Back to Bite You

By Elizabeth Myles

“Why did all the good ones have to be undead? And staunchly opposed to dating the living?”

Seven weeks ago, Jessica Ramos was just a humble bookseller peddling paranormal romance novels in the Houston suburbs. She had no idea vampires actually existed. Now she’s met and fallen in love with one. His name is Nathan, and he’s perfect for her. Too bad he’s also got hang-ups about getting romantically involved with a mortal. He’s declared he won’t date Jessica unless and until he’s back to being human again.

No sweat. Jessica’s convinced that she, her stake-toting best friend Lucy, and the rest of their new gang of supernatural-savvy friends can find a way to free Nathan from his vampiric curse. All they need is a solid plan—and the guts to go up against the vicious master nosferatu who turned Nathan in the first place.

Can the gang hunt down a happy ending for Jessica and Nathan, or will fate turn everything upside down? Only one thing’s certain: they’re about to discover that even the best-laid plans can go awry when unexpected surprises pop up...and the past comes BACK TO BITE YOU.

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK:

Back to Bite You is a light-hearted, paranormal romantic comedy of approximately 72,000 words and is narrated in third person from multiple characters’ POV.

It is Book 2 in a series and takes place after The Sharpest Kiss.

Reader advisory: Back to Bite You includes mild cursing, alcohol consumption, vampire-related violence, and mild sensuality.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elizabeth Myles
• Release date: Nov 30, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005199616

Elizabeth Myles

Elizabeth Myles enjoys reading and writing lighthearted romance. Her favorite stories feature sweet heroines and noble heroes. She is a graduate of Lone Star College-Tomball and the University of Houston. Her prize-winning short fiction appeared several times in Inkling: The Creative Arts Magazine of LSC-Tomball, and her novel, Fear and Laundry, received a notable entry honor in the teen category of Shelf Unbound Magazine's Writing Competition for Best Independently Published Book. Shelf Unbound subsequently included Fear and Laundry in a special contest issue spotlighting the work of “some of today’s best indie authors.”Elizabeth’s other works include the paranormal romantic comedy series The Sharpest Kiss and the contemporary/paranormal series Halloween Hearts.Elizabeth and her handsome husband, Steve, live and run together in Texas. When she is not writing, Elizabeth can be found reading, cooking, or baking, often while listening to Nine Inch Nails and other rock music. She enjoys watching sci-fi and horror movies, and her favorite television shows are Supernatural and The X-Files. Connect with her at elizabethmyles.com, and for alerts about new releases, please sign up for her mailing list here: https://elizabethmyles.com/mailing-list/

Book preview

Copyright © 2019 Elizabeth Myles

Cover by Victoria Cooper.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any person or persons, living, dead, or undead, events or locales is purely coincidental.

btby-coverpageelizabeth_name

CHAPTER ONE

Hillingham Park in Vintage Meadow Lake, a suburb of Houston, Texas

Early December

"OKAY, NATHAN, LET’S go over the plan for tonight. When the bad vampire shows up, I’ll throw a binding spell at it to incapacitate it, Jessica waved her hands, and then you’ll jump in and do your thing—"

What? Nathan cut her off. No. That is not going to happen. If a feral vampire makes an appearance here tonight, you are staying in the car. I will handle it.

Now it was Jessica’s turn to say, What?

You heard me.

Then why am I even here? You said I could come hunting with you.

He glanced at her from the driver’s side of the car’s darkened interior, incredulity shading his deep blue eyes. I said you could come. I did not say you would be hunting. You are here…for moral support.

"Moral support? On a vampire hunt? Really?"

And for companionship. Now his eyes gleamed as he looked her over, one corner of his mouth twisting up in a smirk. I enjoy your…company very much.

A smile spread across her lips. Well, I enjoy yours, too. But I haven’t been training with Kiefer and the girls all these weeks just so that I can sit around looking pretty. I’ve got magic skills now, too, you know. She waggled her fingers again. I can do cool stuff, see? She held out her right hand and spoke a few words, and a tiny blue flame flickered to life in the center of her palm.

It took a lot of effort for Jessica to hold the flame together, and to keep it from dying out, but Nathan looked thoroughly unimpressed by it.

Cute, he said. If the vampire needs you to light his cigarette, I will let you know. He leaned over and snuffed out her magical fire with his thumb and forefinger. To really rub it in, he gave her a smug look and turned his attention back to fiddling with his weapons bandolier, making sure all of his wooden stakes and scary knives were fastened to it securely.

