The Accidental Vampire (31 page)

Elvi didn't bother to respond, she hadn't really heard anything he was saying, or perhaps it was more correct to say she'd heard it but hadn't comprehended any of it. Her brain didn't have the capacity at the moment when it was being hit by wave after growing wave of pleasure from what Victor was doing to her. The man was turning her into a mass of raw sensation and she was sure she was going to explode.

The moment footsteps outside the door announced that the men were leaving Victor reared up and scooped her into his arms. Apparently he'd managed to kick his jeans off before doing so because this time they made it to the bed without falling.

Once there he simply turned his back to it and dropped onto the bed with her in his arms. Elvi landed on his chest with a gasp, then quickly took advantage of their position and sat up before he could try to shift her beneath him. She wasn't having anymore torture. She knew what she wanted and would have it. Victor reached for her, but Elvi scrambled backward and shifted to straddle his hips, her hand finding his erection and guiding him into her as she came to rest on his hips.

They both went still, their gazes meeting as he filled her, then Victor suddenly sat up, catching her by the back of the head and drawing her forward to meet him as his mouth covered hers.

Elvi moaned and caught one arm around his shoulders to keep her balance. Her other hand slid into his hair to run over his scalp as his tongue filled her as well. He was in and around her, enveloping her and it still wasn't enough. She couldn't move in this position and she so wanted to move. Elvi moaned a plea into his mouth, her hips shifting the slight bit they could in frustration, then Victor twisted them both on the bed, laying her on her back and coming down on top.

Elvi sighed into his mouth as his body covered hers, and then gasped as he withdrew, only to surge back in.

As he withdrew and plunged forward again, she dug her nails in, clawing at his back and urging him on, but then cried out in protest when Victor caught her wrists and lifted them over her head, holding them there. He immediately covered her mouth again, thrusting his tongue between her lips as his body surged forward.

Elvi struggled to free her hands for a moment, then gave it up and concentrated on using her body to meet his thrusts as the pleasure swirling in her brain became a tornado, wiping out every other thought. It was only one more thrust before the pleasure exploded between them. Elvi tore her mouth from his and bit into his shoulder to keep from screaming out and drawing the others again, then allowed herself to drop into the darkness that waited beyond the fire they'd created.

Elvi woke several times over the next few hours, finding herself wrapped in Victor's arms all but once. She rose up sleepily in the bed that time, and peered around but didn't see him. Thinking he'd gone to his own room, she dropped back to sleep with a disappointed sigh, only to find him there again when next she woke. The last time she opened her eyes it was after nine in the morning. Recalling she was supposed to phone Teddy, she eased carefully out of Victor's embrace and slipped from the bed. A quick shower later, she dressed and crept from her room so as not to disturb Victor.

The house was silent as she made her way up the hall. Elvi paused at Mabel's room and eased the door carefully open. When she saw Mabel sleeping peacefully and both Edward and DJ asleep in their chairs, she eased the door closed and made her way downstairs. She didn't think Mabel's turning was over yet, but it appeared the worst of it was done.

In the kitchen, Elvi placed her call to Teddy. He was understandably surprised to hear they already needed more blood. He and Mabel had laid in a lot before the men arrived. It was only then that Elvi realized she hadn't informed him of the attacks on Victor and her resulting injury. She'd meant to call him, but found she was uncomfortable around him since the day she'd learned he cared for her. He'd been so short with her since then that it had been easy to allow the pie making to distract her.

She didn't tell him now, thinking it better to tell him in person, and was glad she hadn't after his reaction to the news of Mabel's turning. Teddy was cursing up a storm as he hung up. He wasn't pleased.

Making a face as she hung up, Elvi moved to turn on the stove to allow it to heat, and then grabbed a tray from the cupboard over the refrigerator and headed downstairs to see how many pies left in the cold room needed baking. She wasn't surprised to find that there were still fifteen pies on the shelf. DJ had given blood to Mabel an hour after they'd left last night and there was no way he would have been baking pies while Mabel thrashed and screamed upstairs.

