you had he been given a choice.” The door chimes sounded, signaling the arrival of a customer.

“I know, Syd. It’s just that Michael’s family seems so private all the time, like they don’t want to let me in or want to get to know me. How can a girl beat that if they don’t even want to try?”

She had a valid point, but things would change once the pack accepted her as trustworthy.

“I’ll see you tonight. I’ve got a live one here.” I laughed into the phone. She didn’t know how true my statement was as I watched a human customer, who wanted to make real purchases with real money. I realized my exaggerated reaction to a bit of normalcy was not a sign of being emotionally healthy, but, like my sister, I’d take what I could get.

Standing in front of the mirror, I assessed my reflection. The black, knee-length cocktail dress was a good fit. My black suede, high-heeled boots were a fabulous match. After making sure my makeup was streak-free, I headed out the door to drive over to Kieran’s for the mandatory vampire gathering I’d been summoned to.

Upon parking my car, I opened the door. A man’s hand whipped in front of my face before I could get out. I looked up to see who owned the hand. Daire stood inside of the small area between me and the car door in a black suit and tie, looking as dashing and tasty as ever. I let him take my hand as he guided me out of the car. He tucked my hand under his elbow. With his other hand he covered my fingers while we approached the grand entrance of Kieran’s mansion overlooking Lake Michigan.

The wide drive was full of vampires vying for Kieran’s favor. I was relieved I wasn’t among the masses on a mission to prove worthy to gain the coven leader’s approval.

The click of my heels on the paved drive echoed through the night.

Daire patted my hand in an odd show of reassurance. “My dear, you’re looking fresh and lovely tonight.” He smiled, nodding to the mansion in front of us. “Are you ready to be surrounded by those who you can’t trust, those you have to watch their every move?” He winked.

I laughed. “Daire, just because I confided to you my fears of being the Selected doesn’t mean I’m not watching you, too.”

His grin widened. Leaning his mouth so close to my ear I felt his breath on the sensitive shell, he said, “You learn fast. I told you, Sydney, if you stick with me you’ll do all right. Hell, you may even realize you find me irresistible and ache for my sexual prowess, once we figure out who did what to you.”

We ascended the steps to the house. Daire held the door for me. The sensation of the hand he placed close to my backside when he entered behind me burned with an intimate promise. It took everything I had to focus on keeping my stare forward, pretending not to notice how his touch was sending sensual shocks to my core. I had it bad for the half-breed vampire; I wanted him as much as I wanted Blake.

“We’ll see what happens, you can bet on that. I almost feel pity for you. You see, I’m not sure I’ll have such reactions to you once I’m fixed.” We continued to stroll through cliques of vampires being served by humans, both by glass and the offering of their necks.

Daire kept my hand tucked in his arm while he used the other hand to rub his thumb along my fingers. I didn’t pull away but he made it difficult to concentrate on anything beyond the sensations he was inducing.

Seeing humans give their blood to vampires bothered me less than when I was first introduced to the coven. Kieran’s coven made a glorious show in displaying themselves as the predators they were. I suspected they wanted to instill fear in me. They’d failed, but not because I wasn’t intimidated by the threat of them ripping my throat out at any given moment. Kieran had made an example out of an errant vampire who’d dared insult me. The vampire lived, but only barely.

Daire stepped in front of me but kept my hand in his. I didn’t mind having him for an escort. The coven members gave him a wide enough birth. Despite leaving us alone, they sized us up under lowered gazes. That was fine, as long as they kept their distance. Daire’s statements about the Others hit home emphasizing that I was utterly alone amongst them, despite being in the mansion with their numbers topping two hundred.

The main dining hall had once again been turned into a large dancing area. The entertainment for the evening was provided by a ten-piece orchestra playing classical music. Beautiful people occupied the dance floor, gracefully gliding over the perfectly polished marble floor.

Daire turned to face me and lifted my hand. I giggled like a schoolgirl as he firmly insisted on us joining in with the others for the dance. He twirled me around with the ease only a vampire’s strength could give him. We enjoyed each other’s company while we swayed to the music despite the others’ coming and going.

The music stopped abruptly. We turned to the wide entrance of the hall just in time to see Kieran’s grand arrival. He wore a well-tailored suit, not unlike the ones he required his Knights to wear.

Kieran opened his arms wide to all in the room. “Welcome, my coven. Tonight, we are here to celebrate the event of togetherness, as only we know how. Enjoy.” He queued for the musicians to resume playing their instruments.

Daire twirled me around once more. He led the dance, swaying our hips from side-to-side as he placed his cheek against mine.

“You know, I think I’m going to like my new assignment quite a bit more than I first thought.”

I could tell he was smiling from the movement of his cheek muscles against my face.

“Did you know about your assignment as my bodyguard that first night when I saw you at the palace?”

He nudged my side with his palm. I hadn’t realized we stopped moving to the music for a moment. We resumed the slow dance that did nothing to cool my ardor.

“No, the night you fell from the sky, landing in my arms like an angel, I did not know that it was I who would be given the pleasure of watching over you. I did know your identity and station, however.” There was an orange-tinted hue around his eyes, making them glow brighter.

“Uh, huh. Like you said, I don’t know if I can believe anything you say.” I smiled as he continued to swing me around, thrusting me away only to bring me back into his embrace as we swayed to the left, then to the right.

“Sydney.” He tilted his head like a parent getting ready to scold a child.

A deep booming voice interrupted Daire before he could finish. “Daire, I will be cutting in, thank you.”

Kieran didn’t mince words with his new Knight in telling him to get lost. I supposed, as the coven Master, Kieran couldn’t afford to be a soft leader when dealing with his subordinates, who could annihilate an entire city of humans in a single night.

