His Dark Embrace

His tongue dueled with hers, tasting, teasing, until, with a startled cry, she pulled away. “Ouch!”

He released her instantly. “I’m sorry.”

“That’s okay.” She lifted a finger to her tongue, frowned when it came away bloody. “Grandma, what sharp teeth you have.”

He laughed softly. She had no idea how sharp they really were, or how that tiny taste of her life’s essence stirred a hunger in him that had been dormant for years.

Drawing her into his arms yet again, he gave her a chaste kiss on the forehead. “Sweet dreams, Sky Blue.”

“Thank you. I had a wonderful time.”

“As did I.”

“Good night, Kaiden.”

He waited until she went inside before crossing the street to his own house.

Inside, he locked and bolted the door, then stood with his back pressed against the heavy oak, his eyes closed as he savored the memory of holding Skylynn in his arms. The taste of her kisses lingered on his tongue, the scent of her perfume, of the woman herself, clung to his clothing.

He blew out a sigh as he headed for his lair.

For her sake, they had better find that formula, and soon.

Chapter 3

Skylynn woke filled with anticipation. She had another date with Kaiden Thorne! She glanced at the clock, surprised that she had slept so late. It was almost ten.

With the words to “Unchained Melody” playing in her head, she quickly washed her face and brushed her teeth, then skipped downstairs to fix breakfast, only to find she was too excited to eat. Six hours until four o’clock. What was she going to do until then?

She tapped her fingertips on the kitchen table. Perhaps now would be a good time to go through Granda’s things and decide what to keep and what to give to the local homeless shelter.

With that thought in mind, she went upstairs. After pulling on a pair of old sweatpants and a T-shirt, she drove to the supermarket for some empty boxes. Returning home, she put on a pot of coffee, then carried the boxes upstairs.

Sky took a deep breath when she reached the landing; then, squaring her shoulders, she opened the door to her grandfather’s room and stepped inside. And was instantly transported back to her childhood. How many times had she crept into this room in the middle of the night after her parents died? How many hours of sleep had Granda lost while he dried her tears, or held her on his lap and told her fairy tales until she fell asleep in his arms?

The room looked the same as always. A quilt her grandmother had made covered the double bed. Her grandparents’ wedding picture sat on the dresser alongside a family photo that had been taken only weeks before her parents were killed. The scent of her grandfather’s pipe tobacco lingered in the air.

Heaving a sigh of resignation, she began sorting through her grandfather’s things, placing his clothing in one pile, his personal effects in another.

A third pile held Granda’s silver-backed pocket watch, the jackknife he had always carried, his lucky silver dollar, his favorite paisley tie, and his money clip. She would keep those things for Sam until he came home.

After a good long cry and a late lunch, she carried the boxes out to the garage to await pickup.

Returning to the house, she paused on the front porch and glanced across the street. The place looked deserted, she thought, and then frowned, wondering what had made her think that.

With a shake of her head, she went inside. It was three o’clock. Time to get ready for her date. Kaiden had told her to dress casual. How casual? She debated a few minutes, then decided on a pair of black jeans, a pink sweater with a shawl collar, and a pair of comfortable shoes.

Kaiden arrived at her door at three-fifty-five. Dressed in faded blue jeans, a black jacket over a blue T-shirt, and black boots, he looked ready for anything.

“I thought we’d go to the county fair,” he said as he opened the car door for her. “Are you game?”

“Sure. Sounds like fun.” Heaven knew she could use some laughs after spending the day sorting through her grandfather’s belongings.

Minutes later, Thorne pulled onto the freeway and stomped on the gas.

“You really are a speed demon, aren’t you? Don’t you ever worry about accidents or blowouts? Or tickets?”

He slid a glance in her direction. “Not really,” he admitted with a grin.

“Hmm. So, how was your day?”

“Pretty boring, until now.” Truth was, he had slept through most of it. Not a good sign. “How was yours?”

“Kind of depressing, actually. I spent a good part of it going through my grandfather’s things, trying to decide what to keep and what to give away.”

“I’m sorry, Sky Blue. That must have been painful.”

She nodded. “It was hard, packing his things. I know it sounds silly, but it made me feel like I was throwing him away.”

“You can’t hang on to the past, Skylynn,” Thorne said quietly. “Life is for the living. Have you decided what to do with the house?”

“I’m ... I’m going to keep it,” she said, only then realizing that she intended to stay in Vista Verde. “I can’t sell it anyway, not until Sam comes home.” She refused to admit that might never happen. “It’s half his, after all.”

“What about your job back East?”

“I’ll have to quit, of course. I’ll call my boss in a day or two.” Quitting would be the easy part. Finding a way to tell Harry she was staying in California would be a little more difficult.

They reached the fair in record time, no surprise with Kaiden behind the wheel. The man was definitely a speed freak.

“So, what do you want to try first?” Thorne asked as they made their way toward the rides.

“Anything and everything. I love them all!” Granda had taken her and Sam to the fair every year from the time Sky was three. She didn’t like Halloween masks, she was nervous about driving too fast on the freeway, but she loved carnival rides—the scarier, the faster, the better.

“Great! Let’s go!”

The next hour passed in a whirlwind of wild rides from the Tilt-a-Whirl to the giant roller coaster, from the Ferris wheel to the fun house.

From there, they went to the game zone.

While Kaiden looked on, Sky tried her hand at knocking over milk bottles with a baseball. She missed every time. She tried her hand at breaking balloons with darts, and tossing Ping-Pong balls into a goldfish bowl, with no success. Next, she tested her skill at the shooting gallery. Again, with no luck.