Enslaved in Shadows (14 page)

Royce continued what he was doing. He mumbled something too low under his breath for even Draven's ears to pick up and then his fangs descended biting down. He put two holes in his wrist. What the fuck?
Royce wasn’t a vampire
,
and even if he were it wouldn’t save her!
Blue blood welled where he’s fangs punctured. Royce tipped Jesminda’s
head back and made her drink.
Why the fuck did he have blue blood? No one’s blood ran blue. Draven looked at his long time friend dumbfounded.
Blue blood? Blue blood? Why do I know that?

“I’m sorry,” was all Royce said to Draven when he stepped back and sealed his wrist.

“Sorry? What the fuck did you do? Did you make it wors
e
?”

“No, she’ll make it. I’m just sorry about what’s gonna happen next. Just understand I did it to save her.”

Before he could even ask what the fuck that meant, Jesminda started moaning.
He watched in fascination as her skin mended right before his eyes.
What kind of immortal is he?
Royal vampires didn’t even have fangs that descended. Their fangs were part of their genetic
makeup;
there was no retracting them back like in the movies. Royce’s fangs
elongated and retracted. What
Jesminda did next shocked and aroused him. She began touching herself in
highly
intimate places. Soft caresses on her breasts, her stomach
.
She cupped her sex and mewled like a cat in heat
,
while her other hand pinched her nipples. Draven held her through it. They were in front of their building for all to see and she continued.
She was on some sexual induced high he couldn’t break her out of.

She sat up and began rubbing her body on his chest, nuzzling his neck licking his cheeks.
When she realized Draven was not the object of her affection. She stilled mere moments and reached for Royce, begging. “Come to me.” Her voice deep, her words bathed in desire. She pinned Royce with a sensual stare, straddled Draven’s lap and begin dry humping him with such effort his dick hardened to steel. To add insult to injury she stared at Royce the entire time. The smug bastard only smiled and watched. He didn’t walk away or turn his head. He stayed standing right where he was arms crossed over his chest and he smirked.
             
             

Fuck the fact he could feel the heat of her pussy on the length of his burgeoning cock.
Oh no, she wasn’t shy in her ministrations either and when he tried to bring her closer, she pushed back.
Looking over her shoulder at Royce. As if it was him bringing her to the edge. Draven gritted his teeth as the sex kitten picked up pace. Sweat ran down the side of his face to drip from his chin. A man could only restrain himself for so long. He thought he was doing a stellar job. Sort of. She threw her head back in ecstasy and screamed her release. She peaked using his body while looking at his friend. If that didn’t hurt a man’s ego he didn’t know what would. Royce
shrugged and checked his watch
. The show was now over.
Unfuckingbelievable
!

She collapsed on his chest and moaned in satisfaction.
The heat of her juices soaking through his jeans was now cold.
Her arousal was mixed with something stronger more potent. There was nothing tangy about Royce's blood, and as sick as it made him feel when the
thought hit him.
His blood
was ambrosial, not only to the taker of his blood, but anyone with the olfactory to deeply smell it. Not cool on so many levels. His friend had a lot of explaining to do.

A light snore drifted up from his sleepy cargo. She had the audacity to fall asleep after her dry hump showdown.

“Don’t fucking say it Royce!” He warned.

“What? I didn’t say anything I thought maybe you had some questions about what just happened.”
Royce even tried to down play it like he was just as shocked as he was.
The fucker.

Draven knew he needed answers to life’s mysterious quest
ion of ‘Who the fuck was Royce
Zarides.’ He didn’t like where his mind was going with that, because he had his ideas.
Because let’s face it, everyone on planet earth’s blood, immortal and human
alike, was red, and now here was
this curious fucker, with his blue shit.
But they needed a new car and they needed to be on their way. The time for questions would be later. The building surroundings seemed
quiet
enough. Maybe the douche who’d shot at them assumed she was dead. It would benefit their journey
considerably
if Marcus thought his ex-wife was dead. But they still needed to be cautious.

Draven looked at Royce, letting the man know the conversation was far from over. He had sleeping beauty in his arms and he needed to call Dravaggio. Let him know somehow someone knew she was here. The buildings camera may have picked something up, and the fact no one came out and not hearing the bullets meant supernatural forces were at work.
Someone who worked for her ex-husband.
Someone who not only helped him secure and keep the vampires, but who had connections of the demon persuasion as well.
Time was literally counting down. They needed to find the house where the vampires were being kept and they needed to bring Marcus down. All of these things would happen after he got her and her daughter to safety.

Chapter 9

Relaxed. Comfortable. Sated
.
Jesminda wanted Royce with an intensity that burned a hole straight to her stomach.
Wait what?
She closed her eyes and shook the fuzzy thought from her head.
She didn’t want Royce she didn’t want anybody. She was in the back seat of a car and th
ey were moving at a fast pace.
There were no
streetlights
intermittently placed to mark the roads as they drove. The road Draven took was dark. She could see the shadow of branches but nothing more. Not even the moon shone through the thickets of dense trees. She couldn’t shake the feeling she’d done something extremely stupid.

Her cluttered brain attempted to retrieve pieces to the broken puzzle. She remembered coming out of the building. She remembered talking to Royce about smoking and then her thoughts blanked. A dark void from the time she spoke to Royce, and then to the SUV? How did she get from point A to point B? Slowly she tested all body parts. She was a bit sore, achy in some places. Her chest was sensitive. Every deep breath was painful.
Just li
ke the time the doctors told Jes
she’d almost suffered from a flaying chest injury.
From her supposed trip down a flight of stairs. What the hell happened?

