B005EMAYWS EBOK (6 page)

“
Outerlands
has been breached by a vampire. Did you know this?”

Donavan didn’t think it was a good idea for the two of them to stand around in the shadows and talk. It might draw unwanted attention. He started walking along the boardwalk and Cato fell in beside him.

“I am aware of this. A friend of my daughter’s I’m afraid. My girls have decided to join the Light Seekers.” Donavan gave his brother a contrite smile.

“Why did you allow this vampire to go through the portal?” Cato asked.

“I didn’t allow it. The deed was done without my knowledge. I knew they were searching for the portal, but I did not know they had managed to acquire an amulet - Luciano’s amulet, as I understand. Only when my daughter realized that her friend may not return, did she bother to consult me about the matter.”

“And does he realize that it’s missing?” Cato asked, his voice heavy with concern.

“I am sure that he does, but so far there has been no sign of retribution.”

“I don’t know what has become of this vampire, but the wolves are in a frenzy over it. There is also this matter of slaughtering the humans. The Gatekeeper of
Outerlands
does not want to get involved in matters of the human world, but the wolves feel it is a danger to the balance.” Cato informed him.

“You know that Omar tends to act out every few hundred years,” Donavan shrugged.

Cato shook his head. “This is different.”

“He is trying to entice us into a confrontation,” Donavan frowned. “Something has spurred him on this time, but I have been unable to find out what.”

Donavan again started walking. “It will not happen. As we speak, the prophecy is being fulfilled. The three sisters are my own daughters. It was foretold to me by the Gatekeeper … it is their destiny to help bring the immortals into balance once again. They will defeat Omar if he continues to defile what he is.”

“Let us hope that this is true … and that it happens before there is a war between the wolves and the immortals.” Cato’s words were full of doubt.

Donavan was also feeling the nagging discomfort of doubt. Could his daughters really defeat an evil that was as old and as vicious as his brother?

* * *

Inside her apartment, Summer saw that Penny had thrown her uniform across the couch. Proof that her roommate had already been there and left. Feeling fatigued, she slid her clothes off, and stepped into the shower to freshen up.

When she was done, she felt a hundred times better. Standing at the bathroom mirror, she piled her hair on top of her head and secured it with a hair clip, before she started putting on her makeup.

Summer lost herself in thought. She wondered just how she was going to convince Anton that she belonged with him? Then there was her other dilemma - the murders. How was she going to clear the suspicion that surrounded him? She had no doubt that Anton was the main person of interest at the moment.

The doorbell interrupted her thoughts. Summer still hadn’t dressed yet, so she slipped on her white silk robe. At the front door, she looked through the peephole before opening it.

Summer shook her head. “No, I was just getting out of the shower. I have plans to meet some friends at the Cactus Lounge in a little while.”

“Maybe it is strange, but they both lived close to the campus, and he is staying at the Desert Skies … so I don’t know if it’s all that strange.”

Warren didn’t say anything, but she could see in his eyes that he wasn’t buying it.

“By the way … why wasn’t there anything about the black roses in the police reports?” Summer asked before taking another swallow from the can of soda. She hoped that he wouldn’t catch on the fact that she was fishing for information. She had no way of knowing for sure that black roses had anything to do with the murders.

“Pierce mentioned it … off the record.”

“It should have been in the police report. That’s procedure,” Summer put in. “How can we profile the killer if we don’t have all of the info?”

“I know,” he told her, raising his hands in a gesture of helplessness. He moved too swiftly and his soda spilled on the front of his jacket and shirt.

“Oh damn!” He set his soda down and started pulling off his jacket.

“Here, let me get something to wipe it off.” Summer pulled a clean rag from the kitchen drawer and ran it under the faucet. Grabbing his jacket, she started rubbing the stain with the cloth, while he removed his shirt.

Summer’s gaze inadvertently went to his bare chest. She’d never seen him without a shirt before.

Just then the doorbell rang again, and Summer went to answer it. She saw Anton through the peephole and realized that she had lost track of the time. Opening the door, she stood aside so he could enter.

When Warren came out of the kitchen, Anton glared at the professor. His eyes went to Summer, and for the first time that she could remember, she saw real anger in them.

Flustered, Summer spoke up before he could say anything. “Warren and I had some business to talk about. He spilled soda on his clothes.”

