A Girl's Guide to Vampires

'She lies,' Tanya cooed in Dominic's ear.

'like hell I do! You kicked me on the back of my leg. I bet I'll have a huge bruise there from those monster shoes you're wearing.'

'Monster shoes!' Tanya's eyes spoke volumes, and they were all about methods of disembowelment. 'You Americans know nothing about that which is fashionable—'

'Enough!' Dominic shouted, and shoved Tanya away. He sauntered over to where Raphael and I stood, eyeing me up and down in a manner that set my hackles rising.

'Dominic!' Tanya looked mad enough to spit fire, but Dominic paid her little heed. He made a pretty pout and tsked as he saw me rubbing the sting out of my wrist where I bashed it against the wall. He took my wrist in his hand, pushing away my other hand to rub little circles on the wrist bone.

'But you have hurt yourself!' he said in a syrupy voice. He had surprisingly short fingers for a man who seemed long and lean otherwise, something I noticed when he bent over my wrist, licking his lips as he brought it up for inspection. 'This does not seem to be a day which brings you great luck. Yet.'

'Let her be, Dominic.' Raphael looked bored as sin leaning against the wall, but there was plenty of command in his voice, and his eyes were blazing with something I hoped Dominic found threatening.

'Yeah, let me be, Dominic.'

Tanya nudged his arm, but he ignored her to give me a fanged grin. 'And if I cannot, little one?'

Little one? I stood almost eye-to-eye with him. Who was he kidding?

'What agonies would you suffer if I withdrew my attention from you?' With his free hand he cupped my chin and tipped my head back, his fingers lingering on my neck. I jerked my head out of his grasp, but his hand clamped down tight on my wrist. Pain shot up through my arm.

'Let go of me, you fake-toothed creep!'

'Dominic!' Tanya was tugging on his arm, trying to get his attention, but he hissed and pushed her aside, reeling me in by my wrist.

'Let her go, Dominic.' Raphael's voice was low and deep and rumbled around the narrow hallway. Something warm and pleasant inside me started to hum in response to it. He was still leaning against the wall, looking more bored, if possible.

The grateful look I was about to send him dried up. I glared at him instead. 'Are you going to just stand there and hold up the wall, or are you going to help me?'

'Raphael is in my employ,' Dominic purred as he pulled my wrist up to his mouth, parting his lips and baring his pseudo fangs. 'He knows well the dark forces I can command if he tries my temper.'

I felt like I was in the middle of a badly written Gothic soap opera, something along the lines of Dark Shadows Meets The Ministers.

'You are the hammiest actor I've ever met,' I told Dominic. A muscle in his eyelid twitched.

'Dominic, I insist you stop this at once!' Tanya was a veritable blaze of fury, but she backed down immediately when her lover spun around—jerking my sore wrist in the process—and spat out a string of invectives in French.

'So help me God, if you don't let go of me, I'm going to sue you for assault up one side and down another!' I tugged on my wrist. 'And don't think I can't do it, either! My mother is an attorney!'

His fingers tightened painfully around my wrist. 'Chérie! So impatient! I like a woman who is demanding. I also like one who has spirit. Fight me, mon petit chat. It pleases me to see you struggle.'

I stared at him for a moment in utter disbelief, then turned to glower at Raphael. 'Dammit, he's your employer—do something.'

He shrugged and straightened up. 'What would you have me do?'

'Is castration out of the question?'

'You will be mine tonight, mon ange,' Dominic promised, pulling me closer and making sure I saw him lick his fangs. 'But I think you need a little lesson in manners first.' As he spoke, he pulled my hand to his lips.

'Raphael!' I swear his eyes glowed bright for a moment in response to my demanding plea.

Just as Dominic's tongue snaked out to lick my pulse point, I made a fist with my free hand and prepared to knee him in the happy sacks, but before I could, all hell broke loose. A wordless cry of fury echoed in my head as the door to the outside crashed open in a sudden gust of wind, rattling the windows and sending a blast of cold air and a flurry of dead leaves in through the open door. At the same time as Raphael lunged for Dominic, Roxy and Christian, the man with the nice voice I'd seen the night before, came racing out of the bar. Dominic screamed as if he'd been struck, and released my hand as he staggered backwards. Tanya howled and headed for me with her claws bared, leaping past Roxy, who clutched Christian and bravely shouted, 'Aidez-moi! Aidez- moi!' in the worst French accent I'd ever heard.

'Aidez-moi?' I asked her as I avoided impalement on Tanya's fingernails. 'You want someone to help you? What about me?'

With a movement too fast for me to follow, Raphael grabbed Dominic by the fancy ruffled poet shirt he wore and slammed him against the bar wall. Tanya came at me again with a frustrated shriek, but I grabbed both her arms and held her off.

'Remember your position!' Dominic screamed as Raphael snarled and lifted him off the floor with one hand. Christian jumped in and wrestled Tanya away from me, pulling her away and holding her until she calmed down.

'Remember who I am, St. John! You will have nothing without me, nothing! I can break you with just a word!'

Brave words, considering it was Raphael who was holding Dominic impotent with only one hand, but to my immense disappointment, the words seemed effective. Slowly Raphael let Dominic slide down the wall until he was once again on his feet. Dominic smiled a completely repulsive smile full of gloating, and with exaggerated gestures straightened his shirt and striped vest.

'It is a wise man who knows when he has met his master,' Dominic crowed, turning to retrieve a furious Tanya from Christian.

Employer or no employer, I hoped Raphael would punch him, but other than flexing his fingers, he did nothing. His face was tight and expressionless, and grudgingly I gave him full marks for control.

Dominic's gaze settled on me as I stood next to Roxy. He smiled and dropped his eyelids in what I'm sure he thought was an extremely sexy look, but which really just made him look dopey. 'And you, mon ange—I will see you later tonight, eh? I promise you, I will fulfill all your darkest fantasies, no matter how extreme.'

Tanya made a wordless noise of protest.

'Oh, goody,' I said with irony that I doubted he would appreciate. 'It's been eons since I saw a really quality vampire-staking. So glad you've volunteered.'

The muscle over his eye twitched again, but he held on to his leer. With a showy bow to me, he flashed his canines at everyone and stalked to the door.

'Raphael!' Dominic paused at the door, but did not bother with the courtesy of turning around and facing Raphael when he spoke to him. 'I expect you to be on the grounds before opening.'

'I'll be there,' Raphael answered, crossing his arms over his broad chest and sending Dominic a look I hoped to heaven no one would ever point at me. Dominic swirled his cape over his shoulder and swept out the door with a grand flourish, Tanya following sullenly behind.

'Bet he learned that in Dramatic Exits 101,' I murmured to Roxy. She snickered in return. I gave Raphael a grateful smile. 'Looks like I owe you one.'

His jaw tightened. He didn't smile in return. In fact, he looked mad as hell. 'Looks like you do,' he acknowledged with a terse little nod of his head.

I thinned my lips at him, all thoughts of thanking him evaporating under the glare of those wicked amber eyes. 'Let's not be overly gracious about this, shall we?'

He took a step forward—a long step forward; the man had legs that went up to his armpits—and frowned down on me. I have to admit he made a very intimidating figure, but I refuse to let anyone intimidate me with nothing but a bunch of muscles, a handsome face, and eyes that could drop a horse at ten paces.