He stiffened, then his arms dropped away from her and he rose to his feet. She shivered from the sudden loss of his warmth. Striding to the fireplace, he poked at one of the logs, sending a spray of sparks up the chimney. Firelight flickered on the angles of his face, making it look even more chiseled.
“Mateo?” she prompted when he didn’t answer.
“I have,” he said with a harsh laugh, stabbing another log. “You just don’t remember.”
She blinked a few times, confused. And then with a terrible realization, she knew the truth.
She hadn’t almost died four years ago because of a car accident. No. She’d almost died because of him.
Chapter 6
Mateo needed a drink. A strong one.
The decision to save Selena had been an instinctual one. She’d been in danger, and he did what he needed to do. No thinking, no logic, just action. Like his decision to come back in the first place.
He wasn’t sure how he’d jumped off the cliff and saved her, though. It wasn’t as if he could fly. Wings hadn’t sprung from his back, nor had he flown the two of them back to the top. It was more like jumping and levitating and shit.
He’d known a few vampires who’d developed supernatural skills after consuming the blood of their bonded blood-mates, but he hadn’t consumed Selena’s blood. At least not recently, and it was just the one time. And she certainly wasn’t his mate.
She stood on the far side of the room now, clearly upset. He wanted to go to her but knew she needed this space. “I want to know what happened that night,” she said. “Everything.”
It was a conversation Mateo had dreaded for years. Confessing what he’d done to the woman he’d once loved wasn’t exactly high on his bucket list.
“I…almost killed you.” Saying those four words nearly split him in two.
“On the beach?” she asked quietly, her tone measured.
He didn’t want to relive that night, but he had to. “You cut yourself on a piece of driftwood. Remember? You were running barefoot on those logs.”
She furrowed her brow, then shook her head.
He continued. “There was some blood, but I wasn’t affected by it, so I thought, no big deal. But when we got into the closed confines of the car to head back, the scent hit me like a sledgehammer, and it was impossible to ignore.”
He’d seen the terror in her eyes when he attacked her, but hadn’t cared. All he’d been focused on was her blood. Just like his parents had warned. When it was over, his car was in a ditch, their friends had scattered, and Selena lay lifeless in his arms. So he did the only thing he could do. He’d called his father for help.
Selena remained silent for a few moments now, processing what she’d just learned. “Why didn’t you answer my texts and calls? Even my dad tried to reach you, but it was like you suddenly didn’t love or care about me any more. And then I heard you were gone.”
Pain twisted his gut, sharp as the twist of a knife blade. “I wanted to call you, Selena—it fucking killed me—but I couldn’t. I’d made a deal with my father.”
She spun to face him, eyes flashing with anger. “Your father? What does he have to do with any of this?”
“It probably doesn’t come as a surprise that my parents didn’t approve of our relationship.”
“Of course I knew that,” she frowned. “I just didn’t know why, but I guess I know now.”
“They’d told me I’d never be able to resist you once I went through my Time of Change when a young vampire’s craving for blood begins. And they were right. The entire time we were together, they insisted I break things off with you. But I was stubborn and refused to listen. Thought I would be able to control the urges. Which I did for a while.”
“And then,” she prompted.
“And then…that night happened…and I made a deal with him. In exchange for your life, I was to leave the island and never try to contact you. So that’s what I did. He was able to revive you with a little of his blood, then he called in a few favors. Evidence was covered up, everyone’s minds were wiped. At sundown the next night, I left the island and never came back. Until now.”
“You traded our future together for my life,” she said quietly.
He didn’t see it as a trade-off or choice. It was the only option there was.
Brows furrowed, she chewed on her lip. “Did your parents ever tell you I came looking for you?”
“You did?”
She nodded. “After I got out of the hospital, I came up several times, but they wouldn’t let me past the front gate. Said you were gone and they refused to tell me where or how to get ahold of you.”
His father was such an asshole that it didn’t surprise him. “I’m sorry, Selena. The thing is, my parents were right, and I was wrong. I…I did almost kill you. Despite my best intentions, I wasn’t able to control myself.” He could still hear her screams. And yet he hadn’t stopped. He’d sunk his fangs into her neck and drank. And drank. And drank.
He looked down and saw the hands of a monster.
“But you’re able to control yourself now.”
His head shot up. She was looking at him, not with revulsion in her eyes, but with compassion. Concern. “You call almost attacking you in your kitchen tonight being in control of myself? I tasted Sweet and wanted more!”
How could hearing the truth about what he’d done four years ago not horrify her? With no actual memory of that night, maybe this was just a story, like reading a book where bad things happened to fictional people. Or seeing a movie. Listening to what happened that night didn’t feel like reality to her.
“You could’ve attacked me tonight, but you didn’t. You’re stronger than you think you are.” Before he could reply to that nonsense, she asked, “What are your plans now?”
“They haven’t changed. I’m going to find who’s responsible for collecting your blood and take them out.” And he’d start with her customer who had the Sweet-laced truffle fetish.
“And then…”
He looked at her, not sure what she was asking. “Then what?”
