Only the more she studied him, Jane realized that Sean didn’t look so intimidating right then, not when he was so near the mysterious male—the crazy male—in the sunglasses.
The man who’d held Jane, who’d kissed her so fiercely, turned to slowly face them. Curtis came to stand at Sean’s side, a united front. Curtis was as tall as Sean, but leaner, and his hands were currently curled around a tazer.
The guy never made empty threats.
“You’re not wanted at Wylee’s any longer,” Curtis told him bluntly. “So hit the road, and don’t come back.”
He wasn’t moving.
And the knot in Jane’s stomach was getting worse.
“Jane isn’t your name.” He spoke just to her. Seemed to focus only on her.
Her heart stopped then.
“Why do you lie to them?” He took a step toward her. “Why lie to me?”
Her fingers clutched at Sean’s arm. He glanced back at her. “Do you know him?” Sean asked.
Her gaze swept over the stranger’s face. The lamp posts behind the bar tossed light on him. “I’ve never seen him in my life.”
He took another step toward her. “Lie.”
Curtis lifted his tazer. “Man, I told you—”
The stranger lunged for him.
Curtis fired his tazer.
Only the tazer didn’t actually do anything to the man in black. The shock should have hit him, immobilized him, but he didn’t even slow down. He yanked the electrodes out of his chest, and in the next instant, he was in front of Curtis. One powerful fist drove into the bouncer’s jaw.
Curtis flew back. Hit the ground.
“Get inside, Jane,” Sean demanded. “Get back inside, now.”
Then Sean tried to attack.
He was on the ground less than a second later.
And Jane was running—too late—for that back door.
Hard hands caught her around the waist and spun her around. She was screaming, not even realizing the desperate sound came from her, until his hand flattened over her mouth, stilling her cries.
“Stop fighting me. I won’t hurt you.”
She was supposed to believe him? After he’d just downed those two bouncers with barely any effort?
And why hadn’t the tazer worked on him?
Her breath was rushing out in desperate bursts from her nostrils.
He brought his head close to hers and he-
Inhaled?
She held her body completely still, too terrified to even move.
She’d seen something just this on TV last week. One of those crime shows that she liked to watch. A guy had been obsessed with a stranger. He’d stalked her. Killed her.
Then the detectives had spent forty-five minutes tracking him down. Their tracking hadn’t done the victim any good, though. She’d been dead before the first commercial break.
I don’t want to be dead!
His head lowered over her throat, and, yes, the crazy guy was sniffing her. Sniffing her, then…licking her?
She shivered. A combination of fear and—no, no, it had to just be from fear.
“I would know you, anywhere.”
Her lashes had closed. When had she squeezed her eyes shut? Jane forced them open now. He’d stepped back, but she could actually still feel him. Feel his lips—his tongue—on her throat.
His hands dropped from her. “What game are you playing?”
Sean groaned.
Jane shook her head. “N-no game. You’ve got me confused with someone else.” Her words tumbled out too quickly. Desperation would do that to a girl. Make her talk fast. Make her shake and quake.
“No.” He was adamant. And he didn’t even look back at Sean and Curtis. Why would he? Not like they were a threat any longer. “I know my vampire when I see her.”
For a minute, she actually thought she might pass out. Just fall right at his feet. Her arms wrapped around her stomach as she swayed. “V-vampire?” Then she shook her head. “You’re crazy!”
Wait, that probably hadn’t the smartest thing to say to the guy.
A muscle flexed in his jaw. “You think I don’t know?”
“Vampires aren’t real.” She was edging cautiously toward the bar’s back door. Just a few more steps, and she’d be able to rush inside.
This time, she’d try to not get her ass dragged back outside again.
Like that had worked so well the first time.
He laughed.
The sound stopped her.
His laughter was deep and rumbling and dark. And the man was scary—so terrifying to her. So why in the world did she find the sound of that rough laughter to be sexy?
Maybe I’m the crazy one.
“I know your secrets.” His voice was low, almost taunting. “Every last one.”
He can’t.
“Stay away from me,” she whispered.
His lips parted. Wait, were his teeth sharper? Those teeth, his canines, sure looked sharper to her. They appeared to be getting even more so by the minute.
“Am I having a nightmare?” The question slipped from her. It sounded as absolutely lost as she felt.
His fingers lifted. Smoothed lightly over her cheek. “I can take away all of your nightmares. I can make sure you never know another instant of pain or fear in your life again.”
If only. “Look, mister, you’re the thing scaring me the most right now.”
His hand seemed so hot against her flesh.
“Please,” she was begging, she knew it. “Just let me go.”
The light from the lamp posts and from the back of the building bounced off his sunglasses. She was glad she couldn’t see his eyes. She didn’t want to see them.
In the next instant, his hand had dropped from her cheek and he’d grabbed her right wrist. He lifted up her hand, staring down at her palm. “Your rose. It marks you.” His hold tightened. “I know.”
Now he was obsessing over that weird red birthmark? Okay, sure, if you squinted, it did look like a rose, but so what? “Let me go,” Jane said again. Her desperation was making her voice shake.
“For now.” He released her and stepped back.
For now and forever.
She took a few frantic breaths. Hope stirred.
“I’m not what you think I am.” She had to convince him. Had to get the guy to walk away. “I’m not a vampire. I’m not some kind of monster.” Though you sure may be. “I’m just a normal human, okay? Your average woman. My name is Jane and—”
“It isn’t.” Snarled.
Okay. The guy obviously had quite a few issues.