by Unknown
He was on fire. Hunger, not for food or blood, raced in him. He wanted her back on her knees, kissing his body, touching him. He wanted to feel her skin against his own and hear the sounds of pleasure rip from her lips as he surged into her body.
The true reality was all his urges were a fantasy he could never fulfill. He couldn’t shame her no matter how much he desired her. Along with the reasons a Guardian shouldn’t bond was the fact that bonding one would be shameful for her.
“Thanks,” he choked out. “You do great work, just like the doc said you would.”
When he did finally look up, she was blushing again. “Thanks. Well, I’ll, um, leave you to do whatever it was you were going to do. I just wanted to make sure those were out and that you were healed, and say thanks again. You really didn’t have to do it.”
Dimitri stood up slowly and gave her another smile. When the hell did I start smiling so fucking much? “It was my pleasure.”
He watched her leave and lingered cherishing the memory before he changed into a tight pair of biker shorts and sneakers. His intention to head to the gym and start one hell of an intense work-out was the only thing he could think of doing to rid himself of the sexual frustration caused by being in close proximity to Claudia. Man, this was fucking him up big time. As much as he hated to have to admit it, Shadow was right. He did need to get laid.
Instead, he worked his body into a sweaty mess. His mind went over and over all the things he wanted to do with Claudia and to her. She was everything he ever imagined wanting and nothing like he’d ever had.
Dimitri beat and kicked on the punching bag for a good hour, trying to knock out all the overwhelming thoughts and feelings. He still wanted to go to her, to take her, to conquer her. He lifted weights, jumped rope, and ran laps around the gym until he exhausted himself. Finally, he set up a bench to work on his sit-ups and push-ups. During push-ups, with his toes up on the bench, Carissa strolled in.
She was also dressed in shorts, wearing a sports bra with her hair pulled back. She was ready to either spar or work out. Dimitri didn’t pay attention to her at all. He focused on how many pushups he could do and what else he could do in order to break this damn tension in his body. Instead of it going down, it kept rising.
From the corner of his eye, he did watch Carissa walk up and waited for her to say something. He wasn’t expecting nor was he ready for her to stomp on his back, forcing him to drop to the ground with the breath leaving his lungs. She stood on his back, holding his tired body down.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
He looked over his shoulder at her. “Mind getting off?”
“No, I don’t mind.” She jumped on his back slightly before hopping off.
“Thanks. I needed that back adjustment.”
“What you really need is to get laid.” She smiled in too knowing a manner. “You’re starting to become a real dick.”
Dimitri gave her his worst glare, pushed up to his feet, and snatched the towel he left on the bench. He rubbed his face and sweaty chest. “Who pissed in your cheerios?”
“I've seen the way you were looking at her,” Carissa said. “Is she the one?”
“Is Julian?” he tossed back.
She acted like he hadn’t said anything. “You know you should approach her. I mean, she might be the one to take that chip off your shoulder.”
“Yeah and the way you’re acting since Julian came back into your life has been fucking magical,” he smarted off, tossing his sweaty towel back on the bench. “Save the advice until you’re ready to take it.”
She moved so fast Dimitri never got the chance to step back or block her. Carissa swung hard, hit him in the jaw, and knocked him back down to the ground. She landed a blow to his stomach, knocking the air out of his lungs. Damn if he didn’t hate it when she sucker punched him like that.
“Now.” She breathed out, standing over him with her hands on her hips. “Do I have your full fucking attention, you stupid prick?”
Dimitri coughed, held his stomach, and rubbed his jaw. “What the fuck did I do to you?”
“You’re lying to me and to yourself.” She kicked him again, catching him before he could react. Dimitri knew this wasn’t going to be a simple conversation, not if she could land so many blows on him at one time. “You aren’t telling me everything about the test Ambrose had you and Shadow take.”
