9781936653027BorntobeWildArsuaga (14 page)

“He’s not here. I’m telling you, this is me
talking, not him. I…I actually like him, Jordy. The least I could have done was
let him know I pursued this virus hunt back to Florida where it originated. I
owed him an explanation since he risked a lot for me.”

“Well, I think I’m going to stay with you tonight
just in case he decides to make a surprise visit.”

“No, I’ll be fine. You don’t have to babysit me.
I’ll take one of those PM sleep aids to help me sleep. I should be fine. Go
back to your room so I can get ready for bed. I’m setting my alarm for five. We
can get on the road by six, okay?”

“Works for me.
If you
have any trouble during the night, you call me, promise?”

“I promise. Now, go.”

Within the hour, she’d settled into bed and fell
fast asleep.

The lightning and thunder raged outside the
window. Her eyes snapped open and rolled around in their sockets trying to
focus. Something woke her from her sleep, the wind and rain pounding on the
window, perhaps? No, something else, something in her head called out to her.
She turned an ear toward the window and listened intently, but nothing in the
night moved except the product of the storm. The wind whipped through the trees
across the parking lot tormenting the branches.
I’m dreaming. It’s nothing.

Closing her eyes, she lay back down, tucking the
pillow under her head. Sleep soon lapped at the edge of her consciousness again.
Suddenly a dark shadow rushed toward the bedside. Reflected lightning flashed
it into reality—a man! He stepped forward, reaching out and stroking her back
with the tips of his fingers until he heard a gasp from the other side of the
pillow. Her nipples hardened under the T-shirt.

She turned to face her dream lover, terrified of
who he might be. A faceless stranger or was it Stefan standing at the foot of
her bed? His bright white face and teeth stared at her longingly from above
with dark, smoldering eyes, rimmed in glowing red reminded her of him. It had
to be him. A hand slid along her arm and across her belly, resting just below
her breast, then locked eyes with her. Feeling a tingle in her stomach, was she
frightened of him or herself? His eyes and touch told her everything she needed
to know, and released the fear. Mutual longing replaced it.

As his hand moved up her T-shirt and over the
breast, she parted her lips. His thumb caressed a petal pink areola and into a
hardening nipple, gently rubbing the whole time.

His thumb drew circles around the nipple, and warm
fingers played with it, rolling playfully back and forth, with a slight tug.
She closed her eyes and breathed deep. His palm flattened over her chest and
squeezed her whole breast, pulling it between his fingers, and bringing it up
to his mouth, where he sucked it in and let it slide back out with a loud pop.

The sound crackled like lightning making her
squirm and tingle between her legs.

He brought his head down and planted delicate
kisses over her two bountiful mounds, flicking his tongue over them, evoking
faster and harder breathing from her.

His tongue ran circles around her nipples, sucking
them into his mouth, his teeth scraped across them. He bit them, pulled and
tugged on them.

The warmth and moistness between her legs
increased.

He looked down at her and a smile curled his lips.
He lowered again. This time the unknown lover covered her face with feathery
kisses, until their mouths finally met in a hot and wet mutual confrontation.
Their lips parted and tongues intertwined exploring each other with strong,
powerful strokes. The muscles in her body tensed as her tongue slowly traced
its way along his front teeth, feeling the rounded edge of his incisors, and the
protruding, razor length of his fangs. Licking the tip of one of them, she
experienced the metallic taste of blood. He sucked her tongue deep into his
mouth tasting the blood and shivering as it coated his throat. He lost control
wanting more, and more. Feeling urgency, she pushed away from him.

“Oh God, this is only a dream. You are a dream
aren’t you?” she hissed into the darkness.

“Yes, Alexandra, you are dreaming.” He laughed. He
glanced at the digital clock on her nightstand, checking how much time he had
for games. “Do you want to play,
prinţesa
?”

“Play?
I don’t
understand. What kind of play?” Her words caught in her throat, her breathing
grew hard and heavy.

“Whatever you want.”
He
clasped his hands behind his back. “In fact, if you tell me where you are, I
can come and get you and make this entire dream come true.”

“Oh God, you aren’t a dream. You’re in my head
trying to track me. Get out, get out. I’ll scream, I swear I will. Jordan will
hear me. He’s next door.”

“Don’t trouble yourself Alexandra. I’ll leave,”
his lips stretched tightly across his teeth, baring the fangs. He drew closer
to her, bracing above her only inches away from her quivering lips. “If you
actually want me to leave, I will. Do you want me to?”

Placing a kiss on her lips, stifling the scream
she attempted to make. He rose up again, looking deeply into her eyes. “I told
you the first night we were together; you could not turn back once I possessed
you. You can’t run from me
prinţesa
.
Tell me where you are?”

