Kissed By A Rose
by Dana
Blurb
Anita and Jean-Claude have finally got their life back on track.
But it doesn’t last long.
Anita’s father is ill and Belle is up to her old tricks.
Anita can handle all of that, but someone from her past has shown up.
Can she fight her fathers disease, over come Belle and find a way out of her past?
You’ll have to find out.
Chapter 1
Work, work, work. It’s all I seem to be doing at the moment. I wish. It’s our quiet months and still, It seems like I have gotten the bulk of the raising. Nothing changes, at least not at Animators Inc. All I’m going to say is that Bert had better watch himself.
I’d had my last client and just wanted to go home. All the leopards were going out tonight, all of them. I wanted a night on my every once in a while, and I didn’t like Nathaniel and a few of the other being in a club alone, So I’d persuaded Micah, Merle and Noah to go with them.
My night was planned. Get in, Drink coffee, have a shower, go to bed. Boring, I know, but I hadn’t slept properly in ages, not with out having nightmares or dreams. Hopefully, if I went to bed early, I would have a nice nights sleep.
I started to put my things in my bag, when Craig's voice floated over the intercom and made me jump. Me, scared? never.
“Anita, there is a Rafael hear to see you. Shall I send him through?”
Rafael? What was he doing hear?
“Yeah, Craig, thanks”
I put my bag on the floor and sat down. The door opened, and the tall, dark rat king walked in. He was wearing black pants and a tight white t-shirt. His smile was sincere, but he looked....I didn’t know what it was, but he looked agitated or something.
“What's wrong, Rafael” Not many things bothered the rat king.
“Can we talk?” He sounded tired.
“Yeah, come in and sit down”
“No, I mean, can we go some where else and talk?”
I really didn’t want this shit tonight, but Rafael had been brilliant to me. When ever I needed him, he’d always been there for me, no matter what. Hell, I’d gotten one of his people killed and he was still letting them body guard me.
What on earth could be wrong? I gave him a suspicious look, but he didn’t rise to my curiosity. I sighed and stood up. I picked up my bag and took my other gun from the draw. I never left a gun at work if I could help it.
I ushered Rafael out of the door and locked it. Craig was giving me a funny look and I handed him the key to my office. I didn’t like taking the key home. I usually forget or loose things quite easily if they aren't important, and frankly, loosing a set of keys is no biggy to me, not with what I’ve lost.
Rafael didn’t speak to me until we got to the parking lot. I leaned against my car and looked at him. He looked a mess, quite frankly. I’d never seen him look this bad before. He always tried to look his best.
“Rafael, you look a mess. What on earth could be wrong” I wanted answers and I wanted them now.
Rafael sighed and put his head down. I’d never seen him like this. He’d always been so strong and collected. To see him likes this was like a slap round the face. I sighed and pushed away from the car. I walked over and touched Rafael's arm.
He looked at me and smiled again. He laughed, but not like it was a happy laugh, it was a nervous laugh.
“Can we go for a drink, Anita? I could really do with one”
I smiled. A drink. I didn’t think that Rafael would be the drinking type. I had a sudden idea. Dead Dave’s was close and I hadn’t seen them for a couple of years, since I’d gotten with Jean-Claude.
“O.k, I know the perfect place. Did you walk hear?”
“Yeah, I did”
“O.k, get in. Can’t you start to tell me what’s wrong now?”
I opened the car by pressing the button that opens all the doors on my key ring. Too many times had I been got by the bad guys, or nearly got by them, just because I’d had to open the bloody car.
Rafael slid in to the jeep at the same time I did. He shut the door and put his seat belt on. Everyone who knew me, knew that you didn’t ride in a car with me unless u wore a seat belt.
“I don’t know where to begin Anita, but I will tell you everything”
Oh goodie. I get to sit and listen to a nice long story on my only night off where I can have the house to my self. Sometimes, I think it would be so much easier if I drank.
