Awakened (Vampire Awakenings) (22 page)

She swallowed heavily as her body grew taut with anticipation. She looked up to find him watching her with a small smile and a feral gleam in his emerald eyes. He opened his arms to her and she went eagerly into them. His mouth was savage and fierce as it seized upon hers. Sera was instantly swept away by his fierce need, and her own.

His hands seized upon her waist as he lifted her easily up. Sera gasped in surprise as he thrust deeply into her. “Hold onto me,” he grated hoarsely in her ear.

She wrapped her arms and legs around him as he turned her into the wall. He braced her firmly, and used his hands to guide her movements as she slid slowly up and down. Her tight sheath was so very warm and inviting, so wonderful. The water ran over her, flowing down her breasts and dripping off of her hardened nipples. He seized one of them, sucking upon the sweet bud as he licked the water from her.

She cried out, arching against him as her fingers tightened upon his neck. His eyes seized upon the dark marks on her neck. His marks. His body hardened and grew tauter as a fierce hunger ripped through him. His teeth instantly lengthened and the animal inside of him sprang forth. An inhuman urge to mark her once more seized him. He wanted her sweet blood, needed the resurgence of strength it gave him. He wanted to brand her as his own again so that everyone would know that she belonged only to him. His hands tightened upon her hips, his need became savage as he drove fiercely into her.

She cried out as she withered wildly upon him. Her hands clawed into him as she sensed his urgency, and met it. His mouth began to water as her head fell back and he could see the blood throbbing through her veins. He almost drove his teeth into her neck. Almost took her against her will. He managed to take a ragged gasp and rip his gaze away from her tempting throat. He had to stop; he had to get away from her before he lost all control and devoured her completely.

“Sera,” he grated. “Stop. We must stop!”

His words barely pierced her erotic haze. When they did, she dropped her head to gaze at him. Her eyes widened at the sight that greeted her and terror hammered through her veins. His face was twisted with beastly need, his teeth long and sharp. She could see the struggle for control in his clenched jaw, and flaring nostrils. His eyes blazed a brilliant green with ferocious hunger. Although he had drunk from her last night, he had never looked like this. This Liam was wild, and primitive, and utterly deadly.

“I can’t,” he somehow managed to say.

Her eyes came back to his, wide, and innocent, and beguiling. He grit his teeth hard as he tried to regain control of himself. He had never lost it before, and he wasn’t about to lose it now. Not with her. He would hurt her. He took a step away from the wall and released his hold upon her.

“Get out of here Sera. Stay away from me for awhile.”

“No.”

“Sera!” he hissed as he seized hold of the hands wrapped tightly around his neck.

“I said no.”

Anger flared through him as he met her determined gaze. “Damn it Sera, I’m going to hurt you!”

“No you won’t. I know you won’t.” Her simple words managed to dampen some of the beast within him.

He groaned as his hands convulsed upon hers. “It’s too soon.”

“Will it change me?”

“Not if you don’t drink from me, and I can control myself.”

“Then control yourself.”

“It’s not that easy,” he groaned. “Not with you.”

Her smile was softly seductive as she slowly lifted herself up and slid back down his hardened cock. He stiffened, his hands tightened upon hers as she rubbed her hardened nipples against his chest and lightly nipped at his bottom lip. She rose again and slid leisurely back down, her muscles clenched tightly as she drew him all the way into her. He made no move to meet her actions as he stood stiffly. She felt so exquisitely good, but she was playing with fire, and she was going to get burned. He couldn’t let that happen.

Sera rode him slowly, determined to melt his resolve; determined that he was going to give her what she wanted. And she wanted all of him, consequences be damned. She bit lightly into his neck. His hands tightened as his body stiffened. “Sera!” he grated.

She couldn’t stop herself from smiling. No matter how hard he tried to fight her, and himself, she knew that she was going to win. She nibbled lightly at his neck as his hands seized upon her hips. His grip was bruising but she didn’t care. She bit into his earlobe, tugging lightly on it as he trembled and groaned.

