Catch

by Annie Nicholas

  “They die.”

  I licked my lips. “Why can I be bound then?”

  “Becoming a vampire has nothing to do with blood like the bond. At the point of death, the creator binds the soul to the dead body, with women being turned by a Nosferatu, I was told the souls flee.” Rurik caressed my cheek. “I’ll tell you a secret since you’ll be in contact with Tane’s clan at times.”

  I nodded and held my breath.

  “To transform into a Nosferatu one has to already be a vampire.” I sat up straight. “You’re shitting me. Not only do you have to be a man, but a vampire as well. No wonder the vampire nation is so screwed up.” Rurik barked out a laugh. It dispelled the heavy mood sitting on my heart. “The tub should be getting full. Let’s get you undressed.”

  I grinned as he set me on my feet and let him lead me into the bathroom where the huge black tub shone with steaming hot water.

  Rurik shut off the water and undid his shirt.

  I sat on the edge and watched.

  “Every political faction sent a representative when Tane disappeared as a gesture of support, which translates into someone being inside to keep tabs on everything. The majority appears happy to find him alive and well. There are some who don’t approve of the changes Tane implemented, though.”

  Dragging my gaze from Rurik’s well-defined chest, I watched as his shirt fluttered to the floor. “Changes?”

  With a flick of his wrist, he opened his fly and slid his pants off. “Zero tolerance for murder.”

  “You had those laws already.”

  “But Dragos only enforced them when it served his purpose, like in Budapest. Tane rules with an iron fist in comparison. It makes certain factions nervous.”

  “Enough to kill him.”

  “Maybe.” He tugged at my blanket. “You’re still covered. Come in the water. I promise to warm you.”

  I undressed with Rurik’s help and slipped into the hot water. The heat stung, however after a moment it seeped into my muscles and I melted into the tub. Finally, the chattering of my teeth slowed.

  Rurik settled behind my back and massaged the knots in my shoulders. “You’re so tense.”

  “That tends to happen when someone tries to kill me,” I snapped, and instantly regretted it. “Sorry. I feel terrible.” Drawing my knees to my chest, I leaned my forehead on them. “As I watched Tane get shot all I worried about was myself. I’m a selfish person.”

  “When did self-preservation become selfish? Tane’s survived worse.” He placed a light kiss on my shoulder. “I’m pleased with the results.” I sighed. “He saved me, you know.”

  “You sound surprised.” My lover poured hot water over my hair with his cupped hands. “He’s not a cruel person, Connie.”

  “I’m starting to understand that.” The water coursed through my curls and I closed my eyes. Tane hinted he and Rurik had been more than friends once. Rurik never gave me the impression he found men attractive. Then again, he always made me feel like the most beautiful person in the room so I wouldn’t have noticed if he liked anyone else.

  He stopped pouring the water. Quiet gathered around us like a comfortable blanket.

  My thoughts circled around to Tane sitting on the deck pining for my boyfriend. I couldn’t let it go. They’d been friends for a long time, exchanging letters while I traveled with Rurik, and now this. I shifted between Rurik’s legs.

  “You’re thinking hard again, I can almost sense your worry through your mental shields. Tane will be fine. If your life was in danger I’d be out there with them.” Not even close to what I thought. I glanced at him over my shoulder. Water dripped from his hair onto his broad shoulders. “How did you meet Tane?” My question struck a nerve. Rurik was skilled in hiding his emotions, except we’d been together long enough for me to see through some of the veil. He blinked, an unnecessary action for a vampire. “Why?”

  “You claim he’s a good person and you want me to be nicer, but I need something to help change my mind.”

  He chuckled. No mirth carried in the sound. “I never said he was good. He is a loyal friend, though, with better intentions than most. Is that better?” I twisted around to face him. “No.” This time he wouldn’t divert my question. The past made us who we were and I knew so little about Rurik. “When did you first meet Tane?”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Glancing away, Rurik wouldn’t meet my stare. The sculpted line of his jaw twitched.