Setting three pies on the tray, Elvi carried them back up to the kitchen and set them on the counter. Leaving them there for the moment, she retrieved one of the few bags of blood remaining in the fridge, slapped it to her teeth, and moved to peer out the window while she waited for it to drain. Her gaze slid over the garden with longing as she fed. Elvi had never got to work on it as she'd hoped. She hadn't even made it past the deck in sunlight yet. Perhaps she could do some work while the pies were baking.

Turning away, she tossed the empty bag in the garbage, then moved into the cupboard room and retrieved her hat and the long-sleeved shirt she'd hung there the other day. She donned both, then found the suntan lotion and quickly slathered some on. Satisfied that she'd taken the necessary precautions, Elvi then put the pies in the oven and set the tinier before grabbing her gloves and slipping outside.

A smile curled Elvi's lips as she started across the deck. Birds were singing and flapping around in the birdbath, butterflies were dancing among the flowers, and there was a squirrel digging in the garden, no doubt in search of a walnut it had buried there.

"Good morning, Elvi!"

Pausing at the edge of the deck, she glanced over and smiled at Mike Knight. The man was dressed in shorts and a short-sleeved shirt, busily running a fine net over the surface of his pool to remove the leaves that had fallen during the night.

"Good morning, Mike. Not working today?"

He shook his head. "My day off. I arranged the schedule that way so I could help out at the fair."

Elvi nodded. As fire department chief he had that freedom and often took advantage of it. Mike was as involved in local charities as she had been before her turning.

"How are the pies coming?" Mike asked. "Karen said you'd forgotten all about them."

"Yes, thank goodness she reminded me. I
had
forgotten," she admitted. "They're mostly done, though. I'm just baking the last of them now, but I thought I'd come out and see how much work there is to do in the gardens."

"We'll see you out here more often, then." Mike smiled. "Good. We've missed our chats over the fence."

"So have I," Elvi said solemnly, and it was true. That was one of many things she'd missed over the last five years.

"Do you want some help with the garden?" Mike asked, pausing in his scooping to peer at her. "I'd be happy to help get it back in shape. Karen probably would too. In fact, I've had to hold her back from doing so before now. She was so upset to see all your lovely work go to seed these last five years."

Elvi chuckled at the claim, not doubting it for a moment. Karen and Mike kept a beautiful home and yard and could always be found outside mowing, raking, or working in the garden. Their yard was never less than impeccable and she knew the house wasn't either. It must have driven the poor woman mad to see Elvi's own garden slowly go to ruin. Mabel had hired Owen to mow the lawn and such, but had let the garden go.

"No, that's okay," she said as Mike moved to hang up his net. "I'm just looking today to see how bad it is. I'm thinking I might hire a landscaper to get it back in shape if there's too much work. Actually, I might have to have them redo it so that there's less maintenance. I can come out now, but its better if I'm not out too much I guess. It means I have to have more blood."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that," Mike said, his expression concerned.

"I suppose it's better than nothing," Elvi murmured and turned to head toward the stairs leading down into the yard.

"Elvi?" Mike called, bringing her to a halt. When she turned back, he hesitated, and then asked, "Are you happier?"

She blinked in confusion at the question. "Happier?"

"Yes." Mike moved toward the fence. "Mabel once said that you wished you'd never gone to Mexico and never turned into a… er… vampire. She said you were miserable."

"Yes, I did say that. Many times," Elvi admitted quietly, and it had been how she'd felt then. But then she'd thought she couldn't eat, had slept in a coffin, and avoided daylight like the plague. Things had gotten much better since the arrival of Victor and the others in her life. She supposed that was what everyone was hoping for and why the men had been invited.

"I'm sorry."

Elvi tore herself from her thoughts and peered at him with surprise. "What for?"

