by HELEN HARDT
She was hoarding potential breeders.
Chapter Eleven
Dante
I headed back through the maze and into the hospital and found Jay and River where I’d left them, at the blood bank.
“Hey, where have you been?” River asked.
“Didn’t you see me walk through here before with four people?”
“Uh…no.”
“We walked right past you two.”
“You see anything, partner?” he said to Jay.
“Negative.”
“I had four humans— Wait! You should have been able to smell them.”
“That was part of the shield, son.” My father appeared. “They are shielded from vampires.”
“For how long?” I asked.
“Only you can break the shield, Dante.”
“But I didn’t do anything!”
Except that I had. I’d known at the time, known the truth in my bones when I told them they were safe. I was no longer slave to the darkness in me. Somehow, I’d learned to control it, to use it for good.
“You’re learning to control the new powers that have manifested,” my father said.
“But…how?”
“Instinct. Need. It’s how we all learn. It’s how a baby knows to suckle for nourishment.”
“But no one else has these abilities,” I said.
“Which is exactly why you’re using instinct to control them. A baby comes into the world without sentience. No one teaches him how to draw nourishment. He uses instinct. Since you’re the only one we know of who has these new powers, no one can teach you how to use them. Instinct has kicked in, Dante. Today, you began to control what has previously been only instinct.”
“They are truly safe?”
“Don’t you already know?”
“How would I know, Dad? You tell me to have faith. You tell me I’m their shield.” My hands tingled with energy. At least I assumed it was energy. I was beginning to recognize the signs of this newfound power.
“You are, Dante. Bea assured me it was true.”
“It’s crazy, cuz,” River said. “These things that are happening to you. But it’s great, too. You saved Lucy.”
Yes, I had. My hands had been the conduit for the energy that saved Lucy. But my hands weren’t the only conduit. I’d used my eyes as a conduit before. And in the courtroom, a mere thought had served to reverse Bill’s glamour.
I wasn’t sure I was ready for this.
Didn’t matter. I had work to do here, and the control I was now exhibiting would be a huge help.
“Where’s Erin?”
“She and Logan Crown are taking care of Lucy.”
“Why did you leave her?” I forced my teeth not to descend. The tingling itch was unbearable.
“River heard some vampires talking. We followed them here.”
“What happened?”
“Nothing. They just deposited some blood in the bank and then left. We were on our way back to Lucy’s room when you got here.”
I inhaled. Erin’s scent was always with me, but something had changed. She was worried. Or scared. Sharp adrenaline had spiked her normal dark and seductive scent.
“If something happened to her—” I growled.
The urge for Erin rose within me, and this time my fangs elongated. I was hungry, and not just for her blood. Her spicy fragrance drew me in, and I stalked toward the intoxicating aroma. Was it her scent? I’d smelled her a thousand times, with and without adrenaline.
Was it the result of the energy still tingling through me?
Whatever it was, it didn’t matter.
“Where are you going?” Jay asked.
I didn’t answer.
I needed Erin. I needed sustenance in more ways than one.
This time, we’d find a bed. We’d take a vacant room and lock the fucking door, and then I’d take her roughly. Then softly. Then roughly again.
“Hey!” Jay again.
“Let him go,” River said. “I know that look.”
“Shit,” Jay replied. “I’m afraid I do too.”
Then their voices were unintelligible as I increased my pace.
She was here. Somewhere. Perhaps she was watching me. My every move.
Didn’t care.
My nose led me to a closed door in the same hallway where Lucy was. As I reached for the knob, a wolf howled.
My heart stampeding, I turned the doorknob.
The white wolf. Lucy. And Logan Crown sitting next to Erin, both of them staring at a computer screen.
She turned. “Dante!”
“Come with me,” I said. “Now.”
Chapter Twelve
Erin
“Wait,” I said. “We’ve found something strange in the database here. I—”
“I said, ‘come with me.’” He grabbed my arm and yanked me toward him.
I let out an oof when I hit his hard chest.
Oh, God, his eyes. They were dark and sexy, the rims of amber burning like circles of fire.
My insides sizzled, little flaming arrows coursing through me and landing between my legs. Was it feeding time? Maybe. I didn’t care. He wanted me. Needed me. And I’d be there for him.
He pulled me outside the door, ignoring Lucy, still in wolf form, and Logan. Once we were free of the room, he headed straight for another door and went in without knocking, pulling me in as well.
A sterile hospital room with two beds. Unoccupied.
Dante glared at the door, and it slammed shut by itself, the lock clicking.
My mouth dropped open. But why was I surprised? I’d seen Dante levitate us, indeed our whole bed. But this had been intentional.
Dante had controlled his power this time.
He was growing, learning.
I opened my mouth to tell him how happy I was for him—
“Oh!”
His lips came down on mine in a violent kiss. I opened for him without thinking twice. I’d always be there for him, and right now, even though we were in a strange place with a person who wanted to do people harm—do us harm—our needs could not be denied.
I brushed his pack off his shoulders, thinking for a millisecond that I’d left my own back in the records room with Logan and Lucy.
