Animal Attraction, Page 2

  Well, hell, he didn’t know what he would do then.

  Just because Nuala had a love for one human didn’t mean she would find it in her tainted Kindred heart to have so much as a liking for Ethan. And he certainly didn’t appreciate the fact she was part of the Lazare family.

  And yet…

  The woman was powerful in a way that disturbed him. He needed to keep his promise was all. But he had to admit Nuala Lazare would be difficult to ignore if he ran into her at The Ark.

  Chapter Two

  The last person on earth Nuala Lazare expected to see enter the lower deck of The Ark was a man tall and broad enough to fill a doorway. With a shock of light brown hair spiked around a determined expression, Detective Ethan Grainger flashed his star for the security guard at the entry, and anger fluttered through her that he wasn’t Shade. The guard let him in without hesitation. Ethan had no invitation as was required of human gamblers, but he’d been exposed to the cloaked level on the hunt for Shade’s killer, so he was known to security just as he knew the secret casino deck existed.

  But what the hell did he want this time?

  One of the wolf shifters in the animal habitat howled as if in complaint.

  She would like to howl, too.

  Howl… cry… scream. She had done all when she’d realized the finality of her loss after Shade had left this earth for good.

  Now she kept exquisite control as expected of her by her family and their employees. She was awaiting the arrival of a whale, a gambler of great import in the city, a lawyer who was also an alderman. With an interest in someday running the city himself from behind the scenes, her father had instructed her to charm the man. That was her job as executive hostess—charming men who held no interest for her, culling the extent of their corruption. She was very good at what she did and while she had never warmed to the job, she’d easily done it to please Pop…

  Before Shade…

  Her time with Shade had been life altering. He’d taught her to love beyond what she had ever expected was possible. He’d shown her there was a different way to live, if only she would choose it.

  Choose him.

  Then, before she’d even had her chance, he’d been ripped from her so cruelly, yet his influence stayed with her even as her memories of their short time together faded. She was doing her job because she knew nothing else. Had no one else. But for how long? She slid a hand down to her stomach, to the reminder of what they’d shared. What they’d made together. Before leaving this earth, Shade had insisted their daughter’s name would be Maeve. Nuala would soon have another job, one that would involve her heart. But she didn’t know how to be a mother, didn’t want to emulate her own progenitor. Beatrix Morel Lazare had favored her brother Nik, of course, but she hadn’t been a loving parent to either of her children.

  “Nuala, good to see you.”

  Starting, she flipped around to meet the caution in familiar light brown eyes. “Ethan.” For a moment, she’d forced him out of mind. Now she tried to read him and was surprised it wasn’t quite as easy as she’d expected, so she had to ask, “What brings you here?”

  “I’m looking for Luc.”

  “He’s rarely here this early. Perhaps you ought to call him and make an appointment away from the casino.” She wanted him to leave, and leave now.

  He appeared to think about it before saying, “No, considering the circumstances, the casino is without a doubt appropriate.”

  Nuala couldn’t help but bristle. “Then perhaps you can wait upstairs until Luc arrives.”

  “Actually, I also need to talk to you.”

  Need? He needed? “We have nothing to discuss.”

  Even as she said it, she thought Shade would disagree…

  Her chest tightened and she could hardly breathe. She stood there stupidly staring at him.

  He asked, “Can we talk someplace quiet for a few minutes?”

  No doubt the raucous music made by the slot machines hurt his human ears. “I’m fine right here.” And he could just go. Unless… “Does this have something to do with Shade’s death?”

  “In a way, yes. He would want me to make sure you’re all right, Nuala. To make sure you and the baby are being well taken care of.”

  Cold anger seeped through her. “The same way you took care of Shade? Letting him be murdered?”

  She didn’t miss the guilt that passed through his features. She read him and caught her breath when it came at her in waves.

  But he said, “If I had understood what Shade had gotten himself into, maybe he would still be here with you.”

  “So, you’re saying he didn’t trust you.”

  “Only that convincing someone else of what he’d learned wouldn’t be easy without proof. How many people in this city even know the Kindred exist?”

  Nuala indicated the gamblers who were well on their way to being corrupted forever. “More every day.”

  “I see.” Ethan looked around at the humans, then back to her. “One of the reasons I want to talk. Someplace quiet?” he said again.

  While her stubborn streak wanted to deny him, Ethan wasn’t going to give up so easily. And now they were drawing attention. One of the waitresses gave Nuala a questioning look as she passed them, and a security guard on his rounds stopped within a yard of them, his gaze glued to Ethan. She didn’t need everyone knowing her business.

  “Fine,” she said. “The bar is practically empty at this time in the morning.”

  “You’re not thinking of having a drink in your condition?”

  “Of course I am.” Nuala choked back a more scathing reply, told the security guard where to find her if her whale appeared, then swept away from the man who seemed too intent for her liking.

  *

  Oh, hell, now what? How was he going to convince Nuala drinking wouldn’t be good for the baby? Maybe Kindred didn’t know that. Maybe it didn’t affect them the way it did humans. He was lost here.

