Chapter 32

Katsuro didn’t wait long, running his hands down the outsides of my thighs as he kneeled between my legs, devouring me with his eyes. I grabbed his hands and tugged him to me, putting one on my breast and the other on my waist. Amusement combined with the predatory glint in his eye, and he leaned over me, taking his hand from my waist to guide his cock into me while gently kneading my breast with the other.

I was soaking from his earlier attentions, and it took little effort for him to slide in. I breathed out a sigh of pleasure.

“You are perfect,” Katsuro said reverently as he moved inside of me.

The expression in his eyes turned from predatory to possessive with a hint of something else I didn’t recognize. He watched me intently, shifting his angle at the minutest change in my expression as if he could nearly feel what I was feeling. Maybe he could? Or maybe he could read me that well. Either way, the intensity of his gaze combined with the accuracy of his movements filled me with all sorts of warmth, while sending tingles of pleasure all the way to my fingers and toes.

“Scream for me, Hannah,” the vampire commanded me.

I obeyed, shouting as I came hard.

Katsuro rumbled in pleasure, then leaned over me, breath tickling my neck.

“Yes, please.”

The sharp prick of pain followed by a flood of pleasure ripping through me, sent me over the edge again as stars exploded behind my eyes. A brief sense of deep connection followed, fading after a moment. But for that second, I felt his ecstasy as if it were my own, and I was sure he felt mine.

We sank down into the bed together, his arms wrapped around me, supporting me, protecting me, and in that embrace, I let myself pretend I was safe from the outside world and that these men would protect me and all I had to do was let them. It was a happy fantasy and I let it chase me into unconsciousness, content just to be held for a while.

***

The trip back to Beechworth was uneventful except that Bridger seemed to be avoiding me.

By the time I’d woken up, everyone was ready to leave, further delaying the discussion I needed to have with the three, or possibly four, men who wanted to be my lovers. We couldn’t put it off much longer, but it wasn’t like we were trying to avoid it, so much as circumstances were preventing us from having a quiet moment together.

Davin seemed in a fine mood, but Bridger, well, I just couldn’t read him. I didn’t even know if he truly was interested in me like that. Hell, maybe he was just upset about his house. I hadn’t really had a chance to ask him if anything irreparable had happened to it. Or to thank him for his kindness in sheltering me there and everything else he’d done for me.

Why had he helped me? I’d gone from thinking he was a reasonably friendly and helpful nutjob who believed in the supernatural but couldn’t actually prove it, to finding out he was right, knew he was right from past experiences, and that he had every right to be a little paranoid. For whatever reason, Beechworth had accepted Bridger as one of their own, just like they’d accepted me. He, at least, hadn’t repaid them with a war.

Clare, since she had clearly sided with us, had declared that the bookstore would remain closed for a time so that she could safely stay within Beechworth’s boundaries. Even that was my fault. Clare would be missing out on income because I’d come here. And I hadn’t even come here for any reason other than that I’d heard rumors the place was different.

The only one who wasn’t worse off because of my involvement was Nimbus.

After several days surrounded by others, being alone in my apartment with just Nimbus for company felt strange. Beechworth felt strange. Everything felt strange.

You would think after all the fantastic sex I’d just had, I’d feel amazing. And in many ways, I did. But it also highlighted what I had to lose. And what I’d brought to this community.

Nimbus shifted until he could lay down on my stomach and poke me with his nose.

“What?”

He poked me again.

I buried my fingers in his ruff and gave him a good scratching, but he grumbled and flopped his paw down on my nose.

“Buddy,” I sputtered.

A cold draft blew through the room and Nimbus sprang up and pounced at it, much like an artic fox pouncing prey in snow.

“What?” I sat up and stared as fog swirled around the cloud puppy’s feet. “What do you have?”

Nimbus growled.

I pulled out my phone and texted Oliver. Moments later, he knocked on my door. I got up and skirted around the fluffy dog while he continued to growl at whatever he had pinned. I let the shade in and dragged him to my bedroom.

“What on earth is he doing?” I pointed at Nimbus.

Oliver tilted his head before raising his eyebrows. “Ahh, he caught the ghost.”

“What!” That was almost too much. “Ghost?”

“Yes.”

“Why is there a ghost in my apartment?”

“I suppose it likes you?” Oliver went over to Nimbus and ran his hand along the fluffy dog’s back. “It’s okay, Nimbus, you can let it go.”

The cloud dog growled, not moving.

“I don’t think Nimbus likes it.”

“It won’t hurt you,” Oliver assured the dog. “Or Hannah.”

Nimbus’s growl deepened.

“What did it do?” Oliver folded his arms across his chest.

Nimbus sat on the cloud of mist, still holding it down with his front feet, looked Oliver in the eye and rooed, and rumbled, and growled and yodeled for about five minutes. I started timing after the first minute.

Oliver’s eyebrows rose.

Nimbus fell silent for a moment then as if saying “and another thing,” barked a couple more times.

The shade’s gaze went from the cloud dog’s to the mist on the ground. Then his hand melted into shadow, he reached down and yanked the cloud mist ghost thing up and stomped out of the room.

