Chapter One Hundred Sixy-three By the time they got home, it was early morning. Although her mother had been completely moved in hours before, they stayed late to help celebrate her new place. It was the first time Bernadette had had her own home, and she was excited and nervous about the move. She had asked Bryn if she wanted to spend the night in the guest room, but she declined. She would need to get up when Anton went to work, and she didn't want to wake her mother. Stepping back in their house, she started heading upstairs with Kat. "I'm going to put her down for her nap. She's getting cranky." "Okay, my dear," Anton said. "Max could probably use a nap as well." Carrying his son close, he followed Bryn up the stairs. And as he walked, he wondered when he should start talking to her. He knew she was upset with him. Her body language told him that much. And he thought he had an idea as to what was causing her upset. So they would need to discuss it, and hopefully work through it. She headed for the baby's room, fatigue starting to get the best of her. Her eyelids felt as heavy as Kat's looked. Shifting the baby on to her back, Bryn took her shoes off and quickly checked her diaper. Seeing that she needed a change, she stripping off Kat's pants and got a new diaper for her. Then she settled their daughter in her crib. And Anton was going through the same ritual in Max's bedroom. Once the boy was settled and falling asleep, he leaned down and placed a kiss on his son's forehead. "Wish me luck, Max," he said. And then he headed towards the bedroom quietly, looking for Bryn. Seeing her at Kat's door, he gestured to their bedroom with his head. Scratching her elbow, she headed towards the bedroom and said, "I'm getting tired myself. Might have to take my own nap." Anton nodded. "That does sound like a good idea, Bryn. But first... can we talk?" She shrugged. Sitting down on the bed, she slipped her shoes off. "About what?" "About what we were discussing earlier. About you working." He took a seat on the mattress next to her. "If you want to come back to the warehouse, that would be great, Bryn. I would love to have you come back." He took her hand and squeezed it softly. "I only suggested that you look outside the warehouse because you always seemed happier than when you worked there." She glanced down at his hand, wishing he hadn't brought up the subject. She could already feel herself growing weepy, and she really didn't want to do that in front of him yet again. [When do I ever *not* cry in front of him?] "It's not a big deal, Anton. If you need your space, all you have to do is say so. I might get my feelings hurt for a minute or two, but I'll get over it." "No, Bryn, it is a big deal." His thumb gently stroked the back of her hand. "It's not a matter of me needing space. I want you near me, where I can watch over you. But at the same time, I don't want to overpower you, or force you into a job that you don't want because you feel that you need to please me." "I'm not trying to please you. I'm scared...of going back to work for some stranger that I don't know, and having something horrible happen again. I don't know if I could even handle being alone in a room with some strange guy. I'd always be wondering when he was going to grab me. Or what wrong thing I might say to set him off. I hate being afraid like that." "I know, Bryn." Anton wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close to his side. "And I wasn't even thinking of that when I suggested you look for work elsewhere. I'm sorry, Bryn, for not thinking." She sniffled, releasing a shuddering breath as she leaned in to his embrace. "You didn't do anything wrong. I'm just feeling emotional and didn't understand what you were saying." "And I didn't understand what you were asking for." Anton kissed the top of her head as he squeezed her tight. "I'm sorry, my dear. Come work for me at the warehouse. I know I can find a position for you easily." As he pulled back, his eyes twinkled slightly. "One that doesn't involve you being crammed underneath the desk." She gave him a shaky smile and nodded, before hugging him tightly again. "Thank you, sugar." "You're welcome Bryn." He rubbed her back gently. "That doesn't mean that if you decide you want to strike out on your own, that you have to keep the job at the warehouse. I just want you to feel happy, Bryn. Happy and safe." "I feel the safest when I'm with you." She clutched the back of his shirt in her fists, hanging on tightly. "I love you so much." "I love you too, Bryn," he whispered in her ear. He held her tightly, keeping her tucked close. Hating the slight quiver in her voice, she said, "Will you make love to me? I need you." Anton reached up to gently stroke her cheekbone. "I need you too, my dear." Leaning forward, he kissed her lips lightly, pressing her back to the bed. One hand pinned her shoulder to the mattress before caressing it. Staring up at him with limpid eyes, she let her hands slide around to begin gliding over his chest. The warm column of skin just below his throat seemed superheated, his pulse just detectable under the surface. Curling her fingers around the back of his neck, she pulled him down to her, kissing him softly, her lips barely plucking his. He shifted around so he was laying on top of her. His weight shifted to his elbows, leaving his fingers to gently stroke along her shoulders and her upper chest. Slowly his kisses became deeper, less teasing and more demanding as a leg worked its way between hers. Slipping her fingers under the collar of his t-shirt, she lightly raked her fingernails over his skin. It had been a long time since they'd made love slowly, tenderly, instead of in an almost-race to keep the kids from interrupting them. Now that both babies were likely asleep for an hour or more, she wanted to take her time and worship him properly. His movements were deceptively lazy, as if he had heard her unspoken idea. Slowly his hands stroked down over her chest to cup her breasts. There was a smile on his face as he massaged her chest, thumbs lightly brushing over her nipples. Whimpering softly, she bit her lip and arched in to the sensation. Her eyes were heavy-lidded, sensual, and slowly slid her hand down to the hem of his shirt. Slipping the fabric out of the way, she teasingly skimmed his ticklish belly with her knuckles, drawing circles around his navel. Her fingertips slid under the waistband of jeans over and over again. His stomach flexed from her touches. His fangs were starting to extend as he kissed her, tugging at her lower lip. His hands gathered up her t-shirt and started pulling it up and over her head, wanting to feel flesh against flesh desperately. Lifting up to help him, she began tugging on his shirt as well. With the t-shirts flung to the