My hands cupped his balls, and I grinned up at him. “Can’t forget these.”
His eyes darkened to nearly black in return. “I’d expect nothing less from you.”
As his hard length grew under my touch, Maciah spun me around so that my back was to him and I was standing under the water with him.
His dick twitched against my ass as he rinsed the conditioner from my long strands. As soon as he was done, I turned the water off and reached for a towel to at least dry my hair a little before we finished what we—or maybe just I—had started.
I bent forward to wring the water out, but I barely even had the towel around the long strands before Maciah had me cradled in his arms and was taking me into the bedroom.
“I’m all wet,” I said, pointing out the obvious.
He smirked. “Just the way I like you.”
Well, that wasn’t what I’d meant, but he also wasn’t wrong.
Maciah tossed me onto the bed, and I spread my soaking hair out behind me as he grabbed my ankles, pulling me closer to the edge of the mattress.
He brought my feet up as he stood in front of the bed, kissing each of the arches before sliding his hands slowly down each leg and wrapping them around his waist.
His fingers barely touched my center when my hips bucked, silently begging for him to keep the teasing to a minimum. He smirked and leaned forward to kiss my stomach, causing my back to arch while my chest rose and fell rapidly as the anticipation built between us.
I reached my hands toward his shoulders, hoping to pull him on top of me, but he moved out of the way before I could get a good hold.
“Too many hours have passed since I’ve been able to properly love you. I won’t be rushed, but I promise, you’ll thank me later.”
“How about you rush through this first round and torture me the second go around? I have no doubt I’d thank you for that as well,” I countered, trying to use my ankles to bring him closer and failing.
He shook his head at me as he broke out of the hold I had around his hips, then lowered to his knees. Before I could protest, his mouth covered my center and his tongue flicked over my clit, making me cry out from the instant relief his touch offered.
My skin tingled and heated as he sucked harder on my core, adding his fingers into the mix.
The orgasm growing inside me built up quicker and faster than I was used to, making me tighten around his fingers until I wondered if this wasn’t punishment for my lack of patience.
Except punishment didn’t usually come with moans of pleasure, so I pushed those thoughts aside as I lifted my hips in time with his movements. My fingers tangled into his long strands as I held him right where I wanted when I got close to coming, but Maciah seemed to have other plans.
Just as I was about to crest over a glorious sex-induced hill, Maciah pulled his hand and face back, then cupped my center with his palm. “Not yet.”
My lip lifted into a snarl as I thought to yell at him. Though, the chance to do so was gone in an instant. He flipped me over and plunged inside me from behind, pressing my back down so that my ass went higher into the air, then he stilled as I wiggled against him.
Torturously slow, he pulled out and slammed back into me. My fingers curled around the comforter as I let my head fall until my forehead rested against the bed.
He reached around and pressed his fingers over my clit, then moved at a steadier pace. By then, I was nearly panting, needily pressing back against him while matching his every thrust, wanting every inch of him that I could get inside me.
Maciah slid his other hand over my spine before gripping my hip and picking up speed. Just as I began to tighten around him, he pulled out of me again and flipped me onto my back.
I leaned up with my hand raised, ready to smack some sense into him, but he was on top of me, kissing my intentions away as if he’d known exactly what to expect.
As I opened my mouth to him, he spread my legs open, and I sighed as he fit perfectly inside me with one fluid thrust, almost as if we were made for each other.
He tried to keep me distracted as his tongue danced with mine, but I wasn’t falling for his antics a third time. I brought my hands forward, gripping his hips and rocking against him, taking what I needed from him.
Maciah’s breath moved over my cheek and down my neck until he was sucking on the spot behind my ear. My fangs elongated, and the sudden urge to bite him came over me.
I dug my nails into his shoulder, unsure if that was an instinct I wanted to act on. Then, he nipped at my neck, scraping his own fangs over my skin.
I shoved any hesitation aside as I let my sharp teeth sink into the top of his shoulder and let out a stifled cry as he did the same to me.
Once again, emotions exploded inside me, moving between us, drawing the bond we shared to the surface and solidifying the love I knew we both had for each other.
His blood was unlike any I’d drank, and I craved for more as I eagerly took from him, but as his movements above me continued to increase in speed, I was fighting a battle between my natural cravings and the sexual wants only Maciah could draw from me.
My fangs began to retract on their own after another moment, and I flicked my tongue over the puncture marks I’d made, watching as they faded into two pink circles before my eyes.
Maciah’s tongue did the same but continued a path back up to my ear before he nipped at my lobe.
As my moans got louder, I tried to quiet them, worried he was going to try to withdraw from me again, but then he moved so that we were staring into each other’s eyes. One of his hands held him up and the other lifted my ass up, so he could burrow deeper inside me.
With our gazes locked, any concerns I’d previously had fell away. I focused only on Maciah and the shared love between us, memorizing every sharp line of his face and the way his dark hair fell around his eyes as they watched me.
My core tightened around him as his grip did the same to my hips. Our speed picked up, and I was suddenly thankful he’d made me wait for this moment to come with him. Just like he knew I would be. Cocky vampire.
