After Sundown: Redemption

by Eden Robins

  Alyssa lifted her hips and gasped.

  “Christian, please.”

  “Easy, palomita. I know what you need. And I’ll give it to you.”

  Christian slipped his fingers underneath her panties. His fingers delved into her sweetness. Alyssa hissed and her hips jerked with each stroke of his fingers. He found her tender spot and gave it the attention it deserved. Over and over he caressed her, felt her harden from his touch. Her lips spread apart as they swelled with passion-filled blood.

  Christian tore her panties off. He needed to see all of her. He stared down at the perfection that lay before him. Her voluptuous curves made him harden to the point of pain. Her soft skin made him hunger to taste it. And her body’s responses to his touch made him want to plunge deep inside her and lose himself in her softness. But still he held back. He wanted her pleasure to come first.

  Alyssa’s moans became pleas for more. Christian gently spread her thighs and stared down at her womanhood. She was so beautiful. Swollen and wet with need, the scent of her desire made his mouth water. He lowered his head and took her in his mouth. Alyssa’s hips rose up to meet him. He ran his tongue over the center of her, flicking it over and over. Quivering from his touch, she gasped his name as he plunged his tongue inside her. Then he drew her nub into his mouth, again and again, until she screamed her release.

  Christian lifted his head and watched as she gave her body up to passion. It was so incredibly erotic that he almost lost it then and there. She stilled as the last vibration overcame her, then lay with her eyes closed, a smile on her face. After quickly undressing, he began kissing his way back up her body. She giggled when his mouth ran over certain parts of her. He gave her teasing nips in those spots and then continued his way up.

  He lapped at her stomach then delved his tongue into her belly button. Her giggles soon turned into gasps of pleasure. He slid his mouth up to her swollen breasts and devoured each wet, pebbled nipple in turn. When Alyssa started moaning and squirming restlessly underneath him he knew she was ready again.

  Spreading her thighs wide, Christian kneeled on the bed poised above her. He tilted his hips forward until his hardness pressed lightly against her softness. Alyssa kept her eyes closed, tightly closed. The feel of her was so unbearably good that his next words were no more than a hiss between his clenched teeth.

  “Open your eyes, palomita. I want to look into them when we join.”

  Alyssa immediately obeyed his command. Her eyes fluttered open. Glazed with passion and need, her blue irises glowed against her long, dark lashes. Her full red lips were parted from each panting breath she took. She bit her bottom lip and tried to lift her hips higher so that he entered her. He pulled slightly back so that he remained just out of reach.

  “Christian!” Her needy gasp filled him with savage satisfaction. Good. She was as hungry for him as he was for her. It was time.

  He plunged deep and sure.

  Now it was his turn to gasp with pleasure. The feel of her tight wetness surrounding him made his self-control slip dangerously low. His strokes began slow and long. Each one brought him almost out of her before he thrust deeply inside again. Alyssa’s passionate cries grew louder and louder. His strokes grew faster and harder. He felt her stiffen below him and knew she was getting close. Gritting his teeth, he held himself back, waiting for her to tumble over the edge. She arched her back, tilting her hips up to take him more fully. Her breasts jutted up, like an offering he couldn’t resist. His body raged out of control. Christian captured one of her nipples with his mouth and drew hungrily on it.

  Alyssa cried out and pushed herself more fully against his lips. Passion consumed him, but another hunger also surfaced. Unable to stop it, his teeth lengthened. One grazed against her blood-engorged nipple. The beast broke free. It wanted to feed. It would not be denied. His teeth sank into the soft skin of her breast. Her sweet nectar flowed into his mouth and he drank deeply. Alyssa screamed her release and her body convulsed wildly beneath him. Christian lifted his head and roared as he exploded inside her a moment later.

  After the last wave of orgasm rolled over him he lowered his head and ran his tongue over Alyssa’s bite. It would heal quickly. Laying his head on her chest he listened to her heartbeat as it slowed. Her breathing became even and he knew she dozed.

