Isaac’s lips slowly curved up into a sexy smile that had the power to make all sense leak out of her ears, and damn him, he damned well knew it. Pressing his advantage, he moved towards her, every movement from his gait to the swing of his arms as fluid and graceful as a black panther stalking his prey.
Although something deep in her psyche recognized the danger whenever his behavior blatantly revealed his vampire nature and often caused her heart to spasm painfully with a burst of primal fear, Abby loved that he never pretended to be anything else other than what he was, at least, not after that first weekend together. Maybe it appealed to her naughty side that got a thrill from the very real risk to her life every time they were alone together.
Until Isaac, she had never realized she had a naughty side.
He slid his arms around her and pulled her flush against the defined muscles of his chest that Abby could feel quite well through the thin material of his t-shirt. She had to fight to keep from melting in his arms like she always did. Then from one blink to the next, she felt his lips brush teasingly against her own. She didn’t even see him move.
“Something’s been on your mind since last weekend,” he murmured from only an inch away from her lips as she blinked at him stupidly, suddenly feeling lightheaded from whatever vampy power he always seemed to be unconsciously exerting against her whenever they touched intimately. “I didn’t notice it at first, but after a couple of days, it was hard for me not to notice since you were constantly tensing up at odd intervals with no rhyme or reason.”
Abby frowned. Was she really that transparent?
“It’s nothing bad if that’s what you’re worried about. At least, I don’t think it is.”
The wariness left his eyes, and Isaac straightened, tilting his head curiously. “Now I’m intrigued.”
Feeling a little more clearheaded with more distance between their mouths, Abby continued, “I was talking to Cybele at the club while you were off having your ‘for vamp ears only’ chat with your boss.”
Isaac groaned. “I can well imagine what you two talked about.”
“She’s just blunt,” she said with a shrug. “Unlike some of the vampires I’ve crossed paths with at the club, she never talks down to me just because I’m human. I like her.”
“Most of us do,” he agreed, “but there’s such a thing as being too blunt. She’s caused a lot of major problems over the centuries for the Vampire Underground because she doesn’t have one diplomatic cell in her body.”
“Well, since whatever I say has zero weight when it comes to vampire politics, I guess she just wanted what she thought would be a neutral, sympathetic ear to her complaints because I’d once had my mind tinkered with by Ryker.”
Isaac stiffened. “Even bringing up his name where others can hear you is never wise.”
Abby remembered the very casual way Ryker had spoken about killing and shivered. “Yeah, I got that memo loud and clear.”
He stared at her hard for a long moment, probably wondering if she really meant it or was just trying to placate him. “So?” he said finally. “What do you and your encounter with Ryker have to do with these complaints?”
“It was about her human lovers and how, apparently, Ryker was going behind her back and erasing certain things from their minds after their encounters. She doesn’t hide that vibe of ‘otherness’ about her as well as you do—especially during sex—so a few of them often start to wonder if she’s something other than just a really gorgeous woman.”
“Something she’s well aware must be done,” Isaac said. “If it weren’t for the fact that she’s one of the king’s favorites…but never mind that. Is it the fact that Ryker’s going around erasing memories that’s been bothering you? Are you afraid that he’s going to do it again to you?”
Abby shook her head. “While that’s certainly a scary thought, the fact that your Enforcer’s been erasing minds isn’t the part of our conversation that I’ve been thinking about. Talking about sleeping with humans made her comment about how she envied me for being a human in a relationship with a vampire. She gushed about how amazing a Blood Kiss must be for a human during sex. She seemed pretty shocked that I had no idea what she was talking about.”
Isaac growled, his arms involuntarily tightening uncomfortably around her waist in his sudden agitation. “I’m absolutely going to kill her!”
“You’re not the only one,” Abby seconded, tugging at his arms until he loosened them with a contrite look in his eyes. “She told me I had to ask you to explain! She said she didn’t want to ruin the fun.”