Night Fright was becoming Kyle’s second home. As he pulled into the club’s parking lot, taking the spot next to Arlo’s black truck, his chest swelled with pride. Soon, he’d be immortal.
Arlo nodded him through the club to a back room where Kyle plunked down on a white vinyl sofa that provided little give under his slight weight. With an upturned palm, he deferred to Arlo.
“We’ve overlooked a valuable resource,” Arlo said.
Kyle waited. If he played a guessing game with Arlo, he’d likely get smacked upside the head.
Arlo grinned. “Malcolm’s got a thing for Abby. Otherwise, he would never have agreed to this play. He’s been slippery as an eel for years, and now that we’ve almost got him, I’m getting impatient.” He perched on the corner of his desk, crossing his legs yoga-style. “I don’t want him to settle into a groove. He needs some incentive to bring out his true nature, and that’s where you come in.”
“Sorry, I’m not following.” Kyle clamped his hand over his mouth. He shouldn’t have interrupted Arlo.
Sneering at Kyle, Arlo continued. “Vampires are exceedingly jealous. If you make a move on Abby, Malcolm will react. He won’t be able to help himself. He’s tuned to her.”
“So, what do I do, kiss her in front of him?”
“No, just get her alone and make an overture. He’ll be able to sense it. He’ll appear.”
“Am I taking my life in my hands?” Kyle chuckled nervously.
“Nah, he won’t do anything overt, but it’ll get his juices pumping, and the more we can force him to feel his true nature, the more likely he’ll be to let his guard down in the play.”
“I’ve never come on to Abby,” Kyle said. “She’ll think it’s a joke.”
“It doesn’t matter what she thinks. Malcolm will buy it.” Arlo unfolded from his pretzel pose and landed on the floor without a sound.
Kyle grinned. He’d be that graceful … soon.
“She may be surprised by your come-on, but so what? She’s collateral damage. We won’t let her live once we have Malcolm.”
• • •
In spite of her niggling fears about Malcolm’s safety, Abby couldn’t stay away from him. Whether it was his vampire magnetism or his humanity that lured her, her sexual frustration was mounting exponentially. Tonight she was going to take charge of the situation.
She chose a hot pink cashmere sweater with a plunging V neckline. She would typically pair it with a sleeveless turtleneck, but tonight she layered it with a lacy camisole that allowed more than a hint of cleavage. Push-up bra. Thong. The long sweater hugged her butt, and she wore black tights to emphasize her long legs. Ankle-high boots with three-inch heels completed the ensemble. She pulled her hair back in a ponytail and secured it with a jeweled barrette. And she hoped to get her money’s worth out of the bikini wax … her first one ever … that she’d endured that afternoon. She spritzed herself with J’Adore by Christian Dior. Hey, if it’s good enough for Charlize Theron …
Arriving at Malcolm’s at seven P.M., she turned off her car’s engine and took a few deep breaths. She pulled down her visor mirror and batted her eyelashes. That new lash-lengthening mascara was a wonder.
Malcolm, in a heather gray sweater and charcoal gray slacks, met her at the door. His sweater sleeves were pushed up to his elbows (such gorgeous forearms), and he was barefoot. Abby supposed his feet didn’t get cold, or maybe they were always cold, and it didn’t bother him.
He smiled. “Incredible.” He looked her up and down. “You look … and smell … amazing.”
She decided to dive in while the night was young. “Are you ever planning to make a pass at me?”
His eyebrows shot up. “I’ve certainly thought about it.”
“How often have you thought about it?”
“Would every minute of every day suffice?”
“What’s stopping you?” She crossed her arms under her breasts and pushed them up into the deep V of her sweater.
“This is uncharted territory for me, Abby. I’ve never had a relationship — as a vampire.”
She touched his elbow, and then ran her hand up his arm, feeling his muscles tense beneath her fingers. “It can’t be that different. Making love is the same, right?”
“Yes — and no. Sex is the same, but I have a strong desire, overwhelming really, to taste your blood. It will take every ounce of my control to keep from biting you. I’d say that’s a major departure from what most people would consider a ‘normal’ relationship. And I have the ability to coerce you, but I won’t. This has to be a conscious decision for you.”
“You’re an honorable man, Malcolm. I trust you.” Honorable. Such an old-fashioned word, but it suited him.
“As much as I want you, it won’t be easy to restrain my instincts.”
“I’m ready to take that chance.” She pressed a hand to her heart. “I won’t pretend I’m not frightened. I’ve never walked on the wild side.”
“Wild isn’t what I had in mind. We’ll start slow.”
Her pulse raced like a hummingbird’s. She was taking a chance, probably the biggest chance of her life, but need overcame reason. “I’m in.”
“Are you absolutely sure?”
Abby nodded. The desire to be in his arms eclipsed her fear. She leaned into him, feeling the weight of his big body. He wrapped her in his arms, and everything else melted away. She tilted her chin, and he lowered his head. They kissed. He tasted fantastic, like her favorite smoky shiraz, but better. His thumb caressed the tender spot below her ear while his other hand cupped her head. Her tongue sought his, and he responded with longing and finesse, not too forceful, but not soft, either. It was the best kiss of her life, fraught with intention, and she trusted where he was going with it. The man she’d admired for years wanted her, and oh, she wanted him. Her toes curled.
