The Taming of the Vamp
Page 26
He snorted and looked away.
“I know it sounds stupid when I say it aloud, but you have to understand. I was feeling pretty insecure about us. For some reason my warped brain figured you manipulating me made more sense than the idea that you had feelings for me, too. And we have never discussed our arrangement being more than sex.”
He looked back at me and shook his head. The action wasn’t so much a you’re-a-fool shake as an I-pity-you shake. I chose to take that as progress.
“I know it’s pathetic, but it’s not like I had a lot of reason to believe there was a future for us,” I said, stroking his leg. He didn’t pull away but mumbled something that sounded argumentative.
“Let me finish,” I said. “Now, where was I? Oh, yeah, so anyway, when he told me that, I freaked. I know I should have asked you, but I was angry and hurt. Plus, you know me—I tend to act first and ask questions later.”
Another snort.
“I’m working on it, okay? So I admit I should have talked to you. And I admit I shouldn’t have run off.”
I paused, gathering my strength for what I was about to say. It scared me shitless, but I couldn’t very well kidnap the man without being totally open and honest, could I?
“All right. So here’s the deal. I kind of—” I paused. “Iloveyoucanyouforgiveme?”
He squinted and shook his head as if he didn’t quite catch what I’d said.
Groaning, I took a deep breath. “I. Love. You. Can. You. Forgive. Me?”
With a hard shake to his head, he mumbled something.
My heart dropped. Here I’d laid my soul bare, and all I got was a head shake. But then I remembered how I’d laughed at him when he told me he loved me.
Wait a minute, I thought. He told me he loved me.
Perhaps, instead of jumping to conclusions again, I should ungag him, I thought.
“Okay, I’m going to remove your gag. But I’m warning you now, if the first words out of your mouth are in any way negative, I’m not going to be happy.”
Reaching behind his head, I untied the handkerchief. He worked his jaw for a minute, and I felt a hint of guilt when I saw the red marks by his mouth. I couldn’t decide if the intensity in his eyes was a good or bad thing. So I just waited. It didn’t take long for him to speak.
“First of all, don’t you ever gag me again,” he said in a hoarse voice. He cleared his throat before continuing.
“Second, while kidnapping me was probably not the most conventional form of groveling I’ve ever seen, it’s definitely the most original.”
Nodding, I held my breath.
“Third, will you please untie me?”
My eyes narrowed. “Why would I do that?
“Because I’ll be damned if I am going to tell you I forgive you and then later have you accuse me of doing so only because I was under duress.”
I gasped. “You’d do that?”
“What? Forgive you? I guess you’ll have to untie me to see.”
I thought about the pros and cons for a moment.
“Do you promise not to escape?”
“Gabriella, untie me now.”
“No, Callum, you have to promise you won’t leave until we sort this out.”
“Woman, does everything have to be an argument with you?” he shouted hoarsely.
Silent, I watched him, waiting for the response I wanted. The silent treatment seemed to work as he sighed.
“Fine, I promise not to escape until I’ve said my piece.”
That didn’t sound too promising, but I knew he’d refuse to speak to me anymore unless he was unchained. Reaching into my back pocket, I pulled out the keys. His eyes shot to the jingling keychain.
“I’m going to unlock you,” I said, stalling for time.
“Any day now,” he said.
“Oh, fine,” I said, making quick work of the locks. He almost knocked me to the floor in his haste to get out of the bed. For a moment I thought he was rushing to the door. Instead, he did some stretches and worked the kinks out of his muscles. His back was to me, so I couldn’t get a feel for his mood. Something told me it wasn’t good.
Finally, he popped his knuckles and turned to me. The look in his eyes made me back away.
“Callum, let’s not do anything rash,” I said, stopping when the backs of my knees hit the bed.
“Rash? You mean like kidnapping you and tying you up?”
He kept coming until I fell back on the bed. I tried to scramble over the other side, but he grabbed my leg. Hard metal clamped over my ankle before I could get away.
“No!” I yelled, struggling against him as he got one of my hands locked too. In no time he had both my arms and one leg shackled. I kicked so much with my other leg that he’d given up on it. Smart move since I couldn’t do much without the use of three of my appendages.
“Dammit, Callum!” I yelled as he calmly got up and dragged a chair over to the bed. “Let me go!”
“So sorry, but it had to be done. Now, do I need to use the gag too?” he asked politely.
“Try it and you’ll pull away a bloody stump!”
“I’ll take that as a no, then,” he said, making himself comfortable.
“It’s my turn to talk,” he said calmly. “So kindly shut the hell up.”
I figured he was angry enough that I should probably keep my mouth shut for once. Clamping my lips closed, I nodded.
