Born to Darkness Box Set

by Evangeline Anderson

  Corbin gave me a completely unsurprised look. “And?”

  “And?” I said, irritated by his lack of sympathy. “And I need your help. I need someone who can force my friend’s maker to let her go or at least stop torturing her.”

  He frowned. “I do not think you know what you are asking. The bond between a maker and his or her fledgling is incredibly strong. To intervene in such a relationship and break it…that is almost unheard of among our kind. It would be like a human taking a child away from its parent.”

  “They do that every day,” I pointed out. “Parents lose custody of their kids when they abuse or neglect them. And believe me, if Celeste was a human parent she’d be sitting in jail right now for what she’s done to my friend.”

  “Celeste, is it?” Corbin shrugged. “Ah, she is a sadistic one. Although no more so than many of my kind.”

  I couldn’t understand his careless reaction. “And that’s okay with you? Do you have any idea what she’s forcing my friend to do?”

  He raised an eyebrow at me again. “Probably something sexual considering how upset you are. I notice that matters of the flesh seem to trouble you.”

  “Just because I’m not into casual sex doesn’t mean I’m a prude,” I said, irritated and embarrassed by his piercing gaze. “But this isn’t about me, anyway—it’s about my friend.”

  “Oh no, my darling.” He sat up straight and leaned across his desk. “Make no mistake about it—this is purely about you. I don’t really care what horrible things are happening to your friend. Whatever she is enduring will either make her stronger or kill her—that is the vampire way and all of us have been through it.”

  I was so angry I wanted to kick him. “You honestly don’t care? Celeste is whoring her out—forcing her to have sex with some sadistic bastard just because he’s a VIP.”

  Corbin shrugged again. “As I believe the expression goes, ‘been there, done that, have the t-shirt to prove it.’”

  I glared at him. “You’ve been forced to have sex with someone you hated? Or you forced someone else to have sex?”

  His silver-blue eyes narrowed. “I will let you draw your own conclusions about that. But sufficient to say, what your friend is enduring is nothing new. And since I don’t know her or care about her, the tale of her sad plight doesn’t move me in the slightest.”

  I threw up my hands. “Then I guess I’m wasting my time.”

  “Not at all.” He sat back again, lounging like a lazy cat behind the expensive desk. “I may still be persuaded to help you. Remember, Addison, I said this is all about you. So what can you offer me to make removing your friend from her maker worth my while? Bearing in mind, of course, that I will have to go to considerable trouble to do so.”

  I thought fast. “That citation I wrote you last night? I haven’t filed it yet. We can just pretend it didn’t happen.”

  “Please—is that really all your friend is worth to you? A slap on the wrist and the sum of a paltry fine?” He tsked. “Really, my darling, I had thought better of you.”

  I took a deep breath. “What do you want me to say?”

  “What do you think I want you to say?” He smiled, showing considerable fang this time.

  Crap, I’m in so much trouble here! I swallowed hard. Could I do this? Even for Taylor it was a close call. But then I reminded myself of the horrible conditions she was enduring. She was being forced to have sex with a man she hated over and over again. Surely I could make myself to do this one thing, this one time to save her. Giving Corbin a level stare, I spoke in a shaky voice.

  “Fine. I’ll have sex with you. But no biting at the same time. And I damn well hope you can control yourself—I don’t want to end up looking like I just went through an industrial sized blender, even to save my friend.”

  Corbin stood and suddenly he was around the desk and right in front of me though I had barely seen him move. Damn, he was fast. And probably incredibly strong as well. I steeled myself not to flinch as he reached for me, but instead of pulling me to him he only stroked my cheek with one finger. His touch was light but I felt a rush of tingles go through me anyway.

  “So you offer me your body but not your heart.”

  “Sorry.” I swallowed, forcing myself to stay where I was. “My heart isn’t up for grabs.”

  “Is that because it belongs to your friend?” He searched my eyes. “Is she your lover as well?”

  “What?” I almost laughed at the idea. “No, of course not! Why would you say that?”

