The ruby in his hand throbbed. It was hot, almost painfully so. Intending to lay it on the counter behind her, his naked hip touched her thigh. As if it had a heartbeat of its own, the stone pulsed in his hand. The sensation reverberated in his blood. Shocked, Zane stepped back, breaking physical contact with her.

They groaned together, tears falling from Nicole's eyes. With hearts aching with the pain of separation, they reached for each other. Bowing his back in sudden shock, he felt his l.u.s.t igniting, growing fierce in its intensity. Desperate to feel her inner muscles wrapped around him, he nudged his c.o.c.k at her entrance, dipping into the wet heat of her p.u.s.s.y. Smelling her arousal, he heard total surrender in her throaty cries and surged forward. Burying his shaft deep within.

"Oh! G.o.dohG.o.dohG.o.d! Yes! More." Nicole wrapped her hands around his shoulders and dug her nails into his back. Demanding everything he could give her, she drew blood.

The smell enveloped him. Taunting. He rocked his hips. Faster. Harder. Oh f.u.c.k! Deeper still. His b.a.l.l.s slapped against the cold counter as he pummeled her.

"Zane!" she cried, screaming for more.

With one fist still clenched around the ruby, he pulled her forward and felt the pulsing hammer of life within his c.o.c.k. Watching the vein in her neck beat in the same rhythm, he realized the flow of their blood, their very heartbeats seemed inexplicably synchronized to the stone's vibrations. Arousal magnified to a state he'd never imagined.

Leaning forward, he licked the pounding vessel just above her collarbone. Nicole dropped her neck back, turning her head to one side. Offering her life's essence in easy acquiescence. Only she didn't know what she was doing. If he hadn't been sharing her mind, her pleasure, he might have been able to pull away. The ancient, indecipherable call of the ruby made everything worse. Better.

h.e.l.l. Nothing made sense!

Except taking everything Nicole offered. Sucking a small morsel of flesh into his mouth, he bit down, letting his incisors sink deep. He swallowed, the blissful euphoria found in her blood making his body convulse and setting his veins on fire. Frantically seeking release, he slammed in and out of her tight sheath.

Moving the fingers of one hand to pinch her nipple, he lifted his head when Nicole exploded first. Her screams echoed through the yellow kitchen.

Her spasms were just what he needed.

Closing his eyes, Zane ignored the bright light vibrating deep within the ruby and dug his c.o.c.k deep inside her s.e.x. Succ.u.mbing to the rapture of her clenching heat, he gave in to his body's demands, shouting his satisfaction.

For several minutes, Zane stayed right where he was. Body still joined to Nicole's, he rested his head on her chest as she leaned against the backsplash. Her back was killing her. He sensed her pain through the threads still linking their minds.

Leaning back to place a soft kiss on her freckled nose, he scooped Nicky into his arms. His flaccid length slipped slowly from her body and they both moaned low in regret. Walking out of the kitchen into the living room, he sat on the couch with her held tight to his chest.

She reached up to pull a soft blanket around them. He had her right where he wanted her.

Earlier he'd promised himself he wouldn't take her in the kitchen with the lights blaring and the cold tile under her body. The reality of their joining had scrambled his brain, tormenting his mind with her uninhibited response.

"Next time I'll take you to bed. I'll light candles and spend hours worshiping your body."

Nicky snorted. "In case you didn't notice, I'm not complaining, champ. The kitchen's fine with me. Or the floor. The stairs. h.e.l.l, we're sitting on a perfectly good couch. That works for me too."

It was a simple thing to ravish her mouth while finger-combing the midnight tangles he'd help put in her hair. Following the wild ma.s.s down her back to her a.s.s, one hand moved to cup her hip and press her open center against his reawakened c.o.c.k. Flexing his fingers, he kneaded the cheeks of her backside, pulling her closer and rubbing his rock-hard erection into the soft cradle of her body that seemed made for him. He wanted her spread underneath him, open and ready for his possession.

Mine. Mine to hold. Mine to f.u.c.k. Mine to keep...

To keep? No, can't keep. She was his to keep safe...but from what?

It was that thought that made him hesitate. The dark and urgent l.u.s.t coursing through his body made it difficult to concentrate on anything but getting his hands on more of her. Unhappy about drawing away, he thought about keeping her safe.

This wasn't the time for his second head to kick in. Again. He needed to figure out what was going on.

Pulling back, he looked down to see her lips swollen and red from his sensual onslaught. Breathing heavily, skin flushed with desire, she opened her eyes, lashes fluttering. He was sure their l.u.s.t-glazed sparkle mirrored his. She reached up to touch his face. To trace the faint scar that marked his right eyebrow. Zane shuddered.

