Influential Magic (14 page)

I figured he’d never made a move for the same reason. Now that Beau was gone, a romantic relationship was still out of the question. I never wanted to mess up the closest connection I had to my brother.

I just needed to remind my traitorous body of that fact. And soon. Talisen’s healing touch sent shivers of desire through my sexually deprived body, and I swallowed the moans rising from the center of my being. Forget the bruises. I wanted to feel his hands everywhere.

In my lust haze, I became aware of his fading magic as he moved on to a full back massage. My breath quickened and my wings tingled. His fingers kneaded steadily down my spine. Unable to hold back, my wings flickered in pleasure.

He chuckled, low and satisfied, moving his fingers from my back to glide delicately over the tips of my wings. I arched my back and flexed, pressing the sensitive tips into his touch.

“Excuse me,” a strangled voice interrupted.

Link bounded in from the balcony, growling and pacing in front of my door.

“Crap,” I mumbled and sat up, adjusting my shirt back in place. I’d been so engrossed with Talisen, I hadn’t even noticed David approach. In fact, I barely felt him now. Had Talisen’s magic dulled my senses? No, the tension between us moments ago had been anything but dull. I was just worn out. A good night’s sleep in my oak would cure me. “What?”

“Phoebe called. She needs us to meet her in Midtown ASAP.”

“She called you?” I jumped down and strode to the door.

He nodded toward the desk. “Check your phone. She says she tried you first.” He glared over my shoulder. “Looks like you had other things on your mind. I’ll meet you downstairs after you compose yourself.” David stalked back out of the room, his boots echoing on the stairs.

I glanced down and winced. A button had come loose, exposing more than a little bit of cleavage. The see-through lace bra I’d chosen that morning wasn’t helping matters. “Damn it.”

Talisen laughed.

“What’s so funny?”

“You. You’re cute when you’re flustered.”

“Stop. Just stop. This is your fault.” I stomped toward my closet. Then I remembered David had emptied it and changed course toward the freestanding canvas wardrobe in the corner. Talisen watched as I picked out fresh jeans and a tank top, my standard autumn uniform for hunting vampires. “Stop staring.”

“Can you blame me?”

I rolled my eyes but smiled as I locked myself in the bathroom. Goddess help me. Having David and Tal in the same house wasn’t a good idea. Not a good idea at all.

The last thing I wanted to do was share a car ride with David and Talisen. But what was I supposed to do, leave Tal at home? Not a chance.

“Come on.” I tugged Talisen down the stairs.

David started to protest, but I cut him off as I climbed in the Jeep. “Link’s coming and Talisen keeps him calm. With your current mood, I think it’s necessary. No one wants another incident.”

It wasn’t a lie. Talisen really was the only other person besides me that put Link at ease. God, I hoped no one else realized all it took was a few slabs of raw meat. But controlling Link’s mood wasn’t the only reason I’d insisted on including Talisen. I dreaded being alone with David after what he’d witnessed, even if it was mostly innocent.

Innocent. Right.
Who knows what would’ve happened if David hadn’t barged in? Why did I even care what David thought? Hell, he’d dumped me.

He’d. Left. Me.

I had nothing to feel guilty about. My stomach clenched, tying itself in knots. Yeah, no guilt here. David settled in the hastily repaired passenger’s seat, Link and Talisen in the back. “Did you fix that?” I asked David, eyeing the seat.

“Yes. While you were busy with your…friend.”

I gritted my teeth and put the Jeep in gear, trying to ignore the mounting tension.

“Make a right,” David said.

I slowed. “Can’t. That’s a one-way street.”

“Oh. Right. Go left.”

Apparently I wasn’t the only one preoccupied. After I navigated the turn, I glanced in the rearview mirror. Link lay curled up in Talisen’s lap. I smiled at the image of my two favorite men. Link had never taken to David like that. It should’ve been a warning. What could I say? My dog was a better judge of character than I was.

Several blocks later, David pointed to the opposite side of the street. “It’s the next house on the left.”

I pulled to a stop but didn’t kill the engine as I eyed the two-story Victorian. Shutters covered the floor-to-ceiling windows on both levels. “This is the middle of vampire territory.”

“I know.” David climbed out of the car and took off toward the house. Talisen followed him with Link in tow. I killed the ignition and scrambled to catch up.

“Tell your
friend
he isn’t welcome here.” A muscle pulsed in David’s jaw.

“Says who?” I stopped in the middle of the walkway, hands on my hips.

“I do.” David produced a key and unlocked the solid oak door. In typical New Orleans flair, a scrolling fleur-de-lis was carved right in the center. “You and your wolf can come in, but he stays outside.”

“What?” I raised my voice to a decidedly unladylike level. “Who put you in charge, and where’s Phoebe?”

“Here,” she said, appearing in the doorway wearing a leather micromini, a silk halter top, and thigh-high stiletto boots. She completed the look with platinum board-straight hair that covered her naked back. What was with the hoochie outfit?

She waved at Talisen. He gave her an appreciative nod as he admired all her exposed skin.

“Sorry, Tal. Official business and all that crap.” Phoebe threw him her keys. “Take my car and meet us back at the house.”

I frowned. “But—”

“It’s okay.” Tal draped an arm around my shoulders and squeezed. “Now that I know Phoebs is here, I can rest easy you’ll be safe. See you back at your abode.” He brushed his lips against my temple and then strode off.

