Arthit's POV------

Kongpob opened the trunk of his car and I placed the box of the stalker’s items in it. He turned and took my bag from me and placed it inside also.

I just took another deep breath and sat down in the leather seat. I adjusted it to fit me as he walked around and got in the driver’s seat.

For a brief moment, as his door shut and we were enclosed in this small space, I wondered if I would really be able to keep my cool in this situation. I could picture my teeth at his neck, the feeling that would overwhelm me as his blood filled my mouth..... or the feeling of my lips on his skin, both scenarios were overwhelming for me.

I took a shallow breath, getting control of myself. Yes, it burned my itching throat and sou, but I could do it. I just needed to look at the bigger picture. He was my client, and I was stronger than the call of his blood and body, at least I hoped that it was the only case.

As we pulled away from the hospital and headed towards his house, I thought of the things that we would need to do, to find the stalker. Bright had told me about the guard, Sunny, and I decided that I would check out what he might know first.

“Kongpob, when we get to the guards cabin, I would like to take a few minutes to talk to Sunny. To see if he knows anything about the toy piano that was left at your home”

Kongpob nodded and eased the Porsche up the ramp and onto the freeway through the heart of the city. I didn’t speak as he wove through the sparse late night traffic. I didn’t want to distract him. I also wished that I was the one driving. I always felt more in control that way. Probably not a good thing to drive this car though, I would want to go very fast.

We were quiet as he drove. Both of us had things on our minds.

As the scenery sped by, I remembered his touch on my cheek. If I could have blushed, I knew that I would have been doing so. I tried not to take the deep breath that I really didn’t need but somehow wanted. I needed to keep my mind on the business at hand, and touches to my cheek were not what I needed to think about right now.

We turned into his neighborhood before I expected us to do so. He had driven quite fast, for a human. I mentioned his speed to him, and he just shrugged, glancing over at me with a crooked smile.

“I was impressed with Bright’s driving earlier. He drove faster than I would have, but he really did a good job of it. I was glad he went that fast, I was in a hurry to get to the hospital”

He shrugged again.

“I would let him drive the car again if he wanted to.”

“I will be sure to let him know. He will probably take you up on that, but Jenny will want a turn, too”

I smiled back at him as he laughed at my comment. He said that she could have a go anytime at all.

Sunny, the guard, came out of the cabin, and since he recognized Kongpob, he started to wave us through, but Kongpob motioned him closer. Kongpob stopped as I had asked him to, so that I could speak with Sunny.

“Good evening, Mr. Suthiluck”

Sunny said as he approached us.

“What can I do for you this evening ??”

“As I mentioned to Bill earlier, I am going to be having a couple more guests coming in and out this week”

He turned to me and introduced us. I stepped out to get my picture taken and to ask him a couple of questions. I also swept a quick glance around the area to ensure that we didn’t have any unwelcome visitors.

I smiled at Sunny, trying to put him at ease. Sunny’s responding grin was quite wide. He seemed impressed by the lures that I had at my disposal. I used them quite effectively and with purpose in this case. I wanted information, and he may have some.

“Sunny”

I extended my hand and shook his firmly. I had slipped my soft leather gloves out of my bag and put them on while we were driving here. My skin wasn't freezing, but it was cool, I didn't want him distracted by that while I was questioning him. He was gazing up into my face, drawn in by the beauty that is a vampire. Stepping away from the car with a smile on my face, I quickly began my interrogation. 

**********************************

Kongpob's POV-------

Arthit stepped out of the car to talk to Sunny. He was partially turned from me, and I could only see the side of his face. Sunny's face was turned directly towards me. The first emotion I saw on his face was awe at the beauty of Arthit. Then as he continued to speak to him, I saw fear cross his face. He glanced at my way, and it appeared that Arthit commanded him to look back at him. He then looked down at the ground, and shame was bright on his face. He started nodding at Arthit while he spoke.

