Dark Desire: A Paranormal Romance Novella (The After Dark Series, Book #1)

by Foote, Rebecca

  “You’re feeling the desire for blood. The first symptoms of hunger are upon you. I refuse to wait any longer—you must feed.”

  Feeling certain there were no other options before her, Juliet accepted Damon’s advice, despite her uncertainty of the outcome. After changing into some clothes that were hung in the closet, she joined Damon. They walked through the hallways of the large home—it was the largest house she had ever been in. The ceilings were high, which gave the home an even more spacious feeling. She began to wonder if he lived alone in the large house. Hunger gnawed at her insides again and she stopped admiring the style of the home. Damon took her hand as they stepped outside and walked toward a black sedan. Juliet looked at him in surprise.

  “I thought vampires turned into bats and flew or something. Instead, you drive a car?”

  She laughed lightly, almost drunk with hunger. Damon assessed her countenance and hurried his step. He opened the door for her and waited until she was seated, before starting the car.

  “Those are tales that mortals have come up with. But, there is a grain of truth in some of the legends. For instance, we can change our form. When I hunt, I do not drive a car, but I move through shadow.”

  “Move through shadow?”

  Damon nodded, “Yes. But, for now I need to get you nourishment and this is the easiest way. There is much for you to learn and tonight is only the beginning.”

  I’m in so deep, there’s no way out. How did I get into this?

  Chapter Five

  The night sky was illuminated by the moon, which shone down upon the city. The lights of the buildings looked like fallen stars across the metropolis landscape. Damon led Juliet along the river next to the park. He reached for her hand and pulled her in close.

  “There are things that you are about to see that may seem unusual, but you must trust me. I will protect you with my entire being.” Damon gently kissed her hand. “Trust me.”

  She couldn’t deny that he was telling the truth, for a bond between them was growing. Juliet could sense Damon’s emotions and the closer she got to him, the more intense they became.

  A woman was jogging down the park’s running path with a dog. Damon assessed the situation and instructed Juliet to stay near him. The woman stopped jogging and dropped the dog’s leash. The dog looked in Damon’s direction, whimpered, and ran away. The woman walked toward Juliet and him. Once in front of them, she stood frozen with a glazed expression. Juliet felt enthralled by the woman’s presence as hunger filled her. She heard the woman’s pulse as if it were calling out to her like a dinner bell.

  “I told her to come to us…now drink.”

  Juliet turned to him in surprise and shook her head. “What do you expect me to do? I’m not going to kill this woman. I don‘t want to take her blood.”

  Damon brought the woman closer to them. “You must. I can see you want to, but you resist. Why do you keep resisting the inevitable?”

  As he spoke, his teeth grew long and sharp. He leaned into the woman and bit her neck. She whimpered for a moment, but remained still. Damon released her and brought her closer to Juliet as blood trickled down the woman’s neck. The sight of it brought a feverish thirst burning in Juliet’s throat. The anticipation made it worsen as she hungrily viewed the blood. Filled with need, Juliet leaned into the woman and began to drink. The blood felt exhilarating as it sated her parched body. At first, Juliet heard the woman’s pulse pounding in her ears loudly, but it became fainter the longer she drank. Juliet stopped when she heard Damon’s voice.

  “Juliet… my love, you must stop, or you will kill her.”

  Juliet released the woman and stood next to Damon. She eyed the woman in disbelief and put her hand to her mouth in shock. To her surprise, she felt sharp fangs. She quickly withdrew her hand, noticing the evidence of her feeding. She stared down at her blood-covered hand and was appalled at what she had done.

  Damon gently touched the woman’s neck and stroked his fingertips across the puncture marks. They instantly began to heal.

  “You were looking for your dog in the park; you will find him near your car in the parking lot. Go now,” Damon commanded and the woman staggered away toward the parking lot.

  “How did you do that?”

  “It’s simple really. Mortals are weak-minded and easily swayed. Implant a notion into their minds and they will follow it through.”

  “How did you heal her neck though?”

  A man came down the path and ran past them. Damon waited until he was further down the path before continuing. “Our blood and saliva have healing properties. Humans heal quickly when you gently touch the wound after feeding. It would heal on its own even if you didn’t, but it heals more rapidly when you seal it with your touch.”

  Juliet palpated her neck to feel for a wound, but found none. Damon smiled at her and nodded. “I want you to try it next.”

  “Wait. This is going too fast. Can we slow down?”

  Damon gave her a concerned look, but agreed to her request with a cautionary warning. “When you are hungry, you must feed. There is no other way, or the hunger will drive you mad. You might attack someone openly, thereby revealing your true nature. Be careful not to wait too long between feedings.”

  Juliet listened to his advice and worried how she would assimilate into her new existence. She didn’t like having to drink blood and didn’t want to hurt anyone. Juliet knew, however, that the urge to taste blood was too strong for her to ignore and she would have to find a way to quench it.

  Recalling Damon’s warning that she could not return to her old life, Juliet wondered what others would think about her sudden disappearance. She felt sad and unsure of her new situation, but when she looked at Damon, it took the sting away. Being with him brought new feelings of pleasure.

