by Tessa Dawn
Marquis had seen and heard more than enough.
Reaching down, he scooped her up by the arm, turned her to face him, and began to speak in a silvery voice of pure enchantment. A clear hypnotic tone. "Look at me, Joelle. You will—"
"No!" she shouted, fighting his mind control. "Don't you dare!" She clenched her eyes closed and pointed a finger at his face. "Don't you dare mess with my memories! I mean it, Marquis! You stay out of my head, do you hear me? Please don't do such a thing...I'm begging you."
It was the first time she had ever directly asked him for anything, let alone begged. And it was also the precise moment when he realized just how serious she really was.
Completely at a loss for words, he delved deeper into her mind. Perhaps if he understood her better, had a stronger grasp on where she was coming from, he would know the right way to respond.
Marquis Silivasi was shocked by what he found.
All of the little comforts in his home, the precise way his treasured mementos were always carefully arranged, his favorite books alphabetized by author in the library, none of these things were random. They had all been small acts of kindness motivated by Joelle's deep affection for him.
She had an absolute awareness of everything he did, everywhere he went, and everyone he was with.
And it went back for...years.
Joelle had learned everything there was to know about the Blood Curse, about his past, and she had spent countless sleepless nights lying awake fantasizing about things she seemed far too young to fantasize about. This wasn't just some childish obsession. This woman had fallen in love with him without so much as the slightest hint of interest on his part. He had never even noticed her...as a female.
He stood quietly. Contemplating. And then he finally spoke in an even tone of voice. "We cannot have a relationship, Joelle. It is simply not possible. Tell me, then; if you are determined to continue working for me, and you are not willing to relinquish your memories, what is it that you want me to do?"
Joelle dropped her head, looking utterly humiliated. She hid her face in her hands and dropped her forehead against his chest. "I want you to give me a chance," she sobbed.
The young human looked up then, staring into his eyes; she appeared mesmerized by their depths as she forced herself to say what was really on her mind. "I've thought a lot about it—I really have. And here's the thing: You are always alone, Marquis. Whenever you aren't working or looking out for your brothers. And I know that you have a lot of responsibilities, but you're still a...male. You have to get lonely."
She rubbed her soft body closer against his, almost instinctively. It wasn't clear whether or not she was trying to comfort herself or seduce him. "I know I'm acting like a child, but I'm not. I'm a full-grown woman. And I understand perfectly well that you will leave me the moment you meet the woman who was meant for you." She stumbled over the words, her voice faltering at the mere mention of someone else being loved by Marquis. "But who's to say that it will happen in my lifetime? And what if it doesn't? It probably won't. Either way, you don't have to be alone right now."
Placing both of her hands cautiously on either side of his waist, Joelle looked up and held his dark eyes with her own soft, sultry gaze. "If I only have five years, or even just one, I would give my entire world away to be with you, Marquis."
She reached up to touch his hair, as if she couldn't help herself. As if she had always wanted to do so and might never get another chance. "You could even change me if you wanted." It was a whisper. "To be like you." Her heart froze perfectly still in her chest, waiting for his response.
Marquis stared deep into Joelle's longing eyes, seeing her as if for the first time...taking her far more seriously than just moments before. She was a truly beautiful woman, with soft, sculpted features; full, pouty lips; and an enticing feminine body. Everything about her seemed delicate, like porcelain...and just as refined.
He caught at her wrists and shackled them in front of him with powerful hands, forcing her body away from his while restraining her at the same time.
"I cannot make you as I am, Joelle, not even if I wanted to."
"How do you know?" she asked.
Marquis shook his head. "Joelle, the price of transformation...the cost of immortality for a human is their soul. Only those who are our chosen mates can be successfully changed without being damned. And even for them, the price is a firstborn son. I would never do such a thing to you. I would never allow you to do such a thing to yourself."
Joelle blinked back another onslaught of pressing tears.
