Page 41 of Fire in My Blood
I look up when Lucas enters the room, and I immediately crack up laughing. He widens his eyes in surprise, and his reaction makes me laugh even harder.
I didn’t objectively consider his appearance when we hurried to get ready to talk to Lyn earlier. To me he looked sexy, and he still does, even though his dark-brown hair is tangled and looks exactly like we’ve just had sex—which we did before we fell asleep. The silky pajama pants he’s wearing are crumpled and a little twisted around his hips like he threw them on in a hurry—which he did.
My laughter comes to an abrupt stop when I realize I probably look just as bad. No wonder Lyn looked amused when she saw us.
Lucas’s mouth tilts up at the corners. “What were you laughing at? I hope you don’t think I’m funny. I can’t have that.”
I’m suddenly in his arms, and he’s kissing me. It takes me a couple of seconds to relax enough to respond. His speed startles me, making me realize he’s just as fast as a vampire if not faster.
His lips are so soft and his tongue so skilled that I soon forget everything else. When he finally pulls away, I’m breathless and moisture is leaking from between my legs and soaking into the fabric of the sleeping pants I’m wearing. And judging by his hard cock poking into my stomach, he’s no less affected.
“As much as I’d like to continue this in the bedroom, I need to investigate the vampire who’s after you. The more wecan discover about his identity and whereabouts today, the more likely it is that we’ll be able to kill him tonight. Your safety is even more important to me than your pleasure.” Lucas’s eyes are filled with heat and regret.
I can’t help feeling a little disappointed. But it warms my heart how deeply he cares about my safety. Letting out a deep sigh, I unwrap my arms from around his neck. “I guess I should call my brother.”
“You should. Here.” Lucas holds up a phone that he must have had in his hand all through our passionate kiss. “I picked this up for you. It’s untraceable.”
“Thank you.” I smile up at him.
Returning my smile, he grabs my hand and starts pulling me toward the door. “Let’s go back to your room. You can call from there while I take a shower.”
Nodding, I let him guide me out of the den and down the corridor. “Can we stop by my car on the way? I’d like to pick up my overnight bag. As much as I enjoy wearing your clothes, mine fit better. I feel like these pants might fall down at any second, and that—”
“Is unacceptable.” His brows are pushed together in a frown when he looks down at me. But then his lips curve in a teasing grin. “Unless I’m the only one in the room. Then I would consider it an invitation.”
I burst out laughing. “Yeah, you would, wouldn’t you?”
He chuckles. “I’ll get your bag for you while you call your brother.”
As soon as we reach the bedroom Lucas considers mine, he leaves to let me call my brother.
Sitting down on the edge of the bed, I stare at the phone in my hand. David will be angry that I didn’t call him last night, but at least he will be relieved to know that I’m all right.
He answers immediately. “David Heart.”
His curt response makes me pause for a second. The worry is all there in his hard voice.
“Hi, David.” I bite my lip to brace for his reaction.
“Erica! Thank God. Where are you? Are you all right?” His words come out so fast they’re almost indistinguishable from each other.
“I’m fine. I’m so sorry I didn’t call you last night. So many things happened, and—”
“Where are you? I’ll come get you. At least you hid well. I’ve been to several motels to try to find you, but no luck. I understand why you turned your phone off to make sure he couldn’t find you. Whose phone is this?”
“David, please slow down. I’m safe where I am, but I need to tell you something.” I bite my lip again.
I told myself I wasn’t going to tell him, but it’s better if he knows the truth. Even if he isn’t going to like it. “I know about the man you captured and chained in the basement at work.”
David is silent for several seconds. “Stay away from him, Erica. He’s extremely dangerous. I’m quite sure he’s involved in everything that’s happened to you.”
Anger suddenly boils through me. “Lucas isn’t responsible for any of that. You kept a man prisoner and shot him based on a weak suspicion. How could you? If anything, I’m the one who should get to punish the asshole who raped me. And Lucas has promised to help me do that.” Technically, Lucas promised to kill the asshole himself, but it was close enough.
“Fuck. He’s used his mind tricks on you, Erica. You can’t believe anything he says. Don’t ever look into his eyes. He’s so manipulative you won’t even notice what he’s trying to do before it’s too late.” David sounds scared now, and my anger dissipates.
“David, I know he’s… He told me, okay?” I take a deep breath.
I almost blurted out that Lucas is an elemental, but thankfully, I stopped myself in time. My brother doesn’t know that, and he’s not supposed to know either. Lucas told me that in confidence. “I know he can be persuasive, but he’s never done anything like that to me.” At least I don’t think he has.