Moonlight Calls (Demon's Call Series Book 1) (16 page)

She shrugged. 
“Just because you share blood with a vampire doesn’t mean that you have to
sleep with them.  Most of us prefer a close relationship with our donors, but
it isn’t necessary.  Besides, there are many forms of affection.”

I closed my
eyes.  I opened them again when her fingers gently touched my cheek, brushing a
stray curl behind my ear.  She glanced down shyly, an expression I didn’t often
see on her.  “I felt it,” she said softly, “how powerful you felt.  It
was…startling.  And it had a strange effect on me.”

A shiver danced
over my skin.  She had noticed it, that strange sensation of power.  I felt
like an idiot.  This
couldn’t
be a good idea.  But I seemed to be
severely lacking in the common sense department lately.

Ailis pursed her
lips for a moment.  “I discussed this with my master,” she said slowly.  “He’s
asked me not to drink from you again, if I can help it- just in case.”

In case what?  I
didn’t ask.  I didn’t want to know.  She hesitated for a moment, then gently
enfolded me in her arms and I relaxed against her.  She was my friend.  I was
just going to have to accept the fact that this term had a slightly different
meaning when your friends weren’t human.  She drew back and kissed me on top of
the head.  The soft brush of her lips sent a rush through me and when I opened
my eyes and looked into hers, they were utterly silver, with no hint of gray. 
She leaned in and gently scented my neck, right where she had bitten me before.

 Her physical
familiarity with me was strange.  It was pleasurable, but more comforting than
arousing.  Mostly.  Apparently, vampires had no sense of personal space.  I had
noticed it before, that she was a “toucher,” but it had gotten worse since she
bit me.

“Go on in and
get cleaned up,” she said in a rich alto that made my knees weak.  “I’ll pick
up out here.”

I did as I was
told, feeling like an obedient child.  Once I was in the bathroom, I shut the
door and leaned my back against it.  I was shaky and a little light-headed. 
What the hell was I doing?  I was fully aware that she could lose it someday
and bleed me dry.  Hell, for all I knew her master would decide I was worthless
and she would be the one ordered to kill me.  That was disregarding the little
fact that she herself had just admitted that she might be able to read my mind
when she was taking my blood.

I stepped out of
the bathroom a little while later in my fluffy terrycloth robe, my hair still
wrapped up in a towel and ridiculous fuzzy slippers on my feet.  As I passed, I
noticed that Ailis was in the living room putting her shoes on.  She had changed
into a pair of snug jeans and a lacy halter-top.  A pair of dangly earrings
swung from her ears as she turned to me.  Her hunting gear.

“I’m going out
for an hour or so,” she said with a smile.  I opened my mouth, but she stopped
me with a raised hand.

“I know you want
to share blood with me, but I can’t survive taking blood from you alone,” she
said apologetically.  “It would utterly drain you and leave you weak and
sickly, and it still wouldn’t be enough.  Besides, it’s too strong for me.”  I
winced at that last statement and she shrugged.

I tried for calm
acceptance, as if I was worldly and experienced- not that it was successful. 
“Do you have….others like me?”  Damn it.  I sounded like a moron.

Ailis shrugged. 
“Not like you, no,” she said with a meaningful glance in my direction.  “But I
have friends I can call on if I need to.  Most vampires keep a few humans in
their home and there are always humans at the coven house.”

She gave me a
look that was devoid of emotion, and I knew I wasn’t going to like what was
coming.  “Their memories are wiped or they’re kept under sway to ensure their
silence.”  She looked up from slipping on her heels to see how I was taking
this.

“And what the
hell do you mean by that?”  I said warily.  She had never mentioned the small
fact that she could erase memories.

She sighed.  “I
told you that weaker wills can be controlled.  We can, if we choose, keep them
under our sway- our control- to suit our purposes.  We can also slip in even
further and change things a bit.  Tweak a memory here or there.”

