Bit the Jackpot (7 page)

Without moving, the dog barked twice, which Seamus decided was the canine equivalent of "Fuck you."

He really didn't want to use force with Cara's animals. With his strength and speed, he could wrestle them into submission, but he didn't like getting rough. He had enjoyed raising dogs in the eighteenth century. He liked them, and usually they liked him. Cara's dogs were like her—they wanted him to go to hell.

When he took another step forward, the one dog growled at him and bared his teeth.

"Mine are bigger than yours, buddy," Seamus told him and flashed his own fangs.

If a dog could frown, this one was doing it. Its brow furrowed and then it skirted around the doorway and shot down the hall toward the bedroom.

"Damn. I scared it."

At a loss, Seamus glanced over at the door. He smelled vampire. There was a knock, then he heard Ethan.

"It's me, open the door."

He did and Ethan stared at him for a second, assessing his appearance. One brow rose. "Need some help?"

"Yes. These animals are psychotic." He stepped back to let Ethan in, glad for reinforcements.

"What do we have?"

"Two Labs who think I'm the devil, an obnoxious Chihuahua who thinks he's the devil, and two cats who really are the devil."

Ethan fought a grin.

"What?" Searaus turned, unlatched the smallest crate, and lifted the Chihuahua off the table one-handed. Trying to be gentle but firm, he rammed it into the cage and slammed the door shut. "Just cool it, Satan."

"Nothing." Ethan went into the kitchen, sending the other dog streaking out into the living room. It spotted Seamus, panicked, and vaulted down the hallway toward his companion. "It's just nice to see you taking an interest in a woman again," Ethan called as he opened cabinets in Cara's kitchen and closed them again.

This was not interest in a woman. This was insanity. "Cara is not a woman. She is a mistake I made that I'm going to pay for indefinitely. I'm already paying." He curled his lip at the brown Chihuahua, whose little sausage body quivered in indignation. "To the tune of two hundred and thirty bucks and five furry pains in the arse."

His native brogue tended to increase when he was annoyed. At the moment, he sounded like he'd just stepped out of the potato field. "And what the hell are you doing?" The can opener was whirring in the kitchen. He headed for the doorway. "Last time I checked, you don't eat solids."

"Tuna," Ethan said, holding up a can.

"That smells disgusting." Like rotting corpse. Bad blood. Sweaty men. All mixed together.

"Cats love it."

And to prove his point, both cats appeared out of nowhere and rubbed against Ethan's legs.

Annoyed, Seamus said, "Aw, isn't that cute? You and your two kitties. Bet your wife would like a cat for Christmas."

"Over my dead body," Ethan said.

They looked at each other and laughed.

Ethan shoved the can of food into the open crate and both cats leapt onto the coffee table and straight in. He latched the door closed. "Three down, two to go."

Seamus rubbed his temples and gave a rueful shake of his head. "How in hell did I get myself into this?"

"I think its called lust."

Heading down the hall, Seamus called back, "I think it's called stupidity."

Then he stepped into Cara's bedroom and almost had a heart attack. The dogs were crouched down on the purple throw rug, but he barely spared them a glance. What had caught his attention was the bed. It was big, white wrought iron, with a bunch of material draped over it from a hook in the ceiling, making it look sexy and exotic, like Cara. It was unmade, the lavender sheets rumpled and shoved aside, and the whole room smelled like…woman. Soft and floral and alluring. There was a red bra tossed on the floor, a pair of jeans bunched on an easy chair, and various lotions and makeup scattered across her dresser.

But what stopped him dead in his tracks, robbed him of all breath and all coherent thought, was the thing lying in the middle of her bed, like she'd tossed it aside negligently after getting up.

"What… what am I looking at?" he asked Ethan, wanting confirmation.

"Where?" Ethan came up behind him and looked in the room. Seamus knew the minute he saw it because his posture stiffened. "Holy crap. Uh, well, shit. It's a vibrator."

That's what Seamus had thought. He ran his fingers through his hair and tried not to stare at it. "You were definitely right," he said, feeling a little weak, like he'd lost all of his brain blood to his massive erection. "It's lust."

"Why don't I get the dogs while you stand there and drool."

