One Bite with a Stranger

by Christine Warren

  Yes, he would have to do something about this Ava woman. Perhaps a strong warning would be sufficient.

  Just before Ava left the apartment through the door Regina was very clearly showing her, she looked back over her shoulder at the place where Dmitri watched from the shadows by the bedroom door. Very consciously, he let his mask of polite control slip and showed her a glimpse of the things he kept inside.

  He didn’t think she’d confront him again.

  Reggie never did get around to lecturing Dmitri on his mental snooping or his dictatorial tendencies. Three minutes after she had closed the door behind her friend, he had her stripped, spread, and draped facedown over the side of her mattress while he tortured her with teasing, shallow thrusts of his fingers into her wet heat. At that point, telling him she didn’t like it when he tried to control her seemed a bit hypocritical. She almost hated herself for the way he could make her pant.

  “Misha!” She gasped his name like a magic word and braced her hands against the bed, shoving her hips back against him. The hand that rested in the small of her back and held her in place pressed firmly to keep her still.

  What do you want, dushka?

  She heard his voice, no matter how hard she tried to block him out. She could surround her thoughts with mental barbed wire, but somehow Dmitri could cut right through it and never feel a scratch. Her defenses became meaningless around him, and the thought terrified her. What if Ava had been right? Could she just lie back and let Dmitri turn her into a mindless little sex toy?

  He pulled his hand free of her clinging heat, and she whimpered.

  Tell me, milaya. I want to hear you tell me.

  He wanted to make her beg, and part of Reggie screamed in protest, but the demanding flesh between her legs drowned out the rebellion.

  “You, Misha. I want you.”

  Her whisper became a shocked hiss and then a moan of pleasure when Dmitri rewarded her confession with the hot stroke of his tongue between her thighs. She trembled and had to lock her knees to keep herself upright. Dmitri had slipped to kneel behind her, and he clamped his hands on her hips, pinning them firmly to the bed while he drove her slowly out of her mind.

  You taste so sweet, dushka. Sweet and spicy and delicious.

  It felt a thousand times more intense than his phantom touch at the bar, and it almost killed her to hear him speaking in his black-magic voice while his tongue lapped wantonly at her pussy and drew tight little circles around her clit. Her breath came in helpless pants. She arched her back uncontrollably, tilting her hips to give him better access to her aching flesh.

  That’s right. Such a good girl, he crooned to her, his hands slipping from her hips to her thighs, gripping them and forcing them wider apart. His tongue pressed her more firmly, and he kept his hands clamped just above her knees, holding her open as securely as a spreader bar.

  Reggie pressed her forehead to the mattress and squeezed her eyes shut. She wanted to get closer, wanted to get away. His mouth fed at her, drank her sweetness, and pressed her faster and faster toward her climax. He seemed to sense exactly the moment when his teasing licks became unbearable, and his tongue pressed harder against her. He nuzzled lower and found her clit.

  Greeting the swollen nub with a quick flick of his tongue, he drew it gently between his teeth and suckled. The sensation robbed her of the ability to reason, the ability to stand. Her body went limp and trembled. Dmitri gripped her legs and braced his shoulders against the back of her knees, pinning her upright against the bed.

  She tried to beg him to fuck her, to come inside her and ride her hard, but she couldn’t speak. All she could do was moan and gasp and pray for mercy. He gave her none.

  He nipped lightly at her clit, sending a bolt of pleasure-pain coursing through her. She screamed, the sound little more than a shrill exhalation of air.

  Tell me, dushka.

  She couldn’t speak, could barely think, but Dmitri would hear her. I need you to fuck me. Please fuck me, Misha!

  He nipped her again, soothed the sting with his clever tongue. No. Tell me who you belong to. Tell me you are mine. Tell me no other man will touch you.

  Yes! God, yes! No one else. I’m yours. I belong to you, Misha!

  Dmitri growled his satisfaction and thrust three long fingers deep into her grasping cunt. It was all Reggie needed.

  She came, her entire body clenched and trembling. Her back arched, and her hips pressed high against him and her mind went blank and empty. She knew nothing but Dmitri and the pleasure that coursed through her. She didn’t even know the sharp sting of his fangs or his harsh growl of pleasure when her blood mingled with her juices and slid sweetly down his throat.

