Single White Vampire (20 page)

Lucern stared at the pale creamy flesh of her body. He had gotten her almost naked just days before in this very room, but he hadn't had the view he had now. Kate was slender and shapely, her curves generous but not overly so. She had rosy nipples, which topped breasts pointing at him like a pair of binoculars. He wanted to reach out and grasp them as he would binoculars, but rather than look through them, he wanted desperately to lick and suck and…

“A condom?” he asked, as if he'd never heard the word before. Fortunately, his mind cleared enough for him to grasp the meaning: she was concerned about the sexual diseases of the day. “Oh. Not to worry; diseases can't survive in my body.”

He smiled one of his rare smiles, pleased to be able
to pass along the information. Not having a condom wouldn't be a problem. Besides, at that moment, he was positive that
a
condom wouldn't be sufficient. Many would be needed. Many, many, he thought as he reached out to run his finger over one of her erect nipples.

He glanced up with a start when Kate slapped his hand away. Much to his dismay, she didn't appear impressed with his announcement. She was frowning.

“But don't vampires have sperm?”

Lucern had to think about that question for a moment before his poor besotted mind understood.
Sperm? Sex. Babies. Oh!

“Oh!” He glanced wildly around the room, his mind working frantically. He didn't have a condom. He didn't use condoms. STD's weren't a fear to him, and pregnancy had never been much of a concern. It was rare for a human and his sort to manage a baby. His cousin, the mad scientist of the clan, had explained why to him, but he couldn't remember at the moment. Still, he didn't think Kate would take that rare chance. He needed a condom.

“Uh, just a minute. Just…uh…” Sweeping the blankets aside, he leapt from the bed and grabbed the bloodstained pants he'd removed last night. He began searching through the pockets. When he found his wallet, he took it out and smiled at her—an admittedly pained smile. “I just have to…er…just one minute.”

He ran out of the room and into the living room. He paused halfway to the door to the hall when she shouted, “You don't plan on going to buy some, do you? You're naked, Luc!”

That stopped him.

“Luc?”

“No. No, I'm not—Just a minute,” he finished at last, his mind feverish. He considered dressing, but then an image of Kate rose in his mind. No, there wasn't time to dress. What if she changed her mind? Had second thoughts? He couldn't risk that. It would be faster if…

Hurrying to the phone, he snatched it up and dialed the front desk.

“Good morning,” a cheerful female voice sang. “Front desk. Can I help you?”

“Condoms,” Lucern blurted.

“Excuse me, sir?”

“Condoms. I need condoms,” he barked.

“I see, sir.” The cheerfulness went out of the voice. “What size?”

“Size?” They had sizes? Lucern peered down at himself. “Big.”

“Of course, sir. They're always big,” the voice said dryly. “Your choices are fitted, regular, large or extra large.”

Lucern stared down at himself again. He seemed smaller than he had been moments ago. His erection was dwindling. He decided to forgo the extra large. “Large.”

“Luc? What are you doing?”

Lucern turned to find Kate standing naked in the bedroom doorway, her gaze moving nervously between him and the door to Chris's room. His gaze swept her from top to toe, and he was grateful that his eyesight hadn't been damaged last night. Neither had his sense of smell. Her sweet, spicy scent was wafting to him,
surrounding him with its succulence. She smelled good enough to eat. That thought brought other thoughts to mind: licking every inch of her flesh and—

“Luc?” Kate was starting to look concerned. “Are you all right? You look…odd.”

“Sir?”

Lucern's gaze dropped to his erection. He said into the phone, “Make that extra large.”

“Extra large what? Lucern, what are you doing?” Kate asked. She was starting to sound irritated.

“Just a minute,” Lucern barked into the phone. Setting it on the table, he hurried to Kate's side to catch her by the arms. “I'll be right there. Go back to bed. You have goosebumps.” She had them everywhere—on the arms his hands were absently caressing, on her breasts which his eyes were caressing, on—Perhaps extra large wouldn't be big enough.

Shaking his head, Lucern turned Kate around and pointed her toward the bed. “I'll be right there. I promise.”

“But—”

Lucern closed the door on her protest and hurried back to the phone. “Hello?”

“Yes, sir.” The woman was definitely annoyed at waiting. “Now, what size package do you want? We have six-packs, twelve-packs, twenty-four and thirty-six.”

“Six, twelve, twenty-four and thirty-six?” Lucern repeated. This was like some sort of test. Dear God, he couldn't think. The scent of Kate still enveloped him, and his brain had gone all fuzzy. He wondered briefly if he shouldn't have consumed more blood. Perhaps he had lost more than he'd thought, and his blood supply
was so low that his body was now having to take blood from elsewhere to support his erection. If so, it had definitely chosen to remove it from his brain. His thoughts were as muddy as a pigsty after a rainfall.

