Heart of the Warrior (10 page)

He and Ari were on new ground with each other, and Sev knew
the field of play was a brighter, happier place all of a sudden.

The door to the locker room opened and closed and Ari was
gone, leaving him with his big-ass cheesy smile and the most incredible sense
of contentment he'd ever felt.

What had just happened here? Really? Sev couldn’t have been
imagining the powerful feelings spilling out of Ari, but this had all happened
so suddenly. He looked back in the direction Ari had gone, wanting to go after
him. He didn’t care who knew how he felt about Ari, and he didn’t care who
found them together. He was in love with the male, and had been for a while. He
knew that now. But it seemed Ari wanted to keep things between them low-key.

Was that why he hadn’t said anything about their one time
together before today? Had he simply wanted to stay under the radar? Who knew?
It didn’t matter anymore. He and Ari had just taken a huge step in the right
direction with one another. And yay him! He had a date with the guy tonight.

Bauer appeared from the showers wearing a towel around his
waist, and Sev stood up like he had just been getting ready to head out instead
of sitting there like a love-struck dummy.

"See you later, man. Don’t work too hard," he
said.

Bauer smirked and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Stop
rubbing it in and get outta here."

Bauer disappeared and Sev shut his locker, grabbed his
duffel, and made for the exit. As he passed through the gym, he stopped and
stared at the sparring mat where everything had started. He grinned. Ari was a
scrappy fighter, full of surprises. He had tossed Sev around a couple of times,
which was saying something with Sev’s skilled hand-to-hand background.

He wondered if Ari would toss him around tonight, and the
thought turned him on. What was Ari like in bed? Did he take control or enjoy
being more passive? Would he make the first move, or would Sev have to? Shit,
what was he thinking? It was just a date. There were no guarantees they would
even have sex, and it was probably better if they didn’t. They really needed to
talk, like his mom had suggested.

He was still lost in thoughts when he pushed through the
door of the training center into the hall and almost ran into another member of
Stryker’s team, Devon.

"Oh, excuse me."

Devon gave him an odd look then stepped back as if he had a
contagious disease. "No, that’s okay." Devon quickly looked away and
hurried off.

What the hell was that all about? Sev stared after him for a
second, paranoid. He always worried someone would find out about his mom and
then he would be up shit creek. Surely, Devon hadn’t learned he was half-dreck.
He kept that secret too tightly guarded.

Well, whatever was up Devon’s ass would have to keep. He
needed to scoot.

It took everything he had to keep walking past the elevator
instead of taking it up to the third floor to Ari’s room, but he forced himself
to continue toward the exit. Tonight. He would wait until tonight. He checked
his watch. Just a few more hours until sunset. Would he survive that long?

Gina woke up from her nap and rolled toward the windows. She
had drawn the vertical blinds then closed the opaque drapes over them to shut
out the sunlight, and the room was pleasantly dark. A check of the time showed
it was almost nightfall.

Her stomach growled and she recognized the familiar ache for
blood riding just underneath her need for food. Time for room service. She
called down and ordered a full dinner then hopped in the shower while she
waited. The knock came on her door just as she finished drying her hair. She
answered the door wearing only a silk robe and matching satin bra and panties.

"Room, uh, service." The uniformed man tried not
to gawk, but his gaze performed a cursory sweep of her revealed skin, and his
feet refused to move.

"Good, come in." Gina gripped his mind into
compulsion.

The glands in her mouth were already secreting the tiny dose
of venom that would both numb the pain of her bite as well as heal it. He was a
handsome fellow. If she had more time, she would keep him there for a while. He
could please her body’s physical needs, as well as her hunger for blood.

He did as he was told and closed the door behind him as she
directed him to push the cart of food to the foot of the bed. Then she pulled
him to her, licked his neck twice, and sank her fangs in to his flesh.

Aaaahhhh, that's what she needed to get her night off to a
good start.

He didn’t know it, yet, but he was catching a cold. Her body
would process out the virus so she didn’t have to worry about getting sick, but
still, it made his blood weaker than she preferred. Even so, it was delicious
and would get her by.

