Blood and Sand (26 page)

“She could smell you in here, you know.” He parted the coats she’d hidden behind. “She could sense you on the stairs.”

“Did you leave your family because of me?”

Baojia held out a hand. “How did you sleep?”

“Answer me, please.”

He sighed and leaned against the doorjamb. “It was for a number of reasons. You were part of it, but not the whole. Can we leave the coat closet now?”

Natalie brushed past him, unsure of how she was feeling. Worried. Elated. Nervous. Grateful.

“You show everything and nothing on your face,” he called to her back.

Natalie spun around. “I could say the same thing about you.”

“Are you hungry?”

“No.”

He stepped closer. “Thirsty?”

“I drank some water in your room. Which looks an awful lot like
our
room now.”

Baojia sped to her side, making her eyes swim as he rubbed her shoulders. “I don’t particularly want you out of my sight.”

“How very caveman of you.”

He grinned. “Still thinking abol twanut that cave, aren’t you?”

She blushed and saw his fangs lengthen in his mouth. His eyes watched her with predatory awareness.

“Baojia?”

“Are your human needs met?”

“Yes, but—”

“Then we can talk later.” He picked her up and ran so fast she thought she was going to throw up.

“Okay, motion sickness is not sexy, George.”

He laughed and slowed down a little as they reached the bottom staircase. Within seconds, they were at the door and he was kissing her again, making her head spin for a whole new reason.

“Baojia—”

He wouldn’t let her talk. He just kept at her mouth. Then her neck. She felt his fangs scrape against her skin as he laid her down on the bed and went to secure the door with a combination of way more numbers than just her birthday.
 

“Did you… did you just change the code?”

“Yes. We’ll have to think of a new password every dawn.” He moved back toward her, intent clear as he pulled off his shirt. “I will not take any chances with your security, but I do not want to keep you prisoner during the day.” He lay down next to her, shirt gone, playing with the edge of her T-shirt. “You’ve had quite enough of that, am I right?”

She pulled off her T-shirt. “But not enough of you. I should take a shower.”

The smile dropped from his face and he dove toward the newly revealed skin. Her green bra turned into a scrap of lace when his teeth encountered it. The now-familiar sensation of his amnis flowing over her skin caused her to moan.
 

“Later,” he whispered, his mouth already busy on her breast. “Much later.”

Much
much
later, after Natalie had discovered just how entertaining showers could be with someone who controlled water, they lay in bed. It was still an hour or so before dawn. His cool fingers ran over her still-flushed skin, and his other hand played with the red hair splayed over his chest.

“I am very…” He spoke softly.

“What?”

“Content. I am very content, Natalie.”

She smiled against his chest. “I’m glad. I’m sorry you fought with your sister.”

“She is not my sister anymore.”

Pulling back a little, she looked into his eyes. “Yes, she is. Feelings don’t just disappear because you fight.”

“She brought me to him. When I was human, it was Paula who found me and took me to Ernesto.”

“But you said you weren’t forced to become a vampire.”

“No.” He took a deep breath. “I was willing.”

“Why?”

Frowning, he rolled to the side and then turned her over so she could meet his eyes. “You have to understand what was expected of me. My family was in China. I was sent here to work. For them. So they could eventually pay passage and move, too. There was no future in China, my father said. He was, in his own way, very American.” Baojia smiled. “He thought our family could have a better life here. There were so many rumors of gold, but also regular jobs. On the railroads. On farms. Shops. Just
jobs
, which were scarce in my village. I was sent over and worked on the railroad at first. Then for a mining company. Every place I could. I sent a little bit home, but mostly I saved it. I slept in the cheapest lodging I could. I bought nothing for myself. I would have been able to do it. I e tst

“What happened?”

“In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. No Chinese immigrants were allowed. They said it would be for ten years. I had been here working, had saved up so much… But it didn’t matter. No matter what I did, they would not have been able to come. There were smugglers, but I could not afford to pay them. And there were no guarantees they wouldn’t take my money and leave my parents in their village anyway.”

“That’s horrible.”

Baojia shrugged. “It was reality. But I became very depressed. I considered going back to China, but my parents wrote me and told me that I should stay. They needed me to continue sending money for them, and there were no jobs in the village that paid what I was making. I was… angry. I felt very alone. And there were very few women here—no Chinese women, anyway—who would want to marry a laborer like me. So I had no hope of a family or children. I was an income to them. That was all.”

Her heart ached for him. He had wanted a normal life. Wanted a family and a future. But instead…
 

“They didn’t deserve you.”

“I’m sure they didn’t see it that way. They were doing what they needed to survive. I can’t blame them for that.”

She could. No one should be taken for granted the way he had been. But she dropped it and asked, “Why did you become a vampire?”

“Ernesto had ships. He did trade in China. And he wanted me to be his guard.” Baojia shrugged. “So, he offered to make sure my parents and brother and sister had safe passage to San Francisco and the start of a new life if I would become his child. It was a trade. I didn’t have to say yes.”

Natalie had her own doubts about that, but she let Baojia speak.

“I agreed. He paid for my family’s passage and gave them the money I had saved, and I became his vampire. He was certain I would be very powerful because of my speed and skill as a human. He was correct.”

“And your human family?” She reached out and stroked his face. He leaned into her touch, closing his eyes in pleasure.

“They still live in San Francisco. There are many of them now.” He opened proud eyes. “They have been very successful.”

“Do they know about you?”

He shook his head. “No. I have monitored them through the years, but not closely. It would not be wise.”

