Chapter 4
Christian had just parked in front of Tiffany’s apartment building when her bright red Ford F150 pulled in parallel to him on the opposite side of the street. As he climbed out of his black Ram truck, he saw Tiffany emerge from the Ford.
She spotted him instantly, slipped a back pack over her shoulder and shut the driver’s side door. “Hey. Whatcha doing here?”
He thought she looked inordinately pleased to see him and liked it, but he was irritated at her for being out this late and worrying her mother and him. “Coming to check up on you, young lady. Why have you been ignoring your mother’s calls and texts? And mine? It’s almost eleven. Where have you been?”
Her eyes narrowed with indignation. “So Mom’s already got you checking up on me? That there is bullshit!” she stormed.
Christian had never seen her this angry, but he held ground. “All right. She did and I am. She worries. So do I. Where’ve you been?” He’d promised Mia he wouldn’t tell Tiffany he was checking up on her, but he was pissed. Besides, what other reason could he give Tiffany for why he’d shown up on her doorstep at this hour of the night? Better yet, why had Mia chosen tonight to ask him to do this? This couldn’t be the first time Mia had failed to hear from her. That call just kept feeling weirder by the second.
“Well, all I’ve got to say is the both of you had better back off. I don’t need this job bad enough to put up with you running over here every time I go a few hours without answering one of Mom’s calls or texts.” She stalked off across the street toward her building.
“Hold up, girl.” He gapped the distance between them and grabbed her forearm, halting her. “Check the attitude. You know how your mother gets when hours pass without you returning her calls. She was worried, yes, but she called me tonight because she was excited we’d be working together. So where have you been?” he pressed. Truth was he wanted to know for his own piece of mind as much as Mia’s.
“Bull, Christian. I know my mom. She’s looking for someone to keep tabs on me because she wants the inside scoop on how my job is going. Who else but you can give her that info? I can’t believe you’d play into something like that.”
He had and deserved her rancor, but he was still curious. “Okay. You’re right. I was checking up on you on her behalf. I’m sorry. But now that I’m here, satisfy my curiosity. Where have you been?”
She thrust her arms across her chest and glared at him. “What’s it to you? Maybe I was out tying one on or hooking up, but whatever I was doing, it’s none of your business or Mom’s.”
Lord, she had an attitude tonight, but he’d lit it by doing Mia’s bidding. Tiffany was a private person and a full grown adult. He could see how she’d take his presence as an affront.
Nevertheless, he was here now and intended to get some answers. He scented her and found no alcohol in her system. No male had touched her either. Her scent was purely her, spicy and sweet and beguiling, yet lent no clues as to what she’d been up to tonight.
“You’re right. What you’ve been doing isn’t any of my business, but Tiffany, people care about you, so when you choose to go off the radar, at least alert someone to that fact.”
Guilt wiggled across her pretty features. “I didn’t mean to worry anyone. Truth is I’ve been teaching a computer class on Monday nights for developmentally challenged teenagers. This was the final night for this group and there was a party. The evening ran late and my phone is always off while I’m teaching, but I called her back shortly after I left. It’s all good.”
Christian felt a bit amazed by her confession and proud of her too. She really was a surprising little package. “Well, I understand. That makes sense. So why didn’t you call me back?”
She pointed her finger and him and scowled. “Because I haven’t had time yet. I appreciate the concern, but no more checking up on me. I mean it.”
He wouldn’t promise her a damned thing in that regard. Mia aside, she was in a way now his responsibility. “If I’m concerned I’ll check on you. Simple as it gets. If you don’t like it, tough.”
“How dare you say—”
“I dare and I will. Do you wanna keep arguing about people caring, or will you simmer down and see the sense in it? Things can happen unexpectedly in life. There are people who occasionally worry and check up on me. I don’t have a fit about it.”
Her expression was not one of complete concession, but she didn’t blast him again.
Several moments of awkward silence passed, then he noticed her gaze slide to his truck and narrow with a very unappreciative look. “What?”
