“Why not me, Jade? What makes me worth sparing? What sets me apart from the rest?”
Jade looked at her with an unspoken agony in his eyes, but his expression softened. “When I look at you, I feel something that goes beyond anything I’ve felt for any woman. I don’t know where it comes from. But, now that I’ve found you, I can’t imagine not having you.” He glanced away, into the fire.
A small smile played about Lyric’s red lips. She continued to slowly close the distance he’d put between them. “Then you need to start trusting yourself. I don’t believe you’re going to hurt me.”
“You don’t even know me.”
“And yet, I still trust you.”
“You shouldn’t.”
When she was close enough to touch him again, she paused. “Too late for warnings.” Ever so slowly, Lyric reached up to run a hand along the side of Jade’s strong jaw. She outlined his lower lip with her finger before leaning in to press her lips to his, needing to feel him.
“Lyric.” Her name came out as a whisper. Jade showed no other resistance as she kissed him with total abandon.
“No worries,” she spoke low, in between kisses. “Take it slow and just hold me. I want to feel you.” Common sense shouted at Lyric that she should be afraid. The power emanating from Jade was so far from human that it should have kept her at a distance. She couldn’t heed the warnings going off in the back of her mind. They held no sway over her. Emotion and instinct guided her, and she willingly followed.
Jade’s hesitance seemed to fall away at her soothing words. He pulled her into his embrace, and she snuggled in against him. In that moment, he could have killed her, and Lyric would have died happy.
Chapter Nine
Lyric’s insides were twisted with eager anxiety. All she wanted was to feel Jade’s cool skin pressed against her naked flesh. Never before had any man elicited this kind of response in her. She longed for him with a desperation that commanded her. She knew what she was doing though, and the anticipation was killing her.
Jade kissed her as if she were a fine dessert to be savored as it was devoured. His taste held a sweetness that she couldn’t get enough of. Kissing him with all she had, the head-spinning sensations brought her alive with a new hunger that was all for him. Jade’s hand moved through her hair, down her body, anywhere that he could touch her. She sensed a solemn longing in him, a need greater than she understood.
Throwing her arms around his neck, she consciously made the decision to abandon all reason and self-control. Whatever happened now was all up to fate and circumstance. She hoped that Jade would join her and let go of all that was holding him back.
When he picked her up in his strong arms, a thrill shot through her as he carried her beyond the living room and down the stairs that led to his bedroom. The adrenaline hit her like a ton of bricks, forcing her breath to come in little bursts. Sensing the increase in her heartbeat, he smiled, a sensual pull of his lips that revealed his fangs.
“I hope it’s alright,” Jade said, nudging the door to his bedroom open with a foot. “I’m not really set up to entertain ladies. It’s in need of a woman’s touch.”
Lyric took in the room with an eager eye, finding it bare but comforting. The bed and bureau matched, a fine oak set in a warm color. A few framed photos of nature scenes hung above each. Despite its lack of windows, Lyric felt at home in Jade’s room.
He gingerly laid her on the bed, bending over her as he did so. Claiming her lips again, he slowly ran a hand up her bare leg to her thigh. Lyric gave a small gasp and bit gently at his lower lip. The scent and feel of him dominated her senses. All she could focus on was Jade, all around her. When his hands continued to slide up her body, she held her breath in anticipation.
Ever so slowly, Jade freed Lyric of her clothing with an expert hand. With the removal of every piece of fabric, she trembled in his arms. As he peeled away her soft, black bra, her breasts spilled free. Jade was quick to capture them in his hands as he kissed her. His touch was possessive but tender. She stretched languidly, reveling in his sensual affections.
She reached for him, pulling at his shirt so that she could run her hands over his stomach and lower back. His muscles rippled beneath her fingers. Jade gave a small groan when her hands moved up his chest, exploring every inch of skin as she went. The electricity between them sparked hot wherever their flesh touched.
