Candlelight flickered in sconces on the gold papered walls, casting warm light on the sumptuous, four-poster bed. The silk bedding looked almost as soft and creamy as Zoë’s skin. He couldn’t wait to see her laid out on it.
He quickly untucked his dress shirt and undid enough buttons so he could pull it over his head, aching to feel her skin against his. Then he unbuckled his belt and let his slacks fall to the floor. Her attention quickly shifted from the decor to him, and her eyes simmered as she watched him, making his whole body heat up.
His chest swelled when she stepped closer and ran a hand down it. He cupped her cheek and pulled her lips to his, sealing his promise with a kiss. Her lips followed his, making the same promise.
He pulled at the belt tying her wrap dress together at her waist, although she looked so gorgeous in the clingy, red dress, he was hesitant to take it off her. Every person at the restaurant had stared at her when they walked in. The animal in him had been tempted to bare a fang at a few of them. But she didn’t take her eyes off him the whole night, so he behaved himself, knowing he was the one who’d get to see her out of the dress later.
With one tug, the fabric fell open, revealing her luminescent skin and some sexy, red lingerie. His eyes popped open. Had she been hiding that under her jeans and tee shirts all this time?
“You’re what’s beautiful.” He whispered and stared at her, drinking in her beauty like he planned to drink her blood later. After a long moment, she huffed and took his hands, placing them on her breasts.
“You can touch me, you know. I won’t break.”
Oh, but she would if he wasn’t extremely careful. Since he’d been drinking regularly, his strength had returned to full force, and he could easily crush her bones if he moved too quickly. But he wanted to savor this moment, so he moved slowly.
He gently palmed her breasts, enjoying the feel of the soft mounds and the nipples that stiffened into small peaks under the satin fabric as he kneaded her. Her breathing grew heavier the longer he touched her. Eventually, his hands trailed down the curve of her waist, making her quiver, then rested on her hips.
He pulled her closer, groaning when their centers touched, then slid his hands behind to cup her cheeks. His fingers teased at the edge of her panties and followed the lace trim down to where the two sides met at the apex of her thighs.
She ran her hands up his back then gasped and scraped her fingernails down it when he stroked between her legs. Her heart raced, perfuming the air around them with the scent of her blood and her arousal. His own heart pounded in anticipation, and his fangs descended.
She nuzzled at his neck like she was eager to sink her teeth into it. He couldn’t imagine that she was looking forward to that, but as soon as he injected her with his venom, she’d be desperate for his blood. Then she’d know how much he’d craved her all this time.
He glided his hands over her body — up the dip in her back, over her shoulders, down her arms, then he wrapped them around her waist again and leaned in to kiss her. He took his time, making love to her mouth, enjoying the taste of her. Her breath was sweet from the chocolate cake they’d shared. It would go perfectly with the salty tang of her blood.
They kissed till their breathing grew ragged and she pulled away from him. He stared at her, enjoying the rosy glow on her cheeks, the sexy sparkle in her eyes, and her lips, swollen from his kisses. She stared back at him, her brilliant eyes shining a spotlight into his own dark pools. What did she think when she looked at him?
He was eternally young, and others had described him as handsome. She’d told him before that she liked the way he looked, but it was still hard to believe this beautiful creature could be attracted to him.
She reached up and stroked a hand down his cheek then ran a finger across his brow, down his nose, and over his lips. Then she smiled at him. “I’m so lucky that you’ll be this gorgeous forever.”
He couldn’t help grinning.
“Make love to me, Rowan.” She took his hand and pulled him towards the bed, and his heart went into overdrive. She was ready. Was he?
She laid down on the bed, and he laid next to her and traced a hand down the length of her body. She shivered under his touch. When he got to her panties, he slowly peeled them down her legs then massaged between them. She moaned and writhed, clutching the bedding in her fists. When she cried out and spasmed, he nudged her legs open and climbed between them then slowly slid into her.
He stayed still for a long moment, savoring her tightness and letting her adjust to him. When her hands slid around to his backside and pulled him closer, he began to stroke. He moved slowly, letting the pleasure build. When they were both close to coming, he paused.
