“How can I fix things?” he asked, rubbing her back. This close, he was overwhelming. His presence, his…everything.
“I want to try that dress on,” she whispered, not quite able to look into his eyes. He tipped up her chin, and gazing into her eyes, she saw other lives, other times, but that same strong, steadying presence beside her. “Who are you, Dante?” she asked, hands itching to run all over his body.
“Yours,” he said simply. “For eternities.”
It shouldn’t have made sense, but it did; she knew with a clarity that he was ingrained in her soul, not just this life, but in the past as well.
“Don’t worry, it will come back to you, love.” He stood, and Heather felt the weight of his loss beside her.
Dante couldn’t quite believe what an asshole Jake was. How could he just let this amazing woman slip through his fingers? Not that Dante had expected anything else, but he thought he might have to convince Heather of their past together. She seemed accepting and that was good enough for him.
He brushed her hair back, looking down at her. “Don’t question me, just look into your heart for the answers.” Their history demanded she accept him before he could make love to her and seal their bond.
And this time, unlike the others, he would suggest that she change and become one with him, for a lifetime. She’d been resistant in the past, but this time around he sensed something in her, a steel core that had been developed beforehand.
Dante unbuttoned the cuffs on his gray shirt and undid the first few buttons, exposing his chest. She licked her lips, probably a reflexive action, but it turned him on.
Dante closed his eyes, willing the change to come over him, relishing the sting as his canines became fangs, the sharp bite of the air, the overwhelmingly strong scents and sounds. Down the hall, he could hear a woman snoring, and the distant chime of the slot machines rang in his head.
And Heather. Her natural scent was almost hidden in the chemicals from makeup, the alcohol from the drinks she’d had, and her hair products, but it was there, just under the surface calling to him, a mix of jasmine, and orange blossom, and some tropical flowers he couldn’t quite describe, but loved already.
“Heather, look at me,” he said. Her eyes were downcast, but when she lifted her head and gasped, a hand clapping to her mouth, he wondered if she was actually ready for this. Was his dramatic moment just that?
“You’re beautiful,” she choked out, reaching her hand out. He was far enough away that she had to stand, and he waited patiently as she walked around him slowly, taking in the wider breadth of his shoulders, the few added inches of height, and most of all his fangs.
Heather reached out to touch his mouth, the tip of a finger running over her fang. “You don’t use these to inflict pain?”
Dante suspected she knew the answer, but he shook his head anyway. “We take from blood banks these days. There are some for whom the chase and kill are exhilarating. Many of them go rogue and can’t be controlled. We have to put them down in that case. Others still just chase wild animals—deer in overpopulated areas. They need to be watched carefully, but are allowed to do what they like, within reason, as long as it stays within certain parameters.”
“And you?’ she asked quietly. He knew that she might remember some of what they’d been to each other, but Dante might need to guide her along the way.
“Blood banks, Heather. I don’t victimize anyone. Whenever I’ve taken from a human it has been one with sound mind and free will. It makes them very euphoric afterward, especially if done in climactic moments.”
“Sex?”
“Sex.”
“Show me.”
Dante couldn’t quite believe she had accepted so quickly. In many other lifetimes, she’d been very resistant to anything approaching what he was. He’d had to lead her through on so many occasions. Times like these, where she accepted just like that, were rare and things to be cherished.
He reached for her wrist, tugging up the sleeve of her dress. “First, an introduction here, so you know what it will feel like. Our fangs have a nerve-deadening substance that is injected when we bite, so you feel minimal pain. And when we withdraw, a pleasurable substance is left behind, healing and soothing the skin.
He lowered his head, sniffing her skin, enjoying the warmth and delicacy, tracing the veins with the tip of his tongue. She shivered and he felt the force of her arousal spilling into the air around them. Ah, this was what he wanted. What she wanted. What they desired.
Each other.
