The Darkest Pleasure (12 page)

"You're the only human, the only female—the only being I'll ever want or need. Without you, I am nothing. You are my heart, my soul, my reason for living."

I had no idea what to say. The things he said were astonishing. No one had ever spoken to me the way he had. I stuttered a few times before I finally started to sob like a baby. His face fell and he took on a look of utter shock.

"Ashliyn? Have I said something to hurt you?"

I laughed because even though he was hundreds of years old, a man was still a man. Kerian had no clue what tears of happiness looked like, and that made me cry even harder.

"I love you, I love you, I love you!” I jumped out of the chair and wrapped my arms around his neck. I kissed him with all the passion I felt—kissed him so he knew how I felt—how strong and intense my feelings were for him. My tears were falling on his face, but I felt a warmth bloom inside me that was beyond happiness—beyond anything I'd ever felt in my life. My momentum from leaping up so fast knocked us backwards and now, I was sprawled on top of him. He didn't seem bothered by our awkward position, though, and when he squeezed me tighter and kissed me back, I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life, the rest of eternity with him. I knew if he asked me to be with him forever—if he asked me to become a vampire—I would do it in an instant, because he was my heart, my soul, my destiny.

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We moved to the rug in front of the fireplace and curled up together on the plush fabric. We didn't say anything for the longest time, just lay together with our limbs intertwined.

"So, do you have any super powers?” I said with a lazy drawl, a little sleepy from the long day and the drugging wine. He chuckled and I lifted my head to stare at his profile. The fire cast a soft, warm glow over his face. It reflected in his eyes. I settled back against him to watch the flames again.

"I don't know if I'd call them super powers. I can do things a human can't, though."

I was intrigued. I didn't have to probe him for the answers; after a moment, he answered my unspoken questions.

"I can see and hear better then humans. In the dark, everything is crystal clear to me. I can see a rabbit several miles away with such clarity that I can count each hair on its body. I can hear a child cry in the next town, or smell a fire that has long since burned out. I can run faster, so much faster that it's like I wasn't even there, or climb a twenty-story building in seconds. I'm hundreds of times stronger then humans.” He looked down at me and smiled. “I can crush my enemy's bones as if they were made of paper."

I didn't know what to say to that, but I had no doubt Kerian could be fierce. While he told me the extraordinary things he could do, he stroked my arm, making my flesh sensitive and tingly. “All of that, huh? Hmm.” My response seemed a little understated for everything he'd told me, but then again, everything he'd told me had the unreal quality of a movie. “Anything else?” He was quiet for so long, I thought maybe he hadn't heard my question. I was about to ask again when he spoke.

"I can control humans if I feel the need to, and I can heal almost instantly."

I sat up and stared at him with my mouth open. “Control humans?” He sat up too, avoiding my gaze.

"I've never controlled you, if that's what you're thinking."

I hadn't been thinking that, but now that he'd put those thoughts in my head, my curiosity was piqued. “Why?"

He turned and looked at me with his brows drawn. “What do you mean, why?"

"I mean, why haven't you controlled me? Made me do your bidding? Made me your sex slave?” I smiled at the last part to make it seem less serious. Kerian didn't seem to think I was the least bit funny, and I felt stupid for even trying to joke about the subject.

"I wanted you of your own free will. I wanted you to crave me as I crave you. It wouldn't have been real if I'd made you want to be with me."

He stood and poured us another glass of wine.

"Besides, I don't feel it's right to control a creature weaker than I am."

I felt my anger spike at his comment. As if by being a human, I was inferior to his superior self. “What do you mean, a weaker being? You consider humans weaker beings?” He didn't turn around, but I saw his big body stiffen at my belligerent attitude-and it was belligerent. I didn't like the fact that he thought of humans as the weaker species. “You know, Kerian, you were human once.” He turned around and leant against the bar while he sipped on dark red wine.

"Ashliyn, I haven't been human for over four hundred years. There isn't anymore human left inside of me. I'm an animal—a killer—a vampire. A creature that drinks other species’ blood in order to survive."

