Perfect Timing Read online

  “You have no authority over me. Not now, not ever.”

  “The hell I don’t.” Lucan shoved him again, harder.

  “I don’t want to fight with you. I never wanted this. But push me again, and I won’t vouch for my actions.” Shawn’s tone was flat and his posture deceivingly calm. The only thing betraying the feelings boiling under the surface was the spasm in his jaw.

  “You are nothing but a bum my dad had to keep around because of your whore of a mother.”

  The pain, still close to the surface, hit Shawn like a punch and left him gasping for air. His mind went blank. Red haze covered his eyes. How dare he? His mother had been a loving, tender creature, always calm and caring despite the unfairness of the life she had led.

  Lucan mistook his stillness for cowardice and went for the kill. His fist shot for the jaw. Shawn dodged the blow and planted his own fist in his brother’s stomach. Lucan gasped, his hands flying to the sore point, but he recovered quickly and, with a vicious snarl, slammed his body onto Shawn’s. Lucan’s friends emerged from the shadows, descending upon them like scavengers waiting for a feast.

  * * * *

  Valentin drained the last drops of tea and placed his mug on the table with a sigh. Time to move on. In the warmth of the tavern, his overworked muscles had finally started to relax, and now the effort to get them to function again was painful. He threw the last of his money on the table and headed out.

  He froze with his hand on the doorknob, his ears picking up a strange racket. Had they found him already? Panic rose in his throat, choking him. Sweat broke against his forehead. The walls closed in around him. His mind screamed to flee, to run as far away as possible. Instead he remained still, knees turned to stone.

  The ruckus outside grew in intensity and his neck prickled. Flesh hitting flesh, bones cracking, the low thump of a body hitting the pavement. What the hell? If they had caught up with Valentin, whom and why were they fighting outside? They had no need for such displays. Was this some sort of ruse? He strained his hearing further, picking up the faint sound of heartbeats. Several of them. Weird. He allowed his senses to reach out, searching for anything that would mark the presence of any immortals nearby, and found none. It could be only one answer. Shawn. He was in trouble.

  This time Valentin didn’t hesitate, didn’t stop to think. He pushed the door open and stepped outside, his posture changing, his back stiffening and his pace growing confident. He idly absorbed energy from the elements around him and power crackled over his skin.

  He sniffed the air. Rain. Cold, wet earth and the sweetest smell of all—blood. Its scent grew thicker, obtruding all others, and drew Valentin to it like a moth to the flame. How long had it been since he last fed? Since he last felt the need to?

  His eyes zeroed in on the fighters, frozen in place, staring back at him. He closed in, fangs dropping, ready to strike. There were three men standing and two on the ground. And he had been right, Shawn was one of them. He was bloodied and bruised, but on his feet. Apparently it was four against one. Bastards! They dared touch what was his! Not that Shawn was his per se, but there was a strange attraction he felt for the man.

  Rage coiled, heightened by the scent of blood and adrenaline coming from the men on the ground. The vampire wanted to roll in it, to cover himself in it and drink until there wasn’t a single drop left. Everything became a haze and nothing mattered but that heavenly scent. He was close now, so close he could taste it.

  The two guys on the ground rose to their feet, groaning. Six more steps, five, and then four. He growled, deep and menacing. His fully extended fangs gleamed from under his curled upper lip. Four heads rose as if on cue and nostrils flared. He growled again. The humans didn’t scream or cower in fear as he had expected. They stood their ground, wild-eyed.

  “Fuck!”

  “Oh, shit! Vampire!”

  “Bloodsuckers on pride lands! Alec will be pissed.”

  The tone varied from surprise to downright outrage. Shawn just sighed in contempt, a trickle of blood running from the corner of his mouth. One of the assailants had a broken nose and the other three were sporting serious cuts and ugly looking bruises. Though they were all bleeding, it wasn’t their blood that called out to Valentin. It was Shawn’s. Away from the rank of the bar, the man’s scent was stronger, so much so that even a sick Valentin could sense it. He smelled like summer and earth and grass, woodsy and intense and so oddly intimate. He wanted that man with an intensity that scared him.