Seamus absently glanced down at the Labs, reaching for the nearest one and scratching the backs of his ears, digging his fingers into the warm fur and flesh, "Why, Ethan? Why did I have to pick a stripper? Someone this…" He nodded to the purple vibrator. Damn, that was unbelievable. It even matched the rest of her bedroom. "This sensual. Confident in her own sexuality."

She was going to eat him alive.

"I think you answered your own question. And the dog seems to have warmed up to you."

Seamus glanced down at the dog in surprise. Its eyes were half-closed, tongue lolling out of its mouth in ecstasy as Seamus rubbed and scratched his head. "Well, at least somebody likes me."

The red bra leaped out at him again when he gave another wary glance around the room. "I guess I should pack some of her things. I can't let her leave my place until I can trust she understands how to live in her new life, according to our rules."

"Get the dog in the crate while he's being so mellow and I'll pack a bag."

Seamus frowned. "I don't think you should be touching Cara's clothes." The image of Ethan pawing through her drawers didn't sit well with him.

"And you should?" Ethan opened the closet and pulled out a red suitcase with wheels. "At least I won't get aroused by it. If you do it, we'll be here all day while you investigate every article of clothing she owns."

Ethan yanked three pairs of jeans off their hangers and tossed them into the suitcase with brutal efficiency.

Seamus felt a little better, and he looked down at the dog. "You're coming with me, kiddo. We need to get out of here before I do something even stupider than I already have."

Since the urge to poke in all of Cara's drawers in pursuit of sex toys to feed his very active imagination was intense, he backed up, coaxing the dog with him.

Let Ethan deal with it. He needed to get the hell out of her bedroom.

Ethan watched Seamus retreat like the whole Royal Navy was bearing down on him and shook his head. They had been friends for a long time. Fought on three continents and in six wars together and he'd seen Seamus like this only once before. With Marie.

That little witch had nearly destroyed Seamus, and he had spent the last two hundred years in enforced solitude because of her. It was unnatural to live the way Seamus did, with no relationships, no sex, no hobbies. Just work, all the time.

A woman like Cara could be good for Seamus. Help loosen him up. Make him understand that there was more to life than politics and that not everything could be resolved by launching an opinion poll and stating the data.

Making sure Seamus wasn't near the doorway, Ethan took one of Cara's little cotton T-shirts and leaned over the bed. Using it like an oven mitt, he picked up the vibrator and tossed it into her suitcase. That ought to get a conversation going between Seamus and Cara when she found that in her bag.

On top of it, he piled more shirts, a whole handful of undergarments, a makeup bag off her dresser, and a pair of gym shoes.

Whistling, he zipped it closed. Alexis would be impressed with his quick thinking. His wife always commented that Seamus would be more pleasant if he were having sex.

Damn, Ethan was just brilliant.

Cara was having a hard time staying awake. Her eyelids kept slipping closed and her body felt sluggish, exhausted.

"I'm sorry," she told Alexis as she yawned for the ninth time. "I don't mean to be rude."

It wasn't Alexis's company that was dragging her down. Alexis was funny and matter-of-fact, and had told Cara all kinds of interesting things about the Vampire Nation and Seamus's role in Ethan's campaign. It seemed she had the blood from one very uptight vampire.

But now she was sleepy and it was taking everything she had to stay awake and vertical.

"Don't worry about it. Go to sleep if you're tired. You're still adjusting to the change."

Cara slid down in the couch, tucking her feet under one of the cushions. "I wanted to stay awake to see my animals, but I don't think I'm going to make it."

"I'm sure Seamus has it under control. He may be boring and rude, but he's very thorough."

Odd, but Cara wouldn't have thought of Seamus as either of those adjectives. She might have said persistent, intense, sexy, and domineering, but definitely not boring. And while he was confident, and had ruined her life and given her a really embarrassing orgasm that she wished she could forget, she wouldn't call him rude either.

Not to mention he was very cute.

"Cute?" Alexis said, her legs crossed as she sat in the big over stuffed chair. "You think Seamus is cute?"

"Did I say that out loud?" Cara was so tired, she wasn't sure what she was saying anymore. "Or are you doing that mind-reading thing? "

"Yep. Very annoying vampire trick, isn't it? Lock your thoughts around Seamus unless you want him hearing that he's cute. Personally, I wouldn't advise it. Not if you want to get out of here."

