Authors: Serena Robar

Tags: #Vampires, #Fiction, #Horror, #Best friends, #Dating & Sex, #Horror & Ghost Stories, #Juvenile Fiction, #Social Issues, #Love & Romance, #School & Education, #Friendship, #Dating (Social customs), #Fantasy & Magic, #Horror stories, #Education, #Family & Relationships, #Universities and colleges, #Demoniac possession, #Higher

Dating for Demons (10 page)

BOOK: Dating for Demons

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“Was he crazy?” I had to know if she thought he was. I’m not sure I could believe my dad was crazy, even if he talked about nutty things. I guess I would live in denial and call him eccentric.

“He was a zealot. A strong believer who could never be convinced with logic or examples that his faith was misplaced. I imagine he thought he’d done something to bring on the attack that killed him. That it was his fault his precious Undead were ripping him apart, limb from limb. He’d done nothing but serve them.”

I shivered at the image she evoked. “So you don’t think any of his journals are worth reviewing?”

“No, what I’m saying is take anything in those things with a grain of salt, Piper. Zeal is one thing. A passion for your calling is not bad. When your passion clouds your judgment and common sense, it’s time to step back and listen to a more objective opinion. I’m afraid there isn’t much objectivity in those journals.”

“So you’ve read them?”

She studied me quietly before answering, “Yes.”

Just then Hunter arrived at the teahouse. I wasn’t sure how he’d found me but the guy was like a bloodhound on a trail or something.

I introduced him to Ileana and he took the chair opposite our couch without invitation.

“I thought I’d find you here,” he said without any hint of what had transpired between us earlier. He wasn’t acting the least bit freaked out about our breaking-and-entering job the night before.

“My, what a well-built man you are, Hunter. Pray, what do you do to keep in such excellent shape?” Ileana practically purred in his direction as I shot daggers at her.

Hunter seemed flustered and a blush crept up his neck. My cool, alpha male was letting Ileana castrate him. “Stop it, Ileana,” I said.

She turned her intense gaze on me and Hunter seemed to slump for a moment. She was using her vampire voodoo.

“Be careful with this one,” she warned as she stood up and swept away from us.

My mouth fell open at her abrupt departure but Hunter’s reaction surprised me more.

“Why are you here all alone?” he asked, after pulling himself together.

“Alone?” I said, doubtful I’d heard him correctly.

“Yeah, alone. You were just sitting here on the couch when I sat down.” He looked at me like I was crazy. Ileana had wiped the memory of meeting her from his mind. Nice trick.

“Can’t a girl have a little tea and solitude?”

“How about tea and company? I think I found someplace we can find more of your special script.”

“Really?” I was surprised he was still willing to help me. Heck, I was surprised he was still willing to see me.

“Did you get in okay?”

“Yeah, sure. You dropped me off right at the front door,” I reminded him.

“Yeah, but I didn’t see you go in the house and wanted to make sure everything was okay.”

That was weird, but sweet of him to ask.

“I’m good. Fine. Where do you want to take me?” He stood up and I took his lead.

“Nope, no questions until we get there.”

“Great, does that mean I get to drive?”

He looked horrified at the thought. Nope, I didn’t think so.

It was a quiet destination.

“Why are we here again?” I asked Hunter, looking over a rather large and impressive headstone.

“I thought we might find some pagan symbols.”

“Why this cemetery, in particular?” I jumped nimbly to the next headstone. I wasn’t about to step directly on anyone’s final resting spot. I knew enough Undead to be more respectful than that.

“Over there, past that fence, is the oldest part of the cemetery. It has a section of very interesting occupants.”

He wiggled his dark brows.

“Define interesting.” I glanced back in the direction he indicated.

“Suspected witches, zombies, vampires.” He flashed a grin at me.

“You believe in that kind of stuff? Witches, vampires, zombies?” I mocked him, knowing in my heart that all three were quite real.

“Don’t you?” he asked.

“Uh, no.” I lied, following him to our destination. Once I stumbled. He grabbed my hand to steady me and just didn’t let it go. His grip was strong, powerful and very warm. For a moment I thought of Carl’s cool grip but the heat from Hunter’s hand banished the memory. I needed someone alive and breathing. Carl needed someone like him.

“Why not?”

“Ever met one?” I asked.

“Every Halloween,” he assured me.

“You know, I can dress up like a doctor but that doesn’t mean I can perform open-heart surgery.”

Hunter dropped my hand and pulled open his duster to reveal a muscular chest hugged by a tight black T-shirt. “I’d let you.”

My heart skipped a beat but I kept my voice steady. “Then you
are
just another pretty face.”

I’d turned the tables on him and he laughed at my joke. “Funny girl.” He took my hand again.

“Any reason we had to visit this place at night?”

“Because you aren’t available during the day?” he ventured. He’d never seen me during the day, so obviously he assumed I was too busy then. The truth was I kept unusual hours since my friends were Undead. It meant I stayed up at night and slept during the day, much like they did, but it didn’t mean I thought traipsing around a cemetery at night was a good time.

“True, it’s just kind of creepy here at night. What with the mist hanging over the graves like in a very bad horror movie.”

“I’ll protect you,” he assured me.

But I had to remind him, “That is what every big, strong man says right before they get hacked up, sawed in half or eaten alive. They always leave the damsel to fend for herself and she ends up getting raped by a tree or something.” Okay, maybe I’d seen
Evil Dead
one to many times. I can’t help it. I love Bruce Campbell.

