A Bloody London Sunset (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 2) (22 page)

His eyes widened, and he smiled back at her innocently. She felt a surge of desire run through her, both for his body and his blood, and momentarily considered again how he appeared like defenseless prey caught in her gaze. She leaned slowly towards him until her lips were just inches from his.

“You’re so intense,” he whispered, feeling an almost palpable energy emanating from her.

“Kiss me,” she insisted.

He leaned across the distance between them and brushed his lips against hers. Then her lips locked onto his, and he immediately felt her fingers pressing against the back of his neck. He reached one hand across the table towards her, and her hand met his halfway and interlaced with his fingers. Despite the pounding beat of the music and the cacophony of voices around them, he felt that the only person in the room was Katrina, as if everything else was just indecipherable background noise.

Suddenly, her lips were no longer touching his, and he realized that he’d closed his eyes. He opened them, only to see Katrina’s face hovering an inch before his. Her eyes glowed back at him with telltale signs of either desire or hunger, or both. His mind raced at how drawn he was to her, despite the distraction of being in the midst of a sea of people.

“I’m really focused on you right now,” she muttered loudly enough over the noise that he could hear her.

“It’s like you’re --” he began in a near whisper.

“Hunting,” she completed with a feral grin.

Another shiver cascaded through his body, leaving him speechless. He could only recall one previous occasion when he had sensed such strong energy and emotion from Katrina. It was the night that she and Alton had returned from their first confrontation with Chimalma, after they had raced back to the estate to check on him because he and Paige had been assaulted in the estate by mercenaries. Katrina had stood at the foot of the stairs gazing up at him in the dark, appearing more vampire-like than at any time he had recalled. She was staring at him in that same manner. It was powerful, and he craved to be the center of her attention.

“Stalker,” he teased.

“Guilty as charged,” she countered slyly.

He blinked once and whispered earnestly, “I love you.”

She smiled back at him, and he saw her fangs extend ever so slightly below her lip line. She closed the distance to him quickly, and he felt her lips at his neck. For a split second, he felt her fangs press against the soft flesh of his neck, and then retract. He took a sharp intake of breath, and held it, waiting to see what she would do. But she merely kissed him and sat back to regard him with a predatory smile.

“I love you, and I shall have you tonight,” she issued as part challenge, part promise.

He caught sight of glasses in his peripheral vision and glanced up to see their waitress placing mixed drinks on the table. Cindy smiled down at Caleb, but her eyes quickly darted to Katrina, and her expression became more reserved. A
wary expression
, he realized.

“Just give a wave when you’re ready for me again,” she offered to Caleb intently, as if she were concentrating on keeping her eyes on him alone. She departed into the crowd, although at a faster pace than one might normally expect.

“You spooked her, I think,” he whispered, realizing that Katrina could hear him as clearly as if they were speaking in a quiet room sitting next to her.

They picked up their drinks and sipped, and she smiled at him and leaned towards him.

“Cindy senses a predator,” she answered simply. “Some humans are more perceptive than others. She’s more sensitive to such things. In a baser setting, she might be a survivor.”

“Survival of the fittest?” he asked.

“Exactly.”

“Whereas I would be caught,” he quipped with a grin.

She appeared smug and countered, “You already have been; you just haven’t realized it yet.”

He cast a wide-eyed smirk back at her and sipped his drink again. It tasted wonderful.
I’m happy to be caught by her
. He considered the revelation about his forgotten encounter with Katrina as a child, followed by the disagreement he had with her over Devon. But instead of a resurgence of resentment, anger, or aggravation, he felt a satisfaction that she was his mate and that he was hers. And while he might still be concerned about those topics, he suddenly realized his love for her was stronger than those issues, and it made him feel a surge of combined happiness and relief.

“Happiness for me is loving you and being loved in return,” he whispered as he lovingly gazed into her eyes.

She looked up suddenly from sipping her drink, and a bright smile formed as she stared back at him. “Thank you,” she mouthed silently.

Gil and Paige appeared at the table, though he appeared slightly out of breath while she seemed perky and energetic. Paige slipped into the booth at Caleb’s right and swept up her drink in one fluid motion. Her lips sipped at the edge of her glass delicately, and she smirked at Caleb.

