Bit the Jackpot Read Free Page A

were walking up her neck when he wasn't even touching her.
    She shivered again just thinking about it, a little scared by the whole encounter. Dawn had no such fear. Adjusting her bra with nipple tassels, she stood up and pushed Cara out of the way. "Where is he? We'll call Bryan. He'll kick his ass."
    Bryan was Dawn's bouncer boyfriend. Cara wasn't sure she wanted Bryan confronting Seamus, but she would like an escort to her car. After she got dressed. But before she could reach for her gym bag with her clothes, Dawn was making "uh-uh-uh" expressions.
    "Is that him? Standing with that chick?" Dawn had opened the door and was gazing down the hall with a rapt expression on her face.
    Cara peered from behind Dawn's shoulder. Seamus was brushing the skinny girl's hair back off her shoulders and looked like he was reassuring her. Freak. "That's him."
    "Damn, now that's a man," Dawn enthused. "I'm looking at him, and I swear, my thighs are just spreading automatically."
    Bryan, Dawn's bouncer boyfriend, was clearly forgotten. As was the fact that Dawn was wearing only a thong and the bra with nipple tassels as she leaned farther into the hall.
    Her friend's reaction annoyed her. "He's not
that
hot." She stole another look down the hall. Okay, so yes he was.
    "
'Yes
, he is." Dawn turned back to her. "You have to have sex with him and tell me every single detail."
    That made her laugh. "No! I'm not interested, Dawn, seriously."
    "Okay, then I call dibs on him."
    Cara roiled her eyes. "You have a boyfriend and he obviously has a girlfriend."
    "So? We could do a partner swap for a night. Bryan likes that kind of kinky shit and with this guy I just might be willing to try it."
    Cara did not want to know those things about Bryan and Dawn. "Yuck. Too much information, Dawn." And she wasn't even going to think about why the thought of Dawn with Seamus made her want to strangle Dawn with her nipple tassels.
    "You're the prudest stripper I've ever known." Dawn glanced back down the hall. "Shit. Where'd he go? He was there two seconds ago."
    Cara stuck her head out farther. Dawn was right. There was no sign of Seamus or the woman. "That's weird. But I'm glad he's gone."
    Really. She was.
    But when she was sliding her panties on under her robe and felt the sudden desperate sense that Seamus was in danger, she only hesitated for a second. The feeling came hard, a violent splash of red and black emotion, making Cara close her eyes in agony.
    "Damn."
    "What's the matter?" Dawn asked.
    "I have a headache." When the pain subsided, Cara pulled on a pair of jeans and flip-flops without hesitation and headed right for the back alley of the club.
----

Chapter Two

     
    So that hadn't gone according to plan. Seamus patted Kelsey on the back and murmured stupid nothing words to get her to calm down. The dancer, Cara, had bolted after making it quite clear that she wasn't interested in him. His vampire mind-control trick had completely failed.
    He had gotten her to offer up her name, but that was it, and even that had been a struggle. She had resisted. Part of him wanted to follow after her, and try again. The smarter part of him figured if he did, he'd just wind up with a knee in the groin.
    "Alright, let's go home to the casino, Kelsey." He might as well work the rest of the night. Or go to bed early. Alone. No sex for him, no blood unless he wanted a cold plastic bag from his fridge. It was completely depressing.
    "Okay, thanks, Seamus, I'm sorry for being such a pain." Kelsey sniffled and peeled herself off his chest. She wiped under her eyes, dashing away her blood-red tears.
    She was one of the few vampires Seamus had actually seen capable of producing tears, but it suited her. Drama and hysterics were Kelsey's personality.
    "You're not a pain." He nudged her with his arm and gave her a smile. "You're just paranoid. And too skinny. We need to get more blood on your bones."
    She returned a watery smile and followed him out the emergency exit door.