floor, she slid her hands all over him, unable to get enough of the feel of his skin. The warmth of him made her eyelids flutter shut as he unfastened her bra and pressed his body to hers. "Mmm. I love the way you feel on top of me. You're the only one I ever want holding me down." "I'm going to be the only one holding you down," Anton confirmed. Scooting down a little, he began placing soft kissed on random points on her chest. Or what seemed random until it was clear he was zeroing in on the nipple on her right breast. "No one is ever going to hurt you. Ever again." She lifted up on her elbows, allowing her bra to slide the rest of the way down her arms. Tossing it to the floor as well, she resettled on the bed and let him take care of her. Combing her fingers through his thick hair, she watched him adoringly as her feet traced up and down his calves. Anton let out a soft moan as his tongue replace his thumb on her breast. He nipped at her playfully, teasing and tasting her flesh eagerly. Slowly his hips began to rise and fall, rubbing against her thigh gently. He was home to her. In so many ways, his touch was comfort. It reaffirmed her life, reminded her she was loved, she was wanted, she was sexy. It grounded her and nourished her. It lifted her soul and gave her body ecstasy. It brought out the child in her, the lover, the caretaker, wounded dove, and loving mother. It made her feel dirty and simultaneously as clean as a crisp, white sheet. The mere sweep of his hand could bring her to tears or make her scream. It was a miraculous thing, and she hoped she never took it for granted. "I love you," she said, with the thickness of deep emotion. "I love so very much and always have. Always will." "I love you too, my dear," he whispered between silken kisses. Now he was starting to feel the need, the fire in him catching alight. Desire was always there - what differed was the need to express that desire. And now that need was growing stronger with each passing moment. Fingers tangling in her pants, they moved to the fly and started fumbling them open, grace lost to the need. She watched him, biting her lip, her breath slow and even. She felt completely calm, even as she watched his control start to disintegrate. Sliding her hands over his chest, she gently nudged his nipples, rolling them under her fingers. Despite his urgency, she knew she was completely safe in his arms and that made all the difference. He gave a gasp as he felt her hands stroke over his chest. Now that her pants were down, his breathing grew more and more ragged as he fumbled with his own. Slowly he pulled her her legs up and around his waist before pressing forward with his hips. "Shhh. Slow down," she murmured, her panties still on. Pushing insistently on his shoulder, she rolled him over on to his back, kissing her way down his torso with achingly slow precision. Not even looking, she slowly unfastened his jeans the rest of the way and tugged them off his hips. Backing towards his feet, she pulled his jeans and boxers the rest of the way off. His cock was rigidly erect, and his entire body twitched at the mere stir of her breath. "Easy," she said, quietly, stroking his belly as she gently laved the head of his cock with her tongue. Anton blushed at his overeagerness. "Sorry," he whispered as he combed his fingers through her hair. "I jut want you," he moaned as he felt her lips and tongue soothing his heated flesh. He gently stroked her head, trying to encourage her to move faster and take him in deeper. Turning her head to the side so he could see her face, she said, "You never have to apologize to me for that. Ever." Kneading his thigh, she did as he so eloquently requested without a word. Taking him deep in to her mouth, she pulled hard at him, her speed increasing with every plunge. Anton let out a longer moan as she took such excellent care of him. He continued rocking forward and back, but paused and pushed away from her. "Not that way," he said, breathing heavily. She looked up at him with surprised eyes. "Why?" "Because I want to be deep inside of you, staring into your eyes inches away from mine as you cum." She stared at him with a blank expression, logical thought seeming to drain from her head. Finally, she nodded and crawled up to join him, lying on her back on his side of the bed. She reached for him as he loomed over her, her body lightly trembling in anticipation. He crawled up along her body, dragging his abdomen against her. Anton kissed her neck as he settled against her, just barely scratching her with his fangs. Grabbing her hips, he rolled his, sliding himself inside of her. Catching her breath, she stared deep in to his eyes as she wrapped herself tightly around him. She imagined she could feel each pulsation of blood that passed through his cock, but it was likely her own twitches and quivers she was feeling. Touching the tip of her tongue to one of his fangs, she let the sharp tip cut her just a bit before kissing his mouth. The resulting shudder could be felt from the top of his head to the tips of his toes. Anton began sucking voraciously on her tongue. His hips picked up the rhythm as well, adding a hint of desperation to their movements. Warm and wet, he felt like he was in paradise. Moaning, Bryn clutched his ass tightly. His every move made her twitch with pleasure. He held his pace steady, but instead varied the angle he thrust from. Her nails in his ass made him push a little deeper, linger a little longer. His lips tasted hers, pulling gently. Nipping gently at his lips and tongue, she pulled one of her thighs higher, pressing it nearly to her chest to let him get deeper still. Squeezing him hard with her muscles, she nipped him hard enough to draw blood and start their frenzied kissing all over again. That got Anton's hips moving harder and faster to match the pace of their kisses. He carefully wedged a hand between their bodies to stroke her clit as he felt his balls rising. The sensations he produced were like flashes from a strobe light. Blinding pleasure pulsated through her veins, causing her body to twist and strain, aching for more. Gripping his ass tighter, she slid her fingers in to the cleft of his ass, sweeping sensually over his anus. Gasping as he bucked against her, she convulsed hard, quivering in to deep contractions of her sex. Anton let out a sharp cry as he felt her squeezing him so tightly. He bucked twice more before he came, pushing deep into her. Slowly he sank against her, breathing heavily as he held her close. Panting hard, she welcomed his weight as she sank even deeper in to his pillow. Still clutching the cheek of ass, she pressed her face against his neck and let out a deep sigh. "Mmm." "You can say that again." Anton nuzzled her neck, kissing her jaw. "I'm assuming you