  Chapter 14

  Reggie woke the next morning already brooding.

  Dmitri had kept her way too busy last night for her to think about the things Ava had said at the bar, but she remembered them now. In fact, they were the first thoughts in her head when her eyes opened and squinted against the late morning sunshine. When he wasn’t there to cloud her thoughts with lust, Reggie could admit she did seem to act differently around Dmitri. Somehow he brought things out of her she’d been trying really hard to pretend weren’t inside her to begin with.

  Reggie considered herself a strong, independent woman. She supported herself, thought for herself, acted for herself. She believed women should have the same rights and opportunities as men and should never allow themselves to be treated as if they didn’t. If pressed, she would have called herself a modern feminist, a woman who appreciated men, but didn’t need them to complete her or guide her or tell her what to do.

  So why did it feel so good when Dmitri took control? It freaked her out that his assumption of command and dictatorial tendencies made her feel so safe and cherished. She should be railing against his attitude, not sighing with contentment when he took charge and arranged her and her life to suit him. When she felt his body against hers, it all made perfect sense, but now, in the bright light of day, she had to think Ava might have a point. Maybe she should be suspicious of Dmitri’s autocratic personality.

  She mulled it over while she dragged herself out of bed and pulled on her bathrobe. Once again, her muscles ached in a graphic reminder of the previous night, though this time she could add lack of sleep to her problem. Not only had Dmitri’s demanding appetite kept her up way past her bedtime, but once he had let her sleep, she’d drifted into some really disturbing dreams.

  She’d imagined they were back at the Mausoleum, only this time they danced together, completely naked, on the crowded dance floor. The dream had been so real she’d felt the texture of his skin against hers, the cool surface of the wooden floor beneath her feet.

  In her dream he surrounded and overwhelmed her, a lot like he did in real life. They had swayed to a slow, hypnotic rhythm, while the people around them continued to mosh to the frantic, industrial music she couldn’t hear. They had ignored everyone else, totally wrapped up in each other while they danced. But the dancing had changed, and in the metamorphic way of dreams, in the next instant he had been pressing inside her.

  They made love there on the dance floor. She’d felt Misha’s hands slide down to cup her ass and lift her, and she’d wrapped her legs around his waist and lowered herself onto his waiting cock.

  No one in the dream paid any attention while Reggie and Dmitri made love in their midst. The club patrons had swirled around the couple in a sea of heat and color, but all Reggie had really been able to focus on had been Misha’s deep, black eyes. She’d stared into them while he thrust in and out of her until she’d gotten dizzy and hot and trembled on the edge of orgasm. In her dream, she’d continued to stare until he opened his mouth, and she could see his canine teeth elongate and sharpen until they’d become fangs. When he lowered his head and sank his teeth into her throat, the hot, piercing pain had tumbled her over the edge, and she’d come, her cunt greedily drinking his semen while his mouth greedily consumed her blood.

  The dr
eam had faded slowly, just like the orgasm, but the images lingered with her all night. Even after she woke, she could still feel his mouth drawing at her throat and his teeth holding her in place while he fed.

  That’s what she got for going to goth clubs and fantasizing about vampires, she scolded herself, heading into the kitchen for breakfast. A shrink would probably love a transcript of that dream, but Reggie chalked it up to a late night, exhausting sex, and the lingering tension from her confrontation with Ava. Apparently her subconscious thought there might be some truth to her friend’s accusation that Dmitri’s control of her might be unhealthy instead of just unbelievable.

  She popped a bagel into the toaster and was measuring grounds into the coffeemaker when someone banged vigorously on her front door. Frowning, she slid the automatic drip basket into place, pushed the button, and crossed to the door. Checking the peephole, she sighed and leaned her forehead against the cool wood. The Inquisition had arrived.

  She opened the door and stepped aside to let her friends into the living room. She was on her way to the bedroom before the door closed behind them. “Coffee is on, and there are bagels in the freezer. If I’m getting the third degree, I’m damned well not going to do it naked.”

