Microsoft Word - Blood and Sex from CE.rtf (21 page)

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His mouth hovered just above her jugular. “I know exactly how much I turn you on.”

That spark inside her that answered to only him, the bit of him that had taken up residence inside her along with the blood she’d taken last night stirred.

He breathed in a long breath. “I can smell it.”

She closed her eyes and focused on the heat from his lips, so close to her skin. If only he would bite her. He could take that vein that no one besides Khalil had ever broken.

He leaned back just a little, releasing her hair. “But I’ll play your game. We’ll go to the end of the alley and you can drink that human dry. Then we’ll pretend that it wasn’t me you were thinking of the entire time.”

Christiana’s heart sank. A new ache bloomed in her chest, one that had nothing to do with other vampires shunning her, and everything to do with a new need she had for his approval. If this was the way bonding was going to be, she could do without it. The high that came with his touch wasn’t enough to justify the shame that was coming now.

She pushed past him, heading toward the scent of the male human. Her feet sped up and her teeth began to ache. Her eyes began to sting, but she blinked away the tears. Blane was not going to do this to her. She wasn’t going to be weak, and she wasn’t going to be some stupid, submissive woman like those she’d seen in Khalil’s harem. They hovered around, praying for his approval and competing for his attention. No, that wasn’t going to be her.

Which totally eliminated Maximilliano from her options for a mate. He would demand such behavior. But she couldn’t think about that now. Right now, she needed to feed. Then she needed to stay away from Blane until they parted ways. Otherwise they’d both end up hurt.

With another deep breath, she caught a strong whiff of the human’s cologne. It was a cologne she’d smelled on some of the wealthier men. She turned the corner and saw him

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standing there. A tall Mediterranean-looking fellow in an expensive brown coat. He was talking with another male whom she hadn’t sensed. They both glanced at her, and his attraction to her became obvious as both men smiled.

She took a steadying breath and walked over to them, hoping Blane would stay far behind. “Hello.”

“Hello,” he said in his broken English. His accent was Italian, probably a local.

She let that other spark inside her, the bit of blood magic that let her manipulate the human’s thoughts flare to life. As seductively as she could, Christiana slid up to him. “I’m having trouble finding my hotel. Do you know where
Palazzo Bembo
is?”

“Sure. Yes. It is down...” He pointed in the direction she’d come from, then smiled.

“Shall I walk you?”

Her hand stroked his shoulder once. “That would be so kind of you.”

The human nodded his head and waved once to his friend. After rattling off in Italian that he would see him tomorrow, the man laughed and wished him luck, then walked away. The stranger turned to her and offered his arm. “Please?”

Christiana took his arm and allowed him to lead her back toward the alley. Blane was nowhere in sight. Still, she could smell his skin—that warm, spicy scent on the breeze. Oh, he was there, and he’d be watching.

The thought made her strangely angry. Why did she care that he would watch? It wasn’t as though Khalil had never seen her feeding. But, something about this was different, too intimate.

“How long are you in Venice?” The strange human smiled at her. He was handsome, a strong young man who took care of his body. His blood should be strong as well.

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“Only for the week.”

“Are you here for business?”

“Pleasure.”

That spurred his lust along, but he didn’t speak. Instead, he led her down the dark alley where she and Blane had stopped earlier.

Here in the darkness was the perfect place to take the man, but she couldn’t see or hear Blane. She could only feel his eyes boring into her. It made her a little nervous, more than she’d been about feeding in years. It was almost—exciting.

“Is something wrong?”

Christiana glanced up to see the man looking down at her. He’d turned to face her.

When had she stopped walking?

She smiled. “No.” Her hand went to his face and slid slowly down the stubble and warm skin. “I just wanted to thank you for walking me back to my hotel.”

“You are very welcome.” His lips parted in a grin. “Pardon me, but you are
una bella
donna
.”

“Thank you.”

“
Parlate italiano
?”

“A little.”

His grin widened. “Then I have secret for you.”

“Yes?”

He leaned forward and whispered he wanted to fuck her in his flowery Italian words. His hands slid around her hips and his mouth went to her ear, where he whispered that they should go to her room.

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Christiana slid her hands inside his coat, around the warmth of his body. She buried her head in the crook of his neck and breathed in a long whiff of the blood that pumped just under the skin. That delicious heat thumped just under the skin. “We could stay right here.”

His groaned answer was enough to make her mouth water. But they had to get against the wall, out of the path in case someone came through.

She walked him slowly back to the wall, her back pressed to the bricks, almost the exact way she and Blane had been minutes earlier. The young man kissed his way up her neck, whispering about her beauty and the desire he had for her, but her eyes glanced toward the darkness, looking for Blane.

Then she found him, standing across the alley, one leg propped against the wall. His arms were folded over his chest again as he chewed on a toothpick.

Christiana’s stomach twisted into a nervous knot, and her hands began to shake. She closed her eyes and focused on the meal at hand. She pulled the boy’s head up and planted her lips on his pulse. Her mouth opened and her teeth scratched the skin, trapping the little, fluttering pulse there.

His moans filled the air, and his hips ground into her, pressing his erection against her hips. He was caught up in her power and it gave her that familiar twinge of guilt. Didn’t the humans have any sense of the danger she posed? They always came so willing, practically begging for her attention. Didn’t they feel how different she was?

Nevertheless, she hooked one leg around the man.

He moaned and pressed harder, grinding her against the brick. His heart was pounding, filling the air with the scent of his blood.

Then she scratched her teeth over his skin.

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He let out a loud moan and jerked in her arms.
Was he coming already
?

No
.

Not yet
.

She wasn’t finished with—

Christiana plunged her fangs into the man’s ripe skin. That dark liquid burst into her mouth like a ripe plum and brought the man again, grinding his body against hers. But it wasn’t the same. Not this time. The hot liquid pulsed into her mouth, flowed down her throat, and filled her, but it didn’t bring a quarter of the satisfaction that Blane’s blood had brought. His blood had been intoxicating, another level of that sublime pleasure his body had brought her.

This human didn’t hold a candle to it.

She licked the wound closed and released the man.

He stumbled, forcing her to help him to sit against the brick wall. She hadn’t taken much, so it had to be the high of the embrace that had stunned him. He would recover in a few minutes.

Christiana wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and headed back down the alley.

Her heart was pounding as loudly as her feet on the pavement, but the emptiness in her chest made her feel as dead as she was. Blane had ruined her. Not only did she have a date with a mystery man and a promised mate—now she was thoroughly and completely addicted to a
vampiro
soldier.

How did her life get so fucked up?

Her feet started moving faster and the sound of her shoes striking the ground echoed in her ears. She had to get away from the human. And from Blane. She wanted to be alone.

* * * *

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corner of his eye. He darted after her and caught her by the wrist at the edge of the shadows. He jerked her around so hard, her body slammed into his.

Her eyes were wide and filled with tears.

He held her tight, staring down into her face. “What’s wrong?”

“I can’t do this. I can’t even drink without thinking of you.”

He groaned. “Christiana, I can’t make you accept how you feel, but if you continue to walk away, I won’t keep following.”

A tear streaked down the side of her face.

“You want me as much as I do you. Just stop pretending not to.”

“I don’t know how.”

“Remember last night?”

She laughed, tears flowing faster. “If you don’t want me to walk back to the hotel and leave you alone, I want to hear you say you meant every bit of it.”

Her arms started to shake and her eyes slid shut.

“I mean it. I like you, Christiana, but this is getting old.”

A hole started to open somewhere inside his chest. God help him, he liked her, but he wasn’t going to go through this. Either she wanted him badly enough to admit it, or she didn’t.