BiteMe, page 1
BITE ME
An Ellora’s Cave Publication, August 2004
Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
1056 Home Ave.
Akron, OH 44310-3502
ISBN MS Reader (LIT) ISBN # 1-84360-870-7
Other available formats (no ISBNs are assigned):
Adobe (PDF), Rocketbook (RB), Mobipocket (PRC) & HTML
BITE ME © 2004 JACI BURTON
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. They are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.
Edited by Briana St. James.
Cover art by Syneca.
Bite Me
Jaci Burton
Dedication
For Charlie, who mesmerized me from the first hello and continues to do so with every look, every touch, every kiss. You are my forever love.
Chapter One
Gina Capelli had waited an eternity to meet a vampire. Tonight her dream was finally going to come true.
Of course, her vision of a happily-ever-after involving a stud from the world of the undead would be even more satisfying if she were to meet a real vampire. But since they didn’t exist, she’d have to satisfy herself by mingling with the people who played them on television.
After all, where had her butt been planted every Wednesday night for the past five years? In front of the television, of course, watching Bite Me, the nighttime soap opera about the lives of the rich, famous, gorgeous and fangy. It’s where she lived all her fantasies. She devoured the weekly episodes like the vampires did their prey.
Now she finally understood those Star Trek conventions, how all those fans hungrily satisfied their desire to live the space life by getting as close to the stars as possible. And in doing so, met up with other people like themselves who understood that they weren’t really odd, just devoted.
So what if her friends had thought her insane? She’d seen the advertisement for the annual convention and figured it was now or never.
Besides, this month was her birthday. The big birthday, the one she’d been dreading. She was damn well going to celebrate like crazy. And hopefully kill two birds with one stone in the process.
What a great thirtieth birthday present! Here she was in bright and glitzy Las Vegas, intending to finally rid herself of her unwanted virginity. Since the Bite Me television show was having their annual fan convention, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to give herself a birthday treat. And while she was here, she might as well find someone willing to help her out with the virginity problem.
Her virginity was just a technicality anyway. Years of vibrators had long ago taken care of whatever barrier had been there. But an actual man inside her? She hadn’t experienced that.
Yet.
This weekend, she would. Come hell or high water, she’d find a man willing to make love to her, even if she had to sell her soul to the devil to do it.
So maybe she wasn’t a movie star. And maybe she did carry around a few extra pounds. She was simply voluptuous, that’s all. And if a man wanted a woman with some flesh he could actually hold on to, then she was his gal.
Gina brushed her hand over the velvet gown and turned once again to examine herself in the mirror. She shook her head, unable to believe the transformation.
She was certainly on her way to living out her fantasy. She’d just planned to attend the convention, hoping to get a peek at the beautiful people she drooled over each week.
Then she’d entered the drawing. Filled out the form with all her personal information and a little paragraph about why she wanted to win. And then, shocker of all shockers, they’d called her name. She’d nearly fainted on the convention hall floor today when she heard her name over the loudspeaker.
For the first time in her life, she had won something. She was the grand prize winner in the Bite Me fan contest. She’d thought there’d be no way to get into the private black-tie ball tonight, but winning the contest changed that.
The entire day had been like a dream come true. Starting with a massage, then a hairstyle followed by a makeover. As if that wasn’t enough of a treat, she’d been sent to a premiere couturier to the stars to choose a dress for tonight. A damn designer dress! To top it off, after she was buffed and puffed and poufed and primped, a limo had arrived to escort her to the hotel. The culmination would be a front row table at the Bite Me invitation-only party with the cast and crew.
Gina felt like Cinderella. And now, standing in the ladies' room outside the ballroom, nervous butterflies pounding away at her stomach, she glanced in the mirror and for the first time in her life actually felt like the enchanted princess.
The red velvet gown hugged her curves, accentuated her cleavage and, with its off-the-shoulder sleeves, made her look damn sexy.
And damn sexy was not how she typically described herself.
She was a secretary in a law office. She wore pantsuits, not ball gowns. And she never, ever, got dressed up to go out.
Not like she ever had much opportunity anyway. Guys just didn’t go for her. She didn’t know why, and had long ago given up worrying about it.
But she damn well would not spend the rest of her life as a virgin.
Tonight she’d change that. Surely somewhere in that ballroom where a few hundred people gathered, there’d be one man who wanted to take her for a ride on the magic carpet mattress.
She smoothed back her hair, pleased with the way the stylist had curled her long, raven tresses in sexy little waves. And the makeup that accentuated her violet eyes. For a frumpy, fat Italian girl, she didn’t look too bad.
“Okay, Gina. Can’t hide in the bathroom all night. Get out there and find yourself a man.”
Sucking in a courage-inducing breath, she headed to the double doors of the ballroom. Several tuxedo-clad men stood there with clipboards in hand, wearing earpieces with microphones like they were Secret Service agents or something. She giggled, feeling all Hollywood-like. When she gave one of the men her name, he motioned to someone inside.
