by Elisa Adams
Elena’s smile only widened. “What’s strange about it? You don’t have anything I haven’t seen before. Come to think of it, neither does he.”
She let out a giggle that fueled Alec’s anger even more. He had to get her out of there before she revealed some even more embarrassing information. “Elena, why don’t you go see about making breakfast for our guest?”
Anything to get her out of the way.
Elena pouted, but she climbed off the bed and walked to the doorway. Right before she walked out of the room, she glanced over her shoulder. “You never had a problem sharing with me before, Alec. In fact, there were quite a few times you seemed to enjoy it.”
He groaned. Adriana poked his shoulder, but he refused to look at her. He was sure his face was a very unbecoming shade of red. “Goodbye, Elena.”
She let out a dramatic sigh and walked out of sight.
“What the hell was that all about?” Adriana pinched his arm and he winced. “She asked if she could play with me, and I have to tell you, that really gives me the creeps.”
“Don’t be offended. Elena likes to play with anything that has two legs and a pulse. Beyond that, she’s not very picky.”
Not very picky was a complete understatement. The woman needed to be tamed -- for her own good as much as those around her. But he wouldn’t be the one to do it. He’d taken care of her for too long. Now she needed to learn to look out for herself.
“That reassures me a whole lot.” Adriana edged off the bed, grabbed the sheet and yanked until it came loose. She wrapped it around her body and turned to face him, one hand holding the sheet in place over her breasts and the other planted on her hip. “And, let me tell you, it’s such an amazing feeling knowing the guy I slept with last night keeps his ex-girlfriend around. Why were you so insistent about wanting my pathetic, sickly body when you have someone like her walking into your bedroom in a skimpy little robe?”
“Adriana --”
She held up her hand. “Just point me in the direction of the nearest bathroom, okay?”
“Right across the hall.”
“Great. Be right back. And you’d better be here, mister. I have a feeling we really need to have a talk.”
She stomped out of the room and he let his head drop back against the wall. There was so much to explain to her that he didn’t even know where to begin.
* * *
Adriana stood in front of the sink and splashed cold water on her face. A quick glance out the window after she’d taken care of her business let her know why she felt so out of sorts. It was night. And not still night, either. Something told her it was night again. She’d slept through a whole day. That must mean the illness was getting worse. Though her apparent fatigue might have had something to do with Alec. He’d woken her up more than once.
She bit back a giggle at the thought. So she’d slept with him. So what? It wasn’t going to happen again. He obviously had different values and beliefs than her simple human ones of trust and monogamy. He probably wouldn’t want her again, anyway. Not after she’d freaked out and ran out of the room. Her anger might have been a tad bit misplaced -- he hadn’t made her any promises beyond healing her and she didn’t want them anyway.
She grabbed a fluffy beige hand towel from the towel bar next to the mirror and swiped it across her face. Funny, but she didn’t feel worn out like she normally did in the morning. She felt wide awake.
“I guess that’s what a good night’s -- and day’s -- sleep does for a girl.” It felt like she was walking around in a dream. A vampire who said he could heal her mysterious illness… what, other than a dream, could this whole thing be?
A reality she’d never known existed. That’s what it was. Every time she thought about it, her stomach ached, so she pushed it aside. She could deal with it later, after she dealt with Alec.
She turned to walk out of the room, but her reflection in the mirror above the sink snagged her attention. The dark hollows under her eyes were gone. Not only that, but her skin was a little less pale and her hair less limp. Her cheeks weren’t quite as gaunt as they’d been the day before. A good night’s sleep and good sex could make the hollows under her eyes go away and maybe lessen her pallor a little, but how could she explain the rest?
She rushed out of the bathroom and back into Alec’s bedroom, slamming the door behind her. His head snapped up and he glanced at her. “Is something wrong?”
“What did you do to me last night?”
A wicked smile spread across his lips. “If you don’t know, I’d be glad to show you again.”
“I’m serious, Alec. I look different than I did before I left my apartment to come here.”
The smile dropped from his face and his expression turned solemn. He just looked at her for a few seconds before he answered. “Do you feel different?”
She started to shake her head, but telling him she didn’t would be a lie. She did feel different. Stronger. Healthier. Whole in a way she couldn’t begin to explain. She slumped against the wall. She swallowed hard and tasted a faint coppery tang in her mouth. “What did you do to me, Alec?”
“Nothing more than what was needed to help you heal.”
That was his cure? He could take it and shove it. She wanted no part of drinking blood, even if it would help her get well. “There had to be another solution. Something that didn’t involve making me drink your blood.”
Sadness passed across his features, but it was gone within seconds. He stood and started pulling on his jeans. “It was the only thing that would work. Trust me when I say that.”
“How can you know that with such certainty?”
His hands stilled in the act of buttoning his jeans. “Do you really want the truth?”
She swallowed hard. Something in his tone told her she didn’t. “Of course.”
“My blood can heal you, because it was my blood that made you sick in the first place.”
