Page 21 of Unhallowed Murder
He dried her feet with a towel, lifted her, settled her back on the chaise the right direction, and finally pulled one of the dining chairs to the foot of the giant wave, so he could sit and massage her feet.
The chaise was rounded so she sat up at a gentle angle, and the second ‘wave’ supported her bent knees.
Five seconds into the massage, a low, involuntary groan escaped. The vampire’s fingers weremagic.
The visual of him kneeled before her had shifted when he’d moved her, so she still saw him as subservient while he massaged her feet. She was in control, still,overhim even while he forced the muscles of her feet to relax under his oh-so-skillful fingers.
“Were you a massage therapist during one of your lives?”
“I prefer to think of them as identities, and no. I have a better understanding of the human body than most medicaldoctors, though.” He pressed a spot that wasn’t quite under her heel and wasn’t quite her arch, and every muscle in her leg relaxed. Another long, low moan escaped, and Josef gave a sexy little chuckle.
Everything was fine until he started working on her toes, and heat travelled to her groin. She wondered what those fingers might feel like in other places, and suddenly, it was too much.
Josef seemed to know, and he backed off. She checked her shields — still in place. Her scent had probably given it away.
“Close your eyes for me.” His tone was more request than command, so she did. “Long, slow strokes. Breathe with them. Let it happen. There you are. I’m going to match your pulse; seven beats per stroke. Find the rhythm and let it transport you,Bellula.”
She closed her eyes and sensed him using her heartbeat as his drumbeat. It put her back in charge again. Her heart slowed, and so did his hand.
The candles flickered through her closed lids, the faint hint of jasmine in the oil soothed the cat, and the vampire’s hands kept her relaxed.
The sounds of the city and traffic faded.
Chapter Twelve
Josef breathed easy when he was certain she was in a deep enough sleep he could stop. He wanted her to feel comfortable with him, and he’d succeeded. She needed to be in control, but she didn’t really want to be. He’d have to help her with that, but it wasn’t going to happen tonight.
He wiped his hands with a towel, took his shirt off, and settled in beside the sleeping Lieutenant. The long-lived are inherently patient, but he found himself looking forward to the day when he could hold her this relaxed while she was awake.
He telepathed for one of the wolves to come with a blanket, and he covered her while making sure the blanket stayed between them. As much as he wanted to hold her, it wouldn’t do for him to make her cold. The evening was chilly, but she was a tiger and would be fine with a blanket.
Josef let her sleep several hours in his arms, and he waited until he had no choice but to wake her. He was content to merely hold her, but he had things to do before dawn, and she’d likely need to go home to get ready for her day. He’d asked Cindy to stay on duty after closing, and he telepathed down to ask her to fry a pound of bacon and a dozen eggs.
His little tigress enjoyed her food, and he enjoyed feeding her.
And so, he woke her at five in the morning with an offering of eggs, bacon, coffee, and orange juice. She was confused, then embarrassed, and then ill-tempered, but the food mollified the temper.
“You should’ve awakened me.”
“You slept so well, myBellula. How long has it been since you had someone watch over you and keep you safe while you slept?”
He heard her thoughts, clear as day.Since before my mother was slaughtered.
Ah, and it seemed he had some of the answer of why she felt so fiercely about the dead she was responsible for.
“I love hearing your thoughts, my fierce little tigress, and if that was intentional then thank you, but if it wasn’t, I don’t want to take advantage while you haven’t fully awakened.”
Alarm, dismay, and then distance between them once again, but that was okay. He was building trust.
“This will take some getting used to,” she said, anchoring her shields and settling into them. “I appreciate the reminder.”
“Thank you for not being upset with me.”
She shrugged. “The tiger hunts. So does the vampire. We work around our instincts.”
“You’ll let me know if I can help with your investigation again.”
“I will. Thank you for the offer.”