Jade’s lips were hot on her neck as he kissed his way down her jaw to her throat. He licked and sucked at her pale skin, leaving a moist trail as he went. Lyric’s hands came up to entangle in his long hair as he made his way down to her breasts. She gasped sharply when he took one of her nipples in his mouth. Swirling his tongue around it in a manner that had her breathing hard, he quickly brought it to a firm point.
Moving to lavish the same attention on her other breast, Jade also began to tug at her leggings, slipping them down her legs and onto the floor. He didn’t rush to remove her lacy red G-string though. Instead, his hand played with the flimsy string at her hip. His sharp fangs grazed a light trail over her breast, leaving a faint red mark. Despite the passion-induced frenzy that she was caught up in, Lyric couldn’t help but wonder if it was hard for Jade to control the urge to bite her.
His loving tribute to her breasts made Lyric feel worshiped. Still, she felt no fear, trusting him completely. She pulled at his clothing, finding it unfair that he could touch so much of her while she was so limited. She was desperate to feel his body beneath her fingertips and between her legs.
He rose up above her and peeled his shirt off, baring the full expanse of his upper body for her viewing pleasure. She flashed him an eager look, but she had no way of knowing what it did to him. When he came within reach again, she grabbed him with an aggressive desire that shot the level of ardor to a ravenous high. If Jade had been trying to hold back, he didn’t try any longer.
He reached to draw her skimpy underwear to the side so that his hand could access her soft, feminine place. As Lyric reached to caress the sparse hairs that trailed down to disappear inside his jeans, Jade dipped a finger into her opening. She was wet and ready for him. She moaned when he slid a finger deep inside, her body clenching in response.
* * * *
The sound of Lyric’s pleasure was overwhelming. It stirred responses in Jade that had long lay dormant. The sensations of her body as it gripped his finger tightly were causing his cock to ache as it throbbed. She was so wet for him already. It was killing him to prolong this moment when all he wanted to do was fill her.
The temptation to bite into her supple human veins was enormous. Jade had been playing this game long enough to maintain control, but it wasn’t easy. The need to taste her blood as it spilled over his tongue was undying.
No words could describe how marvelous Lyric tasted: sweet like apples with a spice of ginger and something more that was all her own. Every time his lips touched her flesh, he went to heaven. He could have breathed her scent in and tasted of her all night. As it was, he was eager to move on to other things.
Lyric shuddered as he worked his fingers in and out of her inviting sheath. The lust rolling off her was almost enough to convince Jade to take her right then. He wanted to savor this moment, loving every second that she wanted him with a hunger this immense. She wanted him and not because he’d lured her like a predator with prey. Lyric saw him as a man, a person, not just a monster. As hard as it was to wrap his mind around that, Jade found that he longed to get used to it.
Her responses were encouraging. A purring sound came from her that brought a smile to his lips. He delved inside her, as deep as he could reach, dying to replace his finger with his shaft. She moved against him in a rhythmic manner, seeking to feel more of him. Kissing his way down her body, Jade lingered over her navel, dipping his tongue inside to make her squirm.
By the time he dared to truly taste her, a glistening sheen of sweat adorned her skin. At the slightest touch of his tongue to her pink folds, Lyric’s body clenc
hed tightly, and she gave a small cry. Tracing a moist line to the most sensitive part of her, he drew the tiny nub into his mouth. Her heart beat faster, and Jade felt as if the sound of it was inside his head. He loved her with his tongue until her muscles spasmed around his finger, and she came with his name as a whisper on her lips.
Jade quickly abandoned the remainder of his clothing. He couldn’t pull his eyes away from the exquisite, naked beauty on the bed before him. His mortal woman couldn’t have been more perfect. His woman … yes, she most definitely was.
Lyric stared up at him with a dazed expression. She lifted her hips when he slid the thong underwear down her legs and tossed them aside. Nudging her legs apart, Jade crawled onto the bed between them, kissing her ruby lips as if it were the first time all over again. She sighed softly and wrapped her arms around his neck, her small hands playing in his hair.
