by Julia Mills
“No, I think I’ll go check on my patient in Recovery and then grab a nap in my office.” She got up and followed the other doctor back inside.
“Okay, if you’re sure. It’s no trouble. I go right past your place.”
Waving him off, knowing he was not only trying to be nice but also was sure to ask her out for about the hundredth time, Ash smiled, “Thanks anyway, Jason. I really need to check on Timmy, and I have rounds this evening.”
Looking more than a little putout but still smiling, Roberts’ nodded, “Take Care. See you later.”
Watching him walk away, Ashlynn felt bad that she didn’t share Jason Roberts’ feeling. Sure, he was a nice guy and not at all bad looking – there just simply were no sparks. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. He did absolutely nothing for her, and in her mind, that just wouldn’t do.
“Life is too short,” she murmured to herself, walking down the hall towards the elevator. Pressing the arrow that pointed downward, she thought about her dream, or rather, the man in her dream. She’d seen him before. Recognized the gorgeous jawline, the high cheekbones, the devilish glint in his eye.
Still lost in thought, she stepped into the elevator, pushed the button to the basement and walked to the back of the car. Leaning her hip on the metal railing, her dream from the past morphed into a memory from several hours earlier.
She saw the man outside the Chapel, the one she’d nearly bowled over. The icy hot chill of his touch, the same that she’d experienced in her dream, the one she felt when…
“Oh crap, where was it? I know I’ve… That’s it!” She cheered, spinning on her toes as the elevator door opened and there, not ten feet from her stood the very man from her dream, the one that had saved her from falling, the one she looked at nearly every night on the cover of a magazine.
Throwing her arm out in front of her chest, pointing directly at his heart, she declared, “It’s you!”
Chapter Eleven
“You’ve been haunting my dreams,” Ashlynn blurted out, before slapping her hand over her mouth and blushing the most alluring shade of red Alaric had ever witnessed.
Striding into the elevator, unable to stop, needing to be near her more than he needed his next breath, Alaric closed the doors with the nod of his head, laid the palms of his hands against the cool, stainless-steel panel, he caged her in, staring deep into the warmth of her dazzling brown eyes.
Leaning his body towards her, only a single breath of air separating him from her, he whispered, “And what have you seen?”
Watching so intently he forgot to breathe as just the tip of her tongue wet her bottom lip, he heard her heart fluttering like the wings of a hummingbird and the rush of her blood through her veins as the elevator filled with the warm, succulent scent of poppies and buttercups. She wanted him as much as he wanted her. The time had come, he had found his haven from the Thirst, and it was Ashlynn. She would be his.
Laying his lips to hers, trying to go slow, praying he wasn’t scaring her, but needing her with every fiber of his being, Alaric gently nibbled and teased her tender flesh until he was sure he would go mad. Sliding his hands down the wall, his arms wrapping around her waist, he pulled her closer, groaning deep in his throat when her hands cupped his face, and she opened to him.
Deepening their kiss, feeling the chaotic miasma that his soul and mind had become unraveling, setting itself to rights, he could no longer hold back. His hands roamed her body, his fingers finding the soft, round globes of her ass, he lifted her feet from the floor, pushing her back against the wall as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
Dominating her mouth, seeking ownership of her heart and soul, Alaric rolled his hips to hers, pushing his erection against the heat of her center. Moans of her sweet surrender filled their embrace as Ashlynn pushed her hips against his. He could feel her desire growing, blooming, exploding into a roaring fire, encompassing them both.
Her hands dove into his hair. The short flat tips of her nails dug into his scalp. The need to taste her, to drink from her vein overwhelmed him. Tearing his lips from hers, Alaric kissed across her jaw, teased her ear with his tongue and teeth, whispering sweet nothings as he made his way to the decadent temptation of her neck.
Lavishing her pounding pulse, his canines extending, he touched her mind, using the magic of his Druid heritage combined with that of the Dragons which he’d been given by his bond with Carrick he murmured, “May I taste you, my sweet? May I take your essence into my soul? Will you calm the beast that lives within me?”
