by Scott, K. M.
He smiled in spite of himself, but even more so because her giggling made him want to smile. Sitting there with her at a cafe enjoying a drink, he realized he was happy. Genuinely happy.
It had been a long time.
“I’ve missed that smile. I know there hasn’t been much to smile about so far, but I hope I get to see it again.”
“Remind you of Teagan?”
Slowly, she shook her head. “No. It reminds me of Declan.”
Saint emptied his wine glass and motioned for the waiter to pay the check. “It’s time to go.”
In seconds, they were on the other side of France and back at Solenne’s house. In the place where the table and chairs had been all those years before when he’d first come to this house stood a bench, and Saint sat to enjoy the cool night air. Mist from the river rolled over the grass, making everything dewy, but he didn’t want to go inside yet. For just a few minutes more, he wanted to enjoy his freedom.
“I’ll give you some privacy. If you need anything, I’ll be right inside,” Solenne said quietly.
“No, you don’t have to go. In fact, I’d prefer if you stayed.”
Without a word, she sat down next to him on the bench. For a long time, they sat in silence, looking up at the starry night sky and the thought occurred to him that he loved this house. Away from so much of the world, it was a sanctuary, not a prison like he’d thought of it. Slowly, what it had meant to him all those years ago came back, and he let the feeling settle into that long empty space in his chest.
Staring up at the sky, he said the words he’d put off since he’d arrived there. “Solenne, I need you. None of my vampires will help me, and I can’t last much longer on human blood.”
He deserved a hard time from her. He knew this. Barely a minute had passed before tonight when he hadn’t been a prick to her. When she finally turned to him and spoke, it wasn’t a hard time he got.
It was worse.
“That’s what dinner was about? You needn’t have bothered. I told Vasilije I’d be willing to give you my blood until your vampires show up, and the offer’s still good. You’re no good to any of us if you can’t even stand up.”
Her cold response made him wince. He deserved that too, but after their time together, he hadn’t expected it.
Solenne stood and positioned herself in front of him to allow him to feed.
“No. Sit down,” he ordered gently.
“Saint, you need this.”
“I do, but my way.”
Solenne sat down, and he knelt in front of her. Slowly, he ran his palms up her thighs so her knees fell open. Leaning in, he inhaled the scent of flowers on her skin and his fangs shot into his mouth.
“Solenne…”
His lips touched the soft skin of her neck and his head began to swim. It had been so long since he’d enjoyed the taste of a vampire female. Anticipation raced through his veins like a drug hitting his bloodstream.
Solenne stroked the back of his head and tenderly pulled him toward her. “Take what you need.”
Unlike in the hall near her bedroom, this time he gently pierced her vein and waited for her blood to touch his tongue. The first taste of her made his cock stiffen, and for the first time in so long, he yearned to truly share himself with a woman.
But that wasn’t possible.
He reveled in the strength Solenne’s blood created in him. What had been absent from him for longer than he wanted to admit flowed through him now, bringing his body and soul back to life.
He could let himself need this again.
Eleven
The feel of Saint’s mouth drawing what he needed from her body thrilled Solenne and silently she pined to feel him inside her. To feel his body invading hers, making her submit to his long-denied needs. Desire coiled inside her driving the urge to feel him under her fingertips. Trailing over the soft hair on his head, her touch elicited moans that vibrated against her skin.
He was so powerful between her legs, his body pressing open her thighs as she struggled to close them to fend off the orgasm that would be proof of her desperate longing for him. His chest pressed against her, forcing her nipples to sensitive peaks, just more of her that craved his touch.
As if to torture her, he kept his hands motionless on the tops of her thighs, and with each pull on her vein, she prayed he’d move his hands to touch her anywhere. Fear of his response kept her still until she could bear it no longer, and slowly she inched forward to feel his body fully pressed against her. She didn’t care anymore if he knew how much she wanted him.
Her pussy ached for the touch of him, and with the last scoot of her behind forward on the bench, the wet juncture between her legs made contact with his hard abs. A deep groan escaped from between his lips and reverberated against her neck, and for the first time he moved his hands, pressing firmly into her flesh near her hips.
His fingers were so close. Just a few more inches and he’d give her what she’d waited so long for. What she needed so badly she’d risk the humiliation of rejection once more for the slimmest chance that this time he’d let her in.
The pull on her vein grew weaker, and she held him to her never wanting their time together to end. She felt him push against her hands and reluctantly she slid them over his shoulders as he raised his head to face her.
Please don’t pull away from me.
Through closed eyes, she sensed his gaze fix on her. If she never opened them, maybe this moment would never end.
In a husky voice she imagined he’d use as he lay next to her after claiming her in every way a man could possess a woman’s body, he whispered, “Look at me, Solenne.”
Tears burned her still-closed eyes as the fear that he would now yank her out of her fantasy back into the cold reality of what they were gripped her heart. The gentle touch of his hands as he cradled her face gave her hope, but still she couldn’t look at him for fear the moment would be crushed beneath his words.
