Irresistible Nemesis (6 page)

Coupled with the revelation about Ivan, Andreas’s interest had peaked in the worst sort of way.

His stomach twisted in knots at the thought of the two bouncers accused of accosting his human patrons. Even worse, Natasha had pretty much written off the incident as a misunderstanding. This after she gained a reputation for having no tolerance for other employees who didn’t follow the rules.
The Crypt
had an iron-clad policy about employees who fraternized with humans on company premises. It was strictly prohibited.

Andreas pulled into
The Crypt
’s underground parking structure, his fingers white from their tight grip on the steering wheel.

How could he have allowed such a complete disregard for his authority? His father had been right after all, and that fact made him boiling inside.

I’ve got to handle Natasha before things get out of control.

But first, I’d better feed. I need all the strength I can muster in order
to confront her.

It neared eleven o’clock on a Friday night in New York City.

87th Street still bustled with people. Horns blared and lights glared as nighttime came to life. Andreas headed to the subway station below in search of sustenance. The last train would soon arrive at the station as club hoppers made their way above ground. It would give him the perfect opportunity to find someone to satisfy his hunger, if only temporarily.

He descended the steps, the far-off whistle of the train reverberated against the concrete walls as it made its way toward the platform. A crowd of men and women dressed like they’d stepped out of an episode of
Sex In The City
sashayed past in search of God knows what.

Andreas’s alert gaze searched the barrage of people who walked by in silk shirts and expensive designer jeans. He needed sustenance something fierce. So he picked out a willing volunteer in the crowd. She wore an emerald green halter dress and black patent leather heels. The slender column of her neck, exposed and pulsating.

Her carotid artery was visible. It made his mouth water and his fangs to protrude involuntarily.

Her flowing brown hair and eyes speckled with shards of green immediately captured his attention. She was the perfect little morsel to satisfy his hunger. The closer he got to her, the more Andreas’s need to feed gnawed at him.

When she made eye contact, his power of persuasion put her under a spell. Within seconds, she stood in front of him and begged for whatever Andreas offered.

“Good evening, beautiful.” Andreas’s smooth drawl flowed over the woman a second before he placed a delicate kiss to the inside of her wrist. Andreas sucked in a deep inhalation of air, as he took in his prey’s scent as he often did. The rich aroma of ginger and spice hit him. It somehow caused him to cringe. The sensation akin to raking one’s nail along a chalkboard.

“Hey yourself, sexy.” The woman looked hungry, eager for a man’s attention. “Any plans for the evening? My friends and I are going clubbing, if you’d like to join us.”

“I’m so sorry. I mistook you for someone else.” Andreas shook his head in apology as he averted her gaze. “If you’ll please excuse me.”

As he walked along the tracks heading away from the train station, Andreas couldn’t help but think about the God damn huntress.

Eva. Each time she was near, the unique flora scent of gardenias surrounded him. He craved that smell and quite honestly, no other woman would do. He’d managed to feed off of five different women over the last week, but still he couldn’t bring himself to sleep with any of them. Thoughts of Eva inundated his head. “Those stinking gardenias will be the death of me.” Andreas cursed himself under his breath as he jumped off the subway platform and followed the trail along the train tracks.

Like most charming, charismatic vampires, Andreas had no problem finding dinner. He spotted a sweet, old homeless woman willing to make a blood donation. Her tattered grey overcoat and wide-brimmed hat covered the weathered features of her face. While her clothes looked worse for the wear, she was well-groomed and had recently bathed. All good news for a famished vampire. She smiled up at him, mesmerized by his impeccable gaze, and easily submitted to his demands. Andreas took his fill and left her intact, if not a bit lightheaded from loss of blood. Then he turned back toward the subway station. His sleek form moved stealthily in the darkness. The only sound, the tip-tap of Ferragamo loafers as his footsteps came into contact with the iron rails of the track.

“Mr. Kristopolous, what a surprise!” A voice called to him. Its shadow lurked all around him. “I never figured you for the public transportation type.”

