The Boys Are Back In Town
“I’m telling you, Mick, it was totally humiliating! A…a comedy of errors, all mine! He didn’t have to do a thing, basically just stand there and let me make a fool out of myself!”
Mick ducked his head down for a moment, knowing that even in the darkness of their freezer she could still see the small smile that tweaked up the corners of his mouth.
He wasn’t really laughing at her, or her outrage over it all but over the fact that it hadn’t taken Brody any time at all to realize that his mate lacked patience and had a fiery temper to boot. Personally, he liked the temper, when it wasn’t directed at him that is and even then sometimes it wasn’t so bad. Beth was passionate, in every incredible way imaginable. Just thinking about that stirred him and he rolled over to her and pulled her tightly to him so that she could feel his need.
He felt her stiffen in his arms, definitely not a good sign. What was that about anger directed towards him? He had a feeling he was going to get a good dose of it. Okay he admitted it, he was a guy and he’d let the thought of her delicious body moving against him deeply erotic and had been unable to resist the pull of it. But she was upset and while he absolutely supported his mate, he knew that Brody was right and it was going to be necessary to teach her patience and how to control her anger if she ever really wanted to be able to take care of herself. It didn’t mean that she had to surrender that spark that made her Beth, it just meant that, when in a dangerous situation she needed to think logically and not give in to the red haze of fury that clouded her head.
He tried to explain that to her and her eyes narrowed as she listened. “So, you’re on Brody’s side?”
That was what she took away from what he’d said?
“No, Beth. Baby, there are no ‘sides’ here. I think…” and he shut up as he felt her pull away from him and push the button that raised the lid to the freezer.
He watched as she sat up and swung her legs over the side and pulled her blanket tightly around her, tucking in the ends under hers arms.
“Well think about this, Mr. St. John! You’re sleeping alone tonight!” She grabbed her robe off the hook on the back of the door and slipped it on with her back to him. The blanket fell to her feet and after she tied the belt of the robe tightly around her waist she bent to retrieve it and opened the door, disappearing from his sight as it closed.
Dammit!
He ran his fingers through his hair and laid there for a moment. This was one of those times a guy really felt stupid. If he went after her and she didn’t want him to it would only make things worse. If he didn’t and she wanted him to, well, he’d face a firing squad in the morning.
Which was the better choice? His choice was made when he heard her crying downstairs. He was out of the freezer, into his pajama bottoms and down the stairs before she barely had time to sniffle. He sat down on the couch and she immediately crawled into his lap and he held her tightly.
“I’m sorry, Mick.”
“No, baby, I’m sorry. I do support you, Beth. Always, you know that.”
She nodded and gave a small hiccup as she tried to stop crying. “I know, it’s just, it was so humiliating tonight! I just kept falling on my ass, every time I tried to take him down.”
“I know. I get that. Do you think that Brody did it to hurt you?”
“No, he didn’t. He wanted me to think about what I was doing, about how I was doing it.”
“And?”
“And it made me realize he was right. I do let my anger take control of me. I know that! He just didn’t have to show me in quite that way.”
“If he would have just said, ‘Look, Beth. You have to control your emotions when you get into a dangerous situation’, what would you have said to him?”
She was quiet for a moment, thinking about that question. “I guess I would have told him no problem, that I could control it.”
“But that wouldn’t have been true, would it?”
“No, I guess not. But still, it hurt my feelings!”
“Your feelings or you pride, to end up on your butt so often?”
She sputtered as anger again threatened to overcome her. Finally, she took a deep breath and muttered, “My pride. There, are you happy now?”
He chuckled; he couldn’t help it. It just spilled out and soon she was giggling along with him. “Okay, you may have a point. It’s a good thing vampires heal quickly or I might not ever sit on my ass again. It hurt!”
“It did?” he murmured against the silken skin of her neck. “I can’t have that.” He scooted down on the couch and pulled her to lay on top of him. His hands followed the path of her back down to the curves below it, massaging enticingly. “I don’t know, baby, feels okay to me.”
Her teeth nipped lightly at his neck and she ground her hips against his. “Yes, I’d say I’m doing much better now. Mr. St. John, I think you have the magic touch!” Her lips found his and they were lost in a deep and stirring kiss that left both of them panting.
“I think we’d better head upstairs, to our freezer, Beth. Just in case.”
“Yes, I think you’re right.”
He scooped her up and carried her up the stairs. No one heard their door close or the soft sounds that emanated from their freezer that night. The two lovers shared the night while Dorothy slept on, dreaming of her own lover.
Soon, her dream told her. Soon…
OOOOOOOOOOOO
Rose and Brody caught the familiar scent as the door to the elevator opened outside Brody’s loft. Together they opened the door and were immediately enveloped in the arms of Vaygar, who squeezed them both tightly.
