Hunted Holiday

Chapter One

"Come on, Dani."

Dani Malloye eyed her friend Mimi cautiously, positive the girl had finally lost it and the mental break had come in the form of excess holiday cheer. Apparently, when Dani had, in casual conversation, mentioned she hadn't celebrated the holidays in years, Mimi had seen that as a challenge and accepted it.

Tenfold.

Mimi had already spent the greater part of the snowy Chicago day unloading box after box of Christmas decorations onto Dani's snow-covered front yard in an attempt to "get Dani in the mood" for the season. No amount of setting the scene would ever get Dani on board with the holidays.

She flinched, wanting to keep from slipping into remembered pain. She wasn't thirteen anymore. She wasn't helpless. Ten years had passed and she had embraced her destiny. She was no longer weak or terrified. Even with the sense of empowerment, Dani couldn't make her way back to finding happiness at this time of year. But there was no sense in ruining Mimi's love of it all.

With a slow, measured breath, Dani pushed a smile to her face, wanting to look happy for the sake of her friend. Currently, Dani had concerns about her yard being a fire hazard once the decorations were actually plugged in. So far, the only thing dancing through her head was images of her electric meter spinning. That was a bill she had no interest in seeing.

She made good money as a slayer, or the new politically correct term—Preternatural Enforcer—but she didn't flaunt money or spend unwisely. There had been a time when she'd lived on the streets, unsure where her next meal would come from or even if it would come. While that had changed, she wasn't one to spend needlessly.

Mimi, having grown up in the lap of luxury, didn't really have any true concept of money. The girl still lived in her family's huge mansion on the other side of the city, and more often than not, Mimi had her own personal driver to cart her around. She didn't have to work, but she did anyway. She was one of the Preternatural Magiks with Chicago's Bureau of Paranormal Investigation (CBPI). The people in charge liked to ration them out to the teams of enforcers, just in case a magik was needed. Mimi was on the same team as Dani. They'd met during training and had clicked right away. Dani and Mimi had grown up with very different backgrounds, but that hadn't stopped them from becoming the best of friends.

The minute Dani spotted a giant light-up Santa, still in the box, standing almost as tall as her, she shook her head, needing to stop the insanity before it became an even bigger eyesore. "No way. I'm vetoing that one."

"Come on, Dani," Mimi pleaded, her light blue eyes wide and her bottom lip jutted forward, pouting, as her red hair poked out from under her knitted cap. The girl had a way of getting Dani to agree to just about anything. It was the power of the best friend code of ethics. That, or big sad eyes. Dani wasn't sure.

"The Santa was too cute for me to resist," added Mimi.

Dani paused, considering letting Mimi have her way. "No."

"Dani, you have to admit he's adorable." Mimi tugged on the end of the box, doing her best to get Super Santa free from his packaging. From the looks of it, Super Santa weighed a ton.

Stretching her arms above her head in an attempt to ease her stiffness, Dani kept making a noise that indicated no way. That noise was quickly replaced by a grunt when she overstretched her tired and sore muscles.

Mimi eyed her. "Did you get checked in the infirmary after last night's scuffle?"

"Scuffle" was a mild word for it. Millennium Park had been the scene of one hell of a battle between those who tried to police the supernaturals, and a select group of supernaturals, who had decided they wanted to do as they pleased —and doing as they pleased meant attacking humans.

That was a no-go.

Dani, a skilled slayer, and the few enforcers with her, had been grossly outnumbered when they'd been ambushed. She'd nearly gotten her ass handed to her once or twice during it all, but had come out on top. Several baddies had escaped and the CBPI was on it. If any of the perps resurfaced, the enforcers would be notified.

"I'm good. Sore, but good," said Dani, though she was a bit worse off than she cared to admit. "But I'm still drawing the line on Super Santa."

"Holiday mood killer," mumbled Mimi.