“A Dodge RAM? Geez Christian, I know with what you’re paying me you can afford something better than that piece of shit.”
He slapped a hand over his heart and chuckled. “You’ve sullied my ride. I’m hurt, but it’s a hell-of-a-lot better than your found-on-the-roadside-dead, Ford over there.”
A cute, but wicked grin inched across her features. “Wanna wager on that one?”
“You challenging me to a race?”
She shrugged. “If you ain’t chicken. It is a straight V-8, right? No special souped up package in the motor?”
“No. It’s standard. Bought it brand new less than a month ago. So what are we betting?”
“How about dinner? I know it’s late, but I haven’t eaten anything but cake. You?”
He hadn’t eaten anything all day. Today’s troubles had stolen his appetite because he’d been so caught up in his patient’s tragic loss. “Fair enough, a race it is. But where? I’m not very familiar with this side of the city.” He’d lived here over two decades, but the V clinic kept him too busy for much playtime, like scoping out good drag racing roads. Shit. He hadn’t done something like this since college. Sounded fun though especially with Tiffany as an opponent.
“I know the perfect place,” she replied enigmatically. “Follow me.”
A short while later they were on an old, two lane road deep in bayou country, not a house or car in sight. When she came to a stop, Christian pulled up next to her truck and let down his window. She did the same on her passenger’s side.
He could see her clearly even in the inky blackness of the surrounding Louisiana bayou because a vampire’s vision was best served at night. She was beautiful, her expression eager and a smidgin sassy. She loved a challenge and he was primed to give her one. “We aren’t using auto drive features right? We’re drag racing the old fashioned way?”
She snorted. “Of course. What would be the fun in that?”
“True.”
“A Mississippi count to three, then we hit it,” she said grinning.
He smiled back. “Ready?”
“Oh yeah.”
Damn she was cute. Especially when she smiled at him that way with her little come hither look. She could be such a flirt, but she never seemed overt about it. Maybe that was the turn on. Sometimes he wondered if she had any idea what she did to him. Then again she might be purposely driving him as wild as a buck in rut. Either way he liked it.
Three seconds later they both punched their accelerators and the two V-8’s made a deafening roar, tires squealing. Their trucks shot off nose to nose, but after several seconds Tiffany’s begun to outpace his. He floored it, but never managed to keep up after that point. When they finally halted their vehicles a short while later, he leaned an arm on his open window and said, “All right. I reckon you won fair and square, but I don’t know how the hell you did.”
She shot him a sly grin. “You never asked me if I’d padded my motor.”
“You little brat! What have you got in there?”
“Oh just a special little chip.” Her eyes danced with mischief.
Christian shot her a chiding look. “Cheater. The deal’s off. We go dutch.”
“Whatever. Where do you want to go?”
“Follow me.”
Christian had her trail him in her truck to one of his favorite country/cajun hang outs, pretty sure she’d enjoy the food and music given her upbringing. They made it with a mere ten minutes to spare before the kitchen closed. Christian waved over a waitress and placed their order quickly. In addition to their meals, he’d ordered them a couple shots and beers for boiler makers.
After the server delivered their drink order Tiffany said, “Seriously? If we keep this up, I have a feeling we’re both gonna have hangovers tomorrow.”
“Vampires rarely get hangovers Darlin’. You I can’t say the same for you, so we better behave tonight. This round will be it.” He dropped the whiskey shots into the beer glasses. They foamed riotously at first. Finally, he scooted a glass her way and lifted his own. “A toast to the best IT the V clinic’s ever had.”
She made a pssht sound. “You got that right.” She touched her glass to his then downed the contents of her own.
He watched her glance about the bar, her attention briefly pausing on the dance floor where dozens of couples two-stepped to a familiar tune piped through the bar’s sound system.
“Would you like to dance?” He wasn’t sure she knew how to two step, but knowing Tiffany, the lack of a skill wouldn’t keep her from trying something new.
“Sure.”
Christian could tell she was nervous about this outing and a second later when they stood and faced each other he discovered why. It was the same reason he was nervous. Heat simmered in her pretty brown eyes. It was obvious she wanted him. Heat didn’t even begin to describe his condition. A volcanic inferno of lust roared inside of him.
