Shiver (Night Roamers) (8 page)

I opened my eyes.

Heat?

It was obvious that he’d recently fed.

Fed on Duncan?

“You’ve fed
?” I choked, pushing him away.

H
e shrugged. “It’s been a while, but I’m in complete control. Don’t worry,” he said. “I just need to feel you. That’s all I want.”

He grabbed me again and just like before
, I surrendered and forgot about everything else. I melted into his arms, returning his kisses freely. Soon, his mouth moved down to my neck and his hands were under my sweatshirt, exploring my breasts. When he pushed my bra away and lowered his mouth to my nipples, I shuddered in pleasure.

“So beautiful,” he whispered, licking my flesh, sending shivers all th
e way down to my toes. “My sweet little …Nikki…”

“Yes,” I breathed, wanting to be his forever.

His mouth was magical, making me forget about everything but the moment. I slid my hand into his soft hair and drew him closer to my breasts. “Ethan,” I whimpered as the fire he’d ignited grew hotter between my thighs. Soon I was trembling, my body aching for something that both frightened and excited me.

“Say my name
, again…” he growled, his voice husky with desire.

I threw my head back and moaned as his mouth
ravaged my flesh, making me delirious with need; a need so strong I was willing to do anything for him at that moment. “Oh…God…Ethan…”

He sucked in
a breath. “Nikki, God…I’m inhaling your excitement and it’s driving me insane. I want you so bad but…God… we can’t do this here,” he said, abruptly removing his hands from my skin. “You deserve much better than this.”

“Wait,”
I reached out, not wanting him to stop. His touch created a primal need like nothing I’d never known before. I had to have more of him and didn’t want to wait for anything. “I don’t mind. Really, it’s okay,” I whispered.

“No, it’s not,”
he said, looking around in disgust. “It’s cold and dirty here. When this happens between us, and believe me, Nikki,” he smiled darkly, “it will, I want it to be in a place that’s comfortable, clean, and safe. Not a shithole like this.”

My heart pounded in my chest as I stared at him. He was so sexy, so amazingly beautiful
, and his eyes…oh…his eyes…they held an inhuman fire that probably should have frightened me, but instead, made me only want him more. “Why can’t I resist you?” I whispered.

“Because
, we belong together,” he replied, kissing the tip of my nose. He then pulled me to his chest and whispered, “Forever.”

The way he said
“forever” brought me back to reality. I wanted him, boy did I ever want him, but his “forever” was something much different than mine.

I cleared my throat.
“I…I think I should go home,” I said, avoiding his eyes as I pulled away.

“What’s wrong?”

I stared at him in exasperation. “Everything is wrong, Ethan. I still don’t know what happened to Duncan, and…”

It was then that I’d remembered my mother’s terrified screams right
before Ethan had snatched me from the cabin. “My mother,” I said, staring at him in horror. “Did you frighten her? She was screaming when we left.”

He looked hurt. “No,
Nikki, I wouldn’t do that. Someone else scared your mom. In fact, a man was looking into the kitchen window. But don’t worry, Celeste took care of him.”

“A man?”

He nodded. “Yeah, in fact, he kind of looked like your brother.”

I
suddenly felt sick to my stomach.

Was it my father? He definitely looked like Nathan. More like an older brother than a father. Who else could it be?

“You have to get me home,” I pleaded. “I think it’s my dad and I have to make sure everyone’s okay.”

He sighed. “If that’s what you want.”

“It is. Please.”

He
picked me up and cradled me in his arms. “Hold on tight.”

I slid my
good hand around his neck and stared at his chiseled features in fascination. At that moment, I felt like some all-American superhero was carrying me off somewhere into the night, not a bloodthirsty vampire. It was a nice, whimsical fantasy. One that was also very dangerous.

When we arrived back at the cabin, the lights were out and the only vehicle around was mine.

“Look,” said Ethan, pointing towards the windows near the kitchen
. The floodlights were on, lighting up the yard. “Something happened here.”

I
walked over and looked down at the dirt. It definitely looked like some kind of scuffle had occurred.

Ethan bent down and touched the groun
d. “I smell blood,” he murmured. “Looks like someone tried cleaning it up. But I definitely sense that it was human blood.”

My eyes filled with tears.
“I wonder if it was my dad and they killed him.”

“Celeste attacked the man, whoever he was, without hesitation. She probably fed off of him
when it was over and then hid the body.”

I shuddered.
“Are you sure? She doesn’t seem that heartless.”

His eyes narrowed. “Don’t ever underestimate Celeste. She’s dangerous. In fact, I’ve watched her tear people to shreds
without a second thought. I think you should stay away from her from now on.”

Thinking about my dad being murdered by anyone was unsettling. Even though he was an asshole, he was still my father and there were some good memories.

