“Oh, come now, Sister,” said Lily. “Isn’t it time to let that go?”
Naamah’s only answer was another sniff, then she drained the last of the blood from her goblet and rose. “Leery, at the risk of sounding unoriginal, I must also compliment your skills as a host, and thank you for such a fine meal. Solomon was once such a host. Please allow my sisters and me to clean up.”
“No, no,” said Leery. “I’ll leave it all for tomorrow.”
“You’re sure?” asked Lily.
Leery smiled and nodded. “I am.” He winked at Dru. “Besides, your niece has already promised to help me out tomorrow morning.”
“Ah,” said Naamah with a knowing grin.
Angie grinned at Dru with one side of her mouth and took Luci’s hand when he offered it. He lifted her to her feet with ease and smiled down at her. “What a fun evening,” he said.
“Yes,” said Angie, gazing at Leery for a moment, then turning her gaze up to meet Luci’s. “But it’s getting late, and some of us have work in the morning.”
“Yes, of course,” said Agrat. “Can I offer you a portal home?” A mischievous grin danced in the corners of her mouth.
“No, thank you, Your Majesty. Uh… That is…” Angie blushed a pretty pink.
Luci guffawed and wagged a finger at Agrat. “Stop teasing her, Agrat. You know she worships you.”
Agrat’s smile turned beatific. “Who? Little old, me?” She tossed a wink at Leery.
“You’re insufferable,” said Luci with a chuckle.
“And that’s why I’m your favorite.”
“Dru is my favorite.”
“Leave me out of this,” said the princess of Gehenna with a grin, though she couldn’t take her blood-red eyes off Leery’s.
Laughing, Luci and Angie walked toward the front door of Leery’s new apartment, and Hercule and his sisters followed.
Leery rushed forward to grasp the doorknob. “Thank you all for coming,” he said. “A guy couldn’t ask for better guests for a housewarming party.” He opened the door and smiled as his guests left.
After the others had left, Leery turned back to Dru, who stood at the other end of the foyer, eyes on his. To his mind, she’d never looked more ravishing—color high on her cheeks, her lips blushing with fresh blood. A small grin decorated her lips as she tossed her sable hair. She tilted her head to that perfect angle that drove Leery wild. “Such thoughts, Detective Oriscoe,” she purred.
“That’s cheating,” he said with an answering grin.
“I didn’t need to touch your mind, Leery. What you are thinking about is…evident.” She sighed, however, and glanced at the clock. “But Angie was right. We have to work in four hours, and I don’t want you exhausted tomorrow. It feels like a big day. Besides,” she said with a lascivious glint in her eye, “I don’t think we could finish in four hours.”
A shiver ran down Leery’s spine. “Raincheck, then?”
Dru smiled, and for a moment, Leery lost touch with the universe, wrapped up as he was in her ferocious, wanton gaze. “You better believe it.”
He blinked a few times and swallowed hard. “That’s also cheating,” he croaked.
“Oh. Should I stop doing it, then?” Her gaze remained on his, and the air suddenly felt rarified.
“Not on your life.”
With a wide grin, she strutted toward him, stopping only when the merest fraction of an inch separated them. She lay a hand on his chest, grin becoming a smile at the pace of his pounding heartbeat. “Nice to know I’ve still got it,” she whispered.
His lips quivering with the effort it took to maintain his decorum, Leery grinned. “Oh, I’d say that’s a safe bet.”
“You always say the sweetest things,” she murmured, coming up on her toes. As she finished the sentence, her lips came to rest on his, and again, Leery felt the universe spinning away as his entire being was drawn into Dru’s light kiss.
“You’d better stop that if you want to rest before work,” he rasped. “How much iron do you think is in me?”
“You always say the sweetest things,” she murmured again, her blood-sweet breath tickling his nose, her lips brushing his with each syllable.
Leery groaned and lost himself a third time.