"Did you plant the bug and make the recording to get me alone?" Zane had to clear his throat twice before he could ask the question. Not like he cared. Except...

He wanted the threat to be nothing more than a plan to get him alone and naked. It was a good plan. A great plan. It wasn't like something similar hadn't happened before. It seemed women were always scheming to get him to notice them. Living with the curse of good looks and a h.e.l.l of a lot of money, he'd found it didn't matter what age the women were or if they were married or not.

The only difference this time was that Nicole had been a little more creative-and he would relish any opportunity to f.u.c.k her. Long nights, longer days. He could ignore the threat and chalk it up to her active imagination. As soon as she confirmed she'd planted a listening device as a way to get him to notice her, he'd carry her up the stairs and screw her brains out. Again.

Zane wanted her to admit to the crazy scheme with every fiber of his being. It would make this so much easier. And if she'd talked one of his men into putting that bug on him so he could get lucky? Well, then it was okay. This situation wouldn't be the betrayal it appeared. This was something he could forgive.

The alternative meant someone he knew was working for the enemy.

Nicole frowned in confusion, her blue eyes flashing with anger before she pushed him away and tried to slug him. Her actions told him more clearly than any words that this wasn't an elaborate hoax to get him in her bed.

d.a.m.n.

Chapter Three.

Biting her lip, Nicole physically restrained herself from wrapping her fingers around Zane's neck and choking the life out of him. Was he trying to pick a fight? Now?

His timing sucked.

That wasn't the only thing that sucked. The man had a talented mouth. Lifting her hand up to cup her neck, she thought about the echo of desire pulsing from that spot. He'd either given her one h.e.l.l of a hickey or he'd bitten her. Either way, she already wanted him to do it again. If he'd bitten her-maybe he really was a vampire.

Scrambling off his lap, she grabbed another throw, wrapping it around herself before flopping down in the chair a few feet from the couch. His voiced suspicion that she would make up such a ridiculous story to get close to him didn't stop her from missing the feel of his body against hers.

Jesus H. Christ! This was ridiculous. She'd be the first to admit she liked s.e.x. But this was the first time she'd ever felt a deep, primal craving for someone. The sensation was almost painful. Narrowing her eyes, she wondered if he might be using some sort of preternatural ability on her. She felt like a heroin addict, acknowledging she'd do just about anything for him to finish what they'd started. Right here, right now.

She decided she needed to make a written list before she had so many questions about things that went b.u.mp in the night that she started forgetting them.

Trying to squelch her rampant desire, she sucked in a few deep breaths. Big mistake. Her lungs filled with his scent, the spicy, all-male fragrance making her squirm. What the h.e.l.l was going on?

Frowning, Nicole looked at Zane. Things were adding up to make her believe the nasty FBI impersonators were on to something. But the sight of him-all muscular and gorgeous-rattled her mind.

"So, you didn't set this up?" he asked again.

Nicole glared at him. "You jerk. What? Women make up stories of vampire hunters and get people to act the story out on tape just to have s.e.x with you?"

Zane shrugged those broad shoulders and glanced away from her. "Not quite this creative, but I've had women throwing themselves at me in all kinds of ways." He frowned. "Why did you just say 'vampire hunters'? Did I miss something? I thought they were FBI agents?"

Jumping up from the chair, Nicole braced herself by grabbing the arm when her legs didn't want to hold her. She would not look to see if Zane had a smug expression on his face. The man could definitely kiss. He did everything else really well too.

The way she was feeling right now, he could kiss her a.s.s.

Walking back into the kitchen draped in her blanket, she ignored the clothes thrown all over the room to concentrate on filling a gla.s.s with cold water. She drank a few sips in the hope that it would cool her down.

Without turning around, she knew he'd followed her. "They said they were with the FBI. I didn't believe them. I have an old college roommate who married someone high in FBI ranks. I'm not sure what he does since they're a great group for secrets. Anyway, I called Robert today and he confirmed my suspicions. The badges were bogus and the names the men gave me didn't match any of their agents. I didn't tell him they were interested in you, or why. I just said they wanted me to spy on my neighbors. I do not need time in a padded cell, thank you very much. Robert wants me to talk to a local official but I convinced him to wait to see if they show up again."

While she'd had her back to the room, guzzling water, Zane had picked up something he'd left on her counter. Somehow he'd managed to dress, fold her clothes and set them neatly on the kitchen table. Now he paced her small kitchen, energy and irritation rolling off him in waves. "Why did you say 'vampire hunters'?"

Nicky shrugged. "Partially their fixation on you being a vampire, and maybe some of my overactive imagination. I write paranormal romances. The current revolving theme in a lot of vampire stories is the big, bad vampire hunters trying to get the creatures of the night into a lab. JJ's intentions sounded pretty similar."