“Oh God, I can’t.” Her breathing became rapid, her
heart slammed in her chest. Tears welled and the stress brought on feelings of
lightheadedness. “Please, don’t hurt me, Stefan,” she whimpered, barely above a
whisper.

“I wouldn’t think of harming you. You are my
prinţesa
. You will come to me of
your own freewill.” He ran his fingers along her cheek and down under her chin,
slightly tilting it up. He lowered his lips to hers, brushing them ever so
close without touching. With a gasp of anticipation, she took a deep breath and
held it. “You will come to me
prinţesa
.
I love you.” A soft and gentle kiss touched her forehead.

The kisses moved—cheek, to jaw, chin, earlobe,
settling at her neck. He licked over the position at her artery and let just
the slightest prick of his elongated fangs draw a couple drops of blood from
her. He parted his lips wider spreading over her inviting soft flesh. Feeling
her submission in his arms, he drove his teeth into her throat, releasing a
rush of hot elixir into his mouth. He drank deep with every burst of sweet
sanguinary fire that rushed from her. The voiceless scream of a nightmare
formed in her throat.

Beep. Beep.
Beep.

The clock alarm went off, faintly hearing it in
the background, as the dream faded into the edges of her subconscious.

“No!” Yelling, she sat up in bed, startled by the
now piercing alarm. Shivering, the sheets clung to her sweat-soaked T-shirt as
she breathed a sigh of relief as the dream melted into nothing. The last
remnants of the fitful sleep faded into the darkness of the room. Breathing
hard, Alex fell back down on the bed and rolled over. “It was only a dream,
actually more like a nightmare.”

What a relief to wake up and be alive. After a few
moments, she sat upright, and touched her fingers to her throat, no blood and
no marks. “Thank God.”

Chapter 13

Same Night,
Virginia Beach

Stefan awoke and returned to the oceanfront house.
He hoped Alexandra slept on what he told her the night before and would forgive
him for the blood exchange. She just had to. He was not willing to give her up.

When he arrived, the Mustang was gone. Maybe she
went back to the hotel, and planned to meet him at the beach club.

Twenty minutes later, he finished his shower,
dressed, and headed into the kitchen for nourishment. His house blood supply
drew low.
Time to
order.
He grabbed a bag of his favorite type and popped it in the
microwave to warm up. Taking his glass of evening brew to the living room, he
sat upon the sofa to contemplate the evening’s events.

First, he had to set things right with Alexandra.
All the women who passed through his life, mortal and immortal, over the five
centuries, none touched or affected him like Alexandra did. He thought he
imagined the glow emanating from her, until Sheena admitted seeing it too.

He now remembered the story the gypsies in his
country told many centuries ago about a young maiden with a light so bright
within her soul, only those with a truly good heart could see her would find
salvation. Could Alexandra be the one the old gypsy women spoke of? He always
thought it mindless drivel of superstitious people, but now…

Damn!
He
was still hungry. The past several days he got by with the bare minimum of
blood. The infinitesimal amount he took from his nibbling off Alexandra was
nothing to satiate his ravenous appetite. Before going to the club, he would
take care of the problem and partake of a tourist or two. He liked this time of
year—summertime on the Strip at Virginia Beach—a time when many of the wild and
crazies came out. Along with tourists from around the world venturing out onto
the streets, walking up and down and in and out of souvenir shops and cheesy
nightclubs looking for their thrill of the summer. Fortunately, the vamp
groupies frequented the same streets and clubs making getting an extra blood
boost easy. They never paid any attention to what went on around them and made
his job easy for pouncing on them in the shadows. He could charm them, take a
meager amount of blood, leaving them dazed and high on adrenaline, and he’d
move on to another victim, repeating the process. He could do at least ten a
night and feel satisfied, not needing to worry about feeding while on duty at
the clubs.

Until three nights ago, that is. He prepared to
end his existence, until seeing her walk into the club. In that instance,
everything changed. He smiled. The way she responded to his touch, his mind
touch, confirmed their mutual rapport and desire. She would forgive him. He had
to believe that or go mad.

He decided to leave earlier than usual and hit a
few night clubs along the Strip before heading over to
The Black Rose
. Action along the Strip started earlier than at
Gregori’s club, so finding suitable prey wasn’t difficult. He locked up the
house and ventured into the night.

With the temperature in the low seventies, a light
breeze off the ocean with clear skies—a perfect early summer night lay ahead.
With his vampire speed and the close proximity of his house to the oceanfront
tourist strip, he was deep in the action within minutes, scoping out his first
victim.

