Night Train Part 1

Night Train.

Morgan Hawke.

To Angela Knight: for the Inspiration! (When I grow up, I wanna be just like you!) To Michelle Bailey: for your patience, and all the midnight phone-calls.

To Tina & Stef: for your unwavering faith in me.

The Orient Express.

En Route to Prague from Vienna One hour after sunset "Might I have your company for the night?"

"Huh?" Elaine glanced up from her belly-down sprawl across the private compartment's plush banquette sofa. The art deco lamp directly over her was on, but polished cherry wood walls made the rest of the antique Pullman car very dark. She blinked.Where did he come from?

A tall man in a nearly floor-length black leather coat, stood just inside the deep shadow of her compartment's door. His hands hung loose at his sides. "Pardon the intrusion." His voice was soft, low and velvety with a touch of exotic eastern European lilt. He tilted his head toward the closed door. "I did knock, and your door was unlocked."

Elaine bit her lip. She hadn't heard the knock. Hell, she hadn't heard the door to her train compartment open either. Damn it, she had to start remembering to lock that door. She sighed.Too late now. "I'm sorry, my best friend says a bomb could go off when I'm drawing and I'd miss it."

"An artist's concentration, I understand." He stepped into her pool of light. Blue highlights gleamed in the unrelieved blackness of his hair. He wore it combed straight back from the deep peak of his brow, hinting that his hair was long and tied back. Midnight dark eyes peered at her from under straight black brows. Sharp cheekbones and a strong jaw-line defined his aggressively masculine face, but the lush fullness of his mouth and the ivory-pale color of his skin belonged in a neo-classical painting.

Wow, GQ magazine must be missing a model.She had to close her mouth. The man's face was that freaking gorgeous. "I'm sorry, what was it you wanted?"

One corner of his mouth lifted, hinting at amusement. He clasped his hands before him. "Your company, for the night."

"My company?" She blinked. That couldn't be what it sounded like. "For what, exactly?"

"Sex." His slightly amused expression didn't change.

"Sex." Her heart slammed in her chest.Danger, danger, danger... "I see." Good god in heaven, this guy wanted sex? With her? Was he out of his mind? She wasn't unattractive; she'd never had a problem getting dates. Her generous bust-line, more than generous butt, and small waist drew the guys out of the woodwork. But this guy was just too pretty to even consider someone that didn't come straight from Hollywood.

"I'm flattered, really, but..." She pushed up from the bench and her coiled hair teetered precariously on top of her head. She made a quick grab for the chopsticks jammed in the twisted knot of her long dark blonde mane. Several of her charcoals rolled from her sketchbook to land on the floor with the tiniest sound of breaking glass.

"Oh, damn..." She abandoned her hair and leaned over the side of the banquette sofa, reaching for the fallen charcoals. Her bare foot struck the wall under the night black window and three of the vampire paperbacks by her knee were knocked to the floor.

She groaned in annoyance.It figures...A cute guy and I am an instant klutz. Lifting her feet carefully over the backpack hogging the far end of the sofa, she turned on her belly to get her feet on the floor. Not the sexiest move in the world.Just call me Grace. She hunched down to gather the fallen books and broken charcoals.

The man crouched at her side and collected one of her fallen vampire books. A black brow rose as he scanned the back cover. "What interesting reading material."

Elaine's cheek heated as she stood. "Yes, I read trashy romances." She leaned over the sofa to stuff her charcoals and her other two books into her back pack. "It's a girl thing."

"This is a romance?"

"A trashy romance; it has sex in it." Elaine glanced over her shoulder and froze.

He was still crouched, but the book was forgotten in his hand. He was focused entirely on the curve of her jean-clad butt, bent less than a foot from his nose. His midnight stare lifted from her butt to capture her gaze. "Then you like sex?"

Elaine swallowed the lump in her throat.Oh boy, I really stepped in that one. She stood upright slowly, trying to gather what dignity she could, and then turned around to face him. "Yes, I like sex." It was too late to deny it now. She tugged the hem of her thick white cable knit sweater down over her hips, and butt. She held out her hand. "My book please?"

He rose to his feet in one smooth effortless motion and held the book slightly out of reach. He was a full head taller and the bulk of his leather coat crowded the small compartment with his presence. "May I have you for the night?"

"I, uh..." Elaine was forced to look up to see his face. The back of her knees were against the seat, and her nose was less than six inches from his broad chest. She took a deep breath. The warm masculine scent of leather caught her attention. He smelled good. He smelled...sexy. Her libido awoke with a lazy curl of warm interest.

She turned her head slightly away and shivered.Down, girl. "Look, I don't have sex with people I don't know."No matter how devastatingly cute they are. She set her hands on her hips. "You haven't even told me your name."

His black brows lifted, along with the corner of his mouth. "Pardon me." He stepped back and held out his empty hand, palm up. "I am Aramus."

Elaine wiped her damp palms down her hips and frowned a little. Where had she heard that name before?Oh, yes... A small smile inched its way across her lips. "Aramus, as in,'The Three Musketeers' ?"

He pulled his hand back and lowered his gaze, then let out a soft sigh. "Surrounded by books, I should have guessed you would know."