Arthit asked questions and appeared to be getting answers. He took his wallet out of his back pocket and brought out a piece of folded money. He handed it to Arthit who looked at it closely. He also seemed to sniff it, but surely that wasn't really what I saw. After several more minutes of him questioning Sunny, he took a card from his wallet and wrote something down on it and handed it to Arthit. He shook his head again and turned back to the guards cabin, his shoulders slumped.  Arthit turned and got back into the car with me. 

"Well ??"

I asked eagerly.

"Did he know anything about the toy ??" 

"Yes, he did."

Arthit looked quite angry.

"Around seven a.m. on Monday, a young woman wearing a very short denim skirt and a white halter top approached him. She flirted and then gave him a one hundred bucks to let her through the gate for a few minutes. She told him that she was bringing a present to her boyfriend and that she wanted to surprise him with it."

Arthit showed me the money.

"I told Sunny that we would be confiscating this as evidence" 

"What did she look like ??"

I asked as we pulled through the gate and drove towards my house. 

"She was about 5'7", long curly blonde hair, blue eyes. He thought she was pretty, but there really wasn't anything out of the ordinary about her, except for the fact that she handed him that money"

Arthit's voice had a very cold tone to it as he continued

"I have told Sunny that I will be calling his boss as soon as we get to your house. He is not an appropriate person to be guarding this neighborhood, or any other for that matter. He has an appalling lack of integrity for the job" 

We had pulled into my garage by this time. Arthit asked me to wait in the car briefly while he took a quick glance around the front and side yard. I actually felt a bit dazed...... Arthit looks so beautiful and sophisticated in my eyes......Then I remembered how abashed and then fearful Sunny had looked. Arthit apparently had him pretty scared when he was talking to him. I had to remember that HE was the owner of Guardian Angels and a force to be reckoned with. 

Arthit quickly returned and motioned that it was okay for me to get out of the car. I clicked the remote to close the garage door and opened the trunk to get his bag and the box of the stalker's things out. We walked to the interior door, and I opened it. I left my coat in the hallway and then walked into the kitchen with him.

Arthit asked to be shown around the main floor and to the security panel. As he looked around the house, checking the doors, windows and back yard, I ran upstairs and made sure that the spare room was made up for him. I had a cleaning service that came in once a week, but I wanted to make sure that everything was in order and the lights were on. We met back in the dining room. Arthit had brought the box of items to the table and was sorting them out on to it. He looked up as I came into the room. 

"I have called and spoken with the firm that hires the gate guards. Sunny is being replaced right now"

He seemed quite pleased with that information. 

"That's great, but did you get any information from him that helps us?"

I asked.    

"Yes, we do have a bit more information about your stalker. She was in the neighborhood for the right amount of time to get here to your place and then back to the gate on foot. I believe that she is the same person that has been sending you these things"

He shook his head sadly.

"He didn't see a car though. Her vehicle was probably parked down the street and around the corner. The woman at the impromptu autograph session had brown hair, this one was blonde. I am guessing that one of those looks was fake. It's hard to tell which though. The skirt he described could have been the same one she wore when you saw her" 

"Now, you should get some rest"

Arthit looked at me from across the table.

"It's been a long day, and I am guessing that you are going to want to go by the hospital and check on May before going to the practice at the University in the morning, right ??" 

I nodded emphatically.

"Yes, I do want to do that. I feel somewhat better knowing that she is safe right now. But I want to see how she is in the morning."

I thought to myself that it might also be hard to get to sleep tonight. So much had happened in such a short time. 

"Here, let me show you the guest room."

I looked into his onex eyes

"You probably need some downtime. I want my bodyguard to be rested, too" 

Arthit laughed gently as he picked up his bag. He followed me to the second floor. I walked into the guest room and then over to the bathroom door.

