“Vampires don’t cast spells, Alex,” Josiah murmured. “Only sorcerers. And witches.”
He spun to glare at the scholar. “Like hell, he didn’t! Listen, I know what happened! He…played some kind of mind game. He managed to ensnare me without touching me. I was gone, Josiah! My mind was full of lust and need and all I wanted was to be with him. He could have easily killed me.”
“So why didn’t he?”
That stopped Alex short. His mouth opened, as if to answer, and then closed when none came forth.
“You say he never touched you?” Josiah asked. His tone had that slightly distant, faraway pitch when his mind was working a hundred miles an hour.
“I made sure to keep my distance,” Alex replied. “Do you think I would be stupid enough to get close enough for a vampire to touch me?”
“Sounds like you did,” Seb smirked.
“This isn’t funny!”
Sebastian sobered. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I’ve been out of sorts lately.”
That caught Alex’s attention. “What do you mean?”
But Seb shook his head. “Nothing. Just something I’ve got to figure out.”
“You know, I read something like this,” Josiah said, mindless of other conversations. “About how vampires ensnare their victims with pheromones. I can research if you’d like and confirm it.”
“How are you going to confirm vampire pheromones?”
But Josiah was already headed back into his library, Tommy following him, and Alex knew his friend was lost in the stories and mythology that he studied extensively.
Alex turned back to Seb. “Can I have the Blade? I’m going to need it.”
“It’s in the weapons room.”
“No, it’s not.”
Seb frowned. “I put it there myself.”
“I’m telling you, it’s not there.”
“Look again,” Seb ordered and turned, walking away stiffly. Alex frowned after him. He wasn’t used to Sebastian having PMS.
An image rose sharply in his mind. The sea-blue eyes burning fiercely at him, the lingering pressure of his kiss, and the faint words you’re beautiful echoed in his ear.
He practically ran up the stairs to his room. He slammed the door behind him and leaned against the door, groaning. He couldn’t help it. All he kept seeing was him.
Wayde.
He flung off his jacket, tore off his shirt and pants and fell upon his bed, naked. His hand reached for his cock, which had remained swollen and stiff since the moment he had laid eyes on Wayde. Already it was leaking fluid, wanting so much to bury itself into Wayde’s body, so Alex used the moisture to coat the velvety skin.
He started rubbing the shaft, up and down his fist pumped, slowly at first as he brought Wayde to mind. Dark, almost black hair cut short, with the front long enough to hug his temples, the locks in a disarrayed sweep around his head. His eyes a seafoam blue and slanted just a bit at the corners. His chin was softly rounded, a slight cleft in the center breaking up the overall perfection of his looks.
Bits of the night came to him, the kisses. God! Wayde’s tongue snaking around his, pulling him deeper as the unshakeable thirst for him grew. Alex moaned at the memory of Wayde’s body pressed against his, his cock pressing through the denim material, hot and heavy. He wanted him. It was like a fire coursing through his blood and he started pumping faster, his fist squeezing his cock as he jerked and tugged. He could picture Wayde naked, his glorious body stretched out beneath him on his bed, under him as he thrust into his tight ass. Over and over, harder, deeper. He’d be moaning, groaning, begging for him to come. Come. Come deep inside.
With a horse cry, Alex erupted, his warm essence coating his hands, just as his teeth sank into his lower lip. The pain only sharpened the climax, heightened it in a haze of bone-melting languor.
The orgasm sang through his system, satisfying, but far from what he really wanted. What he needed, what he craved, was to taste Wayde’s submission and his hot climax across his tongue.
Fuck! He was in trouble.
Chapter Seven
Wayde paced nervously around in his living room. What the hell had happened? He had held Alex in his hands, had been all prepared to drink from him, fuck him, and yet…yet tenderness had welled up inside him. The only other time that had happened was when he’d caught Daphne as she fainted in his arms.
Mine.
Damn. Both of them?
“Are you sure you’re all right?” Daphne’s soft voice asked.
