by L. E. Wilson
The despondency in her voice was all it took to break down his resistance. Her anger he could deal with. Her standoffishness he could deal with. But knowing he was causing her pain, of any sort? He could not deal with that.
Grabbing her hand, he slammed it onto his aching erection. The constant, fucking painful erection he had whenever he was within six feet of her. He groaned aloud at the feel of her touching him even through his jeans. “Does this feel like I’m not affected by you Emma? Does it?”
Chapter 18
Nik held her hand hard against his cock as he braced himself on the cabinet behind her with his other arm and curled his hips forward, rubbing himself up and down her palm. His head fell forward until his forehead rested on her hair and he drew a ragged breath. Her answering arousal filled his nose until there was nothing else between them. Her heart pounded in his ears as her blood rushed through her veins, just as hard as his.
The taste of her was sharp on his tongue, in spite of the fact he’d just fed. He needed to stop this, before he was unable to. Removing his hand from atop hers, he made to back away, but Emma grabbed him around the waist and pulled him back toward her while that other hand—oh yeah, that other hand—rubbed down his cock to his balls. His head fell back on a gasp as she gently squeezed them.
Holy shit. “Sweetheart, we need to stop.”
“I don’t want to stop,” she said huskily. Moving both hands to the front of his jeans, she undid the button and grasped the zipper with shaking hands, but managed to get it down. As she slid her hands under the waistband and along his hips to push them down, Nik grabbed her wrists, effectively halting her progress. His skin felt tight and his lips were pulled back from fully extended fangs.
With a sound of frustration, she looked up, her eyes widening.
He gritted out, “We have to stop. Now. Or I’m going to bend you over that counter and fuck you. Hard.”
Instead of the effect he was hoping for, his words brought on a fresh surge of the scent of her sex. He felt her trembling, and knew she’d be soaking wet for him. He ached to touch her there, to feel her desire for him. To taste it. A deep growl rose up from low in his throat at the thought.
Leaning forward, she put her nose to his chest. Inhaling him deeply, she whispered, “Nikulas. Please.”
He was losing his inner battle. She was like a soft, curvy 12 gauge, blowing away all of his arguments. Her whispered plea screamed at him to take her. Take her and make her his, and never let her go.
Releasing her wrists, he wrapped his arms around her head and shoulders and pulled her to him, struggling with the war raging within him between his desire and his fear. He heard her soft exhale as she slid her arms around his waist, her slender arms pulling him tighter against her.
A loud pounding at the door made them both jump away from each other. Nik grit his teeth as her face paled with guilt.
“Nik! Let me in!” Aiden shouted from outside.
Back in their own corners, they stared each other down.
Aiden pounded on the door again, “Come on! Open up! The plane is ready.”
Giving Emma a look of betrayal she couldn’t understand, he strode over and entered the code to let Aiden in.
Emma turned around and put her back to the door. Closing the cabinet, she scampered off toward the bedroom just as Aiden climbed up the steps to come inside.
“Hallo, you two! What’s going—”? He stopped as he lifted his nose and got a good whiff of the lingering scents in the air. “Ahhhh…” Smiling from ear to ear, he watched Emma hurrying to the back and then turned to Nik, staring pointedly at his unzipped pants.
“Interrupt something, did I?” His grin widened, and Nik stormed off to the bathroom without a word. The click of the lock echoed through the interior as he heard Aiden say, “Was it something I said?”
Turning on the water as hot as he could stand it, Nik yanked his shirt over his head and threw it on the floor. He let out a hiss as pants and boxer briefs slid over his still raging erection. It sprang free, hanging heavily at the juncture of his hips as he kicked them away and got into the shower stall. He moaned aloud as the spray of water hit him, his abs tightening and his cock kicking up in response. He needed some relief from this, or he was never going to make it to Seattle.
Palming his thick length, he slid his hand up and down the thick shaft. The water made it slick and he squeezed the head as he came to the top. He thought of Emma’s small hand covering him, and his hips started pumping faster of their own accord, his grip tightening as he imagined it was her holding him. His breathing grew harsh and his heart pounded hard and fast.
