Keyboards and Kink (11 page)

She licked her lips at the sight of wavy brown hair
that skimmed his shoulders. Piercing green eyes stared back at her,
almost as if he were waiting for her to run her tongue over him
rather than her lips. She’d love to oblige him. A guy that looked
that damn sexy had to have a cock that matched. It was a law of
physics.

Smiling at her lame joke, she touched the computer
screen and stared into the eyes of her fantasy lover, pretending as
she always did that he was right in front of her. She’d given up
long ago trying to understand the deep throbbing desire for this
man. She saw his face in her dreams. He was the inspiration for
each of her vampire and pirate heroes. In her mind he had a deep
rich voice with the power to reduce her to a mass of jelly by his
mere words, and one look could seduce her.

Reynold watched, his molten expression peering out
from her computer screen. How pathetic was she? An M.S. in Physics,
and every night she wrote smut under the user name ScienceGirl for
a website run by a mega-hottie who was probably married with
several children. She doubted that was his real pic. She knew
computer program developers. There were dozens of them running
around the lab where she worked, and none of them looked like
him.

Now that reality had come crashing down she was no
longer in the mood to post in the forums, so she turned off the
computer and headed for her bed.

****

Reynold Collins stood at the foot of Ursula’s bed, as
he did several nights a week, and watched her sleep. He’d already
started a thread on the site announcing her as the quarterly grand
prize winner. That way she’d see it in the morning. The amethyst
and turquoise pieces were nearly finished. With her dark hair and
dark eyes, they’d look stunning on her.

The previous winners had all received jewelry so at
least she wouldn’t think the gift was anything out of the ordinary.
But it wasn’t enough. He wanted to give her something special.
Something unique.

He’d been fantasizing about this woman for a year
now, and her latest story had made his blood boil. She’d written
about making love to vampires before, but this one had been
different. Dark and erotic, it had driven him to distraction. He
wanted to make all her fantasies come true. To seduce and possess
her.

For a brief moment he’d considered emailing her to
say he wanted to give her the prize in person, but she was too
smart to fall for something like that. She’d think he was a creeper
and had been playing her all along.

He knew she’d believed in vampires before she joined
the site because he’d worked the question into an email one day,
after she posted one of her first stories. She had shared with him
her profession as a medical physicist doing research on Renfield’s
syndrome—clinical vampirism. She’d studied the theories and knew it
was possible, but he couldn’t just blurt it out.

She’d been staring at his picture for close to a
year, and watching her do so was torture. How he’d longed to make
himself known to her, just to hold her and taste her warm lips. She
was one of the most beautiful women he’d met in over four hundred
years. Her intelligence excited him, and her stories fed his
passion.

“This can’t go anywhere,” he whispered into the dark.
Reynold fought against the crushing disappointment settling over
him like a shroud. She tossed in her sleep and he wondered if his
presence gave her bad dreams. It had happened with other women
before. It was futile to fall in love with a human woman. Any
vampire would tell him the same thing. It was fine to use their
bodies for a while, but don’t get too emotionally attached to them.
For all their fantasies of being one of the undead, in reality they
didn’t want any part of crossing over. In the end he always lost
them.

He moved silently around the bed and touched her
hair, so softly he knew it wouldn’t wake her. The blood pounded in
her veins. He could hear it, calling to him. Would she scream if he
woke her, or welcome his presence? He’d read enough of her stories
to know she fantasized about vampires and pirates. Well, he was
both. Perhaps she’d believe him and accept him as he was? It was
too much to hope for.

When she moaned softly and rolled over he disappeared
before she awoke. He needed time to think about this. He didn’t
want to frighten her.

****

The first thing Ursula did when she woke up Saturday
morning was log onto the Night Games site. She put her hand over
her mouth as a rush of happiness surged through her. Reynold had
posted a thread announcing her as the grand prize winner, and
judging from the number of posts on it, he’d been busy for hours
fielding questions and tamping down false rumors before they could
take root.

