Bite Me if You Can (23 page)

Leigh nodded slowly. “I can understand. As the owner of Coco’s there are things I have to do that I don’t like.”

“Owner?” Lucian stiffened. “I thought you worked the bar there? Bricker and Mortimer—”

“I do work the bar sometimes at night when someone’s sick, but I own the place, too,” Leigh said, and explained, “Donny didn’t show up all week so I filled in. That’s why I was working the bar when Morty and Bricker came in.” She tipped her head, curious. “They still eat, obviously? At least Bricker does. Mortimer seemed mostly to pick at his food.”

“He was just there to keep Bricker company. Bricker’s younger and still eats food.”

“So do you,” Leigh pointed out with amusement as he finished off the sausage she’d been too full to eat and he’d snatched from her plate.

Lucian’s chewing slowed and an odd expression crossed his face. Before she could ask about it, the waitress was at their table.

“Are we all set? Or can I get you anything else?” the woman asked cheerfully.

“We’re done,” Lucian answered, then glanced at Leigh and added, “We should get back. It’s after eight and the couriers start delivering at eight-thirty.”

Leigh’s eyes brightened with excitement. “Then we can go shopping.”

“I’m going to go check again.”

Lucian glanced up from the notes he was making, his mouth curving with amusement as Leigh tossed aside the book she’d been trying to read and headed for the library door. They’d been home exactly one hour and twenty-one minutes and she’d already gone to look out the front window to see if the courier was coming up the drive at least thirty times. The woman was up and down like a jack-in-the-box.

Shaking his head, Lucian glanced back at the notes he was making for his next conversation with Mortimer and read over what he’d written. He’d decided to give the men a break and not call them while they were sleeping today. Mortimer didn’t make much sense when half asleep anyway, and Lucian had a lot of questions to ask, so he was making a list of those questions and any ideas he could think of to help the hunt along.

He made another note and smiled to himself. Oddly enough, he no longer resented not being on the hunt. At the moment, he’d much rather make notes, give them suggestions to follow up, and go shopping with Leigh. But then, he was finding the woman much more exciting than he’d found hunts in a while.

Lucian sat back in his chair and thought back to breakfast. He’d enjoyed that. The food, the company... the sex. His mouth curved at the memory of what he’d done at the table. He hadn’t meant to... or perhaps it was more accurate to say he simply hadn’t been able to help himself. There had been something seductive about Leigh feeding him, and when she’d dropped the bit of sausage on the table and reached to pick it up, he hadn’t even thought, but simply grabbed her hand and started to pull it to his mouth to take the sausage from her fingers. But then his eyes had found hers as his mouth had closed around her flesh. He’d heard the soft puff of air that slipped from her parting lips, heard the way her breathing accelerated with excitement, and seen the way her eyes drooped to half-mast before closing all the way. He hadn’t been able to stop the images that flashed though his own mind of the two of them together... in the shower, on his bed, right there in the restaurant. And he’d projected them out at her.

While true life mates couldn’t read each other, they could send their thoughts to each other once they’d both turned, though usually that kind of bond didn’t happen until a couple had been together for a while. But Lucian was positive that Leigh had received the images he’d projected. She’d jerked as if startled, then sat completely still, her breathing becoming more labored, and small sighs and one soft moan slipping from her lips. He had been affected himself, and might have done something silly if the waitress hadn’t arrived to throw cold water over the moment.

Lucian glanced toward the door as it opened and Leigh moved unhappily back into the room.

“You’re as impatient as a child,” he teased as she began to pace, not even pretending to return to her book.

Leigh turned a sharp eye his way and sniffed. “So? You’re as grumpy as an old man.”

It wasn’t the first time he’d been accused of being grumpy, but he didn’t think he was at the moment. “I am not grumpy.”

Leigh shrugged. “It’s all right, I’m used to it.” Lucian’s eyes narrowed as she went on, “I grew up with my grandfather. He was a grumpy, crusty old soul, too.”

His mouth dropped open at being compared to her grandfather, then he caught the sparkle in her eyes and realized she was teasing him. He was debating how to get her back when the telephone rang and he snatched up the receiver.

“Yes?” he barked.

“Uncle Lucian?”

He sat a little straighter at the sound of Bastien’s voice. His nephew wouldn’t call unless something had happened. Morgan getting caught was the something he was hoping for.

