Sleeping With the Entity (12 page)

Nick sensed something odd about Gordon, but he couldn’t put his finger on exactly what. Had another vamp come to compel Gordon? Was that why he brought up the fact that Nick was asking about Daniella? That had never happened before. He tried to read the other man’s mind.

Two viewings this afternoon. Should I bet on the Bears winning tomorrow’s home game? I want a deep-dish pizza. I need to get laid. No one wants to hook up for party sex with a funeral director. Did I pay my Visa bill? Maybe I should download some porn. Or play online poker with a naked porn star. Scratch two urges at once. Did the flowers arrive yet for the Grabowski viewing?

Gordon’s thoughts were in such a jumble that Nick couldn’t make out any consistent train of thought—aside from sex and gambling. The experience was more like mental buckshot. Mind reading had never been Nick’s forte.

He’d check with Neville about any surveillance footage that might indicate another vamp had visited Gordon. But Nick didn’t sense or smell any recent vamp trespassers.

This was all making him realize how precarious their situation was. They’d spent a great deal of time and money to get things going here in Vamptown. Now more than ever they needed to secure their investments.

Somehow Daniella was the key. Identifying her birth mother would bring them much closer to finding an answer to this puzzle. Or so he hoped.

*   *   *

“We did it!” Daniella high-fived Suz, Xandra, and Lois.

“And you did it without getting into a fight with Tanya,” Lois said. “Well done!”

“I didn’t have time to stay out there and yell at her,” Daniella said.

“I volunteered to do it for you,” Lois said.

“You have such a kind face, I can’t imagine you yelling at anyone,” Xandra said.

“I believe in standing up for what’s right,” Lois said. “Sometimes it gets me into trouble.” A strange look crossed her face before her customary smile chased it away. “But not today.”

“Because I needed you more working the counter and acting as cashier rather than going out to confront Tanya. Your being here got the line moving much faster, so thank you for coming in early when I called you.”

“No problem,” Lois said.

“I just want to thank you all for making today’s grand opening such a huge success,” Daniella said. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Knowing you, you probably could have,” Suz said with a grin. “But it would have been a lot harder.”

“And special thanks to Xandra for all her online marketing and tweets,” Daniella added. “And for constantly reminding people that we close when we run out of cupcakes. You even created a sign for the window that is great.”

“Reminding customers about the possibility of running out of cupcakes adds a sense of urgency,” Xandra said.

“Speaking of urgency, I think it’s time we all call it a day. I’ll see most of you tomorrow.” She paused to give each a hug. “Lois, are you okay? You feel chilled.” Daniella rubbed the older woman’s arms a little.

“Poor circulation,” Lois said, stepping away.

Suz stayed with Daniella while she secured the shop, set the alarm, and locked the doors. “Thanks again for everything. Are you sure you don’t want to come up?”

Suz shook her head. “I’ve got a date tonight.”

Upstairs in her apartment, Daniella kicked off her shoes and wiggled her toes. She’d learned early in her days working in the culinary arts that comfortable shoes were a must so she invested in the same shoes that nurses wore. Being on her feet for twelve hours or more a day was something she and the medical profession shared.

Checking her watch, Daniella realized that she had to hurry or she’d miss her Skype setup with Cookie in New York City. A few minutes later her mentor’s face filled Daniella’s laptop screen. From her corkscrew silver gray hair to her slightly crooked nose, everything about Cookie screamed
Individual.

“Judging by the exhausted smile on your face, I’m guessing that your grand opening went well,” Cookie said.

“Yes, it did.”

“It was a busy day here at my store, too, but then weekends are always high-volume.”

“Thanks for telling me to bake more for the event,” Daniella said. “We ran out a few minutes before closing time.”

“It’s a tough balance. You don’t want to run out so early that you aggravate customers.”

“We sold out of absolutely everything. The Blood Red Velvets were a particular fave. Some customers sat at the tables we have so I got a chance to watch their faces as they bit into my cupcakes.”

“That’s a great feeling, isn’t it?”

Daniella nodded. “There was this little girl who put her entire fist in the frosting, grabbed a handful and shoved it straight into her mouth.”