Chapter 2
Rafael and I got into Dead Dave’s, but Luther wasn’t there, and it wasn’t dark yet, so Dave wouldn’t have been up and out any way. We managed to get one of the booths at the back of the bar. As soon as we had sat down, a waiter came over and took our order. I could no longer pretend I drank a screw driver.
So, I just ordered a coke and Rafael ordered a double whisky. Urgh, if I was going to drink anything, it would be wine or a bottle of something. I dont think spirits would be my thing. Drinking, or rather, my lack of drinking, has never bothered me. I’ve never felt the need to drink.
The waiter took our order and went to get our drinks. I put my hands on the table. I was wearing my usual work attire. Jean-Claude had been a very, very bad influence on me. For some reason, I seemed to have a fashion sense.
I had chosen a black suit, which consisted of black trousers with a diamante pattern of a rose on the hip on the right side. The jacket had was hip length, with three diamante clasps. One in-between my cleavage, one just below my breasts and another one just below that.
You weren't supposed to wear any sort of top underneath it, but like I was going to go out in just a jacket. The jacket had a bra type thing in it, which held up my breasts lovely, but I decided to put a white low neck tight top underneath the jacket.
It was only October, so it was too hot to wear boots, ankle length or other wise. So, I had to go for the sandal type things. Hey, these ones were comfy and had a low heal. I’m not complaining .
It was brilliant, because now we were all partners, and Bert was only our business manager, I could wear what I liked and he didn’t have a say in it. So black was all I seemed to wear now.
I looked at Rafael. I think it was just the look that made him sigh and start to explain why he dragged me hear.
“Do you remember me telling you about my ex-wife and son?”
Oh Great. Where was this leading? I did remember faintly. I knew he had a kid and ex-wife somewhere and he wasn’t aloud to see his son alot.
“Yeah, vaguely, why?” I asked, encouragingly
He sighed again and put his head down. He pulled his hands up from the table and covered his face. Our drinks arrived. I was tempted to throw his whisky over him and tell him to hurry up, but my compassion levels had risen lately, dont ask why, cus I dont know.
“My ex-wife has been infected with lycanthrope”
Oh. Well, I wasn’t expecting that. I looked at Rafael and sighed. I now understood why he was so worried. His ex had their son. She was a new shifter. If she shifted near her son, she could kill him, and if she was the suicidal type, she might kill herself.
“Oh Rafael. What are you going to do?” I asked
I could feel a question coming on.
“I need to ask you a favour” See, I told you.
“What is it?”
“She was attacked when she was coming out of a bar... by a wereleopard”
Oh, again. I looked at Rafael. I’m sure there was a point to him telling me all of this, if he would but get to it, I would be able to do something but sit hear looking half way between pity for him and the mother of his son and wanting to shake him to make him tell me more.
“Anita I need to ask you a very big favour”
“What do you need Rafael, please tell me. I need some sleep” I was getting bored now.
“Anita, if your going to be like that...”
“Just ask me what you need, Rafael, and you know, if I can, I will do it” I told him.
“I want her to come and stay in St. Louis, with me, until she gets her self sorted. I don’t want her to be on her own out there. She wont tell her family and she wont go to the doctors, so I’ve told her to come hear”
Ahaha! So, he wanted her to come to St. louis, which meant having her in my Pard.
“You want her to join the Pard?”
“Yes. I know its a big favour, but I want her close. You’ve seen a new lycanthrope, and how weak their control is. If she lost control with my son near her... I just dont want to think of what could happen”
I could understand that. Jason, when he had just been changed, was enough. And I could take care of my self. A child couldn’t, not against a lycanthrope, it wouldn‘t have a cat in hells chance.
I closed my eyes. Rafael had done so much for me, this was nothing compared to what he’d done for me.
“Of course she can come and stay in the Pard. I’ll phone Micah. He’s gone out tonight, but they shouldn't be back too late. It’ll be no problem, I promise”
I smiled. He stood up and hugged me. I hugged him back. He laughed and kissed me on the cheek. I dont think Rafael had ever touched me like this before. I smiled too.