“I’m going to bite down now, Heather. Just relax.” She gulped and nodded, but by the way she tensed and her heartbeat sped up, he could tell she was quite anxious. He’d have to change that with the force of his love for her. The fear of the unknown could be overwhelming and there was just one way to stop that. He lowered his head more, until his mouth was pressed against her wrist.
Was this really happening, Heather wondered. She believed everything he said; there was some part deep inside her that either suspected or outright knew, and that part was probably guiding her functions, because she should have been freaking out and running for her life. But she wasn’t. And when Dante pulled her arm to his chest and then dropped his head, her body started doing all sorts of weird, utterly sexual things.
“Please,” she whispered, squirming, the desire to have him inside her almost too much to bear. Then he bit down on her and she found herself rubbing anxiously against him, her body—her soul—exploding in a deeply-felt climax, one that broke her apart and set her together again. Everything dimmed and Heather closed her eyes, riding out the sexual tornado that had taken control of her senses.
She opened her eyes to find herself on the bed, completely naked, Dante standing beside her, just as naked and…
Good God! She didn’t know they made them in that size! She licked her lips, tearing her glance away and up, up, up his ripped torso.
“Are you back with me?” he asked, eyeing her appreciatively. Well, he wasn’t the only one.
“I am,” she said softly, and he leaned over, brushing a kiss across her mouth.
“Then may I join you?”
She nodded and he climbed onto the bed, crouching over her and planting a tender kiss over her mouth. It was a little awkward to kiss with the fangs, but he was gentle and didn’t inadvertently cut her lip or anything. Heather dug her fingers into his hair, tugging him closer, devouring his mouth while trying to avoid those dangerous fangs.
Dante groaned, rearing back and looking down at her. “I don’t want you to bleed too much. Not tonight. Maybe later, though.” He gentled his comment with a kiss on the tip of her nose. “For now, Heather, I want to be inside you.” He gave her a wry little grin. “Can I come in? You know vampires have to be invited inside.”
It was so unexpected—both hearing the word and the way he phrased his question—that it put her immediately at ease, a nice counterpoint to the desire filling her body.
“You said you didn’t hurt humans. So how about settling this ache I have deep inside.” It was a cheesy line, but he got the gist of it. He positioned his huge cock at her entrance and eased just the very tip inside. She tried to rear up, to take more of him, but he laughed and shook his head. It was clear they were doing this on his schedule; he was in command and control.
And she was really quite okay with that. As long as he started thrusting sometime soon. Like now, or five seconds ago.
He laughed, the rich sound filling the room with levity, and just when she began to tense up, he eased deeply inside in one endless thrust, driving himself home inside her. Heather was tight, but her body stretched to accept every single glorious inch. He was so full inside her that it took her breath away.
“God, that is good,” she managed when he was fully inside her and had stilled, hovering above her. She wished she could capture this moment for an eternity, the way he was gazing down on her, the absolute wonderment on his face, the way his eyes shone with love and respect,
rather than the vague irritation that… No. Her ex had no place in this moment.
“Good, push him away,” Dante replied, and she knew he’d read her thoughts. That invasion should have gotten her back up, but instead, she didn’t mind in the least. He had a home in her soul—and that was deeper than either mind or body.
“Fuck me,” she whispered, resting her cheek against his shoulder.
“Soon,” he replied calmly, as if he wasn’t lodged deep inside, as if that beautiful cock wasn’t stretching her to capacity. When she settled back against the pillows, her inner muscled squeezing him, Dante groaned—a low, animal sound that resonated in the room. He dipped his head down, his body bowed at an angle that probably only worked well if you were a vampire. But he was—oh, what a vampire he was.
His tongue traced her nipples slowly, first one and then the other, making them ache even more. She couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like for Dante to sink his fangs into one of the swells and vowed to ask him to make that come true later.
“I will.”
The mind reading thing was really starting to work for her.
