The valet brought our bags up to the penthouse suite of La Belange, the swankiest hotel in Palm Springs. My heart caught in my chest when he opened the French doors to the top floor suite, revealing an opulent space fit for royalty.

“My, I guess it is good to be famous,” I laughed. “This is the best suite in the hotel.”

“Don’t I know it,” she said as she twirled in a circle.

I walked towards the wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, complete with privacy glass. We had an expansive view of Palm Springs, complete with a vista into the vast, unspoiled desert. The full moon hung low in the sky, illuminating the tiny, sleepy resort town. Instantly, my whole body relaxed. I could forget I was a vampire here. It was the ultimate playground for me to escape.

The main room of the hotel suite had dark leather couches, and smooth quarter-sawn oak floors. White flokati rugs adorned the space. I took off my shoes and sunk my toes into their soothing, silky fibers. Towards the back of the suite were two bedrooms. The Master Bedroom suite was as large as my first apartment. I stretched my arms, and yawned.

Suddenly, I heard a scream from the kitchen. I panicked, and ran back to the common area, towards the sound of Natalie’s voice.

“What is it? Are you okay?”

I found Natalie jumping up and down in excitement. “Yes, I’m okay,” she squealed. “Just look.”

I peeked around the corner of the luxurious kitchen and, to my surprise, saw the edge of an indoor-outdoor swimming pool. The deep, turquoise pool stretched from the edge of the dining room all the way through to the outside patio. The glass-bottomed pool was suspended over the city, and a sea of lights glittered below us. I’d heard about indoor-outdoor pools, but I’d never seen one in person before—and certainly not on the top floor of a hotel.

“That’s crazy,” I gushed.

“I know, right?” Natalie beamed.

As the words left her lips, the suite’s front door tipped open and a tall, masculine figure darkened the frame. I looked up, and my jaw hit the floor.

Caleb.

His serious expression gave way to a crooked smile. What was he doing here? Wasn’t he supposed to be in New York? My face registered a genuine look of surprise, and I wondered if I was hallucinating again.

“I’m real,” he whispered. He’d read my mind again, and that meant he knew how badly I wanted him.

Natalie’s face drooped in disappointment, and a frown marred her otherwise flawless exterior.

“Seriously, Caleb, what are you doing here?”

“I had some business in Palm Springs to attend to, so I was hoping to combine business with pleasure.” His teeth skated along his lower lip, and my body warmed.

“And what about New York?”

“Postponed due to weather on the East Coast.” He nodded, as if he’d just said the most logical thing in the world. I somehow doubted he was telling the truth.

“Well, whatever.” Natalie placed her hand on her hip and grimaced. “I was planning on going downstairs for my Shiatsu Massage anyway. I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.” She rolled her eyes, and threw her cashmere shrug over her shoulder.

Tension hung in the air as Natalie picked up her purse and headed out the door. When the hotel suite door closed, I immediately relaxed. I understood why Natalie was upset about Caleb crashing our girls’ weekend. She’d gone from being a pampered celebrity, to the third wheel. Natalie expected to be the center of the universe, and anything less made her grumpy.

Still, I was unsure why Caleb came to Palm Springs, and how he’d known which hotel we’d chosen. The last I told him, we were staying at Natalie’s new vacation home. As if reading my mind, he broke the silence.

“I hope you like the suite. It’s my favorite one at the hotel.”

I blinked. “So, you’ve been here before?” I looked around the palatial estate and realized it was just Caleb’s style. Even the windows were tinted with UV protective glass.

“I own the hotel, angel,” he smiled. “Well, part owner. Some friends of mine went in on the deal with me and we made this place our own.”

“Vampires?”

“As a matter of fact, yes,” he smiled.

Suddenly, I saw the hotel through different eyes. The place was posh and glamorous. I imagined that it was a playground for rich vampires and unsuspecting humans. Natalie had walked into the last place she wanted to be –a vampire’s den. “That’s a pretty big coincidence that Natalie and I ended up staying here,” I said.

His eyes darted to the side, and his rich, masculine voice whispered. “Not a coincidence, exactly. I told her manager to make it happen.”

“Oh,” I shook my head. I suddenly realized that Caleb had paid for the suite, and had planned all along to find me here. How much control did Caleb want over my life? All of it, it seemed. I didn’t know whether to be flattered, or alarmed.

“I sense you’re disappointed that I’m here.” His arms dropped to his sides. He walked closer to me, and I noticed a long, blonde strand of hair on the collar of his shirt. My heart sank.

“Not disappointed,” I stammered. “Confused, maybe. I feel like you’re hot and cold with me. One day I’m your everything and the next…” I couldn’t finish my sentence. I wanted to mention the blonde hair wrapped around his throat, but I didn’t have the courage.

He tenderly brushed my face with his silky fingertips, and tipped my head back as he gazed into my eyes. His eyes had already begun their transformation to amethyst, a sign of intense passion. I saw in the reflection of his eyes that mine were now tinged purple, too.

“Is this about Reina again?” He studied my face for the answer.

“I can’t talk about it right now, Caleb. This was supposed to be my girls’ weekend with Natalie.”

“You mean your best friend who doesn’t even know what you are?” He growled, and the air tensed around us.

I bit my lip, unsure how to answer him. I wanted to either kiss him or kill him. There was no in-between with us. As the silence pulsed between us, he gingerly wrapped his hands around my neck, and roughly massaged the area under my jaw with his thumbs. He’d already turned me into a vampire, so I didn’t have anything to fear. But I was terrified. A rush of adrenaline coursed through my body.

“Caleb.” My skin heated, with fear and arousal. Even though I’d become a vampire, I didn’t know how to control my body temperature yet. My body physically responded to his, and I was helpless to stop it. I knew Caleb would never harm me. But Natalie’s words struck fear through my heart: Never trust a vampire.

What if she was right?

“Abby,” he whispered. “You’re everything to me.”

I might have laughed if another man had said it, but when I looked into Caleb’s eyes, I saw centuries of longing and turmoil behind his amethyst gaze. He’d hurt for so long, he didn’t know how to let me go. I wondered if a fling with Reina was his own self-sabotage, a way to self-destruct so he didn’t have to worry about losing me, the way he lost his family so many centuries ago.

The thought of him as a wounded, lost soul touched me deeply, and my fear quickly rushed away. All I saw was the love in his eyes. It made for an enticing aphrodisiac, and I submitted to it entirely.

His hands slid down my arms, and then he held my fingers gently. His lean, muscular body drew closer to mine, and his jaw brushed the crown of my head.

“The only one I want is you,” he whispered.