Species Interaction (18 page)

It also struck me that she must know about teleporting already. A human woman would be mumbling in shock at seeing a couple, particularly a naked involved couple, suddenly disappear. She looked completely nonplussed over the incident.

My internal "something is up radar" rang loudly as the bells of Notre Dame when Quasimodo swung from the ropes.

Ducian grinned up at Meat over Charity's head. "Welcome back. You going to join us?"

Meat clenched his fingers into fists. His taut body language shouted pissed off kitty. Anyone else would steer clear, yet the vampire and his girlfriend prodded him further.

"I'll deal with you later." The words growled gravelly from his deep chest.

Meat glared one more moment, turned, grabbed my hand, and tugged me from the room, slamming the wooden door in his wake.

Great. Now I was left with madder than hell Meat.

"What happened to the bastard staking?"

He shot me a look of extreme frustration. "That will come later."

"Oh, good. That leaves us time for you to tell me what is up with Charity."

White, shiny fangs flashed as he snarled down at me.

I gulped and quickly blurted, "Okay. Well, ummm. Maybe I should wash off that old person pee first before the fungus ickies set in."

Not waiting for a reply, I sprinted to the non-scary bedroom.

Chapter 19

A half hour later, I emerged from the steamy bathroom, towel wrapped, and toasty. My bottom glowed a robust shade of pink after multiple scrubbings, but I held great confidence no green fungus grew there as a result of our little side venture earlier.

Speaking of side venture, Meat was absent from the bedroom. I shrugged and headed toward my suitcase of clothing. If he followed through on the staking plan, I missed the whole episode.

A large yawn followed. One randy tomcat didn't allow much sleep the previous night with his revved up engine that petered out around dawn. With him gone, the suite quiet, I decided on a nap. Meat could just wake me when he returned or lunch arrived, whichever came first.

I pulled my comfort clothes out of the bag. Pink flannel jammies. Nothing better when it came to sleepwear. Slipping them on, I stretched out on the top of the bedspread, grabbed a pillow, and let Mr Sandman take over. I dozed off only to wake up frozen as an ice cube, shivering despite my flannel pajamas.

With a grumble, I pushed off the bed, debating my options. I could get dressed and go see what's going on in the rest of the world.
Nah.
I could stay in my jammies, slide under the covers, and sleep all day.
Nah.
If I slept the day away, I would miss a big chunk of my weekend, and accomplish nothing. Under the bed covers meant all night sleeping, not an hour-long catnap like I intended. Stalking to the bedroom door, I quietly opened it and peered out. Too tired to deal with a cranky Meat, I hoped to avoid him during my search for a blanket, giving him ample time to chill out before food arrived.

The coast clear, I tiptoed to a nearby closet. I cringed as the hinge made a slight squeak, but managed to open the door and grab an extra a fluffy blanket without too much noise, certainly not enough to garner attention, and shut it just as quietly.

Voices caught my attention. Hushed, angry voices coming from the hot tub room. Intrigued, I padded that direction, halting on my side of the door.

"And you never considered telling me any of this before?"

"I did. I mean I wanted to… but…"

Meat's distinct low pitch caught my attention. As did Charity's scrambling defense. I couldn't hear anything that reminded me of Ducian. Well, that made sense after all. Ducky the vampire would be asleep this time of day with his internal clock set to night shift for centuries.

"You haven't even told Ducian, have you?" he hissed at her.

"No. Not yet. I will, though."

"When?"

"Soon. I promise."

A short pause followed as if he were choosing his words carefully, then Meat continued, "You say nothing this weekend. I won't have Shyanne's retreat ruined by your stupidity and deceit."

Deceit?

"You have forty-eight hours, no more, to tell Ducian the truth."

"Yes, Alpha." Her voice lowered and became whispery.

"And that will give me time enough to determine your punishment for this defiant act."

"Defiant?!"

"I warned you to leave it well enough alone, didn't I? You defied me, and you well know the penalty for such," he snarled. "I could demand your life for this."

"I'm sorry. Very sorry." A pleading tone entered her voice.

