Sweeter Than Wine (6 page)

Their concentration was absolute, but she knew they were aware of her presence.

They completed the
kata
and both bowed, signaling the end of the pattern. Sebastian smiled at her as they moved nearer and his expression put her at ease.

“Christina, please allow me to introduce Hiro Yamamoto, a long-time friend and one of those I’ve asked to help teach you.”

Christy held out her hand to the tall, dusky-skinned man. She could tell by his features that he wasn’t fully Asian, though his name sounded Japanese. He took her hand with a firm grip, but his strength was tempered and his manner non-threatening. This was a man who knew his own measure and didn’t need to prove how strong he was, unlike her husband.

Resolutely, she shook off thoughts of Jeff. She wouldn’t allow his darkness to shadow her new life. She’d been given a second chance and she was going to run with it as fast and far as she could.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Yamamoto.” She smiled and was gratified by the man’s return grin. It lit his dark eyes and made him seem somehow less scary.

“Please—” his voice held no trace of accent, “—call me Hiro. You’ve been in a
dojo
before, haven’t you?”

43

“I took a Shotokan class one semester in college. I loved the history and grace of it, but I was terrible. No coordination at all, and some boy accidentally punched me in the nose during our first sparring practice, so I was a little afraid to do much after that.”

Hiro chuckled, though Sebastian looked stern for a moment. She got the impression he didn’t like hearing about her little hurts, so she made a mental note not to mention those kinds of things in front of him again. She was his guest. She didn’t want to upset him.

“Would you like to try again, if we promise never to punch you in the nose?” Hiro chuckled with amusement, putting her at ease.

Gathering her courage, she nodded. “I’d like to try learning
kata
again. It was so beautiful and such good exercise. I was in terrific shape that semester, even though I was ranked at the bottom of the class.”

“There are no rankings here,” Hiro said softly as he moved backwards, drawing her into the center of the room. “Only learning. Follow what I do and try to do the same.”

Hiro bowed to her and she returned the gesture nervously, noting Sebastian had opted to sit this one out, watching them from the sidelines. The ambiance of the room was calming, but Sebastian’s eyes were hot as they followed her hesitant movements. She watched Hiro and tried to follow what he was doing as he started slowly, in a simple pattern that looked like the capital letter I. He stopped a few times to demonstrate the individual movements of blocking, punching, how to make a fist and the proper foot positions for greatest balance.

After a few minutes of his tutelage, she began to feel a little more comfortable. This was easier than she remembered. She didn’t lose her balance once, which had always been a problem, and her body wasn’t nearly as awkward as she remembered it being when she’d tried so hard before. This time, her movements came almost effortlessly and she felt an increased spring in her steps, her feet and hands answering her commands without much conscious thought. It was amazing.

She followed Hiro, unconsciously mimicking every one of his movements as if it were second nature. She didn’t need to think about how to move. She just did it. Before 44

she knew what was happening, Hiro had gone beyond the basics to flying, spinning kicks that she executed with ease. She landed after a particularly high spinning back kick and stopped in shock when she realized she’d been a good six feet off the ground!

Mouth gaping, she turned to find Sebastian watching her.

“What’s happening to me?” Panic filled her as the past few moments registered on her conscious mind. She’d been so in the zone, she hadn’t questioned what she’d done and now it seemed impossible.

“You’re a natural, sweetheart,” Hiro said with a satisfied grin. “You’re too modest.”

“No, I swear…” her breath came fast as panic started to build, “…I was a total klutz the last time I tried this. I have no idea—”

Sebastian came over and took both of her hands in his, pulling them into his chest, sheltering her with his tall body. “Calm down, Christina. This is what I was hoping for.

The cat lives in you. You have all the strength of our kind and some of the agility of Matt’s cougar. Don’t be afraid.”

Hiro laughed and shook his head, gaining her attention. “Matt, huh? I should’ve guessed. He’s the only one I’ve seen jump higher.”

“You know Matt?”

Hiro nodded. “I trained him, just as I’ll train you.”

