Deny Me If You Can (8 page)

Megan swallowed hard. She had no idea what Jillian was doing here or how she had found her, but Megan didn't like the cold look in her eyes even if her voice remained calm.

“He did?” Megan asked and took a step back, but the showcase stopped her from going any further.

“Yes. Writing and reading has always been on
e of his hobbies. If you open the boxes in here you'll find tons of all kinds of different books.” Jillian's gaze swept through the attic before it landed on Megan again, this time colder than before. “He used to read to me sometimes. He always had such a soothing and calming voice that made me melt on the inside.”

Jillian picked up a picture that was placed behind a glass frame. Megan hadn't noticed it until now. There were to
o many things to look at and discover in here. Megan wouldn't mind staying in here for hours and explore. These things could tell so much about the vampire world, but there was no time for that now. Besides, Jillian's presence made Megan feel unsafe. 

Jillian looked at the image and caressed the glass f
rame. It was as if she was caressing something dear to her. Then she handed it over. Megan took it with a little bit of hesitation, but when she looked at it jealousy struck down hard. The image was about one hundred years old and on it she saw Jaromir and Jillian. He was dressed in a fancy suit and she wore a pretty dress. He held his arm around her waist while she kissed him on the cheek and looked into the camera. They both seemed happy together.

Megan almost yelled out to Jillian that Jaromir was hers and that Jillian should keep her hands to herself
. The possessiveness that came over her was something she had never experienced before and it filled her with a blind rage. The feeling was so strong that she almost lunged at Jillian. Megan stopped herself in the last second.

Jillian snorted. “The bond creates interesting reactions within you, do
esn't it?”

Megan remained silent, but
knew that Jillian was right. The desire and possessiveness over Jaromir was all the bond's doing. Where else could it come from? She had felt attracted to Jaromir from the first moment she had laid eyes on him. He was an attractive man after all, but this was something else. It couldn't be Jaromir's powers because he wasn't here.

“Sad, isn't it?” Jillian went on. “Sad that none of it is true, the feelings that you have. They are not your own, they never were. They are there because of the bond you and Jaromir now share, and by the look on your face, I'd say that you are aware of that.” Jillian grinned. “He never was and never will be yours. Why would he
be? It was all because of the heat in the moment. He would never touch a human otherwise, and once you're out of the picture, he will come back to me.”

Megan snorted and grinned back. Jillian was really full of herself. “That's not what it looked like to me when he pinned you to the floor.
You were nothing more than a moment of irritation to him.”

Jillian bared her
fangs and hissed. Megan winced and wished she could take a step back, but the showcase was in the way. Jillian wasn't to play with and Megan knew she shouldn't anger her any further, but she couldn't resist. Jillian pissed her off and deserved a good spanking after what she had done. The shame Jaromir had felt when Jillian had walked in on them had been over the top. If she focused, she could still feel that his shame hadn't disappeared. Deep down he was angry, very angry, but the desire to hunt his prey made him feel better.

Realization struck Megan. Jaromir was actually happy
despite the anger. It was all because of the game. He felt alive. Megan knew that he hadn't felt like this for a long time. It warmed her heart that she was able to bring him this moment of happiness. To know that she made him happy by being his prey strengthened her self-esteem.

That was the weirdest realization ever. She snorted to herself without caring what Jillian thought. Jillian watched her all the time while Jaromir's emotions flooded Megan. She enjoyed the feeling, and even though she still wasn't sure about what was going on inside Jaromir's head, she had decided not to fight what she felt.

She liked this. Jaromir made her like this, and she felt drawn to him in the most peculiar way, but she liked that too. So what if it came from the bond. She had found him attractive from the start, and no one could take that away from her. Especially not someone like Jillian who thought that she could just come in and take whatever she wanted.

For this one night Jaromir was Megan's. What happened after
that she didn't know, but it didn't matter. What mattered was here and now, and Megan would fight for what at this current moment was hers.

The only thing she hoped for was that Jaromir would give her answers once the night was over. She had many questions and she wanted them answered,
and it didn't matter how this ended.

“I have no idea why Jaromir would all of a sudden fi
nd interest in a plane human, but I do know one thing, and that is that you have a too big a mouth for your own good,” Jillian hissed. “I also know that you aren't aware of how strong we vampires are compared to you humans.” Jillian moved closer and Megan backed into the showcase, her hands against the glass. “I could snap your neck without breaking a sweat.” She showed the gesture with her hand in front of Megan's face. “You wouldn't even see me coming. You would be dead before you even had the time to blink.”

Megan knew that Jillian spoke the truth. She had felt the strength in Jaromir
when she had been in his arms, and Megan didn't doubt that Jillian was a lot stronger than her. She had told herself not to anger her any further, but yet again she wasn't able to resist. Jillian had an attitude that Megan just had to put in its place. It was not acceptable.

She straightened her back and looked Jillian straight in the eye.

“Go ahead”, Megan urged Jillian. “Give me your best and see where it takes you. Let us see how pleased Jaromir will be with you when he finds me dead. Who do you think he will go to first? Hm? Who do you think?” Megan grinned. She felt powerful on the inside. Even if she wasn't a vampire, she most definitely felt like one in this moment. She even wanted to hiss and grow out claws that she didn't have. The bond sure had a strong effect on her. There was no mistaking that. “Oh, I know very well who he will seek out. You. The only vampire that has something against me.” Megan took a step closer Jillian who took a step back. Insecurity was showing in her eyes. “And what do you think will happen with you then?”

