"So," Joséf grinned, "You're just hedging your bets by wiping out potential threats."
The vampire smiled, jagged fangs protruding over decaying lips. "Precisely., jagged fangs protruding over decaying lips.
Joséf sighed. "This is going to get ugly, you know. Because that ragtag army is mine to protect now."
"Too bad. The war we're waging on the world is to give it purpose. Your ragtag army is mere cannon fodder."
"Sounds all fine and philosophical. But," Joséf clenched a fist, pulled energy from within along the line of his right arm and stepped into fighting position, "I'm afraid taking free will from others isn't how I operate. So keep your hands off my fucking pack."
"You are not prepared to handle the likes of me, Staganov."
Joséf crouched down. "Bring it."
Joe, don't fuck with this guy. If I'm reading him right, he's insane. Get away with Kissa now!
Joséf ignored Istvan's plea. As long as he couldn't sense Kissa, he'd be able to fight this bastard on his own. Hell, the old fucker looked like he was about to fall over at the touch of a pin.
"Do not misjudge me, wolf. I am not like the vampires you have fought in the States. I am much more powerful than they ever were."
He didn’t like the quick tingles that danced over his skin and made the hair on the back of his neck stand. The power creeped over him like an oil slick, contaminated and heavy. "You’re merely a damn annoyance.”
The stranger laughed, tilting his head back. Withered veins in his neck pulsed when he laughed.
Perfect. A target.
Joséf rushed the vampire, power surging in his hand.
The vampire swayed to the left, then swaggered the other way, eluding Joséf. Was he drunk?
Joséf whirled around, keeping the vampire in sight when the scent hit him full on.
"Fuck, you're high on the shit."
Don't get cocky, keep your focus.
Goddamn Kissa.
Joséf rushed the strange vampire again, only to lunge through him instead of connecting his fist to the vamp's face. He landed to the sound of laughter and felt his inner wolf’s fear turn fuel adrenaline. Spinning around, he forced energy into the palm of one hand while drawing his claws out through the other.
More laughter, weak, melodic, crazy, echoed around the room. "You're certainly amusing. Let's really play that game.”
The sting of power burned Joséf’s skin, nostrils when Ishmael fluttered in and out of visibility. "Fuck you, asshole."
The vampire lunged back at Joséf, slamming his fist into Joséf's chest. He stumbled several feet back while trying to force air back into his lungs.
The vampire moved again, planting a boot in the center of Joséf's back. He fell to the ground, rolled ass over vodka bottle for several feet.
Kissa screamed in his mind. Are you okay?
He couldn't reply. Picking himself up, Joséf leapt at his attacker again, missing him by millimeters. Instead, the vampire's knee caught Joséf in the chest. Then an elbow landed square in the middle of Joséf's back.
Joséf growled from the pain and coughed up blood. His ribs were definitely broken now. He darted out of the way, pain slowing his movements. He had a split second before the next attack, so he glanced around the room, looking for something, anything to use against his opponent. If he truly held the power he said he did, the sun wouldn't bother him.
Judging by the force of the blows, Joséf would have to act fast or keep dodging.
Another blow caught him and sent him crashing through the wall into bushes outside.
Joséf blinked, shook himself off and flopped out of the bushes. "What the fuck are you?"
"I am all that is and ever was, of the vampire race, Staganov."
"Bullshit. Sapporo's never mentioned hanging around a loser like you. So, what is your name?"
The older vampire smirked, but stayed in the shadows of the house. "Sapporo is an old fool. You may call me Ishmael."
Calling forth power warmed his hands. Joséf needed to hit this guy with something other than a physical object and energy wasn't quite the same as human flesh. Even the undead were wounded by energy blasts, Joséf simply had to hope he was still strong enough to throw something heavy at his opponent. "You don't look like an Ishmael. More like a Raymond. Or a Dennis."
"Dennis?" The vampire’s eyes rose, adding to the creep factor of his already hideous appearance.
