The Vampyre Legal Chronicles - Daniel: Book: 3 (10 page)

Gia knew something hinky was going on.

And if Saira was aware Daniel and Ezekiel were vampyre, what
then did that make her?

Instead of sitting on the couch, Gia headed for a single
chair and sank to the edge.

Daniel was watching her like a hawk and the big male vampyre
was examining her so closely a wave of gooseflesh rose uncomfortably over her
skin. The hair on the back of her neck prickled unpleasantly.

Witch
, hissed her vampyre.

Witch?

Seriously?

What next, werewolves, pixies and elves?

Daniel gave her big eyes and she realized he was reading her
like a book. Well, that needed to stop. There must be some way to block him
delving into her thoughts whenever he damn well felt like it.

"She has no magic within her," said Ezekiel into
the silence.

The uncomfortable prickling sensation on her skin eased and
her vampyre settled.

"Thank goodness for small mercies," muttered
Saira.

Gia sent her a dark look.

Saira's response was a white smile which showcased lethal
fangs.

Gia blinked.

 Saira Pattullo was a vampyre, too?

Well, color her
not
surprised.

The woman was dressed in head-to-toe black leather. It
appeared vampyres had a thing for leather. How clichéd, decided Gia with a
little sniff of pure disdain.

Saira must have seen something in her face because now she
hissed like a snake.

Gia hissed right back at her.

"Ladies," said Ezekiel, his gravelly voice a
warning to cease hostilities.

He turned to look at Gia and again she felt power trickle
over her skin. She didn't like the sensation and glared at him to stop. He didn't.
Instead he moved into her personal space and crouched down in front of her, his
leathers creaking over heavily muscled thighs. He held out his hand in a silent
instruction for her to place her hand in his.

Instinctually her eyes flew to Daniel's.

He nodded.

Her eyes clicked back to Ezekiel. Her vampyre was on the
highest state of alert as she placed her hand in his. It wasn't a jolt of
electricity, it was more like a stroke of heat that ran up her arm and spread
through her chest, her mind. Her vampyre slammed the door shut to her thoughts,
her feelings. Now his smooth brow creased as he studied her, his head cocked to
the side in a way that alerted her that this man, vampyre, witch, or whatever
the hell he was, wasn't human. She felt a tiny pain in her head, a probing sensation
and gritted her teeth. Her eyes glared into his making it crystal clear she
didn't like it.

And then the pain was gone.

"You are a powerful vampyre, Gia. I sense a need for
revenge riding you hard. If you take my advice you will let it go... Hatred is
a destructive force."

"Did I ask you for advice?" she wanted to know and
ignored Saira's warning hiss.

Suck it up, Sista, I don't like you either, she let the
thought shoot out of her mind.

Ezekiel's dark eyes flickered for a split second. If she
hadn't been watching him, she might have missed it.

"Impertinent, too," he muttered as he released her
and stood to his full height.

She'd have a crick in her neck if she had to look up at him
for any length of time.

He moved away and took a seat on the couch he'd indicated to
her earlier. Then he seemed to relax as he stretched out long legs and sat
back. All the time his eyes, the eyes of a predator, watched her carefully.

He didn't trust her.

She could taste it, even smell it.

Well, she didn't trust any of them either.

Not even Daniel.

She saw his eyes go slitty and realized he'd picked up her
thoughts loud and clear.

"We'll need blood tests to see exactly what stage her
emerging vampyre has reached," said Saira to the men, rudely ignoring a
fuming Gia.

Well, she wasn't having that.

She jumped to her feet.

"Excuse me? Am I invisible or something? If you come
anywhere near me with a needle I'll kick your skinny ass," she warned, her
vampyre just itching for a fight.

Gia bared her newborn fangs to a Saira who was staring at
her without blinking.

Well, this was something of a personality change for Gia Del
Russo.

Since when had she ever been an aggressive person?

Never.

All her life she'd been brought up to do her duty, to be
passive, responding to events that happened to her rather than leading and
controlling her own destiny.

'You're in control of your destiny now, little sister.'  

Too true
, she responded, still glaring at Saira and
refusing to blink first.

"Gia," said Daniel in a low voice that held a caution
to behave. "We need to take blood to test what's happening to you."

His mouth twitched at the insolent look her vampyre threw
him.