Chapter 6
Adriana was going to kill him. Alec saw the fire sparking in her eyes and the way her hand tightened around the sheet as she walked over to him, and he was glad he’d at least managed to put on pants. The heavy fabric would, hopefully, protect his cock from whatever she intended.
She stopped in front of him and narrowed her eyes. Her hand came up to his shoulder and she gave him a push. “Explain that last comment before you lose something very near and dear to you.”
“My blood is what made you sick,” he repeated. “Or rather, the lack of it.”
She blinked, but said nothing. Her hand stayed in front of her, clenched in a fist, and he figured he had another minute before she hit him. He would have laughed, but he’d made her mad enough already. “Your father had been giving it to you in small doses for years. When he died, that obviously stopped.”
“That’s not possible.” She moved over to the bed and sat, pulling her knees up to her chest. A desolate look had settled in her eyes, and it made his gut ache. “Why would he do that? And how did he get your blood? Please, please tell me you didn’t consent to this and leave me sick for months. I would never, ever be able to forgive you if that’s what you did.”
“Of course I wouldn’t do that. I just found out what had happened a few days ago, when I got the letter he used as a confession.” Alec sneered at the last few words. Frank had been a good friend, but what he’d done had been a cutting betrayal. Alec understood Frank’s reasoning -- after losing his wife to cancer, he wanted to make sure his daughter wouldn’t suffer the same fate. But Frank hadn’t given a thought to the terrible side effects. “As for why, the only answer I can think of is that he wanted to protect you after the way your mother died.”
She shook her head. “That’s crazy.”
“Yes, I know it is. But he only wanted to keep you safe.”
“And when he died, he wasn’t around to give me your blood anymore, and that’s why I got sick.”
Alec nodded.
“How did he get your blood in the first place? What d
id he do, tie you down and stick a needle in your arm?”
He let out a bitter laugh. She wasn’t very far off. “Let’s take a walk. I want to show you the grounds. You should really get to know things around here.”
A panicked look crossed her face and she shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. I don’t want to be eaten by whatever you have out there. I need some time to think. Alone. Okay?”
“Okay,” he said, but he didn’t like it.
* * *
Alec sat in the library, his head back and his eyes closed. He’d left Adriana alone three hours ago. Morning would be here soon. He needed to get to bed, and she had yet to venture out of his bedroom. She had every reason to be angry, and so many things to work through, but he wished she’d hurry up and get on with it. Fatigue was starting to take over and he had no plans to spend the entire day in this chair.
“Alec?”
At first he thought it was just his overtaxed mind playing tricks on him, but then he opened his eyes and saw Adriana standing in the doorway. He sat up a little straighter when he noticed she wore his black robe. Unbelted. She held it closed at the waist, but it gaped open and bared a generous amount of skin above her hand.
He swallowed hard. “Are you feeling better now?”
She nodded. “I talked to your friend, Ian, and he explained a few things to me. You didn’t have much choice in this. It’ll take me a while to get used to it all, but thanks. I think.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” A smile tugged at the corners of her lips. “I’ve been wondering for years what it would take to get you to notice me.”
His eyes narrowed. It didn’t feel right for her to be making jokes about what Frank had done to her. The man had ruined her life. “That isn’t funny.”
“We all deal with our anger in different ways.” She laughed and walked closer. “Me, I prefer to laugh it off. Of course, there are other ways to deal with it, too. Ones you’d probably appreciate more than laughter.”
Damned if he didn’t like the sound of that. He reached for her. “What changed your mind?”
“Ian told me you’ve been obsessing about me. I’ve been obsessing about you, too, but you probably already know that since you’ve been breaking into my fantasies.” She stopped in front of him and leaned forward until her lips nearly touched his. “But you think you can just order me around, and I’m not going to stand for it. After last night, I’m feeling the need for a little payback.”
He gulped, but at the same time, his cock went completely hard. “What do you have in mind?”
“Put your hands on the arms of the chair, and don’t take them off until I tell you to.”
He opened his mouth to argue, but then snapped it closed again. If he argued, she might change her mind about whatever she had planned, and he’d never sleep if he went to bed in this state. He settled his hands on the arms of the chair and waited for her next move.
She let the robe drop from her shoulders. It pooled on the floor at her feet, and Alec started to glance down, but she lifted his chin with her hand. “Just sit. Put your head back the way it was when I walked in here. Don’t move.”
He let his head drop back and glanced at her. She just smiled, and it set him on edge. It sounded like she’d been talking to Elena as well as Ian. Adriana bent and kissed him hard and fast on the lips. His gut tightened. She really had no idea how strongly she affected him.
For too long he’d been waiting to have her. They had a lot of catching up to do. The more time he let her play, the less time he would have for more serious matters. Matters that would bring them both pleasure. Morning would be there soon and getting her under him in bed had just taken top priority. Even sleep could wait a little while.
He started to lift his fingers from the chair to pull her close, but she pushed his hands back down. “Stay. I mean it.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I’m not an animal.”
“No?” She dropped to her knees in front of him. “That wasn’t the impression I got last night.”