After taking her fill, she released him, and the bite
instantly sealed. He grinned like a lovesick puppy from the euphoric side
effect of the small dose of venom she'd injected. Not enough to kill him, but
enough to make him feel really good for a few minutes and heal her bite. She
imagined he was sporting half a hard-on in those black uniform pants, and she
casually glanced down. Sure enough, he was a happy fellow.

She wished she could play. He looked like a hung specimen
and it had been a long time since she had felt a male body against hers. But
alas, there wasn't enough time.

She handed the young man twenty dollars and released him
from compulsion. "Thank you."

He blushed, probably because he realized he was staring at
her satin-covered breasts and displayed a decent woody begging for attention
inside his pants. Gina pretended she didn’t notice as she opened the door for
him.

"Please do come back," she said.

"Uh…um…sure. Enjoy your dinner, Miss Carello."

She smiled and watched him walk out then shut the door.

"Well, I already had my appetizer," she said under
her breath, and then licked his taste off her mouth.

With a satisfied smack of her lips, she plopped down on the
foot of the bed and flipped on the TV before addressing her dinner: Salad,
gourmet cheeseburger, and French fries. For dessert, a wedge of chocolate cake
that looked like Heaven on a plate beckoned her to eat her dinner in reverse.
But no, she would be good.

As she ate her salad, she clicked the channel changer until
she came to the pregame show for tonight's basketball game. She might be able
to catch the first few minutes of the game, but not the whole thing. She had
work to do and a vampire to kill. She would have plenty of time to goof off and
catch up on her sports after Severin was dead.

Arion’s foot bounced impatiently as he sat in his living
room with the TV turned on to the pregame. The sun had set twenty minutes ago
and he was starting to think Sev had changed his mind when the doorbell rang.

In a flash, he was up and hurrying to the foyer.

He swung the door open and smiled when he saw Severin.
"Hi."

Sev looked good. His long hair fell in wavy blond cascades
over his shoulders and looked feather soft. He had on jeans, a pale blue knit
sweater that brought out his eyes, and what looked like broken-in combat boots.

"Hey." Sev stepped in and snaked an arm around his
waist before kicking the door closed behind him. "I missed you."

Ari closed his eyes and inhaled the soft fragrance of
aftershave and soap. When he opened them again, Sev was watching him with a
hunger that stirred Ari to the soles of his feet.

"I can tell."

"I thought about you all afternoon." Sev burrowed
his nose into Ari’s hair.

He thought he might implode from the heat that fired through
his loins.

"Me, too."

It was clear what tonight was about. He had obviously used
the game as a ruse to get Sev there, and they both knew it. Ari's hunger for
Sev wasn't quenched, yet. In fact, what had occurred in the gym had only
whetted his appetite. He felt like a kid after eating his first homemade
chocolate chip cookie and couldn't wait to get his hands on another one. Or a
whole batch of them.

"You want a beer?" Sev said.

No, I just want you.
"Sure."

Sev pulled away, took his hand, and they walked to the
kitchen together. He let Ari’s hand go and set the six-pack on the counter and
pulled out two bottles before twisting off the caps. He handed one to Ari. They
both drank, staring at each other. The air between them was electric. It felt
like a hundred invisible threads of desire reached from Sev’s body to his and
that they were stroking him, caressing him, and burrowing into his skin.

As if a gun had gone off to signal the beginning of the
one-hundred-yard dash, both closed the short distance between them in a split
second. Suddenly, Ari was in Sev’s arms again, just as he had been in this very
spot six weeks ago, and Sev spun him around and back against the refrigerator
before clamping his mouth over his.

Flames burst through his groin and up his spine before
shooting out through his limbs. The chemistry between them was unreal. Off the
charts. Almost supernatural. They were like two land masses crashing together,
causing an earthquake that shattered them to their core.

