Page 15 of Safe in Shadow (Pine Ridge Universe #22)

G race felt him moving in the shadows, like a cat that comes to your lap on its own terms. She didn’t mind. His presence was enough, and knowing he would appear when called gave her independent heart satisfaction—and space.

There is something big happening here.

Yeah. We’re fucking the undead.

We’re getting turned into a puddle by a dozen slithering shadow cocks, and we’re bound up like someone in a kink club, and every single part of us has been invaded.

Penetrated.

She clutched her stomach as she hobbled to the kitchen, stopping short as her thighs squeezed shut.

Even as her stomach rumbled, she couldn’t block out the memory of the teasing, tonguing sensation of shadowy little tentacle cocks licking at her ass before slipping into it, or the absolutely stuffed-full feeling she’d adored despite being trussed up like an x-rated turkey.

Or maybe because of it.

Nyx wasn’t tying her up or tying her down. He was wrapping himself around her as much as he could.

Swallowing her whole.

Bathing in her.

The level of connection was scary and sexy all at once.

After so long alone, I’m his lifeline. His everything. Probably not healthy.

Well. How healthy can you be while you’re dead and trapped in a crumbling house?

Grace made coffee while hot blood rushed to her cheeks and her nether region. I’ve been so wrapped up in this house, this plan, that I might as well be trapped here, too.

I’m okay with that—I think.

Sex wasn’t supposed to equate any sort of love.

Well, in her heart of hearts, she had the dream of love coming first, then sex, and then marriage, and maybe kids, or at least a long, fulfilling life together.

She knew that the “modern, liberated” woman was supposed to just enjoy pleasure for pleasure’s sake.

And she did!

But never the way she’d enjoyed it with Nyx.

“I miss you,” she whispered the words into the blackness of the burbling coffee pot.

Instantly, shadows wrapped around her waist, and a hard chin rested on her shoulder.

“I missed you, too. You... You are in danger here,” Nyx’s low voice rasped against her ear. “I’m selfish to keep you here. As long as I exist, I must stay. As long as this place stands, I exist. You should...”

Grace rounded on him, mouth open. “What? Are you seriously trying to do the morning-after-epic-sex-break-up with me?” she shrieked.

“What? I don’t even know what that is!” Nyx didn’t push her away; he clung to her more tightly.

Grace could hear his breathing, labored and pained. “What? What is it?”

“I don’t want you to get hurt. There is danger here. From me. I remember. I remembered... I caused Cynthia’s death. I killed her. Not with my own hands, per se, but—”

“She fell from a horse!”

“I scared her horse! I scared her!”

“I’m not scared of you! I like you! I l—” Grace’s teeth met her lip so hard she tasted traces of blood. “Ow.”

Nyx pushed himself back to arm’s length to regard her. “What were you going to say?” he gasped.

“Nothing! I... Well, something stupid. Silly. I know it’s not like love-love. But I love being with you like we were last night.”

“Oh. The pleasuring. You love that. Well, I confess I do, too, but not enough to risk your life.”

“That puts you in a surprisingly small group of men these days, I’m sorry to say,” Grace said drily. “There are a lot of sickos who put their pleasure above pretty much anything else, including their partner.”

Nyx’s face seemed to pale from shadowy black to ashen gray, features sharpening as he shook his head, a troubled frown on his face. “I never put her at risk. I... We...” He scraped narrow fingers through his lank hair. “The woman I was with was in no danger.”

Grace waited for more of an explanation, but none came. “I’m sure you didn’t mean to hurt Cynthia,” she finally whispered, patting his arm.

Nyx shook his head, eyes narrowed. “I very much did.”

“But honey... You frightened her? Or the horse?”

“Right.”

“How?”

“I kept appearing to them, I believe. Behind her one second, then in front as she raced through the woods on the old bridle path.”

“That doesn’t make a lot of sense. How were you able to do that?”

In answer, Nyx appeared as a shadow at her feet, then gloating in the corner of the kitchen the next second, and then back as a plume of smoke, slowly gathering itself into the shape of a man yet again. “You see?”

“But that’s something you can do now. When you’re dead. Are you telling me you killed this person as a ghost?”

“Shade. I am a shade.”

“You know what I mean.”

“Yes.”

“But that’s not likely, is it? Because you were already dead, no offense. How could you do that if you just seem like shadows and patches of darkness to most people? Why would you do it? Wasn’t Cynthia your—”

“Miss Sanderson!”