Daire bowed to Kieran but didn’t leave before he kissed the top of my hand.

“To what do I owe the honor of dancing with our gracious host?” I smiled up into Kieran’s maroon-colored eyes. His eyes were a different hue from all of the other vampires in his coven. He’d once told me they often change when a vampire turns three hundred years old. Kieran was well past that time-acquired achievement.

“Ah, my dearest Sydney. It is my honor to be dancing with you. Are you enjoying yourself this evening? I noticed whose company you’ve kept since arriving. Is the Knight behaving in a proper manner while in your presence?”

We’d resumed dancing while we spoke. His movements were nothing like Daire’s. The coven leader had been born a vampire. He had never quite mastered human-like expressions and movements, and I found I could add dancing to the list of his attempts to appear more human.

I went on tiptoes to speak quietly in his ear and he still had to lean forward a bit to hear. “Have you been able to find out any information about my new bodyguard?”

Kieran awkwardly swung me away from him then clumsily brought me back in his arms. He needed to work on his moves for sure. “Yes, I told you he was only half-vampire. The demon blood coursing through those dubious veins of his comes from his father, a Judge.”

“You told me that, but what kind of demon Judge was his father?”

“His father is a Fate demon, Sydney. Daire, if he is capable of harnessing the powers given to him at birth, can manipulate outcomes by the use of sight.” Kieran must have decided he’d had enough of our inelegant dance exhibition and led us toward a set of private rooms we’d used in the past to speak without fearing being overheard.

It was nice being with the vampires. Away from Daire, I felt refreshed feeling the cold essence of their presence. I also enjoyed not feeling the crippling pain that came with the rogue’s presence who infiltrated the party the last time I visited Kieran’s mansion on the lake.

We went into a library with books lining the walls. It was my favorite room in the house. A roaring fire blazed in the hearth. I walked over to enjoy the heat from the flames. Kieran instructed his human servants to always have a fire going anytime I planned on coming for an event because he knew my being around so many vampires was quite the cold experience.

Kieran locked the library door. The coven leader and his vampires shared a similar communication link as Blake’s wolf pack did, except Kieran had to consciously use it whereas the wolf bond was open all the time, between every pack member. I think I’d go crazy having to listen to the thoughts of so many people all day long, every single day.

Kieran took a seat near the fire to be close while I warmed up.

“Sydney, I haven’t been able to find anything nefarious in regards to Liam’s replacement.” I turned to gaze over his face. We shared a knowing sadness at Kieran’s previous Knight’s betrayal. Liam had been a vampire I called my friend. He’d been fun to hang out with. Unfortunately, he’d focused his life on a very old vendetta that he couldn’t let go. It didn’t matter who was caught in the fray as long as he achieved his goal. In the end, Liam ended up dead. His target was still living in secured confinement with the other Elders.

“So, you’re going to keep Daire on his assignment, right?” I held my breath, waiting for Kieran’s replay. I didn’t want to think of the reason why it was so important Daire remain as my bodyguard, but it was. I knew why I wanted him around. I was starting to fall for the arrogant half-breed, but I wasn’t sure if my feelings were the result of whatever weird mojo someone had cursed me with or if it was because I was really falling for him.

Either way, I needed to find out. I couldn’t do that if he wasn’t around.

Kieran’s eyes opened wide, expressing his surprise at my request. “If that is what you would prefer then, yes, the Knight will carry on as your personal guard. If, at any time, you feel differently, then you will notify me at once. I will enjoy having him removed from your vicinity immediately.”

I felt pure joy with Kieran’s decision. The urge to kiss him on the cheek overwhelmed me, but I refrained. We didn’t have that kind of relationship. I never wanted to cross the line by being anything more than cordial. He’d shared his blood with me on more than one occasion to save my life, speeding up the healing process of my wounds, but beyond that, I didn’t want to be hugging and kissing the vampire on a regular basis, even if it would always be on a father-daughter level.

Brianna, Michael, and, I bet it was safe to assume, Blake, too, were waiting for me at Max’s bar, so I had to get going. Being around vampires was fine, but I’d had enough for one night. Kieran escorted me to the main dining hall where the vampires continued to revel in dancing with the occasional bite on the neck of their human blood addicts.

Kieran steered me to the hallway bidding me farewell.

I turned to leave only to bump into someone. “Excuse me,” I said, trying not to cause a confrontation. Vampires weren’t known for common courtesy. They tended to react with violence, especially when it came to the males.

The bumped vampire turned, but not before I had the pleasure of eyeing up the vampire’s generously wide shoulders.

I should have known my body had reacted for a reason.

Daire smiled as he put his fingertips under my chin to raise my face, forcing my eyes to meet his. Glowing red orbs tinted with an orange border seared me to the core. My reaction to him was intensifying. If I didn’t get out of the mansion, I was afraid I’d let him have his way with me. I was pretty sure I would let him even if the vampires were watching.

My body hurt with sexual need.

I grabbed his arm and pulled him behind me while we made our way through the gathering of vampires in the hallway leading to the exit. Why did vampires have to congregate in the hall? I tried not to bump into anyone else, but at that point it didn’t much matter who I pissed off. I had to get out into the night air. Vampire-cooled air wasn’t the same as the fresh night air.

Recognizing my urgency, Daire took the lead. He pushed through the masses, creating a straight path out of the house. We crashed through the front doors. Relief washed over me the moment the cold air blasted me in the face. I could physically separate myself from Daire, the source of my extreme wantonness.

Running down the steps, not an easy task in my fabulous knee-high, high-heeled black boots, I stumbled down the last two steps. In my haste, I lost my balance. I found myself air-borne, plummeting straight to the ground with my palms outstretched in front of me.