Bitten by the Vampire (6 page)

Every instinct screamed inside Mara to fight, not flee. She'd never be rid of Jones until he was dead, and Jones was here, in Miami. She had to stay here.

But as she heard voices next door and the sound of furniture being overturned, a chill slid down her spine.

“Stay back,” Lucien warned.

Splaying out his fingers, he directed a blast of light through the walls to his suite. Two loud, angry howls followed.

“They're trapped, but only for a few minutes. I can dematerialize, but can't take you with me during the day. My powers are too diminished by the sun.” Lucien herded her out into the hallway toward the fire exit as Petra stepped onto the balcony.

“Seventeen flights?” Mara whispered.

“Channel your inner work-out demon.”

When they'd reached the bottom and burst outside into the street, her muscles screamed in protest. Mara's knees buckled. She sagged against the wall, her lungs bellowing out sharp breaths.

“Where's Petra?” she asked.

Worry lined Lucien's brow. He seemed to reach out with his powers. “Damn it. Petra went back to the room to stall them. She wants to buy us time.”

Mara looked up and recoiled in shock. An aura of white light pulsed around Lucien's tensed body. Her angelic half reacted, reaching eagerly for it, twining with the white energy, until tendrils of their mingled light swirled around them both.

It was worry for Petra, she realized. Lucien cared deeply about the little gremlin.

“I can't leave you here alone. It's too dangerous and I will not see you hurt.”

The white light pulsed stronger around him. Mara felt awed and awash with new feelings for this powerful vampire. Lucien was determined to save her. People usually threw her under the bus. Even her sisters had grown distant. But this vampire was slowly getting under her skin with his fierce protectiveness.

Mara thought of crazy, brave Petra confronting the werewolf hunters. “Why are they after her?”

“She violated the rules. Petra's forbidden from taking human blood.”

“But gremlins eat meat.”

“Petra's not truly a gremlin.” He swore. “I will not let them get to her.”

“And I can't climb those stairs. Go, Lucien. I'll be here.”

“I will be back straight away. Stay here in the shadows and don't move.”

The quick brush of his lips sent blood singing through her veins. He dematerialized.

No one had ever made her feel this crazy way before. He was lethal and yet tender. She longed to fall into his arms, stay there and feel safe. But she knew no place was safe.

Mara fisted her hands. “Why?” she whispered. “Why did you wreck my life, Jones? I never hurt you, never did anything bad to anyone.”

Strength returned, pouring into her jellied limbs. Rage loaned it to her as she pushed away from the wall and stood. The dim darkness inside her suddenly blasted into full power, like a jet powering up.

Struggling to leash her emotions, Mara thought quickly. They'd need a cab to the airport. She walked out to the main street to coax a cab in her direction.

One pulled up to the curb. The driver wore a ragged knit cap with the colors of the Jamaican flag. Mara caught a familiar scent on the back door handle. Jones. He had used this cab, had been here. She must find him.

A red haze of fury fogged her mind, clogging all rational thought.

The fire exit door banged open. Someone yelled her name.

She fumbled with the taxi's back door handle and flung it open.

Even as she slid inside and closed the door, she knew. The overwhelming scent of evil clouded her mind. Panicking, she searched the door. No handles.

The driver turned, tipping up his cap and flashing a familiar-gap toothed smile. Jones.

“Welcome, demon. No need to state the destination. You're going straight back to hell.”

 

Lucien swore as the cab sped away. He'd knocked together the skulls of the hunters, sending them unconscious, but now Mara was trapped.

“Go straight to the airport,” he yelled at Petra. “I'll meet you there.”

Heart hammering in his chest, he ran on the sidewalk, tracking the cab. Mara's terrified look stamped into his brain as her fingers scraped at the window like a trapped animal.

If Jones laid a single finger on her…Fangs exploded in Lucien's mouth.

Legs pumping fast, he passed startled pedestrians, who looked confused at the microburst of air. Though the sun diminished his powers, he maintained his legendary speed. Lucien raced into the street, weaving around the vehicles until he spotted a pink taxicab stopped at a red light.

The driver was reeling back, screaming as a whirling gray mass attacked him. Fear kicked up Lucien's heartbeat.

He materialized beside the taxi.

The door yanked open with a protest of screeching metal. He grabbed Mara around the waist while maintaining a glamour.

