Claude's Conquest (Maura's Men Book 2) Page 4

  “Help me?”

  Cat put her hand on her hip. Her eyebrow raised in question and a bit of challenge.

  “Yes, help you. If I hadn’t given you the necklace and explained its purpose, you would have no hope of getting rid of Maura.”

  “It’s because you gave me this thing that I constantly live with the threat of her attack! What made you think that giving me the key to Maura’s power was a good idea?”

  “Trust me, you are safer with it than without it. This is not what I came to discuss. You and Alexander have found each other, and your love has weakened the dark magic in the necklace, but there is still a long way to go.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Claude and Shane must also find love for you to be free, and for Maura to be destroyed once and for all.”

  “Well, that should be easy.” Cat rolled her eyes.

  “Just like you have. They must find their own fairytale endings.”

  “Seriously? Are you supposed to be a fairy godmother? If so, you are doing a horrible job. I mean, really? Where were you when Felix got ripped to shreds by Maura? What about when Shane went off the deep end because the last he saw of Molly was her head separated from her body? Not to mention when Gretchen got her throat ripped out by Declan! I’m sorry, but you are more than just a day late and a dollar short. Even if I could help, how am I supposed to work through that shit storm?”

  If a shadow had features, Cat was sure there was a death glare boring into her at that moment. She could almost feel it heating her body despite the cool night air. This Shadow was something else. It only came to demand things of Cat that were completely insane.

  It seemed to know just about everything except the fact that Cat had already tried her hand playing matchmaker for Shane and Claude. After all, Molly and Shane were meant to be “Together Forever”, but it would take a lot more than just Cat to get those two past their issues.

  Then there was the issue of Claude. He may be charming, but love was definitely not in his vocabulary. Gretchen would be the perfect match, with her no-nonsense attitude, but wanted nothing to do with him. Cat just wasn’t the type to be overly pushy about romantic entanglements.

  “Just figure something out!”

  “It’s not for me to figure out! I don’t know who or what you are, but you definitely don’t know anything about love!”

  Almost as soon as the words were out of her mouth, Cat felt the urge to take them back. If the Shadow really was Xander’s ex, Cat had seriously put her foot in her mouth. There was bound to be some bad karma coming her way. She reached out to the Shadow, but it disappeared, leaving Cat alone once again to her thoughts. Maybe it was time to tell the others about the Shadow’s visits. Okay, maybe just Xander. Tonight, however, wasn’t the time.

  The wedding

  Claude held his breath to combat the giant yawn building in his throat. Xander had spared no expense filling the courtyard with fragrant flowers and elegant decorations. Cat was stunning in her long white princess gown, and Xander looked her perfect match in a white tuxedo with gold trim. It was exactly like the fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast. As beautiful as everything was, it was completely unnecessary.

  Xander had been claiming Cat all over the house for weeks now. You would think Xander would have given up on the more antiquated traditions by now. Besides, if it were truly a traditional ceremony, it should have been him giving away the bride. He was her sire and therefore she was his to give away. Cat had laughed in his face when he’d suggested it.

  The only interesting part of the whole wedding was watching Gretchen pretending she wasn’t into this sappy love fest. He couldn’t seem to keep his eyes off of her, even as Xander and Cat said their vows. Claude sat transfixed as a single tear trailed across Gretchen’s flushed cheek, quickly followed by another.

  He hated weeping women. It was normally a blatant attempt to gain attention, but she was an exception. The way she tried to hide the fact that she was so emotionally invested in the situation by quickly swiping away at her cheeks, endeared him to her even more. Leaning across the aisle, he pulled out his handkerchief and offered it to her. Not even looking at him, she accepted it, delicately dabbing at the tiny drops of moisture streaming down her face.

  Claude swallowed hard when she dabbed closer to her mouth. His eyes drawn to one of her best features, her lips. Pale pink and trembling with each shaky breath she took, he was at a loss. His manhood strained against the fabric of his pants as he imagined how they might feel against his skin. He could have stared at them for hours, but the sound of clapping reached his sex-addled brain.