“Yes, oh yes.” Her answer came almost immediately, adamantly and without fear, as she let her head fall to the side, granting him access to her vein.
Sliding the tips of his fangs over her jugular, inhaling her delectable scent, his heart sped, beating in time with hers as he slowly, lovingly pierced her porcelain skin. As the first drop of Ashlynn’s life essence flowed over his lips onto his tongue, all his senses intensified. Lights flashed like fireworks in the sky behind his closed eyelids. The fiery heat of Ashlynn’s skin burned through the rough cotton of her scrubs, scorching his fingers. His cock thrust against the deep ridges of his zipper pushing to be buried deep within its mate.
Thrusting forward, her hips moving in sync with every sip he took from her neck, Ashlynn moaned his name, her voice echoing off the cold, steel of the elevator walls as her hands slid from his hair onto his shoulders, her nails scratching the leather of his jacket. Fearing he would take too much, Alaric withdrew his fangs, licking the tiny marks left by his fangs to stop the flow of blood.
Smiling against her skin as her hand returned to his head in an attempt to push his lips back to her throat, Ashlynn begged with her mewling whimpers for him to continue. Holding tight to her bum with one hand as his other slipped under her top, around the waist of her pants and into the front of her silk panties, he teased the wet curls covering her pussy. Pushing his hips tighter still against Ashlynn’s as she thrust upward, trying to force his fingers where she needed them most, Alaric leaned his head back, gazing at the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen.
Slipping first one then another finger inside her pussy, his fangs ached with the need to once again be buried in her vein as Ashlynn wailed, “Yes…yes, oh, please Alaric, yes.”
Moving his digits in and out, over and over, driving her passion higher and higher, he pressed his thumb against her throbbing clit as he commanded, “Look at me, Ashlynn. Acknowledge the man whose heart and soul you own.”
Spearing him with a look of utter desire, riding his fingers to her climax, Ashlynn growled, “Yes, Alaric, yes.”
In that split-second of time, less than a heartbeat, the ancient vampire’s world was turned upside-down and inside-out. Her desire became his. He was lost to everything that they were together, in a world where only they existed, one he never wanted to leave.
Feeling her orgasm very near its peak, Alaric slid a third finger inside Ashlynn, bent the tips in a come-hither motion that teased the sensitive bundle of nerves deep within her that he knew would drive her to completion, and watched in awe as her eyes were forced shut, and she threw back her head in utter bliss. Ashlynn’s mouth opened wide in a silent scream, her pussy closed tight around his digits, sucking them in as far as they could go as over and over she came, her climax rocking her body to its very core.
Slowing his motions as her juices wet his fingers, flowing over his hand and wrist, Alaric laid butterfly kisses on her eyelids, cheeks, and chin as his Ashlynn floated back to earth. Waiting for her eyes to once again open, Alaric felt her body go limp. Letting go of her bottom and letting her feet slide to the floor, the ancient vampire’s heart nearly ceased to beat as he realized Ashlynn was unconscious.
Looking into her mind, listening intently to the beat of her heart and the sounds of her still ragged breathing, Alaric breathed a sigh of relief to find that she had only fainted. Smiling slyly, proud that he’d been able to give his Bloodmate such bliss, he lifted, Ashlynn into his arms and kissed her f
orehead, reveling in the electricity of their connection as it skittered across his already sparking nerve-endings. Exiting the elevator, not wanting to be seen with one of their most-valued doctors unconscious in his arms, the ancient vampire raced from the hospital using his preternatural speed, slowing only when he was hidden in the shadows of the alley leading to CRAVE and his home.
Climbing the iron fire escape he’d had installed for just such an occasion, Alaric climbed onto the balcony, opened the sliding glass doors with his mind and walked straight into his bedroom where he gently laid Ashlynn in the middle of his bed. Pulling a chair closer, he shed his jacket, took off his boots and sat down, needing to be near her, watch her, memorize her stunning features as she slept.
Leaning forward, Alaric reached for her hand as he laid his head on the cool, soft cotton of his stark white duvet. Letting his eyes close, more content than he could ever remember being, the ancient vampire sighed, “Finally, the sweet release of peace, the beauty of the woman who owns my heart and a future unfolding with its many wonders before us. I can only hope she wakes with the same sentiment upon her lovely lips.”