He stepped into one of his favorite clubs,
Shark Bait
, an appropriate name for a
beach club he always thought, but also fitting for the clientele who frequented
it. The young women were always predatory and looking for a good bite, which he
was willing to oblige. The club buzzed with life. Activity reverberated
everywhere in the people-packed room, definitely the hot place to be. He made
his way toward the bar. Right away he spotted two primed and ready young women
standing next to the brass railings, moving with the music blaring through the
speaker system.

Sauntering up to the two women, he flashed his
typical gleaming white-toothed smile, the kind which always made the young
ladies smack their lips before he even said one word. And tonight was no
different. Right on cue, both licked their lips as he approached within a few
feet.

“Good evening ladies,” Stefan said in his low,
velvety voice.

“Ooh, aren’t you a cutie. I could wrap you up and
take you home and eat you all night long,” the petite bleached blonde said in
what she probably thought was her sexy voice. Scraping fake fingernails across
his black silk shirt and feeling the taut sinewy muscle below, she sighed
wantonly.

“And I’ll join you,” the taller blonde chimed in.

He grinned. “Ladies, why are we standing around
here? That’s the best offer I’ve received all night. Let’s go.”

He slid his arm around each of the women’s waist,
guiding them through the crowd toward the front door. After moving past the bouncer
at the entrance, he maneuvered them to the right and around the corner to the
back of the building. The women giggled as they fondled over his body. “Where
we going, baby?” the petite blonde asked.

“You’ll see.”

Within a few moments, the three were in the back
alley, obscured from the street and no one around.

The petite blonde lifted her head to Stefan, “Why
are we back here. Don’t you have a place we can go, baby?”

“Yeah, it stinks back here. The dumpster is over
there.” The taller blonde pouted.

His jaw tightened.
Spoiled bitches.
He grabbed the petite blonde and
covered her lips hard. Lust grabbed his crotch. Bloodlust yanked his fangs. He
broke the kiss and ran his tongue over her neck and sunk his teeth in her soft
flesh.

Pulling her hips hard against his steely body and
rock-hard erection, he ravenously drank her blood, oblivious to her helpless
and eager gasps. In his frenzied state, one bite would not satisfy.

He pulled away and gently placed the petite woman
down on the ground, sitting her up on the dumpster. With a glazed look, she raised
her eyes to him, her voice soft and breathy. “I thought you fucked before you
sucked our blood?”

“Not this time.” He turned to the taller blonde
who stood back watching Stefan sample her friend.
“Your
turn.”

Stepping toward him, she licked sensuous lips in
anticipation of pleasure to come. Unbridled sex burned in her eyes. He tried to
subdue his growing erection and focus on satisfying the bloodlust, not sex. She
moved closer, his eyes wandered over her luscious body. He was losing the
battle.

The top of her shapely legs exposed themselves
from beneath the cut-off denim shorts. They seemed to go on forever. She ran
her palms over his shirt, scraping her fingernails across the hard taut muscles
underneath. “Baby, you know you want me. Fuck me when you bite me.” Her voice
was demanding, deep, and carnal.

The depth of desire in her icy blue eyes torched
his blood, already running hot in his veins. Her hips roughly rubbed against
his large, hard cock.

His eyes closed. His breathing quickened. He
wanted this woman to be Alexandra. He desired her. His thoughts were of her,
called for her.
Alexandra
. He bent
his head to meet her lips capturing them in a hungry embrace. His mouth moved
along her jaw, his tongue teasing the skin underneath. Stefan nibbled her
earlobe as his hands dropped lower and grabbed her ass. He couldn’t last much
longer. Her blood pulsing in her veins beckoned him. The smell of her
intoxicating scent of arousal called another part of his beast within.
Alexandra
. He bit into the skin of the
young woman.

Time seemed to cease. A stinging sensation and the
smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils. Pain pierced through his brain.

The tall blonde screamed and he saw her thrown
from his grasp from behind onto the chain link fence. Slamming hard against it,
she fell to the ground like a ragdoll.

His own voice broke through the darkness. He threw
his hands up to the source of the pain, his neck. His hands burned.
A silver chain!
He twisted his body
around swiftly to off-balance the perpetrator of the chain, but to no avail.

He fell to his knees as a hard blow came from
behind hitting his head. His senses confused. He stared at her with intense
glowing red eyes. Stefan’s gaze asked what she wanted. She wasn’t the one
holding him captive. Her human boy toy had him chained, powerless. What kind of
game was afoot now?

“Ecaterina, what the fuck are you doing?” he
growled.