Our bond swirled between us, and my fingers wrapped tightly around his biceps as my vision faltered. I threw my head back, succumbing to the euphoria ravaging my insides, and cried out as Maciah’s sweaty body settled on top of mine.
Once I found the strength to open my eyes, I tried and failed to find words.
“You’re…” I wasn’t sure what to call him. Evil? Genius? Delectable? All of the above.
He grinned, lifting himself up so he was resting on his elbows. “As long as I’m yours, nothing else matters.”
And that was the truth.
No matter what we faced, I knew with Maciah at my side, we would survive.
CHAPTER 7
We waited until just before dawn to crawl out of bed, and muscles I didn’t even know could be sore were sore. Though, I had no complaints about that. I’d needed the connection with Maciah, and he seemed to have needed it as well.
Maciah went downstairs first and pulled our clothes from the dryer they’d been switched to a couple hours prior. When he returned, he frowned, setting the clothes on the bed.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, grabbing my underwear and bra first.
“There are a lot of windows in this house.”
The sun was a big setback for me and a weakness for our group. If Viktor attacked when I was limited as to where I could go, then we didn’t stand a chance.
“Is there any way around the sensitivity?” I asked, knowing there were some vampire secrets not widely shared. Maybe there was one I hadn’t thought to ask about yet.
“Possibly, but we’d need a witch. We can head to Warlock tonight and see if we can find one, along with information about Viktor,” Maciah said as he began getting dressed in clothes he had stashed here already.
Going out and doing something was good, not only for our group, but also for Viktor to know he hadn’t crushed us by destroying the nest.
&nb
sp; “Rachel mentioned that a party was usually thrown in honor of vampires who died. Should we do something here? I know it won’t be the same, but they deserve to be honored,” I said, unable to let go of the ones who died, even if I hadn’t been close to them.
“I’ll think of something. Zeke might have already done so as well, so I’ll check with him,” Maciah answered while buttoning up his shirt.
“No suit coat for you?” I asked when I didn’t see it with the rest of our things.
He shook his head. “Maybe later. Too much work to do today around the house so we can make it safe for you to leave the room. We only have blackout blinds in the bedrooms.”
“What about clothes for the others? Do they have what they need? Or do we need to go shopping for more than one outfit for the rest of us?” I asked.
“I have a laptop in the closet. I figured you could order some stuff to be delivered here. I’ll have the guys get a list of what they need together as well. I’m sure Rachel and Nikki have plenty in their rooms.”
Online shopping would be a good way to pass the day since there wasn’t much we could do about Viktor until the sun went down.
I finished getting dressed, grabbed the laptop from the shelf in the closet, and went back to give Maciah a kiss. “I’m going to find Rachel and Nikki.”
He grimaced. “I need to cover all of the windows before you leave the room. The sun will be shining anytime now. How about I get them and you ladies spend the morning in here while I finish blocking out the sun?”
“Thank you,” I said to Maciah before kissing him again. I didn’t want to feel the way I had in the car when I’d been exposed to the sun the day before. My skin itched just at the reminder.
He blurred out of the bedroom, and I made the bed before Rachel and Nikki arrived. They came into the room with steaming travel mugs of blood-flavored coffee. Seriously, I had the best friends ever.
Rachel handed me one of the cups. “Miss us?”
“Only a little,” I said as I snatched the goodness from her hand and took a long pull of the sweet liquid.
They sat on the bed, and I grabbed the laptop from the nightstand before joining them.
“Maciah said we were going to do a little online shopping,” Nikki said, not seeming super excited.
“I need clothes. I’m sure you guys have stuff here, but it would be nice to have my own things to wear,” I said, opening the internet browser.
Rachel clapped her hands. “I know several stores around here who will deliver as long as you spend enough.”
Normally I wasn’t much of a spender on clothes, but after the hell we went through, I had no problem meeting whatever minimums there were to get delivery.
“Did Maciah give you his credit card?” Rachel asked.
I laughed so hard the whole bed shook. “Yeah, no. I don’t need Maciah’s money. I have my own.” I even had my card number memorized for emergencies just like this. I’d flag it lost as soon as we were done, then have a new one expedited.
I nodded at Nikki before I started looking things up. “Do you want to talk about anything?”
We were a lot alike, and I wasn’t going to push her, but I could sense the unease she was feeling like it was my own. Her melancholy pressed lightly down on my chest, leaving a reminder that nothing was how it should be any longer.
“Not really.” She forced a smile and moved closer to me. “Let me pull up the places Rachel was talking about.”
She took the laptop from me. I’d gladly let her do whatever she wanted as long as it helped ease what was going on inside that head of hers.
Already knowing Nikki was out of sorts, I didn’t ask Rachel about Zeke. Instead, I brought up the call from Dave.
“How is he doing?” Rachel asked.
“He sounded good, and I think they’re letting him out of the hospital soon. I invited him and Steve to come stay with us.”
Nikki raised a brow. “Two humans staying in a house with nine vampires? That could make things more interesting.”
