Finding Fire: Paranormal Romance (Bad Boys Of The Underworld Book 1) (13 page)

She seemed so innocent sometimes. All he had to do was think a dirty thought, and she would seem to know it. Her heart would speed up, and she would breathe faster. She was so good at remaining cool toward him, but when he got too close, or said something that hit a bit too close to home, he saw how hot she truly was.

It was now his mission in life to see just how hot she could get. How fast he could get her heart to beat. How hard her breathing could be.

He smiled in anticipation.

Annabelle was still put out by his refusal to answer her questions. “Well, I said you weren’t evil. I never said you weren’t an ass.” She shifted her weight away from him and stared out her window at the dark landscape passing her by.

After a few minutes, she said, “We should listen to some music.”

“You aren’t going to question me more?”

She gave him a glare. “You probably won’t answer me anyway, so why bother?”

He smiled at her assessment. “Music it is then.” He switched on the radio.

Anna was proud of herself by the time dawn approached. She’d managed to stay awake the whole night. Sure, she’d slept through most of the day, but the previous night and early evening had been so eventful, she’d still been drained.

The dark scenery didn’t help. She couldn’t make out much of anything. The steady rocking motion of the car going over the road had threatened to pull her into unconsciousness for hours.

She wasn’t sure why she so desperately wanted to stay awake. Maybe it was just that she wanted to prove a point. She wasn’t some weak little girl. She could stay out late with the big boys. Or maybe it was simply because she would have even less to do during the daylight hours holed up in a hotel with Nicolas.

Plus, it would be hard for him to seduce her if she was in an exhausted sleep.

About half an hour before sunrise, they pulled into a small motel fifty miles outside of Toledo. It wasn’t the nicest place Anna had ever been to, but it was better than the motel they had dropped Brad off at.

Once again she stayed in the car while Nicolas took care of the room. Nicolas had told her it would be easier if the clerk never saw her, and that was fine with Anna because she was almost too tired to get out of the car. He used his mind control on the clerk so he would never remember the man and woman who paid for two nights right before dawn.

She wasn’t too tired to notice what was missing when they entered the room. “Where is the other bed?” she asked as soon as she glanced past Nicolas’s shoulders into the room.

The room was clean enough. Everything was neat and in place. There was a small table and chair next to the window. A television that had seen better days sat on the dresser up against the wall across from the bed. The only bed. As in there was only one.

“You son of a bitch. You couldn’t even get me my own bed?” Fury bubbled up inside her. “I’m exhausted, so if you have even one tiny idea about crawling into that bed with me, you’re sorely mistaken.”

She raised an arm to, well, she didn’t know what, but hopefully cause him some sort of bodily harm. Unfortunately, he was faster than her and blocked her blow, catching her wrist. “No, no,” he said while she jerked herself free. “It wasn’t on purpose.”

She took a step back, but her eyes still shot daggers at him. “I find that really hard to believe.”

“I was booking the room and was making sure he wouldn’t remember either of us. I never thought about the sleeping situation.”

“You never thought about the sleeping situation?” she shouted. She walked a couple of steps away from him and took a couple of deep, calming breaths.

When she felt as though she’d marginally calmed down, she turned back to Nicolas. “Okay, you know what? I don’t even care why we only have one bed. That’s because I’m sleeping on it, and you can get the chair.” She pointed to the uncomfortable-looking recliner next to the table.

She expected him to protest or argue, but he just shrugged and walked over to the chair and sat down.

She was immediately suspicious. Nicolas didn’t give up easily. “You aren’t going to fight for the bed?” she asked.

“I’m probably not going to sleep much. Besides, you look like you’re about to pass out standing there. It only seems fair,” he said.

She walked to the side of the bed and set her duffel bag on the floor next to the nightstand. “Why aren’t you planning on sleeping?”

“I have a hard time sleeping with other people,” he said. “I haven’t shared a room with someone for about sixty years.”

“You aren’t going to sleep because I’m in the room? Just go get a second room. I’ll be fine.”