"Then let me be your lover," she whispered seductively...fearfully. Despite the iron grip he had on her wrists, she managed to press her body temptingly against his while placing a series of soft kisses in the hollow of his throat.
She deeply inhaled his scent and nipped gently at his neck, just behind his ear...just below his chin...all the while pressing her lower body firmly against his in a blatant attempt to arouse him.
Marquis's hands tightened around her wrists in a viselike grip, and his body became as still as a statue. A deep, feral warning rose in his throat. "Do not move!" he warned. "Not.
One. Muscle."
His fangs exploded in his mouth as the primal heat of a provoked predator rose in his blood. He could hear her pulse pounding in her neck—louder than he'd ever heard it before.
He could smell the sweet nectar of her blood and almost feel the intense pleasure he would experience as he took her body with complete abandon...draining her...robbing her of reason...slowly...exquisitely...taking her life at the same time.
Outside of one's chosen destiny, it was not a natural mating—human and vampire. The call of the wild animal was far too hard to suppress when a male was that aroused—completely without inhibitions, devoid of all control.
Marquis's body stirred, becoming instantly thick and heavy at the groin, even as he fought the powerful red haze now invading his mind. She had nipped at his throat.
Teased him.
Bit him.
Involuntarily, he scraped his teeth against her delicate skin, dragging them back and forth as a deep, guttural sound, somewhere between a snarl and a groan, rose up from his throat. He wanted to drink her blood. He needed to drink her blood.
Just one taste.
Marquis fought his primal nature, knowing that Joelle was in mortal danger. She had played with fire: a power far beyond her comprehension or control. She had not intended to provoke his predatory instincts; rather, she had only wanted to be with him...to be loved by him. To know him in every possible way.
Of one thing, Marquis was certain: She had not expected to die at his hands.
Joelle froze. Exactly as he instructed. Not willing to move a muscle. Not even daring to breathe.
Trembling, Marquis wrenched his teeth away, and then he hissed a long, slow warning like a coiled snake. "Do you have any idea what I am?"
His dark eyes were burning—undoubtedly glowing like fiery crimson coals—the phantom blue centers now absent of civility. Releasing her wrists, he shoved her back and leapt further away himself.
"Marquis, I'm so sorry!" she cried. Her small frame fell hard on the deck, and she slowly stood back up. "God, you must think I'm a terrible, selfish person."
Marquis lurked almost ten feet away, crouched down like a wild animal, behind the cover of a large fir tree. His head was dropped low to the ground, and wild mounds of thick black hair fell forward, concealing his panic-stricken face. He was fighting the beast within him with all of the strength he had.
The silly woman had absolutely no idea what he was capable of.
Either her father had failed to teach her, or he had not made his true nature clear enough. Either way, she needed to run.
And now.
Slowly, with grace and stealth, he raised his head like a hungry wolf. His lips drew back from his fangs, twitching with barely concealed menace, and his eyes turned cold and vacant.
Using the full power of
his voice to control her mind, he gave her an order: "Go!"
Joelle Parker ran like a frightened deer off into the night.
She raced down the steep, unpaved road, flew to the end of the lane, slid across a patch of loose gravel, and finally crawled into her car—where she hastily locked the doors.
As if locks would help.
Shaking and crying, she fumbled wildly for her keys. Her dream was shattered. Her heart was breaking. Her world was no longer safe.
Chapter Thirteen
Jocelyn awoke late the next morning to the smell of breakfast cooking and fresh coffee brewing in the large downstairs kitchen. Making her way from the sofa, where Nathaniel had left her the night before, to the first-floor dining area, she cautiously entered the adjacent room.
"You must be Jocelyn."
A tall, auburn-haired woman with light blue eyes stood over a large industrial stove, bordered by custom stone tiles.
She was flipping pancakes and frying bacon, and her genuine smile lit up the room.
"I'm Colette," she said. "It's so nice to meet you."
Jocelyn eyed the unfamiliar woman warily. She looked human, but then how could one tell? "Where is Nathaniel?"