Ursula was reminded of a time in middle school when
Bobby Torrington had asked her to a school dance. She felt that
same rush of heady excitement now. She remembered looking for him
in between classes, and spending hours with her friends devising
not-so-subtle ways to accidentally run into him at the mall. The
thrill of seeing him smile was the same delight that now coursed
through her body when she read Reynold’s words defending and
protecting her.

He’d also sent her an email. JohnBoy, one of the male
members who harassed the women, had been at it again. Reynold had
finally kicked him off the site. He also told her that her prize
was finished and she’d receive it soon. She was curious to see what
it was only because the members whose stories won every month had
posted pictures of some exquisite jewelry. But what she really
wanted to do was email him back and tell him she’d rather he
deliver it in person.

“Don’t be an idiot,” she chided. What if he was in a
relationship? Then she’d look like a fool. And for all she knew he
lived on the other side of the world. It’s not as if he’d just hop
a plane to deliver a gift. “Reynold, I wish you could read my
mind,” she said as she emailed him back, thanking him for the win
and for kicking JohnBoy off the site.

Ursula stopped typing when she recalled her dream
from last night. They were becoming more frequent and erotic now.
Not that she was going to complain about dreams where Reynold was
her mysterious lover, but this was more. The dreams were dark and
provocative, and they left her wanting something she couldn’t put a
name to. If not for her stories she’d have no outlet for the
emotions they stirred. Did they mean something?

Yeah. They meant she had an overactive imagination,
that’s what. Reynold Collins wasn’t a supernatural being, and he
wasn’t interested in her. They both loved the same types of
stories, nothing more. She’d belonged to the site for a year now
and not once had he ever hinted their relationship go beyond a
cyber one. Then again, she’d never told him she dreamed about him.
Should she, or would he think she was a stalker?

She hesitated for ten minutes before finally typing
an email that described the dreams in vague details, putting the
spin on them as fodder for new story ideas. She made a joke,
telling him she’d have to watch what she ate before going to bed
from now on. At the last minute she threw in a line that said he’d
even starred in a couple of them, then hit send before she could
chicken out and delete it.

The die was cast. By tomorrow morning she’d either
have an exciting new possibility to look forward to, or die of
embarrassment.

****

Reynold read her email ten times before he allowed
himself to believe it could be true that her erotic dreams were
about him. He closed his eyes and pictured her sleeping form under
blankets pulled up to her chin. Only her long dark hair was
visible, and one fist wrapped around the edge of the comforter.

He would take her gift to her tonight and reveal
himself. It was time.

Chapter Two

The dream woke Ursula. She waited until her breathing
had returned to normal and rolled over to glance at her alarm
clock, groaning when she realized she’d only gone to bed a couple
of hours ago. She snuggled back under the covers and hugged her
body pillow. “Reynold,” she whispered. “I wish that dream was
real.”

Her eyes snapped open when she heard a rushing wind
noise. Was it storming outside? When she removed the blanket she
shivered. The air in the room had suddenly grown cooler.

Crossing to the window she moved aside the curtains
and peered out. The full moon cast a bluish hue on the expanse of
lawn below. The trees were still and stars dotted the sky. What had
she heard?

Hugging her elbows she crossed to her dresser and
turned on one of the Tiffany rose bouquet lamps that flanked it.
She had another blanket in the bottom drawer. When someone
whispered her name, she froze. The hair on the back of her neck
prickled. Was someone in her condo?

“Shit.” Her phone was on the nightstand behind her.
With her heartbeat pounding in her ears, she turned around and
watched something materialize in front of the window. A face
floated next to her nightstand. The only things clearly visible
were his piercing green eyes.

“What the hell…”

“I won’t hurt you, Ursula.” His seductive, soothing
voice sent a shiver through her, but not from fear. It was
Reynold’s voice, exactly as it had sounded in her dreams.

“I don’t understand.”
Nice one, Ursula. Tell the
strange man in your bedroom you’re confused. Maybe he’ll stop and
explain first? That’ll make it so much more pleasant.

