and the jangling music of wind chimes grew louder as she neared. A man was inside, sweeping the rugs covering the tiled floor. He looked up as she passed through the door.
“Are you closing up?” she asked, stopping inside the threshold.
“Not just yet,” he said, setting his broom aside. “What can I do for you?”
Jessica held up her necklace, looking around and feeling like she’d been duped. The shop didn’t look like a jewelry repair place. “Someone mentioned I could get this fixed here,” she said with a doubtful tone to her voice.
He took it from her and gave her a startled look, quickly shuttered. “Yep. I’ll get this fixed for you in a jiffy. Have a look around. I’ll be right back.”
Jessica nodded and watched him go through a door into the back, then wandered around the cluttered shop. There were racks of charms and potions on one side, including a row dedicated to nothing but essence of garlic of varying sizes and potencies. Weapons lined the walls out of reach near the ceiling: crossbows, long bows, swords, and arrows with silver and wooden heads. There were others she couldn’t identify, but that looked almost like maces.
Jessica continued looking and found an umbrella holder filled with short wooden stakes and another with mallets. It looked for all the world like some bizarre, witch hunting shop ... or rather, one dedicated to vampire hunting. The movie Blade popped in her head. Really, being Louisiana, she would’ve thought they’d have more voodoo paraphernalia.
The man came out again, moving behind the front counter. He laid her necklace on the clean surface. “That’s a fine warding medallion you have. Been a while since I’ve seen one so old.”
“Warding medallion?” she asked, walking up to the counter to check the work. She couldn’t even tell it had ever been broken.
“Yes. Well, it’s an old, cryptic language. Most people wouldn’t recognize it. See these markings here?” He flipped it over and showed her a scrawling script. She’d always thought it was some kind of ornate design--not words. “It’s protection against the wolf.”
Jessica was intrigued. She leaned on the counter, looking between him and her medallion. “What kind of protection?”
“It depends on the wearer really. Now, if you were a vampire, it would ward werewolves away ... supposedly.”
Jessica laughed. He wasn’t serious. “Okay, you got me. There’s no such thing as vampires and werewolves.”
He chuckled, watching as she put the necklace on. “I’m not joking around. I would’
ve thought you’d heard of the war by now.”
“What war? Does it have something to do with all this stuff in here?” she asked, waving an expansive arm, playing along.
He propped an elbow on the register. “Of course. I’m just a supplier, mind you. I don’t take part, but I’m partial to the Lycan side of things.”
“Why’s that? I mean, I don’t see why vampires and Lycans would fight.”
He rubbed his jaw, considering it. “It must’ve been in the early part of this past century. The Lycans rebelled against the vamps using them as food and slaves ... but they mostly objected to being eaten, and still do. Must’ve been a sight to see them tearing into the vamps--if you were on the inside, that is. I’ve always been partial to the underdog, so I supply them when they come in.”
Jessica was completely unnerved and fascinated by his story. She didn’t doubt but what there were plenty of nuts running around claiming to be a werewolf or a vampire. She guessed anyone had a right to make a living selling to them. “So is this war still going on?” she asked, amused.
“It flares up every now and again, but they usually stick to their territory. Just stay clear of anything Southwest of the Ponchartrain Expressway. Especially the warehouse and Garden district.”
Jessica nodded, humoring him. She was going there to check out the cemetery where her birth parents had been buried--at least that’s what she’d managed to dig up. Jessica paid him and turned to leave, but he stopped her with one last warning.
“You’ll remember what I said, right? I can tell you’re not from around here and don’t know about the territories just yet. I wouldn’t want you to have a run in with those bloodsuckers. There’s only so much protection that warding medallion will give you.”
Chapter Two
Gabriel stood in the shadow of a doorway, watching as Jessica left the shop and walked up the street, completely unaware of his presence. Her senses were too dulled from human living, but he could change that. And he would. Even with the distance, he sensed the necklace about her throat. He was grateful she’d heeded his advice and gotten the chain fixed. A warding medallion was no real worry to him, but he hoped its power would keep the others from sensing her presence in the city a while longer. He’d staked his claim with that kiss, but there were too many to challenge him.
Given what she was, he had little doubt she would be allowed to choose a mate, and better him than another. The fact that he had little remorse for his action proved just how Lycan he’d grown, but it mattered not.
He waited until she’d gained some distance on him before pushing away from the door jam, following her, keeping her within sight. The streets here were empty of other pedestrians. He couldn’t smell Lycans or Vamps nearby, but that didn’t mean they weren’t out there, prowling the streets. Still, he was satisfied they were relatively alone.
He hooked his thumbs in his pockets, rubbing his fingers on the rough denim. They still burned from holding the chain, but no more than the studs in his nipples. If anything, it served as reminder of the kiss he’d taken.
His cock tightened at that thought, and the sight of her hips swaying gently as she walked only worsened the sweet pain. He smiled darkly. She remained oblivious to the fact that he followed her. But wasn’t that how he wanted it? She was blissfully innocent, and he knew the warning Mikel had given her had fallen on disbelieving ears.
She’d become a believer soon enough. It was amazing how quickly a person could change their mind when confronted by living, breathing evidence. Seeing with her own eyes would banish that last, clinging ignorance.
Now that she was here, the warding power of the medallion would grow weaker and weaker, until it lost its power completely amongst the overwhelming presence of his brethren.
Gabriel almost regretted what she’d go through. But she should not have come to New Orleans. Now that she was here, he wasn’t going to deny himself the pleasure of seducing her. The subtle nuances of her nervous desire excited him immeasurably: the breathless sigh, the pulse in her throat, the fight against her own base appetites that mirrored his own. He could still taste her on his tongue, feel the rounded firmness of her ass in his palms. His groin felt imprinted by the cloaked heat of her femininity.
He couldn’t remember ever feeling so frustrated in all his life. He wondered if fucking both their brains out would satisfy the lust boiling his blood, or if it would only worsen, make him insane with lust. He wondered if it was worth the risk in tempting the beast. Could any woman be worth so much?
She stopped suddenly on the sidewalk. Gabriel ducked into a doorway, waiting to see what she would do. He watched her indecisive profile, as she crossed and uncrossed her arms, kicked at a ball of trash on the pavement. Finally, she made up her mind and moved forward and into a local bar.
Apparently, she wasn’t ready to give up the night just yet.
He grinned and trotted up the sidewalk. Just his kind of girl. He liked a woman who didn’t know when to quit.
But she didn’t need to be out too late. He couldn’t sense any danger, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t out there. He wanted to make sure she got to her room okay.
He chuckled, thinking of a few ways to wear her out and entertain her if she was feeling restless.
Gabriel waited a few minutes before sauntering through the door. Inside was darker than out, almost
