Predatory (Immortal Guardians #3.5)(52)

They all thought about her questions in silence for a few minutes. None of them offered answers.

Zareb finally stood. He set the cat gently on the floor before facing his guests. “I have one thing to add. I was in the minds of the humans down in the basement before Ethan short-circuited their brains. One of them was thinking about someone called the Collector. I got the impression that this Collector was the boss, and that he wasn’t Garrity.” He motioned for the three vampires on the couch to follow him. “I’ll show you your rooms.”

She thought about mentioning that no one had introduced her to the other two vampires, but she was too tired to care. “Where will Ethan and I sleep?” Cassie didn’t want to think about the nightmares waiting for her tonight, but she couldn’t stay awake much longer.

Zareb paused. “I only have one guestroom left. It’s the one Ethan used when I first turned him. You can share it with him.” His smile said he knew his choice would upset her, but he didn’t give a damn.

Cassie narrowed her eyes and pressed her lips together to keep from shouting at Zareb. He’d enjoy it too much. Instead she turned to Ethan. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”

Zareb didn’t even turn. He threw back over his shoulder, “Can’t. It’s a sofa bed and I’m sleeping on it. I wouldn’t usually give up my own bed to guests, but I want to be the one closest to the door if trouble comes calling. My three friends here are still a little loopy and Ethan’s Second One would overreact. You? You’re only a human. Sorry.”

He wasn’t sorry. She watched the cat leap onto the couch. It lay down and watched her from half-closed eyes. Cassie recognized the self-satisfied feline smirk it wore. The damn cat would get to sleep on the couch while she’d be sleeping . . . She glanced at the floor. Maybe with a few blankets and a comfy pillow it wouldn’t be—

“No.” Ethan emerged from the shadows, his hoodie and glasses still in place. “We can share my bed. It’s not far from dawn, so you don’t have to worry about me staying awake looking for my chance to pounce on you.” He strode past her, headed for the hallway.

And because she was so exhausted that her brain felt scrambled, she followed him.

He opened the door at the end of the hallway and stepped aside for her to enter. She had a vague impression of a large space, a massive four-poster bed, and furniture scattered around the room that looked as though it belonged in some ancient castle. No windows.

“This was originally Zareb’s room. He wanted to re-create the special feel of that last great castle he conquered.” Ethan laughed softly. “The one with the throne and the willing widow. My maker can be a nostalgic bastard.”

Cassie stared at him stupidly. “Huh?”

“But then Zareb decided he had to move into the modern era. His present room is metal and glass along with a big-screen TV that takes up a whole wall.”

She didn’t give a damn about Zareb. “Shower.”

Cassie didn’t really need a shower. Her last adventure at Eternal Rest had been a bloodless one. Ethan’s kills were terrifyingly tidy and her knife had produced no splatter. She could skip the shower. But even though there was no physical evidence of death, she still needed to wash the feel of it from her body. Yes, it was all in her mind, but right now her mind was running the show.

While she stood in the middle of his room and tried to keep her eyes open, he disappeared, only to appear a few seconds later with a nightgown and robe. Where had he . . . ? Then she remembered. The hall closet with all the extra clothes. When she turned to go back out the door to reach the hall bathroom, he stopped her.

“The room has its own bathroom.” He pointed to a door in the far wall.

A few minutes later, Cassie stepped into Zareb’s glorious shower. It could hold a small army. She made the spray hot enough to peel the skin from her body and then scrubbed and scrubbed. When she finished, she turned off the water and sank onto the stone ledge for a short rest. Yes, she was putting off the moment when she’d have to go back into the bedroom and face Ethan. She closed her eyes. It would only be for . . .

When she opened her eyes again, she was lying in bed staring at the clock on the nightstand next to her. Almost noon. She turned her head. Their bed.

Ethan lay on his back next to her. Asleep.

How . . . ? The last thing she remembered was sitting on the ledge in the shower. Ohmigod, she’d conked out. He must have gotten her out of the shower, dried her, and pulled on her nightgown. Then he would have had to carry her to the bed. How had she slept through all of that? The wet and naked part made her feel a little warm. Memories of the The Kiss tugged at her.

He wore a sleep mask, but no hoodie. She dared to look. After all, if he slept, then the Second One probably did too.

Ethan’s face left her breathless. Even without being able to see his eyes, she felt the inexorable pull that the Second One’s victims must feel. But at least she was able—with superhuman strength—to drag her gaze from that full lower lip, the lines and planes of a face that would bring humans to their knees in the streets if he chose to mingle.

She shifted her gaze lower. He’d pushed the covers down to his waist, exposing sculpted arms and a muscular torso that made her swallow hard. Sure, she’d seen it all before in Garrity’s basement, but this was the first time she’d had time to appreciate it. Cassie bit her lip, focusing on the pain to stop herself from reaching out to touch, to smooth, to rip the damn covers off to see if he slept naked.