His breath rushed out of him. “We will talk about this later. We need to hear as much as we can about Jashari and his friends. We need information. The best place to hear gossip and news is there.” He indicated a rustic building just about a city block away. People were coming in and out of the door constantly. In fact, it seemed to be the only place where there was any activity.
“If a vampire is hunting, he will hunt there, or just outside. He can mask his appearance and force a compulsion on someone to accompany him outside.”
“Do you have your identification on you?” she asked. “I carry my passport and ID in my jacket.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “I have sent word to Josef, one of our boys well versed in modern technology, and he has built a full identity for when I travel with you to the United States, but I do not need anything here.”
She didn’t tell him he was mistaken. He slid his hand down her arm and threaded his fingers through hers, taking her with him down the street to a building where music, laughter and voices spilled out into the night. The rain had let up again so only a fine mist touched her face.
She noticed Andre was reaching out with senses, searching for something—or a lack of it. She stayed in his mind, trying to study what he did.
Vampires are so foul, nature shrinks from their presence. They try to disguise themselves by creating a space of nothing. No scent. No tracks. Nothing at all. That can give them away.
She liked that he shared. She liked that a lot. She especially liked walking beneath his shoulder, close to his body.
Did you spot anything?
“No. That does not necessarily mean we can relax our vigilance, but it is less likely one is close.”
He reached around her to open the door. At once the noise assaulted her ears, forcing her to figure out how to turn the volume down. Immediately Teagan realized just why Andre didn’t need an ID. She felt the exact moment he reached out and took control of the mind of the man at the door. They were waved through. He kept her close as they made their way to a table all the way at the back of the room.
The smell of alcohol nearly made her gag. She’d never had that reaction before, and she knew immediately she couldn’t possibly have a drink. Still, the moment the waitress came over, Andre ordered two drinks. He leaned close to her, creating an intimate space. Listen, sivamet. After a few minutes you will be able to process several conversations at the same time. Listen for Jashari’s name.
She nodded. She wanted to learn as much as she could from him and sitting at the small table listening to his quiet instruction made her feel as if he’d accepted her as a partner, instead of someone who had to be shielded at all times.
Water came first while they waited for their drinks. She sipped at the water, her eyes moving around the bar. It was packed. She was certain there wasn’t much else to do in the evenings. Music blared and couples danced. Laughter broke out at a table a couple of feet from theirs. It was normal. Human. She took comfort in that. She was apart from them all, just as she’d always been, but now, she had Andre. She was with him. She fit with him. She belonged with him. And that was just plain awesome.
17
Andre’s hand, still holding Teagan’s, dropped beneath the table to rest on her thigh. He rubbed the back of his hand there. Up high. She was instantly aware of him. Acutely so. Every single cell in her body was aware of him, especially her sex. Damp. Hot. Inviting. How could he do that?
He was looking at her, but she was in his mind and he was searching the room for information. Still, he was all too aware of her, just as she was of him. He didn’t miss anything about her, not from the nervous hand that came up to push her hair behind her ear to the fidgeting in her chair because—well—if she didn’t fidget, she might just spontaneously combust. Or have an orgasm. Could a woman actually get an orgasm just from a man rubbing the back of his hand along her thigh while his fingers were tight around hers? If so, that was definitely going to happen. So who could concentrate on trying to hear information in the packed room?
“Teagan.”
She did a full body shiver. There it was. Silk and velvet. But low and rough at the same time. Somewhere between a purr and a growl. She loved the way he said her name. Loved it.
She risked looking up at him, and it was a risk because he was gorgeous and he had those eyes she couldn’t resist. She didn’t try to answer him because nothing coherent was going to come out of her mouth. “Um . . .” That was it. That was the best she could manage. Um. What was that? She cleared her throat and tried again. “Let’s just go. I mean, what do we really need to find out that we don’t already know? If we left now, we could get back to the cave and . . .” She trailed off, blushing. The color swept right up her body, probably starting in the vicinity of her toes and ending at her face. A full body blush.
“Sivamet, we will get back to our base soon, I promise.”
She swallowed hard and looked at the waitress as she plopped drinks on the table. Automatically Teagan reached for the money clip she kept inside her jacket pocket. Instantly, Andre’s hand covered hers. Gently. Firmly. When she looked up at him, his eyes had gone totally glacier. He slid money across the table.
“Keep the rest.”
The waitress stared at him with her mouth parted like she might gobble him up at any moment. Yeah, Andre was hot. He said not to draw attention, but every female eye in the place had noticed the moment he entered. She was certain the men recognized danger when they saw it. The crowd had parted for them as he’d led the way to the table he wanted. She had also noted that the table hadn’t been empty until Andre looked at it and directed her there. The occupants got up and left abruptly when they were halfway to it.