Annie Nicholas - Bait

He took the sponge and squeezed more hot water over my hair, making sure it was saturated. He then worked the shampoo through the tangles of curls. His strong fingers massaged my scalp, my forehead, and down behind my ears. They made firm, confident circular motions.

The tension in my neck melted away where he applied pressure, kneading those sore tight knots. Tingles ran along my nerves wherever our skin pressed together. The spark of desire grew more intense.

The strength of his hands caressed the tender muscles of my shoulders. My moan echoed in the room as the pleasure bordering pain pulled from my injuries.

The floor ran slick with steaming water and soap as he began to rinse my head. He abandoned the sponge to use his hands to scoop water from my tub over my hair. His fingers ran through the curls, gently tugging them. It felt wonderful. This was the first time I allowed a man to do this. The pull on the strands increased with each pass of his hand, pulling me up out of the water, arching my back in response to the delicate pain.

He gathered a handful of my hair and pulled forcefully trapping me with my back arched against the edge.

He whispered in my ear. “Run, rabbit, run, try to get away.” He slowly moved to the other ear. “Run, rabbit, run, I’ve come out to play.” He pulled harder on my hair making the pain a little sharper. I cried out in surprise. “Run, rabbit, run, for it’s the end of the day.”

He sipped at the water running down my neck making his way to my shoulder. The pulling eased but he didn’t release me. “Sweet, sweet, Connie.” His cool breath flowed down my skin raising goose flesh, making my exposed nipples harden. Only then did I realize how shockingly far out of the water I’d raised myself. I tried to cover up with my hands but the tension on my hair increased.

He released it but I felt his hands run under mine to cup my breasts as he continued to rain kisses down to the hollow of my neck. His teeth dragged along my skin as if to test my skin for tenderness. I had almost forgotten how it felt to have someone touch me. A fire built inside of my chest where his hands kneaded me. I took all my loneliness and grief then shoved them into this inferno. It burned.

Lifting me from the tub, he pressed my back to his solid chest. He was hard against me. His hands explored my skin and his mouth consumed mine.

My body screamed ‘yes ’ but my soul wasn’t ready. The passion dissolved into guilt, as similar memories were dragged from the corners of my mind. An old familiar hurt twisted my heart as a vision of my dead husband returned.

I sobbed.

Rurik misunderstood it for desire. He laid me on the soapy tiles and crawled onto me. “Oh, Rabbit.” He moaned as he tried to press his lips to mine.

I turned my head, hiding the tears that trickled from my eyes. Stupid of me to allow things to get this far, I should have known I wasn’t ready.

His weight no longer bore down on me instead he hovered over me and tipped my chin back toward him. “Connie?” His gentle tone caressed me. “Did I hurt you?” The concern in his voice sounded genuine.

I reached up and touched his handsome face and traced those well-defined cheeks. “No, but I’m not ready. I-I haven’t been with anyone but my husband in years.”

His eyes widened. “You’re married?”

I tried to sit up but he still pinned me. “No, I’m widowed.”

He sighed and rolled off me. “You shouldn’t tease a man like that.”

It felt like I’d been slapped. “Tease! You invited yourself in here.”

He raised his eyebrows at me. “Pembe said you requested my presence.”

I sat there on the wet, soapy floor, naked looking like a fool. “But...” At the pool! I’d asked Pembe for Rurik because I’d been afraid to get into a pool filled with vampires. “I... Oh, Rurik, I didn’t mean...” Getting up I rushed over to the table and wrapped a towel around myself. I felt horrible and embarrassed. “It’s a misunderstanding.”

Rurik watched as I tucked the towel securely in place. A frown marred his features. “I’ve already seen your breasts.” He fluidly stood and sauntered over unfazed by his nudity. He reached for a towel as well and began to dry off. He glanced at me with a wicked smirk. “And fondled them.”

The tub room lacked places for me to crawl into. I couldn’t look up from my feet. Rurik had his little revenge.

He wrapped the towel around his hips. Patiently waiting for me to get over myself.

I looked up at him.

His face softened. “How long since he passed?”

I wrapped my arms around my body. “Eighteen months.”

He nodded to himself and gazed at the tubs. For a moment the seductive, confident vampire dropped his mask. Grief remembered reflected in his conflicted eyes. Just as quick as it came, it disappeared.

Twisting sinuously, he caught my chin, lifting it up to his face. A slow sensuous smile graced his face. “Vampires know grief well. I can wait, Connie.”

Stunned, I nodded. Pulling my towel tighter, I left the private tub room in search of my clothes.

The next morning I woke disappointed in myself. The sexiest man I’d ever met wanted me and I flaked out.

I left the bathhouse last night in a flurry of quickly applied clothes, assisted by a distraught Pembe.

Rurik made me cry twice in twenty-four hours. I needed to get away from him. The temptation to succumb combined with my unresolved grief made me crazy. To add to my confusion, Rurik kept giving me the wrong impressions. For a murderer, he treated me well and with compassion. It produced too many doubts.

I trusted Colby and his judgments. This time my instincts fought against it. I didn’t know what to do. Colby would send me out to lure Rurik in for the kill, I won’t be the one holding the stake but the responsibility felt the same.

After breakfast, I called Colby’s cell but only got his answering service. My instructions were to sit and wait. So I did. I feared missing his call.

The late afternoon sun soaked into my skin while I lay on the hotel bed. I flipped through another brochure for a tour of Budapest, this one featured a haunted cemetery. With a wistful sigh, I threw the pamphlet on the floor, which had become littered with them. My cell, which sat by my hand chirped, I snatched it up and knew it would be Colby finally returning my call.

“How are you holding up?” His voice sounded like crushed gravel.

“I’m bored beyond belief.”

His low chuckle carried well over the phone. “I have something to alleviate your boredom. We have a place for you to go.”

“Okay.” I’d spent the afternoon rehearsing what I’d say to him but it all evaporated. “Is Rurik still my target?”

“Yeah. Who else would it be?”

My heart fluttered with the realization I wasn’t going to tell him about the bathhouse. He already threatened to send me home after the club screw up. If he found out about our impromptu date he’d start to doubt everything I did. I walked a tight rope between these two men, and my balance sucked. “You spoke about Dragos yesterday,” I snapped. “Where do I go?”

“The A38 club. My sources tell me Rurik is supposed to be there tonight.”

“Colby, what if Rurik’s not guilty for killing those victims? I mean, you’re planning to kill him tonight, right?” This dilemma tore me up. What if we killed the wrong vampire? What if something worse took over Budapest because of it? We could be doing more harm than good. The silence from the other end of the line continued. “Colby?”

“Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“I’ve met with and spoken to Rurik. He’s not the same as the others we’ve disposed of. My gut tells me we’ve got the wrong vampire.”