The Ornament

When Kylee breaks an antique ornament she found in a specialty store, she doesn't expect to find herself flung into another reality. After dreaming of the same man night after night, Kaylee realizes she’s fallen in love…with a vampire. Too bad he only exists in her imagination. After a trip to the mall and a strange ornament shop, Kaylee finds herself back home, only it’s not quite the same. The man on her couch who looks dead can talk into her mind and he insists she’s the one who isn’t supposed to be alive. After a year of living without his beloved mate, Gregori decides to end his life. Too bad he picked the wrong night. After thieves break into his beloved mate’s home, he finds what can only be a Christmas miracle in the form of his mate, alive and well and as snarky as ever. Given a second chance, Gregori sets out to convince Kaylee that her place is at his side.

The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. The Ornament Copyright © 2011 Tianna Xander ISBN: 978-1-77111-037-2 Cover art by Martine Jardin All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher. Published by Devine Destinies An imprint of eXtasy Books Look for us online at: www.devinedestinies.com

The Ornament By Tianna Xander

To everyone who believes in miracles.

Chapter One

“T

he last thing I need is a date.” Pushing aside the tabletop Christmas tree, Kaylee reached over, grabbed the bottle of ketchup and squeezed a generous portion onto her plate. Here Comes Santa Claus played in the background as children lined up to see the fat man in the red suit on the other side of the food court. “That’s just gross.” Laura, Kaylee’s best friend, wrinkled her nose and looked away. “How can you eat that crap?” Kaylee looked at her friend’s plate and grimaced. “I could ask you the same thing, you know.” She took a sip of her drink and frowned. “Tell me something. Why are vegetarians always eating soy burgers and tofu hotdogs that are supposed to taste like the real thing if you don’t like meat?” She waved her fork at Laura’s plate of tofu-chicken tortellini and made a face. “Tofuchicken. Yech!” “Stop changing the subject.” Laura scowled. “You need a man and I don’t mean a dream lover 1

Tianna Xander with worse dietary habits than the both of us put together.” Reaching out, Laura plucked a red ornament off the tiny tree on the end of the table. “Is this a cherry tomato?” She popped it into her mouth and shook her head. “Food. They’re decorating with food.” Kaylee gasped at her friend’s lack of caution. “Stop eating the decorations! You have no idea whose been fingering them.” She shuddered. “It could have rolled across the floor or something.” “You’re changing the subject again. We were talking about the advantages of real men over dream men.” “I knew I shouldn’t have told you about Gregori.” Kaylee shook her head. “Then why did you?” Laura took a bite of her lunch before she continued. “I mean it, Kaylee. Seriously. I’d like to think that if I were dreaming of nightly visits from a handsome dream lover, he’d at least be human.” Reaching across the table, she patted Kaylee’s hand. “Girlfriend, dreaming of bloodsucking fiends just isn’t normal.” “Gregori isn’t a fiend. He’s lonely, tragic…tortured maybe, but not a fiend.” “Perhaps,” Laura said, holding up her hand when Kaylee would have objected. “But you can’t deny that he’s a bloodsucker.” Laura grinned. “Face it, girl, you’re a closet freak.” Kaylee pressed her lips together and looked 2

The Ornament down at the ketchup on her plate. She picked up a fry, swirled it through the red puddle, then popped it into her mouth. She tried to ignore the flashes from cameras as parents snapped photos of their children on the mall Santa’s lap and concentrated on her food. Closet freak, huh? She couldn’t argue with that. Gregori was the epitome of tall, dark and handsome. He was also a considerate lover and he had just a hint of some Slavic-sounding accent that was to die for. He was also a vampire, which made her dream an impossible one, not that she really wanted a vampire for a lover. It still didn’t change the fact that vampires didn’t exist. “I’m telling you, Kaylee, you need to get out more. How about coming to my company’s holiday party?” “Uh…no, thanks.” Kaylee took a bite of her burger and closed her eyes. She did love a good bacon cheeseburger. Too bad her hips loved them, too. “It’s time I resigned myself to another Christmas spent alone.” If she was lucky, Gregori would visit her dreams and she wouldn’t feel so alone at least. “Okay,” Laura said with a sigh. “But the offer still stands if you change your mind. There’s always room for another woman at the party.” She waggled her brows. “You do realize that the men outnumber the women and rumor has it that the 3

Tianna Xander big boss just might attend this year.” “Isn’t that what you said last year?” Kaylee shook her head. She was sorely tempted to tell Laura that she couldn’t give a flying flip if the big boss was going to be there naked with a big red bow dangling from his…waist. “Thanks, but I think I’ll pass.” Kaylee smiled at the mental picture her thoughts invoked. Laura just shrugged. “Well, you know where to reach me if you change your mind.” Kaylee nodded. That was what she liked about Laura. She never pushed too hard. “I have to go. If I stay here much longer, I’ll have you buying something for me with your card and you know I’m trying to cut my spending. I’ll call you tomorrow.” Kaylee stood with her tray and dumped it into the nearby trashcan. Turning back to her friend, she waved. “Try not to spend too much money.” “You know me,” Laura said with a laugh and blew her a kiss. “Try to find a real man to dream about, will you?” Shaking her head, Kaylee turned and left the food court. She wished it wasn’t so cold out and she could walk through the parking lot and avoid the temptation of all things Christmas. Kaylee was on her way to the exit doors when an ornament in a store caught her eye. She loved ornaments, especially antique ornaments. This one 4

The Ornament looked very old. In fact, it appeared to be encased as though to protect it from the elements. It was a small figurine encased in glass. The twinkling lights of the shop hit it just right and it appeared that the tiny figure inside winked at her. She had to have it. She only hoped she had enough money on her. She’d been leaving her credit card at home since she decided to pay it off and get out of debt. The bells over the door jingled merrily as she entered the small shop. Surrounded by the scent of cinnamon and ginger, she inhaled deeply and wondered if the shop had a kitchen. It smelled as though someone was baking gingerbread men in the back. Making her way around the tables filled with every type of ornament she could imagine, Kaylee found herself reaching for the one she saw in the window. She couldn’t help herself. Just as she picked it from the garland stapled to the window frame, a door slammed behind her and she jumped. The ornament fell from her hand and struck the window frame on its way down to the parquet tile beneath her feet. What she had thought was glass, split in two and the small figurine fell out onto the floor. “Oh, no!” Kaylee bent to pick up the pieces as the sound of hurried footsteps got closer and closer. 5

