by Vivian Wood
He sighed, leaning his head back against the wall. A sleepy human, a hungry vampire, and a horny Shifter. Sounded like a bad joke to Mason.
6
Chapter Six
Things didn’t get dire for several more hours. When the sun was high again, it found Mason and Ian staring each other down dispassionately. With each passing hour that Ian couldn’t go out to feed, the tension between them rose exponentially. The main problem was that an easy solution was right in front of their faces: Rose.
Mason had been friends with Ian long enough to have witnessed his friend feeding several times. He didn’t find it especially distasteful or sickening. Rather, Ian was very neat and hardly shed an excess drop of blood when he fed. Ian could easily suppress his own sexual desires when taking blood, too.
The problem was Rose and her reaction. A vampire’s donor could either feel pleasure or pain during the feeding, depending on the vampire’s wishes. What the vampire could not control, however, was the degree of pleasure or pain that a human felt. It ranged widely on the pain side of things, but on pleasure there was a very certain outcome. Most humans orgasmed within a minute or so, later claiming it was the best they’d ever had. Since there was no way in hell Ian was going to cause Rose pain, Mason was looking at the prospect of watching his new love interest cum from another man’s touch.
Mason’s growing attraction to Rose meant that Ian wouldn’t come right out and ask for a donation, but it didn’t keep the vampire from staring at her throat nonstop. Ian’s staring was starting to take on a predatory edge, raising Mason’s hackles.
Only Rose seemed not to notice, pulling out a thriller novel and not looking up at them again for quite some time. She was completely unaware of the battle going on between the two men she’d rescued, content to snuggle against Mason and wait until Ian gave the OK to leave. As much sympathy as he had for his friend, Mason hoped that Rose would remain none the wiser until the sun went down. At that point Ian could go out and hunt for himself.
Mason looked up from his thoughts at the sound of his friend’s footsteps approaching.
“Exploring?” Mason asked, eying Ian with concern.
Ian held up the small disposable cell phone that Rose had given him earlier, nodding.
“I found service high up in the caves. I called some of my kin, and asked them to contact your pack as well. We should have some backup by tonight, tomorrow night at the latest.”
“The sooner the better,” Mason agreed.
“Preaching to the choir,” Ian said, trying and failing to keep his tone light. His eyes strayed to Rose’s throat, giving away the depth of his hunger.
Rose looked up, sensitive to Ian’s heavy gaze.
“Are you okay?” she asked the vampire, clearly confused by his attentions.
“He’s fine,” Mason said, but Ian cut in on top of him.
“I need to feed,” Ian said, not bothering to soften the statement.
“Oh,” she said, frowning. A few seconds later her eyes widened, meaning that she’d figured out the situation. There was only one human present, and she was it.
“Oh,” she said more slowly, looking up to Mason for guidance.
Mason clenched his jaw, repressing a possessive growl aimed toward his friend.
“What? Why can’t I do it?” she asked, responding naturally to Mason’s unspoken sentiments. Turning back to Ian, she frowned again. “What am I missing?”
Ian merely raised an eyebrow and shrugged, pretending nonchalance. If the vampire wasn’t going to tell her the effects of his bite, Mason sure as hell would.
“Mind control, bloodlust, and don’t forget an uncontrollable urge to fuck,” Mason bit off, giving Ian a nasty look.
“Please. I am perfectly capable of controlling myself,” Ian hissed, affronted.
Rose looked between them and then blushed, ducking her head.
“I don’t think Mason’s talking about you, Ian. I think he’s saying that I’d want… you know, sex.”
“I would say it’s more a loss of inhibitions,” Ian clarified.
Mason shook his head, frowning.
“I’ve seen this process firsthand. It’s like you’ve given the human a handful of Ecstasy pills, although it only lasts a few minutes. At the very least, you’ll want to touch and be touched.”
“But Mason, you can keep that from happening, right?” Rose asked suddenly, her gaze locking with his despite her obvious embarrassment. “You can make sure he doesn’t take too much blood, too.”
