A Nightly Howl: The Witching Hour Series Book 2 Read online

  "That was an experience," Nathaniel said as soon as we were safe in the car. I sunk back in my seat, not quite knowing what to say. "I'm thinking we should stop seeing each other. God knows what she might do."

  "Are you trying to be funny?" I asked, showing him my inflamed fingertips.

  "Not anymore," he said, giving me a wicked grin.

  "She cursed me off. I’ve got no chance at ever getting anything from her if I date you," I said, laughing.

  "Listen, putting all jokes aside, I get it if it’s too much for you. I understand."

  I’d had enough of not knowing where I stood. I kept telling myself that I didn't have any feelings for him, but that was big fat lie. Then he took his right hand away from the wheel and placed it on my thigh. He wasn't helping me here. His mirror cracked.

  "I thought you said that we’re still trying things out," he said, facing me.

  "We are, but after our conversation in the hospital I'm willing to give you another chance," I said, ignoring the heat that crawled between my breasts. Maybe I was a fool for thinking that he was going to change for me, but I couldn’t ignore my magic that came alive whenever he was around.

  His hand was moving up and his eyes kept watching me, curious about my reaction. I felt the bulk of my current on my back, my lips parted. Even with the air conditioner blowing, it was still way too hot in his car. His hand was dangerously close to my sex; he stretched his thumb and it caressed me "there." My heart gave a giant whack in my chest. I closed my eyes and concentrated. I was going to blame him if his engine blew up.

  "Why are you torturing me?" I stammered breathlessly.

  "I like seeing you turned on," he whispered, breathing into my neck. "When I'm thinking about your wetness, I have an instant hard on."

  "Oh God," I whimpered.

  "If you beg me, we will make love."

  "I'm fine," I fumed, and another crack appeared on his front window.

  "This car is worth a fortune. You just cost me a couple thousand pounds," he said, hiding a smile.

  “It's entirely all your fault; stop teasing."

  He did stop until we reached my apartment. He intimidated me, pumping my body up with desire. I had to leave. There was no way that I was going to lose this challenge.

  I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and said, "See you later, cowboy."

  "Not so fast," he muttered, grabbing me around my waist and pulling me toward his chest. I lost any kind of control when our lips connected. We weren't kissing; we were mouth fucking each other. The tension between my legs rose, and my body ached to have him inside of me.

  "Firecracker, I like when you become wild." He growled, lifting his head when I leaned in and found his nipples underneath his shirt and licked them. His skin was salty and delicious, but I needed more. We were in public, but I didn't care if we were caught; being in his car just added excitement to what was about to happen. He didn't let me torture him for long, because he lifted me over, so I was facing him. He rubbed his hardness over me and I moaned. My breaths were long and laboured. He had to slow down; otherwise I was going to do a lot of damage to his car.

  When he slipped two fingers inside me, I moaned loudly and started panting. I couldn't keep up when his mouth was on mine again. Part of my mind unlocked and I heard his thoughts.

  She is definitely going to beg me to fuck her.

  Something inside me clicked and I pulled away, breathing hard, stealing my control back.

  “What's wrong, firecracker?" he asked, making a growling sound.

  "I better go. Call me?"

  "Go? I thought you were going to invite me in," he said, pressing himself all over me. I groaned, knowing that I was ready to take him upstairs.

  "Beg me, then I will," I whispered, brushing my lips over his. He arched his hips forward and pushed me back into my seat. Heat crept over his cheeks, and he took a loud inhale.

  "I'm not losing this battle." He chuckled; I exhaled ignoring the pulsing sensation between my legs and jumped out of the car. It was dark and there was no one outside of my apartment. "Bye, sexy."

  He smiled and put his foot down, driving away. Our late steamy rendezvous was over. My legs were shaking as I climbed toward my apartment. Upstairs I took a hot bath, trying to relax and forget that my body buzzed with electricity. I was so wrong when I thought that I could deal with the attraction that consumed my mind and soul.

