by Emily Bex
He feels her stir beside him as she lifts her head, and looks up at him with those dark eyes, peering through that mass of red crimson, a soft smile on her lips. "Lover," she whispers. He kisses her lightly on the nose, before pulling her from the bed. He wants to share a little more time with her here before they return to Bel Rosso.
Shade takes her outside into the cool crisp air of the early night and walks with her through the formal gardens of Castello. He takes her to a spot where red roses bloom. Taking her in his arms, he kisses her softly and then turns her in his arms and points up to the moon.
“It is a full moon. A lover’s moon, si?”
She looks up into the clear sky, “A lover's moon, yes. Are you giving me the moon, Shade?”
“No, mi amore, but I can give you the stars. The moons of Jupiter were named the Medici stars by Galileo, in appreciation of my family’s patronage, so now, they too, belong to you. But I have something far more important to your heart.”
He walks around in front of her, puts his arms around her waist, staring into her beautiful face, the moonlight glinting off her hair and eyes. He lets his hands slide up her arms, and into her hair, surrounding her face. Then he drops down on one knee and takes her left hand, placing the massive multi-stone diamond on her finger, kissing the diamond. Looking up at her, “You are the only one, bel. We are mated now, si?
“Lover,” she looks down at the ring, so large it even catches the moonlight. “This is beautiful. And I can't imagine my life without you.”
“You honor me with your acceptance. Ti amo, mi amore, per sempre. This ring, it was my madre's favorite. Not her ring for mating, but one she held closely to her heart, because I gave it to her. It was my first gift to her after I left home and went out into the world as a warrior. I had tried to make something of myself, so she would be proud of me. I had made my fortune, or what I had thought was my fortune at the time. This was my first big purchase, buying this for her.
“She cherished it and wore it always. When they died, and I came back to Castello, I came out here in the gardens, to where their bodies had been left to burn with all the other treasures that were dragged from the castle. All that remained were ashes. I sat in this very garden and wept like a small child. In the pile of ash that was once my parents, I found this ring and I have kept it all these years, hoping another would wear it someday.
“The gardens had been destroyed by the mob as well and the only thing that remained was a single rose vine. It grew and survived through the charred remains. Madre had several rose bushes, but they had all been trampled and destroyed under the feet of the angry mob, yet here was this single vine, almost as if she was calling to me to remember her and Padre. From that single blooming vine, I have made sure the gardeners of Castello have nurtured and cared for it, and all the red roses you see surrounding you are from that single vine that survived their ultimate devastation. They bloom constantly, just as if she tends to them still."
***
She can feel the love he had for his mother every time he speaks of her.
“Oh, lover... this is so... I wish I could have known her. I hope she would be happy with your choice for a mate. I promise to be the kind of mate she would have wanted for you, what she wished for you. I want our children to look back and think of us in the way you think of her, and your parents' love for each other. I want our children to see the power of our love and how it carries us through, and to strive for that in their own lives. That's what I want to pass on to our children.”
“Si mi amore, I want babies with you, many! And Madre would have loved you. I am the man I am because of the love I saw between my parents, so you can thank them for who I am, for they taught me well the importance of loving your mate, protecting and caring for each other. The only comfort I have from their demise is that they went together. They tried to save each other. One would not survive without the other, and it is the same with us.
“Let us stroll a bit more through the gardens and then we must teleport back to Bel Rosso. There is much we need to accomplish. And besides, we need to perhaps practice a bit more with making bambinos."
Chuckling softly, Shade picks her up in his arms and spins her around in circles, her rose scent mixing with the red roses that bloom fragrantly in the night air. He wishes only that he can make her happy like this for the rest of eternity. It is a task he feels bound to accomplish for them both. Setting her down, he takes her hand and interweaves her fingers between his as they walk together in the Florence moonlight.
27
He holds her tight as they teleport back to Virginia and lands them back inside their bedroom. He sets her down and she staggers slightly, dizzy from the ride, and he reaches out to steady her.
“You okay, bel?”
“I’m fine. I’m just not sure I will ever get used to it…the teleporting.”
“Si, you will get used to it, and some day, bel, when you are turned, you will learn to teleport on your own, although, I admit, I like taking you with me.”
She leans against the bed and smiles at him, “And I like being taken.”
He chuckles at her, “My walking sin, are you tempting me already?”
“I would like nothing better than to tempt you, but after our trip, I think I need a long, hot bubble bath.” She starts to undress and drops her clothes to the floor on her way to the bathroom. She looks over her shoulder, “But, of course, you are always welcome to join me.”
Shade rushes up behind her and lifts her in his arms as he keeps walking with her to the bathroom, kicking open the door as he wills the tub to fill with the steaming water, and the wicks of every candle flickers and comes to life. He kisses her forehead and smiles, “Oh I will join you, bel rosso, but not for a bubble bath. My new mate needs something more extravagant, si?”
***
She sees the tub as the steam rises above the water, the surface covered in a thick layer of rose petals in varying shades of red and pink, their scent carried on the steam. “I should have known bubbles would be too conventional, a bath of rose petals for your bel rosso. Mmmm... I can't wait.”