“As you know, that’s my favorite part of what we do. Watching people enjoy what I create. I’m not a sweets person myself, which some people think is a little weird for a baker. But I like feeding people. That’s better than eating the goodies myself.”

“I like seeing people enjoy my cupcakes,” Daniella said. “But I have to test them myself, too.
I
have to think it tastes good before I can give it to someone else. Oh, I forgot to tell you that we got almost a dozen special orders today! Everything from a request for a caterpillar-themed kid’s birthday to Boston cream cupcakes for a bar mitzvah.”

“I love the special orders,” Cookie said. “This time of year we’ve got bat, black cat, and witch’s hat decorations coming out of our ears.”

“Don’t forget the vampire fangs,” Daniella said.

Cookie nodded. “Vampires are big business. Aside from the Halloween stuff, another trend I’m seeing here in the city is savory cupcakes with flavors like grilled onion.”

Daniella shook her head. “I can’t imagine that.”

“Or fig and goat cheese. Those cupcakes are more like scones.”

“Still having a hard time,” Daniella admitted.

“How about chocolate-covered potato chip, rimmed with crushed potato chips?” Cookie said.

“Now, that’s something I can relate to,” Daniella said. “Sweet and salty. I’m going to have to add that one to my must-try list.”

They talked awhile longer before signing off.

Knowing she’d be too beat to cook dinner, Daniella had stashed some homemade soups in the freezer for this opening week. She pulled out a container of potato leek soup and set it in the microwave before cutting a slice of tomato basil Parmesan artisan bread a baker friend had made for her. She watched an episode of
Cupcake Wars
she’d recorded on her DVR before deciding she was ready to call it a day.

She was heading for bed when the buzzer from her front door downstairs sounded.

“Who is it?” she demanded in a deliberately crabby voice.

“It’s me,” Nick said.

“Me, who?”

“Very funny,” he said. “I need to talk to you.”

“It’s late and I’m going to bed.”

“This won’t take long.”

She supposed she owed him for handling Tanya for her. Instead of replying, she buzzed him up. He was at her door a second later.

“That was fast,” she said.

He wore his customary black attire—only tonight he had a sweater under his black leather jacket.

“Have you ever thought about adding some color to your wardrobe?” she asked.

“No. I like black.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” she said.

“You wear a lot of black.”

“But I mix it up with other colors,” she said.

“I didn’t come here to talk to you about clothing issues.”

“What did you want to talk about?”

“Your brother,” he said.

“What about him?”

“Has he been acting strange?”

She eyed Nick suspiciously. “Why?”

“Just answer the question.”

“Not until you answer mine first,” she said.

“Why do you always have to be so stubborn?”

“Why do you always have to be so impossible?” she countered.

Instead of answering, Nick kissed her.

Chapter Ten

Instead of protesting, Daniella kissed him back. Seriously. Intensely. As if she meant it, which she did. She really,
really
did.

Her entire focus was on him, centering on his mouth as his tongue erotically tangled with hers. So many textures and tastes. So much hunger. Her appetite grew, as did her need for him.

He cupped her face with his lean hands and angled her head to intensify their oral lovemaking. Because that’s what it felt like. Like he was making love to her.

He’d kissed her before but each time his lips met hers, things got more out of control.
She
got more out of control.

Her body was pressed tightly against his. The black cotton of his sweater was soft beneath her fingers as she shoved his leather jacket aside to slide her arms around him. She could feel his arousal through the placket of his jeans. When he rubbed against her, she almost went over the deep end.

He shouldn’t be able to bring her to the brink of an orgasm with one kiss. Or even this series of sizzling-hot kisses. But that’s what was happening to her. Fireworks and shooting stars were soon to come.

Until Nick abruptly broke off their embrace to glare at her. “This is all your fault.”

She blinked at him, her mind and especially her body still swirling with need. Unable to form words yet, she gaped at him like a fish out of water.

“You mess up my mind,” he finally growled.

“So?” she growled back. “You mess up my mind, too, but you don’t see me blaming you.”

