Single White Vampire (12 page)

Lucern recoiled as if she'd hit him. “I wasn't hitting on your friend. What kind of man do you take me for?”

“Well, what kind of man am I supposed to take you for? You've never shown the least bit of interest in me, and I come back to find you all over Chris!”

Lucern stared at her for a moment, then slammed the dead phone down in its cradle. Snatching her by the wrist, he tugged her into his arms. She got out one gasp
of surprise before his mouth closed over hers.

It was no soft, tentative kiss. Lucern had something to prove. Besides, he'd wanted her for so long that he couldn't have been soft had he wanted to. The kiss was a taking—he ravaged her mouth, forcing her lips open and thrusting his tongue inside, his body clenching at the taste of her. She was as hot and sweet as he had imagined.

And she was as willing. Oh, not at first. For the first moment or two Kate was stiff and still in his arms, but then she gave a groan of surrender and melted into him, her body forming itself against his like a soft sweater. Her breasts nudged his chest as she slid her free arm around his neck and tilted her head slightly to make it less awkward as she kissed him back.

It only served to fan the flame of Lucern's desire. Forgetting his original intent to prove he wasn't gay, he released her wrist and slid his arms around her. Letting his hands slide down over her back to her heart-shaped bottom, he cupped those round curves and lifted her against him until they were groin to groin; then he gyrated his hips to press into her. Kate was warm sunlight in his hands, arching and writhing against him as she moaned. Her mouth went wider, then sucked at his almost frantically.

“Lucern.” She gasped his name in protest when he paused to glance around. But Lucern wasn't stopping. He had no intention of stopping; he merely wanted to know where the hell the bed was. He wanted to touch more of her. He wanted to take her. He couldn't touch and take her while they were standing.

Seeing the bed directly behind Kate, he urged her
back onto it. Following her down, he pressed his body insistently into hers and lowered his mouth to kiss her again. Kate relaxed at once, her hands roving over his back, side and arms. Lucern felt her tugging at his shirt, trying consciously or unconsciously to pull it free of his pants, and he was suddenly grateful that he'd removed his jacket and tie earlier. There was less to take off that way.

Kate, of course, was wearing far too much. He decided to help her with that problem; but when he started to break their kiss, she protested with a loud groan and dug her claws into his lower back, trying to hold him in place.

Lucern chuckled breathlessly into her mouth, pleased with her passion. He gave her another deep kiss, filling her mouth with his tongue, then withdrawing it in imitation of what was to come. He broke the kiss and nibbled his way down her chin, along her throat as he started to work on the buttons of her shirt. He hesitated as his lips found and paused on the pulsing vein in her throat. He could feel the excitement in her blood, could almost taste it. He wanted to bite her. Wanted to feed. But he would wait. He would take her blood as he took her body. They would both find the heights of ecstasy that way. It would be better for the wait.

Lucern let his mouth move on, kissing Kate's tender flesh until he reached where the round tops of her breasts pushed out of her bra. His hands had been busy. Her shirt was undone down to where it was tucked into her jeans. Lucern rose up, his knees settling on either side of her hips, and he tugged the shirt free, opening
it fully so that it dropped to lie on either side of her. She lay, naked except for a white cotton bra.

Lucern had seen many women in various states of undress. He'd seen women in corsets that had curled his toes, in slinky French negligees that had left him breathless, in little bits of nothing that couldn't even really be called clothing—but he didn't think he'd ever seen anything as sexy as Kate in her cotton bra. Her cowboy hat had tumbled off and lay next to her, her hair was a tangled mess around her flushed cheeks, and her eyes were sleepy with desire. He wanted to eat her up. Wanted to take her into his body and keep her there for eternity. He wanted
Kate
.

She shifted restlessly beneath him, her hands reaching to feather over his belly through his shirt, and Lucern reluctantly gave up looking at her. Leaning forward, he caught her by the arms and pulled her into a seated position; then he kissed her as he slipped his hands around her to undo the bra. He would have just ripped it off, but it would be a shame to never see her in it again.

Kate wasn't inactive as he worked. She finished tugging his shirt free of his dress slacks and ran her hands underneath, over his hard back then around to explore his chest.

