Cole wrapped his arms around his wife's waist and kissed her neck; her newl y bobbed hair giving him easy access. He knew the reason for the change had a lot to do with the past, but now they could get on with their lives and concentrate on being a family.

Laurie wrapped her arms around his and leaned into his strength. "Do you th ink she will change our lives?"

"How could she not?" Cole whispered into her ear, tugging on her lobe with h is teeth. "We'll just have to start taking advantage of her naps."

Laurie grinned as Cole felt a shiver pa.s.sing down her spine. "Newborns sleep a lot from what I hear."

Cole turned her in his embrace, earning him a naughty grin as her abdomen r ested against his erection. "Then I suggest we take advantage of every one.

"You know what the doctor said-five weeks," she told him, procuring her a growl. Then her smile turned positively wicked. "But you know there are wa ys-"

Cole leaned down to kiss her and tell her exactly what he'd like her to do when the phone rang. He gave her a look of warning; she was not to move. La urie complied.

Grasping the cordless, he hit the TALK. "h.e.l.lo."

"Did I call at a bad time?"

"For crying out loud, Charley. Is there a good time?"

Laurie laughed, earning her a dirty look as she took Gabrielle from her seat and held her close to her breast. She cooed at the baby and kissed her soft h ead.

"Now is that any way to talk to a long lost buddy?" Charley snapped in Cole'

s ear.

"Lost? I could only be so lucky!" "My, aren't you in a grumpy mood. What's the matter, Cole, the missus not g iving you any lately? Oh that's right-no s.e.x; doctor's orders." Cole snorte d, then held the receiver away from his ear as Charley's chortles grew in v olume.

"Look, you want an invitation to come see Gabrielle or not?"

"Yeah, yeah. The little woman and I want to come over and see the newest Kin caid. I just hope she doesn't have your temper, buddy, or you're in for a re al ride."

Cole finished his conversation with Charley, glad they had called a truce so me months back due to the urging of Laurie. For once, he was glad she had in terfered.

She sat in the corner of the couch and put the baby on the cushion beside her, her finger firmly clasped within the delicate folds of Gabrielle's.

"I guess my s.e.x life will have to be put on hold for the time being. Charley and his family of four are on their way over."

"You'll live, Cole. We have the rest-"

The cordless phone rang again.

"Not if that d.a.m.n phone doesn't quit ringing." Cole walked over to the stan d and picked it up again. "Now what the h.e.l.l do you want, Charley?"

"Sorry, Lieutenant. Jack Douglas here." He could hear the new detective swa llow in the background. "I know it's the day you brought your daughter home and all, but this couldn't wait."

A buzzing filled Cole's ears as his old sixth sense kicked in, raising the hai rs on his nape. "What is it?" he asked, his gaze landing on Laurie and Gabriel le.

" Orient has two dead guards...and Sandy Brown is missing. "

Afterward

I rarely watch television in the morning. But one day, while pa.s.sing the set as it remained on with no one watching it, as it often happens in my househ old, something caught my attention: long shiny black hair and eyes dark as c oals. One of the daily talk shows had a male guest, via the satellite, who w as very appealing to look at. I stopped what I was doing and took a seat.

It seemed this man was serving a sentence for attempted murder in a prison somewhere in Canada. But the part that fascinated me and kept me watching the show was how he had landed in jail in the first place.

He had a taste for human blood.

This man was no murderer, but more of a vampire of sorts. Being in a heavy metal band and easy on the eyes, he had little trouble getting women to cut themselves and allow him a taste of their blood.

A real life vampire of sorts .

He hadn't attempted to murder someone as much as had gotten carried away wit h the desire of his thirst. When making the cut, the girl had jerked her han d from his and the slice to her wrist had gone a bit too deep. Charges were filed and he had lost his case.

Being a lover of vampire romances, I thought this man was exactly what I'd been fantasizing about whenever I would pick up a book and lose myself into the paranormal. Maybe the appeal to stay and watch the entire show would h ave been lost had the man been unattractive. But that wasn't the case. This man could have posed for the covers of these vampire novels himself and he re he was, living the role in his real life.

He claimed the taste had nothing to do with s.e.x. It wasn't a s.e.xual draw, but a desire for the blood itself. Of course, the talk show host kept insisting that it was a s.e.xual turn-on, no matter how much he continued to deny it. Eve n in prison, he was able to make trades with other inmates to get them to sli ce their skin and allow him to suckle the cut.

"You would be surprised what people will do in here (prison) for a pack of c igarettes," he had claimed.

My husband thought I was disturbed as I talked for days about the man-and even today I wonder what had become of him.

This man's story was so compelling to me that I had to create a character a round him. Thus, Damien Vincent was born. No, he wasn't the hero of Deadly Obsession , but the story itself evolved around his persona.

I hope you enjoyed the reading of Deadly Obsession and that I might have left a lasting impression on you with the telling of it.

May your days be full of intrigue and your nights full of romance, Patricia A. Rasey