  “Why, brother, you should have picked up his scent earlier. No wonder your father needed me to challenge Alec. You’re too weak.”

  “No point in waiting for Alec. We could take care of the bloodsucker on our own.” A short, bulky, dark-haired man sneered. Valentin assumed he was the leader and turned to face him. The man snarled and shifted on his feet, hiding Shawn in the process. The vampire growled, making his intentions clear. Shawn was his and his alone.

  “You should have stayed out of this.” Shawn sounded resigned, like he expected nothing less.

  “And miss all the fun?”

  “You two know each other? Oh, how lovely.” Lucan turned to Shawn and sneered.

  “Leave him out of this, Lucan. He is none of your business.”

  “I beg to differ, brother.” Lucan spat the words at Shawn and whirled on his heels, throwing himself at Valentin.

  The vampire dodged him easily, grabbed him by the back of his neck as Lucan flew past him, and threw the man against the side of the nearest SUV. The remaining three scrambled to life, two of them launching themselves at him as the last one circled them, waiting for an opportunity to jump in.

  The tugs circled Valentin in some sort of weird dance, none of them managing to place any blows. Valentin moved easily, bouncing on the balls of his feet, easily dodging the punches aimed his way. His blood simmered, excitement and hunger making edgy. Power surged through him, his, his sire’s mixed within his veins, spurring him on. But despite all that, Valentin was tiring fast, his movements getting slower. Sensing the opportunity, the thugs closed in, their blows landing closer and closer, and Valentin started praying for a miracle.

  Lucan shoved away from the car, fingers curved to claws, lips curled in a snarl. Oh shit! Shawn lunged, catching him midair and shoving his fist in his brother’s face. Bones cracked under the force of the blow and blood gushed. Lucan cried out and stumbled backward. Shawn took advantage of this and grabbed one of his brother’s friends and threw him over the hood of the SUV, letting the vampire deal with the remaining two. Valentin caught the exchange and increased his efforts. His movements became a blur, bones shattering bones, claws raking over skin, blood oozing from fresh wounds.

  Lucan took a swing at Shawn, which he dodged, just barely. Unfortunately he wasn’t so lucky the second time, as sharp talons raked his chest and a fist caught him over the side of his head. His knees buckled.

  Valentin saw Shawn go down, his rage giving him new strength.

  “Mine!” His fully extended fangs made talking difficult. The single word held more possessiveness than he’d intended, and it made everyone pause.

  Lucan regarded him with a startled look in eyes. He recovered and issued his own challenge. “Yours? In what way is he yours?”

  How dare he? Valentin’s eyesight changed, his pupils dilating to the point where there was no white left in his eyes. A new wave of power washed over him. Lucan took a step back. The scent of his fear filled the air.

  “Have I not made myself clear enough? He. Is. Mine.”

  “You can have him. I’m better off without him. I just hope you will make his death slow and painful.”

  Without a single glance at the man lying at his feet, Lucan turned tail and left, his goons hot on his heels.

  Only when they were out of sight did the vampire allow himself to give in to the powerful pull of Shawn. The scent of the man was intoxicating. Not even in his first days as a vampire had he been so enthralled. The rain had started falling, bu
t he wasn’t feeling it. He filled his lungs again and again, tasting the scent in all its nuances.

  He stepped closer until he was almost sitting on top of Shawn and crouched to get a better look. The man was covered in blood and bruises. His eyes were closed and his breath labored, but there was no permanent damage.

  The human body, so strong and yet so weak. Valentin could kill him easily. Why shouldn’t he? Shawn’s blood would give him the strength he needed. It wouldn’t cure him, but it would allow him to fight a little longer.

  “What is it about you that has me so worked up?”

  A drop of water sliding down Shawn’s cheek captivated him. How would it be to trace the same path with his tongue? He caught it with his finger and brought to his mouth. It tasted like… rainwater? He glanced up, finally realizing it was pouring and the temperature had dropped in the last minutes.