Suddenly his grip eased as he pushed her against the wall. His body was hot and hard as he throbbed and pulsed within her. His head fell to her shoulder, and she could feel his teeth pressed against her skin. His breath was warm as his inhalations became ragged and harsh. His body trembled as he fought for control.

“Take me Liam,” she whispered. “Make me yours.”

He shuddered violently as her words drifted over him. All of his control snapped. He drove fiercely into her as the creature within took over. She tilted her head back as she rode him with abandon. He didn’t know why she wasn’t afraid of him, why she didn’t want him to stop, and at the moment he didn’t care. All he wanted was to own her, to have her, and to have her know that she was his, and only his.

With a savage cry he bit deeply into her. She cried out in ecstasy as her hands clawed wildly into him, tearing at his skin as the overwhelming urgency for more threatened to destroy them both.

***

It was awhile later before Sera was able to rouse herself from her languid state. She felt thoroughly sedated, deliciously satisfied, and very well used. Somehow, they had managed to make their way to the plush rug upon the floor. She curled one hand into it and smiled with contentment as she nestled closer to Liam.

His hand tightened upon her hip. She slowly lifted her head to gaze down at his exquisite face and bright green eyes. There was a haunted look in them as he slowly searched her face. “Are you all right?” She smiled and nodded as she lightly stroked his chest. “I didn’t hurt you?” Her smile grew sweeter, more content as she shook her head. “You should have let me stop.”

It was the self contempt in his voice that caused her hand to still, and her smile to fade. “No.”

His hand seized hold of hers as he levered himself onto his elbow. He loomed over her, large, and frightening, and hers. “I could have hurt you.”

The sweet smile that flitted over her face tugged at his heart. “No, you couldn’t have.”

Her blind trust, and utter belief in him, caused a fierce tightening in his chest. He had done nothing to deserve it, nothing to deserve her, and yet, he had her. Her eyes were soft and dreamy as she gazed at him. Never had she looked more beautiful than at that moment. There was a soft glow about her that radiated from her dreamy eyes. Her golden hair cascaded around her to spill onto the floor in a damp, wet mass that he found impossible not to touch.

“Come on, let’s get you dressed.”

“Do we have too?”

He raised an eyebrow at her and nodded briskly. “Unless you want to spend the rest of the night in this bathroom.”

She grinned saucily. “This rug is rather comfortable.”

To his surprise, Liam felt himself growing hard again. Her body was warm and supple beneath his and utterly tempting. He didn’t know what was wrong with him. His desire and need for her wasn’t dimming at all, it was growing stronger with each time that he took her. He had fed on her last night, caught a few rabbits today, and fed upon her again, but suddenly he found himself hungry for more of her.

Shit, he would kill them both if this kept up. He shoved himself off the floor and to his feet. “Come on,” he said more briskly than he had intended.

She blinked in surprise as he grabbed her arms and pulled her to her feet. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes.” He tossed her clothes to her and turned away. He couldn’t look at her anymore. He needed to get out of this room. It was growing smaller by the second.

Sera tugged her jeans on as she watched him. His back was tense and his jaw was clenched tightly as he stalked over to turn the shower off. The water had long since grown cold, and the steam in the room had evaporated. She pulled her turtleneck on and then tugged on her sweater. He was standing by the sink, quickly pulling on a pair of jeans as he kept his back to her. It was then that she noticed the claw marks that marred his smooth, taut skin. She swallowed heavily as her eyes widened in surprise. She couldn’t believe that she had done that to him. A fierce blush began to burn her face as she lowered her gaze. What had he turned her into?

She bit into her bottom lip as she searched for something to turn her mind away from her thoughts. “Was your walk successful?”

“Yes. You ready?”

His clipped tones drew her attention back to him. She frowned as she pulled her turtleneck higher. “Liam, what’s wrong?”