“Look at me, Solenne. I need you to look at me.”
She raised her eyelids slowly and in the pale light of the moon he knelt looking up at her, his dark eyes as gentle as she knew they could be. His face, which so often had shown the hard lines of his nature, appeared softened and kind. If only his words were the same.
“Thank you. I hadn’t realized how weak I’d become until I felt your blood inside me. I’d let myself forget what strength feels like. You gave me what I needed.”
Words bubbled up inside her, mixed with the joy at hearing his words. She wanted to tell him she’d longed to see this side of him, free of anger and resentment. To see the man she knew all those years ago. Instead, she pressed her lips together so as to not ruin the moment.
And then he leaned in toward her. Tilting his head, he stared into her eyes with a look of longing, and his lips met hers in a whispersoft touch that made her heart ache.
“Sire?”
The voice of a female behind him broke the spell, and they both looked to see a young woman with long, dark hair looking down at him.
“Sire? I’m here to answer your call.”
Solenne watched in disappointment as Saint stood and moved away from her toward the stranger. One of his vampires had finally answered his summons, and what she’d given him just minutes earlier would no longer be needed.
“Maria.”
He seemed surprised by her appearance. Or was that relief she heard in his voice?
“I knew you’d come.”
Saint turned back toward Solenne and introduced her to his vampire. “You’re saved from having to deal with me anymore,” he joked.
“What do you mean?”
“You won’t have to put me up here now. Maria can give me what I need so you don’t have to be bothered.”
“You’re not leaving. You can’t. Vasilije and the other Sons need you safe,” Solenne stammered out as her head began to spin and her heart pounded wildly. Was she expected to just let him go with some strange woman who seemed to have suddenly app
eared from out of nowhere?
But she wasn’t some stranger. She was one of Saint’s vampires come to give him what he needed like any good vampire did for their sire.
“I’m sure we can find a room in the village. I’d hate for us to put you out,” Maria chimed in.
We.
Us.
You.
Her words rang in Solenne’s ears.
Solenne watched as Saint’s vampire urged him to leave with her at that moment, tugging his arm like a child urgently wanting to return home. Before she could convince him, Solenne had to stop him. Touching his other arm, she whispered close to his ear, “Can I talk to you over here? Alone?”
Relieved for the moment by his willingness to listen to her, she led him to under the trees and away from Maria. He looked down at her as if he couldn’t imagine what objection she could have to his leaving.
“Saint, I don’t feel good about this. Stay here with Maria. Please. You’re both welcome in my house.”
Just saying the words made her feel like her heart was being ripped from her chest. She didn’t want to beg, but she would if she had to. Whether she was merely jealous or it was something else, she couldn’t let him leave.
“Don’t worry. She’s one of mine, one of the few I was sure would come. We’ll just be in the village.”
“But what if the Archons move against you?”
“I’ll have Maria’s blood to keep me strong. Don’t worry.”
Saint turned away from her, but in desperation she grabbed his wrist and he turned to face her, his look one of surprise. “Please, Saint. Do this for me then. Please.”
He stared down at her for a long time and then smiled. “Okay. If it makes you feel better, we’ll stay.”
Solenne watched as Maria reluctantly agreed to her sire’s wishes. Very young in her ways, she seemed especially eager to be alone with him. If her sire were anyone other than Saint, Solenne wouldn’t have thought twice about it. But her sire was a vampire known for his refusal to sleep with any female of their kind.
She followed them inside wondering if she was simply being jealous. Maria had, after all, interrupted what she’d waited so long for. And the ease with which Saint had abandoned their intimate moment stung. Just watching him lead Maria toward his room, his hand tenderly placed on the small of her back to guide her, made Solenne’s chest hurt.
Will this torture ever end?
There was no way she’d be able to sleep, even though dawn was less than an hour away and she was exhausted. Solenne threw herself down onto the sofa and curled up to watch TV, but memories quickly took her over.
Closing her eyes, she listened to the sounds of the night around her. Insects scurried in the grass near her feet, another world so alive co-existing with hers. The deep call of an owl echoed nearby, and she opened her eyes to see its lush feathers of mottled tan and gold and its yellow eyes searching for its mate, but for as long as she watched the beautiful creature, it remained alone on its perch.
Sitting outside at night had become a habit born out of loneliness for her. More and more, Teagan was absent from this house and her life. Other women, other vampires took him away from her, as she feared they would after hearing his words to his brother that night.
And Declan? Each night she yearned to tell him how she dreamed of him—his strong hands caressing her body, his sensual mouth bringing her the exquisite pleasure she knew it could give her—but he remained aloof, seemingly content to watch in dutiful silence as his brother neglected her as he’d promised.
Declan’s quiet strength had kept her from going mad on all those nights alone, but she wished for so much more. At times, she even wondered if he avoided her, his brother’s cast off.
In truth, Teagan had never promised her forever when he sired her. She’d just hoped for it. The wishes of a young woman in love died hard. But she should have seen the truth of who Teagan was. He never kept it hidden, after all.