“That’s my RSVP,” Dru said as she stepped back. “That’s your raincheck, Leery Oriscoe.”
He stood gasping, his eyes coals of burning lust, and he nodded, unable to trust himself with speech.
“See you tomorrow,” she said with a grin. “Thanks for dessert.”
Leery could only nod and stare at her as she strode through the door. He couldn’t move, couldn’t take his eyes off the sway of her hips as she strutted toward the elevator in the hall. She turned as she reached the car and began to slowly unbutton her top, her eyes searing his until he thought he’d burst. Then the doors slid shut, and his knees threatened to buckle. He made it to a chair in the next room and collapsed into it.
Sometime later, he realized he was still sitting in that chair—eyes glazed, mind on Dru, on her kiss, on her promise, on her little show in the elevator—and shook himself. “Better get up, old wolf. Daylight’s right around the corner.”
He pushed up from the chair at the same moment that the doorbell chimed. He frowned at the clock on the wall, then the frown turned upside down, and he fairly danced to the door, flinging it wide open. “Change your mind? Who needs sleep, any—” He stopped speaking and took half a step back. Impenetrable darkness cloaked the hallway. “Dru?”
“Sit, Ubu, sit.” The voice—the familiar, yet unplaceable voice—from the darkness grated on his auditory nerves—the rasp of a file dragged against ragged metal, fingernails on a chalkboard, the squeal of dying piglets.
Leery’s nerves slammed into overdrive as he hurled himself into a fast-change, bursting from his clothes and leaving them shredded on the floor of his foyer, already springing at the darkness, already throwing his arms wide, opening his mouth in a jaw-cracking snarl.
The grating voice shouted a word in a language Leery had never heard, the word burning along his nerves like a promise of hard pain to come, and a purple-white arc flared from the darkness. The ball of electricity bounced off his open front door, then struck Leery in the center of his chest, convulsing him in midair, stopping his change dead, and everything went bright purple for a stuttering heartbeat.
Then everything went black.
“Oh, come now, Sister,” said Lily. “Isn’t it time to let that go?”
Naamah’s only answer was another sniff, then she drained the last of the blood from her goblet and rose. “Leery, at the risk of sounding unoriginal, I must also compliment your skills as a host, and thank you for such a fine meal. Solomon was once such a host. Please allow my sisters and me to clean up.”
“No, no,” said Leery. “I’ll leave it all for tomorrow.”
“You’re sure?” asked Lily.
Leery smiled and nodded. “I am.” He winked at Dru. “Besides, your niece has already promised to help me out tomorrow morning.”
“Ah,” said Naamah with a knowing grin.
Angie grinned at Dru with one side of her mouth and took Luci’s hand when he offered it. He lifted her to her feet with ease and smiled down at her. “What a fun evening,” he said.
“Yes,” said Angie, gazing at Leery for a moment, then turning her gaze up to meet Luci’s. “But it’s getting late, and some of us have work in the morning.”
“Yes, of course,” said Agrat. “Can I offer you a portal home?” A mischievous grin danced in the corners of her mouth.
“No, thank you, Your Majesty. Uh… That is…” Angie blushed a pretty pink.
Luci guffawed and wagged a finger at Agrat. “Stop teasing her, Agrat. You know she worships you.”
Agrat’s smile turned beatific. “Who? Little old, me?” She tossed a wink at Leery.
“You’re insufferable,” said Luci with a chuckle.
“And that’s why I’m your favorite.”
“Dru is my favorite.”
“Leave me out of this,” said the princess of Gehenna with a grin, though she couldn’t take her blood-red eyes off Leery’s.
Laughing, Luci and Angie walked toward the front door of Leery’s new apartment, and Hercule and his sisters followed.
Leery rushed forward to grasp the doorknob. “Thank you all for coming,” he said. “A guy couldn’t ask for better guests for a housewarming party.” He opened the door and smiled as his guests left.