Lucern smiled against her mouth. He undid the last clasp and felt the cloth slip loose. Quickly pushing her shirt off her shoulders, he pushed her back on the bed and tugged the frustrating scrap of cotton off so that he could see her properly.

“Perfect.” The word slipped from his lips as he reached to cup her breasts. Kate moaned and arched
her back, pressing upward into his touch. It was all the urging Lucern needed; he shifted lower on her body so that he could bend forward and take one perfect, hardened nipple into his mouth. His eyes closed with pleasure as he suckled the nub and felt it stiffen even further with excitement. Kate allowed him to attend her breasts for a bit, then caught his hair and tugged his head demandingly upward.

Lucern gave in to the demand. Shifting to kiss her, he slid his leg to nestle between hers. He pressed upward, nudging his thigh against her sex as he kissed her. Kate responded heatedly, rubbing back in return and tugging viciously at his shirt. Several buttons snapped. Lucern suddenly found his shirt open, and he pushed closer so that their flesh met. Kate's nipples grazed the hair of his chest, then his skin, sending tingles through him. He felt her hand slide down over his stomach to his groin.

Lucern went a little wild. He thrust against her, grinding closer, her hand caught between them. The phone began to ring. Lucern heard it, but it was a far-off sound, a distant concern he couldn't be bothered with. Kate filled his mind. She was all he saw or heard—her gasps and soft sighs, her scent, her touch. She swamped him. The world could go to hell for all he cared. Kate was with him, and he wanted her there forever. For longer than forever.

Lifting his mouth from hers, Lucern moved to her neck, found her pulse and sank his teeth into her flesh. She cried out, her neck arching, and Lucern closed his eyes, grinding his lower body against her. Her lifeblood filled his mouth. It tasted sweet despite her slender
body. Lucern had always preferred larger women, finding their blood thick and rich and fulfilling. But while Kate's blood was different, it was still heady. He felt a rush as it filled him.

“Hey, Lucern! Some guy named Bastien…Oh! Uh, sorry.”

Lucern straightened abruptly, rising to his knees on the bed. Whirling he caught sight of Chris moving quickly away from the open door. He stared in amazement, unable to believe that he had got so carried away that he'd forgotten to close the door, and was even more amazed that he'd lost control to such an extent that he had released his power over the editor's mind. Worst of all, he had allowed Chris to catch him and Kate together. He had no fear that the man would know he'd been feeding, but Chris's other assumptions would be just as bad. Kate certainly wouldn't be pleased about it. And Lucern had no desire to cause her discomfort with her coworkers.

Then what the other man had said sank in, and Lucern recalled the ringing phone. Bastien was on the line, calling back! Hurtling himself off the bed, Lucern rushed to the door just in time to see Chris hang up.

“Oh,” the editor said, spying him in the doorway. “I told him you were busy.”

Lucern cursed under his breath. Opening his mouth to snap at the younger man, he paused when he realized the editor was avoiding looking at him. Keyes was also blushing furiously. Lucern peered down at himself, grimacing when he saw that Kate hadn't only got his shirt open; she'd managed to start on his pants. The belt
was undone, the button open, and his slacks were halfway down his thighs.

He doubted that was what had got Chris upset, however. No doubt the man was discomfitted by finding Kate in flagrante delecto with one of her writers.

Lucern was trying to decide what to do when he was suddenly pushed from behind. Shifting to the side, he half-turned to see Kate rush out of the room past him. Her shirt was done up and her hat was back on her head, and the glimpse he got of her face showed it cherry red with embarrassment.

Lucern tried to grab her hand, but she was already out of reach. Kate called something unintelligible but for the word “bed,” then disappeared into her room. The door closed with a snap, followed by the
snick
of the lock. She definitely wanted to be alone.

Lucern sighed unhappily and pushed a hand through his hair. He'd made a mess of everything.

“Well, I guess I'll…er…go to bed, too,” Chris announced. He then disappeared.

Shaking his head, Lucern walked to the bar. He poured himself a stiff drink, then carried it back to his room, closing the door behind him.

“Now that it doesn't matter,” he muttered to himself as he walked to the bed. He'd muddled everything and knew it.

