Assassins Bite (25 page)

Dirk looked good. He glowed with an inner strength I'd never seen before.

Then he opened his mouth. “Uhhy! Eah o eeuh.”

“Sunny,” Aiden translated. “I'm glad to see you.”

“Are you sure that's what he said?”

“They're like babies,” Elena said. “The systems have to reintegrate. He'll be fine. Maybe better than fine.”

“Okay, that's enough,” Bo said. “The fledgling needs his rest.”

“But—”

“He'll be fine,” Elena repeated. “You can come back tomorrow night.”

“Well…all right.” I waved at my brother. “Love you, Dirk.”

“Uh oo oo, Uhhy.”

Love you too, Sunny.
I blinked back tears of relief. My brother would indeed be fine.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Now that I knew Dirk was all right, I set about getting Aiden that second chance with Madison and Milwaukee.

Elena escorted me upstairs, then she and her husband left. Apparently they patrolled the city regularly for marauding vampires, like beat cops. Aiden was still busy with Dirk. I hied myself to the kitchen, sat at the table and optimistically whipped out my phone.

Vampires were apex predators; I was counting on that making them stupidly competitive.

I started with Madison. After identifying myself I said, “You should know the Milwaukee master is meeting with Blackthorne here in Meiers Corners.” I wasn't lying. I planned to call Milwaukee right after this, and I wasn't taking no for an answer.

Proway sniffed. “And this should interest me, why?”

“Because if Vingt gets to Blackthorne first and brokers a deal, he'll get all of Blackthorne's knowledge. You do know Blackthorne is an expert warrior? There's no better. He'd give Milwaukee an edge. If Vingt meets Blackthorne first.”

“Let him.” She hung up.

Well, she hadn't said no. Convincing myself that deep down she'd taken the bait, I called Milwaukee. “Madison is meeting with Blackthorne in Meiers Corners. She'll be here shortly. Shouldn't you do something about it?”

“She can meet with a dozen men for all I care.” The slammed phone said I'd touched a nerve.

But while I
hoped
they were hightailing it here, clamoring for Aiden's expertise, I didn't really think from those calls that they were. I hadn't gotten Aiden his second chance, and may have even made things worse.

It brought back all my doubts, my fears. I was such a Ruffles. Bad timing, worse luck. What made me think the love—or at least attention—of a good man could change that? I phoned in sick to work, then left my phone and optimism on the table and trudged downstairs.

Aiden found me sitting on the basement steps, staring at nothing. I expected him to misinterpret my funk, to reassure me Dirk would be fine, to smother me in words or crush me in a hug.

Instead he sat on my step with me.

In his simple silence I felt all the compassion and support in the world. Like before, the vacuum pulled at my words, my feelings. “I'm such a Ruffles.” I turned to him and dove beneath his arms; I didn't snuggle with him so much as wrestle myself into his embrace.

“A Ruffles?” His arms tightened around me. “What do you mean by that?”

I just shook my head. I wasn't ready to weigh him down with the appalling idiocy that all implied. Instead I snuggled deeper, as if I could meld with his strength. “Aiden, please? I need you.”

He didn't pretend to misunderstand. “Sunny…”

I grabbed him by the collar and stared up into his eyes. My gaze must've conveyed the urgency words couldn't. He didn't argue, didn't make excuses. He simply carried me to our room, got naked and did it.

Misting took care of his clothes. His clever, strong hands took care of mine. His hands took care of getting me wet too, along with the heat of his bare body stretched out on top of mine and plenty of deep, passionate kisses.

“Now,” I whispered, wrapping my thighs around his hips.

As he slid in, I clutched his muscular shoulders. I knew what this cost him. The possibility of pregnancy, the specter of becoming an abusive father, meant this was more than just intercourse for him. This was a huge commitment to an iffy, and probably horrendous, future.

He did it without question, just because I'd needed and asked. It made the gift all the more precious.

He stroked inside me, slow and easy, our slick fronts pressed together, our mouths and hands caressing.

It was leisurely and sweet. Comfort sex. The kind I could imagine having when I was old and my joints creaked.

When
we
were old, Aiden and I together. Pleasure rushed me at the thought. His next thrust slid in all the way, filling me completely.

We both groaned.

He rolled his hips into me, faster now. His cock thrust deep, his fangs coming out to play, teasing my flesh wickedly until I was flushed and swollen and ready.