  He forced his attention back to the ceremony and the happy couple, who were now sharing their first kiss as man and wife. Finally, they were getting to the good part. It would soon be time for dancing, and Claude was anxious to have a chance to have Gretchen in his arms.

  “It’s time for the couple’s first dance.” Claude announced before starting the stereo that would be playing the music for the evening.

  Xander had wanted a real orchestra, but letting strangers into the compound wasn’t a risk anyone was willing to take. Maura and Declan were still out there, and there was no telling when they would strike. Despite the looming threat, the ceremony had been beautiful and thankfully uneventful.

  The grandeur of Cat and Xander’s wedding was a bit absurd for the small group in attendance, in Claude’s opinion, but Xander had insisted. Xander extended his hand to Cat, who took it blushing slightly as he swung her into his arms. Claude fought the gag rising in his throat. He much preferred it when Cat was taking Xander down a notch or two, not acting the smitten bride. The love between the newlywed couple was absolutely stifling as it filled the night air.

  After the couple had their first dance, Claude made a beeline for Gretchen. He had been waiting all night to get her into his arms, and nothing was going to stop him. Except maybe Shane, because before Claude could get across the room, he was leading her out to the floor. Claude cursed under his breath, but he would be patient. He had waited all night; one song longer would be nothing.

  “Thank you,” Gretchen said as she stepped into Shane’s arms.

  She carefully placed her hand in his and he started to move. Slowly, following the music, they floated around the dance floor. Gretchen had been relieved when Shane had asked her to dance. She’d been avoiding Claude and his lecherous gaze all night. She knew he wouldn’t hesitate to coerce her into his arms. Shane was a good dancer, but Gretchen figured he had, had plenty of time to practice.

  “No Gretchen, thank you. It’s an honor to dance with such a stunning woman; especially one that isn’t openly plotting my demise,” Shane said making Gretchen laugh out loud.

  Gretchen chose to ignore the glare Claude was shooting in Shane’s direction. Although his jealous act was cute in a way. It was bad enough with the daggers of Molly’s eyes in Shane’s back. Gretchen tried to be a good partner, but it seemed Shane couldn’t help that his attention was drawn to Molly.

  “Just give her time. A lot has happened, and she’s just trying to sort things out. To be honest if I were in her place I’d be just as pissed off,” Gretchen said.

  Shane nodded curtly. Obviously he hadn’t liked her opinion on the matter. Instead, he focused on the dance. He swung Gretchen out to spin her around and finished it with a dip. She laughed again, but as quickly as her laughter had come, it died almost immediate. Claude was crossing the room towards them, and the determination in his face was enough to kill her good mood. She had honestly hoped to avoid all contact with Claude until their archery lesson tomorrow, but apparently, he had other plans.

  Shane graciously bowed out leaving her to fend for herself. A slight smile tugged at his lips as he glided away. She had no time to react as she was pulled tightly against Claude’s muscled form and swept into motion.

  Molly smiled as her best friend twirled around the dance floor with her new husband. Despite their argument last night she wasn’t angry, the two
had never been able to stay mad at each other for long. Even when Maura had sworn that Shane and Cat had betrayed her, Molly hadn’t been able to hold a grudge.

  Okay, so maybe she’d gone too far with that creepy dream spell, but Molly had been sure of her friend’s betrayal up until that point. The pleading in Cat’s voice as she’d called after Molly in the darkness hadn’t been a guilty one, but a worried one. It had been the first sign that things might not be what Maura and Declan had made them seem.

  Feeling awkward standing alone at the edge of the dance floor, she took a seat at an empty table. Shane had decided to ask Gretchen to dance and Molly hated to admit that she felt even the slightest pang of jealousy because of it. Instead, she decided it was proof of his lack of devotion to her.