When the perfect kiss ended, he held her shoulders and gazed at her with a final question in his eyes. She nodded yes, unable to speak. This was what she wanted. He ran his knuckles down her cheek, and then he walked to the mantel, lit a candle and handed the candlestick to her. “The bedroom’s upstairs, second door on the right. I’ll be up in a few minutes.”
The stairs creaked as Abby ascended. When she reached the top step, the reality of what she was about to do made her grab the banister. She looked down at Malcolm. “I’m not on birth control.”
“I thought you’d done your vampire research.” He smiled. “We can’t reproduce, and we can’t acquire or transmit disease.”
“Okay, then. We’re good.” Holy moley, this is really happening.
Entering the room Malcolm indicated, her eyes scanned the antique furnishings. She set the candlestick on the dresser. A four-poster bed with an heirloom quilt anchored the room. Next to it stood a washstand with a bowl and pitcher. Under the lace-curtained window, a little vanity languished. A length of fabric lay folded on the vanity stool. Abby felt drawn to pick up the fabric, and it unfurled to reveal a lovely nightgown. It was a sheer shift, floor length with its only adornment a row of crocheted flowers at the deeply scooped neckline. Shaking it gently to dispel wrinkles, the gown released the heavenly scent of lavender, and the fabric swirled like it had been set free. Something compelled her to put it on. Laying it on the bed, she peeled off her clothes, and then slipped on the cream-colored gown.
Her whole body tingled. She stood barefoot, gazing in the vanity mirror, when hands caressed her shoulders. She hadn’t heard Malcolm enter the room, and hers was the only reflection in the mirror. Her heart raced as she verified two more vampire characteristics; a soundless approach and no reflection. A tug loosened her ponytail from the barrette, and strong fingers massaged her temples and then snaked their way through her hair, cascading it around her shoulders.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered in her ear. “Seeing you in that gown — you can’t know what that does to me.”
She turned and looked up at him, inhaling his heady scent of spice and cloves. She ran her hands down his powerful chest. When his muscles tensed, the shock waves rippled through her body. She opened her lips to welcome his velvet tongue, and the world stopped spinning on its axis.
• • •
Malcolm wrenched his lips from Abby’s. With lightning speed and pent-up desire, he threw off his sweater, and then he remembered his promise to start slow. He ached to ravish her, but more than that, he needed to savor what they’d both longed for. He touched her mouth, her face, her hair, gently caressing and exploring. He pressed his forehead to hers and took a deep breath. Then he slowly unzipped his pants and let them drop. No boxers or briefs to remove.
He’d become accustomed to a constant erection in Abby’s presence, and now standing naked, knowing she would finally be his, an explosion of suppressed lust made his fangs extend. Retracting them took every ounce of his willpower.
He eased the gown over her head, and then swept the quilt off the bed. He picked her up and placed her on the antique bed. His cock brushed her naked hip as he stood next to her, and he closed his eyes as her hand caressed him. He reclined next to her on the cool bed linens, tracing the outline of her jaw with his fingers and continuing down her arm and hip, committing her body to memory. She was so beautiful. He brushed his fingers across her nipples, which immediately hardened at his touch.
He pulled her on top of him and stroked her back, pressing her breasts into his chest, heart-to-heart. He moved his hands down to her buttocks, spreading his fingers wide and cupping her there. Moving her hips in sensuous circles against his cock, he nibbled on her bottom lip.
She moaned, and then she reached down and embraced his shaft. He caught her wrists, trying to hold back, but her grip was firm and insistent. Her words came in a breathless rasp. “I need you inside me now.”
He slid full into her and lay motionless for a moment, letting her adapt to the length and breadth of him. He tilted her hips, encouraging her to sit up. Bending her knees tight against his hips, she straddled him, arching her back so that her nipples, flushed dark, jutted toward him as she thrust her head back. The light from the full moon outside his bedroom window cast a shadow of their entwined forms on the wall, and an owl signaled their coupling with a triumphant hoot.
Malcolm moved his hands to Abby’s thighs and opened her folds like a flower, circling her sensitive bud and capturing it between his thumbs.
She ran her hands up and down his body. Her eyes rolled back, and Malcolm knew she was close to the throes of her release. He could bite her now. Oh, God, he wanted to bite her. He could almost taste her sweet blood, and if he punctured her artery as she climaxed, she’d allow him to drink from her. He could feel that she would. But no, stop this madness, Malcolm. She trusts you. She honors you. He had to maintain control.
Shaking off his dark thoughts, he lifted her off his cock and moved her alongside him on the bed, her back to his chest. He ran his hand down the smooth porcelain of her back, and then lifted her leg high in the air. He positioned himself slowly, and then penetrated her sheath from behind. She took his cue and grasped her knee so that she was splayed wide, and he cupped her mound, his fingers dancing across her wet bud, which he pleasured to the point of no return. He felt her climax begin to pulse before she gave into it, and when she did, her entire body jerked with the spasms of her delight, which sent him over the edge. He exploded into her, riding the wave of his release until it finally subsided, and they collapsed together. Malcolm wrapped his arms tightly around her and breathed into her hair. “Abby.”
He’d never thought he could care so deeply for another woman.
Had he truly turned a corner by bringing Abby into his life?
What would Sarah think?