The Vampire's Bride--A Paranormal Romance Novel

by Gena Showalter

  Water splashed. There was a vile curse.

  The other demon had fallen.

  “How do you feel?” Layel asked before she could respond to his angry—wondrous—announcement.

  Tired, weak, shaky. Unsure. “Fine.”

  His gaze slid back to her in another lingering perusal, hot, stopping in all the places she wanted his mouth to travel. He licked his lips as if remembering the taste of her. For once—twice? A third time?—nothing around her mattered but a man. Her weakness was forgotten. The game was forgotten. Consequences were forgotten. Only Layel existed.

  “You never told me the worst thing you ever did.”

  A muscle ticked below his eye. “Why do you wish to have such information? What purpose could it possibly serve?” There was genuine perplexity in his voice.

  “I want to know you better. That’s all.”

  A warm blast of sea-kissed air blustered about them, whipping his hair around his face and causing her mouth to water. He didn’t have a shirt on and his pants were ripped. Every hard rope of muscle and sinew he possessed was bared to her view. She couldn’t help but marvel at the sight. I held this powerful man in my arms.

  He didn’t have any scars. She’d always thought she’d desire a man with scars—proof that he did not back down from a fight. Proof that he’d fight for her. Vorik had possessed many. But she wanted Layel far more than she’d ever wanted the dragon—who hadn’t fought for her after all. The vampire’s skin was velvet-covered steel, smooth and strong, and tempted her as nothing else ever had.

  “Have you ever killed a woman?” she asked, inclining her head.

  “Oh, yes.” He didn’t hesitate with his answer. “I held Marina, the former demon queen, in my arms and killed her the way I almost killed you. I drained the life out of her with my mouth. And I have never regretted it.”

  “I suppose she hurt you in some way.” Had they been lovers? Delilah wondered, fists tightening. That small action upset her balance, and she swayed again.

  Layel kicked out his leg, preventing her from toppling. The movement was as swift as a blink—gliding up, then back down—that no one could have noticed, but it saved her.

  Her heart pounded in a staccato rhythm of gratitude and embarrassment. “Thank you,” she muttered.

  “I warned you. Pay attention. Next time, I may let you fall.”

  “My sweet hero.” Feeling a hot gaze boring into her, she glanced around. Brand and Nola were staring straight ahead, Zane the vampire was watching Nola again and—Tagart. Damn. He was glaring at her.

  “You have to stop helping me,” she grumbled to Layel. “Saving me will only get you killed.”

  “At least you don’t deny needing aid. And before you tell me that you wouldn’t have needed aid had I kept my teeth to myself, I know. You are strong and capable when your veins are fully stocked.”

  He acknowledged her abilities as a warrior? Shock nearly felled her. One of the reasons the Amazons so often had to prove their abilities was that the men they fought so often lied, claiming victory they had not warranted, too embarrassed to admit they’d been defeated by mere women.

  “Sometimes I feel weak around you,” she admitted quietly, lowering her voice so only he could hear, “and it has nothing to do with blood loss. The things I want you to do to me…they shame me, and yet that never seems to matter when I’m with you. I crave them.”

  He gulped. “They should not shame you.”

  “And why is that?”

  “Because it has been my…pleasure to fulfill some of your needs. Because it’s all right to allow another to see to your care.”

  “Would you? Allow another to see to your care, I mean?” I want to be that woman. She desired him so badly. In her bed, in her life—there, she had finally admitted the second. They should have been enemies; he would probably hate the woman who made him forget his precious mate, even for a second, but…If he would look at Delilah with tenderness just once, it might just be worth any hardship.

  “I—No. If I were not mated…”

  But in his mind, he was. Would always be. Much as the knowledge hurt, it was the most he’d ever offered her and so she took heart. Seemed she grew more foolish with every day that passed. “Why did you kill Marina?”

  One corner of his mouth curled upward. “She was breathing the same air as me.”

  Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of that half smile. “And?” she prompted when he failed to elaborate.

  “That…offended me.”

  She couldn’t stop a grin of her own from forming. “I never liked her. She was a thief and a liar.”

  “And lies disgust you?”