A tall, thin, very pale man approached her. “You must be our contest winner,” he said, enthusiastically shaking her hand. “I’m Marcus Williams with the Bite Me public relations team. Follow me.”
She nodded and trailed him through the throng of bodies, noticing that no one stopped and turned their head to gawk at her.
The beautiful people were in attendance tonight. Already she’d spotted several of the cast members, standing in the midst of their entourage. She wondered if Deacon Black would be seated anywhere near her. Strategically patting the digital camera she’d tucked into her little black bag, she swore she’d at least get a picture of him tonight.
Deacon was her idol, her fantasy man. He was the star of Bite Me, and every woman’s dream. Six-foot-two, perfect body, hair as black as a moonless midnight and eyes that matched. He was sex incarnate and she’d masturbated to many a whimpering orgasm with his face and body in her thoughts.
Too bad he was always photographed with a starlet or some other gorgeous woman on his arm. Gina didn’t stand a chance with a man like Deacon. Not in her reality, anyway. As far as her fantasies, well, he was as big a star in her nightly dreams as he was as an actor. And she’d had Deacon over and over again in the quiet solitude of her bedroom. He’d given Emmy Award-winning performances there, too.
“Here we go. The main table for you tonight, Miss Capelli.”
She gaped at Marcus, unable to believe there really was a seat for her at the main table. This was where the stars would sit. Her hands shook as she tried for a smile. “Thank you. And please, call me Gina.”
He nodded and patted her shoulder. “I’ll be taking you around to meet people shortly, but I have a few other things to do first. In the meantime, mingle and have a good time. There will be pictures later with the cast, so don’t leave, okay?”
Pictures? Yes! Her friends back in Seattle would never believe this had happened to her. At least she’d have photographs to prove it.
But mingle? How exactly was she supposed to do that? She could just picture herself going up to one of the stars and introducing herself as the nobody who’d won their contest. Yeah, right. She’d just stay where she was and ogle everyone from afar.
Maybe she’d choose a man that she wanted to be her first, and then focus her efforts on seducing him.
Yuh-huh. As soon as she figured out how to accomplish that feat.
First off, how was she supposed to choose? There were many in attendance, some obviously without a partner. All were gorgeous, and none even glanced her way.
Hell, at this point some of the crew were looking pretty good, too.
Surely some man would speak to her first. She wasn’t hideous looking. In fact, she thought she looked damn sexy.
So that was going to be it. The first man to speak to her tonight would be the winner.
“Now why is a beautiful woman like you sitting here all alone?”
Gina froze, recognizing the voice immediately. She didn’t want to turn around and look stupid, thinking he’d been talking to her. Obviously, he had to be hitting on some woman behind her.
But a hand touched her shoulder. She shivered, her skin burning to a crisp at the thought of who was touching her. There went bathing for the next month or so. Finally she turned, then immediately forgot all rudimentary biological functions—such as breathing.
Deacon Black stood inches from
Holy shit, she might faint. Or throw up. Or maybe even both.
He pulled out a chair next to her and sat, then took her hand. “I’m Deacon Black. And you are?”
Cinderella. No, that wasn’t it. What the hell was her name, anyway? “Gina. Gina Capelli.”
The quavering voice should really impress him. Along with the hand that trembled in his.
“Nice to meet you, Gina. I understand you are our big contest winner.”
“Uh-huh.” Ah yes, she was dazzling him with her brilliant conversation, too. Wow, she was just charming the pants off him, wasn’t she?
“You look stunning. And you have the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen.”
Wow, he was amazingly full of shit. But she wasn’t going to complain. “Thank you. So do you.”
He laughed then, a deep and rich baritone. Her body flushed hot, her panties grew damp, and her nipples hardened. Thank God she was wearing velvet with that corset thing they’d nearly sewed her into. He’d never know she was slowly sinking into a puddle of arousal.
“Would you like to dance?”
Maybe it was simply his turn to spend a minute or so with the geeky contest winner. “You want to dance with me?”
There was that crooked grin that made her drool. “Of course I would. Let’s go.”
He stood and held his hand out for her. This was so not happening. She tried to get up slowly, but her dress was caught under her chair. So much for refined grace. She sat there, feeling mortified.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“My dress is stuck.” And I have absolutely no finesse. It figured her normal life would have to intrude on her fantasy.
“Ah, I see.” He crouched down and crawled under the table, then lifted the hem of her dress, his fingers brushing her ankles. Good God in heaven, she might just faint after all. He easily lifted both her and the chair leg with one hand, freeing the hem of her dress.
“There we go. Ready to dance now?”
Numb, she merely nodded and followed him, waiting for the stares and laughter as the people in attendance watched the most gorgeous man in the universe dancing with the chubby fan.
But no one stared, or laughed. No one paid the slightest bit of attention to them as he whirled her around the floor. She felt, for the first time in her life, as light as the air around her. Deacon’s hand pressed on her back and turned her with ease.
