by Terry Spear
I wanted to groan out loud. I was a slow learner and was to be mated with a vampiric human whose old flame wanted me dead. How was this a good thing? “So then, how do you propose I kill her?”
“When we begin to bond, you will gain some of my strength…some of my abilities.”
“Great. I can grow hair on my chest.”
He laughed out loud.
The sound of his hearty, well-meaning laughter cheered me. He laughed with me, not at me like some of the other boys did.
He squeezed my hand. “They’re idiots, Marissa. Will you help me? Save me from a fate worse than death? Will you?”
If I helped him, would it be the dumbest thing I ever did? Or the bravest? Or maybe a little of both? Still, could I do it?
I considered Dominic’s mournful look. Killing an ancient vampire would prove impossible, wouldn’t it? And the idea of Dominic’s sucking my blood and my sucking his…I shuddered.
I cleared my throat. “If I agree to allow you to bite me…”
A flicker of interest showed in Dominic’s dark eyes.
“If…” I repeated, “what new powers might I possess?”
Chapter 4
DOMINIC
Marissa sat beside me, the most stunning girl I had ever known. Her shiny hair begged for my caress. Her full pink lips waited for my kiss. Even her silky blue shirt touched her beautiful breasts the way I wanted to. And her eyes…clear blue and full of intrigue. Not filled with fright or condemnation but with genuine interest.
Was it because she was my soul mate that she caused my molecules to shift so suddenly every time she drew near? Or the human part of my maleness that desired her with fervent longing? Or the vampiric bloodlust that urged me to take her blood and make her mine forever?
I attempted to focus on convincing her how right we were for each other.
“As a Prince of Darkness, I can do many things. Appear in places I’ve been before, materializing in a form of mist, or full-bodied. Just like when I popped in front of you, Marissa, or like when I appeared in a shadowy form near the trees.”
Her gaze never wavering from mine, she listened intently.
What I feared most was if I shared my blood with her, my own abilities would diminish. If I wasn’t strong enough, could I fight Lynetta at all then? Or would Marissa gain some of my abilities, without draining me of them? I wasn’t sure of anything.
Gritting my teeth, I tried to calm my concern. “As a mist, I can whisper words and see and hear what goes on around me. And in a tight fix, unless Lynetta has hold of me, I can vanish, then reappear elsewhere.”
Of course, the drawback was I needed blood from time to time to replenish my own. Since I hadn’t fed on Lynetta this evening, I was sure to be weaker by morning. If that happened, I wouldn’t stand a chance against her as soon as dusk fell.
“Anything else, Dominic?” Marissa leaned forward on the couch, intently listening to my every word.
Was she always this enthusiastic a listener, or did my tale intrigue her more than most?
“I can see everything in the dark as if the sun had never set. I can hear sounds humans can’t hear. And I can fly to the top of a tree or roof, or climb the flat side of a building with ease.”
Marissa smiled. The tension I was feeling in every sinew eased a bit.
“Neat.” Then she wrung her hands and her brow wrinkled. “What’s the downside?”
“Sensitivity to sunlight. I can still manage in the daylight, particularly if it’s overcast. But on a bright sunny day, I’m better off staying inside. My skin easily burns as if I’d been in the midday sun for hours trying to get a tan.”
“What about food?”
“I still eat human food. I was enjoying a cheeseburger when I spied you at the Hamburger Spot.”
“But you need blood?”
I couldn’t lie to her. If she were to help me through this ordeal, we had to be partners. “I have to tell you by not feeding on Lynetta tonight, I’ll be weaker by morning. I imagine I won’t have the strength to free myself from her by tomorrow night when she comes for me again if she catches me outside your home.”
“So…” Marissa swallowed hard and I could sense she was coming to a decision, probably one of the most difficult she’d ever have to make. “If I let you bite me…” she shuddered, “…you wouldn’t be weak, or as weak, but I still wouldn’t have to drink your blood? I mean, it would be like I’d give a donation at the blood bank, right?”
