Bound to Fear

Sisters of the Moon
Series

(Short Story)

Bound to Fear

by

Nina Croft

Bound to
Fear

By Nina Croft

Copyright 2012 Nina Croft

Smashwords
Edition

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****

Cover design by Fantasia Frog Designs

Title page

Bound to Fear

Preview ~ Bound to Night

“
I’m fine,” Maria muttered. She was tired of saying the words.
No one believed her anyway.

“No, you’re not,” Sebastian replied. “And we
can’t help you if you won’t open up to us.”

Maria ground her teeth. “I don’t need
help.”

“You wake every night screaming.”

Heat flushed her face. Trust Sebastian to
know everything that went on in his pack. She wandered over to the
edge of the rooftop and peered over the low wall at the city far
below. Up here, far above the bustle of people, was the only place
she felt safe. She missed the forest.

A few weeks ago, the same group who had
captured and tortured Maria, had destroyed the pack’s house. Jack,
the leader of the local vampires, had offered them sanctuary in
London, and until Sebastian was sure they were safe, here they
would stay.

“You need to face your fears—banish them,”
Sebastian said, dragging her from her thoughts.

The ever present despair rose up inside her,
and she swung around to face him. “How can I, when the thing I fear
most is myself?” She took a deep breath. “Every night, I dream I’m
back in that cell. But it’s not the pain of torture I fear. In my
dreams, I’m broken. I tell them anything they want to know.” She
blinked away her tears. “In my dreams, I’m weak.”

“But you weren’t weak. You told them
nothing.”

“Only because Anya got me out of there.” She
bit her lip until she tasted blood. “If they’d kept me any
longer….”

“You would have died first.”

“I want to believe that, but I just don’t
know.” She looked away, not wanting to see his pity.

“I’ve decided to split the pack,” Sebastian
said.

Maria frowned at the change of subject.
“Why?”

“We’re getting too big. I’ve already sent
Connor up north to look for new hunting grounds. I’d like you to go
south to Cornwall.”

“Sure—no problem.”

She tried to sound enthusiastic, but knew
she’d failed when he shook his head. But it wasn’t only fear that
plagued her right now. Lately, she’d found enthusiasm beyond her.
She’d seen it happen to others of their kind, as they grew
older.

She knew Sebastian had as well.

“You’re one of the bravest people I know,”
he said. “Find some way to prove it to yourself, and move on.”

His words lingered in her mind through the
long day, and an idea slowly took form.

Could she do it, and if she could—would it
work?

Sebastian had known her for over fifty
years. He knew what she feared. Her “little vampire phobia” as he
called it.

Hardly little.

But perhaps Sebastian was right. Maybe, if
she faced her oldest fear, then she could put this new one behind
her. She would have to wait until nightfall, and if she was going
to do this then she needed to do it properly. So, who was the
biggest, baddest vampire of them all? Maybe not the strongest—that
would be Jack—but definitely the meanest.

A shudder ran down her spine. She’d rather
be tortured.

***

Seth awoke, instantly alert, as he always
did when the sun went down. Tonight though, something was
different. He breathed in and caught the musky aroma of
werewolf.

That was nothing odd. Since Jack had offered
a home to the pack, the building was saturated with their scent; it
was driving Seth crazy.

He had nothing against werewolves. In fact,
he liked them a lot, and what he liked best about them was the
taste of their blood. It put him on edge to have so many, so near,
and for them to be off limits.

“Don’t eat the guests.” Jack had warned him.
He’d smiled as he said the words, but Seth knew he was deadly
serious.

That Jack trusted him enough to think the
warning would work pleased Seth more than he would ever admit. Ten
years ago, he wouldn’t have been able to control his hunger. By
now, he would have sated himself on were blood and not considered
the consequences.

But he’d made a conscious decision to
change, and Jack had enough faith in him to give him a chance.
Sometimes living up to that trust was hard.

There was one sexy little werewolf in
particular. She was ravishingly pretty, and appeared young, which
maybe explained why she feared his kind so much, and why she
scurried away whenever he came close. But never fast enough so he
couldn’t smell the hot, sweetness of her blood, laced with the
intoxicating scent of her fear.

And now, if he wasn’t mistaken, she was
hovering outside his door. He ran a hand through his hair and
pushed down his hunger. Rolling onto his feet, he pulled on his
pants, strode across the room, and flung open the door.

And stopped.

She’d swapped her normal T-shirt for a black
slinky top that left her shoulders bare and piled her long dark
hair into a loose knot on top of her head, exposing the graceful
line of her throat.

His gaze fixed on the pulse beneath the
fragile layer of skin, and his gums ached.

Life wasn’t fair.

***

I am not weak. I can do this.

Maria tried to force herself to take a step
forward. When her feet refused to move, she closed her eyes, leaned
her body towards him, and raised her chin, baring her throat.

Could she be any more obvious?

When nothing happened, she opened her eyes.
He was watching her, his brows furrowed.

“Why?” he asked.

The question took her by surprise. “Does it
matter?”

“Yes.”

Irritation flared—why couldn’t he just
co-operate? “I need to prove I’m not afraid.”

He leaned close, breathing deeply.
“Sweetheart, I can smell your fear.”

