Unveiled by Jamie Craig

Author:Jamie Craig [Craig, Jamie]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Vampires, Fantasy, Fiction, Contemporary, Thrillers, Fiction - Adult, Gay men, Gay, Erotic fiction, Romance - Adult, Erotica, Horror
ISBN: 9781602729742
Publisher: Amber Quill Press, LLC
Published: 2007-08-09T14:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 13

Gideon tried to give Jesse more space than usual as they prepared to go to the exhibit. He refused to speak about it, but the tension Jess exuded was like grit in the back of Gideon’s throat, dry and coarse as it threatened to choke him. They didn’t know what to expect. Andre’s details had been vague, and the only thing they knew for sure was there were three other people vying for a single spot. They had no clue how many vampires—or people—would be in attendance, nor how they were being judged.

“How can you put restrictions on art?” Andre had said. So Gideon loaded the van they’d rented, while he waited for Jess to return from dropping Emma at Michelle’s. As he’d predicted, she had begged off helping to bodypaint Jesse, though the excuse she gave made it unclear whether it was personal or pragmatic.

“You don’t want to smudge the paint,” she’d said. “You have the time to do it there anyway.” Her luminous eyes had held steady, as had her hands, all the way until her fingers brushed against Jesse’s as she passed over the sponges they used. Only then did Gideon gauge a jump in her heart rate. Her composure remained serene, though. Jess never even knew until Gideon pointed it out afterward.

He was slamming the back door of the van shut when Jesse’s car pulled into the parking structure. “Well?” he said as Jesse got out to join him. “Did Michelle have her stack of ‘why Gideon is evil’ books ready to indoctrinate Emma?”

Jesse smiled wryly. “Michelle promised me they were going to work on the inventory tonight. Of course, there’s no guarantee they won’t be inventorying the entire ‘why Gideon is evil’ section.”

“I’ll be surprised if Emma comes back not hating me. She’s going to pick up on how much Michelle does, I’ll bet you anything.”

“And she’s going to pick up on how much I don’t hate you,” Jesse replied. “So we should cancel each other out, and she’ll be left to make up her own mind.”

Running his hand through his hair, Gideon shook his head in apology. “I’m making a mountain out of a molehill, I know. But all of this is winding me up the wrong way. I’ll feel better once we’re all back at the office.” He went around to the driver’s side door. “Where I can keep an eye on both of you.”

Jesse pulled himself into the passenger seat and slammed the door behind him. “Well, that’ll make two of us.”

In the confines of the van, Jesse’s anxiety was even more noticeable. He reeked of it, and the scent filled the small cabin. He kept rubbing his palm against the side of his pants, as though he was trying to wipe something nasty off his hand—a sure tell.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” Gideon assured as he pulled out of the parking structure. “You know that, right?”

“I know,” he answered quickly. “I just feel…strange. Something like this, I should have my notebook and recorder and camera…but now I won’t even be able to hear anything.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.