I was getting
pissed, and she knew it.  “Just
when
were you planning on telling me
this?” She
could freaking control me
and I wouldn’t even remember it? 
God I was stupid.  My need for pleasure and acceptance was going to get me killed. 

She paced over
to me and placed a hand on my arm, frowning when I flinched away.  “I told you
that some of us are different than others.  I’ve never sought to influence you
in any way.”

I knew she was
telling the truth, but it still scared the shit out of me.  I could trust her,
but could I trust the man who was controlling her?  Ailis was very obedient to
her
master,
and apparently he could look into her thoughts as well. 
This meant that whatever she saw in my thoughts was an open book to the master
vampire who sought to control me and make me into a tool.

I let out my
breath and forced myself to relax.  “I’m sorry,” I said with less anger.  “I’m
just scared because I don’t
know
anything.  I don’t know what I’m
doing.”  I had to stop taking stupid chances, be more informed.

She hugged me
briefly.  Stepping away to grab her leather jacket she said, “I know.  This is
somewhat new to me too.  It’s been a very long time since I cared for the well
being of a human.”

For a moment,
her eyes looked so distant that I suddenly wondered just how long a
long
time
was for her.  I was about to ask when she dropped a kiss on my cheek
and headed for the door.  I gave it up for now.

“I’ll see you
later,” I said with false cheeriness.  There was only so much information I
could bear in one evening.

After Ailis
left, I put on an old halter-top and a pair of faded cut-offs and made myself a
big glass of iced mint tea and headed out to the back patio.  I relaxed into
one of the plastic chairs, watching the golden sun begin to set.  My gaze
wandered to my infant vegetable garden and I decided I should take a closer
look to inspect for suspicious bugs or paw prints.  I was trying this domestic
thing on for the first time and I was paranoid all my plants would end up dead,
either from a lack of attention, pests, or the stray four-legged herbivore.

I made my way to
the garden, halfway down my long back yard, between the patio and the river. 
Everything looked okay, and I noted with pleasure that the little green
tomatoes had grown substantially and a few were just starting to show a blush
of color.

Just as I was
turning to head inside, I caught a flash of black in the shadows under the
pines.  I froze, cursing my stupidity.  It had been dumb of me to come outside. 
But then, a locked door really wouldn’t do much to protect me either.

I turned my back
and walked swiftly toward the house, dropping the glass of iced tea in my
haste.  It hit the ground and splattered up my leg.  I ignored it and broke
into a sprint.  I didn’t make it by a long shot.  The wolf streaked across the
yard with shocking speed, cutting me off before I was even halfway to the
door.  Apparently, he had been playing nice before.  He was even bigger than I
remembered him, less dog-like, and a hell of a lot more scary. 

I took a deep
breath.  Squaring my shoulders, I resolutely skirted around him and headed for
the door.  He let me go, following me with those intense, glowing green eyes. 
He turned and loped along behind me, making my neck prickle and goose bumps
break out on my arms.  Every instinct I had was being jerked into play.  There
was a predator behind me.  I should still be running.  Reaching the door, I
turned to face him.

“Do me a favor
and get lost.”  My voice was acid.  He flattened his ears to his head and
growled softly in warning, but I didn’t care.  I was pissed, and I was sick of
being afraid.

“I don’t belong
to the wolves,” I said through clenched teeth.  I was trying really hard not to
shout.  I didn’t
think
he would kill me; if that was his goal, he had
been given countless opportunities before now.

“I don’t know
what the hell you
things
want with me, but I’m just a human, okay? 
Nothing else.”

I stepped onto
the patio, slamming the screen door behind me.  I flinched and rubbed my
forehead as a searing pain started in my temples and behind my eyes.  The
headache was faster, and more intense than usual.

I felt a ripple
over my skin and instinctively knew what it was.  He had just done something
powerful.  His aura cascaded over my body and I jumped, whirling around as the
door opened and slammed again, echoing my earlier display of rage.

