the sound of the front door opening stirred alex from the light doze she'd fallen into on the couch, and she sat up to glance tensely toward the hall as she heard the men stomp their way inside. sam got up at once and moved out to greet them, but alex stayed where she was, almost reluctant to know what had happened. she didn't want to believe anyone had been behind her run of bad luck, but bev's phone call had convinced her jacques must have been the one who had forced her car off the road ... which made it possible that he'd had something to do with the other problems she'd been having of late. to her it was just plain stupid. she was the one who'd been wronged in their relationship. why the hell had he set out to make her life such a misery?

cale appeared in the doorway, and then crossed the room to join her, and alex saw sam lead mortimer and bricker to the kitchen. they were giving them timealone. that didn't seem like good news, she decided, as cale paused before her.

"is it okay if i sit down?" he asked, eyeing her warily, and she found herself smiling wryly. he wasn't sure of his welcome. at least he knew sneaking out had been dirty pool.

"yes, of course," she murmured, and waited until he'd seated himself beside her before turning to sit cross-legged facing him. "so?" she asked. "what happened? did he do it?"

cale blew his breath out on a sigh, and then admitted, "he wasn't at the restaurant when we got there. it seems as soon as you hung up, bev called mark to ask him what kind of vehicle jacques drives so that she could pass the information on to you. she then ripped into him about what a jerk the guy was for saying you'd had a terrible accident when you were fine. mark told jacques about the call, and he left at once." he grimaced. "we figure he got spooked because you were asking what kind of vehicle he drives ... which was a black pickup, by the way. according to mark's memories, he was driving that until monday, when he showed up at the restaurant in a rental car claiming his pickup was in the shop."

alex ran her hands through her hair with a little sigh, acknowledging that that was pretty damning. it seemed jacques had tried to run her off the road on monday morning. she was just lucky it had been cale behind the wheel. not that she was happy that he had been hurt, but she never would have survived. "i suppose you checked his house after that?"

when cale appeared surprised, she shrugged. "mortimer and bricker are vampire cops, cops would check the house next."

he nodded. "his drawers were open and half-empty, and there was a spot in his closet between a large suitcase and a small one where a medium-sized suitcase would have fit. we think he packed in a hurry and got the hell out. they're having someone check his bank records right now to try to track him, and mortimer has sent some men out to hunt. they'll find him eventually and figure out just how many of your recent problems were caused by him and how."

"and then what?" she asked quietly. "and please don't tell me they'll hand him over to the authorities. i know the car has already been sent to the wreckers, so there's no proof he did anything wrong. what will they do with him?"

"i don't know," cale admitted quietly. "lucian will probably decide what should be done. he makes all the decisions like that."

"lucian." alex murmured the name with dislike. sam had told her a lot about the immortal while they waited for the men to return. she'd explained that just because she'd chosen to turn didn't mean she could now go about her life. if she didn't turn right away, she would have to be "interviewed" by lucian argeneau. he would decide if it was safe to allow her out with the information about who and what they were. it was an effort to keep their secret and their people safe.

alex understood but, judging by sam's description, would rather avoid that interview. sam had described it as brain rape. she also didn't particularly want to goweeks worrying about having to go through the turn. it had looked damned painful to her when she'd seen sam suffering it. she'd made her decision, and as always, just wanted to get to it and get it done.

deciding not to worry about jacques and his future now, she said, "so ... if you turn me tonight, will i be recovered enough to work tomorrow? "

cale looked shocked by the question. "tonight? this morning you weren't sure what to do."

"and then i had a nap and decided i wanted to be with you and turn," she said firmly. "i don't want to waste any time."

"yes, but it's a big decision. if you want more time-"

"geez," alex muttered, and shifted up onto her knees to climb into his lap. she felt a little awkward doing it at first. it was all still new to her, but she settled in his lap and slipped her arms loosely around his neck. looking him in the eyes, she said solemnly, "you sound like you're having second thoughts."

