From Inside the Grey House:
“Come with me, Natalia.” He was hiding his emotions again. He noticed her body sag just a touch.
“It’s been a long night, Vincent. I want to go to bed.”
“Come with me, Natalia. Please.”
There was a slight emphasis on the last word. Natalia turned to face him, a slight crease on her brow. She had never heard this tone before. “All right.”
From Inside the Grey House:
Charlie came in, holding the door open for a man carrying a plate of food. The human, whose name Charlie had forgotten, placed the plate down on the folding tray next to the recliner. He then sat in another recliner waiting for Ben to notice him. Charlie went to the edge of Natalia’s bed, wanting an update. “How is she?”
“Feverish, disoriented, very thirsty. How about you? Did that nap do the trick?”
From Inside the Grey House:
“It’s lamb stew. There’s also bread, cheese, fruits and vegetables.” Eva was holding a tray with the other items. She was resting the tray on the edge of the tub, seemingly waiting for her to want it. Gail set a glass and a pitcher of water to her other side.
Natalia gave a nervous but proud laugh. “I feel like royalty.”
Lilly was carefully massaging conditioner into Natalia’s hair. “Stay with Vincent long enough and you will be.”
From Inside the Grey House:
A dark shape came into her field of vision and helped her to sit up a bit. A dark hand held a glass of water out to her, as she sipped the cool, refreshing liquid. She protested when the glass was taken away from her before she was ready. She opened her eyes to look at the person teasing her with the beverage, not understanding why she couldn’t see the person kneeling in front of her. She tried again, failing as dizziness took over and she flopped onto the bed.
Ben placed the glass back on the nightstand, taking a small towel and mopping her brow. She was sweating buckets. Before moving her back to a better position, he checked her wound. It was healing well. There was no sign of infection. There was a knock on the door as Charlie entered. Ben continued to dress the wound, dousing the area with peroxide.
From Inside the Grey House:
Joseph grabbed her wrist, spun her around, tightening his other arm around her. His words were a triumphant shout. “All of it!”
Natalia held back a scream as his teeth plunged into her shoulder. She looked to Vincent, her eyes wide with wonder. Mierka was holding him back and he was shouting something, but Natalia wasn’t sure what. She heard a metallic ring as something fell from her hand to the floor. Her arm, no longer encumbered and heavy reached up to caress Joseph’s neck. The bite hurt, but the slow sucking made her head spin. She looked back to Vincent as numbers ran through her head.
From Inside the Grey House:
Vincent was not happy. Anthony was sitting opposite him, looking rather unnerved. Vincent had been berating the younger vampire for over two hours. Justin died while attempting to capture Judith and no one thought to inform their leader. All the people involved were currently being run through various training exercises. When Joseph was done with them, he would take the group down to the dungeon where they would be kept for 48 hours without blood. Vincent was pissed off. Justin worked for Anthony but had lived with and reported directly to Vincent. He knew the human longer than Anthony had.
From Inside The Grey House:
She smiled at him, whispered to him. “Trust me, Charlie.”
He shook in his shoes, moved away from her to hide his discomfort. He pulled at his pants and tried to will away his erection. Knowing it was no use, Charlie bent to the man on the couch, picked him up and carried him into the bedroom. Natalia watched him, trying not to laugh. Perhaps it wasn’t fair to control her ex-boyfriend like that, but she was going to have her way. A smug little bounce in her step, Natalia followed Charlie into the bedroom.
From Inside The Grey House:
“Dean.”
His head shot up at the sound of her voice, but he stayed on his knees. When he spoke, he sounded like a scared little boy. It brought her no joy. “You’ve ruined me.”
She opened her mouth to respond but had no words. No use lying to herself, or to him. She shook her head. “You asked to see me.”
“I lied earlier. I never heard the voices. I didn’t want the others to know I’m not a Slayer.”
From Inside the Grey House:
Lorraine was on the phone, pacing back and forth, speaking rapidly to the person on the other end. She was dressed in a blue silk robe and nothing else. She was a shapely woman and stood five foot four. She had been turned at 25 but looked to be about twenty because of her small stature. “Is there any way you can get her here sooner…? Is there someone who can come sooner…? How experienced is she…? And you don’t need her…? When can she be here…?” She looked toward Vincent. “But no one today…? That’ll have to do. Just get her here as soon as you can. Thank you. You will be well compensated.”
From Inside The Grey House:
Natalia tried to turn around to face him again, but the large vampire wouldn’t let her. She enjoyed the feel of him against her but wanted to face him. His hands were running up and down her body. She’d been standing by the window for only a few minutes before he had come in, wondering if she should go find him. Now, here he was, going slow and easy, and all she wanted was for him to throw her onto the bed and claim her.
“What if I want you to take my blood?”
His lips were at her ear again. She could feel the cool air tickling her ear lobe. “It’s not smart to tempt me with such a dangerous pursuit, Natalia.”
Cat Stark 