"There are towels in here already" 

As I stepped back into the middle of the room, I caught a whiff of something lovely. I had smelled it off and on during the day but could never pinpoint what it was or where it was coming from. I had smelled it in the car too, but my mind was on other things, and I hadn't made the connection. Now, standing in the same room as Arthit, I realized it must be his cologne. It was subtle, an overtone of fresh woods, with something else, an undertone of strawberries maybe ??  Whatever the combination was, it caused my mouth to water. I leaned towards him a little and tried to be subtle as I sniffed just a bit.  I guess it wasn't as subtle as I thought because he took a step back from me with a confused look on his face. I quickly stepped away from him and walked towards the door, feeling a bit stupid to do such thing. I was pretty sure that my face was flushed.  To my embarrassment, I stammered a little as I said

"I think that I would like a cup of tea before I head to bed. Would you like to join me ??"

I looked back at him, where he was standing in the middle of the room. The confused look had been erased, and a calm mask was now in place. 

"I don't want anything, but I will join you in a couple of minutes. I want to call Jenny and check in"

He smiled slightly at me as he took his phone out and started dialing. 

'Okay, Suthiluck, He didn't seem totally wigged out by my sniffing him. Good grief, what was I thinking ??'

I found myself pinching the bridge of my nose. Besides a cup of tea, I think that I also needed some muscle relaxant. This had been a very long day, and I was somewhat confused, it was making my head hurt. So much drama today...... First the stalker appeared to be worse than we thought, then May had complications with her pregnancy. And now, well, I was sniffing my bodyguard. What was worse is that....... The sniff had been worth it. He smelled heavenly. I rubbed my thumb along my fingertips, feeling again the cool texture of his cheekbone where I had touched him earlier. 

I need to have some tea and then I need to get some sleep. I always believed that a cup of flavoured tea before bed, calm down my nerves. I hurried to the kitchen to make the tea. 

**********************************

Arthit's POV------

I spoke with Jenny about the guard and the fact that the stalker's scent was on the currency. She must have heard how I was distracted because she finally asked

"What's up with you Arthit ?? Was the ride over there okay ?? How do you feel being in the house alone with him ?? Do you need one of us to come over there ??" 

It only took her about a second to get all that out. I did appreciate how much they love me, but it made me roll my eyes anyway.    

"Nothing's up with me. The ride over here was okay. I feel fine in the house alone with him. I don't need anyone to come over"

I answered her questions in order. 

"Did something happened with Kongpob ??"

She asked

"He is really different from other humans....."

"How so ??"

"He kind of sniffed me...."

Jenny burst out on my words

"He SNIFFED you ??"

I guess it was less a question and more of an outraged shriek.  It actually made me laugh just a bit.

"Well, he just leaned in a bit and sniffed"

I had to hold the phone away from my ear as she and Prem started talking, very loudly. Jenny had turned the phone to speaker mode. 

"WAIT !!"

I hissed back to them.

"It was no big deal. He immediately backed away, and I could tell that he was embarrassed"

The memory of the blush on his face made the venom surge in my mouth just a little. I swallowed as I shrugged, knowing that they couldn't see me.

"I have sniffed him a time or two today too, okay ?? He smells nice, well, when I can get passed the burn in my throat" 

That quieted them down a bit, and I could imagine them communicating with looks at home…I rolled my eyes again. 

"Next subject, I am going to go over the letters and gifts after he is asleep. I probably won't find anything, but it can't hurt to check them over again closely. Bright ??"

I asked. 

"Yes, Arthit ??"

He answered. 

"We are going to be going back by the hospital early in the morning to check on May. We will then head over to the University. I would like you to meet us there"

I waited for his answer.

"Sure thing. I will meet you in the Hall about a quarter till ten, okay ??"

"Can I tag along with them too Arthit.... please..."

Prem voice echoes through the phone

"Why ??"

"I want to see your Mate too..."

"We don't know for sure if he is my Mate or not"

I replied

"Then maybe I could hang around and listen to him play for a little while" 

"That will be great. Wad told Kongpob that you were jealous of the fact that he had been listening to him practice all week. So you will be able to act like a fan, right, without being over the top ??"