enjoyed that as much as I did, my dear?" Smiling she said, "Mm hmm. And after our nap, I'll even let you do it again." They were enjoying their first full evening in the house alone since her mother had moved out. Sitting on the couch with a big bowl of popcorn, Bryn turned down the volume a bit on the comedy show they were watching. "Do you think I should still talk to that other vampire friend of yours about learning to hunt on my own?" "Huh?" Her question came so out of the blue, that it took Anton a few moments to process it. "Oh, you mean Carl?" he asked. "Uh, yeah. It would probably be a good thing to do." He moved the bowl of popcorn off his lap to the coffee table. "What brought that out, my dear?" She shrugged. She didn't really want to tell him that the thought had occurred to the other day when she'd thought he wanted more space. Whether or not he did, it would probably be best if she didn't lean on him entirely for her teaching. She might end up making a habit out of it. "I was just remembering when you mentioned it." Anton arched one eyebrow, knowing that she was holding something back. "Okay, Bryn," he said. "Is there anything you'd like to know about him before we give him a call?" "Yeah. I know next to nothing about him. Except that he writes some awesome books." "Well, there are things that is generally known about him, and might explain why he's such a loner. But I don't want you to judge him on some things until you've actually met and talked to him." Bryn frowned. "You make it sound like he's a criminal or something." "He's not, Bryn. But there's been a lot of rumor about him for the last thirty years, ever since his lover died." Anton took a moment to stretch against her. "You see, he's one of Lilith's Brood." She gave him a sad look of understanding. "Oh. I guess that explains a lot. I'm assuming he's nothing like Richard, or you never would have suggested him." "He's practically the anti-Richard," Anton said with a roll of his eyes. "After losing Christopher, he basically withdrew from vampire society. He's one of the few that hasn't attended the Gathering in recent memory, and Lilith allowed him a long leash. Although I don't doubt she had spies watching him." "What if he doesn't want us bothering him?" "We talk from time to time. He values his privacy, but I'm certain that he can be talked into it." Anton scratched his head. "There's some other things you should know about Chris' death, but I'm not sure if I should let him tell you or not." It was starting to sound like this was going to be a big to-do. "Maybe you should talk to him first and see what he thinks. He may not even want to do this or have anyone else know about him." "Okay." Anton gently stroked her hair. "I'll call him later tonight." He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her temple. "Now are you going to tell me the real reason this came up tonight?" She frowned again. "What do you mean, 'real reason'?" Anton shrugged. "It just feels like this came up suddenly on the heels of our discussion earlier about you going to work elsewhere. Or maybe I'm growing paranoid in my old age." She gave him a slight nod. "Okay. I guess...I just figured it might be best if I wasn't dependent on you so much. I always feel like I expect you to do everything for me. And what if there's a time when you're not around? I'll need to do things for myself. So I should start learning." Anton nodded. "That is a very wise decision, my dear." He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "I want you to be independent, my dear. Hopefully I will always be around, but I do want you to be able to stand on your own two feet." She nodded, and even though it was the perfectly right thing for him to say, she couldn't help feeling the slightest bit disappointed. She didn't know why. Maybe some small part of her had hoped he'd be possessive and demand he do all of the teaching on his own, "So you'll call?" "Yeah, I will shortly. But I want to try to explain something." Anton gently stroked her cheek as he spoke. "I want to teach you. In fact, I probably will still be teaching you some things. But there are things that I won't be as good teaching, because I'm so old. I just simply won't think of them. Or I'm too close to you, and will make things too easy for you or try to do them myself. It's not that I don't want to teach you, but I want you to have the best education possible. "I know." Her eyes were a tiny bit misty as she leaned against his side. "It's just scary for me, to think about doing this stuff without you. But I guess that's why I need to." She let out a shaky breath, tugging his arms more tightly around her. "I know it's silly, but I'm almost afraid that the connection we have when we're hunting...I'm afraid that I'll feel it with someone else. And I know you said he's gay. But it's not his feelings I'm worried about. It's mine." "It's normal to be worried, Bryn," Anton said, holding her close to his side. "But trust me. That connection we have? It's more based on what we feel for each other than what we are doing. I'll admit, you feel a little kinship with the person you're hunting with, but you won't feel anything as deep as our bond." She pressed her face against his shirt. "I guess I'm most worried about disappointing you. Which I know is crazy, because I couldn't. You believe so much in me. And I know that. I know it's habit that makes me feel this way." She looked up at him. "I hate being such a damned people-pleaser." "Well, how about we work on that too." Anton bent low to kiss her lips. "I love you so much, Bryn. And I know you are going to do me proud." She smiled against his lips before kissing him again. "I love you so much, too." Lying against his stomach, she let out a deep sigh as she snuggled against him. "And you're never too old to teach me anything. I think you've proven that hundreds of times." "So this old dog still knows a few tricks?" Anton smiled as he stroked her back. "Mm hmm. And even saves me a bone every so often." Anton let out a soft chuckle. "So should I go ahead and give Carl a call now?" he asked, reaching for the cordless phone sitting on the table by the couch. She sat up a bit. "If you want to. I could go start dinner, if you want some privacy." "Privacy isn't needed. But dinner is sounding good." He kissed her lips again. "I love you, my dear. And I know you're going to do me proud, whether or not I'm teaching you." She smiled at him, leaning over to kiss him softly before standing up. "I'll be in the kitchen." He smiled and watched her move gracefully to the kitchen. Then he picked up the phone and started to dial. Now that he had convinced Bryn to be the student, he hoped to convince Carl to be the teacher. He ended up getting Carl's answering machine when he called. And the younger