Nik closed his eyes, and remembered the feel of her perfect little ass in his palm, her soft breasts pressed against his ribs as he kissed her the first time. He remembered sinking his fangs into her lip, her blood on his tongue…
Out of his mind with lust, he turned his head and sank his fangs into his own arm, feeding from himself. Bracing that arm against the wall, he continued to drink as he felt his balls tighten and his cock start to pulse in his hand. He came almost violently, exploding onto the wall in front of him as his whole body surged forward, instinctively looking for his witch.
Nik bit down hard on his arm to smother the roar that erupted from his chest. He rode out his orgasm for long minutes, until finally, with a few last strokes, he released himself. Removing his fangs from his arm, he licked the wound closed and dropped his head. His legs shook as he steadied himself against the side of the stall.
He stayed as he was for a long moment, eyes closed, arms hanging limply at his sides, hot water pounding on his hanging head, and trying to catch his breath.
Eventually, he straightened up and wiped the water out of his eyes. Looking down his ridged stomach to his still-hard cock, he came to the realization he was fighting a losing battle.
He’d hoped that taking care of it himself would at least release some tension. And it had. A bit.
Yet, it didn’t change anything. He still wanted Emma. Every cell in his body craved her. He wanted all of her. Completely. And it pissed him off because this was a distraction he did not need right now.
Speaking of which, he had a plane to catch. Quickly, he scrubbed his head and body clean and rinsed off, then shut off the water. He rubbed himself nearly raw with the towel, threw on some running pants and a T-shirt, then shook the water from his hair.
Grabbing his stuff, he went out into the RV to find Emma and Aiden already gone. Gritting his teeth at the idea of them alone together, he shoved his stuff into his travel bag, slipped on his sneakers, and slammed out of the RV, not even bothering to lock it behind him.
Chapter 19
Emma walked to the runway alongside Aiden toward the small, private jet they would take to Seattle. The night air was chilly, but refreshing, and helped clear her head.
He had his duffle bag slung over one shoulder and was carrying her small suitcase in the other hand. Emma brought along her backpack and bag of food. Glancing sideways at her companion, she couldn’t keep from asking sarcastically, “So, did you find someone to eat?”
Aiden raised his eyebrows, “Are you jealous, love?”
“No!” She shuddered slightly as he chuckled.
“Actually, I did find quite a delectable young flight attendant.” Sneaking a peak at Emma—who had a sudden fascination with the nonexistent scenery—he elaborated, “A voluptuous brunette, with juicy arteries and huge tits…”
“Ug! Never mind!” If her hands had been free she would’ve slapped them over her ears. Since that wasn’t an option, she just walked faster as he made gross smacking noises at her with his lips.
Where the hell is Nikulas?
Aiden easily caught up to her. “Seriously, love, do you really think I eat people? I’m not Hannibal Lector, though we do share the same hilarious wit, don’t you think? I guess you really don’t know me well enough, yet. But, no worries! We’ll have plenty of time for that on the plane ride! By the time we reach Seattle
, we’ll be best mates, you and I.” Scooting up in front of her, he walked backwards, his eyes sparkling at the prospect of harassing her all the way across the country.
Rolling her eyes, Emma looked back over her shoulder to see Nik following them at an easy run.
Oh, Thank God.
Swiveling her head back around, she ran smack into Aiden, who had come to a dead stop, and was staring at her with a hurt look on his face. “Oh! Sorry!” She exclaimed. “I didn’t realize you’d stopped. Directly in front of me.”
With a sad frown and a puppy dog tilt to his head, he asked, “You really don’t want to be my friend, Emma?”
Are you kidding me? “Um. I didn’t say that, Aiden.”
“But you rolled your eyes at me,” he declared. “I saw you.”
“Oh, nooo…no…I was just wondering what was taking Nik so long.” She silently begged that the vampire in question hurry it the hell up. She should’ve waited for him instead of being so anxious to get out of that damn RV.
