In the Dead of Cold

  IN THE DEAD OF COLD

  Allie Quinn

  www.loose-id.com

  In the Dead of Cold

  Copyright © January 2014 by Allie Quinn

  All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this e-book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without prior written permission from Loose Id LLC. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  Image/art disclaimer: Licensed material is being used for illustrative purposes only. Any person depicted in the licensed material is a model.

  eISBN 9781623004910

  Editor: Ann M. Curtis

  Cover Artist: April Martinez

  Published in the United States of America

  Loose Id LLC

  PO Box 809

  San Francisco CA 94104-0809

  www.loose-id.com

  This e-book is a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning

  This e-book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. Loose Id LLC’s e-books are for sale to adults ONLY, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.

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  Dedication

  To Rachel, Ben, and Stephanie, with love.

  Prologue

  Jane Smyth dashed out of the bookstore, stopped suddenly, and looked around. Terror seized her heart and froze her insides. The lungful of cold mountain night air she sucked in cleared her head. It awakened her senses and gave her the strength to keep from turning back to the false warmth she’d felt inside the store. Yet she could have sworn she heard a deep voice in her head, calling her to return. The man of her dreams waited inside. No, he doesn’t. What felt like an invisible hand tugged on her shoulder. It took every ounce of her strength to step away. At this rate, she’d never escape this nightmare. Jane slapped her cheek—hard. She winced. The sting helped wake her up, though. So did the cold. She’d hung her coat over a chair in the café, and that’s where it would stay.

  She had to get away. She had to warn…

  She ran. Her SUV was around the corner in the alley. Damn it, she needed to move faster! The distance felt like miles. Despite the cold horror of what she’d just witnessed, by the time she reached her vehicle, her legs burned from running. She pulled her keys from her pocket and hit her fob. The door didn’t unlock. Shit. She tried a few more times before she reached the vehicle, but no luck. Forced with no other alternative, she slid the key into the door lock.

  A hand suddenly covered hers. Her racing heart moved up her throat and choked her. She didn’t even get the chance to scream.

  “Not leaving so soon, are you? You forgot your coat.”

  She turned and looked at him and was instantly caught in his black, endless gaze. To her horror, he leaned closer. His breath, hot and putrid, touched her. Then his tongue was on her face. My God, he licked her.

  She felt as if she were drowning in the evil that filled him. She couldn’t breathe.

  His darkness pulled her, called her closer. She wanted nothing more than to lean against him, test his kiss. Then snowflakes landed on the spot where his tongue had touched her. The cold woke her from the spell he’d wrapped her in.

  He smiled the most evil smile she’d ever seen, and showed his fangs. She knew she had to do something, or she’d be feeling those sharp incisors. She concentrated on trying to push him away. She sent a surge of energy swirling through her. As she felt it build in her like a million thread-like tornadoes, she envisioned the threads clustering together, strengthening before she sent them out. Never before had she unleashed so much energy with a single thought. The power of it frightened her almost as much as he terrified her. Her energy hit him in the chest and sent him stumbling backward. He might have fallen on his ass had he not collided with the brick building on the other side of the alley.

  When Jane saw how fast he recovered and that her blast had done nothing more than surprise him, horror clenched her heart. There was not enough room within the small alley to knock him farther away. Hell, he was still on his feet! He should have been flat on his back. His grin grew.

  Fuck. He thought she’d challenged him.

  He came at her and slammed her against the bricks of the store so fast she didn’t see him move. But she felt his fist collide with her chin. She found herself on her hands and knees in the snow, her entire body burning with flashes of pain. He grabbed the collar of her blouse, ripping it in the process, and pulled her to her feet.

  In another second she knew she would feel something worse than his tongue or fist.

  There. On the opposite side of the alley from her car near a Dumpster. A cart. The metal rods… She gathered her energy and sent it to the cart. Like a huge dart, the first rod slipped from its place and shot through the air. It hit his shoulder, knocked him away from her, impaled him, and slammed him against the building a few feet away, deeper into the alley. He stared at her. His grin disappeared. Anger filled his gaze. Without looking away from her, he reached up and pulled the rod from his shoulder. The horrid sucking sound filled the air around them. Blood oozed from the wound. The heavy, coppery smell of blood made her stomach roll. Then she watched in horrified fascination as the gaping hole slowly closed, leaving nothing more than a tear in his shirt. He licked his lips.

  “I am so going to enjoy you.”

  Her heart stopped. His words and his ability to heal his wounds so quickly… Shit. She’d never encountered such a person before.

  Without hesitation, she sent the remaining three rods at him. She didn’t wait to see if he could free himself so easily from all of them at once. She turned back to her SUV, unlocked the door with the key that was still stuck in the lock, jumped inside, and locked the doors. Then she started the SUV and peeled out of the alley.

