Shon (The Seeker Series Book 2)

by Ditter Kellen

  “I’m listening.”

  Angel turned to face her. “The way I see it, you have two choices here. You can run, leave your family and friends behind, including Shon. Or…”

  “Or what?” Laura had a feeling she knew where he was going with his proposition.

  “Or you can become one of us.”

  Laura’s stomach flipped, hearing it said aloud. “A vampire?”

  Angel nodded. “I know it’s a scary thing to imagine, but it’s not as bad as you think.”

  “You can’t walk in the sunlight,” Laura pointed out.

  “But the moon can be just as beautiful.”

  Laura shifted in her seat. “You drink blood to survive.”

  “You eat dead animals.”

  He had a point, Laura thought, studying the sincerity in is moss-green eyes.

  “How about we concentrate on the positive aspects of my kind.”

  Laura raised an eyebrow. “Such as?”

  “We can live for centuries. We age slowly. We’re strong and impossibly fast. And we heal at a rapid rate as long as we replenish our blood.”

  “But how would I live? I couldn’t work. No one would hire me once I had an aversion to daylight.”

  “You’re an editor. Edit from home. Become a writer. There are dozens of ways to make a living while avoiding the daylight.”

  Laura couldn’t argue with his logic. “Is it painful?”

  “I won’t lie to you. It’s near to unbearable, but the pain doesn’t last forever.”

  Turning to stare out the window, Laura couldn’t believe she was even considering Angel’s offer. “Who would do it?”

  “Shon could do—”

  “Besides him.”

  Angel touched her on the arm, bringing her attention back to him. “Did something happen between you and Shon?”

  Laura shook her head. “It’s not his fault. I fell in love and he didn’t.”

  “Did he say that?” Angel asked incredulously.

  “Not in so many words. But he’s never once admitted to having feelings for me.”

  “And have you?”

  “Have I what?”

  Angel sighed. “Admitted your feelings to him.”

  “Well. I… No, I haven’t.”

  Angel groaned and inserted the key into the ignition. “May I make a suggestion?”

  “Okay.”

  “Come back with me. Shon is on his way to my place as we speak. Talk to him. Tell him how you feel. If he doesn’t feel the same, Ember can turn you, and you’ll never have to see Shon again. If he admits he has feelings for you, then let him be the one to do it. He’ll want to be the one.”

  Laura blew out a breath and fastened her seatbelt. “I’m not sure this is a good idea.”

  The ride back to Ember’s was spent in silence. Laura took that time to reflect on her life choices.

  She’d give anything to travel back in time, go to prom with Shon, and gift him with her virginity. Because of her mother, Laura missed out on so many years that could have been spent in Shon’s arms.

  “You can’t change the past,” Angel softly murmured as if reading her mind. “But you can change the future.”

  But what if Shon didn’t want her? she wondered, turning to watch the passing cars on the Parkway. She would live for centuries, longing for a man she could never fully have.

  “If I do this, is there a way to break the bond I have with Shon?”

  “There is no bond, Laura. Your love is what binds you to him. His blood is merely a beacon in the fog.”

  “But Nita said—”

  “I was told what the shifter said to you,” he interrupted. “She has no way of knowing the full extent of a blood bond.”

  Laura turned to face him. “Explain it to me.”

  “In our world, if two vampires have love in their hearts for each other, they exchange blood during a mating. It creates a bond that cannot be broken. Not even by death.”

  “A mating?”

  Angel grinned. “Humans refer to it as making love.”

  “Oh!” Laura exclaimed, embarrassed that she hadn’t caught on to his meaning right away.

  Memories of the night she’d spent in Shon’s arms flooded her mind in torturous detail. “Shon’s not the mating type, Angel. He’s more of a fling you experience once in a lifetime.”

  “I’m sorry, Laura. I really am.”

  “Me too,” Laura muttered, shifting her gaze to the window once again. “Me too.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Shon arrived at Ember’s condo two hours later. He put the car in park and jumped out.