“Yes. As long as you don’t drink my blood, you won’t experience any change. Well, you might be a little light-headed, but you won’t be any worse off than that.” She was going to do it, my brave mate. My heart lifted.
“It’s just the idea that you’d sink those pointed fangs into me like Lynetta threatened you with…”
I wished she hadn’t seen that, but then again, if she hadn’t, we might not be sitting on her couch right now, working up to the first step in my salvation. “We’ll work up slowly to it…by kissing first,” I tried reassuring her.
Marissa’s lips turned up considerably. “Now Kate would say that was a guy line if she ever heard one.”
I couldn’t help but smile. From the thoughts I gathered from her, she’d never been kissed before. At least she couldn’t compare me with anyone else. But the real question was would she go along with it?
My only other worry was whether I could stop once I fed on her blood. Lynetta always halted me when I’d had enough. Could I tell when I’d had my fill of Marissa and not harm her? No way did I want to hurt my soul mate.
Marissa ran her hand over the couch. “What do I have to do? I’m not saying I’m going through with this, but if I did, what would be the steps?”
“I’d have to move closer to you, like this.” I scooted closer, our knees touching. I feared that I’d scare her away, but already the bloodlust was rising in my system. Mainly because I hadn’t fed in twenty-four hours, and partly because her special warm blood called to me…my mate’s blood.
Already I could hear her blood coursing faster in her veins, which urged me to feed even more, but at the same time I knew I had to try to keep her from panicking. “At any time if you feel uncomfortable, stop me, Marissa. I don’t want to upset you.”
“Proceed,” she said, her word spoken quickly as if she was afraid she’d change her mind if she didn’t take the plunge right away.
Her back was so stiff, I knew if I were to ever drink her blood I’d have to get her to relax or hurt her in the process.
“If you were a regular human, I could calm your fears and get you to relax. But since I can’t, I’ll have to try to relax you with my voice and words. I’m not sure I can.” Despite trying to project a confident image, I sounded like I thought I might lose the battle.
“Go ahead and try. I’ll attempt to loosen up.” Her muscles tightened when I took her hand in mine.
“Do you know any self-hypnosis?”
“I guess I’m tensing too much.” She took several deep calming breaths, then tensed her muscles and relaxed them, repeating the steps several times.
The pulse in her wrist slowed to normal. I nodded, grateful that Marissa was such a treasure despite my initial concern she might be more like the teen witch who had turned me into a frog. “Much better.”
I leaned over to kiss her lips, but she thrust her hand into my chest, and I bit back a laugh. “You can stop, can’t you? You won’t go too far, will you?”
Taking her hand, I kissed it. “Do what you did just then—shove me away, or tell me to stop, and I’ll cease and desist.” At least I hoped I could.
She relaxed against the sofa cushions. “Okay.”
I leaned over her again, my gaze focused on her full pink lips, lightly moistened by the flick of her tongue.
“Boy, if my parents knew what I was up to.”
Trying to ignore her nervous chatter, I kissed her mouth with the faintest touch. Her blue eyes grew wide with worry. “Relax, Marissa. It’s only the briefest
of kisses.” This was going to be a lot harder than I ever imagined possible. We’d never get anywhere if she wouldn’t relax, and again I wished—somewhat guiltily this time—that she was only human.
“You mean, they get worse, I mean harder, I mean—”
“Better.” I held her hands, caressing them gently, but not in a confining manner. I tilted my face up to her eyes and kissed one eyelid then the other, forcing her to close her eyes, bringing a smile to her lips. Running my finger over them, I whispered, “You have the prettiest smile I have ever seen.”
Her smile spread. She kept her eyes closed, but her breathing grew more rapid. Again, her anxiety mounted.
“Just a kiss,” I whispered against her mouth. I touched her throat with my fingers. The throb of her pulse, her warm blood flowing sweetly through her veins, urged me on. Giddy with desire, I kissed her lips more firmly, trying to keep my fangs from extending too soon, trying to show how kind, caring, giving I could be, before I took from her what I craved.
“Marissa,” I whispered next to her cheek.
