Free Kindling Flames: Flying Sparks (The Ancient Fire Series Book 2) by Julie Wetzel Page A

growing old. He had probably left to go to work. She wondered if he had gotten any rest at all. How much sleep did a vampire need, anyway? Vicky let her mind turn on the subject and giggled when an image popped into her head—Darien, in full Dracula regalia, hanging upside down in the rafters of some old building, sleeping like vampires do in so many bad horror movies. She was pulled from her fantasy when a light tap sounded on her door.
    The nurse pushed in. “Good morning.” She sat a tray on the table. “I have your breakfast.”
    “Thank you.” Vicky turned over so she could sit up to eat.
    The nurse raised the head of the bed and looked up at the empty IV bag. “So, how are you this morning?”
    “Fine,” Vicky answered.
    Nodding, the nurse punched some buttons on the blue box and unhooked the IV line from the port in Vicky’s arm. “Let me know if you feel any pain,” she warned as she packed up the equipment. “The doctor thinks you should be fine without the medication.”
    Vicky smiled at her. “I don’t think it’ll be a problem.”
    “It’s probably all the tender loving care your boyfriend has been giving you,” she said with a giggle.
    Vicky blushed. The woman had hit the nail on the head. “He’s not my boyfriend,” Vicky protested weakly, looking at her food.
    “Don’t give me that,” the woman huffed. “That kiss he gave you when you first came in was far too passionate to come from anyone other than a lover. It made even my toes curl.”
    Vicky looked up at the woman as she tried to think about a kiss Darien had given her. The only one that might have been misconstrued as passionate was the kiss he placed on her temple, but no one had seen that one.
    “Then again, you might not remember it,” the woman went on. “You hadn’t woken up yet.”
    Vicky raised her fingers to her mouth and felt her lips.
    “The doctor will be in after a bit to check on you,” the nurse said as she rolled the IV stand out of the room.
    Vicky was too deep in thought to hear the nurse’s words or see her leave. Her insides flopped around like a fish out of water, and she was suddenly not hungry anymore. Had Darien stolen a kiss while she was asleep? What did it mean? Was it to heal her, or was it something else? She thought over Darien’s actions since she had discovered he was a vampire. He had spent a lot of time invading her personal space, but she also found it didn’t bother her as much as it should have. Her mind wobbled on her growing feelings and what they meant for her job. Would she be able to handle working so closely with someone who had such a profound effect on her heart?
    Vicky recalled Vanessa’s teasing about what could be done in a closed office with a large desk and slammed the thought down before it could even get off the ground. Picking up her fork, she started working food into her mouth. She needed to eat, no matter how her insides were squirming. Dealing with Darien would have to come later.
     

 

    Vicky looked over at Darien settling into the driver’s seat of his DB9. He had spent the morning rearranging his schedule so he could take her home when Dr. Urnkalther released her.
    The doctor had been astounded by how quickly the burns had healed. She happily informed Vicky that she no longer needed to stay there. Dr. Urnkalther had even pulled the stitches out of the mostly healed cuts. The good doctor had given Darien strict instructions that Vicky was not to exert herself until the wounds were fully healed. She would have made Vicky take at least a week off work, but there was no precedent for her case. Darien assured her he wouldn’t let Vicky do anything strenuous until she was well again.
    Vicky was ready to get back to her life. There were things she needed to do. As Darien drove them out of the parking garage, she looked out the window at the grayed-out world. Clouds had moved in to block out the sun, and a light drizzle had just started to fall.
    “What’s going