Draven's Crossing: Tempestuous Crossings (15 page)

“None of those places. I’ve been working out of the office for the last few months. I’ve missed you so much. It’s been a madhouse around here. So how about say in a week, or will you be busy?”

Rose headed back to the living room and rummaged around her purse. “I’m planning a huge Ball thing here, but I should have time. Hey, maybe you can help? Take photographs? Beauty shots? What’re you rates?”

“For you, free; I can’t take money from you, hon. You’re letting me crash at your place, and you already know I’m a bed hog and cuddler.” Sabrina laughed.

“Katey’s gonna love you for this. Okay, give me the day and time, and I’ll take off early to pick you up from the airport. I’m so excited, and I can’t wait to introduce you to Draven. You’re going to—” She stopped short as she realized what she’d said.

“Okay, what’s up? You were all mega-bunny energy woman then slam, right into a wall. What’s going on?” The phone line went quiet, and Rose knew that Sabrina wouldn’t leave until she had the whole story.

“Don’t make me do that whole ‘I refuse to hang up’, and if you hang up on me, I’ll just keep calling back, eating into your weekly minutes. Mawhahaha, I am evil.”

Rose smiled and headed back to the bedroom. “Draven is the Mayor of this town, and my new boss.”

“Kinky. Office sex time! Wait, what happened to the ad agency you joined when you got to town?” The soft creak of leather drifted through the phone.

“Didn’t work out. My boss was an asshole. Draven gave me an upgrade to his P.R. staff. Things got heated between us, things were said and well, we ended up having sex on my living room floor, and now I’m acting like we’re dating and all committed.” Rose gathered a few things and put them in an overnight bag.

“You’re leaving things out,” Sabrina poked.

Rose debated giving her the full details, and then broke down and told her everything.

“Holy shit! Can I get what you have? So what’s the big issue here? His cock not long enough? Big enough? He’s got dead man’s breath? He beats puppies? Hates kittens? So far you’ve told me he’s committed to you, wants to fuck you into oblivion, and is determined to take care of you. I say marry the dead man. But that’s just me.”

She hated how matter of fact Sabrina was. When said like that, Rose felt like she was kicking a gift horse in the mouth, or whatever the saying was. “That’s just it, Sabs. He’s everything I could want and then some. Two freakin’ days. That’s how long we’ve been together. I’m acting like we’ve been dating for months, kissing him on the cheek or lips when I leave the room. Doing the whole PDA hugging thing in the office when before I was bitching about what people would think. You know me. I’ve never been like that.”

Sabrina snorted. “Um, yeah, which is why you jump on this bronco and not let go. Here’s the deal. You’re worried about the time it took from meeting to dating. You’ve always been cautious when it came to love and relationships. Now you find something, and it’s all comfy and happening like lightning, but you’re scared. Knock, knock, anyone home? He’s giving you space, backing off, giving you options to put distance between you two. That, in my book, says he cares a hell of a lot more than this being a fuck buddy kind of thing.”

Rose allowed the words to sink in.

“Look, take a day or two apart from him. If you can. If it were me, I’d handcuff him to myself and not let him out of sight. But I’m kinky like that. Separate yourself fully and see how you feel, okay? Crap, they found me. I gotta go. I think they want me to do this thing called work. Lubs you, Rosie Posie.” Sabrina hung up leaving Rose feeling as if she’d found her center again.

“I think I’ll do that.” Ignoring the lurch in her heart, she took a shower and got ready to meet him.
I’ll stay with him tonight, and then see what happens. I have the Ball to concentrate on anyway.

She grabbed her overnight bag, purse, and headed out the door to the parking lot. An Aston Martin DBS UB-2010 sat idling at the curb. She gave a low whistle, admiring the sleek black car. A small part of her giggled at the thought of riding around in James Bond’s car. Draven got out and made his way around the front. “Bag?”

She gave him her overnight bag and waited while he opened the passenger side. Before she slid into the car, Rose got up on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his lips. He groaned and wrapped his free arm around her waist. Sighing against his mouth, she melted against him, savoring the hard wall of muscle and heat of his body. Heat? She stepped back and eyed him more closely. He had the flush of life in him. Placing a hand over his heart, she felt the steady thud. With a frown, she looked up at him again, feeling a bit hurt that he’d fed, but not on her.

“Blood bag, honey. When I got home, I realized that my energy was lagging.” He bent down and kissed her lips before moving away to place her bag in the trunk. Once she was inside and buckled up, he joined her and they were off. “I’ve got everything ready. Do you want do the picnic now or drop everything off at the house?”

“Picnic now. I have to talk to you.” She didn’t miss the way he stiffened. Rose didn’t have to be a vampire or shifter to know he was scared.

Chapter Nine

Draven’s heart tattooed an S.O.S in his chest. His grip on the wheel tightened as his body heat spiked. Licking his lips, he tried to go for nonchalant. “About what?”

He sucked in a breath when she placed a hand on his thigh and gave it a squeeze. “We’ll do this now, if it will help. I’ll be honest; the speed with which this relationship is going scares me. We’ve known each other two days, and half of the first day you irritated me. I’ve decided to spend the night with you tonight. But until the end of the week, I want to keep things at dates, slow down. You’ve tried giving me space, and I didn’t take it. Looking back now, I suppose part of that was fear. I’ve been burned in the past, and you’re too good to be true.”