Tianna Xander “Don’t fret. It’s not broken. Whoever incased it, didn’t want it to break…ever, but somehow, the adhesive he or she used deteriorates and it splits open like that.” He looked at the figurine in her hand and frowned. “You should never pick it up without gloves. Body chemistry does something to it.” Reaching out, he took the figurine from her, an oven mitt on his hand. “Every one of the encased ornaments is old enough that they react to your body chemistry. Never touch the things inside without gloves.” Kaylee wiped her hands on her pants. “I’m sorry. I had no idea. I’ll buy that one since I broke it. If I ruined it with my body oils, I will be the one to suffer the damages.” She smiled nervously. “In fact, I’d come in to purchase that one anyway. It calls to me.” The old man smiled. “The ornaments in here call to almost everyone who walks by.” He placed the figure inside the hard, clear plastic shell and snapped it closed. “I’ll have to glue this back together before you take it home.” He looked at her with a strange expression. “I tell you what. Leave it here and I’ll fix it. Then you can come by tomorrow and pick it up if you still want it.” “Okay.” Kaylee didn’t really want to leave it. Something about the way the old man acted made her want to take the ornament and run, but if he 6

The Ornament wouldn’t sell it to her until he’d fixed it, she couldn’t very well take it and run now. She wasn’t a thief. The only thing she could do was head home and come back first thing in the morning. She would be here promptly at ten AM when the sign said the shop opened. For now, she would just have to head home and try to dream of Gregori again. Kaylee walked out into the parking lot and frowned. “Crap. I rode here with Laura. I’ll look like an idiot if I go back in there now.” With a sigh, she pulled her cell phone from her pocket and called a cab.

7

Tianna Xander

Chapter Two stared at the photo in his hand. His Gregori finger traced her long hair lovingly and his gut clenched with desire at just her image. It didn’t matter that Kaylee was dead. Gone forever, she lived on in the form of her photo, her scent and her home. He fired her cleaning service as soon as he found out about her death. He didn’t want them in here washing away her scent as though she didn’t exist—had never existed. After a year though, the scent of his lover and mate had dissipated. It faded to the point where even he, with his acute sense of smell, could barely pick up her scent in anything with the exception of the basket, which held her soiled clothing. After so many months, even that had begun to fade. Weak, he stumbled downstairs to the living room and made his way to the sofa. With luck, he would remain here undisturbed until after he had 8

The Ornament joined his love in death. He could no longer force himself to continue on in a world that contained such sorrow, such pain. Crumpling the small photo in his hand, Gregori fell to the couch and lay on his stomach, one arm pinned beneath him, the other dangling over the side, his hand resting on the floor. He was too weak to turn over and make himself comfortable. He’d only fed a handful of times since Kaylee’s death. He was starving and soon would find the oblivion of death, where he would join his precious beloved Kaylee and they would spend eternity together. Perhaps they would be luckier in the afterlife and be able to stay together. Gregori refused to live another day without Kaylee in it. He lay on his stomach on the tooshort sofa, staring at the TV across the room. Damn. He didn’t even have the strength to close his eyes. The sound of breaking glass caught Gregori’s attention. Under normal circumstances, he would have investigated, but with his energy depleted, he could do nothing but listen as the intruders made their way into the shrine that was his Kaylee’s home. “Find the jewelry. I’ll get the electronics.” One of them headed for the stairs and presumably Kaylee’s bedroom. “This will show that idiot vampire that we mean business when we tell him 9

Tianna Xander to leave humans alone. They have bagged blood they can drink, but no, they always find one of the most beautiful women and use them as their donor slaves.” Gregori heard the conversation, though they spoke in little more than whispers. He mentally snarled. Why had he picked tonight to weaken himself? Why wasn’t he strong enough to protect her home? He wanted it to remain unmolested at least until his death. Then he wouldn’t care. He would be with his beloved Kaylee. At full strength, he would have killed anyone with the audacity to defile his shrine. Today, he could only watch as the hooded figures split up, one heading upstairs and one walking toward him to take the things his Kaylee had worked so hard to possess. Unholy rage filled him when the hooded figure sauntered over to the wide-screen TV and began cutting the wires. When Gregori heard footsteps on the front porch, he wondered who else had arrived to invade his shrine. Why had he picked tonight to bleed what was left of his blood out into the sink, thinking this would be a good night to die? He heard the snick of the lock on the front door and the click of the latch. Whoever it was had a key. The door shut quietly behind the new intruder, then with a loud screech, the newcomer rushed the thief at the TV and Tased him with the 10

The Ornament device she pulled from her purse. The burglar shuddered for a few moments as the sound of electricity arced through the air before he fell into a heap onto the floor at the newest intruder’s feet. What the hell was going on here? For a year, he visited this home nightly and for a year, no one but he had ever entered the home. Tonight, the night he decided to let himself starve and die, the world declared open season on Kaylee Hamilton’s former residence. What was it that the woman was after? In his experience, thieves were generally men. Women stole to feed their children, men usually did it for drugs, booze or cigarettes. Tall and willowy, with long, silken hair, she could have been Kaylee returning home from a day of shopping. The coat even looked like something she would have worn. The woman stared down at the unconscious intruder. “What do I do? What do I do?” Shit! She even sounded like her. Was it his imagination or did the woman really have a similar-sounding voice. She’d had a key. Perhaps she was a sister he didn’t know about. Not wanting to see her hurt, he tried to communicate with her in the only way he could. If he could still think, he could still reach her through a mental link…he hoped. The intruder at your feet wasn’t alone. He has an accomplice upstairs in the bedroom. You should leave before he comes 11

Tianna Xander downstairs. He may be armed. Gregori had to try to warn her. After all, she did sound like his Kaylee and he didn’t want to see the woman murdered in front of him. That would be more than he could take. The woman’s gaze darted toward the stairs, then she turned toward the couch and froze. Gregori would have done the same had he been able to move. Kaylee! For a moment, his heart knew joy again, then he remembered. He’d seen his beloved’s beheaded body, the stake through her heart and the garlic stuffed into her mouth. No. This wasn’t his Kaylee. His mind played tricks on him as he neared death. Either that or she was here to escort him to the other side. Whichever it was, the woman before him wasn’t his Kaylee alive again. He pushed all thoughts of a Christmas miracle from his mind. It couldn’t be his beloved, no matter how much he wished it to be so.

