Kiss of the Vampire(71)

After taking a quick shower, she started to get dressed. She held up her panties and grimaced. She really didn’t want to put those back on after she’d just cleaned herself up. She tugged on her jeans and fastened them, then wadded up her panties and stuffed them in her pocket. Holding her boots in one hand, she padded in bare feet back into the master bedroom.

“You weren’t planning on trying to sneak out, were you?” Tobias’s voice was rough with sleep. She looked up to see him leaning on one elbow, eyes blinking, dark hair in a lovely tousled mess. There was just enough sunlight to cast shadows over his chest, defining his toned musculature.

She dragged her eyes back to his face. There wasn’t time for any morning nooky, as much as she might like to jump right back in bed. “Sneak out on a vampire? Hardly. I need to get home and change, and grab some breakfast. Unless you have something other than blood in your refrigerator.” When he grimaced, she laughed and perched on the edge of the bed to draw on her socks. “Then we need to call Dante and head down to the observatory. When we spoke to Rinda’s friend Samantha, she talked about Rinda’s affair with a married man, and almost as an aside she’d commented how Mt. Bigelow was a perfect place to study the area of space where the rift occurred.”

Tobias lazily scratched his chest. “I’m with you so far.”

“Well, when you consider what Luc told me, that there are radio transmissions being sent through a mini rift and that the council is aware of them…” She started pulling on her boots. “We need to go back to Mt. Bigelow and talk to those scientists again, especially that head guy, the good-looker who was so nervous.” She twisted around to look at him. “Besides, my poor baby Rufus needs to go outside, and I need to feed him, too.”

His eyebrows shot up. “You have a baby? And you named him Rufus?”

She shot him a grimace. “He’s my dog. Just what’s wrong with his name?”

“For a dog? Not a thing. For a baby?” His eyes darkened and settled low on her belly. “I wouldn’t want any son of mine to get saddled with the name Rufus.”

A slow smile curved her lips. He might not be thrilled with the name, but he didn’t look at all adverse to having a son. She flushed at the thought of carrying his child, of holding the proof of their love in her arms. Before she turned into a maudlin sap, she teased, “Yeah, like Tobias is such a grand name.”

He looked hurt for a second but couldn’t hold on to the expression. His grin was more carefree than she’d ever seen it. “Yes, well, Tobias Caine was the name of the human I took possession of when I first came through the rift, and I felt it was time to honor him by using his name again. Now that preternaturals are known, I won’t have to ever give it up.” This time his frown was genuine. “Unless you really don’t like it.”

She leaned over and kissed him. “It’s a fine name, really. You do him proud.” She got up and stretched. “Shall I call Dante, then? I can have him meet us at council HQ since it’s centrally located for all of us, and we can go to Tucson from there.”

“Sure.” He lay back down and clasped his hands beneath his head. Biceps bulged and pectorals flexed with his movement. “Just make sure he eats breakfast before we leave. I don’t want to sit and watch him stuffing his face again.”

Nix laughed. “He sure can put it away, can’t he?” She stopped beside the bed and leaned down to kiss him again. He brought one big hand up and cupped the back of her neck, holding her still. When she drew back, her breath came a little faster than before.

“Sure I can’t talk you into staying a little longer?” His stormy eyes gleamed with desire.

She groaned. “You are awfully tempting, but I’m sure.” She pushed herself away before she could succumb. The spirit was more willing than the flesh, which was too sore. “Don’t go back to sleep,” she said as she walked toward the bedroom door.

“I just might. You wore me out.”

“Hah. That’s a good one.” If anyone had been in danger of getting worn out, it was her. Most vampires were like the Energizer Bunny—they kept going and going and going.

Or make that coming and coming and coming.

She paused in the doorway and looked back at him. His gaze met hers. “Tobias, I love you.”

His slow smile made her heart melt. “I love you, too, honey. I always have. Always will.” He looked so delicious lying there, arms bent, showing off the definition in his biceps, the dark green sheet bunched around his hips.

She tracked the happy trail of hair down his belly, below his navel before it was lost to sight. A bulge grew beneath the sheet as she watched. She’d taken three steps back into the room before she caught herself. She held out a hand and let out a small growl. “I’ll see you later.” She turned on her heel and walked out of the room before she could change her mind. As much as both of them might want to, they couldn’t spend all day in bed. But once this case was over… Yeah, all the more reason to solve it, and solve it fast.