"never," he assured her, slipping his own arms around her waist. "i just don't want you jumping into it before you're positive."

"i'm afraid that's my nature," she admitted, pressing her forehead against his. "i fuss, and then i decide, and then i race ahead with whatever decision i've come to. it's part of my charm," she added wryly.

"yes, it is," cale murmured. "and i think things through, calculate the pluses and minuses, and then after a suitable time has passed, decide if it is feasible."

alex snorted. "from what sam said, you decided i was your life mate the first night we met."

"that is different. the nanos chose you. there was no decision to be made."

"then why drag it out and wait?" she said simply, and kissed him.

cale responded at once, his mouth opening to allow his tongue out. alex sighed as he invaded her, her hands dropping to run over his chest, sending little ripples of pleasure through them both as she found his nipples and began to play with them through his shirt.

"i never knew men liked to have their nipples touched too," she gasped as his mouth left hers to trail to her ear.

"maybe they all don't," he murmured.

"you do," she almost moaned as he began to nibble at her earlobe.

"so do you," he breathed, his hands now finding her breasts through her sweater and kneading lightly.

alex moaned as the pleasure sliding through her doubled, and then doubled again, but then gasped in surprise when cale suddenly stood up, taking her with him. his hands cupped her bottom, holding her up, and she instinctively wrapped her legs around his hips. alex hooked her ankles around each other as he began to walk toward the door, but asked worriedly, "do we have time? i have to be well enough to go to the restaurant by four tomorrow."

"we'll be fast," he assured her, carrying her out into the hall.

she chuckled wryly at the promise. "we always are. but if we sleep too long afterward ..."

cale's response was to shout, "mortimer, check on us in an hour and make sure we're awake!"

he didn't even wait for mortimer's assurance that he would, but started up the stairs, his eyes moving to her face as their bodies rubbed together, sending shock waves of pleasure through them both.

alex shifted against him with a little moan, grinding herself against the hardness growing where their bodies met, and said breathlessly, "i think you'd better hurry."

"i am," he assured her, and she realized he'd picked up the pace and was practically jogging up the stairs now. it just ground her body into his more firmly, pounding them against each other with each step. by the time he reached the top, they were both panting, and it had little to do with the exertion of mounting the stairs.

instead of carrying her on to his room or hers, cale groaned and bore her backward. he pressed her against the wall, allowing it to help take her weight as he claimed her lips and removed one hand from her behind to bring it around to cover a breast. alex wasn't still. she immediately began tugging at his sweater, pulling it up to bare his chest, and then urging his arms up so that she could pull it off. cale immediately released her, pinning her against the wall with his hips and breaking their kiss so that he could do her silent bidding and raise his arms.

"this is insane," he muttered, as she dragged the sweater over his face.

"uh-huh," alex agreed, tossing the sweater the moment she had it off him. she caught a glimpse of it sailing over the balustrade, and then her attention moved to the bare chest she'd revealed. she didn'tthink, but bent her head to lick the bare skin of his upper chest, her lower body squirming between him and the wall as she nibbled at his collarbone, sending up a maelstrom of pleasure. who knew a collarbone could be so sensitive? she thought dazedly, as his pleasure mixed with hers.

she felt him tugging at her sweater now, and pulled back enough to allow him to remove it as well, then shivered as he tossed it over his shoulder. she saw it float over the balustrade, and then closed her eyes on another shiver as his hands, still cool from outside, slid over her heated flesh. her eyes opened again when her bra suddenly went slack around her, and then cale was slipping that out from between them and sending it flying as well so that he could cup her breasts, unfettered by the silky cloth.

"god, you're beautiful." he almost sighed the words as he lifted her higher to close his mouth over one now-bare nipple.

"hey! sam, mortimer! you gotta see this. it's raining clothes out here." bricker's words sounded on a laugh, and alex heard cale growl deep in his throat, and then his hands slid down to cup her behind again. he lifted her away from the wall to continue up the hall, still suckling at her and alex closed her arms around his head, her body arching and twisting against his head.