She stroked my arm, encouraging me to lull her into a state of bliss. I licked her neck and she tilted her head to the side, exposing her throat to me, offering her lifeblood. In return for what? To save my life? Someone she hadn’t even known before tonight?
Beyond a doubt, she was my savior.
My control over them lost, my teeth extended. If she pushed me away now, changed her mind, could I stop?
Propelling me onward, like a man lost in the desert searching for his salvation, the bloodlust raged out of control. The madness threatened to shove me into the darkest abyss, a bottomless pit of despair. If she stopped me, I feared I’d die of hunger, of rejection, of the knowledge I’d be a Prince of Darkness forever.
She pulled me closer. She wanted me to feast on her as much as I longed to, and yet I worried I’d hurt or repulse her. I grazed my teeth along the soft skin of her neck. She shivered and swallowed hard. Her hands tightened on my shoulders, keeping me close, not pushing me away. My teeth punctured the skin. She gasped. I couldn’t delay. If she didn’t stop me now…
Too late.
I sucked her warm blood tasting like sweet copper and quickly nourished my depleted body.
She leaned back against the sofa, her body finally relaxing, but her fingers still held me close. If I wasn’t careful, I could take too much of her blood. My hunger held me to her throat like a vine clung to a wall for support. Strengthened and warmed by her blood, I finally had to force myself to withdraw my teeth, then licked the tiny puncture wounds to seal them.
Then my cell phone vibrated in my pants pocket. To my utter annoyance, I bit my tongue and cursed inwardly. Shoving my hand into my pocket, I found the phone and turned it off.
Marissa stared back at me, her eyes darkened, her lips slightly parted. I kissed them again, only this time I touched my tongue to hers, only wanting to kiss her deeply, not for any other purpose than to show my profound gratitude, my love for her. I hadn’t any dark purpose in mind, nor had I planned to trick her into accepting me.
But the deed was done.
I hadn’t realized at first a trickle of the blood on my tongue was not hers, but mine. When her tongue tangled with mine, she unwittingly received some of my blood.
Would she hate me for not having given her the choice? Worst of all, now what would happen? If I turned her, though I still felt it wouldn’t be possible since I hadn’t been fully turned myself, how could she help me? And how could I help her likewise?
I tried to break free from the kiss, but she held me firm. Like a siren of the sea, she had caught her drowning sailor and carried me to the heavens above. Inwardly, I smiled. For being a neophyte kisser, she certainly had learned how to completely cast a spell over me.
Not wanting to break the kiss, I still felt obligated to tell her the truth, hoping beyond hope she wouldn’t hate me now. I finally managed to pull away, but pressed my lips against her cheek as a parting goodnight kiss.
“The bite marks will disappear by tomorrow, most likely.” I was nearly sure of this because my healing capabilities were much advanced as a Prince of Darkness. Now that she had some of my blood…
I silently groaned, exasperated with myself. How could I have let it happen?
She reached up and touched the bite marks.
Trying to avoid thinking of what I might have done to her, I gave her a small smile. “They look like some guy gave you a couple of good hickeys.”
Not amused, she frowned. “Kate will be sure to ask me where I got them from.”
“What will you say?”
“I’m not sure. I’ll have to think on it.” Taking my hand, she kissed it. “When can I give blood to you again?”
I groaned outwardly this time. I’d created a monster. Touching her cheek, I gazed into her beautiful blue eyes. “I take it I didn’t hurt you.”
“It was the most exhilarating experience I’ve ever had…like a heated shower just poured over me, touching every molecule in my body, warming me from the inside out.”
Delighted she’d enjoyed our blood bonding as much as she had, as much as I had, I squeezed her hand to reassure her that I’d felt just as alive with her touch. I sighed deeply, wanting to tell her what I’d done. “Marissa, I have to tell you—”
“Hmmm, was it as good for you as it was for me?” She stroked my arm again, and I wanted to devour every bit of her right then and there.
“You are truly fine.”
Her face suddenly clouded. “Better than Lynetta?”