12

The Ornament

Chapter Three

K

aylee turned and stopped dead. The words died on her lips as she saw her dream lover lying prone on the couch, his eyes open. He looked dead. She brought her hand to her throat, her fingers nervously tapping the side of her neck. He wasn’t real. He couldn’t be real. He was a vampire and vampires just didn’t exist. What in the hell is going on here? She returned home to find someone molesting her things and a dead man on her couch. She turned toward the Christmas tree in the corner and frowned. She could have sworn she left the lights on and the music playing. The silence creeped her out, even when she didn’t have a burglar laying on her carpet, most likely peeing his pants from the fiftythousand or so volts of electricity she’d just bagged him with. Behind her, the robber’s phone played Jingle Bells as someone attempted to call him. They’d just have to call back later, preferably after the police 13

Tianna Xander dragged him out of her house. Biting her bottom lip, Kaylee made her way over to the couch. Slowly, gingerly, she reached out to touch his cheek. She had to touch him at least once, even if he was dead. “You’re a dream. You can’t possibly be real,” she whispered. I could think the same of you, my love. Kaylee knew at that moment that he wasn’t dead. Somehow, he spoke into her mind the way he always did in her dreams. But why wouldn’t he move? “Why do you look like a dead man sprawled across my couch?” She got the impression that he wanted to shrug, but was too weak to do so. Why was he so weak? In her dreams, he could do anything. He could shift his shape into anything, he could fly, he even had preternatural speed, running so fast, he was nothing more than a blur. I am dying. I haven’t fed in over three months. When one of my kind does this, we grow weaker and weaker until we finally collapse like this. “Why would you choose to die on my couch?” She narrowed her eyes. “Am I even awake or is this all another dream?” He chuckled into her mind, his voice growing weaker and weaker as though he kept getting farther and farther away. It took me quite by surprise. Believe me, had I known I had gotten so weak, 14

The Ornament I would have lain on my back and closed my eyes, instead of falling face first onto your couch. It’s not comfortable at all. Kaylee finally realized this was nothing more than another dream. Her dreams always started with Gregori convincing her to let him feed. Only this was the first time he’d been too weak to take her in his arms and nuzzle her neck. Shifting her weight to one leg, Kaylee rested her hand on her hip and smiled. “So…I suppose you expect me to feed you?” I wish you were alive so you could. However, I saw your decapitated body myself. A gang of slayers found you, knew you were mine and took your life in an effort to stem our population. You are the dream, my love. He smiled gently into her mind. Like all of the dreams I have had of you over the last year. They were nothing but visions of a lost love, the wishful ramblings of a desperate man. “Unless you received a memo I missed, we aren’t dead.” She gestured to the man lying unconscious on the floor. “Do you really think ghosts Taser people?” I assume that we are both dead. I have starved to death as was my plan. Life without you is unbearable. That was the most romantic and idiotic things anyone had ever said to her. Kaylee heard a bump coming from the stairs, assumed it was the other burglar and continued through their mind link. Oh, puhleeeze. You have somehow managed to convince 15

Tianna Xander me to feed you in every dream. Why should this one be any different? Besides, what if this was the last time she dreamt of him? Death was rather permanent, even in dreams. Whatever you decide, you may want to do it in a hurry. Your Taser victim has a friend and he’s headed our way. If I’m not mistaken, he has finished ransacking your jewelry box and underwear drawer. “No one breaks into my house and gets away with it.” Kaylee narrowed her eyes and thinned her lips, determined to stop the man who would take everything she had left of her parents, even in a dream. Yanking her sleeve up, Kaylee opened Gregori’s mouth and jammed her wrist against his teeth. Sharp incisors sank deep and she groaned with the pain. It never hurt this much before. Of course not. Before, I had the strength to mask your pain with pleasure. Kaylee watched as the color returned to his face. After a few seconds, he brought his hand up and pressed her wrist tighter to his mouth. The pain melted away to pleasure and Kaylee swayed on her feet. She wasn’t sure if it was from the pleasure he provided or if he was draining her dry. She hoped it was the former. As usual, a swipe of his tongue closed the wound. Kaylee looked down at her wrist to see the small wounds fade to pinpricks before 16

The Ornament disappearing altogether. What the world wouldn’t give for his saliva. She could imagine how quickly someone like him could heal wounds in a hospital. Kaylee wrinkled her nose at the thought. She didn’t know if she could stand the thought of him licking other women like he did her. “What the hell?” Kaylee spun around as the burglar looked from his partner on the floor to her. “What’d you do to him, you bitch!” His eyes widened. “You! It can’t be. You’re dead!” “Why does everyone keep saying that? I’m obviously alive and well.” She waved her arms, wobbled her head back and forth, than reached up to touch it. “Yep. It’s still there. I’m obviously alive.” “Not for long,” the intruder said with a growl and pulled a gun from his pocket. Gregori burst into action at that moment. In a blur of motion, he leapt from the couch, shifted his shape into that of an impossibly large wolf and attacked. He bit down on the arm holding the gun and shook his head, dislodging the weapon from the criminal’s hand. It fell to the floor with a clatter. Kaylee screamed when the burglar’s friend came to and pulled a weapon from his pocket and fired. The bullet missed Gregori, slamming into the wall behind him. Gregori snarled, his teeth 17

Tianna Xander dripping blood as he released his first victim and began to stalk his second. “Keep it away from me, lady, or I’ll kill it and you.” “You’d kill us both anyway,” Gregori said. His voice was deep, distorted. Kaylee could only imagine the effort it must have taken to speak while in the body of the wolf. “Vampire!” the other man said, his voice filled with terror. “Yes. I am a vampire.” Gregori shifted back into his human form. “We never should have gone public ten years ago. Ever since then, we have had nothing but attacks against us.” He cast a glance toward Kaylee. “And against those we love.” He stepped closer to the burglar, obviously not worried about the one rolling on the floor, holding his wrist to his chest. He reached out with his foot and kicked the gun on the floor toward Kaylee. It lay between them like a snake ready to strike. Could she get to it before the man shot either one of them? Did Gregori have enough strength to take this new assailant on? The second man dove for Kaylee, grabbing her around the throat. He laughed. “One move and I’ll break her neck.” Kaylee smiled at Gregori and winked. I have this one, but you’ll have to catch me when I fall. She didn’t give him time to reply. What she was 18

The Ornament about to do was going to hurt her attacker a lot more than it hurt her. Gritting her teeth, Kaylee pulled the Taser from her front pocket, jammed it against the burglar’s groin and pressed the trigger.