  “Of course.” Trust was a sacred thing, and lies mocked it.

  “I am a liar.”

  A moment passed in silence as she digested his words. Liars didn’t usually admit to their sins. Which meant he must want to elicit her disgust. Why? “You’ve said that before.” Had she ever sounded so shaky? So…female?

  “And you did not believe me. Yet, look what happened to you.” His gaze flicked to her still-healing neck. “I said I would stay away from you and then I stole your blood.”

  Perhaps this was his way of keeping her away from him, she thought. Perhaps she was proving too much a temptation to his peace of mind. Perhaps he hoped she would treat him horribly so he could then hate her. “I like everything that comes out of your mouth,” she said softly, huskily.

  His breath hitched at the implication.

  She wanted to laugh—am I right?—but added, “You may tell me anything you desire without fear.”

  Water splashed, signaling that someone had just fallen, but she didn’t look away from the vampire. “Tell me—” She stopped, frowned and peered down at her feet.

  The stump seemed to be shrinking. Was shrinking, she realized with shock. Her toes and heels were now hanging off the edge. She shifted, trying to discover a new sense of balance.

  “Be still,” Layel snapped.

  Someone else fell, followed quickly by another. From the beach, she could hear cheers and shouts of warning as fallen teammates encouraged their brethren.

  A rock suddenly flew past her face and into Layel’s. He teetered, cursed, but thankfully stayed put as a trickle of blood flowed from above his eye.

  “Who threw that?” she demanded. Her gaze moved over the challengers. Several mermaids were swimming around Broderick’s ankles, some reaching out to caress his thigh, cooing as they did so. Mermen were swimming around the female nymph, who appeared frustrated by the attention. Every time they touched her, they caused her to wobble. How would Layel react if she fell?

  “By any means necessary, the gods told us,” Tagart said, drawing her attention. Eyes narrowed, he withdrew another stone from his pocket and launched it.

  “No!”

  Expecting it this time, Layel managed to catch it with a movement so swift his swinging arm was nothing more than a blur. “Coward.”

  “What did you call me?” was the hissed reply.

  “You heard me, dragon. Hitting me while I was unaware is the act of a coward.”

  “No, it is the act of a smart man.”

  “Tagart,” Delilah snapped. “Stop.”

  “Whose side are you on, Amazon?” Tagart pointed an accusing finger at her. “I thought you had already chosen. But every time I turn around you are with him.”

  She opened her mouth, but no words emerged. Were she to say that she was indeed on his side, Layel would hate her. Again. Were she to declare allegiance to Layel, her team would soon vote for her to die.

  In the end, she didn’t have to say a word. A shark suddenly flew from between the center stumps, large jaws and fearsome teeth snapping at them. Its fat gray tail slapped at the female nymph, who screeched and fell. Layel didn’t seem to care. Maybe that was why Delilah suddenly felt sorry for her. Thankfully the mermen swam her to safety.

  One of the shark’s fins nailed Nola in the stomach, but she managed to remain standing. F
or the moment.

  When the shark hit the water, disappearing from view, everyone stilled, quiet.

  Nola’s eyes closed and she rubbed her temple. “I do not feel so…good.” Her knees suddenly collapsed and she toppled.

  Brand dove for her. When he surfaced, he had her wrapped in his arms. She was pale, teeth chattering as he dragged her toward the beach and laid her gently on the sand. That’s when Layel tossed the rock he’d caught. It slammed into Tagart’s groin with a thud.

  “You’re right,” he said when the distracted dragon doubled over and yelped. “Smart.”

  Tagart propelled straight into the water. He didn’t rise for a heartbeat, two, and then the water began to swirl, brighten. There was a huge spray when Tagart emerged as a dragon. He unleashed a fiery roar, his wings spreading, scales already replacing skin, tail twitching.

  A stream of that fire launched at Layel. He ducked, the flames singeing his back. Vampires were quick, faster than any other race, but Layel had nowhere to go—and fire was a vampire’s greatest weakness. She knew because Amazons made a point of studying every race, looking for ways to defeat them.

  “Stop, Tagart. Stop!” Brand called from the beach. “Innocents are in the way.”

