Every pull of his lips against my skin seemed to intensify my orgasm. My pussy clenched so tight around him I was surprised that he could move at all, let alone pick up the pace. The first time we were together was amazing, but it couldn’t compare to this. Marcus was a big guy and very aware of his size. I could feel his hesitation to go faster, even as my pussy convulsed around him.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said.
“I trust you.”
Something in my words seemed to unleash something within him. His voice was soft against my ear, whispering so many sexy things. Telling me what I felt like inside.
When he put his knee between my thighs and finally spread them wide, I came again. I was surprised the windows didn’t shatter with my screams. Marcus put his arms around me, pulling me back against him as he rose to his knees. He positioned himself back on his heels. My back was pressed against his chest, my legs spread wide as I straddled his thighs. One arm cradled my breasts while his other hand slid between my legs. The moment he touched my clit I jumped.
“Shhh,” he whispered. “I know it’s difficult, but try to hold still. Just enjoy it.”
I tilted my head back to look at him and gasped. The look on his face as he touched me was incredible. So many emotions passed over his features: pleasure, tenderness, and barely restrained hunger.
He bent to kiss me and I moaned into his mouth. He moved at a slow, maddening pace as he continued to stroke my clit. My thighs were slick with my arousal, making it difficult to keep from moving so as not to slide too much. I was trying to hold still as he’d asked, to just take it all in and let him pleasure me, but I couldn’t stand it any longer.
I pulled back from his kiss, brushing my face against his goatee like a cat. I placed my hands behind me on either side of his waist, using his hips for leverage. At first I moved tentatively, just a slow forward thrust of my hips. But Marcus’ sharp intake of breath sent me over the edge. I ground my ass back against him, enjoying the varied depth of his shaft as I moved. He took my cue and rubbed my clit faster. I rode him till my thighs shook with the effort and still I had no intention of stopping. But then Marcus gave my pussy a little slap and I came so hard I had to stop.
He lifted me again, laying me down beside him. Even after the intensity of what we’d just shared, the emotion in his eyes was hard to take. I opened for him, taking him in my arms as I wrapped my legs around his waist. Even as wet as I was it took a few minutes to take him fully at this angle. Marcus cradled my face in his hands as he kissed me. He didn’t just kiss my lips. He kissed my face, my eyelids, my throat. As he pressed his lips to my forehead the raw emotion was overpowering.
“Have I hurt you?”
I didn’t realize I’d been crying until he said something. The look on his face said just how upset he was at the thought of his lovemaking being the cause of my tears.
“No.” I took his face in my hands, pulling him back down. “Please, don’t stop.”
Whatever battle I had been fighting I knew then that I’d surrendered the moment I saw his face again. Marcus thrust into me once more, slow and hard. He kissed me deeply, his muscles tensing as he came. I had never been so “intimate” with anyone in my life.
I lay there for several heartbeats, gasping for breath and shedding what seemed to be involuntary tears. Marcus rolled over and sat beside me. He reached for me and I crawled onto his lap. He held me close, stroking wet strands of hair back from my face.
“What have I done to make you cry?” he asked softly.
“Nothing. It’s nothing you’ve done.” I pressed my face into the hollow of his throat as he bent over me and held on as if my life depended on it. I never wanted to let him go again. “When we were together before, what I felt for you was so strong it scared the hell out of me. Especially since it wouldn’t last forever.” I’m sure he knew I was referring to my own mortality. He looked like he was about to say something, but I stopped him with my next words. “I feel like I’ve wasted the last seven years of our lives.”
Marcus took my face in his hands. “Make it up to me.”
I wasn’t sure I could, but I was damn sure going to try. Before I got the chance, someone knocked at the door.
“Everything all right in there folks?”
Marcus and I both froze.
“Cops,” he said.
“Are you sure?”
He gave me a skeptical look. “Have you ever been at a party that got raided before?”
I laughed. “No.”
“Well, I have.” He pointed to the door. “And they sound just like that.”
“Everybody okay in there?”
We scrambled from the bed, trying desperately to find something to put on. Where the hell were my clothes? Another knock at the door and Marcus finally responded, “Coming.”
I fought the urge to laugh at his choice of words while I looked for something to cover up with. I did not want police to see me wrapped in a bed sheet. The black dress shirt he’d worn to the funeral was thrown over a chair in the corner. If it fit Marcus then the shirt should reach almost to my knees. I snatched it on and started fumbling with the buttons. Marcus grabbed his robe and turned toward the door.
“Marc?”
He looked back at me and I couldn’t help laughing. The look on his face said he clearly didn’t understand what I thought was so funny.
“Are you going to the door with your dick hanging out?”
“Oh.” He flashed me one of his wicked, side-of-the-mouth grins as he closed his robe and finally opened the door.
“Is there a problem?” Marcus asked.
The instant he opened the door I could tell the officers recognized him. The tall, dark-haired man standing closest stuttered a little and the shorter blond behind him just stared open-mouthed. This was a hell of a time to have fans show up.
