Shadows Strike(18)
Of course her heart had begun to pound like a sledgehammer. But his eyes had never opened. So she had reached for the nearby universal remote, turned the television on, and channel surfed while she gave in to temptation and combed her fingers through his short locks.
His hair smelled like her lavender-scented shampoo and was so soft.
Such contentment suffused her that she damned near fell asleep herself.
It was nice, having him curled up against her. She cursed her mind for leaping forward and wondering how nice it would be to have him curled up against her in bed. Naked. All of that fabulous strength pressing down on her.
He’s immortal. You’re human. She frowned. Or a gifted one.
That was going to take some getting used to.
She had super-advanced DNA. How bizarre was that?
“That feels nice,” Ethan muttered.
Heather jumped. “I thought you were asleep.”
“I was.” He sighed and tightened his hold on her hip as if he didn’t want to let her go. “What time is it?”
“Eight thirty.”
“At night?” he asked, sounding more alert.
“Yes.”
Raising his head, he squinted at the windows. “Has the sun set?”
“Barely.”
Groaning, he sat up, lowered his feet to the floor, and slumped against the cushions beside her. “Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to sleep so long.”
She fought a smile as she eyed him curiously. Several strands of hair stood up on one side of his head. “I’m a little surprised you slept so deeply,” she commented. “I would’ve thought a vampire—or rather an immortal—would wake at the slightest sound.”
Grimacing, he combed his fingers through his hair and tamed the rebellious strands. “Normally, I do. But when I suffer severe enough wounds, I tend to slip into a healing sleep and rest much more deeply, especially when . . .”
“When what?”
He offered her an apologetic shrug. “When I need blood.”
She swallowed. “You need blood?”
“Yes. My wounds may have healed, but I won’t be at full strength until I get an infusion.”
She considered his words. Infusion sounded almost clinical. “So you don’t . . . bite people or drink blood?”
“I only bite people when I’m desperate and don’t have a ready supply of blood. Immortals have our own blood banks to which members of the human network routinely contribute. And no, I don’t drink the blood. My fangs siphon the blood directly into my veins.”
She studied him. “Are you desperate?” Because she was the only blood supply present.
“No,” he assured her with a smile. “Even if I were, I wouldn’t bite you.”
“Well,” she huffed in feigned offense. “I guess my blood isn’t good enough for you.”
He chuckled. “I’m sure your blood would perk me right up.” His eyes said as would other things. “But I won’t risk exposing you to the virus.”
“Is it that pervasive?” she asked. “Would one bite turn me into an immortal?”
“Only if I drained you nearly to the point of death, then returned your blood to you infected with the virus. Otherwise, I would have to bite you several times before the virus would gain a strong enough hold on your immune system to conquer it and transform you.”
“Oh.” She didn’t know what else to say to that.
He motioned to the windows. “Did it rain while I slept?”
“No.” She nodded to the television. “But according to the big blob of red on the radar, it will within the next half hour.”
As though to punctuate her words, thunder rumbled outside.
Ethan didn’t seem particularly thrilled by her announcement.
“What’s wrong? I thought you said rain would wash away the scent of our battle with the vampires and prevent any more from tracking us here.”
He offered her a sheepish smile. “It will. I guess I was just hoping I’d have an excuse to stay with you a little longer.”
Her pulse did a funny little fluttery thing. “You can’t babysit me forever, Ethan.”
“I’m not babysitting you. I’m watching over you.” His lips quirked up. “When I’m not sleeping, that is. Should I check my reflection in the mirror to see if you’ve drawn me a dapper mustache and bushy eyebrows?”
She grinned. “I couldn’t find a permanent marker.”
As he laughed, his cell phone rang.
Ethan retrieved his phone and took the call. “Yeah?”
“It’s Ed. Just checking to make sure you’re still among the living.”
“I am.”
“And are you still with the woman?”
Ethan sighed at Ed’s hopeful tone. “Yes.”