  He was not so lucky.

  He laid his head across her chest, careful not to put all his weight on her. But he didn’t sleep. What he had just shared with Alyssa had been the most wondrous experience of his entire life. He had made love so many times over the hundreds of years of his existence, that he’d lost count. His partners had been mostly worldly women who knew their way around a bedroom. Alyssa affected him like no other. He could tell from her actions as well as the tightness of her woman’s core that she had not been with many men. Yet each soft, needy sound that left her lips, each tilt of her hips, each touch of her fingers had seduced him more completely than any courtesan he had ever been with. They had joined as more than two bodies. They connected in mind as well as body. They had touched each other inside and out.

  He lifted his head and gazed at Alyssa’s sleeping face. He gently ran his hand through her hair. As he started to pull it away, a single curl wrapped around his finger and clung to it. A surge of protectiveness like he had never known rose up in him. This woman belonged with him and to him. No one would ever hurt her. Not without answering to him.

  She was so beautiful in sleep, like a fallen angel. Her silky raven tresses spread wildly around her heart-shaped face. Thick, dark lashes brushed against her ivory skin. Her soft cheeks were flushed from their lovemaking. Lush, red lips swollen from his kisses. His gaze moved down the graceful curve of her neck to her chest. The sight of her berry-tipped breasts stirred him. Made him want to take her again. But the sight of his bite marks stopped him in his tracks.

  Shame washed over him. He had let the beast go. He had completely lost control of himself. How could he? After all these years of keeping tight rein on it, he’d failed to keep the beast in check. What if he had killed her? What if the beast had wanted all of her, all her blood, until her heart stopped beating? The hairs rose on the back of his neck as he realized that it could have happened. His beast could have taken her from him.

  He had not bitten a woman while making love since he broke away from Bazhena. He was always under tight control. He had let himself feel the physical pleasures of lovemaking, but always held part of himself back, enough to keep the vampire in check. Hundreds of years had gone by and he had never had this happen. Something about Alyssa called to his beast. Made it want to rage out of control. Made it want to totally consume her.

  Christian carefully pushed himself up and away from her. He continued to stare down at her sleeping form while he dressed. Her lushly curved body called to him, but he steeled himself against it. This was the last time they would make love. If he couldn’t trust himself with her, then he had no business making love to her. It would not happen again. He couldn’t risk the horrors his beast could claim, or Alyssa’s well-being.

  It was time to call in the reinforcements.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Alyssa woke up. She’d just had the most erotic dream. She stretched and then rolled over onto her side. Reaching down in search of her blanket, she felt all around her but couldn’t find it. The sheets felt different, silky and smooth. Not like her usual one hundred percent cotton thread. That was strange. Yawning, she thought about forgetting about the blanket and going back to sleep. But there was a definite chill in the air. She must have set the air conditioner too high. Reluctantly she opened her eyes. A gasp escaped her lips as she encountered Christian’s intense mocha eyes inches from hers. He was bent over her on the bed.

  It hadn’t been a dream!

  “Time to awaken, palomita.” The tenderness in his eyes was unmistakable as he ran his index finger gently down her cheek. He looked longingly into her eyes for a minute, then straightened and walked away.

 
; The seductive softness in his voice washed over her, making her recall their passionate lovemaking. Alyssa cringed as she thought about how wild she had acted with him. She definitely wasn’t a virgin, but she had never let herself go the way she had done with Christian tonight. The things she had done, the noises she had made. It was like she had become a totally different woman. One who’d just let her inner self-free and enjoyed the moment with everything she had.

  Hmm. Maybe it hadn’t been so embarrassing after all. She distinctly remembered Christian keeping up with her pace for pace. The desire that burned in his eyes had been her undoing. The whole experience had been incredible. The best she had ever experienced. She had never felt as close to someone as she had when Christian plunged deep inside her.