“But why?”

The half-Asian man shrugged. “Because Sebastian asked. He’s my friend and more than that, I owe him my life. You’re important to him, so therefore, you’re important to me. We’ll work together every evening for about two hours. It’s a strict schedule, but with the shifter influence, you should advance quickly to the more complex moves. Like I said, you’re a natural. I had a much harder time adjusting when I was newly turned.”

“Then you’re—?”

“Vampire?” Hiro chuckled when Sebastian cringed at the word. “We’re siblings of a sort, you and I. Sebastian was my maker too.” He bowed slightly to Sebastian and moved toward the doorway. “I’ll leave you two to sort things out. Don’t forget. Tomorrow evening at sunset. We’ve got a date in this
dojo
.”

45

A little overwhelmed, Christy could only nod as he left, her hands still held tight against Sebastian’s chest as his warmth surrounded her. He moved slightly, keeping hold of one hand while he turned them toward the wall of glass and the moonlit garden beyond. He put one arm around her shoulders, the contact with his warm body comforting her strained senses.

“The night is beautiful, Christina. Let’s not waste it in fear.” He led her outside to a stone bench in the middle of the meditation garden and they sat, his arm still around her, one hand holding hers. “Never be afraid of what you’ve become, or what you will yet be.

You’re a strong woman with a pure soul. You have power now, but you have to train it and grow accustomed to it in order to use it to the best of your abilities.”

She couldn’t deal with much more. She had the feeling Sebastian was quietly preparing her for something, but she had no idea what. She didn’t know what her other friends had been through when they were changed, but she didn’t think it involved having wild cougar sex with a stranger, then being trained by a pumped up, devilishly handsome version of Mr. Miyogi.

“You said my friends were turned by their new husbands. How? Why?”

Sebastian sighed, contemplating the stars twinkling above them. “It started with Lissa. When the passenger van wrecked, only she and Atticus were left alive, as you know, but it was a much closer thing than you realize. Atticus was run through by a support beam, close to the heart. He was ready to bleed out—one of the few ways one of us can actually die—but he heard Lissa’s heartbeat, and he fought back from the edge to save them both. He needed her blood to be strong enough to heal them both, but she’d already lost almost too much. The only way to save them both was to feed, then give her his blood. To turn her. A dangerous gamble, but one that worked out best in the end. She was his One, his life’s mate. She completed him.” Sebastian’s arm tightened around her.

“They were married soon after, as you know, and Kelly went to work for them at the vineyard. That’s where she met Marc LaTour and when he was poisoned by silver—yet another way for us to die a very painful death—she saved him. They knew they were true mates by that point, but Marc was waiting for her to decide if she wanted to be turned.

46

Unfortunately that decision was taken out of their hands by the turn of events. Then Carly met Dmitri—”

“Jeez, Carly too?” she interrupted, surprised. “But she lives way out in Wyoming now.”

“Yes, and oddly enough, her new home was right above Master Dmitri’s hidden lair.

It brought her to his attention and shortly thereafter, he learned she was the One for him.

Then she got into a terrible accident, and was forced to choose between never seeing the sun again or death. Luckily for Dmitri, she chose to be turned.” Sebastian sighed and she felt his warm breath ruffle her hair. “With you, there was no choice. You were too near death to ask, but I couldn’t let you die, Christina. I hope you don’t hate me for making the decision without your consent.”

“I don’t think I could ever hate you, Sebastian.” She felt the truth of the words as they left her lips. “And I’m truly grateful for this second chance. When Jeff turned violent, I didn’t know how to fight back. I just sat there, taking the beating, like a punching bag. I don’t ever want to feel that helpless again.” Sebastian squeezed her shoulder, offering comfort.

“That’s all over now. You are already far stronger than he, and after tonight, you’ll be more cunning than many ancients. He’ll never be able to hurt you again. Nor will any other man.”

“Is that what the martial arts lessons are all about?”

“You’re strong, but you need training in order to master your new skills and abilities.