“You sacrificed a lot for them.”

“Yes.” He narrowed his eyes. “But don’t make me a martyr. It was difficult at first, but I like being a vampire. I like the power, Natalie. Even if there are costs. And I like being feared by my enemies. Being feared means those I protect are safer. I would not want to be anything else.

She shivered at his words but didn’t look away. “I know.”

“Do you?” He moved over her, locking his eyes with hers as his fangs grew long. His knee spread her legs and he settled against her, letting his amnis tease over her skin until she thought she could burst from a single touch. Baojia had barely moved, and she was already panting. “I am not a good man. I have not been one for a very long time.”

“I don’t agree.”

“You’re still getting to know me.”

Her chin lifted and she reached up to bite his chin as he growled low in his throat. “I know enough.”

“Are you sure?”
 

There was desire in his eyes, but even more, there was challenge, and for the second time in as many nights, Natalie said yes.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Baojia woke with the instinctual knowledge that she was not near him. Her scent lingered, but it was faint. She had been gone for hours. He sat up and quickly and pulled on his weapons. Knives strapped to worn holsters at his thighs. A thin knife went into the waistband of the pants he pulled on, along with another at his ankle. His dress shirt was black, loose enough for movement, and tailored specifically for his body. He grimaced when he buttoned it. He’d have to find a new tailor in… wherever he ended up going. Giovanni’s offer of an introduction to Katya in San Francisco teased the back of his brain.

The thought of returning to Northern California appealed to him. He preferred the cooler, misty weather along the northern coast, as well as the quieter feel of the population. Southern California had been his home for over 120 years, but it had never quite fit.

She had a father in Northern California; they didn’t speak. He needed to find out why.

He picked up a pencil and punched in the code he’d programmed the night before, then took the note he’d left for Natalie with the numbers. He’d have to burn it before dawn and program another. Part of him wished he could take her to his own place downtown, with its familiar surroundings and ironclad security, but he knew it wasn’t possible. He’d have to arrange for his things to be brought from San Diego and stored somewhere until he knew where to go. He’d already called his personal banker to confirm that his domestic and offshore accounts were secure and had not been tampered with. He didn’t think Ernesto would try anything, but then his sire hadn’t been behaving normally, had he?

So many details…

As if on cue, Caspar appeared at the end of the corridor.

“Ah, Baojia. How are you this evening?”

He nodded at the older gentleman. “I am well. Thank you, Caspar. And how are you and Isadora? I’ve been meaning to ask, has she had any further problems with her heart? I know it was an issue last year.”

Caspar smiled graciously. “The new medication seems to have solved the blood pressure problem. Thank you for asking. And if I may…”

He frowned. “Yes?”

“May I be of any assistance to you? I don’t know all the details, but I am aware that you’ll be making some changes. I have a full roster of trusted human contacts who might be able to facilitate some of the more… practical details.”

It was as if an angel had appeared in front of him with graying hair and a Savile Row suit. “Caspar, I cannot tell you how helpful that would be. I have a home in Coronado I need to empty and another downtown. The downtown house will be more problematic. And I’ll need to arrange for storage.”

The old man nodded. “We have some available here on the property, or I would be happy to arrange something more private.”

“Private, please.” A weight had been lifted off his shoulders just by the offer. “Caspar, thank you. Very much.”

“Please.” He held up his hand. “You have always been generous to Isadora and myself, far beyond what was required of you. It is the least I can do.”

“I won’t forget this.”

Suddenly Caspar smiled. “And I should inform you that Desiree and Matt Kirby are here for thee tsteas evening. I believe the ladies have all gone to the pool room. Giovanni and Matt are hiding in the library.”

“Oh?”
 

“The ladies took several bottles of wine.”

“Ah.” The library it was, then. He’d check on Natalie, but he didn’t want to intrude on whatever female bonding rituals the wine stimulated. Then again… Caspar had said pool room. Natalie in a bathing suit would not be something to miss. He bid the man goodbye and walked toward the smell of salt water.

Leaning against the door that opened to the underground pool, Baojia smiled. All the women were there. Beatrice and Dez were laughing about something as they sat on the steps. Brigid, the odd fire vampire, was sitting off to the edge, separate, but seemingly at ease and chiming in with the occasional witty remark. He liked the woman’s sense of humor, though her carelessness with Natalie’s safety still left something to be desired. In the water, Natalie turned and flipped, as comfortable as a fish.

Or a mermaid. The thought made him smile as he watched her. She was wearing a tiny white bathing suit that showed off her creamy skin and freckles. The same skin he could make flush with a whisper or a kiss. His fangs grew long at the thought.

She would make an excellent vampire. She had the intelligence and practicality necessary for their kind, and a humor that would serve her well in immortality. He could see her born to water. Her fair skin grew paler in his mind. Her red hair more vibrant in contrast. Her rosy lips fell open as her fangs dropped. He realized, rather shockingly, that he wanted her to bite him. Wanted the feel of her teeth in his neck.

Ridiculous. It would make her ill to taste his blood.

He willed his fangs to retract as he silently approached. Natalie was doing flips in the shallow end, alternately joking and drinking a glass of white wine. Beatrice and Dez saw him enter; Natalie did not. Stepping to the edge, he reached out with his amnis and called the water to himself. It sang and danced, wrapping around Natalie and pulling her toward the corner where he stood as she yelped in protest.

“Hey! What the—? B, are you—?”

Beatrice held up her hands. “Don’t look at me. And hey, leave some water in the pool, will ya?”