“Sir?”

“All of them,” he said at last. The more the merrier.

“Lubricated or nonlubricated?”

“Urgh,” Lucern choked into the phone.

“Very good. Lubricated,” the woman said. “Now…do you want For Her Pleasure, Ribbed, Ultra-fit, Extra Strength, Ultra Pleasure, Shared Sensation, Textured, Sensitive, Ultra-thin, Magnum, Supra, Pleasure Mesh, Extended Pleasure or Magnum XL?” The woman sounded like she was really enjoying herself.

Lucern wasn't. He peered down to see that his erection was definitely suffering from this barrage of questions. It was a sad sight, and he whimpered into the phone.

“I'll just send a variety, shall I?”

Lucern was sagging against the table in relief when she added, “That should be no more than half an hour. Have a good day, sir.”

Lucern was erect at once. Well, his body was. His penis was still flagging as he roared, “Half an hour?” into the phone.

His answer was the dial tone.

“Luc?”

He slammed down the phone and turned to find his bedroom door open again. Kate was once again standing in it. But, she had re-donned her robe. He noted this with horror, his sinking heart telling him that the moment was passing. If he didn't do something soon,
she was going to change her mind. Uncertainty was already creeping into her expression. “Maybe we should just give this a pass. You're one of my writers, and it probably isn't very professional to—”

Lucern almost groaned aloud. This was exactly what he'd feared might happen. Faced with it now, he did the only thing he could think of. Crossing the room, he caught her in his arms and kissed her. It was no “Good morning, nice to see you” kiss. It was “I want your body hot, sweaty and plastered against mine.” Kate hesitated the barest moment, then—much to Lucern's relief—gave in with a moan. She melted against him.

Lucern's erection gave him a thumbs-up. It poked at Kate's robe. That was enough to urge him to take her in his arms and carry her to the bed. Setting her on her feet beside it, he quickly removed her robe and tossed it aside, then set to work convincing her she hadn't made a mistake on admitting she wanted him.

His plan—he began to worship her body—was to drag out the foreplay until the condoms arrived. Half an hour shouldn't be any problem at all. It would take that long to make his way across every inch of her skin. He started with her breasts, sweeping his hands up beneath them and catching their bottoms with his thumbs as the rest of his fingers closed around the sides. Then he bent his head and took one perfect nipple into his mouth. He would coax it back to its former glorious state of erection.

Kate moaned and shuddered as her nipple pebbled in Lucern's mouth. She had begun to think this wasn't a very good idea when Lucern left her side, but now, as he suckled on her breast, drawing its peak into his
mouth and pulling her desire back from where it had briefly hidden, she let her doubts drift away. She wanted him. Oh, yes, how she wanted him.

Her hands roamed over his shoulders and down his back, clawed his flesh as he nipped playfully at hers.

Lucern chuckled against her breast and urged her onto the bed. He lay atop her at once, his mouth finding hers and devouring it. Kate kissed him back with every ounce of her being, her hands sliding into his hair and holding him there as she did. Then she let her hands drift down over his body.

Lucern stiffened against Kate, his eyes closing with pleasure as her fingers wrapped around his erection. She squeezed gently before sliding her hand along its length.

Ah, the aggressive modern woman, he thought vaguely. Renaissance and Regency women had been much more timid. Not all of them, of course, but the majority had allowed the man to set the pace and do most of the work. Not his Kate, however. She grabbed for the gusto, urging him on, and once again Lucern saw that there was something to be said for modern women after all. They were smart, business savvy, sexy as hell and not afraid to go after what they wanted. They were…

Horrible,
he thought suddenly as he thrust into her caress. He had half an hour to kill before the condoms arrived. He hadn't been with a woman for a while. Several hundred years of sex had rather stolen the novelty of it, and he had grown tired of the bother more than fifty years ago. He'd led a rather asexual life since. However, Kate had reinvigorated that side of him—with a
vengeance. And if she continued to touch and caress him the way she was, he was going to lose control like a teenager. Oh, this wasn't good.

Reaching down, Lucern caught her by the wrist and pulled her hand away. He broke their kiss and moved down her body, shifting his erection out of reach. He was determined to keep her busy and excited until the condoms arrived.

Kate moaned with mingled desire and displeasure when Lucern's mouth slid from hers and he began licking and nibbling his way down her body. She had the brief thought that it was a shame he didn't have two mouths so she could continue to kiss him as he ravaged her flesh.

