Declan woke to Consuela’s warm body wrapped around him. Her leg was over his hip, her breasts pressed against his back. Her arm around his waist. She kissed his shoulder blade. “Evening, cher rouge.”
He rolled and caressed up her ribs. “Hey, dove. I take it there’s a plan tonight.”
She nodded, then took his mouth in a kiss as she pulled his hip with her leg, drawing his length against her.
Humming, he rolled to his back, pulling her on top. She rocked, taking him in as she kissed him deeper, moving over him. There was a certain desperation in the act.
He caught her face, pushing her back gently, but she held tighter, pushing their pace faster as she nibbled at his bottom lip.
Pleasure rippled through him. He went along with her desire, cupping her breasts, squeezing.
She moaned deep in her throat, thrusting her tongue against his.
Declan lifted her and carried her to the wall where he took her hard, tearing his mouth from hers to capture one sensitive peak. He bit down, not breaking skin. She cried out in pleasure, her nails cutting past skin.
Her walls started to ripple and he kept his pace steady, riding through the burning pleasure. She came, and he continued, faster, deeper, as he took her other nipple, laving at the bud. Best damned taste in the world.
“Bite,” she cried. “Do it.”
Lifting his head, he bit her throat. Her blood tasted like lightning laced shiraz. She cried out, her body climbing toward release again. He pushed faster and his cock jerked, then he came with her as shadows flowed through the room in a wave and the voices of the dead rose up around them.
He pressed his forehead to hers, looking into her eyes. “So beautiful, dove.”
Panting, a smile pulled at her lips. “Needed you so damned bad.”
His fingers grazed just inside her pelvis and she flinched. “What’s this?” He drew back to look at the new flowers and runes. He smiled as he found his initials in runes.
She blushed a pretty shade of pink. “Added to the tattoo.”
He ran his fingers over the raw skin and healed with a whisper. “Fallon’s work?”
“She did the tattoo to begin with. Figured she was the best to add to it.”
“What else is going on in that beautiful head of yours?” he drawled.
“Tonight might be hard. You get to meet my only remaining relative.”
“Your uncle?”
“He’s downstairs.” Pink raced across her cheeks as she squeezed her thighs around him. “Probably should have warned you.”
He laughed. “I’m sure Amelia heard as well.”
She lifted a shoulder. “Poor kid. We should get ready. We have a long night ahead of us.”
He nodded. “Care to explain?”
“Downstairs. We don’t have long, but I couldn’t resist you.” Her eyes slowly shut.
He captured her face, letting her feet find the ground. “Stop. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it.”
She nodded. “We should hurry.”
Frowning, he went to the shower. “Join me? I promise to keep my hands to myself.”
“Briefly. I worked up a sweat, thanks to you.” She nodded to the door. “I left Amelia a note about our guest. Hopefully she read it before heading down.”
“Why?”
“My uncle can be rather intimidating when you aren’t expecting him. He’s big, loud, and quite boisterous.”
“Interesting. You’re none of those things, except when I’m inside you.”
She smiled. “Oh, I can be loud, but usually, I try to get things done without too much fanfare. Except when I met Erik.” Sighing, she pushed him away. “It’s amazing he doesn’t think I’m a grade A bitch.”
“He obviously thinks highly of you, now let’s get down there so we can put a stop to Yuri and all these killings.”
* * * *
Earlier, Consuela called her uncle to explain the previous week. He took it all in stride and seemed happy about her and Declan finally being together. Then again, he heard all about her longing for the man and had wanted to meet him himself.
Leo had loved many times over his three hundred years. Always human women who eventually aged and died while he remained young.
Shaking off the notion, she dressed, reapplied her makeup, and went downstairs. Her uncle smirked. He was albino, same as her. He’d been born in the republic of Saint-Dominique, what was Haiti before the revolution. Consuela’s father bought slaves when it was still legal, before New Orleans was New Orleans, and before the United States bought it in the Louisiana Purchase. Her father brought both her mother, Sarafian, and her uncle Leonaldo. Both were descendent of African slaves. They were twins, and both albino. Apparently, her father had a sister who was also albino, and happened to be a Crimson Witch. All of Consuela’s other abilities came from her mother and uncle.
His deep voice was heavily accented. “There you are. And where is your strapping man?” One pale eyebrow arched.
“He’ll be down shortly. Has Amelia come down?”
“No. Though she’s awake.”
“I should talk to her briefly. Be nice to Declan. I have every intention of keeping him.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll behave.”
Consuela gave him a dubious look and ran upstairs. She tapped on Amelia’s door. Amelia opened it a second later with a tight smile. “I wasn’t sure if I should go down without you.”
“This is your home for as long as you want to stay. Declan already told you that much. And my uncle can seem scary, but he’s typically a very sweet man, as long as you don’t piss off anyone he considers a friend.”
Amelia ducked her head. “He’s not opposed to vampires?”
Consuela laughed. “No, certainly not. He has ability with the dead, much like I do. Don’t worry, he won’t use that against you without ample reason.”
“Like the night I was possessed.”
“No one hurt you, other than your brief death, and that was necessary to rid the demon and keep you alive.”
