Bound By Blood
“Listen, Katy, I don’t expect you to understand this, but I was brought up in a different era, a time when men didn’t touch their brides until the wedding night.”
“Are you saying men and women were all virgins back then? Because I don’t believe that for a minute.”
“Of course not. But men went to prostitutes before they were married. And some long after. I guess I’m more old-fashioned than I thought,” he muttered ruefully.
“All right,” she said with an exaggerated sigh of exasperation. “I’ll stop trying to seduce you. But, mister, you’d better be worth the wait!”
They went looking at churches the following night. Zack and Kaitlyn sat in the backseat of the Porsche, stealing kisses, while Drake drove to the first church.
“This one is beautiful,” Elena remarked.
“And very old,” Drake said as they approached the entrance. He glanced at Zack over his shoulder. “I never thought to ask. Are churches a problem for you?”
“No.”
With a nod, Drake opened the carved front door and stepped inside. Elena, Kaitlyn, and Zack followed on his heels.
It was a lovely old church, with arched ceilings and stained-glass windows. Candles burned on either side of the high altar. Baskets of fresh flowers, undoubtedly left over from a recent wedding, or perhaps a funeral, filled the air with a sweet fragrance. The wooden pews glowed with a patina of age.
“I love it,” Kaitlyn said, glancing around. “Zack?”
“If you like it, I like it.”
“Any point in looking anywhere else?” Elena asked.
“No.” Kaitlyn shook her head. “I want to be married here.”
“All right, then,” Elena said cheerfully. “I’ll call tomorrow and make the necessary arrangements.”
Drake and Elena left the church, their heads together.
Zack caught Kaitlyn by the hand when she would have followed.
“What?” She looked up at him. “You don’t want to get married here?”
“I just wanted to kiss my bride. Do you mind?”
“What a silly question.” She moved into his arms, went up on her tiptoes, and pressed her lips to his. “Your bride,” she murmured, smiling up at him. “I like the sound of that. Just think, soon I’ll be Mrs. Zackary Ravenscroft.”
“Not soon enough,” he growled.
Chapter 38
The ringing of his cell phone brought Zack instantly awake. Sitting up, he grabbed the cell from the nightstand and checked the display.
“Scherry. What’s wrong?”
“Zack! The club . . .”
“What about it?”
“It’s gone.”
“Gone? What the hell are you talking about?”
“Someone burned the place down early this morning. There’s nothing left.”
He frowned as he considered her words. “Are you saying it wasn’t an accident? That someone did it deliberately?”
“Yes. The fire department said someone broke in shortly after dawn and torched the place. The fireman I talked to said it was the work of a pro.”
“Did anybody get hurt?”
“No. The club was empty.”
“All right. What time is it there?”
“Six P.M.”
He grunted softly. Romania was ten hours ahead of Nevada. “All right. I’ll be there sometime tomorrow night. Reserve me a room at Harrah’s under an alias. Get one for yourself, too. I’ll call you when I get there.”
“Who do you think did this?”
“I’m not sure, but I’ve got a pretty good idea. Tell Walls and Lautner to lay low until they hear from me. That goes for you, too.”
“All right, Zack. I’ll see you tomorrow night. And Zack . . . be careful.”
“You, too, kid.”
Zack closed the phone and tossed it on the nightstand. He sat there a minute, lost in thought. There was no way to prove it, but he would bet his last dollar that Nadiya was behind the fire. She might not have lit the match, but he’d bet she knew who did.
He had no sooner ended the call than Kaitlyn opened the door and peeked inside. “Zack?”
“What are you doing up?”
“I heard your phone ring. . . .”
“Come on in, nosy, and close the door.”
His gaze moved over her as she tiptoed toward him. Clad in a sleeveless long white gown that fluttered around her ankles, she looked like a raven-haired apparition as she glided across the floor toward him.
“I’m not nosy,” she said defensively. “But good news doesn’t come at four in the morning.”
“You’re right about that.” He patted the bed, inviting her to join him. “Somebody burned down the casino this morning.”
She stared at him, her eyes wide. “That’s terrible! Wait a minute. Are you saying someone did it deliberately?”
“Right the first time. Any guesses on who did it?”
“You don’t think Nadiya . . .”
“Who else?”