“What about me? What about us? You said yourself that humans can’t know of your existence.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose. There is no us. Not any longer. There can never be an us. “The Council’s rules on that issue are specific.”
She was quiet for a few moments. When she spoke again, her voice was quiet. “So when all of this is over, you’re going to wipe my memory and leave.”
He turned away from her. “Yes.”
Chapter 7
Mateo waited until Selena was asleep before he slipped out of the house and drove down the mountain. He needed to make a few calls, but he didn’t have any cell coverage up at Broadmoor. Soon he was pulling into the parking lot of an all-night mini-mart. After he finished, he’d run in and grab a few things for Selena.
Zeph answered on the fifth ring, out of breath again. Maybe this time he was getting busy with some chick.
“What do you know about the dakai?” Mateo asked. Prior to coming to New Orleans, his partner had worked with a group that helped female vampires escape the sisterhood.
“Hold on a sec.” Zeph put his hand over the phone, mumbled something, and, wouldn’t you know it, a feminine voice replied. There was a rustling of clothes or sheets and then Zeph came back to the line. “The blood goddess cult?”
“Yeah.”
“They’re straight up crazy, is what they are.”
Zeph told him that after a new member gave the group all her worldly belongings and renounced her family and friends, her goal was to become pure-blooded in order to be accepted by the Great Mother. Then when she died, she’d supposedly become a blood goddess, worthy of being worshipped herself.
“How do they become pure-blooded?” Mateo asked. “What’s the process?”
“At every full moon, they mix their blood, say a bunch of hocus-pocus shit, and drink from a special chalice. Why all the questions?”
Mate
o told Zeph what he’d learned from Selena about her catering client who had a particular fondness for Sweet-laced rum. He’d had his suspicions, but it wasn’t until she’d shown him a picture of a cake she’d made for one of their events that he’d known for sure what he was dealing with. They’d had her decorate it with the dakai insignia, an infinity symbol above a red rose.
“Are you sure?” Zeph sounded skeptical. “They’re generally not violent—when dealing with non-members, that is. And they keep to themselves. As far as I know, they use their own blood in the purification rituals.”
“Then how does that explain the rum?”
“Okay, well, they’ll occasionally use the blood of willing donors, but it doesn’t make sense how Selena’s blood got into the black market through them. They have nothing to do with the Darkblood Alliance.”
“There could be sects out there that operate differently, like making deals with DBs in exchange for something they want. Protection, blood, whatever.”
“Maybe,” Zeph said. “So what’s your plan?”
“At sundown, I’m heading to their compound.”
“On your own?” Zeph sounded skeptical.
“Well, you’re not here, are you?”
“For fuck’s sake, man. Call the local field office and get them to send a few agents. Or wait a few days for me to come up and help. What’s the rush? Selena’s safe with you, right?”
He didn’t expect the guy to understand why this was so personal. Hell, he didn’t understand it himself. But he couldn’t wait. Not when the ones responsible for taking Selena’s blood were free, out walking around.
Zeph continued. “If you’re right and this group is working with local Darkbloods, it’s too big a situation to handle on your own. The Agency needs to be in the loop calling the shots.”
Normally he’d agree with his partner that going by the book and playing by the rules was what he needed to do, but this wasn’t a normal situation.
He was starting to lose patience with his friend. “I told you. I’m not waiting.”
Zeph sighed loudly. “How’s Selena? You two hooking up again?”
Mateo gave a humorless laugh. “I’m not a fucking fool.”
“I’ve told you about my sister, haven’t I?”
“You’ve told me a lot of things.” A lot of things that went in one ear and out the other, to be exact. The guy ran his mouth so much that Mateo didn’t listen to him half the time. They’d be on a stakeout and Mateo would put in earbuds just to drown out the guy’s incessant chatter. Zeph could be the one-man equivalent of a cocktail party.
“My sister is training to be a doctor up at Region headquarters. And she’s married to a human. I met him when they were first dating and…”
Mateo knew a few vampire/human couples making it work too, including his friend Andre, but none of the vampires he knew were romantically involved with a sweetblood human. Big difference.
Zeph rambled on and Mateo occasionally threw in a few words like ‘no kidding’ and ‘seriously.’ He appreciated his friend, but the guy clearly didn’t get it. You couldn’t decide to turn off your dark nature. He’d tried with Selena already and failed. Miserably. He wasn’t going to let it happen again.
“Yeah, it was a pretty bad situation, but it turned out fine.” Zeph paused a full five seconds. For a moment, Mateo thought the guy’s lady friend must be doing something to him. “Are you even listening to me?” Zeph growled.
“Your sister. Human guy. Things are peachy. Yep.”
“Dickwad,” Zeph said. “You haven’t listened to a word I’ve said, have you? The guy’s a sweetblood, and the two of them could have some helpful tips and advice for you.”
“For fuck’s sake, Zeph. Who says I want to try making things work? Or that she does? The woman just learned that monsters exist and have been preying on her. And that once upon a time the guy she used to date almost killed her. You seriously think all we need is a little relationship advice?”
“Whatever,” Zeph said, dropping the subject. “Listen. I’m texting with…my future brother-in-law…about them…coming to the island.”