  “But I’m betting you ended up naked last night!” Danice’s quip and the sound of laughter followed her all the way down the hall.

  When she reemerged from the bedroom, still barefoot but now dressed in worn jeans and a red knit top, her apartment smelled like a Jewish deli and sounded like a Chippendales review.

  Her friends had nixed the tiny kitchen and spread out coffee, fruit, and bagels on her coffee table. Someone had dug out butter, cream cheese, and two flavors of jam, and Missy was just setting down a skillet full of scrambled eggs when she looked up and caught sight of Reggie. “Somebody looks well-exercised.” She grinned.

  Corinne placed a serving of eggs on a plate, added half the bagel Reggie had toasted, and handed it to her. “Sit. Eat. Talk.”

  “With my mouth full?”

  “Don’t be smart with us, Miss Thang,” Danice warned. “You have a story to tell us and we are not going away until we hear it.”

  Reggie wasn’t sure she wanted to talk about Dmitri right now. Heaving a theatrical sigh, she took a seat in an armchair and balanced the plate on her lap. “Once upon a time—”

  She ducked just before a slice of orange would have bounced off her forehead.

  “Try again, Reg. And this time skip straight to the hot monkey sex.”

  Corinne’s order defeated the smart-ass strategy, but Reggie didn’t want to share the details of the previous two nights with her friends, especially not with Ava. No matter how close they all were, she couldn’t feel comfortable with painting them a picture of the most erotic experiences of her life.

  And she still didn’t want to open up the discussion with Ava about her actions around Dmitri. Instead of answering, she shrugged and pushed the eggs around on her plate. “That’s pretty much it. We had hot monkey sex. He went home.”

  A chorus of groans and grumbles echoed through the apartment.

  “A less than rousing tale.” Ava leaned against the arm of her chair, directly opposite Reggie’s, and cradled a coffee mug in her manicured hands. “We’ve all spoken about seeing you and your Dmitri together the last two days. I believe we were looking for a bit more detail about your…relationship, Regina dear—names, positions, dimensions.”

  Did two nights of amazing sex equal a relationship?

  The others laughed, and Reggie blushed as red as her shirt, but she still managed a respectably convincing scowl. “If you want details, call a nine hundred number.”

  “Why should we do that when we have you right here? For free, rather than five ninety-nine a minute.”

  “But I’m not here to satisfy your prurient interests.”

  “Of course you are.” Ava sipped her coffee and eyed Reggie over the rim. Her gaze locked on the side of Reggie’s neck, and her eyes narrowed. “What’s that on your neck, Regina?”

  “What’s what?”

  Reggie’s hand went reflexively to the spot that captured Ava’s interest, but she didn’t feel anything.

  “Well, that’s what I call evidence.” Danice wanted to see and jumped up to brush Reggie’s hand away. She stared at her friend’s neck so long and so intently that Corinne laughed.

  “What are you looking for?”

  “Fang marks,” Danice answered, grinning. “I wanted to see if Reggie maybe landed herself a real vampire.”

  Reggie blushed when she remembered her dream. “Don’t be a jerk,” she muttered, pushing her friend away.

  “Looks like a garden-variety hickey to me,” Missy said. “Not exactly sophisticated, but I’m sure it added to the moment. Right, Reg?”

  Reggie shifted uncomfortably and clamped her hand over the bruise. She’d noticed the mark yesterday morning when she dressed, which was odd, because she couldn’t remember when Dmitri had marked her. She still might have to tell him to lay off the vampire act, especially after her dream. “Well, that’s why we went there, right? I was supposed to get a Fix with a vampire-type guy. I did, and it’s done. Who’s up next?”

  “Not so fast, Reg,” Danice said, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms over her chest. “You aren’t getting off that easy. Part of the Fix is sharing the news with your friends, and providing a full evaluation. We still want details.”

  “I don’t think Regina has to tell us anything she doesn’t want to,” Ava broke in. She surprised Reggie with her defense, but at that point, Reggie would have been glad for help from Genghis Khan and the Mongol hordes.

  “Thanks, A—”

  “Because I don’t think Reggie’s adventure counts as her Fix. She still needs to take care of that.”

