Soul Taker (34 page)

He glanced up. "Ye've studied me like I'm a
mouse trapped in yer laboratory." Did she detect a note of
hurt?

"I'm only jotting down what I've
learned."

"There's more to me than bein' a
vampire."

"I know, but it's still a big part of
who
you are. I'm virtually ignorant of your world and don't
want to be. Is it so wrong that I'm curious to know what makes you
tick? You say the books about vampires are superstitious nonsense.
I want a clear picture of you… of the
real
you."

His gray stormed eyes softened to a soft
silver mist. "Ye are a strange human, Isabella Lucci."

"Why do you say that?"

"Ye should be runnin' from the likes of me.
I'm darkness, the epitome of evil, some would believe. Before I was
turned, I believed a creature like myself was a demon."

"I don't believe you are evil. Dark, a tad on
the mysterious side, yes."

His lips curved and this time, he did smile.
"Ye say ye want to know the real me, but I fear ye'll no' be
pleased. I have done things beyond forgiveness. Don't put me in the
light when I have no right to be there. I am closer to the demon I
speak of than the saint ye see me as."

"I know what you are capable of doing." He
met her gaze and they both knew she referred to what he did in the
alley at Tony's Pub. "I'm not foolish enough to believe you have
lived the life of a saint, but I know…" she tapped her chest right
above her heart. "I know you're capable of good. I've seen your
thoughts."

He put her notebook down with a sigh. "I
should warn ye, I am no' makin' excuses for what I am. I have come
to terms with it.
I am, what I am,
as the saying goes."

What she'd seen in her dreams and now his
confession—both should have warned her to stay away from him, but
how could she condemn him for giving her an honest answer? "What
you do now with your life matters more to me." Her gaze shifted to
his mouth and she remembered how those lips had felt against
hers—sweet and oh so tender… She cleared her throat. "Tell me about
you—anything."

His heated gaze swept over her, making her
breath hitch in her throat and her heart skip a beat. "After I was
changed," he began. "I lived with the Sidhe, the Tuatha Dé
Danann."

She nodded. "You mentioned it before and I
saw you with them in a vision. I looked up The Tuatha Dé Danann.
The authors call them the Faeries, but they aren't wing-faeries
I've read about in tales."

"They're often called the Fae. It's a loosely
used word for all the faerie folk—the Sidhe, Brownies, Pookahs, the
Bobhan Sith, the Grim Sith, among others. The Sidhe are bein's with
phenomenal power, godlike creatures held in high esteem among the
preternatural world. To ye, they would appear more human-like than
the other preternatural bein's of the Fae, but… I have a hunch
ye
would notice the difference."

"You lived with god-like beings. How am I
ever supposed to compare with that?"

His brows drew together, obviously not
understanding her duress. "There is no comparin' on my part. I am
drawn to ye. I was drawn to ye before we blood bounded. It is I,
who feels unworthy."

She drew in a ragged breath. "You?"

"Ye are young, alive, and have so much to
look forward to. I fear what I may bring to yer doorstep. Darkness
surrounds me and it always will."

Maybe he spoke the truth about the darkness,
but she never had purpose before she met him, before Harrison
opened her eyes to the preternatural world. Garran believed
darkness surrounded him, but she
lived
in darkness,
separated from others because of her ability to see auras and her
obsession with death and wanting to have a glimpse of their last
moments—if only to make sure they left in peace. She knew without a
doubt she belonged in Garran's world.

She took the steps that separated them. He
must have read her intentions in her eyes. He lifted his hands, as
if to ward her off.

"Don't do this?"

"Do what?" She continued her pursuit as if
she were the hunter and he the prey. She almost chuckled at the
thought, liking the feel of being the huntress. He backed himself
against the wall. She went in for the kill—well, so to speak. She
pressed her body against his, letting him know her intentions, if
he hadn't already figured them out.

His eyebrows rose high on his forehead and
his eyes darkened like storm clouds, threatening, but also
beautiful with its promise for more to come.