“That’s better. Since you seem to be so hell bent on hashing this out tonight, I’ll start by saying you are the most infuriating woman I have ever met. You don’t listen, you’re stubborn, and you’re generally a pain in my ass.”
Not the most auspicious beginning, I thought.
“However, you are also strong, independent, and the most passionate women I’ve ever met. And I meant what I said. I was going to tell you that I loved you the night of the wedding.”
“Were?” I said, forgetting my vow to remain silent. He scowled at me, so I clamped my lips tight.
“During the fight, I was so angry I wasn’t really listening to your words. After, however, I remembered that you’d called me a liar. Plus, you’d started to say something about Orpheus but stopped yourself. Knowing how you and your father work, I put two and two together.
“When he and I talked, it became apparent that he had some misguided notion that he was protecting you by telling you those lies.”
I opened my mouth to comment, but he waved the handkerchief at me, so I shut up.
“Once I convinced him to not chase you down, I did some thinking. I figured if you were that upset over my supposed lies that you probably had some feelings for me. However, since I know you, it was clear you needed time to figure things out on your own.
“When you called, I was shocked. I had assumed it would take you a lot longer to figure out you were in love with me and even longer to get up the courage to approach me about it.”
“But why did you hang up?” I asked.
He didn’t threaten me with a gag again, so he must have been distracted by his explanation.
“I hung up because a phone call wasn’t going to cut it. You had some serious making up to do. However, it didn’t occur to me you’d go so far as to kidnap me,” he said, chuckling. “I should have known better given your history.”
“So what are you saying?” I asked.
“I’m saying that I love you, too, you silly woman. I just needed to be sure that when you came to me you were positive this was what you wanted.”
A bucketful of relief washed over me. But I still had some questions.
“What do you mean by ‘this is what you wanted’?”
“Are you sure you aren’t going to change your mind about us?” he asked. For the first time since I’d known him, he looked vulnerable.
“Callum, how can anyone be sure their mind won’t change? All I can tell you is that I am positive I love you.”
He nodded. “Good, because we’re getting married.”
My body tried to j
erk upright, but the restraints held me down. “What?”
He smiled wickedly. “Yep, that’s right. And I’m not letting you free until you agree.”
“Why can’t we just live together?” I said a little desperately.
Married? If I were mortal, I would have had a stroke.
“Nope. You’re going to be my wife and we’re going to have kids.”
“Kids?” If I hadn’t already been lying down, I would have fainted.
“Four of them,” he said, nodding
“Callum, I think you’re crazy.”
“Sweetheart, I’m crazy about you. I can’t imagine spending eternity with anyone else.”
“But we fight all the time,” I said.
“That just means we get to have make up sex.”
“But . . . but married?”
He stood and leaned over me. His mouth covered mine for a kiss that made my hips go up in flames. Once he had me writhing, he pulled away slightly.
“Married,” he whispered.
In my dazed state, I smiled. I loved this man with all of me. No one else had ever challenged me as much or made me feel as alive as I did when I was with Callum.
And let’s be perfectly honest, no other man was strong enough to put up with my crap. Yes, it might be a match made in hell, but it was the right one for me.
“All right,” I said with a sigh. “But if you think I’m wearing white at the wedding, you’re going to have a fight on your hands.”
He chuckled and kissed me again. Where the last kiss was hot as a flame, this one was as sweet as honey. I poured every bit of myself into it hoping I could show him how much he meant to me.
“Callum,” I whispered finally, “I said yes. You can take off the cuffs now.”
“I don’t think so,” he said with a wicked smile as he moved down my body.
I started to protest, but he did something involving his mouth and my nipple that made my eyes cross.
It took about thirty minutes for the pins and needles to begin shooting through my limbs. But did I complain?
Hell, no.
I’d have all eternity to pick fights with Callum.
-The End-
Also by Jaye Wells
The Murdoch Vampires
The Art of Loving a Vampire
The Taming of the Vamp
The Prospero's War Series
Dirty Magic
Cursed Moon
Deadly Spells
Volatile Bonds
The Sabina Kane Series
Red-Headed Stepchild
Mage in Black
Green-Eyed Demon
Silver-Tongued Devil
Blue-Blooded Vamp
Meridian Six Series
Meridian Six
Children of Ash
About the Author
USA Today Bestseller Jaye Wells is a former magazine editor whose award-winning speculative fiction novels have hit several bestseller lists. She holds an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University, and is a sought-after speaker on the craft of writing. When she’s not writing or teaching, she loves to travel to exotic locales, experiment in her kitchen like a mad scientist, and try things that scare her so she can write about them in her books. She lives in Texas.
Find out more about Jaye Wells
www.jayewells.com
jaye@jayewells.com
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