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Chapter Four watched, feeling helpless as Kaylee used Gregori the Taser on her attacker. She had known she would share in the shock and her courage made him proud. He’d always known she was no victim, even after he saw her headless body. She had put up a fight, of that he never had a doubt. He tied the two humans up and removed all memory of where they had been and whom they had seen. These two would never tell the group of slayers his Kaylee had somehow returned from the dead. Looking down at his beloved Kaylee, he thanked all that was good that she had returned to him even as he wondered how she managed to do so. How had she risen from the dead? As much as he would like to think it a Christmas miracle, he knew better. The only magic in their world was that of the creatures who kept themselves hidden from the humans in an effort to survive. After wiping the intruders’ memories clean, 20

The Ornament they carried them to the garage and dumped them into the trunk of Kaylee’s car. “Let’s go.” Gregori strode around to the driver’s side and climbed in. He waited for her to get into the passenger seat, then pressed the button on the garage door opener. “When did that get installed?” Kaylee turned around in her seat to watch the door open with a frown. “I have no idea. It has always been so.” He rested his arm on the back of her seat, turned and started to back out of the small garage. “I can only say that I am glad that you have the garage. It gave us the cover we needed to get the fanatics in your trunk.” “Where are we taking them?” He watched as Kaylee nervously peered through her window into the night. Snow covered the sidewalks and roads and it continued to fall in large, fat flakes as they slowly rode down her street, the snow crunching beneath the tires. “We will take them to the council where they will receive a fair trial.” “Hmm… Will they really get a fair trial? After all, these are the same people who admitted to wanting all vampires dead. How fair could they really be?” “They will receive a trial that is much more 21

Tianna Xander impartial than any type of hearing they give our kind.” Gregori pulled out onto the highway quickly, the car fishtailing on the icy road as they made their way out of town. “I must get them to the tribunal and you to safety as soon as possible. Try not to be frightened,” he said when she grabbed the oh crap handle above her door. “Yeah, that’s easy for you to say.” “It is easy to say. How fair do you think your trial was?” He shook his head, then turned his gaze toward her for a moment. “I can’t believe you’re here. That you’re back.” His eyes actually burned and he thought he might give in to tears. Gregori shook his head. He couldn’t afford to show weakness, even to Kaylee. Not now. “It must be some kind of Christmas miracle. I can’t believe that you are here, talking to me. That you have fed me once again, your blood making me stronger than I have ever been this past year.” He turned to stare back through the windshield. “Put your seatbelt on. I don’t want anything to happen to you in case someone should go looking for our prisoners and notice your car is gone. They have members on the police force. It would take very little effort for them to find us.” Gregori reached across the vehicle and took her hand in his. “I love you. I have loved you since the day we met and I will continue to love you until 22

The Ornament the day we die.” He squeezed her fingers as he steered the car with his other hand onto another highway heading west. He drove toward the council meeting place, knowing the men in the trunk stood little chance of surviving this night. They would receive a fair trial as he said, but still, their prospects were dim. His people were not a vindictive lot, but they must end the killing of their people. What was it about human fanaticism that allowed them to kill at will? How could they live with themselves after killing innocent women and children? It was obvious they suffered from some sort of illness. The tribunal merely ended their suffering. Something dinged in front of him. “What was that?” “It sounded like one of the warning alarms. We’re either overheating, low on oil or low on gas.” Kaylee leaned over to look, her hair brushing his arm. Gregori inhaled deeply. He couldn’t help it. She always smelled of peaches and raspberries. He had sorely missed the strange but heady mixture this last year. “Crap. We’re low on gas. We’ll have to stop and get some.” He peered through the rearview mirror and sighed. He wasn’t certain, but he thought he saw someone following them. It was difficult to tell. 23

Tianna Xander With the traffic and people passing or entering the highway via the entrance ramps, any of the cars back there could be tailing them and he wouldn’t know. “We’ll have to pull off for gas then.” “What if our two…visitors wake up? They could make noise and cause trouble for us.” Kaylee bit her lip. The action made his muscles clench. “I’d hate to have to try to explain them to the local police.” “We wouldn’t. I would simply erase the memories of anyone close enough to hear them.” “Oh.” She looked a bit surprised as well as wary. “I hadn’t thought of that. Do you do purge memories very often?” “No.” He took the next exit. The sign on the side of the road boasted that it had three gas stations. He would pick the one with the least amount of business and fill up there. He had no other choice. They were out of options. Cars needed gas, that’s all there was to it. “I will choose a station with little or no business. The less I have to tamper with human minds, the better.” He failed to mention that the more he tampered with their minds, the weaker he would become and he needed every bit of his strength to keep her safe. “I never thought about you being able to erase memories.” “That is understandable. Since I don’t do it very 24

The Ornament often, I don’t think on it much either.” Crossing her arms, she gave him a narrow-eyed look. “Have you ever messed with my mind?” “No. I have never done so with you.” He sighed at her skeptical glare. He could feel her distrust of him as though it were a tangible thing. “I swear, my heart, I have never felt the need to tamper with your memories.” “That’s good to know.” She took a deep breath and turned to look through her window. “I don’t know if I could trust you if I found out you did something like that without my consent.” Gregori pulled into a gas station and parked next to a pump. “I will pump the gas, you stay in the car.” He wanted to keep her safe. He needed to keep her safe. He wasn’t sure by which miracle she managed to return from the dead, but he was not taking any chances with her life this time around. He didn’t add that in the car, she made a much smaller target.

