Burned

by Kensie King

His sigh was heavy. But he only nodded and pulled out the stool so I could get down. He had manners, he was smart, he clearly had some sort of good—or maybe bad—attachment to his family. But in all that, he seemed like a well-rounded person. So why did he need to kidnap someone so he could become a vampire?

  What was I missing?

  In the library, he handed me more history books but still wouldn’t let me read the Book of Shadows, which was what I really needed. Not just for the spell but for another idea on how to get out of here.

  But Gage didn’t know that, did he?

  Regardless, he wouldn’t leave my side. And after another hour and a half, he made me go to the kitchen with him so we could put ingredients on our pizzas. He even regaled me with stories of his parents in this very house, making me laugh, which really, really wasn’t what I wanted to do considering I was supposed to hate his guts.

  After I’d finished a beer, Gage slid me another one.

  I shook my head. “No thanks.”

  “Why not? It’s not like you’re going anywhere.”

  I glared at him. “Asshole.”

  But he only laughed. I turned to the window again after checking my watch. It was after seven. Gage was probably convinced that if he could just get us through dinner and the rest of the evening, things would be smooth as honey.

  I stood abruptly, suddenly very aware of how little time I had.

  “What are you doing?” Gage asked, moving partway around the counter in my direction. “We haven’t finished eating.”

  I jerked my thumb over my shoulder. “Bathroom.”

  “Ah.” He angled his head to the hallway. “Got it.”

  I groaned inside when he led the way, but he only pointed to a door off the hallway and said, “It’s in here.”

  “Thanks.” I stepped into the small powder room. It was dark, with deep burgundy wallpaper and a pedestal sink.

  I waited to hear his footsteps walk away before I sat on the toilet seat and cupped Dylan’s card between both hands.

  I was beyond caring anymore if I popped up on him in the middle of work or at home in the bathroom. There wasn’t time to care.

  Picturing Dylan’s face like I had each time in the past, I waited. It took a moment, but the process felt more familiar now. In an instant, I was whisked away to his house. Relief hit me when I recognized the place. I was standing right in the entryway and Dylan was there, sliding his arms into his jacket.

  “Dylan,” I said.

  He whipped around, and then when he saw me, he strode forward. “Lincoln.”

  To my surprise, he gripped my arms—and his hands connected.

  “I’m glad to see you,” I said, unsure how else to begin. And it wasn’t a lie. I could tell Dylan was on my side even if he had an unconventional way of showing it.

  He seemed just as surprised as I was, especially when I leaned into him. His arms wrapped around me, and the strength in them, the warmth of his grasp and the knowledge he was here for me was almost too much.

  “Where are you?” he asked.

  I eased back and looked into his eyes. They were filled with concern. “Gage’s house.”

  He cursed under his breath. “I figured.” Then he lifted his hand, just a breath from touching my cheek. It surprised me and moved me. “Are you okay?”

  “For now. But I don’t know how to get out. I’m stuck and he won’t leave me alone.”

  My hand went through his arm and I stepped back. I was turning transparent again, either from using too much power or because there was some sort of distraction back where my real body was.

  “I have to hurry,” I said.

  “Lincoln.” Dylan tried to grab me again, but his hands didn’t connect. “I can’t get onto his property—it’s blocked from people like me. Is there any way to get out?”

  “I don’t know,” I said in a rush as I felt the pull to go back. “I’ve been trying, but—”

  “Okay, nice and easy,” Dylan said, his voice soothing. “You can do this.”

  “Can’t you leave? Get out of town for tonight so we’re not all here.”

  “That’s not how it works. It has to be you.”

  I gritted my teeth, trying to hang on. I had no idea what else to do. I was kind of hoping Dylan and Grace could come storming in with some sort of vampire repellent and cause enough of a distraction to get me out.

  “You can do this,” Dylan said again with a purposeful nod. “I believe in you.”

