Page 73 of Kiss of the Vampire

“Where’s the Vlad guy?” Lynne asked. “I thought he was stuck to the rest of you guys like peanut butter.”

“He wanted something lighter to eat,” Levka said. “He might be downstairs at the pizza bar.”

Just then, Dylan walked by the table, and Alicia looked as if she wanted to jump out of her seat and tackle him. He glanced her way, but hurried on past.

Alicia sank in her seat.

“I thought you had a thing going with Bobby, now,” Lynne said.

“He’s not Dylan.”

“You talked to Vlad about his dinner plans, Levka?” Caitlin asked, finally realizing that Levka and Vlad probably weren’t having polite conversation.

Levka remained silent.

“When did you talk to him?”

Ruric raised his glass and his brows.

“He passed by your stateroom while I was waiting for you, probably hoping to see you again. I asked if he would join us at dinner. He said no, he felt like eating light. I don’t think—”

Vlad suddenly appeared and stalked toward the table, his neck covered in bloody bandages, his dark eyes angry. “Sorry, old chap. But you’re not keeping me away from Caitlin.” Vlad gave them an arrogant smile.

“Jeez, what happened to you?” Lynne asked. “You look like someone got the best of you.”

Alicia made a face. “Really gross. Do you have to sit here and eat? Levka said you were getting a pizza.”

“I’d rather dine with my favorite companions.” Vlad scooted into Dylan’s old seat. “Did you enjoy the falls, Caitlin?”

She quickly shifted her gaze from the bloodied bandages on his neck to Levka. “What happened to Vlad?”

Vlad smiled, and again she wished she could privately communicate with Levka.

“Arman and Stasio attacked me without provocation,” Vlad said.

What did Vlad think? She was an idiot? “They were at the second waterfall, not anywhere near where we were.”

“Vampires, my dear, can move invisibly to other locations. They can move at a speed faster than the mortal eye can see.”

“So you’re saying Arman and Stasio bit you?”

Arman sipped his water and didn’t react. Stasio almost hid a smile.

“Oh come on,” Alicia said. “What? They’re werewolves?”

“That’s good, Alicia,” Lynne said. “Yeah, the guys turned into wolves and bit Vlad. They do have long hair.”

Vlad’s mouth curved up, and his eyes remained focused on Caitlin. She felt the gentle tugging at her mind and knew he was trying to control her like he had tried a hundred times in the past, but he couldn’t. Was that what intrigued him most about her?

“So they’re vampires and you are too,” Caitlin said. “Why didn’t you fight back?”

“Three against one? Seems hardly fair.”

“Let me see your teeth.”

“You are the one for me.” Vlad grinned.

“Your teeth look perfectly normal to me.”