“It’s okay, Ursula. I’m not here to hurt you.”

“Tell me what the hell is going on right now.” Her
limbs felt like someone had wrapped them in fire ants. They danced
along her skin, stinging her. She shook her head, trying to escape
what her senses were telling her was true.

She placed both hands across her chest as his body
took solid form. It was like watching a computerized model of
subatomic particles come together. The pieces coalesced until a
yummy man stood in front of the window, dressed in khakis and a
button-down shirt.

The muscles visible under his clothing suggested
hours spent at the gym, and his rugged face had the look of someone
who spent a great deal of time outdoors. The air filled with the
scent of musk and another scent she couldn’t identify. It conjured
up images of naked bodies writhing together in passion.

His gaze burned with passion and her clothes suddenly
felt too tight. Ursula trembled at the raw lust in his eyes. Every
erotic fantasy she’d had about this man floated through her mind.
She moaned and backed up but she was already against the
dresser.

“It’s okay. I mean you no harm.”

“How?” she breathed, unable to form a coherent
thought. “Why?”

He placed a wrapped package on the nightstand. “I
brought your prize.”

She shivered. “What?”

“You won the grand prize this quarter, and I’ve
brought it to you.” That voice. It washed over her like warm water,
caressing every inch of her skin. This was impossible, and yet
there he stood in all his testosterone-laden glory. Her nipples and
clit began to throb.

She licked her lips. “Can we take a detour back to
reality for just one second? How is this possible?”

“You’ve always wondered if vampires are real.”

“Sure, but…”
Wait a minute...
“They’re real?
You’re a vampire? Is that what you’re telling me?” Why didn’t she
feel afraid? Shouldn’t be she be planning her escape right now?
Ursula, hello! There’s a strange man in your bedroom!

“You’ve always believed it could be true, so why is
it so difficult to accept?” He took a step toward her. “Isn’t this
what you want? To explore your dark fantasies? That’s what I’m
offering.”

“No way. Not possible.”

He grinned and it sent a wave of desire crashing
through her. This was insane, and yet she craved his touch. More
than she’d ever desired any man.

“Do you doubt your own senses?” he asked, strolling
toward her slowly, like a big cat stalking its prey.

“I can if I choose to.”

“Please don’t send me away, Ursula. Let me in. I’ve
wanted you for so long.”

“This is crazy,” she whispered.

He was so close now she could count his eyelashes.
They hung over his lids, dark and long. “No, it’s not crazy,
Ursula. It’s what you and I have dreamed of.”

“You’ve dreamed of it? I don’t understand.”

“I’ve watched you. I’ve read your stories. Your words
have such power over me.”

“How often have you watched me?” Heat rushed through
her body as she pictured him in the corner, invisible, while she
sat in front of the computer screen, staring at his photo.

Reynold’s look was tender and warm. “Always the
scientist, questioning everything. When will you learn to let go
and experience life?”

Ursula swallowed the sudden lump in her throat and
blinked back tears. She didn’t need to hear those words right now.
She’d had similar words thrown in her face too many times by
various boyfriends. So she worked a lot, so what? Since when had
that become a crime? She loved her research. But it didn’t leave
her much time for a relationship. And her chatter about particle
irradiation and bioelectric potentials tended to put most men
off.

Ursula held her breath while one long finger gently
traced a line down her cheek, across her jaw, and into her
cleavage. His touch burned like fire and the air in the room felt
charged. “Let me fulfill all your fantasies, Ursula.”

“And then what? You go on the website and tell
everyone about it?”

He shook his head. “No. It’s not like that at all.
This has nothing to do with the other members. It’s you I’m
fascinated with. Your intelligence, your passion, and your
beauty.”

Her breath caught in her throat at the look of molten
heat in his eyes. He placed a hand on her shoulder and she exhaled
sharply. He caressed her bare skin, sending a shiver through her.
She looked into his eyes as every past unfulfilling sexual
encounter flashed through her mind.