“Thank you, Anita. You have no idea what you’ve done for me. Im going to go and sort everything out. Can I leave you?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. See you soon. I’ll phone you”
“She’s flying out tonight. Could you come and meet her at the airport?”
How fun. On my night off, I get to go and pick up and baby lycanthrope from the air port and play chaperone.
“Yeah, What time?” I sat down. Rafael was standing over me. I couldn’t be bothered to stay standing, I dont think.
“About nine o’clock at the airport tomorrow night? Thank you, Anita”
As I nodded, he went for the door. I could have laughed. Well. This should be fun.
Chapter 3
I was just getting up and out of the booth, when the door to the side of the bar swung open and Dave and Luther came out. I smiled. I hadn’t seen them for years. It looked like Luther had been converted.
I walked over to the bar. I don’t think they recognised me. It was either that or they didn’t see me.
“Dave, Luther, good to see you” I said.
They both turned round and looked at me. A smile spread over both their faces. Dave literally run round the bar to come in front of me.
“Anita? My god girl! It’s been too long!” And he took my hand and nearly shook it out of my arm.
He took my other hand too and looked at me. He pulled me a little closer and surveyed me, as though he were a proud uncle. His smile was so warm and happy that it made me smile in the same way.
Luther was leaning over the bar, the usual cigarette bobbing up and down in his mouth. He was smiling and he was also a vampire. When Dave let me go and stood back, Luther took my hand and patted my gently on the shoulder a couple of times.
“You look amazing, Anita. I knew the master would get hold of you” Dave said with a huge grin on his face.
I couldn't help but smile. He was right. I can remember the time I refused flat to believe Jean-Claude would eventually get to me, I refused flat to be with Jean-Claude. Hear I was, for years or so later with three of his marks on me, joined in a triumvirate with him, and in love with him. My god, things really had changed.
“So, how are you pair doing? I was hoping I’d see you” I said.
“Well, I’m havin’ a little meeting tonight. I’m going to into partnership with someone and opening another place”
“I hope everything goes well” And I was sincere. I’d always liked Dave and Luther.
“You gonna hang around for a while? Have a drink?” Luther asked as he walked behind the bar.
We seemed to have attracted a little bit of a crowd. I looked at them all and they turned back to what ever they were doing. Maybe it was the mention of the master. Who cares. I’m sure they all knew I was Anita Blake, the Executioner. Who in St. Louis didn’t?
I walked to the bar and took the only empty seat between two men. One of them had probably just come from work and decided to have a drink before he went home, the other was dressed in casual cloths and was talking to a friend.
I sat down and they both turned to look at me. I didn’t look at either of them, I just knew they were both staring. I was looking at the glasses stacked in front of me. Luther and Dave had gone down the other end of the bar.
“Hey, Can I buy you a drink?” The business man said.
He looked young, maybe my age, maybe older. He had copper/blond coloured hair and blue eyes. He had a strong jaw and his hair sort of flopped over his ears.
I looked at him and smiled. I didn’t know why, but I just knew one of them would ask to buy me a drink.
“No thank you. I’ve ordered”
I hoped that would be the end of our conversation, but seemed to know better. It wasn’t
“Well, let me pay then” He said.
He had put his drink on the table. I didn't know what it was, probably something I wouldn’t like. I wasn’t one for drinking alcolhol in any form.
“No thank you, I’m fine. I can pay my own bills” I said again and smiled
Luther and Dave came back over to me. Dave had a glass of orange juice in his hand. He still remembered how I didn’t like alcohol. I know that alcohol has no taste, but it just didn’t appeal to me.
“Thank you, Dave”
“S’all right. So, how do you like being a servant?”
Trust Dave to ask me that out loud. I doubted anyone in hear would have the faintest clue what he meant, but I still liked to sort of hide the fact that I was a human servant to the master vampire of St. Louis.
“I’m sort of just getting used to it”
Dave smiled.