"door?" he mumbled against her flesh, not lifting his head.

alex shivered as the vibration of his speaking went right through her, and then laughed at the absurdity of it, but glanced around.

"a couple more steps," she gasped, running her hands down his back and scraping the nails back up.

when he pressed her against the door, she reached back to open it, aware of the soft murmur of voices below but unable to comprehend what was being said. not that she cared what they said or thought below. she didn't have the ability at that point; all she could think about was the sensation roaring through her body. she barely had enough spare brainpower to turn the doorknob, but she managed it, and the door swung open.

cale immediately carried her inside. he turned to close the door by pressing her back against it as his lips let her nipple slip free only to nibble their way across to her other breast and claim that one. he was holding her high now, her legs around his waist rather than his hips, and alex moaned in frustration as she writhed against him. she began to tug on his hair, just wanting him to lower her enough to allow her to rub against him again, and he did, but had to stop what he was doing to achieve it, and alex found that frustrating as well.

she caught his face in her hands and lifted it, claiming his mouth with her own, and then tore her mouth away to glance around with surprise when he turned her away from the door.

"bed," he gasped for explanation. "soft surface."

alex glanced back to him with surprise, amazed that he recalled that request at the restaurant, when she could hardly recall her own name. she'd have been happy for him to have ripped her pants off and made love to her right there against the door ... at least until they woke up in a heap on the floor, she acknowledged,and then he was bending to the bed. he set her down gently, and then immediately kissed her again. she kissed back with all the passion only he could bring to life in her, but grabbed his hands when he reached for the waist of her jeans.

cale paused and broke their kiss to peer down at her in question, and alex immediately clasped his face in her hands.

"i like you," she said breathlessly.

cale blinked in confusion. "i like you too."

"no, i mean it," she said more firmly. "i like you. i've loved people i couldn't stand to live with, my sisters for instance," she added dryly. "sibling rivalry was hell ... but i like you, cale. you're funny and smart and considerate and sexy as hell, and i really like you."

he smiled softly, and then turned his head to press a kiss to first one of her palms, and then the other, before meeting her gaze solemnly. "i like you too. you're sweet and intelligent and ambitious and an amazing cook ... now let's get you naked cause i like you best that way."

alex laughed and helped him undo her pants, then grabbed ahold of the bed to keep from being pulled forward when he dragged them off. her panties went with them, and both items went flying over his shoulder, then cale quickly shucked his own jeans.

"mmm, soft," he murmured as he climbed onto the bed to join her.

"you or the bed?" she teased.

"the bed," he said dryly. "i don't think i'll ever be soft around you."

"that's good to know," alex gasped as he slid into her, warm and full and definitely not soft.

"shut up and kiss me, woman," he growled, withdrawing a little.

alex laughed and did, covering his mouth and allowing her lips to part for his tongue to thrust in even as his body drove back into her.

"i think you can call this a success."

alex glanced to cale as he paused beside her. it seemed the most natural thing in the world to lean into him as his arm slid around her waist, and his lips touched her forehead.

the night of the opening had finally arrived. it was an evening she'd feared a time or two might never happen, but here it was. the restaurant was finished, everything in its place, the new cooks in the kitchen working away and the dining room and bar area full of people mingling and partaking of her food and drink. alex had arranged it to be more of a party than a restaurant night. the regulars at the original la bonne vie had been invited as well as friends and family, several local celebrities, emile, of course, and the local press, who, thanks to emile, had shown up en masse. it was definitely a success.

"you're looking pale," cale murmured, peering down at her with concern. "perhaps you should slip into the office for a quick refresher. it will only take a minute, and i'll keep an eye on things here," he added when she frowned at the idea.