“Having fun, kiddo?” she asked with a sparkle in her eyes. She had discreetly noted the interaction between him and Katrina from across the room and divined the exchange between them. She also easily recognized the signals Katrina was giving off.
Stalking the poor kid
.

“Oh yeah,” he replied emphatically with a grin and a nod as “Ava Adore,” by Smashing Pumpkins, played.

“Man, this place is slammin’!” Gil exclaimed before taking a swig of his drink.

Paige rolled her eyes and looked at Caleb with renewed vigor, almost like a kid with a new toy. The blonde-haired vampire’s eyes darted over to Katrina’s for a mere second, and she saw Katrina’s imperceptible nod that only a vampire’s quick vision would catch.

She challenged Caleb, “Come on, you big overgrown Muppet. Let’s dance!”

Caleb laughed and allowed her to drag him by the hand through the crowd until they reached nearly the center of the dance floor. Katy Perry’s “Firework” began to play as Paige bopped to the music. Caleb relaxed his body and subtly shadowed her movements. She grinned brightly at him, and he smiled back, fully appreciating the happiness emanating from her. Fortunately, the music was easy to dance to.

He admired Paige’s fluid movements, marveling at how the beautiful woman before him was such an instinctive dancer. A brief pang of guilt ran through him as he also admired how sexy she looked, her red dress accenting her shapely form.
I’m supposed to think of her as a close friend or an adopted sister.

He moved closer to her and said, “It’s great to see you so happy.”

She smirked appreciatively. “It’s definitely the company.”

“I’m just glad to be here,” he shot back.

“I’m glad you are too,” she agreed with a penetrating stare and a gleam in her eyes.

They both grinned and kept dancing. After a few minutes, Caleb noticed that Paige was garnering the attention of a number of fellow dancers, both men and women. He grinned at her knowingly, and she frowned at him for a moment before sweeping the room of her newfound fans. Another popular song started, and they adjusted their movements to match the beat. Caleb was having a great time, and he was happy to see that Paige seemed to be, too.

After the second song finished, “Right Round,” by Flo Rida, started. Paige smirked and looked deliberately past Caleb with a nod in his direction. He raised an eyebrow and turned to see Katrina standing behind him swaying provocatively to the music. Her body moved in a smooth, feline manner that was both fluid and sensual all at the same time. He moved his body to the music with hers, although in a much more subdued fashion. A number of eyes in the room locked onto Katrina with a mix of curiosity and mesmerism. But she maintained an eye lock on Caleb as if he were the only one in the room. Her eyes flashed bright green for a split second, and his gaze was drawn to them immediately. He wanted to get lost in her beautiful eyes.

She moved closer to him as her body synchronized with the music and reached out with one hand to caress the back of his neck. He blinked only once, and when he opened his eyes, she moved even closer to him, nearly rubbing against him. He felt strong desire rise in his body, and his breathing became heavier. Her penetrating eyes became the only thing he saw, and before he knew it the song had ended.

In one fluid movement, she moved to his side and slipped her arm around his waist, leading him away from the dance floor and to their table. It was as if he were floating in a partial daze, and he felt strangely at peace as she guided him away. As he passed a number of people in the crowd, he could have sworn they deliberately parted to let them pass. A few moments later, she kissed him on the lips, and he felt the booth’s cushion at the back of his legs. He sat down with a near plop and reached for his drink absently as he stared into Katrina’s emerald eyes.

“Well done, Kermit,” Paige quipped with a grin. “Nice dancing for a Muppet.”

“Thanks,” he muttered as he brought his glass to his lips to drink. Just the taste of the mojito seemed to help revive his senses, and he felt less like he was in a haze after a moment. He glanced over to Paige, who was grinning at him like a Cheshire cat.

“Somebody still looks a little dazed,” she giggled. “We’ll do that to you if you let us.”

“Glamour?” he asked as his wits returned.

“Not exactly. At least, nothing that strong or involuntary,” Katrina explained. “More like a willing state of meditation.”

