Kiss of the Vampire(44)

“You’re kidding, right?” Tobias slid his sunglasses on and quirked an eyebrow at her.

“No, I’m not. You don’t hang out at strip clubs, do you?” She paused at the passenger side of the SUV and looked at him over the hood.

“No. But I’m not a demon.”

She scowled. “Oh, give me a freaking break. Not all demons are sex-hungry maniacs who hang out at nudie bars.” Then she belatedly heard the teasing note in his voice. “Oh. Sorry.”

He just stared at her a moment before replying, “No problem.” He used the key remote to open the doors and they climbed into the vehicle. Glancing at his watch, he said, “It’ll take us about forty-five minutes from here to get to the Devil’s Domain. We need to head there now if we’re going to meet Dante on time.”

“Okay. Let’s go.” Nix buckled up and leaned her head against the headrest.

Tobias fastened his seat belt and started the SUV, then pulled out of the parking lot. He reached forward and turned on the radio. The fast beat of a popular alternative rock song came on.

She started drumming her fingers on the armrest, smiling a little when she saw Tobias doing the same on the steering wheel. An eclectic taste in music was just one of the things they shared and in the early days it had helped cement their friendship, then later their love. She glanced out the side window. It was too bad music couldn’t save them.

Tobias didn’t seem to be in a talkative mood, not that he usually was, and she used the time to continue her breathing exercises as discreetly as possible. It really didn’t matter, though, since with his vampire senses he’d be able to hear her breathing. She finally decided it was all right if he saw what she did to contain the demon. Perhaps he would finally understand that she had more control than he gave her credit for.

They pulled into the lot at the Devil’s Domain. As Tobias maneuvered the SUV into a parking space, he asked, “Are you going to be all right in there?”

“Sure. Why wouldn’t I?”

“There are probably going to be a lot of vamps in there. Not to mention incubi.” He turned his head to look at her, and, as usual, his sunglasses hid his eyes. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“Yeah, probably.” She scowled. “I’ll be fine, Tobias. I’m not the same person you knew five years ago. I’ve come a long way since we were together.” She opened her door and got out, slamming the door behind her. She was proud of how evenly the words came out. Maybe being around him was acting like a catharsis. She wasn’t feeling nearly the same level of hurt as she had when she’d first seen him.

God, was that just yesterday? Unbelievable.

“Okay. I… Just know I’m here for you.”

She shot him a glance but didn’t spout off the words that sprang to her mind. Here for her like he hadn’t been in the last five years? And here for her for how long? Instead, she gave a short nod and walked toward the club.

Tobias’s cell phone rang. “Give me a minute,” he said, and stopped to answer the phone.

Nix went on and met up with Dante who waited for them near the entrance. He pushed away from the wall he’d been leaning on and they walked to the front door. “Any luck finding your guy?”

“No. How’d you do with the interviews?” she asked.

His shoulders lifted in a shrug. “No one told me anything I didn’t already know.” He started to reach for the door but stopped when the bulky doorman held out his hand.

Nix looked at him. The ruddy cast to his skin, the bright grass green of his eyes, and the small brown mushroom-shaped birthmark beneath his left ear signified he was one of the nature fairies known as green men. “Reservations?” he asked. The look that passed through his eyes was one Nix had seen before. There were already too many humans inside for comfort, and he wasn’t about to let another one in. “This is the first I’ve heard of needing reservations,” she said.

The big man merely stared at her.

“You don’t need reservations,” Tobias said as he walked up behind them.

“Mr. Caine!” The big doorman cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t know these two were with you.” He glanced at the Glock holstered at Nix’s waist. “I’ll let you in since you’re with Mr. Caine, but weapons aren’t allowed.”

There was no way in hell they were going to walk into the Devil’s Domain without their weapons. “You let vamps and weres and all sorts of prets in there—prets who come equipped with built-in weapons, I might add—and you won’t let us inside carrying protection?”