vampire answered the next evening while he was at the warehouse. So he left work early and drove into San Francisco to meet with the author at a Japanese restaurant for dinner. He walked into the restaurant and told the hostess he was expected. He was lead to a booth in the back where a dark haired man was hunched over a laptop. Every so often he would pause in his furious typing to rub his stubbly chin in thought as bright blue eyes considered the screen. And he stood there for a second before they raised to consider him. "Anton," the man said, a hint of a southern accent in his voice as Carl Dane closed the lid of the laptop and rose to his feet as much as the table would allow. "How are you doing? Please don't tell me that you were standing there too long." Anton shook the offered hand and sat down. "Not too long, Carl. And it's good to see you." "It's good to see you too. Especially after I heard what happened..." Carl trailed off, clearly not certain how to handle the situation. "It's okay, Carl, you can talk about it." Anton picked up the menu and started looking it over. Carl still didn't look completely comfortable, despite Anton's reassurance. "I was surprised to hear that you had lived. That you had beaten Lilith at her own game." "She's not beaten yet, Carl," Anton corrected. "Not until her trial. In fact, I'm surprised Hadrian hasn't contacted you about testifying about your experience." A guarded expression came into Carl's face. "He has," he said curtly. "And if he's asking you to talk to me to force an answer, it's not going to work. I told him I'd give it some thought." "Actually no, Carl. That's not what I want to talk to you about." Anton paused to look in the direction of the approaching waiter. After their orders had been taken, he resumed the earlier thread of their conversation. "This isn't about Lilith. This is about my wife, Sabryn." "Your wife?" Carl took a sip of water and set down his glass. "What about her?" Now was the time to lay his cards on the table. "I need some help. She needs a tutor, someone to teach her how to hunt. I've taught her some of the basics, but I'm afraid that I'm going to want to help her more than let her stand on her own two feet." "Really?" Carl leaned forward over the table. "Why me and not Nathaniel Ad... excuse me, Rudenko?" "I thought a more modern perspective might help. Plus, I thought it was time that she got to know more vampires who weren't on the Council." "Does she know about... what happened to me?" "She knows your brood, and she knows you're not in Lilith's favor. She doesn't know the specifics." "Keep it that way for a while," Carl said. Anton nodded, holding his tongue since the waitress was bringing the food to their table. Once they were alone again, Anton returned to the reason he had sought out the other vampire. "So, will you help train Bryn?" Carl gave him a small smile. "I'll give it some thought." She grabbed a cherry Coke from the vending machine and set her purse in Lindy's office, following her friend to the elevator. It was late in the evening on a Wednesday and Anton was busy on the phone with a client, leaving Lindy to introduce her to the new employees. Stepping in to the elevator, Bryn leaned against the wall as Lindy pushed the first floor button. "Must be a new shipment coming in, huh?" "Yup. Furniture from an estate sale, according to the paperwork." Lindy leaned against the wall. She smiled at Bryn. "I don't know if anyone else has told you this, but welcome back. I'm happy that you'll be working with us here again." Bryn smiled widely at her. "Thank you. And no, no one else has said it. I think it's mostly because no one really knows except family. Oh, and Michelle. But she was on her way out the door." Lifting up her can, she said, "Want a drink?" Lindy shook her head as the bell dinged and the doors opened. "No thanks. You might want to wait to open that until we're back upstairs so you're not worrying about spilling." She gestured towards the dock area. "Shall we go see what they brought us?" Bryn glanced at her soda, thinking that she hadn't been worrying about spilling...until now. "Um...okay." Swallowing down her thirst, she followed Lindy to the loading dock. "I hope I'm not in anyone's way." "You won't be. Besides, you need to be familiar with the whole process." She led Bryn over to a large crate that had just been unloaded from the lift gate truck. "This is supposed to be a rocking chair," she said after checking the paperwork. She then turned to the man prying it open. "Jack, you remember Bryn, Anton's wife. She's going to be joining us here." Jack gave her a wide smile. "It's good to see you again." Bryn returned his smile and gave him a wave. "It's nice to see you again, too, Jack. How is your wife? Gina, right?" Jack nodded. "She's doing fine. Gave birth to a little boy, whose now about a year old. I've got pictures of Mason in my cube if you want to stop by." He then shifted the crowbar one last time and the box lid popped off. "Wow, look at that." "Yeah," Lindy said, reaching in to pull away the packing materials. The rocking chair had a resemblance to a glider style, but did have rockers of a sort resting on top of a curved piece supported by legs. Done in dark maple, it looked more like a throne despite the woven pattern, reminiscent of wicker, but much harder. "They don't make them like that any more," Jack commented. Curious, Bryn stood up on tiptoe and looked inside. "Did they make them like that ever? I've never seen anything like it. And it's in such nice condition." "Yeah," Lindy said, an odd look on her face as she pulled on some white gloves. "Except that the right arm is loose." Carefully she lifted up the arm, revealing that it was only resting on rather than connected to the supporting peg. Jack gave her an odd look. "How did you know that, Lindy? This hasn't been inspected yet, and it wasn't on the sales slip listing the condition." Bryn looked at her, too, wondering if she'd had some sort of premonition. She wasn't going to mention it, though, certain that Jack didn't know Lindy had those. "Might have been tilted," she suggested. "No, it's always been that way. Grandpa always said that he had trouble fitting that arm on, and ended up boring the hole too large." Lindy blinked and turned to Bryn. "Did I just say what I think I said?" Eyebrow arched, Bryn nodded. "Either you just got possessed by a freaky ghost, or..." "No," Lindy said with a bright smile. "I remember it," she said, each word growing more and more excited. "Jack, do we have the provenance for this?" "Yeah, uh, we should. You know how the boss insists on documentation so we're not dealing with black market stuff." "I need to see it, Jack," Lindy said. "I was adopted, and I've had a hard time finding my birth family." Not quite