Branded by Sin Read online

  Sean lifted his ass off the seat to pull his pants up. “Umm, they might be back there.” A bottle of whiskey and an empty cigarette pack littered the backseat. He leaned over and plucked her lacy undergarment from the floorboard. “Here they are.”

  She smiled, snatched them out of his hand and dropped them in her purse. “My periaqueductal gray thanks you for the orgasm.”

  Completely clueless, he played along. “Mine thanks you too.”

  “Nice try. But that part of the brain is only activated in women during orgasm. Studies have shown that the male brain pretty much deactivates during ejaculation. You can thank me for rendering you brain dead for about five seconds.” She winked.

  He shrugged. “Now that makes sense.”

  “They don’t call it la petit mort for nothing.” She opened the door and turned back to him. “Are you going to shut off the car and come inside or what?”

  He smiled at the memory and leaned down to smell her hair, still damp from the shower. Vampires didn’t mark mates with their teeth or anything but they did form attachments—strong ones, like Giacomo did with Christy. Against his better judgment and intentions, Sean was very attached to Lila.

  “I don’t know how long I can do this with you.” She squeezed his hand. “But I want you to stay.”

  Every once in a while the thought crossed his mind of how much easier things would be if she were a vampire. Well, easier for him anyway. He wouldn’t have to worry about breaking her bones when he fucked her or killing her by taking too much blood or going too far and changing her by accident. His control was firmly in place though. He wasn’t so selfish as to take her life to make his easier.

  He pulled her up out of the chair and turned her to face him. “You’re pretty incredible. You know that?”

  She balled her fist and hit him playfully on the chest. “I bet if I knew who you were, you’d be pretty incredible too.”

  Chapter Four

  “What about setting a trap for him?” Cass paced circles around the long table that would probably seat a group of lawyers in a different setting, instead of a gaggle of bloodsuckers and a couple of shifters planning a hit on a hit man. Cass absently polished the lenses of his glasses that he didn’t need anymore but still wore because they were part of who he was—a philosophical vampire. Go figure.

  Cass was the nervous type, always fidgeting. He was a chemical engineer or something like that before becoming a vampire. Whenever they needed an analytical brain, Cass was called in. He’d developed apps for their cell phones with call tracing and GPS options. He took his position at the BBE pretty seriously and was always developing something new in the technology department.

  Cass’ boy toy sat across from Sean and one chair over from Tasha. He smiled like the Cheshire cat. He was a good-looking guy; the brawn to Cass’ brain. They were an odd couple but inseparable.

  “Using what as bait? Giacomo won’t go for being dangled like a carrot in front of a rabbit.” Sean lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply.

  “Do you have to do that in here?” Cass waved his hand in front of his face, wrinkling his nose.

  Sean smirked and blew smoke toward the vent in the ceiling. The conference room had no windows. In fact, there were no windows in the building at all. Video monitors showed them the outside world. “Relax. It’s not like you’re gonna get cancer from second-hand smoke and die.”

  “That’s not the point, Sean. It stinks. I’ll have to shower after this meeting.”

  Sean rolled his eyes. “Whatever, man. Get back to your plan.”

  Sean flicked ashes into the glass ashtray on his end of the table. Giacomo’s cigar habit gave smoking the green light in just about all rooms even though Cass bitched high and low about the smell.

  Cass put his black-rimmed glasses back on and pushed them up to the bridge of his nose. He placed his bony hands on the table and leaned on them. “From what I know about this Søren guy, he likes to play with his targets, cat-and-mouse mind games. He’s your garden-variety thug.”

  Cass’ boyfriend rubbed his foot against Sean’s leg under the table. “Sean would make good bait for someone who likes to play cat and mouse.” He winked and bit down on his lip.

  Sean growled involuntarily, issuing a warning. “I’m generally the cat when I play games.” He didn’t care what anyone else did with their dick but he preferred to stick his in women, and he’d kick Cass’ boyfriend’s ass if he tried to get fresh with him.

  Cass glared at his boyfriend. “If you can’t behave, go to my office, Rick. This is serious business here.”