“Yes, Bastien,” he said, then glanced toward Leigh as the doorbell rang.

“My purse!” she squealed, and was out the door like a shot, leaving him smiling after her. He’d never seen a woman so excited just to get something of her own back, he thought absently as he listened to her footsteps rush up the hall and heard the front door open. Now, if it were a gift she was getting—like, say, a diamond choker—he’d understand.

That thought made him pause as he considered that Leigh would look lovely in a diamond choker.

“Uncle?” Bastien’s voice drew his attention back to the phone.

“Yes,” he repeated. “What was that? I missed whatever you said.”

“I was just apologizing for forgetting to tell you about Donny. I hadn’t had much sleep, and with all the distraction of Leigh and the cleaners and everything that happened yesterday, I just forgot.”

“Forgot to tell me what about Donny?” Lucian asked with a frown.

“That when my man went to the restaurant to alter the memories of Leigh’s staff, he found out from Milly, the day manager, that Donny had called, asking for Leigh, and she told him that Leigh was visiting friends in Canada.”

Lucian’s eyebrows flew up at this news.

“I didn’t think anything of it at the time,” Bastien said, “but now... ”

“Now what?” Lucian asked.

“But now it looks like Morgan and Donny are heading your way,” he answered grimly.

Lucian wasn’t terribly surprised at this news. He’d suspected as much when he heard the path they were taking in the rental car, and said so now. “I thought that might be the case, but it seems a stupid move, and just because they were driving north didn’t mean they had to be headed this way. I take it they’ve done something that makes you think they are?” he queried quietly.

“I’m afraid so.” Bastien’s voice was equally quiet and grim. “Two charges popped up on Stobie’s credit card this morning. A gas station in Iowa—”

“He’s continuing north,” Lucian interrupted to murmur.

“Faster than you think,” Bastien said grimly. “The second charge was for two plane tickets from Des Moines to Toronto.”

Des Moines to Toronto. The words were still ringing in Lucian’s ears when Leigh let out a shriek from the front of the house.

The phone slipped forgotten from his fingers as Lucian lunged to his feet and raced from the room. He exploded into the hall, expecting to find Leigh fighting off Morgan’s grasping hands or being dragged from the house by the man and the redheaded Donny. Instead he arrived to see Leigh standing in the ruins of brown wrapping paper and a ripped-open box, a purse clasped to her chest as she did a little dance in the entry and squealed with glee.

Lucian slumped with relief, a small smile tugging at his lips as he watched her do her happy little dance, then his gaze slid to the man standing by the door and his smile morphed to a scowl. The courier was five-ten, well-built and good-looking in the tall, dark, and handsome sort of way women gushed over. He stood grinning at Leigh with an interest that was purely male and vastly annoying to Lucian.

“Man, I love my job,” the courier murmured, his eyes glued to Leigh’s lightly bouncing chest as she danced around.

Every cell in Lucian’s body was screaming out in possessive rage at the man’s leering smile as he ogled his woman. While he had the restraint to keep from swooping on the courier and ripping his throat out for the impertinence, he couldn’t keep back the low growl that slid from his lips. It was a deep, soft sound of warning. Leigh didn’t appear to hear it as she stopped her dancing to open her purse and paw through its contents, but the courier did. Stiffening, the man turned slowly, as if expecting to find himself facing a wild dog. He didn’t look much relieved to find himself facing a furious Lucian. Without a word he nodded slowly, as if to acknowledge Lucian’s alpha status, then eased backward out of the door before turning to hurry to his waiting truck.

Lucian stalked to the door and closed it, then turned to Leigh, his expression softening as she exclaimed while going through the purse’s contents.

“Ooh, a brush. I can brush my hair. And lipstick!”

Feeling the last of the adrenaline slip from his body, Lucian managed a smile and asked, “Is everything there?”

“It looks like it.” Leigh glanced up to beam at him, then asked eagerly, “Can we go shopping?”

Lucian’s mouth twitched at her expression. Dear God, she was so adorable. No child at Christmas looked as eager as this woman at the prospect of buying toothpaste and other hygiene products. “Yes, of course.”

“Wonderful,” she exclaimed, and did a little twirl in the middle of the hall.