the truth, but not a complete lie. "This might be the first solid lead I've had in a long time." Still watching Lindy curiously, Bryn said, "What's going on, Lindy? How can you be so sure about this?" She glanced at the other boxes. "And what about these? Do you see anything familiar in any of them?" Lindy scanned the boxes, looking at each item. Her lips twisted into a thoughtful frown. "I don't, but I'm not sure," she said. She picked up an old framed pictured of a blond woman who appeared to be in her thirties. "Does this look a little like me?" Bryn tilted her head. "A little, I guess. Except your nose is way bigger." She giggled when her friend swatted her. "Yeah, I guess you look like her. But it's hard to tell. The picture is kind of far away." Lindy looked at the back at the photo again. "Jack, get me a copy of all the paperwork that came with this and have it sent up to my office. And tag the rocking chair as something I'd like to buy." "Maybe you should take the picture out of the frame and see if there's anything on the back?" Bryn suggested. She ran her fingers over the frame, as if she was considering doing just that. "I'm not quite ready to do that, Bryn. It might make this just a little too real." Bryn let out a soft sigh, squeezing Lindy's arm. "Why don't we take it upstairs and just sit down for a while. This has got to be a little overwhelming. You might feel better if you sit down." "Okay," Lindy said, leaning against Bryn. "I'll get the paperwork up to you," Jack called after them as they turned to leave. Lindy walked back towards the elevators. "You know, Bryn, I dreamed about finding something from my family here. I just never thought it would happen." "Well, don't get your hopes up just yet. Just because you recognize a chair, it doesn't mean much. That chair might have been sold before turning up here. Let's just sit down and relax a minute before jumping to conclusions." Lindy pouted, regaining some of her composure. "But it's so much fun to jump to them," she said with a fake tremble of her lower lip. Bryn smiled, squeezing her shoulders. "I know. And it doesn't mean this is automatically bad news...but let's go slow. Do you maybe want to call Nate or your mom? Or maybe you should find out for sure first." Lindy shook her head. "I want to talk to Nate. I don't want to tell Mom just yet. I'm not sure if she's going to freak out if I suddenly find another family." "I don't think she'll freak out, but I understand wanting to wait." As the elevator opened on the second floor, Bryn stepped out. "Do you want me to give you some privacy while you talk to Nate?" "Yeah, please. But not just yet." Lindy grabbed onto Bryn's arm to keep her from wandering too far away. "I feel silly being this excited by a rocking chair. It could look like one I remember, and it's another dead end." "No, I think it is the one you remember. But even so, that doesn't mean it will lead you where you want to go. Maybe, if this doesn't pan out, it might be a good idea to have Mulder try to bring out the memory a bit more." "Maybe." Lindy opened the door to her office. "I'm almost afraid of what I might find. I mean, we know what happened to my mother, but I've always wondered why my father wasn't there. I don't have any memories of him." "Just pray he didn't become president of the United States." "Bryn! You're supposed to be making me feel better!" Lindy sat down in the chair behind her desk. "On that note, I think I'd better call Nate." Grinning, Bryn grabbed the door and began pulling it shut. "I'm gonna go bug Anton. Come find me when you're done." "Will do." Once the door was shut, Lindy looked at the phone for a long moment before picking it up. She took a deep breath as she dialed it, wondering where this new discovery was going to lead her. Anton put the file back in his desk, taking a moment to sit back for a second. He was just once again growing truly comfortable in his office again, and was hoping that Bryn was feeling the same. Running his fingers over the mahogany of his desk, he allowed himself to become lost in thought about the last two e-mails he had received - one from Carl Dane, and one from the werewolf pack. A half smile appeared on his face as he rocked in the chair slightly. The next few nights would prove very interesting. Opening the door, Bryn walked in and closed them in privacy. "Lindy's busy, so she dumped me off on you." She grinned. "You know, I had a dream last night that I found out not only did vampirism not make me sterile, but I was pregnant with a litter." Anton let out a loud laugh. "You've spent too much time with the pack," he said with a grin. He gestured for her to come around the desk and sit on his lap. "Speaking of which, I heard from them. If you still want to, they're willing to help you practice hunting." "Really?" She sat down on his thigh, partially facing him. "I didn't really think Jess was going to say yes. When we talked about it, I got the impression she wasn't exactly thrilled with me looking at the guys, let alone hunting them." "Yeah. I get the feeling that she still wasn't thrilled either, but she's willing to help." He reached up and stroked her hair. "I also heard from Carl Dane. He's willing to talk with you whenever you're ready." "How did he sound when you talked to him? I mean, is he looking forward to this at all, or is it just a sense of duty?" "He sounded like he was looking forward to it," Anton said after a moment's thought. "It also sounded like he was looking forward to the company. Of course, this is all assuming that you want to do it." She nodded. "At least once, to know if it would be something I'd like or not." She shrugged. "It makes me nervous. Both ideas. I want him to like me...so it's not a total waste of his time. And I also don't want to disappoint Jess." "I don't think you'll disappoint Jess," he said. Anton leaned forward to press his lips to her forehead in a chaste kiss. "The only way I think you could would be if you seduced both Alex and Walter. And as for Carl, I'm sure he'll like you. In fact, if you tell him how much you like his books, you'll have him eating out of your hands in no time." She gave him a small smile, and then a pout. "What if I do seduce both Walter and Alex. I can't help how devastatingly sexy I am." Anton ran his tongue over this teeth behind his lips. "Well, after we go to their funeral, because you know that Jess will kill them, we'll have to leave the country again..." "Because you're already dead," he said with a playful twinkle in his eye. She rolled her eyes. "So nice to know you're so concerned for my welfare. Meanwhile, Jess might have other concerns, too. I think Lindy might have found her family." Anton's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "She did? How? I thought she had reached