Dani was about to comment when the hairs on the back of her neck prickled, wanting to stand on end but resisting. Her slayer side was more sensitive to certain types of supernaturals. That happened with a lot of slayers. Dani's easy-to-sense supernaturals were vampires.

A smile wanted to form on her face when she put together which vampire in particular was watching her. The only one she'd ever had the hots for. The one who just happened to be her boss. She resisted, doing her best to act as if she didn't sense him there, his gaze on her from afar.

Do not look over at his house. Do not, she repeated to herself.

Cornell Sutton, member of one of the ruling vampire families and one of the heads of her division of CBPI. More specifically, he was her direct boss and just happened to be a hunk. Tall, sinewy, with ink-black hair that hung just past his chiseled jaw line and eyes so dark it was often hard to tell when his demon rode his body. Like most vampires, he was on the pale side, but he worked it.

Man, oh man, did he work it.

Dani's entire body tightened with thoughts of Cornell. He always smelled like cinnamon and baked goods to her. Every vampire had a natural scent. His reminded her of apple pie, which was her one weakness. She'd once asked Mimi if she too smelled baked goods around Cornell, but Mimi had stared at her like she was nuts.

Didn't matter. The guy smelled yummy enough to eat.

Too bad he was her boss and a stick-in-the-mud. He was a by-the-book kind of guy. Always harping on her about the rules and regulations. About her duties. About her wild ways.

Mostly, she tuned him out, disliking authority figures and following orders. She thought she'd one-upped him with her streak of defiance, but then, two years ago, he'd done the unimaginable.

The jerk had bought the property next to Dani's house as well as the next two properties beyond that, had the previous homes on the lots demolished, and then had commissioned the building of a giant, gothic-feeling mansion with matching grounds. The place did not fit into the suburban area one bit. It stuck out like a sore thumb, but he'd done it all the same. It had been completed six months prior, and for those long six months Dani had found herself living next door to her boss. He was probably watching her because he had plans to scold her for her juvenile behavior.

Yep, a total stick-in-the-mud.

A hot one.

But a stick all the same.

She shook her head at her friend. "Mimi, I'm drawing the line there. I think three Santas are plenty already. I'm not sure we need a giant one on top of the others. Last time I checked, there was only one Santa Claus. There were also only eight tiny reindeer." She made quotes with her mitten-covered fingers and then attempted to push her long blonde hair back up and under her stocking cap without much in the way of success. She simply had too much hair to tame. "Catch the tiny and only eight part?"

Grinning, Mimi shrugged. "Hey, those were on sale and my brother won't let me decorate our grounds, so you get to deal with me, like it or not."

Sale for Mimi probably still meant she'd overpaid for everything, not to mention that she didn't really understand buying in moderation. Dani didn't even want to guess at what went into the current haul.

Dani touched her chin, pondering. "Have you ever wondered why it's eight reindeer and not, say, twelve or even twenty? I mean, look at the guy they get charged with pulling—he ain't tiny."

Mimi groaned. "Dani, do not mock Santa."

"Mimi," she said softly, hating to be the bearer of the obvious. "You do realize you're Fae and that in itself says the odds of you being Christian and celebrating a—"

Mimi frowned. "I always wanted to celebrate, but my family didn't see the point. Conrad thinks I'm silly. I like it. I like the idea of it, and honestly, there are some interesting overlaps with Christmas and Fae religious beliefs, which aren't that far from what the druids believe."

Dani grunted. "I have never had a group of Fae show up at my door, caroling."

Mimi snorted. "Yet."

"True."

"It shouldn't matter what religion I am," said Mimi, holding her current decoration of choice much like a teddy bear. "I want to celebrate, so I am."

"You should have baby-stepped it and just went with a tree," offered Dani.

Mimi sighed, a defeated expression coming over her. "I knew I forgot something."

It took all of Dani's strength not to laugh. "You mean to tell me you went through all this trouble, but you don't have a tree?"

"Yes," said Mimi, looking dispirited. "I forgot the tree."