The hairs on the back of his neck rose. He recognized that voice. “Ms. Sambucco, how nice to see you again. I’ve just come from dinner. Had I known you’d be in the neighborhood, I would have extended an invitation.”

Eva snickered softly. “That’s very kind of you. But I’ve already eaten.” Her lilt voice dripped with sarcasm. She held her ground even as the vampire undressed her with his eyes.

“Oh, on the contrary, my darling,” Andreas replied. “There’s always room for dessert. And you happen to be the most delectable treat I’ve come across in a very long time.” Then Andreas approached her. His gait bold and self-assured.

With each step forward, she took another one back, until he had her trapped against the wall of the subway tunnel. He lifted his hand in slow motion to gently stroke her cheek with the pad of his finger. His coarse digits glided along her jawline as the huntress lowered her head to avoid his intense stare. She didn’t seem to care much for bloodsuckers. At least, not one hell bent on seduction.

“I should warn you, Mr. Kristopolous–” she began.

“Please, call me Andreas.” He couldn’t breathe with her so near. Eva tilted her head to the side and Andreas was rewarded with the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen. Long, luxurious eyelashes cast a sublime shadow over her angelic features, including a provocative glimpse of her ample bosom. His control teetered on the edge of collapse.

This is crazy. Take her now, while you’ve got the chance.

An internal battle raged inside Andreas as the animal fought for supremacy. Then Eva looked up at him, newfound courage reflected in her beautiful brown eyes. Her face flushed in an array of color. The sudden rush of blood to her cheeks started his own blood pumping. He growled with need.

Eva held her head high in blatant challenge. “Andreas. I advise you to back off. If you refuse, this will end badly.
Very
badly.

I’ll either drag you in to the authorities by the skin of your teeth or kill you. Your choice.”

Without warning, Andreas pressed his burning lips to hers, demanding an acknowledgement. Eva broke away. Her head thrashed from side to side in an effort to resist his bold intrusion. But Andreas wouldn’t be denied. He pinned her pliant curves more rigidly to the wall and locked both hands to her sides. It was either take what he needed or die trying.

Andreas’s stare bore into her. He pleaded for total surrender.

She blinked and her expression softened a bit. And he went for it with a kiss much more delicate than their first embrace. The pillowy-softness of his lips and the silky smoothness of his tongue, coaxed a response from her. Eva had no chance in hell of surviving the pure rapture of his kiss. Its sweet sensation, a stark contradiction to the way his firm, rigid body pressed against her. The hard length of his cock rubbed against her clitoris, and she moaned out loud. Before long, she kissed him back with a hunger he’d never experienced before.

Andreas couldn’t stop the momentum of their mutual attraction. Neither of them could. It spiraled out of control with hands everywhere. Probing and prodding. They simply took that which was so desperately needed. Eva’s voracious tongue explored his mouth.

Andreas sucked on her pouty lower lip. In a bold move he never expected, she took hold of his firm ass cheeks and squeezed, unleashing the beast that prowled below on the surface. His fangs extended. Andreas scraped them against her tongue and tasted blood.

Delicious, hot, and tempting. The taste drove him into a frenzy.

Like a lion pouncing on its prey, he grabbed the front of her floral-print blouse and yanked it open. Eva gasped as tiny glass buttons fell one by one to the ground. She opened her mouth as if to scold him just as Andreas swiped his sultry tongue over the lacy fabric covering her nipple. She went limp and melted in his arms, releasing the sexiest little half-whimper, half-moan he’d ever heard.

“You’re not a huntress. You’re a God damn witch sent to cast a spell on me.” Andreas groaned as he left a trail of passionate kisses along the side of her throat. “I
should
drain your blood this very instant and get rid of you once and for all. But the need to fuck you is
so
much stronger.”

“I know exactly what you mean.” Eva whispered the words, her voice rough and gravely as Andreas lifted his head seeking another one of her sizzling kisses.

As his lips descended upon hers, Eva jerked her head back in one swift motion. Her forehead came into contact with the bridge of Andreas’s nose. The blow took him by complete surprise. On instinct, he put his hand to his nose and saw the familiar red liquid pooled in the center of his palm. By the time he looked up again, ready to face his beautiful nemesis, she was gone, leaving him reeling. Both angry and aroused.