David narrowed his eyes, a scowl firmly in place. Yeah, he’d loved that little PDA. Not.

Link watched Tal speed off, a forlorn look on his doggie face.

“What’s going on?” I snapped my fingers, and Link instantly jumped to my side.

David stood on the porch in stony silence, studying me as if he was peeling back the layers of my emotional armor. The violation made me want to wrap my arms around myself for protection. But I forced myself to relax and turned to Phoebe.

She threw me a dirty look. “Damn you and your phone. Don’t make me call David again.” She lowered her voice as if to spare David’s feelings, but there was no way he couldn’t hear her. Not with his vampire powers. “You know I can’t stand that guy.”

He didn’t even flinch.

“Right.” I cleared my throat. “Sorry, it won’t happen again.”

Phoebe didn’t even have the decency to hide her rolling eyes.

I threw my hands up in defeat. “I said I was sorry. Will you please tell me what in holy hell is going on? Whose house is this?”

“It’s mine,” David snapped and strode inside. “If you two are done insulting me, we have a vampire to question.”

“I wasn’t…never mind.” Nothing I said would change his mood after the night’s events. “What vampire?” I asked, following the pair into the house. Neither acknowledged my question.

A scream started to bubble in my throat. I gritted my teeth together, holding it back. If they weren’t going to talk to me, why did they bother making me tag along?
Damn David and this stupid assignment.

I glanced around, taking in the tastefully decorated living room. Period antique tables and an ornate hutch from the eighteen hundreds were intermixed with newer, modern-day settees and armchairs, giving the room an elegant but useful feel. When had he acquired this house?

Five months ago, David had lived in a one-bedroom bachelor-pad apartment, complete with garage-sale furniture. Someone else must have decorated this place.

The walls showcased contemporary paintings, rich with New Orleans history and architecture. The place begged to be featured in
Southern Living
magazine. Only the white metal casings from the motorized blackout window coverings screamed vampire lair. When closed, nothing penetrated the patented metal sheet.

I followed Phoebe into a large library. The walls, packed floor to ceiling, housed everything from rich leather-bound books to contemporary science fiction. Not a romance novel in sight. Somehow that knowledge lightened my heart…until the soft, feminine voice filled the silence.

“David,” a sleek redhead purred. “It was thoughtful of you to bring entertainment. You know how I like variety.” She sipped from a pewter cup, the contents leaving a tinge of red on her lips.

Disgusting.

The female vampire held the cup toward David, but he ignored it and fixed her with a glare. “Clea. Why are you in my house? Uninvited.”

Her perfect porcelain brow wrinkled as she tilted her head to one side. “Ah, don’t be like that,” she cooed. “You’ll ruin all the fun. Besides, you don’t want to disappoint your playmate.” She cast Phoebe a sidelong look, leering at my friend.

“Don’t fuck around,” he snapped at her. “You won’t like the result.”

“Such language, young one.” The vampire vixen waved one finger in a shame-on-you motion. “You don’t want me to tell Eadric you’re being ungracious to a guest, now do you?”

David let out a hollow laugh. “You seem to be under the impression you have the upper hand here.”

She rose from the chair, her face transforming from fake innocence to outraged hatred. “How dare you—”

“I’d sit down if I were you,” David warned.

“Or?” She crossed her arms and glared.

“I’ll let the witch fry you.”

Phoebe held up her sun agate and smiled sweetly. “Sorry, Clea. I don’t take nicely to those who try to Influence me.”

“What?” My whole body went rigid with shock. She’d tried to Influence a witch?

Phoebe shook her head and whispered, “I’ll fill you in later.”

A flicker of understanding, followed by rage, crossed Clea’s face as she realized Phoebe had set her up. The moment passed and she assumed a bored expression. “Please. You were begging for a taste.”

“Where’d you get it?” David asked Clea, ignoring my outraged glances.

She shrugged.

David stepped toward the bookshelves closest to him and rested his hand on a thin leather spine. “Perhaps you’d prefer different accommodations.”

Clea leaned forward, rested her chin in her hands, and fixed him with a sneer. “Don’t tell me you have a secret vampire dungeon?”

“Something like that.”

Her smile faltered as they locked eyes.

“How do you feel about sunrooms?” David asked.

She visibly relaxed and leaned back in the chair. “I have yet to see one I can’t muscle my way out of.”

“There’s a first time for everything.” He pulled the thin book forward. I glanced around, looking for a secret passage or doorway. Nothing moved or revealed itself.

Clea laughed and stood. She stalked slowly toward David. “What’s Eadric going to say when I tell him about this pathetic attempt at intimidation?”

“Nothing, since you’ll be nursing a full-body, third-degree burn…if you survive.” He launched himself, meeting her halfway in the middle of the massive room. I fell back, flattening myself into the bookcase behind me. Link hovered at my feet, already shifted and growling.

They spun, moving so fast I couldn’t tell who had the upper hand until Clea smashed against the wall and David pinned her there with his hands around her neck.

“Last chance,” he said. “Where’d you get the Influence?”

Clea spit in his face. “Fucking faery lover. You think I don’t know who she is? We all thought since you’d turned, you’d finally come to your senses. Guess we were wrong. Now get the fuck off me before I tear her to shreds.”

“Such confidence for someone in a position to get her neck broken.”