Love Your Entity(46)

She needed to be sure to e-mail her publicist Katie after the interview today and let her know how it went. She should also check with her to see if any new reviews had come in. Sierra had met Katie last summer during a trip to New York. She’d immediately bonded with her. Katie was brimming with energetic enthusiasm and was a consummate professional. She also had a thing for cupcakes. Sierra made a mental note to send her some of Daniella’s cupcakes.

She was just about to take her first sip of coffee when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Startled, she dropped the mug, which shattered on the floor. As it did so, she realized that Ronan was the one touching her. If she hadn’t been so distracted, she would have recognized that fact immediately because her body had such a powerful reaction to him. But the way he was able to show up out of nowhere was disconcerting.

She was accustomed to ghosts suddenly appearing, so she should be able to deal with a hot, sexy vampire doing the same thing. But Ronan was special in so many ways.

He looked so hot in his jeans and black T-shirt, standing so close, smelling so good. She was a writer. She should be able to come up with more creative ways to describe the way he made her feel. But she couldn’t.

None of the previous men in her life had ever ignited this passion in her. But Ronan wasn’t a man. He was a vampire. She was still grappling with it all.

“Watch out,” Ronan said as he tightened his hold on her while she gazed down at the mess on the kitchen floor.

She tried to ignore her intense connection and the physical need to be with him. Instead she focused on the mundane. Two mugs down, only two to go. Clearly she should get Styrofoam cups or something from now on.

Luckily she hadn’t burned herself from the spilled hot coffee. That may have been her last French Roast flavor though. She’d have to go out and buy more.

“Careful,” Ronan said before sliding his arms around her and picking her up.

Now her thoughts were a thousand percent focused on him. “What are you doing?”

“Preventing you from cutting yourself on the broken china.”

She’d never had a man carry her before, let alone a vampire. Putting her arm around his neck, she held on tight as he cradled her against his body. Her face was close to his, which meant her neck was close to his mouth. She hoped he wasn’t tempted to take a bite. She was tempted to kiss him but she didn’t.

“Where are we going?” she asked breathlessly. She wasn’t breathless on purpose. She wasn’t trying to sound like Marilyn Monroe. The words just came out that way.

“Where would you like to go?” he said.

To bed with you were the first words that came to mind, but luckily she didn’t say them aloud. She hoped he wasn’t reading her thoughts. Could she post “Vampires Out” on her mind? She definitely wanted “Vampires In” regarding the rest of her body. The more she tried to stop thinking about him in bed with her, the more she did it, imagined it, fantasized …

“I’m waiting,” he said.

“My shoes are in my bedroom.” So was her bed.

As he walked toward her room, she responded to the way his arms felt around her. Heat surged throughout her body. The side of her breast was pressed against his chest. She was wearing a NYT BESTSELLER WANNABE T-shirt and had forgotten to put on a bra underneath it. Or maybe she’d deliberately omitted putting on that lingerie item. She was glad she had. She didn’t want any additional layers of clothing between them.

The truth was that she wanted to rip his T-shirt off and lick her way across his chest. She didn’t normally have a photographic memory but the image of Ronan standing naked when she’d walked into the house that first day seemed to be clearer than ever.

Her breathing became faster and faster. At this rate, she’d be hyperventilating soon.

When he crossed the threshold into her bedroom, she noticed how thick his eyelashes were. His dark hair tumbled over his forehead, lending him a rakish air that she found irresistible. Which is why she lifted her hand to run her hand through his hair.

He tightened his hold on her.

She licked her lips. The feel of the silky strands between her fingers was incredibly arousing. Was that because of the vampire bond? Or just because he was Ronan?

He stood there with her, a few feet from the bed, his mouth mere inches from hers. She wanted to taste his lips. So she did. Or tried to. But he abruptly dumped her on the bed.

She landed on her back and bounced on her soft mattress. Her breasts bounced. He watched them with heated eyes. For a moment, she was certain he was going to join her, stripping off her clothes and his before thrusting into her. But he didn’t.

She told herself she shouldn’t be so deeply disappointed that he walked away. Her mind might be buying the argument that he’d done the right thing, but her body was still on heightened hormone alert.