Jessica made a disappointed noise but didn’t argue with him anymore. She knew he was right, and she had only been joking around with him, anyway. Even though she had been training with Kiefer, Lucy, Dara, and Chloe a little, she knew her magical skills were still puny at best. Unlike those other four, Jessica just didn’t have a lot of spare time to go around practicing spells or mixing up potions, nor did she seem to possess an innate knack for the dark arts. Which was fine by her, really. There were other things she was good at. Like tracking down obscure books and doing hours of research.

And, apparently, providing companionship on stakeouts.

With a smile, she glanced out the windshield at the public park Kiefer had assigned her and Nathan to watch tonight. There was a Christmas carnival going on near the playground. She could see cars circling around, their drivers searching for parking, and she spotted plenty of regular people, families with children, wandering around the grounds with cups of hot cocoa clutched in their gloved hands. They sucked on candy canes and munched on cookies, goggled over the decorative lights, and stood in line to have their pictures taken with Santa. She didn’t see any vampires prowling among them, for which she was both grateful and disappointed.

Jessica was glad, of course, that there weren’t any monsters popping out of the trees tonight, harassing innocent folks just out for a night of holiday cheer, but at the same time, she knew there were vampires out there somewhere, lurking around the city. She knew Nathan and the gang needed to find them all and deal with them as soon as possible.

It had been over a month since Dorian had let twenty-eight bloodsuckers loose in the area, and so far, Jessica’s friends had only caught seventeen of them. Lucy and Aaron had taken down three together, while Jason and Dara had nabbed four. Nathan, Chloe, and Kiefer—either individually or in some combination together—had dealt with the other ten. Every one of the vampires had been feral and needed to be put down immediately. Reports of attacks continued to trickle in, though, letting the hunters know that the rest of the vampires were still out there somewhere, wreaking havoc. The thought kept Jessica up at night, even though she knew Nathan and the others were doing everything they could to stop them. She had just never been the most patient person around, and she was tired of waiting. She wished they could just hurry up and find the despicable creatures already and end them once and for all. Then they could move on to their next order of business, which was finding and killing Nathan’s master, Marta. Once they’d managed that, Nathan would be human again. He would finally think it was okay to be romantically involved with Jessica. Not that he wasn’t already romantically involved with her. He was just sometimes a little uptight about it.

She glanced at him again and saw he had taken out a cloth and was polishing a gigantic, lethal-looking serrated blade.

Nathan, I don’t think any other vampires are going to be visiting us here tonight, she said glumly.

No, he agreed. I fear you are correct.

She paused for a second and then said, cheerfully, Hey, I’ve got an idea, though. Do you want to make out with me?

Yes, he said immediately, but still didn’t look up.

But you won’t, she sighed.

You know I will not.

You kissed me that one time in my apartment, she reminded him, and it was really hot.

I remember, he assured her.

Do you think it was a mistake?

No. But it should not happen again.

"But it has happened again. A couple times since then. Those were hot, too."

Yes, I know, he sighed. What can I say? You are extraordinarily beautiful, and…it makes me weak. She saw the corner of his mouth curling upward, and she moved in closer, bringing her face nearer to his. Jessica, move back, he said, feigning irritation. You are blocking the light from the streetlamp.

She rested her hand on his nape, running her fingers through the lush, midnight-black hair there. He ignored it for a while, but then his hands stilled on the weapon, and he turned the full force of his gaze on her. Heat blazed in the depths of his indigo eyes.

Does that feel good? she asked, pitching her voice lower as she surveyed him coyly from beneath her lashes.

You know it does. He sheathed the blade and tossed it onto the dashboard. The next second, with a movement so quick she almost didn’t see it, his hand was on her nape, and he was kissing her like crazy, his lips moving expertly over hers and his tongue seeking entrance. She gladly let him have it. The weapons bandolier, promptly forgotten, slipped between the seats with a clatter. His arms went around her, and with a faint growl, he dragged her against his chest.

Holy cow, Jessica thought as her hands curled around his broad shoulders. This guy—this vampire—sure could kiss like a champion. She felt her head growing light and fuzzy, her body going warm and weak.

And then he bit her.

Not on purpose. It was just a quick slip of one of his fangs, nicking the tender swell of her lower lip, but still, it stung like the dickens.

Ah! Jessica gasped and pulled away from him.

