by Brea Viragh
The next few minutes passed in a blur until the vision in her head merged with the reality in front of her eyes. At last she’d seen something real, something true. Later, when she was able to think, she would remember the moment and wonder what had happened. Why her gift chose now to work for her.
Her throat was hoarse from yelling but she didn’t stop.
Until a hand caught her wrist mid-swing. A warm hand. A hand not attached to a ghoul.
“When are you ever going to learn?”
The next breath filled her body with relief so strong it tingled on the back of her tongue. Accompanied by regret. Desire. Too many emotions to put into words. She swung wildly and was unsurprised when his free hand closed around her fist.
“Enough, Lavinia.” The grim finality of his voice softened when their skin made contact. “It’s done.”
A phenomenal heat surged through his fingers and into her body, amplifying her already racing pulse and electrifying her blood. “Pike.” His name came out as half sob, sticking in her chest. A bead of sweat trickled down her temple.
She should have been proud to elude certain death. Maybe not certain death, but enough of a blow to the nervous system to have Pike wiping away the tears that finally sprang free. He released her abruptly and she lost her balance, staggering away. Ghoul ash and grime were soaked into her shirt. A large rent along the shoulder had the fabric hanging loose over her right arm.
She swallowed, staring at the damage and wondering, always wondering, how he’d managed to find her.
“Are you hurt?” he asked. He sounded weird. Preoccupied.
When she finally looked up at him, a muscle in his jaw tightened to the point she thought it would snap. “No.” It came out as a trembling whisper of sound. Luckily, the vampire had a keen sense of hearing.
“Let’s get you out of here.”
She fell back two more steps. Pike followed with arms outstretched, palms reaching for her. God, she wanted him to touch her. Wanted it more than… “I don’t need your help,” she grumbled.
His deep voice thrummed with agitation. “No, I can see that. By the time I followed your scent, you were three ghouls deep. I took care of the rest. I called out to you but you never answered. What’s going on?”
“I could have handled it,” she insisted.
“So I see. So you proved.”
“You should have left them all to me.” She swung around in a circle, not knowing what to do with her legs. Then skidded to a halt. “You have no business being here.”
“I should have left you alone, is what you mean.”
“Yes, leave me alone.”
He continued to watch her. “Sorry. I can’t do that.”
“Why not? Can’t find anyone else to dupe? You’re looking a little gaunt around the edges. Are those ribs I feel?” She jabbed at him.
“I deserve that” Pike’s spine straightened, as straight and rigid as a steel beam. “I deserve everything.”
“Ha. You have obviously been following me, but you really need to get over it. You said you’d never apologize, that day in your kitchen. So there’s nothing more to say.”
He grunted in response. Typical Pike.
Lavinia sighed and purposely lengthened her stride as she left the mausoleum and struck out across the cemetery. Her patience with the whole mess was wearing thin. Had she ever had the patience to begin with? She must have, to spin on the merry-go-round with him for the last two years. No apology in the world would be enough to have him crawling back onto her good side.
His longer legs ate up the distance between them soon enough. “Lavinia, wait.”
“How did you find me?”
“I told you. I followed your scent. It was easy. You have corpse on your face.”
She rolled her eyes and gave him her best I’m-going-to-punch-your-lights-out look. “What else is new. Silly me for thinking one shower a day was sufficient. Now go away.”
His nostrils flared. “Be mad at me if you want. I deserve it.”
She stopped. “Why are you suddenly changing your tune?”
“Maybe I had a long talk with a few people.”
“Come up with anything good?”
“A few good things,” he said. “A few bad. The other ladies are history.”
“Then I must have been right about the ribs. Who knew missing a few meals would be enough to have you resembling a stick figure.”
“Actually, I haven’t had the need to feed. For which I thank you,” he said as he stood with his hands behind him, a hint of hesitation in his voice and manner. His usual arrogance was nowhere in evidence. And somehow that shot her nerves straight to hell.
“You mean you’ve been feeding off my love for you even though we haven’t seen each other? I’m better than I thought, then. If it was me.”
“It was you,” he insisted. “All of it. I’ve been so fucking blind, Lavinia.”
“If this is your way of apologizing, you are about three years too late. These are things you should have told me when we first met. Not when I’m ass-deep in loving you.” Memories flashed through her mind, the feeling of strong arms coming around her waist and drawing her to the bed. The cool evening breeze on her over-heated skin. The crack in her heart from his deception.
“Or this could just be more of your seductive lies. Which is it? Never mind, I don’t really want to know. I’m fine without you,” she continued. “I’ve got a long life ahead of me.”
“I know. I want to be part of it.”
“Don’t make me laugh.”
“This isn’t a joke, love. I’m being honest.”
“Yeah? That’s a stretch for you.”