He shook his head at that. “It’s not all that rational, this fear of mine. Even if I were in the next room over, I would still know you were aware I was helpless just a few yards away.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I’m calling bull. I’m helpless around you all the time. You have to do it for a couple of hours, and suddenly you’re afraid?”

“That proves that you’re far braver than I am, Annabelle,” he said.

She dismissed that thought with a shake of her head. “Aren’t you tired?”

He leaned his head back against the wall and looked up at her. “I will be fine on the drive tomorrow,” he replied without actually answering her question.

She decided to try another tactic. “What happened sixty years ago that started this? That was when Aleksander took over, right?”

One corner of his mouth lifted in a sardonic grin. “Yes. Not long after that night, I was still on the run. As I said before, no one would take me in, and I had to remain hidden. After a few weeks, I was close to starving, and it was becoming increasingly more difficult to find shelter for the daylight hours.

“There were a couple of days I had to dig myself a hole to protect myself from the sun. Not a very healthy situation for my sanity. I was half crazed when I came across familiar land. I was familiar with the woman who owned the property. She was a vampire I knew very well when I was in Kirill’s court.”

His dark eyes glazed over with the memory. “I knew I shouldn’t, but I threw myself at her door right before sunrise. I was desperate for shelter and companionship. She opened the door, looking like an angel. More beautiful than anything I’d ever seen before. She took me in. She bathed me and fed me. It was the best morning I’d ever had.”

“So when did it go wrong?” asked Anna.

“After my bath, I was lying with her in her chambers. I was so exhausted, I wasn’t awake for long. When I woke up, I was being dragged out by Aleksander’s men.” His eyes turned black at the violent memories.

“She sold you out?”

“It shouldn’t have surprised me. She had a high standing in court. She wouldn’t want to jeopardize that for me. But as I said, I wasn’t in my right mind.”

“How did you get away from Aleksander’s men?”

“They were foolish. That’s the only reason I’m still alive. Their first mistake was not killing me immediately. They planned to take me to Aleksander and try to get some sort of reward. They could’ve killed me easily, but they were too greedy.

“Their second mistake was underestimating me. Though considering the shape I was in after a few hours in their care, I can’t blame them.”

Anger filled Anna. “They beat you? You were defenseless and they beat you?”

“I was known as a powerful fighter. They were enjoying the power rush.”

Anna thought back to how much Charles had enjoyed seeing her helpless, and it made her furious to think of Nicolas going through the same thing.

“They were stupid,” he continued. “They forgot who I was. They thought because they could beat me that I was no longer someone to be feared. They left me alone when they went to feed, thinking I was too weak to do anything. I was weak, but strong enough to break their bonds.”

“Where did you go when you got free?” she asked.

A fearsome smile spread across Nicolas’s face. “I didn’t go anywhere.”

“You waited for them?”

“None of them survived the night,” he said.

Anna thought about Charles. How many nights had she lain awake, wishing for him to die? It had never occurred to her young mind to do the deed herself. She wondered whether, given the knowledge that she had now, she would have been able to finish him off herself back then. “Do you regret killing them?”

His dark eyes connected with hers. “When you’ve lived as long as I have, you don’t regret much.”

She couldn’t bring herself to look away from his intense gaze. “How long have you lived?” she asked, half afraid to hear the answer.

His eyes were still on hers when he said, “Come here.”

She wanted to ask why, but she found her feet moving toward his body. She stopped when she stood over him. It was a strange view. She was so used to him towering over her.

Both of his hands came out and grasped her smaller ones. He turned her palms over, and his large thumbs ran over the fleshy part of her hands. She’d never realized how sensitive the area was, but shocks of sensation reverberated through her whole body.

“I’m seven hundred years old,” he whispered.

Her jaw dropped. One of her palms came up and rested against his cheek. She felt his warmth and some stubble against her hand. She took in the wrinkle-free skin that showed no signs of age. “But how?” she quietly asked.