A sharp pain hit the right side of her eye and spread over her skull like fire. Everything came rushing back in memory overload. She remembered the SUV’s window shattering, seconds later the profound feeling she’d had a fist punch through her chest and exit through her body out the other side! Oh shit! She’d been shot!
She could still feel the blood rising up from her ruptured lungs as it filled her mouth and spilled out the sides
.
Blood mixed with bile and the acid from her stomach.

             
Jesminda’s hand slowing felt for a wound that wasn’t there.
Nothing?
Absolutely nothing. Her last thoughts had been of Faith. She couldn’t even tell Draven about his daughter, because
she had
been
drowning in her own blood. Fire and anger turned to warmth and second chances. She could still taste the nectar on her lips. Dark, spicy, decadent and sinful the flavor of his rich blood was fire to her system. It was her savior, her lover, all rolled into one.
What the fuck?
She didn’t have time to ponder the meaning of it all. He’d saved her that was enough for now. A surge of gratefulness flooded her body and she wanted to hug Royce. Only, her animated HD memory slipped into another stream of thought. Her dry humping Draven as she’d stared back into eyes of liquid fire. Royce. She’d wanted him but settled for the next best thing. Jesminda cringed and let out a squeal of embarrassment. Oh God, now Royce would think she’d want him. She didn’t want either of them. What a disaster!

             
“It’s okay you can admit it sugar, I’m the true object of your deepest desires.” Royce turned and peered over the headrest at her in the back seat. She wanted to hurt him and hump him in the same breath. No fucking way! She was not attracted to Royce. Ewwwww!

             
“I would tell you it’s my animal magnetism, but it would be a lie I could totally live with.
The truth is you were shot, and I saved you. End of story.”

             
Shifters blood didn’t have healing qualities? Did it?

             
“Shifter’s blood does not heal. Can’t
.
And we’ll leave it at that.”
Royce said

He
hadn’t spoken the entire time until now. He looked into the rearview mirror and held her gaze. She was not going to get involved in the eye fucking. It was pointless. He was going to comment or humiliate her.
Let’s just add that to your list of things not to do.
Dry humping the father of her child in front of Royce. And before he could make a comment on her inner thoughts she kicked the back of his seat with her foot. She couldn’t move him by force and he still managed to feign hurt and actually pouted at her in the mirror.

She rolled her eyes. He could pout all he wanted as long as he didn’t open his big ass mouth.

“I’m relieved you’re okay, and I won’t let it happen again. Royce and I will see to it.” Draven's voice was harsh and she knew it wasn’t meant to be hurtful to her. He was upset and she understood.
Especially, from a mother’s perspective.
What kind of mother can’t protect their children? It was his job to protect her. She scooted forward in her seat, her arms on both head rests and looked straight ahead as she said.

“It’s over and as far as I’m concerned I was lucky, very lucky and I won’t forget it either.” She leaned forward and planted a light kiss on Royce’s cheek and whispered a
n immense
thank you to him in his ear. He nodded curtly. It was the first time she’d seen a serious look on his face, since she’d met him.

A serious look that lasted all of five seconds. In that small space of time he was now grinning ear to ear.
It was a contented smile filled with mischievous thoughts.

“Why the fuck did you kiss him?” Draven yelled.

“Uh, duh! He saved me, why else?”

“
Aaah,
little Dravey Drave wants a kiss to
o
Jesminda
.
Give him a kiss.
Pretty please?”

Royce batted his long beautiful eyelashes at her and gave
a thumbs
up
.
She lightly punched him in the shoulder and cleared her throat. She could be serious but she was alive and happy why not be a little playful. Playful never got you hurt. Right
?
Yes it can.

“No can do. That furry beast over there is shackled. Didn’t you see the way his girl handled him at the cafeteria? I’d be crazy to want to go toe to toe with that.” Laughing she leaned forward far enough in her seat so she was able to see Draven grit his teeth. Even his cheeks had muscles. What guy actually had cheek muscles? She wasn’t going to kiss him.
Kissing him would ruin everything.

“We are no longer a couple.” Draven gritted between his teeth.

“Not gonna happen. Even if you beg for it.” Jes shot back.
Stop flirting!

* * * *

             
Jesminda sat back and fastened her seatbelt. Heated feelings still lingered in her system for Royce.
Not as strong as when she’d awaken in the car,
but there was still some lingering thoughts dancing through her head.

             
“Stop being a naughty human,” Royce said into the mirror looking right at her.

Jesminda didn’t even try to hide her face.
Instead,
she winked back at him and he laughed. Life was too short to continue being in a bad mood, he’d saved her life. She could be playful with hi
m. It didn’t mean anything and
Royce knew it. Draven of course also eyed her in the mirror. His eyes watched her intently, alternating between her and the road.

“We’re going to pull over at this rest stop up ahead. We need to get something to eat, and maybe see if there’s a shirt for her to change into.” He said as he turned off the exit to head toward the rest area.

There were so many reasons she should ignore everything her body was saying. For
starters,
the unexplained feelings for Royce
had not
worn off
entirely
. There were her feelings that were resurfacing for Draven. Which didn’t make much sense
. H
e’d lied to her. Game over. She was a big girl and there was no reason for her not to be adult about the entire situation. Instead of
guessing,
she decided to confront the problem head on.