  Running up the stairs, he raised his hand to knock, only to find Angel standing in the now open doorway.

  “Laura’s next door resting,” Angel informed Shon, pulling the door quietly closed as he stepped out onto the deck.

  “Thanks, man.” Shon murmured, turning toward the next-door condo.

  Angel rested a hand on Shon’s arm. “Hang on.”

  “Can it wait? I really need to see Laura.”

  “You should hear this before going over there.”

  Shon leaned against the railing. “Okay. But make it quick. I’m kind of in a hurry.”

  “Laura wants to be one of us,” Angel blurted without preamble.

  “She what?” Shon straightened away from the railing.

  Angel met his gaze without flinching. “Ember and I think it’s for the best.”

  “Best for whom?” Shon growled, taking a step toward his cousin’s mate.

  Angel didn’t back down. “For her. If you’d been paying attention, you would see that it’s what she needs.”

  Shon ran a hand down his face. “Laura’s not like us, Angel. She’s fragile.”

  “She’s a lot stronger than you think,” Angel barked before softening his tone. “Go talk to her. But know this. If you hurt her, you’ll not only have me to deal with, you’ll have Ember as well.”

  Shon clenched his jaw and spoke in a low voice. “Laura is the last person on earth I would ever hurt.”

  “Okay,” Angel relented, handing Shon the key to his condo.

  With a nod of thanks, Shon took the key and let himself into Angel’s condo.

  Following Laura’s incredible scent, Shon trailed off down the hall to the guest room to find her curled up in the middle of the king-size bed, asleep.

  He quietly toed off his boots, stripped out of his clothes, and crawled into bed next to her.

  Laura sighed and turned on her side to face him, muttering something in her sleep that he couldn’t understand.

  “Hey, sleeping beauty,” Shon whispered, brushing her face back from her face.

  Her eyelids slowly lifted. She blinked a couple of times before focusing on him. “You’re here.”

  “Of course I’m here. Where else would I go?”

  Her pretty blue eyes glittered with unshed tears. “I’m lost, Shon…”

  Pain sliced through his heart at her admission. He wanted to hold her close, reassure her that everything would be okay. But he couldn’t. Instead, he did the only thing he knew how to do. The only thing he’d ever been good at...pleasure.

  Shon slowly pulled her into his arms and covered her lips with his. She tasted of salt and sunshine.

  With a sigh of surrender, Laura became pliant in his arms, opening for him, accepting him.

  A feeling came over him unlike any he’d experienced in her presence before. A feeling of warmth, of love…of home.

  Laura was his home; she always had been. And no matter what life threw at them, what trials they’d endured along the way, it always came back to this. The wanting, the needing, the overpowering connection he had with her.

  Shon removed Laura’s clothing without once breaking the seal of their tender kiss. He couldn’t seem to get enough of her taste, her passion.

  She moaned into his mouth, sliding her now bare leg up the side of his much bigger one.

  He wanted to bury his cock deep, to los
e himself inside her…forever.

  Breaking off the kiss, Shon cupped her beautiful face in his hands. “You took a hundred years off my life when you left.”

  She reached up and laid her hand against his cheek also. “I had to. I couldn’t stand to be a liability any longer. I’m the weakest link in this metaphorical chain.”

  “You’re not weak,” he rasped, staring into her sparkling blue eyes. “You’re one of the strongest people I know.”

  “I don’t feel very strong right now. I feel lost and alone. Make me like you, Shon.”

  He shook his head. “You don’t know what you’re asking of me.”

  Something flickered in her eyes. “Unless…”

  She moved to get up, but his arms quickly came around her. “Don’t leave.”

  “I shouldn’t have asked you. Turning me would bind you to me. I get it. But—”

  “You think I don’t want to be bound to you?” Shon blurted, cutting her off. “There’s no one besides you. It’s always been you.”

  Fresh tears sparkled in her eyes. “What are you saying?”

