Wicked Sunset (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 4) (12 page)

Caleb’s eyes widened at my approach and the woman turned in her chair to look up at me.

“Um, Katrina, I’d like you to meet Beth Carson. She’s a local attorney,” he said. “Beth, this is my ma-, I mean, girlfriend Katrina.”

The woman rose from her seat to face me.

“Hello, Beth,” I said, shaking her hand.

“Hi, Katrina,” she said. “I was just visiting with Caleb here.”

“I see that,” I said coolly.

Go away.

She considered me for only a split second before taking her nearly empty drink in hand.

“Well, I better head over for a refill,” she said. “It was nice chatting with you, Caleb. Nice to meet you, Katrina.”

“Likewise,” I replied with a forced smile.

I looked down at Caleb, who had a curious expression on his face.

“She’s a local attorney,” he said.

“You already said that,” I said.

Sorry, but I’m not terribly interested in her right now. Tonight is all about us.

“Let’s go home, shall we?” I said, fishing my credit card from my wallet.

As if on-cue, Frankie appeared with our bill in hand. I handed him my credit card and he made his way back to the bar.

“Is everything all right?” Caleb asked.

I moved to stand before him and reached down with one hand to caress my fingernails along his jawline.

“Fine, my love,” I said.

Time to put some of my dominant charm to good use.

“Home?” I asked softly.

He nodded and rose from his chair, staring into my eyes with a look of desire.

Oh, yes. I like that look.

I pressed my lips against his and quickly drew a breath. He swayed slightly before breaking our lip lock to inhale some air.

I love doing that to him.

Reaching out to wrap one arm around his waist, I gently guided him through the room toward the main bar. After retrieving my credit card, we stopped by where Paige was standing.

“Had fun, kiddo,” she said, hugging Caleb.

“I’ll need your SUV’s keys, Caleb,” I said.

There’s no way that you’re driving after how many beers you’ve had, and on an empty stomach, no less.

“I’ll follow you two out,” Paige said.

“I need to get my cell phone from the SUV first,” he said.

I pressed my lips together into a tight line as I regarded him. “So that’s why you weren’t returning my texts or calls.”

His ‘oh-shit’ expression was almost amusing, except I was a little annoyed with him at the moment.

Calm down. Remember to be the ‘good Dom.’

“Yeah, about that,” he said.

I held up my hand and forced an agreeable expression on my face, but I could tell by the look on his face he wasn’t falling for it.

“I was angry,” he said with a shrug.

Oh, I do love you, but this is not a good time to let your balls drop, Caleb.

I bent down to give him a quick kiss. “Stop talking,” I said. “I have far better uses for that mouth of yours tonight.”

His resulting playful grin was infectious and I couldn’t help but smile. Still, he wisely fell silent and simply held the door open for us as we exited.

He’s learning.

Night was in full swing as we walked out to the parking lot. I followed him over to his SUV; my Audi was in the spot adjacent to his.

I used the remote to unlock his vehicle for him. He quickly got into the back of the SUV and started rummaging around for his phone.

“You okay?” Paige asked me.

“Fine, thanks,” I said pleasantly. “And thanks for venturing out into the daylight to check on him.”

“Sure, anytime,” she said, glancing over at the SUV. “Is he okay?”

“He will be,” I replied.

I’ll do my utmost to make sure of that.

“Found it,” he said, holding up his cell phone.

“Goober,” Paige said.

“Gothanista,” he said.

She appeared surprised. “Hey, who taught you that one?”

“Beth Carson did,” he said.

“Who’s Beth Carson?” she asked.

“Someone Caleb introduced me to tonight,” I said.

I handed his keys to her. “Could I impose upon you to bring the SUV home for us?”

“Sure thing,” she said. “Ethan can help me. I’ll bring it by later tonight.”

“Thanks, shorty,” I said.

Perfect. Then I can talk to her about Caleb.

He walked over to the driver’s side of my car and held the door open for me.

“Thank you, kind sir,” I said.

Once I was seated, he leaned into the car to plant a firm kiss on my lips. I reached up to hold his face between my palms and followed his kiss with a passionate one of my own.

“We need to talk more often like we did tonight,” I said. “We’ll understand each other so much better.”

He nodded. “I agree.”

“Good. Now get in so I can take you to dinner,” I said.

He got in and buckled up. “Dinner? I thought you said home.”

“As you admitted earlier, you haven’t eaten all afternoon, thanks to your impromptu drinking binge,” I teased.

“It was hardly a binge,” he said.

I revved the engine and whipped out of the parking lot and onto the street as The Beatles’ “We Can Work It Out” played over the car’s speakers.

I caught him staring at me from the passenger seat. “Oh, please. Laying it on a little thick, don’t you think?”

“What?” I asked.

“Hello? The song,” he said. “By the way, the 60s called…they want their vinyl LPs back; preferably unscratched.”

“Hey, I like The Beatles, thank you,” I said.

And yeah, I thought the song was pretty appropriate, actually.

I stuck my tongue out at him and advanced to another tune; thenewno2’s “Make It Home” played.

“Oh, yeah. Much better,” he said.

I rolled my eyes.

Music Nazi.

We stopped at a nearby steak house, where I ignored the odd looks from patrons and employees alike; as if they’d never seen a woman wearing Goth clothing before.

Rednecks.

I ignored them all, fully focused upon the man who’d won my heart and enchanted my world.

Everything went well until the drive back to the estate. I noticed Caleb staring out the passenger window.

“I sense you’re settling into dark thoughts again,” I said. “Talk to me.”

“I’m an open book to you, aren’t I?” he asked.