Catching the hand that had stopped hers from exploring, she drew it to her mouth. Grabbing one thick finger, Kate sucked it into her mouth and nipped. Lucern paused to pay special attention to her breasts.

Her body tingled everywhere, and Kate shifted restlessly beneath Luc, clutching his hand and gasping as his mouth dropped to her belly. The muscles in her stomach contracted and rippled under his onslaught; then they clenched as he moved lower still and urged her legs apart. Oh, this was…She hoped he wouldn't
bite
her there.

The thought, silly as it was, forced a gasping laugh from her lips, but it died as quickly as it was born. What he was doing to her didn't leave breath or thought for such concerns, and moments later she didn't care if he did bite her so long as he didn't stop everything else.

Dear God, he would kill her with pleasure and she would be happy in the dying, she thought dazedly.
Then, losing the capacity to think as her body imploded, she cried out, arching her hips upward and tearing at the bedsheets. She shuddered out of control, grabbing Lucern's shoulders as he shifted. The only thing that would make this better was to have him inside her. She was sure of it. “Please, Lucern,” she gasped.

“What is it, sweet?” he asked as he lay between her legs.

“I want you inside me. Put on the condom,” she begged. When he stiffened and paused, she frowned. “Luc?”

“Er…” Much to her dismay, he pulled away from her. “I, er…”

“Didn't you get a condom?” she asked. “I thought—”

“Yes, yes. I, er, I just forgot it in the other room,” he assured her quickly. Pushing himself from the bed, he added, “I'll…er…just be a moment. Stay here.”

Then he hurried out of the room, pulling the door closed behind him.

Lucern yanked the door open and peered out into the hall, hoping to see a bellhop sauntering up with condoms in hand. Of course, there was no such thing. The hall was completely empty. He slammed the door with frustration, then turned to peer around the suite. There should have been condoms in each room. Hotels should stock them like they did candy bars and booze. Really, Luc didn't know why no one had thought of it.

A small sigh and the rustle of sheets drew his gaze to the door to his room. His hearing was working exceptionally well at the moment. All his senses were buzzing. His entire body was jumping with excitement, and all of it, every aching inch of him, wanted to be with Kate. This was like some sort of hell. Some sort of…

Lucern scowled toward his room and the soft, willing woman in his bed. He had known that this conference would be a hellish excursion. Little had he realized it would be full-body torture, though.

A snore from the other direction drew his attention. Chris Keyes's room. Sure, the guy was sleeping peacefully. He wasn't suffering the tortures of the damned and—

Chris is a guy.

The thought interrupted Lucern's internal rant, and he gazed hard at the door. Kate's coworker might have a condom. His gaze shot to his own room. He didn't think that Kate would want Chris to know what they were getting up to, though; he was pretty sure she would be extremely displeased if he asked her friend for a condom.

Another sigh issued from his bedroom, followed by another rustle. He could just imagine Kate shifting restlessly on his bed, her nipples still erect, her face softened by desire and—

He just wouldn't tell her where he got the condom, Lucern decided. Hurrying to Chris's door, he didn't knock or make any other sound that Kate might hear, simply opened it and slipped inside. He rushed to the bed where Chris lay sleeping. Grabbing the sleeping editor by the shoulders, he gave him a violent shake.

“Wake up,” he hissed.

Chris came awake at once, his eyes blinking open with alarm. “What? What's happened?” he asked anxiously. “Is the hotel on fire?”

“No. I need a condom. Do you have one?”

Chris blinked stupidly at him. “What? A condom?” He started to lift his head; then his gaze hit Lucern's naked body. He froze, his mouth dropping open with horror. “Oh, geez, don't point that thing at me. Oh, my God.” He pulled free of Lucern's hands and rolled away
with disgust. “I'm sleeping here. Go away.”

Lucern scowled at Chris's back, straightened, and crossed his arms. “I need a condom.”

“And I need sleep! Go away,” the editor repeated.

“Don't you have any?” Lucern persisted.

Apparently realizing Lucern wasn't going to go away, Chris rolled back over. He glared. “Yes, I do. But do I look like a pharmacy to you?” he asked. He sat up. “Look, Lucern, I like you. But Kate is my friend and…” He paused to scowl. “Will you stop pointing that damn thing at me? You're giving me a complex here. Thank God all of my writers are female. Not one of them would stand there naked, waving themselves in front of me. I shouldn't know this much about Kate's personal life. We're friends and coworkers and…Have you two slept together yet? The other day—”

“No.” Lucern interrupted to shut him up. “Not
yet
! All I want is a damned condom, not a lecture!”