I couldn’t worry about that now.
Dante would take care of me. Would see that I had food and drink.
And I would make sure he had the nourishment he required.
I broke the kiss with a loud smack and tilted my head, baring my neck for him.
I moaned when he sank his teeth into my flesh. First the sharp pain, and then the intense pleasure. Those sweet tugs of his mouth on my neck made me shiver, and I trembled, my legs nearly crumpling beneath me.
“Take what you need from me, Dante. I’ll always be here for you. Always.”
A low growl vibrated against my flesh as he continued to feed.
“Always, Dante. I love you.”
He sucked once more and then removed his teeth, licking over the puncture wounds. Then back to my mouth. The coppery tang of my own blood only increased my desire. Memories swirled in my mind—all our kisses, all the intense flavors when our mouths were joined. And the most intense of all—after I’d tasted his blood.
My nipples hardened, and my breasts swelled against the bulletproof vest I wore. My body turned to flames. Too many fucking clothes. I’d been wearing these black clothes for how long now?
I pulled away. “Need to strip. Now.”
He roared. Yes, it was a roar, and his eyes burned into me like hot coals. “Strip, Erin. Quickly.”
I obeyed. I wanted to, but I also had an ulterior motive.
If I didn’t, he’d shred my clothes, and I needed them here. I didn’t have any spares other than panties.
Stripping took longer than normal with everything I wore, but as soon as humanly possible, I stood naked before him, my tits bulging and my nipples puckered. Already juices had moistened my inner thighs.
My clit
was hard and aching. I squeezed my thighs together, hoping for some relief, but to no avail. I was on fucking fire.
Dante closed his eyes and inhaled. “God, Erin. You smell like a feast.”
“Then devour me, Dante.”
He scooped me up and placed me on one of the hospital beds. “Spread those legs for me, baby. Show me that feast.”
I was only too eager to comply.
He adjusted his groin but made no move to remove his clothes. Didn’t matter. I liked being before him, a feast for all his senses. I imagined myself not on a hospital bed but on a giant silver platter, soft clouds of cotton candy as my pillow.
My pussy throbbed, aching for attention, aching to be filled.
“So fucking beautiful,” he growled, his teeth still tinged with my blood.
Oh, God, he was magnificent. So beautiful. So primal and majestic and full of lust. Full of love.
“I want to fill every part of you, Erin. Fill you with all that I am.”
“Dante,” I whispered, closing my eyes. “Fill me.”
Two fingers plunged deep into my channel.
And the orgasm hit me as if I’d been transported straight into the eye of a hurricane. One kiss, one bite, two fingers.
All it took to send me to nirvana.
“That’s it, baby. Damn, you’re so wet. Come for me. Your climaxes turn me on so much.” He thrust, stretching me, finding that spongy spot that made me crazy.
“Yes, please, yes.”
“Don’t move. You are at my mercy.”
Fine with me. I wasn’t bound. Only Dante’s innate power kept me still. He continued fingering me as my climax ebbed. I lifted my hips, spread my legs farther apart, everything I could to get him to go deeper, deeper, deeper.
Then a zing of his zipper…
And his cock was invading me, filling up every bit of emptiness I’d ever felt. So big, so amazing, so Dante.
I opened my eyes.
His teeth were clenched, his eyes still blazing, and sweat had emerged in clear drops on his forehead.
Take off the rest of your clothes. I want your skin touching mine.
But the words never left my lips. I couldn’t destroy this moment. Couldn’t bear the thought of his cock no longer in my pussy.
As if he’d read my mind, though, he withdrew. I whimpered at the profound loss. But he undressed in a flash, and soon he was back, flipping me over onto my stomach.
“On your hands and knees, baby. Present yourself to me.”
I was happy to obey.
“So swollen and pink.” He stroked the folds of my pussy. “So fucking beautiful.”
And so fucking empty. I gritted my teeth.
He swiped his fingers into my channel briefly and then used the juices to lubricate my asshole. With his other hand on my butt cheek, he forced his cock back into my tight cunt with a growl.
A soft sigh escaped my throat.
He thrust once, twice, once more, and then began massaging my asshole with his finger. And suddenly I wasn’t full enough. I wanted him everywhere. My mouth, my pussy, my ass.
I lifted my hips farther, trying to give him access.
And he breached my tight rim. I inhaled the sharp pain, waiting for him to say something.
He didn’t. Just moved the finger in and out of my tight hole, and just as I got used to the invasion, he added another.
“Good, baby?”
“God, yes. Please. Fuck me, Dante. Fuck me hard.”
No answer, just a powerful thrust into me that touched my heart. He fucked me harder and harder, probing my asshole in tandem, until another orgasm rose within me.
“I’m going to come, Dante. Oh, God!”
It hit me like an explosion, sending shards of me catapulting into oblivion.
“That’s it, baby. That’s it.” He thrust harder, pummeling me, tunneling into me and reaching my core.
A groan on the tip of a snarl. And—
He thrust deeply, releasing. As he contracted into me, every pulse of his cock thrummed against the walls of my pussy. Every beat of his heart mirrored my own.
