Vermilion Kiss (10 page)

Darius continued, “Well, I bought an old bakery that went out of business and thought that you’d like to have it. Of course, I’ll help with the finances and whatnot.”

Sang’s grin broke wide. “Really, Dari? Really?
My
very own bakery?”

“Yes.”

Sang hugged him and Darius spine became rigid. “Anything for my precious Sang.” He whispered as if in a lullaby as he gently caressed Sang’s obsidian mane.

“Lily, will you do the honors of being my assistant?”

I paused. I loved my job at the boutique, I really did, but the chance to work side by side with Sang, baking decadent delights…there was just something far more appealing to that than being a drone the rest of my life and listening to others. I would be my own boss and I could hang out with Sang all of the time. I was hesitant with my answer but finally made up my mind.

“Yeah.”

Sang reached across Darius and kissed the back of my hand. “Thank you, Lily, thank you so much! We’re gonna have so much fun together! I know it!’

“Me, too.” I smiled warmly.

* * * *

The carnival was packed. Literally cramped from space to space. Luckily, Darius had a VIP pass and got us a spot near the entrance. I guess being rich did have its perks. As I stepped from the limo, the greasy smell of fried vegetables, French fries, popcorn, and cotton candy wafted around me like the calling of a ghost beckoning me to go inside.

Sang stretched his arms over his head and yawned. He was wearing his usual deep tinted black sunglasses to conceal his crimson eyes. Darius bid farewell to Lawrence and told him to meet us back in four hours. The butler curtly nodded and rolled away with a tip of his hat for me.

“Wow!” Sang exclaimed excitedly. “A real carnival! I haven’t been to one in over a hundred years!”

Darius shoved his hands in his pants pockets. “Shall we go?”

Sang and I both replied in perfect synchronization. “Yeah!”

We made our way to the entrance rather quickly, and I couldn’t help but think that Darius was glamourizing the people ahead of us. We each got a stamp on our hands and off into the carnival we went.

People bustled about, laughing, hugging, and eating. Food and wrappers littered the ground and a plethora of red and white striped tents lined each side of the center walkway. Sometimes a clown would appear juggling hackey-sacks while walking on stilts, while others sold cotton candy and roasted peanuts. The salty but sweet aroma was very comforting, I felt so relaxed here with all the delighted people and steaming food stands.

“Oh, oh! I want that!” Sang tugged on Darius’ waist and pointed to a stuffed turtle hanging from a game stand. It was one of those games when you had to squirt water into the bull’s eye and whoever filled it up first won.

“You really want that? A stuffed toy?” Darius inquired.

Sang nodded. “Yeah!”

The older vampire sighed. “All right.” He took a seat at the game stand and handed a plump short woman some money. Ten other people were seated as well, and Darius used all his concentration to focus and when the buzzer rang he had filled the tank so fast that the other players didn’t even get halfway done. They all scowled and glared at him with menacing gazes.

“Wow! You’re good, sir!” the woman commented. “What would you like? You can pick anything.”

Darius reached up and grabbed the turtle. “I’ll take this.” He strode back to Sang and I. He handed the turtle to Sang. He squealed in delight and hugged it to his chest.

“Thank you, Dari! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I shall call him Gilbert.”

Just then, I caught something of interest out of the corner of my eye at a dart stand. A huge fluffy pink unicorn. I stared at it practically drooling, and Darius sighed and clapped a hand on my shoulder, his breath trickling my ear seductively, one hand brushing the bangs gently from my forehead “You want that, don’t you, my dear?” he uttered silkily

I licked my lips and whispered, “Yeah.”

“Then I will get it for you.”

Sure enough, Darius got me the giant pink stuffed unicorn, which I named Amalthea from my favorite movie,
The Last Unicorn
. Then we went and got some birch beer straight out of a wooden barrel. We went on some rides, including my favorite, the carousel, and then the Ferris wheel and the bumper cars, where Sang and I slammed into Darius multiple times and laughed like hell.

Sang’s face was lit with pure joy as we walked inside the grand tent and sat down in the very top row. It was rather dark inside and lit by Chinese lanterns strung across the ceiling. There were ropes everywhere for the tightrope walkers, standing hoops, podiums, and clowns riding around on tiny tricycles honking their fake, cherry red horns. The sound of an organ playing surrounded the area with a happy, delightful air, and then the curtains in the back of the stage slid apart and in stepped a man in a top hat walking on stilts juggling ten rainbow-colored balls.

“Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the Smith Brother’s Circus! I am the ringmaster and today we have a very special treat for you! There will be a fun filled show with lions, elephants, death-defying tricks, fire-breathing men. So hang onto your belongings and let the show begin!”

A roar of applause sounded and I cringed as it hurt my sensitive ears. Sang was smiling like a kid at a candy store and Darius looked bored as hell. I took the moment to wrap both my fingers around each man’s hands and smile happily, as the spotlights concentrated in the center of the arena and a beautiful woman, clad in white, leapt out on the trapeze and spun in mid-air.

The crowd cheered as she twirled and danced in the air like an elegant dove. I chuckled to myself, knowing how easy that would be for me to do since I was now a vampire. I admired her skills as a human, though, and acknowledged the many grueling years it must have taken her to master such a sport. When she was done, she flipped three times and landed perfectly on her feet. The audience went mad with clapping and whistling.

The rest of the show consisted of a man standing atop the backs of four white Lipizzaner’s as they galloped proudly around the ring and jumped through hoops of blazing flames. A woman then came out holding a whip and got a tiger to lie down, roll over, fetch, and do all sorts of tricks that a dog might do. Then a burly brute of a man came rushing out on stage, hefted an enormous cannon into the air, lit the end, and a little boy probably only around the age of ten came hurtling out and landed on the back of an elephant.

There was juggling and fire breathing, sword swallowing, and knife throwing. I watched Sang’s expressions of pure awe and happiness at what he was experiencing. Darius snacked on some roasted peanuts and closed his eyes while giving my hand a soft squeeze.

When the show was finally over, flowers rained down upon the audience and Sang caught a full bouquet of yellow roses. He hugged Gilbert to his chest and offered the roses to Darius, who laughed and accepted them with mirth. When we exited the tent, it was already dark outside, the moon a thin sliver in the cloudless sky.

We walked hand in hand, me in the center, my men at my sides, and I skipped while whistling,
Mary had a little lamb
. Sang remained silent as we made our way through the thick crowd and the booths of delicious-looking food.

“I’m hungry,” Sang whined.

Darius sighed and placed a twenty in his palm. “Go and get some food with Lily. I will go fetch Lawrence at once.”

“Okay, Dari! Thank you!” Sang called after him as he left.

I turned to Sang and his face was practically glowing from within. “Thank you, Lily. Thank you so much for this! I had a blast!”

I said, “It wasn’t just my idea. Darius is the one who came up with it.”

Sang’s lips formed into a surprised O. “Wow, I never would’ve thought he did it!”

“Neither would I.”

He fidgeted with his turtle. “Hey, let’s get some cotton candy, okay?”

I clasped his hand in mine and we strolled up to a tent selling gargantuan sticks of cotton candy.

We ate it together and just when we were finished, Darius arrived with Lawrence.

* * * *

Sang and I were giggling as we entered Darius’s master bedroom. The sticky sweetness of cotton-candy clinging to our skin, popcorn and roasted peanuts fresh on our breath. I gently set Amalthea onto a red velvet loveseat beside Sang’s turtle and we both took a seat on the edge of the bed near the bottom. We hushed our laughing as Darius strode in, all raw elegance and poise.

“Did you have fun?” he asked with a wry smirk.

“Yeah! I had a blast!’ Sang beamed.

I replied, “I liked the food and the horses.”

Darius strode to the bed like a big cat prowling around its prey, circling Sang and I as if we were delicacies to be devoured. “Sang, strip,” he commanded.

Sang’s face flushed a bright chimney red and he stuttered, “O—o—of course, master.” He kicked off his boots, wrestled out of his shirt and jeans, and plucked off his socks. I watched keenly as he stood very still, crimson eyes focused solely on Darius as he inspected him like a prized cattle and yanked him by his messy ebony hair to pull him into a passionate kiss. Sang’s boxers tented with his eagerness as Darius broke free and licked at that sensitive spot behind the ear, nibbled playfully on Sang’s earlobe, barely grazing it with his pearly teeth.

