Born in Chains
Lily hugged him hard. She shook, and his speed caused her pain, he could feel it.
Once they had passed above the Eiffel Tower and were nearly back to his apartment, he slowed down. He heard Lily moaning. Damn altered flight. Damn weak human.
He passed through his building, back into the hallway outside the bathroom.
As soon as he touched down, she dropped the Glock, ran to the toilet, and threw up.
He took off his coat and saw the bullet holes. She’d made Swiss cheese of some really fine, expensive leather. He had to admit, she’d been smart about the business because she’d caught all three vampires by complete surprise. He’d dropped his dagger the moment he’d turned to protect her with his body.
Without thinking, he started to head to his office to reload the Glock, but the chain snagged him and Lily cried out, “Hey. I can’t move yet.”
“Sorry,” he called back.
He returned to sit down on the carpet outside the hall, setting the gun beside him. He pulled his knees up and rested his elbows on top but ended up with his head in his hands.
His world, his goddamn disorganized world. Lily had saved them both tonight with her smart shooting and quick thinking. With that much firepower aimed at him, he’d probably be dead, she’d be dead, and that would have been the end of the story.
Lily appeared next to him, wiping her face.
He looked up at her. “How’s the head?”
She nodded. “More like a cantaloupe split into two parts instead of merely exploded. I guess that’s better.”
He stared at her wondering who the hell she was. “You saved our asses back there. I owe you one.”
She met his gaze. “I wish we’d gotten more information than what Hardesty delivered.”
“You still intend to go forward with this, even after almost getting killed?”
She met his gaze, her lips clamped together for a long moment, before responding. “Sure, why not?”
“You said something back there that doesn’t make a lot of sense. Hardesty asked how much you had and you said a lot.”
She didn’t look at him as she responded, “Kiernan has a lot, but he wouldn’t pay half a billion.”
Adrien took hold of her wrist. “You have money, don’t you?”
“I have some.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “Then, why?”
“None of your goddamn business, vampire.”
Adrien frowned at her. He could tell she was lying about something, but what? Then again when it came to humans and greed, lying was part of the bargain.
“I need my clothes,” she said. “My soap, shampoo. I can tell this little journey of ours is going to get messier by the second. Any chance I can get some of my stuff brought here from India?”
He stood up and pulled his cell out of his pocket. He made a phone call then glanced at Lily. “From the campsite?”
She nodded. “Everything.” Then, “Please.”
After he gave his instructions, he said, “You’ll have your things in about half an hour. In the meantime—”
“Food,” she said. “I can see how this is going to unfold for us and I’m starved. How about you? Oh, wait, you already had your meal.” Her sarcasm dripped.
He returned her glare but he didn’t rise to the bait. He searched her gaze because he couldn’t believe she’d just been in a shoot-out but seemed so calm.
He touched the chain at his neck and frowned at her. What he sensed was something like a profound determination to see her mission through, no matter what. For this split second, despite his general dislike of humans, he almost respected her.
Maybe he didn’t understand her motivations, maybe she had some serious debts to pay, he didn’t know, but she’d shown cool under pressure, she’d gotten them both out of an impossible situation alive, and instead of falling apart, she pressed on, asking only for food.
He led the way to the kitchen. Some of his staff had been by while they’d taken their jaunt to La Nuit. He had cheese, fruit, and bread in the fridge, so he pulled them out and set them on the counter.
Lily took up a bar stool and started to eat.
She didn’t say anything, she didn’t look at him, she just scowled at something unseen and chomped on slices of apple.
* * *
Lily ate in silence. She felt no particular need to make small talk with a vampire. Anyway, she doubted Adrien would want to talk and she sure as hell didn’t feel like it.
She’d almost died tonight but felt strangely disconnected from that fact except for one thing, of course: her son.
The moment those two vampires had come into the room, guns in hand, she knew exactly what she meant to do and had positioned her hand on Adrien’s Glock, all the while feigning a full-blown freak-out.
She’d been right that her squeals and sobs would distract the men, including Adrien, long enough to fire a few shots. Adrien turning her into the wall had been the perfect maneuver since she could fire through his coat without alerting either of the assailants.