Boy oh boy, he’d been making some bad decisions tonight. This damned thing between them seemed to be growing by leaps and bounds. He knew he was flirting with the devil here, but he should have realized that about an hour ago before he took her to a bar, liquored her up and asked her to dance.
He’d just have to make the best of it. And who knew? It could be a brand new beginning for them. Or… Common sense reared it’s ugly head. Christian knew if he managed to seduce her things would have to end eventually and that could have some seriously negative affects on their friendship. He didn’t want to think about the negative aspects. Tiffany was his friend and he refused to let sex change that. Possibilities formed in his mind left and right for later on when they were alone. He wanted Tiffany more than he’d wanted a particular woman in a good long time. As determined as he was to have her, he was equally determined not to destroy what they currently shared. Even if that meant nothing happened tonight or ever.
“Christian? You okay.”
He shook his head, scattering his ruminative thoughts. “I’m fine, Darling. If you’re ready, let’s go show them how it’s done.” He flashed a confident smile, took her hand, then led her onto the floor.
He began a basic two step, but could tell instantly she was a pro. So he brought it up a notch to a double two step, effected a few advanced spins and turns that had her breathless and giggling when they exited the floor four songs later.
“That was fun. Thanks.” She beamed at him.
“Anytime, Darlin’.” He meant it because he’d always enjoyed spending time with Tiffany. They enjoyed so many of the same things.
“Our dinner’s arrived. Let’s eat.” She pointed toward their table.
He’d ordered an array of Cajun fare, crawfish, something called `gator-snaps’ and two big bowls of jambalaya. He was pleased to see her dig in heartily and joined her.
She placed a hand over her mouth and swallowed. “You know, it took me a good while to get used to Cajun. I love spicy stuff, but I didn’t grow up on seafood. An occasional catfish is about all I ever had until I moved to New Orleans.”
He chuckled. “Well, your mother is an amazing chef. How’s her and Julia’s catering business these days?”
“Rocking, but Mom’s come a long way with that talent. Money was always tight when I was a kid, so my dad and I often hunted for our dinner. Squirrel and possum suck no matter how many seasonings or marinades you add.”
“Agreed.” He’d eaten his share of the disgusting rodents as a child when his father’s practice had been struggling. However, her comment made him frown on several levels. For one, this was the first time she’d ever mentioned her father to him and Christian knew how she felt about the man. He’d cheated on her mother with Tiffany’s best friend. He also knew from Mia, that Tiffany’s business hadn’t been as lucrative as she’d hoped. Well, no matter. Soon the girl could eat like a queen every night if she wanted, could have anyway. Nathan and Mia Davenport’s wealth was staggering and world renowned. But as Mia stated earlier, Tiffany made her own way.
They continued with more small talk as they’d finished their meal. Afterwards they headed back to her apartment in their separate vehicles. He couldn’t wait to be alone with her. He wanted to know if this thing brewing between them for nearly a decade had any substance to it.
Christian walked her to her door and waited while she unlocked it and flipped on a light switch which illuminated her living room.
He remembered the apartment when it had been Mia’s years ago shortly after he’d met her during that awful time she was coming to grips with Nathan turning her into a vampire. Nathan was her life mate now and they were very much in love. He envied his good friends that blessing.
Today Tiffany’s place was decorated much differently and quite nicely for an older apartment in a turn of the twentieth century home. The walls held mounts, deer and turkeys and many of her sister Danielle’s earthy impressionistic paintings. Thanks to Nathan’s wealth and connections Danielle was famous, rich by her own hand and couldn’t crank out paintings fast enough to sell to eager buyers.
Despite Tiffany’s prized kills, and a fairly impressive gun cabinet, the place possessed a quaint feminine element too. She was a collector of fairy objects he observed. All sorts of porcelain and ceramic figurines adorned shelves and tables, along with plants. She took after her mother there.
“Well, come on in,” she told him, then strode across the living room and dumped her back pack on the coffee table.
