Desire (Vampire Beloved Book 4) Page 3

  “I didn’t know there was such a thing,” she said. “But then again, it’s not like anyone has a vampire one-oh-one class I could take.”

  He chuckled. “I’m surprised there isn’t one, actually. You know the red ribbons that the food wear?” When she nodded, he continued, “Humans have a preference for where they want to let someone feed from them, and vampires have preferences too. Some like a specific look or body type, some like younger or older people, some only feed from the neck.”

  “What are your preferences?”

  Blonde with stunning blue eyes.

  “My preferences change over the years. I have nothing specific, I’m just grateful people will give blood.”

  “How old are you anyway?”

  “Three hundred and seventeen.”

  Her eyes went comically wide. “Holy shit.”

  “You?”

  “Twenty-two. I mean, man, if you weren’t a vampire, we’d be separated by a couple hundred years! It’s crazy to think about. Did you want to be a vampire?”

  “Sure.”

  “No, I mean, did you plan it? Like did humans even know about vampires back then?”

  “No. Vampires kept to themselves, using compulsion to force humans to be food for them. I met Mishka at a masked ball in Europe. Beautiful people surrounded him. He was very enigmatic. Cella was with him, and so was Brone, but that was the extent of his coven. I noticed someone sneak around behind him, and I don’t know... they just seemed dangerous. I dropped my drink and raced behind the group, tackling the male to the ground. He had a silver dagger and a string of garlic around his neck. He spouted that Mishka was a vampire and going to kill everyone.”

  Brone had taken the crazed human away, and Mishka had gone to everyone in the party and one by one altered their memories of what happened so they wouldn’t remember what the man said. “Then he came to me and asked why I helped him. I didn’t really have an explanation except that I didn’t want to see him harmed. He invited me to his home, where he, Cella, and Brone revealed what they were. Mishka offered to turn me, and I jumped at the chance.”

  “What about your family? Wouldn’t they realize something was off about you?”

  “I didn’t have any family, at least not close ones. My father had died in a small skirmish on the coast. My mother had died of an infection from a leg injury when she couldn’t afford the medicine for treatment. I’d been in the military at the time, away from home when she died. It was awful to come home and feel like I’d failed her. I did my bid in the military and kind of drifted aimlessly for a while. Then I met Mishka and he turned me, and here I am.”

  “That’s amazing. How old were you when you were turned?”

  “Twenty-five.”

  “You’ve seen incredible things in your life come to pass. Radio, TV, cell phones.”

  “Humans’ desire for technology definitely makes life interesting.”

  Her wrist buzzed and she looked at her watch. “Ah, damn it. My break is over.”

  “You can stay longer, if you like.”

  “Well, I want to, but I also like my job.”

  “It’s cleared with Cella.”

  “It is?”

  “Yeah.” He felt a little bolder. “Remember when I told you I asked Cella to invite you here so I could speak with you?”

  Avery nodded.

  “She’s got your spot at the coat check covered, so we can hang out some more.”

  “Okay. Maybe just a bit longer.” She gave him a sweet smile, showing a dimple in one cheek.

  They talked for an hour. Traz wanted to know everything about her, and it thrilled him that she seemed as interested in him as he was in her. He could feel a connection to her blooming, the first hint of early love. He didn’t want their time to end, but he understood the value she placed on her job.

  He walked her to the coat check. Vivian’s brows rose and her mouth dropped open when she saw them, but she said nothing.

  “You get off work at five?” he said to Avery.

  “Yep. Unless Cella comes to tell me I can take off earlier. There aren’t a lot of coats this time of year, but I can’t really leave until everyone picks theirs up.”

  “I’d like to walk you out. What’s your cell number?”

  She rattled it off and he put it in his phone, then sent her a text that read “Let me know when you’re ready to leave and I’ll come out.”

  She read the text and grinned at him. “Sounds like a plan.”

  Vivian seemed to be fuming, and Traz didn’t really want her around his mate.

  “Don’t you have somewhere else to be, Vivian?” he asked coldly, folding his arms over his chest.

  “I... uh... yes?” Vivian stuttered.

  He jerked his head to the side, and she opened and closed her mouth a few times, reminding him of a fish, and then stormed off. He watched her leave and then looked at Avery.

  “Wow. I’ve never seen her speechless before,” Avery said.

  “She’s my least favorite person in the coven. If it were up to me, she’d be gone.”

  “Because she’s a bitch?”

  He nodded.

  “So who’s your favorite person in the coven?”

  “Well, in the coven? I probably don’t have one. But outside of the coven?” He leaned forward, placing his hands on the counter and closing the distance between them. Mere inches separated them. He was close enough to hear the thunder of her pulse and see her eyes dilate. “My favorite person is you.”

  He resisted the urge to kiss her. He wanted her to come to him, to close the distance between them.

  Then someone cleared their throat noisily behind him and Traz nearly roared as Avery jerked back with a squeak, blush staining her cheeks.

  Traz bit back the snarl as he realized a patron was waiting to exchange their ticket for their coat. “I’ll see you soon,” he said to Avery.

  “I’ll be here,” she promised with a wink.