“Cool,” he replied with a smirk as he looked across the table and noticed for the first time that Gil wasn’t with them. “Where’s Gil?”

“The men’s room, like, a quarter of an hour ago,” Paige muttered with a shake of her head.

“Is he okay?” Caleb asked with concern. “Maybe I should go check on him.”

Paige wrinkled her nose, shook her head and replied, “Oh, I’m sure he’s feeling fine by now. And don’t go looking for him, that is, unless you bring a pizza with you.”

He raised his eyebrows with surprise and insisted, “No way. You’re sure?”

“Yeah,” she replied with a wane smirk. “I strolled by the men’s room doorway while you and Katrina were on the dance floor. I could smell the weed from outside.”

Caleb shook his head and bit his tongue rather than say what he was thinking:
How can Gil even think about smoking a joint when he has Paige here to spend time with? The guy must be crazy
.

Their waitress stopped by to bring a fresh round of drinks and promptly departed with a practiced demeanor. Paige looked around at the other patrons, casually scanning the room, and grinned. “Well, I’m going dancing some more.”

The spritely vampire bopped onto the dancing floor alone, quickly garnering the attention of men around her. Within seconds, she was dancing with a muscular, twenty-something man. Katrina smirked and cast a thoughtful glance at Caleb, who sipped at his fresh mojito.

“Having fun, my love?” she asked with a smile.

He smiled back and replied thoughtfully, “Yeah, actually this is great, Kat.”

The remainder of the evening was uneventful, although Caleb and Katrina shared additional dances. A much mellower Gil returned to the dance floor not long after Paige and sought her out to dance with her throughout most of the remainder of their time there. Much to Caleb’s surprise, Paige didn’t seem overly annoyed with Gil and took occasional opportunities to dance with other patrons as the mood struck her. She caught his eyes on one occasion, winking at him while flashing a bright smile.

Sometime after midnight, Katrina sensed Caleb was growing tired and suggested they leave. He accepted the idea gratefully, and they bid hasty goodbyes to Paige and Gil, who remained to continue their reveling. Katrina paid the outstanding tab for the four of them, including a healthy tip for their wary waitress, and led Caleb from the club.

The night was quite cold and windy as he wrapped his arm around Katrina’s waist on their walk back to the Audi. He held the door for her as she slipped into the passenger seat and leaned in to kiss her warmly on the lips. She laid her purse aside in the console area and freed her hands to reach out for him.

“Thank you for a wonderful evening, Kat,” he offered tenderly. It was a thoroughly enjoyable and memorable night, and he was grateful that everything had gone so well between them. It reminded him of happier times when they had dated last fall before vampires like Chimalma and Devon Archibald interrupted their lives.

“I haven’t been so kind to you lately, but --” he started, but she pressed her lips against his and wrapped her hand behind his neck to pull him towards her.

He reveled in the heated passion of her kiss and knelt before her in the open car doorway as the cold wind pressed in around them. Her mouth was so warm and comforting against his, and he leaned further into the car against her. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders protectively and continued to kiss him.

A hunger rose in her that was so strong she almost couldn’t resist its calling. She yearned for his body and his blood simultaneously and knew she had to stop kissing him, or she might take his blood there and then. Fighting the strong desire, she gathered her resolve and shifted her body without warning.

Much to his surprise, she rapidly rotated him into the passenger seat as she slipped out through the compact doorway. He had no time to react before she snatched the seatbelt and snapped it into place around him.

“What?” he protested, but she pressed her fingertip to his lips to silence him.

“I’m taking you home. Fast,” she stated with faintly glowing eyes. She shut the door and disappeared from sight.

Before he could turn his head, she had opened the driver’s side door and plopped into the seat. While shutting the door with one hand, she buckled her own seatbelt with the other. The car’s motor roared to life and, within seconds, she shifted into gear and the Audi zipped down the nearly deserted city streets.

“You’ve made me very happy tonight, Caleb,” she murmured as her eyes glanced at him with a predatory glint. Her right hand reached out to him, and she ran her fingernails against his cheek lightly and across the soft skin of his neck.