  My grandmother was never going to accept that I had chosen a vampire for my life companion. For her, it was all about boundaries between species and keeping the genes in the family. She didn't understand the fire that brewed between us. This was just one of the obstacles that I had to accept. I thought that I loved Jasper, but he’d never caused this riot of emotions when he was near me. We had a strong connection but nothing close to what I shared with Nathaniel. I was lying in the bath thinking about happiness, trying to deal with those new feelings that came down like a tornado. I was never a planner and after I placed my feet on the cold tiles, I knew that I just had to deal with it. Love or not, he was my boyfriend—the rest didn't matter.

  * * *

  Personally, I’ve always believed that Mondays should be a part of the weekend. An extra day off work would get people motivated, but after what happened on Sunday I had no motivation—yet again—at all. It was one of those days that I knew wasn't going to be easy. I felt a little better when Kate welcomed me with the cup of coffee.

  Sara was late—some things never change—and I had a busy day ahead of me. It was raining when I left the house this morning. I was soaked right through and my new outfit was ruined. Then Lucinda called demanding that I find her a reliable personal assistant. She had been ranting about this "important" position all morning. When I finally got her off the phone, my computer crashed.

  "You, peace of shit!" I shouted, slamming the tower with my foot. I was pissed, and this had nothing to do with a frozen computer. I was still freaking aroused from last night and I couldn’t concentrate on anything at all. My magic swirled through me, curling down to my toes.

  “What's the matter, Julia?" Kate asked. Her crazy purple hair was tied up in a ponytail. She looked amused by my misery.

  "Nothing. I need to release my magic, otherwise I’ll go fucking crazy," I snapped. "I hate when I can’t control what I'm doing!"

  "Then charm something; that should help."

  "No way, it’s too dangerous. I don’t even know what could happen."

  "So, how do you normally deal with it?" she asked, raising her left eyebrow.

  "Normally my grandmother calls me over and we practice, but in the past few months, well—" I didn't finish, what I was going to say.

  "Yeah, what’s that?"

  This was embarrassing. I had to tell her about my freaky, explosive sex with Nathaniel. She was probably going to think I was some kind of nymphomaniac.

  "Nathaniel usually helps me, you know, when we have sex. For some reason my energy gets out."

  Heat crept over my cheeks. Kate looked astonished.

  "But you guys are back together, right?"

  "Well, yes, but he’s playing games with me. He thinks that I’ll beg him for sex. It’s a bet to see who will be first to break. I'm telling you, girl, it ain’t going to be me," I fumed, shaking my head. She started laughing.

  "I don’t get you two," she said.

  The phone interrupted our conversation when I was about to ask her about her love life. She never talked about men, and I kept wondering if she simply just preferred the same sex.

  Sara came in an hour late, claiming that someone charmed her bus. I was itching to fire her, but Rufus was the one who employed her, and my hands were tied, even if he wasn't in the office.

  I kicked my computer again, and the screen came back on. Lucinda sent the job specs for a new PA, so I started browsing through some CV’s to find the appropriate person. After a minute I realised that I already had a perfect candidate.

  "Kelsie is a PA," I said.

  K
ate lifted her purple head from the file. "Yes, she mentioned it."

  "Lucinda needs a PA, and we don’t have any on our books, so I guess I could call her," I continued, smiling. "Lucinda is a nightmare to work with, but I'm sure that Kel can handle her."

  I was right. Our friend picked up the phone straight away, although she was still in bed cursing off the alcohol. She cheered up when I told her about the job. Two hours later, she entered the office looking professional with her two-piece suit.

  "Hello, how can I help?" Sara asked, tripping on the carpet, landing on Kelsie, who caught her just before she crashed to the floor.

  "Woah, hold on there, darling."

  “It's all right, Sara, this lady is here to see me," I told her quickly. Kate had trouble containing her smile. She was interviewing a potential candidate. Sara started to apologise, but I sent her away to deal with filing, unable to stop myself from rolling my eyes.

  "I'm glad that you thought about me," she said, sitting in front of me. She waved to Kate.