  Rick rolled his eyes. “Fine, fine.” He got up and walked over to the credenza where an assortment of wines and whiskies, rums and vodkas were neatly lined up. He popped the cork out of a bottle of Chardonnay and turned around, holding it up. “Anyone else need a little something to take the edge off?”

  Sean almost asked for a shot of rum but decided against it. He needed his head clear for now.

  When no one answered, Rick poured himself a glass and sat back down, sniffing over the rim and swirling the wine around.

  Cass rolled his head on his shoulders. “Is there anyone close enough to Giacomo that we could use to draw this guy in?”

  Tasha spoke up as she doodled on her notepad. “Nobody’s close to him.” She had a point. Giacomo was a bit of an island.

  With his secrecy and locked doors, no one but Sean knew how to get near Giacomo, and even Sean had limited knowledge. As far as he knew, Giacomo hadn’t replaced Christy but preferred discreet encounters with strangers. So there was no love interest they could use. And Sean wouldn’t suggest that anyway.

  Cass took a deep breath and continued. “If we consider the theory that this is about Christy’s execution, Sean might be a viable option. You were her last baby and a big reason why she was taken out. Using you could work, but Søren might be too smart to fall for that kind of trap. It would be too easy.” Cass stretched his arms over his head and laced his fingers together, cracking his knuckles.

  “With half our troops in Russia, we’re at a disadvantage.” Of all the vampires in the room, Sierra looked the least like a bloodsucker. She exchanged a glance with the vamp guy to her right. Sean was pretty good at picking up on cues. They were fucking. Another vampire office romance in bloom.

  Sean crushed out the cigarette he’d inadvertently smoked down to the filter. “I don’t think it matters that we’re down some men.” He looked around the room at the twenty or so vampires in attendance. “He’s just one guy.”

  Cass paced in front of the table. “Are we sure he’s working alone?”

  The vampire sitting beside Sierra chimed in. “If he’s not, we’re in for a good time. It’s been ages since we’ve had a rumble.”

  Sean smirked. He’d yet to meet a vampire who was a pussy. They pretty much all enjoyed a fight, the bloodier the better.

  “I don’t think it’s necessary to bait him. When he’s ready, he’ll come to us. He doesn’t really have any other option.” Sean stood up. The meeting wasn’t going anywhere. “And when he does, he’ll be one sorry motherfucker.”

  Cass cringed. Profanity bothered him but sucking the blood out of someone didn’t. “Okay. So, maybe the best plan is to not really have one then.” Cass rubbed his temples. “What we really need in the BBE is an FBI profiler.”

  “Put that in the suggestion box.” Sean pulled open the glass door and walked out, heading for the underground parking lot.

  He climbed into the 442 and fished under the seat for his gun. Dropping the magazine, he counted the bullets before shoving it back inside and racking the slide. He set the gun on the passenger seat. His shoulder holster was at his apartment. Somewhere. He hadn’t felt the need to dress all vampire ninja secret agent in a long time.

  A knock on the window startled him and he instinctively grabbed the gun and aimed it in that direction.

  Tasha put her hands up. “Whoa there, cowboy.”

  Sean reached over and pulled up t
he lock for the passenger door.

  Tasha slid into the seat and slammed the door a little too hard. “Sorry. That door is heavy.” She sighed and tilted her head toward him. “Are you okay?”

  “Fine. Why?”

  “Seems like this Søren business is getting to you,” Tasha said, reaching over to rub his thigh.

  “I’m cool, really.”

  She smiled and squeezed his leg, sliding her hand up more. “I could help you feel better.”

  After she’d grabbed his dick before, he’d promised himself he wouldn’t fuck her, but hell—she was tall, lithe, had a tight ass and pretty hair. And she was being all flirty. She’d be a nice notch in his belt. “Yeah?”

  She took his hand and put it on her breast. “I have ways.”

  He squeezed the soft mound of flesh. “I bet you do.”

  Her hand pressed against his zipper. “Impressive.”

  Nothing lightened his mood like his hand on a boob and chick’s palm on his dick. “I don’t get any complaints.”

