Steal the Day (3 page)

I strode to the elevator and pushed the button for the floor that held four large apartments. As far as I knew, only three of the rooms were occupied. The entire undead population of Dallas was supposedly housed in those rooms.

There was Daniel, the youngest, but without question strongest of the three. Michael House looked to be an affable man in his twenties, but he’d died on the battlefields of World War One. And then there was Alexander. Of all the vampires I’d met, Alexander Sharpe was the creepiest. Daniel had reason to believe Alexander had been Jack the Ripper, so I kept my distance.

God, I wished I’d been able to find my shoes. Daniel and I had settled into a nice sort of friendship, and I didn’t want to wave a red cape in front of a bull. Though we had agreed to work on being friends, he still managed to make me feel like a cheating wife sometimes. It wasn’t so surprising. Up until seven months before, I would have done anything to be Daniel’s wife. We’d known each other most of our lives. We fell in love as teens and were engaged at twenty. Before we could get married, he’d died in a car accident. The upside? He’d turned out to be a vampire. The downside? The craptastic Council had taken him away from me for three years and sent him back as a distant stranger with more secrets than I could handle. We’d only gotten intimate again months before, and that was when I discovered all the things the love of my life had been hiding from me.

My blood calls to his, but then it does the same with any vampire. If I’m in a room with a vampire, you can bet his eyes are on me. He doesn’t have to know me to want me. It was only luck that I hadn’t met up with one before or I would have been taken off the street, flown to the catacombs of Paris, and sold to the vampire with the most money or clout. Daniel’s patron, Marcus Vorenus, had assured me he would have paid top dollar. Daniel, in his post-turn fumblings, had managed to protect me. When the Council had come for him, my blood had been in his body. It was enough to make a claim but not a marriage. That had come later.

I had discovered that the person I loved beyond life, beyond death, returned my love because I tasted good.

Dev might not love me, but I wasn’t actively pursued by every faery I met. He slept with me because it felt good, and he liked me. I was Daniel’s obsession, and that was a heavy burden to bear.

The elevator doors opened, and I stepped out into the quiet hallway. I used my key and opened the door to Daniel’s apartment. I was going to sneak into his bedroom and change clothes when I heard a burst of masculine laughter.

I peeked into the small dining room where five men sat around a table. At first I thought they were playing poker. Dev’s club had lively poker rooms going all hours of the night. Then the dice came out, and I knew I was wrong.

“Take that, dragon lord,” one of the men, and I use that term loosely, said.

I shook my head, looking at the table in front of me. “Seriously, you’re a vampire with unbelievable power, and you spend your nights playing Dungeons and Dragons?”

Daniel smiled up at me, his longish hair in desperate need of a trim and completely perfect for its shagginess. His blue eyes were lit with mirth as he looked over at me and I tried, I really tried, to not let my heart break a little bit. “I’m immortal, baby. Do you have any idea the kinds of campaigns I can run?”

I had to smile back. “Nerd.”

“Back at ya,” he replied. “Gentlemen, for those of you who haven’t met her, this is my lovely wife, Zoey. Don’t let her adult-like disapproval fool you. She’s thrown the dice in her time.”

Yes, I had. I’d played with Daniel. I looked at the men around the table. “He’s pulled you in, too, Michael?”

Since Daniel had come back, I’d had several nice conversations with the WWI veteran. He enjoyed talking about his time in the army, and though he didn’t remember much about the sixties because acid apparently works on vamps, too, he was a veritable fount of twentieth century history. He’d even managed to stop staring at me like I was a particularly juicy steak.

Michael shrugged. “It’s fun. It’s just nice to have some friends.”

I knew it was nice for Daniel, too. He’d spent an enormous part of the last several years keeping everyone at arm’s length. He sat there in his Spider-Man T-shirt, and there was nothing I wanted to do more than go over and sit in his lap and hold him close and show his friends that I was his girl. It was an impulse, and now I knew it had nothing to do with what I wanted and everything to do with blood and biology. So I forced myself to stand there.

Besides Daniel and Michael, there was a vamp I didn’t know and two other males of undetermined species. The vamp I recognized because of the glazed look of desperate longing that had hit his face the minute he got a whiff of me.