Lucian shook his head and chuckled under his breath, then realized it wasn’t something he did often. He suspected he’d be doing it more often with this woman in his life.

“Oh!” Leigh stopped suddenly, her eyes wide. “I’d better feed before we go.”

“That would probably be good.”

Turning, she headed for the stairs, no doubt headed for her room and the blood in the refrigerator there. Lucian was about to tell her she needn’t go up to get it, that there was some in the kitchen refrigerator now, but before he could, the sound of a car coming up the driveway made him pause.

Leigh apparently also heard it. Stopping at the foot of the stairs, she turned back, eyes wide in question.

“Go upstairs, Leigh,” Lucian said grimly, recalling the news that Bastien had dispatched just before Leigh’s screams had dragged him from the phone.

Morgan had bought two plane tickets to Canada.

Lucian hadn’t managed to learn on what flight or when he might arrive before Leigh’s scream had drawn him out here. His first thought as he’d raced from the library had been that the rogue vampire had arrived. It was the first thought that occurred to him now, too, and his immediate response was to keep Leigh out of harm’s way. She wasn’t cooperating, however. Ignoring his order, something no one else had ever dared do with him, she scampered lightly back to the door and peered out.

“It’s Rachel and Etienne,” she announced without glancing around to see the scowl on Lucian’s face as he rushed protectively to her side. By the time he reached her, she was already pulling the door open.

“My purse just got here!” she announced gleefully by way of greeting, blissfully unaware of the glare Lucian was sending her way.

Rachel and Etienne paused abruptly at the sight of the two of them in the doorway, their worried expressions giving way to relief. Then Rachel managed to force a weary smile as she led Etienne forward to join them in the foyer.

“So you’ll be shopping today?” she asked quietly as Etienne pushed the door closed behind them.

“Yes!” Leigh said with excitement. “Do you want to come?”

Rachel shook her head. “It would be fun, but I worked last night and need to sleep. Maybe next time.”

“I hope you aren’t wearing that t-shirt out shopping,” Etienne murmured, slipping an arm around his exhausted wife and pulling her to lean against his chest.

Leigh glanced down at herself, her eyes widening with horror as she saw that she was still wearing his joggers and cyber sex t-shirt.

“Oh, pooh! I forgot to change,” she exclaimed with alarm. “And I was going to shower, too. Ten minutes,” she told Lucian, and rushed upstairs, clutching her purse in a death grip.

Lucian watched her go, torn between tender amusement at her excitement and fury that she’d ignored his order to go upstairs earlier.

“I take it Leigh’s screaming was just excitement over the arrival of her purse,” Etienne said quietly once Leigh had disappeared from sight and they heard her bedroom door bang closed.

Lucian glanced at his nephew with surprise. “Her screaming?”

“Bastien called,” Etienne explained. “He was all in a panic. He said he was talking to you on the phone when Leigh started screaming. He said you dropped the phone and took off and he couldn’t get through to find out what was happening. He pretty much ordered me to get over here and see that everything was all right.”

“Yes. She was just excited about her purse,” Lucian admitted, then grimaced apologetically. “I’m sorry you had to come rushing over here. You both look dead on your feet and this is usually your sleeping time.”

“It’s your usual sleeping time, too. Why don’t you look tired?” Rachel asked almost resentfully.

Lucian shrugged. “My hours are all buggered up from sleeping all day yesterday. I napped for an hour or so this morning, too.”

“Hmm.”

They were all silent before Etienne commented, “So I gather Bastien thinks Morgan is on his way here?”

“It would seem so,” Lucian said with a frown, suddenly rethinking this planned shopping trip. “Maybe I shouldn’t take Leigh out shopping until this is over and Morgan is caught.”

“Oh no,” Rachel protested. “Leigh is so excited about it. Besides, you have to at least get her food.”

“Rachel’s right,” Etienne said quietly. “And surely it’s safe for now. It will take at least another day or more for him to drive up here, won’t it?”

Lucian blinked in surprise at the comment. “Didn’t Bastien tell you?”

“Tell me what?” Etienne asked.

Lucian ran a hand through his hair. “Well, it seems Morgan bought two plane tickets from Des Moines to Toronto. He’s definitely headed this way, or here already. I didn’t get the chance to find out what time the flight was supposed to land.”