“Hey, geez, I may be a vamp but my bones still break,” Brody laughed.
“Aw, I didn’t wanna hug you anyway,” Vaygar laughed, picking up Rose and twirling around with her, while she giggled madly.
“Put me down, Vaygar! For heaven’s sake, it hasn’t been that long since we saw one another,” she told him.
He set her down after she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and then gave Brody a wink. “Oh, yes, that night in Coos Bay, the little inn on the cliffs. Very nice, very secluded!”
“Yes, and definitely NOT soundproof. You and Kiki made enough noise to wake up the humans two cottages away!” she exclaimed and yet she was still laughing. “Well, it was a fun weekend anyway. How was the ride down?”
“Good, very pleasant actually. I love this time of year, out on the open road.”
“It’s really good to see you, man. Where’s your team?” Brody asked.
“They’ll be along tomorrow sometime. I was anxious so I hit the road early. Got any refreshments around here?” he asked, looking around the loft. He gave a low whistle and said, “Nice, really nice.”
“Yeah, come on into the kitchen. And you’re right, the place is great. Mick was very generous as we were getting the place ready. You should see the gym,” he said, nodding to a door on the left side of the room as he poured three glasses of O+.
Vaygar headed to the room and opened the door, his eyes lighting up as he took in the ultra modern and well equipped gym. “Whoa, this room is wild, man! This guy Mick is really serious about you training his lady isn’t he?”
“Yes, he is. She’s amazing, Vaygar. Now that I know that her mom is one of your descendants it explains why Beth has so much psi potential. You’ll be amazed at how talented she is.”
“What about Dorothy? Do you perceive anything about her?” he asked Dorothy.
“No, but I haven’t really been looking for it and I don’t want to scare her too much.”
“Why would that scare her?”
“Well, that’s probably a poor choice of words. I just mean, she’s so over-wrought right now with her mate being turned and away from her. She’s due in about two weeks and I don’t know if he’ll be ready to be there with her.”
Vaygar fixed Rose with a solemn stare and said, “He’ll be there. I’m going to see to it. Now tell me more about her.”
OOOOOOOOOOOO
Mick and Beth showered early Thursday morning, hoping to get ahead of the game. Beth had to go to work, in for a meeting at 9 am and Dorothy had a doctor’s appointment at 10 so he planned on fixing her some breakfast before they went.
They had a couple of other errands to run while they were out; stop by her house to pick up some warmer clothes because it was a bit chilly for her at Mick and Beth’s.
Last night Mick had told her, “Dorothy, I do have furnace, I can just turn it up for you.”
“No, it’s not that cold. I will be perfectly comfortable in some heavier clothes, Mick. Honestly!” she said with a grin. “Besides, it’s been a couple of days since we were there and we need to check on things. And, I need mama’s lasagna pan too. It shouldn’t take too long; the trip to the market will take much longer.”
Mick was going to watch as she made her mother’s lasagna for their dinner guests tonight and he considered himself lucky that she was doing it. Everyone who ate the dish exclaimed over and over about how good it was and so he was going to pay close attention to the scents of it all and the methods.
Beth came down the stairs, ready for work and picked up the glass that Mick had filled for her. As she sipped she watched him stir oatmeal on the stove and add some apple that he had chopped as well as some golden raisins. “Um, smells good,” she said as he added a bit of cinnamon too.
“Let’s hope so,” he said as he stirred the concoction.
Dorothy came down the stairs as Beth finished her breakfast. “Good morning, Mom. Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, actually I did. Mick, that smells delicious!” she said, looking into the pot that he was stirring again.
“Thanks. Should be ready in a minute.” He smiled as she grabbed a bowl out of the cupboard and a glass which she filled with milk.
Beth came out of the downstairs bathroom after having brushed her teeth. Just rinsing with water could sometimes leave traces of blood and she didn’t want to freak anyone at out like that. “Well, I have to go! I can’t wait for dinner tonight, Mom!”
She kissed Mick quickly and said in vamp tones, “You keep her safe!”
“Of course!” Louder he said, “Love you, Beth. Have a good day!”
“I intend to. Love you too, Mick!”
“Dorothy, do you want some toast to go with that?” Mick asked as he watched her blow gently on a spoonful of the oatmeal.
“Good grief, no! They’re going to weigh me later,” she laughed. “It’s bad enough as it is. I don’t know how long it’s going to take to get this baby weight off before I can be turned as it is.”
“That’s your plan? I mean, you’re going to be turned that soon?”
“Yes, I am. Rose says I will only have to be away from the babies for a few days so when I’m done breastfeeding them I’m going to be turned.”
Mick hid a smile; this was the woman who had fought against the very thought of vampirism for years. She was actually going to be a great one he thought because she had great instincts, just like her daughter.