“Any time,” I said.

“First tell me what you meant,” he said. “You're such a Ruffles?”

I gasped. “Not now. Thrusting now. Biting now. No talking now.”

He stilled. “Now. Talking.”

“
Arg
. You are so demanding.”

He gave me his subtle smile.

“Fine.” I licked the salty sheen on his chest. “I always show up at the wrong time.” I flicked my tongue over his nipples. “Like when I fell across Eloise and chased her to Settler's Square?”

He rewarded me with renewed thrusting and fingered my nipple until it sang. “Wasn't that simply good police work? Following your suspect, waiting for the best time to make an arrest?” He bent and sucked the nipple into his mouth until
I
sang. With one last lick he switched his attention to the other.

“Maybe,” I gasped. We'd started slow but by now my heart kicked double-time. “But I got used as a hostage to trap you.”

“Not your fault I'm stupidly protective. Besides, you rescued me from the trap.” He kissed his way to the crook of my neck, continuing his rhythmic thrusts. “And she'd have figured out a way to trap me without you. I was lucky you were there.” He licked my earlobe. A shiver tickled up the shell.

“Well, maybe.” I played my fingers along his abs as they rolled under my touch, crunching and extending. I loved the feel. “The first coffee incident?”

“Your brother, stumbling at the wrong time.” He lifted his head from my neck to look me in the eye. “In fact, I'd argue you've been stumbling in at just the
right
time. Starting with that first night when you managed to make me late for my own bombing.”

“Elena said something like that.” I gazed up at him in wonder. “Did I really?”

“You did.” Nestled deep inside, he gazed warmly at me. “Know what I think? I think you, Sunny Ruffles, are a very lucky woman. And I'm a very lucky male to have found you.”

Found.
Something clicked inside, something that said
This One
—something that swept me off the edge of forever into the swirling chasm of long, shivering climax. I was joined by his rupturing inside me, spilling joy.

With Aiden, Ruffles luck really did seem good.

We fell asleep. A couple hours later I woke to insistent knocking.

“Sun-Hee?” It was Elena.

“Wha…?” I had to use extra muscles to breathe under Aiden's limp weight. Slow and sweet meant the orgasm had an extra sucker punch.

“You left your phone in the kitchen. Someone called for you. Twice.”

“Be right there.” I nudged a muscled shoulder. Aiden slid off me, rolled lithely to his feet and held out a hand to help me up.

We dressed. I unlocked the door and Elena handed me the phone.

It started ringing. The phone's display read
Nieman's Bar
.

Aiden snarled. “Camille? What does she want?”

Vampires, sheesh. “That's what I'm trying to find out. Hello?”

“Sun-Hee Ruffles? Hello, darling. I'm Camille Lebeau, owner of Nieman's Bar. A couple of cheeseheads showed up here looking for you and Blackthorne.”

Crap. Milwaukee and Madison, together without a referee? “Heading over now.”

We ran, Elena and Bo following us. The moment we hit sidewalk Aiden swept me up and carried me, so fast my hair whipped in the wind. I'd have enjoyed it if not for the thought of Nieman's as ground zero in a vampire flame war.

Doom is rarely what you imagine. In my case, it tends to be worse.

Nieman's was a typical neighborhood tavern. A rail studded with peanut-heaped bowls ran the length of the room, a long framed mirror behind it. Tall postage-stamp tables were scattered along the far wall, but serious drinkers sat at the bar. Behind it, Buddy the bartender efficiently poured glasses and drew pitchers.

I didn't see any of that. The moment I got inside, soft arms grabbed me and cinched me in a squeeze that made my head pop. My elbow reared automatically for a spear hand to the solar plexus, to render the attacker unable to breathe with possible internal damage.

Before I could release the attack, a sweet scent overwhelmed me, and all my muscles went limp. Not chloroform. Worse.

Mom.

“Sunny, hello! What are you doing here at Nieman's? Did you know your new friends are here, looking for you? I was just making their acquaintance!”

Of course she was.

“Harold, Pat, here is my daughter the police officer.” She grabbed Milwaukee with one hand, seized Madison with the other, and pulled them together as I stared like a frozen turkey. In the neon-enhanced darkness, Milwaukee was all white-blond hair and chiseled cheekbones; Madison's full curves were stunning in a little black number.

