He nodded. “I’ll come with you.”
We walked towards the beach where there was a public restroom open for the festival, which was good because I hated using the satellites.
“Do you want to take a walk by the beach?” he asked when I was finished.
I looked towards the beach. It was dusk and now deserted. “Sure.”
We walked towards the lake and I took off my sandals so I could dig my toes in the sand.
“Now that I’ve got you alone…” he grinned, grabbing my arm and pulling me close.
Duncan was almost a foot taller than me and I stood on my tippy toes to meet his lips. We started kissing and then I remembered.
“Wait,” I said. “It’s getting dark. We shouldn’t be out here alone.”
He snorted. “Listen, if Ethan shows up, I’ll knock his lights out.”
Duncan would have been a formidable adversary for anyone, but not for whatever kind of creature Ethan was. There was no question in my mind about that.
“Duncan, he’s not normal. Remember how he grabbed me and ran through the woods? Even you can’t compete with that.”
He sighed. “Fine. Just one more kiss and we’ll head back.”
I slid my arms around his neck and we began kissing, again. Just when my legs began to feel like jelly, he released me.
“Hey,” I pouted as I opened my eyes.
“Well, well, well,” chuckled Ethan. “You’re a naughty little vixen, aren’t you?”
Duncan lay on the ground, obviously unconscious. I rushed to his side and looked up at Ethan. “What did you do to him?!” I yelled.
He sighed. “Don’t worry he’s just taking a little nap. I should have killed him for even touching you.”
“Ethan, you have to stop this. I’m not Miranda.”
He grabbed my hand and lifted me up. “You are Miranda. I can see it in your eyes, the way you smell, how you taste…” he murmured, looking into my eyes.
My heart began to race as he bent his head and began kissing me. A wave of hot pleasure shot through my body and I released a strangled moan.
Just then, Duncan came back to his senses. “Leave her alone, you asshole!” he raged, trying to get Ethan away from me.
Ethan’s eyes burned with fury and I watched in awe as he let out an unearthly roar. Before I could do anything, he held Duncan in the air by his throat.
“Please, stop!” I sobbed, rushing towards them. I started hitting Ethan in the back, but it was like hitting a plate of steel. He used his other hand and pushed me to the ground.
Duncan’s eyes were bugging out of his head and his face was turning purple. I knew he would die if I didn’t do something.
“Ethan!” I screamed, getting back up. I hit him repeatedly with my fists, but he continued to ignore me. It was only when a group of men began racing towards us that he swore and released Duncan.
“Let’s go, now,” ordered Ethan.
I backed away from him and then turned to run. Before I could take five steps, I was in his arms and we were racing across the beach like a flash of lightning.
“No…” I sobbed as the lights from the carnival became a blur.
Chapter Twenty-Three
I woke up in a cool, dark bedroom. Candles lit up the room and rock music played softly in the background.
I sat up. “Duncan?” I mumbled, “Nathan?”
Someone sighed and I found Ethan watching me from the shadows. He sat in a leather club chair that had been pushed into the corner of the room.
“So, you’re finally awake,” he murmured.
I swallowed. “Where am I?”
“Welcome to my humble abode,” he chuckled. He was naked from the waist up and my mind turned traitor once again as I imagined running my fingers over his impressive pecs.
What in the hell was wrong with me?!
I forced my lustful thoughts aside and tried to concentrate on Duncan and whether or not he was safe.
“Take me home,” I demanded, scooting to the edge of the bed. “Please.”
His eyes studied me intently, but he didn’t respond.
I stood up and smoothed down my dress. “Seriously, take me home,” I said, lifting my chin.
Ethan stood up and walked towards me. His eyes lowered to my dress and I suddenly felt naked. I wondered if vampires had x-ray vision.
I put a hand to my chest and looked up at him. “Ethan?”
“You are home,” he replied, his voice husky. I backed away and he grinned. “Are we playing hard to get, now?”
I ignored the question. “Look, this is insane. You can’t just keep me here like a prisoner.”
His eyes hardened. “Prisoner? If you want to leave, you’re certainly free to go.” He then stood sideways so that I could move around him to the doorway.
Holding my breath, I decided to go for it. Before I could take two steps, however, he grabbed both of my hands and had them behind my back before I had a chance to exhale.
“You know you want to be with me,” he said, smiling darkly. “In every way.”
I stared up into eyes that hinted of things I’d only fantasized about, and shamefully, my resistance fell apart.
Yes, I wanted Ethan…
In fact, from the tingling sensation growing between my legs, I wanted him every way and everywhere.
One of his large hands slid into my hair, cupping the back of my head. “Let me,” he whispered seductively, his breath hinting of butterscotch once again, “please you.”
Oh, my God…
My eyes lowered to his mouth and I licked my lips, remembering how good they’d felt on my skin. The next thing I knew, he had me on the bed, pressing against me, and I surrendered all control, gasping in guilty pleasure. Within seconds I was returning his kisses as passionately as he was giving them.
“Yes,” he growled, against my mouth as my hands traveled along his back to his hair. I tightened my fingers around the strands and pulled him closer, kissing him deeper as hot waves of desire shot through my veins, urging me on.