a dead end." "She found something in the shipment downstairs. An old rocking chair. I don't know if there's any way to tell if it's really from her relatives, but it's a start. She's calling Nate right now." "Wow. We had joked about the fact that someday we might run across something I had owned at one point or another, but never thought that something from her family would show up." Arm around her waist, he pulled her tighter against his chest. "How is she taking it?" "She's shaken up, naturally. She wants to know if it's true, but she's terrified of the letdown that would happen if it isn't. And she's worried about what Jess's reaction will be, too." "Yeah, I hadn't thought of how she'd react." Anton rested his cheek against her head. "You do know that if she didn't trust you, she would be saying no to the practice hunt." She nodded, leaning against him and relaxing. "Yeah. How about you? Do you trust me?" "Of course I do, my dear." His hand gently stroked her side. "I wouldn't have gone with this idea of a practice hunt if I didn't." She leaned her head back, looking at the ceiling. "I'm just worried, you know. What if it is a turn-on? Are you going to be freaked out by that?" "I'm going to try not to be, my dear. Because I know that is a possibility." His hand continued to stroke her in what he hoped was a comforting motion. "As long as it's me you come home to so you can do something about that turn-on, I'll be fine." She turned her head and looked at him, smiling. "I love you, you know. It will always be you I come home to." Anton smiled tenderly at her. "I know, my dear. And I will always come home to you." He kissed her forehead again. "Any thoughts about Lindy's next move? I assume she's going to look at the shipment information and see if she can get a confirmed provenance of the... what did she find anyway?" She shrugged again. "Actually, I hadn't been thinking about Lindy at all. I was thinking about you. But if you'd rather talk about her, I guess we can." "You caught me, my dear. I hadn't realized I was doing the avoidance thing." Anton continued to hold her close. "What were you thinking about me?" She gave him a look of disbelief, amazed that he couldn't read her body language. Despite the door being unlocked, and being fully aware that Lindy would come looking for her soon, she turned in his lap and straddled his legs. Then she held his jaw as she leaned forward and kissed his ripe lips. He was caught off guard by her passionate kiss. But Anton made no attempt to push her away or make her stop. Instead his arms went tighter around her, pulling her more firmly onto his lap. There was a fleeting worry about someone filing a sexual harassment suit, but the thought flew out of his mind at the feel of her breasts pressed against his chest. Moaning softly, she rocked her pelvis against his crotch as her hands kneaded his shoulders. Sucking at his tongue, she leaned even further in to him and prayed Lindy stayed on the phone with Nate for a long time. Coherent thought was quickly becoming something Anton wasn't capable of. His hands began massaging her hips as his kisses became more and more demanding. One hand let go of her to flatten against the small of her back, pushing her forward harder and keeping her close every time she rocked against him. Sliding her hands down his arms, she squeezed her hands over his, encouraging him to grip her even tighter. "I want you," she whispered against his mouth. He kissed Bryn as his hand slipped up to tease the catch of her bra through her shirt. "Want to take me on my desk for a change?" She shook her head, backing away from his touch. With a devilish look in her eyes, she slid off his lap and leaned over to whisper, "No. I want you to think about this all night. To remember every little detail. And when you get home, I want you to do something about it." That said, she headed for the door, grinning at him over her shoulder. Anton's eyes narrowed with an evil gleam in it. "Be careful what you wish for, my dear," he said with a smirking grin. "You better hope that your mother is willing to watch the kids today." She smirked at him, opening the door. "I better hope you can restrain yourself that long and I don't get attacked in the supply closet. Have a nice evening, sugar." "See you at home, my dear." Anton forced himself to stay behind his desk. Mostly because he knew that Bryn wanted him to get up and follow her. But he also would embarrass himself if he met anyone other than Bryn out there. Still grinning to herself as she shut the door, Bryn headed towards the office lounge for a snack. She was now, unfortunately, horny as hell...but she wasn't going to do anything about it with the possibility of Lindy interrupting them at any time. Forcing herself to sit down on the couch, she bit her lip and tried not to imagine going back in there to ravish him. Anton tried focus on his paperwork, reviewing next quarter's projections. Last year's tax returns. Anything to get his mind off of the throbbing of his groin. But none of it was working, not when he knew she was probably waiting out of his office, ready to tease him about his lack of control, and to a further frenzy. He looked at the door, debating which was more important - his ego or his libido. Still a bit twitchy, Bryn dug in her jeans pocket for a dollar and headed for the vending machine. The machine refused to take the wrinkled bill, spitting it back in her hand. Irritated, she tried to smooth out the money and try again. All the while, her mind was on the man back in that last office. Giving up or in, he wasn't certain which, Anton stood up and stepped out of his office. Maybe a soda would settle him. So he went to the lounge area only to spot Bryn there. And he could no longer resist. Swiftly and silently he walked up behind her, arms going out to keep her pinned against the soda machine. "Need some help with that, my dear?" His voice sent a spiral of shivers up her spine. Gasping softly, she couldn't help leaning back against his hard body. "How exactly are you planning on helping me?" "Well there is a dollar in my wallet in my back pocket. Practically pristine. I could get it out," Anton mused. He was trying to ignore how his abdomen nestled so nicely into the small of her back. "Or you could," he added. Biting her lip, she pressed harder against him before turning to face him. Staring up in to his dark gaze, she licked her lips. "I could do that." Her hands settled on his waist, her thumbs sweeping over his belly, before moving around to squeeze his ass through his slacks. "Yes you can," Anton purred. He leaned heavily against her, pinning her firmly against the soda machine. "So are you?" She stared at him somewhat stupidly, losing her train of thought as his body heat penetrated her clothing. "Am