Lucas (Immortal Blood) (3 page)

“But the nice gentleman who went to get you some water will be here any minute, so…” I nodded towards the door. “It was nice to meet you, though.”

“Yes, it was nice to meet you, too.” Her lips trembled and her eyes were moist.

I flashed her one more smile and rushed out of the office, and out of the school as well.

Settling back in my car I let myself breathe heavily. That had been close. I hadn’t
gone there to feed and those minutes in the office might have cost me my prey. I hit the dashboard, swearing. From now on I would sit in the car as long as it took until I saw either Sam or Kate. End of story.

I’d parked my rental car near the motorbikes. Vampires love speed so I assumed at least one of them had come to school on a motorbike. My gaze slid over the row and stopped on a black one. I snorted. There was more space around it than the others, so I assumed either its owner was a really bad boy or a vampire. Or both.

The bell rang and I put on my sunglasses, sliding a little lower in my seat. A couple of girls passed me, concentrating fully on each other. I heard parts of their conversation and wanted to put my hands over my ears, as some of the things they said were quite shameless. Luckily, I didn’t have to wait long before I saw Sam march out of the school. She looked sulky and the tough guy following her looked even sulkier. He said something to her and she snapped at him. He snapped back and went to the black motorcycle. I grinned.

Sam didn’t follow him, and when he drove away without looking back she angrily gave him the finger. Perfect.

I followed Sam’s scooter back to the house and parked my car so that I had a great view of all the windows looking out onto the street. I saw her climbing to the second floor and soon she appeared at the window. I held my breath. I was pretty sure she hadn’t looked my way at the school, but you can never be too careful with vampires, as they can pick out the most peculiar little things when you think they’re not even looking. So, if she looked down now she would easily spot my car and might recognize it as the same one that had been at the school. But she just glanced out before turning her back on me. I let the air flood out of my lungs and leaned back, finding a more comfortable position. I stared at her window and when she started to undress there was no force that could’ve taken my eyes away from her.

The hours went by and nothing interesting happened. Not until the clock hit eleven.

The front door opened and Kate walked out with two of the guys I’d seen before. They went to a black Audi Q7 that was parked next to the house. They didn’t start the engine, though, and after a while Sam and a guy also emerged and hurried to the car. I licked my lips. This was my moment. There were only couple of places where vampires could go and party safely. One was the other side of London, a small, very casual place that was more like a private club than a nightclub, and the other one, not so far from there, was for party people. Sam’s red second-skin-like miniskirt gave me a good hint about which place they were heading to. I stepped on the gas and followed them.

The club was situated in an alley that was dimly lit, and when I reached the familiar door I stopped. I didn’t knock. I didn’t have to. It took only four seconds before the door was opened and a giant bouncer let me in. He didn’t say a word. Not hi or anything. He glanced at my wrist once and paled. There was no need to introduce myself or for him to ask me anything, as my tattoo told my story. He knew perfectly well who I was or, better yet, whom I was with.

Inside, the noise hit me, making my mouth wet, and my lower belly ached for pleasure. A slow bass beat was seductive, mimicking the beat of a heart, and the quiet sighs from the shadows reminded me of the pleasures the place could offer. I caught the scent of fresh blood mixed with sweat and lust, and let myself enjoy the atmosphere before stepping further. I looked for Sam and saw her dancing with her friends, but I knew it wasn’t time yet, so I stayed in the shadows, carefully avoiding her and her little group. Wherever I looked I could see vampires mixing with humans. Humans offering their necks and wrists willingly, their bodies entangled together. Some dancing, some doing things way wicked. My eyes gleamed and my mouth stretched into a sinful smile as I made my way to the bar.

“W with O,” I said, glancing at the dance floor.

“Negative or positive?” a husky voice asked.

“Negative.”

I raked my hair and heard a sharp gasp. Turning slowly I met the bartender’s eyes, which were staring at me in terror. At first I didn’t get what was wrong with her, but when her eyes involuntarily glanced at my wrist I smiled devilishly.
She didn’t seem to know whether to stare at my wrist and the tattoo on it or into my eyes, which now had a dangerous edge.

On my wrist was a tattooed knife with a two-headed snake entwined around it. One of the heads seemed to be screaming, as letters floated out of its mouth. Centum. Less than six vampires had the exact same tattoo, and my creator was one of them.

The bartender swallowed. “I also have a special AB, if you’d like. It’s on the house.”

I shook my head slowly and she disappeared to make my order. A familiar voice laughed nearby and I turned. “Sam.”

She smiled at me and eyed my black jeans and tee approvingly.

“I didn’t know you ca
me here, too.” Her eyes also revealed she hadn’t recognized me as a vampire when we first met. Interesting. She should have, so maybe she’d been so mesmerized by my looks that she’d forgotten to use her senses. A piece of knowledge I could use to my advantage later.

I locked my eyes onto hers and she swallowed nervously. I gave her a flirty grin and shrugged. “I don’t.” I glanced at the people behind her. “Aren’t you
gonna introduce us?”

“Sure,”
she said, turning to Kate. “This beauty is Kate, my best friend. That’s Jonathan, a very good friend of mine.” She gestured to a dark-haired, tall boy, also known as puppy-eyes, who flinched at the word friend. “And that’s Dane.”

My eyes met Dane’s and he smiled, revealing his canines. I returned the smile. I recognized a predator when I saw one and couldn’t help wondering if I was looking at my brother’s killer right then.

Kate’s eyes flashed excitedly. “Sam, you forgot to tell us who he is!”

“Oh,” Sam laughed. “This is Lucas. I met him yesterday.”

