A Kiss For You

by Rachel Van Dyken

  "I'll kill her," he said softly. "All you need to do is ask it — and it's done. She doesn't deserve life for the way she treated you, and it would make me happy to see you hold your head high around her."

  "But she'd be dead."

  "Perhaps I'll just toy with her a bit."

  I giggled.

  "Go." He kissed me again. "And if Cassius shows up—" Ethan swore. "Which he may, considering he's insane and has a death wish… try to ignore him."

  "Done," I answered. "Besides, I could touch him all I wanted…"

  Ethan growled.

  "…and still crave you."

  His face softened. "I wish that was true."

  "It is."

  His face was sad. "I'll see you in a while."

  Genesis

  Drystan's eyebrows shot up to his hairline when I walked into the store. I wondered if all immortals could smell what I'd been doing — or where I'd been. Then again, Ethan had said he'd marked me.

  So maybe it was just like walking around with his scent all over me.

  "Genesis." Drystan pointed to a stack of boxes. "We just received another shipment. Why don't you put the books away to start off with, and then I'll have you help customers."

  "Great." I reached for the boxes and was surprised when they didn't feel heavy at all, maybe it was compliments of the vampire blood which was currently making my veins feel like they were on fire.

  Ethan had said it would wear off throughout the day, but my body still felt hot. I wasn't sweating, but I felt like I should be.

  I carried the stack of boxes over to the corner and started pulling out books. Each one was in alphabetical order, making it easy to find a spot on the shelf for them.

  I was halfway finished when I felt it — the chill in the air.

  "Cassius," I breathed, "didn't take you for a reader." I knew I was safe from him as long as I didn't touch him. I was bonded with Ethan, meaning, at least part of Cassius's charm was going to be lost on me.

  He chuckled darkly. "How'd you know it was me?"

  I turned, welcoming the relief the cold of his body brought me. "You're chilly."

  "I am that." He nodded, shoving his hands into his jean pockets. He looked almost human. His dark hair was pulled back from his face, tucked behind his ears. His eyes appeared more gray than white, and he was wearing a perfectly harmless combination of jeans and a white T-shirt.

  He still looked huge.

  And completely out of place in society.

  Then again, people probably assumed he was an NFL player or something.

  "Did I pass inspection?" He grinned.

  I rolled my eyes and turned away. "Have any good dreams recently?"

  "Are you saying you miss my invasion, sweet?"

  "No." And I didn't. I was just curious, more curious about him than I cared to admit, especially after everything Ethan had shown me. My hand caressed the spine of the book I was placing on the shelf.

  "Questions… Perhaps I should sit down." He pulled a chair from a nearby table and sat, folding his arms over his chest. "You may begin when you're ready."

  "Arrogant," I snapped.

  "Feisty." He sighed cheerfully. "Always happens when you have a bit of spice in your blood. Vampires aren't known for their calm demeanors."

  I licked my lips. "What happened to Ethan's daughter?"

  Cassius stilled, his breathing stopped altogether. "So he's shown you… That's brave of him, all things considering."

  "Mates don't keep secrets."

  "Oh?" His voice dripped with doubt. "I must have missed that lesson in the last two thousand years."

  I couldn't hide my shock. "Two thousand years."

  "Give or take a few days." He shrugged. "Ethan's daughter was not Ethan's daughter. I took care of the situation as I saw fit. Don't forget who I am, human. Or what I am and what that means for you and your pitiful fleeting little life."

  I swallowed and backed away. "Are you threatening me?"

  "Think of it as a reminder," Cassius whispered. "When all this is said and done… if you fail, if Ethan fails, you'll be just another blip on the immortal life. A mere… memory."

  "Great pep talk," I muttered, reaching for another book.

  "I didn't sleep with the human," Cassius offered. "I know that's what you're thinking. What type of friend… or brother… would do such a thing? Did I kiss her, try to win her affection? Naturally, because that's the order of things in our world. If she cannot stay strong for her mate, she doesn't deserve immortality."