“Justin,” Daniel said evenly, reaching over to touch the other man’s arm.

Justin shook his head and forced his focus from me to Daniel. “Yeah?”

“She is mine.” The words were said with no real threat behind them, which was surprising. In the past, Daniel had threatened wretched death on any vamp who looked at me twice.

“Of course.” Justin sighed as though some pressure had been released. That answered one question I had. Justin wasn’t a newbie. Baby vamps struggled with control. It was why the Council ruthlessly handled their training. “I’m sorry.”

Daniel cut him off with a wave of his hand. “You didn’t know.”

“Well, I don’t get it,” said one of the non-vamps, a scruffy looking guy in his mid-twenties. I would bet he turned into some sort of canine. “She’s all right and I wouldn’t kick her out of bed or anything, but I don’t get the drool thing. Dude, you should wipe your chin.”

“You aren’t a vampire, Blake,” Daniel pointed out needlessly. “Think of a really hot alpha female. Would you do just about anything to mate with her?”

Blake’s eyes got heated for a moment. “Oh, yeah, especially when she’s in season.”

“More info than I needed!” I felt myself flush.

“I was just trying to give him a point of reference.” Daniel looked very amused at my embarrassment.

The last male smiled, an open, honest grin. He was the smallest man at the table, with a boyish physique that hadn’t quite filled out to the man he would inevitably become. He looked to be in his late teens, definitely the baby of the group. “Well, I’m a sad-sack human, and I would totally do you. I mean, if you would and if it didn’t mean my horrible death and stuff. I got to be honest, though. I wouldn’t be too flattered if I was you. I don’t have real high standards.”

“You have a human in here?” I stared at Daniel, waiting for a damn good explanation.

As I said, I’m usually the only human in a room. I survived because I’d been surrounded by powerful protectors my whole life. My father, Harry Wharton, was important in the supernatural world and Daniel, well, no one messed with Daniel. I now had the added protection of being considered the property of the Council. To the Council, I was an asset, a plaything to be coddled and protected and sheltered. No vampire would try to take me from my master. To do so would invite a duel, and Danny was far too badass to risk that. That being said, if Daniel wasn’t around, another vampire would be duty bound to provide the ass kicking. It was a testament to my hold on Danny that Michael and Alexander hadn’t tried to take out Dev. It was their instinct to protect what they considered vampire property. It generally meant I could go where I wanted and no one messed with me.

To be a human in our world was to be vulnerable. Without protection, most would never survive.

“Oh, my name’s Nathan,” the human, who would probably be dead soon because he hung out with vampires, said. “It’s totally cool. I know they’re vamps and Blake’s a shifter and you’re a companion. I grew up in this world. You’re totally the first companion I’ve ever seen. My brother and sister will never believe me.”

Michael laughed, and it was such a human sound. It was the sound men make when they’re fucking with each other. “You grew up trying to destroy this world, dude.”

“He’s a freaking hunter?” I practically screamed the question. Daniel had brought a teenaged hunter into his gaming group?

“Ex-hunter,” Nathan corrected me. “I just kind of did it ‘cause it was the family business. Then I tried to hunt and kill Daniel here, and he convinced me I should probably take a different career path.”

I bet he had. The poor little boy had probably tried to come after the most powerful vampire the world had seen in millennia with a stake and a clove of garlic. It should have been a bloodbath that ended with little Nathan as a snack. But as Nathan continued his story, I learned that Daniel had chosen to take the idiot out for a pizza.

“That’s when Daniel got me a job at a comic book store,” Nathan concluded his tale. “I like it. It’s way more relaxing than hunting, and I get a twenty percent discount.”

The shifter, who in my experience shouldn’t be here either, pointed at me. “Hey, you look just like that club owner’s girlfriend. Not exactly, of course. She’s way hotter, but you look a lot like her. You know that guy who runs Ether?”

Michael was the only one who looked uncomfortable besides Daniel. The other three men were trying to decide if I was hotter than me.

“I don’t get that guy,” Blake said, shaking his head.

“What don’t you get?” I wanted to know because Dev didn’t seem to have any male friends. He spent all of his time with me or his half-demon butler. “He’s gorgeous, rich and successful. What else do you need?”

