“Me?”
He didn’t answer right away, partly because he wanted to give her some time to figure it out. But also because Cyrus seemed more than intrigued with Belle and Marcus wanted to make sure limits were set right there, right then. His eyes flashed into darkness for a second, and Cyrus immediately stepped back. It was just a small step, maybe a fraction of an inch—but enough to let him know the lines had been drawn in the sand.
When Marcus turned towards Belle, his eyes were back to a soft silver.
“I was hoping you’d be interested in joining the scientists here at the lab.”
A cloak of silence extended over the room. He knew all vampires in the lab had been hanging on to every word of the conversation. Since they could hear him from the other side of the room without any effort, they had all pretended to be focusing on the task in front of them, although he knew for sure the king walking into the room with a human was eventful enough to surpass anything else. Now that he’d stated the actual reason for bringing Belle down there, he could feel the mix of surprise and concern breathing over the space.
“What?” Her voice came out small.
“We need somebody who has a better grasp of human physiology than we do,” he said.
Understanding washed over her face. Beautiful and smart, he thought. Then he pushed the thought away. Also fragile as any other human.
She shook her head and wavered slightly. He immediately extended a hand and grabbed her arm, offering a steady anchor. A soft electric charge passed between them where their skin touched. The effect she had on him still surprised him. He had expected to enjoy her, to feed on her once or twice, and then get bored. But the more time he spent around her, the stronger the connection seemed to become. And that electricity, that whirl of energy that connected them every time they touched… It was just getting stronger by the minute.
It was a sobering realization.
Not only the fact that he was enthralled by a woman this much, but also the fact that the enthrallment was growing, feeding on the energy between them. He suddenly felt very tempted to pull her away from the lab and the hungry eyes around them. An almost uncontrollable need to stake a claim over her, take her back to his room and keep her all to himself.
He ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. Focus.
Belle’s fingers slid over his arm as if they belonged there. It felt like an incredibly intimate gesture, the move of a lover who wasn’t afraid of letting others know she belonged to somebody. Or maybe it was just his mind playing tricks on him—in which case he had to believe the warmth exuding from her was also a lie.
“I think… I think I can help,” she finally said, and he believed her.
He turned his face towards Cyrus and saw the look of fascination in his eyes. If there was ever any doubt she was Marcus’, the last few seconds had to have been confirmation enough. Most of the vampires there had never seen him with a pet, because the few he’d had never been more than that, pets. He was beginning to realize Belle was a lot more. And while her blood was intoxicating—even now, he could smell the excitement running through her veins, making him ache for a taste—it was everything else she was that it was the most intriguing. Not being able to charm her was frustrating, but it also made her superior to others. In a way, it made her closer to him. Impenetrable and unique, that was what Belle was. And the challenge of figuring it all out was proving far more exquisite than he could’ve dreamt of.
“She’ll be safe down here, My Lord,” the vampire said and Marcus was glad he didn’t have to explain anything else.
He turned to Belle, who was glowing with excitement. This was her turf, what she knew, and probably what she missed.
“Why don’t you let Cyrus show you around for a while? They’ll escort you up in a couple of hours. See what you can do, if anything, to help.” Then he paused for a second and his eyes scouted hers. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
She nodded with resolution. “Oh, yes. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
He doubted she had meant for the words to hurt him, but they stung anyway. He had a moment of second-guessing himself, where he wondered if giving her space and time away from him was a good idea. The idea bothered him and when he grabbed her arm to let her know the rules, his fingers closed on her skin a little too tight. Sharing her with others wasn’t something he wasn’t looking forward to, as irrational and insane as that was. But he was also afraid that without a solution, without a touch of magic from somewhere unexpected, the world was running out of options.
It took him a second to realize he was clenching his teeth. He wanted to tell her that she was only allowed down here because he was being generous. Let her know that he had the power to take it all away if he felt her slipping away from his grasp.
Instead, he let go of her arm and took a step back. “Upstairs in three hours,” he ordered before disappearing into the darkness of the tunnels.
Marcus had turned around and stomped out of the lab before she had time to realize what had just happened. Somewhere in the tangle of thoughts rushing through her mind, she had missed something.
“Isabelle,” Cyrus interrupted her thoughts. “Let me show you what we have.”
She turned around to face the vampire and nodded. She was already in the belly of the beast. Might as well play along, she told herself.
“Have you tested the blood?”
Cyrus nodded. “As much as we can in machines.” He paused for a second, unsure of what to say next. Or maybe measuring his words as to not say too much. “We’ve also… tasted it.”
The words had no impact on her. Funny that less than a week ago, they would have sent chills down her spine. Now it was just data, numbers and words she was being fed for processing.
“And?”
The vampire looked at her with hesitation. “There’s something missing.”
She pointed towards the microscope, as if asking for permission. Cyrus nodded and she got closer to take a look through the eyepiece. The cells looked normal—exactly as you would expect from real human blood.
“They look fine to me,” she said.