  "So you test all the humans?"

  "Yes." His voice was final. "And if they fail…"

  "They die."

  "They're simply eliminated before the natural order of things happens. Eventually they die. Take Mason's mate, for example. Lovely girl, obsessed with the wolf — dead."

  My eyes burned with unshed tears. "Ara…" I hated saying her name. "She didn't love Ethan."

  "In her selfish heart, I believe she thought she was in love with him. She loved him in the best way she knew how. She loved herself more."

  I nodded, sadness piercing my chest, making it hard to breathe.

  "More questions, or shall I simply touch you and be done with it?"

  Ignoring him, I shoved another book in its place. "Stephanie says you aren't bad."

  He said nothing.

  I thought he'd left, but when I glanced over. He was staring into the space above my head as if in a trance. "Stephanie." Her name sounded different on his lips. But as soon as he'd uttered it, he closed his eyes and shook his head as if he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

  "I'm not bad." His eyes turned white. "But I'm not good either."

  "What? So you just hang out in the middle?"

  "When it suits me." He smiled then stood. "Tell me, do you believe yourself strong enough to resist a Dark One's touch?"

  "I did before." I stepped back from him. "Before I was mated to Ethan."

  "His blood makes you strong. His mark… stronger than before." Cassius tilted his head. "But the human heart is the strongest of all. It surpasses all immortal claims."

  "My heart is my own."

  Cassius sighed, his eyes sad. "And that is the problem with humans, is it not? They continuously lament not being able to find love, and when they do, they still refuse to relinquish their most prized possession. Oh, they give their bodies, their souls, but their hearts?" His chest almost grazed mine. "They keep for themselves."

  "Why?" I blurted.

  He stilled, tilting his head to the side, making himself look more predatory, like an animal ready to pounce. "Fear."

  A gasp escaped my lips.

  "Fear," he repeated, "is not welcome here."

  And suddenly my world made sense.

  "I wonder," Cassius whispered, his breath freezing the air in front of me, "when the time comes, will you also choose yourself? Give into fear, or finally sacrifice the one last shred of humanity you have in order to gain immortality?"

  I opened my mouth to answer.

  "About done?" Drystan called then appeared around the corner.

  My lips were freezing, probably blue, but Cassius was nowhere to be seen.

  "Genesis?" he repeated. "Are you alright?"

  "Yes." I found my voice. "Fine. I'm almost done."

  "Good."

  He walked back around the corner. I lifted another book just as the barest of whispers flew past my ear.

  "Until you sleep…"

  Ethan

  I knew he'd visited her the minute her eyes met mine. She should still be on fire for me; instead, she felt — warm.

  Yet her heart still pounded for me. That was all that mattered. That's what I told myself as I gripped the steering wheel and drove us toward her mother's residence.

  "Cassius." I hated that she said his name with such familiarity. "You said he's like your king?"

  "Mmm-hmm."

  "Who does he report to?"

  "The archangels." I sighed. "When they care enough
to check in on us."

  "Are they bad?"

  "Humans — and please don't take offense to this — like to categorize things so they can better understand them. If something is bad, they stay away. If it's good, it must be safe. But is chocolate really good? Perhaps to you, but what if someone's allergic? What's worse, what if you gorge yourself? Then something that was once good in your eyes is suddenly very bad because it has the power to kill you. The same goes for immortals. Are all Dark Ones bad? No. But they aren't good. Are archangels bad? Yes. In a way they can be very bad, but they also have such goodness that it's blinding. What you should concern yourself with is not trying to understand, because you never will."

  Genesis let out a frustrated sigh. "Easier said than done."

  "If I told you he was bad," I reached for her hand, "you may stay away longer, but it may also cause fear to grow in your heart, and fear is not an emotion I want you to feed."

  She nodded. "I'm afraid now."

  "Of me?"

  "My mother." Her eyes were distant, locked on the house I'd just pulled up to.

  It looked better, as if someone had made repairs. The shutters no longer fell from the window, and the porch had been rebuilt.