"For helping to pressure you into going to Mexico when you didn't want to," he explained. "The lot of us have felt horrible about it ever since Mabel explained what had happened at the town meeting Teddy called when you guys got back. We never would have pressured you so if we'd known—"

"Don't be silly, Mike. I know that," Elvi interrupted. She'd known for years that the reason everyone had been so accepting of her new status was because many of them had felt bad for talking her into taking that trip when she hadn't wanted to. Elvi had intended to cancel the trip to Mexico after the accident, but everyone from Teddy, Mabel, the Knights… even Dawn, the grocery store clerk, had all insisted she should go.

"We were hoping that Mabel's plan with the single's ad would help make things better."

Elvi smiled faintly and opened her mouth to tell him it had, then paused and glanced toward the driveway as the sound of a car engine caught her ear.

"Oh, Teddy's here," she said. "I'll talk to you later."

Giving him a wave, Elvi moved to the end of the deck and descended the stairs to greet Teddy as he got out of the car and retrieved a cooler from the trunk.

"How is she?" Teddy asked grimly as he stomped up the sidewalk toward her.

"She was sleeping when I checked on her," Elvi said, hurrying ahead of him to open the door. Teddy carried the cooler inside, slammed it on the counter, and whirled to face her.

"How could you let this happen? After all she's done for you?" he asked furiously.

"I didn't let anything happen," Elvi said quickly. "I wasn't even here. DJ turned her and—"

"Well, you
should
have been here," he interrupted with a snarl. "After the way she's looked after you for five years, doing all those things you couldn't anymore, you could have spent a little time looking after her for a change." He gave a snort of disgust. "But I suppose you couldn't tear yourself away from that damned Argeneau character long enough to be bothered."

"I—" Elvi began, only to be interrupted as Teddy's eyes narrowed.

"DJ did this to her?" he asked suddenly, apparently that part of the conversation just having made it through his anger. Mouth tightening, he snarled, "I'll stake him out like—"

"You will not!" Elvi interrupted sharply. "Mabel loves him, and he was only doing what she asked him to do."

"We'll see about that. I'm checking on her. Alone," he announced in a tone of voice that suggested she not argue.

Elvi watched him head determinedly upstairs, then shook her head and turned to head right back outside. She wasn't interfering. DJ could handle him. If he still wanted to yell at her after that, then he could just come find her, she thought furiously as she crossed the deck to the yard.

Elvi couldn't believe the man had turned on her like that, blaming her for Mabel's turning as if it were her fault. As if she'd been a bad friend and
let
it happen. The truth was if she'd known Mabel wanted it, Elvi would have stood by her decision. And Teddy had no right to stand in judgment, she thought as she stomped around the garden glaring at the damage done by time. That was all she'd intended to do today, but Elvi was so wound up and agitated by her run-in with Teddy that she decided she needed some physical exertion to help get rid of it.

Crossing to the shed at the back of the yard, she dragged the door open, and stepped inside. All her gardening tools were still there; hanging from their hooks and racks, in perfect shape, but covered with a fine coat of dust.

Muttering under her breath, Elvi walked along the implements, trying to decide what she'd need. She wanted to do something that took a lot of hitting or something.
Something like cutting wood would be good
, she thought. Unfortunately, she didn't have any wood to cut. They bought it all corded and split.

Muttering about the stupidity of men, Elvi picked up the shovel, thinking that slamming it in the ground a couple hundred times and jumping up and down on it to dig it into the earth would be good.

She'd started back toward the door when it suddenly slammed shut. Pausing, she blinked in the darkness. There was no light in the shed, no window even to allow natural light in, not even enough light for
her
eyes to use. Something she'd found annoying on other occasions, but which was almost scary now. It had been years since she'd been in the shed and where—at one time—she would have known exactly where everything was and been able to move through it easily enough, now she couldn't and there were several dangerous items in the shed. There were sharp items everywhere; on the floor to trip over and fall on… against the wall for her to walk into. Elvi wasn't at all sure she could find the door without skewering herself.

She should have leaned something against the door to keep it open before entering, Elvi realized, and berated herself briefly for not thinking of that before the wind had blown the door closed. And then she paused to sniff the air as something wafted past her nose.

Was that smoke? Elvi sniffed more deeply, frowning when she got a good nose full of the scent. It
was
smoke.