“But you don’t believe in things that go bump in the night.”

I stopped, effectively pulling my hand from his grip. He was throwing me off balance with all the flirting. It was time to do the same.

“I go bump in the night. Are you afraid of me?”

He stepped toward me.

“Should I be?”

We stood toe to toe in the mist, the world utterly silent around us. Was I really going to kiss Hunter for the first time
in a graveyard
? I could almost hear Colby’s voice mocking me, “That is so
you,
Piper.”

“Maybe
you
should be afraid of
me
?” He said it softly. I put my hand on his chest, where he offered to let me perform surgery earlier.

“Warm skin, strong heartbeat.” Boldly taking a step forward so we were practically one shadow, I leaned in and gave his chest a soft kiss. Then I slid my hand up to his neck and gently touched the vein pulsing at its base with my index finger. His jaw clenched but he didn’t move away.

“Steady pulse. Lifeblood.” I stood on my tiptoes to kiss the pulse under my finger was. He sucked in a gulp of air. I paused a moment, wondering what I was doing. I’d never been this bold in my life but with Hunter, I wanted to be the aggressor. I wanted to kiss him. He was so confident and in control all the time that I wanted to be the one calling the shots for once.

I could barely reach the base of his throat with my lips. He wouldn’t lean down to help me so I stretched a little more, my hands on his shoulders for balance. His neck radiated heat and I gave him the sweetest, smallest kiss on the throat.

I dropped down from my toes with a shy smile and looked up into his eyes.

Never had I seen a more frightened-looking guy than Hunter at that moment.

“What’s wrong? What happened? Is there someone behind me?” I whipped around to see what terrible thing had crept up on us while Hunter was mesmerizing me, but we were totally alone.

Hunter gulped once, then again. He didn’t move an inch, just kept staring down at me with the same fear and awe on his face.

“I can’t fight you, Piper. I know you’ve hypnotized me and I know I can’t stop you but I want you to know I—I want this. I want to give you what you need. It’s against everything I believe but for you, I would do it.”

It was a lovely speech, it really was. Very ardent and sincere. I just didn’t have any idea what he was talking about.

“Huh?”

He pulled the neckline of his tee, actually ripping it away from his shoulder, exposing lots of tanned flesh. Wow, that was so hot.

“Don’t hold back. I’m not afraid. Not of you. I know why I was called here now.”

Yes, I was confused. Yes, I should have done the right thing, the decent thing, by making Hunter backpedal and explain himself fully. But the most amazing, sexy, gorgeous guy I’d ever met had just ripped his shirt practically off, exposing his hard muscles and begging me not to hold back and telling me how much he wanted me. Well, you would kiss him first and ask questions later too. Trust me on this one. You totally would. So I did.

I kissed his neck again, using my tongue to taste its saltiness. I kissed up his jawline and slid my hands up to his face, pulling it down so I could reach his lips. He resisted me for a moment, as though confused. Then he kissed me. We went straight to openmouthed kissing and Hunter was the perfect kisser. Not too slobbery, not too dry. He even sucked on my lower lip a little. Zowee.

I didn’t have the experience with guys that Colby did, but I’d kissed a few of them here and there. It was nothing like kissing Hunter though. Kissing Hunter made time stand still. I couldn’t form coherent thought, and no guy had ever done that to me before.

“Well, look what we have here. Two kinky lovebirds doing it in a graveyard.”

We jumped away from each other in an instant. Were we being busted by some cemetery rent-a-cop? I looked around and couldn’t see anyone. Something moved to my right and I was surprised to find a black cat sitting on a large gravestone, grooming itself. A black freakin’ cat in the graveyard. Are you kidding me?

The cat put its paw down and looked quizzically at us. “Don’t let me interrupt. Continue.”

I was shocked. Did this cat just talk to us?

I grabbed Hunter’s arm and pulled. He was staring at the cat too, but not in shock. More like annoyance.

“Chill, Hunter, it’s not like the dame can hear me. She’s a curvy one. You got good taste, man, but then you always did.”

Hunter’s expression went from annoyance to anger. Yes, the cat was talking. Except they didn’t seem to think I could hear the talking cat. Because really,
that would be crazy
, right?

“Hunter? Why is that cat talking to us and why can I hear it?”

I’m not sure who was more surprised, Hunter or the cat.

“You can hear me?”

“You can hear him?”

They both spoke at the same time.

“Uh, yeah. Why is the cat talking?” I was trembling and Hunter immediately pulled off his duster and wrapped it around me. I couldn’t seem to stop shaking. He pulled me close to him and we sank down on the grass. He rocked me in his arms and I tried to stop shaking.

“Chick’s in shock, man,” the cat proclaimed, jumping from the headstone to the grass.

“If you even think about crawling up in her lap and purring I will snap your scruffy neck here and now.”

Hunter’s face was thunderous. The cat paused in mid-step. He sat his furry bottom down a good five feet away from us and waited.

My shaking started to subside. The racking turned to tremors and the cat went back to licking himself. This time he was more industrious with his cleaning, deciding all his manly cat parts needed a thorough washing.

“Ew, do you have to do that here? Now? Have you no respect for the dead?” It had to be said.

“We-ll, lookie who’s all proper now. I wasn’t the one just exchanging slobber with a Demon Slayer in this oh sacred of sacred places, honey.”

BOOK: Dating for Demons

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