“Si, just for my bel!”
Sitting her down before him, he slides off her bra and panties, and holds her hand as she steps into the tub and sinks into the hot water, her face and shoulders surrounded by the rose petals, the candlelight making her pale skin glow. He stands back and winks as he begins to strip. Placing his booted foot on the edge of the tub, he looks at her with those ice blue eyes that make her wet between her legs.
“Unlace them with your teeth mi amore, take them off your master.”
Kate giggles at the request, “You know I love these boots.”
She looks up at him as she grabs the strings between her teeth and pulls at the laces, slowly loosening them. As she finishes with the one boot, he changes position and places his other booted foot on the tub for her to loosen.
“There... anything else you want me to do with this mouth tonight?”
He gives her a wicked grin, “You are one impatient sexy imp, and I must teach you patience.”
He pulls his t-shirt off over his head, baring his broad chest. “Stand up, bel and take off my leathers.” He watches as she stands, the water cascading off her body, rivulets run over her nipples, and the rose petals stick to her skin. He grabs her hair, pulling her face to his hardened cock.
“You tempt me, bel, you tempt your master. Continue!”
She mocks him, “Patience, lover. You must learn patience.”
She grasps the button of his low-slung leathers and releases it, and slowly unzips his pants, which are so tight they are like a second skin. She slides her wet hands inside the waist band on either side of his hips and slowly slides the leathers down. As his thick patch of pubic hair is exposed, she nuzzles her nose into him, inhaling that musky scent. As his cock is freed, she runs her tongue over the length of him. Pulling the leathers down his thighs, her tongue follows in their path, until they are below his knees an
d he can pull them off and step free of them.
“So how was that? Tell me again, I am your walking sin.”
He steps out of his leathers, “Your mouth aches to fuck my cock, si? No, my walking sin, you must learn to have patience. Move forward and stand at the faucet, look straight ahead, mi amore.”
As she follows his orders, he is pleased. She understands that the tease only intensifies the pleasure. Stepping in behind her, he lets his hands go to her waist and slides his cock along her ass, snuggling it between her legs. Whispering in her ear as he slides them both down into the warm steamy water. She gently lies back against his chest, her nipples bobbing out of the water, surrounded by the rose petals, their pink almost camouflaged, tempting and teasing him.
“Lay here with me, let me wash your crimson locks, my hands cannot keep to themselves.”
She relaxes her head against his chest as he expertly shampoos her hair, massaging her scalp and shoulders.
“Hmmmmm, I love when you touch my hair. How can you relax me and excite me at the same time? You said you wanted to talk to me, and I'm afraid I have been distracting you on purpose because you are such a distraction. Are there things you need to share with me? I will be serious if you need to talk.”
“Just relax, bel, take comfort in the protection of my arms, my fingers in your hair. I love your hair. It is like silk in my fingers. I do want to talk to you. I know you want me to let my beast loose. But you need to feed more from me. I will know when it is time. If you let him out before that, he is wicked and how do you say? Kinky? He could hurt you, drain you, take you hard. I cannot control him once I unleash him. He is the evil inside me, and you will need to be much stronger to handle him. He wants out. He wants you, to mate with you. So when I tell you to stop tempting me, you must listen. It is for your safety, and you will assuredly know when he is loose. He wants you like nothing I have ever felt, it takes much to keep him down. I use all my power to restrain him right now. Just be patient, the time will come.” He slides his soapy hands over her breasts and kisses her neck. “Can you do that for me please, bel?”
She melts into him as his hands work their magic, “I do hear you, Shade, but your words say one thing, and your hands and mouth tempt me to push forward. But I will follow your lead, in all things. It brings me such pleasure to bring you pleasure. I can't teleport us to exotic places, or cover you in diamonds, or make rose petals rain down on us, but I can tempt you, and bring you pleasure. So that is what I do, lover. You guide me... and I will follow... and tell me if I am pushing too far, too fast.”
Sliding his hands under the water, they surround her tiny waist and he lifts her up like she is a feather and kisses down her spine.
“You are my eternity, my walking sin, the beat of my heart, the blood in my veins. I will consume and devour you as my own, for you are mine!”
***
Turning her so she faces him, he slowly lowers her back into the water as she straddles him, her legs immediately going around his waist and he kisses her neck and shoulders with a thousand little nips and soft bites, sucking gently at her skin. Feeling her body arch back, he takes a nipple in his mouth as he slides his cock inside her hard and grips her hips with both hands.
“Ride your master, mi amore. Make love to me.”
***
She gasps as he enters her in one swift movement. How can he ask me to be patient? He makes me insane with desire. He says go slow, but then impales me on his engorged cock. Her body responds to him. She thrusts her hips against him, grinds against him, as she must have all of him. She loves how he fills her, loves the feel of him inside of her. She moans and writhes with pleasure as the water splashes over the edge of the tub and rose petals float across the floor.