  “I love you, Laura Donovan. I’ve loved for as long as I can remember.” He kissed the lone tear that slipped down her face, taking her salty essence onto his tongue.

  Laura’s arms came around him with a force that surprised him for one so small. “I love you too, Shon. With everything in me.”

  Shon hugged her to him, basking in the feel of her body, the sound of her words.

  “Are you sure this is what you want? To be with me forever?”

  “I’m more than sure,” came her muffled reply.

  He pulled back to gaze at her gorgeous face. A face he’d dreamed about nightly for years. “I’ll do it. But I need to be inside you right now before I die from wanting you.”

  “Yes. Make love to me, Shon.”

  Covering her mouth with his, Shon rolled her beneath him, glorying in the sweet taste that was Laura.

  He dragged his lips across her face, down her neck, and stopped to sample her amazing breasts before moving along her stomach to stop at the juncture of her thighs.

  I can smell your desire for me,” he growled, his gaze devouring her small, bare pussy.

  “Open for me.”

  Laura spread her knees, hooking her calves across his shoulders.

  A deep rumble of appreciation vibrated inside his chest with the first swipe of his tongue through her delicate slit.

  Shon had never tasted anything as incredible as Laura’s desire for him.

  Soft, sexy sounds came from her throat as he rested his thumbs on her swollen sex and took her sensitive clit into his mouth.

  Her hands flew to his hair, and her hips began to move in time with his swirling tongue.

  Shon poured everything he had, everything he felt into mastering her beautiful pussy. He wanted her to reach heights she’d only imagined existed. He wanted her to explode beneath him, to soar to a place only he could take her.

  He slipped a finger inside her and curled it back toward him.

  Laura went wild. The feel of her climaxing around his finger, against his hungry mouth snapped Shon’s control.

  With one last swipe of his tongue, he crawled up her curvy body and gripped the head of his cock. “You’re mine. From this night forth, you belong to me.” He thrust deep.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Laura cried out from the fierce thrust of Shon’s massive cock. The feel of him stretching her, taking her and owning her only enforced the words he’d growled upon entering her.

  She did belong to him. Heart and soul.

  “Say it,” he demanded, pumping into her with deep, sure strokes. “Damn it. Tell me.”

  “I love you, Shon.”

  A suspicious moisture sparkled in his eyes. “Again.”

  “I love you. I need you. I would die for you.”

  Shon struck. His fangs penetrated her neck, sinking deep as his cock continued to thrust into her body.

  Laura had never felt more alive, more powerful. Another orgasm built, taking her higher, to a place she never wanted to come back from.

  Shon buried himself inside her, slowing to grind his hips against her throbbing clit, all the while his mouth took great pulls from her overheated throat.

  Laura was lost. Lost in a dream of constant release. Her pussy continuously contracted around his massive cock. Her breathing became as erratic as her heartbeat and her soul disconnected with her body to meld with his.

  Her eyes drifted shut. Another orgasm crested.

  Shon groaned against her neck. More contractions seized her.

  He pushed his cock into her deep enough that it would have been painful had she not been in the throes of another climax.

  Sounds grew more distant, yet still, she came.

  The last thing Laura felt before drifting off into darkness was the hot jets of Shon seed expelling inside her.

  * * * *

  Pain. Excruciating, debilitating pain. Laura opened her mouth to scream, but no sound could be heard.

  Darkness surrounded her, suffocating in its blackness.

  Shon? she silently cried. What’s happening to me?

  The distant sound of his voice could be heard over the deafening roar, reverberating in her ears.

  Fire swam through her body, burning her up from the inside out. It licked its way to her feet before bursting inside her skull in an inferno of agony that took her humanity.

  Laura fought the blaze in search of relief. Images of her life swam through her tortured mind. Laughing with Ember, hugging her parents, Shon dismounting his motorcycle in all his alpha glory.

  Nothing made sense. She attempted to hold on to the images before they faded into bland colors and disappeared altogether.