Colette flipped the last pancake onto a warming plate and turned off the gas burner. "Nathaniel was out late last night.
He didn't want to wake you when he got in, so he asked if I would be willing to visit with you while he slept. Not to mention, his housekeeper is out running errands this morning, and Nathaniel is a horrible cook."
Jocelyn frowned. "You mean he asked you to guard me while he slept...."
Colette met Jocelyn's scrutinizing gaze head-on. "No, I wouldn't consider that statement accurate, really. It's not unusual for...males...like Nathaniel to sleep off and on throughout the day. They have far more energy at night. My sense was that Nathaniel didn't want you to wake up alone in a strange place." She placed two pancakes, a strip of bacon, and some scrambled eggs on a plate and set it on the granite bar behind her. "Here. Have a seat. Eat some breakfast."
Jocelyn reluctantly looked at the plate. She didn't want anything to do with Nathaniel or this new woman, but she had to admit she was starving. She hadn't had a bite to eat since hiking to the Red Canyons the day before.
Colette poured a glass of orange juice into a small ornate glass and set it beside the plate along with a fresh set of silverware, folded neatly in a linen napkin. "Would you care for some coffee as well?" She gestured toward the pot.
Jocelyn nodded and grudgingly took a seat at the bar while Colette poured the coffee and sat down beside her. "Nathaniel also asked me if I would be willing to talk with you." There was a long, drawn-out moment of silence before Colette continued. "He told me about what happened last night. What you saw in the canyon. He felt like you might be more comfortable speaking with a woman, maybe a little more likely to speak your mind."
Jocelyn stared at the confident, welcoming woman like she was a microbe under a microscope: dialing in on every little nuance in order to determine her species and origin. She wore a pair of faded Levis and a blue cotton shirt. She walked with graceful ease and tactful confidence—like someone who had complete control of the world around her and knew it.
She had kind eyes, and there was an obvious sincerity in her smile. Seemed normal enough.
"If you don't mind my asking, who are you anyway?" The words came out a bit harsher than Jocelyn intended, but then she wasn't accustomed to complete strangers speaking to her so intimately. To heck with it. She took a bite of her eggs and waited for an answer.
Colette flashed an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry—how rude of me. My mate, Kristos, grew up with Nathaniel. They attended the University in Europe together. We have been close friends for the last couple of years, ever since...well, let's just say that I was in the exact same position you're in now, not so long ago."
Now this caught Jocelyn's attention. "You're human?"
Colette's light blue eyes turned lighter still, softening beneath the dim, recessed lighting that hung above the bar.
She smiled warmly. "I was human...like you."
Jocelyn shivered and continued to eat her breakfast.
Despite her hesitation to be friendly, the food was delicious, and she was grateful that someone had taken the time to cook for her.
Colette continued speaking. "The truth is, while I don't know you personally, I do have my own understanding of what you're going through." She looked off into the distance.
"And I still remember how afraid I was at the time, how many questions I had." She softened. "It's a lot to come to terms with all at once."
The woman had Jocelyn's full attention—how could she not? She sat up, tucked her hair behind her ear, and looked intently into Colette's eyes, studying her for signs of truth.
"So, you're saying that you were just like me. You were completely unaware of...vampires...when suddenly, one appeared right out of the blue, scared the living daylights out of you, and then kept insisting that you belonged to him?"
She whispered the word vampires as if merely saying it out loud could get her locked up in a dungeon somewhere.
Colette nodded and leaned forward. "Exactly like you. And I have to tell you, I didn't take it nearly as well as you are right now. Not in the beginning, anyhow. And I already knew Kristos when everything happened."
Jocelyn finished her orange juice, sat back and considered Colette's words. At least she had a law enforcement background and was no stranger to danger or frightening situations. Something like this must have been hell on someone as soft-natured as Colette. She leaned forward again. "Colette, what would really happen if I tried to escape?"
