Midnight Moon (Love and Blood Series Book 1)

by Raven K. Asher

  I chuckle while moving back towards the bed. I sit down on the edge and then watch as Dominick locks my door before flipping off the lights.

  His eyes blaze red as he stalks closer to me.

  I lay back as he moves over me.

  “Dom…” I whisper.

  “What, Sweetheart?” He replies as his eyes search mine.

  “How do you know Loki?” I question.

  “He made me.” He answers easily.

  “Seriously…?” I blurt with surprise.

  “Yes. He made me nearly two hundred years ago. He’s been like a brother to me since that moment.” Dominick replies.

  “We shouldn’t be doing this then.” I breathe out.

  “He wouldn’t care.” Dominick insists.

  “Loki loves me, Dom. I think he would care a lot more than you think.” I argue.

  Dominick curses softly before moving off of me. “I had no idea that he felt that way about you. He never said a word.”

  Sighing roughly, Dominick lies down on the bed beside me. “Either way I intend to keep you safe.”

  I wasn’t going to argue with him, not when I might be in danger.

  Plus, I really didn’t want to face the vampire who had attacked me all alone.

  After a few minutes of silence, I turn my head to look at Dominick. I sigh and then close my eyes as my stomach lets out a low groan.

  Without a word, Dominick places his wrist against my mouth.

  I reopen my eyes and then take his arm in my hands as my fangs bite into my bottom lip.

  The smell of his blood just under his skin fills my nose, and I groan.

  Dom chuckles lightly. “You know you want some more.”

  I nod and then bite into his wrist. As his blood splashes over my tongue, I groan again. This was what I had wanted to do all along.

  After a moment I release his wrist before moving over him.

  He smirks and then lifts his wrist to his mouth before licking the wound. It heals instantly before he places his hands on my hips.

  “If you bite me again, I’m going to bite you.” He warns.

  His threat only causes me to smile. I honestly wanted him to bite me. I needed him to bite me; I craved it.

  “You are perfect,” Dominick states abruptly as he gazes up at me.

  Before he can say another word, I lean in and sink my fangs deep into his neck. He groans softly while his grip tightens on my hips.

  Without breaking our contact, he flips us so that I was lying on my back and he was above me.

  He pulls the blankets away from our bodies before pushing himself into me.

  I gasp and pull away for a moment as he bites into my shoulder.

  A wave of ecstasy slams into me right before I bite into his neck again. Unlike when I had done this with Loki I remain in control.

  I was determined not to black out this time.

  ****

  “We really need to get some sleep.” Dominick breathes out as he lies down on the bed beside me. “I don’t think I have enough energy to get up.”

  I laugh lightly as I push up on my elbow to look down at him. “Would you like some blood?”

  He nods. “Yes, I would, but I really don’t want the bagged stuff.”

  “It’s all I have.” I sigh.

  He groans dramatically but nods. “Fine…”

  I snort and then push myself off of the bed. I wrap a light sheet around my body before making my way into the kitchen area. I then grab two bags of blood before placing them in the warmer.

  Dominick suddenly pulls me back against his body before he rests his chin on my shoulder.

  “I’m not going to want to give you up after this.” He states softly.

  “No one said that you had to,” I reply.

  “If Loki commands it then I won’t have any other choice.” He sighs.

  I turn in his arms to look up at him. “Loki wouldn’t do that. He wouldn’t keep me from being happy. And if he did, I wouldn’t let you go without a fight.”

  “You’ve got me hooked,” I add with a smile.

  “No kidding, you’ve got me addicted to you too.” Dominick laughs. “I’ve never been as attracted to someone as I have been with you. Typically I leave as soon as possible, but with you, I want to stay. I don’t think I could walk away right now even if I had to.”

  After a few moments, I sigh. “There’s one thing we have to get straight though.”

  “What’s that?” Dominick pushes.

  “I'm interested in other guys. I cannot deal with you getting jealous or deciding that you don’t want me with anyone else.” I stress.

  “I’m fine with it as long as I have first choice with you. I already warned you that I don’t take orders from anyone else.” He replies.

  “That, I can work with.” I breathe out. “Just don’t lie to me like Loki did, okay.”

  “That’s something I will never do.” He promises.

  “Good.” I sigh.

  Our conversation comes to an end as the warmer dings. I turn and then pull out the blood bags before turning around again.

  Dominick looks at the bags with disgust.

  “It’s not so bad.” I snort.

  “It is when you’ve only ever fed off of live humans.” He argues lightly before taking a bag from my hands.

  He stares at it while I lift the other bag to my lips. My fangs pierce the plastic and Dominick looks up at me.

  In an instant, his eyes darken. “Then again you do make this look sexy.”

  I shake my head but continue to drink while Dominick lifts the bag in his hand to his lips. He closes his eyes and then bites into it.

  Even though he looked disgusted, he made drinking from a bag just as good as Loki had.

  There were just certain things about Dominick that reminded me of Loki which is probably why I had felt an instant connection with him.

  Plus, I didn’t have to worry about hurting him.

  Once we both finish drinking, Dominick breathes out. “That was disgusting. I can’t believe you drink this stuff every day.”