  He stalked her and hovered around her, but other than that had made no move to show that he had even an ounce of the love they had once shared left. Shane had changed, just as she had, and it hurt seeing him so consumed with himself. He was a shell of the man he once was and Molly was sure it had more to do with his own demons than any grief or remorse he felt at losing her.

  Molly frowned as Shane twirled Gretchen and finished with an extravagant dip. Anger welled up inside of her. They had never danced like that. In fact, Shane had made it a point to avoid any situation that would require him to dance. Claude stormed across the room, breaking up the pair. He had it bad, and everyone knew it.

  Gretchen was so out of depth with his aggressive courtship, but anyone who had known Claude longer than a few months knew that his tactics with Gretchen were not his norm. If she were any other women, he would be more aloof and charming and not the raging dickhead he’d proven himself to be in front of her. It was quite entertaining to watch even if Molly felt a little sorry for her.

  Shane moved to the edge of the dance floor. He watched for a moment as the two couples swayed to the music. While Claude and Gretchen seemed to be fighting, Xander and Cat floated effortlessly across the floor, smiling and laughing together. The grand ceremony served a dual purpose. First and most importantly, to give Cat the fairytale wedding she had never wanted, but fully deserved; second, as a happy distraction from the horror of Maura’s return. Shane still couldn’t get over the fact that she had managed to escape from under his nose. Not only had he missed his chance to catch Maura and Declan, but he had also missed his chance to find Molly.

  It pained Shane that she refused to give him a second chance, but he wouldn’t give up. She couldn’t stay angry forever, and well, they did have forever. The most painful memory Shane had was of watching Molly’s body lowered into its grave. At the time, he thought there was no way to revive her headless body. It was that mistake that caused the rift between them. Maura had somehow managed to bring her back to life and poisoned Molly against him. Shane refused to lose her again. He crossed the room to where she sat and extended his hand.

  “Care to dance?” He asked, but she just rolled her eyes and made her way to the buffet table.

  Maybe he should take Gretchen’s advice and give her space to cool down. However, Shane wasn’t sure just how much space would be too little. Any amount of space was too much in Shane’s opinion. Shane hoped Claude had more luck with Gretchen than he had with Molly.

  Claude wasn’t used to the jealous feeling that had radiated through him as he watched Gretchen dancing and laughing with Shane. He’d wanted to punch Shane in the face as the man had let his hand drift slightly lower on the curve of her hip. Claude knew Shane was only taunting him, but it had only increased his possessiveness. He knew he was officially a goner when he instantly felt better once Gretchen was firmly in his arms, even if she insisted on fighting him.

  He knew her body was reacting to his being near, just as his was reacting to hers. From the moment he had seen her, something had drawn him to her. He still wasn’t sure exactly what it was, not that he had ever been picky about women. She wasn’t overly pretty, definitely not a model, but more the girl next door type.

  Tonight she had tamed her curly mass of hair by pulling it up into some kind of twisted up do. It was a shame as he had fully intended on getting his hands in those brown spirals as he kissed those perfectly shaped lips of hers. From what he could tell she hadn’t used any makeup, and yet her eyes held his attention almost as much as her lips.

  He pulled Gretchen closer, slowing the movement of his hips, until he was sure she felt just how much he wanted her. Gretchen squirmed against him under the guise of being free of him, but the shallow, choppy nature of her breathing and the rosy flush of her cheeks told him otherwise. Yes, this was definitely worth the holes she was boring into his chest with those big gray eyes of hers.

  Despite his raging hormones, he kept his hands in check; one at the small of her back, a respectful distance from her heart shaped bottom, and the other firmly grasping her small delicate hand. The last time he had held her hand it had been a lot rougher, calloused from digging and whatever other hard labor she had done before the accident.

  “If you keep squirming like that, I will be forced to abscond with you to my room,” Claude breathed into her ear.