  Traz didn’t want to leave, but parking himself at the coat check for the rest of the night seemed a little forward. And slightly crazy. He said goodbye to Avery and forced himself to go to his office. The night seemed to drag. The only thing breaking up the tedium of waiting for Avery’s message was a meeting with Mishka about switching to electric trucks. He had tasks to be completed for the coming weeks, and he spent the rest of the night working on getting the diesel trucks moved to their buyer and the electric trucks set up for delivery from the manufacturer.

  Finally, his phone pinged with a message, and he nearly fell off his chair grabbing for it.

  “I’m ready whenever you are,” Avery wrote.

  If his heart were beating, it would pound out a drumbeat to rival a marching band.

  “On my way,” he responded.

  Turning off his computer, he switched off the overhead light and walked to the door just as Cella and Cyrus passed by.

  “I heard you scared Vivian,” Cella said.

  “She’s a bitch.”

  “Yeah, I’ll second that. Did she say something that concerned you?”

  “I just didn’t like how she was looking at Avery, like she might say something nasty.”

  “Well, she came to me to complain about you, and I relieved her of her duties at the coat check, so she won’t be filling in for Avery anymore. She’s always been aggravated working there, but something about seeing you and Avery together must have set her off.” Cella shrugged. “For now, she’s working as a waitress in the club. Hopefully, she’ll have a better attitude there.”

  “I don’t think that’s possible,” Cyrus said. “She doesn’t seem to want to contribute to the coven at all.”

  “Agreed.”

  “So your little date went well?” Cella asked, her eyes dancing with humor.

  “Well, she said I could walk her out, so I hope so. I want to ask her on a proper date.”

  “She’s working tomorrow night, but she’s off Wednesday. If that helps.”

  “Thanks, Cella.�
�

  “You bet. Good luck!”

  Traz hurried down the hall and out of the offices. He picked up Avery’s sweet scent as he neared the coat check.

  “Hey,” she said. “Are you done for the night too?”

  “Well, I live here, so I could always go back to work if I wanted, but yes, I shut down for the night.”

  “You’ve got a room under the club, right? I heard a coven member talking about it.”

  He offered her his arm and she took it, her hand cupping his forearm. He took her the back way to the check in room so she could check out for the night.

  As they walked, he explained about being part of Mishka’s family.

  “How many are in the family?”

  “Originally there were seven of us—Brone, Cella, Ven, Temple, Vex, Rage, and me. Mishka’s added the beloveds as family members to the group—Brone’s mate Arissa, Vex and Rage’s mate Angie, his own mate Harmony, and Cella’s mate Cyrus.”

  “That’s pretty neat. Do you enjoy living underground?”

  “Well, I can’t be out in the sunlight, so being totally enclosed is helpful.”

  “Ah, duh.” She chuckled. “I knew that! I’m not a ditz, I swear.”

  “I promise I don’t think that at all.”

  She checked out and he held the door open for her. The employee lot was emptying. He walked with her to her car, an older model two-door. “This is my chariot,” she said.

  When she pressed the button to unlock the door, he opened it for her.

  “Avery?”

  “Yes, Traz?”

  He stared down at her, taking in the nuances of her face, from her pretty blue eyes to the supple curve of her lips.

  “Would you go on a date with me?”

  Her brows rose a little and then she smiled. “I’d love to. When?”

  “I heard you’re working tomorrow, so how about Wednesday?”

  “That sounds good.”

  “Can I see you during your break tomorrow?”

  “I’d love that.”

  They stared at each other for a moment that felt endless. Then she rose onto her toes and brushed her lips against his. His whole being snapped to attention, his focus solely on her. He slid an arm around her and drew her close, flicking his tongue along her lips. She opened them, and the first dance of their tongues together made everything within him riot. His fangs throbbed, his senses went haywire, and every inch of him was a hundred percent certain she was his truemate.

  Maybe even his beloved.

  He didn’t want to let her go.

  But he knew because she was human that she needed time to come to terms with what they were together. He’d shared some details with her on her break, and hopefully this first amazing kiss would lead to more.

  She was breathless when the kiss ended, her eyes a little unfocused and her lips swollen. “Wow.”

  “Wow indeed,” he said.

  “I wish it wasn’t so late,” she said. “But I’ll see you tonight.”

  “I’ll be counting the hours, trust me. Text me when you get home, so I know you arrived safely.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  They kissed once more and then she sat behind the wheel. He shut the door and stepped back, returning her wave as she pulled out and left the lot.

  He stayed until he couldn’t see her anymore, and then he headed back into the club and down to his chamber. Normally, he’d take a shower before he went to bed, but tonight he wanted to keep the sweet scent of Avery on his skin and clothes as long as possible. He paced in his chamber until he got her text a half hour later that she’d arrived home safely.

  “Is it crazy that I miss you already?” she texted.

  “Not in the least. I didn’t want you to go, but I didn’t want you to think I was being too forward.”

  “We can talk during my break. I’m glad you asked Cella to ask me to the private room so we could talk.”

  “Me too, sweetheart. Rest well.”

  “You too.”