Her eyes pinched closed, and she tossed her head and cried out. “No! What are you doing?”
“Zoë, look at me.”
She pried her eyes open and glared at him. He smiled at her and ran a finger down her neck. “I’m going to bite you, then I’m going to inject my venom. It will sting for a moment. Then you’re going to want to drink from me. When you do, my blood will interact with the venom and turn you. Are you ready?”
“Yes,” she whispered, staring straight into his eyes so there would be no doubt.
He nuzzled his lips against her neck till he found the vein pulsing there then let his fangs graze her skin, prolonging the anticipation. He remembered every moment of the one and only time he’d drunk from her before, even though he was crazed with bloodlust at the time. It was intense and violent. This time, it would be gentle, tender, like their love-making.
He thrust into her body as he plunged his sharp fangs into her neck, piercing the soft flesh. She cried out and held onto him. Her blood flowed into his mouth, a hot, wet, delicious stream that ignited a fire in him. She squirmed under him, panting and moaning, obviously feeling the same desire. He set a rhythm, sucking and stroking till they neared the pinnacle again. Then he stopped drinking from her and let a stream of venom flow into her wounds.
She screamed and thrashed as the venom seared her veins like poison. If she didn’t drink from him, his venom would kill her. But she didn’t hesitate. Her mouth rooted for his neck, her blunt teeth gouged out a small chunk of skin, and she latched on, sucking greedily.
Euphoria hit him like a lightning strike, electrifying every nerve, ratcheting up the intensity. He increased the speed of his strokes and sucked at her neck while she drew from his. In moments, they both climaxed, crying out in ecstasy.
She pulled her mouth away from his neck, gasping for air, her body heaving under him.
“Don’t stop, Zoë. Keep drinking.” She was a vampire now, but they weren’t done yet.
She wrapped her lips around his neck again and sucked, and he did the same to her. They drank till they both passed out from blood loss, their veins drained dry, their bodies emptied of their own blood, their stomachs filled with each other’s. Then the blood they’d ingested began to spread, filling their veins again.
He woke with a start and lifted himself up so he could look at Zoë. A new depth of love welled up in him, and tears dripped from his eyes and landed on her cheeks. The bond that had held him to his lost mate had vanished. He had a new mate, now, and they were bonded together forever. A moment later, her own eyes popped open, and she stared at him in wonder.
To Be Continued in…
It’s vamps like Roric that make humans believe vampires have a right to live in human society. He doesn’t drink from humans, he’s never even taken a vein, and the idea of infecting a human is abhorrent to him. As leader of the Vampire Enforcement Agency, his job is to find and capture the vamps who betray humans’ recently-earned trust. Until one human woman tempts him to break all the rules.
When Roric intercepts a rogue vamp attack and finds Caroline dying, he can’t resist her blood or beauty, and in a moment of passion, he does the unthinkable and turns her to save her life. But Caroline despises the monsters who killed her parents, and she’d rather die than live as a vam
pire.
With vamp attacks at an all-time high and Caroline resisting him at every turn, Roric’s job, his family, even his life is at risk. Worse, her attacker wants her just as bad as Roric does, and he knows Roric’s secret. Roric will do anything to earn Caroline’s trust, but can he keep her safe long enough to convince her that life as a vampire isn’t a death sentence?
GET YOUR COPY NOW
1
Caroline leaned closer and rubbed the towel harder and faster back and forth across the top of the bar as her heart sped up at the sight of him. He glided in with supernatural gracefulness, but he was no angel floating on a cloud; he was a demon on the prowl. With his devilish good looks and mesmerizing appeal, it was obvious he was one of them.
He scanned the bar as he slipped around the tables, his steps purposeful but his eyes searching, flicking like snake eyes from one potential victim to the next, dismissing one after another as he stalked her way.
This time, her fingernails scraped the bar top, gouging into the lacquered wood as she dragged the towel back again, leaving jagged scratches in the wake of her shaking hands.