25

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Chapter Five

K

aylee continued to stare through the window as Gregori prepared to add gas to the tank. Another car pulled into the station from the other direction and she watched as they drove up to the other side of the pump. Bored, she opened the glove box and shuffled through the contents. She did the same with the center console, frowning at the paperback book she found there. “There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you.” She had thought she lost that particular book a few weeks ago. Hesitant to purchase another, she read others with the hope that sooner or later this one would turn up. It was her first vampire romance. Her dreams had begun not too long after she started the book and she had chalked the dreams up to her too-active imagination fueled by the author’s muse. She leafed through the pages and frowned at the placement of the bookmark. She didn’t remember getting so far into the story. Opening it 26

The Ornament to the marked page, she knew she’d never read that far. It was in the middle of a love scene. There was no doubt in her mind that she would have remembered the spicy text. Flipping backward through the book, she found the last thing she remembered about it, approximately fifty pages back, and began to read. She was so engrossed in the book when Gregori got into the car, she didn’t even look up. Putting the car in gear, he hit the gas and they took off, tires squealing. Kaylee looked up and gasped. “Who are you and what do you think you’re doing to my car? Where’s Gregori?” The stranger on the seat next to her laughed. “Who I am isn’t important. That I have you is. I will bargain with your boyfriend when we reach our destination. Your life for that of my friends.” “How did you—” “The idiot doesn’t carry credit cards. He had to go inside to pay. I didn’t expect such a break, but I guess there’s no fixing stupid.” “Gregori isn’t stupid.” Kaylee looked around for something to hit the guy with. No one dissed her dream lover and got away with it. “He’s the most brilliant man I’ve ever met.” “How many times do we have to tell you idiot vampire lovers? They aren’t men and women. They’re monsters, fiends! They drink your blood to survive. They feed on you until you’re all used 27

Tianna Xander up, then they move on to someone else.” He shook his head with a growl. “You would think that people could figure that out.” “Gregori would never hurt anyone like that.” Kaylee bit her lip. Would he? After all, what did she really know about him? Next to nothing if she were to be truthful with herself. She stared out the window, wondering how long she had to live. She may not be dead, like everyone kept saying, but something told her she soon would be. “Besides all that, why kidnap me? Why kill me for that matter? What have I or any of the other people you and your so-called society has sentenced to death done to you?” “You feed the vamps, that’s what you do.” Spittle ran down his chin as his expression filled with some unholy light. “You are all revenants, slaves, servants to the vampires. You protect them during the day when they are forced to sleep in their coffins and you feed them when they awaken. “Our leader has decreed that all of you must die. If we cut off the unholy fiends’ supply of nourishment, they will eventually starve to death.” Glancing at her, he gave her an oily smile. “The more of you we kill, the closer we are to having our world as it was meant to be—free of the pestilence of vampires once and for all.” Kaylee brought her hand to her lips and bit her 28

The Ornament knuckle so hard she drew blood. She barely felt the pain through her fear. He was nuts! The man was certifiably insane and he apparently had likeminded friends. What would she do? What could she do? She stared out the window into the darkness. Tears ran down her face as she realized she was about to die. Could you die in a dream and if you did, was it permanent? She hoped to God it wasn’t. If it was, she would die before she woke, never knowing the love of a flesh and blood man. It didn’t matter that Gregori had told her he loved her many times. He wasn’t real and as much as it pained her to say it, even to herself, it just wasn’t enough. I am real, my love. Never doubt that. Ignoring him should have been easy. If he was a figment of her imagination, she should be able to turn off the sound of his deep and sexy voice. Incredibly, Kaylee felt the brush of warm fingers over her cheek, down the side of her neck to rest on her shoulder. That, in itself, should have convinced her that he was nothing more than a figment of her imagination. People just couldn’t reach out through time and space to give you a touch with their thoughts that felt so incredibly physical. I can, my beloved. You are my life, my very reason for living. I have no idea where you came from or how 29

Tianna Xander you came back into my life, but I will take you any way I can get you, even if you don’t believe. Perhaps it would help if I reminded you that my people announced our presence to the world nearly ten years ago. We are allowed to get our blood through blood banks, much like your grocery stores. She felt him give a mental shrug. Most of my people are not fond of drinking the cold, bagged blood and still prefer to stalk prey, but for the most part, we all conform to one norm and feed from the bagged blood provided by people who give their life’s essence in a charitable effort to sustain our lives. Some say we never should have gone public, that we should have kept ourselves apart from humans, but I cannot bring myself to regret the decision. It ultimately brought me to you. My life changed the day you walked into that lab to make a delivery. I knew the moment I saw you that you were the one put on this earth to be my beloved mate. Stop it! Just stop it! Kaylee put her hands over her ears, trying to block out the sound of his voice. She knew it was impossible. He was inside her, somehow inside her head, driving her crazy. Perhaps she deserved to die. She was going insane herself. I can’t hear you. She projected her thoughts at him in a singsong manner, then frowned. Why did she project her thoughts if she didn’t really believe he was real? Oh, my God, Kaylee, you are going mad. Gregori sighed into her thoughts but refrained 30

The Ornament from saying anything more, which was probably for the best, considering the fragile state of her mind. What could she do? If she was crazy, what could she do about it and if by some bizarre twist of fate she’d fallen down Alice’s rabbit hole, there was nothing for her to do but go along for the ride. The loon driving her car was no longer talking to her. He merely drove the vehicle with a slack expression. Had Gregori taken control of his mind? If so, where were they headed? Her spirits lightened as he pulled into the parking lot of a small motel. Maybe Gregori had him pull over so he could catch up. She had seen him turn into large raptors before. For all she knew, he could be circling overhead at that precise moment. The driver opened his door and used her vehicle remote to open the trunk. Uh, oh. I think he’s about to let our prisoners go. Kaylee wondered for a moment how he knew they were there, then shrugged it off. He’d known they held the men, he probably just assumed they were in the trunk of her car. Looking up toward the sky, Kaylee waited. She may not believe he was real, but one thing was certain, if this was some weird dream, there was no doubt in her mind that Gregori would come to her rescue. It is of no consequence, my love. He has led us to one of their meeting places. Council members are on their 31

Tianna Xander way, as we speak. Never fear, baby, their time of judgment is at hand. Just moments after Gregori spoke into her mind, nearly twenty impossibly large raptors landed on the roof. There was a mixture of owls, eagles and condors. Thankfully, she didn’t see one bat among them. She didn’t know what she would do if Gregori turned into one of those nasty creatures. Beating him with a tennis racquet came to mind. I can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that you will never ask me to turn into a bat. Gregori’s voice caressed her mind with a chuckle. And I would hope that you would hesitate to beat me with anything no matter which form I chose to inhabit. When the last of them arrived and perched on the roof, they all dove for the pavement, landing at the back of her car in human form. They surrounded the man who kidnapped her as he still sluggishly attempted to awaken his comrades. “Martin Moleski, James O’Bannon and Jiggy Tyler…” There was a short pause as the vampire speaking looked around at his friends and made a face. “Is Jiggy really a name?” He shook his head, his expression filled with disgust. “It almost makes me wish we killed prey when we fed off the hoof and one of us found this boy’s parents before they had a chance to give him that ridiculous name.” 32