  "Say the word, and I end her life," I vowed. "Now hold your head high."

  Genesis nodded wordlessly and followed me out of the car to the door.

  Her mother was by herself; I picked up only her scent. I knocked.

  Footsteps creaked against the wood floor. And a short woman with graying brown hair appeared in the door. Her eyes were bland, her skin wrinkled. Life had been hard on her, or maybe that was humanity's punishment for being such a horrible mother.

  Her eyes met mine, widening briefly before settling on her daughter. Her smile was full of venom. "So, you're his whore now?"

  With a hiss, I shoved the woman into the house and walked her backward until she was against the nearest wall. I gripped her throat with my hand, lifting her until her feet dangled beneath her.

  "Say it again," I dared her.

  Tears filled her eyes.

  "What? Trouble breathing?" I tilted my head. "Care for me to end your miserable existence?"

  She croaked out a no.

  I released her then whispered in her ear, "Disrespect my mate one more time, and you won't even feel the slice of my teeth across your throat."

  The woman paled.

  Genesis's hand gripped mine, steadying my heartbeat, when all I wanted to do was rip her mother's throat out and laugh over her dead corpse.

  "Mother." Genesis trembled next to me. "We won't be long. I just had a few questions."

  "Knew you would." She snorted. "But I don't have answers for you, at least the ones you're looking for."

  I moved away from Genesis, walked down the familiar hallway, and located the picture. I pulled it from the wall and tossed it to her mother. "This woman. Who is she?"

  Her mother's face paled as she stared at the picture. "Dead."

  "Caught that," Ethan hissed. "Who is she?"

  "Ara was her name." Genesis's mother petted the picture as if she was reliving something. "Everyone hated her."

  I tensed.

  "She was beautiful, and she knew it… so vain that she made the family look bad. Her number was called, but of course it was. The rest of the families were jealous. And then she failed."

  "Your great-grandmother?"

  "Great-aunt." Her mother set the picture down on the table. "She's a stain upon the family name. We don't discuss her. This is the first time our number has been called since Ara's disgrace." She snorted. "And I knew it would happen the minute Genesis was born — that skin, that hair." She rolled her eyes. "So beautiful, just like Ara."

  Genesis's heart thumped wildly, so loudly I had to concentrate on what her mother was saying in order to hear the words above the beating.

  "I made her strong." Her mother's eyes met mine. "Better she hate her own reflection than fall prey to it."

  "How tragic," I whispered, "that you felt the need to shame a little girl for having golden hair and pretty eyes."

  "It worked!" her mother screamed. "Look! Mated to an Elder! A vampire, no less!"

  "It worked," I repeated, "because her blood is pure… because her soul is pure." Anger crashed over me at her mother's proud expression. In a flash, I moved behind her, biting a small mark on her shoulder and whispered, "For the rest of your days you, will see nothing but Ara's reflection when you look in the mirror. You will hate, and it will drive you mad. That is the gift I leave with you for bestowing such kindness upon the woman I love."

  Her mother swayed and then fell to her knees. A tear fell down her cheek. "No, please no. Don't do this."

  "It's done." I gripped Genesis hand. "We'll bother you no more."

  Genesis didn't want to follow me; her feet dug into the ground, so I tossed her over my shoulder and carried her out of the house.

  When she still didn't make a noise, I buckled her seatbelt and peeled out of the parking spot, driving like hell back toward our home — toward safety.

  Ready to lose my mind, I opened my mouth to apologize when she blurted, "You love me."

  "If that's what you wish to discuss…" I reached for her hand.

  She squeezed mine. The heat from my blood took over, making her skin hot to the touch.

  "And you won't leave me? Ever?"

  "No," I vowed. "I don't think I'm capable of surviving such a loss."

  She nodded, wiping a tear from her cheek. "Cassius visited today."

  "I know."

  She sighed. "He told me things… about you. About Ara."

  "Did he touch you?"

  "No," Genesis whispered. "But one day soon, he will. He touches all the human mates."

