But Ivan didn’t even react. Magno’s bite healed quickly, and Ivan was left with nothing more than blood smeared on his lips.
It was hopeless.
“We’ll get him home,” Magno said, “and then all we can do is wait. I’m sorry, Charlie. It should never end like this when two Bloodmates have only just found each other, but sometimes the world can be a cruel place.”
Tears streamed down Charlie’s face, and she held Ivan’s naked, unconscious body against hers, wishing there was more she could do, wishing she could press her life into him.
Magno was right; the world could be a very cruel place indeed.
Chapter 20
Two weeks passed by, and Ivan still hadn’t woken from his injuries.
The burns from the chains had been horrendous enough, but the bite from the beast had almost killed him. Only Charlie’s quick thinking to suck out the poison had meant that he still existed, though existing was all he was doing. He hadn’t moved a single muscle since they’d brought him back from the moors and placed him in Charlie’s bed.
She’d been given compassionate leave from work to be with Ivan while he tried to heal. It hadn’t been easy, being with him hour after hour, getting no response, but she never gave up. She sat at his bedside, reading to him or telling him stories about her life. At night, she slipped into the bed beside him and silently cried into her pillow.
In the cold, lonely hours of the mornings, with Ivan motionless beside her, she found herself thinking of the other woman, Michaela, wondering if there was something more she should have said or done while she’d had the chance. Should she have gone for her or shouted something about how much she hated her and how she’d destroyed their lives? But Charlie discovered her sorrow was too great to even get angry. The other woman had lost her father, and, with him, her place in the world. Now she was being detained by The Directive and may even meet the same fate as her father.
There was the chance the Beast of Dartmoor would start to grow in strength again in another thirty-three years, and once more try to break free for good, but The Directive would be waiting for it when the time came. They hoped the silver chains around its body would be enough to prevent it from fighting free of its sleeping place, but if they didn’t work, they would deal with it again.
It wasn’t her problem now. All she cared about was the vampire lying in her bed.
Charlie carried a cup of tea over to take her seat beside Ivan. It was night, and she’d drawn back the curtains, allowing a view over the river below. She remembered how Ivan had commented on it the first night, how he’d said how peaceful it was here. Though his eyes remained shut, she hoped he was still able to find a little peace in the view from her small flat, and it soothed his soul somehow.
A battered paperback sat on the bedside table, and she picked it up and leafed through to where she’d left the bookmark to keep her place.
She started to read.
“Serenity wrenched the front door open and stumbled down the steps onto the gravel drive. The cool air of the night hit her hot skin, making her terrible shaking worse—”
Movement from the bed cut off her words, and she frowned, thinking she’d imagined it. She ran her gaze across Ivan’s still form, taking in every detail, trying to figure out what it was that had made her heart race.
Ivan’s fingers twitched, and Charlie sucked in a breath and jumped to her feet. The paperback tumbled to the floor, its pages splayed open.
“Ivan!”
His whole arm jerked, and Charlie clamped her hand to her mouth. She definitely hadn’t imagined that.
“It’s okay, baby,” she said, taking his hand. “I’m here. Come back to me. You can do it.”
He let out a moan, and his head twisted to one side. His eyelids fluttered, and then suddenly his eyes were open, staring directly into hers. Charlie let out a cry of shock and relief, tears flooding her eyes.
“Oh, my God. You’re awake. You’re awake.”
She could barely believe it herself. She’d never wanted to give up on him, but there had been the darkest moments when she’d wondered if this was it for them now.
“Charlie,” he croaked.
“Yes, yes, it’s me. I’m here. I’ve been here the whole time.”
She leaned in and cupped his face in her hands, kissing him, tears spilling from her eyes and spattering his pale cheeks.
“I was frightened you’d never wake up,” she said, taking a seat on the bed beside him.
His tongue snaked out to swipe across his lips. “I need blood. Thirsty.”