The head of his sex pressed against her moist warmth, and he hesitated, meeting her eyes. He gave her one last chance, one moment to change her mind. When she just looked at him expectantly with her lower lip caught between her teeth, he threw caution to the wind.
Though his urgent desire insisted that he be inside her now, Jade wanted to savor this moment forever. Entering her slowly, he embraced every sensation as her body opened to receive him. She was so deliciously slick and tight, sheathing him perfectly, as if they’d been made for one another.
Her fingers tightened ever so slightly in his hair as he began to thrust in a steady rhythm. Her milky white breasts bounced gently in time with his thrusts. With her head thrown back and eyes closed, Lyric moaned. Her pleasure was his priority. Jade wanted this to be all for her. Yet, when he plunged deep, burying himself fully inside her, he thought he would die from the extreme sensations. She wrapped her legs tightly around his lower back, holding him deep within her as they writhed together as one.
He kissed her then, a hard bruising kiss. She responded with a hunger to match his own. Giving a sudden cry, Lyric convulsed, and her hot sex gripped him hard. The orgasmic energy oozed from her as she came. It tantalized Jade, causing him to ache for her blood. Despite the urgent hunger, he was already head over heels in love with the woman in his arms, and he would die before he would lay fangs on her.
When Lyric had caught her breath, he carefully rolled them over so that she sat atop him. The view was entrancing. His eyes roved over her, watching as she lifted off his cock and slid back down, taking him in until no space remained between them. Black hair fell over her shoulders and down her back; her blue eyes virtually shined.
She had control, and she used it. He watched her move with a fluid grace on top of him. She rode Jade hard until he groaned with the agony that it took to hold back. He didn’t want to climax yet, didn’t want it to be over. He belonged buried deep inside of her; he was sure of it. Yet, when she began to cry out, he groaned and succumbed to the pleasure.
Jade’s arms went around Lyric, pulling her down so he could kiss her tenderly. The orgasm rocked him, forcing her name from between his lips as he pressed them to hers. Her body instinctually responded to his, gripping his cock tightly as he released inside her.
She collapsed on his chest, clinging to him with an urgency that knew no bounds. He held her as if he’d never let go. Stroking her hair, he murmured soft words in her ear. “I think I’ve fallen in love with you, Lyric Morrison. And, if fate makes a fool of me for doing so, then so be it.”
* * * *
The flash of the lighter was blinding in the dark as Taylor lit a cigarette. Drawing the harsh fumes into his lungs, he savored the wickedly enjoyable sensation before exhaling. He glanced at Sadie, who lay sprawled on the seat beside him. It was hard to see anything but her outline in the pale glow of the cigarette.
He felt higher than he’d ever been as a drug-induced youth. The thrill he got from his time with Sadie was unreal, bigger than any intoxicant he’d ever ingested. However, the addiction was just as deadly.
Tonight had been different. Taylor had gone home to discover Charity locked in the bedroom, unwilling to speak to him. After a shouting match through the door, he’d grabbed his jacket and gone to Cry. And, this time when Sadie had taken his hand to lead him down to the hidden blood chamber, he had instead led her outside where they had fucked in his car as she bled him.
Taylor’s head fell back against the seat when Sadie grasped his shaft tightly. She pumped him in her hand until he grew rigid again. He was glad they’d come out to his car instead of going down to the lower level of Cry. Though he’d never admit it out loud, it scared the shit out of him down there.
The first time she’d taken him there, he had watched as several vampires had their way with a woman. Whether she was willing or not had been irrelevant because they’d killed her anyway. Of all of the strange and morbid things he had witnessed in the basement of Cry, Taylor had never been able to wipe that memory from his mind. It had penetrated deep inside him, and yet he kept coming back.
A groan escaped him as Sadie moved so that she straddled him. The short, curly hairs of her sex tickled his groin. Her fingernails left pale, red scratches along his chest as she dragged them down to his abdomen. Even in the dark, Taylor could see that her expression was hungry. She hadn’t had her fill of him yet.
