Loud snapping sounds diverted my attention toward the bathroom door. Maddox stood in the doorway with the door in his hands. He’d ripped it completely off the hinges. His saluting cock pointed directly at me. I licked my lips. The man never got dressed. My body yearned to be touched by him. The door went flying. A lump of bile gathered in my throat.
Maddox walked in my direction. Panic with a sense of excitement fell upon me. I knew I was a trapped female in the company of a horny vampire high on witch’s blood. He needed a release. I debated on relieving him, but his words of wanting to protect his girl settled the score. Not knowing what his mind thought, I darted off in his direction. Big mistake.
He caught me and carried me into my walk-in shower. His body trapped me against the cold tile of my shower. I watched him turn the water on. We slid down until water drenched his head. His cock wiggled up against my thigh. Both our bodies quivered. Maddox stared at me causing me to freeze like a deer in headlights.
“Why are vampires bad?” His question stunned me.
“They aren’t. If I thought they were bad, I’d let you die that horrible death instead of feeding you ‘jacked-up’ blood.”
“Then why are you afraid of loving me? To be honest, you don’t know enough about me to assume I am evil. We just met,” His head dropped. I felt his pain, but I wasn’t sure why he was in pain. “Is my appearance different? Am I no longer a sexy looking man?”
Great! I stumbled across the one man who has an issue with self-doubt. The man is a gorgeous and fuckable. I took in a deep breath to answer the man standing before me. With my finger, I raised his head so his eyes stared back in mine. “You are abso-fucking-lutely sexy. If you weren’t in a committed relationship, I’d jump your bones and fuck you until we passed out.” My mouth dropped the moment I finished the sentence because I regretted making a statement like that. “Hmm, vampires and witches had a falling out. A relationship between the two is forbidden. Immortal creatures aren’t speaking to each other. Stories from my grandparents claim a demon pretending to be one of each of us caused damage leading to the feuds.”
“Let’s end the feud and be lovers,” he begged.
“It’s not that simple,” I countered.
“Why not?” Maddox’s facial hair tickled my cheeks while his warm breath fell on my neck. “I am very attracted to you. So is my cock.”
I glanced down to see a hardened cock. Hormones released inside my body. My legs shuddered. “Because I tried to end the feud.”
Maddox stepped back and stared at me. From the look in his eyes, I speculated he didn’t believe me.
In a smooth motion, I pushed him back, grabbed the hem of my shirt, and pulled it above my head.
A smile plastered on his face.
“Before you get all excited.”
“Too late, gorgeous. Y-yo-your body is fucking hot,” he stuttered.
“Not really. See this scar,” I pointed to the huge pink streak racing across my stomach. Maddox nodded. “This is a result of loving a vampire and fighting against the feud.”
“I don’t completely understand,” he tried to speak, but I stopped him.
“Brock and I were married. He was a vampire. Me, the witch. Both sides were pissed, and a few accepted the crosslines love. My side, the witches, threw a few temper tantrums before realizing I held the key to returning things back to the place before Ivy Jean. A child growing in my belly was going to be a peacemaker between two of the three supernatural creatures at war. The wolves and the witches called a truce a few months prior to my marriage to Brock. To be honest, the only ones fighting as of late have been the vampires and us witches. Someone broke up our house. Brock protected me and the baby, but got shot in the heart with a wooden bullet. A female injected me with something. I felt the needle prick then blacked out.” Tears ran down my face. I closed my eyes to keep the flow at a minimum. Images of Brock flooded my brain. I wished every day I could turn back time to bring my Brock back. While there were spells to bring back the dead, none brought the original loved one back. I reached out for Brock. He disappeared. When I opened my eyes, I clung to Maddox. “Sorry. My mind played a trick on me.”
“It’s okay. You loved him deeply, I can tell. Please forgive me, I’m a jerk.”
“Maddox, you are not a jerk. Just a horny vampire jacked up on my blood.”
