"i'm so sorry." olivia didn't need empathic powers to know this had caused robby a lot of pain.

"then i learned that during the day while i was hiding in a cave in my death-sleep, mavis declared me dead and took a new husband. a bloody english soldier."

olivia winced. "this is why you value loyalty so much, isn't it?"

robby arched a brow. "are ye being my therapist again?"

"i'm just trying to understand you." now she knew why he hated betrayal so much.

he glanced down at his bloodstained t-shirt. "i need to wash up. i'll be back soon." he strode from the room.

she thought back on his story. he hadn't asked to be a vampire. he'd only wanted to stay alive. and he was using his prolonged life to fight evil. there was no denying the fact that robby mackay was a good, honorable man.

and she loved him.

she couldn't bear to wound him with rejection. she couldn't let him feel betrayed all over again.

she rose slowly to her feet. she was going to accept him. and love him, no matter the cost.

she eased into his bedroom and locked the door. she could hear the shower running in the bathroom. she glanced up at the surveillance camera to make sure it was still turned off.

she padded into the bathroom. he was soaping up in the clear shower stall, his back turned to her. rivulets of soapy water meandered down his strong back and tight buttocks.

she sighed.

he turned and his eyes widened. he cracked open the door. "are ye here for the view, or did ye need something?"

with a smile, she pulled his baggy t-shirt over her head and dropped it onto the floor. "i do need something." she tugged at the drawstring holding up his flannel pants. "i need you."

he leaned back into the water spray and turned the water off. he looked at her, his eyes glinting with a reddish tint. "olivia, i canna play at this. if i take you, i willna let you go."

"good." she wiggled the flannel pants over her hips and let them drop. "because i'm not letting you go."

he burst out of the shower and swooped her off her feet.

she laughed. "you're all wet."

"ye will be, too." he tossed her on the bed and landed beside her.

"do ye know how much i love you?" he kissed her brow, her cheeks.

"about as much as i love you." she ran her hands into his long, wet hair.

with a growl, he took her mouth. she opened and welcomed his tongue, stroking it with her own. she invaded his mouth and tested the sharpness of his fangs against her tongue.

he pulled back. "careful with those."

she smiled. "i'm not going to live in fear of you. and you don't have to keep punching holes in my pillows."

his eyes widened. "are ye saying ye're no' opposed to a wee nip here and there?"

she laughed. "that depends on where."

"oh aye." he cupped a breast. "there are definitely places i would never want to puncture." he brushed his thumb over her nipple.

she shivered, and her nipples pebbled.

"och, now would ye look at that? is there no' a lovelier sight in the world?" he leaned over and sucked a nipple into his mouth.

the rasp of his tongue sent goose flesh shimmering down her arms and legs. heat pooled between her thighs, and her core felt empty and aching with need.

"robby." she dug her fingers into his back.

"are ye rushing me, lass?" he trailed kisses down to her belly.

"yes, yes, i am." she wrapped a leg around him.

he slid a hand between her legs. "do ye know what happens when ye rush a vamp?"

"i...no." she closed her eyes, enjoying the slow and gentle exploration of his fingers.

"ye might end up with me moving at vampire speed." suddenly, his fingers were rubbing her as fast as a vibrator.

she squealed. "oh my gosh. that's...that's..."

she spiraled out of control and shattered with an orgasm.

"oh my..." she pressed a hand to her chest as she struggled to breathe.

his mouth tilted up. "so maybe we should slow it down a wee bit?" his hand returned to its more leisurely pace.

"you rascal," she breathed. "you're good at every speed."

with a grin, he buried his head between her legs and continued his languid exploration with his tongue.

she moaned and writhed in motion with him. this time the climax hit her without warning. it was sudden, deep, and thorough, pulsating through her with throbs that stretched on and on.

she was so sensitized that when he plunged into her, she came again. and she wanted more. she couldn't get enough of robby. she wrapped her legs around him and met each hard thrust. the pace escalated, becoming frantic and frenzied.

he licked her neck, and it ignited spasms of pleasure. with a shout, he climaxed with her. she felt a small pop on her neck as her core clenched rhythmically around robby.

when her breathing and heart rate returned to normal, she realized what had happened. "you bit me?"

"just a little." he licked the wound, and she shivered. "i couldna resist marking you. ye're mine now."

she hugged him tight. "i'll always be yours."

chapter 27

the next day at dusk, olivia paced nervously beside j.l.'s bed. carlos waited at the foot of the bed, ready to pounce, in case he needed to restrain j.l. from biting her. she had three glasses of warm blood ready on the bedside table. emma had recommended she have some straws on hand.

olivia had spent half the night making love to robby before finally succumbing to sleep. she'd wakened around noon. it no longer freaked her out that he was lying next to her not breathing. she'd showered and dressed in the clean clothes he'd brought from her apartment.

carlos checked his watch. "any minute now."

"do you like working for mackay s and i?" she asked.

"yes." carlos smiled. "are you thinking about applying for a job?"

"maybe."

"angus is a good boss. he's been very helpful and supportive with my...particular problem."

"fur balls?"

carlos snorted. "i wish it were that simple. my kind is an endangered species. the village where i grew up was destroyed and most of the were-panthers were killed."

"i'm so sorry. that's terrible."

"i've made a few excursions to hunt for more of my kind. angus not only gives me the time off to do it, but he finances my trips."

"where - " she stopped when j.l.'s body jerked.

his chest expanded as he dragged in a big breath of air. his eyes opened.

she leaned over him. "j.l.?"

he snapped his head toward her. his brown eyes possessed a strange new amber glow. "what...where...aargh!" he curled up, grasping his stomach.

