He stopped the car next to a dilapidated steel building. Patched areas of corrugated steel and rust overwhelmed the original building. Mel flew from the back of the car as soon as the door was open. She didn’t hesitate and ran inside. The smell of Nando was fresh, and unlike his scent that lingered around Dan-Dan, he smelled almost normal.
Nose to floor, she cast about to find where Nando had walked. The scent was strong and led to a set of metal stairs. Mel flew up the stairs and into a small, dark room. In a blink her vision adjusted to the lack of light.
In a flash and rush a figure, who seconds before was lying on the ratty couch, was hissing in the corner.
Nando.
She barked, letting Cyan know she had found him.
Melinda hesitated. She wanted to run to him and cover him in kisses and her body. His reaction confused her. He still crouched, exposing his fangs, his nails elongated into claws similar to the claws Cyan had painted a bright red on the tips of her fingers. He wasn’t her Nando. This vampire creature smelled wrong, sick. He was too thin. His shirt hung in shreds over a frame that did not belong to her lover. If he shifted just so, she would be able to count his ribs. His abdomen sucked up into his chest cavity. His hair hung lank and greasy. But it was him. And she loved him.
Her paws danced in place as she bowed and wagged at him.
“Fernando!” Cyan’s voice was sharp, commanding.
Her hand was back in the scruff at Mel’s neck. “Wait, he’s not fully awake.” Cyan’s voice was low.
“Eh, dude. Shit, he’s all vamped out. I’m waiting out there.” Dan-Dan’s presence behind her and Cyan did not stay long.
“Fernando, ven a ti mismo!”
Mel wanted to move forward, but Cyan held her back.
Nando lowered his defensive hands, though the claws stayed out. He blinked hard and his face twisted as he tried to focus on them. His fangs retreated, and he closed his mouth. He stayed pressed into the corner behind the couch.
“Tu sabes quién soy. Despierto.”
Nando continued to blink as if he wasn’t seeing fully.
“Sangre.” His voice was rougher than normal, but it was music to Mel’s ears.
“When was the last time he fed?” Cyan called over her shoulder.
“Before we left the house. But he was in bad shape. You know he actually attacked me,” Dan-Dan said from beyond the room’s door.
Mel sneezed. She didn’t like the smell of the room: old pot, cigarettes, and Nando not smelling quite right.
“Does your father keep a supply, or does he just have pets?”
“Not sure. The old guy doesn’t drink from the pets, so there might be a supply.”
“What? Your father doesn’t keep pets? Explain.”
“No, Dad totally uses the pets. That’s who Fernando fed off of before we left. But I don’t think it was enough. He was in bad shape.”
“Dios mio, Dan-Dan, focus. Is there blood back at the house you can bring for my brother or not?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know.”
Mel’s attention was all on Nando as the two daywalkers discussed blood. She sneezed when Fernando moved forward ever so slightly. He froze. She scared him. She shouldn’t have gotten excited.
“Nando.” Cyan’s tone admonished the man.
“Sangre.”
“I’m working on it. Melinda, if the boy and I go for blood, you will keep him safe.”
Of course she would keep him safe. But right now, was she safe from him?
“Melinda? Mi Corazon? La loba es Melinda?”
“Si, ella Melinda.”
Nando chuckled. “Ella no es pequeña. Feroz, grande, maravillosa.” He sighed and looked at Mel as if he admired her wolf but did not truly comprehend who she was.
Cyan said more to her brother in rapid-fire Spanish. Melinda couldn’t catch the words; her comprehension of the language already strained.
“Fernando won’t harm you. He will probably fall back asleep soon. I need to find him blood. I don’t think Dan-Dan has completely been honest with me about the conditions they were keeping my brother in.”
Cyan left Mel alone facing off with Nando, who still crouched in the corner, cowering from her. It didn’t matter how long Cyan was gone for. It would be infinitely long since Mel could not run to and throw her arms around her lover. She lay down and rested her head on her front paws.
Nando crawled a bit toward her.
She let her tail wag but managed to hold still. Maybe all he wanted was to climb back onto the couch and go back to sleep. She wouldn’t blame him if that’s all he did. She longed for more. She longed for recognition of her heart, that she belonged to him even if he had never witnessed her wolf before. They had a connection when she was in human form. She wanted Nando to recognize that for her in this form.
“Mi loba es pequeña. No eres pequeña. Tu eres una loba grande.” He continued to crawl toward her.
She sneezed, wanting him to know she wasn’t a threat.
Nando made it about five feet before he stopped crawling. He curled in on himself and huddled against the couch. At this rate he would never crawl over to her. Mel inched forward. Nando flinched. They approached each other this way for what felt like hours. One would inch closer, then they would both stop and wait and look at each other.
Nando would mutter in Spanish. Mel would yawn or sneeze. She didn’t want to shift. She didn’t know how he would react. She feared that if he saw a human and didn’t recognize her, he might try to feed from her, and that would be disastrous. She wasn’t willing to risk it. But she was willing to risk inching closer to him.
Finally they were less than a few feet apart. Nando stared into her eyes. He had to recognize her. He had seen her wolf eyes before. Please Nando, recognize me. She pushed her will toward him. See me for who I am. I love you.
Nando sighed and relaxed. “Melinda? Pequeña loba, is that you?”
She lunged forward and head butted him, knocking him onto his back.
Nando laughed as his arms wrapped around her neck. She rubbed her face against him. Yes, her Nando had recognized her.
By the time Cyan and Dan-Dan returned with supplies, Nando had fallen asleep with his arms wrapped around Mel.
This was so good!! Love this series and I’m looking forward to the next one. I love reading a story that you feel a part of, I really wanted to hug Nando on multiple occasions!!! Great storyline with all the ups and downs, and a few moments I wasn’t expecting. Highly recommend Lulu’s books. ~an Amazon reader
What do you do when your imaginary friends start pestering you with images of sexy male strippers and hot were-shifters? You write stories about them. Well, that's what I did! Oh, and then I combine them and toss them in a kilt for good measure!
Hi, my name is Lulu and I write sexy hot contemporary and paranormal romance. Welcome to my website.
Making the Para "Normal" and the Supernatural Extraordinary.