Blood Hunger (An Adult Paranormal Romance) (Deathless Night Series #1) Read online

  He looked amused, if a bit surprised, with her directness. “Well now, don’t beat around the bush sweetheart, just go ahead and say whatever’s on your mind.“

  Her unflinching stare didn’t waver as she waited for a response to her question.

  With a glance at the bartender who was still hovering around them, he suggested, “Why don’t we go find somewhere a bit more private to talk.” It wasn’t a question.

  Emma studied his too-perfect face for a few seconds, then nodded apprehensively once in agreement. Turning to grab her things, she gave old Ned a reassuring smile. He took her hand as she placed it on her bag. “Darlin’, you just give a yell if you need anything at all.” He looked directly into her eyes while he spoke, making sure he got his point across. “And you just let me know when you’re ready to leave. Alone.” He gave Nik a pointed glare. “And I’ll walk you to your car.”

  Men were always offering to walk her to her car. Did she really seem that helpless?

  The beautiful male beside her tilted his head and looked at Ned with mild curiosity, like he would an animal at the zoo.

  “Do we owe you anything for the drink, old man?” he asked.

  Ned shook his grey head slowly, staring him down. “The young lady has already paid.”

  Emma looked over at the newcomer just in time to catch him giving the elderly man a menacing smile from where he stood behind her. Fear for the old man had her turning back around to assure him she’d be ok. She didn’t know if that was true or not, but the elderly bartender was no match for a guy like this, and she wouldn’t have him risking life and limb because of her.

  She’d just opened her mouth to tell him so when he took a reluctant step back, the old bartenders’ sense of self-preservation finally kicking in.

  A strong hand wrapped gently, but firmly, around her arm. “Good! Come on, Emma.”

  Giving the bartender a last reassuring smile, she let him steer her towards an empty booth far from listening ears.

  He led her to her seat, and then settled himself across from her where he kept one eye on the kindly bartender. “Would you like another drink, Emma?”

  “No, thank you.” She waited expectantly.

  “A bite to eat? Are you hungry?”

  Her nerves strung out from the near confrontation at the bar, she leaned forward, getting right up into his face, and slammed her hands on the table. “No! I don’t want a drink! I don’t want food! The only thing I want is to know where the hell my sister is!”

  Emma wondered where her own sense of self-preservation had gone, but her patience with this was at an end. If he had some information for her, she wanted it now.

  “Calm down,” he told her, “and I’ll tell you everything I know.”

  Sitting back in a huff, Emma crossed her arms and waited for him to speak, idly wondering where her sanity had gone.

  Leaning towards her in a much more calm manner than she had, he asked her, “Emma, do you have any inkling of who or what you are?”

  What is he talking about? “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, what you are. What your sister is. What your parents were. And, more specifically, who they were?” Putting his elbows on the table and linking his hands, he drilled into her with those eyes, until she felt like he could see right down to her soul.

  “I’m not sure I know what you mean…” Emma hedged, genuinely confused.

  He continued to stare at her, his head tilted to the side, like he was listening to something she couldn’t hear. After a moment, he seemed to come to some type of decision. “Emma, you come from a family of very powerful witches.”

  Well, that wasn’t exactly what she’d expected to hear. “Witches,” she repeated blandly.

  “Yes,” he affirmed with a nod.

  Was this guy for real? If her family was full of witches, don’t you think she would know?

  She should’ve called him back earlier, demanded more information before agreeing to meet him. Not that he had given her a choice. Clearly, he wasn’t a cop or any kind of detective. Mentally unstable was probably more like it.

  “I am so, so stupid,” she finally admitted. Disgusted with herself for falling for…whatever the hell this was, she grabbed her bag and stood to leave.

  “Where are you going?” He demanded.

  “I’m leaving. Obviously.” She spat back at him.

  “Emma, please. Sit down and hear me out.” He held up a hand, halting her. “Please.”