He shook off his confused feelings and looked at her. She stood in the entrance of his library with the back light draping her form in shadows. Her golden hair lay in gentle waves over her slim shoulders, and though he couldn’t see her pale blue eyes, he felt their impact.
“Yes, love,” he said as he walked toward her. As he got closer, the lighting evened out and he saw her eyes widen with awareness. His last lover had been Shade, a sorcerer named Simon that now worked for the Council. Simon had wanted more, but Wayde’s heart hadn’t been engaged. Not like now. Now his old heart beat with renewed passion and he ran a finger down her soft cheek. Vampires didn’t take gender into account when they were sexually aroused, but he was surprised to find himself drawn to both Daphne and Alex at the same time.
He heard her poor heart pound and felt her blood heat up. It excited him and his fangs pushed heavily against his lip. It took every ounce of control to slide them back into his gum. Daphne’s eyes dilated as they landed upon his lips and didn’t move. He knew she was thinking about kissing him and damned if he didn’t want that, too.
“Daphne?”
She looked up at him, her pale blue eyes full of latent desire. His cock immediately hardened, a sign that not only did he want her blood, but he wanted her body.
“Would you kiss me, Wayde?”
He wanted to. Good God, did he want to.
“Are you sure, Daphne?”
She nodded and that was enough to break his resolve. He’d spent the past fifty years alone. He’d fed, of course, off willing donor’s who’d traded blood for sex. But this…this…want for Daphne wasn’t like anything he’d ever experienced before. Well, except for Alex. Years by himself and suddenly there were two people he wanted more than just for feeding upon.
She wanted him. He could sense it just as thoroughly as he knew the moon hung high and full in the sky. He slid his arm around her waist and pulled her into his body. She gave a little gasp as she settled her hands upon his chest and stared up at him. Then, slowly, giving her a chance to say no, he lowered his head and his mouth settled on hers. At first it was a purely chaste kiss, a mere pressure of lips touching one another. But it wasn’t enough. He pressed harder, opening his mouth and letting his tongue slide between her lips.
His tongue twined with hers, jolting a salacious moan from deep within her that had his cock pulsing in his pants. He explored each hidden corner of her mouth, sweeping aside any doubt that this was exactly what he wanted. He was on fire from her kiss alone and could only imagine what it would feel like to sink into her tight little pussy.
He pulled back and stared at her until she opened her eyes. They were dreamy and full of passion for him and it made him feel ten feet tall. Odd, considering he was a vampire.
“I’ve never been kissed,” Daphne whispered as she stared up at him.
“I know.”
“Is it always like that? Always so…amazing?”
He shook his head, cupped her face, and smiled bemused down at her. “No. Initial attraction is, of course, very common. But that wasn’t just initial attraction, Daphne. I’ve had my fair share of first kisses and I have to admit, that was…divine.”
He watched the blush darken over her cheeks and his thirst rose once again. Yes, he wanted her, physically as well as hungrily. But he knew she wasn’t ready for the kind of intense relationship he craved and needed. Her heart was too fragile for that and he wanted her around as long as possible.
Forever.
/> He was going to have to tell her about her heart soon. She needed medical help to fix what was broken, otherwise he was going to have to watch her die at such a young age.
“Will you…make love with me now?”
“Not when you’re still sick, Daphne.”
“Oh, but I’m not,” she protested.
He sighed and eased back, although he still held her hand in his. “But you are, aren’t you?”
She frowned and sadness clouded her eyes. He felt her mentally pulling back from him and a second later she let go of his hand. She didn’t say a word to him as she turned and left. When he heard her bedroom door click shut, he closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh.
So she knew. She knew she was dying.
Then why the hell hadn’t she done something?
****
He couldn’t stop the thirst that hit him. He’d tried to ignore it. He’d tried to appease it with animals and bagged blood, but it wasn’t the same and he was so hungry. Always hungry.