  I scowled. "So he told you…"

  "To test them."

  "Yes."

  "I'm going to pass."

  "Alright."

  "You don't believe me?" She pulled her hand away.

  I sighed and focused on the road ahead of me. "I have no reason not to believe you."

  Genesis let out a loud sigh. "Do you think the only reason you love me is because I'm related to Ara?"

  "No." The entire idea was ridiculous. "Not only was she horribly selfish — something I've finally come to terms with — but you're nothing like her. Besides, you don't stop and stare at yourself every time you see your own damn reflection."

  "Thanks to my mother," Genesis mumbled.

  "That's it." I pulled the car over, forced it into park, and reached for Genesis. With a growl, I tugged her body across the console and into my lap. "She did you no favors. That woman was no mother to you. A weaker female would have crippled beneath that type of emotional scarring. I should have killed her for what she put you through."

  Genesis's eyes pooled with tears.

  I cupped her chin. "Beautiful inside and out — the last thing you need to be is afraid of your own beauty. Embrace it, but don't let it overtake all sense of reality. You are beautiful. You are strong. You are pure. Those are simple facts. Outside of that, nothing else matters other than the way I feel about you."

  "If being beautiful means I turn into Ara, I'd rather be ugly."

  "You could never turn into her." I pressed an urgent kiss to her mouth. "You're… you."

  Genesis returned my kiss, biting down on my lips.

  I flicked her tongue with mine then deepened the kiss. "Home."

  "Bed."

  "Yes," I growled, rubbing my body against her. "Now."

  She let out a little gasp.

  "Or here." I tugged her shirt over her shoulder, kissing the bare skin. "Vampires can be very… creative."

  "Show me." Her eyes burned bright green.

  I ripped the rest of her T-shirt with my teeth. "Never… challenge me."

  Frenzied hands reached for my jeans while I reached for hers, both of us colliding with one another as we tried to peel clothing away.

  Layer after layer went flying.

 
; And then she was naked, straddling me.

  "Mmm…" I took her fingers between my teeth. "…I've never tasted anything so incredible."

  "My hands?"

  "Your skin." I chuckled then placed myself near her entrance. "You know… we could always wait until we get home and—"

  She welcomed me into her body.

  But didn't move.

  I let out a frustrated growl and gripped her hips. "You think to tease me?"

  "I was told never to tease a vampire."

  A mixture of laughter and ecstasy left my lips as our bodies began to move.

  "No bite this time?" she asked.

  "Sometimes," I growled, thrusting hard, then pulling out, "faster is better."

  Genesis

  We made it home.

  But I was without shirt, considering Ethan had ripped mine to shreds. So he handed me his while he walked into the house sporting a pair of jeans and a really big smile.

  "Ethan." Alex was in the kitchen drinking wine and reading. "Is today no-shirt day? Should I remove mine as well?"

  He reached for the edges of it but earned a growl from Ethan.

  Mason was sitting in front of a bowl of berries; his hand paused midair as he looked between the two of us. "Damn, Ethan, at least feed her every once in a while."

  "He's very concerned with food, always concerned with food." Alex nodded. "Hurry up, Mason, your berries are drying out."

  A berry went flying by Alex's head.

  I didn't notice Stephanie in the corner; she wasn't normally so quiet. When her eyes met mine, they lit up. "Hey, how about shopping tomorrow? Before your fun little human job?"

  She looked like she'd been crying. "Are you okay?"

  "She's fine," Alex snapped, his good humor completely gone. The room turned tense in an instant. He cleared his throat and forced a smile. "Sirens, very emotional."

  Stephanie smiled. "Very."

  "Ethan, a word?" Alex stood.

  "Sure." Ethan kissed the top of my head and left the room while Mason started rummaging around the kitchen; pots and pans clanged together, and then he pulled out a giant piece of steak.

  "I hope that's not for me." I pointed.

  "Protein…" He threw the steak into the pan. "…feeds the blood, which feeds the mate, which, in turn, feeds you."