Nicole didn't miss Zane's reaction. The expressions flickering in his eyes seemed to run the gamut. Pain, irritation and solid resolve seemed to be the most prevalent. The one that took her by surprise was a soul-wrenching sadness.

The emotion she didn't see was perhaps the most telling. He wasn't surprised.

"Can I ask you a question?" she murmured.

Bracing himself, Zane wondered what he'd tell her. The truth? Did he dare trust this pa.s.sionate woman with his biggest secret? If he did, would she let him take her to bed again? He'd used a little compulsion when he'd taken her blood so she wouldn't remember that. And the little raspberry on her flesh would look like a hickey. s.h.i.t...the question he should ask himself is if she'd run to the vampire hunters once she knew what he was. He needed a stronger grip on his libido.

"Yeah. Go ahead and ask," he finally replied.

"Do you think it would be better to just stay here and hide, or should I take off on a vacation for a little while so these idiots can't find me?"

His heart slammed in his chest at the thought of her leaving him, of being somewhere he couldn't protect her. Realizing his feelings for Nicole might be more than rampant l.u.s.t, he knew those feelings had to be nipped in the bud before they could take root. He didn't do anything but one-night stands. He definitely shouldn't have a short fling with someone who lived within walking distance of his home. But Zane knew he was going to do it anyway. Should she leave him and run off into the night? h.e.l.l no!

But why hadn't she asked him if he was a vampire?

"Because I think it's better to play dumb blonde on this one," she said. "If I don't know, I can't tell.

He must have asked the question out loud. Or their mental connection didn't just happen when she wrote s.e.x scenes. "Your hair is midnight and mystery black, not blonde," he stated emphatically. When she frowned at his comment he searched his mind for a more appropriate term. Keeping current with every nuance of speech in every country he'd lived in was impossible.

Nicole rolled her eyes at him. "Don't be an idiot. Playing 'dumb blonde' is a state of mind. What if JJ and Mike decide to kidnap me and use some form of truth serum or, G.o.d forbid, torture? I really, really want to be able to say that as far as I know, you're human."

"I still don't understand. If you believe I'm not human, why help me? Why are you still here? You should be running away as fast as you can." He was having a hard time understanding what he felt. This woman didn't seem to have any sense of self-preservation. On the one hand, he wanted her to stay so he could protect her, but maybe she shouldn't listen to him. She might be safer someplace else.

Nicole shrugged. "Oh h.e.l.l. I don't know. I try to have an open mind and after all the books I've read and written about vampires and werewolves, or s.p.a.ce aliens and other planets...I guess I've always hoped something other than human life does exist. And you heard those men. They threatened me with a tax audit or worse. They are definitely not my friends. I don't believe you'll hurt me and I think they might. Um...would you?"

Zane was speechless. The only response he could manage was to shake his head. No. He wouldn't hurt her. In fact, he'd do anything he could to protect her.

"See? I'm going to hold you to that promise, by the way. Besides everything else, if I asked the question and you told me you were something other than human, we'd never get the rest of this mystery figured out."

Now he was really lost. This female had his mind tied up in knots. "Why would you say that?"

"Because, if you admit to being a vampire or some other supernatural creature, I'll tie you in my office and pester you with all sorts of questions for weeks on end. We wouldn't have time to figure out what's going on."

Closing his eyes, Zane decided he liked the idea of being tied up and at her mercy. Only it wouldn't be in her office so she could ask him questions.

"So, you don't want to know if I'm more than human?" He needed to clarify what she wanted.

"Umm. Well, tell you what. Let's play dress-up sometime in the future. If you show up wearing a black tux with a cape, I'll know you're a vampire. If you're dressed in fur, well, you're a werewolf. Jeans and a t-shirt for human. If you're anything else, you get to decide the costume and we can play twenty questions." And then she laughed.

The woman was crazy, tempting the beast in him with her easy acceptance. Painting an enticing picture of what they could be doing-should be doing if he didn't have to spend the night trying to determine if one of his men had turned into a traitor.

He needed to think. To come up with a plan that would keep her safe. Keep his secrets safe. Spending the rest of the night in her bed while he concentrated on making her scream his name in pleasure wasn't going to solve anything.

He tried not to see the disappointment in her eyes when he said he had to check the rest of his house for electronic bugs and think about their next steps. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, little Nicky, after I've had a chance to process everything." Refusing to compromise her safety, he wanted to think before getting involved with her further. The reality of his life prevented anything more than an easy fling.

Temptation incarnate, this woman could never be labeled an "easy fling".