  How can I resist him? He’s so handsome and the way he stares at me as if I’m the most enticing woman in the world. A moment ago, he called me “my love.” Does he really love me?

  Damon led Juliet back to his car, which he parked down the street near an abandoned warehouse. After a few minutes, they were back on the road, driving toward Damon’s home.

  “Damon, has anyone been unable to do this? I mean unable to accept their transformation into a vampire?”

  Damon turned at her with empathy. “Don’t worry. I will do everything in my power to help you, although I do not believe you will have any difficulty. You have already drunk from your first mortal and adjusted to the physical changes.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Through the darkened streets, they traveled swiftly. Damon steered with speed and accuracy that would make any NASCAR driver jealous. The headlights lit up the private stretch of road that led to his home.

  “Damon?”

  He turned to her and smiled. “I will show you.”

  As they rounded a curve, bringing his home into view, Juliet looked at it in surprise. She hadn’t noticed how elegant it was before, since she had been overcome with hunger. In the darkness, lit only by the car’s headlights, the house loomed silently. Large cottonwood trees lined the driveway and their leaves rustled in the wind. The home was a large, white Colonial with Corinthian pillars either side of the entry. The yard’s grass and shrubbery were neatly manicured and a forest of fir trees comprised the yard’s boundaries.

  After Damon parked the car, he led Juliet into the house. They walked through a side door into the kitchen. It contained modern appliances that looked as though they had never been used. They continued down a hall and entered an open door of a bathroom where a large, antique clawfoot bathtub sat against one wall.

  Damon spun Juliet around and positioned her in front of a full-length mirror that hung on the wall. She viewed her reflection with detachment, as if a stranger were staring back at her. Her eyes were the same, but her features were more refined. Juliet was actually surprised at how good she looked. It usually took an hour of pampering herself to get this kind of result. Her long hair was thick and beautif
ul, coiffed perfectly in lazy waves that framed her face. Juliet’s eyes almost sparkled with radiance and her lips were full and inviting. She cocked her head to the side, enjoying her improved look. Damon’s image next to her was every bit as gorgeous. She sighed unknowingly while eyeing his reflection up and down.

  “Okay, so there are some definite perks about being a vampire.”

  He smiled at her appreciatively. “Juliet, I wanted to show you that you still are you.”

  “Still me? Yes, slightly improved however.”

  His forehead formed puzzlement lines and he shrugged. “Some have noticed drastic changes in their appearance, but you have always been beautiful.”

  His words floated softly across her skin as he leaned in next to her and put his arms around her waist. A slight chill made her shudder as his lips lightly touched her earlobe and she lost her train of thought. Damon turned her around to face him. She sensed power behind his beautiful, intense eyes, an ancient type of power that she could feel flowing from him into her. An incredible bond was being forged between the two of them and it seemed to increase with each moment they were in each other’s presence. The swiftness and intensity of the bond, however, troubled Juliet.

  “You’re making this difficult for me.”

  “What?”

  “Hating you for turning me into a vampire.”

  Damon raised an eyebrow while considering her remark and smiled at her compassionately. He began to gently trace her cheek and outline her lips.

  “We belong together. If it were not so, I could not feel your emotions as my own and you would not feel mine.”

  Juliet shook her head. “What do you mean?”

  A sensation of falling swept over Juliet as she stared into Damon’s eyes, seeking the answers to her many questions. His gaze was placid, but intimidating for power emanated from his very presence.

  “The dawn is approaching; we must sleep. Come with me.”

  He led her by the hand down the hall toward a staircase that went to the basement. At the bottom was a long hallway. He paused near the bedroom which Juliet had stayed in previously.

  “Will you stay with me this dawn?”

  She looked at him with a confused expression. “You want me to sleep with you?”

  “Yes,” he responded with raw need threaded through his strained voice.

  Juliet didn’t answer immediately, feeling unsure about the sleeping arrangements and what would happen at the dawn. A look of disappointment momentarily crossed his face. Damon opened Juliet’s door and she stepped inside.

  “Don’t worry about the dawn—you are safe here. There are no windows and it is completely sealed. No one will disturb us either, for the house is protected from the outside world. You may sleep worry-free, knowing you are safe.”

  He reached for a silken lock of her hair and felt its softness. Then his hand tenderly cupped her face.

  “Sleep well,” he whispered before kissing her lightly and closing the door behind him.

  Chapter Six

  Juliet arose the next evening as the sun slowly dipped below the horizon. Investigating the house, she found a library with hundreds of books, and a huge fireplace that occupied one of the walls with a large-paned window on another. She pulled back the curtains and looked out at a dark, dreary sky. The clouds grew thick and thunder crashed in the distance. The old Colonial boldly stood, defiant against the impending storm. With each threatening clap of thunder, the window vibrated. The trees swayed violently as the winds picked up, twisting and whipping their limbs in the storm. Lightning flashed across the sky; and had to have been closeby because of the boom of thunder that accompanied the flash.

  A light cool breeze caressed Juliet’s skin, drawing her attention back to the room. She turned around and was surprised to see Damon right beside her.

