Summit at Sunset (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 3) (14 page)

My love
, she thought as she valued the young man next to her.

Some time later, the small sliding window before them opened to reveal Bibbens’ face.

“We’re ten minutes from the hotel, Ms. Rawlings,” he quietly whispered in deference to the slumbering human beside her.

She acknowledged him before the glass slid quietly back into place.

Katrina lightly used the back of her fingernails to caress the side of Caleb’s face, causing him to breathe in deeply. Stirring, he opened his eyes, which rolled up to seek hers in sleepy fashion. He stretched in the seat, momentarily rubbing at his eyes with his fingertips.

“Are we there?” he asked before yawning again and lazily glancing at his wristwatch.

She shook her head at his adorable manner and whispered, “Not yet, my love. But we’re close. I thought that you might want to see our approach. I’m told it’s quite a sight whether at nighttime or in daylight.”

A few minutes later, true to Katrina’s earlier statement, the white glow of lighting surrounding the conference site loomed into view from the base of the pronounced mesa before them.

It appeared as a glowing oasis among the dark mountainous area surrounding them. A two-lane asphalt road cut into the sharply sloping, forested landscape with street lamps attached to metal utility poles at sparse intervals. Caleb suspected that the curvy roads were twice as dangerous to navigate at night, despite the strategic placement of sturdy-looking metal crash rails before the road seemingly dropped into nothingness.

After a short time, the monotony of the tree-lined road gave way to a rising incline. A gentle, pronounced arc revealed the conference hotel in all its majesty. An elaborate frontage of vast grassy ground interspersed with full, tall trees and an occasional park lamp spread out before the majestic driveway leading up to the main facility.

A series of tasteful exterior lights elegantly accented the gathered buildings. The central hotel was only five stories tall, but extended along the width of the numerous acres of lawn set before it. A series of windows lined each level of the hotel, and the roof was covered in a giant, coppery dome. A three-story section of the facility was connected to the hotel by a smaller, one-story length of building. The smaller section was lined with large windows across the length of the first floor, and the roof was domed with glass tiles.

“Pretty impressive-looking,” Caleb mumbled, thinking,
Expensive-looking, actually
.

“And that’s just the portion you can see from the front,” Katrina explained. “There’s a host of things to do here. And you missed the small town of Podjelje that we passed through earlier. It has some quaint-looking shops and restaurants.”

Best of all, boredom shouldn’t be an issue for him if I get stuck in prolonged meetings
, she rationalized with satisfaction.

He observed the lengthy approach to the side entrance of the conference facility.
This looks promising
.

After their vehicle circumnavigated the large curve around a central gazing pool accented by an elaborate statue of a stately-looking man riding a large horse, they parked beneath a small tent-like structure assembled before the large side entrance. The sides were drawn up, leaving the area visible from all angles, but Caleb suspected that it was intended for sheltering daytime arrivals.

Their SUV stopped directly before the glass entrance, and the vampire sitting in the front passenger seat exited to open Katrina’s side of the vehicle.

This might be just the relaxing change of scenery that I need
, Caleb hopefully contemplated as the driver opened the back of the SUV to remove their luggage for the approaching attendants.

As they passed through the main entrance into the lobby, it was apparent from the clusters of bodies that many of the participants had only recently arrived. Navigating their way through the busy lobby, Caleb noted a variety of humans intermingled with vampires bustling through the large open area.

As it was the first time that he had seen so many vampires all in one location, he felt slightly unnerved. Admittedly, he wasn’t certain that every person he visually identified as being a vampire truly was. However, upon careful scrutiny, he had noticed that many vampires maintained a bearing and attitude that set them apart from the average human populace.

For example, a number of vampires strode through the throng of people with an air of superiority, as if waiting for the sea of humanity to part for them at will. He noticed that a number of humans deliberately shied from those vampires, often pressing closer to their vampire companions. He was immediately curious as to how other human mates related to their vampires compared to him and Katrina.

Katrina momentarily studied her mate and deciphered the curious expression on his face.