"When I was reporting in to Cornell, I noticed he had a bunch of them around his place. I can steal one of his."

"Danielle Malloye, you will not be a grinch," said Mimi, her eyes wide.

"The guy is loaded and I'm pretty sure he had his minions do the heavy lifting. Doubt he'd notice one missing."

Mimi paused. "So, tell me about your last visit with Mr. Hot 'n' Hunky Boss Man."

Rolling her eyes, Dani bent and gathered some snow, packing it into a snowball. "Not much to tell. After that big bust down at Millennium Park, which he showed up at, by the way, he then demanded I return to his home with him, rather than the office. I did. He let everyone else involved go to the office."

"Don't you think it's weird that you live next door to one of Chicago's most influential vampires?" asked Mimi.

Dani shrugged. "I've no idea why he picked here to build. Oak Tree Ridge is hardly up-and-coming or a happening section of town."

Mimi grinned. "Gee. I wonder."

"What does that mean?"

Mimi licked her lips. "I'm sure I have no idea."

Dani tried to hide her blush. "It was so weird. He burst in like a superhero during the battle and started ripping through the bad guys. When the rest had scattered to the winds, Cornell walked around me in circles, scowled, told me I should have waited for him to get there before even entering the area—like I was supposed to know it was going to be an ambush—and then he demanded to know about all the injuries I'd sustained."

Mimi snorted. "He offer to kiss any?"

"Be serious."

"I am," Mimi said, pointing to Cornell's house. "The man built his house practically on top of you. I don't think it's a reach to say he'd certainly kiss your sore spots. And your non-sore ones."

Cornell's house sat just behind an iron fence he'd had erected within days of the construction on the main house coming to a close. He had two hellhounds that, while adorable, at least in Dani's eyes, couldn't be permitted to roam the neighborhood unattended. Humans tended to freak out if they did.

As if hellhounds made eating humans an event. They preferred demons.

Everyone knew that.

Okay, not everyone, but certainly anyone who knew anything about hellhounds knew as much. It wasn't like humans were new to supernaturals. Since the supernaturals' giant coming-out party in the mid-seventies, humans had been getting schooled on the paranormal. Dani was too young to have been around during the Paranormal Awakening, as the media had termed supernaturals outing themselves. She'd read about what had happened back then.

It hadn't been pretty for either side.

"Hey, Dani, look!" yelled Mimi, holding another decoration in the air.

Dani highly doubted Cornell would be too happy with the idea of living next to a winter wonderland. If she thought hard enough, she'd have to admit to herself she'd given Mimi the okay to proceed with decorating in the hopes it would irritate Cornell.

Sighing, Dani strongly suspected she'd be dealing with a few angry neighbors before the week was done, and one would be her boss. She was already public enemy number one as far as the Homeowners Association went. Dani seemed to collect citations. The jerkwad in charge of the thing disliked supernaturals in a big way. He was one of the human purists. A crazy group who thought by protesting everything to do with supernaturals, they'd somehow get them to go away. Guess he didn't understand they'd been here longer than the humans. Then again, she doubted he cared.

"Where should I put him?" Mimi asked, holding up a light-up elf. It was clutching a book with holly on the front of it.

Dani blinked several times. "In the Shire?"

Mimi appeared confused.

No surprise. Dani's geeky side and her references to it normally fell flat with Mimi.

"Whatever you think is best," said Dani with a snort. As Mimi rushed off to see what, if any, open spots she had remaining in her spider web of extension cords, Dani's focus went to her boss's house once more. She could feel him there, watching her still. It warmed her to an extent, though she wasn't sure why.

Because you're totally into him.

She groaned, disliking her inner thoughts for pointing out what she tried very hard to deny.

"I'm bored," called Dani. They'd been at the decorating for hours. Or rather, Mimi had been decorating and Dani had been trapped outside, watching the holiday horror take shape.