So he tore through the night, heading to the area that would provide a lot of human traffic but would allow him to stay in hidden in the shadows. Westrin Park offered him a smorgasbord of options and he sat in the darkness with his eyes closed as he dragged in deep whiffs of the people walking by. He could smell the blood and his fangs painfully descended as the craving clawed at his gut. Even his fingers turned into talons, ready to rip open the throats of everyone who passed by. He could revel in their terror, bathe in their blood. Satisfy the hunger that never left him.
Instead he waited. Some far, distant corner of his mind still remembered that attacking and killing humans was wrong, but the need inside of him over rode any moral instinct. He waited for the right person.
And then he found her.
Chapter Eight
Daphne turned on the television the next afternoon as she began to clean the living room. As she dusted, the news came on, talking about another killing. She paused and turned up the volume.
“The body of another woman has been found near Westrin Park. Although the police haven’t made any statement yet, sources claim the victim is like the other two women found around the area.”
She saw Alex behind the reporter, standing with the other police as a covered body was loaded into an ambulance. Sadness for the poor woman washed through her, as well as a chill of awareness. It wasn’t safe for women on the streets at night, and if Wayde hadn’t taken her in, she’d be walking them after her shift.
Rising, she wandered into the kitchen and looked at Alex’s card she’d taped to the refrigerator. Making a split decision, she picked up the phone and dialed his cell number.
It rang twice before he picked up.
“Malden,” he answered.
“Hello, Alex, it’s me, Daphne,” she said.
There was a slight pause. “Daphne? Are you all right?”
“Yes. I saw the news, though, and thought of you. Are you all right?”
“You called because you’re concerned about me?”
“I am,” she confirmed. “Was that silly of me?”
“No,” he answered quickly. “That’s actually sweet of you. I’m working on this case and it’s…bad.”
“I can imagine,” she murmured.
“How have you been?”
“I’ve been well, Alex. I’m on the last of my antibiotics, so I’ll probably be leaving Wayde soon.”
“What about Mr. Wallace? Has he stayed with you? What about last night?”
“He worked last night and came in late.”
“Do you stay up for him?”
“I’ve always been a night owl,” she said. “I usually find nighttime jobs—”
“No,” he interrupted. “Don’t do that, not until I catch this maniac. I don’t want anything to hurt you.”
Her breath caught and through the phone connection she heard his concern.
“Do you hear me, Daphne?”
“Yes,” she answered softly. “I heard you. And I promise, no night work until you catch the murderer.”
“Thank you,” he said. “Daphne…may I come over and see you?”
“Today?”
“Yes. Just for a visit. I like that you called me.”
“Okay. How about I make you a sandwich?”
“That would be nice. See you in an hour?”
“All right,” she replied and hung up the phone, her heart thumping in her chest. She had to take a deep breath to calm down and then hurried into her bedroom to change into something a little more attractive than a sweatshirt and yoga pants. Wayde had so kindly gone to her apartment and picked up clothes and her toiletries and she made sure to repay his kindness for all he’d done for her by cleaning and cooking meals whenever he was home.
Once she freshened up, she went back into the kitchen and began to prepare Alex’s food. When the doorbell rang, she quickly opened and smiled at Alex. Once again, his sexy grin knocked her for a loop and she stumbled back a step to allow him to enter. Alex quickly grabbed her and pulled into his body to steady her, which made her mind go blank as she stared up into his amber gaze.
It was as if a volcano had erupted and lava was flowing through her veins. She could barely think, and couldn’t say a word as she watched his head slowly lower toward hers. And then his lips touched hers, so slight and gentle that she wouldn’t have believed he was kissing her at all, except she watched him. He watched her back, judging her response, waiting to see if she would accept him or push him away. One kiss led to another, and he nibbled on her mouth, light little kisses that made her yearn. She wished he would deepen them and kiss her properly.