“I just can’t picture you following anyone, taking orders and all that”
I looked at Dave and gave him one of ’them’ looks. He just laughed at me. Luther came over, his cigarette still bobbing up and down in his mouth. I had the feeling that the guy was still looking at me.
“Why aint you been to see us?” Luther asked me.
“I don’t know. Things have been very hectic in my life at the moment. I’m sort of in demand from everyone”
Which was true, I was now a federal marshal, so I was being called out to more and more crime scenes, I had Bert working me harder than any of the other animators, I was sorting out the Pard and tryint to sort out my relationship with Richard and the Pack. I had too many things to do. I can only do so much.
“Anita, what are you thinking about so hard, gal?” Dave was looking at me, his head on the side.
“I think I’m in demand too much. I’m slowly wearing myself out. In fact, forget the slowly, I’m just wearing my self out”
The door opened, and Asher walked in. What on earth was he doing hear? I frowned. It was pitch black outside. I checked my watch. It was ten o’clock. Shit, I must have been hear for about an hour and half.
I watched Asher walk in. He was a shock to the senses. He was beautiful, but he didn’t look feminine, you would never mistake Asher for a woman. Even with the perfectly shaped body, and the long golden, wavy hair, you defiantly knew he was male.
I knew he was male, because I’d had the pleasure of making love to Asher. I was with the two most beautiful men in America. Jean-Claude and Asher were the complete opposites of each other. They both had pale skin, but where as Asher's eyes were the striking, shocking blue of husky's eyes, Jean-Claude were the shear colour of the midnight, clear sky. Jean-Claude’s hair was as black as my own, and just as curly, but Asher’s was the colour of gold. A gold you only got if you really cleaned a piece of jewellery.
Asher spotted me and walked straight over. He looked puzzled to see me hear. He was wearing white dress pants, a black shirt with only a few of the buttons done up, his hair was lying over the right side of his shoulder, so as to hide his scars.
I didn’t care about his scars and I’d proved it more than once. I smiled and he smiled. He walked up behind the stool and put his arms over my shoulders. He smelled gorgeous.
“Bonjour ma cherie, and what are you doing hear?” He asked, his head buried in my hair.
“I could ask you the same thing”
I turned to face him and he kissed me. It was my undoing. All he or Jean-Claude ever needed to do was kiss me, and I was theirs. Sad but true.
Chapter 4
Asher and I separated after a long drawn out gentle kiss. I was aware that we had a small audience. Luther and Dave had been watching with small smiles on their faces and glints in their eyes, and the business bloke to the right of me had been watching, too.
Asher pulled back and stood behind my chair with his hands on the back. I looked at Luther and Dave and they laughed. Luther walked off to go and serve someone else, but Dave stayed and just looked at me.
“What?” I asked, in an innocent tone that wouldn’t fool anyone. I had a huge grin forming on my face.
I looked to my right to see the business man just staring at me. He had his hands together and had turned to face my way. One elbow was on the bar, the other on the back of the bar stool.
I was sort of shocked that anyone could be that blatant and that rude. He was smiling and it was one of those condescending smiles I hated. I did not like this man.
“Do you have a problem?” I was getting pissed off.
“No, not at all” The pratt said, laughing.
Asher was confused. The look on his face was enough. He was looking from me to the man.
“Anita, is there anything wrong?” Asher stood up.
“No’ I said, still looking at the man “ I dont think so”
I think that Dave had just noticed that there actually was a problem. He leaned on the bar in front of the man and looked at him.
“I think you had better leave, my friend. I do not take kindly to having my customers disturbed” Dave said in a low threatening voice.
The man put his hands up, in an ‘ I’m unarmed’ gesture. He was still smiling as he put money on the counter and turned to walk out. I sighed and closed my eyes. I was getting too paranoid. I’d always said ‘ better to be paranoid than dead’. It was a saying that had kept me alive for the most of the last six years, so I’d stick to it.