Distress swam into Nathan’s gaze, cutting through the clouds of lust that had gathered there. I apologize. It happens sometimes—

When you get excited, I know. Jessica reached for her mouth, but Nathan caught her wrist and held it aside. He brushed his thumb across her lip, blotting the tiny pearl of blood that had beaded up there, and touched it to his tongue. Jessica saw his eyes flicker as he swallowed.

Do I taste good? she wondered.

You do, he said simply. But, once again, I am sorry.

Don’t apologize, she waved at him. It’s cool. Hazards of dating a vampire.

He actually smiled at that, but he said, We are not dating. I have told you many times, that will not happen until I am human once again.

Oh, okay, she said in a skeptical tone. "Well, then what are we doing?"

He brought a fingertip to the hollow of her throat, tracing slowly into her cleavage. You are being extraordinarily beautiful, as always. And I am once again being weak.

An excited quiver sang through Jessica. She grinned and leaned into him, planting her lips on his again. He had just moaned, starting to get back into it, when she nipped his bottom lip with her teeth.

Ow. He pulled back, surprise flaring in his irises.

There, let’s see how you like it, she sniped, but with the smile still in her eyes.

His irises smoldered in response, and he took her by the arm to pull her in close again. Minx, he said, and fixed his mouth to hers.

A second later, his hand was on her chest, caressing her through the soft fabric of her sweater. He toyed with the top button, and Jessica unfastened it for him. She knew he would never have done it himself. As she had discovered over the past few weeks, weak for her or not, Nathan was still a gentleman with a strict code of self-conduct. Maybe a little too strict, as far as she was concerned. He might slip now and again, and let himself kiss her, but he’d never venture any further than that. Little did he know what his self-denial was doing to her, though. His restraint was supposed to cool the passion between them, but all it did was make Jessica even hotter for him. She could almost convince herself she was dating an old-fashioned nobleman, or maybe a medieval knight. She’d never known how much she liked it when a guy played hard to get.

Sinking her hands into Nathan’s hair, she felt herself melting again, the desire to climb into his lap and rip off his shirt almost overwhelming her. She might’ve tried it—had the car’s back door not suddenly flown open and scared the living daylights out of her.

Ahhh! Jessica and Nathan both cried out.

Chloe slid into the backseat and slammed the door closed, using her telekinesis to secure all the locks again. I am sorry. I did not mean to startle you.

Chloe, Jessica’s hands flew up to refasten her sweater. She stared at the nosferim—Chloe’s term for a vampire/human hybrid—in the backseat with alarm. I thought we talked about you sneaking up on people?

Chloe looked at her with big, innocent blue eyes. I deliberately made noise as I approached.

Yeah, well, noisy for a vampire and noisy for a human are two different things, I guess, Jessica huffed.

And that wasn’t the only difference between humans and nosferim. As a hybrid, Chloe exhibited a curious combination of vampire and human characteristics. She had a typical human life expectancy. Sunlight didn’t harm her. She had retractable fangs, and could subsist on blood, but chose not to. Crosses and holy water had no adverse effect on her. She wasn’t particularly fast, but she had increased strength and some psychic ability, including light telekinesis. Her biggest asset had nothing to do with her heritage at all, though, but rather came from her knowledge of magic and the supernatural in general. She’d spent the earliest part of her life studying and training in an undisclosed village in Britain, and had afterward roamed the globe with her parents, her grandfather, and a revolving door of other vampire hunters from around the world, tracking and destroying nosferatu and honing her spellcraft. Despite being only twenty-two years old, she was a proficient magic user and experienced hunter. There was no denying she was impressive, but…she was also a little odd. Even Chloe admitted it. She’d once told Jessica, with a sardonic twist to her lips, that back home, she was considered the most socially adept out of all her family members. Hybrid vampires, it turned out, tended to be even weirder in some ways than the full-blooded variety.

Chloe’s expression, if one could call it that, didn’t change. She said, If nothing else, I thought you two would hear the door locks opening.

Nathan muttered, We were…preoccupied.

I noticed. There was no discernible judgment in Chloe’s tone. Her slim white hands came up to straighten her impeccably fitted black leather jacket, which she wore over a black turtleneck and black jeans. Black boots capped her feet. She looked like a shadow with a white porcelain mask floating over it. Once again, I apologize. I just spotted you here and thought I would come by and say hello. I did not realize Kiefer had assigned you to the park tonight, else I might have chosen another location to surveil. Have the two of you had any luck here?