"Well, Aramus, any friend of Alexander Dumas is a friend of mine." She grinned and held out her hand. "I'm Elaine."

His head lifted and a smile flashed briefly across his lips. His slightly cool fingers and smooth palm closed around her smaller hand. "Elaine." He turned her hand palm down and bowed gracefully over her knuckles. "I am charmed." He remained bowed but lifted his gaze. A breathtaking smile bloomed across his full mouth and his eyes narrowed slightly with sudden intent. "Do you have any idea how lovely you are?" Yikes!Elaine sucked in a sharp breath.They should bottle that smile and label it 'raw sex'. They'd make a mint. "Thank you." She swallowed. "You're very handsome yourself." Aramus straightened, but held onto her hand. "Now that we have been introduced..." He tossed the paperback onto the sofa behind her and reached out to collect her other hand. He focused his gaze on her eyes and his smile disappeared. "I should very much like to have your company for the night." Elaine rolled her eyes. He was certainly persistent. Aramus lifted her hands and pulled slightly, forcing her to take a step closer. "Am I not agreeable to you?" She lowered her gaze and twisted her hands slightly. He couldn't be serious? His fingers tightened. "Elaine?" She looked up at him. His dark eyes were dilated wide and his mouth tight. "Please." His voice was barely a whisper. "Let me have you for this night." Elaine felt her heart slam in her chest. He was serious; really, really serious. A bead of sweat trickled down her back.Is it getting warm in here, or is it just me? She licked her dry lips. "Aramus, I don'tjust sleep with anybody who wants me." "That is...reassuring." A smile flashed across his lips. "However, I should like it if you made an exception." "This is all very sudden..." Elaine felt a tiny shiver of nervous amusement.Hello, can you say, 'heroinein a Gothic Romance'? "Can I think about it for a little bit?"Can I have a little breathing space whilewe're at it?

"Of course." Aramus lowered his gaze, released her hands and stepped back with a sigh. "May I stay while you 'think about it'?"

Elaine smiled. "I wasn't going to throw you out, I just wanted to get...used to the idea."

"I see." His head lifted and he smiled, just a little. "May I remove my coat?" Elaine shook her head.Aramus and his politeness. "Sure." She turned to collect the paperback lying onthe seat and stuffed it in her backpack. "Remove what ever you like." She set her backpack on the floorand picked up her abandoned sketchbook.

A warm chuckle came from behind her. "With pleasure." Elaine flinched.Maybe that wasn't such a good thing to say? She turned back with the sketchbookclutched before her. With his back to her, Aramus let the heavy black leather slide from his broad shoulders. He wore a creamy white sweater similar to hers, only his was obviously real Irish-knit wool. The long tail of his night-dark hair fell straight and sleek toward a waist that was obscenely narrow. He took two steps toward the door and set his coat on the hook. The slight motion showed quite plainly that his pants were tailored closely, and that he had an ass to die for.

Elaine's nipples tightened in blatant interest and moisture dampened her panties. She had to sit down before she fell down.God in heaven he's freaking beautiful . And he wanted to sleep withher ? On second thought, a lot of guys wanted to sleep with her; they just didn't want to be seen in public with someone built like they belonged in the Victorian era.

In two long unnervingly sensual strides Aramus stood before her.

Elaine had to remember to breathe. He didn't just look like sex, he moved like sex. The rich scent of leather and male drifted over her. She shivered slightly.God, he smells like sex.

"May I see?"

"Huh?" Elaine forcibly dragged her mind out from under her libido. "I'm sorry, see what?"

Aramus tapped a finger against her tightly clutched sketchbook. "Your drawings."

She lifted her shoulder just a little. "If you like, but..."

"I'd like." Aramus smiled and plucked the book from her fingers. "But?" He turned and sat down on the sofa next to her.

"But I'm not very good."

"Is that so?" He opened the large book, spreading it across his lap and over onto her knee.

The book had been new when she brought it overseas with her to Rome. Her sketches began with page after page of museum and gallery statuary renderings, then fountains and monuments. A few grave statues were tossed in, here and there with the occasional portrait. The two-inch thick book was three quarters full and she was already on her third box of fine charcoals.

He leaned close to her, their shoulders and knees in warm contact as he flipped the pages.

Embarrassed warmth filled Elaine's cheeks. Having Aramus looking at her sketches was more intimate than if he had been looking at her naked body. Displayed across his lap lay her very soul... She rolled her eyes.Okay, let's not get overly melodramatic here. They are just sketches, not dirty diary entries. She bit back a smile.Those pictures were in her other sketchbook.

Aramus stopped and ran his finger down a ragged paper edge close to the spine. "There is a page missing."

"Anthony, one of the art students I met in Rome, took it from my book when I wasn't looking. It was his portrait, so I understand why he took it."

"He stole it?"

"No big deal." Elaine shrugged. "Anthony got what he deserved later when he tried to pass it off as his work."

Aramus frowned. "He told someone that your drawing was his work?"

"Yep." Elaine grinned. "Too bad he couldn't actually draw portraits that well. From what I understand it got him into a lot of trouble when the drawing master interviewed him for an apprenticeship."