Her hand stroked up and down his thigh, setting off another wave of heat that flowed straight to his groin. His balls drew closer to his body, while his cock thickened, filling with blood. He loathed the decision to have a blood bag before meeting her. His brain was already floating away, allowing his libido to do the thinking. Gripping the wheel tighter, he tried to ignore the tightening of his body and the way the interior of the car became smaller and hotter. Her hand moved closer to his groin, and for the first time in his life, he found himself praying to a higher being that she wouldn’t touch his cock. If she did, he knew he’d pull over the car and fuck her. Getting arrested for public indecency was not on his itinerary; what was, was getting to the picnic in one piece without crashing.

The air around him thinned as the scent of her need increased.

“I just want to take things slow, but not break it off with you. Do you understand?”

Her nails dug into his thigh, and he whimpered in response as his cock jumped. He wanted to feel those nails biting into his skin, raking his back, chest, anywhere she could reach. Blowing out a breath, he nodded.

“Draven, tell me you understand.”

He couldn’t. He didn’t even know what the hell they were talking about. Her hand moved closer, her fingers mere inches away from his aching shaft. Biting his bottom lip, he jerked the wheel, turning into the parking lot of the park. Her little scream heightened his desire. Once the car was in a spot, his hand scrambled to unbuckle his belt. Fumbling, he managed to push the button when he felt a slap on back of his head.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Rose demanded.

Looking up, the fog of arousal had cleared enough to see fear dance in her eyes. Her chest rose and fell as she panted. “You almost got us killed!”

Hanging his head, he groaned. “I’m sorry, baby. I lost my head. Your hand was on my thigh and it hasn’t been even an hour since I’ve fed. I lost my head and let my cock do the thinking. Do you want to go home?”

Sending up a silent prayer that she still wanted to do the picnic, he waited. A small tap on the window caused her to scream again.

“Drav, you in there?” Torger called out.

Hesitation stayed his hand, fearing the worst, before he hit the button to let the window down. His voice was shaky, and he felt a bit jittery. “Yes?”

“You okay? I was just asking if you could point me in the direction of the trails. You know me and directions.” Torger rubbed his neck. A bright pink stain appeared on his cheeks, neck, and across his bare chest. A glance down had Drav closing his eyes and praying for mind bleach. Torger had an erection.

“Fine, um, can you point that thing in another direction. And, um, straight until you hit the pine trees; the trail is there.” Draven prayed his friend would leave quickly and that Rose hadn’t seen any of Torger’s package.

“Ooops, sorry man, full moon. Okay, thanks. Take care and be careful, okay? Saw the way you came into the parking lot; scared the shit out of me; thought there was trouble.”

Still not looking at the other man, Draven squeezed his eyes shut. “You’re telling me. I’m fine, a bit blood drunk. Fed about thirty minutes ago. It’s still infusing into me. Went a bit uh, nuts due to outside stimuli.”

“Yeah, well be careful. Gotta go. The wolf wants to run.” The sound of Torger’s retreating footsteps was a relief. Draven didn’t open his eyes until he was sure that Torger was far away from the car.

“Um, he’s naked,” Rose pointed out.

“Yes.” For a moment, jealousy flared inside so hot it scared him. A glance at Rose showed her wide eyed, yet the air in the car remained the same. Relief stole through him at the realization that she wasn’t attracted to his friend. “It’s the full moon.”

“I know, but he’s naked. Like isn’t that illegal or something?” Rose rubbed her eyes.

Her question drew out a chuckle. “Honey, they need to be naked to shift. So everything is okay.”

“Yeah, but he’s like, really naked, no shoes,” she said.

Draven reached out and caressed her cheek with his fingertips. “Do you want to be naked, too?”

“No, I want to smack you again. Next time, don’t drink and drive.” She unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car. He in turn started laughing, long and loud.

After he out of the car, he popped the trunk, hit the toggle button and locked the car. No one would steal it, but he didn’t put it past someone to plant something in his car. It was close to an election season. He grabbed the picnic basket and blankets out of the trunk. After taking her hand, Draven guided her into the woods. A cool breeze blew around him, bringing with it the scent of wolves, evergreens, and earth. He began to calm down and breathe it all in. That small contact from holding Rose’s hand set him at ease. The world and his job didn’t exist outside of these woods. In the here and now, he could find out more about this special woman following him into the woods, despite his actions.

“I’m sorry. When a vampire feeds there’s a time period for them to adjust, even the older ones need to acclimate to the new blood in their system. So everything is intensified: touch, arousal, scent. When you had your hand on my thigh, I lost it. It felt so damn good. I got too eager to touch you, taste you, fuck you again. I’m sorry I scared you. I don’t ever want to do that again.” A glance back showed Rose’s gaze squared lower than his back. He smiled. “Are you watching my ass?”

“What?” She looked up and gave him a sheepish grin. “Sorry.”

“I’m pleased you find it attractive. Did you hear anything I said?” He hoped he wouldn’t have to repeat himself.

“Yes I did, and I understand, but next time, warn me, or better yet, wait another half an hour until you’re fully adjusted and call me if you’re going to be late. I don’t mind. Where are we going anyway?” Her gaze lifted, her eyes dark, inquisitive.

“To watch the wolves run. It’s a wondrous sight, and I think you’ll love it.” He prayed she would.

“I’m sure it is. I’ve heard of it, but was always told no human should be out in the woods during a full moon. It’s not safe.” A tremor laced its way through her voice.