What could he do now? He hadn't a clue what Kate was thinking. Was she aware that he'd bitten her? Usually people weren't, but he usually controlled their mind while doing it, pouring the pleasure it gave him back into them while he fed. It was usually a very erotic experience for them. For the women, anyway. He didn't
bother to do that with the men, but merely blanked their mind so that they wouldn't recall what had happened. They were simply left with two tiny holes in their neck and no idea where they'd come from. Lucern had opened his mind to Kate as he'd bitten her, but he was not sure she'd felt his pleasure as her own. Had she felt his bite? Had it been painful? Or had she felt the pleasure and jubilation?

If she had felt the pain of the bite, Kate would probably think he was some insane freak. She'd think he wrote about vampires because he mistakenly thought himself one. She'd be wondering just what she had on her hands. Or, worse, she'd know the truth. But Lucern suspected it would be the freak thing. A sensible modern woman like Kate would never believe in vampires.

Kate woke up feeling awful. She didn't understand why at first, but then the memories hit her like a sledgehammer: Coming back to find Lucern hanging over Chris. His going into the bedroom to answer the phone. Her following him, rage consuming her.
How dare he be gay?
she had been thinking.
How dare he?
The very idea had stunned her. She was attracted to him. Had had erotic dreams about him. He couldn't be gay!

And it appeared he wasn't. She could still feel his lips on hers.

Her first reaction to his sensual assault had been shock; then her anger had turned to relief, and, just as quickly, to desire.

The man could kiss. She recalled his kiss as she pushed the covers aside and slid out of her bed. The man could kiss like no one she'd ever met. His kisses had reached down inside her soul and pulled out every want, every desire, every drop of lust residing inside her
body, and had brought it to the surface. She'd wanted him. She still did. Her nipples were erect just at the memories. And he had definitely been excited, too. It had felt as if he had a big steel rod in his pants when she'd put her hand there.

Which was all great. Except that she was his editor and had no business knowing how big his steel rod was. And her coworker had caught them going at it!

Groaning, she walked into the bathroom, turned the cold water on in the shower and stepped inside. She had no idea how she was going to face either man again. But somehow she had to. Should she act as if nothing had happened? Should she talk to Chris about it? Should she talk to both of them? And if she talked to either of them, what could she say? She knew what she
should
say to Lucern. She should say it was an aberration and could never happen again. But she didn't want to say that. And with Chris, she didn't have a clue. There really was nothing to say.

Sighing, Kate turned off the water and grabbed a towel off the rack. She wrapped it turban-style around her wet hair, then grabbed a second towel to dry off. Next, she grabbed the terrycloth robe the hotel had provided and, bundled in that, she walked to the mirror and made a face at herself. She had to dry her hair, do her face, dress and then go out and see Chris and Lucern. Ugh.

Kate reached for the towel around her hair, meaning to get the worst of the water out before blow-drying it, when she noticed marks on her neck. Pausing, she stared for a moment. Then, leaning into the mirror and
turning her head to the side, she peered out of the corners of her eyes at her neck.

For the longest time she just stared at the two small puncture marks, all sorts of thoughts running through her mind: Lucern's books, with characters all bearing the same names as his family. The evening wedding. Lucern and his mother being allergic to the sun. The head wound that had appeared to bleed so copiously, but that she couldn't find and that didn't appear to bother Lucern at all after he washed the blood away. The way he'd been leaning over Chris when she'd returned, his mouth against her friend's neck. The fact that Chris hadn't even seemed to be aware of his presence, and hadn't reacted at all to Kate's return.

Yet she didn't recall Lucern biting her last night. Did she?

Oh.
Suddenly she saw an image of being half-naked in Lucern's arms, her breasts brushing his hard chest as he thrust himself against her hand and nibbled on her neck. She had assumed he was giving her a hickey, maybe; hadn't cared, it had felt so good. “Dear God,” she'd moaned. And “Don't stop.” She'd even turned her head to allow him better access.

Her hands dropped to her sides. He'd bitten her. Not only was Lucern Argeneau a vampire, he'd had the balls to bite
her
!

Turning on her heel, she charged out of the bathroom.

 

“You bit me!”

Lucern's eyes popped open, and he sprang upright on the bed to stare at the woman in the doorway. His
eyes were bleary with exhaustion. He hadn't slept at all well or long. A body couldn't take six hundred years of sleeping during the day and switch to sleeping at night just like that. He had lain in bed awake for most of the night, wondering if Kate was very pissed at him and when he would be able to get her into his arms again. Judging by her expression now, he wasn't guessing anytime soon.

