Broken Dawn Read online

  He hoped like hell he wouldn’t fuck this up. Because he wanted to have many more moments like this one. Millions more.

  Grabbing the remote, he aimed it at the television and turned it off.

  Keeping one arm behind her back, he slipped the other beneath Kayla’s knees and rose. Nick didn’t think he had carried a female like this since his cousin had fallen and hurt her arm when they were children. Kayla felt almost as light as Marie had while he carried her upstairs and into his bedroom.

  Becca slept in the bed, the television casting flickering light over her features.

  He raised a knee to support Kayla long enough to free a hand and drag back the covers. Jostling her as little as possible, he lowered her to the mattress beside her daughter.

  Becca roused as he drew the covers up. Blinking up at him, she stiffened. Her brown eyes widened before awareness of her location and his identity returned. She glanced at her mother, then leaned up on an elbow. “Is she okay?” she whispered.

  “Yes. She’s just tired.” He fought the need to draw his hand over Kayla’s hair and lost.

  Becca watched him stroke the silky strands atop her mother’s head, no emotion showing in her features. “What about the concussion? Should I wake her every hour or two?”

  “No. The doctor said that wouldn’t be necessary. We’re supposed to just let her sleep.”

  She nodded. “Thank you for everything you did today. For taking care of her and getting me here so quickly. It scared the hell out of me.”

  He smiled wryly. “Me, too. I’m glad everything turned out all right.” Not knowing what else to do, he offered her a good night and headed for the door.

  “Hey, Nick?” she called softly, omitting for the first time the mister she usually used before his name when addressing him.

  He turned in the doorway. “Yes?”

  “Don’t hurt her. Okay?” She didn’t deliver it as a threat or a warning, but as a simple request born out of love and concern.

  Nick offered her an equally honest reply. “I won’t. I care about her too much.” He cared about Kayla so much he’d given her a rope with which she could pull herself out of the rabbit hole. But she’d ditched that rope without a second thought.

  Nodding, Becca lay back down beside her mother.

  “I’ll be down the hallway if you need anything,” he offered.

  “Thank you.”

  Pulling the door closed, Nick headed for the guest bedroom.

  Kayla loved her daughter. She really did. But she was so ready for Becca to leave.

  And it had only been two days.

  Since she had flown in on a Thursday, Becca had decided to stay the weekend and head back to North Carolina on Sunday night. “Unless you’d like me to stay longer,” she’d added. “I know things are awkward with the cast and all.”

  “No,” Kayla had said a little too quickly. “I’ll be fine, sweetie.” If Nick followed through on his promise to show her several times a day how much she didn’t bore him in bed, she’d be very fine indeed. She just had to get Becca to leave first.

  Nick, of course, was a total sweetheart. He made lunch for them every afternoon, something she worried might be keeping him from getting enough rest. And he cooked dinner for them every night before he left for work. Not burgers. Not premade meals he popped into the oven or takeout. He actually cooked meals for them that were so freaking delicious she and Becca always asked for seconds.

  “I swear,” Becca declared around a mouthful of eggplant parmesan Saturday night, “I’m going to be ten pounds heavier by the time I leave.”

  Nick grinned. “I’m glad you like it.”

  Kayla liked it, too. She also loved spending more time with him. Usually, she and Nick just called greetings to each other if they happened to cross paths while coming and going or engaged in brief, friendly conversations over the fence.

  She did begin to worry though that Nick might be keeping things a little too casual. She could understand him not groping her or feeling her up in front of Becca. That would be too weird… for all three of them. But Nick even avoided innocent touches like holding her hand or draping his arm across her shoulders. And the more he did, the more she wondered if maybe he’d changed his mind.

  Usually when Nick saw her out front or spoke to her over the fence, they were alone—just a man and a woman laughing and chatting amiably. Now that he was spending hours at a time with her, however, he was seeing a lot more of her in mom mode.

  Did he find that to be a turnoff?