Mimi lifted what looked like a harp from another box. Dear gods above, the girl had managed to get her hands on a harp. "You could help me decorate."

"I'm not that bored," returned Dani, considering taking the harp and some of Mimi's other decorations and putting them over on the doom-and-gloom, yet well-kept, property.

A little spreading of the holiday cheer.

Cornell would be livid.

She smiled, liking the idea more and more.

Dani couldn't help but laugh as she glanced at a set of stone gargoyles that flanked the large staircase to his front door. They'd look wicked cool with some holly around their necks. Maybe some tinsel on them as well. She blew on her mitten-covered hands, doing her best to regain some sort of feeling in them. It didn't work. Snow had soaked through the mittens and pretty much left her hands icy cold. "I'm freezing and I'm hungry."

"You're like a small child," her friend said with a chuckle. "Often I feel like our quality time together is me babysitting you, and you're a grown woman."

"Oh yeah, I'm the one with the kid complex." Dani motioned to the still unpacked boxes of decorations. The delivery truck that had arrived early in the morning had been packed to the point of near bursting. "Often I buy out entire department stores of their holiday collections and insist on putting them all up, on the same day, at the same house. Yep, me for sure."

With a snort, Mimi shook her hand and motioned to Dani's house. "I made gingerbread cookies, and can make us some cocoa when we're done."

Dani sighed. "I'd say I'm shocked you have cookies and cocoa waiting, but we both know that would be a bold-faced lie. I'd be more shocked if your gingerbread men didn't have cute little gingerbread women to go with them."

Mimi blushed.

Pointing, Dani laughed. "I knew it!"

"I'm predictable. So what?" Mimi shrugged. "Sometimes it's a good thing."

Mimi was right. It was good to know that no matter what, Dani could count on her.

Knowing she wasn't going to be able to leave Mimi unattended without fear of a fire, Dani set about keeping herself occupied without aiding in the decorating. She gathered snow and began the mindless task of building an obscene snowman. Each time Dani managed to get it at least half-done, Mimi came past and knocked it over. Apparently, making men from snow and giving them enlarged testicles wasn't considered festive in Mimi's book. It wasn't in Dani's either, but getting under Mimi's skin always appealed to her.

What are besties for?

After a quick trip into the house, Dani returned with the last of what she needed to complete her masterpiece—a carrot. She shoved the carrot in the snowman to represent his penis and smiled widely. "Ah, now that's decorating."

"Help me. He's stuck," Mimi said, wiggling her backside to the Christmas music she'd insisted on playing from her cell phone as she yanked on the oversized Santa, trying to free him from his box. "He's too big."

Dani laughed. "Is there such a thing as a man who is too big? Speaking of size, I need a bigger carrot for my snowman. Hmm, do you think a cucumber would work better?"

"Dani, get that off there!" Mimi shrieked.

"Fine. Go ahead. Suck the joy out of that holiday spirit you were so anxious for me to get."

Mimi gasped as she lost her grip on the Santa. She fell backward and hit Dani, knocking her to the ground with a thud. A dull ache centered at the base of Dani's skull. "Ouch."

"Crap. Sorry," said Mimi, trying but failing to get up. "Slippery spot. There are a bunch of them out here."

The coppery taste of blood filled Dani's mouth. She swallowed and bit back a groan as her already battered body adjusted to the newest onslaught of discomfort. Mimi would worry if Dani dared to let on that she'd not fully healed from the battle the night before. As a slayer, Dani healed nearly as fast as most supernaturals. But she'd gotten pretty knocked around and it would take her at least another day to be back to something close to normal. "Way to draw first blood."

"Well, it really is the only way I can get a lick in on you," Mimi said, laughing as she went to sit up.

Grabbing her friend's wrist, Dani winked, keeping Mimi held down to the ground. "It's snow angel time."

"Dani?" Shocked didn't even begin to cover the expression Mimi had on her face.