  As he walked across the room, Alyssa couldn’t help admire the way Christian moved. Like a panther, dangerous, yet graceful, beautiful, but deadly. When he abruptly swung around, his face no longer looked gentle. Instead it was shuttered. His eyes cold.

  “Get dressed. I’m taking you home.” His voice was brusque and unfeeling.

  The temperature in the air grew colder. Christian’s gaze remained fixed on her. The nakedness she had reveled in only moments before now left her feeling vulnerable. As if reading her thoughts, his eyes ran insolently down her body. His face became tight and angry, as if what he saw was not to his liking.

  “Get dressed, now.”

  Alyssa leaned up on her elbows, but didn’t get up.

  “What’s going on, Christian?”

  Her eyes narrowed with suspicion. What kind of game was he playing? They had made the most incredible love, then he woke her up tenderly and now he had suddenly become Mr. Arrogant Jerk.

  “Can you just do what I ask without an argument for once, Alyssa?”

  His voice sounded resigned, as if he was tired of talking to her.

  Anger bubbled to life in Alyssa. She sat up and grabbed her clothes. Walking arrogantly towards Christian, she glared at him. If he wanted to act like an ass, she would treat him like one. She paused right before walking by him.

  “If this is some sort of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel the Vampire after-they-make-love-for-the-first-time kind of thing, I’m not liking it at all. Get over yourself, Christian.”

  He continued to look straight ahead. The only acknowledgement that he had heard what she said, was a tightening of his jaw. Alyssa wanted him to feel something. Needed to get something from him other than coldness. She couldn’t take that. Not after everything they had shared.

  Standing up on her tiptoes, she leaned towards him. Placing her mouth by his ears, she whispered the one thing she hoped would get his attention.

  “It wasn’t that good.”

  Alyssa wasn’t disappointed.

  Before she could blink an eye, Christian lifted her up by the shoulders and backed her against the wall directly behind her. He pressed his body against hers to keep her pinned there. His eyes flared to life. Anger and something else shined bright.

  “Not that good? Are you sure about that, Alyssa? Are you sure?”

  Grasping her thighs, he spread them wide so that they wrapped around his hips. Even through his pants, she could feel his hard manhood pressing against her core. He flexed his hips once, then again, brushing against her womanhood. Alyssa bit her bottom lip to keep the whimper of pleasure buried in her throat from breaking free.

  “How about if we put your words to the test?”

  Christian devoured her mouth without warning. She tried to push him away, but he easily held her hands against the wall on either side of her head. She grew dizzy from the onslaught of his lips. His kisses started out hard and demanding, but soon became soft and seductive. He sucked on her bottom lip until she couldn’t help but part them for him. He delved in and out of her mouth, teasing her with his tongue. Alyssa moaned and tentatively met his touch. He pulled back slightly, so that she was forced to probe deeper. When he continued to tease her, she began boldly exploring his mouth.

  Christian eventually broke their kiss and rained kisses down her neck to her breasts. Without hesitation he wrapped his mouth around one nipple and drew on it. The hard tug of his mouth left her squirming with desire. She arched against his mouth so that he could take more of her. Christian switched to her other breast with a low growl and she stiffened in pleasure. His mouth was working magic on her body, while he continued to flex his hips against her. When he finally lifted his mouth from her breasts she was panting with desire.

  Alyssa didn’t notice that he had let go of her hands until she heard him unzip his pants. He pressed his hardness against her opening and she almost screamed from pleasure. He grasped her bottom and pulled her closer to him. The feel of his hands holding her in place was driving her wild. She squirmed against Christian, but he didn’t budge.

  “Now, what were you saying?” Christian said through tightly clenched teeth.

  Alyssa couldn’t respond. All she knew was desire. She wanted him inside her, now.

  Christian slid one hand around to the front of her and cupped her womanhood. He pressed his thumb near her most sensitive spot and began making circles around it. She felt her wetness coat his finger until it felt slippery against her. Closer and closer he circled until he almost touched her center. Then he hesitated.