Boy, was this a character change for the worst. What had
happened to his quiet and polite PA? What had happened to the shy and lovely
Gia who'd worked for him for two years? And why did the way her chin lifted
fill him with pride as well as lust?

Daniel realized his night with Gia had forged a bond between
them that was new, raw and incredibly powerful. One night. Just one night and
he couldn't imagine waking each morning without her, couldn't imagine not
falling asleep with his legs tangled in hers. That fabulous voice the final
sound, he heard before sleep.

He wanted to take her hand to his mouth, to sample the
scent, the taste, of her, to tell her she was his.

Forever.

She was watching him now, eyes filled to the brim with
suspicion, hip cocked in faded jeans. Her feet were bare. Those narrow
shoulders showcased by a simple T-shirt of white cotton. Her mouth and her eyes
went all sulky in a way that made him just want to scoop her up and take her
back to bed.

"Don't even think about it," she told him in a
do-not-mess-with-me-pal voice. "I have a gig to prepare for tonight."

He blinked as he recovered fast from the shock that she'd
read him.

"Nope," he said.

"I have a contract to fulfil, money to earn to pay off
a debt. Trust me, I'm going."

"Nope."

"Watch me."

She turned on her heel, marched into his bedroom suite and
banged the door so hard the room shook.

Silence.

"Well, well, well," drawled Saira from the couch.
He turned to look at her. The vampyre medic looked as if she was sucking on a
lemon. "Looks like you've got yourself a handful of trouble, Daniel. Looks
like you're going to need to play hardball with your newborn. I don't remember
Gia having a potty mouth."

"She didn't. This is a new development."

"What's this about a gig?" asked Ezekiel, taking his
life in his hands as he reached out to play lazily with the ends of Saira's
black hair. Without looking at him, she jerked her head in a movement that
warned she didn't like it. It seemed old Ezekiel was still interested in his
ex-wife. Daniel managed to suppress a grin at the scowl on her face that told
the world Saira was not interested in Ezekiel.

"Gia has a voice you wouldn't believe. She's been
singing at the Sly Fox club downtown and making a nice little sum each
night."

"What does she need the money for?" asked Saira,
accepting the fact that Gia could sing without a blink.

"Her late husband was in arrears to the wrong people.
The mafia, specifically Enricho Donatti. She's paying off the debt."

Saira's dark brows winged into her hairline. "Whoa,
didn't see that one coming. I'd say you have a little problem in your hands
because there is no way she's stable enough to be exposed to humans. Her
bloodlust would cause mayhem."

"I agree," said Ezekiel.

"Other than locking her in the room, I don't know what
else to do."

"You could beat the crap out of her for one thing and
teach her a little respect," snarled Saira.

Daniel's vampyre rose.

"Respect is earned, Saira, not forced. No one will
ever
lay a finger on her. Do you hear me?"

Saira rose, hands on hips and tossed him a dark look.

"You need to toughen up, Dan. You're too soft. Always
have been."

"And you need to take your nose out of things that do
not concern you. I have Ian Macpherson and a whole battalion of Centuri guarding
the exits. She'll not get out of here tonight. You have my word on it."

Ezekiel rose, folded his arms and stared at Daniel through
narrowed eyes.

He knew that look.

"And don't even think of using magic on her,
witch."

"I doubt very much if it would work. From what I could
read from her, she appears immune to such influences." He heaved out a
sigh and stalked to the window to look out upon a city in darkness. "I am
meeting with your father later to discuss the deteriorating global situation...
and Gia. He may decide to keep her under guard until she becomes a little
more... co-operative."

Daniel heard the warning and reacted to it.

He didn't want to break a confidence, but Saira and Ezekiel
and his father needed to understand what Gia had gone through.

"She is a victim of a spousal abuse so extreme that at
one point she was readying herself to take her own life." When Saira's eyes
went wide, he nodded. "The way she has embraced becoming vampyre has come
as something of a shock, I admit. But I understand her reaction, too. Not once
has she suffered nausea or any discomfort, that I can ascertain. I was at least
expecting dismay, even fear. Instead it has become clear to me she feels free
and empowered, happy even, for the first time in her life. I won't have the
light of hope for a better future for herself extinguished by you or by anyone
else. We must give her a fighting chance to find her feet. She's bright and
talented and smart. And underneath the mouth, she has a good heart. She just
needs a little time."