"You heard me. I'm letting out that inner child of mine. The one you were complaining about. Snow angels. Now. Or I go back to erotic snowman-building. Only this time"—she put her hands out wide—"I'll make his cock the size of a zucchini."

"I hate it when you use those words in public," Mimi snipped, wrinkling her nose as Dani swooshed her arms and legs out, making her snow angel. "You could be a little more ladylike. It wouldn't kill you."

Grinning, Dani tossed a handful of snow at her. "Here I thought zucchini was a 'Mimi correct' word for it."

Mimi wiped the snow from her face and rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. I swear, you let the first thing that comes into your mind fly right out. And do you ever think about anything but sex?"

"Yes, dear. Visions of sugarplums will be dancing through my head all night. If, and only if, the nightmares take a break long enough to allow that to happen." No part of her wanted to upset Mimi with talk of the past, so Dani put her hand out and smiled. "Come on, you can help me castrate the snowman. When we're done there, I've got three, almost four Santas we could do too. Oh, and twelve non-tiny reindeer. Wow, we could be at this all night."

She pushed to her feet and made a move to rush toward the large Santa. Mimi grabbed her ankle and laughed. "Danielle, you are not going to deface Christmas decorations!"

"Not deface, de-dick, darling." Twisting, slightly, Dani attempted to break Mimi's hold on her without harming Mimi. The second she realized it wasn't going to work, Dani gave in and fell forward. Mimi picked then to let go of her, leaving Dani slipping on a patch of ice. Both of them ended up on their backs in the snow again, laughing.

Chapter Two

"There a reason you keep staring out that window? You've been doing it since sunset when I got here."

Cornell Sutton slipped his fingers around his whiskey tumbler, his dark gaze remaining in place as he stared out the window of his study and into the neighbor's front yard. He couldn't look away. She was out tonight, playing, enjoying herself, looking so carefree. She held his attention, unlike any other woman ever had or ever would.

Dani Malloye.

He longed for these rare moments when he could see her without any cares or worries and without her knowledge. She was always so guarded when she was around him and aware of his presence. Last night, he'd had to fight to keep from drawing her into his arms and holding her until dawn's break. She had been injured in a battle, one he was sure had been staged to lure his enforcers out and then ambush them.

When he'd happened upon her in the alley and found her staggering, holding her side and bleeding, his rage had nearly taken hold of him. The demon he shared his body with had wanted to unleash its hell upon Dani's attackers. Several had managed to elude capture, but he planned to hunt them on this night. They probably thought themselves safe, having lasted the day. However, they were anything but.

He had their scent.

And they'd dared to harm his Dani.

Oh, they would most certainly pay.

For now, he would watch the blonde who captivated him as she continued her youthful antics, bringing a smile to his face. A face that belonged to a man who all too often forgot to find pleasure and happiness in the things around him—a fault many immortals suffered from. Becoming jaded was easy to do.

As of late, Cornell had found himself falling into the trap. But he had Dani. She was his salvation. His tie to humanity, though he'd never actually been human.

She was a curious woman, one who managed to always keep him guessing. He knew of her past. Of the horrors she'd endured at a young age at the hands of those like him—vampires. When Cornell had been informed of what Dani had suffered through, he'd gone on a hunt for those who had harmed her and he made them pay—for weeks on end, again and again. Until they understood what a mistake it had been to harm Dani and those she loved.

Of what an error it had been to ever lay a hand upon his woman.

Mine.

Burning-hot need rushed over him, and he held his drink so tight he was amazed he didn't shatter the glass. He had spent years longing for the woman, wanting to know the feel of her body against his, the taste of her lips, the sound she would make when coming.

"Ignoring me now, are you?" asked his best friend and fellow vampire, Finn Mackay. The man's brogue had never waned in all the years he'd lived in the States.

Many supernaturals that had centuries under their belts tended to cling to certain aspects of old. Cornell did so in the form of his home. He had it built from memory, based off his home from long ago in Europe. This was not the first time he'd had the castle-like mansion recreated. It would more than likely not be the last, either.