  Pretty much the only time he’d touched her since that first night was when he decorated her cast after they finished devouring the eggplant parmesan. Equipped with a paintbrush; a few brown, black, and metallic paints; and some paint pens, he transformed Kayla’s cast into Wonder Woman’s gauntlet, complete with what now looked like leather hand wraps.

  “That is so freaking cool!” Becca exclaimed.

  Kayla nodded in amazement as she turned her arm this way and that, admiring his handiwork. Anyone who glanced at her in passing would think she was wearing a metal gauntlet. The detail was incredible. “It really is. You’re such a talented artist.”

  Smiling, Nick tucked his paints away in a bag. “It’s just a hobby, something I do to pass the time.”

  Becca leapt up. “I’m totally posting pics of that online. They’re going to get so many likes.”

  Nick rose as she raced into the adjoining living room. “I’d better go. I’m running late for work.”

  “Okay.” Kayla smiled down at her gauntlet as she pushed her chair back and stood next to him. “This was really nice, Nick. Thank you.” She rested a hand on his strong forearm, left bare by his T-shirt, intending to rise up onto her toes and give him a kiss.

  But he swiftly stepped back. Casually breaking her hold, he turned away.

  It hit her like slap to the face.

  Movement drew her attention to the archway into the living room. Becca stood there, phone in hand, her face somber.

  Kayla sighed. Nothing like being rejected in front of your child.

  Nick headed for the front door, Kayla following woodenly.

  “Thanks for dinner,” Becca called behind them, her voice uncertain and lacking the jubilation that had formerly flavored it.

  “You’re welcome,” Nick responded without turning. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

  Kayla waited while he unlocked and opened the door. “Be safe tonight.” She still didn’t know much about his work or how dangerous it might be but could think of nothing else to say in that moment.

  “I will. You ladies have a nice night.”

  “We will,” they chorused.

  Then he was gone with barely a glance back.

  Silence fell as she closed the door.

  “Everything okay between you two?” Becca asked tentatively.

  “Sure,” Kayla responded automatically and turned the dead bolt. “I need to go get some work done.”

  “Okay.”

  Remembering that Becca wanted to take some pictures of her cast, she held it over the table.

  Becca snapped some quick pics. “How’s work going?”

  She shrugged. “The cast makes typing awkward, but I’m still getting it done.” She couldn’t afford to not to get it done. She wasn’t sure how much of the ambulance ride and ER costs her insurance plan would cover and was dreading the day the bills began to arrive. “I’m going to head into my office.” The manuscript she was currently editing was a sci-fi romance filled with action and humor. Maybe it would take her mind off Nick for a while.

  “Okay. Let me know if you need anything.”

  “Thanks, sweetie. I love you.”

  “Love you, too, Mom.”

  “What’s with you tonight?” Eliana queried as they strolled through the University of Houston’s campus.

  “What do you mean?”

  She gave him a long up-and-down look. “You’re wound as tight as a drum.”

  Nick grimaced. “I f
ucked up.”

  “How so?”

  “I think I hurt Kayla’s feelings.” Self-recrimination struck. “No. I know I did. It was completely unintentional. But that doesn’t excuse it.” And it did nothing to banish the memory of the hurt he’d seen flicker in her eyes earlier when he’d backed away from her touch like a fucking sixteenth-century duchess whose manure-covered stable boy had tried to grope her.

  “What happened?”

  He sighed. “She touched me and I pulled away.”

  She arched a brow and gave his crotch a quick glance. “Touched you where?”

  “On my arm,” he growled. “Get your mind out of the gutter. Her daughter was in the room with us.”

  She laughed, unashamed of where her thoughts had gone. “Why did you pull away?”

  “Because now that I’ve held her and kissed her and touched her amazing body, all it takes is one brush of her hand on my arm to leave me hard and aching.”

  “And make your eyes glow? Kinda like they’re glowing right now?”