A shudder ran through her. “Okay. I need to
prove that I can conquer my fear. That my fear doesn’t rule
me.”

A look of disbelief flashed across his face.
“What am I? Some sort of therapist?”

She shrugged suddenly uncomfortable.
“Maybe.”

He considered her, head tilted to one side.
“So why are you afraid of vampires?”

Was he crazy?

“Jesus. You’re a goddamned blood-sucking
monster. Why the hell wouldn’t I be afraid?”

A brief smile curved his
lips. Then he stood back and gestured for her to enter the room.
Maria became aware that he wasn’t wearing much, just a pair of
black pants that hung low on his lean hips. At any other time, and
had he been anything else, she might have admired the sleek lines
of his body, the ridged muscles of his flat belly. As it was, they
hardly registered. It wasn’t what was in his
pants
that made her pulse
race.

She took three steps forward. Her breathing
short and sharp, as she stood, frozen in place. She didn’t think
she could run now even if her life depended on it. Which might very
well be the case.

“A sacrificial lamb,” he murmured.
“How…delicious.”

Circling her slowly, he came to a halt
behind her. As he touched her lightly on the shoulder, she
jumped.

“You’re trembling,” he whispered close to
her ear, his cool breath feathering across her skin. “Calm
down—this won’t hurt.”

Maria didn’t believe him. It was nearly
seventy years now, but she could still see her mother’s dead
staring eyes, filled with the agony of her last moments.

His lips touched her throat in the softest
of kisses as his hands settled on her shoulders and he drew her
back against the coolness of his naked chest. His mouth opened
against her skin. Maria swallowed and braced herself for the pain.
For an instant, his body tensed, his fingers tightened. Then his
fangs sank into her.

No pain.

Just a rhythmic tugging that pulled at
places deep within her body. Relief held her motionless for a
moment, then she tilted her head to the side to give him better
access. He growled low in his throat, his hands sliding down her
arms to enfold her, pull her closer against his hard body.

What was he doing to her?

Her breasts ached, and a pulse throbbed
between her thighs. She arched back against him, and his palm swept
up over her stomach to cup her breast. He squeezed, and lightning
shot down through her belly. The strength drained from her limbs,
and she would have fallen but for his strong arms wrapped tight
around her.

Finally, he withdrew and she felt the slow
swipe of his tongue against her skin. She stood for a moment,
before pulling free. His arms released her, and she turned slowly
to face him.

His eyes glowed crimson. Her blood stained
his lips. And despite that, Maria wanted him with a fierceness she
had never experienced in her whole long life.

How could she?

She whirled around and ran. She didn’t stop
until she slammed her bedroom door closed behind her and clicked
the lock into place.

***

What the hell had that been about?

Seth stood in the center of the room staring
at the closed door.

He knew some women were drawn to the danger
his kind represented, but his little wolf hadn’t seemed like that.
She’d been genuinely afraid.

Until he’d bitten her. Then her fear had
vanished, and she’d melted against him. He breathed in, filling his
nostrils with the lingering scent of her arousal. His balls
tightened, his cock throbbing with the need for release.

Jack could only expect so much from him.

He followed her scent up the stairs, coming
to a halt in front of a door. He turned the handle—locked.

Raising his foot, he kicked. The lock
splintered and the door shot open.

***

He still wore nothing but the black pants,
and this time Maria couldn’t help but notice him. He must have been
young when he was changed, no more than early twenties, and she’d
bet he’d been stunning even then, with his dark eyes and sharp
cheekbones. Now his face glowed with the inhuman beauty of his
kind.

Her gaze dropped to his broad shoulders,
muscular chest, and a lean ridged abdomen. Then lower to the bulge
where his erection pressed against his straining zipper. Her gaze
flew to his face as warmth flooded her body.

“What do you want?” she muttered.

His eyes narrowed in disbelief. “Are you
kidding?”

At his words, a wild reckless excitement
filled her. She’d been sitting here, unable to understand what was
wrong with her. She’d faced her fear and survived, yet the whole
thing had left her empty and aching. Now she knew what she
needed.

Jumping to her feet, she stalked toward
him.

“I am not weak,” she ground out, and she
knew the words were true.

He raised an eyebrow. “Honey, I never said
you were.”

She held his gaze as she gripped the hem of
her top and pulled it over her head, tossing it to the floor behind
her.

His hot gaze ran over her, tightening her
nipples, but he didn’t move, and she took another step toward him
until her bare breasts grazed his chest. She shivered as delicious
sensations tore through her. “I’m strong,” she said.

“I know.”

He didn’t, but he soon would.

Unzipping her jeans, she kicked them off and
stood before him in nothing but her black panties. He was breathing
hard now, but wariness flickered across his face. She liked that.
She peeled the black lace down over her legs then tossed them
toward him. His gaze sizzled down her body, settling on the curls
between her thighs and inside, she melted.

Moving fast, her left foot kicked out to
sweep his legs from under him. He landed on his back, and Maria
dropped to her knees beside him, straddling his hips before he
could move.

She rested her hands on each side of his
face, caging him in, then bit her lip hard so she tasted the sweet
metallic tang of her own blood. His nostrils flared, and she
lowered her head and kissed him. He devoured her mouth, his tongue
pushing inside, and she sank down onto him to grind against the
hardness of his straining shaft.