  She paused next to the table. I don’t know why the hell I’m doing this. “Fine. But I don’t want to hear about whatever it is you think you know about my family. I want to know who you are. And I want to know what you know about the whereabouts of my sister.”

  “I promise I will tell you all of that, but in order for you to fully understand, I need to give you some background about my people, and about your family, that you are apparently grossly unaware of.” He waved his hand at her seat. “Please, Emma, sit down. As much as I hate to admit it, I need your help, and you need mine.”

  His tone sounded so sincere, it gave her pause. Slowly, she went back to her seat and sat down again, giving him a hard look. “Just so you know, giving me the sad puppy dog eyes will get you nowhere with me.”

  His lips twitched. “Duly noted.”

  “Ok, wiseass, tell me about all this stuff I presumably don’t know about. I’m listening.” Crossing her arms again, she leaned back and waited for him to speak.

  “Let me start over.” He paused. “Emma, have you ever noticed any strange things that happen around you?” Another pause. “It’s ok, you can trust me.”

  Surely, her expression alone clearly showed how much she disagreed with that comment, but just in case it didn’t, she spelled it out for him, “What makes you think I would trust you with anything at all? I know absolutely nothing about you. I don’t even know your name! Although you seem to know quite a bit about me. Or at least you think you do.”

  Emma had spent her entire life safeguarding her secrets from everyone except her immediate family; she was not about to give them up that easily. She didn’t care how hot he was. Or how lonely she was.

  He ran a hand frustratingly through his hair and started over again. He seemed to know he was totally blowing this. “I’m sorry, you’re completely right. My name is Nik, or actually, Nikulas. Nikulas Kreek.” He held out his hand.

  She regarded that hand warily for a moment, and then hesitantly placed her own small one inside his much larger one. He closed his fingers firmly around hers, the skin on skin contact instantly causing electric pulses to run right up her arm, and straight down to her groin, where she felt a rush of wetness between her legs.

  Her eyes snapped up to his, and her breathing became hindered as their gazes locked. Her heart pounded in her chest, her blood rushing through her veins.

  She squeezed her thighs together to try to relieve the yearning between her legs that hadn’t totally gone away since this man had entered the bar, and was oh, so much worse now.

  Really, what is wrong with me?

  He inhaled sharply, his nostrils flaring slightly, and she watched as those strange eyes of his seemed to shine even brighter. The muscles on the side of his jaw bulged out as he clenched his jaw, and his hand tightened around hers.

  So. She wasn’t the only one affected by the touch. Good to know.

  ***

  Nik nearly groaned aloud as the scent of her arousal hit him, the thought of her wet and aching almost making him forget they were in a public place with watchful eyes. His body hardened as his blood sped up to match the flow of hers. His gums ached, his fangs descending, as he fought the need to pierce her soft skin. He struggled to get himself under control as he clung to her small hand, afraid to move for fear of what he might do.

  But then Emma abruptly pulled her hand from his, and at the loss of it he curled his own hand in on itself to try to keep the warmth of her there.

  Delicately clearing her throat, she repeated, “S
o, Nikulas, I ask again, who are you? Where did you come from? Because I know you’re not from around here.”

  Nik discreetly rubbed the heel of his other hand over his throbbing erection and tried to concentrate on the conversation. “Originally? I was born in Estonia. But my brother and I, and some others in our family, have been here quite a long time.” He paused, contemplating how much to reveal about himself. “We actually live in Seattle, Washington.”

  “And what brings you all the way here to PA?” Emma asked.

  Having discreetly readjusted himself in his jeans to a slightly more comfortable position, he focused again on her lovely face. “You.”

  “Me?” she scoffed. “Forgive me if I have a hard time believing you. I’m just a small town girl, living a very unexciting life. How could you possibly have any interest in me?”