They looked me over, interested, and I couldn’t help noticing Kate straightening her body and stepping closer to me. I looked at her icily and she stepped back, hurt. I couldn’t allow her to believe she’d have a chance with me. For God’s sake, she was my niece!

“Lucas.
” Dane almost spat my name. “Never heard of you.”

“Funny. Never heard of you either,” I smirked.
“Are you two…?” I waved my finger between him and Sam.

“No,” they said in unison as Kate and Jonathan said, “Yes.”

I lifted my brow and Sam blushed.

“It’s complicated.”

“Yeah, so back off.” Dane’s voice held a warning.

I held my ground and fixed my eyes on Sam. Her eyes begged me to drop it, but I wanted to shake Dane up a bit. “Where I stand it’s really simple. It’s either yes or no.”

He stepped closer and practically growled.

“I’m sorry it took so long,” the bartender said as she put my drink on the bar.

I turned, ignoring Dane completely, and smiled at her. “It’s okay, sweetie. Thank you.”

She muttered something like ‘thank you, sir’ and vanished.

Jonathan sniffed and came closer. “Is that what I think it is?”

“Depends what you think it is.”

“A very old, spicy AB.” He sighed longingly.

I nodded and didn’t bother to say it wasn’t what I’d ordered. The girl had messed up my order. On purpose, I was sure of that.

Jonathan sighed again and I moved the drink closer to him.

“Be my guest.”

He glanced at me and I noticed Sam rolling her eyes. Jonathan took the drink and put it under his nose. Sam punched him and he sipped it, looking embarrassed. I turned to the bar again and ordered another drink. The bartender’s lips were trembling and she looked as if she would drop dead at any time, but I really wanted my O negative mixed with some old Scotch.

“So.” Sam cleared her throat. “Why haven’t we seen you before?”

“Because I don’t live here.” I drilled my eyes into hers. “I’m only passing through.”

“So you’re visiting.” She smiled haltingly.

I took a step closer. “Sort of. I’m looking for something.”

“Did you find it?” she whispered.

“Don’t know yet. Maybe.”

Dane snorted but we both ignored him. I touched her hair.

“Come on, Sam! This is ridiculous,” Dane interrupted.

Sam didn’t move. I let my hand slide onto her shoulder and she gently put her hand on mine. Dane grabbed her arm and, before she could react, started to drag her away from me.

“Later,” I mouthed and she nodded before she put a brake on and started to struggle free from Dane’s grip. I saw them disappearing around the corner and couldn’t help smiling. The seed had been planted and either one of them would do something stupid for sure. Kate eyed me weirdly and I rudely turned my back on her. She growled but left me alone, and Jonathan, well, he was a lost cause, as he seemed to be in some kind of ecstasy from the AB I had given him.

I lay on my bed, thinking about the previous night and Sam. I didn’t know how she had hexed me, but I couldn’t get her out of my mind. I knew she wasn’t mine to take but I would use her to get what I wanted, and I didn’t mind having some fun while doing it. I wished she were there with me so I could start my little game with her and I wondered what she was doing. Was she with Dane and was he doing things to her that I wanted to do?

An image of her curvy body flashed into my mind and made me ache. I knew exactly what I would do with her if I only could get my hands all over her. I would dig my fingers into her long, dark hair and pull her close to me. I would taste her body and make her moan, begging me not to stop. My hands would work wonders on her, and when she couldn’t take it anymore she would scream my name over and over again. I felt my body responding to my thoughts. I took my cell from the nightstand, playing with it. It was only 7 a.m. but I didn’t want to wait. Not even when I knew she’d only been home a few hours.

The phone beeped twice.

“Yes?” Sam’s voice answered briskly.

“Morning.”

“Lucas?” She sounded confused. “How did you … how did you get my number?”

I grinned. “Easily. So what are you doing?”

“Now?”

“Yes, now.” I lowered my voice and felt lust grasping my groin.

She was quiet. As if she’d heard the lust in my voice and hadn’t yet decided what to do with it.

“Sam?”

“
Mmm?”

“Did I wake you?”

She laughed. We both knew vampires didn’t need any sleep. There were way better ways to use a bed. “What do you want?” she asked and I heard a bed creaking.

My grin widened. “Breakfast?”

“Ha ha. Very funny. What do you really want?”

I wasn’t sure if she was ready to hear the real answer so I played it safe. “Just to see you.”

She was quiet. I could hear her breathing and it warmed me in ways I’d rather ignore.

“Lucas,” she finally sighed. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

“Why?” I pushed. “Because of your ex?”

“Yes. Like I said, it’s complicated.”

“Isn’t it always,” I muttered. “So, can I?”

“What?”

“See you?”

“Now?”

“Why not? Meet me at the small café next to Covent Garden. The French one.”

She hesitated.

“The one with the window full of pastries and small cakes.” I tried to keep my voice steady.

She didn’t answer and I didn’t want to beg. Begging was so not my thing. The minutes stretched and it was starting to annoy me.

“Sam?”

“Yeah, sure. Why not.”

“Fifteen minutes?”

“I’ll be there,” she breathed and I closed the phone, grinning like a little boy.

The café was full when I arrived, but that didn’t bother me. I went over to the table near the window and looked at the old couple sitting at it. They glanced at me once and the old lady whispered something to her husband. They left before I said a word. I sat down, feeling anxious.

Two minutes later Sam arrived. She smiled at me from the door and I waved. “Hi,” she said and sat opposite me.

I raised my brow and imagined at least a dozen better ways to spend the morning with her than sitting in a café full of people. She seemed to read my mind
, as her cheeks flushed deep read.

“Samantha.” I reached for her hand. She didn’t pull it away and I entwined my fingers with hers. Her deep-green eyes met my bright-green ones. “You look beautiful.”