She picked up one of the colorful throw pillows littering her couch and began to fluff the thing. A nervous Tiffany was something he’d never witnessed, which told him her thinking probably parallel his own horny thoughts. The fact the place exuded her personal scent acerbated his physical condition. The spot behind his incisors began to tingle, where his fangs extended. They wanted their way and so did he. Christian wanted to yank her up by the back of her thighs and plaster her body to his, her parts to his, then just let go, but he knew neither of them were ready to go that fast yet.
He closed the front door then walked over to her, searching for a topic. “You aren’t still brooding about me talking to your mom are you? I told you Mia was just worried because you hadn’t called. She didn’t reveal any deep, dark secrets. Promise.”
There was an irritated gleam in her dark eyes when she turned making him realize politics or religion would have been a better topic choice than her mother at the moment.
“No. I’m used to Mom’s meddling. And I have no deep, dark secrets, Christian. My life is utterly boring.”
He chuckled. “I doubt that, but I’m sure you could stand to get out more. Do you have a boyfriend?” He already knew the answer to that from Mia. But if she was wrong, he couldn’t allow things to go any further.
She let out a single scoffing laugh. “Now that’s a stupid question. Do you think I’d have gone out with you tonight if I did?”
He stared at her, finding his tongue suddenly tied, but his own question—and it had been a stupid one—had popped the lid on this can of worms. “No, of course you wouldn’t. So why did you?” Now his questions were going from stupid to stupidly loaded.
“You already know part of the answer to that. I like hanging out with you. We’ve had so much fun at Mom and Nathan’s over the years, but I think your fishing.”
He took another small step her direction. “Maybe. I guess it’s juvenile of me to play games. We know each other too well. You know I want you.”
A shrewd look filtered into her gaze a second before it raked over him, very slowly, thoroughly and with feminine appreciation. “Nah. Really?” She flashed a big grin.
He did the same while taking in her pretty, gold/bronze features, her cute upturned nose and those full, luscious, rosy lips that had him imagining some very creative things they could do to a deprived member of his body.
He took two more steps. She stayed put, inches from the couch where he wanted them both to end up in short order. “Of course, I really want you. Are you having problems with that very obvious fact?”
She dropped her head and breathed out a tiny laugh. When her gaze met his, it still blistered with longing, but wonder too. “I can’t believe this day. It’s been one hell of a roller coaster ride.”
“I’ll say.” He frowned when he thought of Mrs. Corrigan. Bad timing, but he simply couldn’t help it.
She gapped the distance between him and took hold of his hand, scattering his dismal thoughts. “Look, whatever happens we’re not gonna lose this, right?” She placed a hand over her heart then moved it to the center of his chest.
He wrapped his fingers around hers flattened against his breastbone and squeezed. He understood her worry because the same troubled him. Still nothing could change the way he felt about Tiffany as a person. “Impossible. We have too much history for that to happen. If whatever this is comes to a screeching halt, I’m not going to avoid you or pretend this night never happened. I care too much about you for such nonsense. But if you have even an inkling of a doubt that anything which might happen here tonight or in the future could change our friendship, then this goes no further, Tiffany.”
She nodded. “I appreciate you saying it, even though I already knew. I guess I just wanted to hear the words. And I agree this will not change our friendship. Tomorrow you’ll still be Christian La Mond, my good friend.”
“That’s what I wanted to hear.”
“Good. Then we’re agreed.”
“We’re agreed, Darlin’. On all fronts.”
She let out the breath she’d been holding as a ragged sigh. Then her tongue darted out and swept across her lower lip, slowly, seductively and that did it. He kissed her. He started the kisses slow and sensual, nipping at that sexy lower lip and intermittently sucking, but that didn’t last long. There was too much pent up sexual tension pulsing between them. He pulled her flush against him and began kissing her like a hundred and twelve year old virgin. Meaning wild, crazy, lip and hip grinding action that made him feel like a fool for waiting over a decade to experience this with her.
