4. Claude
FOUR
CLAUDE
T he fire had truly stripped the establishment down to the bare bones. The gray chrome sky overhead brooded as Claude walked the grounds with Leigh, listening to her detailed descriptions and apt suggestions on not only the way to run Embraced , but how to make it lucrative. She impressed Claude with her knowledge and assertiveness. Clearly, it wasn’t her first rodeo.
But she also impressed him in a whole different way he wasn’t ready to acknowledge.
She was built like a wolf. Solid and capable with an enchanting beauty. Very similar to vampires, though vampires tended to be more wiry and compact. Claude was an exception to the rule, with broad shoulders and a chest and back like a concrete wall. The black and neatly coiffed hair gave him away only slightly, but not as much as the dark ambiance that followed him.
His quiet demeanor allowed him to absorb a lot. He found that people, especially supernaturals thirsty for power, revealed too much in their endless banter. He had met many wolves—and vampires—who hadn’t learned the art of shutting the fuck up.
Leigh wasn’t like him. Not in the slightest. But she wasn't like the others either. Her words were thoughtful and meticulous.
Claude was surprised to find himself enjoying that. Also, the way her black jeans hugged her thick thighs and her T-shirt pressed into her like a second skin.
Her face was stoic and hardened. But that stole nothing from her beauty. Nothing about Leigh Rosario was watered down.
Claude found himself losing focus as she spoke, studying the dew of her lips, the golden flicker of her eyes. He had to blink a few times to get himself back into the moment. Attraction to a wolf? What is going on?
"You do this a lot, don't you?"
Leigh had been pointing at the roofing structure, which had been completely replaced due to the incident, when he brusquely cut her off. She turned to him and let her arm flop down to her side. She appeared exasperated.
“Do what?” she said, clipped.
“Organize. Delegate. Work."
She glowered slightly, then one side of her mouth bowed upward. It was cute.
“Is it that easy to tell?"
Claude nodded, finding it difficult to keep his own smile away.
“Not that it isn’t efficient. It’s obviously worked for you many times."
Her smile came into full bloom. Something else, something magical and surreal bloomed inside the vampire's cold heart. It was terrifying but equally thrilling. It had been far too long since the last time Claude had connected with a potential lover.
And Leigh had, if nothing else, a great deal of potential. Even if nothing happened between them, simply being so close to a woman with such beauty and charm was sending his heart racing. But then, like a pail of cold water washing over him, he recalled she was a wolf.
And that was a problem.
“Looks like rain is coming," she said, gazing up at the sky. “How about we head inside? Let’s talk about the next steps."
Claude nodded, then watched the way her hips swung back and forth in front of him, hypnotizing and outrageously alluring.
Fuck. This has to stop.
Claude’s thoughts were like a runaway train. It wasn't just because she was an attractive wolf. Many vampires, including himself, were accustomed to having flings with species that weren’t their kind. Sex was one thing. But what was prodding at him from inside his chest like a blade was something else entirely.
The profoundness of the attraction made him ache. He knew of that kind of palpable, tenderly stunning agony of attraction from a distance. His cousin Aria had felt it, being mated to a half-wolf, half-vampire. It had certainly happened before with a full vampire and full wolf, as Maree was a full vampire, mated to a full wolf.
But Claude was still baffled. He followed Leigh inside the structure where the rattling of hammers and buzzing of drills died down as rumblings of rain encroached on their productivity. They stood in what had once been the lounge, and Leigh folded her arms over her chest.
Claude tried to ignore the way the gesture enhanced her cleavage.
“So the construction should be finished next week,” she began, eyes wandering overhead, wheels cranking in her mind. “Once that is finished, there’s hiring a decorator, obtaining a liquor license, hiring waitstaff, chefs, hostesses, planning a grand opening, advertising it on social media…”
Leigh trailed off, her chin raised to the ceiling as if attempting to summon her vision into reality. He could sense that her imagination was vivid. He had thought about her lending him her imagination, and his blood started to pump red hot.