The both women watched each other during a crushing silence. The atmosphere was thick with pressure and tension. One second Jillian looked ready to lung
e for Megan. In the next she was not so sure anymore.

“That's right,” Megan said to kill the silence. “I think you know very well what will happen to you then. Kill me and you sign
under your own death certificate.”

This could go either way. Megan maintained her ground. She was tense, ready for anything, but all she could do was pray that she would somehow get out of this alive.

Jillian's gaze suddenly darkened and an even darker smile spread on her face. “I'm willing to take my chances,” she said before she attacked.

Jaromir had never
believed that things would turn this way. He had never felt more embarrassed in his whole life. Jillian had walked in on him and Megan at the exact moment that he had climaxed. He had been unable to stop his scream of pleasure even if he had known that she was in the room, watching them without shame. And then Shane had walked in, making things even worse. It was as if they both had forgotten that he was their king, but he wouldn't punish them. At least not Shane. Shane was his closest friend and also his right hand. Shane hadn't left the room because he had been worried. Jaromir also knew that Shane would keep this to himself. Jillian, on the other hand, was a different story. She had become increasingly crazy over the years. Yes, vampires had a tendency for possessiveness, but Jillian's possessiveness wasn't healthy. There was a thin line between being protective and overprotective. Sure, he would kill and defend for what he held dear, but he was also wise enough to know when to back away. Jillian didn't. She demanded without ever considering his wishes and desires. She had managed to push him away because of that.

Jaromir thought of Megan. Within a few hours
, he had become more addicted to her than he had ever been to a woman. His whole body screamed that she was the one he had been waiting for his entire life. She was his mate even if she didn't know it yet. He would do anything to win her love, but if she still refused after several tries, would he be able to let her go? His heart ached painfully from that thought, but deep down he knew he would let her go. It was torture for a vampire without his mate once he had found her, and he knew that it could kill him. Without her, he would wither slowly away and eventually end his suffering, but he didn't want to force Megan to live her life with him. In the end, it was her choice, and he refused to become like Jillian.

Jaromir took a deep breath and shook the feeling of a possible failure off. Hopefully it would never go that way. If he played his cards right
, he would win Megan's heart, and get a great hunt in the bargain. 

Jaromir stood
in front of his mirror with new clothes on after a shower to get rid of the stickiness between his legs. He had decided to go with something simple like black jeans and a black shirt. Who knew, he would maybe get dirty again. There was still about three hours to go before the clock turned five a.m. His whole body itched to go out there again, to take a sniff in the air and track Megan down. But he was worried. Had she left? Or had Shane managed to talk her into staying? If she had left, he would track her down and give her the blood, he decided. If he wanted to win Megan's heart then the last thing he needed was her sister dead.

There was a knock on the door.

“Enter,” Jaromir said while he corrected his black shirt one final time.

The door opened and in came Shane.
Jaromir tried to stay cool, but he desperately needed to know what Megan had decided to do. Judging on Shane's smug facial expression, he assumed that Shane had good news.

“Well?” Jaromir asked.

“She is still here. She has been running around up there for a while according to a few vampires who have seen her.”

Jaromir relaxed and nodded. That was a great relief, but then he
saw Shane's face turn serious.

“What is going on, Jaromir? I thought the human was here only for a few hours of enjoyment. A hunt doesn't usually turn a vampire into a possessive bastard. I can understand why Jillian acts the way she does, but you? Over a human?”

Jaromir angered. “There's nothing wrong with being a human.”

“Of course not. That's not what I meant, and you know that, so don't make this into something it is not. Just explain your motives to me to help me understand what goes on inside your mind.”

Jaromir remained still for a long while. He watched his friend who watched him back, waiting. Did he want Shane to know? Would Shane understand? After a short moment of reconsidering his choices, Jaromir knew that Shane would understand. He was an old and wise vampire, and above all, he was trustworthy.

Jaromir took a deep breath. “She is the one. She is t
he one I have been waiting for. My mate.”

Shane was usually the calm type, and Jaromir had never seen him react
the way he did now. First came confusions before Jaromir's words hit home. Seconds later shock followed. Shane's eyes grew big and his chin dropped low. Then Shane nodded to himself. “You know, I suspected something like this, but I thought it was farfetched.”

Disbelieve was written all over
Shane's face, but all Jaromir could do was smile.

“
Strange, isn't it?” Jaromir said. “Faith seems to have unexplainable ways. You know, I felt there were something about her the moment she stepped inside my office. I felt it in my whole being and the attraction was instant. But I thought it was because I found her brave to walk in among hundreds of vampires. No human has ever done that before.” Jaromir met Shane's gaze. “She thought she was risking her life by being among us, but she did it anyway to save her sister. Though I do think that she is beginning to understand that we aren't more dangerous than any other human, that there are evil vampires just as there are evil humans.”

Shane's eyes narrowed. “The bond?”

Jaromir placed his hand against his chest. He could feel Megan there. Her emotions, her desires, her dreams. She was a brave woman who did anything it took to protect her loved ones, even if it meant putting herself through danger and fear.

“Yes, the bond. It tells me so much about her, and through it I know for sure that she is the one I'm waiting for. She feels so ... perfect. She is not just brave. She is carin
g, loving and above all just.” Jaromir grinned. “She will make a perfect queen.”

Shane sighed and ran his hand over his face.
“Well, I guess that day comes sooner or later for some of us. I just never expected yours mate to knock on our door one day.”

Jaromir chuckled. “I know what you mean. Many searched all over the world for their mates ...”