"that's a hunger pain," carlos whispered.

olivia wanted to explain the situation before shoving a glass of blood at him. "j.l., you were attacked by vampires. they nearly killed you. the only way to save you was - "

he shouted and covered his mouth. he moaned in pain.

she winced. "i'm so sorry. we had to change you, j.l. it was the only way to save you."

"change me?" he whispered. he cried out as fangs ripped through his gums. he touched the fangs with his fingers, and his eyes widened. "i'm a...?"

"you're a vampire, dude," carlos said.

olivia's eyes blurred with tears. poor j.l. looked so shocked. in the past, she'd always known exactly how he was feeling, but now he was blank. it was like she'd lost a part of him forever in exchange for making sure he survived. "i'm sorry, j.l. you were dying, so close to dying. it seemed like the only way to save you."

he looked at his hand, which had touched his new fangs. the fingers were smeared with blood from his ripped gums. his nostrils flared. "i'm so hungry." his gaze shifted to olivia and the amber glow in his eyes intensified.

"here." she held a glass of warm blood up to his mouth. it clinked on his fangs, so she plopped a straw in it. "drink."

he took a hesitant sip, then grabbed the glass and drank it all. "still hungry."

she passed him the second glass, and he finished it. his fangs retracted and there was color once again in his cheeks.

"i have another glass if you need it." she motioned to the bedside table.

he glanced at it with a bemused look. "it's so weird. it actually tastes good to me." his gaze drifted about the room. "everything's more sharp and clear. where am i?"

"romatech industries," carlos replied. "the manufacturer of synthetic blood, or in your case, the local food store."

j.l. looked confused. "do i know you?"

"i'm carlos panterra, day guard for mackay s and i. and i'm a were-panther."

"wow." j.l. looked at olivia. "this isn't some kind of weird dream? i'm really a vampire?"

"i'm afraid so." she squeezed his hand. "i begged robby to do it. but if you're really miserable, i heard there's a way to reverse it and make you mortal again."

"i'll consider it, but i think i'm going to be all right with this."

she heaved a sigh of relief. "i was afraid you would hate me."

"no." j.l. shook his head, frowning. "it was my fault. i shouldn't have gone back."

"what happened?" she perched on the bed next to him. "do you remember?"

"i was at the hospital when yasmine called. she said she was trapped inside the storage unit, locked in with a bunch of vampires, and if i didn't save her, they would wake at sunset and kill her. so i rushed back to get her. i thought it would be safe, you know, 'cause it was still daylight, and all the vampires would be dead."

he dragged a hand through his thick black hair. "it was a trap. there were some escaped convicts locked in there with her. i guess the malcontents kept them alive to be breakfast. they attacked me and knocked me out. i think they were hoping to save themselves by offering me up as the entree."

"it must have been terrifying," olivia said softly.

he nodded. "i thought i was a goner." he smiled suddenly. "but hey, it could be worse."

she smiled back. "you could be a zombie?"

"exactly. so when do i get to kick some malcontent ass?"

carlos chuckled. "easy, bro. you need some training first to learn how to use your new powers."

"superpowers!" j.l. grinned. "sweet."

robby was in the security office at romatech, discussing strategy, when he spotted olivia on a monitor. she was approaching the office with carlos and j.l. he had checked on the newly turned vamp earlier and was relieved to find him and olivia in good spirits.

robby opened the door to let them in, then introduced j.l. to the others.

"if ye'd like a job at mackay s and i, we'd be happy to have you join us," angus said.

j.l. shook his hand. "that would be great. thank you."

"everything's fine," olivia whispered to robby. "he's happy with the change."

"wow, i could hear that," j.l. said as he crossed the room. he studied the weapons in the caged armory. "you guys have some awesome swords."

"we've decided to teleport back to kansas city," robby announced. "we believe casimir will still be in the vicinity, mainly because his new buddy, otis, will be there, looking for olivia."

olivia frowned. "i suppose you need to use me as bait to draw him out."

"nay," robby said quickly. "i'd rather come up with another option." he took her hand. "but for now, we're moving to barker's office at the fbi building."

"i'm coming with you," j.l. insisted. "i don't know how to teleport yet, but i do know how to fence."

they armed themselves. robby made sure olivia had a dagger in addition to her pistol.

he slipped on some gloves, so he could load her pistol with silver bullets. "these willna kill a vampire, ye ken, but it will hurt like hell and slow them down."

"thank you." she snapped her gun into her holster.

he stuffed a silver chain into one of the pockets of his black cargo pants. he'd learned months ago that he could teleport with the chain as long as it didn't touch his bare skin or wasn't wrapped around him. "this could be the night. if i can get this chain around casimir, he willna be able to escape."

"and you'll finally have the revenge you've wanted for so long." olivia touched his face. "be careful, i couldn't bear to lose you."

he kissed her brow. "lass, ye're going to be stuck with me for a long, long time."

she called her supervisor on the speakerphone. robby teleported her to barker's office, and connor brought j.l. angus and emma arrived with carlos.

barker grinned when he saw j.l. and slapped him on the back. "you're looking good."

"thanks." j.l. peered into the main office. "everybody's gone home."

"yep." barker led them all into the larger outer office. "they think all the escaped prisoners are accounted for. of course, otis is still out there. any ideas for finding him?"

"maybe yasmine used her debit card again." j.l. headed for his work area. "i'll check."

"i'll help." olivia followed him.

"do you know how many vampires we're up against?" barker asked.

robby sighed. they'd compared notes earlier about the battle in the storage unit. three malcontents had managed to teleport away in addition to casimir and otis. "we believe they have a total of five, but casimir could have had more of his followers teleport in."