The Ornament He turned back to the three men who were all awake but looking groggy. “The three of you and the men and women waiting inside the hotel room where you all planned to murder Miss Hamilton have been sentenced to death. Your sentence will be carried out forthwith.” He turned away from the three men as though they disgusted him. He waved his arm, gesturing toward the prisoners and barked, “Bring them. They shall all die in the same room. I don’t want to have to punish the motel owner for having the bad luck of renting to these people.” “Yes, Oberon,” one of the other vamps said as he bowed in deference before following the instruction. Kaylee watched as Oberon, an obviously powerful vampire, turned and walked toward the rooms along the parking lot. He stopped in front of a door. After only a second or two, the door burst inward as though blown by a great wind. The vampires all made their way into the room and Kaylee covered her ears as she attempted to block out the sounds of the humans’ terrified screams. Grateful that Gregori never left her side, Kaylee knew she would have had a difficult time coming to terms with it had he gone with the others and helped dispatch her kidnappers and would-be killers to hell. Gregori wrapped his arm about her 33

Tianna Xander and hugged her close. She leaned against him, needing his strength and warmth. What would she have done had he not come to her rescue? “How could I not do everything to ensure your safety?” He pressed a kiss against her temple. “You are my love, my very life. There is no other for me, only you.” He moved to stand in front of her, his hands gripping her shoulders. He bent down to peer into her eyes. “I love you more than my life itself. I couldn’t bear to lose you a second time.” The other vampires filed out of the hotel room, looking just as clean and elegant as they did when they went in. Not one of them looked like they just went into that room and killed several men and women. “Dispose of the bodies,” Oberon said. He seemed to be the one in charge since they all arrived. “Gregori, why did you not join in the feast? It isn’t often we can gorge ourselves on warm blood like this.” He turned back toward the room as the others carried the men out. Kaylee looked around, hoping no one was around to witness this blatant act. “There is no one here, Miss Hamilton. Even if there were, it would be of no consequence. We would sense them, wipe their memories clean and there would be no problem.” He grinned, showing off his perfect white teeth that now looked human. It surprised Kaylee when the other man 34

The Ornament reached out and shook Gregori’s hand. She didn’t think they did anything so mundane as that. “We are gentlemen, first and foremost.” Yeah, gentlemen who drank the blood of their enemies. No wonder Vlad the Impaler was so sick. He probably was one of these guys. “No, my heart. Vlad the impaler was a madman, but he managed to do what he set out to do. He drove the enemy from his lands.” Kaylee shuddered. She couldn’t imagine drinking blood to survive. She gave Gregori a narrow-eyed look. She also couldn’t imagine sifting through other people’s thoughts uninvited like some sort of snoop either. The two men started to choke and turned away. “What do we do now?” Gregori asked the other man as they both pretended that neither of them had just read her mind. Kaylee shook her head and sighed. Did they think her stupid, that she didn’t know they read her mind every chance they got? What was she, some form of entertainment for them? “We wait,” Oberon said as they watched the others pile into the dead men’s vehicles and took off. He waved a hand toward the motel room. “Call in a cleaning crew, will you? There’s blood all over the place in there. A few of them were idiot enough to think that draining them dry would turn them into one of us, so they slit their 35

Tianna Xander wrists.” “I can’t imagine why they would do such a thing. After all, what do they say about you guys in the movies these days?” Wrapping her arms about herself, Kaylee turned away from them with a sigh. “I need to go home.” “You cannot,” Gregori and Oberon said at the same time. Gregori stepped up behind her, wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back against his warmth. “The slayers know of your return. You will not be safe at your home. You must come with me.” “You will go with Gregori, Miss Hamilton,” Oberon said as he stared deep into her eyes. Kaylee felt a strange sluggishness overcome her along with the sudden urge to do whatever this man said. She shook her head and glared at Oberon. “I’m not going anywhere I don’t want to go and don’t you dare try to use your mental powers on me again.” Oberon narrowed his eyes, a strange red glow showing in his pupils. “Control your woman, Gregori, or I will.”

36

The Ornament

Chapter Six wasted no time in seizing control of Gregori Kaylee’s mind. He loved the fact that she was outspoken, but Oberon would not. The other man expected people to follow his orders blindly, which was to be expected considering the length of his time as leader of their people. They hadn’t survived this long as a separate species from the humans because he allowed dissention. Moving closer, he held out his hand. “Take my hand, Kaylee and we shall visit one of my homes. You would like that, wouldn’t you?” Surprised at the strength of her resistance, Gregori wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. “I will take her to the council house in LA,” he told Oberon as he watched the other man turn and walk toward the empty building. “No one shall find her and no one shall hear of her involvement in what happened here or you will answer to me. See that you keep her under 37

Tianna Xander your control until you can convince her to become your mate.” Oberon’s expression changed. Somehow, he looked both harder, yet filled with compassion. Any type of empathy was unusual for the other man. That alone was enough to have Gregori’s full attention. “You are a lucky man. Just see that you care for this precious gift the fates have given you and keep her safe,” Oberon said just before he leapt toward the sky, shifting his shape into that of a giant condor as he flew into the darkness. It was a few minutes before Gregori thought to make his way to the hotel room and peer inside, careful to keep Kaylee from seeing. Blood covered the floor, the bed. Some even sprayed across the wall, resembling some macabre work of art. Now knowing exactly which crew to call in, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and pressed the speed dial number for the crew responsible for cleaning up such messes. “Arty?” he asked though he knew who was on the other end. Arty and his crew were a group of humans assigned by the government to handle such things. Oberon would contact the member of their government responsible for spinning the tales required to keep humans from rioting in the streets when vampires found the need to execute 38