  Before I could answer, I was jerked away to the sound of knocking on the bathroom door. My stomach twisted. It was the rush, the traveling back so fast. I’d have to get used to it if I was going to have to keep communicating with people that way.

  I stood slowly, flushed the unused toilet and mumbled, “Hold on.”

  I fake-washed my hands to buy me another minute. My only hope now was to trick Gage somehow. To make him believe I was on his side before I turned the tables and got the hell out of here.

  When I opened the door, Gage stood there with his hands on his hips and expression that seemed to demand an explanation. I had no clue how long I was in there, but I didn’t care. It was now or never.

  “I’m curious,” I said causally, propping my shoulder on the door jamb. “Who did the spell in the first place? If I knew who did it or what kind of spell it was, I’d have a direction. I need—”

  “Wait.” I stopped talking. Fuck. He was suspicious. “Why are you so eager to get this all figured out now?”

  I dodged his gaze and walked back to the hallway. He followed me all the way to the library before he caught my elbow.

  “Link.”

  I put steel into my voice when I turned around. “Look, I can’t stay here forever. I need to be done with this.” With you was what I wanted to say. I couldn’t be around Gage anymore. “I need…”

  “I will let you go. After we finish this, you’re free.”

  I gave him a suspicious look. It wasn’t that simple, I knew it. But did I really want to argue?

  Gage stepped in front of me, so I had no choice but to look at him. “God, Link, you really think I’m the bad guy, don’t you? You think I’m just—what? Going to use you and then dispose of you?”

  My heart lurched at the words because I knew he could do it. He was a vampire and very strong. He could probably kill me without much effort—especially if I broke the curse and he had all his vampire powers.

  Because I couldn’t answer, because I had no idea what to expect now and I just wanted to be out of here, I ducked around him and walked into the library to get back to the books. On the desk where I’d been working in the middle of the room, there was an open box I didn’t notice before. Inside was a shiny and sharply pointed letter opener.

  Gage hurried after me, and when I heard his quiet breath, I turned back around. “Link,” he said seriously, trying to get me to look at him. “Listen to me.”

  I lifted my chin, but behind my back, I let my fingers fumble over the table to find the letter opener. My first potential weapon besides the fire that seemed to keep failing me. Even if I could control it, I wasn’t sure it would hurt Gage fast enough or strong enough to get me out of here.

  “I’m not going to hurt you,” he said. The sincerity in his tone made me pause. Either he really meant it, or he was an amazing liar. “Do you believe me?”

  When his eyes darkened, I looked down. No way was I going to let him try to influence me now.

  “Don’t try to make me believe that if it isn’t true,” I said firmly.

  “I’m not—fuck.” He gripped my chin and tilted my face up. “I wasn’t trying to do that—it happens sometimes. I’m learning, like you. This power…” His jaw clenched and his eyes returned to their normal shade of devastating blue. His fingers softened and then he brushed them on my cheek, a tender gesture that made my hand loosen on the letter opener. “I swear I won’t hurt you. But you’re the only one who can do this, and I need you.”

  Dammit. I actually believed hi
s words. But I still didn’t know why. Right now, all I had to do was grab that letter opener and stab him. Hopefully it would be enough to get away.

  But I couldn’t manage to make myself do it.

  “I believe you,” I finally mumbled.

  He released a soft breath. “Good.”

  Then he trailed his finger down my cheek and to my neck before letting it wander over my chest, lingering there when my lips parted. He wouldn’t kiss me and wouldn’t go any further than that because he’d promised me and I believed that promise, too. He wouldn’t do anything unless I said so. And he was far more patient than I would have been in his place.

  Then it hit me. This was my chance. Maybe my only chance.

  If I could distract him, I could use this moment to get away. Somehow.

  I slid my hand up his arm, over his shoulder, and to his neck. His breathing picked up. And when I gripped his hair in the back, he yanked in a breath.

  But even then, he waited for me to make the first move.

