Spectra: A Paranormal Romance Novel Read online

  Mercury stood, raising his eyebrows. “May I remind you, that for all intents and purposes, you are my woman. And maybe I like having a reason not to bring other women to my place. Maybe I consider that my sanctuary and only allow the most special of people into that space with me. Now get changed.”

  I pouted and pulled the light jumper I'd thrown straight over my bra off and dropped the knee length skirt to the floor.

  Mercury let out a low whistle. “Nice lingerie. When did you start buying the good stuff?”

  I smirked. “I didn't.”

  “Williams?” Mercury quirked a brow.

  “Don't be like that.”

  “What? I was just asking if he bought it for you.”

  “You know he did. How many other people even know I exist, let alone buy me clothes?”

  “Exactly why I asked if it was Williams.” Mercury grabbed the dress and held it up, holding it above my head for me to raise my arms and lowered it down over my body. “I'm not jealous. You and he have your arrangement, we have ours. We do what works for us.”

  I turned to look in the mirror and didn't mind the way the dress looked on me. Its skirt was slightly flared and fell to mid-thigh. With my knee-high lace ups, I sort of looked awesome, but if this place was sophisticated, I was going to look a little trashy. I sighed and unzipped the boots, kicking them under the bed, pulling out a pair of four-inch heels.

  “Wow! Putting in the effort. Nice.” Mercury wrapped an arm around my waist and kissed my neck. “Let's get going.”

  I grabbed my jacket, slipping into it, and let Mercury pull me towards the door. Normally I would have asked where we were going, who would be there, all the important questions, but tonight was about getting trashed and forgetting.

  Twenty minutes later, we were pulling up out the front of a very nice townhouse in the hip part of town. As Mercury paid the taxi driver, I recognized a predator walking into the building with a human on his arm.

  “You didn't mention this was a predator party, Merc.” I scowled.

  Mercury placed his hand on my back. “I'm with you, I won't let anyone near you or anything happen to you. The host works at the hospital, and while she is a predator, I've really got no excuse not to come, and she knows it. I think she was hoping to score with me, and that's why you are coming to protect me while I'm protecting you.”

  I chuckled, and Mercury kissed my cheek, his own smile falling into place. “Let's go drink the place dry, shall we?”

  Inside an attendant took my jacket, and a waiter offered us a glass of champagne. We accepted, and I tipped the flute up as Mercury led us into the large foyer with vaulted ceilings and a grand staircase that led up to a sweeping balcony. A beautiful chandelier hung suspended by wires over the foyer, and the color scheme was classic black and white.

  People milled around the foyer, some of them giving us the once over as we walked in, a male predator de Sang, what the Nachtwelt called predators who drank their prey’s blood, giving me a smile and a wink as I emptied my glass.

  I turned to Mercury. “You better not have bought me to a smorgasbord party, Merc.”

  A waiter approached us with a tray full of champagne flutes. Mercury placed our empty glasses on the tray and took two more, handing one to me. “I was told it was a housewarming.” His voice low as his eyes glanced around the room warily. He was getting the same feel for the place I was. “I'll say hello to Gladys so she knows I was here, and then we'll get out of here. Shouldn't get too out of hand in that time.”

  I nodded and took a sip of my champagne this time, deciding this wasn't the place to get wasted as we moved through the room. Mercury stopped at a waiter serving hors d'oeuvres. “Where's the host?” he asked with a smile as he took one of the appetizers. The waiter pointed up the stairs and continued circulating. Mercury sniffed the appetizer and threw it into a potted plant before he grabbed the one I was about to eat. “You don't want to eat that.”

  I balked as he disposed of mine as well. “Oh, that's gross! Who caters for changelings?”

  Mercury shrugged, took my hand, and started up the stairs. I hesitated moving deeper into this place but trusted Mercury to keep me safe so I stepped lightly up the steps with him. Several shut doors curved around the balcony that circled the void, and one set of double doors stood open opposite another set of stairs leading up to the next level. There were a few people scattered along the balcony talking or flirting, some a little more than, but nothing like what happens at the club.