Mentally he sighed. Yeah, right. This internal conflict was c.r.a.p. He had no intention of walking away from Nicole for longer than a few hours. He needed a night to gain a bit of perspective. To remember that anything between them could never be more than a short-term physical sharing.

"Before I leave, can I ask you for two things?" He waited until she nodded. "I'd like one of your books to read and a kiss to finish out the night. It will make me feel a little less sad that I could be hunting one of my friends."

Zane frowned at the evil grin she gave him when he asked for one of her books.

His confusion evaporated when she stepped closer, dropped the blanket she'd loosely wrapped around her magnificent body and kissed him. It was the type of kiss that challenged his resolve. With her warm, naked body pressing against his, he enveloped her in his arms, claiming her mouth. Lost for long moments in Nicole's addictive taste and the texture of her skin, Zane struggled with the instinct to say "screw it" and take the woman upstairs. Growling low in his throat, he managed to tear himself away from temptation.

As soon as she handed him the book he'd asked for, he beat a hasty retreat out the kitchen door. Running not from her, but himself.

Much later, lying in his bed reading her book, Zane figured out why she'd had such a smug look on her face when she'd handed him The Vampire Next Door. The story was full of sybaritic s.e.x and love between a vampire and a human-and Zane recognized himself on every page. He silently promised Nicole his own brand of retribution. Even though her created world had little in common with that of real vampires, the book was entertaining.

Written evidence of her very inventive fantasy life intensified his memories of the pa.s.sion they'd shared tonight, leaving his body rigid with desire. Sleep would not come easily.

Trying to douse the flames, he forcibly turned his thoughts from his imaginative neighbor in an attempt to refocus on this new threat. Earlier he'd searched his house for listening devices, coming up with nothing. Nicole's comment about the cleaners had him searching everything in his closet. Twice.

Again, nothing.

Glancing at the clock, he sighed. If he thought this threat was isolated, he'd handle it on his own. But he'd heard rumors of vampire deaths in other parts of the country. And Thomas of course, his body found discarded on the side of the road just a couple miles from the estate. Zane closed his eyes briefly at the painful remembrance. Thomas had been tortured, he was certain. His body burned so badly, Zane ultimately couldn't verify the cause of death.

And then Gustof had shown up at his door with a stake in his heart, living just long enough to hand him the ruby. Zane had a.s.sumed at the time that Yuli's enemies were responsible for that man's death. What if they weren't? The Absolute Sentinel Council needed to be warned.

Picking up his secure cell phone, he called the number that would ring a world away in an ancient stone castle.

"............!" Vlad's dark voice said the Russian word that sounded like "asdraswhicha" to Zane. The man always answered the phone the same way, with a very curt h.e.l.lo. Vlasko, or Vlad to his friends, didn't like the telephone. He always sounded suspicious when he answered.

Zane grinned. h.e.l.l, Vlad was suspicious all the time.

"............!" The irritation in the repeated greeting brought Zane's attention back to the present.

"Vlad, it's Zane."

"Zane. You are calling to tell me you will become the Sentinel for your district. Wonderful! I am so glad you are finally seeing things the way I want you to be seeing them." Vlad chortled.

"Don't go there, Vlad. I'm not agreeing to the position yet. Why should I? There isn't a formal council in this area so there's nothing to be Sentinel for." Zane ignored the fact that this was exactly why Vlad was so anxious to get him to agree. As the supreme head of the Absolute Sentinel Council, or ASC, Vlad was anxious to establish regional Sentinel leadership across the globe. For paranormal and Other creatures, like Weres and Druids and Fairies, the smaller councils policed the supernatural communities in their areas, keeping their world from colliding with the world of humans.

Each council was led by a chosen Sentinel. Zane had resisted Vlad's suggestion that he establish a new region in the Pacific Northwest. He didn't want the headache he knew it would involve. Vlad was determined to change his mind.

"If you are not calling to accept my not-so-nice proposition, why are you bothering me?"

"Vlad, behave yourself. Hi Zane," Veronica laughed. Evidently she'd jumped on an extension in time to catch some of their conversation. "It's good to hear from you, how are things in the States?" Never far from Vlad, Ronnie was the man's mate and the softer half of the vampire true bond the couple had formed over a hundred years ago. Zane was certain Ronnie was responsible for keeping Vlad sane.

Occasionally Zane wanted that sanity for himself. Until he remembered it came with a hefty price. The bond between vampire mates acted as metaphysical cement to guarantee the couple remained together. It was so strong that a bonded pair would become sick and die if they were separated for any length of time. Over the years, the distances their bodies tolerated grew smaller and smaller. Veronica and Vlad could barely stand being a room away from each other. Living within that type of restriction after centuries of solitude would drive him nuts.