  Before I could question my idea anymore, I fused my lips to his. I couldn’t even draw a breath before he yanked me into his arms, hard enough to have a thrill racing through my body, warring with the other part of me—the part that knew I had to trick him.

  Our bodies touched the entire way down, hard lines and muscles, quivering flesh.

  “Link,” he groaned. He slipped his tongue into my mouth, and I couldn’t help the flicker of desire that raced through me.

  My fingers clenched on his shoulders, tight on his muscles. Faster than lightning, he gripped my thighs and hiked me up to set me on the table. It disoriented me and turned me on at the same time. Then Gage attacked my mouth again. His lips were like a fever against mine, and his hands were all over the place, running down my back, sliding up my arms, cupping my face to plunder my mouth with his tongue.

  My mind whirled with the intensity of it, and every moment I tried to hang onto the fact that I was doing this for a purpose. That I needed to keep my head in the game because this was my last chance to stop something very bad from happening.

  But my hands moved of their own volition.

  I grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled. He lifted his arms for me to yank it over his head and then slowed for a moment. He moved so quickly, it was hard for me to slow down as well. To stop and take a look. His body was magnificent. Toned but lithe, like a predator.

  And when he smiled, it was all too clear I was the prey. But it was working. In that moment, I almost forgot the letter opener.

  I let myself give in just slightly. My hands wandered over his shoulders, across his chest and to his abdomen. Firm muscle under smooth skin.

  Then I felt the first flicker of flames.

  I jerked my hands back. Gage angled his head.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “You have to…” I swallowed. “You have to be careful.”

  He caught my hand faster than I could blink. “Tell me.”

  Maybe it was the softness in his command, or the fact that his eyes were full on mine without any guile. He wanted to know, and I wanted to tell him.

  “Last time I did this—” I cleared my throat. “Let’s just say, it didn’t go over very well for the other guy.”

  To my surprise, he lifted his knuckles to my cheek and brushed them softly, encouraging me to continue.

  “He tried to force me, and I couldn’t stop the fire,” I said. The whole night had been a disaster. We’d both been drinking, and I knew it had been a mistake to go into the guy’s room. But I’d been clear when I’d said no. Unfortunately, he’d been drunk. “I couldn’t control it. He had to go to the hospital.”

  Gage stepped up to me and wrapped his arms around my back, pulling me to the edge of the table so my legs were on either side of his body.

  It almost broke me when he kissed my temple. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

  His hands skimmed down my back as the fire receded.

  “You can’t hurt me like that, though,” he said, eyes appealing.

  All of the sudden part of me was ashamed that he thought the only reason I was hesitating was because of a bad experience. He had no clue I was tricking him. That was supposed to be a good thing, but instead it made me feel miserable.

  I looked up at him. “I seem to recall setting you on fire pretty easily yesterday.”

  He glanced down at his arm. “And I’m not hurt. See?”

  I followed his gaze and saw he was right. There was no scarring on his arm—it wasn’t even red. I hadn’t hurt him—or he’d healed quickly enough there wasn’t any damage.

  Then he gave another smile that was almost tender, a smile that undid me, because in this moment, I wanted it. I wanted him. I wanted the chance to try again and to be with someone I clearly had a bond with.

  He pulled my shirt over my head and set it on the table, taking his time. When I slid off to stand again, he stepped back and let his gaze wander from my head to my toes. It was almost as though the slower he went, the more likely it was for the flames to stay inside.

  But the thing was, they’d come out before when he’d been trying to drug me. Which meant they came out when I felt threatened, which I should have felt right now. He was holding me captive.

  He was the bad guy.

  But I wasn’t playing my part. Maybe I knew that somewhere deep down inside and that was why the fire just wasn’t cooperating.

  “Be with me,” he murmured.

  The words caused a ripple of confusion to travel through me. It was like he was speaking straight to my soul. I wanted this unity. But at what cost?