I what?" He bent low to whisper in her ear. "Are you going to grab my wallet, or are you just going to grab my ass?" Licking her lips again, she gave his ass one more squeeze before tugging his wallet out of his pocket. Without looking, she opened the folded leather and pulled out a dollar. He efficiently kept his money in numerical order, so all of the ones were in the front. Still staring in to his gaze, she pushed his wallet back in his pocket and then lifted up on her toes to kiss his mouth. "Thank you, sugar." "You're welcome, my dear." Anton dipped his head to kiss her mouth again as his body pressed harder against hers. Taking the bill from her hand, he fed it into the machine and pressed the drink selector, all the time kissing her. Whimpering softly, she let her hands slide around until she was gripping his shoulders from behind. Her breasts were smashed by his chest, her nipples tightening almost painfully. Lightly squirming, she made herself as tall as she could, eager for more of his perfect mouth. As the vending machine released one of its cargo, she jumped slightly, feeling it shudder against her back. Anton kissed her deeper and harder, feeling her stretch against him. Reaching down, he ran a hand along her thigh to the knee and then lifted it to wrap around his waist. His hand then started to work back up towards her ass when he heard a quiet ahem behind him. He turned his head to see Lindy standing there, eyebrow arched and head slightly cocked. Flushed and breathing hard, Bryn glanced at Lindy before quickly looking away and lowering her feet to the floor. She cleared her throat as she reached for the can of soda that had dropped and then moved to stand between Lindy and Anton...hiding the fact that his slacks were quite tented. Not that Lindy probably hadn't already noticed. "Um...d-did you look at that picture yet?" "Not yet," Lindy said. "Anton, I want to take a few days off so I can look into this." "Go ahead and take all the time you want, Lindy," Anton said. "And good luck." "Yes, good luck," Bryn said, hastily. "We'll make sure all of the other stuff in the shipment is kept together, in case you might want to look at something else." Lindy nodded. "Thanks. I'm going to be in my office for a while." She turned and started walking down the hall, but turned to look back at them. "And you might want to take that behind closed doors," Still blushing, Bryn nodded. As soon as Lindy was out of sight, she met Anton's gaze. She couldn't quite tell from his expression if he wanted to follow that advice or not. "Maybe...I should go back downstairs." "Maybe you should," Anton said. But before she could leave, Anton grabbed her hand and started tugging her back to his office. "But I don't want you to. " She couldn't help grinning as she hurried to match his pace. "Your office has a camera. So does the break room, for that matter." He had forgotten that, and didn't particularly feel like giving the security guards a free show. Anton let out a frustrated growl. "Call it an early night and head home then?" She gave him a smirk. "I only just got here." She tried to think for a minute. The elevator was probably rigged, to keep out unwanted visitors. Lindy's office and most of the areas downstairs would be taped as well. But maybe... "What about the bathroom? Is there a camera in there?" "No," Anton said. There was something dirty about taking her in the bathroom, along with the spice of possibly getting caught. "You want to do it in the men's room or the ladies?" She thought about it for a moment. The men's room had a certain taboo to it, but the women's had a good chance to being cleaner. Then again, she thought the janitor probably did a good enough job, and it wasn't like they were going to catch anything. She could always wash her hands afterwards. "The men's room." "As you wish, my dear." Anton tugged her towards the men's room, stopping in front of the door. He pushed the door open and peeked inside. Seeing it was empty, he pulled her inside and pushed her up against the sink. Without saying anything, he began kissing her hard and deeply again. Moaning, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and picked up right where she left off--sucking at his tongue like there was no tomorrow. There was a slight medicinal smell to the air, as if the room had recently been scrubbed with an antiseptic. Trying to concentrate more on his scent, his arousal, she quickly found herself squirming again. "Want you, sugar." He didn't respond with words but with actions. Anton's fingers fumbled at the buttons holding her blouse closed, He lifted her up to rest her on the edge of the sink as he pulled her blouse apart, letting his fingers run over the lace of her bra. Her rapid breathing pushed her breasts tighter against his palms, but she couldn't help arching her back to help things along. She wrapped her legs around him, tugging him closer still. Quickly working on his shirt as well, she had him unbuttoned and was smooching his bare skin along the way. He was now working on getting the bra out of the way. He could just see pink nipple playing peek-a-boo through her lace, and it made him throb harder. HIs hands went to the catch of her bra and unhooked it, but he didn't drop to his knees to take her in his mouth. Instead he remained standing so she could work on unbuttoning his pants. "Mmm. I have a feeling we're going to be in this bathroom a whole lot. We may just want to clean up the apartment upstairs instead, now that Vandala is in Australia." "Yeah, although we might have to ask Alex to sweep it a few times. Knowing her, she's planted webcams." He looked down at his pants which were firmly in place, and then up at her with a cocked eyebrow. "You going to do anything about this?" She smirked at him. Reaching forward, she grabbed him by his waist band and tugged him even closer. Unbuttoning and unzipping his pants, she nipped at his chin with the barest hint of fang. "Impatient, sugar?" "You could say that," Anton purred, stretching against her as she nipped at him. HIs fingers went to the fly of her slacks, teasing her through the fabric before unzipping them. "Just as impatient as you," he whispered and then leaned forward to kiss her mouth. Whimpering softly, she pressed herself more firmly against his hand. "Damn right. Hurry up." Using him for balance, she lifted up a bit so he could pull her pants down. "I'll have to wear skirts from now on." "And I may have to discover some previously unknown Scottish ancestry." He looked up at her as soon as he was done peeling her pants and underwear off. "So it doesn't seem so odd when I suddenly start wearing kilts," he added as he lifted her legs. She giggled, even as her head banged against the mirror. "Ow." Still laughing, she reached up to rub her head