"all right, then," alex grumbled with all the goodgrace of a child agreeing reluctantly to take cod liver oil. it wasn't that blood tasted bad. she didn't even taste it the way they'd shown her to feed, but it was the idea of actually consuming the blood. she hadn't quite gotten used to that yet and found herself shuddering with distaste even as her fangs slid out eagerly to consume it. how messed up was that?

chuckling, cale hugged her close and bent to press a quick kiss to her lips. "poor darling. you'll adjust soon."

"you keep saying that," she murmured, toying with his tie. "but it hasn't happened yet."

"it's only been a couple of days, love," he chided. "give it time."

"hmm." she smiled faintly. "i appear to have a lot of that now."

"yes. you do," he said solemnly. "not regretting it already, are you?"

"you're kidding, right?" she asked with amusement. the last two days since she'd woken from the turn had been amazing. now that she'd stopped trying to keep him at arm's length with her professional footing nonsense and agreed to be his life mate, her life had become almost blissful. they made love every chance they got, which was amazing of course. alex was sure there was nothing that could beat immortal sex. except there was in some ways, and that was when she and cale were together and unable to make love, which had been an awful lot these last two days as she'd had to cook at the old la bonne vie, and he'd refused to leave her alone until jacques was found. while there had been desire and need sparking between them underthe surface, there had also been witty discussions and gentle teasing and easy affection that she reveled in as he sat on the counter and watched her cook.

she really did like this man, and of course she definitely wanted him, but she also loved him, and while alex had said that to him when she'd agreed to the turn, she thought now that perhaps she hadn't really, because what she felt for him seemed to grow stronger every day and sometimes actually hurt. she could look at him and feel an actual ache in her chest. or perhaps that's how love was. perhaps it just grew stronger with time, she thought, and assured him, "i'm very happy with my decision."

"good." he smiled and kissed her nose before releasing her. "go on. there's a surprise waiting in your office too."

"oh?" she asked with interest. "what kind of surprise?"

"go and see for yourself," he insisted, giving her a little push.

smiling, alex moved quickly through the milling crowd, thanking people as they congratulated her on the new restaurant, the food, the drink, the service. she was beginning to think she would never get to her office, when sam suddenly appeared to grab her hand and drag her the rest of the way.

"wooh! thank you." alex laughed as they escaped into the kitchen and the door swung closed behind them. "i was starting to think i'd never make it out of there."

"yes, you did look like a damsel in distress with all your admirers fawning over you," sam teased.

"yeah right. besides, i was a damsel in distress. i need a little pick-me-up to sustain me, and cale says there's a surprise in my office too that i want to see," alex said, moving away from the door.

"did he?" sam asked innocently.

alex slowed and eyed her narrowly. "you know what it is."

"who me?" she batted her eyelashes and urged alex to keep moving.

alex snorted. "you are such a-" the words died in her throat as she stepped into her office and spotted jo seated in the chair, her feet on the desk.

"finally!" jo dropped her feet to the ground and came around the desk. "you took forever getting her here."

"jo!" alex gasped, rushing forward to hug her little sister. she just as quickly pulled away to peer at her, noting that while the turn had added some weight to sam, and removed a couple of pounds from herself, it didn't appear to have changed jo at all except that she had a healthy glow to her now. they all did, she acknowledged, and asked, "what are you doing here? you're supposed to be traveling in europe with nicholas. i thought you couldn't make it."

"and miss your big day?" jo snorted. "not bloody likely. of course we flew back for the party."

"oh." alex stepped back to peer at her, and then shifted to slip her arm around sam too and include her as well. "it's pretty awesome isn't it?"

"way awesome," sam assured her.

"it's the start of a chain, my dear," jo announced. "ipredict that within the next ten years, there will be la bonne vie restaurants across the globe."

"not that," alex said on a laugh. "and i assure you i have no desire to open more restaurants. i meant us. here. the three of us with men who love us and whom we love."

"immortals who love us and whom we love," sam said solemnly.

"we should have a joint wedding," jo announced suddenly.

"oh, god, don't start talking wedding already," alex said with disgust. "cale and i just got together. and i hate weddings."