I brushed a couple of the tears from my cheeks. “She told me to trust her and Caleb. That neither of them would hurt us. You think she’s lying?”

He shrugged.
“I don’t know. But to be safe, it’s better if you stay as far away from her as possible.”

Just then, we
saw a pair of headlights moving towards us in the distance.

“Your brother,” said Ethan. “I should leave.”

“You can see that far?” I asked, incredulously.

He
smiled and pulled me to him. “Go inside and wait for him. I’ll check around town and see what’s happening.”

I nodded.

“Nikki,” he said. “I swear to you, I didn’t kill anyone, and I have no idea what happened to Duncan.” His face darkened. “Someone is playing a dangerous game, and when I find out, I can’t promise that there won’t be any blood spilled. Nobody fucks with me.”

I opened my mouth to say something
, but he placed a finger over my lips to silence me.

“I love you,”
he continued, his eyes burning into mine. “You may not believe it and, to tell you the truth,” he said, smiling. “I’m not even sure how it happened so fast. But, I love you and I’m coming back for you. Just give me a couple days to figure out what’s happening.”

“Okay,” I whispered.

He then pressed his lips to mine and kissed me more tenderly than I thought possible. I closed my eyes and relished the way his mouth explored mine and how oddly wonderful he smelled. When he finally pulled away, I groaned in protest.

“Until we meet again,”
he said, backing away.

I raised my hand and waved just as my brother’s headlights surrounded me.

“Who the fuck was that?!” yelled Nathan, slamming the door of his Mustang. “And what the hell is going on around here?”

I stared at him, not knowing exactly where to begin. “Truthfully,” I said. “I don’t know what’s happening. And I doubt you’d even believe me if I told you.”

“Mom called me and she’s worried sick about you! She and Caleb are out scouring the town looking for your ass!”

I cleared my throat. “
Well, I’m fine.”

He laughed coldly. “I see that. Who was with you just now?
” His eyes scanned the woods. “Did he just take off somewhere into the woods?”

“It doesn’t matter
, it’s just a friend. Listen, Nathan, I think dad was here and that he might have been hurt.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Dad?”

“Seriously.”

Nathan ran a hand thr
ough his hair and looked around the yard. “Tonight?”

I nodded and then showed him the footprints near the kitchen window.

“This doesn’t mean anything,” he said, crouching down.

“Look,” I said, pointing to
some dark spots. “Blood.”

He reached over and
touched it. When his fingers came back up to the light, they were bloody. “Oh, shit,” he whispered.

“Call mom,” I said.

He nodded, then took out his cell phone and dialed her number. I listened as he explained that I was home now and how we’d discovered some blood right outside of the kitchen window.

“Oh,” he said
, nodding after listening to her response. “Okay. Well, I’ll let her know. I guess she was with some friend or something,” he said, looking at me with a frown. “Don’t worry, I’ll let her know.”

“What?” I asked when he hung up.

“First of all, she said you’re grounded because you took off and had everyone worried. Second of all, the blood was from a raccoon that tried attacking Celeste. Celeste killed it and Caleb helped to get rid of it.”

I closed my eyes and groaned. It was like talking to a wall. He’d never believe me.
“Where’s mom now?”

“On her way home.”

“Okay,” I sighed, feeling mentally exhausted. I wasn’t going to win any arguments tonight. “I’m going up to bed.”

“Wait,” said Nathan as I climbed the steps. “How’s your wrist?”

I shrugged. “Pretty sore still. It’s sprained.”

He nodded. “Have you heard anything from Duncan yet?”

“No,” I said. “The last time I saw him was yesterday when we were attacked.”

He stepped closer to me. “Attacked?”

I frowned. “I know you don’t believe me, but we were attacked and now he’s missing. I mean, come on, Nathan, why would I be climbing a tree in the middle of the night?”

He stared at the tree in question.
“I know. It didn’t make much sense to me either. But then again, you’ve been acting very strange lately. Especially with all of your vampire ramblings.”

“It’s true,” I said. I then told him about my conversations with Celeste and Caleb.

He gave me a pained expression. “Here we go again.”

I groaned. “Why are you being so pig-headed?”

“You know why, Nikki! Vampires don’t exist!”

I rubbed my forehead, I was getting another headache. “I’m going to bed. Obviously, you’re not going to be any help finding Duncan.”

He followed me up the steps to the porch. “Are you going to school tomorrow?”

“I’m going to try,” I answered.

We walked into the house and I went upstairs to my room. When I finally shut my eyes and started drifting off, it was well past midnight.

Luckily, I managed to get up in time for school the next morning. After being lectured from my mother for ten minutes, I took a quick shower, slipped on a long plum sweater and jeans, then grabbed a Pop-Tart to eat on the way to school.