  “I met Tane at the hot springs of Mageurite Island in Budapest.” Restraining my need to bop him on the head, I took a deep breath. “I didn’t ask where.”

  His gaze flicked back to mine. “I was still human.” The pit of my stomach dropped as I recalled Rurik’s story of how the Romans took the most attractive young men and women in the area to work at the springs. They did more than help bathe the clients and they weren’t given a choice. I didn’t know what to say, so for once I kept my mouth shut.

  “Tane discovered me there. I think, at first, he didn’t see me as more than entertainment, but after a few nights things changed. He purchased me then introduced me to my creator, who brought me across as a vampire.”

  “Tane didn’t do it?”

  Rurik shook his head. “No, Nosferatu can only bring other vampires across into their clan. They can’t make humans vampires.”

  “Wow.” How interesting. “So he can never bring me over if I decide to cross?”

  “No, that honor would be all mine.” He smiled. “After my change, he assisted with the revenge I brought down on those who tore me from my home.” Even after centuries, a touch of anger still simmered in his voice.

  Taken from his home and his family at a young age, I never considered the future he might have had—a wife and children, his own fishing boat like his father, maybe a little cottage. I touched his cheek with the back of my hand.

  “Tane brought me to his home in Dragos’s court and I learned new skills.” He slid his hands around my waist, then continued around to caress my behind, as if to show me what skills he’d learned.

  “Then you were lovers.” I held my breath.

  He nodded.

  If his face showed worry or sadness I couldn’t tell. My own worries blinded me.

  There’d been small hints so why the shock? Because I’d been hoping it wasn’t true.

  Ignorance was bliss and the truth bitch-slapped me upside the head. The sound of Rurik’s voice pulled me from my dread of losing him to Tane.

  “Dragos hated me at first sight. He saw me as a representation of a new type of vampire being bred.”

  “Handsome and intelligent instead of brutal and predatory,” I whispered His smile warmed at my comment as if pleased by my insight. “Exactly, but he saw me as soft and weak. After the second attempt on my life in Dragos’s court Tane sent me away. The rest is history and should be kept for another night.”

  “Why?” My cry echoed in the steam-filled bathroom. What other secrets did he keep? Tane lived down the hall and wanted him back. The king of vampires now, not some courtier, and Rurik did love power. He never needed to tell me that. No one struggled and fought with politics like he did, unless they craved the power it gave.

  “You want me to tell you four centuries of my life in one night?”

  “Lovers shouldn’t have secrets, we promised each other to stop keeping them.” I punched his shoulder and made a small splash.

  “I didn’t think it was a secret.” He quirked an eyebrow at me. “You didn’t think I was a virgin?”

  The idea struck me as preposterous and made me laugh. “No. Come on! You,Tane?

  It’s bad enough I’m bound to him, but your past makes it ten times worse.” He pulled me closer, pressing my breasts to his chest. His erect cock sandwiched between us. “How?”

  “Because he’s a powerful person.” There. I said it. My concern lay out before him.

  “Will you be okay with only me?”

  His lips parted as he stared at me wide-eyed.

/>   I traced his mouth with my fingertips. “You should have told me you liked men, too.

  I’m not sure how to deal with it.” Even to my own ears, I sounded vulnerable. I hated it.

  “If you went back to him, how could I stay? I mean, I’m stuck with this damn bond and—”

  He covered my lips with his. This kiss, so passionate and gentle as he consumed my mouth, turned me inside out. Soft and slow, he drew out each motion until it ended as suddenly as it started. “No worries,” he whispered, pressing his forehead to mine. “Over time, the line between genders blur for most vampires. I don’t love someone because of what they are, Connie, but for who they are, and I do love you so very much.” Like a great vise had just released from around my chest, I sucked a deep shuddering breath. “You love him, too.”

  He sighed. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

  “Do I ever?”

  “No.” He grinned with his answer. “Let me ask you a hard question. If your deceased husband were to return tomorrow, would you love me less?” The question hung over my head like an ax as we stared in each other’s eyes. “Your hesitation is making me nervous.”