  Mercury led us through the open doors into a parlor room with comfy lounges, a few backless vintage style settees, and one large ottoman placed dead center of the room. Oh yeah, it was a smorgasbord party, and this is where the main action would be happening.

  Mercury squeezed my hand as if sensing my sudden anxiety and spun me in to face him. “Keep breathing, Spec. You do not want to disappear in front of this lot.” He kissed me gently, lips pinching mine, his tongue darting across my lips to taste the champagne I'd just swallowed. It was a quick kiss, just enough to relieve my anxiety for a moment.

  He spotted someone over my shoulder and stuck a false smile on his face as he started to cross the room, pulling me along with him again. A woman in her mid-thirties caught sight of Mercury over the shoulder of a male she was speaking to. Her heavily made up face cracked in her own smile as she waved Mercury over. She flipped her lustrous-rust colored curls and batted her false lashes at Mercury before he even reached her.

  I rolled my eyes as we came close, but almost froze as the man talking to her turned to see who approached. Bay Ryder turned his pale blue eyes to Mercury first, blinking his disinterest, but when they slipped to me, his eyebrows raised slightly. Not enough that it was noticeable to those around us, but I was watching him closely. My heart jumped into overdrive as soon as I recognized him, and in that moment my desire to be invisible was overwhelming.

  Mercury instantly turned to look at me when he spotted Bay, worry etching his features, his eyes flicking back to the exit as he calculated the distance to get out of here before he turned back to the host. He squeezed my hand hard. The pain made me suck in a breath, and I looked to Mercury, surprised. He glanced at me quickly, and I realized I'd actually started exhaling entirely when I'd seen Bay. I took a sip of champagne and concentrated on breathing in and out.

  “Merc, you made it!” Gladys grinned, pulling Mercury in to kiss his cheek and rub her body against him.

  “Of course, I can't stay long though, my girlfriend and I have plans tonight.” Mercury stepped back, creating a buffer zone between him and the de Sang.

  Gladys finally looked at me, and I could see her scrutinizing my appearance as she looked me over. “And here I thought you'd brought a nice wine as a housewarming gift.”

  I clenched my jaw, but Bay responded for me. “Miss Michaels is not food, Gladys, and Mr. Williams would have your head if you dared to serve her up as such.”

  Gladys frowned. “Why would L'Ordre worry his gorgeous head about this human?”

  “Because his job is to keep order between the Nachtwelt and humans, and a human must be willing or unaware, that is the law. Spectra would not be willing and is very much aware of us.” Mercury replied lightly, tucking me into his side. “Nice place, Gladys. Heritage listed?” He changed the subject.

  Gladys smiled. “Yes. It required a bit of work, but I think I've restored it to its former glory.” Gladys's eyes returned to me, “So how long have you two been seeing each other?”

  “Over four years now.” Mercury smiled.

  Gladys's eyebrows jumped off her face. “But she's so young!”

  Mercury smirked. “She's just finished her college degree, Gladys. She's older than she looks.”

  Gladys looked to Bay. “You've met Miss Michaels previously, I gather?”

  Bay's eyes were intent on mine. “Yes, Miss Michaels and I are business associates.”

  “Former associates.” I added, “I don't w
ork for your kind.” I took a larger sip of the champagne.

  Gladys looked intrigued. “And what sort of work do you usually perform, Miss Michaels?”

  “Spectra helps victims of violence,” Mercury answered casually, “It's how we met. We both attend the same church.”

  Gladys's brows connected in her confusion. She tried to puzzle through the tidbits she'd been fed but gave up, obviously not the brightest de Sang to stalk the night. She beamed at Mercury, slipping in to take his free arm. “Let me give you a tour. Bay will keep Miss Michaels company for you.”

  Mercury smiled but unwound his arm from hers. “Maybe another time, Gladys. If my guess is right, you are about to serve dinner, and Spectra and I do have plans for this evening.”

  “Dinner is still twenty minutes away...” Gladys frowned.

  “I'll keep Miss Michaels safe while you have your tour.” Bay stepped up to my other side, slipping his arm through mine.