I felt myself becoming wet with desire as I watched the two men dance sensually, Darius planting butterfly kisses along the length of Sang’s neck and torso, his tongue swirling slowly around his erect nipples as if they were an exotic treat. Things deep below inside me clenched tightly as Darius slid the other man’s boxers to the floor and fondled his balls, stroked the full hardness of his cock and wrapped his mouth around the tip and sucked ever so gently, ever so painfully slowly. A low moan escaped Sang’s lips as Darius took him further into his throat and drew on him hard. Sang’s legs buckled and he almost collapsed from the pleasure, eyes fluttering wildly, body spasming as he reached his first orgasm and sprayed his warm seed into Darius’s mouth.

Darius licked the come from his lips and smiled as he carefully took off his shirt, pants, and shoes. He stood magnificently bathed in the shimmering candlelight. His long chocolate hair cascaded to below his hips like a luscious, thick waterfall, and his amber eyes glowed like fire. His hands roamed Sang’s pale flesh as if it were a natural wonder, and glided his fingernails across his arms and legs in feathery strokes.

I reached into my panties and fingered myself as I watched Darius shove Sang against the wall and in one quick motion thrust forcefully into him. Sang screamed his pleasure to the heavens as Darius grabbed hold of his hips and pumped in and out, in and out, faster and faster, burying himself to the very hilt. Sang panted as Darius tugged his hair and tilted his head back for a deep, heated kiss while still buried inside him. Sang moaned loudly when Darius’s hands caressed his cock while he fucked his ass roughly, crudely. His balls slapped against Sang’s thighs as he drove into him more and more, Sang’s eyes rolling back in pure undeniable bliss. Sweat dripped from both men’s brows as Darius came inside the other vampire and slipped out with a grunt.

Sang’s legs gave out and he slumped to the floor in delightful ecstasy. I was going to go help him up when Darius held up a finger and shook his head “no”.

“Now it’s your turn, my lovely little flower,” he purred as he approached me like a lion courting its mate. My inner lioness leapt at the occasion and clawed at me to get to his, making me cringe in pain.

“Do not fear, my dear. Accept the lioness within you.”

I doubled over and the lioness growled. I thought of the cage inside my mind that she was trapped in and unlocked it, set her free to wander the vast expanse of my thoughts. She was very pleased with this, and affectionately rubbed against me from the inside. I suddenly became hot, so goddamn hot, as if I were caught inside a raging inferno, a maddening heat that enveloped and consumed me like the flames of Hell. I shrieked and hurriedly tore out of my clothes, not caring if I ripped them or not. They fluttered into a puddle at my feet and Darius strode next to me, took my hand, and pushed me onto the bed.

I cried out as the warmth webbed through my veins and Darius massaged my forehead with his cool touch and let his palm slide along my feverish body. “Just relax, my dear. Let the lioness take control.”

I closed my eyes and I saw her, standing regal and proud, gazing at me with gleaming golden cat eyes. I surrendered to her as she bound to me and leapt onto me and we melded into one being, one soul. I felt her presence like I’d never felt it before. She was there. She was always there. Always had been. And always would be.

Darius let out a snarl as I saw his lion flash through his eyes and curl his lips into a sneer. He hastily buckled my wrists to the posts on the corners of the bed and then spread my legs apart and did the same to my ankles. He tore my panties off with his teeth in a fluid grace only he could manage and expertly unclasped my bra, setting my breasts bouncing free. The lioness in me arched my back and offered my ass like a cat in heat as I made small mewling noises, pleaded him to come inside me quickly. Now.

He just smirked wickedly, placed his head between my thighs, and began to dart his tongue in and out of me, pushed it deeper and deeper inside until it hit that wonderful little knot that sent me shattering into a million pieces. I moaned as he devoured me thoroughly, lapped at my lips, nibbled tenderly and then fiercely at my clit with such intense fervor that I couldn’t help but spill my second orgasm onto the area of the clean silken sheets.

I wanted so desperately to run my hands through his gorgeous hair, to touch his masculine, muscled chest, feel his face within my fingers. I bucked at my restraints as the lioness became irritated and roared in fury at our complete and total helplessness. Then Darius tied a blindfold around my eyes and placed a ball gag inside my mouth. I choked and gagged at first but then I accepted it and began to relax my tense muscles, as I trusted Darius to work his sexual magic.

I squirmed and writhed as his cock entered inside me fast without warning and my tight narrow walls clamped around it deliciously.