  “Because that brother I mentioned? He’s missing too. And I think he’s with your sister, and I think you can help me when we get to them.” He held up a hand as she opened her mouth to interrupt him. “Just hold on. I’ll answer your questions, but first, I need you to tell me exactly what happened the night your sister went missing. Everything. No matter how unimportant or unbelievable you think it is. You might be shocked at how little surprises me.”

  He watched as her thoughts and emotions flitted across her expressive features at his words. Doubt, confusion, hope, and finally…joy.

  “I knew it!” She slammed her hands on the table again. “I knew she wasn’t dead!” A full on, dazzling smile broke out across her face, and Nik’s lungs stopped working altogether.

  Fucking hell. That smile lit up her entire face, her eyes sparkling with elation. He found himself unable to look away, even if he’d wanted to.

  It was like seeing the sun again after all of his hundreds of years of darkness. This slip of a female was bringing out things in him that he hadn’t felt for…a very long time.

  And he didn’t like it one damn bit.

  Sitting back and placing a hand over his heart, like that would help it start to beat again, he blinked a few times to break the connection, attempting to disguise his reaction to her with a cough before asking, “And how did you know that?”

  Seeming to remember whom she was talking to, and the fact that she hadn’t decided to like him (in spite of her body’s betrayal), Emma stopped smiling and frowned at him instead.

  Squinting at him suspiciously, she answered his question with a couple of her own. “How do you know she’s with your brother? And how do you know they’re still alive?”

  “Because if my brother was dead, I would feel it. Like, literally. Right here.” He put his hand back over his heart. “And correct me if I’m wrong, but I think you have a similar connection with your sister.” Nik waited for her to deny it…she didn’t. “Look, I know you don’t know me, and I know that you have absolutely no reason to trust me. But that’s exactly what I’m asking you to do.”

  He leaned forward again and trapped her hazel green eyes with his so that she couldn’t look away. “Emma, please. I need you to tell me what happened that night.”

  ***

  Caught up in those mesmerizing eyes of his, Emma almost believed him. He certainly sounded sincere when he wanted to. But how could she tell him what had really happened that night, when she couldn’t bring herself to remember?

  Looking away to watch the dancers, who had gone from slow dancing to Just Like Heaven to fast dancing to Piano Man, she gave him the same story she gave everyone else. “All I remember is being at the carnival with Keira. I remember walking through the field where everyone parked their cars; though it was pretty late so most people had already left. Ours was parked way out towards the tree line where the woods started. Next thing I remember, I was in the ER, and Keira was gone.”

  Sitting back in his seat, he followed her gaze over to the dancers, who were now harassing the bartender for another drink. “You’re lying.” He sounded disappointed.

  Her eyes whipped back to his face. “What did you say?”

  “You’re lying. I think you remember a whole lot more than you’re letting on.”

  “How dare you?” she hissed at him. “Who the hell do you think you are, accusing me like that?”

  Nik glanced over at the salt and pepper shakers, which had started to vibrate on the table.

  “What reason would I have to lie?” she continued, completely oblivious to what she was doing. “You come waltzing in here, someone I’ve never even met, wanting me to give up all these supposed secrets you think I have, and when I don’t say what you want to hear, you accuse me of lying?!” As Emma’s voice got louder and louder, the shakers started bouncing into each other.

  “I know you’re lying, Emma,” he said distractedly as he watched them. “You totally suck at it.”

  He waved a hand at her when she started sputtering. “Don’t go puffing up at me and getting your feathers all ruffled. You do. You suck. You’re a terrible liar. First of all, you couldn’t look me in the eye when you told me that well-rehearsed crap that you’ve probably been telling the authorities for years. Second, you’re getting waaaay too defensive. Only liars get so defensive. And third,” With this he leaned across the booth until his face was inches from hers. “I can hear your heart. You’d fail a polygraph miserably, Em.”

  Emma frowned at him. He can HEAR my heart? How in the world…? She listened to the noise in the room: The music, the laughter of the drunken couple, the clinking of glasses as Ned put up those he had washed. Pushing back against the seat to try and put some distance between them, she inquired sarcastically, “You heard my heart beat?” At his nod, she said, “So you are a dog.” She shook her head in mock regret. “The hot ones always are.”

