Seduced by the Night (19 page)

She had no idea how close she'd come to ending up in the back of his Expedition. He'd wanted her with the lust of a hormone-ridden teenager. And he didn't think making love to her once was going to be enough. It was better to have no taste of her at all than to know what Miles could enjoy whenever he wanted.

The thought of Beth's
fiance
burned with an impotent rage and he hated having the man there in the admiral's house, sitting next to his
wo
—
Not
his woman, Dirk forcefully corrected himself.

Taking a deep breath, he brought his attention back to the dinner table and endured the rest of the meal. Finally, it ended and the group retired to the living room for drinks. If Dirk thought he was uncomfortable at dinner, it was nothing compared to the feeling he got sitting in an armchair off by himself while everyone else, either by design or by accident, paired off. Mac sat on the arm of
Lanie's
chair, the admiral and Julia sat together on the sofa, and Miles and Bethany sat on the adjacent love seat.

"Charles, that was a delightful meal," Miles said.

"Yes, it was, but I had nothing to do with it. Julia made all the arrangements for me," the admiral replied, bestowing a proud smile on the woman sitting beside him.

Julia's smile beamed back at him. "It was nothing, really."

The others voiced their appreciation for the meal, causing the woman to blush daintily, and Dirk wasn't surprised when the admiral reached over and gave her hand an affectionate squeeze. He and Mac exchanged meaningful glances. It was the first time since they'd known the admiral that he'd shown an interest in anyone. Dirk thought it might be a good idea to spend a little extra time getting to know the woman who had captured his mentor's attention.

As the conversation hit another lull, Miles cleared his throat, drawing all eyes to him. "As you may know, tomorrow is the Rod O'Connor Award dinner and ceremony." He draped an arm about
Bethany
and hugged her close. "You are all invited to be our guests."

"I'm afraid that won't be possible," Dirk said. "None  of us will be going—including Beth." He looked at her, feeling like a heel, hoping she'd understand once he explained. "I know this is a big honor for you, Beth, but it would be extremely dangerous for you to attend that ceremony."

"Why?" Miles sounded indignant.

"Because everyone will be
expecting
her to make an appearance," Dirk explained. "She'll be an easy target and I'm not willing to risk her safety for the sake of an award." He glared at Miles. "Are you?"

Miles had the decency to look abashed. "No, of course not I would never place her in danger." He turned to
Bethany
and his face softened. "I'm sorry, my dear. I suppose they're right, it's too dangerous. If you'd like, I will go to the ceremony and accept the award on your behalf."

Dirk saw the disappointment in her eyes when she reluctantly nodded to Miles and he vowed that somehow he'd make it up to her.

With the subject of the ceremony put to rest, the conversation returned to more of the chatter that Dirk hated so much. After listening for what seemed an eternity, he finally stood up.

"If you'll excuse me, I have work to do. Julia, the meal was spectacular." He gave the others a curt nod and then let his gaze travel over to
Bethany
. "I'm sorry, Beth. I hope you understand why I can't let you go to the ceremony."

She nodded, even though disappointment showed in her eyes. Knowing there was nothing he could do about it right then, he turned and walked from the room.

Bethany
watched Dirk leave and wondered where he was going. He hadn't talked much through the meal and she'd gotten the impression that he hadn't wanted to be there at all. Well, she could understand that. Even she was wishing the night were over. She'd been under so much stress lately that she just wanted a chance to relax. Heaving a silent sigh, she wondered when Miles would go home.

Glancing at him, she realized it was going to be a long night. Miles and the admiral had ventured onto the topic of financial investments and both men were in their element.
Bethany
leaned back against the couch and though she found the topic extremely dry, she politely listened.

After what had to be an hour,
Bethany
heard a small noise from across the room. Looking over, she saw
Lanie
stifling a yawn that might not have been totally authentic. "Oh, pardon me,"
Lanie
apologized. "I didn't realize how tired I was."

"Oh, dear." Miles looked at his watch. "It
is
late, I'm sorry to have kept you up." He smiled at them indulgently. "I keep forgetting that not everyone is the night owl that I am."

Bethany
had to swallow her smile, grateful when the admiral drew attention away from her when he rose to his feet. "Miles, it was nice visiting with you," he said.

"T
hank
you, Charles, for inviting me."

Bethany
allowed Miles to pull her to her feet and then followed dutifully along as Admiral Winslow walked Miles to the door. There, he made his farewell and left them alone.

"I'll call you tomorrow, all right?" Miles said, his hands on her shoulders.

She nodded.

"And don't worry about the lab," he continued. "I'll  have the maintenance crew clean it up, again. I'm just grateful you weren't hurt last night."

"T
hank
you, Miles. I appreciate that."

"Good night, my dear." He leaned forward to kiss her, but suddenly
Bethany
couldn't do it. She turned her head at the last minute and the kiss landed on her cheek. Miles gave her a funny look, but said nothing.

Bethany
closed the door after he left and went back into the family room. By now, she was alone. Thinking everyone else must have gone to bed—or was otherwise occupied—she headed for the study in hopes of finding a book to read. She'd taken only a few steps in that direction when she heard the sound of a television.

Following the noise down the main hallway, she stopped in front of a door and knocked.

"It's open," a voice grunted from within.