  He frowned and nodded at my wrist where the scars were hidden by my suit jacket. “She is the one you have been feeding, correct?”

  “Well, yes,” I admitted. “She, uh, she can’t glamour humans into giving her blood. And she won’t take it by force either. So I’m pretty much her only recourse.”

  Corbin shook his head. “Such a one as you describe is too weak to survive. She should never have been brought over in the first place.”

  “You can take that up with Celeste—she’s the one who decided my friend had ‘potential’.”

  He looked thoughtful. “Hmm. She is not usually so mistaken. Her retinue is one of the strongest in the state because of her instinct for finding those who should be born to darkness.”

  “Well, she was wrong in my friend’s case,” I said. “And I still don’t see why the fact that I give Taylor my blood would make you think we’re more than friends.”

  “You really don’t know?” He shook his head. “You spend so much time pursuing my kind and yet you have no conception of how we think or what we really are.”

  I was beginning to get impatient. “Just tell me already.”

  “Sharing blood is a very erotic action for us,” Corbin murmured, stroking my cheek again. “Which is why we generally prefer to feed only from those we find attractive and who are attracted to us.”

  I stepped away from his touch, feeling nervous. “Seriously?”

  He nodded. “Yes. So giving blood to someone you are not sexually attracted to would be a very uncomfortable experience.”

  I thought of the squirmy feeling I got in my stomach and the way it felt like insects were walking all over my skin when Taylor bit me. “So that’s why it feels so weird,” I murmured. Well, at least now I knew I didn’t have any hidden lesbian tendencies—I wasn’t attracted to Taylor so giving her blood felt wrong to me. Not that giving blood to any vamp would feel right—especially the one currently standing in front of me, so close I could smell a hint of his expensive cologne.

  “I am glad to see your heart is not given to another. Even if it is not, as you say, up for grabs,” Corbin said softly.

  “Don’t get too excited. My best friend might be a vampire but that doesn’t mean I want anything to do with the rest of you.”

  “You will have to have something to do with me if you expect me to rescue your friend from her sad plight,” he pointed out. “So I ask you again, Addison, what do you offer me?”

  Here we were, back at the crux of the issue. My heart started to beat triple time. “I already told you I’d sleep with you. What else do you want?”

  “What I do not want is an unwilling bed partner.” Corbin frowned. “Rape holds no appeal for me.”

  “Who said anything about rape?” My throat felt suddenly dry. “I…I’m offering myself to you. This would be completely consensual.” As well as completely illegal but I didn’t want to think about that.

  “No.” Corbin shook his head and leaned back until he was half sitting on the edge of his desk.

  “No?” I frowned. “That’s it? You just refuse my offer?”

  “I do not want your body unless your heart is also involved.”

  “Well, I’m sorry,” I said, feeling at a loss. “But I can’t make myself love you.”

  “Indeed, you cannot. So it seems I must make a counter offer.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “You spoke of Celeste having a VIP in town. In all probability, he is the area Inquisitor.”

 
“Area Inquisitor?”

  “We have a government too, as you know,” Corbin said mildly. “And it is only slightly more corrupt than your own. So if the Inquisitor is with Celeste now, chances are he will visit me next.”

  “Taylor said his name was Roderick,” I said.

  Corbin nodded. “Yes, that’s the one. When he comes to me I must either flatter him with gifts or impress him with a display of my strength. Otherwise, he will think me weak and ineffective and attempt to have me replaced.”

  “I can’t imagine that’s ever been a problem for you,” I said dryly.

  He grinned. “No. But one gets tired of doing the same old thing, year after year. This year I think a more subtle display is in order.”

  “What are you thinking of doing?” I asked warily. I had a feeling I wasn’t going to like his idea, whatever it was.

  “I am thinking that nothing would be more impressive than to have a non-glam human Auditor as my consort.”

  “So…you want me to pretend to be your date?”