More… I wanted more…
I wrapped my legs around his waist, this time holding him captive as our pelvises moved together in a rhythm that soon had me whimpering in pleasure.
Suddenly, he stopped and his body tensed up.
“What?” I asked, staring up at him.
He closed his eyes and his jaw tightened.
“What did I do?” I whispered, touching his cheek.
He opened his eyes and they seemed to burn right into my soul. I stared in awe as a fire ignited around his irises and grew into flames.
My eyes widened. “Are you okay?”
He touched my cheek with his finger, drawing circles. “I’m fine… and you’ve done nothing but… make me want you more than ever,” he whispered. “I just needed a second to regain my control.”
“Oh.”
“Now, where were we?” he asked as his fingers moved down my neck and across my chest. Before I could respond, the front of my dress was ripped open and his mouth was on my skin.
“Oh,” I moaned as his tongue trailed wet kisses to my nipples, teasing and driving me insane with desire.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, cupping my breasts as his mouth moved upwards. When I realized where he stopped, I tensed up, wondering what would happen next.
Was he actually going to bite me? And worse, would I care?
His tongue stroked the skin near my collarbone and then moved up towards my ear, nibbling and licking. As I began to relax, his right hand released my breast and his fingers moved down my ribcage, across my bellybutton to my panties, stopping right at the edge of the cotton.
“Invite me in,” he whispered against my neck.
“Yes…” I whispered, my legs trembling.
He ran one of his fingers over the top of the material and I gasped. “Say it…” he demanded.
“Come in, Ethan…”
Just as his fingers began to slide under the fabric, the door b
urst open and he shot up. His face was a mask of monstrous rage and my heart stopped as I saw his fangs for the first time. “What is the meaning of this?!” he growled.
Sheriff Caleb stood facing us while I pulled the blankets over my exposed body. His face was burning red, as were his homicidal eyes. “Why in the fuck did you bring her here?!”
Chapter Twenty-Four
They’d locked me in the bedroom but I could still hear their angry shouts from somewhere in the house. Caleb said he had to bring me back, but Ethan raged that I belonged with him. I wanted to go home desperately and prayed that Ethan would give in and release me.
There was a soft knock at the door and then it opened. An attractive red-haired girl entered the room, who I only assumed was Celeste, Caleb’s daughter. This time she wasn’t wearing glasses and her startling green eyes stared at me with interest.
“Here,” she said, throwing me a pair of shorts and T-shirt. “I heard you needed this.”
I stared at her, wondering if she was a vampire, too.
“Yes,” she said with a sardonic grin. “I am whatever it is you think I am.”
“What, you can read minds?” I asked.
She laughed. “No, I could tell what you were thinking by the expression on your face.”
“What are they going to do with me?” I asked.
“If Ethan had his way, you’d never leave his side. Caleb doesn’t really trust you, but he has the hots for your mom and isn’t willing to hurt her.”
I scowled. “How fucking sensitive of him.”
She laughed. “So, what do you want to do?” she asked. “Do you care for Ethan?”
“I don’t know,” I said, pulling the T-shirt over my head, “he stares into my eyes and I want nothing more than to be with him. But that’s not real, is it? Isn’t that some kind of power he has to control people?”
She nodded. “True.”
“But, even now…” I said. “He has this effect on me and he’s not even in the room. I guess I really might feel something for him. It’s all so confusing.”
“It’s only natural to feel lust towards him, if that’s all it is. He’s very sexy.”
“That is no lie.”
“Caleb said he caught you with some guy named Duncan,” she said.
“Yeah,” I answered. “I’ve kind of been seeing Duncan.”
“Are you in love with this, Duncan?”
“I think I’m confused. I don’t know. Maybe I’m a little in love with both of them.”
She smiled. “Being in love with one of us is dangerous. If you decide to stay with Ethan, you can’t live a normal life.”
I swallowed. “So, are you vampires?”
She grimaced. “I never did like that word.”
I swallowed. “So… do you suck people’s blood?”
She stepped closer to me and touched my cheek as I held my breath. “We take nourishment wherever we can get it. Some are willing to give us our nourishment, some don’t have much say in the matter.”
I backed up. “So, you are willing to kill people if you have to?”
She smiled darkly. “Survival of the fittest.”
“Is Caleb turning my mother into one of you?”
“I believe that he has chosen your mother to be his mate.”
Oh, hell.
“Is Caleb your real father?” I asked, continuing with my questions. If she was willing to answer, I wasn’t going to stop.
“Yes,” she said. “My father became a… vampire first. He then turned me into one to save my life.”
My eyebrows shot up. “What do you mean?”
“I had Typhoid.”
“Wow, when was that?”
“Eighteen ninety-one,” she said.
I stared at her in shock. “That would make you…”
“Much older than you,” she answered.
Caleb stormed into the bedroom and waved at me. “Let’s go. We have to get you out of here before your brother and Duncan show up. I guess they know about this place from Susan.”
“Are you taking me home?” I asked, backing away from him.
His eyes narrowed. “You weren’t hurt, and when I walked in on you and Ethan, you looked to be enjoying yourself. You aren’t planning on pressing any charges against Ethan, are you?”