  A mass of nerves, Ethan followed Nuala into the nearby bar. Her every curve was shown off by a dress the same blue-black as her eyes and long, silky hair. Stunning as usual. Truthfully, she didn’t even look pregnant, and that made him wonder if she was still carrying Shade’s child…

  Swallowing hard, he shifted his gaze away from her as she slid into a curved leather booth. A redhead wearing a leopard sarong and a name tag identifying her as Auriol was on them practically before he was seated.

  To Ethan’s relief, Nuala said, “A large orange juice.” Then she lifted her eyebrows at him in question.

  “Coffee.”

  “What kind?” Auriol asked. She gave him a flirty smile. “Cappuccino, latte…”

  “Just coffee. Black. Thanks.”

  So, what was the best way to approach Nuala? If her closed expression was any indication, she wasn’t going to be easily receptive. He should have thought this out ahead of time, but he’d been trying to concentrate on the murder, on having face time with her brother to figure out if the crime was Kindred related, and if so, why. He wasn’t ready for this.

  “I thought you wanted to talk,” she finally snapped. “I don’t have all day.”

  Ethan sighed and dived right in. “All right. Why are you still here?”

  She appeared surprised. “I’m working. Or will be as soon as we’re finished here.”

  “I didn’t mean the work.” One thing at a time. “I understand you’re still living here.” There were lower decks, also cloaked, where the Lazares and other high-ranking Kindred had quarters. “Skye told me she invited you to move in with her.” Skye and Shade Cross had inherited a two-flat in the Lakeview neighborhood from their grandmother and had claimed separate apartments. “Shade’s place is still empty.”

  “I already told her I couldn’t live there without Shade.” Nuala frowned.

  “Skye thought it might give you some comfort to be around his things. You might want keepsakes for your child. You are still pregnant, aren’t you? And she wants to get to know you—” />
  “Whoa! What kind of question is that? You don’t think I want Shade’s child?”

  He could feel her sudden outrage. “Just that you don’t look pregnant.”

  “Don’t believe everything you see.”

  Her image shimmered and her shape changed. Now she definitely looked pregnant. Very pregnant. Too pregnant, considering she’d met Shade a little more than three months ago.

  “Nearly to term,” she said.

  “I can see that. So, whose baby is it?”

  “Shade’s, of course!” she snapped.

  And in the blink of an eye, she regained her slender yet curvy shape.

  Refusing to be affected by her obvious charms, he looked straight into her eyes. “Thirty-five weeks would be nearly to term.”

  “For a human,” she agreed. “Panther gestation is ninety-six days. Give or take a few. I’m nearly thirteen weeks pregnant now.”

  Ethan nearly choked on that. She had what? A week to go? Maybe less? Of course he knew she was a panther shifter, but he hadn’t thought that had anything to do with the pregnancy. “You’re going to give birth to a panther cub?”

  “Did I say that?”

  Maybe not, but she had given him that impression. He’d been thinking things she would hold against him and he quickly regrouped and headed the conversation back where they’d started. “More reason than ever for you to move out of here.”

  “My family’s here.”

  “Your parents and Nik. All 100 percent Kindred. Your child will be half Kindred and half human like Luc, and he doesn’t live here. And neither does Skye.”

  “A human.”

  Skye was more than that, but he wasn’t going to get into something that would make Nuala stay away from her. Nuala concentrated on her bracelet, fingering the different big cat charms. He knew that Shade had given that to her, because they’d been together when Shade bought it on a street nicknamed Koreatown.

  “Skye is going to be your daughter’s aunt.”

  “I have nothing against Skye, but—”

  “She says you’re avoiding her. You’re both grieving. You could be each other’s support system.”

  She quickly blinked away any emotion. “What about you?” she asked. “Do you grieve the man you let die?”

  There it was again. The accusation. Ethan’s gut tightened. She had no idea of the extent of loss he’d suffered. Of the guilt that rode him. “I loved Shade and thought of him like a brother.” His real brother had been murdered almost a decade ago. Losing Shade the same way had torn open wounds that never healed. And instilled fresh doubt in himself. “What do you think?”

  To her credit, Nuala reacted to that. He saw a flicker of something other than anger and resentment in her expression. He felt a tenuous connection. And then her features went neutral.

  Before he could say anything more, the waitress arrived with their drinks and set them down on the table.

  “Thanks, Auriol.”

  Giving him an intense once-over, the waitress said, “If you want anything else… anything at all… you know where to find me.”

  The moment she walked away from the table, Ethan put Nuala on the spot. “Will you at least consider Skye’s offer?”

  “Why should I?”

  “How about because a casino is no place for a child? Once the baby comes, what will you do here? Stay locked up with her in your quarters? The apartment is decent sized, and there’s a backyard. A baby needs sunshine and fresh air.”

  Her blue eyes widened, their intensity capturing his attention.

  “But I won’t be with people I know.”

  He tore his gaze down to her mouth. A mistake. He looked away from her for a moment, long enough to regain his sense of purpose.

  “Then get to know Skye. And considering she and your brother are an item, Luc will be around. He has a human mother, which makes him the most important person after you in your daughter’s life.”