I wasn’t sure what freaked me out more, the hand shifting thing, the fact that Oliver apparently understood Nimbus enough to get angry at the ghost, or that the ghost had done something to piss off both the dog and the man.

Sitting on the bed, waiting for Oliver to return, I addressed my dog. “What was that all about?”

Nimbus huffed and flopped down on the bed next to me. I buried my fingers in his hair and wondered how I could get more fluent in the cloud dog language. Twister had spoken to me in the transitional place I’d gone to a few times, but Nimbus never had. Was it because he no longer had a body and Nimbus was still alive?

Oliver finally came back. “The ghost will not bother you again.”

“Great. Thanks. What did he say?” I gestured toward Nimbus.

“He, rightfully, does not like that the ghost touches you without your permission.”

“Oh.” That got my eyebrows to rise. “Well, thank you both for protecting me.” I had no idea what else to say. “Are you busy, Oliver?”

“No.”

“Could you hold me for a while? After being surrounded by people for several days, my apartment feels very empty.”

“Of course, Hannah.” Oliver’s eyes lit up with a smile and he scooted over next to me. After a short, awkward moment, we got ourselves arranged. I lay on the bed spooned between Nimbus and Oliver. The warmth chased away the darkness that had been trying to overwhelm me.

“Hey, you said you’d explain later. If you’re still up for it, what was all that with Drake?”

“Ahh.” He shifted as if uncomfortable but squeezed me tightly in reassurance. “Yes, I should explain that. You don’t know the lore and it is important. Especially if we are to be bonded mates, or even just lovers.”

“We are lovers,” I protested.

“Well, yes.” The press of his lips against my neck soothed me. “And as such, you need to know some of my history, and as the years go on, you’ll learn more, but the relevant bits I’ll share now. Shades are guardians. I don’t know if you would call us a guardian spirit, or a guardian creature, or some sort of fae, but we are tied to a bloodline as guardians. If that bloodline ends, we are set adrift and have no purpose. Drake is tied to Vito’s bloodline. Drake has been bound to that creature since before he was a vampire. I don’t know if Drake was always evil, but he certainly is now. My bloodline died out. I believe I mentioned that once I had a mate and I lost her. She was tied to the other side of the bloodline. She and they were massacred. I only survived because I wasn’t there. I should have been, but we thought one shade was enough and I’d gone off for the evening.”

He fell silent, and I gripped his hand, squeezing tightly.

“A mistake that haunts me to this day. I no longer have a bloodline to guard, but this apartment complex is a substitute. It gives me purpose. And now, so do you.”

“Oh, so you like me because I give you purpose?” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.

Oliver chuckled. “No, dearest. It’s just a side benefit.”

“Okay.” I brought his hand up to my lips and kissed his knuckles. “So you’re a guardian spirit. Nimbus is a super powerful magical dog. Davin is a golden retriever with bite, and Katsuro is… Uh.” I lost the thread, unable to come up with something.

“Super powerful,” Oliver filled in. “And Bridger. Yes, we’ll have to think of descriptors for those two. Super powerful doesn’t quite cut it for Katsuro, either.”

“I need to find Bridger. I think he’s avoiding me.”

Oliver nodded. “That would be wise.”

Before I could continue, someone knocked on the door, startling a bark out of Nimbus as we all sat up. There was something ominous about that knock, though I wasn’t sure how a fist against wood could sound ominous. Angry, yes, or tentative, but foreboding just didn’t seem to fit. Still, it did.

We went to the door, and I opened it. Bridger was on the other side, brow furrowed, mouth tight.

“Hey, come in.”

His gaze darted to Oliver for a moment before he nodded, and we all went to the small kitchen and sat around the table.

“So, Drake escaped,” he blurted out after a short, awkward silence.

And there went all my good feelings from earlier. I knew it wasn’t going to be that easy.

“Well, fuck,” I said.

Oliver and Bridger nodded in agreement.

Nimbus grumbled in annoyance.

“So, what do we do?”

“What can we do?” Bridger shrugged. “We just have to be ready for an attack.”

Oliver held up his phone. “Katsuro has called a town meeting for just after dark. I suspect we’ll have a plan of action then. If you’ll excuse me, I need to go prepare.” The shade left and an awkward silence fell between me and the hunter.

“So…” I said.

“So…” he replied.

More silence.

I buried my hands in my face. “Um, yeah, so we probably need to talk.”

“You should let Davin and Katsuro mark you. And Oliver if shades do that kind of thing. It’ll keep you safer.” Bridger got up and headed for the door.

“Bridger, wait.”

“Why?” He turned.

“What about you?”

“What about me? I’m just the crazy hunter.”

Before I could protest, he was out the door.

“Damn it. Bridger!” I needed to catch him. We had to sort this out before things got worse. We kept getting interrupted before we could have that all important talk as a group, and Bridger might not even know we were considering him a part of the equation. At least until he said no.

Nimbus rooed and popped out of existence. I ran to the door and threw it open. Moments later, Nimbus returned dragging a reluctant hunter behind him.

“You’re not just anything,” I said as Nimbus dragged him back into the room. “And we really do need to talk.”