  His fangs ached with the need to bite her as he was so close to her neck. Even hidden under the fabric of her dress. Claude had been appalled when he’d seen that her dress was also a turtleneck. Her style of choice because of the scar left by that bastard Declan. That reminder had Claude pulling back, but the heated look in Gretchen’s eyes made him abandon all thoughts of chivalry.

  Gretchen stilled at Claude’s threat. In all her life Gretchen had never felt so needy. Her body was tempted to keep wiggling just so that he would, but her brain was fully in control. Claude was exactly the kind of guy she didn’t need to be around. Especially with everything else she was dealing with right now. He was a predator and she, unfortunately, was his prey of choice at the moment. She just had to keep reminding herself of that fact.

  “Ordinarily, people live and learn, you, on the other hand, seem content with just living,” Gretchen said with a sweet smile that surely wasn't reflective of her mood.

  She pushed her body away from his and stormed out of the room. She hadn’t wanted to make a scene on Cat’s big day, but Claude had forced her hand. The whole ceremony had been increasingly awkward as he had stared at her, making his intentions clear from across the room. Claude wanted her, and he would stop at nothing until he had her. Gretchen’s body was restless with desire; all she needed was a few nights of lusty adventure, but that was not what Claude had to offer. He had made that clear from the beginning. He wanted complete surrender, her complete surrender.

  To make matters worse, Gretchen wasn’t sure that what he had to offer wasn’t what she wanted. It would be so easy to fall in love with a sexy vampire like Claude, but if Gretchen had learned anything in life, it was that things were never as easy as they seemed. Gretchen was still trying to realize her true self. A journey she had been on even before the dramatic event that had changed her life forever.

  If she had thought finding herself was hard before, finding herself while dealing with vampirism was on a whole new level of difficult; a level she didn’t want to further complicate with emotional entanglement. Then, there was Claude’s reputation. What made her so different from the countless other women he had seduced and used? Why was it only now and only with her that he wanted more?

  Gretchen stumbled a little as she missed a step. With a curse, she stopped to pull off her heels before continuing up the stairs to her room. She was glad that no one had followed her as she closed her bedroom door. She didn’t feel like dealing with getting the third degree from Cat or Molly, or worse Claude.

  She stripped down to her underwear and crawled into bed. Dealing with Claude, as always, had been exhausting. Her body and mind were constantly at war whenever she was around him. It was maddening. She reached for the book on her nightstand, but found she couldn’t focus long enough to read it. Her mind kept drifting to the moment she wished she could forget. She reached up and t
ouched the scar on her neck where Declan had ripped her throat out. Despite the healing power of vampirism, the scar remained stubbornly as a reminder of her ultimate failure in judgment.

  Every time she had a moment to herself her mind always drifted back to that day. If it weren’t for that scar and her current situation, she would think it was all some horrible dream. Gretchen had no clue to the depth of Maura’s evil, but to her no one could be worse than Declan Murray. He’d been a thorn in her side since the day she met him. If only she had known before it was too late that he not only was an arrogant prick, but a freaking murderous vampire slave. If she ever ran across Declan Murray again, she would kill him herself.

  Archery and ice cream

  The last person Gretchen expected to see at her door in the morning was Claude. He leaned against the door jamb in that sexy, lazy way of his that made her want to swoon. Wearing a sheepish grin, he offered her a mug of blood.

  “What do you want?” She eyed the mug suspiciously but didn’t take it.

  “Just bringing you breakfast, and I wanted to apologize. I know I’ve been coming on rather strong, and I don’t want to make things more complicated for you.”

  Gretchen was shocked. This was not what she had expected from him.

  “I’m glad you are starting to see the light.” She smiled and did a little dance in her head.

  “I’m not saying I’m going to stop. Even if I could, I’m not sure that’s something either of us would be happy with.”

  Her inner celebration stopped, and she frowned at him.

  “I will admit that there is considerable lust between us, but will you at least tone it down a little?”

  She could compromise if he could. She hated admitting that he was right about her wanting him, but it wasn’t like she could hide her attraction either way.