"Yeah, you fucking like that? Ishmael?” The glow burned hot in Joséf's hands until he sent the wave of energy at Ishmael.
A direct hit knocked the old vampire back a few inches, leaving a hole where stomach flesh should have been. Entrails hung out, withering and pulsing. Dark brown blood began trickling out of the wound
"You're not immune to everything."
"You'll pay for that, you insolent dog.” Ishmael raised his hands to the ceiling, his eyes turning a shade of bright yellow.
Joséf wasn't dumb enough to stick around for this act. Changing into a wolf, he raced around the vampire and jumped through the front door, sending splinters everywhere. He continued running for a moment before realizing the massive explosives in the house hadn’t gone off earlier.
What the fuck is going on here?
Ishmael appeared in front of Joséf with anger burning in his eyes. "You're not getting away."
On the contrary. Joséf rushed the old vampire, pushing his body to move faster, teeth and claws bared. Slamming into the vampire, they both landed against the wall of the house. His jaw connected with Ishmael's throat.
Something in his last shot must have disrupted the vampire's ability to fade into his previously misty state.
The taste of poison and hundreds of years' worth of death filled Joséf's mouth, along with the vile taste of sickness and rot. His stomach lurched painfully, but he forced his jaws to clamp down on the vampire’s throat and kill him. Grinding his jaws, he heard Ishmael's gurgled scream and tasted the rush of blood before Joséf’s teeth slit his vocal chords.
Despite the blood gushing into Joséf's mouth, the smell of gunpowder tickled his senses, setting him on high alert. Ishmael must have been covering it up with his sickening drug stink.
Before Ishmael's head fell off, he managed a parting smirk.
Joséf spat and coughed until a whistle called his attention. Kissa swayed in the doorway.
He realized where the explosives were.
Kissa shifted and raced past him in a blur. Joséf changed forms and took off after her.
The burning agony his injuries caused him slowed him but he refused to fail the one person here who mattered the most in such a short time during his stay in this godforsaken country. Pain licked at his skin, his vision began to blur. The fear of blacking out so close to the house remained a fixture in his mind while he pounded the ground with his boots, and allowed him to ignore the desire to vomit.
"SHIT!"
"Let me heal you, Farkas.” A soft voice whispered, blowing soft air against his ear. Lupine energy coursed through him, repairing every damaged nerve ending and splicing every muscle back, even stronger than before.
A soft, feminine body slid over his, pressing full breasts against the hardness of his chest. His cock stirred, straightening against a well-muscled thigh.
He opened his eyes to see Kissa's reddish-brown curls dangling just over his face. Delicate curves melted against his muscular angles. In the distance, he saw the sun, heard the waves lapping gently at the shore.
Breathing a sigh of relief at her safety, he started for her, stopped for no apparent reason, save the pain of his injuries. "We're on a cloth near the lake?"
She nodded, shifted her weight beneath him. Her wetness slicked over his stomach and made his muscles flex.
"Mmm, you're awake. Good."
"What’s going on?” His cock throbbed heavily between his legs.
Kissa reached between them to stroke him, squeezing his shaft gently with each pump.
He groaned.
&nb
sp; "Sex heals us, my herceg. Prince."
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tighter to him. Closing his eyes, he let out a sigh, "We've got to talk, sweetheart."
"Shh. Not now. You need your rest. And then we're making plans for our trip back to the States. We can't go see your lover looking like we do."
Joséf struggled to sit, but Kissa pinned him down. His expression must have been obvious because she shook her head. "Shh, my love. I promise, all of your questions will be answered soon. Just promise me you love me."
He let her press him into the rough blanket, let her surround him. His heartbeat slowed with her languid caresses. He met her stare, saw the seriousness and the intensity in those blue eyes, realized they were on the same page.
He loved her.
Fuck.
She'd almost died with him while he fought the vampire, and the thought of her death would have sent him on a violent tear, and probably lead to his own death. But she was here, breathing over him, her body warm against his, her mouth parted, tongue caressing her lower lip.