Facts clicked quickly in my head. Oh, yeah, he knew her. Knew her well, from the sounds of it. She had to be part of his
Familia
in order for him to have the authority to punish her. Whatever she did drew his ire big time.

Ducian also didn't have a clue in all this. My heart immediately went out to him. He obviously thought highly of Charity, and to find out that she hid something big from him would hurt. Might even be a relationship breaker. I didn't know many men that would forgive and forget being lied to.

Deciding it was time to get the heck out of Dodge, lest they open the door to find me eaves dropping, I turned back to my bedroom.

My puzzle still lacked a few pieces, but the picture slowly began to take shape. Given a bit longer, Charity might either come clean or drop enough hints for the both Ducian and I to figure it out.

Slipping back into the bedroom, I paused as a sudden thought hit. Knowing Meat, he would come in the bedroom to at least check on me. The recently snagged extra snuggly blanket would clue him in to the fact that I had been up and could have possibly heard their angry exchange by accident… mostly. I couldn't help it that they spoke loud enough that my ear plastered to the door was enough to make out every furious whisper. On the other hand, I didn't expect the boyfriend to appreciate my having garnered such knowledge that way. Thus, I had no choice but to hide any evidence. Hide didn't mean I still couldn't use it.

I laid the soft beige blanket on top of the comforter, careful to make sure it didn't stick out from any sides. Pulling one end up, I rolled both the blanket and the comforter top around me at the same time, leaving me in a toasty cocoon. A quick peek proved no evidence showed.

With a quick sigh of relief at the warmth and at getting away unscathed after listening in to their conversation, I closed my eyes and relaxed into much needed sleep.

* * * *

I woke a short time later, stiff, uncomfortable, and alone. Stretching, I managed to extricate myself from the self-imposed burrito wrap, glancing up at the clock as I did so. Forty-five minutes had passed.

Grouching about the ineffectiveness of bed warmers when they were absent, I wrapped the snuggly blanket around me and headed to the couch. At least there I would awaken when Meat reappeared or when Ducky aroused from his long winter's nap, whichever happened first.

The large, overstuffed deep chocolate colored leather couch beckoned from the center of the living area. A walnut coffee table stood before it, completing the ensemble. However, it wasn't the luxuriously expensive furniture that garnered my attention. Instead, it was the basket overflowing with sex toys that sat in the middle, like a brightly gleaming jewel on a crown. Multitudes of colorful objects poked over the lip of the basket, as if seeking attention.

I shook my head and turned away from the sight. Flopping on the couch, I pulled my pink bunny slippered feet under the cover, curled up, and headed back to dreamland.

A distinct jingle along with an unfamiliar male voice breathing out a tongue-searing curse directly behind the couch woke me in an instant. Scrambling, I scoured the area within arm's reach for potential weapons. Latching onto a stick-shaped item from the basket, I jumped up, prepared to defend myself.

The man stood much closer than I expected, putting me literally in his face. I screamed. He startled. I swung my burglar deterrent rubber stick, catching him on top of the head.

"Ow! Damn, lady." He reached up to rub the sore spot.

I swung again and again, aiming for his chest, face, any body part that would make a dent in his evil intentions.

"Shit!" He backed up, nearly tripping over the small cart behind him. Latching on, he used it for support while retreating another few steps toward the front door. "I was just… Ow! Stop it!"

A thrill tingled down my spine as I took the offensive. He stumbled; I raised the item for another good whap.

"What in the hell is going on here?" Meat's voice boomed across the room.

Pausing in mid-blow, I spun to find Meat standing just outside the bedroom door, droplets of water slowly dribbling over his entire body. The dark locks of hair hung limp with water saturation. Rivulets meandered from that broad chest, over those well defined abs, and down to his naked semi-happy Meat parts. A slow puddle began to form at his feet. He absorbed my attention without flinching, not appearing concerned about his state of undress in the least. Exotic dancers probably were way past self-consciousness eons before they stepped on stage for the first time.

Turning back, I noticed the white uniform attired young man detected the same things I had about Meat. Judging from the facial expression and the quick licking of his lips, he seemed quite impressed and taken by the tall, built man before him.

