Bit the Jackpot (Vegas Vampires #2)(18)
Author: Erin McCarthy

This was not going to go over big with her.

Seamus wondered if there was a way to convince her he was right that didn’t involve tears or screaming.

He’d much prefer it involve orgasms, and one for him, too, this time.

But the look on her face when she stomped her way into the dining room convinced him he was going to have to try an alternate form of persuasion initially. One that didn’t involvehim letting her feed off him. He still couldn’t believe he had done that.More than once. It was totally against the rules and completely unnecessary. He had an entire fridge of bagged blood he could be giving her. Instead, he was slitting his wrist and letting her take from him because it gave him immense pleasure to feel her drawing on him, to see the ecstasy on her face, to feel like if he gave her his older, more powerful blood, it would somehow make up for the guilt he had.

And it really bothered him that she kept insisting his blood tasted bad. A small, illogical part of him didn’t want her to taste mortal blood from a bag, decide it was delicious, and disdain his offerings. Right now she needed him, wanted him.

And he needed counseling. He’d lost his ever- lovin’ undead mind.

"What are you doing?" she asked, peering over his shoulder.

"Just checking e-mail, verifying Ethan’s schedule for the week, checking the election polls."Thinking about her.

"So you really are Ethan’s campaign manager?"

"Yes."

"How old are you?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. She’d changed into clean jeans and a red T-shirt that hugged her very impressive br**sts.

"Three hundred and seventy-one last April."

"Are you Irish?"

"Yes. Are you Korean?" He wanted to know who Cara was, her likes, dislikes, what made her tick. They were going to be living together for a while, and it was important they talk, find some common ground.

"A quarter Korean.The other three fourths, who knows, something European."She gestured to the very chest he’d been ogling with a rueful look. "No Asian woman has a chest like this naturally."

"And yours is? Natural?" That pleased him more than it should.

She leaned against the table, dogs hovering around her ankles. "Yes. Not that it’s any of your business.

"I need to call my grandmother’s nursing home and give them this number. My grandma is pretty far gone with dementia, and I want them to know how to reach me."

"Sure, I understand. I can call the nursing home tomorrow if you have trouble staying awake past sunrise." Seamus pushed his chair back from the table and crossed his leg over his knee. "Anything else you want to know?"

"How did you become a vampire?"

That was easy enough. "I was an Irish farmer until Cromwell. Then I defied my father and joined the rebellion against the English. I was a good soldier, until I met Ethan. He ran his sword through me. Then for whatever reason, he pulled me off that field and gave me this life back."

"So it’s his fault you died? And he felt guilty and made you a vampire?"

"Yes." He had always been grateful to Ethan for that. War was war and by all rights he should have died.

"Hmmm I see a pattern here. Sounds exactly like what you did with me."

Where was Freud when you needed him?"Maybe."

"So give me the book of rules. I want to study all this and go home. I don’t know how I’m going to go to school, since there aren’t any night classes, but I want to be in my own apartment at least. And I can’t be gone for more than two weeks at work or they’ll replace me."

Her hand was out. Seamus stared at her in disbelief. "Cara, I don’t have a written manual for vampirism. The rules are verbal for the vast majority of us. There are hard copies, but only the ancients and the president have access to them."

Cara crossed her arms. "How am I supposed to know if I’m doing it wrong or right?"

"I’ll tell you."

"I don’t want to be with you," she said, her teeth grinding together.

"Sorry." He meant that.Sort of. "But that’s the way it is."

She made a hideous noise and threw her arms up in the air. "You’re like a block of wood. You’reimpenetrable . Your expression never changes. You always look vaguely annoyed. Even when I’m you know"—her voice dropped down to normal tones— "you don’t even react. You don’t try to have sex with me. Not that I want you to. But you don’t even try. Are you g*y?"

"No!" This was why he avoided women. They were freaking crazy. How could she not notice his erection? How could she not see his drool when he looked at her? And why did she want topenetrate him in the first place? She didn’t even seem to like him.

"I am not g*y. And I don’t try to have sex with you because I don’t want to take advantage of you when you’re confused and adjusting."

"I’m confused?"

"You’re not?" Was she saying she wanted to have sex with him? Seamus felt an erection spring up of nowhere.

"I don’t think so." She chewed her bottom lip.

Very convincing." Uhh what are you in school for?" When in doubt—confusion, cluelessness ,utter know-nothingness—change the subject.

Cara frowned. "I’m in veterinarian school. I intended to be an animal doctor, though this has the potential to seriously screw that up."

Well, that explained the fur menagerie. "Maybe you can take some of your classes online." Seamus loved the Internet. It was the best invention since electricity.

"I hope so."

Then to his utter horror, she gave a sniffle.

"I’ve worked so hard dancing at night, classes and studying all day " Her words wobbled and her lip trembled.

Oh, crap. "Cara, I’m sorry. I really am. I’ll help you figure it out. We’ll get it all worked out and everything will be fine." Or he’d impale himself. He couldn’t stand to see the look of unhappi-ness on her face, knowing this wasall his fault.

She pressed her mouth with her palm and took several breaths like she was getting herself under control. "Why did you approach me last night? Was it to feed off me?"

"Well." He should have known he’d be called to the mat for this sooner or later. Honesty seemed like the wisest course. That’s what he always told Seamus when campaigning, just come clean and apologize or it will bite you in the ass later.

"Normally we discourage live feeding from mortals. I haven’t live-fed in a few hundred years. But last night I saw you dancing. I was attracted to you, to the way you move, the way you understand your own body." He felt hard just remembering. It didn’t help that her eyes were dilating, that he could feel sexual tension vibrating between them harder, faster, and louder than that little toy of hers could ever manage. "I wanted to seduce you. That was my primary goal."