His eyes landed briefly on hers, the golden glow of the dangling pendant lights reflecting in the deep, black pools. Their magnetism pulled her in even as she fought to look away. He gave a wicked smile like her fear had triggered his arousal. His kind fed off the fear of humans. When they weren’t sucking their blood.
Caroline’s heart and lungs stopped beating for a long moment, frozen as he stared at her, and every hair on her body raised in a pathetic human defense. Only when his piercing eyes let go of hers and swung towards a woman sitting at the end of the bar did she finally release the breath she'd been holding, and her body functions restarted again.
Chills rippled down her limbs as the excess adrenaline drained out of her. She didn’t relax, though. Her mind and body stayed in a suspended state of hyperawareness as she watched the predator zero in on his intended prey. He might not be a threat to her, but if there was a vampire around, Caroline stayed vigilant.
Despite the laws that prevented them from feeding on humans and the newly created enforcement agency tasked with policing them, his kind still ran rampant through the streets of Modesa, and she knew from experience just how dangerous and out of control they really were.
The demon in designer clothing latched his gaze on a middle-aged brunette in a too-tight, black polyester dress that emphasized the fact that her figure wasn’t what it used to be. When the woman looked up and noticed his stare, her eyes lit up, and a smile deepened the makeup-caked wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.
Caroline wasn’t sure if her extreme aversion made her more conscious of vampires than other humans were, but she always recognized them the minute they walked in the bar. Was the woman as aware of his nature as Caroline was and thrilled by the prospect of spending the night with a blood-thirsty stranger? Or was she just foolish enough to think she could still attract a man as alluring as him? Caroline felt compelled to warn her, either way.
The woman had been in here once or twice before. She was a divorcee named Lisa on the prowl for some male companionship, based on the conversations Caroline had overheard. Was she desperate enough to fall for his supernatural charms?
The man slid onto the oxblood leather barstool next to Lisa and whispered something in her ear. He ran his nose seductively up her neck, and his mouth curved in a smile that revealed one sharp fang. Lisa smiled back at him and tilted her head, exposing her jugular. When his hand covered Lisa’s, Caroline’s body shivered, imagining his icy touch. He lifted the other hand and glanced towards Caroline, beckoning her with a twitch of his finger.
Her body tensed, and her heart rate soared again. She should be running the other direction, but instead she forced her reluctant feet his way. This was her job, and until she found a better way to pay the rent on the tiny, run-down apartment she called home, she had to serve the customers who visited the bar, human or not.
As she approached, the man swung his gaze away from Lisa and aimed it at Caroline again, a maleficent smile still curling his lip. Up close, she could see a thin scar crossing through it, evidence he was turned, not born.
“Another appletini for the lady, please, and a bourbon for me.” There was nothing inhuman about his voice, but it still grated down her spine, making her cringe in revulsion.
She tore her eyes away from him and flicked them towards the woman. “Lisa, is this… man… bothering you?”
Lisa’s head twitched in surprise at the use of the name she didn’t remember giving, followed by a slight scowl at Caroline’s meddling. “He hasn’t done anything but offer to buy me a drink. So far, anyway.”
Lisa turned to him with an eager, wanton look on her face that made Caroline’s stomach curl. “Although who knows what he has in mind for later?”
Anxiety ricocheted through Caroline’s body like a bullet as she imagined how Lisa’s night would end. She grabbed her arm, digging her nails into her flesh. “Lisa, don’t! Don’t you know what he is? He’s a… a…”
She couldn’t bring herself to say the word. Vampire.
Pictures of Lisa’s blood-drained body flashed through her mind. Caroline imagined finding her sprawled on the floor, face down, then lifting her head off the ground and looking into her lifeless eyes. Sometimes the face was Lisa’s, sometimes it was someone else’s.
The vampire’s eyes glinted at Caroline’s fear. “A law-abiding citizen making the acquaintance of a lovely young lady who seems perfectly happy to have my company. Isn’t that right, Lisa?”