The Ornament slayers. Gregori’s people had been told from the start that slayers were their mess. They had better learn to deal with them. The only help the human government would give was covering up the disappearance of those involved. “You know it is,” Arty replied from the other end. Gregori heard the snick of the human’s lighter and the sharp intake of breath as Arty inhaled smoke from the cigarette he’d just lit. “What do you need, big guy?” “I need a clean-up crew and I need one fast.” Gregori wasted no time in telling the other man where. “We had another incident and need your special services.” Arty heaved a sigh. Gregori could almost see the noxious smoke swirling about the other man’s head. “Stay there until we get there. We may need your special services in case someone decides to enter that room before we take care of it.” There was a short pause before he continued, “Oh, and find the manager and plant the memory of a room remodel in his head, will you? We’ll have to repaint the place and change the carpet. We can’t have people trying to figure out how the place got the stuff without a work order, now can we?” “That wouldn’t be my first choice.” Gregori ended the call and turned back to Kaylee who still stood tucked beneath his arm. 39

Tianna Xander “It may be years before I allow you out of my sight again, dear heart.” He placed a kiss on her forehead. Never again did he want to feel the terror he felt when he’d exited that gas station with a soft drink he’d purchased for Kaylee in his hand and found her car gone. He’d thought the worse for a few moments when she didn’t project thoughts of fear and distress. Why would she not know immediately that she was in harm’s way? He knew the answer when she finally realized the driver of the vehicle had changed. At any other time, he would have smiled to find out that she had been reading a vampire romance. It gave him hope. However, when he finally made contact with her terror-filled mind, the only thought he had was to find her and keep her safe from those who would harm her. He looked down into her slack expression and sighed. She was going to be pissed when he finally released her mind. Turning to her car, he strapped her into the passenger side and fused the seatbelt with a thought. She couldn’t run if she couldn’t escape the confines of her vehicle. Striding around the rear of the car, he shut the trunk as he passed, then slid into the driver’s seat to wait for Arty’s team to arrive. In the meantime, he needed to talk to a 40

The Ornament cognizant Kaylee and let her get her angst for his highhandedness out of her system. With a sigh, he released her mind. Anger followed her disorientation as she came to her senses and looked around. “That’s it. I can’t live like this.” She reached down to unlock her seatbelt. “Get out of my car. I’ll drive myself home.” Kaylee frowned down at the latch of the belt, pushed the red release button and frowned. “Why won’t this thing unlock?” She continued to yank on the belt. “I can’t believe you had the nerve to just take over my mind like that.” She paused in her struggles to glare up at him. “I don’t like control freaks and controlling someone’s actions, their very thoughts, smacks of being just that.” Reaching out, she grasped the door handle and opened her door. She looked down, examining the apparatus in the glow of the dome lights and scowled. “What did you do to this?” She scowled up at him again. “I’m an adult, Gregori, and free to make my own choices. Release me or I’ll scream.” “Go ahead and scream, little one. It will do you no good. I will merely control the minds of anyone who dares approach us.” Tears filled her eyes and the sight of them almost broke his heart. “Let me go. Can’t you see? We aren’t meant for 41

Tianna Xander each other. I can’t live like this where you take control of my mind because I say or do something you don’t like,” she sobbed. “I need to be free, not kept in some kind of gilded cage where I’ll be safe. What kind of life is that, Gregori?” She wrapped her arms about herself and began to rock back and forth. “I want to go home. I need to go home.” Kaylee continued to chant the words as she sat by his side, the seatbelt forgotten. A knock on the window got his attention. It was Arty. Gregori fought the urge to check his watch. It didn’t matter where in the world he was when he contacted Arty, the other man was never more than fifteen minutes away. Sometimes that bothered him but not today. Today, he wanted nothing more than to get this over with and get Kaylee to safety. Gregori climbed from the car and as usual, towered over the human as he stood with his hands on his hips. “Which room?” Arty asked as he peered toward the building. “I assume it’s the one with the door open, but you never know.” “It is.” Gregori pointed. “Take care of it, will you? I have to take my woman to safety.” “What woman?” Arty asked, sounding confused as he looked into the car. “I don’t see a woman.” 42

The Ornament Heart in his throat, Gregori spun around. Kaylee was gone. The seatbelt, still locked in place told of her presence or at least told of her presence in his mind. “No!”

43

Tianna Xander

Chapter Seven

K

aylee woke with a start. She dreamed of him again. In his early to mid-thirties, no real man could compare to him. She knew he was nothing more than a dream, but she still couldn’t convince herself to let him go and start dating again. Dating felt too much like a betrayal, no matter how crazy it seemed. For a year, she dreamt of him making love to her almost every night and for a year, she hadn’t dated another man. Just the idea of it felt…wrong somehow, even though she knew Gregori couldn’t exist. Throwing the covers back, she climbed out of bed with a sigh. Of course he couldn’t exist. He was a vampire. A very handsome, sexy and virile vampire, but he drank blood to survive, just the same. Stripping her nightgown off, Kaylee padded to the shower and climbed beneath the warm spray. She loved the new instant hot water her new hot 44

The Ornament water heater provided. Kaylee washed herself as quickly and efficiently as possible, then stepped from the welcoming warmth of the shower into her cold bathroom. Donning her bathrobe, she returned to her bedroom and frowned. Yesterday’s clothes were strewn about the room as though she stripped them off on her way to bed, too tired to put them in the hamper. She wandered about the room, picking up her dirty clothes as she went, frowning at the small card that fell from one of her pockets. It was for the ornament store she’d visited the night before. She had wanted that ornament last night so much, but now…now it just didn’t seem so appealing. She set the card on her bureau and began to dress. Still, she’d promised the man she would buy it since she broke it. Picking up the card, she stuck it into her back pocket, then slipped on her shoes. She was nothing if not a woman of her word. With a sigh, she grabbed her purse and headed for the door. Thirty minutes later, she stood outside the shop, looking in. She was early. It didn’t open until ten and she checked her watch. It was only nine-thirty. “Excuse me, Miss. Can you tell me the time?” The voice was deep, almost as deep and sexy as Gregori’s but not quite. 45