"I would assume so." Aramus raised a brow and his mouth curled into a cynical smile. "A good drawing master always asks for a demonstration."

Elaine chuckled. "Anthony is actually a good artist, just not for portraits."

"He should not have tried to claim another's skill." Aramus turned the page and stopped at one of her better portraits. The young man had been watching something just past her shoulder and a slight breeze had tousled his hair as she sketched. She had tossed in a slight rendering of the renaissance fountain behind him, just to give the portrait theme.

Aramus frowned slightly. "I'm afraid I do not understand."

Elaine looked down at the portrait. "Do not understand, what?"

Aramus glanced at her with a quick smile. "I do not understand how you could possibly think that you are not good." She felt heat creeping into her cheeks. "Okay, evenI know that picture is good. But for every good one there's about a dozen that are dismal failures."

He raised a black brow. "Indeed? Show me what you consider a failure."

She looked up at him and bit down on a nervous smile. "Do I have to?"

Aramus pushed the book onto her lap. "I insist on proof."

She groaned just a little and flipped to her last sketch, the portrait he had interrupted. The face just wasn't coming out right.

"Ah..." He frowned at the page, then turned to face her, his lips barely a kiss away. "This young man does not look drawn from life, imaginary perhaps?"

"Fictional." Elaine reached out to smudge a line with her finger. Nope, the picture was hopeless. "I was trying to draw a character from a book."

"But..." He frowned at the sketch. "The proportions are off on some of the features in this one, the ears, the eyes... This does not even look human."

"That's because he's not." Elaine hunched her shoulders. "He's supposed to be a vampire."

Aramus stilled. "Indeed?" His voice was barely a breath.

Elaine could feel the tension in his thigh and shoulder where they touched. Her heart began to hammer.

Aramus's gaze focused tightly on hers. "You have a fascination for vampires?" The word 'vampire' sounded curiously exotic in his lilting eastern European accent. He turned to gaze at her with intense, yet hooded eyes. "The soulless damned?"

"The soulless damned?" Elaine felt a nervous chuckle forcing its way up. "Well that all depends on whose story you're reading."

His brows rose. "You do not think they are the soulless damned?"

Elaine coughed to keep from laughing out loud. "I really wouldn't know. I've never met one."

"So you would reserve judgment on a creature of the dead?" Aramus lowered his chin and tilted his head toward her drawing. "Is that not a trifle...naive?"

"You're sure vampires are creatures of the dead, huh?" Elaine crossed her arms under her breasts and lifted her chin. "Have you met one?"

His black eyes held her gaze. "Perhaps I am one."

Her heart stopped for a single beat then her pulse leaped in her throat. Suspicion ignited a spark of temper.If he thinks pretending to be a vampire will get him into my pants, he better think again! A smile as cold as ice curled her lip and narrowed her eyes. "You breathe, and you're warm, so you're not dead. Does this make you merely the soulless damned?"

Aramus closed her sketchbook carefully, lifted it from their laps and turned away to set her book against the wall behind him. "There are those who believe that drinking blood is enough to damn one."

"Oh please..." Elaine rolled her eyes and grinned. "They obviously haven't been around the fetish crowd. Lots of people do bloodletting and they aren't damned or even vampires. They just think it's sexy."

"Doyou ?" Aramus turned to her with eyes that were pits of darkness so large the whites were nearly gone.

Elaine's breath stopped in her throat. No human being had eyes like that. She'd seen too many Goth kids in spooky contacts to know that she was looking at the real thing. Good God in heaven, what if he was telling the truth? What if he really was...a vampire?

Aramus turned his whole body to face her, his bent knee bushing hers. "Doyou think bloodletting is...sexy?" The gleam of long upper incisors and smaller lower canines showed as he spoke.

Fangs?Elaine bit down on her bottom lip. Those were not dental caps. She had a set of porcelain vampire fangs made by a dental assistant and his teeth were real, as real as her own. How the hell did you answer that kind of question to someone who might actually be a vampire?Oh, what the hell... She took a deep breath. "Yeah, as long as I'm not scarred, maimed or killed in the process."

Aramus raised a brow over an inhumanly dark eye. "It does not frighten you, to have someone shed your blood?"

Elaine swallowed. "It's the fear that makes it exciting. But blood-play is not something you do with someone you don't trust."

Aramus chuckled. "I should say not."

Elaine's heart slowed to a more sedate panic. Weird eyes and long teeth aside, the laugh made him seem less alarming, less...alien. "Out of curiosity, I thought vampires only had upper teeth?"

"All predators have both." Aramus looked down, hiding his eyes. "Do I frighten you?"

Did he?Elaine glanced at the back of the couch. "I think intimidated would be a better word."

Aramus lifted his gaze, and his brows dipped. "How so?"

Elaine lifted her brow and gave him a crooked smile. "Well, you did come on a little strong with the sex."

His brows rose and his eyes widened, then he scowled. "I am a vampire. I drink blood. This does not frighten you?"

Elaine stared him straight in the eye. "Are you going to kill me?"

He jerked away to sit with his arms folded across his chest. "I do not kill."