book (5 page)

“
Are we in trouble?” Verona bit her lip, clutching the shoulders of a concerned looking Anthony. “Are you planning to take us all to jail?”

“
No,” Jess snorted. “What am I going to do, arrest myself right along with the rest of you?” She stepped away from the group, pointing an authoritative finger in their direction. “We have more serious things to worry about, like keeping Scarlet in jail and keeping all of you safe.”

She took in her breath as Hathen stepped in front of her, pinning her with a penetrating stare.

She met his eyes with a firm gaze that backed up her strong-shouldered stance.

“
What about keeping yourself happy, Jess?” his tone almost pleading. “Do you ever think about that?”

Stepping around him with a smooth flourish, the police chief threw a brief shrug in his direction as she began to exit the park.

“
My job makes me happy, and I plan to keep it,” she sniffed, adding more softly, “And part of that job, Hathen, is keeping you and your people safe. Please let me know if you see anything suspicious, or if anyone associated with Scarlet shows up or makes any threat against you.”

She granted him a small but sincere smile as she stepped across the border that divided the park from the streets of her city. She was finally heading back to a place she at least understood. “And please let me know if you need anything.”

“
I need you.” The words, although softly spoken, stopped her in her tracks. Their warmth, sincerity and genuine sadness tugging at her heart.

Closing her eyes tight, Jess took a deep, sustaining breath and carried on walking.

“
Good night Hathen.”

Midnight found Jess back in a place that, while not as beautiful or elegant as Nightingale Park, at least qualified as somewhere she knew and understood.

Seated at her desk in the Clearview Police Department, Jess’s head bowed low above a pile of papers that required her attention and signature. The latter of which she struggled to give.

Hours after her eventful evening at Nightingale Park, her senses still brimmed and overran with all things Hathen. His gorgeous face, his muscular body, and his deep, sonorous voice. Most of all though, she thought about what seemed to be a golden heart, and a kind, strong demeanor.

“
Yeah, it’s a heart that we’re not even sure is beating,” her pesky subconscious screamed in her ear. “The guy is, after all, a card carrying member of the walking undead.”

“
Pffft,” she whispered in response, “he’s a vampire, not a zombie.”

Vaguely alarmed that a grown woman was indeed carrying on this conversation, especially with herself, Jess tried to focus on her ever growing pile of paperwork. Finally, though, she threw down her pen and rested her head in her hands.

I let this happen once before
, she shuddered at the intrusion of old memories.
I can’t allow it to affect my job, or my life
…
.

“
You don't honestly think you have a chance with him, do you?”

Jess bolted upright in her seat, alert in keen curiosity.

Since when does my conscious have such an annoying, high-pitched voice?
she pondered.
Not to mention such a pretentious accent?

The sound of cold laughter ran down her spine like shards of ice. Looking upward she caught the dark-eyed gaze of Scarlet, the vampire who crouched like a caged cat in the corner of her cell.

“
You honestly think that after Hathen has had this,” she gestured down the length of her slender, busty form, “he’s going to want you?”

Jess chuckled, folding her arms on her desk.

“
Now come on Scarlet, is that really the smartest thing for a woman in your position to be saying?” She tilted her head. “You seem to be forgetting the whole ‘What you say can and will be held against you’ thing.”

“
It’s true!” Scarlet snapped, baring her fangs as her eyes flashed. “You won’t be able to keep a hold on him, or me either.”

These words brought Jess out of her chair, and she flew to the side of Scarlet’s cell with her own teeth bared.

“
You’re the leader of a bloodsucking den, aren’t you?” She seethed, fists bared. “And someone is going to be coming for you.”

Fixing the police officer with an infuriating smile, Scarlet said nothing. She retreated to the corner of her cell, continuing to stare at Jess with evil eyes that seemed to lack expression.

“
I know you’re hot and everything,” Jess shook her head, speaking in a low volume more to herself than to Scarlet. “Still, I just don’t get what he saw in you.”

“
It’s a mystery to me too babe.”

Jess gasped as she was swept most literally off her feet, gathered up in two strong arms and kissed senseless.

Hathen held her closer than close as his lips engaged hers in a wild, frantic kiss. A kiss that stole her breath and made her pulse race.

Even so, she pulled away long enough to shoot a triumphant smile in the direction of a scowling Scarlet.

“
I dunno,” she shrugged. “I’d say I have a passing chance with him. Doncha think?”

Soon the couple sat at Jess’s desk, feasting on a sumptuous chocolate cake Hathen had brought from Nightingale Park.