She kicked again, but he grabbed her foot before it made contact with his gut. He pushed her foot away before rolling, putting distance between them to leap to his feet. “First, I haven’t really had time to talk to you about anything Ambrose has tossed at us, thanks to Shadow trying to blow us the fuck up. Second, I only neglected to not tell you more about the test.” She made like she was going to jump him, but Dimitri jumped back faster, holding up one finger. “I don’t have to tell you shit. We cut that tie a long time ago.”
She glared at him. The manner in which her eyes narrowed made Dimitri uncomfortable.
“You’re scared,” she accused.
He snorted. “You’re full of shit.”
“Oh, really?” She smiled back, shifting to lean on one leg, arms crossed over her chest.
He took a deep breath, letting it out in an aggravated rush. “Are we working out or not?”
* * * *
Claudia snuck into the training room’s top level. Looking down, she saw Dimitri and Carissa sparring off. The sounds of their fists made thudding noises, which echoed off the walls. The two of them grunted as they fought, and the exhibition fascinated her. Oh, who was she kidding; he fascinated her. She couldn’t get over how gentle he was with her or how brutally he fought Carissa down there.
“You’re dropping your shoulder,” Dimitri told Carissa.
She made a huffing sound back at him and swung her arm like she was going to hit him. Instead, she kicked. They went back and forth at each other. When she struck at his side, Dimitri caught her arm and backhanded Carissa hard, turned, and flipped her over his shoulder, slamming her down on the ground. Claudia flinched for Carissa. Watching, Claudia had to wonder what he could do to her if he really wanted to.
So why didn’t he take things further. He could have. She’d felt his hard on pressing up against her rear and saw it in his room.
While Carissa was still down, she swung her legs up, wrapped them around his neck, turned to the left, and brought him down. They rolled around, trading punches and struggling to be on top.
Carissa came out the winner, pinning him down. Claudia had a strange feeling he was letting her win for some reason known only to him.
“You know I just don’t understand why, but I get the impression your heart isn’t in this,” Carissa said.
“Get off.” Dimitri twisted his body, pushed, and stood. He walked over to his towel and wiped his face.
Carissa sat on the floor, her legs pulled up to her chest with her arms wrapped around them. “Are we done?”
He tossed the towel aside and turned back on her. “Yeah, we’re done.” His voice sounded hard, and his face looked like he was pissed. “Have you even talked to Julian yet?”
“Not talking about me.”
“Well, we sure as hell ain’t going to be talking about me.”
“What are you so pissed about?” She frowned, going to her feet. She got close to him, and Claudia feared she was going to witness a kiss. “You fed from her, didn’t you?”
Claudia’s mouth went dry. She held her breath, waiting for him to tell her he hadn’t, when her throat still throbbed from his bite, and her clit still had a tingling sensation of something unfulfilled.
“Stay out of this, Carissa.” He had a warning in his tone. “My personal life doesn’t concern you anymore. Remember?”
Claudia stood up slowly and left as quietly as she came in. She went back to the clinic, mainly because she knew she could lose herself in work and training. It was all she had in his world.
* * * *
Carissa stood with her head lowered
, alone in the dark hallway. She was sore, which wasn’t a bad thing. She’d had a good workout with Dimitri, but she still felt as though he had some unresolved issues about his current situation with Claudia.
When he left the gym, she followed. He went straight to his room, no doubt for the rest of the night. Seeing his door close was the first time she’d paid any attention to how much he isolated himself from all of them. What was happening with Dimitri was a sure sign of a vampire needing his bloodmate. She feared Dimitri might be at the point of suicide. He needed to have something to live for.
I’m not alone. She raised her head and turned. Lucan stood in the middle of the hall. He raised his finger up to his lips, telling her to be quiet before he extended his other hand out to her. Carissa pushed away from the wall, walked up to him, and took his hand.
He led her down another hall, which was normally hidden by a wall that slid to the side. No one outside the order was supposed to know about it, a secret kept for the transitions. Lucan had it opened, the torches on the wall were lit, and on the stone bed was a knife.
“Lucan, what are you doing in here?” she asked, staring at the set up.