  He could see she was thinking about it when she said, “Her name is Maeve.”

  Her tone had softened, Ethan realized. “You already named her?”

  “She told Shade what her name should be before he left this world.”

  Ethan gaped for a moment. Part of him wanted to ask exactly how that had been possible… but the other part didn’t want to know anything more than he already did. Still, Nuala had already named her daughter, so she must be considering what was best for the child. He just needed to encourage her to be open to options.

  “If you’re not here all the time, you’ll have more choices in how you want to raise Maeve. And she should have choices, but how can she if she only knows one way of life?”

  Nuala didn’t respond. Ethan concentrated on his coffee, while she swirled the orange juice in her glass. He was getting the weirdest feeling, like maybe he should keep his opinions to himself.

  You’re done here. It’s Luc you want to talk to…

  Ethan frowned and downed the last of his coffee. “I’m done here for now. I need to find Luc.”

  “Why? You never said.”

  “A new murder. Possibly Kindred.” He pulled out his cell phone and found the close-up of the victim’s face. “You know this guy?”

  Nuala took a long look and shook her head. “Not a name, but he does look familiar. What do you mean by possibly Kindred? Him?”

  Not wanting to identify the victim until it was official, he said, “More like killed by. Found a hunk of fur next to the body.”

  Nuala swallowed hard and looked away. “I don’t know anything about it. Maybe Luc will have the answers you’re seeking.”

  Leave and find Luc!

  Though he wanted to spend some more time with Nuala, Ethan felt compelled to get to his feet. “I need to leave so I can find Luc.”

  “Good. That’s why you showed up here today, after all.”

  “Right.”

  Ethan gave her a penetrating stare. Why did he feel such a sense of urgency to leave? He was compelled to back off, leaving Nuala with a satisfied expression, making him wonder if she was using some Kindred trick to influence him.

  Unable to fight it, he headed for the exit past the habitat, where shifters worked in their animal forms. Humans lined the expanse, peering into the glass as one of the Kindred opened a small cage filled with rodents that fled the tight space only to face predators that immediately went after them.

  His gut knotted when he heard people laughing and urging the predators on. They didn’t need to lose their souls to be crappy human beings.

  He glanced behind him.

  Nuala appeared to have folded in on herself as if giving into distress. He stopped himself from going back and taking her in his arms and comforting her. But for a moment he couldn’t move. Couldn’t help wanting to comfort her. Despite everything—her being Kindred, her being Shade’s woman, her hating him—he had unresolved and highly inappropriate feelings for her. Now she was upset, probably his fault, and he didn’t think it was over some victim she didn’t know. It had to be about the baby.

  Apparently her daughter being part of two worlds was of some concern to her.

  Which meant he might have a chance to influence her, if not in the direct way he was certain she had just done to him.

  Chapter Three

  Nuala was getting herself together mentally when Nik stormed into the bar.

  “What the hell was Ethan Grainger doing here?”

  Typical of her brother. Never a soft word when shouting would do. And he was standing there, over her, his height and broad stature making him appear threatening. The great oaf. “Good morning to you, too.”

  “We don’t need cops of his ilk hanging around the place.”

  Though she had her own reason to dislike Ethan, he was a good man or Shade never would have trusted him. Which meant she could trust him, too, despite thinking he’d missed something that could have prevented Shade’s murder. The hormones must be stirring her up, because she found herself standing up for a man she shouldn’
t like.

  “Ethan wasn’t hanging. He was looking for Luc.”

  Nik slid into the booth across from her and glowered. “Why?”

  “Another murder. They found the body in the park this morning. Guy’s throat had been ripped out.”

  As always happened when emotions of any sort battered Nik, his deep blue eyes darkened to nearly black, the same shade as his slicked back hair. “A Kindred kill?”

  “Bets are on it.”

  His right hand fisted on the table, making the wolf, snake, and hawk of the gold ring he always wore seem more prominent. “Oh, hell, Pop’s gonna hate this.”

  Nuala wasn’t so sure. Despite his attitude about death, Pop had a laissez-faire attitude when it came to someone who wasn’t family. He’d never even expressed condolences on Shade’s murder. Then again, neither had Nik. “Pop just hates the mess it could bring down on us. What about you, Nik?”

  “What kind of question is that? I’ve never killed anyone other than in self-defense.”

  Perhaps that was true, but was it good enough? Death was forever, a state she’d been taught to abhor from childhood. The Kindred didn’t have to die. Well, not a natural death because of age or illness, though they could be killed. All they had to do to become immortal was give up their souls, which she had done by tradition at puberty, though Pop had soon given her a human’s soul to use so that she could enjoy life.

  Something she’d been thinking about a lot since realizing she was pregnant.

  “I almost forgot,” Nik said, “I have a message for you from Mother. Apparently something came up and your whale is running late. Some crisis in the city.”

  “Oh.” Relief flowed through her, making her realize Ethan Grainger’s appearance had put her more on edge than she wanted to admit. She needed time to recoup. “Good.” Seducing secret fantasies about corruption and power from a stranger was the last thing she wanted to think about at the moment.