He was right, of course, but . . . Rising, she closed the distance between them. Resting her hands on his shoulders, she went up on her tiptoes and kissed him.
At first, he didn’t kiss her back; then his arms went around her and he pulled her body against his, his mouth devouring hers in a kiss that burned away every thought, every need save the flame that smoldered between them, growing hotter and more intense as his tongue dueled with hers.
“Sheree . . .” Holding her away from him, he took a deep breath. “Damn, girl, what are you doing?”
“I don’t want you to go. Please, Derek, I’ve never felt this way about anyone else. Maybe it won’t last, maybe it isn’t even real, but shouldn’t we find out?”
“Oh, it’s real enough, love. Don’t ever doubt it.”
“I hear a ‘but’ in there somewhere.”
“I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“I’m willing to take my chances.” Moving closer, Sheree ran her hands over his chest. “Are you?”
She was old enough to know her own mind, he thought as he took her into his arms again, and there was no denying that he wanted her more than his next breath.
Muttering, “I just hope you don’t regret it,” he lowered his head and branded her lips with his. Right or wrong, he intended to stay with her as long as she would have him.
Mara glared at her son in disbelief. “Have you completely lost your mind? How could you do such a stupid thing?”
“She had a right to know,” Derek said. “I put Sheree’s life in danger and she needed to be aware of it. Don’t worry, I didn’t tell her about you or Logan.”
Mara glanced at her husband, lounging on the sofa beside her, his long legs stretched out in front of him. “I don’t believe this,” she said. “Our people spent years and thousands of dollars obliterating every scrap of proof of our existence, so that, gradually, mortals went back to believing in the myth and not the reality.” She turned her angry gaze on her son. “Now, we have hunters being killed and stories about it in the newspaper. And to top it off, you decided to tell Sheree. Sheree, who knows where we live!”
“He did the right thing,” Logan said. “The girl needed to know.”
“What?” Mara rounded on her husband, ready to do battle. “How can you say that?”
“Because it’s the truth. What was Derek supposed to do? Just walk away and leave her in the dark?”
“If necessary,” Mara retorted.
“He’s crazy about her,” Logan said, grinning at Derek. “That being the case, he had no choice but to tell her the truth.”
Derek dropped into the chair across from the sofa. He had always admired Logan, and never more so than when he stood up to his wife. Mara might be the most powerful vampire in the world, but Logan wasn’t the least bit afraid of her, even though she could easily destroy him.
“There’s always a choice,” Mara retorted, but there was no heat in her voice.
“You’re worrying for nothing,” Logan insisted. “She isn’t likely to go around telling everyone she’s dating a vampire. Who would believe her?”
“I hope you’re right. At the moment, we have more pressing problems, like finding out if it’s just coincidence that hunters are popping up all over the place, although you know I don’t believe in coincidence, or if someone’s hunting us specifically, and if so, who it is.”
“Okay, wife, where do we start?”
“At the Den, of course. And then we need to find out if any of our old enemies are looking for us.”
“The Den.” Derek sat forward, his brow furrowed. “There were a couple of vampires there a few days ago. I had the feeling I knew one of them, although I couldn’t place her.”
Mara’s eyes narrowed. “What did she look like?”
“She was old. . . .”
“Was she with another old lady?”
“Yeah, how did you know?”
Mara glanced at Logan. “Edna and Pearl.”
“You know them?” Derek asked.
“Oh, yes, I know them.” Mara’s eyes glittered with menace. “They kidnapped you when you were a baby. They were partly responsible for your father’s death.”
“How so?” It was a story she had never told him.
Mara looked at Logan, a question in her eyes.
“Maybe it’s time he knows. Past time, if you ask me.”
Mara’s gaze grew distant. “I met Kyle Bowden at the foot of the Sphinx. He was a brilliant artist and I was captivated by him and in awe of his talent.” She smiled at the memory. “He fell in love with me, and I suppose I loved him, too, in my way. We parted when he discovered I was a vampire. It was about that time I realized I was losing my powers. Not long after that, I ran into Logan,” she said, squeezing his hand. “I hadn’t seen him in centuries. I don’t know what I would have done without him, especially after I discovered I was pregnant. He took care of me, found a vampire doctor to look after me. A few months later, Kyle hired a hunter to find me and your father and I were reunited.”