A breathtaking smile lit up Aiden’s face. It really was too bad he was a total nut job.
“Oh! He’s on his way. I see him coming now.” He turned around and started walking again. “Come along then.”
Dragging her feet, she followed, glancing back once more to reassure herself that Nik had nearly caught up.
Honestly, he made her a bit nervous, this one.
Nik closed the magazine he’d bought for the flight with an impatient sigh. The first half of the plane ride to Seattle had been uneventful, other than Aiden’s insistent overtures of friendship to Emma, which consisted of him sitting in the luxury seat facing her, and intermittently regaling her with stories of his riskiest sexual exploits and trying to convince her that she was, indeed, a witch.
Around his tenth or eleventh try to goad her “witchy side” into appearing, her head fell back onto the headrest and she groaned with frustration. “Aiden! I’m telling you for the last time, I am NOT a witch! I can’t see the future! I can’t control the weather, or fire…or anything! And even if I could—which I can’t—but even if I could, I shouldn’t be trying to do any of that while forty thousand feet in the air!”
“So you’re telling me nothing unusual ever happens when you’re around?”
“That has nothing to do with anything—” she began.
“Just try,” he insisted, as she threw up her hands angrily.
They both turned to Nik.
“Would you please tell her she is a witch?”
“Would you please tell him I am NOT a witch?”
Talking over each other, they returned to arguing amongst themselves.
“I am not!”
“You are!”
Nik’s patience, both with the arguing and the monopolizing of Emma’s attention, had come to an end. “Enough!” Nik roared. “I am NOT the parent here, goddammit!”
“Of course you’re not the parent,” Aiden scoffed. “That would just be silly, as Luukas is the Master Vampire.” Cocking his head to the side, he narrowed his eyes at Nikulas. “Something’s eating at you. You just haven’t been yourself since you brought Emma, here, aboard.” Snapping his fingers, he exclaimed, “I know! Would it help if we talked about it?”
Nik widened his eyes, and with a furtive glance toward Emma, who appeared to be busy trying to look as disinterested as possible, told him, “No. It most certainly would not help to talk about it at this moment.”
Sitting back in his seat, Aiden crossed his legs and steepled his fingers beneath his chin. “I disagree. I think it would help immensely to get a certain something off your chest, so to speak.”
He was going to kill his best friend. He really was. Slowly. And so very painfully. “I’m warning you, Aid…Shut. Up.”
“Oh, come on! Let’s hash it out, as they say. We have nothing else to do at the moment, and we still have a few hours until we land in Seattle. I promise you’ll feel better.” With a naughty smirk, Aiden winked at Emma.
Nik’s mind spun, frantically trying to think of a way to shut him the fuck up. He needed something to distract him.
“Emma. You are a witch.” He hated throwing her under the bus, but if it would distract his so-called friend…
“What?!” she cried.
“I told you so!” Aiden crowed happily to Emma.
Well, what do you know? It worked. He was really going to have to remember that trick. “Your family comes from a coven of witches that dates back as long as we do, probably longer. I tried to tell you about this last night, and I understand your reluctance to hear it, really, I do, but—”
She put her head in her hands. “I. Am. NOT…”
Slashing his hand sharply through the air, Nik cut her off. “You ARE. Every woman in your family, and some of the men, as far back as we can remember, have been witches. Your mother was a witch.”
“My mother??”
“Your sister is a witch. Unless there’s been some weird mutation in your gene pool when it comes to you, specifically, you have to be one too. The only thing that changes is the level of power from one person to another.”
Emma sank down into her seat, like the wind had been knocked out of her. “If this is true, how did I live my entire life and not know? Why wouldn’t I know?”
“I have no idea.” He was just as baffled as she looked.
Aiden chimed in, “Maybe if we tell her some of the history?”