Sighing, he flopped back on the bed with a groan. He didn't have the energy to deal with Kate at the moment. He had barely got a couple of sips out of Chris before she had returned, then had barely got a couple more out of Kate. He was
hungry
, dammit.

“Don't you ignore me, Lucern Argeneau!” Kate snapped, storming forward. “You
bit
me.”

Her words made their way through his sleep-fogged mind and his eyes blinked open again. Damn. She'd noticed. He watched her approach, then noticed Chris hovering worriedly outside the door.

“Close the damned door,” he snapped.

Kate turned in surprise to the door. Spotting Chris there, she looked at his neck. There were marks there, too.

Chris's eyebrows flew up at her angry expression. He grabbed the door handle and started to pull it closed. “I'll just close this.”

“Just a minute. Let me see your neck,” Kate demanded. She was at the door in an instant and jerking his head to the side. She stared at his throat for a minute, then whirled furiously on Lucern. “You son of a bitch.”

“Geez, Kate. Take a pill. It isn't Lucern's fault. I cut my neck shaving.”

She whirled back to Chris in shock. He was already closing the door behind him as he left.

The room was enclosed in darkness for a moment; then Lucern flicked the switch on the bedside lamp. Kate started toward him. “What did you do to him? How could you possibly make him think that is a shaving cut?”

Her incaution was foolish. She got too close and, just like that, Lucern rose up in bed, caught her by the arms and dragged her over him until she slammed down on the mattress. In the next moment, he moved to cover her.

“Get off of me.” She had meant to sound commanding. Instead her voice came out weak and breathless. Kate scowled to try to reinforce her words. She wasn't scared exactly, but there was a quaver in her voice. Lucern's eyes had turned that silver color, though not in anger. He looked like a predator, and Kate was pretty sure she was the prey. The problem was, she wasn't sure she didn't want to be. Her body was already responding to the feel of him pressing down on her.

Lucern hesitated, then let his eyelids droop over his eyes. He looked like a sleepy lion. It really wasn't much better.

“I am sorry,” he said in that proper English of his. Another clue to his vampirism, Kate thought unhappily. He was probably real old.

“What for?” she asked after several moments of silence.

“For biting you,” he answered promptly, then added, “without your permission.”

Kate scowled. “What about Chris?”

“It was just a nibble,” he said with a shrug. “And you did say I should go to him if I needed anything.”

“I didn't mean you should bite him!” Kate yelled.

Lucern had the nerve to grin. “And what should I have done?”

“You could have…”

When she fell into a confused silence, he asked, “What? Said, ‘Oh. Say, Chris, would you mind picking up a pint of blood while you're out getting peanuts? I'm a tad thirsty at the moment.'” He made a face. “You didn't put my name on the room, so the blood that was supposed to be delivered here was turned away. I was hungry,” he explained simply.

Kate stared at him, her mouth gone dry. He really was a vampire. She suddenly realized that she hadn't really believed it yet. Now she did. Mostly. Shifting under him, she demanded, “Show me your teeth.”

He bared them. They looked perfectly normal to her. His canines were a little pointy but not overly long, and she muttered, “No sharp, pointy, canine teeth….”

“Oh,
those
teeth.” Lucern opened his mouth again. To her horror, the canines extended out of his gums like a cat's claws.

“Oh, God,” Kate whimpered.

He retracted the teeth at once. “It's okay, Kate. I would never hurt you.”

“You bit me!” she cried. Which was followed by another chorus of “Oh God, oh God, oh God.” She couldn't seem to stop saying that.

“But it didn't hurt,” he argued. “Did it?”

“Oh God! Get off me, get off me, get off me!” She began to struggle beneath him, but it was a useless attempt. He was much bigger than her. And stronger. She stopped struggling, tried to calm herself, then said, “Please.”

Lucern peered at her for a moment, suspicious, then shook his head. “I can't. Not until you promise that you won't tell anyone about this.”

She opened her mouth, but he forestalled her by adding, “It's for your own good, Kate. People would just think you are nuts.”