Anton arched one brow. “ Since when do two people have to be half naked to discuss business?” he asked cynically, his gaze roving over her.

Summer blushed when she remembered how sparsely clad she was, but her embarrassment was quickly replaced with a flood of anger. What on earth made him think that she had to explain anything to him? She hadn’t yet agreed to any marriage, to whoever this
Vilka
was. Anton had rejected her, so what did he care.

“It’s nothing Anton. You’re really making a big deal out of nothing,” Summer told him, suddenly very aware of his nearness, and the fact that they were alone.

Her hardening nipples strained against the thin silk of her robe, and she didn’t miss the way his eyes kept straying to her breasts.

“Don’t get sassy with me girl,” he told her in a low - dangerous voice. Anton leaned closer - his eyes boring a hole right through her.

Again she heard him growl and before she knew it, he had covered her mouth with his. Anton’s kiss was hungry and demanding. While his tongue explored her mouth, his hand reached down to pull her robe apart and seek out her breast. The heat of his touch against her bare skin was enough to make her melt, and she moaned with pleasure. Summer wrapped both of her arms around his neck.

He moved his lips from her mouth to her ear. “Do you want me to use you to satisfy my needs? Is that what you want?” he whispered. His large hands were slowly caressing her skin, moving down to the wet heat between her legs.

Summer knew he wanted her to understand it would be just physical, and truthfully - at the moment she didn’t really care. Instead of playing his game, she turned it around on him.

With a deep sigh, he pulled away and closed up her robe. “We can’t. You deserve better than someone just using your body to satisfy their needs. You deserve for someone to make love to you.”

Why couldn’t he return her love? She’d been in love with him for as long as she could remember. Even now that she was a woman, he still held her at bay. Sure, if she tried hard enough she could entice him into her bed, but that wouldn’t make him love her.

Closing her eyes, she imagined a solid wall around her that they couldn’t get through. Tonight, she didn’t want the dead to be her companions. She wanted Anton to relax and enjoy their time together.

She picked out the sexiest and most revealing outfit she could find. The black satin and lace dress showed off her cleavage and legs. She’d make sure he wasn’t thinking about sending her to her marriage bed tonight.

Summer paid careful attention to her hair, putting it up so that she could show off her neck and shoulders. She made sure that a few golden-brown ringlets were left out to frame her face. When she was satisfied that she looked her best, she left the bedroom.

One look at Anton’s face and Summer knew the effort had been worth it.

“You are a young lady that loves to play with fire,” he told her, a smile playing on his lips.

* * *

In the dimly lit lounge, Summer found Penny and Jordan already eating dinner.

When they walked up to the table, Jordan let out a whistle. “You’re looking hot tonight!”

Jordan was Penny’s sometime boyfriend. The problem was that they were opposites. Jordan was a video game fanatic and paid little attention to anything else. His shaggy brown hair looked as if it had never been combed. Penny was no neat freak, but she did have her limits. The two of them were constantly fighting about his bad habits, as Penny called them.

“I was beginning to think you weren’t coming,” Penny told her before looking up at Anton. “But then again … maybe you were just too busy to spend time with us,” she added with a giggle.

“Warren stopped over,” Summer explained. “Jordan, this is my friend, Anton.”

“Hi,” Jordan said before turning his attention back to his cheeseburger.

Throughout dinner, Penny did most of the talking. Jordan participated in the conversation between games on his portable video system.

Summer couldn’t keep her mind off of Anton. He was sitting so close to her, that if she moved in his direction at all, she’d be on his lap.

“In a minute,” she told him, as she placed her hand on his and started caressing his skin. She smiled when she heard him inhale sharply.

He grabbed her chin and gently tilted her head so that she was looking him in the eyes. In their smoky depths, she saw a passion that he was trying very hard to control.

“You can’t keep playing this game. If you do … I will end up taking you, and no amount of conscience will stop me.”

Although his words were meant to discourage her, she felt a tingling sensation spread from her core throughout her body. She let out an involuntary gasp, as the heat ripped through her.

Anton began to tremble, and his eyes took on that glowing light of animal lust. He was a
Vilka
, and like the
Sungmanitu
males, they could smell a woman’s lust. She could see his instincts taking over. At that moment, her need for him was stronger than it had ever been - and he could sense it.