But why?
“I don’t know.”
He sucked in a deep breath. “You don’t know? Well, I guess then it’s going to be a long night of swimming in a cold swampy lake. I hope you brought your swimsuit and a change of clothes because if we don’t find him before midnight, we’re going to have to hold off on performing the ritual until tomorrow night.”
“Maybe he’s not in the lake...”
Cassius blinked twice and turned to face her as he stopped at a light after exiting the highway. He knew it. “I beg your pardon?”
“I may not have given a complete truthful statement while I was being interrogated.”
I fucking knew it.
He bit his tongue so as not to explode. If he were going to extract any more information from her, he knew he had to proceed with caution. “Okay, why?”
Lara shrugged. “Fear.”
“Fear? Of Milo.”
She nodded quickly. “Even in death, he’s able to have some control over me. I’m tired of it, Cassius. I just want to be free of him, once and for all.”
It made sense, but he wished she would have told him this sooner. “And you will be, but you’re going to have to tell me where you buried him... which I’m assuming you did?”
She nodded once more.
Cassius banked a left turning onto his street. “Okay, so you tell me where Milo’s body is buried, and we can dig him up and bring him back to Ethan’s. Once we get the ritual out of the way, he won’t ever be able to have any more power over you again. Can you do that?”
“Yes.” Lara yawned. “But since it’s still early, do you think we can rest first? I have a terrible headache. I’d like to lie down for a bit.”
Cassius parked the car in front of his house and then flicked his wrist, checking his watch. It was twenty to nine. They had some time until the midnight hour was upon them. “I guess that’s fine. We have a little bit of time before we need to get back. Here, take my keys, and I’ll be just be a sec, I want to grab something out of the trunk.” He dropped the keys in her hand.
“Thank you,” Lara smiled and leaned into him, placing a kiss on his cheek.
As she hopped out of the car, he watched her make her way up to his house.
His eyes stayed on her as she swung open the front door and then spun around to meet his gaze.
“Aren’t you going to come in?” she said in a loud voice.
Fuck it. His case notes could stay in the trunk a little longer. It wouldn’t hurt. Nodding, he pressed the button on the door for the windows to roll up and then he killed the engine. He stepped out of the car and made his way up the walkway.
Never once did his eyes leave her.
Never once did she break the spell, either, glazing back at him with a devilish smile.
Didn’t she say she had a headache? That look on her face said otherwise.
As soon as he reached her, she reached up and grabbed his collar, bringing his face down to hers, and kissed him. She moaned into his mouth and his dick turned hard in an instant.
“Make love to me,” she whispered as she pulled her lips away from his. But it was only for that split second because as soon as those words left her lips, they were already back on his again.
And Cassius was not about to disappoint her. In one swift movement, he lifted her into his arms, slammed the door shut with his foot, and then carried her up the stairs to his bedroom.
SHE SMELLED AMAZING. As she lay in his arms fast asleep, he ran his fingers up and down her arm, and with each inhale, he could smell her strawberry and champagne scented shampoo.
This was new for him. He wasn’t used to the cuddling and the mushy lovey-dovey stuff after sex.
But something about Lara made him want to do it. Something about being with her made him want to just hold her in his arms.
He looked over to his left; just after ten. They had a little bit of time left, but it was running out. He hated the thought of waking her; she was so peaceful.
And suddenly, he had an urge to bite down into her neck and taste her sweet red juice.
Licking his lips, he moved slightly so that she gently landed on the pillow. The veins in her neck screamed out to him, wanting him to give them that release.
Fuck, I want some of that.... Just a nibble to see what she tastes like. I bet she’s sweet....
As he leaned in to sink his teeth into her porcelain-like skin, Lara stirred in her sleep, causing him to pull away.
What the fuck am I doing? Even just a taste could turn her, and I can’t do that to her.
He took a deep breath and rose from the bed. He would take a quick shower and then wake her. It was time to get the show on the road.
CHAPTER 11
The moment she heard the shower faucet twist, Lara snapped open her eyes, a shiver rolling the length of her body. She’d held still, frozen in fear as Cassius moved over her, the tips of his teeth scraped across her skin. From a ghost to a vampire, her taste in men had not improved. Either one of them had the ability—and apparently the desire—to kill her, but something had stopped Cassius. Was it possible he had control of his unnatural urges? Surely, Mendsville wouldn’t allow a dangerous vampire in their precinct, let alone, give him a job.
“He had plenty of opportunity to drink your blood when you were screwing his brains out, Lara.” Her harsh voice grated through the austere room, empty, except for the bed in which she laid, and a long, black leather couch shoved against the far side of the room.
Brick walls, coated with black paint, gave the room an industrial vibe. Clouds of steam flowed out from underneath—what she assumed was—the closed bathroom door.
Do vampires need showers?
She suspected the action was more of a habit than a necessity, something from Cassius’ human life that he’d carried over into his undead one, like eating... and other things. She blushed as the memory of his mouth moved across her throat. A part of her wanted to join him in the hot water, to meld her body with his, and to extend the brief time that she was insulated in this fairytale bubble, where she could believe she wasn’t being haunted by her ex-husband, and the man in the shower wasn’t a vampire who’d threatened to take her jail if he discovered she’d committed any crime.
Lara’s gaze dropped to the floor beside the bed. A stack of clothing, hers and Cassius’, intermixed in a colorful pile of lust. Nestled in the cloth were the exorcism supplies that Benji had given them, supplies that Cassius wouldn’t be able to use, let alone touch. It would be her that would have to expel Milo’s spirit from Detective Carter, but that would also mean showing Cassius where Milo’s body was hidden... which would lead to an investigation... and her eventual arrest, once they discovered Milo had been stabbed to death. Multiple times.
“Seems unfair to go to prison for the murder of man as horrible as Milo.” She muttered and crawled off the bed. Kneeling on the floor, she sifted through the clothing, extracting the pieces which belonged to her. She dressed quietly; her eyes glued on the bathroom door.
Her hastily formed escape plan, crafted during the quiet ride to Cassius’ home, involved faking sleep until he moved to a different part of the house, however, his withdrawal to the bathroom had afforded an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.
She composed an apology in her mind as she wound the rosary around her wrist, creating several beaded loops. Pulling her cell phone out of the pile of clothing, she typed the words before she could change her mind.