RED NIGHT ~ VAMPIRE FILES TRILOGY (Book 1)

16

"I simply thought you were offering," he says.

"I already told you that will never happen. So...moving right along," I say, raising my eyebrows in a smug way. "So back to Gabe."

"You might consider waiting to know someone before letting them stick their tongue in your mouth," he says, the faint glow back in his eyes.

Jealous? I doubt it. He's the cat and I'm the mouse. I'm merely an amusement for him, but I didn't realize he knew about that kiss. I think I'm blushing, which annoys the heck out of me.

"Who I kiss is none of your business. How did you know that Gabe knew what you were, and why didn't you say anything to me?"

"It becomes my business when you seduce me moments later. I don't care for seconds, Samantha." He gives me a hard look.

"Seconds? Oh, you are—"

"And I always know who my enemy is. Besides, I could smell him in the building before I realized you were involved with him. As for telling you, I was curious to see if he would confide in you or continue with the lie. Are you planning to take him to your bed?" he asks, with a new edge in his voice.

I'm thrown by his personal question, and I know my jaw is hanging open before I close it. Is there no limit to his forwardness?

"What? No! I mean, it's none of your business if I do. He's a nice guy and I like him. That's all you need to know," I fume.

He looks as though he's struggling. I'm not sure what goes through his head. Do vampires think like a rational person? Or does their condition include schizophrenia? There is no way of knowing what I'm dealing with here. I'm in over my head.

"I'll make it my business when your lover wants to kill me. It becomes rather difficult to keep you alive and keep an eye out for your Hunter at the same time," he says with barely concealed anger.

He must hate Gabe, but why? I don't think I should tell him that Gabe gave me some goodies for protection. This could be another problem.

"Gabe is not my lover! I don't have a lover! And stop talking about my sex life like it's any concern of yours!" I jump as the whistle for the kettle starts to blow from the kitchen.

I take a deep cleansing breath before rising to make my tea.

"You want him. I could smell your desire when you came home. I considered killing him then, but you distracted me," Adam says.

I think the temperature in the room dropped a bit. I look at the patio doors before I remember that this happened when Adam and Zac faced off. I look back at Adam. He certainly looks serious when he discusses killing Gabe.

"Don't you dare kill anyone! You told me you weren't a killer. You said that you hunt those that do."

"Hunters do not count—not entirely human. And I never said I wasn't a killer. I simply stated that I do not need to kill." He says this casually, as if commenting on the weather. Is he serious or merely trying to upset me? His moods change on a dime.

"What do you mean by you "could smell my desire"? Are you trying to be weird?" I ask with growing concern. I know nothing about vampires, even as one sits in my living-room.

"Just that. Vampires have a sharp sense of smell, taste, and hearing, as well as enhanced endurance, staying power..." he says, letting his words sink in.

He watches my reaction. I won't be baited. I've figured out some of his games, at least. I raise my eyebrows at him and sip my tea to show that I don't care.

"Just as I know you desire me even if your mind won't admit it."

That bit of information is almost as awful as if he told me he could read my mind or that he has X-ray vision. I might hate vampires, all vampires—especially the one in front of me.

Still, I try hard to show I'm not affected by his words. "I think you're getting your smells mixed up. You're confusing desire for disgust." I go back to ignoring his comment.

"What is a Hunter?" I ask.

"You can ask your lover before I kill him," he says casually.

"Don't hurt Gabe. If you do, I'll stake you myself."

We both know my words are an empty threat.

"And why did the temperature drop when you and Zac were facing off at the restaurant?"

I know I didn't imagine that.

"I make no promises. If he stays out of my way, he might live," he says before rising to look out the patio doors again. He ignores my question. "I am concerned that we have not heard from Zachariah. I believe he's up to something."

"Maybe he left town. You said that he usually runs away when you get this close," I say.

"Something's not right," Adam says.

"Do you have a cell phone? I don't even know where you are when you're not here. What if something comes up? How would I reach you?" I ask, sipping my tea.

"Here is my number. I'm staying at the Hyatt, not far from here. Room number 351," he says, handing me a piece of paper with a number written in a neat, precise hand. I almost laugh at the notion of a vampire with a cell phone. Smiling, I take the paper from him. He raises an eyebrow at me.

"Are you sleeping on my sofa again?" I can't stifle a yawn.

And then I remember my latest dream. "Were you ever human...I mean, how did you become a vampire?" I'm feeling shy again, like I'm asking something rude and personal.

I don't know why—he certainly doesn't seem to have the same hang ups about invading my personal boundaries.

He looks at me, and I think I see a moment of unguarded pain flash across his face before the usual hard mask falls into place. Was it my question? Maybe nobody has ever asked him this before. Now I do feel guilty for asking.

"It's a long story. Another night perhaps," he says, and looks back into the darkness. What is he thinking of, I wonder?

"Were you ever married?" I ask before I can stop myself.

My dream is running through my mind and I have to know. I study him closely.

"Once, a long time ago," he says without looking at me. "I won't be needing your sofa tonight. I need to feed, but I'll be close."

And without ever looking back at me, he's gone. This time I do run to the balcony in time to see him look up at me from under the street light. We look at each other for a few moments then he turns and disappears into the shadows. I close and lock the doors, for all the good it does.

I may have found Adam's soft spot. He looked more vulnerable in that one moment than I thought him capable of. I'm even more convinced that the woman in my dream was his wife from long ago.

How would I know that, and what is a Hunter, exactly? What else is out there that I don't know about?