She gasped into his mouth then went to nipping at his lower lip with her teeth. For a second the blood pounding in his brain grew so loud from the sudden burst of lust, he thought might suffer a cerebral embolism.
He continued to make love to her mouth like a sailor who hadn’t seen port in months, while his hands reveled in the soft, smooth curves of her body. She copied his movements, snaked a hand beneath his T-shirt and began to explore his bare chest with her palm.
“Son-of-a-bitch,” he muttered into her mouth when one of her fingernails scraped over the hard bud of a nipple, sizzling overly sensitized nerve endings. He’d waited too long, way too long because this was too intense, happening too fast. He wanted it to last hours, the entire night.
She broke the lip lock and peppered little kisses across his cheek down his neck while flicking his skin with her tongue, leaving him completely void of reason. He moaned and felt himself falling into a raging sea of desire he’d never known in his life. A brief moment later he felt his fangs extend on their own accord.
He had to taste her now!
Christian walked her a couple steps backward toward the couch. When he got them there she tumbled onto it and he followed. Righting himself, he pulled her onto his lap and began to repeat what she’d been doing to him, laving her neck with his tongue, nipping at the soft skin covering the enticing beat of her pulse, getting moans of pleasure for his efforts. The sweet, exotic scent of her blood pulsing wildly through her veins had him mindless and completely vulnerable to his base vampire hungers, blood and sex.
He bit down and seconds later she went limp in his arms. The numbing agent contained in his vampire venom rendered her immobile like a powerful anesthetic, but she took it in stride. A sexy moan issued from her throat as her pulse steady and strong pushed sweet blood into his mouth. He drank greedily, mindlessly, knowing it was impossible to hurt her, take too much. She meant too much to him. He moaned deep in his throat as her sweet life essence flowed across his tongue, better than anything he’d ever tasted. Better than life itself.
Then it happened. The one thing every vampire longed to experience with another person from the point they reached their majority was the blood bond connection. And it was happening between them hard and fast.
Her thoughts, feelings, emotions, passion, basically all of who she was, blew up inside his mind and fused with his thoughts and feelings and there was no peeling any of those things apart. He couldn’t separate his from hers. All he could do was revel in the moment and he did. She as well. Both shook from the sweet violence tearing through their beings. Minutes later, the mental and physic connection swelled to such an insane level, her body exploded with a violent, orgasm. Of course he experienced it with her and when she screamed her pleasure, he yelled his own and nearly blacked out from the intensity.
He must have for just a bit because when he finally gained a rational thought, he realized he laid on top of her and she was breathing just as hard as he.
He lapped up the few remaining droplets of blood on her neck, braced his hands on the couch and raised up. She let out a little groan, then her eyelids fluttered a few times before she looked up at him with astonishment. “I can barely move, Christian. What the hell?”
He winced then tried for a reassuring smile. “Yeah, well, vampire venom has a numbing agent which causes the brain to ignore nerve signals for muscle control. Sorry. Can’t be helped. It only lasts a couple minutes though.”
“Whatever. I don’t think that’s my entire problem. My mind can’t wrap around what just happened because I felt you in there. I felt what you felt. I experienced your thoughts alongside of mine. And man, were they hot. God, Christian that was so totally wild. Is it always that way with vampire sex?” She looked as dazed as he felt.
“No, it most definitely is not always that way and wild is not a good enough word for expressing what just happened.” And he meant it. That had been the most poignant experience of his life and the first time he’d ever experienced vampire sex. Actually, life mate lovemaking was a more apt description because the melding of minds could only happen between life mates.
Christian sat up, situated himself beside her on the edge of the couch and looked down at her with awe.
My God. It was her. He’d wondered, even suspected, but now that he knew he just wanted to just stare at her and delight in the amazement of the most joyous event of his life.
Tiffany was his life mate and she’d been right before his eyes for twelve fucking years. How could he have been so blind? More to the point why had he waited this long to find out?
There had been a whole host of reasons he didn’t want to think about right now. He just wanted to bask in this newfound revelation, but reality crept in and began to dampen his joy. Tiffany was human. What they’d experienced might not have made the same impression on her soul.