  “See? You’re already feeling better.” She stroked his cock through his jeans. “You feel really good, actually.” She stared at him, blue eyes locked with his.

  The eye contact made what she was doing even hotter. She’d upped her game since the last time she came on to him. He leaned over and kissed her lips. His fangs dropped and he gripped her throat.

  She pulled at the button of his pants and started to slip her hand inside…

  His phone rang.

  “Sorry.” He moved her hand back to his thigh and answered Lila’s call. “Hey.”

  “Are you on your way to my house?”

  “I will be, yeah. Leaving work now. Everything okay?”

  “Yes. I just missed you. Wanted to hear your voice.”

  Sean smiled and his fangs retracted. “I miss you too. See you in a little while.”

  “Okay. Bye.”

  “Bye.” He ended the call and looked at Tasha. “I better get going.”

  Tasha took her hand off his thigh and laughed. “You’re a big softie.”

  “Pfft.”

  Tasha opened the car door. “See you tomorrow, lover boy.”

  Sean rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” He watched her ass as she walked back to the building. Lila would definitely benefit from the raging hard-on Tasha just gave him.

  Chapter Five

  Lights flashed and bass from some shitty top-forty song thumped inside the club. A group of women at the next table were making sure a bride-to-be was getting shitfaced. The brunette wearing the plastic tiara was knocking back shots at breakneck speed. Hopefully the wedding wasn’t tomorrow because that girl was probably gonna be hating life come morning.

  There was a time when Sean had enjoyed the bar scene. Now it was mostly annoying.

  Sean watched the other vampire stalking his prey. He knew all too well how the dance worked, the seduction leading up to the bite. He’d done it many times but was still fascinated by seeing other vamps do it. Sean kept his distance in the dark club but thanks to his vampiric gifts, he could see the exchange between the bloodsucker and the girl he was chatting up. She was already in his thrall and molding herself against him, smiling and batting her eyelashes. She obviously didn’t know she didn’t have to woo him.

  The vamp looked like a newbie. His hand slid down from the middle of her back to her ass, where he cupped her cheek. His hair was cropped short and he was dressed in Dockers and a polo shirt. He blended in well with the preppy clientele, which appeared to be upper-class yuppies who probably worked on Wilshire by day.

  The bimbo tossed her hair and laughed before snaking her arm around his neck.

  She sucked whatever the hell pink drink was in her glass through the skinny stir straw, taking the yellow umbrella out of it and sticking it in her hair. Pretty enough to bang but not good for much else unless a vampire was jonesing for a fix.

  The vamp hooked his arm through hers and whispered something against her ear.

  She nodded, smiling. Even if she didn’t want to do whatever he’d suggested, he could make her think she did. It was the nature of the beast. But this girl looked the type to spend an inordinate amount of time on her knees.

  Sean checked his watch. Tasha was supposed to be there but he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of her yet. He waited until his mark was pulling the door of the club open before he left his seat in the back corner. He needed to stay far enough behind that the other vamp wouldn’t smell him but he didn’t want to give him too much of a lead either. The bimbo blonde’s life could very well be hanging in the balance. It wouldn’t take long for the vampire to do his business.

  Sean made it to the door just as it closed. He waited a few seconds and then pulled it open. He sniffed the night air and followed the scent. There wasn’t really a description for what vampires smelled like. To humans it was more a pheromone thing, not an identifiable scent but attractive and arousing. He rounded the corner toward the parking lot, a favored spot for feeding. It didn’t really get any easier than accosting drunk people fishing for their keys in a poorly lit space littered with cars for cover.

  Vampires had exceptional eyesight, especially at night, like built-in night vision goggles. Sean scanned the landscape and spotted the couple leaning against a black Volkswagen Beetle, one of the newer models.

  The vampire was already locked on the blonde’s neck and her hands hung shaking at her sides as if she were having a seizure.

  “Fuck.” Sean was too late. The asshole was dropping venom already. He wasn’t a newbie after all.