She tried to deny what she truly wanted,
believing they couldn't work. She knew now it had been foolish on
her part. She wanted to be with him and clearly, he wanted her,
too. Only, he seemed skittish now that she'd taken the initiative.
"I thought vampires were sexual creatures, or is that just another
myth?"

"Ye play with fire, Miss Lucci. If ye want to
take things slowly, this is no' the way to do it."

Her shoulder lifted in a shrug. "I'm not
afraid of fire."

"Ye should be." He pushed her back at arms'
length.

"Garran." She spoke his name like an
incantation, stilling his actions. "Garran, don't push me away. Not
tonight. Not when I know you'll face Alexander tomorrow. I want
you. The question is: Do you want me, too?"

Chapter Fifty-Two

This was insane. Garran knew this. He needed
to send Isabella back to bed and away from him, but her fingers
touched his arm, a featherlike touch that sent a thrill of desire
pulsing through his veins. If he touched her he would incinerate
from the light she radiated, but if he didn't he would cease to
exist anyway. His gaze locked with hers. She was a fool to look
upon him with desire, but he was a bigger one for accepting it. He
leaned down and kissed her, his mouth demanding and greedy. He told
himself he was only going to kiss her and nothing more, but his
body had a mind of its own as waves of pleasure washed over him.
His hands encircled her waist and brought her closer, wanting more
of her hot sweet breath. He swept his tongue inside her mouth,
touching her tongue in a mating dance all its own.

Her heart raced, and he relished in the
thought it beat erratically because of her need for him to touch
her. Her sweet feminine scent curled around him, drawing him under
her spell and weakening his resolve to only kiss her when he wanted
so much more.

He couldn't take her, not yet. Not before she
knew what it meant to be mated to him. Hell, he needed to know what
it entailed. Isabella was human and fragile compared to his kind.
It was foolish to believe he would not one day change her or to
even believe he wouldn't want to. He'd been alone for a long time.
If she lived a human lifespan, she'd only be with him for a breath
of time, but he was selfish. He wanted more, but he also loved her
and would allow her to make the choice. Be with him for always or
not at all. It was the only way.

He dragged his mouth from hers, but she tried
to reclaim their connection. "No, we need to stop," he said firmly,
taking hold of her hands that seemed to have a mind of their own as
they roamed over his body with needy caresses. She stilled, but
remained pressed against him, making it difficult for him to focus
on what was right and wrong where she was concerned.

"We don't have to stop. I don't want you to."
Her lust-filled gaze wavered over his features before hungrily
eyeing his mouth.

His fangs throbbed in his gums. "And what of
tomorrow when daylight comes and the shadows disappear?" Her gaze
shifted to meet his again. "Will ye no' regret this? Because rest
assure, Miss Lucci, if we continue on this course, I will make ye
mine… forever."

She ran her fingers down his arm in a
circular motion. "Fair is fair, I suppose."

His brows furrowed. "What do ye mean?"

"I plan on making you mine, too."

She didn't understand. He shook his head.
"Miss Lucci—"

"Perhaps you should call me by my first name
now,
Garran
."

Hearing his name was like an incantation,
binding him to her will and God, he loved the way his name slid off
her tongue. He swallowed hard. "Isabella, I—"

"Oh, for heaven's sake." She clasped his face
and crushed her mouth to his.

Her bold movement sent him over the edge. To
hell with everything else… She was a consenting adult. She knew
what he was and what he was capable of doing. His hands thrust into
her hair and he cradled her head in his palms as he took what she
offered. Surely, he could take her to bed this once and remain in
control of his other instincts.

"What in the hell is going on?" A male voice
demanded, slicing through Garran's lust-filled haze.

He pulled Isabella behind him to protect her.
His adrenalin spiked, ready to pounce if the male so much as made a
move.

Isabella peeked her head around him. "Did we
wake you?"

"Did we wake—" Garran looked over his
shoulder at her. "Who is this man?"

"My brother, Nicholas."

Oh aye, the brother.
He'd forgotten he
lived with her.

"Izzie?" Her brother pushed his glasses back
up on the bridge of his nose and glared at Garran.