“They do, but they for some reason they don’t provide satiation,” he said, and then scrambled to find additional words. “We’re still hungry after drinking it.”
She remembered Marcus words. Human blood brings other pleasures. “Could the lack of satisfaction be psychological?”
“No,” he said with a light frown. “We thought the same thing at first, but it’s more than that. Think of it as being extremely thirsty and drinking water, only to find out it does nothing to quench the thirst.”
She looked through the microscope again, searching for any small variation that would indicated a mistake, a failure in the composition. There was none. “Have you played around with the red and white cell blood content?”
“Some. We’re trying to stay as close as possible to the original.”
She shook her head slightly. “That might be a mistake. Fresh blood is alive, in a way. It contains a certain amount of hemoglobin because we’re breathing and that keeps the oxygen flowing at a constant pace. A true substitute, a replacement, might need to account for the difference, especially if you’re storing it.”
Cyrus’ eyes flickered. Then he pointed towards the large refrigerators and storing tubes in the back of the room. “Lead the way,” he said.
“This might not work at all, you know,” she said.
The vampire shrugged. “We have nothing to lose.”
“Fair enough, let’s give it a try,” she said.
And for the first time in a very long time, it felt like maybe—just maybe—the world had a chance at survival.
Chapter Sixteen
That had been a first. Of all the firsts he’d been feeling around Belle, the wave of possessiveness that had hit him down in the lab had been especially powerful. That had been almost two hours ago, and he could still feel the pangs of jealousy surging through hi
s veins. It didn’t make any sense, but the truth was that he didn’t want to share Belle with anybody. Especially since he didn’t truly know if he had enemies inside the compound, vampires plotting his demise behind his back. The kind of enemies who would be happy to hurt Belle just to get to him.
When she came back into his room, he tried to push down the storm raging inside him.
“How did it go in the lab?”
Her eyes had a spark he hadn’t seen before. “I think I might actually be able to help,” she said. “It looks like—”
He shot to her side before she had time to react, the blur of movements cutting through the room. The truth was that he didn’t want to talk right now. He just wanted to take her. Hard, rough, forceful. Right at that moment.
His right hand slid to her neck, fingers encircling her throat gently. Belle gasped but didn’t resist him, her heartbeat speeding up to a delirious run. He pushed her against the wall without letting go of her throat. He didn’t want to hurt her, but he wanted to make sure she understood who was in charge. His eyes locked on hers, waiting to see if she’d surrender. When she didn’t respond, his fingers tightened just a bit and she moaned.
As soon as the sound escaped her throat, his predatory instinct took over, blinding everything else. His body pressed into hers, crushing her tiny figure against the wall behind her. Any hope of softness and control was now gone. He was just an animal trying to mark his prey. He mouth took hers with urgency, his fangs out and trailing her lower lip before his tongue darted into her mouth.
Belle moaned and melted against him, inflaming his need to an almost unbearable point.
His free hand moved behind her, sliding across her ass to cup a cheek. Then he pressed her lower body against his so she could feel his length. The other hand remained where it was around her neck, holding her captive. He wasn’t in the mood for foreplay tonight. No gentleness or softness or moving slowly. He wanted—needed—to stake a claim.
His right hand slid from her ass towards the front of her pants, unbuttoning them and sliding them down in a quick movement. And then his pants were down too and he was back pushing against her sex, soft and wet and ready.
Belle looked enthralled, her features heavy with desire. She was panting hard and fast and a cry of almost painful pleasure escaped her throat when he pushed against her.
“You’re mine, Belle,” he growled, and the words came out deep and weighty.
He could feel his own eyes burning a trail down her throat and then back to her face. There was no fear in Belle’s eyes and that only served to drive him even more insane with desire.
He lowered his head down so his lips were almost touching hers. “Tell me you’re mine, Belle.”
And almost as if he was trying to elicit a response out of her, he adjusted his body so his cock was now at the entrance of her sex. It took every single ounce of willpower he had left not to ram into her right then and there. Instead, he savored the deep moan that escaped her throat. “Tell me,” he ordered.
Belle closed her eyes, her body trembling against his. “Yes, yes, I’m yours.”
He moved his mouth away from hers and towards his own wrists. When his fangs pierced his skin and the blood started to flow out, Belle’s eyes widened. His heart was pounding in his ears and he was mad with need.
He moved his bleeding wrist moved closer to her mouth and Belle’s body tensed up in response.
“Marcus, no, what are you doing?” She put her hands up against his chest and tried to push him away but it was too late now, and there was no turning back. He wouldn’t allow it.
“Drink,” he said, and the words were a mix of order and desire-laden plea.
“No!” He could hear the panic in her voice, but when she tried to shake her head, his fingers tightened on her throat.
He moved his wrist away and pushed against her again, crushing her chest. His hips pushed up and he slid inside her just barely. She was slick and welcoming, her body ready for the invasion. Every inch of his body was throbbing and so was hers.
“It’s not going to hurt you,” he said, his eyes melting into hers. “You have my word.”