Back at BPA headquarters, Eva reviewed her field notes in preparation for a briefing with Oliver. She couldn’t quite believe her luck. The listening device she planted in Aristotle Kristopolous’s office last week had finally given her the ammunition she needed to take down the Kristopolous family once and for all. So why the nagging feelings of guilt and betrayal? Could it be all she’d learned about Andreas over the past few weeks had started to affect her?

As she walked down the hallway toward Oliver’s office, Eva thoughts turned to Andreas. He was a vampire. But all the other details of his life didn’t quite mesh. Everything she found on his business dealings proved legitimate. Nothing about him screamed ruthless murderer. Instead, he came across as nothing more than a wealthy playboy. One who consequently donated millions of dollars a year to local schools and museums in support of the arts.

Most of all, the way Andreas interacted with her had Eva second-guessing herself. Hell, he refused to fight back when all she wanted to do was kick his ass from here to eternity. He had more than one opportunity to kill her. Why hadn’t he finished her off when he had the chance? Yet, here she stood, alive and well. Go figure.

Eva pushed the doubts out of her mind as she rounded the corner. She found the door to Oliver’s office wide open. He sat behind the desk talking on the telephone and motioned for her to come in while he finished up his conversation. She took a seat in a high-back leather chair adjacent to him, and nervously flipped through her field notes and crossing and uncrossing her legs.

“So my dear, I hear you have some important intel to share.” Oliver set the phone back on the receiver and clasped his hands together – his expression giddy with anticipation.

She bit her bottom lip and hesitated before she answered.

“What would you like to hear first? The good news or the bad news?”

“Any information we obtain on the Kristopolous family is considered good news.” Oliver smiled, no doubt in good spirits.

“Please proceed with your report.”

“Okay, I’ll start with the bad news. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find anything incriminating on Andreas or his family. So far, they’re coming up squeaky clean.”

Suddenly, a full-fledged grin edged across his face. “Andreas, huh? I see you two are on a first name basis. That’s good. That means our plan is working. You two are growing closer, no?”

“Yes and no,” Eva confessed, lowering her eyelids in modesty. It was a tad embarrassing to discuss their budding relationship with her boss. “Your initial impression was correct. He is definitely attracted to me on a physical level, and I’m doing my best to play up that part of the connection. But it’s not as easy as I thought it would be. I can’t seem to…to….”

“You can’t seem to what, Eva?” Oliver asked as Eva’s cheeks burned.

She searched for the right words to describe exactly how Andreas made her feel. “Sometimes, I find it difficult to turn off my own reaction to him, even though I’ve been trained to resist the hypnotic power of the vampire.” Her speech was stilted as if the words had been yanked out against her will.

“I had a feeling that was the case. For the moment, that’s exactly as it should be. It’s more important to gather evidence against him than it is to worry about your own silly infatuation. In this case, my dear, that’s all part of the job. And now the good news, if you please.”

“I was able to infiltrate
Miravale
, the Kristopolous family compound in Connecticut. I installed a listening device in his father’s office and had the feed recording on continuous loop over the last week.” Eva crossed her arms and smiled, proud of the accomplishment.

“Excellent investigative work, my dear. So what information have you been able to decipher from these recordings?” Oliver nodded, a beleaguered half-smile spread across his weathered features.

“Oliver, this could be the information we’ve been waiting for.

It has the potential to dismantle the entire Kristopolous organization.”

“Oh, do tell.” Oliver encouraged her enthusiastically.

“In my report, I included some biographical information on the family’s head of security. Miss Natasha Blagovich. I believe there’s a photograph of her there as well.” Eva paused, then pointed to the manila folder draped over his desk. “You may want to locate her information in the file.”

He opened the folder and pointed to the image of the woman clipped to inside cover. “A stunning young lady, indeed. How exactly does Miss Blagovich play a part in the coven’s downfall?” Oliver scratched his head.