  “Now, what do I do with you? I cannot keep you, let alone keep you safe.” But before the words left his mouth, he knew that he couldn’t leave Shawn behind, hurting or not. It wasn’t a feeling he cared for, so he pushed the thought aside to deal with later.

  Hoping he wasn’t causing the man more pain than he had to, the vampire slid his hands under Shawn’s body and lifted him in his arms. Though shorter than Valentin, Shawn had a good forty pounds on him, but the vampire could carry him with ease.

  Valentin tried to ignore the titillating scent assaulting his nostrils, warm blood and male, the hunger gnawing at his stomach, and concentrated on his surroundings. He had been so caught up in his righteous rage, an entire battalion of tanks could have arrived without him noticing. Fortunately that was not the case.

  The vampire carried Shawn away from the parking lot’s light range and set him back on the ground. He scanned the area around them and, once satisfied the other man would be safe there for the few minutes needed to secure a vehicle, he turned around and headed for the parking lot.

  He’d never hot-wired a car before, but how hard could it be? They did it all the time in movies, surely he could match that. Halfway to the parking lot, he remembered he had nothing he could use to pry open the door.

  I guess I could always break the window, if need be. He grabbed hold of a small rock and aimed for the light bulb. Moments later the glass shattered, leaving the parking lot in the dark. He didn’t need the light anyway and the night would provide him protection against prying eyes.

  Valentin circled the parked cars. There wasn’t much of a choice. Most of the cars were ancient, battered and rusted under the layers of paint, only a few looking slightly better. He wasn’t picky, but if he were to steal a car, he’d like to get at least a remotely reliable one. A blue SUV caught his eyes. It wasn’t new, but it seemed in good shape. And the best part was that it had no alarm system that he could see. He tried the door, hoping he might find it unlocked. No such luck. He glanced around, making sure he was alone, and slammed his elbow through the driver’s window to lift the safety. He stuck his head inside and sniffed. It smelled faintly like Shawn, and Valentin chuckled.

  Okay. I can do this. Just have to pick the right wires. He crouched under the wheel, pried the lid open, not without inflicting some permanent damage, and within seconds had the wires in his hand. Exactly what I thought. There’s nothing to it.

  A minute later he was pulling next to a still-unconscious Shawn. He pushed the seat back as far as it could go and lifted Shawn in. Halfway through the motion of pushing shut the door, Valentin froze. He’d walk away from any car crash he might get into, and as he wasn’t much of a driver there was a high chance of that happening, but Shawn couldn’t. He secured the seatbelt over the man’s chest and lap, whilst fighting the urge to check up closer on the equipment behind those tight jeans.

  He got back in the driver’s seat and pulled off onto the road with no destination in mind, just the urge to not waste any more time.

  Valentin traced Shawn’s face with his knuckles, his touch soft as a feather. What do I do with you now, handsome?

  Valentin longed to be allowed to continue the journey south. How would it feel to run his hands all over that body? To expose every inch of that glorious skin? To touch it, to taste it, to feel it against him? Shawn’s rich scent surrounded him, seeping into his every pore and driving him crazy with lust. The confusing part was that, while Shawn was still covered in dried blood, Valentin was lusting after the man’s body more than anything else.

  Valentin shook his head, chiding himself. For all he knew the man wasn’t even gay, much less interested. He just hoped Shawn wouldn’t be too pissed about being dragged along to want to have anything to do with Valentin.

  The vampire shifted in his seat, trying to find a more comfortable position for his raging erection. Driving with a hard-on was going to make for a really long trip.

  Chapter 3

  Shawn groaned and pried his eyes open, a dull headache pulsing behind his eyelids. Thank God there wasn’t any light or it would have been much worse. The scent had awoken him. The smell of an aroused vampire nearby. It had wormed its way into his consciousness and tugged at his memory.