He let his eyes drift closed. He’d be sleeping right now if she didn’t have him so turned on. He felt her hands at his waistband and soon she had his jeans unzipped. Her hot breath hit his cock. He arched his hips toward her and she rewarded him with a kiss on the head of his cock.
A groan rumbled in his chest. His fingers tightened on the chair. She was going to kill him, and he had a feeling she’d enjoy every second.
“It’s getting late,” he warned her.
“It’s early.” She frowned. “But I guess it’s late for you. What’s the matter? Are you tired or something?”
“Yes. I should get to bed.” Even though he said the words, he had no plans to walk out. Not now. If he did, he’d never get any sleep. “Why don’t you come with me?”
“I plan to come with you, but not in bed. Here will do just fine.”
He blew out a harsh breath. The feather-light strokes of her hands on his skin had him squirming in the chair. He had to dig his fingers into the chair arms to keep from reaching for her again and prolonging the torture.
He opened his eyes just in time to see her pull the belt off his robe. He swallowed hard. “What do you think you’re doing?”
Her burst of laughter filled the room. She held the strip of material up in front of him and shook it in her hand. “I haven’t decided yet. Maybe I’ll blindfold you with it. Or tie your hands behind your back to punish you for not holding still.”
Either option sounded incredible. He groaned and arched his hips toward her. Whatever Adriana wanted to do would be fine, as long as she did something. Soon.
“Or maybe I’ll save those ideas for another time.” She winked and brought the tie over to him, dragging the soft fabric across his legs. “I have a better idea for now.”
She trailed the tie up to his cock, wrapped it around his length and stroked.
Alec hissed out a breath and tightened his grip on the chair even more. Any more of this and he might tear chunks out of the material.
“Do you like that?” she asked.
Her tone told him she knew he did. He swallowed hard and stared down at her. “You know I do.”
Adriana only smiled. Her fingers teased his cock as she continued to stroke him. The tie between her hand and his skin added a delicious friction that had him pumping his hips and begging for more.
Too soon, her strokes stopped. He nearly let go of the chair and pulled her on top of him, but she must have seen his intentions in his eyes. She shook her head and unwound the tie. He thought she’d drop it to the ground, but she didn’t. Instead, she looped it around the base of his cock and tightened enough to create a slight pressure.
Then she took his cock into her mouth and sucked him deep.
He watched as she bobbed her head up and down the length of his cock, her tongue swirling and stroking and driving him mad. The sensations were almost too much to take. He lifted his hand and started to bring it to her head, but her warning glance had him putting it right back on the arm of the chair.
The wet heat of her enveloped him, pushed him toward the edge until his balls drew up against his body and his breathing was nothing more than ragged gasps. Her fingers, resting on his thighs, dug into the muscles as she continued to work him with her mouth.
Too soon, she released him.
If she thought she’d get away with teasing him for hours without providing him some sort of relief, she’d thought wrong. There was only so much he could take and he’d about reached his threshold. No longer caring about keeping his hands on the chair, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward him. Before she could protest, he had her on his lap, straddling him.
Alec expected an argument, but she just smiled. “What’s the matter? Can’t wait?”
“No. I can’t.”
The taunting look in her eyes told him she wasn’t through with him yet. He dropped his head back and groaned. What had he gotten himself into?
“You hav
e to.” She rubbed her pussy along the length of his cock. The feel of her wet folds against him without being inside her nearly made him snap. He dipped his head to take a peaked nipple into his mouth, suckling her until she arched against him and moaned. Her fingers threaded through his hair and she ground her pussy harder against him. It felt so good that it took him a second to figure out what she was doing. Once he knew, he pulled his head back and narrowed his eyes.
He growled, but still she didn’t stop. Her eyes had closed and her lips were parted, her whole body flushed. No way was he letting this happen.
“Stop. Don’t come yet.”
“Why not? You’re so much fun to tease and this feels so damned amazing.”
He would have laughed, if he’d been able to manage much more than a ragged groan. It did feel amazing, but it would feel even better once he was inside her.
“Teasing time is over.” He gripped her hips, lifted his own and impaled her on his cock. The relief was almost immediate, but it was short lived. Soon she started to move and he was caught up in the sensations all over again.
She slammed down on him over and over, tiny cries escaping from her lips. Her nails dug into his shoulders and she leaned forward, raking her teeth across his neck. The act was so unexpected that it dragged a moan from him. He couldn’t wait to turn her. Then he’d be able to feel her fangs on his neck. In his neck. Just the idea of it sent a shudder through him.
He grasped her hips to hold her closer while he hammered his cock into her. He couldn’t last much longer, but he refused to let go just yet. She was close. She dropped her head back, her lips parted and her eyes closed.
Only when he felt her pussy muscles convulsed around him did he let himself give in to his release. He squeezed his eyes shut and held onto Adriana. What felt like an eternity later, but could only have been a matter of minutes, Adriana stirred against him.
He stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head. “How are you feeling?”
“I have to say I’ve been better.” She let out a laugh, but it was weak. “You really take a lot out of me.”