“
You raced off before we could have dessert.” Hathen mentioned while slipping a moist chocolaty bite between Jess’s smiling lips. “And it was one I made myself.”

“
Really? I’m impressed!” Jess smacked her lips, nodding approvingly. “I had no idea that vampires cooked.”

Hathen chuckled, wiping some fallen crumbs from her desktop.

“
We do all sorts of things other people do, Darling.” He winked. “We, after all, were once humans ourselves. We had homes, jobs, and families.”

“
Do you have a past?” Jess questioned with a curious tone. “I mean you personally, Hathen. Who are you?”

Hathen thought a moment, then shook his head.

“
I can’t say that I have a past that I care to remember, or for that matter, to share.” He regarded her with a sad smile.

“
Basically, Jess, my life as a child passed in a haze of yells and screams, trouble and strife. It soon became a revolving door of foster homes and strange faces who claimed to care.” He shrugged.

“
Some of them did, I guess, but I was never able to find a place that I called home.” His gaze drew distant, almost dreamy, and his voice softened with his next words. “By the time I was 18 I was back on the streets, attending 'hard knocks university' and living in a youth hostel. It was there I met Alida, the very special lady who gave me the bite of life.”

Jess was shocked.

“
You actually believe that the person who did this to you gave you life?” Her forehead wrinkled in keen confusion.

“
Of course!” A proud Hathen straightened in his seat, his full lips set in a firm line. “She introduced me to a family who, to this day, loves and supports me unconditionally. She introduced me to a life of unrivaled pleasure, while also showing me that I could make a difference in my world and community.”

“
And that you do,” Jess said quickly, making sure he knew the extent to which he was valued. “Hathen, I have to say I was amazed by what you and your den have accomplished in and for our city. I had no idea of all the work that you’d done, that you continue to do, for the people of Clearview.” She paused. “The same people who no doubt suspicion and shun you on a regular basis.”

Hathen nodded.

“
Ours is not an easy life, sweetheart.” He flashed a sad smile. “Alida got so fed up with the discrimination, in fact, that she left our den a few years ago to start another in Los Angeles. In that city vampires are pretty commonplace.”

“
Shocker,” Jess joked straight faced while devouring the last of her chocolate cake. “So was that when she appointed you the master of the city?”

“
Yep, that’s when I became the King of Clearview.” Hathen pointed a sardonic thumb in his own direction. “Lucky me. Really, though, I do love this city and the people in it. One in particular.” He reached across the desk to kiss Jess’s cheek. “I was so afraid we’d scared you away tonight. I was afraid that, after a beautiful beginning, you’d think me a terrible pervert and abandon me.” His voice cracked beneath the weight of his own emotion. “Abandon the possibilities of us.”

Jess shook her head, reaching forward to tilt her forehead against his.

“
Believe me, baby, in my years as a police officer I’ve seen more than my share of perverts. People like rapists and child molesters, who use sex as a weapon and turn it into something ugly and terrible.” She cringed at the thought of those who passed through her jail on a regular basis. “What I saw tonight in the park was far from terrible.” She smiled at the memory. “As a matter of fact, it was one of the most beautiful sights I’ve seen. I guess I just wasn’t quite ready for it.”

She took in her breath as Hathen surged across the desk, searing her lips with a hot, hard kiss.

“
Well whenever you’re ready Darling,” he pinned her with a gaze that just dripped seduction. “Come back to the park. I’ll be waiting for you.”

****

Hathen's words echoed in Jess’s mind late that night. She tossed and turned in the warm cotton sheets that lined her basic camp bed.

Never one to deny her mind fantasies, she lost herself in a haze of ecstasy as she dreamed of her golden-haired vampire; a man who stirred her senses and aroused her deepest, most forbidden desires.

Even before surrendering to a restless sleep, Jess’s mind was plagued by visions of Hathen and his vamps running wild in Nightingale Park. Laughing, playing, and making love in a way unknown to the humans of this world.

And the moment she fell into the grip of a light, uneasy slumber, the visions took over; luring her deep into a world of erotic desire without bounds.

She envisioned herself in Hathen’s arms, twisting in passion as he kissed, embraced, and finally joined with her to complete the promise of their undeniable passion.

As an adult woman, this was not the first sensual dream that Jess had ever experienced. It was though definitely the most vivid, as it drenched her mind in a rich and beautiful multisensory experience.

She beheld his golden beauty in all its glory, also feeling his strong but tender touch. She caught wind of his citrus-tinged scent, and heard his deep, sonorous voice resonate in her ear. The dream deliver the same words he’d spoken to her earlier that night:

“
Come back to the park. I’ll be waiting for you.”