A_Little_Harmless_Fascination (28 page)

Damn! He pulled his attention away from Lady Cordelia and
back to Gray who was now studying Nico with enjoyment.

“She's a Carrier.”

Gray's face lost all emotion, his body turning to stone.
“You must be mistaken. I know every Born in the ton. She is not one.”

Nico glanced around looking to see if anyone had overheard
and realized that the only attention they had were from eligible young women
across the floor. With a sigh, he motioned with his head and turned, not even
waiting to see if Gray followed. Nico knew the duke would. He found the library
easily, and was relieved to discover it empty. Gray shut the door quietly and
leaned against it.

“Do you really think she is a Carrier?”

“I don't think. I know. At age five hundred, I think I know
the difference between a Carrier and a normal human female.”

“She is not descended from any line I know. Her mother was
married to the Earl of Collingsworth.”

“He must not have been her birth father.”

The look of comprehension slid over Gray's face. “Of course.
Only the oldest is his, the son. The daughters were said to have different
fathers, all four.”

“Yes, and the youngest, Cordelia, is treated as an outcast
by the others.”

Gray sneered. “That brother of hers is a bastard. Owes
everyone in town, which is why he isn't here.”

“You mean she is in town alone?”

Gray crossed his arms over his chest and frowned. “Indeed. I
think she stays in the family townhouse, but with little staff. Truthfully, I
have no idea how she affords it. Her father...Collingsworth left her barely
anything to live on from what I heard.”

“And there is no rumor of impropriety. She has no
protector?”

“Not that I know of. And I assure you, with the notorious
Lady Fionna as her mother, if there was a hint of scandal, it would be all over
the ton.”

Nico shoved that aside and moved back the subject on hand.
“Regardless, she is a Carrier.”

“Again, I point out that my family has kept track of all the
noble families. She isn’t on that list and neither is Lady Fionna.”

 
Irritation turned
Nico’s voice sharp. “Think. When the church attacked us during the Inquisition,
many families hid. We scattered to the winds, and I am positive we have yet to
find everyone. There are probably several dozen Carriers in the ton and they
have no idea…why would they unless they have mated with a Born? “

He had known about Lady Cordelia for days. Something about
their first meeting, the way his body had reacted, had told him she was not
just a simple bluestocking. He had immediately responded to her, despite the
fact she was not his type of woman. He usually liked females tall, lithe and
definitely experienced. Cordelia had none of these attributes, but she was a
Carrier. So he was predisposed to respond to her.

Though in truth, he had never reacted even to another
Carrier so strongly.

“You may be right,” Gray surmised.

“I am. It’s easy to scent a Carrier. It also explains why
Hurst is after her.”

The young duke crossed his arms over his chest. “Hurst is
not one of us.”

“Indeed. He's Made for sure.”

With satisfaction, Nico watched Gray's eyes widen in alarm.
It was the first Made vampire to hit the ton in recent times. “Bloody hell.”

“Precisely. He has shown little to no interest in Lady
Cordelia until recently. We need to find out where he was before his
fascination arose. If he has not left town...”

He let his words trail off letting Gray draw his own
conclusions. “And a nobleman at that. This is not a good development.”

“No. I need you to find out where he was, discover any of
the places he frequents. Who he’s spent time with. We also might want to put a
man on him.”

“Do you think we need to warn the other noble houses?”

Nico snorted. The other vampire families were notoriously
stubborn. “Would it do any good? They refuse to believe there is a problem. My
father is the only patriarch who is worried. No one else but the three of us
seems to understand the gravity of the situation.”
 
He thought about Lady Cordelia and her role in
everything. “I say that Hurst's attention started just over a fortnight ago.
Something must have happened then. He does not appear to have gone completely
into the Blood Lust, but there is a good chance he is not far from sinking
there.”

“How do you know he isn't already there?”

Sometimes Nico forgot that Gray was too young to have seen
Made vampires and their terrible descent into murderous madness. “If he had,
you would have seen more than just a slight altercation when I asked Lady
Cordelia to dance. It is very likely the bastard would've challenged me on the
spot—possibly even attacked me.”

Shock crossed Gray’s face. “Truly? That would have been a
sight.”

Nico ground his teeth again, but this time not to keep his
teeth hidden. Gray was a good sort, but he was young, especially for a vampire.
He was not around for the last purging, and he did not know just how bad this
mess would end up.

“He probably doesn't know I am a Born, has no idea what is
going on. His body is telling him to pursue her. And since she has no
protection, such as your sisters and others in the ton, he knows she would be
easier to prey upon.”

“I'll get a man on him, and I'll talk to father about his
connections, where he has been before. I hope this doesn't end up like that bit
of business you had to handle up north.”

With that, Gray left Nico alone with his dark thoughts.

There would be no way out of it; Hurst would have to die,
but not before they got some information out of the bastard. The one he had to
kill three weeks ago had been too far gone to question, but Hurst seemed to
still be functioning surprisingly well…but Nico didn’t expect that to last. If
they could grab the viscount off the street, they might be able to persuade him
to talk. He'd make plans tonight with Malik. Time was precious when a vampire
had been Made. If they were not handled properly, they would turn into a craven
beast searching out the nearest Carrier to consume. If the woman didn't die,
she would wish she had.

 
Now Hurst had
apparently set his sights on Lady Cordelia. And that bothered Nico.
Exceedingly.

With a sigh, he straightened away from the desk. His body
was still humming with anticipation of a joining. While he could not satisfy
the mating call Lady Cordelia had nearly wrested from him, he could find a
woman to slake his lust.