And that seemed to work, because Belle’s body stopped resisting. He pushed into her a little more and his groan matched hers at the slow torture of the movement. Then he moved his wrist up against her lips again.
“Drink,” he ordered softly, and she did.
The second her mouth touched the puncture wounds, he gasped. It felt like a million lightning bolts hitting his body all at once. Pain and urgency and unbelievable ecstasy. His whole body exploded into waves of pleasure and he rammed into her with a grunt. Belle let out a moan and the pressure of her lips on his wrist increased. He let go of her throat and slid a hand down, grabbing her up and off the floor, getting her legs wrapped around him.
Every time he rammed into her, Belle drank harder and moaned louder. The pleasure in her face was exquisite. He could see the orgasm building in her features, grabbing her and twisting her as his own body neared the climax.
And then her tongue darted out and licked the wounds while she continued sucking. That undid him. His whole body bucked, release tearing through him in an almost agonizing wave. Pain and bliss all rolled into one. The most basic, most organic of emotions taking away the last bit of coherence from his mind.
He rammed into her one more time and Belle’s body exploded into orgasm. She let go of his wrist, her body arching against his. He held her tight as she rode her own climax, breathless and vibrating in his arms. As she slowly came back to reality, her ragged, harsh breath matched his.
Even if Belle didn’t know it yet, they had both just crossed the point of no return.
Fire. Surging through her veins as if trying to devour her from the inside. Beautiful cold fire lapping through her chest in a hypnotic dance. Even though her body felt spent, she could feel the heat burning its way down her body and into her cells. Vampire blood. It felt wrong and oh-so-right at the same time.
It was the ultimate betrayal, wasn’t it? Drinking the blood of the monsters. But the second she had tasted it, something in her had snapped. Nothing she had ever experienced had felt like his blood did. It tasted like honeyed liquor going down her throat and it had ignited a flame inside her, a pang of pleasure that made her want more. Combined with the feeling of him inside her, it became beckoning, like the call of a wild beast.
She adjusted her body against his, trying to find the perfect spot to fall asleep in his arms.
“What’s on your mind, Belle?”
You are, she wanted to say. Always, all the time. You.
“The blood,” she said instead, which was also true. “It felt… empowering.”
“What did you expect it to be like?”
“I never asked myself that. I never thought I would…” She took a deep breath. “I guess I imagined it would be… poisonous.”
Marcus’ face was unreadable.
“No, it has healing properties. And as you saw, sharing it is also highly sexual, which is why we don’t usually do it.”
The fire moved up towards her face, burning and pulsing in her ears. “Then why…”
“Because it felt right,” he interrupted her, grabbing her chin so he could tilt her head slightly back and look into her eyes. “Didn’t it?”
Yes, it had. More right than anything she had ever experienced in her life. It had felt like a mix of surrendering and claiming at the same time. As if drinking his blood was making him a part of her, something that could never be erased.
She wanted to deny it, wanted to tell him it had meant nothing. But she didn’t have the strength to pretend. Not when his eyes sparkled like silver and the fire of his skin was still against hers.
“Yes,” she whispered.
He kissed her, a hint of a wicked smile on his lips. “Of course it did.”
Arrogant.
She could feel sleep washing over her, slowly inching its way through her body. It was the kind of sooth
ing sleep she hadn’t had for years. The sleep of the satisfied—of the ones who felt safe and content and fulfilled.
And then, halfway between sleep and wakefulness, his body moved against hers. Her skin fluttered and came alive, and she opened her eyes just a bit, hoping to catch sight of him without giving herself away.
The glitter of the moon was dancing on his face, twisting and turning into beautiful shadows over his skin. There was a royal dignity to his presence, a quiet touch of distinction that seemed to ooze out of him even now, as he remained still on the bed next to her. She could deny it all she wanted, but everything he’d done since meeting her had been honorable. All her effort in trying to find the monster hiding in the shadows had been in vain and she was suddenly exhausted from searching for the dark side of him—a side that now she believed maybe didn’t exist.
A wave of understanding hit her and hit her hard. And before she could stop it, a thought formed in her mind. I can’t kill him.
Even if she could find a way to do it, she didn’t want to.
Her thoughts flew to the lab and the many surgical tools there. At some point during the night, she’d thought about taking a scalpel back to the room and hiding it in one of her drawers. Then she could have jumped out of the bed and sliced his throat open. She wasn’t sure it would kill him and that was a clear sign that her plan had been faulty from the beginning. But none of that mattered because the second she thought about hurting him, a wave of nausea hit her with the intensity of an earthquake. Her breath got caught in her throat and she had to remind herself to try and breathe over the panic that overtook her.
Not only was she sure that she could never hurt him, but she was also suddenly convinced that she would fight anybody who tried. Tell me you’re mine. Marcus’ words echoed in her chest with a thundering boom. Because at that very moment, as his body intertwined with hers on the softness of the blankets, she knew it.
For better or worse, she was his.
Chapter Seventeen
What to Read After FSOG: The Gemstone Collection (WTRAFSOG Book 9) Page 123
