Kyden circled the vampire. “Some vamps, especially new ones, have trouble controlling their bloodlust.”
Had anything ever sounded so absurd? “Some can control it?”
“Most do.” He gave the vamp’s face another good hard look before he joined Nexi. “The majority of vamps will only take what they need to survive, glamour the human, and carry on with their business.”
A warm breeze swept through the night, but it did nothing to ease the coldness in her bones. She snorted. “Now I’m getting why this has to remain a secret. A human would be crazy to ever allow that.”
Kyden jerked his chin in agreement, then he turned to Haven. “You’re done here.”
The vision faded, leaving only the drained body, and Haven placed her hands upon her hips. “Dream on. I’m going with Nexi.”
Kyden drew his sword from his scabbard. “Finn would hand me my ass if you were put in danger. You’ve never come with me before and I don’t plan to change that. Please don’t argue.”
Haven nibbled her lip, regarding him, then she accepted defeat. “You’re right, he’d bury you.” She bounced over to Nexi, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. “Be safe.” Then she skipped off, and within three steps, she’d vanished into the portal.
While seeing someone disappear into thin air was enough to leave Nexi shaking her head in shock, watching Kyden stab his sword into the man’s stomach made that last event not nearly as baffling.
Before her eyes, the man’s face became fuller, and his fancy suit once again hugged a middle-aged body. Even the decomposed-flesh scent in the air cleared, and Nexi leaned in, noticing the man had an added gunshot wound to his head. “That is beyond freaky.”
Kyden sheathed his sword, turning to the street. “Freaky, maybe, but necessary.”
She grabbed his very thick, very muscular forearm, enjoying how his muscles flexed beneath her fingertips. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
He looked to her fingers around his arm before his eyes slowly caught hers. “Not that I’m aware of. I imagine, though, you’d care to enlighten me.”
She swallowed hard and dropped her hand, fighting the warmth pooling low in her belly. “If you haven’t noticed, you’re wearing a leather kilt and are half na**d. What’s the plan, hide in the shadows and be all spy-like?”
“I don’t pretend to understand how to act spy-like.” His brows drew together with his frown. “Guardians’ gear has a magical glamour placed upon it. You, as a supernatural, will see the guardian gear. Humans will see regular street clothes.”
She stated the obvious. “Then why did I see your whole get-up that first night in my house when I was still human?” At the slow arch of his brow, she didn’t need him to explain. “Because I wasn’t really human, right?”
He nodded. “You, as in your true self, are a supernatural. The glamour on our gear only works on humans. Even if your magical abilities were blocked, making you mortal, you’re genetic makeup is supernatural. Therefore, the glamour wouldn’t work on you.”
Nexi didn’t recall ever seeing any half-naked warriors walking down the street, but maybe that was because she’d been such a homebody. She figured, too, if she had seen such an image, she would’ve assumed it were a costume and explained it away. “Well, that glamour thingy is—” She scanned over his squared chest glistening with moisture from the warm night, down to his rippled abdomen before she forced her attention to his grin. “Convenient.”
Chapter Four
A glass balcony wrapped around the upper level of Crimson Rose. The walls of the dance club were painted black with a crackled blood-red faux finish. Steel tables were scattered around the large rectangular room and candles on top provided a warm glow. The dance floor was straight ahead with a large, gold cage hanging from the ceiling that held two female vampires grinding to the techno music.
On a Friday night in Salt Lake City, clearly the vamps in attendance were looking for fun. Too bad Kyden wasn’t here to indulge, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t enjoying himself. He leaned against the bar and turned to the source of his amusement.
Nexi’s mouth had dropped open the moment she spotted the crowd on the dance floor, and ten minutes later, it still hadn’t shut. Up until this point, she hadn’t seen this many supernaturals gathered in one place. Even in the Otherworld, the Council’s Guard was typically working or sleeping. It wasn’t often everyone gathered at the same time.
She currently eyed a vampire and a mortal groping each other. Kyden, though, was tempted to do the same with her. At the images racing through his mind, he shifted on his feet as the shorts under his kilt felt too tight.
Leaning an elbow against the bar, he considered Nexi’s appeal. He preferred women with a bit of bite to their personalities. This woman had more than enough to tempt him. For the past month, no matter what had come out of his mouth, even if he’d been gentle, she’d practically removed his manhood with a few sharp words.
Maybe that was why he found her so alluring. Perhaps that was even why he’d offered to train her. He’d be fooling himself if he didn’t admit he wanted to explore his interest in her, and he’d taken the chance to ensure he could.
“I’m so confused.”
He blinked out of his thoughts, discovering Nexi’s eyebrows were furrowed over her pretty eyes. “Confused?”
“Human’s can’t see the fangs, right?” She finally glanced to him, her expression tight with confusion. “The glamour you have on your whole getup works for vampires, too?
He nodded.
She pursed her lips, giving the crowd another look before turning to him again. “I just saw a mortal lick a vampire’s fang. Meaning, he wasn’t using his glamour on that human.” Her frown looked adorable. “I thought humans didn’t know about supernaturals?”
“Most don’t.” He admired her soft-looking skin, the sweet freckles on her nose, and the gentle curves of her face. Forcing himself to look her in the eye again, he focused on her question. “The mortals in the club are either in love with their vampire, or are addicted to the high they get from them.”
“The high—like a drug?”
He chuckled at her wide eyes. “When a vampire feeds, it’s intensely erotic. I’m sure you can imagine how addictive something like that could be for a human.”
She hesitated, gave him a long look. “Actually, no, I can’t imagine that.” She shuddered with a disgusted expression. “Besides that bit of grossness, aren’t they worried they’ll tell everyone about…you know…their secret?”
Kyden glimpsed to the dance floor and watched a human woman stare adoringly at a male vamp, wondering how to explain. “The blood sharing can create a bond. Think of the mortal as the vampire’s pet. They’re extremely loyal to their vampire and would keep this secret if it was asked of them.” When the crease between her brow lessened, he added, “More importantly, vampires live by strict rules enforced by their leaders, which keeps things safe.”
Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Now you’ve lost me, which is actually surprising since I didn’t think I could possibly be more confused.” She pushed off the bar, turning to face him dead on. “The Council doesn’t rule over vampires?”
“In a way they do.” She stared intently at him, and his damned fingers twitched to grab her and make her forget these thoughts altogether. “But vamps and wolves have their own leaders who preside over them, just as Briggs explained to you with the Patriarch. Vampires, though, are governed by Mistresses.’”
Disbelief flashed over her expression, so he added, “Think of it this way: the Council protects the mortal lives in gratitude for allowing supernaturals to flourish in this realm—a treaty made back at the beginning of time—even if mortals don’t know it. The supernatural leaders in the Earthworld provide safety to the supernaturals that live here.”
She gave her head a bewildered shake. “Sort of like the government and police force, but just weirder?”
He chuckled. “Much like that.”
She exhaled and looked out to the dance floor, as the music switched to a slow, seductive song. Her eyes were inquisitive as she studied the crowd. He liked that about her; she held a tenacity to find answers. No matter how crazy this must be for her, she took it all in stride, and that he respected.
He also liked how her jeans hugged her lower half, as well as the tightness of her black tank top showing off enough cl**vage to keep his interest. She had quite the sexy, toned body, a body that he currently couldn’t stop looking at while imagining what lay beneath those tight clothes. He knew his type, and Nexi was his type, and then some.
Kyden had always stuck to more casual relationships than anything he’d call meaningful. Nexi, and her fiery personality, made him rethink that choice of lifestyle. In fact, he intended to start pursuing that avenue to see if this chemistry with her could lead somewhere.