“I choose you as my patronus,” he said, picking up the knife.
“Lucan—”
“I choose you!” His young voice emphasized his demand.
She swallowed hard.
Lucan was still young, had several more years before he would normally go into the transition from child to a full-fledged vampire. At that time he would grow into his teen body and acquire his vampire powers. Already Lucan’s intelligence was way beyond anything anyone ever expected it would be. He knew the way of the Guardians. If they did what he proposed, he could trigger a premature transition, growing even faster in mind and body. He would leave this room a young man, no longer a child, years before it should happen.
Because of his status as Prophet, one more powerful than even an elder, she could not refuse his demand.
Carissa swallowed hard, went over to him, and knelt down at his feet, head down. “I give you my blood as your patronus. I give you my life.” She gave him her wrist.
Carissa didn’t even flinch when Lucan cut her flesh. She closed her eyes; his lips closed over the cut, and he drank.
Chapter Five
Dimitri was sleeping deeply when something jolted him awake. He waited a few seconds, listening, half-expecting someone to barge into the room. When nothing happened he turned over with the intention of going back to sleep, until he was hit with a sharp pain in his wrist.
New fangs punctured the vein of her wrist. More blood was pulled out, sucked into the mouth, and when she opened her eyes to see she watched his transformation for herself. He was no longer the boy, but growing into a young man before her eyes.
“Carissa!” Dimitri hissed, rolling from the bed. He looked around for something to put on fast.
He was out of his room quickly, barely dressed. Dimitri ran for the life of him down the dark halls towards the secret room. The door was closed but slid open with a push. He walked in, stopped, and stared open-mouthed at the scene before him.
A boy, or more like a teenager, hunched over Carissa’s wrist, drinking like it was his last meal. He was naked. The clothes of a child, ripped from his body were scattered around him on the ground. Muscles formed in his body, his arms, and legs becoming thicker. Long, black hair hung over his head, onto her arm, hiding his face, but Dimitri knew who it was. Lucan. The boy was in his transition, and it was happening fast!
“Lucan, stop!” Dimitri yelled. “You’ll drain her dry!”
Dimitri grabbed hold of the boy by his shoulders and pulled him back. Lucan let go, reared back, and yelled. Blood dripped down the sides of his mouth, his fangs were red, and his eyes a bright metallic silver. Carissa fell back, or more likely passed out, and Lucan lunged for her.
To hold the boy back took a Guardian’s strength, the main reason why any transitions were done with more than one in the room. The one going through it was chained down to keep them under control.
“Dimitri!” Ambrose rushed in, going right to Carissa. “What the hell is going on?”
“Lucan chose his patronus.” Dimitri grunted, struggling to hold Lucan back. “I told you this would happen!”
“Here, mate.” Shadow came in, went over to Dimitri, and stuck a needle into Lucan’s arm. Instantly, the boy started to relax.
“What the hell is going on?” Lucian along with Tempest and Julian joined the group. “Where’s Lucan?”
“There he goes,” Shadow stated. “Nightie-night.”
Lucan slumped in Dimitri’s arms. “Lucan chose his patronus, and the process threw him into transition,” Dimitri told Lucian. He cast Ambrose a dirty look. “With only Carissa with him. This is your son now.”
He looked over at Carissa. Julian picked up her bleeding arm, licked the wounds closed and scooped her up in his arms. He walked out with her.
Dimitri didn’t take his eyes off her until he spotted Claudia standing in the doorway. She was still dressed making him think she’d been working in the clinic instead of resting like she should be. Their eyes locked for a second before she lowered her head and followed Julian out. God, he wanted to go to her.
“Why the hell would he do this?” Lucian said, taking Lucan from Dimitri’s arms.
“Ask him when he wakes up.”
“That drug will keep him out for a good twenty-four hours,” Shadow said, “but we should get him to the clinic, mate,”
Tempest reached out and touched Lucan’s face. “He’s changed so much,” she whispered.