He was probably right about that, she realized. They would all think she'd been working too hard and gone off her rocker. A shifting from below drew her attention to the fact that something was moving down there, and it wasn't Lucern. At least not most of him. Dear God, he was getting aroused. She could feel him growing and pressing against her. Kate cleared her throat. “Umm, Lucern?”

“Call me Luc,” he suggested. He gave a wicked grin. “Lucern sounds so formal, and we're a bit beyond that.”

Kate didn't smile. She cleared her throat again. “Luc. If you're dead, how can you get…” She shifted her eyes downward. He got the drift without her having to explain further, thank goodness, and he shifted away so he wasn't pressed quite so intimately against her.

“I apologize, but I fear I find you quite attractive,” he said with great dignity.

“You do?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“Oh.” She wasn't sure whether she should be happy
about that or not, so she returned to her question. “But, if you're dead—”

“I am not dead,” Lucern informed her, rolling his eyes.

“You aren't?” she asked. He shook his head solemnly, so she continued, “Then, you aren't soulless?”

“No.” A smile quirked his lips.

“And the rest of your family…?”

He shook his head solemnly.

Kate digested this news, her mind processing that he had written factual history books before his vampire romances. She processed that the first vampire romance had characters named after his parents, the second was about Lissianna and Gregory—a social worker and therapist, just like the real Lissianna and Gregory—and the third was about Rachel and Etienne, a coroner and a game designer. It seemed pretty obvious that he was still writing historical fact. “How old are you?”

“Six hundred and twelve,” he answered calmly. As if it were a normal enough age. Dear Lord, Kate realized with dismay. She
had
lost her mind. She whimpered again.

“It's okay, Kate.” Luc brushed the hair back from her face. “I know this is a lot to accept, but it's okay.”

“How can it be okay? You're a vampire. And you bit me.” She still couldn't believe he'd done that. And why had it felt so good?

“It was just a little nibble,” he said. When she glared at him, he tried again. “I'm sorry I bit you, but I was hungry…and you smell so delicious.” His eyes dropped to her neck as he spoke, and longing crossed
his face. Alarm coursed through her, and Kate covered her neck with both hands.

Much to her irritation, he began to chuckle. His chest shook against hers.

“This isn't funny,” she snapped. “How would you like to feel like a slab of veal?”

“My dear Kate. You are hardly a slab of veal,” he said. Forcing a solemn expression, he added, “You're at least a steak.”

Her mouth dropped open in horror. Lucern took advantage of the moment and closed his mouth over hers. Much to Kate's chagrin, the passion he had ignited in her the night before immediately flamed to life again. Apparently, her body didn't care that he was a bloodsucking demon. It liked him just fine. More than fine. And now Kate was having to fight both him and herself. It was a losing battle. A bare moment passed before she gave in with a wrenching moan and slid her arms around his neck.

It was all Lucern was waiting for, apparently, for a heartbeat later she found the sheet that had been caught between them gone and her robe wide open. Which not only left her naked beneath him, but alerted her to the fact that Lucern Argeneau slept in the nude.

Her eyes widened. He slept in the nude and in a bed. When he broke their kiss to nibble at her ear, Kate gasped, “What about your coffin?”

“I left it at home.” His voice was a velvet growl laced with laughter.

Kate wasn't sure if he was joking or not, but she stopped worrying about it when his hand closed gently around one breast and squeezed. Moaning, she arched
into the hot caress; then her eyes popped open. “Why aren't you cold? I thought vampires were cold.”

“I told you, I'm not dead,” Lucern reminded her.

“Oh, yeah,” Kate muttered. Then Luc claimed her lips again. Shifting down her body, he enclosed one breast in his warm, wet mouth. He suckled on it like a hungry baby, his tongue flicking her nipple as he did. Kate suddenly didn't mind being dinner. Which made her think. “What about garlic?”

“Love it,” he said, and shifted his mouth to her other breast. “Someday I'll rub it all over your body and lick it off as proof.”

Kate squirmed at the erotic image, then realized it was not unsimilar to the one they were already playing out. She was naked; he was licking her.
Dear God!
She lost track of her thoughts as his hand slid between her thighs.

“Luc,” she breathed. Much to her amazement, he stopped, heaved a sigh and shifted to sit beside her.

“Okay. Let's get this out of the way. We're obviously not going to get anywhere until we do,” he said with exasperation.