  “Yes, damn it.” Closing his eyes, he thought of the time in the eighteenth century when he’d gotten caught out in an open field with no trees or structures in sight as the sun rose, leaving him no choice but to burrow down into the snow to keep from getting burned. Without modern technology and the convenience of cell phones, he’d lacked the ability to call his Second for aid and had been forced to stay in that snow and ice all damned day.

  Yep. That did it. The arousal sparked by thoughts of Kayla receded.

  Opening his eyes, he cut Eliana a glance.

  She nodded. “Back to brown. You’re good.”

  He had to give her props for not laughing. If the shoe were on the other foot and her inability to keep her eyes from glowing hindered a budding relationship, he’d probably think it funny as hell.

  But Eliana just offered him a commiserating smile. “Being an Immortal Guardian has its drawbacks.”

  “It really does.”

  She bumped his arm with her shoulder. “Stop worrying. I’m sure Kayla will understand. Just explain it when Becca isn’t around.”

  “That’s the thing. Becca is always around.”

  Now she did laugh. “She leaves tomorrow though, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Well, you’ve waited this long for Kayla. You can wait one more day.”

  He nodded.

  Crickets chirped, their song almost drowned out by the boom-boom-booming music pouring forth from the party they approached. It had been raging for a while now. The kids inside had been drinking and/or getting high for a few hours. Their inhibitions were down. And they paid no damn attention at all to their surroundings when they staggered outside to either head home, look for another party, or find the nearest place to get laid.

  Even the biggest jock among them would prove easy pickings for vampires seeking a bite. Two such jocks headed their way, plastic cups reeking of the beer that sloshed over the rims.

  “Hey, baby,” the blond called, ogling Eliana. “Why don’t you ditch this ugly fucker and come have some fun with us?”

  Eliana grimaced. “Hell no. Look in the mirror and you’ll understand why.”

  His friend guffawed. “Dude! That’s like the fifth girl who’s shot you down tonight!”

  The blond scowled. “Bitch.”

  Nick shook his head at the young men as they passed. “Perhaps if your parents had taught you better manners, you’d have more luck.”

  “Fuck you,” the blond muttered under his breath.

  Eliana glanced at him over her shoulder. “And read a fucking book every once in a while! Ignorance is a huge turnoff!”

  That sparked another round of mutters from the blond while his friend laughed and razzed him.

  She smiled up at Nick. “It is for me, anyway. Big and dumb has never attracted me. No matter how hot a guy is, he has to have something going on upstairs in order to pique my interest.”

  Nick nodded absently as a crawling sensation worked its way up the back of his neck.

  Eliana sobered. “What is it?”

  “I don’t know. I just got a weird feeling.”

  “What kind of weird feeling?”

  “Like we’re being watched.”

  Slipping her hand into his in a fake girlfriend-boyfriend ploy, she casually glanced around. “I don’t see anything.”

  He didn’t either, yet the feeling persisted.

  “Wait,” she said. “Yes I do. Over there.”

  He followed her nod and watched a couple of vampires slink through the shadows after the two jocks. His steps slowed to a halt.

  Eliana sighed. “Damn. Why couldn’t they have gone after someone I actually want to save?”

  He arched a brow. “We could always look the other way.”

  “Tempting.” She bit her lip. “But once they finish with those two numb nuts, they might seek other prey.”

  “Such was my thought. Let’s do this then.” Giving her a teasing smile—because that feeling of being watched continued to prickle the back of his neck—he tugged her off the sidewalk toward the shadows between two buildings.

  She cast him a flirtatious glance. “Oooh. Are we doing the horny couple turns offensive linemen thing?”

  He smiled. “It seemed appropriate.”

  “Woohoo!” she cheered with a grin. “Then hurry up, lover.”

  Laughing, he broke into a loose jog. Just before they reached the corner of the first building, he released her hand and looped an arm around her waist, tugging her close as if they really were a horny couple looking for a dark, quiet place to engage in a quickie.

  They ducked behind the building.

