I melted against him. I couldn’t help myself either. This was Jerry, my Jerry, and I felt my usual response to his taste and his touch. Richard cleared his throat and we broke apart.
“I’ll call you later.” Jerry turned and followed Richard out the door.
I looked at Flo. “Well. I don’t know whether he’s still mad at me or not.”
“Oh, he’s still mad, but he’ll get over it. Go fix your lipstick, then let’s go shopping. I think you can fit into a six, girlfriend. See if you don’t.” Flo pulled out her own lipstick. “Richard’s mad at me too. I have to work hard to bring him around because I want to buy something from Ian. The man’s a magician, no? Look at you. And in just a few days.”
By the time we’d hit the boutique in the lobby and I’d managed to squeeze into a size six (with spandex), I was calling Ian a freaking Houdini. I refused Flo’s generous offer and made the clerk take my credit card instead of charging it to the room, coming up with a story about a surprise for Ray. Of course I figured my purchase was going to be leaked to the tabloids, but I’d love to see “Glory Wears Size Six” hit newsstands.
I told Flo good-bye, then headed upstairs. My cell phone rang just as I was hanging up my new pair of skinny jeans. Caller ID said it was Jerry. I took a breath and answered.
“Hi.”
“Gloriana, I’m outside on your balcony. Will you let me in?”
“Sure.” I closed the phone and headed out to see for myself. Brittany and Valdez were there. They’d just turned on the TV and hit the minibar for some snacks, but obviously they’d seen Jerry and were both waiting for their orders.
“You want to come in?” I opened the French door.
“Why don’t you come somewhere with me?” Jerry signaled to Valdez. “We can leave the shifters here. I’ll have you back before sunrise.”
“Glory, you want to go or not?” Brittany was strictly on Ray’s payroll. She didn’t take orders from Jerry, just me or Ray.
“Sure, I’ll be fine. You two enjoy an evening off.” I glanced at the clock. “Actually we’ve only got about two hours. I’ll be back.” I looked up at Jerry. “I have to be. It’s important.”
“Right. Another of MacDonald’s supplements.” His mouth firmed.
“Not just that. I have the reality show people coming right after sundown. I’ve got to be up and ready to go as soon as I can.” I smiled and touched his cheek. “That’s part of why I did this. They’re making my dress for the red carpet, remember?”
“How could I forget?” He turned his head and kissed my fingertips. “I don’t want to argue with you. Let’s go. Feel like shifting?”
“Sure. I’m still pumped from my feeding earlier. You should have seen me, Jerry. I was a real jock!” I laughed and held my arms out to the cool night air. “Where are we going?”
“Just follow me.” He shifted into a beautiful black bird, waited for me to do the bird thing and then took off.
We flew out and over smaller buildings and the park where Trina and I had run. We flew over streets with cars racing along under us. Finally we were in the hills above Los Angeles. Another empty house? Jerry’s connections with the vampire council were paying off.
He landed on the balcony of the second floor, then swiftly changed back into his tall male form. I landed beside him and managed my own change with a speed that impressed us both.
“You’re getting pretty good at that.” He laughed and hugged me.
“I guess the more I do it, the more confidence I get.” I turned and looked out at the lights of Los Angeles. “Oh, this is beautiful. Where are we?”
“Another of Chip’s investments. We’re in the Hollywood Hills. This one comes fully furnished. We’re in the master bedroom.” Jerry stepped inside.
“Right. Why do we always end up in bed together?” I heard the bitterness in my voice. Well, it was true. Was that all we had? Sex?
“So we won’t this time.” He held out his hands like he wouldn’t dare touch me.
“You know what I mean. It’s like we have to make a big deal out of just talking to each other. And when we do, it’s a disaster. Like last night.” I kept at least five feet between us. He looked too good to me and I couldn’t blame it on Ian’s supplement either. Jerry always looked good to me, damn it.He frowned. “Yes, last night was pretty much a bad scene.”
“Except for the sex.”
“Right.” He moved closer and smiled like he knew he could have me again with just a touch. “Because sex between us is always good.”
“See? We’re right back where we started.” I walked around the king-size bed and kicked off my shoes because my feet hurt, no other reason. “I’m not doing this, Jerry.”
“Fine. Go sit in that chair. Over there. Well away from the bed.” Jerry pointed to a pretty sitting area in front of a fireplace. It had another one of those automatic switches that he flipped and we had a beautiful fire going in moments. He sat in a chair across from me. “Let’s talk about what you’ve been going through.”