When he had her squirming, her body’s pleasure centers bouncing wildly from breast to pussy and back again, he pulled back long enough to start fucking her in huge thrusts, bottoming out and then pulling almost to full withdrawal, only to sink back in deep. Heather arched her back, moaning and crying out as he stroked areas of her body that had never had attention before. But when his pace picked up, and he started thrusting harder and faster, she gripped his shoulders and held on for the ride.
Dante moved faster with sure thrusts that threatened to hurl her off the cliff of her arousal. She had no control over her body’s responses, could only ride them out, could only hang on as he drove them to that edge again and again.
When she flew off it into the climax of her life, it was in Dante’s safe embrace. She could shatter in his arms; he’d put her back together again.
It was after seven or eight amazing climaxes that Dante collapsed beside Heather, sweaty and gorgeous, his fangs fading back into his gums. If he was half as sore as she was, there would be hell to pay tomorrow, but that was all in the future.
Their future.
Heather would have to deal with the disappointment from both families, and Jake’s anger, but she had a feeling her friends would be firmly on her side. She snuggled against Dante, knowing that they really should shower. Like she had the energy for that.
When her cell phone buzzed, nudging her awake, Heather realized she’d fallen asleep. Dante was beside her, a little smile on his face. “Better answer that. I cleaned up for both of us. You may smell like the hotel’s Ivory, but you’re not sweaty any more. Better answer that.”
Heather followed the sound of her phone. It was on the nightstand along with her purse, a bottle of water, and a candy bar—her favorite, how had he known that?
“Hello?” she asked, not even looking at the number.
“Hey, where are you?” Shelly asked, sounding much more awake and much, much less satisfied than Heather was. There was a huge amount of noise around her, and Heather could pick out the voices of several of their friends.
“I um…I’m with a friend.”
“Dante? Is that his name? Steve is so pissed at you. Jake too as I understand it. Did you break things off? Did they really ask you to bail Jake out?”
“Steve did,” Heather replied. “I haven’t broken things off with Jake. Not yet,” Heather said with a sigh. “I suppose I should, huh?”
“No need to, in my ever so humble opinion, Heather. Did you hear what happened? He had his fingers in the panties of a stripper.” She paused, consulting with someone else. “Sorry, Roxi tells me he fingered three strippers under their panties, and the girls are furious because they told everyone—especially Steve and Jake—that there was to be absolutely no touching at all. The boy is in for a world of hurt, and there is no way anyone who knows you would believe you’re staying with him. Not even Steve the asshole who called me, asking me to bail Jake out. Told him no can do. It is time Jake actually learned to grow up. Don’t bail him out of this, Heather.”
“I have no plans to.”
“So um…we shouldn’t expect you back tonight?” Shelly sounded hopeful, and Heather realized just how much her friends had disliked Jake.
“I don’t think so. I’ll be by tomorrow.” She turned to Dante. “Tomorrow good?”
“Not too early, tell them to have a great night, on me. I’ll reimburse any expenses they incur.”
“You don’t need to do that.” She stroked her hand over his chest, planting a kiss above his left nipple.
“Yes, I do. They look out for you and I appreciate that.”
“So who is this one in a million guy?” Shelly asked. “He sounds too good to be true, from what I hear. Sounds like a great one night stand.”
“He isn’t.”
“No?” Shelly asked, surprised. “You didn’t go to the chapel and get married, did you?” She hummed that famous song and Dante chuckled.
“No, I didn’t marry anyone. Dante’s just…special. I feel like I’ve known him all my life.” She met his eyes and the expression he gave her back warmed her heart. “He’s the one I think I was always meant to find.”
There was silence on the line, then Shelly breathed out a long sigh. “Wow, that is intense. You’re sure of this?”
“More than sure, Shelly. You’ll see him tomorrow. Promise.” Heather said, and ended the call.
“So…you’re mine?” Dante asked, lifting a single eyebrow.
“Yours for eternity, as long as you’ll have me.”
“Oh, I’ll have you. Again and again, in as many ways as possible.”
