"fine. stay here if you're afraid," alex said, a note of scorn in his voice. "i'm going out."

daisy drew in a deep breath and let it out in a long, slow sigh. "and i'm going with you."

"thought you were afraid of the great and powerful rhys?"

"maybe i am," daisy retorted. "maybe that makes me smarter than you."

alex snorted. "you wish."

daisy couldn't help it. she grinned because this argument sounded just like the hundreds of others she and alex had had through the years. she finished her pizza, drank the last of her soda, and stood up. her father had always said the only way to overcome your fears was to face them head-on.

grabbing her handbag, she headed for the door. "let's go."

"i thought you wanted to shower first?"

"i'll take one when we get back. put your shirt on, big brother. maybe we can find some holy water along the way."

erik stirred with the setting of the sun. like all vampires, he woke fully rested and aware of his surroundings.

rising, he cocked his head to the side, muttered an oath when his preternatural senses told him that the room where daisy and her brother should have been holed up was empty.

damn fool kids. where the hell had they gone?

moving to the window, he drew back the curtain, squinting against the last rays of the setting sun. where was she?

stealing himself for the pain to come, he unlocked the motel door and stepped outside. his skin tingled as he navigated the short distance from his motel room to his car. unlocking the trunk, he opened his suitcase, pulled out his cloak, and quickly wrapped it around him, flipping the hood in place with a flick of his wrist. the cloak's heavy black cloth blocked the sun's rays as he hurried toward daisy's room. closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, then followed her scent into the single-story, l-shaped mall located across the street.

after a five-minute search, he found daisy and alex at the cash register inside a men's store.

"what do you think you're doing?" he asked, his voice low but harsh.

"i needed a change of clothes," alex retorted. "you got a problem with that?"

erik glared at him. "i don't give a rat's ass what you do, but if you put daisy's life in danger again, you'll answer to me."

whatever retort had been in alex's mind died, unspoken, at the look of fury in the other man's eyes.

erik looked at daisy, his expression softening. "do you want to die? why did you leave the motel? what the hell were you thinking?"

she met his gaze defiantly. "we needed something to wear."

"i see. you want to be well dressed when rhys finds you, is that it?"

"don't be absurd," daisy retorted.

fighting back his anger, erik took daisy by the arm and led her away from her brother. "have you forgotten that rhys isn't bothered by the sun?" he asked, keeping one eye on alex. "rhys doesn't have to stay indoors as long as he's out of direct sunlight, nor is he compelled to rest during the day." erik captured her gaze with his. "he could be here now and you wouldn't know it until it was too late."

his words had the desired effect. daisy's eyes widened as she quickly looked around.

"we need to go. now," erik said.

"well, look who's in a hurry all of a sudden," alex said, coming up behind them. "we'd have been on the road a long time ago if you'd dragged your sorry butt out of bed before sundown..." alex's eyes narrowed thoughtfully as his voice trailed off.

"let's go!" daisy grabbed erik by the arm and hustled him toward the exit, hoping to get out of the store and back on the road before her brother put two and two together and got vampire. "come on, alex," she called over her shoulder. "we're wasting time!"

chapter 21

it took only a few minutes to throw their stuff together and check out of the motel. as much as daisy had wanted a shower, she decided to forgo it for two reasons. firstly, because rhys was after them, but, more importantly, she didn't want to leave alex and erik alone together for any length of time for fear that alex might ask erik questions that erik would be reluctant to answer.

they had been on the road for over an hour now, and thus far, no one had said much of anything. alex sat in the backseat, his arms crossed over his chest, his expression pensive. daisy could almost hear the wheels turning. how much longer before her brother concluded that erik was a vampire? she could only imagine the dust-up that would follow.

erik's attention appeared to be on the road. daisy glanced at him from time to time, wishing she knew what he was thinking. she hadn't had a chance to talk to him alone since they left the motel. she needed to explain her reasons for agreeing to go to the mall with alex. maybe it hadn't been the smartest thing to do, but it had seemed like the best way to keep alex from discovering erik's secret.

with a sigh, she stared out the window. taking a vampire home with her probably wasn't a very smart thing to do, either.

but there was another, more pressing matter to be considered. she waited until alex dozed off to mention it to erik.