"which is exactly why we should have one big one," jo said at once. "less work for each of us. besides, it doesn't have to be right away, next year sometime maybe. we can-" she paused and glanced to sam curiously as she began to shake with silent laughter. "what?"

"i was just thinking how wonderful this is," she admitted with a grin, and then burst out with a full laugh, and said, "and they kept telling me it wasn't going to happen, that three sisters wouldn't find life mates. ha! ha i say!"

"wait, wait." jo pulled away and rushed to the small refrigerator in the corner. "we need a drink to toast that."

"the only thing you're going to find in there is blood," alex said dryly.

jo grimaced as she opened the door and peered inside to see that this was true. she wavered for a moment and then shrugged. "ah, what the heck."

"i better get the blinds," sam muttered, and rushed to the blinds as jo retrieved three bags of blood.

alex quickly closed the door as well, and then turned back to accept the bag of blood jo was holding out.

"okay," jo announced as she handed a bag to sam as well. "we say, 'ha! ha i say!' together, and then slap the bags to our teeth. it can be our own private toast from now on." she paused to glance from sam to alex with concern. "you can both bring on your own teeth without cale and mortimer turning you on first, right?"

alex raised her eyebrows. "i seem to always need blood and just seeing it brings them on. cale has never had to turn me on to get them out," she said, and grimaced at the way the fangs in question mangled her words. they had made an appearance the moment she'd seen the bag of blood.

"me too," sam said, the two short words coming out "me thoo."

"huh." jo frowned. "must have just been me." shrugging, she raised her bag. "okay. together now."

alex shook her head at the silliness of it, but they had always got silly together, and she too said, "ha! ha i say!" as her sisters did, and then slapped the bag to her teeth. they then stood there, grinning like a trio of idiots around their bags as they waited for them to drain.

"we should have toasted to us," jo decided with a little sigh as she tore her empty bag away a moment later.

"we'll do that with champagne later," alex decided, ripping her own bag away. "the willan sisters are worthy of a sparkling toast."

"is there champagne?" jo asked with interest.

"it's being chilled. it should be ready after the others leave. but there are all sorts of other goodies out there if you're thirsty or hungry."

"i'm starved," jo admitted. "we came right here from the airport."

alex arched her eyebrows as her gaze slid over jo's slinky, long black dress. "you flew here like that?"

"are you kidding? i flew here pretty much naked most of the time," she said with amusement, and when both sisters' eyebrows flew up, explained, "it was a company plane. bastien sent it for us, and nicholas and i were alone in the passenger section. i'm now a member of the mile-high club several times over. that man can't keep his hands to himself."

alex gave a laugh. "and i suppose you wanted nothing to do with it and were trying to fight him off?"

"oh, good lord no." jo chuckled. "i may even have started the getting-naked part. he, however, started the touchy-feely business. i was trying to behave myself until then."

"i didn't hear that, i so didn't hear that," sam said, tossing her own bag away. "you're my little sister. you don't have sex. you're still a virgin, and as far as i'm concerned will be until i die."

"what about alex?" jo asked with amusement.

"her too," sam assured her. "neither of you have sex, and that's that. when the babies come, i will exclaim with amazement over the fact that immaculate conception happened again."

alex and jo laughed at the claim.

"all right, alex, we've hogged you long enough. we should let you get back to your opening," sam said more seriously. "we can catch up later back at the house. have one of our girly nights."

"are you staying at the house?" jo turned to alex to ask with happy surprise.

alex grimaced. "yes. mortimer and cale insist on it until jacques is found."

"jacques tournier?" jo asked with a frown. "what-?"

"i'll explain," sam interrupted firmly. "alex, you really should get back. one of the reporters might be panting for an interview."

alex nodded, but said, "i need to use the bathroom first. you two go ahead."

"all right, we'll hold down the fort in your absence," sam said, ushering jo toward the door.

alex watched them go, smiling to herself, and then turned to open the door to the bathroom. she flicked on the light and started inside, only to pause as she spotted the man inside, seated on the toilet.