  I bit my lip as his hand slid along my exposed forearm, tingles shooting up my arm. I gripped Mercury's hand harder, and he stepped us back from the circling de Sang, relief and disappointment flooding my system as I lost contact with Bay.

  “I really will have to take a raincheck, Gladys. Maybe next time.” Mercury took two more steps backward with me, smiled, then turned and walked us out of the parlor.

  As we reached the double doors and I looked back over my shoulder, my eyes met Bay's. His eyes filled with interest, and I knew I was in really big trouble.

  “You're amazing, Spectra.” Mercury grumbled as we descended the stairs. “You're the only woman I've seen on a regular basis, so trust me, I know how amazing you are. But to bring Bay Ryder out of a two-century dry spell is a whole new level of amazing.”

  I frowned at Mercury as we collected our jackets. “How did you pick that up just now?”

  Mercury gave me an unhappy look when he realized this wasn't news, took my hand, and led me out to the curb where he hailed a cab. “I didn't. He turned up at the club looking for you last night. I thought he was still as a client until I heard what you said tonight. Then I recognized the way he was looking at you. It was subtle, everything about Bay Ryder is understated, but that was the look of a man ready to devour a woman in a very non-food way.”

  I sighed as the taxi pulled up and Mercury opened the back door. “I know.” I slipped into the back seat and sagged.

  Mercury sat down next to me and took my hand. “Saint Benedict's Church please.” The taxi started moving, and Mercury touched my cheek, bringing my face to his. “Be careful with him, Spectra, for all the same reasons you need to be careful of Williams.”

  I nodded and closed the distance between our lips. Today wasn't for this stuff. Today was about forgetting. So I would put my issues with Bay Ryder aside for now and focus on nothing but Mercury's mouth and hands on me. Mercury hesitated for a moment till I took his hand and pushed it up under my skirt. He smiled against my mouth and threw himself into helping me forget.

  When the taxi pulled up at the church, we made our way to the caretaker's cottage that Mercury shared with the actual caretaker. Mercury opened the door, dragging me inside and pinning me against the door, hands gripping my hips, body pushing hard against mine as our tongues thrust and volleyed for the upper position in each other's mouths.

  A loud clearing of the throat came from just behind Mercury. He pulled back and turned to see the caretaker, Robert Mulley, standing at the hallway to the bedrooms at the back.

  “Oh, hey Robert, thought you were going out tonight?” Mercury smiled.

  Robert blushed. “I am. Was just about to head out when you came back.” He rubbed at the back of his balding head, and his blush deepened as his eyes scanned over my body.

  Poor Robert was a widower in his late sixties now. When Mercury started bringing me back to their cottage four years ago, Robert decided that was motivation as any to get out and start having a social life. He'd taken up ballroom dancing first, but it wasn't on every night of the week, and with Mercury's work roster, Robert slowly added bingo and bowling to his social calendar so he effectively had something on every night of the week that I might visit.

  I felt bad at first scaring the poor guy out of his home, but Mercury explained it was overdue, and his getting out and socializing was a healthy change for the aging man, and in truth, Robert seemed to be a lot happier now. Just not on the occasions we started early, or worse, when we didn't quite make it back to the bedroom, and he walked in to find us on the lounge room floor.

  Mercury smiled devilishly and tugged me away from the door so Robert could get out. “Have a good night, Robert.” Mercury pulled me into the lounge room. I smiled shyly and waved goodbye, which made Robert blush even harder as he made a quick escape out the door.

  Mercury walked to the cabinet, grabbing two shot glasses and a bottle of vodka. He poured two shots and handed me one. I threw it back, cringed at the burn, but put my glass back out for a refill. Mercury complied, still not drinking his own.

  I threw back the next shot as I sank onto the lounge and held the empty glass out again. Mercury refilled it another two times before he put the bottle on the table and emptied his own glass. He took my empty glass, placing it on the table, and casually pushed me to lie back on his lounge, laying his body over the top of mine. He smiled down at me then ducked his head to my collarbone. Mercury didn't mind me getting plastered when I was with him, but he controlled how drunk I got.