I looked past Caleb to where Ethan was standing with his arms crossed, looking furious. “No,” I said.
“You aren’t going to make any trouble for us, are you? Not that anyone would believe you anyway,” said Caleb.
“If you leave my mother alone,” I said. “I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
Caleb’s face turned dark. “I can’t do that.”
“Yes you can! Do you think I want my mom turning into a vampire? I’ve seen her neck!” I yelled, surprising myself.
He sighed. “There are things you don’t understand. Your mother… I have feelings for her and I’d do anything for her.”
“So you’d turn her into one of you?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “How do I say this?” he stepped closer. “Your mother has cancer and I’m giving her a second chance.”
I snorted. “You seriously expect me to believe that?”
“She has breast cancer,” he said, his face grim. “Hell, she doesn’t even know about it yet.”
I felt sick to my stomach. “What, you can sense that?”
He nodded. “Yes and if she becomes one of us, she’ll survive. If she doesn’t, she may die.”
“But you didn’t even consider giving her a chance?”
“I was afraid she’d say no,” he said. “You’re right, though, I didn’t give her a choice. She may hate me when she finds out, but at least she’ll be alive.”
“Do you consider yourself alive?”
Ethan stepped past Caleb and put his hands on my shoulders. “Do I look dead to you? What you felt earlier, was that really so bad?”
I stepped back. “Ethan, you’re trying to control me again. I don’t know how I feel about you because it isn’t real. You use your powers to make me feel things that I’m not even sure about.”
“I only did it the first night we met,” he said. “And I’m…. sorry. But I haven’t manipulated you at all since that night. Every feeling, every emotion you’ve had since then, has been real.”
There was a sharp knock at the door and someone stepped into the room. “We have to do something, now!” hollered one of the guys I’d seen Ethan with in the diner the other night. “Someone’s here. I think it’s her damn brother.”
“Fuck,” groaned Caleb.
“Wait,” said Celeste. “Let me take care of him.”
“Don’t you dare hurt my brother,” I snapped.
She smiled. “Believe me, when I’m done with him, he’ll be begging me to hurt him. But in a good way.”
I wasn’t sure what she meant, but Caleb nodded and said, “Celeste won’t hurt him or she’ll answer to me.”
She gave him a pouty face as she stepped out of the room.
Caleb nodded towards the door. “You’re free to leave,” he said to me.
I looked at Ethan, who was obviously upset. “I…”
“I told you before that you were free to go,” he said. “I’d never do anything to hurt you.”
I’m sure he still thought I was Miranda and wanted me to become a vampire like he was. But the very idea of doing that was frightening beyond belief. I still wasn’t exactly sure how I felt about him, but I knew without a doubt that I didn’t belong to that world.
I looked down and stepped past him to the door.
“Nikki.”
I turned to him. “What, Ethan?”
“You haven’t seen the last of me.”
I wish I could have pretended that those words didn’t affect me, but they did. He must have noticed my reaction, because he licked his lips and gave me a slow sexy smile.
“Goodbye, Ethan,” I said, walking away.
Chapter Twenty-Five
They lived
in a large old colonial that was very well furnished. I’m not sure why I was so surprised; if they were vampires and could live for centuries, they had time to save for such luxuries.
“Nikki!” hollered my brother from the front door. “Are you okay?”
I was walking down a long spiral staircase that faced the front door where Nathan and Duncan stood. They were being held back by two other guys from the diner, who I assumed were also vampires. Celeste was also with them.
“I’m fine,” I said.
Duncan looked pissed and was glaring at the vampires. “Get out of our way so we can make sure she’s not hurt!”
“Now, now,” said Celeste. “She’s doing fine. She came here on her own free will, and isn’t hurt in the least.”
“Who are you?” asked Duncan.
She smiled. “I’m a friend of Nikki’s and Anne’s. I’m Caleb’s daughter, Celeste.”
“She’s fine,” confirmed Caleb, trying to ease the tension in the room. “And she’s not pressing charges because she came on her own free will.”
I walked to the front door and Duncan put his arms around me. “Are you okay?” he asked, searching my face.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
Duncan frowned and looked at Caleb. “I should press charges against that asshole, Ethan, wherever he is.”
“I’m right here,” said Ethan, coming down from the top of the stairs.
“Okay, do you want to press charges?” asked Caleb.
Duncan glared at Ethan, who was smiling malevolently. “I just want him to leave Nikki alone,” he said.
“Nikki and I are friends,” replied Ethan, his eyes undressing me again. Even now I wanted to be underneath him, his mouth and hands everywhere. Especially when he looked at me that way – like I was his possession and he knew it.
“Right,” snapped Duncan.
“I remember you now,” said Celeste to Nathan. “You’re the cute guy from the grocery store the other night.”
Nathan’s eyes appeared to dilate as he stared at the beautiful vampire. A lopsided grin spread across his face. “I was wondering what happened to you. It’s nice to see you again.”
“And it’s very nice to see you,” she replied, twirling a red curl around her finger.
Toxic (Venom Series) Book Three Page 36