  I giggled. “I doubt that. Of course, I wouldn’t love you less, but equally. Crap, if that was supposed to make me feel better it didn’t.” I tried to push away, however his iron grip held me.

  “You can trust me. I won’t hurt you. Tane understands I’m with you, just like I had to understand when he bound Eric.”

  That answer made me feel even worse. It meant he still cared for Tane. Things might be fine now but in ten years? We were going to have to cross this bridge one day, and I knew I’d be the loser. I could pressure him to admit it, except the coward inside me cringed. I’d dealt with enough turmoil for one day. The tender touch in the garden between him and Tane would be laid aside until I had the strength to deal.

  “You’re thinking too hard again.”

  “Damn, I can’t help it. You just shredded my concepts of our relationship and I’m at a loss.”

  He rubbed my temples with his fingertips. “Shh, it’s not that big of a deal. You’re tired and stressed. Let it go. Be here with me, right now, enjoy the moment.” I closed my eyes and melted back against him. “I want to. Help me.”

  “Thought you’d never ask.” He smirked as he lifted me to sit on the edge of the tub then spread my legs so they rested over his shoulders.

  A gasp escaped me as his cool mouth met my warmed pussy with a gentle touch. His strength supported me as it did in life.

  He glanced at me, asking if I was all right.

  “Don’t stop.” The words came from my gut and sounded deep. He never would have hesitated before. But I never had freaked at his touch, either. I hated Luckard.

  Like his earlier kiss, Rurik used his mouth in a gentle, passionate way. Licking between my folds with sure stokes until he found my clit. He circled the sensitive bud with his tongue with an expert’s skill.

  I grasped the edges of the tub and threw my head back. Pleasure blinded my thoughts.

  Growling, he latched onto it and sucked with sweet abandon. Without the support of his hands, I would have fallen to the floor in a senseless heap.

  “Yes,” seemed like the only word left in my vocabulary since I cried it over and over until the culminations of our efforts released themselves and left only a wild, crazed woman in my place.

  The room spun when I opened my eyes. I blinked and drew in a lungful of air. My racing heart slowed and blood returned to my brain.

  Rurik, his lips glossed with moisture, rested his chin on my thigh and watched me catch my breath.

  “Hot.” I cleared my throat. “Hot damn.” I allowed my rubbery legs to slip off their perch into the water. If I knelt in the tub, I couldn’t trust my legs to keep me from drowning. I gestured to Rurik. “Stand for me.”

  Water streamed from his chest as he rose, it followed the natural grooves of his muscles and I couldn’t resist following its descent. A thin line of dark hair ran from his belly button to his groin. He called it his happy trail. My goal stood erect and ready at trail’s end.

  Tracing a finger over those fine hairs, I sensed him shiver.

  He stepped closer and loomed over me, his half-lidded gaze burning with need.

  Without breaking eye contact, I leaned forward and licked his hot, swollen tip.

  He shuddered and clenched his hands. I wanted to return his favor, make him mindless with passion and bring him to his knees.

  I wrapped my hand around his base and guided his cock while I made slow, circular motions with my tongue.

  Breathing heavy, he stepped closer again and banged his knee against the tub. “Fuck, Connie.”

  I grinned before slipping him deep in my mouth, and angled my head so he could watch as his cock slid an inch at a time, until it hit the back of my throat.

  He stared as if mesmerized by the sight, his lips slightly parted.

  Running my hands over his firm flesh, I grabbed his ass and pulled him closer.

  Clenched muscles met my palms. They quivered under his skin like a racehorse waiting for the starting-gun. Was he holding back? Usually an aggressive lover, Rurik appeared more restrained tonight. I wanted to tell him not to worry, that I’d gotten over being abused, except I’d be lying. Instead, he offered me control and in return, I set the demanding hard pace I knew he craved.

  After a few strokes, each pump elicited a louder groan from him. He thrust his hips a little, but still didn’t touch me. I wanted him to. Our heavy breathing filled the room.