Bright put his thoughts out loud too and Prem laughed.

"Actually I do have one of his CDs. I got it after that people magazine article came out. He is quite gifted. So I am not going to have to pretend. He is also quite gorgeous, his chocolate eyes are awesome"

Jenny got back on the line, and we confirmed the plans for the next morning before I said goodbye. 

Okay, time to go downstairs and have a cup of tea with my client. I would pretend to drink it, if I have to, and then I would pretend to go to bed. I would head back to the dining room table after he was asleep. 

I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. I could hear the movements in the kitchen. Kongpob had two cups on the counter and a wide variety of tea set out. 

"What kind would you like ??"

He asked, while waving his hand over the assortment. 

"I am good, but you go ahead"

I told him as I sat down on a stool at the marble counter. 

"My mom drank tea for refreshment and for comfort. It's one of her habits that I still enjoy"

He chose a chamomile tea bag and steeped it in his cup. He added just a touch of honey and brought his cup over to the other stool at the counter. We were sitting across from each other. 

"I realise that it's 1 am. in the morning and that I have a busy day tomorrow, but I am not sure that I am going to be able to fall asleep easily tonight"

He said as he sipped his tea. He looked back up at me. His eyes were  looking tired.

"How do you do it ?? Isn't this kind of thing hard for you, too ??" 

I glanced down at my hands resting on the counter and thought about his question before answering him.

"I guess that knowing that I am helping people is what keeps me going. It's worth it for some sleepless nights and long days. I don't want the bad guys to win, ever. Whether they are trying to get close to someone, like this person is trying to get close to you, or when someone takes something that doesn't belong to them. That's just wrong"

I laughed quietly.

"One of our side jobs is to find lost pets. That isn't huge in the universe, but finding a pet for someone who is frantic because they are lost is pretty cool. They are always so happy when we find them" 

"I can certainly understand that. Holding concerts isn't going to bring on World Peace, but it makes a lot of people happy to hear me sing and play"

He shook his head.

"It also makes me happy to perform for them. I sometimes wonder if that's enough though"

He looked away, and several emotions chased themselves across his face. As he took another sip of tea, I watched the way the light played on his hair. It was pretty wild looking. I found myself wondering what it would feel like to run my fingers through it. 

Ohhh God..…I really needed to get a grip and focus on this case. I stood up and said

"Well, I will see you in the morning. If we leave from here by 7:30 that will give us plenty of time to go by and see May. Professor Wad's husband and my brother Prem, wants to meet you in the morning, too. He said he would come and meet up with us in the University. I think that we could be over there by 9:45, if that's okay with you" 

Kongpob got to his feet, too. He took his cup over to the sink where he rinsed it out and then placed it in the dishwasher. He made sure that the stove was turned off under the kettle and then turned to face me. 

"That will be fine"

He walked over and turned the light off and led the way out of the room. We walked quickly up the stairs, and he paused at my door. He looked up at me, that crooked smile on his face again.

"I can't thank you enough for helping us out like this"

He looked deeply into my eyes, and I found my breath catching in my throat.

"Sleep well"

He raised his hand slightly, and I wondered if he was going to touch me again......... The moment passed, and I nodded to him as he turned and walked down the hall to his room.  I stepped into the room and closed the door behind me. I leaned back against it and took in a deep breath, letting it out with a sigh. I decided to shower and change. He would probably be asleep by the time I was done. Then I would go and check over the letters and things.    

I was anxious to find something that would help us find the stalker. I wanted Kongpob to be safe and May, too. I ran my fingers across my cheekbone again, following the line that he had touched. I wondered if any other human would affect me the same. Somehow I doubted it. There was something special about Kongpob Suthiluck. I just hoped I could find out if that is HIM being my Mate or something else, before the assignment was over and he would moved out of my life. 