Ezekiel nodded. "Why don't we bring in Anais to help
her find those feet?"

"Yep. She was fantastic with Charlotte when she was on
the edge," said Saira.

Good idea.

"I'll talk to her," said Daniel.

He knew that Anais would help in any way she could.

Like himself Anais was an empath.

She lived to help others.

However, if Daniel could see the way
Anais was behaving at that moment, he might change his mind.

She was in the vast walk-in shower in their bathroom, temper
still sparking as she washed off the sweat of her
incident
in the fight
club with Marcus.

How dare he embarrass her like that?

Just because she'd won their bout?

He was a bad loser.

Hot soapy water ran down her back, stung the livid and clear
handprint on her ass.

And again her temper clicked up another notch.

She knew she'd played dirty, using her supposed distress
against him.

At heart Marcus was a big softie and couldn't bear the
thought of her being upset in any way. So she'd struck a low blow. So what?
Surely the whole point of fighting under the tutelage of Ian Macpherson was to
win
?

Did it really matter
how
she won?

Lifting her face to rinse honey and oatmeal conditioner from
her hair, she didn't hear the bathroom door open, didn't feel the displacement
of air. The first she knew she wasn't alone was when large hands slid up wet
skin to clasp her breasts.

Anger to arousal in two seconds.

Every time he touched her, her body betrayed her.

Her nipples went hard as he nuzzled the sweet spot in her
neck.

She arched to let him taste her.

Marcus adored nothing more than to take a little snack when
they indulged in love play.

He gripped her wrists, placed them behind his neck, opening
her up to his seeking hands, searching fingers.

When those fingers entered her, his thumb circling in a
relentless rhythm around her clitoris, she arched her back and gave a little
sigh of pleasure. God, he played her body like a violin. He knew exactly what
strings to pluck. Her climax was a lovely long and slow rise that took her up,
up, up, until she shuddered.

"Am I forgiven?"

She blinked, the question dumping her abruptly into reality.

She pushed out of his arms, turned to face him.

Her mouth opened.

But nothing came out.

He was standing above her, strong muscled arms braced on the
wall, effectively caging her in. His wonderful face serious as those fabulously
blue eyes were filled with his love for her as they stared into hers. Annoyance
with him simply slipped away. She loved that face. Just loved it. She loved his
high cheekbones, the strong and totally masculine jaw, the firm mouth made for
kissing. And then her eyes slid down defined pecs, the six pack, the flat belly
to an erection that pulsed as it seemed to reach for her.

He'd never been shy of showing her his body. He'd never,
ever, hid his need for her. And it was painfully obvious he needed her now. Of its
own volition, her hand reached out to whisper a finger down his shaft to his
scrotum. The low growl was almost a purr and the sound did amazing things to
the liquid heat deep in her belly where arousal bloomed like the petals of a
flower opening to the sun.

Her eyes flicked to his, went wide. "Are you using sex
to get on my good side?"

His mouth twitched, the dimple flashed.

Those blue eyes went all wicked.

"Is it working?"

Now her arms went around his neck as she stood on her
tip-toes to match her mouth with his. Her body pressed against the sleek and
slippy hard heat of his.

"Might be."

The sound of an alert from his cell phone made Marcus close his
eyes and groan out loud.

Then his mouth was on hers as his hands moved to grip her
backside and lift her. Long legs wound around his waist as he entered her with
a single thrust of his hips.

Hot.

Tight.

Wet.

He heard another alert from his cell.

Swearing, he lifted her from him and set her feet on the
tile.

His forehead dropped to hers.

And he read a deep disappointment that only matched his own.

The sound from his phone was an urgent summons from his
father.

No matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't ignore it.

"
Fuck
."

His wife closed her eyes and pressed another hot kiss. This
one filled with a promise of good things to come later, to his mouth. Then she
stepped away.

"Maybe something's happened. You'd better go."

He nodded, grabbed a towel, wrapped it around his waist and
grabbed one to dry his hair.

"I won't be long. Don't you dare fall asleep before I
return."

Her dark eyes went wide as if to say,
As if
.

The look on her face made him grin.

How fucking lucky was he to have such a woman in his life?

She might bust his balls on a regular basis, but he loved
her.

With every breath he took, with every move he made, he loved
Anais.

"I'll wait for you," she promised.