  She had no qualms about where she needed to go. The Moonlight Resort. Not only did she have to warn Graham Masterson, but the Moonlight Resort was the only place she knew she’d be safe.

  Chapter One

  Shaking with cold, Jane struggled to open the Moonlight Resort’s lobby door. Until now, adrenaline had kept her warm, despite the frigid temperature and snow outside. She stopped short inside the large foyer. The sudden heat on her sodden clothes made her feel even colder. Gooseflesh covered her like sharp nails. She clenched her teeth together to keep them from chattering.

  The lobby was extravagant. Flames licked the logs filling the huge circular stone fireplace in the center of the room, sending out waves of warmth. The alluring aroma of coffee and chocolate from the café on the other side of the curved registration desk penetrated her senses. She would kill for a cup of coffee right now. Three kids were making s’mores at the fireplace. Her stomach twisted and gurgled, letting her know she hadn’t eaten in a while. The place was filled with noise and laughter and motion as people ate and enjoyed the evening.

  She quickly glanced down at herself. She looked like she’d been in a major fight. Fire burned through the numerous skinned areas all over her body. With the way her right shoulder blade felt, she could have sworn it had a knife stuck in it. Her head throbbed as if tiny men beat away at her skull with sledgehammers and ice picks. Her snow boots caught her eye. Thank goodness she’d worn them; her feet were the only thing dry and uninjured on her.

  Her skirt had been ripped up the right seam and revealed several inches of a scraped thigh. The back of her blouse was probably dirty from where she’d been shoved against the bricks. She rolled her shoulder. Oh yeah; it was ripped too.

  She swallowed hard. It was impossible to calm her hammering heart. She was safe here. At least, she told herself she was safe.

  What if she wasn’t?

  Whether she was or she wasn’t, it couldn’t be helped. There was nowhere else she could go where she was safe. And she needed to warn Graham Masterson.

  Jane deeply inhaled, trying to dredge up some courage. She tensed her body to keep the shivers that were coming fast and strong at bay. With purposeful strides, she made her way to the front desk. The clerk behind the counter looked up. The automatic smile she wore disappeared the moment she took in Jane’s appearance.

  “How can I help you?” the young girl asked, her blonde ponytail swinging behind her.

  “I need to see Mr. Masterson immediately.” Jane leaned against the counter and fought the urge to rest her weary head in the palm of her hand. She wished like hell for a drink of water.

  “Perhaps I should call the hotel doctor or an ambulance for you instead. Did you fall on the slopes or something?”

  Yeah. She always wore a skirt and blouse to go skiing. And did this cute little clerk wearing a bit too much eyeliner see her wearing any ski gear? She gripped the
polished marble counter in an effort not to grab the girl by her polo shirt. Jane couldn’t touch her. Not now. The last thing she needed was to feel anyone’s emotions. Blood still felt like it coursed through her veins at a hundred miles an hour. Jane looked at the girl’s name badge.

  “Mandy?” When the girl nodded, Jane continued. “I don’t need an ambulance or the hotel doctor.” Well, yes, I probably do, come to think of it. “I need to speak with Mr. Masterson. It’s urgent.”

  “Do you have an appointment?”

  Hell, she did not have time for this. “No, I don’t. I’m sorry to say that when emergencies come up, you can’t always plan for them with a two or three days’ notice.”

  “Would you like me to make one?”

  Mandy’s high voice was like salt rubbing into every one of her wounds. Jane forced in another deep breath before she could speak. “Yes, please do.” She glanced at her watch and hoped to hell Mandy caught the sweet sarcasm in her words. “I need to see Mr. Masterson in the next thirty seconds.”

  Another man approached. “Excuse me. I’m Tim, the concierge. May I help you?”

  Didn’t concierges generally work on getting people better accommodations or tickets to the ballet?

  Jane didn’t care as long as he got her to Mr. Masterson. Mandy smiled. Probably relieved to be handing Jane off to someone else. “I hope so. I need to see Mr. Masterson right away.”

  “And you don’t have a scheduled appointment?”

  Jane cleared her throat. “No.”

  “It’s after six. Mr. Masterson may no longer be in his office. Would you mind stepping over here, please?”

  Jane thought it was a waste of valuable time—time she and Mrs. Masterson didn’t have—but in order to keep from wasting any more, she followed Tim to his small sitting area next to the concierge podium. She licked her lips and ignored the heat of all the stares she felt touch her back from the patrons moving through the lobby.

  “Please, sit down,” he offered as he sat.

  “No, thank you. I don’t have the time.” She also didn’t have the patience for this small talk or the strength to get back up if she did sit down. “Please, I need to see Mr. Masterson. It’s urgent.”

  “And whom shall I tell him needs to see him?”

  She felt something warm on her right knee. It would serve him right if she bled all over the plush carpet. “Jane Smyth, not that my name will mean anything to him. Please, this really is urgent—a matter of life and death—that I speak to him, in person.”

  “In regard to what?”