Tianna Xander “It’s about half past nine,” she replied as she turned around. The man was tall, almost as tall as Gregori and almost as handsome. He smiled down at her and her legs wobbled a bit. This was a man she could get to know. A real man. “That explains it.” He grinned. “I’m way early.” He spun around in a circle. “Is there a place around here to get a good cup of coffee?” “Sure, The Bean Shack is just around the corner, they have great coffee.” He smiled his thanks and began to walk away. After a few steps, he turned around. “I’m Robert MacMasters. I think my father just bought this mall. Could I interest you in a cup of coffee with me?” Take him up on it, Kaylee. He’s a real, flesh and blood man, the sound of Laura’s voice chanted in her head. Behind her, someone unlocked the door to the ornament shop and she turned. It was the old man. He held the ornament that caught her attention so thoroughly the night before in his right hand. He was wearing gloves, of course. She turned back Robert. “I’m sorry, but I have an appointment in the shop. Maybe another time?” “I’ll hold you to it,” Robert MacMasters said before he turned and walked away. “Come on in. I need to get the door closed 46

The Ornament before people think I’m open.” The old man hurried her into the shop, then closed and locked the door behind her. “I couldn’t get the ornament fixed,” he said with a frown. “For some reason, my glue just won’t hold it closed.” Kaylee looked at the broken plastic inside the plastic bag the man kept it in since she’d broken it the day before. “I’ll pay for it since I broke it, but you can keep it. I don’t know what came over me last night, but I don’t think it’s the right addition to my decorations.” “Nonsense.” He scowled at her. “No one is perfect. Do you think the fates give everyone a chance like the one they gave you.” Turning, he peered through the window toward the coffee shop and sighed. “If you want rich and spoiled, you know where to find him. If you want a man who will appreciate you, you have to take a chance. How many people do you think get the chance to live out their lives with a person who loves them more than their life?” He handed her the bag. “The ornament is tendollars and fifteen-cents after tax. Do whatever you want with it, but you only have until midnight to make up your mind.” “Midnight?” Kaylee asked, confused. “I don’t know what you mean.” She nervously licked her lips and stared at the ornament in the bag. Was it 47

Tianna Xander real? Was everything she thought she’d dreamed real? “Yes, you silly girl. It was real and he’s dying without you. That ornament, and others like it, take people to other times, other dimensions and most of them only work during the Yule Sabbat. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance, but if you want to stay here and live your boring existence without knowing true love and without ever having really lived,” he paused and gestured to the bag, “throw that away when you leave here. You don’t deserve it. Perhaps someone with a sense of adventure will find it and it will work for them just as well. Now,” he added as he pushed her toward the door. “I do have a real life, so if you’ll excuse me. I’ll get on with it,” the old man growled as he unlocked the front door and pushed her out into the mall corridor without another word. Kaylee looked down at the plastic bag and wondered if what the old man said was true or if she was still in a dream. She pinched her arm. Hard. If this was a dream, it was a good one, because that had hurt like hell. She’d have a bruise there in a few minutes. She thought about the man she just met and knew he was interested. Perhaps she could have a nice boring life here with him, but that’s what it would be. A nice, boring life. Kaylee wasn’t sure she wanted boring. She wasn’t sure she wanted to 48

The Ornament be beheaded in another dimension either. It didn’t take much to make up her mind. If she put any thought at all into it, she knew she loved Gregori with everything within her. Robert MacMasters seemed like a nice guy, but he didn’t make her knees go weak quite the same way Gregori did and he certainly couldn’t make her melt with a look. Kaylee opened the plastic bag, reached inside and grasped the ornament with her bare hand. “I want to go home.” This time, there was no doubt in Kaylee’s mind that this wasn’t a dream. She felt the vortex pulling her down, down into some sort of strange cosmic whirlpool that took her from the mall and deposited her inside a large home with beautiful marble floors. “Don’t you now Arabella me,” a beautiful woman said as she rounded the corner, a coffee cup in her hand. The woman, whom Kaylee presumed was Arabella, stopped short, brown liquid sloshing from the cup. “Oh!” She looked around, her large brown eyes wide. “Where did you come from?” She turned to call over her shoulder. “Gregori darling, did you know you had company?” Gregori darling? Tears burned Kaylee’s eyes as she realized she’d made a horrible mistake. “I— 49

Tianna Xander I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she stammered as she stared up at the gorgeous brunette. The woman was beautiful. How could she ever compete with that? Arabella smiled. “You aren’t interrupting, dear. I was just about to leave.” She snapped a lid onto the cup of coffee in her hand. “See? It’s a travel mug. I just wanted to let it cool a bit first. Even vampires get burned, you know.” She winked. “I’m off to work now. My brother should be down shortly. Don’t make him grovel too much, will you, dear?” With a chuckle, Arabella breezed from the room. After a few seconds, Kaylee heard what sounded like the front door close as the other woman left the house. “What company?” Gregori asked as he rounded the same corner that his sister had just a few moments before. He stopped dead in his tracks and stared at Kaylee as though she were a figment of his imagination. “If you’ve come to taunt me again, please don’t. I’m not sure I could remain sane this time.” “I came back, Gregori.” Kaylee sighed. “I still don’t like the idea that you can control me at any time, but I figure that if I’m in danger and I won’t listen to you, you don’t have much of a choice.” Pausing, she licked her lips. What else should she say? She looked around the room for ideas. “Say that you’re really here, that this is some 50

The Ornament sort of Christmas miracle and that you love me.” Gregori advanced on her by a step. “Say that you’ll never leave me again.” He rested his hands on her shoulders. “And say that if you’re ever in danger again, you will allow me to use whatever means necessary to keep you safe.” Bending, he pressed a kiss to her lips. But most of all, my love, tell me you will be my wife, my mate. Kaylee rested her hands on his broad chest and pushed. Looking up, she smiled. “Only if you promise me we can get married today.” Gregori grinned, then winked. “Baby, I can have a priest over here in less than ten minutes.” “Well, then,” she paused to give him another kiss, “by some strange power in a tree ornament, we have our Christmas miracle. What are we waiting for?”

51

About the Author Tianna Xander is an eclectic author of numerous paranormal, sci-fi, time travel romance erotica books. Gaining inspiration for her characters and dialogue through her family and her addiction to the internet, she never fails to amaze readers with each new book she creates. As a reading junkie herself, Tianna has no problem reading whatever is available at the moment from romance novels, murder mysteries and encyclopedias to books on solar energy. Tianna’s life wouldn’t be complete without a happily ever after of her very own. She resides in Michigan with her husband, two children, three cats, two dogs and an intimidating bunny. Never one to fail to give credit where it’s due, she commends her family for their constant support. After writing many books and receiving rave reviews, her family is just as proud of her. Always full of ideas, Tianna rarely puts the pen down, so readers can look forward to many more exciting stories in the future.