Chapter Fifteen
From where I sat at the foot of the bed I had a really good view of the officers. Marcus was so tall that I could see underneath his arm, despite his attempt to stand directly in front of me. The protective gesture was nice, but I didn’t have a problem with people knowing I was in his hotel room.
The dark-haired officer seemed to collect himself first. “We’ve had some complaints about the noise.”
I found it odd that in a hotel that catered to vampires, they never heard people scream. Or perhaps it was the nature of my screams they found so alarming.
Bless his heart, he was blushing so dark he looked purple. The policeman cleared his throat nervously. “A lady next door said she’d never heard a woman scream like that before.”
You couldn’t have wiped Marcus’ grin off with sandpaper. I heard his thoughts just as clear, “You’re damn right she was screaming.”
Not used to having other people’s voices in my head, I jumped a little when it happened. It took me a second to realize he really hadn’t said anything out loud.
“She thought somebody was being killed,” the officer clarified.
I glanced around the room, surveying the damage we’d done. My first thought was that it looked like a crime scene. One of my shoes was by the door, my shirt was underneath the window, my bra was over one of the lamps, Marcus’ clothes were nowhere to be found except the shirt I was wearing and I had no clue in hell where my panties were. And let’s not forget that the bed was completely destroyed. There were also traces of blood on one of the pillows where I’d been bitten. Holy shit.
I couldn’t fight back my laughter any longer. Marcus reached behind him and I stepped forward to take his hand. I couldn’t help but notice how perfectly I fit beneath his arm and how good it felt to be held against his side.
“As you can see, she has not been harmed,” Marcus said smoothly.
“I assure you, I’m not in any pain,” I added.
At my words the officer blushed even darker which I didn’t think was possible, and Marcus laughed. They seemed as startled as I was when I’d heard him laugh for the first time. His
on-camera persona was so frightening, it was hard to imagine him smiling the way he was. His normally smooth hair was in complete disarray and he still couldn’t wipe off that grin. Seeing “Nightmare” standing there in nothing but a robe with a half-naked woman must have been a shocker, particularly in light of the complaint.
“I don’t mean to sound rude, but isn’t this something that hotel security would normally do?” I asked.
“Yes ma’am. It is. But given the nature of the guests who stay here—” He turned to Marcus who gave a really impressive “in character” glower. “Well, the police usually respond when vampires are involved. Just to be safe.”
“We understand,” Marcus said. There was that grin again. “We’ll try to keep it down.”
“It’s his turn next though, so if you get complaints about a man screaming, I’m not killing him either.”
I don’t know what came over me. Given their reaction I couldn’t seem to stop myself from teasing them. Marcus tugged my hair gently from behind as if to say, “Don’t provoke the police, dear.”
He was just about to close the door when the blond cop finally found his voice. “Sir, could I have your autograph please?”
Marcus looked surprised. “Um, sure.”
He stepped back so that the officers could move just inside the door.
“Do you guys have a piece of paper?” Marcus asked.
I watched as they rummaged through their pockets. Finally, they handed him their ticket books. I laughed softly while he signed them both. As the officers backed toward the door the dark-haired one said, “Thanks. And if we get another call, it’ll be us to come back. Um, we won’t disturb you or anything, but we have to respond.”
The blond spoke then, “If you hear another knock at the door, don’t mind us.”
Marcus closed the door as he repeated, “We’ll try to keep it down.”
He leaned back against the door and nearly doubled over laughing. “I’m sorry, Dawn. I hope you weren’t embarrassed.”
“No. I’m a little shocked though. I’ve never had a noise complaint against me before.”
“Can you imagine what they’re going to say when they get back to the station?”
I don’t think I’d ever seen him laugh so hard. It was nice. My smile was involuntary. It felt good to see him this way.
“Look at this room,” he said, gesturing around as he stood up. “Holy shit.”
This time I laughed too. “I think you impressed them.”
“Oh, my God. I didn’t realize it looked this bad.” He ran a hand through his hair before stretching. As he did this he arched his back, causing his robe to open wide again. “You want to take a shower with me?”
My hair was tangled and my body was covered in sweat. A shower sounded wonderful.
“Sure.”
Marcus didn’t exactly fit in normal showers, especially not the ones in hotels. His head sticks up above the top of the curtain and he has to adjust the shower nozzle to hit him right in the face or keep ducking down to get his hair wet. I’d only taken a shower with him once before and had forgotten how much fun it was to watch. This is what I was thinking about when he turned on the water. That is, until he dropped the robe. I could have looked at his body all night and still not be tired of it. He has the most incredible long legs, with perfectly sculpted thighs. They’re the kind of thighs that make you want to touch them, flexing every time he moves, drawing your eyes upward whether you’re aware of it or not. Every time I thought I’d decided on a favorite body part, he’d turn and I’d change my mind. When he turned his back to me and bent down to test the water, I could no longer resist the urge to touch him again. He rose as I moved my hands over the expanse of his back, reveling in the feel of every muscular curve. I wrapped my arms around his waist and sighed.