I sat down and Asher sat in the now empty seat. I put my elbows on the bar and hid my face behind my hands. I was tired. I had lost all hope of just going to bed for a nice quiet early night.
I turned to face Asher. I dont think he really understood what just happened, which is why he had mostly kept out of it. Then I remembered he hadn’t told me why he was hear.
“You didn’t answer my question” I told him
He leaned his elbow on the bar and rested his face in it. His hair fell over the scared side, he was still so conscious of hiding his scars. I dont think I’d ever run that habit out of him.
“And what was that”
“Asher, no games tonight. I’m too tired to be messed with”
He moved closer to me and hugged me. I was rather shocked at first, but then I hugged him back. I wrapt my arms around his waist and buried my head to his chest. I’d realised lately, that sometimes little bit of human comfort helps. Well, not human, but...well, you get what I mean.
Its taken me just under twenty years to realise, but I’ve got there. I was finally letting my heart do some of the thinking, instead of just my head. He stroked my hair, down to my back and then up again, and whispered French sweet nothings to me. This was much the same thing that Jean-Claude did when he comforted me. It was what I had come to expect from the boys when I did let them near me when I was upset.
Asher smelled wonderful. I begrudgingly lifted my head away from his chest and gave him a lazy smile that was returned.
“I am hear waiting for Jean-Claude. Now, ma cherie, What are you doing hear?” He asked me.
“I came hear for a drink with Rafael and to see Dave and Luther” No need to lie. Its not like I’d done anything illegal.
“Why is Jean-Claude coming?”
“That is a surprise and one only he can answer” Dave was now leaning in front of me.
He had a smile on his face that looked the same as Asher’s. It was a smile that said ‘ I know something you dont know ’
“Bastards” I said simply.
They both laughed. The door opened again. I looked over Asher’s shoulder and before I’d even looked I knew it was him. I knew when Jean-Claude walked into a room. I knew what he was feeling, what mood he was in and what most of his facial expressions meant. The only person who knew more about him than me was the vampire I was still holding on to.
Jean-Claude caught me looking at him and smiled. I smiled back. He walked towards me. Jean-Claude was a shock to the senses and a system over load if there ever was one. Tonight he was wearing skin tight jet black jeans and a black shirt that was see-through. It had soft wide cuffs and a soft collar. He had four buttons done up.
Watching Jean-Claude, I felt caught in his eyes. I couldn’t stop looking. I’d always looked, even when I didn’t want to. He was just that beautiful, charming and gorgeous.
Jean-Claude’s lawyer, Marcius, was walking behind him with a briefcase in his hands. What was going on? Dave stood up and walked round the bar and stood behind me.
I wanted answers and I wanted them now.
Chapter 5
Dave nodded at Jean-Claude and then they embraced. To anyone else, it would of looked like they were hugging. I knew differently. To offer your neck to another vampire meant that you trusted them. If you refused to offer your neck when you greeted, it meant you didn’t trust them.
The lesser vampires offered their necks to their masters. They had to. The master would then accept or rip the lesser vampire’s throat out. The lesser vampire could do nothing about it. Oh well, no one said it was perfect.
Jean-Claude and Dave broke away from one another. So Dave wasn’t in trouble. That was good. It meant I didn’t have to intervene on Dave’s behalf.
“Shall we go through to the office? Luther, can you watch the bar for me?”
“Sure can boss” Luther said and winked at me. What was going on?
Jean-Claude walked over to me with a gentle smile on his face. His lawyer was in tow.
“Marcius, can you go through with Dave. I shall be through in a minute. Asher, could you go through with them?”
Asher smiled and stood. He laid a kiss on my forehead then patted Jean-Claude on the shoulder and walked through the door with Dave and Marcius. Jean-Claude sat down opposite me, where Asher had just been sitting.
“What brings you hear, ma petite?” Jean-Claude laid his hands on my upper arms and cocked his head to one side.
“I could ask you the same question”
He smiled.