“Hopefully not. Though, we probably won’t find out. He didn’t seem keen on the idea, not that I blame him after what he went through.” I proceeded to tell them what Dave said about Simon working with the vampires and how Silas was most likely working for Viktor the whole time.
“I was surprised Silas could have had the forethought to send the drones if he died or we got away. It makes more sense that Viktor had that plan in place. It also shows that Viktor assumed Silas would lose, which means Viktor won’t be underestimating us,” Nikki said, making a very good point.
“I hadn’t thought of that. I don’t think that’s a good thing, though,” I replied.
She shook her head. “Probably not.”
I took a few more drinks of blood-coffee before Nikki handed me the laptop back. “These will have everything you need. We need new phones as well for the remaining vampires. Only you and Maciah had yours on you.”
“Zeke might have taken care of that already. I can check with him,” Rachel said a little too quickly.
“Of course you can,” I teased.
She smirked, clearly proud of what she had with Zeke. I was happy for her. We just had to find a way to help Nikki get past whatever she was feeling, and then things could level out for all of us. Well, after we killed Viktor.
I began shopping, making things easy by buying a few of the same items just in different colors. Within twenty minutes, I had a dozen outfits picked out, including underwear and shoes and a few surprises that could come in handy later.
“Anyone want to add anything before I finish this?” I offered. I knew they had some clothes here, but maybe not what they were used to.
“I’m good for now,” Nikki said first, and Rachel agreed.
A few clicks and several thousand dollars later, I had a new wardrobe that was supposed to arrive within three hours. Money wasn’t the most important thing in the world, but it sure did make things easier.
I leaned against the headboard, facing Rachel and Nikki. “I’m stuck in here, and shopping didn’t take nearly as long as I hoped it would.”
Nikki patted my leg. “We can watch movies.”
“Or play board games,” Rachel added.
I groaned, rubbing my hands over my face. “How long does this sun thing last?”
They both shared a look I didn’t like, but it was Nikki who broke the news. “Usually two, maybe three years, but it gets easier with every day.”
My skin ached just thinking about trying to ease my way into getting used to the UV rays. That was going to make me wish I was dead.
My phone pinged with a text. I glanced at the screen to find an automated alert from my order stating my personal shopper would be acquiring all of the requested items just as soon as they opened later that morning and how much my business was appreciated. Yeah, I bet it was.
Nikki reached for the remote. “There has to be something you enjoyed watching that we can check out.”
I smirked. “Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a favorite.”
Rachel smacked me in the face with a pillow. “You’re not a slayer anymore.”
“Maybe not right now, but I will be again. I won’t compromise on that. I know it’s not safe for me to go out hunting vampires right now, but when Viktor is dead—something I have no doubt will happen soon—I’ll be resuming my nightly activities.”
Rachel frowned. “I know you said that before, but I hoped after some time had passed that you’d change your mind.”
“That won’t ever happen. Though, I’m open to doing things differently than I did before. I don’t need to hunt by myself. Maciah mentioned there were other nests like yours that were too small to fight against those who didn’t want things to go back to the old way, either. We could begin by helping them and spread out from there,” I said.
“You’d help the other vampires, not just humans?” Rachel asked, and the surprise in her voice hurt me a little.
“I’m okay with admitting when
I’m wrong. I shouldn’t have judged all vampires the same way. Helping the vampires is also helping the humans, so it’s not a bad deal. Especially if more of us work together to keep the humans safe. I don’t want another person to go through what I did as a teenager.”
Vengeance was nothing without purpose, and I intended to make sure my purpose impacted as many people as possible for as long as I was capable of fighting for something better.
“I don’t know how you’re not still furious at what happened to you,” Nikki said.
“Human or vampire, it doesn’t matter. We all have a choice in how we feel and act. Nobody can take that from us unless we let them. I don’t always succeed in keeping control of my emotions, as you’ve both seen, but when I’ve had time to process things, I can let them go if that’s what is best.
“Like when Maciah didn’t talk to me for six days. I didn’t hold that against him, because there was no point in hurting the both of us. Making him pay wasn’t going to change what happened, but it might have affected the future. I could have pushed him away and who knows what would be happening right now.”
“If more people thought that way, the world would be a much easier place to live,” Nikki grumbled.
My phone pinged again, and I ignored it, hoping to get Nikki talking about what was really bothering her, but Rachel nudged me. “Um, Am? I think you’ll want to see this.”
I grabbed my phone from her hand and sneered at the screen.
Simon: It’s a shame you weren’t inside that house when I blew it up, but don’t worry, I’ll be seeing you soon, Amersyn. You can’t hide from us.
I wanted to throw my phone across the room, but instead, I took a deep breath, taking my own advice about controlling my actions.
Me: You know I never hide, Simon. I’ll be eagerly awaiting the appearance of you and the vampire friends you’ve made.
Hopefully, he’d take the hint that I knew exactly who he was working with.
Simon: At least my friends don’t pretend to be something they’re not.
I considered sending another response, but I had nothing else to say to him. He had no idea what he was talking about, but I also knew there was nothing I could say to change his mind.
Vampire Vow (Scorned by Blood Book 3) Page 5
