Tempted in the Night (12 page)

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world," John replied, glancing up long enough to wink at her.

Nonplussed, Jess could only stare at him as he next greeted Julia. For a change, his face was clean shaven and his dark hair was neatly combed back; his usual rumpled suit had been replaced with a much nicer one. The change in appearance made him seem a completely different person, one who could even pose for the cover of
GQ
—or maybe a policeman's calendar, given his wide shoulders and trim hips.

He definitely cleaned up well, and she suddenly wondered if he would think the same of her. She'd chosen to wear a simple, sleeveless black cocktail-length dress, with a V-neckline and simple lines that showed off her figure to good advantage. She'd pulled her hair back in a loose bun, letting a few tendrils hang down. Up until now, she'd thought the gown was perfect for the evening. Now, as John came to her, she felt scantily clad.

"Excuse me, do you mind?" he said to the man beside her, pointing to the spot between them. "I was hoping to sit next to my date tonight."

Before Jess could say a word, the man shot her a look that let her know he didn't approve of her flirting with him when she was clearly involved with someone else, and scooted down. John immediately took his place.

"I trust I'm not interrupting," he said softly, leaning toward her in what had to look like an intimate gesture. "I really don't think he's your type, though."

"I guess we'll never know, thanks to you—again." She spoke with saccharine sweetness, but John laughed, seeming to be genuinely amused. That made her mad, so she decided to ignore him through the rest of the evening and turned her attention to the front of the church, even though the only thing to see there were the large bouquets of white roses sitting atop each of two pedestals.

Clearly not taking her hint, John leaned close again to whisper in her ear. "You look very nice tonight." His breath fanned across her neck, sending a small shiver racing along her body.

Jess continued to stare at the roses, not wanting to encourage him to speak to her.

"Great dress," he whispered again, and she practically felt the heat of his gaze on her plunging neckline. "Although you probably should have worn something warmer," he continued, his voice caressing her. "Do you want to wear my coat?"

Was he daft? It felt like someone had turned the heater on full blast. "No, thank you," she said in a hushed tone. "I'm not cold."

"Ah."

Up until now, she'd been staring straight ahead, but that simple response drew her attention. When their gazes met, she saw that his eyes were shining with amusement—and something more; something heated. He broke eye contact and his gaze dropped to her breasts and lingered too long to be polite before he brought his gaze back to hers and winked. "I'm flattered."

Immediately, she felt her breasts swell and knew, without looking, that her nipples were distended; a fact that must have also been obvious to him through the fabric of her dress.

Mortified, she had an overwhelming urge to cross her arms, but resisted, not wanting him to know he'd embarrassed her. Instead, she gave him a frosty look. "You flatter yourself." Then she leaned forward a bit more and graced the man on the detective's other side with a seductive smile.

John frowned and she turned her attention back to the front, a smug smile spreading across her face.

"What I want to know," John whispered, moving close enough that she felt his body heat warming her, and his breath against her neck stirring the small hairs, "is where you're hiding your sword."

Before she could say anything, the blaring of the Trumpet March announced the bride's appearance, and Jess found herself lost in the moment. Jess had seen Beth several times before in her wedding gown, but she'd never seen her looking lovelier than she did at that moment. Walking beside her father, it was clear to all present that the sole object of her attention and love was the man who waited for her at the end of the aisle.

Jess felt her breath catch, and despite previous vows to not get too emotional, her eyes filled with tears. The thought that a vampire slayer shouldn't be this emotional raced through her head, and she tried to discreetly wipe the moisture from her eyes.

Beth reached the front, and the look in Dirk's eyes was hot and hungry. It was the kind of expression every woman deserved to see in her husband's eyes, especially on their wedding day. Reaching up to dab at her eyes again, Jess was surprised when a tissue suddenly appeared before her. Even more surprising was the source, but there was nothing in John's expression to lead her to think that he was about to tease her for crying or in any other way belittle her.

"Thank you," she said softly, taking it from him. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all, she thought. Then her attention was fully focused on the ceremony for the next twenty minutes.

Afterward, as Charles, Julia, and most of the guests left the church to head over to Charles's mansion for the reception, Jess waited patiently for Mac and
Lanie
to finish with the photographer who was taking pictures of the wedding party. For a while, she stood and watched the pictures being taken, but eventually she had to find the ladies' restroom.

When she returned to the chapel a few minutes later, she found it completely empty. Thinking the party had moved outdoors to take a few moonlight photos, she hurried outside to find the yard dismally empty and the last of the guests just driving off.

"There you are." John's voice came from behind her, giving her a start.

"It appears that my ride has left without me." She gave him a baleful glance.

"No, it hasn't." Standing beside her, he gestured to the lone vehicle in the parking lot. "Your chariot
awaits
."

He put his hand at the small of her back and ushered her toward his car.

"Thank you." She walked beside him, feeling ill at ease. "I guess Mac and
Lanie
forgot me." She tried to sound like it didn't bother her, but it did.

"They didn't forget you," he said as they stopped at his car and he unlocked the passenger door.

"Are you trying to imply that they left me on purpose?" She knew that she shouldn't let anything he said affect her, and yet—

He smiled. "What I meant is that you're not that forgettable."

"So you're suggesting that they left me intentionally? Because I'm a nuisance to be with?" she accused as she got into the car.