  “My lover.” Corbin’s silver-blue eyes were hooded. “And you would have to play the part very…very well. If the Inquisitor suspects that I am attempting to deceive him, the consequences would be…unpleasant to say the least.”

  “So I have to—what? Hang on your arm, pretend to be all lovey-dovey?” I was beginning to feel cautiously optimistic. This actually sounded doable—a lot more doable than having sex with a vampire, anyway.

  Corbin seemed to catch my relief because he frowned. “I am afraid this will be a little more involved than you seem to think.” He stood up from the edge of the desk and reached for me. I stepped back by instinct and he shook his head. “First, you must not flinch from my touch. You will have to get used to my hands on your body, my mouth on yours.” He reached for me again and pulled me up against the hard planes of his chest. Then he kissed me.

  It had been a long time since I’d locked lips with anyone and I have to be honest—it was good. Damn good. Maybe because he’d had centuries of practice kissing or maybe because of the little thrill of danger that ran through me when he took me in his arms. He could break me in half with less effort than it would take me to break a pencil. But though I could feel his immense strength in the tension of his big body he was gentle—even tender.

  I was tense in his arms at first—nervous and uncertain. But despite my hostility for Corbin, there was no denying that he was hot. Against my will, I felt myself melting and even kissing him back a little. But when one of his needle-sharp fangs nicked my lower lip, I pulled back abruptly.

  “Ouch!”

  “My apologies.” His voice was even deeper than usual and his pupils were dilated, the black eating the silver-blue of his irises.

  I touched a finger to my hurt lip and it came back with a red smudge. It was a damn good thing we hadn’t been doing anything more sexual than kissing or there might have been trouble. I didn’t care how much Corbin talked about his self-control, there was no way I wanted to be with a vampire who was feeling the urge to feed and the urge to fuck at the same time.

  “I’m bleeding,” I said.

  “I know.” He took my hand in his and sucked my finger into his mouth. I felt his tongue, warm and wet, lap gently against my fingertip. Shivering, I pulled my hand away.

  “Your blood is sweet. You taste…innocent.”

  I frowned. “I’m not a virgin if that’s what you’re implying, so don’t get your hopes up.”

  “No, but you have not often known the pleasure of a man’s body against your own.”

  Speaking of which, I could feel something hard pressing insistently against my thigh. I looked up at him. “And this is different from having sex with you how?”

  “Not as much penetration.” He smiled down at me, showing his fangs. “Although I may need to bite you again in front of the Inquisitor to prove my ownership.”

  “Ownership? Now wait a minute!” I tried to push away from his chest but he held me close, not letting me go. “Nobody said anything about you owning me,” I said angrily.

  “Of course not,” he said smoothly. “But the Inquisitor must believe that I own you—body and soul. And if he believes I am also able to glamour you, so much the better.”

  “But you can’t,” I pointed out. “I’m a non-glam. I have resistance.”

  “You have a natural shield around your mind that most humans do not,” Corbin said. “But shields may be let down…or penetrated.”

  “I’m not letting you inside my mind,” I said, pushing against his chest again. “That’s a deal breaker.”

  This time Corbin let me go but he continued to pin me with his intense gaze. “What are you afraid of, Addison? That if you let me in and came to know me intimately, you might begin to feel something for me?”

  “Hardly.” I straightened my jacket and reached up to smooth my hair. “I just don’t want a vamp inside my head. I’m not about to become your puppet or one of those pathetic glam-sex addicts you have panting outside the doors of your club every night.”

  “Those who become addicted to what we can provide have a weakness in their soul. The same weakness that might lead them to become addicted to any other pleasurable activity. Drinking. Smoking. Physical sex. You, my darling, have no such weaknesses. You are one of the strongest humans I have ever met.”

  “Thanks. And I’d like to stay that way.” I shook my head. “I’m serious, you can pretend to glamour me if you want but I’m not actually going to let you do it. Letting the Area Inquisitor think you can get into my mind will have to be good enough.”

  Corbin frowned. “All right, we will table this issue for now though I may want to return to it later. However, there is one point on which I must insist.”