She glanced at him now. He cut a slab of cheese, laid it on a slice of French bread, and shoved the whole thing in his mouth. She was still surprised to see a vampire eating regular food. His gaze skated past her, into the living room. He appeared to be thinking hard, maybe about their next move.
“Wait a minute, why did you turn your back to the room?”
He glanced at her, brows lifted. “To shield you. It was an instinctive response, but useless. Given the nature of the blood-chains, if I’d died, you would have as well.”
“So you didn’t turn because I had your gun?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t know you’d taken it.”
“Huh.” She bit off another piece of apple and popped it in her mouth.
Josh liked apples and hated pears, couldn’t stand the grainy feel of them in his mouth. Two years had passed. What had he eaten in that time? What had he been doing? Had he been cared for well enough? Kiernan had said that Josh had a caregiver, a human woman, so apparently he’d wanted Josh in one piece, but why? Of all the children in their neighborhood who had been killed that night, why had her son been spared, and provided with a caregiver?
This was the big question she’d been unable to answer. She was almost positive that taking Josh hadn’t been random. She felt the purposefulness of it in every cell of her body.
Adrien reached forward and grabbed her wrist. “What are you thinking about? Right now? You feel sad to me.”
She released a heavy sigh and pulled her arm away from him. “That my son liked apples.”
“I’m sorry that your family died.”
She glanced up at him, chewing slowly. “It doesn’t change that vampires killed them.”
“No. It doesn’t.”
“Why are you staring at me?”
“I’m trying to understand you, that’s all.”
She shrugged and cut a chunk of cheese, sliding it onto her tongue from the back of her knife. “What’s the plan from here? I’m not sure I’d trust Rumy again, if I were you.”
“He wouldn’t have known what Hardesty was up to, but a casino in Arizona?”
“Your world seems hell-bent on exposing itself to my world. And it sure doesn’t seem to like you very much.”
“No, not much, at least not the parts intent on illegal and reprehensible transactions.”
She snorted.
“Oh, that’s right. We’re vampires, so there can’t be anything decent about my world.”
“Pretty much.”
“What do you base that on?”
“Oh, let’s see. Your pal Daniel, who’s been selling off property that belongs to your kind, Hardesty is a real peach, and you’ve already said that Rumy knows every slimy element to be found between Italy and Shanghai and all the way to New York. I have yet to meet a vampire I could admire. Then there’s you, happily demanding my blood like it belongs to you, but that’s a quality I’ve come to expect from your kind: Take, then maybe ask questions later.”
He cut another slab of cheese, planted it on more sourdough, and shoved it in his mouth. After chewing and swallowing he said, “You screamed a few times, if I remember, and you weren’t exactly in pain.”
She offered a half smile as she said, “Just like a man to make a big deal about his cock when he hasn’t got much else to offer.”
He rounded the bar and before she knew what he meant to do, he’d hauled her off her seat and pulled her against him. She tried to push out of his arms, but he was too damn strong. He started sucking on her neck and grinding his hips into her.
Damn the vampire!
The chain vibrated heavily against her throat. She could feel his desire like flames against her skin, and his lust ignited her own. But she struggled against all the sensations—of her incomprehensible desire for him, her lust, her need, which seemed to be multiplying as each hour met the next.
When he kissed her, she bit his lower lip, drawing blood.
He drew back, but his eyes had darkened and instead of releasing her, he settled in on her neck again, suckling and plucking, licking along her vein.
At some point her hands stopped pushing at him and instead her fingers kneaded the flesh of his arms, tugging at his biceps that flexed at her touch. He plastered himself against her, his hips undulating slowly. Her breathing grew shallow and her eyes closed; maybe they rolled back in her head.
When he kissed her this time, she let him, despite the blood on his lips.
His tongue dove deep as he rocked his pelvis against hers, the hard length of his cock rolling over her flesh, working her into a frenzy. Her moans filled the air.
She hated him, but she wanted him desperately.
She was about to suggest they return to the bedroom when he let her go. She fell back, almost making it onto the stool, but because her limbs had loosened she slid off and fell to the floor, landing on her butt.
She sat there, looking up at him.
He lifted a harsh eyebrow. “And sometimes, human, a cock is the only thing a woman wants.”