“Witch, you are going to be the death of me.” Maddox kissed my cheek and walked out. His firm ass taunted me all the way out. I slid down to the fetal position and cried. My scar began to ache out in pain; something that hadn’t happened in years. Saving the man in the other room brought out more than just the memory of Brock. Strange feelings reappeared. I desired to be held and loved again. In a way, I wanted Maddox to return, just to cradle me in the cold shower.
I opened my mind up to allow him in. I could use a companion in the shower. Nothing happened. The tears fell faster than my hand could wipe them away. A feeling of being watched caused a lump to form in my throat. Looking around the room once more, I found no one, even though, I wished for the return of Maddox. The water pooled around my hip area and formed a moving picture. In the movie, Maddox searched my house for his clothes. His feelings for me poured into my body. Hurt and pain filled me.
“No,” I screamed. I exited the shower without bothering to turn the water off or grab a towel. “Maddox, where the hell are you?”
No answer. My legs moved as fast as I could make them. Not sure where he went, I headed for the front door. His scent faded the closer I got to the door.
A noise in the spare room redirected my attention. Within a few steps, I entered the doorway. Maddox stood beside the bed in his tight blue jeans. For the first time, I noticed a tattoo on his back. He jerked around with his fangs out ready for battle. “You startled me, witch.”
“I’ve been screaming out for you,” I snapped back.
“Get dressed. Someone is watching us. I feel the presence but cannot see anyone yet. The smell is much like rotten meat.” Vampires weren’t known to have the keenest sniffing abilities, but it was stronger than a human and witch. I got a whiff and gagged until I choked. Maddox flew to myside. “I warned you.”
“A troll,” I choked out. “Check under the bed. They love to hide beneath their sleeping victims.”
“With the smell, they are not going to sneak up on their prey,” Maddox added. I laughed when he dropped to all fours to check under the bed. The short, orange-haired, green troll slithered out from under the bed and jumped on top. The smelly person reminded me of what a kid would act like. “Get the fuck off my bed you, stinky bastard.”
“No,” the troll chuckled. “I am checking out the boobies on the broad.”
Maddox lunged on the bed with fangs drawn out. The troll didn’t flinch at Maddox’s moves. “No,” I screamed, “his blood is poisonous to you.”
“The witch is right,” the small creature said while sliding off the bed. He approached me with clasping hands. I stepped back and shook my head no. The troll jerked back when Maddox landed between us.
“He can still snap your neck, troll,” I argued.
“Yea, he could, but he won’t. For his darling Aaryn’s sake.”
“What does Aaryn have to do with anything? How the hell do you know about her?” Maddox grabbed the troll around the throat, lifted him in the air, and tossed him across the room. The body of the troll mimicked the body of a rag doll being thrown around. It bounced off the wall. The lifeless body dropped onto the bed. I watched Maddox take off at him.
“Stop,” I yelled. “Killing him will not tell you what he knows about Aaryn. He is doing the dirty work of someone else. Does anyone from the club know about Aaryn?”
“No,” Maddox answered. He dropped his head. “My best friend is the only one. He wouldn’t betray me that way.”
“He might not have before,” I answered.
Maddox glared at me with his teeth showing as if he wanted to bite me. “Things change once you become a vampire. Your situ
ation is different than his, assuming he is a vampire.”
“Jose had been acting differently, lately. Ebony ordered him to do things I wouldn’t have known him to do before. He stripped in an open room. My best friend was shy before.”
“She is his sire.”
“Who is mine?” Maddox questioned me.
“Well, technically the sire is the person who bites and feeds you their blood. In your case, I am not sure.”
“He is a half-breed? This day gets better,” the troll added. “Although, tasting the white breast meat is hard to top.” Maddox’s arms moved so fast all I saw was a line of blur. The troll’s body flung into the mirror shattering it into hundreds of pieces.
A muddled vision appeared in the shards of glass. I stared into the mirror to see if I could lock onto something to clear-up the vision. One thing I saw was a long strawberry-blonde haired woman with closed eyes. Maddox blocked my view. By the time I got another look at the mirror, the vision disappeared and my reflection glared back at me.