  We'd started hooking up at the club several months after Alexander and I broke up. Then when the anniversary of my family’s death rolled around, I'd got so drunk the next day that I couldn't even hold my head up. Mercury just held me that night. He told me the next morning that while he didn't mind me getting wasted on his watch when I needed it, he didn't like seeing me that gone.

  Over the years, he'd worked out the exact amount of alcohol required to get me buzzed but still within my senses. It was one of the reasons I trusted Mercury. He truly did care about me and took care of me when he was around. I loved Alexander, but I cared deeply for Mercury. I reacted differently to his touch, it wasn't so much an itch caused by flames running under my skin. Mercury was more like floating in a pool of cool water on a hot day. Relieving, comforting, soothing.

  As his mouth kissed down my chest, his hand pulled the strap of the dress from both shoulders. He licked and kissed along the edge of my cleavage, and I moaned as his thumb brushed over my nipple through the material. Mercury's mouth kissed back up to my ear, he licked and bit my earlobe, and I squirmed under him.

  “There's something I've always wanted to do with you. Can I?” he murmured, his thumb brushing over my breast again, sending thrills to lower areas.

  “Yes,” I gasped.

  Mercury pulled back, grinning at me. He grabbed the top of the dress with one hand and pulled back harshly, ripping the front of it away.

  “Jesus, Merc!” I looked at the dress, wide-eyed. “That was silk, it must have cost a fortune!”

  Mercury gave me his devilish smile. “It was worth it to see you in it, and now even more so to get you out of it.” His index finger hooked under the front of my bra. “How attached are you to this underwear?”

  I gaped wide-eyed as he pulled hard and ripped the bra from me. He smiled and fell upon my breasts, licking and sucking, his hands kneading the firm softness. My head fell to the lounge, back automatically arching to give him better access to me. I wrapped his head in my arms, fingers threading into his hair as my body responded to him.

  His hand slid down my front and beneath my underwear to find my clit. His finger added pressure just above my hood and circled to start a slow tease. I gripped his hair in my fingers and pulled his smiling mouth up to mine. “Not here. Robert hasn't recovered from the last time he found us on the lounge. I don't want to be responsible for giving him a heart attack.”

  Mercury rolled his eyes and wrapped my legs around his waist. He slipped one arm around me
and lifted me easily with him as he stood. He picked up the bottle of vodka in his free hand and walked to the back of the cottage to find his room. It was a small room, just big enough to fit the double bed he slept in, a wardrobe, and the two bookshelves containing his few possessions in it.

  Kneeling on the bed, he dropped me back onto the mattress and tipped the bottle up to his mouth, taking a mouthful. He smiled down at me and held the bottle above my face. “Open up.”

  I closed my eyes and opened my mouth. The cold liquid poured into my mouth and, as I swallowed, burned down my throat. Heat flooded through me. Mercury dripped the vodka down the center of my body and dropped his mouth to lick and suck it from my skin where it was running off in rivulets.

  His tongue found my ticklish spot just under my ribs, and I twisted as I laughed loudly. Mercury slid one hand under my back, his body causing a barrier as he found that spot again and held me to his mouth. I screamed and squirmed, pushing on his shoulders to try and escape. “Merc, stop, please, I can't breathe.” We both knew what happened if I stopped breathing.

  Mercury smiled sinisterly and took another swig of the vodka before putting it to my lips, letting me take one mouthful before he put it aside on the floor. “Let's see how these panties rip...”

  “Merc! I've got nothing left to wear home tomorrow.”

  He ignored my protest and grabbed one side of the panties with both hands before pulling quickly in opposite directions. And just like that, hundreds of dollars in underwear and clothing was destroyed. If I'd paid for it, I would have been pissed. If I'd been sober, I'd still be pissed. I loved that underwear set. Grabbing the other side of the panties, Mercury gave another quick tug, and the material gave easily to his strength.

  Folding the material back, Mercury ducked his head between my thighs. I gasped, my back arching as his first lick opened my labia to his probing tongue. His finger trailed through the wetness of my lips and then slid into me roughly. I bit my lip, fingers twining in his hair, the other hand grasping the quilt under me. With a smile that could make a nun go weak at the knees, Mercury dropped his mouth and nuzzled my clit while his finger gently caressed inside me.