Audrina
The SUV pulled over, and Gabriel helped me down to the sidewalk. “Here’s our hotel.” He motioned to the gigantic building behind him.
I stared up at it, jaw slack. Holy hell. I’d never seen anything so beautiful. It had two huge, adjoining towers and was silver, almost all glass. It rose into the sky like a giant, glittering jewel.
Gabriel smiled at me. “Our party is staying in the western tower.” He pointed to the building on the left. “We’ll have it all to ourselves-actually, I can’t wait to show you.”
He reached out his hand for me. I glanced at it, then looked him in the eye.
“No pressure, Audrina.”
“It’s not that.” The problem was, holding his hand felt too natural; if I didn’t watch myself, I would get swept up in the moment and forget about how dangerous he truly was. But we were supposed to be a couple, and the other members of the party were spilling out of their SUVs.
I reached out and took his hand.
Electricity shot through me as he pulled me close against his side. My body had no fear of Gabriel. That same desire throbbed through me, ending in a chronic ache between my legs. I would just have to bear it for the next two weeks.
While we waited for the rest of our party to join us, I chastised myself. I’d reached for Gabriel’s hand on the plane, and I was holding it now. I wasn’t going to lie; it felt good. Staying with him felt good.
I shivered and moved closer to his big body, pushing my thoughts to the side. It wasn’t meant to be, but I could still enjoy the moment.
And we were in Vegas. Vegas! I didn’t know why I was so excited, but the gorgeous man holding my hand and the opulent building stretching above us certainly had something to do with it.
Bianca and Julian reached us, big grins on both their faces. Iulian looked handsome as ever in a dark suit, but Bianca stole the show. She wore a strapless, tiny blue minidress that matched her eyes and showcased her long, coltish legs. Her dark hair tumbled in waves over her shoulders. Excitement lit up her already stunning face, making her even more beautiful.
“We made it!” Bianca pulled me in for a tight hug. This time I didn’t imagine it—she sniffed me. She eyed me with interest when we broke apart. “You’re coming to the spa, right?”
“Yes-if that’s still okay.”
“Yes!” She smiled at me warmly. “I can’t wait to spend more time with you. We’re going to have so much fun! Meet in the lobby in an hour, okay?”
“Okay.” I couldn’t help but smile as she and Julian followed the concierge into the hotel, Julian’s hand planted firmly on Bianca’s ass.
The doorman held the door for us, and Gabriel squeezed my hand. “Come.” We went inside and my eyes adjusted from the bright sunshine to the dark, sleek interior.
The hotel lobby was insanely beautiful. Black marble floors, a wall made of…gold?…and huge, modern-art sculptures had me gaping. We headed right for the bank of elevators, bypassing the front desk. “Don’t we need to check in?”
Gabriel gave me a lopsided smile. “I told you, we own this.”
“R-Right.”
I wasn’t certain if it was on purpose, but Gabriel made sure that our elevator doors closed before anyone else could join us. He surprised me by hitting the “down” button.
“We’re going underground?”
His smile deepened. “It’s the only way to get to the western tower.”
When the doors opened, another luxurious interior greeted us. There were gold-brocade walls and low lighting. Gabriel held on tight to my hand, guiding me to yet another set of elevators. “Ah, here we are number three. This is for our suite.”
“We have our elevator?” Why should I be surprised?
“Wait until you see the room.”
If Gabriel thought it was worth seeing, I was destined to be gob smacked. He hit the “up” button, but I noticed, once again, that there was a lower level.
“What’s below this floor?” I asked.
“Our private club. It’s for vampires only-and their human guests.”
I shivered. There was private, and then there were two-levels-below Earth private. I could only imagine what the vampires and their human guests got up to in the secret club…
The elevator rose above the ground, and the sunlight momentarily stunned me. “Oh, it’s glass!” I laughed as I stared out at the city below. The glassed-in elevator offered an amazing view of the neighboring hotels, their luxurious pools winking in the sunlight. The mountains rose majestically in the distance. I couldn’t help myself from smiling; I’d never seen anything like this.
I looked over to see Gabriel staring out at the scene, a thoughtful expression on his face. “You know, I’ve always taken this for granted.”
“I guess I’m good for something,” I joked.
“I imagine you’re good for quite a lot of things.”
Ung. Something coiled inside me, waiting to spring out. Uh-oh. Why did the vampire king have to be so damn sexy?
We rose all the top of the hotel. The elevator doors opened, and we headed inside our “suite.” But it shouldn’t have been described that way-it was a penthouse mansion. The ceiling seemed to rise three floors above our heads; the walls were all windows, flooding the space with sunlight. The glittering city spread out below us, was breathtaking.