He walked to the door but it blew open, bringing Lady
Cordelia with it. His body responded immediately. The normally perfectly
coiffed curls that dangled over her ears were in disarray. A look of irritation
marred her usually smooth features. She slammed the door shut behind her and
then leaned against it much the same way that Gray had. Clearly, she did not
notice him in the room.

“Stupid man.” She locked the door behind her and then patted
down her hair. “He is becoming a real trial.”

“I hope you are not referring to me,” Nico said.

She started and then looked in the shadowed corner where he
stood.

“Mr. Blackburn?”

He cursed himself the moment he realized she could not see
in the darkness. If he had stayed quiet she would not have seen him. She had
not mated yet, so she possessed only human abilities.

“It is I. I take from your comments that you did not follow
me here.”

She sniffed. “Of course not. I am trying to avoid that idiot
Hurst. Why on earth he has decided to bother me now is beyond me.”

Bloody hell. Hurst’s constant pursuit could herald the
coming of his blood lust. If the viscount touched her, he’d likely sink into
madness. Something would have to be done—tonight.

“Come, now, Lady Cordelia. You could easily attract his
lordship’s attention for any number of reasons.”

She mumbled something under her breath that sounded like
“not bloody likely.”

At least she understood there was danger. Unfortunately, it
did not help his protective instincts. The need to shelter her, keep her safe,
coursed through his blood, along with a healthy dose of lust. He did not speak
for fear of revealing the depth of his need.

Silence loomed several moments, then without any warning she
flashed him a brilliant smile. He blinked as he watched her approach, amazed at
the change in her expression. And wary. No woman could be trusted, especially a
Carrier. Those with the ability to birth vampires were frighteningly
clever—they had to be to survive. He knew without a doubt, Lady Cordelia was
working something out in her brain that would only bring about disaster for
them both.

“Mr. Blackburn?” She stopped in front of him, her scent
wrapping around him, tempting him. It was a mixture of musky woman and
innocence that had his incisors threatening to descend. The woman was too
bloody tempting for her own good. No wonder Hurst had been after her.

“Yes?” he asked, surprised that he hadn’t started panting.
Or done something far more aggressive.
 
Even now as she gazed up at him as if she worshipped him. He reacted,
his lust in full bloom. He wanted—ached—to throw her across the desk and strip
her naked. Nico knew it was primal; it had nothing to do with the woman.

But he’d never had such a strong reaction to a Carrier.

“I wondered…” She pulled her bottom lip through her teeth,
and he inwardly groaned. The woman was going to undo him with her innocent
gestures. He curled his fingers into the palm of his hands.

“Lady Cordelia, what do you need?”

She blinked and hesitated. He did not blame her. Even he
could hear how his voice had deepened, roughened. The earlier altercation still
thrummed through his blood. Maybe she would flee the room, and he would be free
of her long enough to ease his desires elsewhere.

 
He should have known
better.

She raised her chin, and said, “Can you explain a bit more
about your shipping business?”

“W-what?” He could not concentrate on her words, but rather
watched the way her lips moved in the slant of moonlight that illuminated her
face.

Cordelia cocked her head to the side. “Are you unwell?”

He shook his head, his attention still on her mouth. Her
tongue flicked out over the fuller bottom lip as she took a step closer. Bloody
hell, he craved to taste her, to feel her mouth move beneath his. He wanted to
feel her flesh beneath his and he wanted to sink his teeth into her neck.
 
With every bit of his control, he pulled his
mind away from the image of her wearing nothing but the moonlight.

He needed her to go, far away. He made one last attempt.

“Lady Cordelia, I think you should leave.” He bit out each
word, the lust he felt dripping from each syllable. Unfortunately, the woman
apparently was oblivious.

She stepped even closer, determination stamped all over her
face. Passion darkened her eyes.
 
She was
magnificent.

“I will not be deflected again.”

Good God, the woman smelled of heaven. He could imagine
rolling with her on a bed, the scent of her surrounding him, the tangy taste of
her on his tongue. His incisors descended, primed for feeding. He did not even
try to stop it. He knew it impossible.

Without another thought, he grabbed her. She gasped, the
sound erotic in the darkened library. He had the satisfaction of seeing her
eyes widen as he dipped his head.

“Mr. Blackburn, whatever do you think you are doing?”

“Shutting you up.”

Then he bent his head and took possession of her mouth

Coming this July to
print and digital from Melissa Schroeder Publishing.

Born to an Air Force family at an Army hospital Melissa has
always been a little bit screwy. She was further warped by her years of
watching Monty Python and her strange family. Her love of romance novels
developed after accidentally picking up a Linda Howard book. After becoming
hooked, she read close to 300 novels in one year, deciding that romance was her
true calling instead of the literary short stories and suspenses she had been
writing. Since her first release in 2004, Melissa has had over 30 short
stories, novellas and novels released with multiple publishers in a variety of
genres and time periods. Those releases include the Harmless series, a
best-selling erotic romance series set in Hawaii. A Little Harmless Sex, book
1, was one of the top 100 bestselling Nook Books of 2010.

Since she was a military brat, she vowed never to marry
military. Alas, fate always has her way with mortals. Her husband is an Air
Force major, and together they have their own military brats, two girls, and
two adopted dog daughters, and they live wherever the military sticks them.
Which she is sure, will always involve heat and bugs only seen on the Animal
Discovery Channel. In her spare time, she reads, complains about bugs, travels,
cooks, reads some more, watches her DVD collections of Arrested Development and
Seinfeld, and tries to convince her family that she truly is a delicate genius.
She has yet to achieve her last goal.

You can connect with Mel all over the web:



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