Humans weren’t wired to experience something like this. Vampires were. Most likely she’d view what just happened as a wonderful emotional or sexual encounter, but not the sealing of their fates for all eternity. Meaning there could never be another for either of them. Explaining this confusing aspect of vampire mating worried Christian, but at the moment he was too happy to care about explanations.
Finally, she sat up and ran a hand across her messed hair and ponytail. “Whoa. Damn it, Christian, that was amazing, you smoking ass hottie,” she said in a sexy, breathless voice, then grinned again.
“I’ll say. But if anyone’s a hottie it’s you, girl. I could do that every day for the rest of my life.” He chuckled then cupped her cheek, leaned in and gave her a soft kiss. When he pulled back, he noticed her satiated expression had grown a bit wary. “Are you okay.”
“Sure. Yeah, I’m great. You?”
Her tone had been buoyant, but he sensed a cover up. “Need you ask after that? No regrets? Right?”
She waved her hand at him. “Are you kidding me. No way. I knew what I was getting into. I just didn’t know you were going to rock my world off it’s axis.”
“Trust me. Mine’s pretty damned shaky at the moment too.” It pleased him greatly that he’d given her such pleasure. He’d been in her mind and what he’d viewed amazed him. She’d fantasied about this many times. What worried him is he hadn’t picked up on thoughts of her wanting to be with him again, let alone forever. Apparently, none of her vampire kin had explained that integral part of life mating to her or she’d at least have a clue they’d experienced the blood bond life mate connection. Did she suspect now that it was over? Boy he wanted back into her mind so bad, but he dare not press his luck there. He could sense she wanted to backpedal, to play things down.
Tiffany swung her legs over the edge of the couch and cleared her throat. “So I guess we graduated from just friends, to friends with benefits, huh?”
His smile fade because they’d become a hell-of-a-lot more than that. “Well, I don’t know if I would say it like that.”
Her own smile faded as she laid a hand on his knee. “Hey, it’s cool. That was great, but it’s not like I’m looking for a commitment here. No pressure. If this was just a one time thing that’s perfectly okay with me.”
Christian stifled a groan because it sure as hell wasn’t going to be a one time thing. He’d just discovered his life mate and wanted to dance on the nearest mountain top and shout it to the world. Tiffany was nowhere near ready for that. For her sake he needed to take things slow. He just hoped things wouldn’t be glacier slow. “Right, no pressure. We’ll just see where this leads.”
Her brows knit as she cocked her head and stared at him with a bit of confusion. “This can’t lead anywhere serious, Christian. There can never be anything permanent between us and I’m okay with that. I know what you’re really looking for is a vampire life mate. In case you haven’t noticed I’m not a vampire and have no desire to be.”
Those last words were like a knock out punch. If she meant them he would have to convince her to become his life mate as a human. He couldn’t mark her, make her his wife in the way of their kind so they could share a unique scent telling other vampires they were married. They couldn’t share a physic connection unless they did this. She’d never be able to initiate the act of mind speaking. No human possessed that physic ability. And of course they’d never have biological children.
There were too many more depressing nevers to ponder. He sank back into the couch and heaved a great sigh. He’d never ask Tiffany to turn for him anyway. It was a life altering decision that came with physical risks. He was overjoyed Tiffany was his. Still he couldn’t help but wish they’d been born the same species. Preferably his.
“Good Lord, Christian, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I thought it was a given that this couldn’t lead anywhere serious because I’m human.”
He could argue that fact, but now was definitely not the time. He could tell she was spooked. Anything more he might say would only make things worse right now. “Darlin’, you didn’t hurt my feelings. We agreed this wouldn’t change our friendship and it won’t. Your friendship means too much to me.” He stood. “But it’s getting late and I’d better let you get some rest.” He leaned over brushed his lips over hers then stood. “Good night, Darlin’. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Night,” she murmured, her expression a little befuddled.
He left quickly before he did something stupid like blurt out the truth and scare her worse than she obviously already was.