I scoffed. “Not entirely, you’re not. That’s why we have to
talk
about these things.”

“I just can’t help feeling that, despite really wanting you to be who you are, it’s still wrong for me to want you that way,” he said.

“Seriously, Caleb?” I asked. “What are you afraid of?”

Then something came to mind.

I parked in an empty parking lot and turned to him. “This is about those comments at the Slovene conference, isn’t it?”

In Slovenia, he had acquired a bit of a reputation as ‘that guy ruled by the two vampire women’ from some of the more closed-minded humans attending the conference. A number of them were human male companions, though I heard mutterings from a few of the staff, as well.

He maintained a rueful expression but said nothing. However, I heard his heart rate increase significantly.

“I
knew
it,” I said. “Listen, I didn’t see any one of those supposedly masculine men rush forward to carry an explosives-laden briefcase across a field and throw it over a cliff before it blew up in their faces,” I challenged. “Or confront a dangerous vampire with some sort of hastily-pieced-together UV light fixture. Or even battle against corrupt police officers for Dori Rousseau’s honor and welfare. Those guys who were labeling you were full of testosterone-laden egos and no action, Caleb.”

However, he still appeared unconvinced and I suppressed a heavy sigh.

“Okay, think about this, then. You’d never permit anyone else to treat you in the manner that I do. You wouldn’t dare stand for that, would you?” I asked.

“Probably not,” he said.

“Of course not; only I’m allowed to do that. Only I can give you what you need; what you desire, what fulfills you. Nobody else gets to treat you that way.”

He nodded. “I understand.”

“I’m not worried about whether you understand or not,” I said. “I’m concerned that you just don’t believe it yet.”

“It’s okay, Kat. I just need to work this out in my own mind, that’s all,” he said.

My fear was that he wouldn’t.

Of course, I’m also worried that he’ll end up brooding about this and I won’t get any sex from him tonight.

I watched him as he once more stared out the passenger window.

I earned having good sex tonight, Caleb, and I intend to receive what’s rightfully mine.

I reached over the grasped his chin between my fingertips and turned his face to look at me.

“You’re no wimp, Caleb,” I said firmly. “I’ve trained you myself. There are few men who could pick a fight with you and walk away from it. How wimpy is that?”

He looked at me with an almost juvenile visage.

“Great, the next time someone teases me about being too submissive, I’ll just kick their ass,” he said.

I released his chin and slipped the car back into gear. “Exactly,” I said. “You have my permission. And if anybody has anything to say about
that
, then
I’ll
kick their ass.”

There, case closed.

His subsequent chuckling encouraged me, and I couldn’t help but laugh as I whipped back out onto the street.

Chapter 10

Caleb

By the time Kat and I returned to the estate, I felt exhausted. I stifled a yawn as we walked through the expansive kitchen.

“I think I’ll hit the shower before bed,” I said.

“No bed,” she said. “No sleeping allowed yet. You’re gonna’ take a shower and perk back up for me.”

“For what? Massage? Game of chess? Maybe a movie?” I teased.

She pulled me into her arms and gazed down into my eyes in a possessive fashion. “Maybe you.”

She reached down and pinched my butt.

“Hey!” I said.

“Mine,” she said. “All mine.”

Her hand slid down and firmly grasped my genitals with one hand. “Mine, too,” she said slyly. “And I want what’s mine tonight.”

I kissed her hard, pressing my lips against hers and parting them with my tongue. She pressed me back against the kitchen counter, kissing me in an urgent, hungry fashion.

Her lips parted from mine and she pulled away from me so that I could see her green eyes lit up like miniature burning embers.

She’s hungry or aroused…or both.

She nibbled at my neck and I felt her two fangs extend and rake against my flesh. “I’ll have you tonight, my love.”

Her feral tone sent a shiver down my spine. She released me and lightly kissed me on the tip of the nose. “But first, I have to make a quick phone call,” she said. “Start the shower, my love. I’ll join you soon.”

I grinned all the way down the hallway.

My lover, my mate, my alpha vampire.

Downstairs in our sublevel master bedroom, or as I playfully called it, ‘the lair’, I put my iPod on shuffle on its external speaker and went to start my shower.

She joined me soon afterward, and we picked up where we left off in the kitchen.

We almost ran out of hot water.

Afterward, I wrapped a towel around my waist and went upstairs for something to drink as she finished in the bathroom.

As I downed a glass of water and leaned against the kitchen counter, I thought about the day’s events, including my disagreement with Kat and the time spent at Old Skools. I wistfully recalled the memory of Paige’s appearance and our time together.

Then I recalled Kat’s arrival, and the very intimate discussion we had in the midst of the club. So much had surfaced about our relationship, including my own admissions to her.

She loves me so very much, and I can’t live without her. But do all successful relationships constantly have to be fine-tuned or negotiated?

When I returned to our bedroom, Reeve Carney’s “New for You” played softly in the background as Kat stood beyond the opposite side of the bed wearing only a sexy pair of black panties and matching bra. Her hands settled atop her hips, striking an alluring pose.

“You’re simply gorgeous,” I breathed.

“Come here,” she said, beckoning by wriggling her index finger at me.

I started to move forward, but then stopped.

At least occasionally, I’d like to dictate terms.

“No, you come to me,” I said, pointing to the spot before me.

Her eyes narrowed slightly, but she relented and slowly walked around the side of the bed toward me. It was then I noticed she was wearing an oversized pair of furry pink and white bunny slippers. There were big floppy ears extending from either side of each slipper, as well as a cute fuzzy black nose on the front.

I chuckled. “What’re those all about?”

The edges of her mouth upturned slightly. “I didn’t want my feet to intimidate you again.”