“Fiancés,” Lara corrected him.
“Fiancés,” Detective Carter repeated in monotone. He wrapped an arm over her shoulder and steered her toward the gap in the fence. “Milo is your husband?”
Lara nodded.
“And he’s been haunting you about four years?”
She nodded again, leaning into Detective Carter’s warmth. It was almost over.
“I owe you an apology. I was certain you were responsible for the death surrounding this house.” Detective Carter stopped just before the sidewalk, dragging a hand through his hair. “I'm sorry, Lara. I’m not surprised your fiancés didn’t survive the possessions; it can be a traumatic experience...” He shuddered, his eyes clouding over, as if he were reliving a disturbing memory. The arm around her waist tightened. His voice deepened. “I supposed you’d like to press charges against your ex-husband?”
“How would one arrest a ghost?” She chuckled at the thought of Milo in handcuffs, then winced. Detective Carter’s fingers pressed into her side, digging just beneath her ribcage.
“I can’t give away all the department’s secrets,” he replied. The tip of his tongue slid along the bottom of his teeth.
“Do you know why Milo was unable to takeover Cassius’—I mean—Mr. Broxsby’s body?”
“No. Nor do I care.”
His curt reply sent a shiver rolling down Lara’s spine. Something felt wrong, very wrong. She leaned away from the detective, unsure why she no longer felt safe in his embrace. Her gaze moved over his body, rising from his feet to his chin, and froze on his full lips. She knew, before her eyes moved higher, that the man staring back at her wouldn’t be Detective Carter.
“Milo,” she whispered.
“Hey, baby. Did you miss me?” Milo’s cold voice danced across her skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps. The hand wrapped around her waist constricted.
“He’s a cop, Milo. Give him back his body.”
“No. I like it.” His free hand gathered her hair into a ponytail. He leaned closer; his lips brushed across her forehead. “There are things that I’m going to do to you with this body that I haven’t done to you in years.”
He wrenched her head back and pressed his mouth to hers. His tongue forced itself past her lips. She swung her fist, striking him in the face, and jerked away, struggling in his iron grip. A trickle of blood ran down his chin. The grip on her hair tightened, and he yanked her head backward until she stared into his glowing black eyes.
“I love it when you fight me.”
“Fuck you, Milo!” She swung again. He caught her arm with his free hand and twisted it behind her back, torqueing it until she cried out.
“I was going to let you enjoy our sexual reunion,” his fingers curled, entangling themselves further in her hair, “but now, I think I’ll torture you until you beg me to stop.”
He dragged her toward the house, darkness clouding his face.
“And I have no intention of granting that wish.”
CHAPTER 8
It couldn’t have been more perfect. The way her body had moved with his. The way the passion in her kiss matched his own. He had dreamt about taking her body since the first time he laid eyes on her, and finally, he had her in his arms. If it were up to him, he would be rolling around in bed with her again right now, but instead, Dane’s text sent him racing out of there.
Get out. You’re in danger. Meet me outside by my car.
He was in danger. How? What had made him say that? Cassius needed answers.
After he darted out of her house, he started up the block looking for his car until he finally came upon Detective Carter’s car. When had he gotten back there? He knew he saw him driving off when he stood next to Lara as she waved to him from the window. He saw him speeding off.
And now he was back?
Maybe he hadn’t left in the first place. Maybe he had just circled the block in case of any funny business. Like, apparently, this. It wouldn’t have been a bad idea, knowing how all of Lara’s lovers eventually wound up dead at her house.
But he wasn’t Lara’s lover... at least he hadn’t been until tonight.
Thoughts of the way her body moved over him came crashing right to the front of his mind once more.
“Cassius, take me,” she begged.
Fuck, she felt so good. His dick began to throb once more, wanting, needing her all over again.
Shaking his head, trying to snap out of his thoughts, he slowly walked up to Dane’s car. The windows were tinted, so he needed to get closer to peer inside. Peeking in, he noticed no one was there.
No Dane? How could that be? Where is he?
He fished out his cell phone from his pocket then re-read the text. Dane had specified to meet him at his car, but then, he was nowhere to be found. Cassius dialed the detective’s number; his heartbeat speeding up. Why was it ringing with no response?
Five rings later, his voicemail picked up.
“Dammit!”
Spinning around, he threw his phone back into his pocket and then looked back toward Lara’s house. It was dark, but the dim light coming from the bedroom was still on. He needed to head back.
Maybe Dane tried to enter through the back of the house, and Cassius hadn’t noticed him as he exited through the front?
Sure, that could have been a logical explanation, but something just felt way off to Cassius.
He wasn’t far from Lara’s house, with Dane’s car left only up the block, but as his legs sped up in pace, he felt a million miles away.
Something wasn’t right. He could feel it deep down inside ever since Dane’s text message. Obviously, something had triggered it, but what? He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, which bothered the hell out of him.
Racing back toward the house, his breathing picked up, turning erratic. Chopped breaths left his lungs as he bent in half. Once he straightened, he rang the bell twice. Not waiting a single second, he pounded on the door.
Where was Lara? Why was she not coming to the door?
“Lara!” he yelled as rap after rap slammed on the wooden front door. “Lara, open the door!”
No sound from behind it... she wasn’t coming. He knew there was only one thing left to do.
Taking in a deep breath, he backed up and then attempted to break down the door. His arm throbbed as he gave it his all. And yet, it didn’t take much for the door to swing open. One hit from Cassius was all it took for the door to come crashing off its top hinges. There were quite a few pluses to being a vampire.
“Lara!” he bellowed again from the top of his lungs, standing in the doorway. It only took a few seconds for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room, but once they did, he took in his surroundings.
His head snapped from left to right until his eyes finally focused on the second-floor landing; the small light from her bedroom was the only light on in the house.
Rushing up the stairs, he called her name again. “Lara! Lara, where are you?”
There was still no response as he reached the second floor. No sign of Lara, or Dane for that matter, in sight. What the hell was going on? Where was she? Where was Dane? He ran until he stood in front of the third door, then he came to a halt at the entrance of the bedroom.
His dark eyes widened as he took in the scene before him: Lara, naked on the bed, tied up by both her hands and feet, resembling a starfish. Her mouth was sealed shut with a piece of silver duct tape. Her eyes staring back at him in horror as she jerked back and forth on the bed.