And her hand was sweating all over his. Lovely.
“You here alone, Gina?”
“Yes.” I’m everywhere alone.
“No family to accompany you?”
“No. No husband, no family. My parents are dead and I have no siblings.” And she was certain he just loved her volunteering all that useless information.
“Ah, I see. I’m sorry to hear that.”
Sorry for what? The fact her parents were dead or the fact she had no husband? “Thank you. Are you here alone?”
She cringed. Dumb, dumb question. Deacon Black was never alone.
“No, I’m not.”
That’s what she figured. Maybe his girlfriend was in the bathroom and he was merely killing time. Perhaps this was a mercy dance. After all, she didn’t have a lot of names on her dance card tonight.
“I’m with you now, so I’m not alone any longer.”
Huh? “You’re not here with a date?”
He shook his head. “No. So that means you could be my date tonight, Gina. If you’d like to be.”
She was hallucinating, still in her room dressed in sweatpants, not here in a luxurious ballroom dancing with the man of her dreams. “Are you kidding?”
“Of course not. I’d love to spend the evening with you. That is, unless you have other plans.”
Other plans? Oh yeah, she had planned to catch a Bite Me rerun later tonight. And perhaps try to fit in a little of the aforementioned fainting. “Uh, I have no other plans.”
This was truly the weirdest night of her life.
Then a thought struck her and she stifled a gasp.
Deacon Black had been the first man to speak to her tonight. He was supposed to be her first lover!
If he hadn’t been holding her in his arms at the moment she’d have laughed out loud. Yeah, right. She was going to proposition Deacon Black, the man who’d slept with some of the most beautiful women in Hollywood. She could just picture the look on his face when she asked him to fuck her.
Then again, he had asked her to be with him tonight. Maybe he was desperate.
No, dammit! She fought back years of self-esteem issues brought about by her weight. He’d come to her. He’d asked her to dance. He’d asked her to be his date for tonight.
She was not ugly, fat and unattractive. And she was going to ask him to have sex with her tonight.
* * * * *
Deacon smiled and pulled Gina a little closer.
She was perfect for him. And talk about an eleventh-hour victory. He needed her and he needed to have her before midnight.
Damn if it wasn’t difficult to find virgins these days. Thankfully he only had to go through this ridiculous ritual once a year. After his renewal, he could bed and bite whichever woman he chose, no matter how many men she’d slept with before.
But tonight he’d needed a virgin, and Marcus had come through and found him one. Plucked her right out of the fan gathering as if she wore a “I’m a virgin” neon sign on her shirt.
Sometimes it was easy. Other times it was like trying to find a polar bear in a snowstorm. But these fan fests were a mecca for the lonely, and fortunately, the virginal. Gina Capelli definitely fit both categories.
With her full curves and ample breasts, she was the type of woman he used to seek out. Before he was turned, before the taste of blood became his only desire.
Now, there were plenty of women more than willing to spread their legs and bare their necks for him. Being a star of a television show had distinct advantages for vampires like him. Hell, most of the cast members were vampires, as were many of the crew. And the ones that weren’t got off on fucking vamps and donating a little blood now and then.
None of them were virgins.
Gina was. But not for long. Tonight he’d take her virginity, and unfortunately, her life. That was how it had to be. Funny, he’d never felt remorse about doing it before.
But this one had a special quality about her, a vulnerable innocence mixed with an intelligent wit that she hid behind some kind of wall.
And she should remain a virgin, at least until some deserving man came along.
He wasn’t deserving, but it wouldn’t stop him from taking. He’d take what should rightly go to a man she loved.
He’d bet she hadn’t met a decent man in her entire life. If he’d met her years and years ago, he’d have taken care of her, would have shown her what it was like to have a man worship her.
But he was a different person then. It was a lifetime ago. He hadn’t thought about it in years, so why tonight? Because of Gina?
She had the most amazing eyes, and real lashes. Not those fake ones the actresses wore, but honest-to-God long, black lashes that framed those violet orbs like the flower for which her eyes were named.
Gina was beautiful. And innocent. And for the first time in too long his gut clenched at the thought of what would happen to her when he was through with her tonight.
But he was powerless to stop what was already in motion. It was either her or him at this point. And he was just selfish enough to choose his survival over hers.
“Tell me a little bit about yourself, Gina.”
Her eyes widened, those deep, violet pools reminding him of the tender flowers that grew outside his childhood home. That had been an eternity ago.
“I’m not really very interesting.”
“Let me be the judge of that. Where do you live?”
“Seattle.”
“And what do you do in Seattle?”
“I’m a legal secretary.”
Ah, lawyers. Worse bloodsuckers than he was. “Do you enjoy that?”
“Not in the least.”
He laughed at her candor. “What are your dreams, then? What do you want to do instead?”
“I don’t know. I thought about…well, it’s silly, really. But I always thought I wanted to be a writer.”