  "Well, it’s good timing and I can provide you with references; you don’t have to worry about your ex-boyfriend." I handed her the job specs. "The job is with La Caz pharmaceutical—"

  "Hold on…La Caz; I’ve heard of that name before."

  "Yes, it’s Nathaniel’s company," I admitted. "But the position is with his HR Director, Lucinda, so don’t worry."

  "Great, I don’t mind. I’ll take anything."

  I smiled and gave her all the forms that she needed to fill out. Her resume looked impressive. Lucinda was a mermaid and I doubted very much that she would ever get involved with shifter politics or care about Kelsie’s past. Kelsie knew the basics about my relationship with Nathaniel, but she wasn't up to date with anything new. She was excited about the interview and I had high hopes about her impressing Lucinda. In the end, I thought the day hadn't turned out to be a complete waste. I had a good feeling about this position. Lucinda was a fussy cow, but she would know straight away that Kelsie had potential.

  "How can I help you?"

  Sara reappeared from her filing duties to greet whoever was at the door. I didn't even notice that someone had entered while I was going over Lucinda’s job specs.

  "I'm here to see Ms. Taylor, if I may?"

  I nearly fell out of my chair when I heard his voice.

  Suddenly, Nathaniel was in the office looking at me. He was wearing a dark suit with a crisp white shirt and black tie. He looked like a Greek god who just stepped down from the heavens, and all the girls were staring. Kelsie smiled, playing with her hair. My stomach tightened, and my magic crackled down through my cleavage. Kate glanced at me, finally getting back to the witch applicant, who seemed to like what she was seeing. Sara kept opening and closing her mouth unable to say what was on her mind. I was so shocked that I didn't know how to react. He chose to pay me a visit at the worst moment.

  Chapter 20

  Kiss.

  "Nathaniel, what a surprise. I wasn't expecting you today," I said after a several seconds of silence. Kelsie shook her head in disbelief, her jaw wide open. I was frozen, caught between desire and shock. The series of images from the lift passed through my mind and I blushed.

  "I was passing through, so I decided to pop in." He shoved his hands into his pockets.

  "Oh, so, you decided to visit the agency, just like that?" I asked, but it didn't come out right. I sounded like I was growling.

  "May I to talk to you in private?"

  "I'm very busy, Nathaniel. Lucinda needs a new PA, and I need to explain everything to Kelsie." I pointed at my friend, who waved and smiled widely.

  He nodded, then walked to my desk; all eyes followed him. I started shuffling papers, trying to show him that he needed to leave, but it was already too late. He stopped right in front of my desk; the air became warm and fuzzy. Violent emotions of desire rolled through my stomach.

  "Come on, firecracker; we need to talk," he said smoothly.

  Kate must have heard him because she barley contained her laughter. My magic flew through me like a river and I got up.

  "Fine," I said through gritted teeth. We both marched to the interview room; the one in the back. I was hoping that he had a really important matter to discuss. I shut the door, folding my arms together, wondering what he needed this time. He had no idea what I was going through; even my palms were dripping sweat on my arms.

  "Right, what’s so important that it couldn’t wait?"

  His eyes narrowed, revealing a luminosity of green that I had never noticed before.

  "We’re important, and I couldn’t wait to see you."

  "I can’t believe that you’re so inconsiderate!" I shouted, shaking my head. "You think that you can just come in here demanding to talk to me? I'm working."

  The magic circulated through the air, static electricity passing through my skin.

  “Don't pretend that you’re not happy to see me again," he muttered. He moved too quickly for me to react. "Why do you keep torturing me like this?"

  His arms circled my waist before I had a chance to run for the door. Heavenly heat rose between my thighs as he pulled me hard against him. "If you beg me to make love to you then I can end this. Come on, just one word." He smiled devilishly. He didn't give me time to say anything, instead he lifted me up. I whimpered when he set me gently on the empty table not breaking eye contact the whole time I was in his arms.

  He didn't stop. Instead, his lips moved over mine passionately.