When had a kiss ever assaulted his senses like this? Was
this what a kiss was supposed to feel like? As if a waterfall of heat was
pouring through his body like a tidal wave from the pit of his stomach? His
knees wobbled, his hands trembled, butterflies danced in his abdomen, and his
cock hardened in an instant. Was that normal? His body never reacted this way
from kissing a woman. With a woman, he never got hard without having to
fantasize, and even then it had never felt like this – like he had a steel rod
in his pants. And what was that noise? Ah, hell. That was him, moaning deep in
his throat with every breath he took. God, he was completely lost in Severin’s
kisses.

"Sev…"

"Mmm?"

"Spend the night with me."

Sev made a noise that sounded like yes and assaulted his
lips with increased fervor as his hands started to lift up his shirt.

Suddenly, a loud pounding at the front door jolted Ari back
to reality. He jumped and pushed Sev away. Breathlessly, he glanced over his shoulder
in the direction of the front hall.

"Fuck." He tried not to laugh at how jumpy he was,
but ended up chuckling and shaking his head at himself. "That must be the
pizza, but shit, they could have used the doorbell, for God’s sake."

Sev chuckled at him and grabbed his beer off the counter and
took a drink.

Pound-pound-pound!

"Okay, okay, I’m coming!" Ari called.

"Not yet, but you will." Sev's voice and the
heated sideways glance he threw Ari hinted of promise, and he grinned
mischievously as he stepped aside to let Ari leave the kitchen.

Ari's breath quickened, and he smiled. "I hope
so."

"Hey-hey! Anyone home?" Io called from the front
porch, knocking again.

Fear gripped Ari’s throat as panic rose in his heart. He
froze in his footsteps.

"Fuck, what’s Io doing here?" He glanced back at
Sev with wide eyes. He hadn’t been expecting Io tonight.

"Just tell him to get lost. You’re on a date."

Oh, yeah, that would go over great with Io. He couldn’t even
let Io get an inkling of an idea as to why Sev was here. He gave Sev a get-real
look. "He’s my best friend. I can’t tell him to get lost. And I can’t tell
him I’m on a date, either."

"Why the fuck not?" Sev frowned at him.

Ari shook his head. He didn’t want to have this discussion
right now. "Just hold on. I'll deal with him."

Sev sighed and meandered out of the kitchen to the living
room as Ari checked himself to make sure the bulge in his jeans was covered by
his untucked shirt, and then he took a deep, steadying breath before hustling
down the hall to the front door.

"Hey, bro! What’s shaking?" Io barged past him and
into the kitchen.

"Just getting ready to watch the game with Sev."
Ari closed the door and tried to act normal, even though he was nervous as
hell. He hoped his attraction to Severin wasn’t as obvious as he thought it
was.

He followed Io into the kitchen. "Why are you here, Io?
I thought you had a date tonight." Well, dates. The two girls from last
night at Four Alarm had apparently been good enough for a second go-round. Io
didn’t usually dip into his women twice, but he supposed there was an exception
for every rule.

"I do, I do. On my way there now, bro." He stopped
when he saw Sev on the couch in the living room. "Oh. Hey, Sev." Io
glanced over his shoulder at Ari as if he needed to talk to him in the worst
possible way.

Sev nodded and held up his beer in greeting. "Io."
He sounded irritated.

Tonight was turning into a major bust. This wasn’t what he
had wanted to have happen on his first date with Sev. It was a date, wasn’t it?
Just as Sev had said?

Ari drew up next to Io as he pulled one of the beers out of
the six-pack. Fzt. He twisted off the cap and guzzled a healthy gulp.

"Io, come on, why are you here?"

"What’s up your ass? In a hurry or something?"

Actually, yes.
"Of course not. It’s just…well,
the game’s getting ready to start."

"Come here a sec." Io kept his voice low and
motioned him into the other room. When they were alone, Io snickered.
"Hey, I think Sev might be a faggot."

Ari felt the color drain from his face and he stammered.
"Uh-wh-huh-what?"

Io huddled in close and chuckled quietly. "Yeah, man. I
stopped by AKM to grab my laundry and bumped into Devon. Devon was in the
showers today and heard two guys fucking each other or some shit. A little
while later, he was walking past the gym and Severin was coming out. His hair
was wet." Io looked at him as if he was waiting for Ari to connect the
dots. "You understand? Sev was one of the guys."