As if he’d noticed my attention, Matt surprises me by being the one to speak up. He’s playing with the satin ribbon trim at the neckline of Savannah’s costume, his fingers twisting in the curls of her blonde hair that have fallen over the upper rise of her pale breasts. Now he shifts his other hand to her lap, clasping her slender fingers in his much larger hand. “By marrying us, I think the lovely women in this car have fulfilled every fantasy we could wish,” he says. “It seems only fair that we occasionally try to accommodate one of theirs.”
“Here, here. Well said.” Lucas raises the glass of whatever alcohol he’s imbibing, and the others follow suit, winning soft smiles from the women.
Matt clears his throat then, indicating he’s not done. His eyes meet his wife’s. “I admit, I find the way she responds to role-playing and costumes…very rewarding. It’s unexpected.”
At my raised brow, Jon steps in to clarify. “Some empirical evidence might help,” he says. Cupping Rachel’s face, he lifts it so he can slide his mouth down behind her ear, his other hand spreading out over her sternum, fingertips fanned so one of them is at the base of her throat. “The second I do this,” he murmurs, “her pulse leaps like a rabbit. The idea of the vampire intensifies that primal response. It’s fascinating.”
Rachel’s eyes have half closed, her hand slipping down to catch into the folds of his coat.
“Hmmmm. Looks like Frank Langella was right,” I observe. “I read he used to have men comment to him that they definitely reaped the sexual benefits of their wives seeing him in Dracula.“
“It just amps up that whole Dom vibe to a paranormal level,” Dana suggests, then gives a little breathless laugh as Peter dips his head to prick her neck with his fangs. “Just like that.”
A shiver runs through me as I watch Peter take a delicious little nip at Dana. “So, ladies, I have to tell you that I’m pretty impressed with you all. Really, how gratifying was it to win a bet against these men?”
“It was like fucking Christmas, ten times over,” Marcie declares, causing all the women to laugh, and eliciting good-humored grimaces among the men. “I wanted to upload it to YouTube. Of course, there’s always a down side, which is actually an upside. They have to reassert their testosterone, reclaim their manhood, that kind of thing. And we wouldn’t want to stand in the way of that…”
“So selfless,” Ben snorted.
“It was still cheating,” Lucas said. “They tag-teamed Dana’s cardplaying skills with Savannah’s ability to read Matt.”
“I’ve seen Matt turn plenty of meetings to his advantage, apparently single-handedly. When in actuality, he does it as a result of the information and resources you four have provided him.” Savannah gives Lucas an imperious look. “Would you consider that cheating?”
“Absolutely.” Ben stepped in to defend Lucas’s position. “He didn’t say cheating was wrong. He just said you cheated. A win is a win.”
“So says the soulless lawyer.” Cassandra rolls her eyes.
Waiting for the catcalls that follow that comment to run out, my attention has gone to the women’s costumes, and how well coordinated they are with their men. “All of you ladies have selected some amazing choices for your costumes. I would really love to hear your reasoning as to why you chose them.” And as I peer over Ben to glance at Marcie, I give her a quick wink and add, “Seems like great minds think alike. Right Kate?”
“Absolutely.” Marcie teases the hair at Ben’s nape with her fingers. “Just remember to go home with the right Kate tonight, Count. Or I might find just the place to shove this gun.”
“Why can’t I have both?” he says, with an utterly sinful look at me. Despite that, I notice the teasing glance he casts toward Marcie is obviously laced with quiet devotion. It’s still new, seeing this side of Ben displayed so openly. But it’s a good thing to see. “These women,” he mutters. “They think just because they own you, heart and soul, they can tell you what to do.”
“I didn’t hear her tell you what to do. She just warned you there are consequences for unwise actions,” Peter notes.
“I did consider dressing up as Lauren Hutton’s character, the Countess from Once Bitten,” I add. “But I figure I couldn’t find any virgin males at this shindig.” And definitely not in this car. At their amused looks, I shrug. “What? A girl’s gotta eat!”
I turn my attention to Cassandra’s costume now. She is wearing a long, dark wig, and has donned contacts that make her blue eyes equally dark and piercing. Her blouse clings to her torso, her forearms revealed by lace-draped sleeves that match the deep lace-edged neckline, a Goth look to go with her long velvet skirt and hook button boots. She also has applied stage makeup that makes her eyes look more deep set, cheeks drawn. It gives her a piercing intensity when she looks toward me. “With Lucas being Spike, I wanted to go as the true love of his life, Drusilla. It wasn’t fair that only the guys got the fangs.” Caressing Lucas’s jaw, she shifts to Drusilla’s drifting, singsong way of talking, managing it so well I know Marcie is right – Cass is a serious closet Buffy fan. “Delilah is soooo sweet. I’ll bet she tastes like clover, my lovely. And honey.”