The idea that she, and Lani and Beth were different kinds of vamps made it easier for him for some reason. They could still enjoy some of the comforts of humanity and while that might bother some vamps for him it definitely took the edge off of the fact that they wanted to be turned. It might be a silly idea but it didn’t seem as bad as it did before they knew about the Children of the Moon.
At that thought he heard someone approach his door an since he hadn’t heard the elevator it had to be Brody. He caught his familiar scent along with a new one, definitely vamp but with that strange variation to it that meant they were one of the 13.
He answered the door and stood aside for Brody and another guy, who must be Vaygar he decided. “Hey, come on in,” he said, stepping aside.
Dorothy had just finished putting her glass and bowl into the dishwasher when the men entered. The man with Brody was tall, maybe 6’4 or so and thin, but very well muscled she noticed. He had a short sleeved tee shirt on it showed his muscular physique quite clearly.
His blue eyes lit up at the sight of Dorothy and as if compelled by a power she didn’t understand she walked to him and stood facing him.
Vaygar knelt down on one knee and took her hand, first pressing his forehead reverently against the back of it. “My lady Dorothy. I am at your service. I am Vaygar.”
“My lady,” Dorothy couldn’t help but laugh. “Dorothy is just fine thank you.”
“Nay, do not forget that you are royalty, of a sort. You are a descendant, my descendant and therefore special.”
“I, um,” she looked at Mick as a flush spread over her face. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Vaygar.”
“You are well as are the little ones.” He reached out and placed a hand on her belly and she fought the urge to back away. She felt the babies shift inside her and caught her breath for a moment. “Alexander protects his sister, even before birth. He shall be a wonderful warrior some day.”
“His sister?” she asked. The still had never had a clear view of the second baby and so they didn’t know if it was a boy or girl.
“Yes, his sister. You did not know?”
“No, we didn’t. Each time they do a sonogram all we get a clear view of is a boy. We’ve not been able to tell if it’s two boys in there or if the second baby is just camera shy,” she told him, suddenly excited at the news of a boy and a girl.
“As I said, he protects his sister.”
“How did you know that we’re naming him Alexander?”
“You know the name, Dorothy. It is in your mind. I do not mean to intrude in your personal thoughts but when he rolled to protect his sister you called him that. In your mind. Alexander is a family name, is it not? Do you have a name for the girl yet?” He actually knew that she did; they would call the girl Grace, another family name.
“We haven’t decided for sure yet,” she told him, turning away in an effort to gather herself. He was amazingly strong, psychically, that is. She’d have some of his traits they’d told her. Would she be like this, able to pluck information out of people’s minds? She hoped not!
Mick glanced at his watch; they had about 35 minutes to get to her doctor’s appointment and as it was across town they needed to leave. He felt sure that Dorothy would be happy about that as she seemed to be struggling a bit with Vaygar.
The guy did come on pretty strong and the news about the babies might have been better left unsaid, as least so soon that is. Frankly, he needed a bit of distance himself and so he said, “Dorothy, we need to leave if we’re going to make your appointment.”
“An appointment? No, my men aren’t here yet. It will have to be postponed!”
Dorothy suddenly turned around, anger making her face flush this time. “Excuse me? This is my doctor’s appointment and I will not miss it. It is important that I go and so you and your men will just have to catch me next week.” She picked up her purse and said, “Mick, I’m ready!” and headed to the door.
“Dorothy, please!” Vaygar said. “You need to be protected!”
“I am protected! Mick protected my daughter for over twenty years and he’ll protect me as well! Now gentleman, I have an appointment to get to.”
Mick couldn’t keep the sparkle out of his eyes as he said, “You heard the lady!” In vamp tones he added, “She’ll be fine.”
“We’re following you,” Vaygar said, his voice low as well.
“Just don’t let her see you. In a fight, I’d put my money on Dorothy!” He headed out to the hallway and saw her waiting for the elevator. When the doors slid open he held it for her as she stepped in.
As the doors closed Brody turned to Vaygar and laughed, “You really have a way with the ladies, brother!”
“She’ll come around! She liked me, I could tell!”
“If that’s the truth you were the only one that could,” Brody laughed again. “Come on, it’s down the stairwell for us!”
They watched from the shadows as the elevator door slid open and Mick stepped out, checking the garage before he let Dorothy out. In his car the pulled out into traffic with Brody and Vaygar following cautiously behind. Mick wasn’t upset really; he didn’t take it personally because he was worried about the mysterious Vinton McCullough himself. Every pair of eyes available would make it easier to spot him if he came around.
“You alright?” he asked her.
“Yes, but god, what an infuriating man. I may be his descendant but I am not his child! I think he’s rather odious actually! Mick, I trust you with my life!”
“I know that. He just takes keeping you safe seriously and the truth is, Dorothy, until we know what, if anything we’re dealing with I’m glad to have other eyes on you.”
And fangs…
To be continued…
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