Isabella moved to stand by Garran and slipped
her hand into his. "This is Garran MacLaurin, Nick. Garran, let me
introduce you to my brother, Nick."

Nicholas didn't look impressed. He looked
pissed.

Garran growled, the possessive side of his
nature coming through despite his efforts to rein it in.

Isabella squeezed his hand in warning.

"It's late or should I say,
early
."
Nicholas crossed his arms across his chest.

"Listen, Nicholas, I can entertain if I so
choose. Go back to bed. We'll
try
to be quiet." A chuckled
slipped out and she quickly covered her lips.

Nicholas blinked as if he couldn't believe
she dismissed him.

Garran suppressed a smile. Now would not be
the time to anger the brother further.

"Izzie—" Nicholas began only to be cut off by
his sister.

"Nicholas," she warned, her brows rising high
on her forehead to bring home her point.

Nicholas shifted his gaze to Garran as if he
wanted him to set his sister straight. Nicholas flinched before he
recovered his composure. For that brief second, Garran would have
sworn Isabella's brother
saw
him, glimpsed his real self,
but then his gaze shifted back to Isabella. "I hope you know what
you're doing." He didn't wait for her to answer him, but turned on
his heels and went back into his bedroom, slamming the door behind
him.

Isabella let out the breath she'd been
holding.

"I should go." Garran broke the silence.

"Why?" She looked at him.

"Because yer brother doesn't like me bein'
here."

"Are you serious?"

His finger wound around a loose tendril of
hair. "I want to be with ye, but not tonight." Her body stiffened
and she backed away. She let her hand fall to her side and he
immediately felt the loss of it.

"Why? I want you. You want me. What's the
hold up?"

He ran a hand through his hair. She was too
willing to accept her fate without knowing all the facts. "Ye give
me too much credit at bein' able to restrain my urge to feed. Ye
must know all the facts before ye make this decision. There are
risks, and ye must look at all of them." He met her eyes. "Ye have
seen glimpses of my memories, but ye have failed to realize, I have
seen yers as well. I will no' be the cause of another heartache in
yer life."

She pursed her lips. Her hands were on her
hips, making her look haughty and sexy all in one. "Are you sure
it's not because
you're
afraid to commit?"

He paused, a second too long.

"Go then." She waved her hand at him in
dismissal. She stormed past him to the front door, yanking it open.
"I believe this is your cue."

He strode to the door, but in the hall he
turned around to face her. "Believe me, this is for yer—"

She screamed in frustration and slammed the
door in his face.

"…good," he finished to the door. He stood
there stunned and shook his head. She made doing the right thing so
very difficult.

Chapter Fifty-Three

Isabella leaned against the door and wiped
away angry tears. "Damn his foolish code of ethics." She stormed to
the kitchen and flipped on the lights. She couldn't sleep, not now.
She pulled out pots and pans. She slammed the cupboards closed as
she took out the ingredients she needed. "We'd never work," she
mumbled under her breath. He wasn't even human for Christ's sake.
"But I've had human relationships and they weren't so great
either." Garran knew of her ability and accepted it. When had she
ever had that? When had she not felt like a freak? She opened a can
of tomato sauce with a vengeance.

"What's going on in here?" Nicholas stood in
the archway of the kitchen, looking none too pleased to have his
slumber interrupted–yet again.

She slammed the pot on the stove, water
sloshing all over the place.

"I'm cooking."

"Now?" He glanced behind him, into the living
room.

"If you're looking for Garran, he left."

His gaze softened. "I'm sorry."

"Are you?"

"Izzie—"

"Can it, will you?"

"Okay," he said with caution. He strode over
to the counter. She wanted to make pasta. Nicholas let her, handing
her what she needed, while he waited for her to tell him what had
happened.

"I like him," she blurted out.

"I'm assuming you mean the guy who just
left."

"His name is Garran."

Nicholas handed her the fresh garlic and she
chopped as she talked.

"He's not like anyone I've ever met. He's
strong, honest, and brave. He knows I can see auras and it doesn't
spook him. The way he makes me feel when I'm with him…" She sighed,
not caring if she sounded like a lovesick schoolgirl with her first
crush.