Yes, she wanted out of there. Her life as she knew it was gone. But she wanted out of Seamus's apartment. It was the only thing she was sure of before she collapsed into total oblivion.

When she woke up again, she was in a bed that wasn't hers and someone was warm and breathing deeply beside her. She hoped beyond anything it was Alexis, but somehow she really doubted Ethan's wife would be sleeping with her. Which meant it had to be Seamus, and the thought of being in bed with Seamus made her heart race from anger and something that might be desire, if she were honest with herself, which she didn't intend to be.

Nervous and disoriented, Cara became aware she was still wearing her jeans and the borrowed T-shirt—thank God she wasn't naked—and the room was dark, the drapes drawn. She tentatively rolled on her side, prepared to meet her maker, literally. Instead of coming face to face with Seamus, she saw it was her Labrador, Button, lying next to her.

Her old friend, familiar and cuddly, was immeasurably better than a sexy vampire in bed with her.

"Hey, sweet baby," she said in complete relief, petting her dog's head. He opened his eyes for a brief second, then snuffled back into sleep.

It was so normal, his reaction so uninterested and typical, that she wanted to cry in gratitude. She could give up a lot of things, but never her babies.

"Button's such a good baby," she murmured, snuggling in closer to him, wanting comfort and loving. "Where are Fritz and Mr. Spock, hmm?"

"Mr. Spock? Who the hell did you name Mr. Spock?"

Startled, Cara glanced over and saw Seamus standing in the doorway with Fritz at his side. Despite the darkness, she could see him clearly. He was wearing lounge pants and a Notre Dame T-shirt. His fingers played idly in her dog's back fur and Fritz looked perfectly content to be fondled by his new friend.

"Mr. Spock is my Chihuahua. Where he is?" Cara made sure the navy bed sheet was still over most of her body. Being around Seamus made her feel naked.

"He's scarfing down some really expensive dog food in my kitchen. I can't believe you named him Mr. Spock. No wonder he's such an asshole. I would be, too, if that was my name." Seamus came into the room, Fritz following along beside him like he was tethered to his leg.

"He's not an asshole!" Cara sat up, indignant. No one messed with her fur babies. "I named him Mr. Spock because of his ears, and he's very sweet." And how dare he walk around with Fritz like he was
his
dog?

"If that's sweet, I'd hate to see pissed off." Seamus sat down on the bed by Cara's feet, his legs spread and his forearms on his thighs, hands cupped together. Fritz trotted in between his knees and shamelessly rubbed his head under Seamus's ears.

"How are you feeling?"

"Are you talking to me or the dog?" she asked in annoyance. "Because he looks pretty content."

"He likes me," Seamus said, making cutesy faces at her dog. "Don't ya, buddy? Yep, we're good friends now, aren't we?"

Fritz gave a happy bark.

Cara bit her lip and tried not to feel jealous. It didn't work.

Seamus turned to her. "But I meant you, actually. How are you feeling?"

That was a good question. Cara thought about it. She still felt a little tired, but otherwise fine. Great, in fact. Strong and highly aware of the room around her, of texture on her skin, the sound of the air-conditioning humming, and the amazing ability to see even though the room was dark. Physically, she was the new and improved Cara.

Mentally? She was feeling a little stressed, to put it politely.

"I'm fine." Total lie. Her whole life had been altered forever. She was borderline hysterical and altogether terrified, yet she had no intention of letting him know how vulnerable she felt.

"I brought a suitcase full of clothes and stuff from your apartment. It's in the corner by the closet." He gestured in that direction. "Why don't you get changed and we can give you a tour of the casino and discuss some relevant… issues."

"What time is it?" She felt like she'd slept for hours, yet she sensed it was still dark outside.

"Just past midnight."

She stared at Seamus blankly. "But I didn't leave the club until almost two. How can it be midnight?"

"It's midnight on Thursday. You slept through the day."

"Thursday?" Cara shoved back the blankets. "Shit! I'm late for work." She swung her legs around until she was sitting next to Seamus, looking around frantically for her suitcase. She did not want to lose this job. It paid well, and the management understood her appeal to clientele was the mystery of the screen. Never had they asked her to dance without it, which kept her happy.