by Kari Gregg
“Just look at him. My son.”
“No.”
Luc glared indignant fury.
The tips of Garrick’s lips curved a minute degree. “You’ll remain long enough to give a proper good-bye to your ward, or have you forgotten her?”
“Of course not.” He flushed an angry, embarrassed pink. “How can I forget Kate when you never let me?” he said waspishly.
Kate’s lips thinned. “I hadn’t realized I’d become such a burden to you.”
“That’s not what I meant.” Luc swung his gaze to Garrick in silent, reluctant appeal.
He arched an amused brow. “You dug yourself into this. Dig yourself out.”
“One week. You’ll give Kate one week.”
“And see that you do not part on bad terms.”
“Fine,” Luc said woodenly, but Garrick detected the quickening beat of his heart, felt the urgency the younger vampyr felt to depart.
“I’ve secured property for you in America, the Southern Appalachians. An abandoned mine will provide an adequate sanctuary for you, and two hundred acres of virgin woodlands to rebuild your strength, to train, for your weres to hunt.”
Luc’s body snapped to attention, his nostrils flaring foul temper. “I’ll go where I want, without your bloody were babysitters.”
“I’ll tolerate only so much rebellion from my son, Luc,” Garrick said, voice steely and implacable. “Until you mate, I release you, or you kill me to regain your freedom, you will do exactly as you are told. Do you understand?”
He bared his teeth, smothered a harsh oath.
“You’re too hard on him, Rick.”
He kissed the crown of her head. “If I were softer, we’d lose him.”
“Luc.”
He planted his three-fingered fists on his hips, his eyes shooting daggers at him. “I hate you,” he finally snarled.
“I know.” Luc’s loathing and disgust shredded him. “Say the words.”
He glared long minutes, but finally, mouth twisted to a fierce scowl, he dipped his head an infinitesimal degree. “I’ll feed from the weres to speed my healing. I’ll grow strong. I’ll learn to fight better than I fought when my body was whole. I won’t risk myself or the weres you entrust to me. I will live. Because you demand it.”
“I understand.”
Garrick studied him then, the infuriated angle of his jaw, the proud steel of his spine. He understood better than most how much this hurt him, this yielding of control over his life to another, even to him. They’d shared the same stable once, enslaved by the same master. They’d killed him together, gained their first taste of freedom together. They’d hunted dark masters as partners until the call to turn had proven too great for Garrick, and for the first time, ever, Luc had been alone.
Garrick had not stolen a son from the dark masters.
He’d regained the son he’d already, once, set free.
He could not, would not lose him again.
He nodded to the jungle with a jerk of his head. “Go. Feed.”
With a low growl, Luc melted into the surrounding shadows, but he did obey.
Kate released a long breath, relaxing into him. “Do you think he’ll be all right?”
“Yes. No.” Garrick pulled her closer. “I don’t know.”
“Are you all right?” she said against his neck, her pink tongue tracing his pulse point with arousing tenderness.
“I have your love, the devotion of my weres, and Luc lives.” His shoulder jerked to a shrug. “None of our kind has ever been so blessed.”
She chuckled against his skin. “None of our kind has ever been so greedy.”
“True.” He smiled. Already, his heart lifted. For her. Because of her. “And that’s where the rebellion went wrong. Slavery taught us to expect little, to hope for little. The war has given us a chance for more, but we’ve been too scared, too beaten down to grab it. If we don’t reach for much, reach for all they have taken from us, the masters have won.”
“Like I said.” She scraped her teeth along his throat. “Greedy.”
He threw back his head and laughed. “For you. I want more for my mate than crude survival and centuries of hiding from bloody war. I want a world of fierce, greedy love, so much you grow drunk with it. Someday, I promise you’ll have it.”
“You’ve already given it to me. Whenever we touch. Every time you breathe.”
“Stop teasing me, love.” He anchored her to his body, cradled her scalp with his palm. “I need.”
Her teeth sank into him.
He stiffened, mind reeling in awesome pleasure.
And as she sipped at his neck, loving him with her heart and her soul, Kate gave that world to him too.
Kari Gregg
Kari Gregg lives in the mountains of Wild and Wonderful West Virginia with her Wonderful husband and three very Wild children. Once Kari discovered the fabulous play land of erotic romances at RWA’s National Conference in 2009, the die was cast. Finally! A market for the smoking hot stories she loves!
When Kari’s not writing, she enjoys reading, coffee, zombie flicks, coffee, naked mud-wrestling (not really), and…coffee!