“I mess up your mind?” he said. “Because I kissed you?”

“Because you’re
you
.”

“What does that mean?”

“I can’t figure you out,” she said.

“Same here.”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not hard to figure out. I don’t have any hidden agendas.”

“And I do?”

Daniella nodded. “I think you might.”

“What are these hidden agendas?”

“I’m still trying to figure that out. And I will,” she warned him. “I have total confidence that I
will
work it out in the end.” She may have been bluffing a bit. The truth was, she was
hopeful
she’d work it out but when dealing with Nick, she knew that it was better to be overconfident. “And until I do, I don’t think we should be kissing or making out.” Especially when he left her aching for more. Why had he broken things off? She should be grateful he had instead of irritated.

Daniella rapidly came up with several possible reasons for his behavior—but the one she liked best was that he kissed her to distract her and got more than he bargained for. Maybe she got to him as much as he got to her. She preferred that to the possibility that he just wasn’t that into her. His body had certainly communicated the fact that he wanted to have sex with her, but maybe he was like that with every woman he kissed.

“You kiss me instead of answering my questions,” she accused him. “And then you chicken out when I kiss you back.” She knew those were fighting words, which is why she said them. She could tell by the stormy anger in his gray eyes that she’d scored a direct hit. As he took a step closer to her, it belatedly occurred to her that he could also perceive her words to be a challenge. “No more kissing,” she reminded him, backing up.

“I never chicken out.” He reached out to trail his index finger from her temple to the edge of her mouth. “Never.”

She wanted to ask him why he’d broken off their embrace but was smart enough to keep her mouth shut. He brushed the ball of his thumb over her lower lip, which still throbbed from the intensity of their kiss. He used his other hand to cup the side of her neck where her pulse was pounding.

Looking into his eyes was like looking into a swirling eddy pulling her into its dangerous undertow. His eyes got even darker before he once again abruptly stepped away.

“This isn’t over,” he warned her before walking out.

*   *   *

When Nick returned to the Vamp Cave, he found Bruce viewing the video from earlier in the day. “Why didn’t you tell me the camera adds ten pounds? And my face looks so pasty,” Bruce lamented. “Maybe I should get a spray tan like Tanya keeps telling me.”

“You were wearing clown makeup,” Pat reminded him. “And you’re a vampire. That’s a double whammy.”

“Clown vampires do have more than our fair share of issues,” Bruce agreed. “They make those horror movies about clowns and then about vampires. I boycott them all. Except for the
Twilight
saga. Those are romantic. But I have to close my eyes for some of the fight scenes.”

“Yet you watch and love the
Fast and Furious
movies,” Pat said.

Bruce nodded. “I do love great car crashes.”

“Which is why he’s also a NASCAR fan,” Pat told Nick.

“What movies do you like, Nick?” Bruce asked.

“I don’t have time for movies.”

“Nick, you’re growling again,” Pat said. “You must have just seen Daniella.”

“You probably watched me on the surveillance screens going to her apartment,” Nick said, only now belatedly realizing that possibility. He hadn’t been thinking clearly when he’d kissed Daniella. Which is why he’d stopped kissing her.

Vampires hooking up sexually with humans never ended well. Mostly for the human. The thought of Daniella getting hurt due to something he did was like a claw through his heart. Not that he was supposed to have a heart. Or feelings. They were a weakness that clouded both thinking and actions.

“We don’t actually have cameras placed inside Daniella’s apartment. Although I could arrange that if you think it’s necessary,” Neville said.

“No.” Nick focused his attention on the surrounding screens instead of the memory of her melting in his arms. “What about her brother?”

Neville frowned in confusion. “You want me to put cameras inside his place?”

“No,” Nick said impatiently. “I want you to check the video and see if he’s had any vamp visitors lately aside from me. Including Vamptown vamps.”

“Okay, but why?” Neville asked before seeing the menacing look on Nick’s face. “Never mind. Forget I asked that.”

Nick nodded his approval before saying, “Later.” He headed for the peace and quiet of his small office upstairs. He wasn’t alone for long, however, as Pat came to join him.