  Eliana grinned up at him. “Having me this close doesn’t do anything at all for you, does it?”

  He laughed. “No. Kayla has spoiled me for other women.”

  Concealed in darkness and out of sight of the security cameras, they parted and turned to peer at the two jocks. The vampire duo continued to stalk the drunken idiots from the shadows.

  “They’re keeping their distance,” she murmured.

  He nodded. “Biding their time until they reach an area without cameras.” They were already almost upon one.

  “Ready to do this?” Eliana asked, practically bobbing on her toes in anticipation.

  “Ready.” They both faced their targets.

  “You take Han. I’ll take Chewy.”

  He chuckled at her description of the two vampires. One was broad-shouldered and brunette. The other was a taller, stockier ginger with long, shaggy hair and particularly hirsute arms. “One. Two. Three.”

  Chapter Seven

  Nick and Eliana raced forward at preternatural speeds, becoming but a blur of motion neither the partygoers nor the guards manning the security-camera feeds would detect.

  The vampires were so fixated on their targets that they didn’t notice the immortal predators until it was too late. They spun around at the last second, eyes wide.

  The two Immortal Guardians plowed into them like NFL linebackers, lifting them off their feet and carrying them forward, never losing speed, until they reached another security-camera blackout area and stopped. The vampires kept going, hurtling toward a building. Cracks formed in the brick when they struck the wall.

  Grunting, the vampires fell to the ground. But they weren’t on their asses for more than half a second before they leapt up with snarls of fury.

  “The fuck?” the brunette snapped, his eyes glowing bright blue.

  The hairy vamp’s eyes flashed vibrant green. “Immortal Guardians,” he snarled.

  “So you’ve heard of us?” Eliana asked as she drew two shoto swords.

  The vampires spewed a slew of curse words garbled enough to indicate both were already skewing toward insanity.

  Nick drew his own shoto swords. “I don’t suppose you’d care to surrender yourselves and seek our aid in staving off—”

  The vampires leapt forward.

  So much for them wanti
ng to stave off insanity.

  Both vampires attacked Eliana, the cowards. Two big guys against one small woman?

  He laughed silently. That one small woman could kick both their asses while blindfolded with a hand tied behind her back.

  But with him present, she didn’t have to. Nick dove into the battle, diverting the brunette from his quest to hamstring Eliana while she tore into the Wookiee look-alike. The fight was quick. The fight was fierce. And anyone walking past wouldn’t even notice it. Darkness enshrouded the combatants, all of whom moved so quickly they blurred. Most people walked with their heads down while they gazed raptly at their phones, frighteningly oblivious to the goings-on around them. Even the muffled sounds of battle went ignored by many since more and more also wore earbuds.

  The blades the vampires wielded were shorter than Nick and Eliana’s. The vampires’ technique also lacked a lot. Nick inflicted one gash after another, efficiently evading Han’s swings. His breath remained calm as he struck metal, flesh, metal, metal, flesh, flesh, flesh. He stripped the vampire of one tactical knife, then dodged the other and opened the vamp’s carotid artery.

  Stumbling backward, the vampire clamped a hand to his throat in an attempt to stem the flow of blood.

  Nick rid him of the second tactical knife and turned to see how Eliana fared.

  Her shoto swords flashed.

  The ginger vamp’s head left his shoulders and tumbled to the ground beside his wide-eyed friend.

  Both vampires collapsed. Unlike immortals, vampires could and would die from excessive blood loss. Little time passed before the brunette drew his last breath.

  Nick turned away from them and gave Eliana a quick inspection. Quite a bit of blood adorned her, but it must be that of the vampires because she appeared unharmed.

  Grimacing, she motioned to her blood-streaked face. “You see? This is why I can’t get a man. I mean, who the hell would want to come home to this every night?”

  Laughing, he retrieved a clean handkerchief from his back pocket.

  “Oh sure. You can laugh,” she grumbled as she took it. “You have Kayla.”