Bitten By Regret (Just One Bite #2)
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Authors: Kay Glass
Bitten By Regret
Kay Glass
Bitten By Regret
By Kay Glass
Copyright © 2012 by Kay Glass
Edited by Samantha Welch
Kindle Edition, License Notes:
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. Kindle Edition.
Dedication
For my grandmother, Elsie- you
inspired me to be better than I was. I finally am. I wish you were here to see it.
I love and miss you so very much. Thank you for passing your love of books down
to Mom so that she could pass it to me.
And for my in-laws, Wayne and
Vivian- may "my" Wayne and I follow the lesson you have laid forth in
front of us: if you love, you will persevere. Your marriage is an inspiration
and I thank you for accepting me into the family. I love you both.
Table
of Contents
Chapter One
Diandra Malone sat on the rear deck of her Bethany Beach
home with a cup of coffee in hand, much as she did every morning when the
weather was nice. It was a typical August day on the beach, and that meant that
it was a comfortable 80 degrees at 9 a.m. much to her delight. Enjoying the
comforting sunshine, she reclined on the pale blue lounge chair wearing her
favorite black sheer robe and a pair of oversized purple rimmed sunglasses.
RaeLynn was in her playpen on the deck with a sippy cup of
milk in one hand and a teething biscuit in the other. She was four months old
now, and her curly strawberry blonde hair was shoulder length already. A gentle
breeze whipped it up and around her face, and she dropped her cup to try and
catch the hair as it blew into her eyes, giggling at this newfound game. She
caught a fistful and tugged, then let out a little yip of surprise when she
learned the hard way that the fistful of fun was actually attached. Diandra
looked down at her precious child and once again marveled at how special she
was. In some ways just a baby, in others she was so much more.
"Hey, you," Lizbeth said as she stepped out onto
the deck. She was already dressed for the day in a pair of comfortable
hip-hugger jeans and a hot pink tank top. Her chestnut colored hair was pulled
back in a stubby ponytail, the best she could manage since she kept her hair
rigidly at shoulder length. Her face was shiny and clean, free of makeup.
Lizzie hated to wear any makeup, even just some lipstick. She wore a light coat
of foundation, a touch of blush, and a tinted lip gloss to work, but on the
weekends she skipped it altogether.
Lizbeth set her coffee down on the low ivory-colored table
in between the two lounge chairs and stretched thoroughly, making sure each
part of her body felt loose and easy. Then with a smile she bent down and gave
Diandra a long, lingering kiss. "Good morning, love." RaeLynn made
cooing sounds, holding her chubby hands up in the air, opening and closing them
in her demand to be picked up. Lizbeth laughed and scooped up the baby, raining
kisses all over her chubby pink cheeks. "Good morning to you, too,
Princess!" RaeLynn giggled and started making smacking noises with her
lips- her own version of giving kisses back.
Lizzie sat down in her lounge chair, a pale rose color, to
play her usual morning game of peekaboo with RaeLynn while Diandra looked on
fondly. Lizbeth would say, "Peekaboo, baby!" and Rae would giggle and
disappear from sight. Lizbeth would then make a pretense of trying to find
where the baby had gone, and after a few seconds RaeLynn would drop the veil
that protected her, making her visible to the human eye once more. While this
little trick had terrified both women in the past, now it was a part of
everyday life for them, especially since this gift had helped protect RaeLynn
while Diandra had rescued Lizbeth. It was only a month ago but on days like
this one it seemed like another lifetime.
After spending some quiet time on the deck, the two women
went in to have breakfast. Margaret, the housekeeper who had been with Diandra
for the last eight years, had their breakfast ready for them as she did each
morning. The woman was truly a wonder in the kitchen, and the never failed to
enjoy whatever meal had been placed before them. Since Diandra hadn't excused
herself to go to another room for a bit, Lizzie assumed her lover had already
consumed her morning baggie of blood. She normally did so before indulging in
coffee so it was a safe assumption. The women shared a breakfast of bacon, French
toast, and fresh strawberries while Lizbeth reminisced.
It was hard to believe that it had been nearly a year since
she had come into Diandra's life. This time last year she had been homeless for
nearly a month, still struggling to survive each day. She had survived and
persevered, and somehow she had made it from that life to this one with barely
a stumble. She looked around, taking in her surroundings. Everywhere she looked
she saw gleaming wood, glistening glass, and dust-free antiques, all due to Margaret's
loving ministrations. The house didn't necessarily scream money- it was more
like it bore a discreet plaque. It was all very tastefully decorated but, if
you had an eye for it, you could spot a large bank account at work.
This was certainly the last place you expected to find a
women like her, Lizbeth mused. A year ago she certainly wouldn't have believed
it. At that point she expected she'd be dead before much longer, simply because
being a cop and being street-smart were not entirely the same thing. While
she'd been a cop for years before being kicked off the force so unceremoniously
she had still been rather naïve, still a little girl on her quest to right the
wrongs of the world. A little chuckle escaped her at that thought and she shook
her head at Diandra's look of puzzlement.
Lizbeth was so grateful for the twist her life had taken,
although she didn't necessarily like the route she'd taken to get here. Finding
a dead body in an alley had led her to the life she never knew she could have.
Funny, she would have figured it would've been
her
body dead in an alley if she'd had to survive on the streets
much longer. And after last month's story had hit the news about the drug
smuggling case and those involved, a formal apology had been issued to her,
making her life worth living again. She'd also been given a year's salary at
the pay rate she had been receiving at the time they threw her off the force,
and she had been reinstated in full. Of course, she had already been working as
a cop for Alexar Thompson, Bethany Beach's chief of police, but it was still
delightful to finally have her name cleared of all charges. If nothing else,
being reinstated in full had given her back a measure of self-worth.
