To Die For

by Trista Ann Michaels

“You’re just how I like you,” he mumbled. His lips worked a path over her hip as he spoke. “Wet, helpless, and panting.”

  He pressed two fingers into her vagina, and she moaned, forcing her hips back to take them deeper.

  “I could do this all night. Teasing you, making you beg for more. Making you beg me to stop,” he added, his voice deep and lust-filled.

  He pulled his fingers free of her pussy and then pressed them into the tight ring of her ass. Amy gasped at the slight bite of pain that quickly morphed to pleasure. She’d never had anyone touch her there, and she found it strange, dark, and at the same time such a turn-on.

  “Can you take me there, Amy?” he whispered, and she shivered at the very thought.

  She could hear him unzipping his pants, and her heart raced. She wanted him inside her. She wanted to feel his thick rod stretching her walls. He was so big and felt so good inside her.

  He removed his fingers from her ass and pulled her back down so that her feet rested on the floor. “I’m going to take you, Amy. Right now.” He let his cock rest between her legs. She moved her hips back, letting her wet pussy rub against his length, letting him know she wanted him, letting him know to take her.

  “That’s nice,” he growled. “But this will be so much better.”

  He set the head of his cock at her entrance and pushed forward. Amy sighed as his length pressed inside her willing walls, stretching her tight. Kaelen growled behind her as he thrust deeper, forcing himself as far as he could go. Amy let her legs widen, allowing him to go even deeper into her, filling her completely with his engorged length.

  She could hardly breathe and held on tight to the edge of the counter. He wasn’t moving, and she wanted him to. She wanted him to be wild like he was the night before, to make her scream with release after release.

  “Kaelen,” she moaned and pressed her hips back into his groin.

  “Don’t move,” he whispered.

  He took one of her hands in his and put it between her legs. She could feel where his cock entered her. She could feel her cream as it coated his balls. Giving them a squeeze, she smiled at the rough growl that rumbled through his chest. With his hand over hers, guiding her, he slid her hand to her clit. Together they gently circled her nub with the tips of their fingers. Amy sighed as they moved as one—slowly.

  Kaelen moved his hips in a circular motion, almost sending her straight into orbit. She wanted more. She needed more and was quickly becoming frustrated that he wasn’t pounding into her.

  Using his fingers, he spread her ass cheeks wide, then pulled his cock from her pussy. Amy tensed as she realized what he was about to do and quickly grasped the edge of the counter with both hands. He pressed forward slowly, and Amy gasped as his cock spread the tight ring of resistance.

  “Relax,” he growled, his voice a deep sexy purr.

  “Kaelen,” she squealed, not sure she could take him there as the stretching became almost painful. “I’m not…I’m not…”

  He pressed all the way inside, and Amy moaned at the pressure against her channel from the other side. It overrode any pain, sending pleasure screaming through her veins with enough force to make her cry out.

  Kaelen put his face in her neck and moaned as he held himself still. His hands wrapped around her waist, then lower to cup her sex between her legs. Amy sighed as his fingers toyed with her clit, bringing her ever closer to the release she could feel building deep inside.

  He pulled back, then pressed in, thrusting himself balls-deep into her ass. Amy groaned at the pleasure-pain and pushed her hips back against him, silently asking for more. Kaelen repeated the move once more and scraped his teeth along the side of her neck. She shivered and whimpered as she leaned forward onto the island. Her hands shook as she rested her elbows on the cold granite. Her legs trembled from holding up her weight.

  With a low growl that was purely predatory, Kaelen grasped her just above her thighs and lifted her slightly. The move changed her angle as well as took some of the pressure off her legs. She sighed and turned her head, laying her cheek against the cold counter.

  This was nuts—insane—incredible. She’d never met a man like him, never met a man who could make her feel like this. So sated, so wild, so willing to let him do whatever he wanted. And Kaelen definitely did what he wanted, but he did it in such a way that it made her wild for him and whatever it was he wanted to do. She loved his commanding presence, his dominating style, his bossy orders, even his occasional slap across her ass.

  He’d ruined her for other men.

  “Kaelen,” she whimpered as her orgasm built in her womb.

  Kaelen used his groin to press her against the counter and reached around with one hand to touch her sex. She cried out as his fingers separated her labia and gently swiped through the cream coating her pussy. He applied gentle but wicked pressure to her clit, and she exploded with a loud scream she was sure rattled the windows.

  Every part of her tingled with tremendous pleasure as the muscles of her anus and pussy contracted. Kaelen sped up the tempo of his thrusts, going in short, deep movements that made her head spin out of control. She barely felt his bite this time as he sank his teeth into her shoulder. He tensed shortly after, his own moans of pleasure lost against her skin as he sucked at her blood.

  Just as her release subsided, his teeth retracted, and he licked her skin, healing the wounds.