  I sensed a brush of fingers on my hair, as if wanting to tangle themselves in my curls, yet they fell back at his sides. The muscles in his thighs trembled where they touched me.

  Yearning screamed from his body.

  He slipped into his native tongue of Hungarian. It sounded like he spoke words of encouragement, however he could have been cursing me for all I knew. The only thing I understood was my name. With a strangled cry, he pushed his cock to the back of my throat. His knees buckled to catch against the tub as he spilled his seed.

  The sudden movement almost yanked him from my mouth, but with a quick reflex, I slid lower and didn’t release his cock. I felt his clenched muscles under my hands relax.

  He slid himself out of my mouth before sitting hard into the tub. The water splashed over the edge onto the floor.

  I couldn’t help but grin in triumph.

  Rurik leaned his head back.

  I stepped out of the tub and wrapped a towel around my body. “I’m tired.”

  “Let me regroup and I’ll join you in a second. I have to wait for feeling to return below the waist.” He closed his eyes and sunk lower into the water.

  As I stepped across the carpet of our bedroom, a new worry surfaced. I detoured from the bed and peeked out the door.

  Gwen stared back. “I’m not taking you anywhere. It’s almost dawn, and you have a black cloud following wherever you go. The dayshift guard needs to—”

  “Has Tane returned?”

  She stood straighter and widened her eyes. “No.”

  “Shouldn’t someone go find him before the sun does?” I clenched my towel even tighter. The vision of him twisting around me to take the second arrow haunted my thoughts. Not even sex drove it away.

  “He knows how to survive in the wild, Connie.” She gave me a wiry smile. “He was a vampire before civilizations developed.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  The crack of the whip made me flinch, yet I didn’t feel its bite. I tried to run with all my might, yet my body wouldn’t move. Manacles weighed heavy on my wrists, dragging them to the floor. Blinded by darkness I could hear him approaching, one heavy footstep at a time.

  Terror clutched my soul and squeezed me like a squeak toy until I screamed.

  And sat bolt upright in bed. Blankets twisted around my legs as I tried to escape. I kicked and rolled, only to tumble head over heels off the damn bed. The thump to my head only fogged my m
ind more.

  My sweat-soaked nightie clung to my body. Weary and exhausted, nothing made sense. I only wanted to sleep, except Luckard wouldn’t let me. I had to run, to hide, then maybe he’d leave me alone.

  Without another thought, I headed out the door. A strange man stood in my way, his eyes wide, hands held up in front of him.

  I didn’t allow him a chance to capture me and swung a left hook before I lost the element of surprise. It connected with his chin and the stranger fell, but my knuckles stung.

  No destination, no plan or goal, I just needed to flee the sound of the cracking whip.

  Rounding a corner, I rebounded off someone heading in the other direction. With unnatural speed, they pinned my arms to my sides and dragged me down the hall.

  I bit, screamed and tried to head-butt my assailant. We came to a pair of familiar wooden doors where Tane stood waiting.

  I knew him. He felt safe.

  Released from the man’s grip, I raced to Tane’s open arms. He’d saved me twice, I could trust him to do it again.

  With a slight grunt when I flung myself against his chest, he encircled me in a strong hug, and kicked the door shut. “What the hell is wrong with you?” He glared at me, bewildered.

  “I-I. The whip…and Luckard.” Looking around, I realized I stood in Tane’s foyer. “I don’t know.”

  He guided me to a couch in the sitting area. The creepy masks on the wall all stared at me as if laughing. “Sounds as if you had a nightmare.” I flopped onto the cushion. “Yeah, a pretty vivid one.” Tane sat next to me. “We should check your mental shield.”

  “Let’s not and say we did. I’ve had enough of you in my head lately.”

  “A human is more susceptible in their sleep, Rabbit. This might not be a nightmare.” I swallowed with a dry throat and stared at him. “Then what the hell is it?”

  “Luckard trying to get into your head. He probably thinks he can slip into my head from yours through our bond, but I’m too strong for that and he’s too stupid.”