A laugh broke through her concentration. Lizbeth looked up
from her musings to find Diandra wiping tears from the corners of her eyes as
RaeLynn cheerfully nibbled on the French toast she'd obviously swiped from
Lizbeth's plate while she was lost in thought. She chuckled as well, ruffling
the baby's hair, all deep thoughts gone in a massive uprising of love for the
two females in her life. It didn't get much better than this.
Later that afternoon a knock sounded on the door. Diandra
set RaeLynn in the playpen and moved to the foyer to see who was there. The
door swung open and her smile faded as the little color in her face drained.
Déjà vu struck her with all the force of a well-aimed fist. The sight of a
wild-looking man at the door shouting accusations in her face; the pain in her
scalp as she was dragged down the hallway by her hair; finally, the agony of
teeth ripping into her throat. All these things ran through her mind as she let
out an unearthly shriek and her fangs elongated. She dove for Jonah, fingers
hooked into claws as she prepared to kill him with her bare hands.
Jonah held her off with one arm as he used the other to
close the door behind him. "Now Diandra, there's no need to cause a scene.
We have some work to do." She shrieked again, fury turning her cheeks a
bright crimson. All the commotion brought Lizbeth to the foyer. She took in
Diandra's reddened complexion and the arrogant smirk on Jonah's face and she calmly
drew her service pistol from the small of her back. The smirk was wiped off his
face when he saw the same gun that had made a hole in him less than six months
ago.
She bared her own teeth in a smile
of satisfaction.
"Diandra, baby, do us both a favor and kick this bitch
out so we can talk," Jonah said, his eyes never leaving the gun that was
aimed directly between his eyes. He never so much as blinked as he watched to
make sure she didn’t pull the trigger- just another sign that he was no longer
human.
Diandra stepped over and wrapped her arms around Lizbeth's
waist, careful not to compromise her aim. "Lizzie, if he makes a move you
don't like just shoot him." At Lizbeth's quick grin she clarified her
statement. "A move you don't like other than just standing here." She
laughed a little, and it had a mean sound to it.
"Diandra, you don't mean that. I never meant to hurt
you. I didn't know exactly what I was doing, and I got so angry when I saw
her." Jonah was using all the right words to plead his case, but she
noticed that his begging sounded more dutiful than sincere.
"That's absolutely no excuse, you piece of shit. You no
longer live here. Give me one reason not to have Lizbeth pull the trigger in
self-defense. After all, you're an intruder." Diandra's grin was evil, and
she was obviously enjoying whatever visual accompanied her words. He had the
uncomfortable feeling that the vision was of his brains hitting the floor.
Jonah backpedaled, attempting to smooth things over.
"Honey," he started, but at her vicious glare he hastily corrected
himself. "Diandra, I'm your husband, and the father of the baby."
"Actually, in the eyes of the law you're dead and I'm a
very rich widow." Diandra smile was full of teeth and fang. "Granted,
the money was ill-gotten, but how was I supposed to know that? And it's going
to such wonderful places, too. You should see the charity program I've started
for the homeless with your money. It looks like your dying was a very good
thing, not just for me but for the state of Delaware in general." He was
furious, she could tell, and she reveled in it.
Just then a small cry reached them from the parlor. Lizbeth
sighed and put her gun away. There was no need to upset RaeLynn. The two women
turned and headed for the sound of the whimpers, leaving Jonah standing in the
foyer feeling very dismissed. He shrugged it off and followed them. After all,
they hadn't thrown him out yet- he might as well see just how far he could push
his luck. He had things to say and he'd be damned if he'd leave before saying
them.
Diandra had already forgotten him as she drew RaeLynn into
her arms- until she heard the gasp from behind her. So much for her hopes that
the bastard would take a hint and leave. He'd never been very good at taking
hints when she dropped them while they were married, so why should she expect
that to change now that he was dead? Sighing, she turned with the baby settled
on her hip.
Jonah was staring at his daughter as though she were one of
the wonders of the world. Diandra had almost forgotten that he'd yet to see
her. He made quite a picture, all wide eyes and dropped jaw. He couldn't
believe this little beauty was half his. He reached for her without thinking,
and then yelled in surprise when the baby just disappeared.
"What did you do to her?" he yelled, stepping
towards Diandra, fury and fear riding him in equal measures as reached for her.
She backed away, her arms strangely clutching what appeared to be empty air
around her waist.
"Actually, Jonah, it's what
you
did to her, not me. Everything you see before you is a result
of your own actions. You turned me while she was still inside me. She's not
exactly a normal baby. She disappears, as you saw, when she gets nervous.
Apparently you make her nervous- big surprise." Diandra's voice was icier
than he had ever heard, and he was surprised to feel a pang in his slow-beating
heart at hearing the woman he'd spent nine years with speaking to him that way.
He held his hands out beseechingly. "Diandra, what
happened to you?"
She fixed that glare on him again, pinning him in place.
"Life happened to me. You died; I struggled to survive without you. I
finally found happiness, but then you came back. I found out that you were scum
and I never even knew it. So say whatever it is you came to say and then get
the flying fuck out of my house!" Her voice rose on the end of that
statement and Jonah was startled to feel a cold breeze hurl the words at him.
He shivered involuntarily, finding it hard to speak the words he had prepared
for this moment.