  Standing straight but a little breathless, he pulled from her ass and grabbed her elbow, spinning her around to face him. He did it so quickly, she had to grab the edges of the counter to remain upright as his mouth descended on hers in a kiss that quite literally stole her breath.

  He pulled back and stared at her, his eyes narrowed slightly. She could see the slight confusion in his eyes, the surprise, the wariness. He was like her. He felt something, knew that they were different, but wasn’t sure how.

  He used the tip of his finger to gently brush her bangs from her brow. “You need a shower, angel,” he whispered.

  “Yeah.” She sighed. “I think I could use one. So could you, I think.”

  “Is that an invitation to join you?”

  She licked her lips and decided to just take the bull by the horns and run with it. “I would be upset if you didn’t.”

  “Well,” he drawled, his Romanian accent a little thicker than usual. “We wouldn’t want you upset, now would we?”

  “No,” she breathed.

  He glanced down at his slacks and the shoes he still wore. With a grin, he looked at her through his lashes. “I think I need to get these off.”

  He quickly shed both the shoes and pants. Before Amy could even utter a word, Kaelen picked her up in his arms. She gave a little yelp and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as he carried her from the room.

  Her heart gave a little beat of excitement at the way he carried her up the stairs toward his room. She frowned as he pushed the door open with his toe, then slammed it closed with his heel.

  “Your room?”

  “Why not?” he asked with a crooked grin. He stopped in the middle of the room and spun in a circle. “Nice and dark. There’s a fireplace to make it a little more…romantic.” He looked at her and smiled. “And of course my bed is bigger than yours.”

  She glanced quickly toward the bed and silently agreed it was bigger. Hers was a full. His was a king.

  “Ready for that shower?” he whispered.

  She nodded and smiled to herself as he carried her to the bathroom and the large walk-in shower that dominated the room.

  Kaelen set her on her feet by the glass doors of the shower, then grasped her elbow to steady her when she wobbled as though she might fall. She glanced up at him, giving him a shy smile that made his stomach clench. She was so damn beautiful, especially when she looked at him as though she was embarrassed by her behavior.

  Hell, as far as he was concerned, she had absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. She was everything he liked in a woman and then some. Givi
ng her a reassuring smile, he touched her cheek with the backs of his fingers, then moved to turn on the water.

  While he waited for it to warm, he pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it to the floor. Amy quickly did the same with hers, and Kaelen stood back, watching as she climbed into the oversize shower. He followed a second later but still stood back mesmerized as she stepped into the stream of water and let it roll down her head and back.

  Kaelen reached for the loofah to the side and filled it with soap. He rubbed it up her back and over her shoulders and the backs of her arms. She looked at him over her shoulder as he slid it down her spine and over her hips. She was so fair, so delicate; she looked like a doll—fragile and breakable.

  He knew then, as he rubbed the soap all over her body, that he would never hurt her and would always want her. He would never get enough. Even now, he could feel himself getting hard again.

  She turned to face him and took the sponge from his hands. She repeated for him what he’d done for her, and Kaelen closed his eyes, allowing her small hands to rub over his tired flesh. Her hands lingered at the scar on his chest, and he glanced down to look as well. It still hadn’t completely healed, but it didn’t lack much more. Another day or two, and the scar would be completely gone; only the memory would remain.

  He put his hand over hers and leaned in to place a gentle kiss against her brow as he positioned them both under the spray of water to rinse the soap from their bodies. The warmth felt good, and it had been a long time since he’d allowed himself to see a shower as anything other than a way to get clean.

  Over the last few decades, sex had become an afterthought. Something he did if he had the time and if he had the desire. Which in all honesty, hadn’t been often of late. She’d awakened him, brought him out of the dark. How the hell did this happen? Was he in love with her? He didn’t even know what love felt like. How was he supposed to know if that was what he felt for her?

  He grabbed her face and put his thumbs under her chin, forcing it up. She closed her eyes as water ran down her head and face. He bent his head and covered her mouth with his. Her lips opened in surprise, and he slid his tongue inside. She tasted so good, so sweet, he could do this all night.

  Unfortunately, he’d promised her a night of just talking, no sex. He’d broken that promise once. He was determined to get through the next few hours without taking her again. He wanted her to trust him, so he needed to keep his word. At least from here on out.

  With reluctance, he broke the kiss and smiled down at her drenched face. “Let’s go for a walk.”

  Her eyes widened slightly, and she tilted her head back out of the stream of water. “A walk? Naked?”

  “Sure. Why not?”

  “It’s cold out. That’s why not.”

  Kaelen laughed and reached behind her to turn off the water. “I don’t feel the cold.”

  “I do.”

  He grabbed a towel hanging on the rack and wrapped it around her. “Why do you want to go for a walk?” she asked, obviously confused.

  “I’m trying to keep from fucking you again,” he admitted. “I could, you know. Right here. Right now.” Amy swallowed. “I’m trying to be good and talk like I promised you earlier.”