"Well, I think I might’ve been about to get lucky, if someone hadn’t rudely interrupted," Jessica grumbled under her breath.

Nathan shot her an amused look before turning back to Chloe. No, he said, shaking his head. Despite two attacks having been previously reported in this park, we have seen nothing. Not a single feral vampire. You?

Chloe shook her head, too. Those reports from Frankie came in weeks ago, she reminded him. It seems the vampires we seek have moved on from here. I doubt they will return.

You think they’re gone? Jessica asked. That they’ve left the city?

No, Chloe said. I believe the majority of them are holed up somewhere in the area, but it is anyone’s guess where their lair might be.

I tend to believe you are right, Nathan admitted thoughtfully. If only we did not live in such a sprawling metropolis; it might be easier for us to pinpoint their location.

I do have some good news, Chloe offered, sitting forward. The earlier part of the day proved more fruitful for Kiefer and myself. Before sunset, we found one of the strays slumbering in a cemetery across town.

Jessica and Nathan exchanged an excited glance. No kidding, Jessica grinned. That’s great!

Nathan was more subdued. It was feral, I presume? Like the others?

Chloe nodded.

You killed it? Jessica gulped. She knew it was the right thing to do. Like their name suggested, feral vampires were wild. They couldn’t be reasoned with. If left alone, they’d just go on a rampage, biting and killing everything in their path until they finally caught a stake through the heart or a blade through the neck. Still, Jessica could never forget that four of the men she knew and respected most these days—Nathan, Kiefer, Jason, and Aaron—had all been turned into vampires once upon a time. One of them—the one she was head-over-heels in love with—was still as undead as the day was long. The feral vampires they now hunted had once been normal people, too, with families and hopes and dreams. It just didn’t feel like much of a victory to have to put them down like dogs.

But then Chloe said something that startled Jessica out of her gloomy thoughts. No, it is not dead.

What? Jessica glanced at Nathan and saw he was surprised, too.

What went wrong? he asked Chloe. The vampire escaped you? Jessica heard the doubt in his voice and shared it. It was practically unheard of for a vampire to get away from either Chloe or Kiefer, much less the two of them working together.

But Chloe gave another shake of her head, sending a golden curl springing loose from her ponytail. No, she said, it did not escape us.

Nathan’s face hardened, and Jessica felt suspicion tiptoe through her brain. Chloe, she said warily, what’s going on?

Chloe straightened her jacket again, unnecessarily. Perhaps… she hesitated, obviously measuring her words with care. Perhaps it would be best if the two of you returned to the safehouse with me and saw for yourselves.

CHAPTER TWO

JESSICA HAD INITIALLY heard of Kiefer’s safehouse nearly two months ago, when she’d first met Nathan’s magic-using best friend. At the time, the sorcerer hadn’t trusted anyone but Nathan enough to allow them in there, but circumstances had changed since then. Once Jessica and her friends had earned his confidence, Kiefer had thrown open the doors to his haven and let them in on a few of its secrets. The group of friends had now spent weeks training down there, plotting against Dorian and his feral vampires.

The place had turned out to be a four-bedroom family home situated in the woods outside the city. Kiefer had purchased it for a song, years ago, and then spent more than a decade renovating and reinforcing it, creating what he considered a fortress against evil that was both practical and cozy. The surface level was furnished and outfitted just like any other normal, modern home, but the real essence of the place existed underground, in the honeycomb of concrete bunkers sprawling underneath the house.

According to Kiefer, the estate’s previous owner had been a doomsday prepper who’d built the catacombs in anticipation of Armageddon. Or maybe Ragnarök. The man’s rambling conspiracy theories hadn’t been totally clear to him. All he knew was that the grumpy, disheveled seller had since decided the location was too risky. Houston was the fourth most populous city in the country and therefore a natural target for terrorists. Or angry gods. He had off-loaded the house to Kiefer without asking too many tricky questions, and then quickly shambled off to someplace more reassuringly remote. Now Kiefer used the subterranean shelter to stash not only food and supplies but also weapons, books, computers, and ingredients for spellcraft. Rooms at the north end were reserved for training and storage, and it was to one of these gymnasiums that Jessica now followed Nathan.

What is this? Nathan demanded when they strode into the room. His stormy eyes were fixed on an enormous cage looming in the corner. The cage had always been there—precisely why, Jessica had always been a little afraid to ask—but it was usually empty. Not tonight, though.