And he loved her, would breathe her in, let her drag herself through his system and out of his mouth for eternity. Then the thought clicked. What about Livía?
"She's keeping us both alive. Pressing matters in the States are calling us back, Szeretőm."
"What of the pack?”
She slid her thumb over the swollen head of his cock, stilling his thoughts and making him gasp.
She shook her head again, curls swaying. "We'll deal with it before we leave. For now," she lowered her mouth to his, wriggled her hips. Her fingers massaged his shaft.
Joséf's cock pulsed in her hands. He couldn't deny the rush of hormones flooding his system right now, but he'd agreed to be alpha, so questions had to be asked.
"Are the mates back?"
"Safe and," she kissed him, flicking her tongue over his lower lip, "sound."
His hands found her ass, spread her cheeks apart. "Ishmael?"
She groaned and ground her slicked sex against his shaft. "You took him out. You must have blacked out again, my prince.” Her lips surrounded his shaft, the gentle squeezing motion sending ripples of pleasure into his body, making his hips squirm.
Digging his fingers into her ass made her yelp.
She nipped at his neck. Goose bumps formed on his flesh, covering him from head to toe.
"You love me.” His pulse sped up.
She gave his cock another squeeze. "You love this, I know. But you love me with your heart, my prince?”
He did. He loved her, needed her. Found her integral not just to his place in the pack, but to his heart.
Livía would understand. Right?
"I do love you."
"Then, let your lover know from time to time. And listen," she swept her tongue across his neck and nipped him.
His fingers clenched the soft curve of her ass. He raised a hand, flattened his palm and brought it down against her asscheek. She yelped and glared at him.
He spanked her again. "I’m alpha."
Her lips curled up in a lazy smile. "Yes.” She slid herself lower, pulling him into her pussy. The tight folds of her sex gripped him, searing him. He moaned, gripped her hips, and slammed Kissa down on him.
She grunted, sank her teeth into the crook of his neck. "All for you, my prince.” She ran a free hand through his hair, tugging dark strands before lowering her mouth to his. His tongue plunged between her lips, mimicking the way her hips moved over his shaft. He stroked her back with a free hand.
He loved her. Little doubt existed when he realized that the woman beside him had risked believing in him, following him. It had been the same woman since he’d arrived.
He'd been too stupid to realize it at the time.
Now if he could avoid disappointing her, like he had with Livía.
Her muscles contracted, distracting him from his self-destructive thoughts.
"No more of this," she tapped his forehead.
"I can't help what I am. I can't shut it off, sweetheart," he whispered against her skin, then flicked his tongue over her to taste her. Sweet, salty, earthen, his.
Her voice dipped lower. "You don't have to try. I'll just force those thoughts away. I'll throw them away where they belong.” She bit his bottom lip.
The pain sent his mind spinning from the thoughts he tried to cling to, making him buck. He thrust deeper into her.
She braced her hands on his chest, rolling her hips up and down, back to front, all while her muscles clenched his cock and milked him.
He spread his fingers over the bare skin of her hips, enjoying the feel of her smooth, heated flesh. He arched against her, guiding her into a steady lover's rhythm that made her pant.
His pulse sped and his balls tingled. Every muscle rippled with her movement on him. Looking down the line of his body, he saw just how joined he and Kissa were, the sight spurring him to fuck her harder.
Except even healed, he couldn't in this position.
"You're not always going to control me, my love.” Her mouth opened, eyes closed partially.
He chuckled, the noise rumbling low in his chest. She thought that, hmm? He grabbed a breast, rolled a nipple between thumb and forefinger.
She squealed again, a delightful sound. Her husky arousal surrounded them.
"Next time," she panted, "I'm taking you in my mouth."
"I have other places for it to go," he slapped her ass again.
She yelped. "I know. Maybe later," she slid both arms around his shoulders, tugged on his hair and ran her nails up and down his back. She looked so small in his arms, it was hard to believe she was as sexually aware as she was.
