When the sun was high in the sky, Lucien lifted the door of the storage unit and ushered Callie out. She stood in the sunshine, blinking against its dazzling radiance and waiting until her eyes adjusted so she could see again.
“I need you to stay here,” Lucien said.
“Where are you going?”
“If the guard changed during the night, I have to get to them before they see us on camera and call the police. I’ll be right back.”
Before she could reply, he was gone in a blur of motion. Her hand went to her heart as she took a step back and gawked at the place where she last saw him. He was definitely doing a lot better than yesterday.
Shaking off her amazement over his speed, Callie returned to the storage unit and peered into the clear boxes labeled bedroom. When she spotted some clothing inside, she pulled down a couple of the boxes until reaching the ones she sought. She removed the lid and sifted through the clothes inside. She’d hoped to find something to wear, but it was all children’s clothes.
She put the lid back on the box and turned to examine the rest of them, but it was all sheets and blankets. She returned the boxed and retreated to the open doorway again.
She arrived there as Lucien returned. “Is everything okay?” she inquired.
“Yes. It was the same guard as last night. Apparently, he’s already left and come back, but his shift ends again soon.”
Callie nodded before gesturing to the unit behind her. “There’s nothing we can use for clothes.”
“We’ll go through some of the other units.”
“The poor guard is going to lose his job if we keep breaking into them.”
Lucien tilted his head to study her. “We’re running for our lives, and you’re concerned about his job?”
“Yes,” Callie replied more defensively than she intended. “He probably depends on this income to survive. Without it, he could lose his home or starve.”
Without thinking, Lucien ran his fingers down her cheek. Her eyes widened, but he couldn’t stop himself from touching her as he caressed the striking contours of her face before gripping her nape. He knew many kindhearted women, but for some reason, her kindness struck him as good instead of annoying.
“He won’t lose his job,” he assured her.
“You can’t know that.”
“No, I can’t, but I’m going to make sure you survive.”
Callie blinked at his words and the fervent tone accompanying them that made her almost believe they would make it through this. A part of her did believe it, but the other part kept waiting for those monsters to show up, drag them back to that place, and destroy them.
She clasped the hand causing butterflies to erupt in her belly and pressed it against her cheek. “We’re going to survive.”
And then, realizing she was holding the hand of a vampire, she released it. He’d hurt her, but she was beginning to realize she liked Lucien.
Maybe she was going insane, or maybe she was an idiot, but she trusted him and had a lot of faith in him. She believed he would do everything he could to get them out of here; she hoped it would be enough. There was a small army of those things, and it was only the two of them.
“Did you call your friends?” she asked.
“No.” He wasn’t going to stay away from her any longer than necessary, even if it was for a five-minute phone call. “I’ll call them before we leave.”
“Did you ask the guard where we are?”
“Camden.”
“I’ve never been here before,” she murmured like it mattered.
“Neither have I, and I don’t plan to stay much longer. Come on, let’s see if we can find some clothes.”
They searched through five more units before uncovering clothes that would work for both of them and sneakers that fit him. Then they trudged to the bathroom.
He waited while she used it first. When she emerged, her black hair was wet as it dangled over her shoulder, and her face was pink from scrubbing it. Her formfitting, red T-shirt hugged her curves, but she’d rolled up the bottom of the jeans to keep them from dragging on the ground.
She looked young and innocent when she lifted her face, closed her eyes, and smiled as the sun’s rays spilled over her face. She was enchanting. Desire bloomed in him, and he shifted uncomfortably when his cock stirred.
Now was not the time for such things, but his lust continued to rise as he took in her beauty. He longed to touch her again, but he restrained himself from stroking her cheek once more. He clearly recalled her silken skin beneath his hands, and he was afraid that if he touched her again, he wouldn’t stop.
She took a deep breath before opening her eyes. Her striking eyes met his before she glanced nervously away.
“I won’t take long,” he said.
“I’ll be here.”
Lucien slipped past her and into the bathroom. Using the paper towels and hand soap, he scrubbed at his flesh and washed his hair the best he could. With his head bent beneath the sink, he watched the dirt flowing down the drain while he scrubbed at his scalp.
He peeled off his filthy jeans, threw out his boxer shorts, and washed all over before tugging on the new pair of jeans. They were too short on him and hung low on his waist, but not many pants would fit him right now.