They glared red death at each other. Then, like two magnets repelling, they pulled from my mother's hands and stalked off to separate ends of the bar.

“Poor dears.” My mother
tsked
. “They are having a little marital spat. Give them time.”

“Mom, they're not married.”

“Significant others, living together, whatever. Speaking of, who is this?” Mom clapped her hands—and grabbed for
Aiden
. Even his ninja reflexes didn't save him, or maybe he let himself be captured for the maternal examination. “Is this the Aiden Blackthorne I've heard so much about? I am so happy to finally meet you. Detective Strongwell told me all about you.”

I sliced Elena a hairy eyeball. She shrugged.

Aiden gently extracted himself and bowed. “I'm pleased to meet you, Mrs. Ruffles.”

She gave a delighted crow. “How nice your boyfriend is!”

“Yes, he…wait, my
what
? Mom, Aiden isn't my boyfriend.”

“Of course he is. Just look at you!” She grabbed each of us by the head and smooshed our cheeks together; either Aiden cooperated or she was just that strong. “You are a beautiful couple.”

Light flashed with the electronic
kashick
of a phone's camera shutter. “Smile,” Elena said, conveniently after the fact. She checked her display and her smile widened. “Yeah, a beautiful couple.” She showed it to us.

We were a gookie-faced couple.

“This is so going on TwitFace.” She wandered away.

Things were getting out of hand. “Mom, we need to talk—”

“Just a minute, dear,” she said. “Buddy, pitchers of your best Doppelbock for everyone, and boilermakers for us! Sunny is celebrating.”

“I am?”

Behind me, a woman in leather lederhosen, black eye shadow and not much else called gleefully, “You heard her, Buddy. Doppelbock boilermakers for everyone.”

“Mom said pitchers.” I waved at Buddy, who was hauling pricey-looking 160 proof bottles from the top shelf. “No, wait—”

“You are celebrating your engagement,” Mom said.

“
What?”
Sanity derailed. “Why would you think
that
?”

“Well, after the shenanigans Dirk heard going on in the police restrooms—”

“
Thanks
, Mom.” Me, a lucky woman? Aiden seriously needed to upgrade his definition of luck, maybe swap the L for a Cl or F.

I wanted to fix things but didn't know where to start—Mom's matrimonial beam, Elena's showing the picture to
everyone
, Buddy's loading trays of pricy boilermakers, or the nonverbal battle between Milwaukee and Madison escalating across the length of the bar from stuck-out tongues to evil eyes and several rather rude finger placements.

Yeah, ground zero, vampire flame war. Start there.

Lederhosen Lady, who must have been Camille, didn't help matters, cranking up a new sound system. The bar reverberated with the theme from
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
. Madison and Milwaukee started toward each other like a Western gunfight at high noon. I could almost hear the
ching
of spurs.

I nudged Aiden in the ribs. “Do something. They're about to kill each other.”

“What?” Aiden whispered back. “Most of
my
solutions involve killing them first.”

“Damn. Too late anyway.” They'd reached the middle.

Madison drawled, “What a nice surprise seeing you here.” If tone of voice was a knife, Madison had just disemboweled him.

“Likewise,” Milwaukee sneered, a verbal punch to the nose. “How have you been?”

“Fi-ine.” She stretched and curled the syllable into a hangman's noose.

“
Good
. So glad to hear it.” He swung his words like an axe.

I sighed. Yup, the Ruffles playlist includes “Oh Say Can You See (No the Flagpole's in the Way)”, “We All Live in a Yellow Van-Down-by-the-River” and “Rock Me Like a Novocain”.

“Except…” Madison turned away, a moment of vulnerability on her face. “My first lieutenant…I'm afraid he's crowding me out.”

I was shocked.

To
everyone's
shock, Milwaukee replied, “Then he's an ass. Get rid of him.”

She sighed. “I can't.”

“Of course you can.”

“No, he's married to my personal assistant and I don't want to hurt her. I'm afraid to lose her…it's complicated.”

“What's complicated? Just get rid of the cluck. You can always get another PA.”

“You're not listening.” She scowled. “I don't know why I bother telling you anything. You
never
listen to me.”

“I never listen to
you
?” He reared back. “I've told you a thousand times to get rid of that asshole and he's still there.”

“Oh, and I should turn to you, when you're the one who walked out on me last time?”

“We've been over that! My human factotum's mate was in labor and I'd promised the man I'd come home—”