"I… I delivered your lunch, sir. Just like you ordered." The tawny-haired worker answered. The first words sounded shaky, but his voice steadied as he continued. His eyes lifted briefly to Meat's face before journeying south again.

The alpha kitty gave him a marginal nod before pinning me with his hot gaze. "And what were you doing?"

I pointed at the invader. "He scared me!"

Meat crossed his arms over that broad chest, raising one eyebrow in question. "And?"

"And… and… I defended myself."
So there.
Modern women didn't need men to rescue and protect them. They could take care of themselves.

"I see." Meat leaned back on his heels before taking a step or two closer, causing more droplets of water to run down that well sculpted body. A quick glance told me that bellhop boy's gaze hadn't moved a bit.

"Yep. I was defending myself. I can do that, you know," I flung back, a bit snappy from my recent adrenaline rush. Annoyance crept into my voice from the goon who scared me to death and continued to check out Meat's endowments with an amazed lustful appreciation as if he stared at the Star of Africa diamond right before his eyes.

Meat snorted.

I lifted my weapon. "Yep. I took this here… ummm…" I looked at the object in my hand closely for the first time, and immediately, my face burned. "This here… elephant sized… purple… doohickey…" I stammered as considerable thoughts flew through my mind.

Leave it to me to grab the largest rubber dildo ever made from the basket and utilize it like a baseball bat. I decided, all things considered, it made a decent club. Surprisingly, it held up to the battle without so much as a dent.
Maybe they really were made for some rough handling and a long haul.

"What's going on?" Ducian's sleepy voice broke through the uneasy silence. He ambled into the room, jeans covering half of his body, leaving the rest bare.

The bellhop cleared his throat; his gaze flickered back and forth between the two other men in the room. His expression spoke of sensual longing, much like how a man lost in the desert would view a tall glass of ice water.

Meat gestured to the man. "He delivered lunch. Shyanne beat him with a dildo for doing so."

Ducky's mouth fell open as his sleepy brain obviously tried to process that information. "Huh?"

"Stark raving lunatic of a woman."

The words, despite being whispered, carried over to me. I shot a glare at the hotel worker and jiggled the purple monster at him. His eyes narrowed, but at least, he remained mute.

I would hate to have to beat the guy senseless with the BOB thingy. It held up well thus far, but that didn't mean another sound thrashing wouldn't spell its downfall. Bits of purple rubber all over the floor might be a bit difficult to explain to the cleaning staff.

I could see it now. "Looks like some irate woman pulled a Bobbitt on this huge dildo. Wonder if her man is still intact."

The shifter nodded my direction, drawing Ducian's attention to the offending piece still clutched in my fingers.

My thoughts quickly churned from defensive strategies to the true calling for the phallic shaped item. "Good grief. How in the world…? Oh, there is no way this could fit. And EWWWWWWW. This had better not be used. That would be just… just"—I dropped the item back into its basket—"icky."

Hastily opening the door, the bellhop dragged the cart through after him, clanging loudly in the process. A soft click indicated the door automatically shut in his wake.

Meat eyed me for a moment longer. His index finger shot out, making a come hither motion. His sultry expression read like a book; a fold out version with extra large letters.

"Oh, I don't think so." I shuffled back, keeping the couch between us. "I'm starving."

His smile widened as he stalked. "Baby, I'll feed you. If you're extra good, I might agree to be the plate for your dessert."

Shy parts perked up at those words. Stubbornly, I stomped them back down. "I mean it. Food." I saw the spark in those deep sea blue eyes. "I mean
real
food. Now." I stood tall, crossing my hands over my chest.

He lunged; I squealed and darted for the safety of Ducian, skidding to a halt behind him.

Ducky looked down at me from over his shoulder, sending me a flash of fang, before turning his attention to the rapidly approaching cat. "Man, put on some clothes. The image of you bare ass naked is burning into my brain. I'm going blind."

"And you'll need therapy too," I quietly added in from behind the protection of his back.

He snorted derisively.

Meat growled low in his throat, shooting me a look full of promise. Spinning around, he strode back to the bedroom, presumably to spare the poor vampire's vision.