Her face twisted in a grimace. “Yeah, sorry. Still getting used to the undead thing.”
Consuela chuckled. “Honestly, vampires aren’t exactly dead. Yes, you briefly died, but your situation was a little different. We had to remove enough blood the demon fled.”
“I’ll be down in a moment.”
“Are you worried about something?”
She shook her head. “Other than waking up feeling like I need Yuri, no. And that desire to find him again scares the hell out of me. Because I know I can’t trust him, yet I cr-crave him.” She shuddered.
“We’ll fix that.”
She nodded, and Consuela stepped into the hall.
Declan closed the distance. “That lipstick…mmm.” He pressed a kiss below her ear. “Don’t want to mess it up.”
“Don’t start,” she whispered. “Come down and meet my uncle.”
She took his hand and brought him downstairs.
Leo stood, a smile on his face and humor in his eyes. He made his way to the stairs. “Never expected someone so ginger to steal Consuela’s heart.”
“That so?” Declan squeezed her hand. “We were drawn to each other from the moment we laid eyes on one another.”
“English countryside. Interesting. And you have magic in your blood still.” His head cocked. “Druid. Why the silver?” He pointed to Declan’s temple.
“Long story. Though the magic had been gone a long time, Consuela brought it back when we traded blood the first time.”
He grinned. “Then you’re meant to be. That’s a relief.”
Declan glanced at Consuela and back.
Leo chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m here to help you all with this vampire issue. Yuri’s been a very naughty boy.” He sighed. “I had hoped you wouldn’t get mixed up with him again, but perhaps it’s best you be the one to take him down.”
Amelia sniffled.
Leo looked up. “The girl who was bound through magic to him and was briefly infested by Alkirran.”
Consuela and her uncle already discussed the possession. He hadn’t realized either, which made her feel better about it all, considering he had far more experience with the possessed than she had, and he had seen Everaud many times over the years.
Amelia ducked her gaze.
He chuckled. “Sorry, little one. I know you must be wanting to run to the boy, but trust me, he has a black soul, even before Daloisha entered the mix. He has a few good strands, but the rest is dark as can be.”
Her head tipped. “Why do you say that?”
“I believe he was the reason Consuela’s brother got involved with the demon in the first place. Only wish I had noticed myself, and we wouldn’t be having this problem now. For that I am sorry.”
“Where are you from?” Amelia asked timidly.
Smiling, Consuela took a seat. Declan joined her.
Leo answered. “Saint-Domingue. You’d know it as Haiti. It was long ago. But my sister fell for Consuela’s father. And after I scared the gods into him, he decided to take her away from the plantation and start his own family business. He had much success in good old New Orleans before it was the city you know today. Hell, before it was even an American town.”
Amelia took a seat across from Leo. “Really? You were a slave?”
Light danced through his green-tinted brown eyes “Yes, I was. And don’t you mind that none. The Bordeaux’s were a good family who treated us much better than most of those families ever did. I think they knew we were special, that we should be feared, but their family was something special too.”
Amelia’s eyes lit up. “You’re staying awhile, right? I want to know more.”
“I’ll be in town, though I have a room at the bed and breakfast.”
Declan looked from Consuela, to her uncle, and back. “I’m fascinated by your history.”
Consuela turned toward Amelia. “You’ll be okay here tonight?”
She smiled. “It’s okay for my family to come over, right?”
Declan nodded. “Of course. And for now, we’re not allowing you to leave. Just to be safe.”
Amelia shook her head. “Not going anywhere. Don’t want to. Not ready to be around people. Other than you all.”
“You going to be okay with your parents here?”
She nodded. “I’ll make sure I drink plenty of blood first.”
Consuela smiled. “You’ll be fine.” She turned to her uncle. “We’re supposed to meet them in Seattle. You ready?”
Leo nodded.
Declan hopped up. “Let’s go then.” He turned to Amelia. “You’re welcome to anything in the house.”
Leo followed Consuela and Declan out. At the car, Consuela moved to take the back seat.
“Take the front,” Leo murmured.
She did, and she moved the seat up, knowing Leo needed room for his legs. Consuela turned in her seat. “You sure?”
He laughed. “Yes, very. Never been in the Northwest, and figure you’ll navigate better than I do.”
Declan smirked over his shoulder. “GPS is a lovely thing. And thank you for coming out to help. Amelia is rightly befuddled between her emotions and whatever bond Yuri forged with her.”
“Hopefully Yuri’s death will wash away his spell.”
“I’m sure it will. Mine faded with enough distance. Though I think I resisted it better than her.”
He sighed. “I remember when Yuri first came to Orleans. He wanted a fresh start and a new life without the oppressive government taking everything from them. He was the only one of his family to survive the trip.”
Consuela sighed. “Don’t remind me.”
“You haven’t called him a friend in nearly a century.”
“Because I saw what he did to those vampires. They may have been the bad guys, but what he did made him as horrible as they were.”
Declan took her hand. “You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
She squeezed his hand.
“The man is right. You’ve never sunk to Yuri’s level. You won’t. Stop believing the worst of yourself,” Leo murmured.
“We should go.”