Jones touched his wet, reddened cheek. “Hello, Lucien, nice to see you again. She's dead now. The hunters will claw into her and hurt her badly now that she's attacked me.”

“If you've hurt her, I'll rip your throat out myself,” Lucien said tightly.

Jones laughed, thumped his chest. “Can't touch this,” he sang mockingly. “You know the rules.”

“Get out of here.” Lucien used his powers to depress the gas pedal. Startled, Jones screamed and wrestled for the steering wheel as the cab sped away.

He hauled Mara to the sidewalk. Wrinkling his nose at the sulfuric smell of demon, he held on tight. She shrieked. On the curb, Lucien pulled her hard against him. Her gray skin was icy, her amber eyes swirled with blood red. Her strength astonished him. He wrapped his arms around her.

He began to rock her, using touch to soothe and calm.

“Shh, Mara. It's all right. It's all right. You have nothing to fear. I'll make damn sure he'll never get his hands on you again. I'll rip him to shreds if he dares to touch you.”

Crooning, he used his hypnotic voice to draw out her cold fury. Gradually she stopped fighting. The blue returned to her eyes and her skin became pale, her nails returning to the blunt, pared ends. The cold, dark aura swirling around her faded.

Mara sagged against him, her eyes closing. His heart cracked. Lucien stared at the woman in his arms, her angelic self chasing away the snarling demon.

He could save her, he realized.

Maybe in saving her, he could even save himself.

Cradling her in his arms, he traced her moist, red lips with an index finger. Mara's eyes fluttered open again. Light caught the flecks of blue, chasing away the demon red completely.

“Lucien? I lost it again. Is Petra okay? Please tell me she's not hurt.”

“She's fine. I reached them just before they laid paws on her.” And cracked their skulls open, he thought grimly. The hunters would awaken with headaches and fresh determination.

“Good. You care about what happens to her, I can tell. It's nice.” Her voice drifted away. “I wish someone felt the same about me. No one has, since my parents died.”

The simple declaration shook him to the core. He held her tighter.
I could care.

He did not want to.

She looked shaken, worry creasing her brow. “I didn't hurt you, did I? I don't want to hurt you.”

“You didn't hurt me,” he assured her.

“Good. I don't want you to get hurt, Lucien.” Mara touched his face.

The caress was a warm, velvet stroke. Emotions coursed through him. No one had cared about him in years. Even Petra, his closest companion, took his well-being for granted. The warmth in Mara's eyes undid him, as did her rosy mouth. It was a promise of the sweetest taste of heaven, a chance to redeem his damned soul. She smelled like fresh peaches.

Hungering for a taste, he framed her face with his hands and settled a soft kiss on her rosy, parted lips.

Lucien kept kissing her, needing and craving this connection. He siphoned away her anger, her fears, replacing them with his calm, icy control. All the while his own control slipped.

When they finally broke apart, Mara looked languid and pliable. “Now where?” she asked, looking like a woman ready for love.

Lucien gritted his fangs. She wasn't going to like this, but he had little choice. “And now, you sleep.”

He passed a hand over her face, catching her as she slumped into unconsciousness.

The paved driveway resembled a small road as it wended through field and forest. Acres of pines and oaks and gently rolling hills surrounded the red-brick house. The leaden sky was sullen and the remoteness made city-born-and-bred Mara queasy. It was a perfect home for a vampire who wanted to hide himself away.

Too far away for her.

Near the house was a detached garage, big enough to house a yacht. Mara studied the angles, seeing possibilities. Seeing a place to evade Lucien while she planned her escape. She guarded this thought, knowing he could read her mind.

“It's private,” Lucien told her. “In case you were wondering.”

“Your little bordello where you seduce all your lovers?”

His dark gaze was steady. “It's Petra's sanctuary. And she and I have the only key, in case you thought of the garage as a place to evade me.”

Her mouth opened and closed like a fish. So much for shielding her thoughts. Lucien gently tipped her chin up, amusement on his face. “Inside,” he told her, opening the door. “Hurry, night is falling.”

 

His home was quiet, filled with luxurious furnishing and antiques. While dinner was being prepared, she paced the guest bedroom. But the canopied bed and the elegant furniture didn't impress.

Letting her leave would deeply impress her.

Ever since waking up to find herself inside a stretch limo, she'd tried to quell her emotions..