“I sense a social streak surfacing in my mate. Let’s focus on getting checked in first, okay?” she whispered in his ear.

Despite the fact that their luggage would be automatically delivered to their suite, they were expected to observe the standard check-in process at the main desk. The area was crowded with those who had just arrived, as well as those who had arrived earlier but hadn’t yet been checked in. While there were additional hotel employees manning the main desk, the mere size of the crowd indicated that it might be a longer wait than Caleb preferred.

Katrina visually swept the room, catching the eye of Alton and a female vampire standing next to him. He motioned for her join them.

Bending down to whisper in Caleb’s ear, she apologized, “Alton’s beckoning. Probably wants me to meet someone. Do you mind?”

He shrugged. “Yeah, sure. Not going anywhere anytime soon, I think.”

She winked at him and made her way towards where Alton stood.

It appeared to Caleb that most of the people waiting to check in were much like him, which suggested that the menial task had been foisted upon the human vampire companions. He observed the disorderly gaggle of men and women, who ranged in ages from early twenties to mid thirties, and noticed a number of people glancing at him as well. He was struck by the notion that the scene was similar to the first day of school when all the kids sized each other up.

Suddenly, his body lurched forwards and to the left as someone slammed into his right shoulder.

“Hey!” he exclaimed as his head whipped around.

A tall, dark-haired man dressed in expensive-looking trousers and sport jacket glared at him with slightly glowing blue eyes.

“Watch where you’re going, human,” he growled.

Caleb’s jaw clenched at the vampire’s gruff tone.

“I believe
you
ran into
me
, actually,” he corrected.

The vampire’s right hand darted out in a blur, grasping his neck in a vise-like grip that caused him to gag slightly from the impact. Caleb’s hands immediately pried at the hand gripping him, but he was unable to dislodge it. The vampire’s fingers uncomfortably tightened around his neck.

“Someone should teach you to respect your betters,” the vampire insisted as the people around Caleb stared wide-eyed at the exchange.

A pale hand appeared out of nowhere to grasp the vampire’s wrist while another tightened around the fellow’s own neck. In a blur, the vampire was thrown backwards onto the floor while Caleb was knocked to his knees from the sudden motion. The vampire’s body was summarily slammed against the tile floor onto his back as a short figure wearing a navy blazer and slacks hovered over the prone figure.

Paige Turner’s blue irises brilliantly blazed with rage as she glared down into the offending vampire’s face.

“Touch him again, and I’ll
end
you!” she growled through clenched teeth.

Caleb’s eyes widened at the scene taking place before him, and his mind reeled upon realizing that Paige was his unexpected rescuer. A number of nearby humans and vampires stood watching the display with a mix of curiosity and surprise.

“Let me go, or I’ll –” the dark-haired vampire threatened.

The prone vampire’s left hand darted to claw at Paige’s right one as it squeezed his neck, but the blonde vampire menacingly seethed, “Do something,
please
. Just give me a reason.”

His hand immediately dropped away.

“Apologize,” she insisted in a flat, lethal-sounding voice.

Or I’ll kill you right here
, she darkly resolved.

The male vampire’s glowing blue eyes met hers before darting to stare up at Caleb with a fierce expression.

“A misunderstanding, human,” he growled.

“Do it better,” Paige flatly insisted.

The vampire paused as if considering his options then whispered, “My apologies, human.”

“No harm,” Caleb quietly offered as he rose from his knees to stand while rubbing at his sore neck. “Apology accepted.”

Paige released her grip on the vampire, who moved in a blur to extricate himself from the rather humiliating public circumstance. Caleb watched him depart, but then his attention quickly returned to Paige as she stood and gathered him in her arms in a welcoming embrace.

“You okay, kiddo?”

“Yeah, sure, I’m fine,” he murmured, still a little dazed by the rapid series of events.

Satisfied that he was unharmed, she chirped in a lilting voice, “It’s good to see you, tiger.” Gone was the lethal-sounding tone of moments prior as the young vampire calmed herself in practiced manner, a technique that had taken years for her to master.

He gratefully returned her earnest hug.