“Maddox, you ended his misery for now. He will wake up with a splitting headache. Follow me to the cages. We will keep him in the back and use him when he regains consciousness. You battered him until he fears you,” I explained.
“Show me the way,” Maddox picked up the smelly troll.
I led the vampire and captured troll to the dungeon area. With one look at my inventory, I opened the back cage. The cold air caused perky nipples. My hostage, the elf whistled out. “I want to steal a baby’s bottle.”
“Shut up or I will order the vampire to knock you out too, Munchkin.” I glared at the cage in the far corner.
“Go fuck yourself, bloodsucker lover,” the elf snapped back.
“Divana, what is he talking about?”
I turned around to show Maddox my high beams.
He licked his lips and tossed the troll into the cage. “Oh, well I think I might want to…”
I pressed my finger on his lips and shook my head.
“Why not?”
“We discussed this,” I started to explain.
“She don’t want to end up like the first time,” a female’s voice from the other side spoke up.
“Good morning, Brina. How’s the paw?”
“Fuck you, Divana.”
“No, we both know you are damaged goods. Even your master auctioned you off. Never forget I saved you from the horrible death.”
“That’s reassuring. Death would be better than being caged up here,” the animal shifter grunted.
“Oh, you enjoyed the man cutting on your clit?” I knew she’d shut-up on that one. The bear hated when I brought that up.
Maddox walked out of my room before anyone else had a chance to speak up.
My stomach growled. The cold air on my body caused different areas to ache. My ass started to feel like a frozen piece of meat. I raced back to the shower where I jumped under the water. It was on the cool side so I twisted the knob to warm. The water flowed down my body causing me to sigh while it felt good. I closed my eyes to enjoyed it.
A hand wrapped around my waist and pulled me backward. The strong masculine smell crossed with a tad of sweetness relaxed me. I leaned back into a well-chiseled chest. My body quivered at the poking of my ass. “I wish you’d allow me access to please you. I promise you, your inner temperature will sky rocket.”
“Maddox, I do…” His fingers danced down my stomach to my mound. I sighed in anticipation of his fingers stroking my clit. Two years without anyone touching me caused my heart to race with the thought of him caressing my body. He twirled me around and pushed my back against the wall. I opened my eyes to catch him fleeing the shower. “Maddox.”
He stopped and turned back toward me. His cock stood out straight; hard and ready to go. “Witch, I feel…”
“Weak,” I answered by interrupting him.
Maddox nodded.
I turned off the shower and raced to him.
His knees buckled. His eyes slid shut. He dropped to the floor with his fangs hanging out.
“No, you wait. Bite me.” I raced to his side.
He looked up at me with a wicked grin. “Can I have an extra bang for my blood?”
“You asshole.”
“Been told that before,” he snickered. “I am hungry though. Can I get a taste of you?”
“I will feed you. Now go,” I suggested with a point of my finger. The ring of a phone startled me. I raced to answer it. “Hello.”
“D, you need to stay inside tonight,” the voice on the other end demanded. I knew by the voice it was Ambrose.
“Ambrose, what is going on?”
“D, a massive human search party is hunting for him for the next three days,” Ambrose explained
“I cannot keep this vampire in my house for that long. You know that.”
“What the fuck are you talking about and to who?” Maddox questioned.
“You take care of him. Tomorrow I will send a shipment to our special spot. That will help him with feeding. Minimize the feedings of your blood.”
“Wait, Ambrose,” I said while the call dropped.
“You don’t want me? Are you only toying with me?” Maddox asked, but never waited for the answer. He stormed off.
No, you don’t understand. My blood is addictive, like cocaine is to humans.
Chapter Four
Maddox
She kept uttering the cocaine reference to me. I had never taken cocaine in my life. The worst I ever did, was alcohol. Her blood does make my clothes want to drop off. Tequila. That’s it, sweet tequila. Crunching noises from outside caught my attention. I raced to the window. My stomach rumbled over the smell of the fresh blood. A new heightened sense of hearing allowed me to listen to the animal’s heartbeat. It raced.
