Huh. Now that he thought about it, he did remember seeing a rather ragged green couch in the kitchen.
And there was really no way he was going to fit on it. "I think I'd prefer the bed."
She stretched out. "Um, I'm sure you would." Another yawn, one she made no attempt to cover.
"But you're getting the sofa. Or the floor. Your choice."
What a fine choice it was.
"There's food in the cabinets, if you get hungry. Pay to…keep it stocked." Her eyelids began to lower.
"Uh, Maya?" Surely this wasn't it. The great vampire was just going to curl up now and go to sleep? And he was going to stay up, horny, all damn day long? What about the bite? Did she think they were linked now, that she could trust him? A long sigh filled the room. "Slick, I've been hunting all night. I killed a demon, got my body ripped open, and had to deal with you. " She drew out the last, making it seem as if his presence had been the most stressful part of her night.
Adam frowned.
"Now, I'm tired, and apparently, I've got one hell of a hunt planned for tomorrow."
But he hadn't even told her all the details about Nassor and his pack yet.
"So I'm going to bed."
"You need to-"
Her eyes closed. "We'll talk tomorrow." Her voice had started to slur.
Well, damn. The vampire was dismissing him.
Just curling up and going to sleep.
He spun and stomped toward the door.
"Brody." No sleepiness in her voice now.
Glancing back over his shoulder, he found her stare trained on him.
"I've got you in me now. Got your taste." Her eyes were wide open as she told him, "We're linked. Don't think about lying to me or betraying me. I told you that I'd help you find the girl, and I will."
But only after she'd gotten her beauty sleep.
Adam bit back his impatience. Just because he didn't need sleep didn't mean that she could stay awake and be strong.
Even the undead had to rest.
He gave a curt nod.
"Turn on me, and I'll kill you." Her eyes flashed black for just the briefest of moments. "Believe me, if you even think about betraying me, I'll know."
No, she wouldn't. She had his blood, yeah, and though she didn't realize the fact yet, it would give her more strength than she'd ever possessed.
Maya would need that strength in the nights to come.
Yet other than the physical power the blood gave her, there was no other connection. If he wanted, he could let her into his mind. But only if he allowed it.
The vampire kept applying human rules to him.
A serious mistake. Human rules had never applied to him.
Not in all the centuries of his existence.
"Sleep well, vampire. You can trust me this day." For the day, she could. After that, well, they'd just have to see.
Her gaze bored into him and he knew she was trying to test their blood link. He could feel her power stirring in the air around him. Deliberately, he projected a calm, steady presence back to her.
She nodded her head slowly. Settled back against the bed and closed her eyes, apparently satisfied that she didn't have to worry about him while she slept.
Adam stared at her, emotions, needs churning in him. Maya Black wasn't quite what he'd expected.
She was making him feel. Making him want.
Not an ideal situation for one of his kind. Because when creatures like him wanted something, well, they took it.
After all, they were the strongest of the beasts that roamed the land.
Yeah, if he wanted something, he took it.
And, usually, he killed anything that got in his way.
CHAPTER 3
"Tell me about the kid."
Adam looked up at Maya. She stood in the doorway, clad in a pair of faded jeans and a white T-
shirt.
The sun had set less than twenty minutes ago. As it had dipped beneath the horizon, he'd heard Maya stirring in the next room. He'd stayed on the couch, not moving, too leery of finding another strip show if he walked into the bedroom.
Because what would he do then? He'd already spent the better part of the day trying to forget what the woman felt like beneath his fingers. He didn't need another visual tease to stir him up.
Maya sauntered across the room and stared down at him. "I need to know everything about her."
He licked his lips. "Her name's Camellia. Cammie. She's nine." But he'd already told her that.
"What does she look like?" Her gaze drifted to his hair. "Dark, like you?"
He nodded. "Same hair color, but she's got curls. Same eyes. She's kinda fragile, and small."
"What, is she your sister's kid or-"
"My brother's. But I'm her guardian." Protecting her had been his responsibility, and he'd failed her.
He'd just wanted her to feel normal. Going to a sleepover at a friend's house had seemed so innocent.
So human.
But Cammie wasn't normal. Never would be.
The vamps knew it. That was why they'd taken her.
"Why isn't your brother the one looking for her?"
"Because he's dead." Jon had passed years ago. Taken his own life, right after Cammie's mother died.
"Must be tough on the kid. Not having a father."
"Or a mother." Hell, he hadn't meant to tell her that.
Her lips pulled down. "So it's just the two of you, huh, Slick?"
"Yeah."
"And where's home for you and Cammie?" Maya drawled. "I get the feeling you aren't from L.A."
No, he definitely was not. "Maine. Small town. Cotter's Ridge." At least that's where they'd been living when his niece was taken.
"Um." She sat on the couch beside him, her knee brushing his. "And you came all the way to L.A. in order to find little old me?"
Yeah, he had. Because Maya could lead him to Nassor.
"How do you know that it was Nassor's pack that took her?"
"A witness told me. She saw the vampires, heard them mention his name." Nassor wasn't exactly a name that could be forgotten. Those who knew of the supernatural world, well, they usually knew of Nassor.
The vampire was old. Maybe one of the oldest of his kind. Writings of him began in the time of ancient Egypt.
According to the legends, he'd been favored by his gods. Granted immortality.
The bastard had been raising hell ever since.
Maya rubbed her index finger down the bridge of her nose. "Nassor's men don't usually leave witnesses behind."
"They thought she was dead." He still wasn't sure how Karen had managed to hold on until he'd gotten there. Sometimes, humans could surprise him. "Karen-Cammie's nanny-managed to tell me what happened."