  A horrific vampire wants to kill him and claim his wife. “Nothing I can relay to you, I’m sorry. I can say that I believe his wife is in danger.”

  Jane watched as his gaze moved from her face down to the rip in her skirt. Jane gritted her teeth together so hard her jaw hurt. She considered telling him the wet T-shirt—or in her case, blouse—contest would cost him fifty dollars. His slow study left her feeling foolish and naked and somehow like this was all her fault.

  It wasn’t.

  “Mr. Masterson is the owner of this resort as well as many others—”

  Jane had reached the limit to her patience. “I’m well aware of that,” she snapped. Fatigue clawed at her insides, and she had no choice but to reach out and grasp the chair she’d previously refused. “I need to see him. Please.”

  She almost clapped when he picked up his cell phone and touched the screen. She was getting somewhere. She took a moment to look around. The resort was packed, but Jane expected nothing less, considering the Moonlight was in the heart of the Rockies and provided the best in entertainment and sport. A few people looked her way, but for the most part, they were too caught up in their own lives to be concerned about her.

  Jane pursed her lips but stopped when the action made her chin hurt. The pain reminded her of the punch she’d taken. Tim grabbed her attention as he ended the call, absently reaching out and touching her hand.

  She was too tired to react, too slow to step away.

  Tim’s worry hit her like a snowball in the face. His wife and young daughter were sick with the flu. And all he wanted was to get rid of Jane and finish his shift without any problems so he could go home to them. She heard his thoughts as if he spoke them: Geez, what the hell has this woman been doing? Roller Derby? I need to get finished with her and get out of here.

  “There will be someone with you in a moment,” Tim said.

  That meant she’d have to go through someone else before she met Graham Masterson face-to-face. Hell. She blew her bangs away from her face. Well, if anything happened to his pretty wife, she knew she’d done everything she could. There were just too many roadblocks. Besides, now that she’d had time to slow down and not feel like she was running for her life, she wasn’t so sure after all that this was the safest place she could possibly be. However, until she thought of something better, she had no choice but to stay.

  “Are you sure you won’t have a seat while you wait?”

  Jane didn’t return his smile. “I’m sure.”

  “At least let me get you a towel or a blanket.”

  A blanket sounded wonderful but bulky. “A towel would be fine, thank you.”

  It took him a moment to move to the desk and get her a large, plush, white towel. She often wondered how hotels kept their linens so white. Perhaps that was a question for Mr. Masterson—when she ever got to talk to him. She was careful not to touch Tim again as she took the towel from him and used it to dry off.

  “Whom am I waiting for?”

  “There he is now.” Tim nodded toward the elevators.

  When Jane saw the man who exited the elevator and now strode toward them, her heart picked up its pace. It was impossible to look away.

  Hell, it was impossible to breathe.

  It was him. Oh… Oh… Oh… She couldn’t even think enough to utter an oath. She’d always known he existed—she had, after all, bumped into him before, had touched him—and had seen so much in that slight brush of skin against skin. She had never expected to see him again, though, except while she slept. He was the man who filled her dreams, the man who made her panties wet with warmth right now.

  Yet, although he might fill her nights with passion, by day, he was little more than a monster in her nightmare. Despite the passion he shared with her in her dreams, she had planned to never see him in real life.

  Too late for that.

  He paused for a moment when he saw her. It was a quick hesitation. Tim probably didn’t notice, but Jane did. For a long moment, she didn’t breathe. She’d spent every night for the past two years with him, and yet she didn’t even know his name. His sandy hair and laughing gray eyes, as well as his slightly crooked nose and the rest of his body beneath his clothes, were as familiar to her as his lips on her skin.

  He made her scream, cry, giggle, laugh. In her dreams, he held her, kissed her, touched her, explored her, talked to her, and made passionate love to her—among other things while they visited exotic places. Did he dream of her as well? Jane couldn’t mistake the recognition she saw in his eyes.

  With each step that brought him closer to her, her insides tightened. Her nipples hardened. Her pussy quivered with anticipation. Damn, her body recognized him and reacted with need for his touch.

  His eyes were somber, serious. “Thank you, Tim. I’ll handle this from here.”

  She would have recognized his voice in complete darkness.

  “Of course, Mr. Drummond.”

  Mr. Drummond. Soft, light, perfect. His name left the tiny hairs on her arms standing at attention. His name floated over her like a feather against her flesh. Now she had a last name to go with his face, his body, his strong, experienced hands.

  Hold on a minute; time to backpedal. She had always known he was real, not a figment of her erotic dreams. She did, after all, remember touching him in the elevator so very long ago. She sucked in a deep breath and tried to bring some moisture to her cracked lips with her tongue, but it was too dry. She might be wet and freezing, but suddenly, she fought the urge to take off her clothes. Mr. Drummond turned his deep gray gaze on her, and Jane thought she might drown in it.