Excerpt of At His Commandy by Kimberly Zant, Veronica Chase, Celeste Anwar, Megan Ziese

Blood Feud by Kimberly Zant

Chapter One

New to town, I’d used up a tank of gas pounding the
pavement in search of a place to light before I had to
spend all of my savings on a hotel. I tried to be
philosophical about the situation. I’d be living here now.
I needed to learn my way around, but moving wasn’t cheep
and I was going to have to count my pennies until I was
fully settled, so it was hard to be completely off hand
about it.

There’d been a few frustrations in the exercise, like
getting lost more times than I liked to count, but I’d
found a place that suited both my budget and my
temperament. I was trying to decide what furniture I needed
and where to put the pieces I’d brought with me when I’d
discovered the view from my apartment was a beautiful one--
not the scenery, the local wildlife.

My living room window looked right down into the walled
yard of the neighbor’s house--sort of--meaning I could see
into it--and from a distance at least, the man next door
was enough to send any red blooded woman’s libido into
overdrive.

Impossible as it seemed, he looked even better close up,
because I’d nearly broke my neck to get back downstairs to
unload the car so that I could get a better look at the
young god sprawled half naked in a lawn chair next door.

Disappointment filled me when I reached the parking lot.
The wall was just a tad too high for me to look over it
casually. I suppose that was why I hadn’t noticed him to
begin with.

I glared at the wall irritably. Climbing on the top of my
car and leering at him wasn’t what I’d had in mind. He was
built like a young god, but that didn’t mean he looked like
one. For all I knew the body was just a fluke and the face
that went with it a total turnoff.

I was still trying to figure out how I was going to get a
better look at him when I slammed the trunk lid, hoisted
the box I’d removed from the trunk on one hip and started
back. There was a face peering at me from the other side of
the wall. A jolt went through me, partly because I was
stunned to discover he’d come to check me out without any
pretense of casual curiosity, partly because finding
someone staring at me was completely unexpected, and partly
because if this face went with the body I’d seen from my
window it was hard to fathom why there wasn’t also a harem
of women draped all over him.

Blinking rapidly, as if someone had just swung a punch at
me, I braked as abruptly as if I’d run into the wall he was
leaning on.

His dark gaze scanned me from the top of my head right down
to my sandals without any attempt to hide his carnal
interest. His gaze was heated when his eyes met mine again
and so was I. One corner of a devilishly kissable mouth
tipped upward, displaying an equally devilish dimple. The
smile kept growing, his lips parting slowly to reveal a set
of teeth that looked amazingly white next to his dark olive
skin. "Movin’ in, chère?"

Feeling as giddy and awkward as a teenager, I merely gaped
at him, my mind struggling to decipher the unfamiliar
accent. "Uh--yes," I finally managed a little weakly.

"You doan sound too sure, chère. I didn’t scare you, did
I? ‘Cause that wasn’t what I had in mind. I just figured I
might as well introduce myself an’ offer you a hand, seein’
as how we’re gonna be neighbors."

I managed a tremulous smile. "That’s so sweet of you to
offer, but I’ve only got a few things with me. Most of my
stuff is in storage. I thought I’d look around for someone
to move it for me tomorrow."

"Hold on."

I blinked in surprise and stepped back as he hoisted
himself up on top of the wall. Every muscle in both arms
and his chest and belly strained and rippled as he
straightened his arms, supporting his body momentarily, and
then flung one leg over the top.

Every muscle in my body clenched, especially those in my
lower belly, as I stared in opened mouthed wonder at all
those rippling muscles. I hadn’t even known men had that
many muscles in their bodies.

"Beau," he murmured with a wide smile as he landed beside
me.

I was so busy staring at the happy trail that led from his
belly button to Godzilla, faithfully cupped by his snug
jeans, that it took me several moments to gather my
wits. "I’m … uh …Jillian," I supplied after a frantic
scramble around my mind in search of my identity. "Beau?"

He grimaced, rubbing the dark shadow of beard along his
jaw. "Short for Beauregard. DuMauier."

My face flamed. I prodded my mind for the little bit of
French I remembered from high school. Beautiful view? I
knew that was close to the mark if not the exact
translation. I’d thought it was a nickname, but if anybody
deserved to wear such a name, this man certainly did.

"Oh!" I said. Thoroughly rattled by now, I stuck my hand
out. "Jillian."

The easy grin and the dimple appeared again, this time
accompanied by a husky chuckle that made my kegels clench
like they had something to hang on to--or wanted something
to place a stranglehold on--which they definitely did. "I
did rattle you just a tad, din I, chère?"

I went back to blinking, wondering how he could
tell. "Cook," I added hastily, realizing that I’d already
given him my first name twice and feeling my face heat up
and flash like a neon sign.

"On occasion," he responded. "Especially for purty ladies."

I began to have the bizarre feeling that I’d stepped into a
different world and the natives didn’t speak my language.
It dawned on me after a moment, though, that he’d thought
my name was a question. "Uh … I meant, my last name. It’s
Cook."

He chuckled again, his face darkening just enough to
thoroughly captivate me, as if I hadn’t been to start
with. "Now I’m disappointed. Here I thought we had
somethin’ goin’."

I wasn’t shy ordinarily, but I wasn’t exactly bold either.
I burned to say something ribald, though. Dinner and a
fuck? "We could," I stammered. "I mean, I could … cook." My
wits were scrambled! "Uh … actually, I don’t have any of
the kitchen stuff yet."

"So--maybe I should invite you to my place instead? I cook
a mean steak."

I wanted to accept, desperately, which was the main reason
I thought it unwise. "I’d like that," I managed to say
politely. "But I guess I should get settled in before I
consider … uh …." I floundered, trying to decide whether
the invitation constituted a date, or if it was just a
neighborly sort of ‘housewarming’ thing. I didn’t want to
sound as if I assumed he was interested in me that way when
I’d barely met him. "…Playing" Eekk! Where the fuck had
that come from? "Work before …uh … play, you know." God!
Kill me now! That was unbelievably stupid! "Because I’m not
settled in and couldn’t return the invitation."

I could tell from his expression that he was trying to
decide if I’d lost my keeper or had way too much to drink.

This was really going badly!

I rubbed my temple absently, wondering if I’d gotten sun
stroke, or if it was just my libido that had fried my
brain. "I’m sorry. I’m just really tired," I said on
inspiration. "Long drive, and all the packing before,
sleeping in a strange place. I’m really not a moron.
Honestly."

He gave me a look of sympathy. "Tell ya what, baby. I jus’
happen to have access to a truck and some men with strong
arms and backs. Why don’t I give you a hand with the
movin’?"

"That is so sweet!" I exclaimed, totally surprised to
discover that he was as nice as he was beautiful. "I
wouldn’t want to impose, though."

He took the box from me and guided me toward the apartment
house. "I consider it an investment."

I looked at him in surprise, wondering if I was going to
get to pay him back in trade. Oh what a job that would
be! "An investment?"