I dug in my heels. “Wait! No-no-no-no! What do you think you’re doing?”
He turned around. “Karli, we are going to bed. To sleep. I mean it. Stop panicking. I’m not going to touch you, but I’m also not letting you out of my sight until I figure out what Maria’s agenda is. I don’t like the fact that she’s in town at all, but I especially don’t like the fact that she knows about you.” He sighed. “Look, she’s not the woman she used to be, and I don’t trust her one bit. I need to figure out what drove her back to Vegas.”
“I know what drove
her back to Vegas,” I said. “She told me. It was you.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “All the more reason for you to stay. She’s unstable, jealous, and insecure. That’s not a good combination for a vampire. Especially not when the apparent target is a full-blooded fairy.”
We were in his bedroom then. As he was climbing into his king-sized bed I asked, “So, just to be clear…you expect me to crawl into bed with you and sleep? That’s all?”
He patted the mattress. “Yes, Karli. Just some good old-fashioned sleep.” He crossed his heart. “I promise I’ll be a good boy.”
*****
I woke up later that day to the smell of coffee brewing. Vance kept his promise; he didn’t make a move on me once. The mountain of pillows in between us had been really for my benefit. So I wouldn’t make a move on him. I had been awake for hours just lying there becoming hornier by the second. He smelled so good, and the sex visions wouldn’t stop. It took every bit of restraint that I had not to touch him. Or myself.
I took an ice cold shower before going into the kitchen to face him. He handed me a cup of coffee as I sat down at the breakfast bar. “So,” I said. “I want details.”
He placed an omelet in front of me. “Eat.”
I took a bite. “Omigod. I think this is the best omelet I’ve ever had. I didn’t know you could cook.”
He smiled. “I can do a lot of things.”
Okay, point for Vance…for the cooking, I mean. “Quit dodging the subject. I want to know about Maria.”
“Maria’s a vampire,” he said.
I glared at him. “Duh. How and when did she become one?”
“About thirty years ago,” he replied. “I don’t want to talk about how she got that way.”
“Why not?” I asked.
“Because it’s bound to start an argument and I don’t feel like arguing with you right now.”
“Why would it start an argument?”
“Next question.”
I huffed. “Ugh! Why do you evade all of my questions?”
“I’m not evading all of your questions. Just anything relating to Maria’s transformation.”
“So, in an attempt to avoid an argument about one subject, you start one about another?”
“You’re the one picking a fight here, Karli,” he said. “Not me.”
I crossed my arms. “Whatever.”
“Are you done?” he asked.
I dug into my eggs and counted to twenty before I spoke again. “So what are we going to do about her?”
He sighed. “I don’t know. I made some calls earlier and found out where she’s staying. I’m thinking about confronting the problem head on.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. “Are you actually planning to go see her?”