“Yeah? Well, all I want is to sleep and to not see Kate hurt, and you…” He paused as a knock sounded on the door to the suite.

When Lucern started to leave, Chris caught his arm. “You aren't answering the door like that! What if it's a fan who managed to track you down?” The editor thrust his blankets aside and got out of bed in one move. He was topless but wearing boxers. He stalked out of the room without bothering with a robe. Lucern followed at a discreet distance, just in case it
was
fans at the door and not the condoms he had ordered.

“Good morning, sir!” A uniformed bellhop stood in the doorway, smiling widely and holding out several boxes. “I believe these are for you.”

Chris goggled. Lucern didn't know if it was the quantity or the variety that had so horrified him. When the editor continued to stand there, Lucern lost his patience and strode forward.

“Give them to me.” He took the boxes from the now also gaping bellhop, then hesitated. “I don't have a tip. Chris, do you have a tip?”

“What?” The editor stared at him blankly.

“A tip for the man,” Lucern repeated irritably. He gestured to his nakedness. “I don't have anything. I'll pay you back later.”

“Oh.” Chris patted his boxers where pockets would have been on slacks. He scowled. “No, of course I don't—”

“That's okay. You can just catch me later,” the bellhop said quickly. Looking uneasy, he held out a pen and a clipboard with a slip of paper. “Just sign this so they can be charged to your room, and I'll be off.”

Chris quickly signed the slip and handed the pen and clipboard back. “Er, thanks.”

“You're welcome, sir. You two have fun now.” The bellhop winked, then pulled the door closed.

Chris whipped around to face Lucern, horror dawning on his face. “He thinks we—that you and I—he…” He was almost incoherent with horror.

Lucern was too impatient to get back to Kate to calm him down. He took the vampire shortcut and slipped into the editor's mind.
Go to bed, Chris. This was all a dream. You're sleeping.

The man calmed at once. He started to walk toward his door, muttering, “Oh, yes. I'm sleeping.”

Lucern watched Chris's bedroom door close, then
hurried back to his own room. He nearly ran Kate down. She had re-donned her robe and was apparently coming to find him.

“Oh,” she gasped and took a step back at his sudden appearance. “I thought I heard a knock at the door and voices.”

“Yes. Hotel delivery,” Lucern said. Noting the way her eyes widened as Kate took in the boxes he held, and afraid she would be put off by the number of condoms, he added, “I wasn't sure what kind to get, so I ordered all of them.”

“I see.” Her face turned pink, but she managed a smile. “Well, that's…er, that shows forethought…or something.”

Lucern sighed inwardly. This condom business could really put a crimp in the act of lovemaking.

Displeased with the discomfort now between himself and Kate, he set the boxes on the dresser, pushed the door closed and pulled her into his arms. He wanted her warm and wet and aching for him again. He hadn't gone to all this trouble to have the moment ruined. He kissed her with a deliberate passion meant to stoke the embers of the fire he'd built earlier, but when Kate didn't immediately melt against him, it occurred to him once more that it was a shame her mind was locked to him. It would have been so much easier to simply communicate his desire to her and infuse her with it. Instead, he had to do this the hard way.

Urging her around to lean against the dresser, he broke their kiss to lean back and untie the sash of her terrycloth robe. He froze as the cloth gaped open.
Damn, she took his breath away. He raised his hands to capture her breasts.

Kate released a shuddering sigh as he caressed her, and Lucern realized there might be something to be said for the hard way. He wanted to hear more of those sighs. He wanted moans and groans, and for her to say his name in that sexy pleading voice. He wanted to sink inside her and drive her wild with pleasure. And he didn't want to waste time moving to the bed.

Releasing her breasts, Lucern pushed the boxes of condoms out of the way, caught Kate under the arms and lifted her to sit on the dresser. Pushing the robe off her shoulders, he let it fall to the hard wooden surface, then stepped between her legs. He wanted her on fire again. He wanted her mindless, all his. Catching her by the back of the neck, he drew her forward for another kiss. His other hand played over her body. Using fingers and mouth, he planned to trace every line of her body, neglecting not an inch. He wanted to fondle, nibble, caress and devour.

Kate had a few demands of her own, however. He felt her hand encircle and slide along his length, and he nearly came undone. He managed to contain himself, but his kiss became almost savage. His hand immediately slid between them to find the heart of her.

Kate gasped and nearly leapt off the dresser. Lucern's touch was a shock to her still sensitive skin. She moaned and scooted closer, her legs closing around his hips, her hands moving over his body. He was hard and strong and a pleasure to touch, and he was driving her mad. He had already pushed her over the edge once earlier and she was aching for the experience
again. But this time she wanted him inside her.