"No. I am not ignoring you, despite how much I am considering it," returned Cornell. "There is a reason I'm looking out the window. And I suspect you already know what that reason is."

Finn whistled low and laughed. "Aye, you mean who. And my money would be on the tall blonde, not the tiny redhead, though she's a looker. I would nae kick her out of my bed for eatin' crackers."

Cornell sighed, as all the reasons why he could never have Dani for himself, despite what the Fates appeared to think, rushed over him. She was a natural-born slayer. He was a vampire. She was his subordinate. He was her boss. The list went on and on. "It could never work."

He watched as she danced around an obviously male snowman she'd built that was anatomically correct. Dani's friend Mimi seemed too focused on adding light-up decorations to an already over-lit display to notice Dani's antics.

Cornell had been obsessed with the young slayer since he'd first met her five years back, upon her completion of slayer training, and right before she had been officially brought into the Bureau for agent training. She was eighteen at the time. Far too young for him to have the feelings and desires he'd had stirring inside him. Cornell had placed a trusted friend in charge of overseeing Dani's training within the Bureau, knowing his willpower was pushed too far when it came to the stubborn blonde.

The last few years had been sweet agony for him, being near her day in and day out, yet not in the way he wished and longed for. He wanted her in his bed, by his side as a mate should be. He didn't bother denying what he and his demon knew to be true—the real reason why he felt so drawn to her.

She's my mate.

He knew the truth, though he'd not admitted it out loud just yet, let alone to her or anyone else. Besides, she wouldn't be open to hearing such a proclamation from him. She always came off as disliking him greatly. It didn't matter. He was more than fond of her.

With as old as he was, he knew better than to fight nature. It ended poorly for any who tried, and for some reason, many supernatural males did. They thought if they buried their heads in the sand, and pretended what was before their very nose was not true, then they could continue living the way they'd become accustomed to. He supposed it was a flaw of most alpha males, it didn't matter what type of supernatural they were.

As a natural-born vampire, Cornell had never been a slave to his demon to the extent the sired were. But when it came to Dani Malloye, he found himself no more able to control his demon side than a newly sired vampire fledgling.

He moved his free hand to the window as he stared out at her, watching her laughing with her friend. It was difficult to keep from smiling as well—her expression was that infectious. He wanted to touch her, to know the feel of her skin. Countless hours were spent fantasizing about what she would feel like beneath him, his cock buried deep in her, their bodies intertwined.

"Corny, old buddy, old pal," said Finn, interrupting Cornell's thoughts. "I can smell your arousal and I do nae want to be here if yer going to start jerkin' off. As close as we are, I have to draw the line somewhere. I pick there."

Groaning, Cornell cast a speculative look over the top of his glass at Finn, who sat with his legs open, beer in hand. The beer was foaming over the sides of the glass and down his hand, onto a sofa worth thousands. "I greatly dislike being called Corny."

"I know," returned Finn with a waggle of his dark brows. "'Tis why I do it."

Figures.

Finn stood and approached, dripping beer on his way over the oriental area rug, before joining Cornell at the window. "I see the way you look at her. And let's nae forget where we're standing, in the home you had built to be near her. That is nae creepy at all. Nope. Nae a bit."

He had to admit that it was over the top to build his home directly next to Dani's, yet he'd been unable resist being near her any longer.

Cornell wondered when and how he'd become such good friends with Finn. The Suttons weren't known for their fun and fancy-free ways. Kendrick, one of Cornell's brothers, was even worse. He lived by the rules and found comfort in routine. He was a born leader. Also, Kendrick had a low tolerance for Finn. Finn often goaded him when the opportunity presented itself. That was probably part of the problem. Cornell had always found Finn's outlook refreshing and welcomed it. They'd been friends for centuries, but some days he did wonder how, since they had very little in common. He enjoyed Finn's lust for life. Many vampires lost themselves over the years, moving far from their human ways.