Nicolas abruptly stood. His body was so near hers that his heat almost burned her. His movement had dislodged their hands, but he already had his palms resting on her waist.

He leaned in so close that she could feel his breath on her cheek. “Let me share the bed with you,” he pleaded. “I promise you will enjoy
every
second of it.”

Anna was so tempted. She rested her forehead against his chest to avoid looking at him. She had a feeling if she looked into his eyes, she’d be completely lost. She could feel his heart beat fast in his chest.

He was so big and beautiful, and he
wanted
her. It was so overwhelming. At her silence, he continued, “I can make it so that neither of us wants to sleep.”

That broke his spell. “You want to have sex with me, but can’t trust me enough to sleep in the same room as me?” She pulled herself out of his grasp and walked to her bag.

He took a step, as if he meant to follow her, but stopped after that first stride.

Anna grabbed her sweatpants out of her bag. “You can have that side of the bed.” She pointed to the side he stood closer to. “You need to get sleep. If any vampires find you, I won’t be able to fight them off on my own. We need you at full strength, so whatever phobias you have about sleeping with someone, well, get over it.”

With that said, she turned and walked into the bathroom. She locked the door behind her out of habit, because she knew he could knock down the door if he really wanted in.

She didn’t feel particularly dirty, but after that close call in the room, she felt as if a cold shower would do her good. She didn’t want to think about his hands or his eyes or how warm his chest felt against her.

She’d spent years avoiding all men. All she had to do was avoid just this one for two more nights. It sounded as though it should be so easy, but he had this effect on her she couldn’t explain.

Sure, he was handsome, but you don’t live in a big city without seeing handsome men every day. He wasn’t more charming than other men she’d met. Hell, he wouldn’t even be considered nice, let alone charming.

Even so, something about him drew her like a moth to the flame. She needed to keep her head clear and remember her motives for coming on this trip. She came to talk with Aleksander, and if she didn’t like what she heard, she would help Nicolas kill him.

Maybe that was Nicolas’s reason for trying to get her in bed. He might think that sleeping with him would make her more likely to help him kill Aleksander.

She had to remember that they both had ulterior motives and were both keeping secrets from each other. How could she even consider sleeping with someone who she trusted so little? He felt so unsure of her that he didn’t even want to be asleep in her presence.

With her mind clear on where she stood in relation to having sex with Nicolas, she climbed out of the shower and dried off. She slipped into the sweatpants she’d brought along and put on her bra and shirt. She never slept in a bra, but today she felt as if she needed all the barriers between Nicolas and her she could get.

When she ventured out into the room once more to get her toiletries, Nicolas was still on the chair. She didn’t say anything to him as she retreated back into the bathroom.

A little while later, she came back out. She was cold, as her hair was still wet, and the room already had a bit of a chill to it. She laid an unused towel over her pillow and climbed under the covers.

When she turned off the light, the room wasn’t completely dark. A bit of light from the rising sun shone through the curtains, but not much of it really penetrated the room.

She lay in the dark for a few moments to listen for any movement from his side of the room. When it became apparent he wasn’t going to leave the chair, she said, “Get in the bed, Nicolas.”

He let out a soft chuckle. “I thought you wanted the bed all to yourself.”

She sighed. “I already explained myself to you. You need your rest. I’m not going to hurt you. I’m too tired to do much of anything right now. Just get in the bed, get some sleep, and keep your hands off me.”

He didn’t respond. At first she thought he was going to stay in the chair, but after a few moments, she heard him stand and walk to the bed. The mattress dipped toward him as his weight settled on it. She glanced over at him. He lay on top of the blankets and made no move to cover himself. He’d taken his shoes off at some point but still wore his jeans and shirt. He probably wasn’t comfortable, but at least he was in the bed.

Anna contented herself with the knowledge that she was lucky she even talked him into sharing a bed with her, considering the no-sex rule.

She rolled onto her side and faced away from him. She didn’t think she would fall asleep too fast, but the night had been very long. Soon her mind drifted, and not long after that, she was lost to sleep.