Page 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

Vlad discerned the hidden question in her words.

“I box.” It wasn’t exactly a lie. “It keeps me grounded.”

Delphine cocked her head. “Somehow I doubt that.” She considered him for a moment. “So, what’s your story? Besides drinking good whiskey and making conversation with strange women in bars?”

Vlad’s mouth curved. “Would you believe I’m independently wealthy and spend my days collecting rare books?”

“No,” she replied stoically.

“How about running an underground fight club?”

“Getting warmer.” She took another sip of her drink. “I’m guessing the reality is more complicated.”

Vlad’s smile turned wry. “Isn’t it always?”

Something sparked between them then, hot and electric.

Vlad’s pulse spiked. He hadn’t felt anything like it since?—

Yeah, best not go there.

Delphine focused fully on him, like she could sense the attraction sizzling between them and was debating what to do about it.

“You know what I think?”

“What’s that?” Vlad said almost breathlessly.

“I think you’re trouble.”

Heat pooled in Vlad’s veins at the banked heat in her gaze.

“Good trouble or bad trouble?” he said, his tone dropping an octave.

She didn’t miss his attempt to seduce her. “Is there a difference?”

“Usually. Sometimes the line gets blurry.”

Delphine studied him over the rim of her glass, something knowing in her expression. “I get the feeling you’re speaking from experience.”

“Maybe.” Vlad arched an eyebrow, emboldened by the smoldering fire in her eyes. “Want to find out?”

A hint of amusement pulled at the corners of Delphine’s mouth. “Are you propositioning me?”

“That depends.”

“On what?”

“Whether you’re saying yes.”

A bark of laughter left her then, the sound surprising her as much as it did him. She shook her head, her cheeks dimpling. “You really are trouble.”

“You haven’t answered my question.”

Delphine drummed her fingers on the bar. She came to a decision, set her glass down, and turned to face him fully. Her knee brushed his thigh, the contact sending sparks dancing along his nerve endings.

“Here’s the thing,” she said slightly coolly. “I make it a rule not to go home with strangers.”

“We’re not strangers.” Vlad gave her his most charming smile. “We’ve been drinking together for at least twenty minutes.”

Delphine rolled her eyes a little. “Ah, yes. Practically bosom buddies.”

Vlad cocked his head toward where Cortes had been sitting. “I even introduced you to my friend.”

“Your friend with the weird habit of flicking at imaginary things?”

Vlad nearly choked on his whiskey.

Damn. She’s good.

“Speaking of imaginary things.” Delphine glanced down, her gaze landing exactly where Tarang sat.

The tiger went still.

Vlad’s heartbeat quickened. There was no way she could actually see his familiar. But something in her expression made him wonder.

“Yes?” he said carefully.

Delphine met his eyes again. “Your place or mine? I’m staying at a hotel close by.”

The sudden shift threw him. He stared.

“What happened to not going home with strangers?”

“What can I say?” She rose, her movements graceful. “I’m feeling rebellious.”

Vlad put his glass down and stood up.

Delphine came up to his height thanks to her boots. It was oddly thrilling.

“My place is probably closer,” he said.

She bobbed her head. “Let’s go.”

He helped her into her leather jacket and used the excuse to brush his fingers against her neck. Her skin was warm, her pulse steady beneath his touch.

Usually, his incubus powers would tell him exactly what effect he was having on a potential lover. But even without that advantage, he could sense Delphine’s sexual interest. It was there in the way she leaned ever so slightly into his touch and the gleam in her eyes when she looked at him.

They settled their tab and headed for the door. The night air was crisp, hinting at the spring to come.

“This way.” Vlad indicated the direction of his apartment.

Delphine fell into step beside him, her stride matching his easily. Tarang padded silently after them, the tiger still watching the blonde with unusual intensity.

It didn’t take them long to reach his apartment building.

“Let me guess.” She glanced at him as they approached the converted industrial warehouse with its restored redbrick facade. “Penthouse?”

Vlad raised an eyebrow. “What makes you think that?”

“You wear expensive suits, drink rare whiskey, and smell of old money.” Delphine shrugged. “Plus, this is Chelsea. Real estate doesn’t come cheap around here.”

I better not tell her I own the entire building.

“Maybe I’m just really good at what I do,” Vlad said lightly.

“Oh, I’m certain you are.” Her sultry tone made his blood heat. “Though I am curious what, exactly, it is you do.”

Vlad clocked the Black Devils’ SUVs guarding the premises as they came in sight of the entrance. He caught Delphine’s hand and pulled her closer, hoping to distract her.

“Tonight, I’m planning to make you forget all about that assignment you came to New York for.”

“Confident, aren’t you?”

Vlad arched an eyebrow. “I’m full of surprises.”

Fire sparked in Delphine’s eyes.

The doorman nodded respectfully when they entered the marble lobby.

“Definitely the penthouse,” she murmured.

Vlad shot her an amused look as they stepped into a private elevator, Tarang keeping close to him. “You sound pretty sure about that.”