She was still his, though. Not interested enough to even return home most nights, he remained the only man she could give herself to by vampire law.
A neglectful sire, but her sire, nonetheless.
If only he’d release her…
Her mind buzzed with treacherous thoughts. No, I must resist what my very soul desires.
She hoped a walk in the night air might clear her mind. Solenne entered the garden pathway outlined with tall hedges and struggled to clear her mind of what she knew would only bring harm to those she loved. Footsteps shook her from her thoughts, and she turned to see Declan behind her.
“Teagan called. He’s not coming back for a while. Something to do with Vasilije.”
Solenne smiled at his lie. “I understand.”
“Has he agreed to let you sire?” His voice verged on pity.
Shaking her head, she smiled at the question, if not the sound of pity in his tone. She’d never even considered siring another vampire. “No, but I’ve never asked.”
“Don’t make excuses for him,” Declan said angrily. “He doesn’t deserve it.”
“I’ll be fine. I have everything I need—a beautiful home, Teagan’s money, and more freedom than most of us can dream of.”
Declan’s expression clouded over. “Freedom can be just as much a prison. Trust me. I know.”
“Is that why you stayed here? I know it’s not for your brother.”
He grimaced as if in pain and looked away from her.
“I’m sorry things between you haven’t worked out.”
She understood his disappointment. He’d also hoped for something that never could be.
Stepping closer, he stood in front of her and looked at her with a look she’d never seen from him before. It reminded her of how Teagan had looked at her in those first wonderful days of her life as a vampire.
“I stayed here because of you, Solenne.”
“Me?”
“You.”
Before she could respond, he kissed her and everything began to swim around her. Everything she’d fantasized about how his lips would feel on hers paled in comparison to the delicious sensations his kiss produced in her. Forceful, yet yielding, his mouth crushed against hers. Soft, full lips feasted on her desire, taking and increasing it at the same time.
The feelings his touch created threatened to overwhelm her. Whimpering into his mouth, she feared both continuing down the path their passions had led them to and stopping, never to have the sweet taste of him on her lips again.
“This is wrong. No matter how much I want you, I’m still his,” she said as she finally broke the kiss.
“I don’t care. But from this moment on, you’re not his. You’re mine.”
Mine. Did the man who spoke those words so full of love even exist anymore? Was the man she’d given her heart and soul to—Declan—inside him somewhere, or had he been eliminated by the man Saint had become?
A century of missing him pressed on her heart. There had been men in those years, some she even cared for, but no one had ever taken his place. After a while, it had just become easier to be alone than wish that the male next to her was Declan. Often, she’d been sure it was a foolish wish, but that desire to be with him again never went away, no matter how much she tried to convince herself she should just forget him.
Solenne groggily looked around for some indication of the time and saw the clock on the fireplace mantle. 3:38.
Stretching her body, she worked to smooth out the kinks from lying on the sofa all day. Her back arched and her legs felt like they’d been twisted like pretzels for hours. By the time she made it to the kitchen, she was cursing her age.
A noise from the side of the house Saint’s room was on made her instantly forget her body’s aches and pains, and she raced toward his room, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.
Was he…?
Were they…?
The door was closed, so she opened it just enough to see if what she feared was true. The shutters that kept out the sun were closed, and in the
darkness of the room all that could be seen were the outlines of their bodies. Saint lay on his back on the bed and Maria sat on top of him, her arms above her head.
Tears blurred Solenne’s vision, but she couldn’t look away. Jealousy settled into her chest like a two-ton weight as she saw the truth.
Saint was making love to a vampire.
Maria rocked back from his body, and Solenne watched the woman who’d dashed her hopes clasp her hands together high in the air. She’d won what Solenne had so wished could be hers.
As the tears rolled down her cheeks, Solenne saw the faint outline of an object in Maria’s hands that made her eyes widen in terror.
“No!”
In a blur, she was next to the bed, her hands on Maria’s wrists. The woman was stronger and no matter how hard Solenne squeezed, the wooden stake continued toward Saint’s heart.
Hatred flashed from Maria’s eyes. Solenne felt panic like she’d never felt before. “Don’t do this! He’s your sire. Saint, wake up!”
Her arms began to shake violently as Maria’s strength finally overpowered hers. Beneath his vampire, Saint woke as Solenne’s arms finally gave out. The stake crashed down toward his body, just missing his heart when he turned out of its way.
Maria leapt from the bed, but Saint was on her in a flash, holding her fast to the wall.
“Why? Why the fuck would you come here to kill me?” he asked in a voice laced with pain.
Maria turned away from him, but he grabbed her face and forced her to look at him. “Why? Tell me what the fuck I ever did to deserve that?”
“What did you do? How have you treated me? All of us. Other vampires are treated with love and respect. You treat us like outcasts, only wanting us when you need to feed. We mean nothing to you.”
Saint stared at her and said nothing, but Solenne couldn’t let him be attacked so viciously without saying something in his defense. “He created you. Gave you the life you now enjoy. Gave you the freedom to go wherever you please. Without him, who would you be?”
