Page 30 of Taste of Forever
“No touching, I promise.” Laith brought up his hands, wiggling his long fingers, then brought his wrists together in front of him. “You can even tie me up. Actually…” He let hishands fall to his sides. “Maybe not a good idea. I might enjoy that too much.”
For once, my nerves were too frayed and my exhaustion too deep to crack a smile. “You’re not coming into my house.”
It didn’t matter that he was right. That I didn’t want to be home alone. Maybe that was the reason I was still out here talking to him. But, whatever the case, letting him into my place was a step too far.
In my mind, bringing Laith inside crossed a bigger line than him kissing me. It was way more than nearly having an orgasm while he drank my blood. Worse than talking to a handsome stranger in a bar.
This was the home I shared with Justin. We made memories within those walls. We made plans, had arguments, and made up from arguments. No matter the cracks in our relationship, it was between us and no one else. This vampire was not part of our life.
Going to the blood bank and then the club had been a mistake. Meeting Laith had been a mistake. He was just a convenient distraction. It was probably better for both of us to never cross paths again.
He didn’t push the issue, instead shoving his hands into his jacket pockets. “There’s no need to be embarrassed about your secret Beanie Baby collection or whatever you’re hiding but, fine.” He turned to lean against the exterior wall, propping one booted foot behind him. “I’ll keep watch from outside.”
Again, I was too exhausted to respond to his joke and felt my teeth grinding. “No, you need to leave. And don’t come back here.”
His smirk was infuriating. “Worried I’ll scare your boyfriend off?”
“No, just… whatever, I don’t care. Stay out here or go, just leave me alone.”
I patted my jeans pockets and…there were my keys, for fuck’s sake. Heaving a sigh of relief, I turned my back on Laith to unlock the door.
“I’m staying.” His tone was serious for once. “Sleep well, Heather. No one will bother you until I have to go before sun up.”
I didn’t respond as I went inside. Didn’t even meet his eye as I turned to shut and lock the door.
He would keep his word and stay out there all damn night. For some reason, I knew he would do exactly as he said: keep watch like a loyal bodyguard until he retreated with the darkness of night.
Guilt stabbed through me. Now I felt like an asshole for not letting him in. You were supposed to keep stray animals out of your house, not people trying to help.
I raked my fingers through my hair, blowing out a long breath. “Don’t be stupid, Heather,” I muttered, digging through my purse for my phone.
Laith’s behavior was weird and obsessive. He shouldn’t have followed me home, shouldn’t have kissed me, shouldn’t have insisted on staying all night to protect me. If he were human, I would have called the cops.
So why did I feel a little bit calmer, knowing he was out there? Why did I carry a smidge of regret for not letting him inside?
Once I located my phone in the great purse abyss, I called Justin. His phone rang several times before going to voicemail. Not surprising, but disappointing all the same. I ended the call and typed out a text message.
Me: Hey, let me know when you’re coming home.
I almost added ‘miss you’ at the end, but ended up deleting the words before hitting Send. I was already needy enough to be texting and calling while he was out with friends.
At least someone wanted to be near me all night. Even if that someone wanted to spend forever drinking my blood.
Chapter 8
Heather
Drew, my longtime office partner, turned to me in the taco truck line. “Did you hear that Munroe is retiring?”
I was only half listening, my stomach growling at the promise of rich, savory food. “Oh, no kidding? Finally letting go of that cushy supervisor job, huh?”
“More like it’s being ripped away because he can’t dig his claws in any deeper. I lost count of how many times he’s been caught sleeping at his desk. It’s a miracle he stayed in for that long.”
I snorted. “You applying for it?”
“Nah, I don’t think I’d get it. Sergio and Frost have more seniority than me. It’ll probably go to one of them.”
“And then they’ll probably camp there until retirement before letting one of us have a chance at it.”