Grace yelped, jumped, and bashed her elbow on the kitchen counter.

She peered out the kitchen window and saw a leaden, overcast sky.

“What time is it? How long did I sleep?” she hissed, looking around the kitchen for something that would turn her outfit of an oversized tank top into visitor-appropriate apparel. “Just a minute!”

“Take your time! It’s Mr. Minegold from the Welcome Wagon!”

Grace froze as she ran towards the steps. “Nyx! He’s one of the ones!”

Nyx was beside her. “What ones?”

“The haunted ones! The ones that don’t age! He has red eyes!”

“A vampire, dear!” called the voice from outside. “We also have excellent hearing, in addition to the occasional red tinge.”

Grace swallowed hard. “Go away.” Vampires aren’t real.

I’m sorry, you were just talking to someone who can turn into a sex squid. Real is no longer in our vocabulary.

“I have muffins! Oh, and I don’t bite.”

Her stomach grumbled.

“I’ll handle this.” Nyx shot away from her, black and billowing, a bullet made of darkness.

“Wait, I... I’ll go with you! Can he hurt you?” she hissed.

Nyx didn’t answer.

“Ugh! I don’t have a robe or anything!”

Death or decency?

And what can two dead guys do to each other?

She paled and raced up the stairs. “Don’t do anything until I get back!” she bellowed.

“HELLO! I AM MR. MINEGOLD . Very nice to meet you, Mr. — ?”

“Nyx. Why are you here?” Nyx stared at the man in a burgundy turtleneck, black jacket, and charcoal gray fedora who stood in his territory.

Hadn’t he seen him before? He’d surely heard that voice...

Mr. Minegold held out a basket of muffins and a dark green folder with the town’s logo on the front.

“It’s my week for the Welcome Wagon. I have muffins from The Pine Loft Coffee Shop and this folder about the services for the town.

Here. Can you—” Mr. Minegold held out the cellophane-wrapped basket tied with a white ribbon.

It crashed through Nyx’s hand and landed with a thud on the porch.

“Oh, goodness. I’m sorry about that. Some ghosts can hold things, you know.

I believe anyone can learn with practice.

I have a few friends with spirit bottles that I could bring over to offer a demonstration if—”

“I’m not a ghost. I’m a shade. I am more than human.

I am partially dark energy, and the energy is bound to this house, and I am bound to it.

I can touch what is in my domain, what belongs to me .

You are in my space, bothering my human.

Now, leave.” Nyx spoke in a harsh tone, surprised at himself.

Oh, not that he was harsh, but that he had explained things so quickly and thrown Grace in at the end as “my human.”

“Ah, yes.” Minegold’s eyes and voice were steady, the faintest hint of a smile on his face. “We’ve ‘met’ before—and you gave your tacit permission to bless this place and protect its inhabitants.”

Nyx gave a curt nod.

“Then I doubt you would mind if I spoke to the young lady to make sure she’s settling in?” The vampire’s voice was light and cordial, some slight European accent hiding under the well-mannered speech. Despite the pleasant tone, the eyes were hard, hints of red dancing in the center of each iris.

Nyx met the hard stare with one of his own, but his mind was softening towards the man on the porch.

He now recognized him as the man who had accompanied the warlock one night several weeks ago and perhaps several times over the years—his unreliable memory made Nyx uncertain on that point.

“Are you checking to make sure Miss Sanderson has settled into the town—or into this house, with me?”

“Ah. The second one is my first priority, and the first is my second.”

“What? Do all vampires speak in riddles?”

“No, I meant that I— Oh! Hello, Miss Sanderson.” Mr. Minegold stopped speaking as Grace appeared in pink capris and a baggy tank top, her hair yanked into a bun. In one hand, she was holding a small gold cross on a chain. “That’s a lovely necklace.”

“Begone!”

“Oh, really!” He huffed and held out the basket.

“Just tell me you and your supernatural inhabitants are getting on, and I’ll be off.

Although,” Mr. Minegold fanned open the folder and revealed a bundle of brochures, flyers, and leaflets, “you might want these, regardless of who delivers them. Look, here we have the numbers for the fire, police, hospital, and ambulance service. And here we have coupons to the River House, The Pine Loft, Jade Forest, and Tiramisu, the Italian restaurant opening in August. Ooh, and this one is ever so useful for a homeowner, even if you’re handy—Promises Kept: Home Repairs and Handy Help.