  My chest rose and fell as I lopped my arms around his shoulders. His sensational and greedy kiss broke any kind of reservation that I had left. His lips were everywhere, near my ear, then below my neck moving down to my breasts. The lights were flashing, and my power was charging fast, blowing off all of my control.

  "You taste delicious and I can smell your warm blood," he whispered, pressing himself against my sex, causing an eruption of bliss inside my core. I made a sound in the back of my throat as his tongue passed my lips. His hands were moving alongside my thighs.

  "Stop, please," I begged, digging my fingers into the back of his neck. His hands slipped on to my hips, pulling me closer. I couldn’t break away from his embrace, or maybe I just didn't care anymore. It wasn't long before his hand found my bare skin and he claimed my mouth again, pushing harder, forcing himself onto me. I wanted him to take me here on this table. I didn't care that we were going to be caught. He found my weakness and I didn't have the strength to stop him.

  "Do you really want me to stop?" He growled, sucking on my lower lip. My heart hammered hard, ready to explode and my skin prickled with sparks of energy. He unzipped my skirt and slipped his hand between my legs. I bit down on his arm when his thumb circulated around my clit. I was so turned on that it wouldn't take long before I climaxed. The tension was building, and I was seconds away from orgasm when he withdrew his fingers.

  "What are you doing, for fuck’s sake?" I slammed my hands down with frustration on the edge of the table. His eyes were changing, shifting into a pool of dark chocolate.

  "You asked me to," he replied, breathless, running his hand through his sandy hair.

  I roared with frustration, releasing some of my energy. Bright blue and red light jetted over us; parts of the ceiling came down, crashing to the floor. The tension between my legs rose as I tried to gather my thoughts. I knew exactly what he was doing to me, but instead of getting on with another argument I kept breathing, closing my eyes for several seconds. Getting rid of some of my magic helped me to some extent.

  "Anything else you need?" I asked him, but my voice was hoarse. His erection strained through his trousers, his fangs were fully erect; there was pure fire in his eyes—no warmth, just greed and hunger. He could tease me all he wanted, but I was stubborn and determined to win this game.

  "No, I don’t need anything else." He growled.

  "Great, so, if you have nothing else to say, then I guess we’re done here?" I chuckled. I enjoyed watching him struggle. I wasn't sure ho
w long he was planning to carry on this game, but so far, I was the winner.

  "We are," he said, irritated. He left, slamming the door so hard that the picture on the wall fell to the floor. The air was clotted with sexual tension. I looked up at the ceiling and sighed. Kate would have to help me later on to cover up the damage.

  Nathaniel and I were back together; we were in a relationship. Sleeping together was just part of the deal. I didn't want to rush anything, afraid that that sex would only pull us apart, but we both needed to get laid in a bad way.

  I was frustrated and pissed off with his silly mind games. Five minutes later, I marched back to my desk feeling sexually and mentally foiled. Sara was talking to herself, typing something furiously, not paying much attention to the girls as they surrounded my desk.

  "So, what did you do to him?" Kate asked, beaming. "He stormed out of here, furious."

  "I'm winning, and he can’t bear it." I smirked, winking at Kate. She knew what I was talking about.

  "Winning what?", Kelsie asked, frowning.

  "Nothing important; don’t worry, Kel," I said. “We're going through some things."

  "I can’t believe that you’re going out with him," Kelsie said. "He’s hot and he’s a vampire!"

  "He’s also domineering, stubborn and controlling, so be careful what you wish for."

  "He can’t be that bad," Kel muttered, getting back to her application form.

  Feeling liberated, I went back to work.

  After work, I met Nicky and we both went for yoga. It had been weeks since I’d done any exercises and tonight I was behind everyone else. When we finished the session, we sat down in the coffee shop to catch up on the latest gossip. It took me a while to update her on everything. I went through my recent reunion with Nathaniel; the situation with Rufus, my grandmother, my recent near-death experience in the old warehouse, Jasper, and of course Ella. Nicky looked gobsmacked.