"what are we going to do tomorrow?"

"what do you mean?"

"alex won't want to spend the whole day in a motel again. he's going to wonder why we don't travel during the day."

"yeah, i've been thinking about that, too. i think we'll drive straight through to boston."

"are you kidding? it's still two days away."

"i know. i'll drive until sunup, and then you and alex can take over until nightfall."

"but...the sun...you can't..."

"haven't you noticed the dark tint on the windows? i'll be fine as long as you keep the windows up."

daisy mulled that over for a few minutes. "what if alex wants to stop at a motel again?"

"if it's at night, no problem. if it's during the day, just tell him you don't think it's a good idea, not with rhys looking for the two of you."

daisy's stomach did a funny flip-flop at the mention of the vampire's name. "it probably wasn't smart of us to stop last night," she muttered.

"probably not. will your family be able to protect you?"

"aren't you going to stay?"

"sure, if you want me to." he had no intention of leaving her as long as rhys was a threat. "but i can't be at your place during the day."

"no," she said with a faint grin. "i guess not." her parents were pretty easygoing about most things, but not about vampires. her father hunted them relentlessly, like his grandfather and his great-grandfather before him. irene o'donnell had given up hunting when she married daisy's dad, but she could still swing a wicked mallet, if necessary. "you don't think rhys will find us, do you?"

"i don't know. he's pretty big on revenge, but he's easily distracted. your best hope is that someone else ticks him off."

"will he think it strange that you left town without telling him?"

"i doubt it. i've done it before. i'll call him in a day or two and tell him i needed a change of scene."

"i'm sorry i got you involved in all of this."

erik slid a glance in her direction. he could see her clearly in the darkness. her hair fell loose over her shoulders, a fall of dark silk that tempted his touch. her brow was furrowed, her eyes shadowed with worry, not only for herself, but for her brothers and her parents.

"i won't let him hurt you, or your family," erik said quietly.

"erik..."

"what?"

"nothing."

he smiled at her, pleased that she was worried about him, too. it had been a long time since anyone cared whether he lived or died. sometimes, he hadn't much cared either. but that was before he met daisy o'donnell. she had revived his flagging spirits, made him glad to be alive.

with a sigh, daisy lowered the back of her seat and closed her eyes.

erik watched her from the corner of his eye. it took only a few moments for her to fall asleep. his hands tightened on the steering wheel as he listened to the slow, steady beat of her heart. her scent filled his nostrils. for a brief moment, he imagined pulling off the freeway, finding a dark, secluded place, taking daisy in his arms to still his hunger and ease his desire. there was just one problem, and it was snoring softly in the backseat.

with a sigh of exasperation, erik rolled down the window. it wasn't easy, being in such a confined space with two mortals, especially when one of them was as tempting and tasty as the woman sleeping only inches away. everything about her called to him--her beauty, her humor, her laughter. the way she looked at him, always a little wary, yet unafraid. the way her body molded itself to his, the intoxicating taste of her lips, the womanly scent of her skin, and yes, her blood, warm and sweet, unlike anything he had ever had before. since that first small taste, he had hungered for more, knowing he would never again be satisfied with the blood of another.

he glanced at her again. she was so young, so beautiful. even now, after knowing her, it was difficult to imagine her as the blood thief. harder still to imagine that they could have any kind of future together. and yet, how could he let her go? only now did he realize how empty, how meaningless, his existence had been. he had accepted being a vampire centuries ago. he had put the past behind him, made the necessary adjustments. told himself he was happy. lies, he thought. all lies to make the emptiness of his life bearable. but now, with daisy, his life was no longer empty.

which led to another problem. he wanted her. she wanted him. finding a way to make their relationship work might be a problem. finding a way to coexist with her family would be an even bigger obstacle. and then there was her brother, alex, who was already suspicious. erik wondered how much longer it would take for alex to figure things out. not long, since he was already suspicious. and then there was the other brother to consider.

erik raked a hand through his hair. he hadn't made many mistakes in his life, but falling in love with daisy o'donnell could prove to be fatal.