Ah, and this is Mr. Reginald Gray’s card, a very fine plumber.

This,” he squinted at the card in his palm for a second before adding it to the stack that he was slowly foisting into Grace’s arms, “is a 10% off landscaping and lawn mowing card from Kane Garden Center. Now, it’s not my place to say, but if you do intend to run this lovely spot as a bed-and-breakfast, the outside should be as charming as the inside, and the outside needs a fair bit of work. ”

Grace was silent for a second, then spluttered. “Cross!” She waved the little necklace wildly in Mr. Minegold’s face.

“It’s very pretty.” He gently patted her wrist away and gave her the remainder of the items in the folder. “There’s other information in there about community events, the local park, the schools—I’m afraid we’re a little limited in choice there, but what we have is excellent.”

“Why isn’t the cross working?” Grace hissed in Nyx’s ear.

“I’m not evil, and I have friends of many faiths. Also, as I said, I do not bite. As in, I do not harm innocent people.” Mr. Minegold smiled. “You’ve noticed the paranormal residents, have you not?”

“You’re darn right I have!” Grace stuck out her chin defiantly.

Nyx had to smile. In her bare feet and wild hair, she was defending her home—and maybe even him—from a powerful predator, even if he claimed to be harmless.

“Officer Walsh mentioned your housemate.” Mr. Minegold gave a bow towards Nyx. “I hadn’t realized we had another member of the paranormal community out here, and from what you mentioned to the officer, it sounded like he might not be too friendly.”

“I am friendly when I want to be,” Nyx snarled.

Minegold didn’t flinch. “As long as you are friendly to the innocents and do no harm, then we can be as friendly as you like. Good morning, Miss Sanderson. Welcome to Pine Ridge, and I hope you’ll have many happy years here. It’ll be wonderful to have another hotel in town, or at least nearby.”

“Wait!” Grace blurted as he began to retreat. “It’s daytime!”

Mr. Minegold looked up at the sky and doffed his fedora. “It’s quite overcast. Jasper Wainwright—news and weather on channel 41—WPNR, you know, our local station, said we’re in for three days of storms.”

“I thought vampires only went out at night.”

“We do need to avoid direct sunlight.” Mr. Minegold smiled and patted the long sleeves of his jacket. “No summer wear for me, I’m afraid, but as I’m always quite cool, it’s not a bother.”

“What about the garlic?”

“Grace, why don’t you invite him in for tea at this rate?

” Nyx demanded, slightly huffy. This was his human.

He hadn’t realized until just now that he felt horrible jealousy seeing Grace talking to another man, especially another non-human.

To be specific, a non-human who could offer her so much more.

The vampire could travel about, go places day or night, apparently, and he was solid. He could touch anything and everything.

Nyx was suddenly overwhelmed with lewd imaginings of touching Grace, and of using more than just his own form to bring her all the pleasure she could want. He wanted to be able to bring her gifts. To take her places. To let her be free and see her enjoying it.

The vampire didn’t know or was ignoring his inner struggle, saying blithely, “Garlic is considered a ‘holy bulb’ and thus it will most certainly impact many vampires. Most, I would say. Not me. I enjoy it, particularly in thin slices studded into a brisket prepared with a red wine and tomato sauce.”

“That sounds so good,” Grace whispered, then looked guiltily at Nyx.

“If you’re worried about evil forces, there’s another business you should visit—Madge’s Magic on Bristlecone Ave.

She’ll help you ward the place from evil presences.

A good security system wouldn’t come amiss, either.

You’ll find the most dangerous people around here—not that there are many—seem to be human. ”

Nyx licked his lips and saw the vampire’s eyes flicker towards him. Should he tell Minegold about The Stranger?

What about me ? What about my past sins? I killed Cynthia.

The hatred roared to life in him, but it was now mixed with satisfaction.

Killing Cynthia was good. And if I believe killing to be good, does that not mean that I’m evil? Grace should leave. I should leave. If she gets help from this magical woman... Will it drive me away?

The idea of leaving this prison was wonderful.

Leaving Grace?

“I’ll let you two talk. I am tired.” Nyx let himself unravel, sliding away in silence.

Inside, he slunk back under her bed. Maybe if he remained in the hovering space between shades and souls, he could somehow remain—still with her, yet not a threat to her.