  The messages stopped and he stared at his cell for a while with what he knew was a goofy smile on his face. Then he climbed into bed in his clothes that still smelled like her and drifted off to sleep.

  Chapter Five

  Vivian Trenton stared down into the parking lot through a second-floor conference room window. Fury raced through her as she watched Traz kiss the puny human female. She’d known something was up when that bitch Cella invited the human up to the family room. A place Vivian had never once been invited to, even though she’d been a coven member for over a year. Then Traz had the nerve to threaten her and Cella backed him up!

  Damn family members, always having each other’s back.

  She trained her phone’s camera on the human’s vehicle and took a picture of the license plate. She texted the picture to a male she fucked around with whenever it suited her needs. He was part of a small coven in northern Pennsylvania and always happy to do stuff for her, on the off chance she might grace him with a visit.

  “Find out what you can about the owner of this car,” Vivian texted Barry.

  A few moments later, he responded, “Hello to you too. Why do you need to know about the owner?”

  “Causing problems for me, so I need some leverage. I’ll owe you.”

  “You already do.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’ll come see you this weekend.”

  There was a pause and then he responded, “Give me two minutes.”

  Barry was great with computers and was used by his coven to do all sorts of things under the human government’s radar. When she’d stumbled upon his abilities, she’d put him to good use whenever it suited her.

  Like when she wanted to take out her competition.

  “Avery Banner, twenty-two. Lives in Logantown. What info are you looking for?”

  “Anything out of the ordinary.”

  There was another pause, and then he texted her an image of a document. She used her fingers to zoom in and saw it was a restraining order against a male named Jasper. A rogue wolf who’d attacked her on several occasions.

  Bingo.

  “Thanks, Barry.”

  “You said you’d come visit this weekend?”

  “I’ll let you know when.”

  “You’re not standing me up, are you? Again?”

  Damn, she hated needy males.

  “Calm down, I said I’d see you and I will. Thanks again.”

  She looked at the restraining order, quickly memorizing the phone number. Dialing it, she chuckled at the snarled voice that came across the line. “Who is this?”

  “A friend who wants to help you get what you most desire.”

  * * *

  Avery wasn’t usually nervous when she went to work at the club, but knowing she’d get to see Traz again had her nerves jangling. He was just so freaking hot. And he liked her! He wasn’t clingy and crazy like Jasper, and he wasn’t an asshole anti-vampire bigot like Vince.

  Climbing from her car, she smoothed her hands down the front of her carefully chosen outfit—a sparkly navy-blue miniskirt, matching heels, and a spaghetti strap lavender tank that showed just the tiniest bit of her belly. She’d taken extra care in doing her hair and makeup. Now that she knew Traz liked her, she wanted to look especially good for him. He was super sexy. She hoped he thought she was too.

  Avery walked into the club and checked in, then headed toward the coat check booth. Her heart kicked up a notch when she saw Traz leaning against the counter, looking delectable in leather pants and a dark button-down shirt.

  “Morning,” she said, then made a face. “I mean, evening.”

  Was she ever going to stop sounding like an idiot in front of him?

  He gave her a thousand-watt grin. “It takes some getting used to being up at night. You look beautiful.”

  Her cheeks heated. “Thanks.”

  She put her wallet and phone under the counter. “Did you have a nice day?”

  “I did. I had some regrets though.�
�

  “Oh?” She bit her bottom lip, loving the way he leaned in close. His eyes were such a beautiful jade color, they looked like someone had carved them from the natural stone.

  “I wish we’d been able to spend more time together.”

  “If it weren’t for the pesky sun rising,” she said.

  “Indeed.”

  “Hello,” Cella said, coming to join them.

  “Hi, Cella,” Avery said.

  “I will relieve you on break for a while until I can get someone better to do it.”

  “What happened to Vivian?”

  “She obviously wasn’t the right fit for the position. I’m sorry you had to deal with her,” Cella said. “I stuck her in the club serving drinks, which I’m sure will not be any more to her liking, but at this point I don’t care. If you need anything, call me.”

  “Will do.”

  “I’ll see you at break?” Traz asked.

  “I can’t wait,” Avery said.

  He strode away, and she couldn’t help but lean over a little and take a peek at his butt, covered in tight leather. Damn, the man was fine! All vampires seemed to have an unearthly sexiness to them, an ethereal beauty that wasn’t visible in humans. But Traz was far and above the sexiest guy she’d ever laid eyes on. And after her secret lusting for him, he was interested in her! Fate seemed to be on her side, which was amazing, since she usually felt like fate was kicking her in the knees.

  Two hours later, as she was watching the clock and waiting anxiously for her break, the phone behind the counter buzzed.

  “Coat check, this is Avery.”

  “You’re needed on the loading dock to sign for a delivery,” Vivian said, her tone laced with annoyance.

  “What? I don’t sign for deliveries. I never sign for anything.”

  Vivian snarled, “Listen, you little bitch, Mishka called and asked me to have you sign for a delivery for the coat check, and it’s arrived. The delivery man is waiting here, impatiently, so he can unload the items. If you want me to tell Mishka that you’re being difficult and ignoring his request, then I’ll happily relay that to him. You’ll probably lose your cushy job.”