Kiefer stepped out of the shadows with his hands raised. Now, before you freak out, he said, but Nathan’s face had already started to cloud over, his jaw ticking with indignation.

What is going on here? he insisted.

Jessica could understand why he was upset. The scene before them was…well, more than a little disturbing. A female vampire, barefoot and clad in dirty rags, slumped in a corner of the cage with an iron collar clapped around her neck. Shackles encircled her wrists and ankles. The creature looked crazed, her teeth bared and her eyes rolling wildly, but her restraints must’ve been enchanted, because she looked frozen from the neck down. Her arms lay limply at her side, her legs sprawled uselessly out in front of her.

Nathan turned to Chloe, who’d slipped in right behind them. This was your idea, wasn’t it? he accused her.

Chloe’s face remained impassive as she turned to him. She opened her mouth to respond, but Kiefer beat her to it.

Actually, it was mine.

Nathan spun back to him. What?

Kiefer’s hands were still in the air, like he was surrendering. "It was sparked by something Chloe said to me, though."

Nathan’s eyes narrowed. He muttered under his breath, I knew it.

Jessica watched Chloe carefully, searching for any reaction to Nathan’s open hostility toward her. It was obvious that even after weeks of being acquainted with her, he still didn’t trust her very much. But if Chloe was upset about that, she didn’t let it show; her inscrutable face gave nothing away.

Kiefer said, I knew you wouldn’t like it, man, but hear me out. You know Chloe’s got decent psychic powers. She thinks she might be able to read one of the feral’s minds. Then we might be able to figure out what Dorian was doing with them, and what he wanted with Celia. And why he wanted you so bad, too. You still want to find all of that out, don’t you?

Jessica could see Nathan’s skepticism fading as he sifted through these possibilities. Because of course he wanted the answers to those questions. They had haunted him for over a month now. He rounded on Chloe. Do you honestly believe you could perform such a procedure? Is it even possible?

Chloe stood with her long legs apart and her hands behind her back. It is possible, and in fact, I have already attempted it. I did not succeed, but I think perhaps under the correct circumstances, I might attain more satisfactory results.

What circumstances?

Chloe cast a bland look at the vampire in the cage. She must be starved for several days, and there is a ritual that must be performed. It would involve ritualistic cutting and binding—

No, Nathan said before she could finish.

Nathan, Kiefer tried, but Nathan held up his index finger to quiet him.

He swung his turbulent gaze back to Chloe. I have read about the sorts of rituals of which you speak. The subject must be awake throughout the ordeal, correct? With no anesthetic magic administered to dampen her pain?

Of course not, Chloe said. Pain is a necessary ingredient to the procedure. It is what will break the vampire’s spirit and make it docile, pliable enough that it will open up its mind to me.

Then what you are describing is torture, Nathan said through gritted teeth, and I will not allow it. Kiefer should have known that. In fact, I am certain that he did.

Kiefer started to say something, but Nathan glared at him, and he shut up.

Now, one of you put this poor creature out of its misery, Nathan ordered. This instant.

I do not understand, Nathan. Chloe inclined her head thoughtfully. This creature is beyond reason. It is bestial. And you planned to kill it anyway. What difference could a few days of discomfort prior to its demise possibly make to you?

The words were hardly out of her mouth before Nathan yanked a stake from his belt and flung it into the cage. The wooden point found its target, burying itself in the vampire’s heart, and the creature scarcely had time to hiss one last time before she dissolved into a pile of ashes. Her shackles and collar tumbled to the floor with a dismal clank.

Kiefer’s face fell, and Chloe sighed as she dropped her chin. I wish you had not done that, Nathan. It was no easy matter getting that vampire here and restraining her thus.

I am sorry for your inconvenience, Nathan replied sarcastically.

Chloe eyed him coolly. She took a step forward. "Nathan, when I first came to you, it was to ask for your help hunting a master, Gregor, who had long eluded me in the Himalayas. You told me you would help me find him, but only after you’d located and dealt with every stray vampire Dorian had let loose here in your city. I agreed your focus should remain here, given the dire circumstances, and I offered to aid you in your pursuit. Then you informed me that even if you found all of Dorian’s vagrants, you would not be free to help me until after you had tracked down your own master, Marta, and dispatched her to regain your humanity. I found this rather disappointing, as you would obviously be a more useful partner to me in your vampiric form, but even so…I