  Her heartbeat grew faster, like the thunder of a thousand stallions racing through her skull.

  The sound suddenly stopped. The fire ceased its torment, and blessed oblivion swept her up in a cocoon of clouds that left her weak with relief.

  “Laura? Come back to me, baby.”

  Shon’s voice. So close, yet too far to grab on to.

  “You can do it. Concentrate on the sound of my voice. Open your eyes, love.”

  Laura fought her way to the surface, reaching for Shon, straining to feel his presence.

  “That’s it, my heart.”

  Her eyes fluttered open. And panic set in.

  The room was brightly lit, colors seemed to come alive, and sound became magnified.

  She scrambled back against the headboard. “What’s wrong with me?”

  Shon inched slowly toward her. “You’re okay, baby. Breathe your way through it. Everything you’re feeling is natural. It just takes some getting used to.”

  Laura’s gaze darted to Shon’s face. A face she knew and loved. “Shon?”

  “It’s going to be all right. Here, touch me.”

  She lifted a trembling hand to his masculine jawline. “You feel different.”

  “It’s the newness of being vampire. You’ll get used to it in no time.”

  “Hi,” Ember whispered from the other side of the room. “Don’t be afraid.”

  Laura shifted her gaze to her best friend. “Ember?”

  “I know you’re scared,” Ember soothed, moving to sit on the side of the bed. “But what you’re feeling is normal. You only have to embrace it.”

  Laura turned her attention back to Shon. “It hurt so much. I’ve never experienced that level of pain before.”

  “I know. And I’m so sorry, but you’ll never have to go through that again. It’s over now.”

  “Is that what you went through during your change?”

  Shon shook his head. “I felt some discomfort, but I was born with vampire blood in my veins. You were made.”

  “Am I dead?”

  “No, baby. You’re not dead. You are more alive than you ever were before. You’ll see once you give it some time to soak in.”

  Laura took several calming breaths as s
he stared into Shon’s amazing brown eyes. “I…” she began before glancing at Ember. “Would you mind giving us a minute alone?”

  “Of course.” Ember laughed, bending to kiss Laura’s cheek. “Take all the time you need. I’ll be next door.”

  Laura waited until Ember left the room before reaching for Shon’s hand. “I can feel our connection.”

  He stared back at her without blinking. “You’ve made me the happiest man on earth. I’ll never be able to thank you for this gift…for giving yourself to me. You own me, Laura. Heart and soul.”

  The longer Laura lay there, the calmer she became. “Can we go away for a while? Just the two of us? I want to explore this new body. I need time to adjust, to grow…with you.”

  “When would you like to leave?”

  “As soon as possible.”

  Shon leaned in and rested his palms on either side of her face. “Will you marry me first?”

  Laura’s new vampire heart pounded in her chest. “You want to marry me?”

  His lips brushed against hers. “Marry you. Father your children. Spend an eternity with you, as your husband, your mate. Your forever.”

  “Yes,” Laura whispered, throwing her arms around his neck. “Yes, a thousand times.”

  “I’ll make arrangements for us to leave tomorrow night. Where would you like to go?”

  “Surprise me.”

  Shon laughed. “Be careful what you ask for. We may end up in Egypt, or some shit like that.”

  “I don’t care where we go, as long as we’re together.”

  A deep sadness settled inside her heart. “I need to see my parents. To tell them goodbye.”

  “You need to feed first.”

  Laura blinked. “You mean blood?”

  “It’s not so bad. You’ll be able to take food for a while, but the need for it lessens over time. Blood will make you stronger, more settled.”

  “I trust you.”

  Shon crawled up next to her on the big bed. “Your fangs will take a few days to develop completely. But I can help with that.”

  He lifted his wrist to his mouth and bit down. Blood welled up to the surface in a crimson flow that oddly called to her.

  Laura cautiously gripped his wrist in her hand. The scent of his offering traveled up her nose with a power that was staggering.