Wicked Nights (5 page)

Anton saw the girl’s face turn a deep shade of red. She quickly took a sip of her drink, then a deep breath.

“You told her?”

Alex sat in the armchair next to Laurie. “I didn’t have much of a choice, really. Corneliu stopped by and blew out some of my windows.”

Anton stirred in his chair, trying to find the right position. Or maybe trying to find the right words.

“How much did you tell her?”

Alex shrugged. “Pretty much everything. You did say I needed a willing participant for the ritual.”

Anton turned towards Laurie. “How well do you know each other?”

“We met yesterday,” Laurie answered. “I was investigating the women’s disappearance—”

“You’re a cop?” Anton turned to face Alex. “Even for you, this is pretty careless. Doesn’t she have a legal obligation to turn Corneliu in?”

Alex waved off the question impatiently. “She’s not exactly a cop. And it doesn’t matter anyway. She’s a child of
Samhain
and Corneliu ended up here looking for her, so she’s obviously a good choice.”

Anton studied Laurie for what seemed like minutes. “Can we trust you?”

“I’m still here, aren’t I?” she replied.

Anton hesitated for a second and then reached for a notebook from inside the box. “It’s not just about sex. You need to make sure you have some sort of organic reaction to each other.”

“Oh, we have that,” Alex said, and it made Laurie blush again.

“What exactly are we supposed to be doing during this ritual?” Laurie asked.

“Alex needs to read some words. But the real power is in the orgasm, so you just need to make sure you both come.”

“That’s really not going to be an issue,” Alex said, his eyes focused on Laurie.

“Oh, I believe it. I can feel you two undressing each other right now.”

“Any idea of the extent of this power?” Alex asked.

Anton frowned. “Not really. This is new territory for me too. I’d expect all your senses will become more acute. Not sure what it will do to your telekinesis and everything else.” He looked at Laurie. “I suggest you stay here tonight. Corneliu is going to be looking for a woman he can use in his ritual, and this is really the safest place for you to be.”

Laurie nodded.

Alex reached over and pushed a strand of hair out of her face. He couldn’t explain why, but he felt extremely protective of her. “You can take one of the guest bedrooms, and I’ll get you some clothes tomorrow.”

Anton handed Alex a notebook. “You have a lot of prep work to do. The whole ritual has to be performed once the moon is out but before midnight.”

Alex nodded and turned his attention to the notebook.

“Alex,
esti
sigur
?”

Alex didn’t have to look at Laurie to know the answer. Whatever connection had been awoken, he was ready to fight to keep it alive.

“I’m sure. Let’s get to work.”

Laurie didn’t see Alex all day on Halloween. She woke up mid-morning to find a stack of brand-new clothes on a chair near her bed. Somehow, he — or somebody — had slipped into the bedroom while she was sleeping and delivered the items. It was unsettling that she hadn’t even realized it, and even more unsettling when she figured out that every item fit her perfectly. Either he magically knew her clothing size or he had undressed enough women that he could accurately guess what sizes they wore. She was ready to bet on the second theory.

When she headed downstairs, she found somebody working in the kitchen, waiting for her with a full breakfast. The woman wasn’t at all surprised to see her.
What else happened while I was sleeping?
she wondered.

“Good morning, Miss Cole. Eggs or pancakes?”

It was all so surreal, she just had to go along with it. “Eggs, I think. And a very large cup of black coffee. Where’s Alex?”

“Mr. Volman has been in the study since early this morning. He said you’re free to explore the grounds but that you should take somebody with you.”

Great. She needed a bodyguard just to leave the house.

Emily called to wish her happy birthday around noon, and Laurie told her she was taking the day off. As much as she wanted to tell her what was going on, she knew she couldn’t. Besides, every single nerve in her body was already on edge waiting for that night. She didn’t need anything else adding to that.

She had asked herself a few times if she wanted to call the whole thing off, and the answer was always the same. She wanted to stay. Not only because the idea of sleeping with Alex made her vibrate with anticipation, but also because she believed him when he said this was the best — and maybe the only — way to stop Corneliu.

And Corneliu scared her, which was hard to admit. She’d been chasing bad guys for years, and this was the first time she didn’t know what to expect of one.

She didn’t want to have to look over her shoulder for the rest of her life, and she certainly didn’t want Corneliu becoming more powerful. Accepting the idea of magical powers was hard, but she couldn’t deny the display she had seen the night before. And if one of those men was going to get even more powerful, she didn’t want Corneliu to be the one.