He kept his back firmly to her as he gathered the clothes off the floor. “Nothing.”

“Are you mad at me?” she asked in confusion.

“No.”

“Then why are acting like it?”

He scooped the last article of clothing from the floor and shoved them onto the counter. He ran a hand wearily through his hair as he turned to face her. “I’m not mad at you Sera.”

No matter what he said, his voice was still cold and strained. She stared at him in confusion. “Then what is the matter?”

He frowned as he studied her. She was slightly paler than normal, and there were shadows under her large, luminous eyes. “How do you feel?”

“I feel fine.”

“I’ve taken a lot of blood from you Sera, are you sure that you’re all right?”

She smiled as she nodded. “I’m fine.” Her words did nothing to ease the harshness in his face, and the coldness in his eyes. “Liam, what is wrong?”

He opened his arms to her. “Come here.” She hesitated for a moment before stepping into his embrace. “I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at myself, and I’m confused.”

Fear constricted her heart. Was he confused about her? About the way he felt about her? “About what?” she asked in a strangled voice.

He pulled slightly away and tipped her chin up with his finger. “About the loss of control I have when I’m around you.”

She blinked in surprise as she frowned at him. “What do you mean?”

“Sera, what happened earlier shouldn’t have. I should have been able to stop myself from changing, from feeding off you. But I had no control, it just took over. And now I would like nothing more than to do it again.”

He expected to see fear or revulsion in her eyes. Instead, they clouded with desire as she bit into her enticing bottom lip. “Oh,” she whispered.

Sera shivered with want as his steel arms tightened around her, and his words stirred something deep inside her. She had no idea what she was becoming, what he had brought out in her, but words that should have frightened her, should have warned her to stay clear of him, at least for a little while, only served to make her tremble with want, and need. Was it because his blood coursed in her veins? Was there now part of a vampire inside her?

She should have been terrified at the thought, but she wasn’t.

Liam’s fingers lightly stroked her cheek. He tugged at the edge of her turtleneck and pulled it down. He gazed at the two marks that marred the creamy perfection of her skin. His marks. His eyes dilated as his teeth instantly lengthened. He wanted to brand her again, to taste her again; to fill her veins with his blood so that everyone knew that she was his. So that she knew that she was his.

He clamped his jaw tightly as he willed the demon inside him to subside. Slowly, he was able to regain some control of himself, and meet her eyes again. “I thought you said the marks faded,” she whispered as she watched him intently.

“They do when we use our saliva to make them close faster.”

Her brow furrowed. “Why didn’t you do that with me?”

His eyes gleamed with a feral light that made them flash red for a second. Sera’s eyes widened, but to her surprise she felt no fear of him. “Because I wanted you to bear my mark. I want everyone to know that you are mine. And you are mine Sera. No one else is ever going to touch you.”

Normally she would have been angered by his highhanded, possessive tone. She would have been enraged at the thought of anyone thinking they owned her. Instead, she found herself thrilled by it. “I mean it,” his eyes flashed again as the creature within neared the surface. “If anyone touches you...”

She placed her finger over his mouth to silence him. A muscle in his jaw twitched as his eyes gleamed violently. “I am yours Liam,” she whispered. “Only yours.”

He closed his eyes as he fought against the vampire that wanted to break free and finish what it had started. Slowly, her words sank in and helped to ease his fierce need. “Good.”

“And you’re only mine, right?”

He opened his eyes. She was staring intently at him, her eyes narrowed, and a fierce spark in them. He smiled softly at the ferociousness in her gaze as he traced her swollen lower lip. “Yes.”

She grinned as she stood on her toes to kiss him lightly. “We had better go before they send a search party for us.”

She pulled her turtleneck back up. Liam’s hands clenched as he fought the urge to rip it back down so that everyone could see what was beneath it, but he knew he couldn’t risk Kathleen and Danielle realizing that it wasn’t just a hickey she bore.