After the others had left, Leery turned back to Dru, who stood at the other end of the foyer, eyes on his. To his mind, she’d never looked more ravishing—color high on her cheeks, her lips blushing with fresh blood. A small grin decorated her lips as she tossed her sable hair. She tilted her head to that perfect angle that drove Leery wild. “Such thoughts, Detective Oriscoe,” she purred.
“That’s cheating,” he said with an answering grin.
“I didn’t need to touch your mind, Leery. What you are thinking about is…evident.” She sighed, however, and glanced at the clock. “But Angie was right. We have to work in four hours, and I don’t want you exhausted tomorrow. It feels like a big day. Besides,” she said with a lascivious glint in her eye, “I don’t think we could finish in four hours.”
A shiver ran down Leery’s spine. “Raincheck, then?”
Dru smiled, and for a moment, Leery lost touch with the universe, wrapped up as he was in her ferocious, wanton gaze. “You better believe it.”
He blinked a few times and swallowed hard. “That’s also cheating,” he croaked.
“Oh. Should I stop doing it, then?” Her gaze remained on his, and the air suddenly felt rarified.
“Not on your life.”
With a wide grin, she strutted toward him, stopping only when the merest fraction of an inch separated them. She lay a hand on his chest, grin becoming a smile at the pace of his pounding heartbeat. “Nice to know I’ve still got it,” she whispered.
His lips quivering with the effort it took to maintain his decorum, Leery grinned. “Oh, I’d say that’s a safe bet.”
“You always say the sweetest things,” she murmured, coming up on her toes. As she finished the sentence, her lips came to rest on his, and again, Leery felt the universe spinning away as his entire being was drawn into Dru’s light kiss.
“You’d better stop that if you want to rest before work,” he rasped. “How much iron do you think is in me?”
“You always say the sweetest things,” she murmured again, her blood-sweet breath tickling his nose, her lips brushing his with each syllable.
Leery groaned and lost himself a third time.
“That’s my RSVP,” Dru said as she stepped back. “That’s your raincheck, Leery Oriscoe.”
He stood gasping, his eyes coals of burning lust, and he nodded, unable to trust himself with speech.
“See you tomorrow,” she said with a grin. “Thanks for dessert.”
Leery could only nod and stare at her as she strode through the door. He couldn’t move, couldn’t take his eyes off the sway of her hips as she strutted toward the elevator in the hall. She turned as she reached the car and began to slowly unbutton her top, her eyes searing his until he thought he’d burst. Then the doors slid shut, and his knees threatened to buckle. He made it to a chair in the next room and collapsed into it.
Sometime later, he realized he was still sitting in that chair—eyes glazed, mind on Dru, on her kiss, on her promise, on her little show in the elevator—and shook himself. “Better get up, old wolf. Daylight’s right around the corner.”
He pushed up from the chair at the same moment that the doorbell chimed. He frowned at the clock on the wall, then the frown turned upside down, and he fairly danced to the door, flinging it wide open. “Change your mind? Who needs sleep, any—” He stopped speaking and took half a step back. Impenetrable darkness cloaked the hallway. “Dru?”
“Sit, Ubu, sit.” The voice—the familiar, yet unplaceable voice—from the darkness grated on his auditory nerves—the rasp of a file dragged against ragged metal, fingernails on a chalkboard, the squeal of dying piglets.
Leery’s nerves slammed into overdrive as he hurled himself into a fast-change, bursting from his clothes and leaving them shredded on the floor of his foyer, already springing at the darkness, already throwing his arms wide, opening his mouth in a jaw-cracking snarl.
The grating voice shouted a word in a language Leery had never heard, the word burning along his nerves like a promise of hard pain to come, and a purple-white arc flared from the darkness. The ball of electricity bounced off his open front door, then struck Leery in the center of his chest, convulsing him in midair, stopping his change dead, and everything went bright purple for a stuttering heartbeat.
Then everything went black.
