He took her face in his hands, stroking his thumb over her soft lips, tenderly kissing her swollen temple with its ugly bruise. She closed tear-filled eyes as he bent to kiss her one last time, lingering to savor the sweetness of her mouth. “I'll send Emelie in.” He left before she could open her eyes, before he could see the pain he'd just put there.
Emelie came around the corner, still scowling after Raj's departing back. She took in Sarah's hurt, bewildered look and crossed to her quickly, shaking her head in disgust. She tsked loudly and said, “Men are such idiots. Makes me glad I'm a lesbian.” She looked Sarah up and down, frowning at her injuries. “Didn't he share blood with you?"
Sarah blushed. “No."
"Well, what the hell was he doing in here then? Jesus, I can't believe—"
"It's not his fault,” Sarah insisted, jumping to Raj's defense. “It's me. He tried, um, before and I wouldn't, that is, I didn't—” To her horror, she started crying.
"Oh, baby,” Emelie breathed. “What will I do with the two of you now?” She held Sarah, letting her cry away all the fear she'd been pushing back since they'd bonked her on the head and thrown her in the backseat of that car, all of the pain from her wretched aching feet and arms, the throbbing in her head. And most of all the pain in her heart at the thought of never seeing Raj again.
"Better now?” Emelie asked.
Sarah nodded, reaching for a tissue from the nearby stand. She blew her nose and threw the used tissue in the trash. “Sorry."
"That's okay. I'm used to it. Raj has that effect on a lot of people."
Sarah laughed and felt her eyes fill with fresh tears. She looked down at her hands so Emelie wouldn't notice and saw the blurry outline of a white card. She frowned and looked up at Em.
"Give him a couple of months,” Em said patiently. “It's going to be rough for a while, but after that . . .” She nodded at the card, which Sarah saw had Em's name and cell phone printed on it. Em met her eyes, giving her a steady, meaningful look. “Trust me on this one, babe."
Sarah palmed the card and nodded. “Okay."
"Right,” Em said. “Now, let's get you gone. The guys are gonna tear this place apart, and then we'll have Simon get started on your little problem. He's a genius at making people disappear.” She grinned wickedly. “In a good way, that is."
Sarah laughed and hoped Em was right. About Simon and everything else.
Chapter Forty-nine
New York, New York—Manhattan
Raj stood on the rooftop high above Manhattan, watching cars moving up and down the street below, the red and white of their lights reflecting off the wet pavement in a blur of color. It had rained again today; the month was shaping up to be one of the wettest in New York history. But for now, the rain had stopped. The air was warm and muggy, but far better than the sterile, processed stuff waiting for him inside, along with yet another marathon session of meetings with his various underlings.
If anyone had told him three months ago that life as a vampire lord was somewhat akin to that of a corporate executive, he'd have laughed. Oh, he'd known there was business involved. After all, he'd been running Krystof's affairs in Manhattan for decades. But this endless nattering about every tiny detail of even the smallest vampire enterprise in the farthest reaches of his territory . . . Christ, there were times he wanted to run as far and as fast as he could go. Find some tropical paradise with warm, velvety nights and soft waves lapping at sun-warmed beaches—just leave all of this crap behind and say f**k it.
But there were so many souls he cared about who relied on him—Emelie and the rest of his children. And now a seemingly endless number of others he really didn't care about, but who relied on him just as much, if not more.
And besides, who would spend those velvety nights with him? Paradise wouldn't be paradise if he was all alone.
He sighed, straightening away from the railing and turning to survey the many and vigilant vampires who shared the rooftop with him. He was certainly never alone here. Not anymore. His eyes scanned his security team, noting Emelie's absence. Em had seemed to sense his dwindling patience for meetings and suggested he let her clear his calendar for the rest of the night. There were a few hours yet before sunrise, but he'd agreed readily enough, originally thinking about dropping in at one of his clubs, although, he'd quickly discarded that idea as just more business. There were always the trendy human clubs, crowded with beautiful people desperate for attention. But that didn't appeal either. Maybe he'd just spend a quiet few hours at home—some chilled vodka, good music. He shook his head in amusement. He must really be getting old if that was his idea of a good time.
He headed for the stairway that would take him down one flight to the top floor of the building and his penthouse condo. His security team moved with him, anticipating his direction and sending two of their number down the stairwell ahead of him, while the rest formed up around him. Raj stifled another sigh and let them do their job, going the short distance down the stairs, through the fire door and then down the hallway to the double doors of his condo.
They stopped there, waiting while he tapped in his security code, taking up positions to either side of the hallway door while he stepped inside the darkened penthouse alone. That was the one thing he insisted upon, the one thing he and Emelie had fought long and hard over, even though she'd known his will would triumph in the end. He permitted no security inside—this was his home, his inner sanctum. It was the one place where there were no petitioners, no one looking to him for answers or protection. The one place where he could be truly alone.
Except he wasn't alone tonight.
He heard her breathing first, speeding up to match her racing heart. She stood almost directly across from him, one hand touching the back of a chair as if to anchor her in the dark room. He inhaled deeply, closing his eyes as it all came back to him, the feel of her beneath him, around him, her small cries of pleasure as she came over and over until she lay limp in his arms, her pale skin damp with sweat. He exerted his will and candles flared to life around the room, more welcoming than the harsh, artificial light of the modern era.
Her eyes widened, their golden flecks echoing the flames. Finally she looked at him, raising her chin defiantly, as if she expected an argument. He smiled. She'd get no argument from him, not tonight.
"Sarah."
"Raj?” Her voice wavered and he saw the gleam of tears in her eyes.
"Come here, little one."
She ran across the room. He'd intended to let her come to him, but his will failed, his need to touch her too strong, and his heart too weak. He met her halfway, catching her when she jumped into his arms, holding her easily as their mouths met for the first time in what was surely centuries. He crushed her to his chest, their kiss hard at first, a clashing of teeth and tongues, as if their time was limited and they each needed to taste as much of the other as possible in the brief time allotted them. She was whispering his name over and over, tears running down her face. He tasted their saltiness and held her closer, carrying her to his bedroom, kicking open the door and lowering them both to the huge bed where he'd slept alone and hungry for too many months.