Pressing her finger to his lips, she stepped
within inches. “Shh, baby. You don’t want to draw attention. Not with these two
bimbos slumped over on the ground with blood dripping off them. I told you I’d
come for you one day or night as the case may be. And tonight is your lucky
night.” The huskiness in her voice meant absolute business, nothing personal.

“Why are you doing this?”

“All in good time, baby.
All in
good time.”
She glanced over at the two women. “Hmm.
Seems
a shame to waste these two. You always were such a pussy about following rules.
No sense in wasting good blood.” Pouncing first on the petite blonde resting on
the dumpster, she sucked her dry in moments. Then she turned attention to the
other blonde lying motionless by the fence.

Within minutes she stood amid a scene of carnage
covered in blood and gore with two cooling corpses at her feet. Assessing the
end-product of her handy work, she laughed. “The police will have a field day
with this one. I love it. Who cares, only part of the grand plan.” She sashayed
back to stand in front of Stefan.

“Okay, baby. You listen carefully to what I’m
about to say.” Fisting his hair, she jerked his head back. “You see this
syringe, Stefan? It is filled with a virus, a deadly vampire virus and if you
don’t do as I say I will stick you with it. You’ll go bye-bye within a week. A
very long and painful death I’m afraid. Do you understand?”

Anger welled inside him and he literally saw red in
his vision.

She chuckled. “I’ll take the look in your eyes as
a yes. You are not to fight with my boy. We are walking to my car and you will
get in without struggling. He is quite strong and will break your neck, maybe
not to kill you, but enough to incapacitate. You will do as I say or you’ll be
punished more harshly. Hold out your hands.”

“Go to Hell Ecaterina!”

“Oh baby, I’ve been there, got the T-shirt and the
bad hair days to prove it. By the way, I told you my name is
Cat.
”
Pulling out a pair of gloves, she put them on, reached into the other pocket
and retrieved a set of silver handcuffs.

His brow wrinkled anxiously.

“Hold out your hands, baby. I don’t want you to
try anything funny. I’m not fucking around here. Don’t think I wouldn’t use it
on you, Stefan. Now, move. I’m growing tired of this. I want to get back to
Miami Beach before dawn.”

He presented his hands and Ecaterina placed the
manacles on his wrists. He grimaced as the silver singed his skin. “She was
right,” he mumbled, as he shuffled forward constrained by the silver chains.
Alexandra, I need you. I love you.

“Who was right?”

“No one.”
He growled low
in his throat.

“You’re talking about the fat bitch you were with
at the club.” Narrowing her eyes, she tried to pierce his mind. He closed her off.
“Who is she?” Ecaterina demanded.

“Don’t worry about her. She’s gone.” Stefan
answered with sadness and longing in his voice.

“Hmm.
I don’t believe
you, but it doesn’t matter. You’ll be in Miami in a few hours.”

Within the hour, they were on a private jet flying
to Miami Beach—Stefan, Ecaterina, and Gerry, the human boy toy. When the plane
leveled at thirty thousand feet, Gerry removed the silver chains and the burns
on Stefan’s neck and wrists started to heal.

Ecaterina walked from the back area and sat down
in the seat directly across from Stefan. Having cleaned up and changed clothes,
she showed no evidence of the blood bath.

“Feeling better, baby? We could have done this a
lot easier if you had accepted my request for help when I asked, except you declined.
So I took matters into my own hands.”

He glared intently at her. “You’re crazy if you
think I’m going to help in killing a Fed.”

“You’ll help me…or you’ll die.
Your
choice.”

“I don’t understand. Why are you doing this? Why a
virus to kill vampires? And killing a Fed?
For what purpose?”

“Oh so many questions, Stefan.
You give me a headache.” Leaning forward, she rubbed firm palms over his
thighs. “Suffice it to say, it’s part of Emil’s plan.”

“Emil…Emil Dragomir?” He watched the lascivious
expression gather in her eyes as lust-driven hands worked their way up his
thighs.

“Yes, Emil Dragomir.
My lover.
The genius behind the entire plan to dominate the vampire
blood market.
His company has synthesized the blood enzyme responsible
for the miraculous healing we vampires possess. That’s all I can tell you for
now.”

“What the hell are you doing getting involved with
that bastard? I’ve heard he is one of the most evil and dangerous family
Masters. Why did you get mixed up with him?”

“Mmm, baby, I don’t want to discuss Emil. Let’s
talk you and me. I’ve missed you.” Her hand skimmed over his taut abdomen and
broad chest.

He grabbed her wrists, holding them tightly. “I
haven’t missed you Cat. I’ve moved on.”

“Your eyes and scent tell a different story baby.”
She leaned in, rising and squirming to straddle his lap, and licked his chin.