Everlasting Kiss (Everlasting 1)

"All right, dear. I love you."

"Love you, too."

Daisy ended the call, then sat there staring at the phone. So, her little brother was in love and thinking about getting married. It was always the quiet ones, she thought, grinning. Brandon had been shy and introverted for as long as she could remember, yet it sounded like he was going to beat both of his siblings to the altar.

Marriage. Did vampires marry? She had never heard of such a union. When people married, they could expect to spend fifty or sixty years together. But vampires, Lordy, they could be married for centuries. People always talked about being in love forever, but could any two people really expect to stay together that long? She grinned inwardly. Maybe, if one of them was Erik. What was he doing now? Was he sleeping the sleep of the Undead, or was he sitting next door, thinking about her the way she was thinking about him?

Would she have stopped him earlier, if Alex hadn't interfered? What would it be like, to make love to Erik? Did vampires make love like normal people? Heat flooded her cheeks and pooled in her very center as she imagined the two of them locked in each other's arms.

Shaking off the image, she fanned herself with her hand. Would this day never end?

Daisy had hoped her brother would sleep until sundown. After all, he had been badly hurt, and even though Erik's blood had saved his life, Erik had told her Alex was still healing. And there was nothing like sleep to help a body recuperate.

She glanced at the wall that separated their room from Erik's. Was he sleeping? Would he wake up if she knocked on the door? Would he invite her inside and take up where they had left off when Alex interrupted them? Lord, what was she thinking? She tried to banish the image of herself and Erik wrapped in an embrace, but it was no use. She wanted his arms around her waist, his mouth on hers, his tongue teasing her lips. She wanted to touch him and taste him, and even though the idea excited her, there was a little part of her mind that kept asking if she knew what she was doing.

Right or wrong, she was thinking of going next door when Alex sat up. Yawning, he stretched his arms over his head.

"I'm hungry," he said, glancing at Daisy.

Daisy shook her head. No matter what time he woke up, he was always hungry.

"So," he said, "how about you?"

She shrugged. "I could eat something."

"Good, I hate to eat alone." A search of the bedside table turned up a phone book. After finding the phone number for the nearest pizza place, Alex ordered a couple of pizzas and two sodas, then looked at Daisy. "Should I order something for your friend?"

"I don't think so."

Alex completed the call, then went into the bathroom to take a shower.

He emerged twenty minutes later, shirtless, his hair still wet. "I can't believe they don't have a blow-dryer in this place. I don't suppose you've got one in that handbag of yours?"

"No, sorry."

Muttering under his breath, he went back into the bathroom.

They were watching a pay-per-view movie when the pizza arrived. Alex tossed one of the boxes on Daisy's bed. "Ham and pineapple for you."

"Thanks."

"What do you suppose your friend is doing?"

Daisy shrugged. "He's probably still asleep. He drove all night, you know."

Alex grunted softly.

They ate in silence for a few minutes. Daisy licked a bit of sauce from her fingers. She didn't know if the pizza was really good or if she was just really hungry, but she couldn't remember when anything had tasted so wonderful.

"So, what do you say we hit the road? I don't know about you, but I'm going stir-crazy in here."

"Erik might still be sleeping."

"Wake him up," Alex said, speaking around a mouthful of pepperoni.

"Later. I want to take a shower, too, you know." She sipped her drink. It was three hours until sundown. She wondered what distraction she could come up with if Alex insisted on going next door to wake Erik.

She was still trying to think of something when Alex said, "There's a mall across the street. Since you don't want to disturb Sleeping Beauty, what do you say we do a little shopping after you get cleaned up? I could use a change of clothes."

"Good idea," Daisy said. Her brother loved to shop almost as much as she did. With any luck, they could spend an hour or two at the mall, she thought, and then sent a wary glance at the door. Maybe leaving the motel wasn't such a great idea. What if Rhys had followed them last night? What if he was out there, waiting for them? It was said that vampires couldn't enter a dwelling without an invitation, but what if that only applied to homes, not motels? What if it was just a myth? "Maybe we should just stay inside."

"Why?"

"Rhys knows who we are. What if he followed us?"

"Bring him on!"

"Are you crazy? He almost killed you."

"Come on, Daisy Mae, you're exaggerating. Do I look like someone who almost died?"

It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him that he would be dead now if it wasn't for Erik, but of course, she couldn't say that, couldn't tell her brother that his savior was a vampire.

"It was a close call," she said. "Too close."

"I can handle myself."

"Oh, sure. You proved that the other day."

"Dammit, Daisy..."

"We've never hunted a vampire as old as he is," she said, her trepidation growing with each passing minute. "We don't know what he's capable of, what powers he possesses."

"Fine. Stay here if you're afraid," Alex said, a note of scorn in his voice. "I'm going out."

Daisy drew in a deep breath and let it out in a long, slow sigh. "And I'm going with you."

"Thought you were afraid of the great and powerful Rhys?"

"Maybe I am," Daisy retorted. "Maybe that makes me smarter than you."

Alex snorted. "You wish."

Daisy couldn't help it. She grinned because this argument sounded just like the hundreds of others she and Alex had had through the years. She finished her pizza, drank the last of her soda, and stood up. Her father had always said the only way to overcome your fears was to face them head-on.

Grabbing her handbag, she headed for the door. "Let's go."

"I thought you wanted to shower first?"

"I'll take one when we get back. Put your shirt on, big brother. Maybe we can find some holy water along the way."

Erik stirred with the setting of the sun. Like all vampires, he woke fully rested and aware of his surroundings.