Justin shook his head. “I don’t get what women see in him. How much time does he spend getting his hair to do that? I know he looks all cool and shit, but he’s that guy who all the other guys think is a douche.”

Nathan pointed at Justin and nodded. “I know just the type. I hate that guy.”

I looked at Daniel, who was smiling under his hand but chose not to comment. “Gentlemen, I’m afraid my lovely wife and I have some business to deal with tonight. I’m going to have to call the game.”

As the boys got together their various pieces of equipment and decided on the next time they would meet, I watched Michael and Daniel exchange a look. I think Michael was trying to make sure his friend was okay.

Daniel showed his group to the door, and I walked down the hall to his bedroom. It was such a change from the way it had looked months ago when Daniel had first brought me here. While it wasn’t a wreck, there was a certain messiness that let a person know the space was lived in. And he’d added a bookshelf. I walked around the room picking up his clothes because they would lay there until I decided to do laundry. I couldn’t stand the thought that he was wearing something he’d picked up off the floor and sniffed to make sure it wasn’t too offensive.

I opened the drawer where I kept a change of clothes. Living in the country could be very inconvenient. I loved my house, but I had to spend time in the city, too. It probably would have made more sense if I had left my stuff at Dev’s, but nothing about this made sense. I had a drawer at Daniel’s, and he had the third bedroom at my house. We’d gotten him light-tight drapes, and I planned on putting shutters on the windows. He didn’t stay there most nights, but it was always there for him.

I eased into blue jeans and a dark T-shirt. I didn’t have any sneakers here. I would have to do this in the heels that Daniel hadn’t noticed yet. I opened the closet because Neil kept a few things here as well. Sure enough, I found a stylish blazer that was only a smidge too big for me. It was perfect to fit around the shoulder holster I put on. When wearing an armory, one really has to consider the fit of one’s clothes. Too small and said armory is easily discerned by bulges and wrinkles in the clothes. Too big and you might find yourself wading through layers of fabric to get your gun. If I’d had to wear something of Daniel’s, it would have devoured me.

When I shut the bedroom door behind me, I heard Daniel walking around in the kitchen. I listened to the opening and closing of the fridge. I stood in the doorway and watched as he squeezed blood from the bag into a mug. He carefully sealed the bag and placed the mug in the microwave. The whole time he was waiting for the microwave to finish, he watched that mug go round and round while his right hand shook slightly. I could only guess what he was thinking. He couldn’t wait to get that blood in his mouth, couldn’t wait to taste it, to feel it slide down his throat and start to work on his body.

The oven dinged, and Daniel poured the contents down his throat. It was over so quickly, and then Daniel used his index finger to scoop out the last bits. It shouldn’t have been that hard for him. Marcus promised me if Danny had a regular supply of blood, he wouldn’t be this way. He should be calmer, more in control.

“Do I need to give more?” I would give a lot to not have to see him so desperate.

“Nope,” he said firmly. I watched as he forced himself to put the mug down.

“Danny, you aren’t getting enough,” I replied. “It’s obvious. Please, I’ll just let the nurse know you need more. It’s not like it’ll kill me. I barely notice it now.” I’d been taking vitamins and a horse pill I was assured would keep my iron level up.

Daniel steadied himself against the counter. His hand tapped on the granite, and he dragged in a long breath. “I don’t need any more. I’m trying to get off the shit.”

“What? You can’t.” I walked to the refrigerator and pulled out the donation bag. This late in the week it should have been almost empty, but it was half full. Anger started to flood my system. What the hell was he doing? “I can’t believe this. I need you to be strong. Do you remember where we’re going?”

He turned on me and flashed his fangs. “Of course I do, Zoey. I know exactly what’s on the line, but you have no idea how hard this is. You don’t know what it’s like. I crave it. I’d do anything for it. I fucking hate it. The first time it took years before I could stop thinking about it every minute of every day.”

“You didn’t hate it when we were together.” Even as I said the words, I regretted them because we were both thinking about what it had been like. I’d never been closer to a person in my life than when I shared blood with my Daniel. If only it hadn’t turned out to be a lie.