  “I really don’t have much of a choice. No one has taught me how to feed without killing someone. Loki pretty much refused to let me drink from a person, and his blood wasn’t nearly as good as yours.” I reply with a huff.

  “Then I’ll teach you how to feed.” Dominick insists.

  “I don’t know…” I breathe out.

  “It won’t be like what you saw in the club. I have an image there that I have to maintain. The guys there do what I want because I don’t show weakness. Even though it doesn’t seem like it, I keep the peace between the single vampires in this town. I keep them from ripping each other apart.” He explains.

  “Most vampires come to me with their problems, and I do what I can to help.” He adds.

  “What are they going to say now that you’ve got me?” I ask curiously.

  “They won’t say a word.” He replies confidently.

  “Are you sure?” I stress.

  “Yes, and if they did, I would stake them myself.” He answers seriously.

  Looking up at Dominick I release a shaky breath. “You scare me sometimes.”

  “I would never hurt you.” He promises while stroking his knuckles across my cheek. “I would protect you with my life.”

  For a moment his eyes widen. His words seemed to shock him just as much as they surprised me. It was odd that he was already so willing to keep me safe even though we had only just met.

  “Am I missing something here?” I ask while motioning between us.

  “Honestly, I don’t know. This is kind of weird. I have to admit that. There’s something deeper going on here that’s for sure.” He replies.

  “Maybe Loki would know what’s going on.” I sigh.

  Dominick nods. “It might be why Loki feels the way he does about you. There might be something with our blood. It might be possible that your maker is somehow connected to us.”

  “You don’t thin
k that’s who Loki went after, do you?” I whisper.

  The puzzle pieces were beginning to come together.

  “It’s possible,” Dominick replies before letting out a yawn. “Either way there’s nothing that can be done about it right now. Right now we can get some sleep before night comes again.”

  I nod in agreement before letting out my own yawn.

  Sleep was exactly what we needed.

  13-Duck and Dodge

  Two weeks fly by without a word from Loki. I hadn’t had any more strangers knocking at my door in the middle of the night either.

  I had been getting closer to Dominick.

  We were pretty much inseparable. I went where he did, and he stayed close while I went to my classes.

  Everything had been pretty perfect other than Tinsley disapproving of my new relationship.

  She didn’t trust Dominick.

  Part of me couldn’t blame her though. Some of the stuff that Dominick was involved with was scary, but I was well aware of why he did what he did.

  Everything that he did was to keep her safe along with every other new vampire in town.

  Dominick had a tough job to do, but he was good at it.

  “Am I going to be able to pull you away from Dominick tonight?” Tinsley asks as we warm up together for class.

  The Academy guys hadn’t been here to teach us for well over a week, and I honestly missed them.

  Mr. Blake wasn’t bad, but he was relentless.

  I had caught glimpses of Kane and Nix, but they had been avoiding me at all costs. Every time I had made a move to talk to them they had practically run away.

  “Yes, you can have me tonight. Dominick has some stuff that he has to do so I’ll be free for a while.” I answer her.

  “Good. I’ve needed some girl time.” She replies before freezing in place as her attention falls on something behind me.

  Seconds later she squeals. “The Academy guys are back.”

  I inwardly groan but force myself not to turn around.

  The last thing that I wanted was another awkward moment between Kane and Nix.

  “Uh oh, Kane is coming this way,” Tinsley whispers.

  I close my eyes and curse under my breath.

  Without warning, my best friend darts off leaving me alone. I give her retreating back my best glare before Kane clears his throat from behind me.

  I ignore his presence much like he had done to me recently.

  “Ava, can we please talk?” He sighs roughly.

  “I have nothing to say to you, Kane,” I reply a bit harshly.

  “Seriously, Ava…?” He replies before moving around in front of me. “You could at least tell me why you pushed me away. I thought we had something. What happened?”

  “Do you really have to ask me that, Kane?” I breathe out before continuing. “I could kill you with one bite. Hell, you could kill me just as easily.”

  “We did perfectly fine though.” He argues.

  “That was before I knew how badly I could hurt you,” I reply.

  “It didn’t matter to me. It was worth the risk.” He insists.

  “I didn’t think it was.” I sigh. “I don’t want to be the one who ruins your life.”

  He huffs out a breath while running his hand through his blonde locks. “What do we do now?”

  “You move on,” I answer simply.

  “Like you have?” He growls.

  “Yes, exactly like I have. At least I can’t hurt him the way that I could hurt you.” I reply. “It’s nice not having that fear hanging over my head.”

  “He’s dangerous though, Ava,” Kane argues.

  “No, he’s really not.” I groan.

  If only everyone got to know him the way I did, they wouldn’t worry about me so much.

  As if on cue Dominick joins us. He glances between Kane and me before turning his attention directly towards Kane.

  “Is there a problem here?” He questions Kane.

  “Yeah, actually there is.” Kane states boldly.

  My jaw drops before I quickly stand up, placing myself between Kane and Dom.

  “Kane, this is not the place or time to do this.” I bite out.