Not Finn.

While Finn was certainly a force to be reckoned with in vampire circles, he kept hold of his humanity, but that was perhaps because he had started out as human. Unlike Cornell and his siblings. Finn's ability to stay removed from his demon— something almost unheard of in those who had been sired—had been what prompted Cornell to ask the man to oversee Dani's training. And Finn had done him proud.

Cornell stared out the window, his gut clenching. "She was injured last night."

"She's fine. I read the report. Banged up but fine, Cornell."

He stiffened, regret washing over him, sinking deep and settling there. "I should have been there to help her from the start."

"Her job is dangerous and she's good at it," Finn said, his tone light. "One of your team's best enforcers."

"I know, but it changes nothing. I let her be harmed," he said, feeling defeated. He'd been tied up with another matter and had been unable to shadow Dani as he normally did.

"You've got it bad for her." Laughing, Finn shook Cornell's shoulder lightly. "Go over and speak to her. Nae as her boss but as a man. I seem to recall a time, long ago, when you were verra guid with the ladies. Try to remember what that was like."

"What would I say?" he asked. The man he'd been long ago had left no trace of himself behind. He was a mere shadow of who he'd once been when it came to Dani. Once upon a time, he had wooed women to his bed nightly, using them to sate his needs—both sexually and blood-related—and then he'd send them away, having no desire for repeat visits. Dani was different. He ached for her so much that it tested his limits. Much more and something would give. He wasn't sure what, and that terrified him. "At times, I run out of work-related items to discuss with her."

"Offer to stuff her stockin'. Ladies love it when they get pumped full of a big one."

Cornell choked on his whiskey and Finn patted his back.

"See, the idea of fillin' her with yer holiday cheer has you speechless," returned Finn with another chuckle.

Cornell groaned. "It really is amazing I don't stake you myself."

"I know, right?" Finn clapped his hands. "I'm also right about you needing to make yer move. If you do nae, she might find some handsome bastard and decide to shack up with him. You think seeing her get a little bruised on a hunt is bad. Imagine seeing her get the hell fucked out of her. She's young and in the prime of her life. I do nae think she's going to remain single forever. Do you?"

The very thought of Dani with another man set Cornell's teeth on edge. His demon reared up, threatening to force fangs to show as his mood soured. He pushed his glass of whiskey at Finn and stormed toward the door, grabbing his coat as well. As a vampire he was already cooler than most and he wasn't a fan of the bitter cold any more than anyone else.

Finn downed the last of the whiskey and rushed up behind him, laughing. "I do nae want to miss this. 'Bout time you vampired-up, Corny." He withdrew his cell. "I may record this so yer brothers believe me when I retell the tale."

Cornell gave him a piercing look. "I am about to make a move on my mate and you're worried about how this will appear when retold?"

"Aye." He waggled his brows. "I should call Matthew. He'll nae believe it. He thinks vamps are pussies when it comes to claiming their mates."

Cornell came to a sudden stop and Finn ran into him from behind. "Why aren't you surprised I called Dani my mate?"

Finn chuckled. "Every one of us but you two seem to have figured it out, buddy."

"Really?"

"You should have heard yer sister," said Finn. "She's been threatening to lock the two of you in a room until you admit yer feelings for one another. Athena is strong. I'd be worried if I were you. Now, Operation Mate-Claiming has commenced. What can I do?"

"Avoid saying anything to piss her off," answered Cornell.

"So yer saying I should nae speak. Got it." Finn pointed. "Look, she's on the ground. Best you take advantage of this straight away. Yer already way behind on making a move here."

Cornell groaned as he took large steps through his snow-covered side yard in the direction of Dani's front yard.

"Did you get a glimpse of the snowman? Sweet mercy, if the lass is after a dick that is only as big as a carrot…"

Cornell looked over his shoulder. "Finish the sentence. I dare you."

"Nae. I'm guid."