He leaned down, brushed his hair against my shoulder blades, and sank his teeth into the other side of my neck.
Such completeness. Such intensity.
I quivered, my orgasm still barreling through me, his feeding making it even more intense and strong.
The soft tugs, the satisfied groans rumbling from his throat, his slick body pressed against mine—it was pure rapture.
After he’d withdrawn his teeth, fingers, and cock from my body, I lay limp, my face burrowed into the stark white pillow.
“Do you have any idea how beautiful you look right now?” he asked gruffly.
I turned onto my back and stared at him. He stood naked, his cock still hard and springing from his black nest of curls. His body was muscular, and the shine of perspiration made him dazzle, as if the harsh fluorescent lighting were actually the natural rays of the sun. His hair was a mass of unruly waves, strands sticking to his cheeks and forehead. His lips were full from kissing and smudged with my blood.
He’d never looked more gorgeous.
I smiled. “Did you get your fill?”
“I’ll never get my fill of you, Erin.” His eyes were heavy-lidded. “Never.”
I opened my arms. “You’ll never have to.”
He came to me, sitting down on the bed, and he caressed my cheek. “I love you so damned much.”
“I know. I love you too, Dante. So much.”
“I’ll do anything to protect you.”
“I know that too.”
He inhaled, letting the air out slowly. “That’s why I need you to leave here. Now.”
Chapter Thirteen
Dante
“You’ve got to be kidding.” Erin moved from the bed indignantly and began gathering her clothes.
“Do I sound like I’m kidding?”
“Don’t overestimate your power over me, Dante. I’m happy to obey your command in the bedroom, but outside? Not so much.”
“This is for your own protection, Erin.”
“What about you? You need me to survive!” She whipped her hands to her hips, an adorable stance considering she was stark naked, her body flush with blood at her skin’s surface, her scent irresistible.
I couldn’t help the slight curve of my lips.
And the hardening of my cock.
Then a curve of her lips as she noticed her effect on me.
She advanced toward me slowly. “I’m not going anywhere, Dante, and you can’t make me.”
I pulled her naked body against mine and kissed her fiercely. The thrumming of her blood to her heart drowned out all other noise, and I took her with my lips and tongue.
Her aroma wafted around me, the dark and exotic scent of her blood and the musky apple tartness of her arousal. Plus something new. Something vibrant and intense. Yes, the testosterone rising from her anger with me, but it was laced with something more this time.
Something dark and irresistible.
Intoxicating.
I had no idea what it was, but I was powerless to resist it. I was hard, and she was in my arms, still wet from me coming inside her. I slid my fingers through her slick folds and then broke the kiss, turned her around so she was against the bed, and shoved my cock into her from behind.
“You will obey me, Erin,” I commanded through clenched teeth in between thrusts.
“I’m not leaving,” she replied.
“You are.”
“I’m not.”
My whole body throbbed. Her disobedience, her indignation—it all made her more attractive to me. More irresistible. More determined.
I thrust harder, deeper, gripping her hips and panting.
Obey me. Obey me. Obey me.
Not leaving. Not leaving. Not leaving.
She didn’t utter the words, but I heard them as if she had.
When she shattered beneath me, clenched around my cock, I thrust deep into her
body, taking her, making her mine, willing her to obey.
When my orgasm finally subsided, I withdrew and joined her on the bed, pulling her into my arms.
“Still not leaving,” she said against my neck.
“You are.”
“No, Dante, I’m not. Don’t you understand? I need to be here. Not just for you but for me. This is something I have to do.”
I nudged her away slightly so I could meet her gaze. Her peridot eyes sparkled with fire. She was serious. Dead serious.
“Try to understand,” she continued. “I understand where you’re coming from, but I need you to understand where I’m coming from. I love you. This place is hell for you. I need to be here. For you.”
A warm blanket of love and devotion cloaked me. I always knew she loved me, but right now, for the first time, I understood that her need to protect me was as great as mine to protect her.
She might obey me during lovemaking, but outside, we were true equals with equal responsibility to love and protect each other.
This was the blood bond.
Bonded by blood, body, and soul, bound to love and protect each other until death separated us.
Even death wouldn’t separate us. Our energies would be bound for eternity.
This I knew, as if I’d always known. As if it had always been a part of me.
“Let me stay,” she whispered.
I kissed her forehead. “As if I’d be able to make you leave.”
She chuckled. “I suppose you could ball up your energy and force me out of here.”
“No, I can’t.”
“You can. You forced me out of our bedroom when I wanted you to get me pregnant.”
“That was necessary at the time. You can’t be pregnant right now. Not until we figure out what’s going on here. Besides, you’re not fertile. I’d know if you were.”
“Oh!” She jumped from the bed and began pulling on her clothes. “Logan and I found medical records.”
“You hacked into the system?”
“Are you kidding? Like I’d know how to do that. No. It was all Logan. He sat down and logged on. Said he didn’t know how, but he knew the passwords.”