  “What?” I asked nervously, wondering what he wanted now.

  “I must heal the scars on your arms. Take off your jacket and roll up your sleeves.” He gestured at me impatiently. “Now.”

  “Why?” I asked, reluctant to show even a little skin in his presence.

  Corbin sighed. “Because in my world, leaving such scars on one’s consort is the mark of either sadism or extreme ineptitude. I do not wish to be thought either a bumbling fool or a savage.”

  “Why can’t you just say that someone else bit me?” I asked.

  He gave me a dark look. “Because if you were truly mine, I would never, ever share you. I am not into what you humans call open relationships.”

  “Possessive, are you?”

  “Extremely.” His voice was nearly a growl.

  “Why am I not surprised?”

  “I do not even like the idea of your friend taking blood from you,” Corbin continued. “Though I realize it was a necessity since she is too incompetent to feed herself any other way.”

  “Don’t talk that way about Taylor. She was always the best at everything she did before she got turned,” I protested. “She’s extremely intelligent—she just isn’t cruel enough to adapt to being a vamp.”

  “So you think cruelty is the main prerequisite for becoming one of my kind?” he asked blandly.

  “I think it helps, yes.” I frowned at him as I unbuttoned my jacket and took it off. “I mean, you’re not exactly all hearts and flowers and warm fuzzies, now are you?”

  Corbin shook his head. “We do what we must to survive. That is not always easy in my world.”

  I had a feeling I was going to learn a whole lot more than I wanted to about his world in the near future but I didn’t want to talk about it anymore. “Here,” I said, rolling up the sleeves of my white silk blouse and holding out a wrist. “How are you going to heal me?” I hoped it didn’t involve him trying to get inside my mind.

  But Corbin simply cupped my hand in his palm and brought my wrist to his mouth. “Like this,” he murmured. Bending his mouth to my scarred wrist, he began to lick and suck. My breath caught in my throat at the feeling of his hot, wet tongue against my flesh and my heart immediately began to pound.

  “How is
that supposed to hel—” I started to ask and then I felt a cool tingling sensation that began at my wrist and seemed to travel up my arm and down into my chest. It felt strange at first and then really good—too good, to be honest. My nipples were suddenly stiff and achy and I could feel that I was getting hot and wet between my thighs.

  I squirmed uncomfortably, wishing I could pull my wrist away from his mouth. Corbin’s gaze met mine as he continued to lick and kiss the flesh of my badly scarred wrist. His silver-blue eyes were half lidded with lust. It was as though this simple act of tasting my flesh was extremely erotic to him. I shivered from the way he was looking at me as much as from the tingling that was spreading through my entire body.

  It occurred to me that I shouldn’t have been able to feel anything at all. I had been feeding Taylor for almost six years now and I’d lost a lot of sensitivity in that area—no doubt her badly placed bites had caused some kind of nerve damage. But now I could feel everything, every tiny movement of his lips and tongue against my skin—it was as though I was suddenly hypersensitive to his touch.

  “How much longer?” I finally blurted out after what felt like an eternity of his mouth on my skin.

  Corbin straightened up—he’d bent down to reach my wrist—and smiled at me. “See for yourself.”

  I looked at my wrist in disbelief. I was healed. And I don’t just mean that the scars Taylor had left on my skin had faded—they were completely gone. It was as though they had never been in the first place.

  “How did you do that?” I demanded. “I’ve never heard of a vamp that could heal before.”

  He shrugged. “Many of us have special abilities we don’t share with your kind. Are you ready for me to heal your other wrist?”

  I thought of the strange, hot feeling I’d gotten when the healing tingles traveled through my body and frowned. “I…guess so.”

  Corbin arched an eyebrow. “You don’t sound very happy to be healed. You cannot tell me you enjoyed having such disfiguring scars in such a prominent place.”

  “No,” I admitted, shifting restlessly from foot to foot. “I’ve been wearing long sleeves for what seems like forever so I don’t have to explain them to people.”