Hiro and I can do that for you, if you let us.”

“He’s an interesting man.”

“He’s a true friend and a man of deep conviction.”

“Is that why you turned him?”

“I knew Hiro as a mortal, before I found him dying on a battlefield, fighting for what he believed in and to protect the innocent. Knowing him as I did, I couldn’t leave him to die. I liked him too much, but more than that, I respected him. He comes from a long line of martial arts masters. His father immigrated to the United States and married an 47

American woman. It wasn’t easy for either of them, but it was especially tough on Hiro.

Even with that, when innocents were attacked, he stepped forward to help defend the people of his country and for that he nearly died.”

“I can tell how much you love him.” She patted his arm, understanding.

“He is like a brother to me.” Sebastian smiled crookedly. “Sometimes a pesky younger brother, but still a brother. It’s nice to have family again. After so long alone, it’s good to have family to care for.”

“Do you have any other progeny around that I should know about?” She chuckled as she gazed over at the trickling water draining through a series of bamboo pipes. The garden was peaceful and made her more relaxed than she could ever remember feeling.

“No, sweet.” He kissed the top of her head as she leaned back against the seat, his arm around her shoulders. “Only you and Hiro. Generally speaking, we don’t make many offspring that way. When you turn someone, you are responsible for them, and you risk much if you don’t know the measure of the person. If they turn bad—if they kill innocents or act so rashly they threaten the secrecy of our existence—the Master of the region will demand their death for the good of all. Then it falls to their maker, or one of the enforcers to do the deed.”

“Enforcers?”

He absently stroked her shoulder with his thumb. “You’ve met Ian Sinclair, haven’t you?”

“Once. At Lissa’s.”

“Ian is one of Marc’s most trusted enforcers. Marc LaTour is Master of this region.

The two of them are very old. Ian was a knight during the Crusades, if you can believe it.” He tugged her closer, so she rested against his shoulder. “He’s been assigned to watch over your friend Jena, since she knows about our kind now. Marc decided she had to be watched, lest she somehow betray her new knowledge to the wrong people. There are those in the world who still hunt our kind, and those who watch us, whose intent is unclear. We have to be vigilant to protect the secrecy of our race and ensure our continued existence.”

48

“They won’t hurt her, will they?” Apprehension filled her for Jena, the smartest of her college friends who’d gone on to medical school. She knew Jena had done all she could to save Christy’s life after Jeff nearly killed her. She loved her like a sister and didn’t want her in danger.

“I doubt it. She didn’t strike me as the kind of woman who’d sell out her friends by trying to tell the world about immortal vampires.”

“No. She wouldn’t. She’d probably do her best to try to figure you out, though. She’s a true scientist at heart. She loves riddles and puzzles of any kind.”

“Well, she won’t get much of a chance to study any of us. She’ll just have to be content knowing we’re out there.”

Christy laughed softly. “That’ll drive her nuts for sure, but she’s not reckless, and she’s a steadfast friend. She’ll keep your secret.”

“I had to bite her, you know.” Sebastian stilled, as if he were holding his breath. “I’m sorry. She wouldn’t let me help you until she was sure what I proposed wouldn’t hurt you more.”

Christy turned to face him, the moonlight gilding his handsome face. “It’s okay, Sebastian. Both of you were only trying to protect me.” She reached up and kissed his cheek. “Just don’t ever do it again, okay?”

He dipped his head and took her lips with a languid kiss. “It’s a deal, milady.”

They lost track of time as the moon rose higher over the trees shrouding the backyard oasis of calm. Sebastian kissed her with drugging thoroughness, leaving no millimeter of her mouth unexplored, no nerve ending untingling. The man was a talented kisser and a devastating masculine presence.

Dimly, Christy heard a soft rumbling purr and suddenly a warm, furry, and very large body pressed against her legs, rubbing lightly. It startled her enough to pull away from Sebastian’s hot mouth. Looking down, she stared into the sparkling topaz eyes of the biggest cat she’d ever seen.