  “Christian!” she hissed.

  Alyssa’s hips tilted involuntarily towards his touch.

  “Is this what you want?” he asked arrogantly.

  Before she could answer, Christian flicked his thumb against her nub.

  Alyssa couldn’t stop the small sob of pleasure that erupted from her mouth.

  “When it comes to pleasure, you are just a baby compared to me, palomita. Never forget that.”

  Then he plucked at her center, playing her over and over again, until her orgasm overcame her. She screamed his name and her hips convulsed helplessly over and over again. Before her last convulsion shook her, Christian growled low in his throat then sunk his hardness deep inside of her. Holding her behind with both hands, he pulled her towards him and plunged into her over and over again. Yelling her name, his release came swift and strong.

  Christian leaned his forehead against the wall beside her head as his heaving breaths eventually slowed. Alyssa would have slid to the floor if he hadn’t been holding her up. She waited for her own breathing to become normal before lifting her head off of his shoulder. As she did so, he pulled himself straight and carried her towards his bathroom. The feel of him moving inside her as they walked sent tingles of pleasure through her. He walked to the sink and set her down on it. Looking deeply into her eyes, he leaned down and kissed her thoroughly. Then he pulled away and walked out of the bathroom without a word.

  Alyssa sat in stunned silence until she heard Christian return. He handed her the bundle of clothes she had been holding.

  “Please get dressed.”

  Alyssa felt like she was in a daze as she met Christian’s arrogant smile. His way too masculine smile woke her up. It was the kind of satisfied smile that said he knew he had pleasured her well. Alyssa sat up straighter and lifted her chin proudly. Well, at least he had said please this time.

  “I’ll be right out.”

  “I’ll be waiting with baited breath, palomita.” Christian’s knowing smile made her want to throw something at him. But the door shut before she could find anything suitable.

  Once Alyssa finished cleaning up and getting dressed, she quietly opened the bathroom door. She stopped short at the sight that greeted her. Now dressed, Christian stood looking out the large window that took up almost one wall of his bedroom. Her eyes ran over him. This man took her breath away. She had never understood what that term meant until now. Just looking at him made her feel like someone had punched her in the stomach, knocking the breath from her body.

  His long hair was neatly tied back. She hadn’t had a chance to free it during their lovemaking. Her fingers itched to do so now. She remembered the silky texture of it under he
r touch. His broad shoulders strained against the tight black T-shirt he wore. Even in stillness, she could see his muscles bunched beneath the material. Her gaze ran down past his slim hips to his behind. Christian had one of the finest butts she had ever seen. The faded jeans he wore clung to every hard curve of it in just the right way. She would love to walk up behind him and run her hands all over his magnificent body. Considering the fact that he had brought her to her peak three times made no difference. She couldn’t get enough of him.

  Alyssa remained silent as he continued to stare out into the night. He had to be very deep in thought not to notice her standing there. The man had senses like she had never seen. What was he thinking about?

  There was something about the way he stood looking out the window that pulled at her heart. He was a man who proudly faced the world no matter what it gave him. And he faced it all alone. If what he had told her was true, he’d been living this kind of life for over two hundred years. How could he bear it? Wasn’t he lonely?

  An ache pounded at her chest. She wanted to reach out to him. Need filled her. Need to help him. Need to touch him. Need to make all the hurt, all the loneliness he ever felt go away. She wanted to fill his nights with happiness and contentment instead.

  She slowly walked towards him. She had to touch him. Reassure him that she was here. Make his loneliness go away, for just a little while. As she drew closer she saw him stiffen. He had finally become aware of her. She stretched her hand out towards him. But before she could touch him, he swung around and took a step back. Their gazes met. Christian’s eyes looked haunted. He shook his head slowly back and forth.

  “No, Alyssa. It’s time for you to go home. Time for you to get back to your real life. And time for me to get back to mine.”