Nik nodded and Aiden continued. “See, basically it boils down to this: There are two kind of vampires, good ones and bad ones. We,” he indicated Nik and himself, “are the good ones, and we call ourselves, simply ‘Vampires’. The other group is known in our world these days as the ‘Legion’. Now the Legion, they are some wonky vampires. Leeha, their leader, is the worst one. She’s fabulously mad, and quite beautiful. Her arse alone makes a man want to…to…” He stuttered to a halt, and settled on appreciative grunting noises as he squeezed the air with his hands.
“I don’t think Emma cares about her ass,” Nik cut in, picking up where Aiden had left off. “But as he was saying, she is totally fucking psycho, and her followers are right up there with her.”
“Occasionally,” Aiden interrupted, “when a vampire is turned, they come out of it just, not quite right.”
“Long story short,” Nik continued, “Leeha is one of those Vampires. She was made a vampire illegally. Kidnapped as a human child by one of our males. He secretly raised her as his daughter, and on her 25th birthday, he turned her without permission from Luukas.”
Emma interrupted to ask, “Why would he need permission?”
“Because if we let every Vlad, Count, and Elvira make vampires willy-nilly, the population would quickly get out of control and we would run out of humans to eat.” Aiden said as matter-of-factly as if he’d been asking her to pass the salt.
Nik scowled at him. “Anyway, when Luukas found out, the male who did this was tried by our Council and sentenced to death by fire. Leeha was spared. At the time, we believed she wasn’t to blame for his actions. We’ve since learned she was not as innocent as she appeared.”
Pausing to gather his thoughts, he stretched his long, muscular legs out in front of him and crossed his ankles. Emma’s eyes flickered over his body, and he bit back a smile as she tore them away and asked, “What made you reconsider?”
“We found out later from the servants in his household he had raised Leeha to believe she would one-day rule by Luukas’ side. We’ve no clue where he got that idea. He’d taken her from her human family when she was quite young; he’s the only parent she remembers. When she turned about 14, he began preparing her to be queen. He abused her as no daughter should be abused, and justified it by telling her she needed to have sexual prowess to be able to win over the Master Vampire.” Nik flashed his fangs, his lip curling up in disgust.
“So vampires do have relationships with other vampires?”
“No. Never. Which is why we were so shocked when we found out what he'd been telling her.
Sometimes they’ll, uh, hook up, but they never stay together in a long-term thing. Once in a while though, a Vampire and a human will mate.”
Little lines of confusion appeared between her brows. “But aren’t humans just food for vampires?”
Nik’s blue eyes burned fiercely into hers. “Not always, no.”
“See, Em…I feel like I can call you ‘Em’ now…Is that okay?” Aiden blurted out. At her distracted nod, he ignored Nik’s scowl and repeated, “See, Em, vampires don’t mate with other vampires because they can’t sustain each other. We can feed off of other vamps, it doesn’t hurt us, but it’s kind of like eating a rice cake. You can’t live off of it. We need viable, live, human blood to survive. And since feeding and sex are so closely intertwined, it makes sense to have a human if you want a significant other. Personally, I find monogamy quite boring, I would never tie myself down to just one flavor, but to each his own.”
“But Nik drinks donated blood, from a bag.”
Before Nik could defend his actions, Aiden added “And you can clearly see how he suffers for it.”
Nik shifted uncomfortably as she scrutinized him from head to toe.
“He looks fine to me.”
“Thank you.” With a smile for Emma, Nik flipped off Aiden.
“What does the human get out of it? Other than being a food bank?” Emma asked.
“What do they get out of it?” Aiden exclaimed. “They get protection, a longer life! They get to stay young, and beautiful! And, love, most importantly, they get to experience mind-blowing vampire sex.”
“What Aiden is trying to say,” Nik blurted, “is if a human is taken as a vampire’s mate, he or she will actually exchange blood with the vampire. Not as much as we drink, of course, but a little of our blood will go a long way.”
Emma made a face. “That’s so gross.”
“Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it, poppet.” Aiden waggled his eyebrows at her.
She looked at him like he was nuts and turned her attention back to Nik. “So, what exactly would your blood do?”