Sex with this vampire had left her feeling vulnerable. Mating with him again would siphon out more of her strength. It was too dangerous. Lucien with his dark eyes and wicked hands, could turn her into a shadow of herself.

Making her vulnerable for future attacks.

It meant she had to resist the feral attraction her demon felt for Lucien, and fight her angel's longing to bond with him.

The closet contained stylish clothing all in her size, but for a baggy sweatshirt and sweatpants with a UM logo. Lucien had been prepared for her. Mara dressed in the fleece, scraped back her hair into a careless ponytail and looked at her face in the dresser mirror.

If the cultured vampire got turned on by fleece, she was in trouble. Sporting a smirk, she bounced downstairs.

Mara went into the lavish living room. Sprawled on the leather couch, Lucien studied flames crackling in the fireplace. A glass of red liquid dangled from his lean fingers.

Breath fled her as she realized he wore only a pair of cranberry silk pajama bottoms. Firelight gleamed off his hard chest.

Lucien looked up with a slow, sexy smile.

Ignoring him was going to take a hell of a lot of restraint.

“Good evening, Mara. Please sit.”

When she went to the chair, he arched a lean brow. “On the sofa. I won't bite.”

Gathering her resolve, she curled up onto the leather. Then he added, “Yet.”

Mara tucked her legs beneath her. “Be careful who you bite, Lucien. I have my father's blood in me and I'm certain it tastes like molten fire. Or bad wine.”

“Taste is always an individual decision. But speaking of wine, will you share a glass with me?” He took a sip. “It's quite exquisite. Like you, rich and rare.”

Heat pooled between her legs.
Stop it
.

“Got any beer? Domestic? Cheap beer?”

There. Her plebian taste should turn him off.

His smile widened. Lucien waved a hand, and the mini-fridge behind the wood bar opened. A brown bottle floated into her hands.

“Petra enjoys this. She prefers it warm, but I keep a few bottles chilled, just in case she changes her mind.”

Damn. Mara opened the bottle with her teeth, took a long slug and belched. Lucien regarded her over his glass.

“If you're trying to diffuse my interest, Mara, it's not working. The sweatshirt only makes me hunger to see what lies beneath. The taste of beer on your tongue makes me long to kiss you, and sink my tongue into your mouth. The tightly bound hair causes me to envision how I'd loosen it, run my fingers through it while I take your mouth.”

Her entire body clenched with need.

Lucien leaned toward her, his gaze fiercely intent. “And when I take your body again, there will be nothing between us but flesh, and the bond we will create.”

Mara clenched her teeth, set down her glass. “Sex is sex, Lucien. You can't mate me. Because there is a monster out there who will hurt others, and I'm damned anyway. I will kill Jones. He deserves to die.”

“But you deserve to live.”

She went to respond when she saw the torment swirling in his gaze. Insight filled her. “Why are you determined to save me, Lucien?”

“You remind me…of someone. The fire I see inside you, the strength, and the sweetness.”

“Who?”

His gaze grew distant. “Someone else I wanted to save. And failed.”

The white light flooded her being with the need to comfort. Insight hit her. “It was another Darklighter.”

Judging from his widened eyes, she'd hit the mark. “What happened, Lucien?”

A cold stillness settled in the air. His jaw turned to stone as he stared at rain beading the window. A storm was brewing. She sensed the internal storm would be far more brutal.

“She was an assignment,” he finally said. “I was to destroy her.”

“Like me.”

A sideways glance. “No. This Darklighter had already lost her innocence and turned evil. So I was informed.”

Icy chills shivered up her spine. “You killed her.”

More silence. She could sense that the vampire was hurting deeply. He had been forced to terminate a life, and suffered greatly for it. Unlike true evil, he took no pleasure in hurting others.

Mara slid across the couch. For once she would pay attention to her angelic half and follow her heart.

“You've never forgotten her.” She took his hand, wanting to provide comfort.

“She was…special to me,” he whispered.

Lucien set down his wineglass. His hand was icy, and she chafed it between her palms, warming him.

“She had not turned evil. I discovered afterward I had been deceived. The Society had hired a specialist to flush out evil beings. He lied about the crimes she'd committed. When I found out, I wanted to destroy him myself, but could not. The Society had sworn him protection and any paranormal being hurting him would be severely punished. They banished him, but it was too late for the Darklighter.”

He seemed so distant, his eyes like broken glass. Mara's heart twisted.