"You're thinking again," she jammed down on him.
He grunted, glared at her. "I'm just amazed by you, Kissa."
Kissa stopped, slid off and alongside his body. Planting her mouth on his, she thrust her tongue in. He let her, opening for her. If she were to be his queen of the pack, then he'd have to treat her as an equal. He'd have to realize she, like Livía, was better than he.
She pulled back and crawled down his body, spreading her fingers across his chest. A free hand grabbed an erect nipple, rolled it between her fingers. Waves of pleasure shot from his chest to his cock. Then she engulfed the head of his prick in her mouth. He hissed at the contact, his body tensed. Every bit of blood rushed downward to his engorged cock.
Kissa's throat relaxed, then gripped his entire shaft, amazing him at just how skilled she was.
He reached for her, stroked her hair and tried to maintain his composure, but it became difficult with each stroke Kissa gave him. She cupped his balls, sucked him, drew her tongue along his shaft, faster and faster she pumped him.
He clenched his fists, tried not to hurt her. "I'm going to come if you keep that up!"
She popped his cock out of her mouth just long enough to speak. "Come, my prince.” Then, she drew his entire length in her moth and sucked hard.
Joséf exploded, clutching her scalp while her head bobbed up and down him. He shot hard, fast, and several times inside her pretty little mouth before he stopped.
She drank him down, sucking his entire seed from him. Pulling his cock out of her mouth with a free hand rewarded her with spurts of cum. Kissa licked her lips, then kissed the head of his cock.
She cleaned him off and accepted him. Just like Livía before her, they’d taken sex to an entirely deeper level than Joséf thought possible. Why was their entire existence based on sexuality? What was the gain of that? Why did any of it matter at the moment?
"You know I love you, right, my prince?” Kissa nibbled her way down Joséf's stomach and back up again.
He squirmed beneath her, sighing from the painful pleasure.
"Tell me you love me, my prince. Tell me again," she breathed the words out, and they sent electricity straight through his heart to his cock.
"I do. Damn it but I do love you, Kissa."
She settled against him. Her breathing slow
ed, her pulse returned to her normal beat, a faint sound he heard if he listened closely.
Pressure eased in his spine, wounds healed slowly. Nerves were on fire for a different reason than from pain, and his heart beat with pride. The clouded portion of his mind held worry, but he felt it slipping away. Istvan, Dave, were they okay? How was he going to leave the pack so soon, if they weren't really solidified? What was so important that he would up and leave, breaking a promise to an Ancient who could surely kill him?
Kissa would have to come with him, he couldn't leave her here. The pack would retaliate.
So many damn questions.
Snuggling closer, Kissa wrapped her arms around him, stealing his mind back to reality. She wanted to keep him safe like Livía, but he knew better. Safety was a lie in this world, something the humans told themselves during the day so they'd sleep better at night.
Inside him, his dual nature existed just to push him down and into dangerous territory. His only reason had been to save those who could not save themselves.
Kissa couldn't quite save herself, but she damn sure didn't lie down and die, either. His respect for her had grown exponentially since he'd first stumbled into the woods with her tagging along.
At least some things worked in his favor. He sighed hard and held Kissa against him. Rolling them both on their side, he buried his head in her hair and smelled the fresh, lupine aroma that was Kissa.
He'd never forget her scent. Surrounding him, it would always help guide him.
"Back to America. What's so pressing, Kissa?"
"Shh," and she snuggled closer into him. "Not yet."
"But—"
Two fingers snaked between them and pressed against his lips. "Just give us this peace, my prince. I promise, tomorrow we'll move."
He settled in on the blanket and closed his eyes. Temporary safety, maybe. But it was an illusion he'd be happy to live with until tomorrow.
8
The fire burned high in the camp, providing warmth to the wolves against the chill of the morning. It had taken Joséf and Kissa a couple of days to come back to camp as he healed and rested, fully, for the first time since he arrived.
An Alpha Torn (Nights Of Lust Book 1) Page 14