I wanted to feed. I needed to feed. Divana was going to kill me, but I didn’t care. I slid the window open. The rush of fresh air hit my nostrils knocking me for a loop, momentarily. A tree limb snapped catching the bear off guard. Something gave me the knowledge to know that was going to be a great source of blood. The bear was female and irritated. In a blink of an eye, I had the window open and was through it.
My feet hit the ground running. I leaped in the air and landed on the back of the hairy female. She rocked and bucked me like a bull with one of those stupid cowboys trying to hang on for eight seconds. Maybe I was just as stupid for I needed more than eight seconds of blood. The bear jerked left. I lost grip with my right hand. To keep from falling off, I planted my teeth in her spine. Direct hit. Somehow, I found an artery.
Warm blood trickled down my throat. While it satisfied my need for food, it tasted less than tasty. If I couldn’t have her blood all the time, I needed to find a great alternative. Bear wasn’t one, but would do if it had too. Even though I knew I wanted Divana’s blood, I sucked down enough to fill me up. A different kind of rush overpowered my body. I growled like a bear and sniffed the air.
Fragrances from colognes and perfumes choked me up. Only humans wore artificial scents to cover up their natural aromas. Whispers teased my ears; however, I only heard one word I recognized. My name. People whispered my name? I glanced down to observe my clothes covered with bright red blood from my recent kill. No one needed to see me like this.
“Think, Maddox, think,” I muttered while scratching the back of my head. Whispers of the men penetrated my head. I jerked my head around to find nothing. In order to concentrate on the voices, I squinted my eyes and listened. A man’s repetitive calling of my name sounded familiar. The voice mimicked one of Jose’s brothers, but I was unsure for it was only a whisper. Standing in the middle of the woods gave me the idea to climb a tree. I looked around to find the tallest yet sturdiest tree I could.
Crack. The noise of an acorn falling reverberated in my head. Pain rattled my brain. Migraines had nothing on this. I dropped to my knees. A familiar scent tickled my nostrils. Warm hands touch my shoulders. It’s me. Let’s get you inside. Did you kill this bear?
She giggled. I forced myself up off my knees to help her. With ease, I picked up the bear and yanked it from her hands. Within minutes I stood in her kitchen and waited on her instructions of where to put the bear. Divana pointed toward a small room which contained a long table and meat hooks. Damn she was one prepared woman—my kind of woman.
“You heard that, didn’t you?”
“Heard what?”
“You didn’t hear what I thought outside?”
“No. I am not privy to it unless you allow me in. My brain on the other hand seems to be an open door you love to walk in and out of,” she teased with a sultry chuckle.
“Witch, that cackle isn’t helping me to believe you.” Divana stopped and turned around. Her eyes glared back at me with a hint of twinkles in them. My cock vaulted to life and pushed up against my jeans. I readjusted myself while taking two steps toward her. She stepped forward. We bumped heads awkwardly. Before she stepped back, I grabbed her up and pulled her into my body. Our lips meet in a passionate kiss.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked.
“To kiss the most beautiful female I have ever seen before? Hell yes.”
“Maddox, what about your fiancée?” Her hands pushed against my chest putting a small distance between us. A fearful look gathered in her questioning eyes. “Will you be comfortable cheating on her?”
“She won’t want me now. I’ve been turned into a monster,” I protested.
Divana stepped closer.
“Witch, I need you.”
“On the contrary, Maddox, you don’t need me. Only my blood.” She giggled. “I am attracted to you as well, just scared of allowing you to be with me.”
“I am a big boy and can make my own choices.”
“Not saying you aren’t man enough to handle me, but…the last man I allowed to love me got killed in the cross fire. There are people out there,” she spoke while tears streamed down her face, “trying to kill me because I am a witch. I’ve been accused of tricking people into drinking my blood to control them.”
Sweet Nectar Page 4