“Jesus, Zeph. I not going to—”
“Too late. He’s going to see about flying a few agents over to Vancouver Island tomorrow evening. And if I can catch a flight, I’m going to join you.”
Mateo was confused. “Flying? Out here?” How had Zeph coordinated that so fast? It occurred to him that maybe he’d been tuning out his friend longer than he thought.
“If you’d been listening to me,” Zeph said slowly, enunciating each word, “you’d have heard me say that Finn is a helicopter pilot for the Horseshoe Bay region.”
“Wait. The sweetblood guy your sister’s married to works for the Agency? And he flies agents around with him in a tiny enclosed space?” If he didn’t know Zeph like he did, he’d have thought the guy was lying or grossly exaggerating the facts.
“Yeah, amazing, huh?” Zeph said, his tone saccharine sweet. “And sometimes they’re even cooped up together for hours. A sweetblood and several vampire males. But then, you’d have heard all that if you’d been paying attention.”
Mateo was glad his friend wasn’t here to see him rolling his eyes. He could be so goddamn sensitive sometimes.
Chapter 8
Something jolted Selena awake. Confused, she sat up and looked around her darkened surroundings. Embers burned in a fireplace. The shadow of a piano stood to her right. This wasn’t her bed. This wasn’t her bedroom. This wasn’t her house.
Then it all came back to her in a rush. Mateo. Vampires. The balcony. The accident.
But as unbelievable and crazy as all of that was, it wasn’t what had woken her.
It was Paula. She’d forgotten about Paula.
Hearing the front door open, she jumped to her feet, heart pounding in her ears, and tiptoed across the room. She peered into the entryway, saw Mateo, and relaxed just a fraction.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his eyes darting around. He was holding a grocery sack that he set on the entryway table. “Are you okay?”
“I’m just jumpy, that’s all. But I realized I never found out if Paula made it home okay.” Without realizing it, Selena had sent her employee—her sweet, lovable, and somewhat clueless employee—into the mouth of the dragon. If anything happened to her, if she didn’t come back… Selena closed her eyes, not wanting to go there. “I need my phone.”
“She’s not a sweetblood like you,” he said, handing it to her. “Chances are, she’s fine.”
That was only marginally reassuring. She looked at the phone and her heart sank. No cell service. “I have to go check on her.”
Mateo shook his head. “It’s almost daybreak.”
“I unknowingly sent her into danger, Mateo. I need to know that she’s okay. Now. If you can’t come with me because of the sun, I understand, so I’ll just go myself.”
Mateo glowered at her. “You’re not leaving this house alone until I’m convinced the threat to you has been eliminated. You might not understand what they’re capable of, but I sure as hell do.”
Not this again. “Mateo, please. She’s my responsibility. She went there because of me.”
He paced to the other side of the entryway, boots pounding angrily on the tile floor.
“We don’t even need to get out of the car,” she continued. “I just want to drive past her apartment and make sure she made it home. I’ll never forgive myself, or you for that matter, if I sit around and do nothing.”
He paused, then turned to face her, a look of resignation in his dark eyes.
The early morning light was thin and gray by the time they turned into Paula’s apartment complex on the south end of Agate’s Cove. Mateo recognized the beat-up maroon sedan parked in front of the second building from when he’d helped Paula load up her car with the catering samples.
“Is that it?” he asked, pointing.
Selena sat forward in her seat and peered through the windshield. “I thin
k so.” He drove slowly past the car to give her a better look at it. “Yes, that’s hers. Thank goodness, she made it home.” Tears welled up in her eyes and she choked back a sob. “Thank you. I can’t tell you what a relief that is.”
He stopped alongside the tennis courts, intending to give her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, but instead, he held her face in his hands and brushed away her tears with his thumbs. Her lashes, damp with tears, framed her beautiful eyes. Even though she could be as tough as nails, Selena could also be vulnerable. Fragile. She felt things deeply. Cared about people deeply. Whereas he was a hard, selfish bastard, she treated everyone as if they were a friend or her own flesh and blood. He’d always loved that about her.
He hadn’t intended to kiss her, but there he was, leaning over the center console, drawing her close to him. Her lips were every bit as soft as he remembered as he pushed his tongue inside, tasting the saltiness of her tears. He groaned at how good it felt to kiss her after all this time.
Selena echoed his thoughts. “I’ve missed you,” she mumbled against him, sliding her hands over his chest. God, he loved the feel of her touching him like this. “So damn much, it’s not even funny.”
He ran his lips along the delicate skin under her jaw, the fragrant hollow behind her ear, her neck. When her hand slid lower to brush against the growing bulge in his jeans, he cursed softly. “I’ve missed you, too.”
“Yeah, I can tell,” she chuckled, her voice low and husky.
Rocking his hips forward, he spread his legs to give her better access to all of him as he shoved his hand under her shirt. He wasn’t about to let the center console between them hamper his efforts to put his mouth on those beautiful breasts of hers.
Just as she fumbled for the button on his jeans, there was a tap at the window. They jerked apart as if they were teenagers caught in the act.
Unraveled By Blood, A Sweetblood World Vampire Romance Page 4