“So you could, but I asked you first, ma petite”
“I came hear for a drink with Rafael. He needed to tell me something. Now, why are you hear with you lawyer?” I said in the same tone of voice. I raised my eyebrows and tightened my mouth to emphasise the fact I wanted to know what was going on.
Jean-Claude laughed. His laugh was a sound between a sexual taboo and something you could bottle and sell, to give pleasure. His laugh rolled over my skin and made me shiver. Even after all of the years I’d known him, all the time I’d been with him, he still affected me, as though I was some silly little school girl with a crush.
“Quit the charm, Jean-Claude, and just answer me” I said smiling.
“If you would but accompany me in to the office, all will be revealed”
He stood up and offered me his hand. I stared at it. Jean-Claude was the master at concocting plots, plans and making them happen. I realised of late, that that one of the things I loved about him. If you took away the plotter part of him, the master of feelings and how to hide them, he wouldn’t be him any more.
But I didn’t like it when he kept his plots from me.
“Your such a pain, Jean-Claude!”
And I stood up and walked towards the door that they had all disappeared through. He grabbed my hand and I turned round.
“Do not get angry, ma petite, it is nothing horrible, other wise you would have been informed” He told me, to cover himself.
He pulled me to him using my arm. He took both of my hands in his and kissed me. I had to raise on tip toe a little, but that was O.K. I was used to the crick I got now.
“Now, I am eager to get this done with and go back to either yours or mine” He whispered, his mouth still close to mine.
I smiled. I knew I wasn’t going to be left alone tonight. As soon as I heard that Rafael needed to see me, I knew that one way or another, I wasn’t going to have a night to myself. Why should I expect to get one anymore?
“Come on then”
*******************
Jean-Claude was right. It wasn’t anything horrible. It was quite shocking actually. He and Dave were going into a partnership and opening a string of bar/restaurant places together.
Tonight, they were deciding what to call the string of restaurants, where they were going to open them, the food they were going to be serving and how much each was willing to put into it.
When Jean-Claude sad the amount her was putting in, I nearly toppled off his lap. Only his hands on my thighs kept me up. Jean-Claude was going to be over a 3/4 profit partner. Lucky him.
They had decided to serve the normal things like burgers, fires, hot dogs. The stuff everyone likes. They were also going to do a Carte menu. Which meant, posh restaurant that catered for everyone.
I hardly understood all of the finance side of things. That was one of the main reasons I hadn’t left Bert high and dry. He knew how to do all of the finance side of things. I didn’t have the first clue.
They were now struggling to find a name. They had come up, so far, with; The Den, Bar Nuite, DC’s, DJC’s.
And those were only the ones I could remember. I was getting bored and wanted to go, but now I’d met up with the boys, I didn’t want to leave them. Sad, but true.
I was staring transfixed, at the vase of roses on Dave’s desk. He had a plane white office, with a black normal desk opposite the door, a black couch against the left wall and a filing cabinet on the right.
I suddenly had an idea and came out of my trance. I hadn’t been properly listening for about the last five minutes. Dave was talking, leaning on his desk, Asher was sitting on the couch next to Marcius, and Jean-Claude and I were sitting on the big black comfortable chair behind Dave’s desk.
“I think we should go with DJC’s” Dave was saying.
I didn’t like it.
“I’ve had an idea” I said.
Everyone shut up, smiled and looked to me. I hadn’t said anything since we’d entered the office, which was strange for me.
“What about Belle Rose Bars?”
Jean-Claude started to think and smiled to himself. Dave narrowed his eyes and looked at me. Marcius’s face didn’t change and Asher looked like he was trying not to laugh.
“I like it” Dave said, finally.
“As do I, me amie, as do I. Where did you come up with that, Anita?”
“ I dont know, but I want this done so we can go”
Dave laughed.
“You never change, do you, Anita?” He was smiling.
“Nope. Would you want me any other way?” He laughed at that.
“Nah. You fine the way you are, gal. Now, lets get these papers signed”
Thank God for small miracles.