Mason looked at her pleading face and sighed, his shoulders slumping a bit.
“If that’s what you really want,” he said, still skeptical.
“It is. I feel responsible for us all being trapped in here. This was my plan, and I just didn’t think it out very well,” Rose said, biting her lip nervously.
Mason looked from her guilty face over to Ian’s hungry one and threw his hands up.
“Fine. This isn’t a permanent solution, though,” Mason warned them both. To Ian he said, “You’ll have to go out and hunt tonight.”
Ian merely nodded, his expression neutral.
“Okay,” Rose agreed, shedding her pile of blankets. “How do we do this?”
“I usually have my donors sit on my lap. I can access the neck better that way,” Ian said simply, standing and stepping closer to Rose.
“I don’t think so,” Mason said, giving Ian a black look. Ian and Rose both looked at him, surprised at his vehemence. This whole situation was bringing out Mason’s protective instincts, casting him in the role of the overbearing male.
“What do you suggest, then?” Ian asked, his gaze narrowing. Rose was looking back and forth between her two rescues, trying to understand the less-than-subtle tension that had sprung up between them.
“She’ll sit in my lap, and you will take her wrist,” Mason commanded. A fleeting look of amusement flashed over Ian’s face before he acceded with a shrug. Rose merely looked more baffled than ever.
“Come,” Mason ordered her. He brought his knees up and apart, making a place to cradle her in the shelter of his body. To his immense pleasure, she obeyed him immediately rather than voicing the hundred questions he could see she so wanted to ask. She took a calming breath and then sat just in front of him, scooting backward until her back was snug against his front.
“I’m going to hold you. For restraint, I mean,” Mason said. Not waiting for an answer, he slid his arms around Rose’s waist. She resisted for a moment before relaxing back against his chest. Mason leaned back against the wall, the sweetly clean scent of Rose’s hair enveloping him and almost distracting him from noticing Ian settling close by.
Ian grasped Rose’s wrist, and her whole body went tense against Mason’s again. Mason rubbed his hands over her arms, which seemed to relax her slightly. Still, he could feel her heartbeat and breathing spike as Ian brought his lips to her wrist.
Ian didn’t stretch the moment, his fangs dropping only a second before he plunged them into Rose’s tender flesh. Rose made a muffled sound of pain, jolting almost violently in Mason’s arms. Mason tightened his hold, but just as quickly Rose mellowed.
Ian moaned quietly, and then slurped indelicately as he drank.
“Oh,” Rose said, her tone one of soft surprise. The tension melted from her body, leaving her draped over Mason’s body like a piece of silk. She sucked in a breath and held it, released it with painstaking slowness. Her body warmed in his embrace, every inch of skin flushing sweetly.
Rose shuddered, her breath hitching and releasing as her breathing grew shallow. Mason was completely enthralled, feeling every tiny movement she made and inhaling deeply as her scent took on a musky undertone. Perspiration broke out across her skin, sharpening her scent just that much more. Mason took it all in, content to watch her blossom in his arms.
At least until Rose’s free hand began to wander, creeping from her lap to touch Mason’s arm, his shoulder, his neck. These were no tentative touches, but rather
wordless demands. When she reached behind herself to cup her palm to his neck, she arched her back just a bit and moaned. Her nails bit into his skin suddenly, bringing Mason to full awareness. The enthrallment abated, leaving Mason painfully aroused while Rose rocked against him.
Still, he didn’t touch her. He would never take a female against her will, even one as lovely and tempting as Rose. His lack of movement seemed only to encourage Rose. It didn’t help his situation any when she started pressing her ass back toward him, grinding against his erection. Mason gritted his teeth, determined not to have her unman him so easily.
Rose grabbed one of his hands, dragging it up to cup one of her breasts. Mason forced himself not to do as she wanted, started to pull his hand away. She grabbed his hand again, this time squeezing it roughly around the soft mound of her breast. Mason flexed his hand ever so slightly, producing a pleased moan from Rose.