  Sean sprinted across the parking lot and grabbed him by the back of his neck. He squeezed hard but didn’t pull, lest the girl’s throat be torn open. At this point, Sean was doing damage control and he didn’t want a huge pool of blood to clean up.

  A guttural growl sounded from the other vampire and he released the girl. She crumpled to the ground and Sean spun the dude, pinning him to the car. Blood, heavy with the odor of alcohol, dripped from his fangs and he took an uncoordinated swing at Sean’s head. He ducked out of the way and slammed his fist into the guy’s face. For good measure, Sean smashed the vamp’s head against the window of the bug. Glass shattered inward and his skull cracked, dazing him.

  The girl wasn’t moving or breathing and she wasn’t bleeding from the holes in her neck. The asshole probably took too much for the venom to actually work. It wasn’t all that easy to make a vampire. If you killed your prey and still injected venom, no go. There had to be enough blood to incubate the baby.

  Sean pulled the guy into a headlock and dragged him to the trunk of the 442, which was only a few rows over. He kept a tight grip on the dude while he stuck his key in the lock. Sean hefted his sorry ass inside and slammed the trunk closed.

  Where the fuck was Tasha? He could have used a little help here. He made his way back to the blonde who was still lying lifeless on the blacktop. Making sure there were no witnesses, he picked up her purse and then tossed her over his shoulder. He felt a little tinge of regret that he’d been too late, but one lesson he’d learned early on was that he couldn’t take on the responsibility for what others did. She was dead because of the jackass in his trunk—and Sean would handle him.

  The dead woman reeked of booze and urine. Great. She’d pissed herself. Sean didn’t want to take the chance of opening the trunk and giving the idiot inside another crack at him. Normally he would have had someone else pick up the girl’s body but he didn’t want to wait around. He deposited the girl in the backseat of his car and said a silent thank you for leather seats that were easy to clean.

  Climbing into the driver’s seat, he cranked the ignition and called Tasha’s cell phone. It went straight to voice mail. “Where the hell are you? I’m on my way back to BBE. Meet me there as soon as you get this.”

  When he pulled into the underground parking garage, he still hadn’t heard from Tasha. It worried him. Not responding was out of character for her.

  Just as he opened the back door
of the car, Tasha came out of the building.

  “Damn, Sean. Are you okay? I got your message while I was on my way to meet you.” She peered into the backseat. “Dead?”

  Sean nodded. “Shit went south way faster than I expected. Got a live one in the trunk. He’s been quiet on the ride over so he’s either still dazed from me putting his head through a car window or he’s waiting to surprise me.”

  Tasha put her hands on her hips. “Do you want me to take her inside? Can you handle what’s in the trunk by yourself?”

  “Yeah. I got this little fuck.” Sean put his key in the trunk and as soon as he turned it and the lock tumbled, the trunk flew open and the vampire jumped out at him, nearly knocking him down. Sean staggered back a few steps before wrapping his arms around the guy in a bear hug that would have crushed a human.

  The guy started rambling on in another tongue. It wasn’t an easily identifiable language like Spanish. Sean assumed it was probably Dutch. This guy was likely one of Søren’s. Sean guessed the hit man wouldn’t be pleased that someone on his team was running around killing people and haphazardly leaving a trail.

  “You got him?” Tasha dropped down into a stance that looked as if she were waiting for a whistle to blow so she could win a medal in the hundred-yard dash.

  Sean exhaled and tightened his grip on the vampire. “Yeah, but do me a favor. Pull my belt off and gag this motherfucker. I don’t want him biting me.”

  Tasha popped back up and pulled at the buckle around Sean’s waist, tugging the belt out of the loops of his jeans. She forced the leather into the vampire’s mouth and tried to buckle it behind his head. “His head is too small.” She moved back around in front of them.

  The vampire growled and screeched and fought against Sean’s grasp. He snapped his jaws at Tasha and she reared back.

  “Never mind. Back up.” Sean dropped the vampire to his feet, pulled his Mark out of the back of his waistband and fired a slug square into his chest. The vampire was lifted off the ground and knocked back a yard or two before he landed with a thud on the concrete. His head hit hard and he was out cold.