“Pervert,” she shot back, unable to stop a giggle.
“Your pervert,” he retorted. “For all eternity, as long as you’ll have me.”
“I do.”
“I do, too.”
THE END
Bonus Catalogue of Sample Books
(Limited Time only)
Two for the Blood
Two for the Blood
My name is Andrea. You could say I live a normal life; at least that’s the way it looks on the outside. But things are not always as they seem. My husband is Alvah. I love him—I really do—but things have changed over the years.
When I met Alvah, I instantly fell in love. He treated me like his queen, always spending time with me and buying me anything I could ever wanted. I wish it could have stayed like that forever, but it didn’t take long—about two years into our marriage, really—before he began to focus more on earning money and less on our relationship.
It is not like we need the money; in fact, we have more than enough to support several families for several lifetimes. But that did not matter to Alvah. He wanted more. I find myself wondering what I did wrong, what changed, and the only thing I can think of is my weight. When I met Alvah, I was what you would call extremely thin. I never ate and worked out all of the time, but as the years went by, I found other things to occupy myself with.
I am not what most people would call obese, but I am a very curvy, full-figured woman. I have large breasts, thick thighs, and my hips are round. I never thought that gaining a little weight would take my husband so far away from me. These days I never see him. He leaves for work before the sun comes up and comes home long after I have gone to bed. I have wondered if he is having an affair, and I have cried myself to sleep because I felt so alone.
I ached to feel his touch and yet I get nothing from him. I stayed up late one night last week, as I wanted to surprise him. That day, I had gone shopping and purchased the sexiest nightie that I could find. It was light pink and looked beautiful against my skin tone. It had feathers around the bust line and around the bottom. The rest was completely see through.
I lit candles and waited for him to come home. When he walked into the bedroom that night, the look on his face was one of disgust. He walked around the room blowin
g out the candles and slid into bed. When I reached over to touch him he just said that he was too tired and had to work in the morning.
He will never know how much he hurt me that night. I lay there and thought about when we met, how he could not keep his hands off of me. Our relationship started off in a way that many would call weird, but to me it was perfect. When I met Alvah, he seemed to be the type of man who did not approach many women. He was shy and quiet. I actually had to make the first move, but once I did it was an amazing adventure.
A few weeks into our relationship, I asked Alvah why he had not stayed the night with me yet, and I could tell something was off. He told me that he had a secret that no one knew, and that he would tell me but if I ever left him I would have to die.
I thought he was joking so I told him to tell me. Alvah said he was a vampire and he had to go out at night to hunt. He needed the blood to live. I remember sitting there, wondering if he had some sort of mental instability that would make him think he was a vampire. I could not believe how I always seemed to attract the craziest men, but then he told me that if I would let him feed off of me, he would not have to hunt.
I decided that this was some type of sexual game and agreed. We went back to my place and I found out that he was not lying. I allowed Alvah to feed each night and when he was done, he would always make love to me. It was unlike anything I had ever imagined, and I felt that I was lucky to have found him.
When he stopped feeding is when I really started to gain weight. Did he not know that if he would only feed again, things could go back to the way they were? I often thought about who or what he was feeding on when he came home late at night. I wondered if he had found someone else, someone who he desired more than me, but I didn’t understand why or how that would happen.
I had given him everything, including life through my blood, and he was too worried about money to even spend time with me. I could not blame him, he was going to live forever and would need the money to sustain himself, but he only had me for a short time and he knew that. Alvah had told me about past loves and how he had watched them grow old, how he had to tell people that his wife was his mother so that they would not get suspicious of him. How he had buried previous wives as well as children, and I could see the pain in his eyes when he talked about it.
PARANORMAL ROMANCE: Shapeshifter Romance: The Vampire's Stolen Bride (BBW Fantasy Alpha Male Romance Books) (New Adult Vampire Fun Mature Young Adult Billionaire Steamy Love and Romance Novella) Page 3