  He smiled at her sensually as he reached out. Juliet loved the way she tingled when he touched her, sending waves of longing throughout her bloodstream. Realizing she could lose herself to him easily, she tried to focus on the view outside the window.

  “I remembered something when I awoke, a strange dream… I was in darkness and I heard your voice. You spoke to me saying you’d been looking for me for countless years and that I had to make a choice to become a child of the night.”

  Damon turned her around to face him, finishing her words, “As my bride.”

  Juliet looked at him, unsure of how to react. Damon took her hands and placed them in his. “I spoke those words to you, asking you to come to me freely. As much as I wanted you, I didn’t want to force you, even though I could have. You are my bride and we belong together.”

  He gently traced the contour of her face down to her chin and leaned in to kiss her. “Surely you can feel this is true.”

  Her heart answered before she could form a thought and she returned his kiss passionately. Damon held her tightly to him and kissed her deeply. He spoke the truth as if he had seen it written on her heart. Damon released her from his fervent kiss and his eyes were brimming with depth and sincerity.

  “It is said that one can find his true mate through a sign: a great longing that envelops one’s senses. I hoped that someday I would find you, but had almost given up because it had taken so long. A while ago, I came through this area and felt an intense feeling that drew me to you. It was as if you were a magnet, pulling me closer. When I saw you, I instantly knew you had to be my bride. I must admit, I was surprised when it happened because I had almost given up long ago. I decided finding one’s true mate was a myth, but I was wrong.”

  Juliet listened in amazement as Damon explained the way he had suffered without her, feeling incomplete, and how overjoyed he was to have finally found her. She knew, without a doubt, that a vampire could love, for he certainly loved her.

  “I followed you for a week, so I could learn more about you. I watched you go to school, and at the end of the week you went to that club. At first, I was going to simply change you and have you, but I began to realize I couldn’t do that. I loved you too much. I couldn’t do it without giving you the choice, even though it would have killed me to lose you. Despite all of the time it has taken me to find you, I wouldn’t have forced you. I am of the Draconian Order and honor would have demanded no less from me. If you had refused me, I planned to greet the dawn to release my soul.”

  Juliet shook her head in sadness, for the thought of losing him was too much to bear. She felt so connected to him that she couldn’t stand the thought of a world without him in it. Yearning to know more about him, she pressed forward.

  “What is the Draconian Order?”

  Damon pondered her question for a moment and realized that a small history lesson was required before he could explain more. “Long ago, our people were in chaos. Vampires killed humans openly, hunting down their prey with no regard for the consequences. The humans retaliated by forming hunting parties to slay our kind. They hunted our people during the day and staked us as we slept. There were many humans killed in the chaos and even our numbers diminished. Eventually, a committee was formed by the some of the oldest vampires because they knew we could not continue to kill openly and had to be more cautious. My maker brought me into the order and I have remained there from that day.”

  Juliet listened, intrigued at Damon’s account of the vampire race and the mobs that came after them to stake and decapitate them while they slept. Damon kissed her hand again softly, which sent rolling desire through Juliet.

  “When you chose to join me, you weren’t just deciding your own fate, but mine as well. When I discovered what kind of situation you were in, I was angry at myself for not finding you sooner. You were obviously suffering; if I could have found you sooner, you never would have gone through that.”

  Damon looked away in anger, which grew stronger, physically manifesting itself as fire that danced in his eyes. His jaw clenched and he looked like stone as he spoke, “When I think of the men at that club, I feel determined to kill every one of them. You ar
e my bride and I will not stand idly by.”

  Anger sharpened Damon’s words and Juliet feared his state, for she felt certain he would seek revenge upon the club patrons. Uncertain of the outcome, and trying to avoid a killing spree, she pleaded to convince him otherwise.

  “But, you shouldn’t.”

  “Why not? They deserve it.”

  Juliet raised her eyebrow as she thought for a moment that perhaps, some might deserve it, but knew she couldn’t have him killing a bunch of horny men on her behalf.

  “I know some of them may deserve it, but I don’t think all of them do. Please, don’t do it. It’s hard enough for me to adjust as it is. Something like that would make it even more difficult because I would feel responsible for you embarking on a killing spree.”

  Damon listened to her as she appealed to him on their behalf. He wondered why she would give them even a second thought.

  “Because you ask me to,” he reluctantly acquiesced, “I won’t kill them, although they deserve it. You are too kind to them—they should be punished.”

  “I know and you’re probably right, but I don’t want you to be the one to do it.”

  Damon watched her as she spoke, taking in her beautiful features. He ran his hand along her side and rested it upon her waist. He looked as if he were studying her.

  “Juliet, the night is upon us and we must hunt. But, before we do, I want to teach you how to use the shadows to cloak yourself. Traveling in shadow will enable you to hunt prey without their knowledge. You will be fast and silent and completely undetectable if you do it correctly.”

  He grinned at her in challenge. Intrigued with the idea of a new way to travel, Juliet responded enthusiastically. “How do you travel in shadow?”

  Delighted with her response, Damon continued his instruction. He took a step back from her to give her space. “First, close your eyes and listen to your surroundings.”