Lucas eyes me, a very Spikelike look. Suddenly I find myself wondering whether Lucas shared my little Boardroom fantasy with Cass. When Cass turns her gaze to me as well, the two of them are pulling off a chillingly realistic representation of considering a victim who’s about to become dinner. In this crowd, that doesn’t have an entirely unpleasing feel to it, but before I get myself in trouble by offering up my femoral artery to Lucas for say a day, or two—or eternity for that matter—I decide it’s a good idea to clear my throat and turn my attention to Dana.
Dana wears a tight thin shirt in tie-dye blues and browns with an angel wing print overlay on it, a feminine counterpoint to the low slung tight brown leather pants, thick-soled shoes and snug gauntlet on her left arm. I notice a sling of arrows tucked off to the side. “Jessica Biel’s Abigail, from Blade Trinity,” Peter says, cueing his wife to my attention.
“Blade Trinity was my favorite of the three,” Dana says. “Wesley Snipes, Ryan Reynolds and Jessica Biel. I could get off on imagining them all day. All sorts of good fantasy possibilities there.” She tips her dark glasses down, the ones she often wears so people aren’t distracted by her blind eyes. “But that wasn’t the only reason I chose to go as Jessica. I have to provide my man back up, cover his ass. And not just because it’s so worth covering.”
“Groping, fondling…” Marcie puts in, dodging Ben’s pull on her hair.
“Amen, sister.” The petite black woman, who has amazing biceps definition, enough to compete with Jessica, beams. “If we get into any trouble, I have my girl Kate on speed dial over there to back me up. Of course, now I have two of them.” She nods in my direction. “Anna was pretty kickass in Van Helsing. She kept up with Hugh, big time.”
“You know it girlfriend!” I say as Dana and I go for a fist bump.
Marcie is completely badass and sexy as hell in her Selene get-up of latex pants, corset, and a gun strapped to her thigh. She wears a black wig to match Kate’s hairstyle and has done the makeup accordingly to enhance her vivid eyes and lush, glossy mouth. She wears the contacts that turn her eyes that ethereal blue-grey. The effect is completely preternatural.
“A little less docile than Frank’s female victims,” she muses, running her hand up Ben’s thigh, “But I think he prefers it that way.”
“You bet your sweet ass,” Ben said, capturing the hand and bringing it to his lips, taking a not-so-gentle nip at her knuckles with those impressive fangs. “The more you fight, the harder I take you down, brat.”
“You can try.”
My attention shifts to Rachel at last. She’s in blue velvet, a dress tailored to cling perfectly to her lush figure. The deep neckline, tight sleeves and draped hips turn her into a Venus. The skirt flares out below the knees to show a slashed black lining. Her neck is bare and her blonde hair is swept up. In fact, as I look around, I realize none of the women are wearing necklaces or the collars I know they each have, a gift and binding to their respective Masters. The reasons are quite clear. No woman in her right mind would want to impede the fangs of these men reaching their intended target.
I can’t figure out who Rachel is supposed to be, but she’s dressed to be ravished, consumed, and Jon looks ready to devour. Which I realize is the point and the costume. When she notes my puzzlement, she nods, confirming it.
“I’m a vampire’s servant,” she says simply. “Wearing what he desires, ready to provide him blood…or whatever else he needs, when he needs it.”
“Well, Rachel,” I say, “you absolutely make the most beautiful vampire’s servant. I’m sure your Master”—I look at Jon out of the corner of my eye and find him smiling—“is very pleased with you. Your costume makes me think about a book I read recently, Taken by a Vampire, by Joey W. Hill. She writes the most exquisite stories about vampires and their servants. Taken has a servant named Niall. He is a 300 year old sexy-as-hell Scot who likes to wear kilts. Not a lot underneath those kilts, you know.” I grin as I say that last sentence.
“Love her books,” Lucas says, shocking me, but his eyes glint with humor. “And I haven’t read a single one of them.” He glances down at Cass. “But every time she does, I reap the benefits. I’ve been thinking we should send Ms. Hill some kind of gift. Chocolate, a Jaguar, a house in the Bahamas…”
“I happen to be a friend of Ms. Hill’s,” I reply, “and I know that that she has a fondness for Chris Hemsworth. You know, that delicious Aussie actor that plays the Marvel character Thor in the movies? Maybe you could arrange to have a Jaguar parked in the driveway of a house somewhere in the Bahamas where Chris would be waiting for her, covered in chocolate….” I can barely contain my laughter.
**********
Soooooooo how have you enjoyed my "Howl"oween Limo Ride with the Knights so far? I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have! Well maybe I have enjoyed it just a wee bit more being that I'm sandwiched between Master Ben and Master Jon. *evin grin* On that note I have to tell you that Joey and I have saved the best for last so you DEFINITELY DO NOT want to miss what goes on during tomorrow's final installment of the Limo Ride! 
I have a very unique prize to give away to one lucky Riverina Romantics follower! I have reserved one Virtual Signing copy of Joey W. Hill's highly anticipated upcoming release Unrestrained! That's right! Here's your chance to win your very own personalized signed copy of Dale and Athena's story which will be released on December 3, 2013! To be eligible for this amazing INTERNATIONAL giveaway all you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck everyone!
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