"oh, sorry," she began with surprise. "i didn't realize-" she stopped abruptly as the man stood, and she realized he was dressed, just sitting on the closed toilet lid. it was then she actually looked at him. once she'd realized someone was on the toilet, she'd immediately averted her eyes, but now she looked at his face and her eyes widened as she recognized the man with three days' worth of stubble on his face. "jack."

"jacques," he corrected grimly, starting forward. the gun she now noted in his hand jerked to gesture her away from the door as he walked, and she quicklyshifted to the side, moving around him and trading places as he closed the door.

eyeing him warily, alex stopped beside the toilet and peered at him in question. "now what?"

it seemed the most reasonable question. he had the gun, and while she didn't think he could kill her with it now that she'd been turned, he could certainly hurt her. no one liked to be hurt. however, her question seemed to irritate him. or perhaps it was her lack of weeping and wailing in terror she realized when he sputtered with frustration.

"you don't do anything the way you're supposed to," he spat with frustration. "in france, you were supposed to love me enough that you would claim you had stolen my recipe, but did you? no. you let them believe i had stolen yours."

"you did steal mine," she said at once.

"but if you loved me like you said you did, you should have taken the blame. but you didn't. you let them kick me out in disgrace," he snapped. "my father never forgave me for that."

"well, that's hardly my fault," she said impatiently. "and i did love you. or i thought i did. enough that if you'd asked me for help, i would have helped you, but instead you stole it."

"and then i go to all the trouble and expense of opening a restaurant near yours, and do you even notice? hardly. you just wish me luck and go about acting as if it's fine with you."

"it was fine with me," she said dryly. "there are a lotof people in toronto, jack, certainly, enough to support two french restaurants."

"jacques," he snarled. "and i know you were laughing at me, thinking i wasn't real competition because i didn't graduate the great culinary school," he said bitterly.

"i wasn't laugh-"

"you even go off and decide to open a second restaurant to show me up," he added, talking over her. "and what happens when i make trouble for you there? "

"we suspected it was you behind my problems here," she said with a little sigh.

"you're damned right it was. i spent a hell of a lot of money to make sure the electrician wired things so that this place would burn down. but you live under a star or something. it didn't burn to the ground as it should have. it just suffered some smoke damage. it didn't even slow you down much. you just set to work gutting it and redoing it." he shook his head.

"i don't suppose you had anything to do with the problems i had with that too, did you?" she asked grimly. "the wrong carpet, the tile, the-"

"that cost me a small fortune for all the good it did," he said bitterly. "i was paying your project manager to bungle things and bribed everyone from the tile salesman to the carpet installers to mess things up. but again, you just kept plugging along. even hiring peter out from under you didn't slow you down. you just brought in another guy."

alex stared at him with amazement, finding it incomprehensible that he'd spent so much time and money just to try to hurt her. how had he twisted his own deception in his mind to make it somehow her fault? what was wrong with him?

"the attack at the old la bonne vie?" she asked.

he nodded grimly, eyes burning with hatred. "nothing else had seemed to even touch you. i realized that the only way to teach you a lesson was to just straight-out hurt you. i was even looking forward to beating you senseless, but bev came along and spoiled everything."

alex narrowed her eyes. she no longer cared why he had done all this, she was getting angry now. "and forcing my car off the highway? "

that question made him pause as confusion slid across his face. "how the hell did you survive that? i only meant to hurt you there, but i was sure i must have killed you. yet you don't even have a mark on you, but i saw the car hit the rail."

"it wasn't me in the car," she admitted grimly, and recalling cale's injuries felt her anger crank up another notch. the man could have killed her. would have killed her had she been driving as intended, but he had hurt cale horribly, and all because he'd stolen her recipe when they were basically just kids?

"it wasn't you?" jack echoed with amazement, and then shook his head. "you're the luckiest bitch i ever met."

"yes, i -->>

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