“But why? She doesn’t know you killed Daryn and Marius.”
“I think she’s got a pretty good idea that I had something to do with Daryn’s death.”
“So, you think she’s in Tahoe?”
“I don’t know, but I intend to find out. I’m going home tomorrow.”
“How long will you be gone?”
“As long as it takes. I need to talk to the fire department, find out what they know. Get in touch with my insurance company. See about getting the mess cleaned up. Call the architect who built it the first time.”
“But . . . we’re getting married next Saturday.”
“Right. How do you feel about getting married in Tahoe?”
She blinked at him, and then shrugged. “I guess it doesn’t matter where we get married, as long as we get married. But . . . what about my mom and dad?”
“They can come with us. Hell, the whole family can come along.”
“Our marriages are usually private affairs, with just the immediate family present.” Of course, she’d already strayed from tradition by insisting on flowers and a church wedding.
“Really?”
Kaitlyn nodded. Weddings among her kind were not the romantic affairs of books and movies, since most marriages were arranged by the parents of the bride and groom. There was no music, no flowers, no reception afterward. At the Fortress, marriages were solemnized by the Master of the Coven. She wasn’t sure if that was legal in Nevada, but it didn’t matter. Wherever they were, her father would perform the ceremony.
She made a soft sound of contentment when Zack drew her into his arms. “I can’t wait to be your wife.”
“I’m kinda looking forward to that myself.” He hugged her close, his tongue sliding over her lower lip, slipping inside to mate with hers.
She was like a flame in his arms, igniting his desire, burning away all his good intentions. Her hands moved over his shoulders and down his arms, testing the strength of his biceps, then slipping under his T-shirt, her fingernails raking his chest, his back, sliding down to the waistband of his sweats. Every touch aroused him more.
“Katy . . .”
She covered his mouth with hers, swallowing his protest.
With a low groan, he surrendered to the need that would no longer be denied. Taking her in his arms, he kissed her fervently, his desire growing as his tongue dueled with hers. He took his mouth from hers only long enough to pull her nightgown over her head. He stared at her, speechless. She was beautiful from head to foot. Her skin was lightly tanned and perfect, her waist narrow, her hips nicely rounded, her legs long and shapely. He quickly rid himself of his T-shirt and sweats, then stretched out beside her.
“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” he asked.
“You are.” Kaitlyn rose on one elbow, her stomach fluttering as she admired his muscular arms and chest, his long legs and flat belly. “Definitely beautiful,” she murmured.
“You think so?” Slipping an arm around her, he buried his face in her cleavage. “So soft,” he murmured. “So warm.”
A needy moan rose in her throat as he nuzzled her breast. “Zack . . .”
He drew her into his arms, molding her body to his. The gentle abrasion of skin against skin aroused him still more. But it was the scrape of her teeth against his neck that carried him past the point of no return. Pleasure engulfed him as she drank. Only a taste, but it was enough. It heightened his desire and his thirst, made him forget everything but his need for this one particular woman above all others.
She turned her head to the side, offering him her throat. And he was lost.
Her musky scent filled his nostrils as his fangs pierced her tender flesh. She moaned softly, her hands clutching his shoulders as he rose over her. She cried out with mingled pleasure and pain as his body merged with hers.
He held her close for a moment, showering her with kisses while her body adjusted to his.
She writhed beneath him, urging him on, her hands caressing him as he moved deep inside her. She was silk and satin in his arms.
Kaitlyn clung to him, holding him so tightly it seemed as if they had melted into one another. Two made one, she thought, and felt the bond between them grow stronger even as tension built up within her.
She cried his name, desperate for release.
“Hang on, darlin’,” he said, his voice husky.
One soul-shattering kiss. One last thrust, and they tumbled over the edge to paradise.
Kaitlyn spiraled slowly back to reality. Never before had she felt so complete. So content. So utterly happy.
Opening her eyes, she saw Zack watching her intently. She smiled drowsily. “Wow.”
He arched one brow. “Wow?”
She kissed his chin. “It was worth the wait.”
“I’m sorry I waited so long,” he said, and then grunted softly. “So much for all my good intentions.”
Propping herself up on her elbow, she traced his lips with the tip of her finger. He had a remarkable mouth, she thought, capable of doing remarkable things. “I’m sorry for seducing you.”