Colette didn't flinch. "You wouldn't be safe, Jocelyn." She lowered her voice. "There are fates far worse than whatever you fear with Nathaniel right now." She frowned and took Jocelyn's hand, rubbing it empathetically. "And the plain truth is—you probably wouldn't get very far. Between Nathaniel, Marquis, Kagen, and the sentinels, you would be back here faster than you could say your name three times." She sighed. "I know it's not what you want to hear, but it is the truth: Escaping is just not an option."
Jocelyn lowered her head and closed her eyes as the reality of her predicament began to sink in all over again.
It just couldn't be true.
This just couldn't be happening.
Only days before, she had been packing for a trip to the valley, safely unaware, at her home in San Diego. Although it wasn't much of one by some people's standards, she had established a comfortable, routine life.
She had her job. Her elderly next-door neighbor, Ida, whom she often looked after. And her beloved aquarium filled with rare, tropical fish...which had taken her years to acquire.
Oh God, she thought, my fish are all going to die if I don't get back at the end of the week.
It seemed an utterly crazy thing to think about—all other things considered—but the point was: She had been a normal person with a normal life, and now her entire world was about to change, and she was helpless to stop it. The sheer enormity of the situation threatened to overwhelm her.
"Jocelyn..." Colette's voice was compassionate.
Jocelyn looked up.
"Right now, this feels like your worst nightmare. Believe me...I know. But I wouldn't be surprised if you look back one day and see this as the best thing that ever happened to you." She patted her on the shoulder. "Here, let me get you another cup of coffee."
Colette rose from the sturdy knotted-pine bar stool, an exact match to the custom kitchen cabinets, and poured Jocelyn a second cup of coffee before returning to the breakfast bar, carrying a small tray with cream and sugar on it.
Jocelyn sighed and shook her head in frustration. "I don't think so, Colette." She frowned. "Look, I get that you love your husband. And you obviously think a lot of Nathaniel, or you wouldn't be doing this, but you don't know anything about me."
Colette ran her hand through her hair, the soft, medium-length tresses bouncing
back and forth in response to the motion. "I don't have to know you, Jocelyn. I know the Omen, and I know what it means." She paused, as if searching for the right words. "Jocelyn, you are Nathaniel's destiny—just as he is yours. That means that fate decreed this long before you were born. And whether it happened now, a year from now, or ten years from now, your heart would've searched for his forever." There was deep conviction in her voice. "Vampire or not, his soul completes yours."
Jocelyn frowned and turned away. "How romantic," she smirked. Somehow, she just wasn't getting into the whole fairy-tale thing.
Colette was not deterred. "Now then," she said in an upbeat voice, "whether you agree or disagree with what I'm telling you, you should still take advantage of this chance to ask some questions, because you probably won't get another one before—" Her voice abruptly broke off.
"Before what?" Jocelyn asked.
Colette smiled warmly. "Before you and Nathaniel come together."
Jocelyn winced, feeling suddenly light-headed. She added a spoonful of sugar to her coffee, took a sip, and looked away as she collected her thoughts. She was a detective and a darn good one. Someone with reliable instincts and inborn intuition. Colette was absolutely right about one thing: The more information she had, the better.
She sighed and tried to distance herself from the situation.
Setting her coffee mug down on the counter, she turned to face Colette squarely. "What exactly are these creatures?"
she asked, sounding more courageous than she felt.
Colette smiled. "They are...we are...precisely what Nathaniel told you."
Jocelyn rested her elbows on the counter. "Then tell me more about vampires—because I'm still not sure if Nathaniel is a monster, a man, or something between. I just know that he has way too much power."
Colette folded her hands in her lap. "Not a monster—of that much, you can be certain. But not a man, either, at least not as you've come to know men. Nathaniel is a male who possesses both light and shadow. He's capable of amazing good, but..." She let out a deep breath. "He's also capable of dealing out harsh retribution and violence when necessary: The sons of Jadon are always trying to balance the two energies." She leaned forward. "In my opinion, the hearts of the Light Ones are good—very good—but their natures are wild."