He wondered if she ever planned to kill him and why she hadn’t yet. Taylor wasn’t stupid enough to believe he was her one and only. He got as much from her as she did from him, but there was nothing more to their relationship. Eventually, she would tire of him and then take his life along with his blood.
The heat of her pussy banished the thoughts from his mind as she plunged down on him, taking him deep inside her. The heady swirl of vampire power caught him up in its intensity. Even as he gladly gave in to the manipulating rush, he knew that he wanted more. Now that Taylor had seen the vampire who killed Lisa, he was determined. Somehow, he would get his moment, his payback.
Even as Sadie moved on him with the expert skills of one who had been pleasing men for many lifetimes, the thoughts continued to churn in his brain. The vampire that Taylor so badly wanted, he might not come here to Cry, but he wasn’t far. And, he consorted with human women.
Another thought struck Taylor then, and his pulse pounded harder. Had Lisa somehow been involved with the vampire behind his back? Or, had she simply been the unfortunate choice of a hungry predator?
He squeezed Sadie’s firm ass as he enjoyed the small noises she made. With one hand, he reached for one of her small but nicely shaped breasts. He circled the nipple softly, and she began to move faster, sliding up and down on him with slippery ease.
The atmosphere grew heavy with their sexual energy. Taylor’s arousal grew to the breaking point as he looked up at her spectacular body. Being inside her was mind blowing, and he gripped her hips to control her movements. The first orgasmic sensations had his cock twitching.
He felt the muscles spasm inside her as she climaxed. As she did so, she leaned in to him, sinking her fangs into the side of his neck. It pulled a small cry from him, one that was both pleasure and pain. His hand dropped to his side, and when the orgasm washed over him, it was even better than the first time. The sensations were mind shattering.
Taylor struggled to stay in control as Sadie’s power sought to draw him in and make him into her willing slave. His seed filled her as she simultaneously sucked his lifeblood.
Slipping a hand down beside the seat, Taylor gripped the stake and withdrew it in one smooth motion. Everything within him cried out as he went against the obedient urges her power encouraged in him.
With one hand, he shoved her back and brought the stake down hard. Slamming it into her chest, he froze with fear when nothing happened. Then all of a sudden, Sadie let out a shriek like an animal caught in a trap. Her wail cut off abruptly as she exploded in a shower of dust, ash and bone.
Taylor’s entire body vibrated as the remnants of Sadie fell all around him. The backseat of his car was a mess. He stared around in shock; the st
ake fell from his hand to clatter to the floor. A slow smile spread across his face. Goddamn vampires.
He was so incredibly pleased with himself as he drove home. So much so that he almost missed the poster plastered on the side of the bus stop. As he pulled to a stop at a red light, he just happened to glance over.
It was her! The dark-haired woman he had seen with the vampire. Taylor did a double take before pulling over to get a better look. He couldn’t believe his luck tonight.
It was her alright, along with a handful of other gorgeous women. So, she was a burlesque dancer. Of course, why shouldn’t she be something undeniably sexy? According to the poster, she had a show coming up with her fellow dancers.
The wheels started to turn in Taylor’s brain with ideas forming that he couldn’t help but entertain. No question, he would be at that show.
Chapter Ten
The ear-piercing shriek of the alarm clock brought Lyric awake with a start. Fumbling to remove the beauty mask she slept with, she reached for the clock with a fist. Groaning, she rolled over in bed to squint at the sunlight glaring through her window. It couldn’t be noon already, could it? She did not feel at all like getting up to face the world.
It had been an hour past sunrise when she’d taken a taxi to her rental car, from there heading home. Tearing herself away from Jade had been the worst agony. A lazy grin spread across her face at the thought of him. After he’d stopped psyching himself out, everything had gone smoothly. She couldn’t have asked for it to be any better. Jade’s touch was tender. Closing her eyes, she let the memory of their lovemaking warm her.
With a sigh, she thought back to his insistence that he was bad news for her. He’d really thought he would hurt her. Logically, Lyric was probably a fool to think otherwise. Still, she had no reason not to trust him, killer or not.
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