There was a mahogany bar, a living room that faced the Strip, a gorgeous kitchen, several intimate seating areas… The color palette was stark, with dark grays and blacks, but there were bright fresh-flower arrangements everywhere. I wandered around in awe. The space was sleek, elegant, and decadent. It screamed sexy times.
I glimpsed the master bedroom, which boasted an immense bed with a leather headboard. There was a balcony attached-and it had a plunge pool. Holy crap. There was a smaller bedroom down the hall, almost as opulent, but with no pool. Hmm. Knowing that room would be mine, I almost pouted.
The bathrooms were to die for. There was a glassed-in shower and an enormous, round pod of a tub with some sort of colored light inside it, making it glow. Both the shower and the tub faced the Strip.
Damn. They didn’t call it Sin City for anything. Every room hell, every surface in the penthouse screamed sex. I couldn’t help picturing the Master, huge, naked, and hard as a rock, taking me into the bed. And in the pool. And in the tub. And on the dining room table…
Bad Audrina!
Fanning myself, I scowled as I returned to Gabriel in the living room. He sat on the couch, nursing a glass of red wine. Looking at him in his expensive suit, his thick hair tousled above his gorgeous face, I pouted some more.
I was going to spend the night in this luxurious, to-die-for, sinful hotel room with the Sexiest Vampire Alive, and we weren’t even going to touch each other? It seemed like a crying shame.
He smiled at me. “So, what do you think?”
“You said it was nice.”
“It is nice.”
“You didn’t mention the fact that it was huge and that there was a plunge pool.” I shivered, suddenly picturing Gabriel’s naked chest rising out of said plunge pool.
“Ah yes, the pool.” A glimmer of a smile curved his lips. “I would imagine it’s quite enjoyable.”
“You imagine?”
He straightened his tie. “I only ever come here on business, Audrina.”
His all-work, no-play attitude was starting to get to me. If anyone needed to see and be seen in a plunge pool, it was Gabriel Dalca.
“Well, we should go in it,” I said brazenly. I smiled at him.
In response, he raised his eyebrows.
Then I realized what I was doing. I was asking him to swim with me in the intimate, sexy plunge pool attached to the master bedroom. In broad daylight. So I could see his naked chest in all its glory.
Bad Audrina! Bad girl!
Gabriel blew out a deep breath. “You have to meet Bianca.”
“Oh. Right.” I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. What I did know was that feeling was back-the powerful attraction that overtook me when he was near and I even dared to think about sex. But sex was all around us. In the enormous master bedroom, in the plunge pool, in the pre-lit tub, and in the glassed-in shower. The margin for error tonight was huge. And speaking of huge…
My gaze skipped over Gabriel, handsome, chiseled, and perfect in his pristine suit. I’d felt what he had going on underneath that thing last night. Christ. I fanned myself some more.
“Is everything all right?” The smirk on his face indicated he knew exactly what I was thinking.
I’d been so worried about surviving two weeks with a vampire. But how I was going to survive one night in this sinful suite?
“You know…” He favored me with another lopsided grin. “I don’t think I hate Vegas anymore.”
“Huh,” I said. “Go figure.”
I fled the room to get ready for Bianca before I did something rash.
On my way out, Gabriel stopped me at the door. “Bianca’s given me her solemn vow that she and her bridesmaids will in no way harm one hair on your head.”
“R-Right.” I seemed to be fluctuating between two realities, one in which I needed to be petrified of vampires, the other in which I was sidetracked with my excitement about Vegas, somehow wrangling Gabriel into the plunge pool and my impending spa visit. I kept forgetting to be afraid.
“You smell wonderful to them, of course.” Gabriel narrowed his eyes. “But my security team assures me you’re safe. Her attendants have perfect records, and also, apparently each of them is beyond excited to be here and be part of the wedding. They will not risk my ire.”
“It’s a royal wedding-it’s a big deal,” I reminded him.
He nodded. “In any event, the spa is closed to outside visitors. No one will be there except for the estheticians and the bridal party. And my security team.”
“Since when did you have a security team? I thought they were at Hawthorne Hall.”
He tilted his head. “That’s your sister’s security team. Mine has been waiting here on the ground, securing the hotel. They’re everywhere, but you won’t ever see them because they’re that good. It’s the only reason I’m letting you out of my sight. Do you understand?”
Geez. “Yes, Master,” I mumbled.
“What was that?”
“Nothing.” I smiled at him with fake innocence. “See you later!”
I hustled to the elevator before I called him Master again or begged him to check out the plunge pool.
Game face Audrina, game face. But what sort of game was I playing?