“Look.” He raised his fingertips to her face and slowly pushed the hair away from her eyes. “I’ve lived for centuries on love and lies. It’s all I was taught since I was made. I didn’t realize there was any other way. Might I insist, however, there might not have been any other way? Until you were made.”
“Until I was made,” she repeated. “Sure.” A combination of distrust and denial took her breath and she stood there, wondering at his end game. If he tried to win her back now, would his meal double? Was the love from a heart healed by forgiveness enough to last him months? Years?
She would be okay either way. Whether he told her exactly what she wanted to hear or made the final exit from her life, she would be okay. She would continue to love him, but she would be okay. Except that her desire for happily ever after made that more than likely impossible.
“There’s no one like you in this vast world. Believe me, I know. I’ve looked. I would still be playing, cheating, and scrapping around for meals. Then you found me.”
Something was going on. Call it her woman’s intuition, but Lavinia knew something was happening. “I shouldn’t have gone searching for you that first night.”
“Searching for trouble, more like. I am nothing but trouble. I’m yours, however. If you’ll have me.”
She glanced down to the ground and her feet instead of looking at him. “You’re just saying that because you don’t think you can live without me.”
“Love, I can’t live without you,” he said softly, and her heart rate doubled, “truly. However, that’s not the only reason why I want to be with you.” His thumbs stroked away her tears before gathering her against his chest. “I knew you were in trouble tonight. I was terrified I wouldn’t reach you in time.”
“You did.”
“Yes. But if I’d been a second too late—”
“Then you know I would have had it covered,” she finished for him. Relief flooded her nervous system so completely she thought she would slide down to the ground. Would have if Pike hadn’t held her up.
She felt his smile against the top of her head. “Exactly.”
“You know, I could really use a shower. I’m covered in grime. Grime and ghoul. It was a hell of a fight.”
His fingers trailed along the dip of her waist. “You’re sexy when you’re filthy.”
“Do you mind if we go back to your place?” she asked.
“Depends. How long are you planning on staying?”
“That’s up to you.”
“How about the rest of forever?” This time there was nothing but interest in his question. “I find I quite like you with me.”
It was enough to melt her insides into a puddle of goo. “You sure do know all the right moves.”
“After the mistakes I made with you? I like to think I learned a thing or two along the way. Oh, my love. You look peaked. I think you need mouth-to-mouth.”
Lavinia swallowed, her body shaking with the effort it took to stand next to him. Warmth surged beneath her heart. “You don’t say.”
“Hold on tight.” Pike leaned forward and drew her lips up to meet his.
She held her index and middle fingers up between them, stilling the movement. “Wait. What about my mom?”
He sighed. “What about her?”
“You can’t just expect me to ride off into the sunset with you and forget about her. I have responsibilities. People who need me. I’m all for a good romantic fairy-tale ending, but I need to think about the facts. She can’t be left on her own and I refuse to put her in a home.”
Ah, love.” His laugh rumbled in his chest. “I wouldn’t dream of whisking you away without her. Have I mentioned I’m independently wealthy?”
Her smile was wry. “Of course you are. Beyond the little mishap with the rat shifters?”
“Semantics.” His arm curled around her waist. “You’ll still need to practice your techniques. There are many creatures in this world. You’re not prepared for all of them.”
“Just please tell me there will be no more succubuses in our future.”
“Succubi.”
“What?”
“The plural of succubus is succubi.”
“Whatever. No other women period,” she insisted. “Got it?”
“You’re the only woman I plan on having in my bed. For the rest of eternity.”
“Good.”
This time, she didn’t stop him when he stooped low for a kiss.
She felt his lips brush across her mouth, and she knew. No vision, just a knowing that went as deep as her soul.
Life would never be the same.
THE END
AFTERWORD
Thank you very much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Stay tuned to learn about upcoming releases, available titles, teasers, and more. Be sure to check out my other steamy romances on Amazon.
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Also by Brea Viragh
Contemporary Romance
The Promise Me series
Hold Me
Touch Me
Kiss Me
Love Me
Heartwood Novels
Sugar and Gold
Your Hand in Mine (coming 2018)
Paranormal Romance
Pike
The Cavaldi Birthright series
Fate Walks (Book One)
Morning’s Light (Book Two)
In the Dark (Book Three)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
BREA VIRAGH is a contemporary and paranormal romance writer based in the Blue Ridge Mountains. She is a proud Gryffindor, a graduate of Brakebills, and a member of Fairy Tail. When she isn’t writing and daydreaming about her newest project, her hobbies include binge-watching HGTV, scouring thrift shops for goodies, and maintaining her alpha status among her boyfriend, puppy, and three cats.
Feel free to stalk her online on her Website, Facebook, Twitter, or Goodreads