When he finished dressing, he stepped back to inspect himself. His eyes remained red; it would probably take a couple more feedings before the color vanished, but he’d washed the dirt from his flesh, he smelled ten thousand times better, and his fingers didn’t catch in his drying hair when he ran them through it.
He was still underweight and weaker, but he felt and looked a lot better. He would get them out of the city and somewhere safe, and once he had access to a steady supply of blood, he would feed more and work his way back to full strength.
His chest and shoulders were still damp, so he didn’t bother pulling on the shirt. He would dry as they walked to the guard booth and pull it on before they left. He draped the black T-shirt over his arm and walked out the door.
Callie twisted her hands and chewed on her bottom lip as she waited outside the bathroom door. Her eyes swung back and forth as she listened for the hum of the golf cart. Lucien had told her to call him if anyone came, but she didn’t feel like dealing with the guard.
The door to the bathroom opened, and she turned toward him. She started to speak, but the words clogged in her throat when she spotted him.
He was still gaunt, but with the layer of grime removed from him, she saw every detail of the lines carving his abdomen. No one should have abs that perfect or mouthwatering. Never mind bouncing a quarter off them, a brick would launch off those things.
And if those abs weren’t enough enticement, a trail of dark blond hair led from his bellybutton to the sagging waistband of his jeans… jeans that had a noticeable bulge in the front of them.
She blinked as she tried to tear her attention away from the mouthwatering sight of him, but her fingers itched to run over those broad shoulders and chest before dipping into the hollows of those abs while she memorized every inch of him.
She hated the complete darkness of the storage unit, but she’d prefer not to see how attractive this vampire was. Slowly, she forced her gaze from his abs to his chest and finally to his face.
His reddened eyes met and held hers as she gazed at the chiseled contours of his face. Now that he was clean, she could tell the scruffy beard covering his square jaw was a dark blond color, but she still wasn’t sure about the color of his hair as it remained wet.
Behind the scruffy beard was the temptation of his mouth. His lips were full, but the bottom one was slightly fuller, and the upper one…. Why did she suddenly want to bite it?
Callie shook her head as a tumult of emotions assaulted her. She couldn’t be attracted to a man—no, a vampire who willingly admitted to loving every minute of killing things, even if those things deserved it.
She’d already been in one fucked-up relationship; she was not getting into another one, even if that meant staying single for the rest of her life. Although, after everything that happened, she was beginning to suspect her life might be a lot shorter than she anticipated.
Pushing back her sudden unease, her eyes settled on the fading bites on his shoulders and arms. Without thinking, she rested her fingers over one of them.
“They fed on you?” she asked.
Self-disgust filled Lucien as he glanced at the marks. “No.”
“Then—”
“I did it to myself.”
When Callie’s eyes flew back up to his, he saw the confusion in their beautiful depths.
“I was starving. I needed to bite, to bleed, to taste blood. It’s—” He couldn’t hold her gaze as he spoke. “—it’s not something I’m proud of.”
Horror churned inside her as his words sank in. She couldn’t imagine the desperation that would compel someone to do that to themselves. Given everything she’d witnessed, she was beginning to realize it was a miracle he’d retained enough control to get them out of those tunnels.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
“For what?”
“Saving me.”
Uncomfortable with her gratitude, Lucien shifted. “We have to go.”
She ignored her impulse to clasp his hand as they walked through the storage units and toward the entrance. They were almost to the guard booth when he tugged the shirt over his head. Disappointment filtered through her, but it was definitely for the best.
When they stopped outside the guard booth, the man turned to look at them. He didn’t seem surprised to see them standing there.
“I need to use your phone,” Lucien said.
The guard grabbed the black phone sitting on the counter and pushed it toward him.
“Do you have a cell phone?” Lucien asked.
“No.”
Lucien kept his irritation over this concealed as he pulled the phone closer and lifted it from the receiver. He started dialing the last number he remembered for Ronan and waited as the phone rang. Usually, Ronan would have gotten rid of the phone with this number by now, but Lucien suspected Ronan kept it in the hopes of receiving this call.
He’d almost finished dialing when he spotted three Savages emerge from the alley between the buildings across the way. They stayed to the shadows, but they were out in the day, which meant they weren’t as far gone as some of their brethren and the sun didn’t bother them as much.
And as he watched them, their eyes found his.