As the evening approached, her nerves got worse, so she took a walk outside — followed by a suspiciously tough-looking gardener — then took a bath and changed into a tight black skirt and a silk blouse. Skirts weren’t really her thing, but if she was going to wear one, this was definitely the right night for it.

She caught a glimpse of something on the pillow, a velvety black box with a card attached. The note read: “Happy birthday. Last bedroom on the left. Come over when you’re ready.”

The box held a silver necklace with a pendant in the shape of a
stang
. It was probably part of the ritual, but that didn’t make it any less beautiful. Strange that the item that marked the death of those women could also hold such beauty. She put it on and looked at herself in the mirror.

“Happy birthday to me.”

The absurdity of it all just made her smile. After a good night’s sleep and a relaxing bath, the events of the night before seemed years away. They also seemed a lot less real. If somebody had come in and told her it had all been a dream, she might have been inclined to believe it. It would have made sense, and she would much rather go back to believing magic wasn’t real.

If she was going to do this, she might as well do it right now, before she came to her senses and decided to take off running. Taking a long breath, she made herself relax. Or at least try to relax, because her stomach was tied up in knots and her ears were buzzing.

Come over when you’re ready.

She walked over to his bedroom and knocked on the door. She immediately realized it was silly, so she reached for the doorknob and twisted it.

The bedroom was huge. A large four-poster bed dominated the left wall, but there were also several armchairs and dark wood armoires around the room. It was a room to enjoy, not just to sleep in. Now, illuminated with just the flickering of candles, it seemed made for decadence.

Alex stepped out of the darkness. He was dressed completely in black and looked ravishing. He looked like a god. If there had been any doubt in her mind that she wanted him, it was gone.

“Come in, Laurie. I won’t bite.”

She could hear the wicked smile in his voice.

She closed the door and then leaned back against it, waiting for him to move closer. She felt like a shy teenager all of a sudden. “Sorry, the whole thing is a bit strange.”

He approached her, and immediately the whole room got warmer. God, her body seemed to pulse at the proximity. He traced her collarbone with his finger, touching the pendant. The buzzing in her ears got louder, and then she realized it wasn’t her ears. It was the whole room. It vibrated with an electric pulse of its own. Like the day before, but stronger, deeper.

“You can feel it, can you, Laurie?”

She closed her eyes, letting the heat seep in, letting the vibrations reach her and awaken every corner of her body and mind.

“Yes.”

He pushed against her body, pressing her against the door. Then he bent towards her so he could whisper. “Forget the ritual, Laurie. Right now I just want you.”

Her eyes slowly moved up to meet his, her heart thumping so loud she could hardly hear herself speak. “I want you too.”

He groaned and kissed her hard. His hands slid around her waist to pull her away from the door and against his body. And then they moved higher, under her shirt, his thumb reaching under her bra and teasing a nipple. She gasped against his mouth but didn’t break the kiss. Instead, she reached for him, searching for his skin. She found the buttons and started undoing them.

And then she was off her feet. She wasn’t sure if they were floating or if he’d picked her up, but a second later they were on the bed, their shirts off and the candlelight dancing over their exposed skin.

“God, you’re beautiful,” he whispered before lowering himself to kiss her neck.

Every place he touched went up in flames. His skin was like fire against hers, making her whole body cry out for release.

Laurie.

His thoughts were finding a way into her mind. Hearing him as he was kissing her made his caresses that much more erotic.

His lips moved down to her breast, his tongue flicking against the soft material of her bra. More, she needed more. As if he could hear her, his hand touched her thigh and moved up slowly, stopping just short of her sex. He caressed her teasingly but didn’t touch her where he knew she needed him to.

“Alex, please.”

He stopped and moved up to look into her eyes.

“What do you want?”

“You, I want … take your clothes off.”

His smile got wider. “I was hoping you would ask.”

He sat back up and unbuttoned his pants to free his cock, ready and powerful. Laurie moaned at the sight. Not only was he ready, but he was big. Her hands moved forward to touch him, but he reached her first, tugging at her skirt and underwear.

“Let’s play fair,” he said as he drank in the sight of her, naked and flushed with desire. His eyes left a trail of fire on every inch of her body. Then he leaned down and kissed her again, his skin pressing against hers everywhere he could reach. And still she needed more.

His hands slipped up her thighs again, resting on the outer folds of her sex. She held her breath.