Lucern moaned and shuddered when she found his hardness and caught it in hand. Kate smiled against his mouth, pleased at this proof that she could affect him, too; then she felt blindly about until she caught one of the boxes on the dresser. Somehow she got it open one-handed and retrieved a condom. She had no idea what kind it was and couldn't have cared less. She just wanted him inside her. Now.

Lucern heard a vague crinkling sound, then tearing. He was about to break the kiss to glance around when he felt something press against the tip of him and begin to slide over his length. Now he did break the kiss to look. Much to his amazement, Kate was sliding a condom onto him.

“Kate,” he got out through gritted teeth. “I—”

“I
want
you,” she breathed, finishing her work. Catching him by the behind, she drew him closer to her.
“Now.”

That was all she had to say. Lucern had thought it would take a bit more work to get her back to this point, but her cheeks were flushed with color and her body was straining. She wanted him. Without further ado, he caught her under the knees, slid her forward on the dresser and pressed his mouth to hers. He plunged into her. Then he had to stop at once. The feel of her closing warm and wet around him was like nothing he had ever experienced. He was enveloped in her scent and feel, was almost one with her in body and soul. Almost.

Acting instinctively, he slid his mouth from hers and down to her neck, and he partially withdrew. Kate murmured with pleasure, her lower body wiggling against
him. Her head tipped back to allow his caress. Lucern felt his teeth protract and plunged them into her neck as he thrust back into her body. It was a purely animal action, like a dominant male cat catching a female by the neck, as he drove into her. Kate C. Leever was his, and he was marking her as such.

Kate cried out and strained against Lucern as her mind was suffused with pleasure. It was a sudden rush, an overwhelming wave as his mind merged with hers, gifting her with what he was experiencing. Her pleasure—almost unbearable before—was suddenly doubled, and for a moment she was sure her heart couldn't take it. Then her body shuddered and contracted, her legs clenching around his, her nails unintentionally raking the length of his back, and lights exploded behind her tightly closed eyes.

She felt Lucern's hands slip under her bottom and pull her tighter to him, and she moaned. The movement made another wave of pleasure course through her. The waves were battering her, riding one atop the other as she experienced both his pleasure and her own. She clutched her hands in his hair, held on for dear life as the overdose of excitement made her woozy. She was afraid to open her eyes, afraid the room would be spinning as wildly as her mind.

Mere mortal lovers would seem tame after this experience, she realized sadly. Lucern had ruined her for all others, and she very much feared it was like a drug. All Kate could think was that she wanted more. Her heart was hammering, her body writhing, and she wanted more. She wanted to drown in it. She
was
drowning in it, she realized as she began to lose consciousness. Yet still she wanted more.

Lucern felt Kate sag against him as his pleasure overcame him. He cradled her against his chest as his body shuddered, then waited another moment for his strength to return. Pulling her back enough to peer into her face, he saw that she had fainted.

He wasn't terribly surprised. It had nothing to do with his bite. While he had sunk his teeth into her, his body was presently sated and he had not drunk. This faint was purely a result of what they had just experienced. It had happened in the past on those few occasions when he had poured all of his pleasure into the mind of his lover, and none of those times in the past had been as explosive as this one. He would have been more surprised had she not fainted.

Smiling, he pressed a kiss to her forehead, then again rested her against his chest. He had to regain his strength; the experience had hit him pretty hard, too. Lucern had never felt quite so weak yet satisfied in his life, and this woman in his arms was the reason. He rubbed her back with one hand, sifting the fingers of his other through her hair.

Finally, once he felt able again, he caught her under her bottom and lifted her from the dresser. He carried her like that to the bed, her legs and arms sagging but their bodies still joined. Yet by the time they reached the bed, he had once more grown hard within her. He was relieved when she murmured and opened her eyes. He knelt on the bed with her, then laid them both down.

“Luc?”

“Yes.” He brushed the hair off her forehead and pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose.

“That was…”

“Yes,” he agreed solemnly. Shifting, he moved to one elbow to take some of his weight off of her. Kate's eyes went wide as she felt him move inside her; then she appeared disappointed.

Lucern didn't understand why until she said, “You didn't—”

“Yes, I did,” he interrupted, unwilling to let her think for even a moment that she hadn't pleased him. “But you're intoxicating, and I want you again.” He withdrew a little and slid back in as he spoke.

Kate's eyelids drooped to half-mast, leaving her looking sleepy and sexy and with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. “Oh, well, I do try to keep my writers happy, Luc,” she said.