  Instead of being offended, Nik cocked his head to the side and gave her a charming smile. “You think I’m hot?”

  “I am so out of here.” Emma slammed down the remainder of her drink, grabbed her bag and stood up. “Don’t contact me again.” And with that, she turned and marched towards the door, determined to go home to her boring life and forget all about this fraud.

  She was stupid to think some stranger would just show up out of nowhere, after seven years, and know something about her sister that neither she nor the police had found.

  Nik caught the salt and pepper mid-air as they flew at him, set them down and slid out of the booth and followed her out, pointing at old Ned and shaking his head at him in warning that he’d better keep his happy ass right where it was.

  Although he didn’t look thrilled about it, the old bartender decided to be smart this time.

  Outside in the parking lot, Nik ordered, “Emma! Dammit, STOP!”

  “Go to hell!” Keys already in hand, she beeped her car open while still a few feet away. Wrenching the door open, she started to get in. But instead of the empty space she expected between her and her seat, she slammed into six foot three inches of hard-ass muscle that was suddenly between her and her escape.

  Emma let out a little shriek, jumping back and hitting the inside of the car door with her hip. “Ow!” Rubbing the sore spot, she glared up at Nik’s unsmiling face. “How the hell did you do that? I didn’t even hear you coming…” She snapped her mouth shut. “Know what? I don’t want to know. Get out of the way, Nik.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that, Emma.” Putting his left hand up on the door window, he effectively caged her in. “Look, can we go back to your house?”

  “What? NO! We most certainly can NOT go back to my house! I don’t even like you! Now get out of my way before I scream. I want to go home! ALONE!” She couldn’t believe that just a short time ago she was longing for more excitement in her life.

  Nik rolled his eyes. “I’m not trying to get in your pants, Emma.”

  She huffed indignantly as his eyes roamed down over her breasts.

  “Not that it hasn’t crossed my mind,” he clarified. “But trust me, if I wanted to fuck you, you’d already be flat on your back and screaming my name.”<
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  She could not believe the arrogance of this guy. Although, on second thought, maybe she could. With a face and body like his, she was sure he had women falling all over themselves vying for his attention all the time. She doubted they’d care much about what an ass he actually was.

  Emma opened her mouth to retort, but she was too shocked to think of a thing to say, so she just stood there with her mouth hanging open.

  “Close your mouth, Emma, you’re gonna get flies in there.”

  The bastard grinned as she snapped her mouth shut and then immediately opened it again to sputter at him anew.

  Unable to coherently say anything that would properly communicate her complete disdain for this man, she shut her mouth with an audible click. Clenching her jaw together so hard it made her teeth hurt, she gave him one last, hateful look, then ducked under his arm, shoving her keys back into her bag as she stomped away again. Walking home was preferable to standing here arguing with this lug head. Thank God she’d worn her sneakers. She’d come get her car early tomorrow morning.

  She heard her car door slam, and then his boots jogging across the pavement as Nik swiftly caught up to her.

  “Emma, I’m sorry.”

  She didn’t respond, but kept walking, turning left on the main road and heading towards her house.

  She didn’t hear him following her. Had he let her go? Somehow, she couldn’t imagine him giving up that easily.

  After a few minutes, she glanced back to see he had stopped on the side of the road, obviously hoping that she would do the same. She didn’t. Screw him.

  He tried again to get her to stop and listen to him. “Really, I am sorry. I don’t know what gets into me sometimes.”

  She increased her pace.

  “Hey, how about we stop all this silly bickering, and go back to your house so we can talk privately? I swear I’ll behave myself.”

  She continued to ignore him. She just wanted to get home. Get home and forget this gorgeous man who came out of nowhere, making promises she wasn’t sure she wanted him to keep.