“
This
is your secret overseas contract job?” he incredulously whispered in her ear.

“Yep,” she replied in an enterprising manner. “Captain Turner, second in command of security for the conference site, at your service. Got a swanky uniform jacket and everything.”

He pulled away from her slightly to note the embroidered silver captain’s bars sewn into the collar of her navy blazer, as well as the security badge over the left pocket. He was momentarily gratified by the unlikely coincidence of her position in contrast to her rebellious personality. Then the ominous circumstances of a few minutes prior returned to the forefront of his thoughts, and his countenance darkened considerably.

“Thanks for the help,” he genuinely offered.

She beamed and darted to kiss him gently on the cheek.

“Babysitter’s always on duty, tiger,” she whispered in his ear.

I’ll always be there for you whenever possible, kiddo
, she silently added.

A sense of gratitude mixed with happiness washed over him, and he tightly embraced her in response. She closed her eyes for a brief moment, savoring both their closeness and the relief that he was unharmed. Then she pulled away slightly with a mischievous expression.

“Okay, break it up, or I’ll have to cite you for public display of affection,” she teased with a smirk in typical Paige Turner fashion.

He chuckled and shook his head at her, but quickly noticed that everyone in the immediate vicinity was intently staring at them.

Paige seemed to notice as well and announced in an authoritative voice, “There will be no fighting in my lobby! And show’s over, so stop gawking.”

Most people either returned to their previous activities or relocated to another part of the lobby. Moments later, the clamor of voices and activity returned to its former levels. A tall, pale-skinned man wearing a uniform similar to Paige’s, but with a major’s rank on the collar, stopped a dozen feet from them. The fellow’s features suggested to Caleb that he might also be a vampire.

“Captain Turner? A word, if you please,” the man beckoned in a displeased tone.

Aw, crap
, Paige thought.

“Looks like the boss is calling,” she muttered to Caleb. “Catch ya later. Gotta run,” she added before turning on her heels to catch up with the man.

Caleb watched her depart and tried to refocus his attentions on the lines of people waiting to be checked into the hotel.

Okay, this is no longer any fun
, he thought.
And I may have lost my place in line, too.

Realizing that most of the humans around him were curiously staring at him, he absently rubbed at his neck again while trying to ignore them.

“You two seem to know each other,” a young man wearing jeans standing next to him observed with some amusement. He was approximately Caleb’s age and height, but had slightly curly blonde hair and green eyes. His accent suggested that he might be from the New England area.

“Er, yeah,” Caleb acknowledged as he held out his hand to shake. “Caleb Taylor,” he prompted. “Pleased to meet you.”

The fellow returned the handshake. “Aiden Henderson. Nice to meet you, too.”

A petite-framed young woman standing in front of Aiden turned to look at Caleb with an appraising expression. She had medium-length blonde hair and brown eyes and appeared quite trendy in her pair of Capri pants and turtleneck sweater.

The young lady thoughtfully assessed Caleb. “I thought that you were with the red-headed vamp?”

“So true,” he awkwardly replied. “Actually, the blonde vampire, Paige, is my surrogate.”

“You have two?!” the woman demanded.

“Not exactly,” he hedged. “You see, Katrina, the red-headed lady, is my mate. It’s kind of complicated, really.”

Boy, is it ever
, he earnestly conceded.

“Actually, I suppose you could say that
they
have
me
,” he wryly added.

“So, you serve them both, then?” asked a man with a French accent and a scandalized expression who was standing in another line to Caleb’s right.

“Well,” Caleb began, but abruptly stopped. “Wait. Just what do you mean by ‘serve’?” he challenged.

The young Frenchman laughed, followed by Aiden and the blonde lady standing in front of him. Caleb chuckled despite himself, suddenly happy for the lighter mood in the room.

The Frenchman held out his hand. “I’m Reynard Dautry.”

Caleb returned the shake while introducing himself.

The blonde woman offered, “Madison Baker, but everyone calls me Maddy.”

“So, Caleb,” Aiden said following the brief introductions. “You were saying about
serving
two vampires?” he pressed with a raised eyebrow.