He said it so nonchalantly. I knew my mouth was open, not because he'd said he was no longer human, but because he'd evaded my question. He seemed devoid of emotion. “You didn't answer my question, Kerian."

"Humans are a weak species. When I was human, I too fell into that category. I call them a weak species because what I can do and what they can do are in completely different spectrums. I could kill a human with one thought. I'm an animal that exists on instinct, Ashliyn. Don't make the mistake of thinking I'm still human, or that there's any humanity left inside me."

"Why are you talking this way? I'm human, Kerian, or have you forgotten that?” I didn't know if this was our first fight, but I knew I didn't like it, and I knew I didn't like Kerian's views on humans—me, in other words.

"I haven't forgotten."

I watched as he walked towards me and sat on the floor. He handed me a glass of wine and I downed the whole thing in two drinks. I could see the suggestion of a grin on his face.

"Even though you're much weaker physically then I am, than even a large human male is, mentally you're my superior. You're cunning and intelligent, witty and bright. You are beautiful and soft, petite and gentle."

He ran his fingers down my arm and rested them on top of my fingers.

"Please don't read too much into my words. I meant them exactly as I said them. Humans—aside from you—are weak-minded and easy to control. True, they're physically weaker than a vampire, but the bottom line is, the only reason I'm able to make them do my bidding is because they're weak up here."

He pointed to his head as he watched me.

"If you want to know a secret, I've never controlled a human's mind. I've watched Jakob do it, but I guess that's the only part of my humanity I've kept—compassion for others."

I lay down on the soft rug and went back to watching the fire. I wasn't angry with Kerian, but the fact that he'd said he was superior left me confused, my feelings hurt. But I tried to look at it from his point of view, and could see how I might think the same thing after four hundred years of having powers beyond my comprehension. I pushed my anger away and rolled over to look at him. He was leaning back, braced on one elbow as he drank his wine. I wished at that moment I could read his mind.

"Will you show me?"

He turned and looked at me with one brow raised. “Show you?"

I nodded and sat up so we were face to face. “I mean, will you show me some of the things you can do?"

He looked at me as if he were searching my very soul. “Are you sure you want to see?"

Did I want to see? I knew I did, because if I were going to have any kind of life with Kerian, I needed to know—needed to see. I nodded. He didn't make me wait long. My heart raced as he stood up and helped me do the same. He held both my hands in his as I watched him open his mouth. At first I didn't know what he was doing, but then as I watched, his two canines lengthened. They became long and sharp, shiny in their whiteness. I could see light bounce off them and I leant in to get a better view. I don't know what came over me, but I brought my hand up and ran my finger across the tip of one.

"Is this okay?” I said, because he was looking down at me with confusion. He nodded, which caused my finger to slide down the length of the sharp little dagger. I gasped as the tip of his fang cut my finger smoothly, as if a knife was cutting into warm butter. Blood flowed out of the little cut and slid onto his bottom lip. Before I could move my finger, he sucked it into his mouth and gave it a gentle pull. I felt pleasure shoot through me from the simple act of him sucking my finger. He released the digit, and I watched as he licked his bottom lip. His eyes were half-lidded and his breathing was shallow.

"That felt good...really good.” I whispered the words as I kept my eyes trained on his mouth. I wanted to lick his lips and see what I tasted like. The erotic thoughts flowed into my head, and I could easily picture the act.

"You feel my pleasure. Just as if you were to drink from me, I'd feel your pleasure."

"Drink from you?” He leaned close to my face, so close I could feel his warm breath across my lips.

"I have no doubt if you were to drink my blood, you'd thoroughly enjoy it...as much as I would enjoy you doing it."

I shivered at his words. He closed those last couple of inches and kissed me passionately. I moaned into his mouth and let my tongue meet his in the middle. He broke away and kissed down my face, to the hollow of my neck. I felt my top slide off my shoulders, along with my bra. Before I knew it, we were both naked and panting. He lowered me to the ground and I felt his heavier weight settle on top of mine. I spread my legs wide to accommodate his larger body, and moaned at the feel of his hard shaft sliding against my slit. He continued to kiss my neck, and the feeling was incredible. I undulated under him. I was so wet, his erection moved against me easily. I felt the head of his cock nudge my opening before it moved away. I moaned at how he teased me, but it was a nice build-up for what was to come.