“I notice things.” She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall, watching him through half-lidded eyes. “Like how that doorman definitely had a gun under his jacket. And how there are more security cameras than this place should need. Oh, and let’s not forget the guard dogs parked outside.”

Vlad stiffened. Before he could analyze whether her words were a threat, Delphine closed the distance between them. She grabbed the lapels of his suit, tugged him close, and pressed her mouth to his.

Her kiss stole his breath. She tasted like expensive whiskey, her body fitting against his like she belonged there.

Vlad buried his hands in her hair and deepened the kiss, loving the feel of her against him. Delphine made a sound low in her throat that shot straight to his groin.

The elevator dinged.

They reluctantly ended the kiss. Delphine’s lips were slightly swollen, desire turning her eyes the color of a stormy sea.

“Coming?” she said as she stepped out of the elevator.

He grinned, the double entendre not lost on him as he followed her across the landing to his apartment.

Tarang slipped quietly through the front door when Vlad opened it. The tiger’s subdued behavior roused his curiosity once more.

Delphine hooked her fingers into his belt loops.

He chuckled as she pulled him into the penthouse foyer, only for his breath to catch when his back hit the wall.

Delphine’s mouth found his again, hungry and demanding.

Her strength surprised him.

It was as if a switch had flipped inside her and she was showing him her true self for the first time that night.

“Bedroom?” she breathed against his lips.

“Upstairs.” Vlad caught her hips and used the leverage to reverse their positions, making her gasp softly. “Unless you’d prefer the couch?”

Color stained her cheekbones when she felt the evidence of his desire.

“Bed.” She leaned in and tugged his lower lip sultrily with her teeth before releasing him. “I plan to take my time with you.”

Heat smoldered in Vlad’s veins. He was usually the one who took control during encounters like this. But something about Delphine made him want to cede that control.

They left a trail of clothes in their wake as they made their way up the stairs, their hands urgent and their mouths meeting in hungry kisses. Delphine’s sweater hit his antique sideboard. His jacket and tie joined it. Her boots ended up somewhere near his bedroom.

Vlad closed the door on an annoyed Tarang’s face and took a moment to appreciate the black lace underneath Delphine’s clothes before she dragged him across the floor and pushed him onto his bed. He went willingly, drinking in the sight of her crawling up his body.

“Nice digs.” Her gaze swept the masculine surroundings before finding his, the heat in her eyes incandescent. “Still feeling confident?”

He laughed. The sound turned into a groan when she rolled her hips.

“Getting more confident by the second!” he gasped.

The slow smile Delphine gave him was pure sin. “Good.”

Vlad forgot about everything as the night wore on and he lost himself to the woman in his arms.

His missing powers. The mess with the crime families. Mae.

It wasn’t until they finally fell asleep in a tangle of limbs, sweat cooling off their sated bodies, that he realized he felt like himself again for the first time in months.

It seemed like barely minutes had passed before sunlight was warming his face, dragging him from a deep slumber. His body ached pleasantly, memories of the night’s activities bringing a smile to his lips even before he opened his eyes.

He reached across the bed.

The sheets beside him were cool.

Vlad’s eyes snapped open. He sat up and scanned the room.

There was no sign of Delphine.

If not for the rumpled sheets and the lingering scent of her perfume on his pillow, he might have thought he’d dreamed the whole thing.

Vlad slumped and scrubbed a hand over his face, torn between disappointment and grudging admiration. Delphine had managed to slip out without him noticing, something he suspected might have happened even if he’d been in full possession of his demonic powers.

Guess she only wanted a one-night stand.

He dropped back down on the pillow and stared at the ceiling.

On a scale of one to ten, last night had been a solid one hundred. A dry smile stretched his lips. He’d almost struggled to keep up with Delphine’s stamina without his incubus powers.

She really was something.

The chances that they would meet again was pretty much nil. Vlad had no doubt Delphine would not visit the Velvet Room while she remained in New York for business.

He climbed out of bed and hit the shower, determined to put the encounter behind him.

It had been a spectacular night and it would make for a great memory.

It wasn’t until he was adjusting his silk tie moments later that he realized something that stunned him. Vlad’s hand stilled.

The hollow feeling he’d carried inside him after losing Mae to Nikolai had all but faded.

He stared at his reflection in the floor-length mirror in his dressing room.

Have I moved on from her?

He knew he would always hold a deep affection for Mae. But the wound she had inadvertently carved into his heart felt like it was finally healing.

Vlad wondered whether the woman he’d just spent the night with had anything to do with it.

I guess I’ll never find out, since I’m not going to see her again.

He exited the dressing room, his steps light. Tarang was sprawled in a patch of sunlight on the landing when he opened the bedroom door.

“You could have warned me she was leaving,” Vlad told the tiger drily.

Tarang huffed guiltily.

“Come on.” Vlad headed for the stairs. “Let’s get you some breakfast.”

Tarang licked his chops and rose to follow him.

Vlad’s phone buzzed as he was pouring himself a coffee.

It was Gustav, reminding him that he had to be at Yuliy’s mansion at ten a.m. to meet his new bodyguard.