  You have to get away from him… The words came straight from Savannah, taking over. As though she were here with me, making sure I kept to the plan.

  I had to be out of here before tonight, and she wanted to make sure I made it.

  I remembered Dylan and Grace, even my mom, and knew they were all working toward the same goal as well. But I was the only one who could do it.

  My fingers moved to the table behind me, fumbling in the direction of the letter opener while Gage stepped forward once more. His fingers danced across my shoulders, rocking me to my core. Who knew an evil vampire could be so gentle?

  Then, while his hands moved their way over my arms and down my stomach, his mouth touched mine again. His kisses grew more heated, trying to draw the same passion from me. I returned the kiss, all the while feeling for the letter opener and planning my next move.

  Hopefully before things went too far.

  His fingers moved against the zipper of my jeans, a quick flick that had them open and loose around my waist.

  “Gage,” I said, voice low.

  He leaned me back against the cool wood of the table again, faster than I could blink. “I want you,” he murmured, stepping closer to press a kiss to my chest. “In here. And I want you upstairs in my bed. And in the shower. Over and over.”

  My body shuddered as he kissed his way lower.

  Then he grasped my wrists and pinned them over my head, startling me. Oh, fuck. He knew exactly what I was doing.

  But instead of a reprimand, he asked me a simple question. “Do you want me?”

  I blinked up at him, searching for the darkness in his eyes, evidence of him trying to compel me. But there was nothing but his clear gaze, beseeching.

  “I do,” I said in all honestly.

  He released me to continue his descent. My actions warred against my words. But I had no choice. I reached for the letter opener as flashes of my dream returned to me. Of Gage pinning me to the wall in the Knob Creek Hotel. Of his hot body against mine. The anticipation of him penetrating me. God, I wanted him. That hadn’t been a lie.

  I wanted more from what my life had become. I wanted that intimacy.

  Fuck.

  His fingers tugged down the waist of my jeans and he kissed softly just above the lip of my boxers. It was as though the ground rattled beneath us, like the world shook because of us. Because of
this overwhelming need for each other.

  There. I found it. The handle of the letter opener.

  Stab him! Savannah’s voice echoed in my mind. Do it!

  My heart clutched when Gage continued to kiss me. He lowered my boxers inch by inch until my cock sprang free, hard and ready for him.

  “Link,” he murmured, something close to reverence in his tone.

  I opened my mouth to tell him to stop. But then his lips were on me, closing over the head. I groaned. The sound came out hoarse and full of angst.

  But Gage only took it as a sign to continue. His tongue came out, running along the bottom of my dick, making one long stripe all the way to the head.

  No, no, no… I couldn’t let this keep going.

  I was this close to coming and this close to stabbing him. Torn. I was torn between need and want, not sure if I was going to regret this for the rest of my life or not.

  Then the fire exploded. It burst in a great ball in front of us, making him yelp and jerk back. And then his jeans were on fire.

  Maybe it was because of my confusion. Because my body was being yanked in too many directions.

  Either way, this was my chance.

  Gage straightened, his mouth and hands leaving my body. “Shit!”

  I gripped the letter opener hard and then sat up. It could feel the heat from the flames on my face and arms. On my hand as I lifted it and prepared to stab him.

  Gritting my teeth, I plunged the blade into his back.

  CHAPTER 13

  The gut-wrenching cry that tore from Gage almost made me stop right where I was. Not to mention that my body was still rolling in waves of near ecstasy because of what he’d been doing with his mouth.

  Then I snapped to attention. Focused. Because the handle of a letter opener was protruding from his back and this was my only chance.

  Gage twisted to try to remove it, getting me moving. I yanked my jeans up and his hand snagged the pant leg before I could step back.

  “No!” I yelped, stumbling backward.

  He grunted and surged forward to grab me. I shoved my hand into the pocket of my jeans, as if guided by some supernatural force—which might have been exactly what it was—and yanked out the necklace.