Lisa pulled Caroline’s hand off her arm with a scowl then nuzzled closer to his cold, hard chest. “And a handsome one, at that.”
The vampire bared his teeth at Caroline. “Now, if you don’t mind, we’d like our drinks, please.”
She whipped around and stomped away, past the martini glasses and shot glasses and the colorful bottles of liquor glimmering in the soft light. Despite the elegant appearance, this bar was just as dangerous as a dark alley, maybe even more so. Here, the monsters stalked their prey in plain sight.
Caroline pushed through the door at the end of the bar and down the narrow hallway, her pulse pounding in her ears, drowning out everything but the sound of her own accelerated breathing. She veered into the break room, clutching her stomach.
Gray looked up from his locker and rushed towards her. His blue eyes flashed with concern. “Caroline! What’s wrong?”
She threw herself into him, burying her face in his narrow chest, and let the fresh, clean scent of his cologne soothe her. He wrapped his arms around her and patted her back while her body heaved against his.
“There’s a… a… vampire out there, seducing Lisa.” She whispered the word like saying it out loud gave him more power.
“Who’s Lisa?”
Caroline shook her head and frowned at him. Didn’t he hear what she said about the vampire? “She’s just this woman who’s been in here a couple times lately.”
“Did he threaten her?”
“No, but she’s acting like she’s going to go home with him.” Her fingers dug into Gray’s form-fitting, black silk dress shirt.
“Some people really get off on the whole vamp thing.” Gray plucked a piece of her hair off her damp cheek and tucked it behind her ear.
“But they’re dangerous! It’s obvious he wants to take her home and feed on her. We’ll probably see her picture splashed across the paper tomorrow — another victim of a vampire attack.”
Gray stroked his hands up and down her goose-pimpled arms. “They’re not all like that, Care. If they were, there’d be attacks every night.”
She pulled away from him and slammed an open locker door. The clang of the metal vibrated through her body. She shivered and crossed her arms over her chest. “Even if he doesn’t kill her, he’s still going to feed on her. It’s against the law!”
Gray pulled his apron from his locker and wrapped it around his waist. “Listen, why don’t you
go home? It seems kind of dead out there tonight, anyway. I’ll keep an eye on the vamp and try to talk some sense into Lisa.”
Caroline nodded, taking a deep breath. “Yeah, okay. If you don’t mind. I don’t think I can go back out there and serve him.”
“No problem. Go home, get some rest, maybe watch a chick flick, or something. Take your mind off it. I’ll come over later, and we can give each other facials.” Gray blew her a kiss and winked at her.
She shook her head and grinned at him as she pulled off her apron and stuck it in her locker. “Sounds good. That’ll keep you from going home with him, too.”
“Ew, no. Not my type. I like my men submissive.”
Caroline scrunched her nose.
“Too much information?”
She nodded, smiling, but her voice grew serious again. “Call the agency, Gray. Tell them what’s happening. Maybe they’ll send an agent who can stop him before it goes too far.”
“Okay, I will.”
She waved goodbye then headed out into the hallway towards the back exit. Lisa came out of the ladies’ room then and almost ran into her. Caroline grabbed Lisa’s arms and looked at her with pleading eyes.
“Lisa, listen to me. That man is a vampire. He’s dangerous. Please, just go home or find another bar for tonight. You’re a beautiful woman. I’m sure there are plenty of human guys who’d be happy to keep you company. In fact, I think it’s ladies’ night at that bar on East Avenue.” She’d heard that the security there had little tolerance for vamps. Hopefully, Lisa would be safer there.
Lisa stared at her for a moment, considering. “Ladies night, huh?”
“Yeah, half price on drinks, and it always draws a big crowd.” Her boss would kill her if he knew she was sending patrons to another bar, but Lisa’s safety was more important.
“Maybe I’ll check it out. I’ve never been with a vamp before. It sounds exciting, but…” Lisa dug her fingers into her sequined clutch and swayed on her high heels.
Captured by the Vampire: Vampire Enforcement Agency Series Prequel Page 10
