AUTHOR’S NOTE: characters belong to LKH. Don’t blame me for the following installment. My muse is insane. J
Edward made his way out into the living room after giving me plenty of time to get decent. His Beretta was holstered but I knew he was itching to have it out and pointed at me. He had his blank face on, eyes cold, but I could tell that he was shaken. I didn’t blame him. Not taking his gaze away from me, he leaned against the far wall, then winced as he remembered his injuries.
“I’m okay now. You can sit on the couch, Edward,” I told him. Cautiously, he did as I suggested. He motioned to his mouth, then at me. I wiped my hand across my lips and saw the remains of Cherry’s lipstick. Quickly I got up and walked to the kitchen for a napkin. When I sat down again Edward began firing questions at me.
“What is this ardeur? Does it always involve the leopards? What the fuck happened since New Mexico, Anita?” He looked pissed off. Who could blame him. It had been a while since the two of us had compared personal notes.
“Like I said earlier, the vampire marks had to be married again. After getting my aura ripped apart back in Albuquerque, the boys and I had to repair the damage. Unfortunately, it had some side effects.”
“You said you inherited the vampire’s lust for sex.”
I shook my head. “Not quite. It’s not sex, but the lust itself. It just ends up turning into sex most of the time.” I shrugged. “It’s easier that way, usually. The ardeur is something I’ll eventually be able to control. Today was an accident. Micah left before we could…take care of it this morning.”
That earned me a hard stare. “Is that why you’re with the head leopard? For sex?”
This was not going to be pleasant. “No. He’s my Nimir-Raj. It’s hard to explain. His beast and mine get along really well. That’s rare. It’s like an Ulfric and his lupa. They’re a mated pair in the pack and most of the time in real life too.”
“So this brings your total bed partners up to what?” He just wouldn’t leave it alone. Fine.
“I didn’t choose all this, Edward. It chose me. I’m just doing the best I can. It’s more than I can say for you right now.” I glared back at him. For his sake and mine, I hoped his possible lycanthropy was a false alarm. At the rate we were going, somebody, probably me, would end up killing him before the next full moon.
He asked the question I’d been waiting for. “If I end up being a shifter, do you get to fuck me too?”
“Not unless you were a willing participant, but no. So a few of my people help me out controlling the ardeur. Do not turn me into a slut, Edward. This is my problem, not the pard’s. At least I’m honest with them about this.” See, I could hit below the belt as well as he could.
Narrowing his eyes, he crossed his arms and sat without moving an inch. If he wanted a staring contest, he would get one. I was betting my brown eyes were colder than his baby blues could ever get. It was so like a man to get into a pissing contest over everything. I was going to make him regret it.
My Browning was a foot and a half to my left. Could I get to it before he shot me? We were about to find out. I made like I was leaning back to stretch and grabbed for the gun. I rolled to the right and sighted down the barrel at Edward. He hadn’t even gone for his weapon. There was something in his _expression that stopped me. He looked regretful, pensive. What the hell? “Edward?”
Before I could think, he darted forward and grabbed the back of my head in his hands. He didn’t bother with my gun. He knew I wouldn’t shoot him now. I almost changed my mind, though, when he leaned forward and kissed me roughly. I pulled back. “Anita,” he said simply. His lips found mine again and I didn’t resist. It must have been the ardeur at work again. There was no other logical explanation. But then, when did logic ever come into play in my life?
I realized with a start that it had been a long time since I’d had this kind of contact with someone who was fully human. No fangs pressed into my lip, no energy played along my spine. The kiss had it’s own power though. His hands were gentle as he ran them through my hair, smoothing it back from my face. I was careful not to touch his wounds. It left few tame areas to handle with us both kneeling. I settled for placing my palms on his thighs, mostly for balance. He broke the kiss and eased back. “I should probably tell you,” he began.
“Tell me what?” It seemed that somebody was always saying that to me. Now the shit would hit the fan.
Edward flashed that Ted Forrester good ol’ boy smile at me. “I’m a single man. Donna called off the engagement.”
My jaw dropped. “Donna called it off? What did you do to make her decide that?” I wanted to know.
“She couldn’t live with the idea that I was a bounty hunter, no matter how legal it was. As much as she hates the monsters, I think she realized that I was one of them.”
“You are not a monster, Edward.” The words were out of my mouth before I had time to think about it. He might not be one now, but he probably would be soon enough. I felt like an ass.
“Maybe you don’t think so, Anita, but you’re less human than me. Donna’s a smart woman. I think she was more concerned about what would happen to the kids than about my feelings.”
It suddenly dawned on me. “That’s why you let yourself get attacked. You were upset. You didn’t care what happened. Jesus.” I needed to get out of here.
Edward just sat there looking at me. “But I did care, Anita. I didn’t get clawed up because I was upset. You know me better than that. I never let things happen that I don’t want to happen.” There was a glint in his eyes that I didn’t like at all.
“What are you talking about?” Please God, I prayed. Don’t let him be hinting at what I thought he was. “Edward.” I fought to keep my voice even and calm. “Please tell me you did not let a shifter attack you on purpose.”
He moved his hand forward to brush a strand of hair from my cheek. “Not just any shifter; a leopard. That was the important part.” He closed his eyes and went to kiss me again I think. I didn’t give him the chance. Fast as I could I crab-walked backwards until I hit the wall. My gun, where was the damn gun? It was a sense of deja vu as Edward crept toward me like I’d done to him earlier. Panic washed over me in wave. He was out of his goddamn mind.