asked.” Her laughter trickled over him. “I didn’t say I’d agree, honey. I just asked if you ever ask for permission. I got my answer. Sorry, maybe your English is a little bad.” She gave him a pitying look.
Next she’d be signing him up for English as a Second Language classes at the nearest college. Dmetri had had enough. She was running circles around him, happily too, and he was done with it. Time to pull her to a stop.
He cupped the back of her neck and pulled her towards him. Her eyes widened in surprise and then her gaze fell to his lips.
She fluttered her eyelashes at him. “Why, Dmetri, are you gonna kiss little ole me?” His frown deepened at her insolence and then he kissed her. Her lips were soft and warm, very warm. He pulled back quickly because his dick was already hard enough to snap with that one simple touch. If he tasted her, he might not be able to stop.
He grinned as he saw she was slow to open her eyes. Her cheeks were just a little flushed and her fingers had curled gently into his jacket. Damn he couldn’t wait to have her.
“Dinner tomorrow,” he said.
And then he left before she could utter a word.
Chapter 6
Vane answered the door after the first knock.
“Come in, Dmetri.”
Dmetri strolled into the living room and saw an entourage waiting. This was supposed to be a small one-on-one interview with Vane’s cousin to make sure she didn’t have any contact with Claude before coming here. Instead, every one of the Kategans was here including their mates.
Jackson was the first to acknowledge him. With a grin, he came forward and clasped him in a brief hug. Jacks and he had grown a relationship of sorts after he turned him into a vampire.
The decision to turn him was made easily because—Vera had needed it. In the following month after turning Jacks, Dmetri and he had exchanged a few punches and, surprisingly, had grown close while he taught Jacks the ropes of being a vampire.
“Good to see you, old man.”
Dmetri smirked at the jab. “Rather be old than a young babe like you, drook .” Jacks laughed, clapping him on the back, and escorted him into the living room. He exchanged greetings with the big Kategan family and took a seat across from Vanessa.
Vanessa looked better today. She’d showered and wore fresh clothes—clothes that barely covered anything. A frown crossed his lips as he took in the young girl’s short skirt and tight shirt. She sat with her leg crossed kicking it constantly as if she couldn’t wait to get out of here.
“Why do I have to talk to the vamp?”
“I just have a few questions for you.”
She rolled her eyes and crossed her other leg, kicking faster.
“You came from California?”
“ Da ,” she said, mimicking his Russian.
“How did you get all the way to Chicago by yourself?”
Vane took a seat next to his mate on the couch. Sarina held her new sleeping babe in her arms. “She said she had some money and took the greyhound,” he said.
“Did you meet anyone strange on your trip?”
She cocked a thin black eyebrow at the question. “I met tons of strange people. People talking to themselves, a guy who smelled like garbage, a man who said he knew when Jesus was coming—it was fun.”
Dmetri saw Vane bow his head into his hand. “Were any of them vampires?” She stopped kicking her leg. “No.”
Reading people wasn’t his forte, that was more Brayden’s area, and he couldn’t be sure whether she was telling the truth. “Why are you here?” She gave an exasperated look at Vane. “I already told him all of this. Dad pissed me off for the last time. He’s arranged a marriage for me. Can you believe that? I mean what century is this, really?”
“To who?”
She shivered in disgust. “A nasty old man. Dad only wants to do it so they can combine the packs since we’re next to each other. One big pack. Dad said everyone needs this. Yeah, everyone but me.” She snorted and Dmetri saw a flash of pain in her