  Tagart was beyond listening. He spit another stream of crackling flames, cutting past everyone still standing—Zane and Broderick jumped into the water to avoid impact—and then the fire hit Layel, who had stubbornly refused to budge. Delilah screamed and found herself leaping to take the hit herself.

  Just when the flames were about to engulf her, Layel’s arms banded around her, jerking her down, down, down, twisting, landing in the water, his body the first to hit. But his feet had been the last to leave the stump. Which meant his team had won. She swallowed a mouthful, choking. The salt stung the marks on her neck, her lungs seized and she fought to get to the surface.

  Layel’s grip tightened. Her eyes widened as she realized why. The shark was swimming toward them, mouth open, teeth gleaming hungrily.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  SHIVAWN AWOKE with a jolt and moaned. Gods, he ached. Was weak, drained. Too much sex play, he suspected. Had happened before, and would probably happen again.

  Grinning, he cracked open his eyelids, the world around him blurry, out of focus. There was darkness with only the slightest hint of gold. A few feet away, water dripped a slow, steady rhythm. The walls closing in at his sides were…rocky, he realized, not the ivory and onyx he was now used to.

  Where was he?

  Not in a bed. The ground beneath him was as rocky as the walls, the air damp and musty. A cave? And why did heavy weights pull at his wrists and ankles? His grin faded, amusement replaced by anger, as he turned his head and saw the heavy chains that bound him.

  Bound? He was bound?

  A lovely female face flashed in his mind, teeth bared, fury in her blue eyes. He remembered. “Alyssa!” he snarled.

  One of the shadows in the corner shifted. Then, suddenly, she was beside him, staring down at him. Never had she looked lovelier. Her skin was flushed a healthy pink, her cheeks filled out, her lips bloodred. She wore a black robe, and it covered every inch of skin except for her breathtaking face and delicate hands. “So. You’re awake.”

  “Unchain me. Now!” He jerked his arms and legs, but the thick links held strong. His weakened state was no match for them.

  “You had best be quiet, nymph.”

  “Alyssa.”

  She traced her fingertip over his bare chest. So. She had removed his shirt. What else had she done to him? His teeth ground together, his body unresponsive.

  Most of his life, his cock had been an asset. It had reliably risen for anything female. Except her. He didn’t know why. The night he’d spent with her, he’d had to think of others to stay hard.

  He hadn’t lied to her. He’d left her sleeping in bed, sated, while he had wallowed in dissatisfaction, frustration and confusion. He wasn’t eager to repeat the experience.

  What was it about her that so turned him off? Every time he looked at her, all he could see in his mind was blood. All he could hear were screams.

  “Let me go and we’ll pretend this never happened.”

  Her nails, still resting on his chest, grew to sharp little points, slicing into his skin. “Oh, no. There will be no release for you. Not yet.”

  “Alyssa,” he gritted out again.

  “I brought you here to punish you, you know. To give you what you deserve. I wanted to hurt you, destroy you, but as I watched you sleeping I realized I couldn’t do it.” She laughed bitterly. “What I can do, however, is pleasure you. Pleasure you so fiercely you’ll never forget what happened in this cave, never forget the woman responsible. And most of all you’ll wish, desperately, for more.” The more she spoke, the more determination dripped from her tone.

  “The nymph army will search for me. They’ll find us and you’ll be killed for this.”

  A cold smile hovered at the edges of her lush mouth. She shook her head, hair dancing. “They’ll assume we disappeared like the others.”

  His stomach tightened with dread. She was right. “This isn’t going to make me love you, Alyssa. This is going to make me hate you.”

  Her gaze lowered, and she traced circles around each of his nipples. “I know,” she admitted softly.

  “Then free me. Now.”

  “It seems I’ve wanted you forever,” she said as if he had not spoken. “I know I’ve dreamed of us together, over and over again. And the one pure, perfect memory I had, you ruined.”

  He could not, would not soften toward his captor. When he gained his freedom, and he would, he would ensure she was unable to harm another warrior. “I told you that was not my intention, but you wanted the truth, so I gave it to you.”

  “I was not finished,” she said, jaw firmed. “You left me and you were unsatisfied.”