“Push into me, lover...push hard into me. I want all of you. Cum inside me...fill me up. I need to feel you!”
He hears her plea as her sex clenches his cock tight. “Ti amo per sempre. Mine!”
Gripping her hips, he pulls her down hard as he pushes inside her fully erect, thrusting hard, feeling the volcano building, and then he feels she is ready, wet, swollen and aching to let him explode inside her. He drives deep and hard and cums inside her, his beast on the edge. His head thrashes back and forth, his eyes glow like hellfire and his fangs are elongated. He feels her nails sink into his back and it takes him out of his mind. Giving her one last thrust, he holds still inside her and feels her cum so hard around him, no inhibitions. He wraps her into his arms as she lays her head on his shoulder. He slides his hands down into the warmth of the water and holds her tight until her breathing returns to normal.
***
She collapses onto him. Oh my God... is this being patient? He takes her to such heights she needs to scream with pleasure. She clings to him, gasping for air, letting her heart return to its normal pace. He makes her feel like she will burst at the seams with her love for him. I love him. I love him.
“My words fail me, lover... how can you ever know what I feel?”
28
Shade is trying to get back into his routine. Back from Florence, and fresh from having his bel rosso feed from him, there is nowhere else he would rather be right now than home, with the feel of her mouth at his throat. But it’s another night at the Dead House, doing what he is getting paid to do here. Alec’s warriors are performing better. But better is never good enough for Shade. Giving them some space tonight, he pairs each warrior with a partner, assigns them a quadrant and sends them out into the city. He wants them to hunt openly. Take out any rogue vampires they encounter, dispose of their bodies, and bring back the numbers and the exact location of their hits so they could start tracking activity. A rogue is a vampire who has abandoned his master and his coven, and frequently travels with other rogues, much like a gang of mortals. They live outside the boundaries of accepted behavior for the vampire community, and risk exposing the carefully crafted façade that protects the species from discovery by the mortals.
He keeps tally of the kills and updates the grid activity as the night progresses. It gives them a good indication of where there may be pockets of rogue activity. Certain quadrants tend to draw these gangs, because of the clubs and bars where unsuspecting mortals congregate. Shade plans to rotate the warrior’s grid assignments so, over time, they are exposed to the entire D.C. area.
Current rogue activity is random and rare, but each night as his warriors become more familiar with the territory, they discover more about the patterns of rogue behavior. Alec’s territory, here in Washington, is calm in comparison to some assignments Shade has taken in the past, but he never lets his guard down.
He feels restless sitting inside this hell-hole and decides to go out and do a little rogue hunting himself. There is nothing like hunting to keep your edge. He no longer needs to hunt for food, so this night he is hunting for the kill. It is what he does best. Skirting across the rooftops, tuning in his hearing and other senses, he doesn’t pick up anything of interest to him. Things are quiet, and although that is a good thing for Alec, it only makes Shade more suspicious. When the night is too damn quiet, he begins to wonder if something is brewing. Not to mention, he has other things working inside his head.
His mind is preoccupied with his bel. Since being with her, he has literally had to fight to hold down his own beast. His beast rears up every time they have sex, as the beast fights for release to have his way with her. But his sweet, gentle bel is mortal, and she has no clue what the hell the beast would do to her. Shade knows the beast could potentially kill her. He has never met a mortal that brings his beast to the surface as quickly as bel. A mere look from those dark brown eyes of hers, a flip of her crimson mane or a swish of that tight, sweet ass and the beast is clawing to get out and have his way with her. The darkest evil was his beast. He had let him loose on many immortal women, they could handle his anger, his strength and, of course, his insatiable appetite for sex and blood. But bel could never handle all that he was. It took all his concentration to kee
p him under control and it was beginning to be painful to him. He had never held him down for so long.
Shade always let the beast loose when there is a fight. He was the demon that strikes out and makes the kill easy and precision quick. But Shade’s own desire to mate her brings the beast out quickly, anxiously wanting to claim her as his own. He fears if she ever sees him, she will flee, mated or not. And that is his greatest fear, losing her to the true evil that lives inside him. He has hidden that from her intentionally, but she teases him, lures him, seduces him with her every move, and he fears losing control.
Dropping down to street level, Shade walks among the clubbers of D.C., shaking his head to clear it of his own issues and focus on what is around him. He scans the streets, watching the mortal couples walking hand in hand, leaving the dance clubs with their throbbing beat, or going for that last drink at the corner bar. Groups of females walk through dark streets, giggling and laughing, young and stupid, with no idea what lay within the shadows.
Shade can feel no intruders, so he hurries along his way. Lighting up a smoke, he makes his way closer to G-town. He usually checks Alec’s house and surrounding area himself. He takes Alec’s safety as his personal responsibility, at least while Alec is in his home. Alec’s neighborhood is Shade’s own private grid, more or less. Shade still can’t figure him out. Why any immortal would seek their power in the mortal realm almost makes him laugh out loud. Alec hated that he was vampire. Oh, he loved the immortality, and the strength, which he used to his own wicked advantage, but he hated that he was more beast than man.