Christian stood
just inside the door, stark naked, his glorious body a dull glow in the fading
light.  I would have laughed had it not been for the fact that he was
positively radiating anger.  His expression was harsh and his eyes glowed,
while his shining mane of hair rippled in the breeze.  His red aura was huge,
and it beat against my skin in waves.  I took an instinctive step backward.  I
had forgotten just how damned
big
he was, in more than just the physical
sense.

He took a step
forward, reaching for me.  I scrambled for the sliding glass door.  He was beside
me in a flash, grabbing me by the upper arms.  My grueling martial arts
training fled and I attempted to slap him senseless, like a frightened
schoolgirl.  I could still feel his power beating against me, like a planet
going supernova.  I got a hold of myself, fighting against it, and managed to
calm down.

“Knock it off,”
I said quietly.  “You can do whatever you want to me, but so help me God, if
you use your power to coerce me again I will fucking
kill you
.”

He jerked back
in surprise, as though I had slapped him in the face.  Releasing my arms, he
stepped back and gestured toward the door.

“This is the
thanks I get for all I have done?”  He was clearly seething, though he nearly
whispered the words.  “We need to talk,
darling
, and I would prefer we go
inside.  I haven’t risked my life protecting you all this time just to walk
away because you think I have somehow offended your honor.”

I studied his
aura for any signs of eminent outburst, but he seemed to have calmed down a
bit; gone from towering rage to scathing sarcasm.  I smirked at him as I
realized that I was standing on my patio arguing with a naked guy.  His face
softened.  He impatiently brushed his long, glorious hair back from his
forehead and gestured at the house again.

“Please tell me
you have clothes in there,” he said tiredly.

 I rolled my
eyes and stepped inside, motioning for him to follow.  Sure, I always kept a
spare change of clothes for a male giant stashed in the back of my closet. 
“Why the hell didn’t you just put some clothes on and come to visit like a
normal
person?  Or do you only wear clothes when you’re pretending you aren’t an
animal?” 

He replied with
the same acid tone I had used, “Because I had to sneak past the vampires out
front.  I would not want to risk your anger by killing your
friends
.” 
He raised a dark eyebrow at me.  “You say you don’t belong to them, and yet
there are half a dozen of them out there guarding your house as if a valued
member of the camarilla was inside.”

He raised an
eyebrow.  “I have spent months keeping the unfamiliar ones away- those that
don’t seem to belong to your camarilla.  Not to mention the stray wolves who
just happen to notice your aura.  I make myself known to you, and after one
night of mind-blowing sex, you run from me and suddenly refuse to speak to me? 
Tell me, what have I done to earn your scorn?”

I tried not to
look shocked at the information that I was being guarded.  I didn’t miss the
fact that he had no doubt whatsoever that he could easily dispatch the
vampires.  He was either even cockier than I had given him credit for or I was
in way over my head.  I suspected the latter, as was usually the case.  Was he
really an alpha?  And could your average alpha take care of six vampires like
they were nothing?

Stomping to the
bathroom, I grabbed an oversized bath towel and headed back out to the living
room.  I could offer him my robe, but that seemed way too personal for a guy I
was still pissed at.  Besides, it wouldn’t even close in front.  I swallowed my
excitement.  Tossing the towel to Christian, I leaned a hip against the
doorway, trying my best to stay pissed off.  It was a battle I was slowly
losing.  I kept getting distracted by stray thoughts related to having a naked
werewolf in my living room.  One that had apparently been protecting me.  One
that made an amazingly sexy man. 
Mind-blowing.
  His word, not mine.

With that
thought, I jerked my halter-top up so I wasn’t showing so much flesh myself. 
Christian’s eyes followed my movements heatedly as I crossed my arms and
glared, fighting the rising tingles in my stomach.

“Stop it,” I
said loudly.  I was pissed when my voice came out all wavery and scared, and
more than a little bit husky, but he relented and stopped whatever it was he
was doing to make my skin buzz.