“It’s okay. Magno provided me with blood bags. He told me you might need them if you woke.” She caught herself. “When you woke.”
She moved to stand, but he caught her by the arm. “No. Your blood. I want your blood.”
“You do?”
She sat back down again. Her pulse was tripping, and nerves tumbled in her stomach. Though she was nervous, she wanted her blood to make him better.
“If that’s okay?” he added tentatively.
“Yes, Ivan. Of course it’s okay. I thought I’d lost you. I’d give you every little part of me if it helped.”
He stared into her eyes. “I felt you with me the whole time, Charlie. You gave me the strength to keep fighting. I wouldn’t have made it without you. Thank you.”
She smiled and blinked through her tears. “You saved me, too. Do you remember? The beast was coming for me, and you jumped on its back, and that’s when it bit you. It would have been me it had bitten if you hadn’t done what you did.”
He frowned and struggled to sit up in bed. “What happened to the beast?”
“It’s gone beneath ground. It might be back again in another thirty-three years, but The Directive will be ready for it.”
“And Michaela?”
“The Directive is dealing with her, too. Technically, she didn’t actually kill anyone, though obviously she hurt you. I’m not sure if they’ve decided what to do with her. Now, enough of the questions. You need blood if you’re going to get strong again.”
She held out her arm to him, offering herself.
Ivan lowered his mouth to her wrist, and his fangs extended. The sharp points pressed against the delicate skin, and she took a little gasp of breath. Her gaze was rooted to the spot where he was about to bite, and she watched with fascination as his fangs pushed into her skin, though she experienced no pain. Then his lips were on her flesh, and she felt the pull as he drew blood from her veins.
“Not too much,” she warned him.
Though she trusted him, this was his first feed in weeks, and she didn’t know how much control he would have.
He lifted his mouth from her wrist and licked the puncture wounds. She watched the twin marks closing over, thinking she’d never get used to seeing magic happening right in front of her eyes.
She smiled at Ivan. “You look better already.”
His skin was clearer, and his dark eyes had a familiar glint that wasn’t there before.
He nodded. “I feel better, too. Thank you, Charlie. I couldn’t ask for a better Bloodmate.”
“You don’t have to say thank you. I’d have given every last drop in my body if I had to.”
He pulled her in, so she fitted against him. “And I’d have given you my life. I was terrified when I thought that creature was going to kill you. I’ve never known a fear like it.”
“I felt the same fear when I thought you were going to die. Like the other half of me was about to die with you.”
“Neither of us is going to die,” he said. “We’ll be together now, forever. Just as it should be. I love you, Charlie.”
She held him tighter. “My love,” she said. “My Bloodmate.”
THE END
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A Vampire’s Thirst
About the Author
Marissa Farrar has always been in love with being in love. But since she's been married for numerous years and has three young daughters, she's conducted her love affairs with multiple gorgeous men of the fictional persuasion.
The author of thirty novels, she has been a full time author for the last six years. She predominantly writes paranormal romance and urban fantasy, but has branched into contemporary fiction as well.
If you want to know more about Marissa, then please visit her website. You can also find her at her facebook page, or follow her on twitter.
She loves to hear from readers and can be emailed at [email protected].
Also by Marissa Farrar
A Vampire’s Thirst: Nikolai
Stolen: A Vampire Blood Courtesans Romance
A Baby for the Alpha: Bad Alpha Dads
Chronicles of the Four Series:
Through a Dragon’s Eyes
With a Dragon’s Heart
The Serenity Series:
Alone
Buried
Captured
Dominion
Endless
The Dhampyre Chronicles:
Twisted Dreams
Twisted Magic
The Spirit Shifters Series:
Autumn’s Blood
Saving Autumn
Autumn Rising
Autumn’s War
Avenging Autumn
Autumn’s End
The Dark Ridge Wolves:
Wolf Snatched
Wolf Torn
Wolf Betrayed
A Vampire's Thirst_Ivan Page 13