Marcus put his hand over mine and patted them gently. “Are you feeling okay? I tried not to take too much blood.”
He turned in my arms and held me against the front of his body. The top of my head barely reached his chest. I felt small, but not helpless. In fact, I felt powerful when I was with Marcus. Here was this big man who could do anything to me he wanted. He didn’t have to do anything I said … but he did everything.
“I’m a little weak, but other than that I feel fine. Of course, that could just be from the sex.”
He kissed the top of my head and turned to check the water again. “I think it’s ready.”
When he moved the curtain back I noticed the new tattoo on the inside of his left biceps. It was a gothic style tombstone in the shape of an angel with its wings spread. The stone at the angel’s feet read, “Amanda.”
He noticed where I was looking and stretched his arm out so that I could see the new addition better. I traced my fingers over the design solemnly, wondering where I might end up on his skin someday.
“It’s beautiful. I think she would have liked it.”
“I’m not leaving until I find out who did this to her. When I go, I hope you’ll give some thought to coming with me this time.”
“I will.” I ran my hand over his arm again, admiring his other tattoos as I spoke. “Stay with me while you’re here.” I made it more of a statement than a question.
He answered without hesitation. “All right. It’s too late to leave tonight, but we should probably check out early tomorrow.”
A thrill ran through me. The realization that he would be in my home was a great feeling, and one I hadn’t expected. In that instant I knew how much I wanted this.
Marcus motioned for me to stand under the water and I sighed when he started to wash my hair. I’d never had a man wash my hair before. The feel of his long fingers massaging my scalp made me forget what we were talking about until he said, “How about we leave at noon? Is that too early for you?”
“Isn’t it too early for you? I mean, it’ll be daylight outside.”
I turned around to face him and he winked. “I told you, I’ve always been an insomniac.”
“But you’re a vampire. You’re supposed to sleep during the day or die or whatever it is you do when the sun is up.”
He laughed. “Well, technically I’m dead all the time. I do feel compelled to rest when the sun first rises. But I don’t need much sleep, even by vampire standards. I can be awake during the day, I just can’t be exposed to sunlight. Besides, it’ll be easier for me to leave when people aren’t expecting it. After what happened tonight, it won’t be long before fans and the press finds out where I’m staying. We should get out of here as soon as possible.”
“How will you leave?”
“Easy. I’ll put on one of my cloaks.”
“You mean one of the ones like you wear to the ring? You travel with those?”
He shrugged. “Hey, I’m used to going straight from one show to the next. I’ve traveled with spandex somewhere in my luggage for over forty years. Does it really surprise you that much that I’d have a cloak?”
I laughed. “I guess not.”
He pulled me close again and I rested my head against his chest while he rinsed my hair. The way Marcus touched me wasn’t sexual and yet it was almost as intimate as making love.
“When the police were here, I could hear your thoughts inside my head. Well, just one thought. That didn’t happen before.”
“Remember when I said that once I bit you, there were certain things that couldn’t be undone?”
“Yes.”
“The connection between us is one of those things. With every bite we will become more of a part of each other. It’s one of the reasons that vampires don’t often feed from the same person more than once.”
A pang of jealousy ran through me and I fought to control it. In seven years he must have bitten other women. Could they get inside his head the way I did tonight? The thought was much more painful than I’d expected.
“Are you connected this way to anyone else?” I asked.
He smiled and I wondered if he was reading my emotions. Maybe it was
because his expression was kind rather than amused that made me melt back against him. Whatever it was, I knew that Marcus understood my fears.
“Other than occasionally feeding from David, I go to blood banks or drink a blood substitute.”
My shoulders relaxed as he spoke, his words alleviating my concerns.
“But you could drink from anyone you wanted. Thousands of women would stab each other for the chance.”
“Which is precisely why I don’t take advantage.”
Marcus stepped out of the shower first and wrapped a towel around his waist. He picked up another towel and spread it open in invitation. I hugged him as he wrapped me up before releasing me to finish drying.
“By the way, you heard my thought because I wanted you to,” he said.
“You tease. You can turn it off and on at will, can’t you?”
“Enough to know what you’re thinking right now.” He took a step closer, letting his towel fall to the floor. “I do believe there was some mention of making something up to me. What you’ve got in mind should do the trick.”
I wrapped my arms around his waist, enjoying the way his naked body felt against mine.
“It’s getting late. Do we have enough time?”
“How much do you need?”
“How much do we have?” I repeated.
He looked down at me, wet hair framing his face. He was so incredibly handsome that for a moment I was taken aback, unsure of how to proceed until he answered, “Till the break of dawn.”
I smiled at the double meaning of his words. Since I knew he wouldn’t break me that meant he intended to make love to me till first light. Like I said when I first walked into his hotel room, I’d never wanted to be anywhere more.
*****
“Did I wear you out?”
Marcus ran his hands over my body, pulling back the sheet as he spoke. His big hand rubbing over my belly made me stretch cat-like until I pointed my toes, arched my back and finally opened my eyes.
Till the Break of Dawn Page 11