"You?
A nuisance?
Don't be ridiculous," he said in mock protest, closing the door and walking around to the other side to get in. "I know that I enjoy being with you, but then, I like dodging sword blades and getting the crap beat out of me by vampires."

"Sorry," she muttered as he started the car. "You getting beat up wasn't supposed to be part of the plan."

She fell quiet as he
maneuvered
the car out of the parking lot and onto the street. They arrived at the mansion several minutes later and John parked his car in the back, where Mac had parked Charles's
Humvee
. Together they went inside. Seeing how many people had shown up for the reception, Jess was absurdly grateful not to be arriving by herself.

The mansion was filled to capacity, and the admiral had opened up the west wing for the occasion. There was a ballroom on this side of the house where tables had been set up for the meal. A small band was playing off to the side where an area had been cleared for dancing. At the front of the room, on a low dais, was the wedding party's table. Already, Dirk, Beth, Mac, and
Lanie
were sitting down.

"There you are," Charles said, coming toward them. "We saved you a spot at the family's table, so if you two will come with me."

Charles led them across the room to where the wedding party waited. Jess saw that there were two seats, side by side, left open. She and John each took one.

"I'm sorry we had to leave the church so quickly."
Lanie
, who was sitting on Jess's other side, gave her an apologetic smile.

"That's okay," Jess said graciously.

Lanie
looked relieved. "I knew, once you heard the problem, you'd understand."

Now Jess was confused.
"Problem?"

Lanie
looked past her to John. "You didn't give her my message?"

John looked embarrassed, though Jess suspected it was an act. "I guess I forgot."

Jess shot him a look before turning back to
Lanie
. "What problem?"

Lanie
leaned in conspiratorially.
"Gem.
I thought that Mac had locked her in her carrier before leaving for the church, and he thought I had. When we realized that neither of us had, we knew we had to get back here as quickly as we could before she either scared the caterers or ate the cake."

Jess looked around to see if she spotted anyone serving the food. When she did, her gaze flew to the cake. "She has a sweet tooth, does she?"

Lanie
grimaced. "Let's hope that no one else notices that we're one tier short."

When
Lanie
looked away to respond to something Mac said, Jess turned to John. "You let me think they forgot me," she accused him.

"No, I specifically said you were not forgettable. I'm not responsible for any conclusions you drew after that. Besides, as your escort this evening, I am responsible for your safe conduct from the church to the reception, and"—he gestured around the room—"mission accomplished."

Jess didn't understand him at all. One minute, he was dashing and charming and the next, he was irritating to the point where she wanted to scream. To make matters worse, she suspected that he knew the effect he had on her and did it intentionally.

In an effort to thwart him, she purposely avoided further conversation with him, choosing instead to chat with
Lanie
. Then all too soon the meal was over and Jess could hear Charles, farther down the long table, addressing the newlyweds.

"I believe it's traditional for the bride and groom to have the first dance."

Jess looked over and saw Beth's smile as she turned to Dirk expectantly. He didn't look too excited about the prospect of getting up in front of everyone, but after a rueful glance at the dance floor, he turned to his new bride. "Come on, but I'm warning you now that if I hold you close for too long, I'm going to have to drag you upstairs for some privacy."

Beth leaned close to whisper something in his ear that had him hurrying her to the dance floor.

"They look so nice together, don't they?"
Lanie
asked on a soft sigh as everyone watched the couple dance. Midway through the number, the newlyweds motioned for the others to join them.

"Come on," Mac said resignedly to
Lanie
, standing up and extending his hand to her. "I'm not about to let Dirk show me up."

Lanie
pretended to be affronted. "Is that the only reason you want to dance with me?"

His suggestive smile made her blush. "Come with me and I'll tell you exactly why I want to dance with you."

Lanie
rose and Jess watched the pair join Dirk and Beth on the dance floor.

"My dear," Charles said a moment later to Julia, "shall we show these adolescents how it's done?"

Julia's eyes beamed as she smiled and placed her hand in his. "Why yes, that's a
marvelous
idea."

Jess watched Charles and Julia walk to the dance floor, realizing that she and John were now alone at the table. She felt horribly conspicuous sitting there, as if every eye in the room was staring at them, waiting for them to join the others.

"Shall we?" John finally asked, sounding hesitant.

"Oh, that's all right. We don't have to." Just as she said the words, however, Charles pinned them each with a look.

She gave John an apologetic smile as he stood and pulled back her chair. "I'm sorry," she whispered as they walked out to the dance floor. "Perhaps we could make one quick circuit and then sneak out the back doors—no one would know we'd left."

He raised an eyebrow at her as he pulled her into his arms. "Maybe find a dark corner outside where you can have your evil way with me?
Tempting, very tempting."

Startled, she looked up into his face. "What?"

"I don't usually take a woman to bed on the first date, but I'm not about to turn down your offer." He guided them around another couple. "In fact, let's skip the subterfuge and go upstairs to your room right now."

"How dare you!" she sputtered, trying to pull away. His arm around her waist was iron tight, and she was all too aware of the way his body moved against hers as he guided them around the dance floor. She was as embarrassed as she was mad. "I wouldn't… make love to you if you were the last man available."

He lowered his head until he could whisper in her ear. "Then why did you suggest it?"

"I didn't suggest it," she bit out indignantly.

"Careful, Jess.
People are starting to stare."

She cast a look around and saw that he was right. Several pairs of eyes had turned to them in blatant curiosity, and Jess snapped her mouth shut on the rest of what she wanted to say.