“And since he’s had Carissa’s blood, he’s going to change even more.” Dimitri stood up as Lucian slung his son up over his shoulder. “From the look of him, her blood was enough to push him into Crossover.”
“Think about it later,” Shadow told Lucian. “Get him down to doc. He might need more blood still.”
Dimitri stood alone in the chamber, but it wasn’t for long. Ambrose came back, worry on his face.
“The boy took a lot from her.” Ambrose sighed. “Carissa is going to need to stay in the clinic for awhile and have what he took replaced.”
“And him?”
“He’ll need transfusions as well.” Ambrose shook his head, “I don’t understand why the boy would’ve done this alone.”
“Patronus.” Dimitri sighed. “He’s chosen her to be the one. I told you it was going to happen before any of us were ready.”
“This changes our time table.”
“It changes a lot of things.” Dimitri’s groaned in frustration. He rubbed the back of his head, frowning. “Lucan is going to know everything she does without any training. He’s going to be very powerful.”
Ambrose hung his head for a few seconds.
“What’s wrong?” Dimitri asked.
“Shadow found something finally, but now with this we’re going to have to wait.”
“What did he find?”
Ambrose lowered his eyes again. The action gave him the appearance of being older than what he was. “Renzo’s son, Denver, Shadow found a way to contact him. He wants to see Julian.”
“When?”
“I’m not sure.” Ambrose sighed and headed out of the chamber. “But whenever it is we’re going to have to wait until she’s back on her feet. Doc looked at Shadow again and said he is going to need more time. The cracked rib hasn’t healed yet.”
Dimitri nodded. “I’m going to check on Carissa.”
“Good. I’ll talk to Lucian and Tempest. Let them know what’s going on.”
They left, sliding the door back into place, hiding the chamber.
Carissa sat in a chair, instead of laying out cold on a bed. An IV in her arm ran blood into her vein. Lucan was out of it though. The drug Shadow gave him doing the trick. Ivy had his arm hooked up with blood pumping into his system also.
Claudia tended to Carissa. Dimitri watched her move around, checking the line, making sure everything was
working the way it should, then checking Carissa’s pulse. It calmed him to see her in action. She carried herself with assurance.
“How is she?” he asked.
The question made Claudia jump. “I didn’t hear you come up.” Her face reddened as she turned away from him. “She’ll be fine after she’s had her blood replaced. Doc wants to keep her here for a bit, and Corbin is bringing her something to eat.”
“I don’t need to eat anything.” Carissa sighed, closing her eyes and resting her head back on the chair.
Claudia gave him a quick smile and moved away to check on Lucan. Dimitri couldn’t stop himself from watching her walk away.
“Why don’t you bond with her and get it over with?” Carissa asked. The question snapped his full attention to his partner. “I see it in your eyes that you want to. Until you do, you’re just going to be distracted as hell.”
Dimitri avoided the subject. “What the hell were you thinking doing this with Lucan alone?” He crossed his arms over his chest, scowling at her. He was angry and did not want to have the other conversation. “He could’ve killed you. Drained you dry.”
“I didn’t have a choice.”
“The hell you didn’t!” he snapped, raising his voice. He didn’t give a shit if the others heard him.
She opened her eyes, the brightness of her silver irises shining up at him. “You knew just as well as I did that when a request of patronus was made by Lucan, neither one of us would be able to refuse him. I didn’t have a choice.”
They had a stare off, tension between them thick. Dimitri broke the silence. “I never saw it until now. Do you even feel a thing anymore? Or are you so caught up in your fucking self-pity shit you can’t see straight.” He growled, ran a hand in his hair and looked over his shoulder. Julian stood off to the side, watching them. He looked back at her. “Get your shit together, Carissa, or I’m no longer going to be your partner.”
Walking for the door, he cast one more look in the direction of Claudia. She was watching, her eyes showing him things that he was pretty sure she didn’t want him to see. She was worried about him. He saw it, and it bothered him. No one had ever worried about him, at least not in the way she was.