She opened the door and stepped inside. The minute she saw who it was, though, she quickly stammered her apologies and started to back out.

"Where are you going?" Dirk asked.

"I, uh, didn't mean to intrude."

He gave an impatient sigh. "You're not. What do you want?"

"Nothing. I heard the television, that's all."

He gestured to the set before him. "The only set in this entire mansion. Come on in."

She eyed the small couch, the only available seat in the room, and memories of the night before came rushing back with all the force of a small explosion. "I'd better not."

"Afraid?" he taunted her. "I promise not to bite, unless you want me to."

She felt the heat rush to her cheeks and couldn't bring herself to move from her spot. Apparently seeing her indecision, Dirk sighed, stood up, and walked over to her.

"Beth, what happened last night—at the lab and then later—my fault and it won't happen again. I promise."

She studied his face, trying to decide if he was sincere, and saw his frustration.

"Please, Beth. The last thing in the world I want is for you to be uncomfortable around me. Tell you what. I'll leave. You can stay here and watch TV. I'll go read a book or something."

She smiled at the thought of this always-on-the-go man sitting long enough to read a novel. He caught her smile and gave her a look of mock disdain. "I
can
read, you know."

"Well," she countered sweetly. "I wouldn't want you to strain yourself."

"Ouch." He chuckled and
Bethany
felt some of the tension between them ease.

"Is there anything good on?" she asked.

He handed her the remote. "See for yourself."

She took it from him, went over to sit on the couch, and brought up the online guide. Then she noticed that Dirk was still standing at the door. She looked up and caught an almost wistful expression on his face that quickly disappeared as soon as he noticed her looking at him.

"Find something worth watching?" he asked.

"What you had on is fine. Aren't you going to finish watching it?"

"If you're sure you don't mind."

She smiled. "I'm sure." Turning her attention back to the television,
Bethany
was soon lost in the story unfolding before her. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been able to simply sit and relax. It felt wonderful.

When the show ended, neither made a move to leave. Instead, feeling much at ease,
Bethany
kicked off her shoes and tucked her legs up under her. As a movie came on, Dirk stood up.

"Don't move," he ordered as he walked to the back of the room. Curious, she turned and saw him cross to a stack of afghans folded on a chair beside the bookshelf stacked full of paperback novels. He grabbed several off the top and brought them back to the love seat where he proceeded to spread one across her lap and drape another around her shoulders. "Better?"

"
Mmm
. Much better." She hadn't noticed the chill in the air until the blanket enveloped her. "T
hank
you."

He smiled. "You're welcome."

As the movie played, the release of stress and the blanket's warmth soon had her fighting to stay awake.

When she slumped sideways, Dirk shifted slightly, wrapping his arm around her until her head rested on his chest. He stared down at her and smiled. A thousand vampires could storm the castle at that very moment and he'd let them, as long as he could continue to hold Beth in his arms.

He'd never felt such contentment, which should have bothered him, but he refused to dwell on it. For tonight, he told himself, he would simply enjoy the moment. Which wouldn't be long, he thought. As soon as she woke and realized what she'd done, she'd be mortified. In her mind, she'd equate it to "sleeping" with him. If he was a real gentleman, he'd wake her now, send her to bed, and save her the embarrassment, but he'd already proven he wasn't. He turned down the TV, not wanting the noise to wake her, and continued to watch. Shortly after dawn, Dirk, unable to fight the fatigue that accompanied the rising sun, drifted off.

Across town, Detective
John
Boehler
stared at the body of another dead drug dealer, his emotions and thoughts conflicted. The body had been found behind a Dumpster, in the same condition as several others that had been recovered over the past several months.

It had the two puncture wounds in the neck, marking it as the work of the
Exsanguinators
; the "terrorists" hunted by Admiral Winslow and his security team.
John
and Admiral Winslow had never actually used the word "vampire" when they discussed the perpetrators of these crimes, but
John
wasn't stupid. He'd been on the force a long time and seen shit that would curl your toes and make you want to crawl home to momma. He knew exactly what atrocities one human could inflict on another; things that couldn't possibly be considered humane. And though these deaths weren't the most violent he'd seen, he was almost positive that no human had committed them. But that's where
John
left it alone. For now.

When he'd met Mac Knight and Dirk Adams, he'd sensed something dark about them. After getting to know them, he knew two things. They could be as dangerous as the monsters they hunted and he trusted them with his life.

The game being played, as
John
knew it, was that when the terrorists killed innocent people, the admiral's  team hunted down and killed the terrorists.
John
's role was to keep Mac and Dirk informed any time he came across a new victim. Lately, though,
John
had noticed a subtle change in the game—and it was this change that left him baffled.

It seemed that, more recently, not-so-innocent people were getting killed. People that
John
, personally, felt the community was better rid of. These victims were such scum that the entire precinct was hard-pressed to make more than a cursory effort to find their killers—and if they ever did find them… well, accidents happened, criminals escaped, and paperwork got lost—especially when it was for the greater good of the community.

That's why
John
was no longer sure he wanted this particular "terrorist" killed—and why, for the third time that month, he didn't pick up the phone to call Winslow's team. Any clues that might otherwise lead Mac or Dirk to this particular vampire would be lost tonight.

And if
John
had a hard time sleeping tonight because he was covering up the truth in hopes of serving a greater good, then that made tonight no different from any other night.