Chapter Twelve
Not wanting to wake from the best dream she’d ever had, Ashlynn squeezed her eyes shut and rolled to her other side, ignoring the enticing scent of coffee and cinnamon rolls as she pulled the incredibly soft blanket over her head. Floating in and out of slumber, she smiled as his voice, the rumbling, rolling lilt that had seduced not only her body, but her mind and soul, filled the room as if he were not only a figment of her incredibly active imagination, but a real living, breathing man whom with she could live out every one of her naughty little fantasies.
Flashes of his face, his eyes, his gorgeously muscled body flashed in her mind, warming her body, making her long to have his lips, his hands, his fangs on her body once again.
Whoa! Fangs? Leslie was right, I do need to get out more. But, maybe…
Pondering making love to a vampire, wondering what it would feel like to actually have him drinking from her, Ash rolled onto her back, pushed her long curls off her face and slowly opened her eyes. Gazing at the stark white ceiling above her, she shoved the duvet down to her waist and finished her uncovering ritual by kicking with her feet until the blanket was in a pile at the foot of the bed.
Turning her head to the left to see what time it was, the reality of her situation came racing at her like a runaway train. That was not her nightstand or her clock. She was not in her bed…or her room…or her own clothes.
Jumping out of the bed, looking for an exit, she once again heard the very male, very sexy voice making her whisper, “Son of a bitch, he’s real.” Taking two steps towards the bathroom, deciding she would see if any of the hundreds of stupid movies she’d watched on lifetime were right and she could escape through the window in there, Ashlynn stopped dead in her tracks.
Slapping her hand to her neck, she felt two wounds, no larger than the head of a pin right over her jugular. Racing to the bathroom, needing to find a mirror and fast, she spun to her right, leaned as far over the vanity as she could and stared at the tiny, red marks.
“It was real?” The words slipped out as she forced herself to breathe. “I had sex in an elevator with a virtual stranger?” Looking at her reflection, wondering if her eyes could get any bigger or her mouth could open any wider, Ashlynn nearly jumped out of her skin, complete with a shriek and her hand slapping over her chest, when Alaric simply appeared out of thin air and propped his hip against the doorframe.
“Good morning, sweet Ashlynn. How did you sleep?”
Gawking at literally the sexiest man alive, at least in her opinion, Ash worked hard not to faint or throw up or both. Her mind was racing, searching for what had truly happened and what was a dream when her eyes landed on the perfectly sculpted muscles of Alaric’s chest and torso.
Her fingers tingled as her body warmed, and her mind screamed, “It was all real, you idiot!”
Still mute and apparently losing whatever of her mind that was left, her gaze continued its perusal of his physique while she tried to come up with a logical explanation for her undeniable need to rush into his arms and bare not only her neck but her body to the man, check…make that Vampire, before her.
“It is quite simple, you see,” his Scottish brogue was music to her ears and only added to her desire to strip off his jeans and see what other pleasures laid beneath the distressed denim. “And something that until not even a day ago, I thought was only a myth…a fairy tale told to those of us made Vampire.”
As his words sunk into her confused, lust-addled, freaking-out brain, Ashlynn’s mouth opened before said brain engaged and she shrieked, “You kissed me in an elevator!”
“Aye, I did,” he winked, the corner of his full pink lips curling up in a sexy smirk. “And so much more.”
He stepped forward.
She stepped backward.
He turned his head to the side, his eyes narrow as if he was about to ask a question.
She beat him to the punch, still thinking before she thought. “You drank my blood. You kissed me.”
“You said that already, my sweet,” Alaric interjected.
“You…you…your… f-f-fin…” Ash ignored what he said, rushing on, pointed at his hands, vividly remembering how those nimble fingers had made her body sing and trying to hide both her excitement and desire.
Lifting his hand and wiggling his fingers, Alaric once again interrupted. “My fingers? Oh yes, they did…”
“Stop right there.” Ashlynn pointed at him, grabbing hold of her embarrassment and turning it into outrage. She took a step forward. “What is this?” She motioned back-and-forth between them. “Why did you do that? Why? Did you accost me in the elevator?” She took another step forward, trying to be intimidating, but actually being drawn to the damn man like a moth to a flame.