  “Does he know that he pretty much stole you from me?” Kane growls out.

  “He didn’t steal me from anyone, Kane.” I breathe out.

  Thankfully Dominick remains quiet behind me. I was grateful because anything that he said now would only make things worse.

  “Well, I want you back. We had a good thing going before you decided to push me away.” Kane states as he pins me with a look.

  “Kane…” I sigh.

  “Just give me a chance. We can take things slow.” Kane nearly pleads.

  He then looks towards Dominick. “Help me out here.”

  “It’s all up to her,” Dominick replies.

  “We can’t be together, Kane. I’m sorry.” I reply gently.

  He nods once before he storms off.

  I groan and then turn around to face Dominick. “After two weeks of avoiding me did he really have to pull that now?”

  “He likes you,” Dominick replies with a grin.

  “Yeah, but he’s a wolf. I don’t want to hurt him.” I reply.

  “I doubt that you would hurt him. You haven’t let your control slip once since I’ve been with you.” Dom replies. “There are a lot of vampires who have relationships with wolves. They make good matches for harems since they’re used to the concept in their packs.”

  I sigh and glance back at where Kane had gone. “All it takes is one mistake though.”

  “And more than likely he would survive and be completely fine with the change. Some wolves want to become hybrids.” Dominick insists.

  “Why would they want that?” I ask.

  “They’re more powerful as a hybrid. Once they change nothing can hurt them. They become immune to our bites, and their bites to us are rendered harmless.” He explains.

  “Oh…” I whisper.

  After a moment I sigh. “It doesn’t matter now. I made up my mind, and I’m pretty sure I made myself clear.”

  “You did, but I doubt that he’ll give up that easily.” Dom chuckles lightly.

  “Dominick, are you going to be joining us tonight?” Nix suddenly questions as he joins us.

  He glances between Dom and me before placing his full attention on Dominick.

  “Not tonight, Nix, I’ve got some work to do,” Dom replies before glancing at me. “Actually, since you’re here could I ask a favor?”

  “What could I possibly do for you, Dom?” Nix questions with a hint of surprise.

  “Could you watch over Ava for me?” Dominick replies.

  “Why would he need to watch over me, Dom?” I press.

  “I have to leave town tonight. Loki needs my help, but I’ll be back before dawn. I just need to be sure that you’re safe while I’m gone, and Nix is the best.” Dominick explains.

  I open my mouth to say something but Nix beats me.

  “I’ll watch her for you, Dom.” Nix agrees before he continues. “…But you’re going to owe me big time.”

  “Done, I’ll do whatever you need just name it,” Dominick replies.

  They bump their fists together, and I inwardly groan.

  “We’re going to be starting class in five so wrap this up,” Nix demands as he looks towards me.

  I nod in understanding before he walks away.

  Dominick watches Nix leave before he looks at me with a raised brow and a smirk. “You are a naughty girl. You have both a wolf and panther wrapped around your fingers.”

  I snort. “I do not.”

  “Oh, you do.” Dom chuckles while pulling me close.

  “Just shut up and kiss me,” I reply.

  He nods and then leans down to press his lips against mine. After a few moments, he reluctantly pulls back.

  “Are you going to tell Loki about us?” I whisper softly.

  “I was planning on it.” He replies wi
th a nod.

  “Good.” I breathe out.

  “I better go if I want to be back before dawn.” He sighs.

  “You better be back before dawn,” I stress.

  “I will be.” He promises before pulling me close for another kiss.

  When he pulls back again, I reach up to cup his cheek. He leans into my touch for a moment before closing his eyes.

  “Be careful.” I push.

  He nods while reopening his eyes. “I will be.”

  With that promise, he takes a step back before he turns and walks away. He walks out the door moments later before disappearing down the hall.

  I sigh and then move towards the group gathering around Nix and Mr. Blake.

  Nix gives me a questioning look, but I shake my head.

  “Tonight we’re going to do things a little different. Tonight we’re going to take this outside. Let’s see what you’ve got when you’re out of your element. Let’s see what we can use to our advantage. Use your imagination.” Nix announces before clapping his hands together.

  He then points towards the doors, and everyone begins walking towards them with Mr. Blake leading the way.

  I stay behind, and Nix does the same as he watches me.

  Once everyone is gone, he steps beside me.

  “Is everything alright?” He asks.

  I sigh and stare straight ahead. “Have you ever got that feeling of impending doom?”

  “Lots of times but nothing ever happened.” He replies.

  “This is something I can’t quite shake though. I’ve had this feeling since I woke up yesterday and it’s making me sick.” I reply before looking at Nix. “I’m afraid something bad is going to happen.”

  “Nothing is going to happen to you, Ava.” Nix insists.

  “That’s just it; I’m not worried about myself. I’m more worried about Dominick.” I breathe out before glancing down at my feet. “I’m worried about you and Kane too.”

  “We’ll be fine.” He replies confidently.

  I nod but remain quiet.

  “Did you say anything to Dominick about how you were feeling?” Nix asks.

  I shake my head. “I didn’t want to worry him.”

  Nix nods in understanding. “I get it. He has enough on his plate.”