Sara Humphreys - Vampire Trouble

For all we know, Maya, that may not happen for us. Our bloodmate bond may have different side effects than Olivia and Doug’s.

Maya didn’t respond but nodded her understanding and rubbed absently at her chest. Disappointment tugged at her briefly. It would be nice to be able to walk in the sun again, but when Shane’s fingers brushed over hers, a smile curved her lips and she reveled in the sweet feel of his mind touching hers. Nothing could be better than that, not even a day in the sun.

“Are you alright?” Lottie asked with genuine concern.

“She’ll be fine, but we should go to our room because the sun is rising.” Shane tilted his head toward the brightening sky. “Thank you, once again, for your hospitality.”

“Sure thing, but I don’t know how much sleep I’m gonna get. My mind is gonna be racing about all this, that’s for damn sure.” Lottie walked out of the living room with them and led the way up the stairs. When they reached the second floor, she stopped at her bedroom door. “I have an idea of how you might be able to find out more about yourself. I know someone else who might be able to help you.”

“Can’t you do another reading?” Maya asked hopefully.

“No.” Lottie yawned loudly. “We hit a wall tonight. Trust me. I saw all I’m gonna see out of you, but I have a friend who can probably see a bit more than I can. She’s a psychic human—palm reader.”

“I don’t know,” Maya said hesitantly and leaned into Shane’s comforting embrace. “I’m not sure if I should go around talking about this with just anyone.”

“She ain’t just anyone,” Lottie snapped. “Lillian is a damn powerful psychic and she’s married to an Amoveo man, one of them shifters. Anyway, Lillian and Boris own one of the bars I work in, and they know all about your kind. You can trust her the same as you can trust me.”

“Lottie’s right.” Shane gave Maya a reassuring look. “I haven’t met them, but I’ve heard Pete speak highly of both of them. His mate is an Amoveo from the Bear Clan, and as you know, Pete’s a liaison between the Amoveo and the vampires.”

“Maybe one night this week, you two could take a little break from…whatever you been doin’,” Lottie said, waggling her eyebrows, “and take a trip over to The Den. That’s their bar. It’s at the edge of the Quarter.”

“Could we?” Maya looked up at Shane, excitement lacing her voice. “I never have been to New Orleans, and we wouldn’t have to stay long. It would be a nice break from training.”

Shane paused as though he was weighing all of his options. After what felt like an eternity, he finally nodded his agreement. “Perhaps we could make a quick visit, but it would be a good idea to speak with the czars about it first.”

“Thank you.” Maya kissed his cheek and hugged him. “And thank you, Lottie. For everything.”

“Yes, well…I’ll see you after we all get some sleep,” Lottie said, before disappearing into her room.

Maya went to go upstairs, but Shane grabbed her hand, stopping her. He stared down at her with his trademark serious and intense gaze.

“Shane?” Maya teased. “What’s the matter? Can’t handle having a gypsy-vampire girl for a bloodmate?”

Shane’s hand cradled her face gently, and though she could tell there was something he wanted to say, he didn’t. He placed a kiss on her forehead just before he carried her up the stairs and tossed her onto the bed with a wicked grin. They removed their clothes in a blur of movement, and an instant later, Shane’s nude body covered hers. Wrapping her up in his arms, he trailed kisses over her shoulder and his deeply seductive voice floated into her mind. Gypsy or vampire…you are mine, and I would die to protect you.

Shane stood in the front yard of the grand old house and stared out over the moonlight-dappled water, waiting for Olivia to pick up her phone. He and Maya had spent the past four nights training and making love, and he wasn’t surprised that Maya was excellent at both. A smile curved his lips as he recalled her willingness to please him and her increased bravery with each sexual interlude. The woman was a spitfire in the bedroom, and he knew his sex life with Maya would never be boring.

Nothing about Maya was bland or ordinary. Her fighting abilities improved with remarkable speed, and he was eager for the rest of the coven to see the formidable warrior she was becoming. While her skills on the battlefield would be for others to see, Maya’s talents in the bedroom would be only for him.

A sudden and dark surge of jealously gripped him at the mere thought of another man touching her, but he shoved it down quickly. Not only did he believe Maya had genuine feelings for him, but they were bloodmates and had performed the blood exchange multiple times. His brow furrowed when he recalled how strong the pull of the sun still was for both of them. Perhaps they would not become daywalkers like Olivia and Doug. Maybe the czar’s ability to daywalk was linked to Doug’s angel bloodline more than anyone believed.

The string of unanswered questions that rumbled through Shane’s head was interrupted when Olivia’s voice mail picked up. Shane made a sound of frustration and hung up before quickly dialing Doug’s number. It was unlike the czar not to answer her phone, and he wanted to speak with her before he and Maya went to see Boris and Lillian. They’d been training nonstop for several days, and Maya had been asking to visit with the New Orleans couple to try to learn more about her past. As much as he wanted to help her, Shane still felt some reservations about making the trip.

They’d managed to remain at Lottie’s home without being detected, but if they weren’t careful, a trip into the French Quarter could change that. New Orleans was a hotbed of supernatural activity and considered one of the few neutral zones in North America. While some supernaturals made it their home, no single supernatural group ran the city the way the vampires did in New York.

“Hello?” Tight with tension, Doug’s voice rang through phone, interrupting Shane’s thoughts.

“It’s Shane.” A tickle of warning flickered up his back. “What’s happened? Why didn’t Olivia pick up her phone?”

“She’s having the baby.” Doug sounded terrified and frustrated. “So she’s kind of busy.”

“Olivia?”

“No, the Virgin Mary,” Doug said sarcastically. “Yes, Olivia. Right now. She’s in there screaming in pain, and they can’t even give her pain meds.”

“No,” Shane said somberly. “Our bodies don’t respond to any type of pain medication.”

“Yeah, well, Suzie, Xavier, and that fucking ghost girl kicked me out of the room—out of my own fucking apartment—and I’m standing out here in the hallway like a schmuck talking to you. I can’t even telepath with her because she cut me off, and I feel useless like tits on a bull.”

“I-I’m sorry.” Shane felt like a jackass. He had no idea what to say or do because he was relatively certain Olivia was in an enormous amount of pain, and from the sound of it, so was Doug. Childbirth and handling a nervous father in the proverbial waiting room were definitely not his forte. “What can I do?”

“Just keep your girlfriend out of trouble.” Doug spoke quickly, and Shane could hear him pacing back and forth, his footsteps echoing through the stone hallways of the Presidium. “That powwow of bigwigs will be finished in two days, and when Emperor Zhao hears that Olivia’s having the baby, my bet is that he’s going to get his old ass to the city in about two clicks. King Heinrich was already planning on coming because that little shit Horace is still whoring around Manhattan with his pack of degenerates.”