“Good evening, lovely lady,” he murmured. “I hope you don’t mind my cutting in.”
“Uh . . . no. I guess not.”
He smiled, revealing even, white teeth. “Have you a name?”
“Of course,” she replied tartly. “Everyone has a name.”
“Care to share yours with me?”
She stared at him, unable to shake the feeling that it would be dangerous to tell this stranger who she was.
He lifted one brow, his expression amused. “It’s just a name.”
“Names have power.”
“Only if you’re a witch.” He cocked his head to the side. “Are you a witch?”
“Perhaps.”
“I think not.” His gaze moved over her from head to heel. “A dark angel, perhaps.”
Sheree smiled in spite of herself. “No, but you’re getting warmer.”
“Ah. A vampire?”
She batted her eyelashes at him. “Why, however did you guess?”
He laughed softly. “Just a hunch, darlin’. Let me see your fangs.”
“I’m sorry, but I left them home tonight. Can I see yours?”
“Maybe later. Can I buy you a drink?”
Sheree intended to say no but found herself accepting instead. She wasn’t sure if it was because he was without doubt the sexiest man she had ever seen, or if it was his smile, or if it was the way her heart had skipped a beat when he called her darlin’. She grinned inwardly, thinking all of the above.
When the music ended, Derek led her to a table, excused himself to get their drinks. She had asked for a Bloody Mary and he decided to make it two, though his drink of choice was something warmer. And redder.
She was swaying to the music, her eyes closed, when he returned.
For a moment, he found himself staring at her. What was it about this woman, he wondered, that enchanted him so? She was pretty. She smelled good. She had a winning smile and she laughed easily. But it was more than that. What more, he had no idea.
“Here you go,” he said, placing her drink on the table.
She opened her eyes and smiled as he sat across from her.
“A toast?” he suggested, lifting his glass.
“All right.” She lifted hers as well. “What shall we drink to?”
“New beginnings?”
“New beginnings,” she repeated, and touched her glass to his.
Her scent tantalized him, as did the steady beat of her heart, the sight of the pulse throbbing in the hollow of her slender throat. He clenched his hands when his fangs brushed his tongue. Damn. He needed to get away from her, needed to feed now, before he did something reckless.
“Will you be here tomorrow night?” he asked, his voice tight.
“Are you leaving?”
He forced a note of humor into his voice. “It’s feeding time.”
“Oh, of course,” she replied, playing along.
“Tomorrow night.” He had intended to return to his own home in Sacramento sometime tomorrow, but that could wait a few days. Pushing away from the table, he brushed his knuckles across her cheek. “Ten o’clock.”
Before she could answer, he was moving toward the exit.
Sheree stared after him, then shook her head. She was either drunk or seeing things, but she could have sworn she’d seen a faint red glow in his eyes.
Chapter Three
Mara sat on the sofa in front of the fireplace, reminiscing about the past. She told herself she wasn’t waiting up for Derek. He was a grown man. He no longer needed her to look out for him, nor would he appreciate it. But she waited anyway.
It was an hour before dawn when he entered the house. He scowled when he saw her.
“Dammit,” he hissed. “I’m a big boy now. I don’t need my mother waiting up for me.”
Mara lifted her head, nostrils flaring, but said nothing.
“I didn’t kill anyone.”
She smiled faintly. “All things considered, I could hardly condemn you if you did.” How could she? She had killed more than her share of mortals in the long centuries of her existence.
Derek dropped into his favorite chair and stretched his legs out in front of him.
“You smell of perfume and alcohol,” she remarked.
“I met a woman. I didn’t feed on her.”
“But you wanted to.”
He didn’t deny it. “Do you mind if I stay here for another few days?”
“Of course not. The others are all going home tomorrow night.”
There had been a time when the DeLongpres and the Cordovas had maintained homes in Oregon, but they had all moved shortly after Derek’s birth. Now, they lived in California, though not all in the same town. Derek made his home in Sacramento. Roshan, Brenna, Vince and Cara had homes in San Jose. Rane and Savannah owned a ranch-style house located on several acres near Auburn, while Rafe and Kathy lived in Red Bluff. Mara owned a home in Northern California, but this house in the Hollywood Hills was her favorite.