But clearly, he wanted her to give him permission. So she did. She took the initiative, her hands reaching up to his wrap around his neck as her body arched against his hard, muscular one. Her eyes closed just as his did and when he pulled her closer into his body, her lips parted. His tongue surged in, tangling with hers, moving in and out as her mind spun out into bliss. Whimpering a little, she arched her back as her hands buried into his thick, silky hair.
Finally, when he lifted his head, she stared at him through dazed eyes.
“Oh my,” she whispered and licked her lips.
His gaze followed her tongue and he groaned. “Oh, Daphne. I wish I could take you into your room and show you how much I want you. But that would definitely be the wrong move right now.”
“It would?” she asked, wondering why it would so wrong.
“Yes,” he answered firmly. “We know nothing about each other. And you’re living with Wayde Wallace.”
Wayde. The name poured ice over her heated body, and she jerked back from Alex’s arms and smoothed her hands down her pants.
“Right,” she said. “I have your lunch ready.”
She turned and walked away, leading him into the kitchen where she had a plate ready for him at the bar.
“Daphne,” Alex said and grabbed her arm, halting her further retreat. When she looked up at him, she saw all the yearning she was feeling in his beautiful whiskey-colored eyes. “Please don’t feel like you did something wrong.”
“But I did do something wrong,” she replied softly. “Wayde took me in. He takes care of me. And I kissed you like I haven’t done the exact same thing with him. You do something to me, Alex, something profound. But Wayde deserves my loyalty. And I can’t betray that. I’m sorry.”
“So am I, Daphne,” Alex said with a sigh of frustration.
****
The club was in full swing when Wayde arrived. Music blaring a techno beat, smoke lightly filtering over the dance floor. Overhead lights of rose, blue, and green brought out multicolored hues of the people bumping and grinding together. Wayde immediately felt lust fill his blood. He could feel the chaotic energy of everyone around him and he breathed deeply, letting the ecstasy give him a nice buzz. He didn’t want to fall into punch-drunk love too quickly.
Tartarus was perhaps the only club around that acted as a sort of neutral ground for the
Shade and humans to meet. Although, technically, it was a human dance club the people who came knew what sort of creatures partied with them. Wayde spotted a few warlocks, werewolves, and fairies mingling. He met their surprised looks and gave each a polite nod of greeting, knowing they were wondering what he was doing out and about. Like most vampires he was known to keep to himself, but his attraction to Alex and Daphne had changed everything. Something strange was going on and Wayde wasn’t sure what it was, but he needed to calm his libido the fuck down before he went anywhere near them again.
He moved onto the dance floor and let the music flow into him. Before long, he was moving his hips to the beat, dancing with men and women alike. Wayde felt his thirst roar to life and his cock sprung to life, turning to steel behind his zipper. God, he wanted to fuck.
No, he needed to fuck.
His pupils elongated as he began to search for a partner. Male, female, Shade or human…shit, none of that mattered right then. But as he searched through the dim interior, through all the faces, his gaze landed on one half of the duo who had driven him to Tartarus in the first place.
Alexander Malden.
The Shade cop stood still in the center of the dance floor, only a few feet from him, staring at Wayde as if he wanted to suck him down and lick him clean. It made Wayde’s cock ache with desperation and before he knew what he was doing, he rushed toward Alex. He cupped his face and pulled him down to kiss him.
The kiss was not gentle. It was rough, raw. Wayde lips pressed Alex’s open and his tongue slipped, seeking his, twisting with it, dancing. He pressed his body more firmly into Alex’s, needing to feel every inch of him. With surprise, Alex’s hard cock pressed back, pulsing.
Wayde’s hand roamed over Alex’s hard body, over the tightly defined shoulders down a corded back. Sweat slicked his skin. He pushed Alex’s shirt up far enough to lick his way down his neck to suck on the erect nipples. Alex was moaning, although Wayde couldn’t hear it over the roar of the music. They grinded against each other, humping on the dance floor. No one watched them. No one cared. The decadence of the situation only added to heat surrounding them, consuming them.
As Midnight Loves the Moon Page 4