and pulled herself closer to him. "Why don't we both just start wearing robes to work. Or is untying a sash too much work for you?" "You don't want me to waste energy doing that when I could be doing this." Adjusting her one last time, he pushed inside of her. His hips started to pump up and down at a moderate pace, trying to tease them both. Gasping, she leaned back against the mirror once more and closed her eyes. She would have let him continue all night. "Mmm, definitely don't want to waste time doing anything else. So good." He didn't respond with words, but leaned a little closer to her. His hips continued pistoning in and out of her at a steady pace. Smiling at her with a slight mischievous glint in his eyes, he bent down to take her nipple between his lips. "Mmm." Pushing her fingers in to his hair, she used her grip to hold him in place, her toes curling. She couldn't help glancing at the door, praying no one walked in to see the boss fucking her on the sink. The very notion sent a strong shiver up her spine. Unable to get much leverage in her position, she tucked him tight against her with her legs and dug her fingers in to his ass. Anton let out a soft hiss as Bryn's nails scratched him. He began thrusting harder and faster, adding a little twisting motion as well. He sucked harder on her nipple, fingers strumming over the one that his lips weren't wrapped around. Moaning louder, she squeezed him tightly inside her and shifted her hips against him as much as she could. Frustrated that he had all of the control, she finally said, "Lift me up. I wanna ride you." He was about to tell her no, that he was having too much fun teasing her. But the look of desire in her eyes sent his flaming. Spreading his legs wider, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her towards his torso. He staggered a little as his center of weight shifted. "Like this, Bryn?" Her gaze narrowed a bit. "Why do you always stumble when you do that? I'm not fat, damn it." "It's not fat at all my dear," Anton said. "Remind me to give you a physics lesson later. After I'm done doing this." It was an awkward position, but he thrust upwards. She wrinkled her nose at him, but her body's reaction wasn't to stop and debate the matter. Grabbing his shoulders, she used the leverage to pull herself up and down on his cock. "And I'm not stupid. I know what physics is...and I'm still not that heavy." His lower lip was caught between his fangs. "Do you really want to debate this now?" he asked asked as a shudder went through him. His hands were on her waist, helping pump her up and down his length. Quivering, she gave him a dry stare and didn't say anything further. Pressing her mouth against his hard, she kissed him deeply, her own fangs coming in to play as she squeezed him mercilessly inside her. Anton let out a low moan at the feel of her lips and fangs. His hips still pumped into her, as he kissed her back. And his moans grew louder as their fangs scratched and clashed. She released a loud moan of her own, the sound echoing in the tiled room. Stopping her continuous movement, she ground herself down on his cock, swiveling her hips, and shuddering at the intense sensations. "More! Touch me." Trusting her to hold onto him, Anton freed one hand to cup a breast. He rolled the nipple between his fingers, teasing her as he nipped at her tongue. His hips pushed harder upwards, rubbing his pubic hair against her clit. Gasping, she nipped harder at him in return, her fangs barely slicing his tongue...but a tiny droplet was enough to send her in to a lustful frenzy. Attacking his mouth, she clenched down hard on his cock, muffling her squeal against his tongue as she came. Anton swallowed a sharp yell feeling her clench around him. He pulled her tighter against him, breathing heavily, fingers digging into her ass as he kissed her deeply. Suddenly moving her hips hard and fast, she struggled to make him cum just as hard as she had. She didn't want him to muffle his yell. She wanted everyone to hear him in ecstasy. He felt her squeeze him tightly, and he couldn't hold back any longer. As he felt himself let go, Anton threw his head back and let out a sharp yell that echoed off the tile of the bathroom. Grinning widely, she continued to ride him throughout, moving slower as his orgasm subsided. She squeezed him tightly with both arms and legs, pressing her mouth to his even as he struggled to catch his breath. "Mmm. That was nice, sugar. So very nice." "Very, very nice," Anton breathed as he tightened his arms around her. He lightly pressed his lips to hers. "We might have to do this more often," he said with a playful gleam in his eye. She giggled, smooching him again. "Well, then, you definitely need to get that upstairs apartment cleaned up. Because there's no way this bathroom is going to remain a good choice. In fact, we should hurry up and get dressed. Someone had to have heard that yell of yours." Anton blinked and slowly lowered her to the floor. "Then let's get dressed before they come searching for us, my dear. Hopefully they won't call security thinking that you're beating me up." She gave him a little smirk as she tugged her underwear up her legs. "You wish. I know you love it when I beat you." "Damn right I do," Anton said as he pulled up his pants. "Maybe you can do that tonight when we get home?" he asked with a playful and hopeful twinkle in his eye. She smiled. "Only if you're a very naughty boy." His grin grew wider. "Are you trying to encourage me to be bad?" "Well, it seems a little pointless and not to mention cruel for me to be spanking a good boy." Pulling her slacks up, she fastened them as she stepped closer to him. "I have to set some kind of example for our kids, you know." "Of course, my dear." He pulled his shirt back on. "Not to mention our employees. So I guess we should get back to work." She let out a soft whimper, leaning in to him and wrapping her arms tightly around his back. "I don't wanna. You've spoiled me. Now I feel all lazy and satisfied." "I don't wanna either, my dear. But I've got quarterly review to finish, not to mention this year's tax returns to look over..." Anton paused for a moment. "Oh, to hell with it. It'll keep for another night. Let's go home." She grinned, then bit her lip. "All of the other employees are going to think you're giving me preferential treatment. But...I guess if you can't do that with your own wife, I sure as hell wouldn't allow you to do it for someone else. Then I really would have to beat your ass." "And yet, by saying things like that, you are encouraging me to be bad." Now that they were dressed, Anton slipped an arm around her waist. "Come on, my dear. Let's get our things and go home." End Chapter One Hundred Sixy-three <- Previous Chapter | Home | Next Chapter ->