  He could not deny it, so did not reply.

  “As I said before,” she rasped, long lashes rising. Her eyes glittered dangerously, filled with a determination so complete he’d never seen its equal. Stronger, even, than her tone. “You will be completely sated when I’m through with you. You’ll think of me constantly, recall the bliss I gave you, and you’ll want more the way I have wanted more all these years. But I will never give it to you. After this, we will be on equal ground. And I will be done with you.”

  Dark rage seethed through him. He was a warrior. Being captured like this—and by a woman—was humiliating. What’s more, he was a nymph. He should be able to charm her into doing anything he wanted. More, he should want this, should merely consider it play.

  Not desiring a woman was almost…sacrilegious. “That will be rape,” he found himself saying, and could not believe the words had sprung from his mouth. No other nymph would have uttered them. Ever. They would have reveled in any pleasure this woman gave them.

  A strangled cry left Alyssa, and she jerked her hand away from him.

  He used the reprieve to think. Why had he stopped her? Nymphs needed sex to survive. Without it, they grew weak. Might even die. With it, though, they grew impossibly strong. He should let her ride him, restoring all of his strength, and then he should break these chains and strangle her with them.

  Yes, that was a sound plan. He would grit his teeth and bear it. He only hoped he could fool her and actually respond to her touch.

  He popped his jaw—calm, stay calm—and forced his expression to soften. “I’m sorry. That was cruel of me to say.” And difficult to apologize when he did not mean a word of it. “You want me, and I want you.”

  The woman was going to suffer for bringing him to this point.

  She blinked in surprise, then suspicion. “What game do you play?”

  “No game. I simply wish to bed you.”

  Unconvinced, she shook her head. “You suddenly want me before I have even begun? Just like that?” She snapped her fingers. “Only a moment ago it would have been rape.”

  “Yes. Just like that.” He
’d had to swallow his fury to choke out the words.

  “Liar.” But her hands returned to his chest, as if she wanted to believe him despite her doubts. She dipped a fingertip into his navel, leaned down and kissed him there, gaze never leaving his.

  He inhaled sharply, then had to grit his teeth as he’d supposed, his father’s screams suddenly exploding in his head. His ears rang, and the scent of death filled his nose. Every muscle in his body tensed. This was what happened every time Alyssa neared him. Regaining his strength was not worth this. “You…you…I can’t stand the smell of you,” he ground out, not knowing what else to say to make her leave. “You have to back away from me.”

  Alyssa uttered an embarrassed yelp and stood. “You’re a cruel man,” she rasped out, “yet I convinced myself otherwise, lapping up every scrap you tossed my way. Enough! No longer will I do so. You want me to bathe? I will. I want nothing to diminish your enjoyment. And you will enjoy. Not that you deserve it.

  “You never noticed, but I’ve been unable to drink another’s blood since our joining. I was literally dying for your blood, damn you, but now I’ve had it. Now I’m strong. And soon we will be free of each other.” She stalked from the cave, leaving him alone.

  His head fell against the rocks, those terrible memories fading from his mind in the wake of her heated accusations and departure. She hadn’t drunk from another? She loved him that much? It was almost…humbling. But surely she had exaggerated. Surely she hadn’t truly been dying because of his refusal.

  Right?

  He thought back to how pale she’d been lately, how sunken her cheeks and eyes had become. Now, after having his blood, she glowed. He was ashamed to admit it, but he hadn’t noticed her decline.

  He frowned, concern overshadowing every hint of his anger and freeing his mind from thoughts of revenge. How would he feel if she were to take her last breath? If he were never to see her again, as she’d vowed?

  He’d come to expect her presence. She was Alyssa, the female who constantly sought him out, who watched him with lust in her eyes. Who did everything in her power to seduce him. The same as most females, were he honest. But she wanted more than sex. As many times as she’d invited him to bed, she’d asked for his aid in devising battle plans, beseeched him to join her for a stroll through the Outer City and sent him books she’d enjoyed so that they could one day discuss them. She wanted conversation, to know his thoughts and have him listen to hers. She wanted to know him as a man, not just a lover.