Bound to Shadows (Riley Jenson Guardian 8)

"Now, why am I not surprised about that?"

"It also involves sex. "

"Given it's a werewolf ceremony, I'd be surprised if it didn't. " He paused, and said reflectively, "Maybe that's why the ceremony with Eryn didn't work. We said the words but didn't go through the motions. "

Eryn Jones was the wolf he'd been engaged to before I'd met him. Only, she'd used an experimental "love"

drug to snare him and had been after little more than his money. He'd caught her exercising her werewolf nature with several willing wolves, and he'd made her pay by snatching her memory and giving her a new life - that of a hooker.

He wasn't a man you ever wanted to betray.

"Well, all I can say is thank God, because otherwise we would not be here today. "

He smiled. "So maybe I should start forgiving her?"

"Might be an idea. "

He nodded, his expression somewhat distracted as he trailed his fingertip down my neck.

I licked my lips, and said, "So you're happy to go with the werewolf ceremony?"

"It's what you've always dreamed of, isn't it?"

"One of the things, yes. "

"Then that's what we'll do. Although I wouldn't mind exchanging rings. I'm a big believer in those oldfashioned things. "

"Something for me, something for you. It'll be perfect. " I kissed his fingertips as they trailed back up and across my lips, then snuggled my body closer against his. Felt the hardness of his rising erection, the excited pounding of my pulse. "And do you know what would be the perfect way to celebrate our upcoming nuptials?"

"I think I can guess," he murmured, a heartbeat before his lips claimed mine.

From that moment on, there was little talking, only kissing and caressing and lovemaking.

And it was perfect.

* * *

I t was nearly four by the time we got to Mickleham. There was little traffic on the roads and few lights on in any of the houses. Our target was situated in the Mount Ridley estate, which was basically dozens of mini-farms ranging in size from two acres to eight. There weren't a whole lot of trees or cover to be had, but given the time, I doubted there'd be too many people up and about to notice us.

Quinn slowed the Porsche and all but crawled past the property.

"Three life-forms inside," he said softly.

I glanced at him. "You can see that from this distance?" There had to be a good acre between us and the house.

He smiled. "You may have infrared, but you don't have a vampire's blood hunger. That makes all the difference when it comes to sensing life within walls. "

"I guess it does. " I looked back at the house. In the darkness, it looked like a squat and ugly box, but it was two stories high and dominated the skyline. There were no lights on in the house, and there didn't seem to be any animals grazing or sleeping in the paddocks.

"I'm betting it's not as peaceful as it looks. They wouldn't be that careless. "

"There will probably be alarms on the house, at least," he agreed. "And we also have the problem that, as a vampire, I can't go into the house. Not without an invite, and I very much doubt they're going to extend one. "

"So, we need a distraction. " I paused as we cruised past the boundary of our house and another - slightly prettier - one came into sight. A light shone in one of the rooms on the first floor. Night owls were not what we needed right now - not when they were right next door to a house we needed to break into. I glanced at Quinn.

"How well can you act?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Did you know I was once a very sought after actor in Elizabethan times?"