“You can't fix the past. I realized that when my parents were murdered. I'm not the kind of woman who retreats into the past. All you can do is go on, and keep living. Because there is so much more to life. You know this. You've done it far longer than I have.”

His expression thawed slightly as he glanced at her with an expression of longing. Lucien needed her.

She picked up his hand, gave one of his fingers a long, slow lick. “So much more…to taste.”

Lucien groaned as she sucked on the digit. “Your dinner will grow cold. You must eat.”

“I'm not that hungry,” she said, watching his jaw clench. Mara touched his mouth, running a wet finger over the firmness. A new power rose inside her, the feminine power of making a man sweat. “At least not for food.”

His body grew taut as she continued teasing. “Don't push me, Mara. If you agree to lie with me again, it will be different this time. There will be no going back.”

The words sounded ominous, yet she felt intrigued. Mara thrilled at the challenge. “Sounds dangerous.”

Suddenly he seized her finger. Arousal rippled through her as he lightly bit, then swirled his tongue around the digit. “I am very dangerous, more than you know.”

“And like I said, I'm not a going-back kinda girl.”

The desire in his dark, compelling eyes thrilled her. His dark curls were mussed and a beard shadowed his taut jaw. He was tall, powerful and leanly muscled. He ran his gaze over her as if she were a doe and he a hungry wolf.

When he threw her over one shoulder, she squealed a protest. Lucien gave her a light smack on her bottom and jogged upstairs with her.

He dumped her unceremoniously on his bed and freed her from her clothing.

Then Lucien stripped. Her fascinated gaze tracked every bulging muscle, each sculpted limb, the dark, crisp curls there, tapering to a fine line at his flat torso until flaring out into the thicker nest at his groin.

A hank of hair hung rebelliously over his forehead as he watched her quietly. She felt an urge to brush it back, fully see his eyes.

Would they be shining with desire? Or speculation?

Suddenly she didn't want to know. She only wanted to sink fully into the dream of being cherished and loved by this man. Let it caress and take her where it would.

Everything happened in a haze of pleasure. Lucien touching her, stroking her naked bottom. Whispering words of passion, urging her to bind herself to him. His tongue dragging slowly over her shuddering flesh. A nip of fang as he kissed her.

Reaching between her legs, he slowly stroked, coaxing more moisture from her aroused body. She cried out in pleasured shock.

He loomed over her, his big body pressing her into the soft mattress. His erection nudged her slick folds. A sob escaped, but this time she opened herself wide for him.

Suddenly he flipped her over to her stomach. Intrigued, she glanced up to see him reach for a tube. Mischief danced in his gaze.

The berry-scented oil heated beneath his expert fingers. He massaged it deep into her muscles, pausing to flick his tongue over the spot he caressed. Mara rested her head on her arms, moaning as he worked magic with his hands.

Lucien parted her buttocks, slid an oiled finger along the taut cleft. His strokes were light and teasing as he spread the slickness over her clit. She felt dripping with want, aching with need, and she arched her back in a silent plea for more.

“Now you are ready to take me,” he murmured in satisfaction.

Drawing her back on all fours, he grasped her hips. She felt the hardness of his thick shaft nudge her tender folds. Lucien slid his cock along her soaked cleft, tunneling through it in long, teasing strokes. Her vagina clenched in an agony of need.
Fill me,
she begged silently.

Then he drew back, found her opening. He pushed inside her and took her, hard and fast. One hand slid around her front, teasing her clit.

Mara arched and cried out as the tension burst within her. He joined her, pumping deep inside with a hoarse shout of her name. As her body finally quieted, she felt him loom behind her, powerful, strong, dangerous.

“You're mine, Mara. Forever,” he whispered, nuzzling her neck with his wet mouth.

And then he bit her.

Pain surrendered to rapture as he pierced the skin with his sharp fangs. Lucien drank deeply from her, each pull a lick of fire between her legs. Mara reared up, but he wrapped two steely arms around her and held her fast. Another orgasm shuddered through her.

He stopping drinking, gave the wounds a slow, sensual lick. Trembling, she lay on the bed, still shivering from the aftershock of climax.

A slight sting was the only reminder of his fangs on her skin. But deep inside, she felt her demon give a last, protesting shriek, and the white light cried out as well. And then both darkness and light were quiet, leaving her hollow and empty.