No, damn it! He was trying to do the right thing here and she wasn’t helping a bit, the minx!
Mason took a deep breath and reminded himself that Rose wasn’t herself, that Ian’s bite was producing this lust. He, on the other hand, had no such excuse.
He looked over to see if Ian had finished, only to find an empty space where his friend had been. Obviously Ian wasn’t the one who needed help controlling his desires, unlike Mason. The vampire had taken what he’d needed and vanished, leaving Mason to deal with his donor.
Rose grabbed his hand again, this time in both of hers. She pulled his hand up and licked his fingertips, sending heat racing through his veins yet again. She dragged his hand down, down until his palm slid across her flat stomach and lower. His dampened fingertips touched a bit of lace. Mason craned his neck to find that she’d managed to unzip her pants and push them down over her hips, leaving just a pair of white panties to cover herself.
He pulled away, but she dragged his hand back down further this time. No matter, Mason was much stronger than Rose. Or so he thought. When he withdrew his hand again, Rose pleaded with him.
“Please,” begged prettily, writhing in his embrace.
“You don’t know what you’re saying,” Mason said, surprised at the roughened sound of his own voice.
“Mason,” she whispered, causing him to completely still. “Mason, please! Please.”
The sound of his name on her lips broke him, stripped away any thought of leaving her like this. He would do anything to hear her croon to him again. Perhaps…
But no. Mason would help her find her release, and there he would stop. He wanted Rose alright, but not like this.
“Mason?” she entreated, confused at his total stillness.
Mason pushed her panties down, exposing her completely. He licked his fingertips again, then reached down to touch her. Her mons was covered in soft, damp curls; he loved that she was natural there. Slipping two fingers downward, he spread the soft pink flesh wide and enjoyed her delighted cry.
Mason shifted her diagonally in his lap, giving himself better access and a better view. He traced his fingers down her slickness, intentionally avoiding her clit. His fingertips made a deft circle around her entrance, and she responded with an agonized cry.
He traced back up, circling around her clit several times before gently flicking a single fingertip over it to test her sensitivity. Her whole body went rigid in his arms, telling him that she only needed the barest touch to feel pleasure. He dipped back down and teased the very beginning of her entrance, spreading her wetness back upward again.
His mind was spinning, thinking of all the possibilities. He could make her come so many ways, it was just a question of making the choice. He should slow things down, show her just what an amazing bed partner he could be.
Rose wasn’t having any of it. She didn’t hesitate to beg him again, calling his name to rush him along.
“Fuck me, Mason. Please, please fuck me,” she gasped, sounding close to tears.
Mason scooped her up in his arms and laid her down on the blankets, yanking off her panties and pants. He pushed her knees up and spread her wide, dropping down to his elbows. He slid his palms from her incredible ass up to her thighs, then pulled her close for a taste. If he never so much as touched her again, at least he would know her most intimate taste.
Licking his lips, he trailed the very tip of his tongue across her clit. She jerked and cried out, so close to the edge that Mason couldn’t waste another moment. He introduced a single finger to her entrance at the same time as he sucked gently on her clit. She came immediately, her core muscles rippling and pulsing madly. She cried out, and Mason thought he caught his own name in the melee.
He would have been paying more attention, but instead he was focused on a tight little ring of muscle that he’d found a few inches inside her sheath. Withdrawing his fingers gently, he was unsurprised to find traces of bright red blood on his hand.
“A virgin,” he wondered aloud, embarrassed at his own reaction. He sat up and looked at Rose, half naked and heavy-lidded as she lay on the blankets. How could this be? She had been so brazen, demanding his touch. He had just assumed- well, he hadn’t thought-
Mason jerked himself upright, his gaze traveling up over her sweetly bare form. She lay still, as if she’d melted into a satisfied puddle. She’d thrown an arm over her face, but Mason could see that she was smiling.