A scourge of bitterness attacked my gut just thinking about that vamp. “There’s no comparison. Where you are the sugar in a sweet and sour mix, she is the tart. Where you are the warmth of the sunshine on a Florida summer day, she is the icy darkness in frigid Antarctica. You, and only you, are meant to be the one for me.”
And now that we’d swapped blood, she had no choice. It would be forever.
Chapter 5
MARISSA
Kissing Dominic had been the most profound experience I’d ever had. Every fiber of my being had been on high alert, anxious about his taking my blood. But when he bit me, it was nothing more than a pricking sensation, and then oh so sweet. For once in my life, I, Marissa, ordinary witch who’d never caught a guy’s eye, was loved. Yeah, by a vampire.
But what a vampire…Prince of Darkness, rather. Hmmm, what if I told Kate I had found my very own prince?
Dominic smiled.
I forgot he could read my thoughts, and immediately my face heated with embarrassment. “I guess if you’ve fed enough, it’s really time for me to get to bed. I’ve got to go to school early.”
“Show me the way, princess of my dreams.”
Feeling extremely tired, I led him up the stairs that seemed to grow longer with every step. A charmer, that’s what he was. I loved how he seemed to cherish me. But had he been like that before the vampire got hold of him?
“I’ve always liked girls, if that’s what you mean. You know, the kind of guy who preferred talking to girls over fighting a guy at recess like so many of the clowns did.”
“Ahhhh. Been a lot of girls, have there?”
He chuckled behind me.
After leading him down the hallway, I opened the door to the guest bedroom.
“One too many girls,” he finally said. “The last nearly did me in. Guess I should have stuck to proving how macho I could be fighting the guys.”
He joked as if it didn’t bother him, but I could tell from the wrinkle of his brow and soulful eyes, he hung on to a thread of a life he so longed to have back.
“You will return to the way you were, right after we’re through with her, right?”
“One of the other vamps hinted I’d be much better off. I assumed I’d get my regular life back.”
Pain squeezed my heart like a symbiotic reaction. I leaned over and kissed his cheek, wondering how he had won me over in an instant. Lynetta. I could still envision her soulless eyes narr
owed at me and her teeth bared. Even now, chill bumps trailed down my arms, and I shuddered. I knew I had to save him.
Touching my shoulders, he leaned over then kissed my lips. “Goodnight, sweet angel of mercy.”
The heartrending tenderness of his gaze nearly undid me. Not wanting him to have any illusions that I was some perfect angel, I warned, “I can be really cranky if I don’t get enough sleep.”
Amusement flickered across his face. “Until we wake, then.” Stepping into the dark room, he didn’t turn on the light. He didn’t need to, I belatedly realized, and I wondered if the changes had come easily to him, or if he’d had to adjust to them. I shut the door, my mind groggy but full of questions.
Morning would come way too soon.
I headed down the hall to my room and stepped inside. It took me some time to realize in the middle of my changing into an oversized T-shirt, that Dominic was speaking in the room next to me.
My heart plummeted while the blood in my veins burst into overdrive. Had he let Lynetta in after all? Had she willed him to do so?
I ran for the guest bedroom and jerked the door open. Dominic sat on the edge of the bed, wearing only a pair of black satin boxers decorated in bright red lips while he spoke into a cell phone.
I gulped to see him nearly naked, and me wearing only a T-shirt. “Sorry,” I whispered, wondering what in the world I thought I would have done had I found Lynetta in the room with him. Slapped her silly?
He winked at me, then took in my appearance and grinned. “Yes, Mom, I’ll be at a friend’s. I’ll be safe for tonight. Call you tomorrow.” He snapped the phone shut. “Did you need another goodnight kiss?” Looking sinfully wicked, he smiled again.
I pointed back to my room. “I worried when I heard voices in here.” I poked a loose curl dangling at my cheek behind my ear, feeling guilty for thinking badly of him. “You…you have a mother?”
His mouth quirked with humor. “Yep. And a father, too. Every kid normally has one of each to begin with.”
He was teasing me in an affectionate way, and I realized how ridiculous I must sound. “I…I never thought that you might have a family nearby. You didn’t tell them about me? About…us?”