“Good for you,” he praised with annoying enthusiasm, then went all business. “Seth has called a meeting. He wants everyone at David’s place in an hour.”
“I’ll be there.”
“You want me to bring you anything?”
“A change of clothes would be nice.” David kept a ready supply of clothing at his home for Immortal Guardians and their Seconds to plunder, but why raid it if it wasn’t necessary?
“Got it. See you there.”
Ethan tucked his phone away in a back pocket.
Lightning flashed beyond the curtains, followed by the grumble of thunder as the first drops of rain struck the ground outside with a tentative pitter-patter.
There went his excuse to linger.
“Everything okay?” Heather asked.
He nodded. “May I use your bathroom?”
“Of course.”
Rising, he crossed to his duffel bag and dug around in it until he found the toothbrush and minty toothpaste he always carried with him. Battling vampires could get ugly. He had, on more than one occasion, had to use his teeth to rend flesh or give himself a quick infusion when wounded severely. And unlike some of the other immortals, he had never developed a fondness for the taste of blood.
Not that he would tell Heather any of that.
She arched a brow and smiled. “What don’t you carry in that bag?”
“An umbrella,” he retorted with a grin.
She laughed. “Bad luck there.”
Ethan availed himself of her bathroom. When he returned to the living room, he found Heather standing at the window with the curtains open, staring out into the darkness.
Lightning flashed, brightening her features momentarily.
The rain pummeled the ground in earnest now.
“It’s really coming down out there,” Ethan commented, tucking the toothbrush and toothpaste away and zipping his duffel bag closed.
“Yes.”
He crossed to his coat and withdrew her 9mm from an inside pocket. “Here. I’m sorry I had to take it from you.”
Accepting the weapon, she stared up at him. “I’m sorry I probably would’ve shot you with it if you hadn’t.”
Damn, he hated to leave her.
Spying a pen and a pile of mail on the coffee table, Ethan picked up an envelope, turned it over, and wrote on the back of it. He handed it to her. “My number. If you need anything”—or just want to talk, he added mentally—“please don’t hesitate to call me.”
She took it and stared down at it.
Ethan forced himself to don his coat and retrieved his duffel bag. His boots thudding across the wooden floor sounded loud in the silence.
Heather followed him to the door.
“I’ll check the area to ensure no vampires made it this far before the rain began to fall,” he told her.
She nodded.
Opening the door, he stepped out into darkness and dropped his duffel on the front porch. “I’ll be right back.”
A quick search of the surrounding forest and meadowland confirmed no vampires had come looking for their deceased comrades. Already the scent of blood in the clearing had been washed away by the downpour, as had Ethan’s and Heather’s scents.
Ethan returned to the porch, his hair and coat dripping.
Heather waited for him in the doorway, the 9mm clutched in one hand.
“All clear,” he told her, wanting so badly to kiss her again.
She nodded. “It still feels like I’ve known you for a year,” she murmured.
“Oddly, it feels the same for me.” Stepping closer, he cupped her face in cool, rain-slick hands. He heard her heartbeat pick up its pace even as his own did the same.
Lowering his lips to hers, Ethan delivered a slow, gentle kiss, memorizing her taste, the feel of her soft cheeks beneath his palms. He raised his head, saw the amber glow of his eyes reflected in hers. “Be safe, Heather.”
She nodded. “You, too.”
He lingered a moment longer. Then, stepping back, he picked up his duffel bag, strode to his car, and drove out of Heather’s life.
David was the second eldest and second most powerful Immortal Guardian on the planet. Or at least he had been until Zach had grudgingly joined their ranks. Nevertheless, David remained Seth’s second in command, having helped him guide and corral the Immortal Guardian group for thousands of years.
David also treated all immortals, their Seconds, and members of the human network like family. He opened his homes to them all. Did everything he could to provide a family-like atmosphere and dispel the loneliness that crept up on them from time to time. And provided the warmth and stability so many of them needed to keep plodding along in this existence.