After my shower, I had changed into a pair of black jeans and white t-shirt from my bag. I put a tailored dark blue button down shirt over that and headed down to the dining room. About thirty minutes later, I really wanted to growl in frustration. I had been over each and every note, letter and gift…twice !! The scent was the same on all of them, as was the handwriting. Our sense of smell would already identify the stalker anywhere, so pouring over these things didn't bring me anything new. I didn't know what I expected to find, but there was nothing there that would help us. 

After I put the things back in the box, I moved into the living room and just sat on the couch, listening to the surroundings for a while. This was a very quiet neighborhood. The houses weren't so close together that humans would be able to hear every little thing that went on in them. I could hear a baby crying in a house close by, a mother's voice quietly made hushing sounds, and it stopped, a dog barked briefly, an owl hooted a bit closer. I could hear traffic some distance away.

Even though it had taken Kongpob some time to fall asleep, I could now hear his steady breathing and his heart beating. Occasionally I could hear him turn over in bed. It was rather odd to be in a house with a sleeping human.

Our house wasn’t quiet at night. Since we didn’t need to sleep, there was always something going on. Knott would be drawing up plans for his latest NGO projects, Prem would be in his darkroom, developing some pictures, Jenny would be creating some new clothes designs. Wad would be grading papers, except when Bright would convince him to play some video games. There were times when they would start arm wrestling, and then Noor would have to step in and tell them to take it outside. They had broken several pieces of furniture and display items over the course of the years. Sometimes Knott would join the boys, but he mainly read and just watched us play.

My family also used the time to be close to each other, each couple enjoyed their private pursuits together, which was why I usually headed out to wander around at night. We all loved each other very much, but they loved their mates even more. It was sometimes quite overwhelming to be in the house with mated couples.

Just before dawn, I got up and looked through the house. The living room had several pictures on the walls, as did the dining room. The rest of the house was rather sparsely decorated. The pictures were a mix of posed shots and candids, all of Kongpob’s family and friends. There was a painting of him and his parents over the fireplace. It was quite large and looked like it had been done when he was about 15. He got the color of his eyes and hair from his mother, but the texture of his hair definitely came from his father. They all looked so happy in this painting.

As I moved through the house, I found myself making my way closer to his room. I could hear his heartbeat in every room as I explored. It was there, quietly in the background, I had become quite accustomed to its sound. When I arrived at his closed bedroom door, I wondered what exactly had drawn me there, I wondered what I expected to find. I debated for just a moment before quietly opening the door and slipping inside. The room was dark, the drapes closed tightly. His scent was thick here. Some part of my mind actually found that comforting. I took a deep breath and felt the burn in my throat. But another feelings was overwhelming me, one of them is, curiosity.

I stepped closer to his king size bed. The bedding was messy. I was right, he had been tossing and turning in his sleep. He was on his back just now. His right arm was raised up and resting on the pillow above his head, the covers pushed down to his waist. He wasn’t wearing a shirt right at the moment. My breath caught again at the sight of his bare chest. I had seen the very well-equipped home gym on the main floor. He must have use it often. I stepped closer to look at his face.

In sleep his face had softened. The worry that had been evident for most of the day was gone. His brow was smooth and unlined. His lashes lay thick upon his cheeks. He really was gorgeous. I chuckled to myself at the thought of what he would look like..... as a vampire. He would be spectacular. Wait, I shouldn't be thinking about that right now if I am going to try to control myself around him.

I nearly jumped out of my skin as Kongpob started to turn towards me.

Was he waking up ??

He sighed as he slipped his hand beneath his cheek and settled back down. He murmured something I couldn’t make out, and then he grew quiet again.

I knew I should leave his room, So... I backed up but.... took another deep breath of Kongpob scented air. He smells intoxicating for me..... Pulling me towards him......

I am eager to know him more...... More closely....... More intimately......

🌞🌜🌞🌜🌞🌜🌞🌛🌞🌛🌞🌛🌞

A/N: So.... How was it ??

Tell me what you all think about this chapter in the comments section 💖💖