Yeah, and those stupid suckers get zapped and die…
“Why did it feel so right? Why didn’t I fight you off? Why in all that is holy did I let you bite me?” She took the final step forward, staring right into his eyes. Her heart was racing. She was short of breath. Tiny beads of sweat were sliding down her spine. Her words were coming so fast she sounded like an auctioneer. As she poked Alaric right in his bare chest to punctuate every word. “Who are you, really? Did you screw with my mind? I’ve heard Vampires can do that, but I never believed it. Did you put a spell on me? Are spells even real? What am I doing here? Where are my clothes? Am I your servant or your blood slave or whatever the hell you call them?” Snapping the fingers on her free hand as she poked him even harder in the chest, Ashlynn exclaimed, “Renfield! That’s it. That’s the name. Am I gonna be your Renfield?’
Slapping the palm of her hand over his heart, she gasped at the icy hot sparks that danced up her arms as goose bumps rose all over her body. “Will you talk? Will you answer at least one of my questions? What the hell is wrong with you? Do you make it a habit of kissing women, making their fantasies come true and then locking them away in your…your… yo…
Ashlynn’s words instantly evaporated as Alaric slammed his lips to her. Pulling her to him, his arms wrapped around her waist, the blazing heat of his body threatening her very fantasy, Ashlynn was helpless but to do as he bid. Opening completely, she moaned low in her throat as his hands roamed her body, leaving a fiery trail in their wake.
Arousal thickened in her blood, growing by leaps and bounds with each swipe of his tongue alongside hers. She whimpered at his bold moves as he delved farther into her, their bodies, hearts, and souls in perfect union. Fanning the flames of her desire with his drugging moves, it was as if he read her mind, knowing what she wanted…what she needed, even before she did.
Her panties were soaked as he rocked his hips between her legs, the hard length of his erection teasing her clit making it throb with the need to come. Raking her nails down his back, Ashlynn pulled him closer, holding onto his shoulders as he gripped her ass and lifted her off the floor.
Wrapping her legs around his waist, pulling him closer still as his lips left hers and kissed along her jaw, Ashlynn leaned her head to the side as she whispered, “It is yours for the taking.”
Throwing back his head, Alaric roared, the declaration of raw passion and absolute possession making the need for Ashlynn to feel him buried nearly unbearable. She wanted all of him, his cock, his fangs, his heart and his soul. Gone were the questions, the doubts, the uncertainty, nothing had ever felt so right, so wonderful.
Turning quickly and making it to the bed before Ash had barely realized they’d moved, she grumbled her discontent and tried to pull Alaric down with her as he gently laid her on the bed. Grinning with mischief, he gave her a sexy growl, “Put your hands over your head and stay right where you are.”
Trembling with excitement, she followed his orders, watching closely as he dropped to his knees, and slowly began kissing across her ankle and up the inside of her leg. Gripping the duvet tighter the closer to her center he climbed, Ash tried with all her might to lay still and not close her legs as her arousal soared, the proof wetting the inside of her thighs.
Licking the wetness from her legs, Alaric groaned low in his throat, whispering, “Aye, ye taste like heav’n.”
Throwing back her head, wailing his name, her eyes rolling back in her head as he teased her throbbing clit through the damp silk of her panties, Ashlynn’s back bowed off the bed, when he fingers slipped inside, through her wet curls, thrusting deeply into her pussy. Lifting her hips, willing him farther inside, her orgasm speeding to its triumphant completion, her mind and body blew apart as Alaric touched her g-spot with the tips of his fingers, squeezed her clit under his thumb and sank his fangs into the pulsing vein at the very top inside her thigh.
Over and over she came, her orgasms in perfect time with every long, thorough draw he took of her blood. Gasping for air, never wanting to leave the perfect moment in time Alaric had created for her, Ashlynn’s body shuddered as he pulled his fangs from her flesh and licked the insignificant marks she knew were there.