  Reggie went pale. “What? But you can’t Fix me. I mean, I already had a Fix. I mean, Dmitri was—”

  “Not part of the game,” Ava declared. “I had someone set up to take care of the two Fixes you submitted, Regina, but you didn’t stick around to meet him. Therefore, you missed your Fix.”

  “I didn’t miss anything! Dmitri and I—”

  “I don’t care if your new friend wore a black cape, plastic fangs, and made you call him ‘master.’ He wasn’t your Fix, so he doesn’t count.”

  Reggie’s shirt paled beside her flaming cheeks.

  “Oh, my God! He did!” Danice shot to her feet and did a little victory dance in front of the sofa. “Reggie’s man fulfilled both her fantasies, and we didn’t even get involved. You go, girl!”

  Her appetite gone, Reggie set her plate down on the table and checked to see if there was room under it for her to hide.

  “Wow, Reg. That is so cool! None of us were able to get our fantasies without a little help. And here you go and blow us out of the water.” Missy grinned and gave her a thumbs-up sign. “I guess you didn’t need our help after all.”

  “Let’s not be hasty, Melissa.” Ava set aside her empty cup. “Reggie may have gotten a couple of her fantasies fulfilled, but it wasn’t an official Fix. We’ve all had dates outside of the Fixes, and it doesn’t matter what happens on them. It’s only the arranged Fixes that count. After all, we can’t check with Dmitri, so how do we know Reggie isn’t lying about the S and M just to get us off her back?”

  Reggie saw the others taking Ava seriously and tried to cut in, but the other woman bulldozed right over her.

  “I won’t say it’s impossible Reggie could be telling the truth,” Ava continued, “but we have no way to know for sure. So I move we throw out these fantasies and start over. Reggie gets an all new Fix.”

  Reggie stared at her, astounded and terrified. “Oh, no!”

  “You know, Ava may be right,” Danice agreed, grinning. “Must be your lucky day, girl, because you’re up again.”

  “Right. Can’t have you missing another turn,” Corinne said.

  “Look, guys,” Reggie began, trying to reason with them, even while the
idea of sex with any man other than Dmitri made her stomach churn. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do here, but it’s really not necessary. Dmitri would—”

  “Dmitri would what?” Ava asked, her voice soft but far from gentle. “You said Dmitri didn’t control you, Regina. Was that true?”

  “Yes, but I’m…involved with him. I can’t do this. Ava, you said it yourself last week. I’m monogamous. Now that I’m involved, I can’t just sleep with someone else.”

  Ava looked determined. “Two fucks do not make an involvement, Reggie. I don’t care how good this guy was in bed. Unless you ended your date in Vegas in front of a JP, you’re not exclusively involved. You never even said when you’re seeing him again.”

  Reggie scowled. On the one hand she wanted to deck Ava, but there was the corner of unease inside of her that wondered if maybe her friend was right. Maybe she was letting Dmitri control her. Maybe she should strike a blow for independence while she still could.

  She ignored the way her insides recoiled at the idea.

  “Fine,” she snapped. “Give me some paper, and I’ll give you a new batch of fantasies.”

  “Oh, no.” Ava’s eyes glinted. “After last time, I don’t trust you. I had Missy bring along your original fantasies. We’ll draw from those.”

  Reggie stared at the papers in Ava’s hand for a minute, then glanced up at her friends. They watched her expectantly.

  “I still think—”

  “Don’t think, Regina. Just sit there and be a good girl while we Fix you.”

  Reggie let her head fall against the chair back, and she squeezed her eyes shut. After Dmitri, she wasn’t sure any of her old fantasies still applied. It felt as if he’d fulfilled them all.

  God, I’m like an addict, she thought, frightened by how deeply Dmitri affected her. I think I might really need to do this. I’ve never acted this way about a man in my life. And I don’t even really know him…

  “My, my, but you are an adventurous girl, Regina McNeill.”

  Reggie heard the satisfaction in Ava’s voice and decided she didn’t want to know what had been drawn. “I’m sure that a very lucky man I know is going to love your night out together. In fact, I think both of you might come to view the opera in a whole new light.”