Page 19 of The Guardian's Curse

Sharp fangs descended, glinting in the moonlight. A drop of venom dripped from one tooth and splashed onto her skin. He scooped her into his lap, and with no fanfare, he sank his teeth into her throat.

The pain was quick and sharp. Electric cold spread from his teeth as one hand tangled into her hair, keeping her throat exposed. His other hand settled between her thighs. The icy tingle of his bite shot down her spine, colliding with the fiery burn of his fingers below. Like hurricane winds, they spiraled around her. She was the eye of the storm, at the center of something terrifying and amazing. Amidst the roaring winds, she heard the waterfall of piano keys. The world trembled around them.

The phone buzzed against the nightstand, screaming an obnoxious alarm. Shoshanna gasped and opened her eyes to find a notable lack of sexy vampires in her bed. There was a throbbing ache between her legs. She slid one hand down, and the lightest touch of her fingers sent a shiver twisting through her. Wet warmth soaked through her panties.

Holy shit.

A furry tail snapped against her cheek, and she looked up to see Magneto sitting on the pillow next to her. His silent glare was thoroughly judgmental, as if he knew she’d just been having a sex dream about her new employer.

“Who I haven’t even seen,” she muttered. Magneto’s eyes narrowed. “What are you looking at? You don’t even have balls anymore. You cannot possibly relate.”

She sure as hell wasn’t going to chase the Big O with the damned cat watching her. With a growl of frustration, she rolled out of bed, still clinging to the hazy bliss of her dream. There was a sting at her neck, and she leaned close to the mirror to inspect her skin. It was unmarked, but she could still feel his phantom kiss.

“Good lord,” she muttered. She hadn’t had a dream like that...maybe ever. A steady pulse throbbed between her legs. She stole a glance at the shower. It was tempting to take care of the mounting frustration, but what if he heard her? What if he knew somehow?

After covering her hair with a shower cap, she trudged into the shower. The warm water cascading down her back reignited the memory of his touch on her skin. Her fingers drifted downward, finding that warm, ready place. Closing her eyes, she tried to hold on to the fragments of the dream, of those lips on her breast, and strangely, his teeth in her throat.

Bracing one arm against the wall of the shower, she stroked and circled, imagining the handsome vampire’s hands instead of her own. His blue gaze stared down at her, filled with hunger and lust.

I hunger, Miss York.

Pressure gathered into a desperate ball of flame between her thighs. Energy pulsed from her, and there was that one perfect, frozen moment of pleasure as her body tightened. She breathed hard, leaning against the granite wall of the shower. Not the most satisfying, but it was better than walking around all day thinking about him.

After scrubbing herself from head to toe, she emerged to find Magneto sitting on the bathroom counter. His yellow eyes followed her, as if to say I know what you just did.

“Don’t judge me,” she muttered. “If you’d seen him, you wouldn’t blame me one bit.”

But she hadn’t seen Alistair, not really. And yet, she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was him. Still, she did not need to spend her days having sex dreams about the vampire. He was protecting her from Elliott by being a bigger, badder monster, and she would be a fool to forget that.

After getting dressed, she pondered her suitcase. Completely unpacking felt too much like accepting this strange situation. Instead, she placed one set of clothes in a drawer and left the rest in her suitcase. After feeding Magneto his morning feast of pungent fish chunks, she settled back in bed with her phone.

Late last night, she’d texted her boss Jolene with a story about a stomach bug that would keep her home for a few days. Hopefully, Elliott would be dealt with by the end of the week, and she wouldn’t have to maintain her lie too long. She hesitated to text Ruby, her best friend and fellow witch. Everything with Ruby was a family affair, so Ruby’s mother, grandmother, and aunties would all know Shoshanna’s business by lunchtime. Still, if their positions were reversed, she’d be furious if she only found out after the fact that Ruby had been in trouble.

Hey, give me a call when you have time. Got a weird situation and wanted to let you know.

Ruby was never away from her phone for more than a few minutes. Shoshanna managed to finger-comb her hair and apply mascara to one eye by the time her phone started ringing. She hit the speakerphone and kept working on her other eye. “Sho! Are you okay?” Ruby asked.

“I’m okay,” she said hesitantly.

There was boisterous laughter in the background, and Ruby let out a furious tirade in Cantonese. “Like a bunch of little kids,” she complained. A door slammed in the background, and the noise faded.

Ruby worked at her family’s upscale health food store, Jade Breeze. In addition to expensive organic juices and local produce, the Wangs also sold protective herbs and tea blends that were quickly becoming famous. Ruby had put the store on the map with her “Dusklight Blend” sleeping tea, which she’d only named such because Auntie K said she couldn’t call it Better than Ambien. The last time Ruby put a batch up for sale, the customers were lined up at four in the morning to get their orders.

“How’s business?” Shoshanna asked.

“Aunt Eileen is working on a hangover tea and trying to pay college kids to try it, but I keep telling her that her sales pitch sounds like she’s the villain in a horror movie,” she complained. “We’re working on her marketing skills. What’s up?”

“Well, for starters, I spent the night in Midnight Springs,” she said.

“Damn, girl. Did you get laid?”

Almost. “Not exactly. It’s a vampire’s house.”

“What?!” Ruby spluttered. “If you banged a vampire without telling me, this friendship is off.”

She laughed. “No banging. Do you remember me telling you about the stalker boyfriend from college?” She told Ruby the story of Elliott showing up at her place, up to getting dropped off here at the mysterious Alistair’s house.

“Oh my God! Are you okay? What about the kitty?”

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