“You mean the weight-loss thing.” I was sorry I hadn’t had time to put on my new skinny jeans, but I did have on one of my new clingy sweaters, size medium, thank you very much. The deep rose vee showed off the edge of the C-cup bra I’d bought in hot pink with black lace trim. I absolutely loved it. Why had I turned down sex? I wanted Jerry to see this bra. All of it. Obviously I was certifiable. And, again, much as I’d like to, I couldn’t blame my lust on Ian’s program. Having Jerry near me always messed with my thought processes.
“Tell me how MacDonald’s deal works. What the supplements have been doing to you.”
So I told him. About the nausea. And the dreams. Not about the sleepwalking or the sunlight, of course. The fact that my healing sleep wasn’t working seemed to worry him the most.
“And you say he’s given you a new drug to drink when you wake up in the evening. You don’t know how you’ll react to it.”
“No.” And now I was worried. What if I got sick and then had to be on camera? This was a big deal. I’d get my first glimpse of what the designers had made for me and there’d be that fitting. At least a makeup artist would be on set if I looked like hell after hugging the toilet. Only three more days till the Grammys. I couldn’t quit now but . . .
“Glory, is this really worth it?”
“Yes.” I knew Jerry hated my one-word answers, but he might as well get used to it. Hey, it was what he usually gave me.
“I know I can’t stop you, but I’m going to warn you about something.” He got up, squatted in front of me and took my hands. “I told my father that the MacDonald heir is here. Da is on his way to help me take him down.”
“No!” I jumped up. “You can’t do that. An ambush? That’s—that’s cowardly. Not the Campbell way at all.”
“When it comes to the MacDonalds there are no rules.” Jerry grabbed my shoulders. “I’ve been trying to tell you. These men are the cowards. They’ll lie and cheat and steal to get what they want. Ian knows you’re a Campbell woman. Make no mistake about that. When Richard found out that no other vampire on MacDonald’s weight-loss program got sick, I knew. This is his plan, Gloriana. He’s hurting you to get to me. He’s been trying to draw me out and it’s working. But I’ll not face him alone. I’ll have the clan behind me.”
“Jerry, stop! Don’t do this. Call the laird back and tell him it was a mistake.” I pulled my cell phone from my pocket. “Come on. I can’t let you screw this up for me.”
“Oh, right, for you.” Jerry turned his back on me. “I should let him poison you, wait until you go to your big-deal event with your rock star and have your picture made for all the world to see. Then after you’re dead and I’m mad with grief, then it’s okay for me to take my men and drive MacDonald into the sea. Is that the way it should be?” He spun and grabbed me, his hands biting into my shoulders. “Is it?”
“Stop! Are you listening to yourself, Jerry? Since when does poison work on vampires? Besides, you tasted my blood earlier. You said it was fine. I’m not poisoned, am I?” I offered my neck. “Drink from me again. Take me to bed and let me show you how much energy I have tonight. I’m feeling, hell, alive! More alive than I’ve felt since the night you turned me. Ian’s magic works, Jerry. Whether he’s your ancient enemy or not doesn’t matter to me.”
“But it does matter to me, Gloriana. I can’t be with a woman who doesn’t understand that.” Jerry released me and stepped back. “I never thought I’d finally have enough of you. But mayhap it’s come to pass.”
My heart fluttered, then seemed to stop. Was I crazy? What had I just done? I reached for him but he shook his head.
“Don’t try to cozen me.”
“I’m not.” I was, but I’m not totally stupid. “Listen, Jerry. I get the feud thing. I do. I remember the stories your father told when I visited Castle Campbell. The MacDonalds did terrible things to members of your family.”
“They did.” Jerry nodded, his lips firm.
“And I’m sure the MacDonalds tell stories about the Campbells as well.”
“All lies.”
“No doubt.” I could see logic wasn’t going to work here. “This is the twenty-first century. Broadswords and cudgels are out; brains and computers are in. Can’t you think of a way to take out Ian that’s more subtle than a direct attack?” One that hopefully would take more than three days to plan. “You’d lose fewer men that way.”
“Now you’re making sense.” Jerry actually stood still while I ran my hand up his arm. He wore a white silk shirt with full sleeves and a spread collar, a pirate’s shirt. He’d tucked it into black jeans and left it unbuttoned just enough to make me want to finish the job.