"I want to bite you, Ashliyn. I want to feel you slide down my throat."

I felt his sharp teeth run up and down my neck. Tingles raced up my spine.

"Will you let me, my love? Will you let me drink from you? You taste so good, it's hard to control myself around you."

His words were so erotic. I leaned my head to the side and whispered, “Yes.” I wanted it as much as he wanted it. I felt a need inside me that wouldn't be denied. That little voice told me this is what I wanted, that this is what I needed. He brought his hand between our bodies and aligned his cock with my pussy hole. I thought he would push into me, but he just stayed still, breathing heavily. I felt his fangs against my neck and moaned in frustration. I don't know what came over me, but I wanted him to bite me desperately.

"Please, Kerian."

That was all the encouragement he needed. In one quick thrust, he was buried deep inside of my body. I felt his body pressed against my clit and pushed closer to him. My inner muscles clenched around him, but he didn't move. I didn't know if it was because he wanted to let me get adjusted to his huge size, or if he were trying to control himself. He felt so big inside me that I gasped as he slowly pulled out. I was stretched to the limits with him inside me; I could feel every ridge along his length. He gently pushed back in. I tilted my head to the side and brought his mouth to my neck. I cradled his head as I felt his thrusts pick up speed. I loved the feeling of our sweat-soaked skin clinging together, the sound of our wet sexes slapping together to make the most erotic of sounds. He pounded into me and I felt my orgasm approach. In, out. In, out. On and on he slammed into me, sliding his hard cock into my wet pussy until my orgasm was inevitable. I gasped as my climax bloomed, and then I felt his teeth sink into my neck. Instantly, my orgasm tore through me, peaking over and over again.

I felt as if I were floating in a vast ocean, weightless in my own body. I had no idea sex could be like this, so pleasurable and earth-shattering. Maybe it was because he'd bitten me, maybe not, but my orgasm continued to wash through me until I thought I couldn't take it anymore. Moisture poured in a steady stream from my body, coating his steel shaft and making his movements slick and quick. I felt him pull at my neck, heard him swallowing. His body moved quickly above mine, his thrusts fast and deep inside me. I heard our skin slapping together, felt his balls slapping against my bottom. He tensed above me as the hot jets of his semen shot inside me. As I felt his release, another orgasm crested and shot through my entire being. I clenched around him as I felt him break away from my neck. He moaned and kissed me on the lips. His tongue speared into my mouth, caressing and exploring me as if he'd never done so before. I tasted myself on his tongue, a spicy, yet sweet flavour that had my nipples beading up in need. At last he rested his forehead against mine as our bodies cooled.

"I love you.” My eyes were still closed and when I didn't hear anything back, I opened them and saw Kerian staring down at me.

"No, I love you.” His gaze looked intense as he watched me, his eyes searching my face for something.

He brought my hand to his heart and laid it against his skin. “This beats for only you."

He rolled off me and pulled me to his side. I was so hot from making love to Kerian that I was surprised the fire felt so good on my skin.

"Are you the undead, Kerian?"

I was half joking, so I was pleased he chuckled at my comment and hadn't taken offence to it.

"No. I'm just...different."

"I like different."

We lay in silence, but my curiosity got the better of me. “So, you said you heal faster? What did you mean by that?"

He didn't say anything but brought his hand up to my eye level. He untangled his other hand and I propped myself on my elbows, confused.

"Are you ready?"

I looked at him with drawn eyebrows but nodded. My eyes grow big as Kerian's fingernail started to grow. It stopped at a sharp point. He ran his dagger-like nail down the palm of his other hand. The nail easily cut through his skin, and the flesh opened up like a butterfly's wings. I gasped and sat straight up, ready to grab the first aid kit, when right before my eyes, his skin closed together. A drop of blood had fallen from the wound and onto my thigh. “How did you do that?” He didn't say anything. I sat frozen as he dropped his head to my thigh and licked the drop of blood from my skin. He nipped my leg before he rose. I looked down at my leg, feeling my thigh tingle where his mouth had been.