  His heart jumped, fear of being close and vulnerable rising, before the events of the previous days came rushing back. His mother’s death. The funeral. His stepfather’s ultimatum. Leaving what for the last fifteen years of his life he’d called home, with nothing more than the clothes on his back. Alec’s understanding when Shawn had told him about his stepfather’s plot to overthrow him using Shawn. His kindness when Shawn had said good-bye to Alec and his pride. Then his decision to drown his sorrows at his favorite bar. The image of a skinny bloodsucker with big, black eyes and sandy blond hair popped up in his mind. He remembered wanting him, despite Valentin being a vampire and a man. And he remembered the bloodsucker’s grace and skill during the fight. It had been clear that he was experienced, though it was with a different style. The way he moved was more suited to holding a sword than hand to hand combat. And he remembered the aura of strength surrounding him that Shawn always thought was reserved only for thirteenth-century knights.

  But vampires and shifters didn’t mix, damn it. Ever. That was the rule. Why it was so, Shawn didn’t know, but he’d heard stories. Werewolves bled dry for trespassing into bloodsuckers’ territory, or vampires killed for offending one or the other of the local prides or packs.

  So why had he felt so protective of Valentin? He should have killed him when he first laid eyes on him, not warned him off. A dangerous predator like the vampire on his lands should have triggered all sorts of violent responses in him, not possessiveness. And definitely not arousal.

  He kept his eyes shut and his breath even as he mulled things over. He was very aware of the man sitting next to him, Valentin’s scent was everywhere, but to his utter surprise, he found the presence soothing. How weird was that? They should be enemies. The therians and the vampires had been at each other’s throats for centuries, so why didn’t he feel threatened?

  Each question raised more questions, and Shawn’s curiosity was tickled. He’d stick around until time or his relentless questioning would wear Valentin down and would finally provide all of the information he was seeking. Maybe in the process, he’d figure out what was up with that attraction he felt for the vampire. For all he knew, it could have been some kind of weird mojo the bloodsuckers had going for them to help them get laid. Yep, that had to be it. He wasn’t gay.

  Satisfied with his conclusion, he opened his eyes and shifted in his seat. They were in his SUV, on the road. He had no idea where Valentin was going or why was he driving Shawn’s car. He glanced to his side at the vampire and his eyes widened in shock.

  Son of a bitch!

  “Did you have to break my window?” Okay, maybe his voice croaked a bit, but no one but him could tell. It was his baby they were talking about. Breathe! Just breathe, before you strangle him!

  Valentin winced. “Yeah, well. Sorry about that. It hadn’t occurred to me to check if you had any car keys on you. I was in a hur
ry. How do you feel?”

  Shawn dismissed the question as a plot to distract him from probing Valentin anymore. “You were in a hurry.” It was a statement. “In a hurry to go where?”

  Valentin shrugged and kept driving. Shawn bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from screaming in frustration and tried to be reasonable.

  “That would explain your need to steal a car. But did it have to be mine?”

  Valentin chuckled. He actually chuckled.

  “What’s funny?” Shawn wasn’t finding any of this amusing.

  “I wasn’t looking to steal your car. It just happened.”

  “And the car wasn’t enough? You had to take me, too? Or that just happened, too?” No point in mentioning that it fit Shawn’s plans perfectly.

  Valentin smirked, which Shawn found to be equally annoying. “Nope, that was planned.”

  Shawn caught the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger and prayed for patience. This had to be a vampire with a serious death wish.

  “Why?”

  “You intrigue me.” Valentin seemed to be choosing his words carefully.

  Still rubbing his forehead with the tips of his fingers, Shawn let out another groan, ignoring the way his heart skipped a beat at the admission. It wouldn’t do for him to admit he found the vampire equally intriguing. No, sir, it wouldn’t do at all.

  “Let me see if I got this straight. You were in a hurry to leave and so you stole my car and, as I tickled your fancy, you decided to take me along as well.”

  “Yep, that about sums it up.”

  “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  The car swerved dangerously. Shawn grabbed the dashboard in an attempt to keep himself safe. Valentin swore under his breath and struggled with the wheel.

  “Watch it!”

  “Everything is under control.”

  “Really?” Shawn could only stare at the vampire in shock. “How is this under control?”