He cursed, drawing Rose’s slumberous gaze.
“You didn’t tell me you were a virgin! Are a virgin. Damn!” Mason protested, looking around for the panties that he’d practically ripped off earlier. As if putting her clothes back on would somehow undo what he’d done.
“Does it matter?” she asked, raising an eyebrow as she allowed Mason to redress her. “I’ve never been bitten by a vampire, either. That seemed like the main obstacle at the time.”
“I would never have touched you,” Mason said, his brows knitting as he glared at her.
“But I wanted you to touch me,” Rose said, puzzled.
“Well, yeah. Why do you think they call it bloodlust?” he said, conscious of his voice rising but unable to stop himself. The girl was insane, obviously.
“I wanted you to touch me before that,” Rose said, her lashes sweeping down to hide her thoughts.
“You don’t- you can’t just spring that on a guy! It’s a lot of responsibility. What if I’d taken things further?”
“You wouldn’t have done anything I didn’t want,” Rose said with a shrug.
“That’s not the point!”
“Then what is?”
“You’re the last unicorn, Rose. You’re a hot blonde with a good job that’s never been with anyone else. You can’t just go around sitting on guys’ laps. You’re going to be compromised!”
“It’s 2012. I can be compromised all I want,” she said, sitting up and crossing her arms.
“That’s all good and well, but you have to be at least a little selective,” Mason said wryly, shaking his head.
“I think I was pretty damned choosy,” Rose said defensively.
“I’m a fucking shapeshifter, Rose! And besides that, I’m just some guy! You barely know me.”
“I know enough.”
“Really?” Mason said, throwing up his hands.
“I know enough to have decided to throw away my whole life and career just to break you out of the lab. Having sex for the first time is way less of a big deal than that, don’t you think?”
“No, not really,” Mason said, but he was losing steam.
“I’ve planned this all out for months. The jail break part, I mean,” she said, blushing.
“And you just thought, hell, throw Mason a bone while I’m at it?”
“No! That is, I’d hoped- I was going to go with you. To your home, I mean. I want to learn more about paranormal culture.”
“Shifters are people, not a science experiment,” Mason snapped.
“I didn’t mean it that way. I just thought that if I went with you, maybe we would get closer and then the natural thing to do wou
ld be to become intimate,” she explained.
“So basically you planned this whole scheme just to get laid? You could get that anywhere.”
“Yes, but not with someone who looks like you,” she said plainly.
Mason’s jaw dropped, and for a long moment he was without words.
“You are very nice to look at, you know,” Rose added. “Very tall and muscular. And your eyes are very unusual.”
“You’re crazy,” Mason answered, looking skeptical. It wasn’t her description that he doubted; Mason knew he was attractive in his own way. But that she would save Mason and Ian just based on how toned his abs were…
“Ian is better looking than I am,” Mason blurted the first thought that came to mind.
“I think that’s a matter of opinion,” Rose sniffed.
“Can we go back to the part about my being a shapeshifter? You’ve seen me change.”
“I have no problem with that.”
Mason was silent again, his jaw tensing. She was so matter-of-fact in her statements, it was hard to argue against her.
“What if I have a problem with you? You are one of the people who held me captive for months on end,” he asked darkly.
“Too late, Mason. You’ve already shown your cards. I’m the last unicorn, remember?” she asked lightly, reaching up to take her wildly mussed hair out of its sagging ponytail.
“I shouldn’t have said that.”
“It was sweet.”
“Yes, but I have the feeling that you’re never going to let me live it down.”
Rose’s face lit up as she finished fixing her hair.
“The word ‘never’ implies that we have a future…. So you are going to let me stay!” she beamed.
“I didn’t say that.”
“Yes, but you implied it. Does this mean that we’ll have sex?” she asked, her tone impertinent.
“You are shameless,” Mason said, baffled. His mind was completely overloaded, no longer registering surprise as she revealed more and more of herself.