Claude began to saunter, pretending his focus rested solely on the discussion.
“...I don’t know how you vampires do it."
“Hmm?”
“All this planning,” she responded, her hands having drifted to her hips. "I do it a certain way with the Wolfes, and they seem to enjoy it. It’s fruitful, so I’m assuming that's why Tristan asked me."
There was no venom in her tone. It was all matter-of-fact. Claude turned to her with his hands in his pockets, and her gaze snapped back at him.
For a moment, he felt dizzy. It was the same sensation vampires got when they were blood bound.
“There’s something my cousin wanted me to relay to you.”
"Is that so?”
She folded her arms again. That cute smirk bowed on her lips.
“Tell me then.”
He had to look away. There was no earthly way he was capable of looking into those hazel eyes and keeping track of his thoughts.
She had a way of derailing them.
Claude sauntered around the room again. All construction had ceased. Rain began to patter like drumming fingers against the plastic tarp that covered the new roofing.
“Aria doesn’t want the club to be what it used to be. She wants it open to both vampires and wolves. She wants to start fresh."
Claude gazed at Leigh and noticed how her lips had thinned out and her forehead creased magnificently. The transparency of her expressions was refreshing.
“I’m sorry,” she said, scoffing. “I’m not very good at masking my emotions, and I mean no offense to Aria. But that sounds a little insane to me.”
Claude took his hands from his pockets and raised them into the air, feeling somewhat relieved.
“I’ll level with you, Leigh. It sounds quite risky to me as well. But change does have to start somewhere, I suppose."
Leigh sighed, then brought her fingers to the bridge of her nose. Claude felt compelled to approach her.
“I mean. I don't think she's wrong,” Leigh said, shaking her head slightly. “I think it could be dangerous is all. But I’m not the one who's going to run the club."
The exasperation Claude had spotted earlier made its triumphant return. There were bags under Leigh’s eyes the shade of bruises, and a heaviness to her stance. He felt an urge to comfort her, for what he didn’t know, and reached out a hand to graze Leigh’s wrist.
Her skin was warm and so very soft. He could feel the slightest hint of a pulse beating through her veins and up his arm, mingling with his own. He silently reveled when he felt it pick up, feeling distinctly as if this was a sensation that was as easy as breathing.
Leigh’s eyelids flickered for a moment when their skin touched. Time stood still for Claude as gentle electricity surged through him. He had a vision of a lightning storm with dreamlike colors painting the sky.
“Maybe it’s time that our people start getting along?” he said, feeling possessed. "Not that I’m the leader on the matter. But Aria is wise for her age. It would save a lot of headaches if we all tried a bit."
Leigh was at a loss for words.
“Uhh, yes, I mean, I don’t think you’re wrong, like I said…it’s only that I…”
Suddenly, Claude realized what he was doing, and snatched his hand away. He cleared his throat in both embarrassment and bewilderment.
“Sorry. I just remembered that I have to pick something up. For the club, I mean…" Claude stuttered.
“Oh?” she asked.
“Yes, for one of the other clubs. I’ll be back though. I apologize for having to leave so quickly. Thank you for the tour."
Claude spun on his heel and rushed to the door. He pushed it open, smacking into the tarp that drooped overhead and splashing rainwater into his face. It felt like a slap.
“Fuck!” he muttered.
He continued the rushed movement back to his car. He reeled from what he had just done. How foolish he had been to reach out and touch her like that. He didn’t even know why he’d done it. They’d just met, why did he think he had any right to put his hands on her? And why did he want to?
Claude jumped into the front seat and shoved the keys into the ignition. He really didn’t have anywhere to go. But he ran anyway, an intimidating vampire brought down by a mere woman.
He looked back at the establishment. He wondered if Leigh was thinking of him, what she was doing. Was she giggling, adorable, and soft? Or was she offended?
Claude forced himself to drive off. There was no point in going back in. He had no idea what was going on inside himself. He had to regain control again before he saw her.
He had to speak to someone in authority about it.