  “We could go for a walk,” she agreed. “If you think that will help.”

  “If I think it will help? What are you saying?” he teased. “That I may still attack you even if we go for a walk?”

  “It’s not just you that’s having a problem, Kaelen.”

  “Ah,” Kaelen said as he tightened the towel. “So you want me.”

  “I think that’s already been established,” she drawled drily, making Kaelen grin.

  “If you’re worried about the cold, we can stay here. I’ll start a fire, and we can talk some more. I promise to behave. If you want more, the ball is in your court. Deal?”

  She nodded, and he slid the shower door open. A cool blast of air made goose bumps rise along his flesh, but the cold didn’t really affect him. He glanced back at Amy and didn’t miss the way she shivered in the towel. She was cold, which was understandable considering how cold it was in the house. Big houses like this were incredibly hard to heat, even with modern units, and tonight had been particularly cooler than usual.

  Rushing to his room, he grabbed a flannel shirt he found in the closet for Amy and a pair of sweats for himself. Jason had brought him some clothes since they were both close to the same size.

  He threw on the sweats and stepped out of the closet just as Amy stepped from the bathroom. He handed the shirt to Amy, and she dropped the towel and pushed her arms into the sleeves, her lips trembling, and followed him out into the bedroom.

  Kaelen sat on the stone hearth in front of the fireplace and repositioned the wood in the grate. He checked to make sure the flue was open, then sat back, studying it.

  “Need a match?” Amy asked as she searched the mantle.

  “No. I think I remember how to do this.”

  “How to do what?”

  Amy stepped back and watched as Kaelen got on all fours and blew into the fireplace, just under the wood. A flame quickly roared to life, and Amy gasped, taking two more steps back.

  “How did you do that?”

  “It’s a trick my father taught me a long time ago. I haven’t done it in decades. I haven’t needed to, once lighters and matches were invented.”

  He sat back and admired the flame as the wood caught. The heat worked its way into the room, and Kaelen held his hand out, inviting her to join him on the hearth.

  “Come. Sit.”

  She wrapped the shirt tighter around her breasts and gingerly sat down, making sure the edges covered her legs to her satisfaction. He smiled softly, wondering why she even worried about it. He’d already seen her naked and most definitely loved how she looked. He reached out and gently touched her thigh, giving it a soft squeeze before bringing his hand back to his own lap.

  Talk. They needed to talk. Sex could wait. He needed to know for sure if she was his mate. He needed to know she wasn’t just a great fuck.

  She kept her gaze on the flames, her brow creased into a frown, her lips thin and tight. What was she thinking about? If he concentrated hard enough, could he hear her thoughts? He could certainly feel her tension, her confusion. Was she just as confused as he was?

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  “I’m a little sore,” she admitted.

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  She sighed and continued to stare at the fire. The flames reflected on her skin, giving her a golden glow. “I know it’s not, but to be honest, I’m not sure what to tell you.”

  “I can get into your head, Amy. Do you know what that means?”

  “Yes. Stacy told me.” She moved her gaze to his, and her eyes were filled with worry, uncertainty, and something else. His heart skipped a beat as he saw excitement, hope. “Is that the only way it would happen?”

  “Yes. And it doesn’t happen to all of us. Some vampires never find that. It’s rare.”

  “Normally, people fall in love and hopefully, over time, develop a similar connection. I think we’re backward. We have the connection. Now we’re trying to understand why.”

  “I think I know why. We’re just trying to determine if it’s right and worth it.”

  “Worth it?” she asked.

  “You would have to turn, Amy. Would a love strong enough to link us mentally be worth dying for?”

  Her lips twitched. “Dying as in becoming a vampire?”

  Kaelen nodded and watched her closely.

  “I think it would be,” she said softly.

  He reached out and touched her chin with the bend of his finger. He couldn’t help himself. If he was close to her, he had to touch her. Plain and simple. The wood made a loud popping sound, sending sparks onto the hearth. She squealed and slid her bottom back along the stones. Her hand flew to her leg, knocking off an ember that had landed on her thigh.

  Kaelen grasp
ed her leg and held her still. He leaned down and gently kissed it, slowly dragging his tongue over the growing red welt. It was a minor wound and easily controlled. The welt faded as he pulled his mouth away. Studying the fading spot, he rubbed his palm across it.

  “There…all better.”

  He looked up and found her watching him with a mixture of surprise and awe. “Thank you, but that kind of stuff isn’t exactly helping keep us from having sex.”

  He fought a smile as he let go of her leg and sat back. “Would you have rather I left it to swell and hurt?”

  “Well, no, but… Okay, fine,” she said, rolling her eyes adorably. “Thank you, Kaelen.”

  This time he did laugh. “You’re adorable when you’re rattled.”

  “When you’re around I seem to stay in a rattled state,” she grumbled. “What were we talking about?”

  His teasing grin turned all too serious. “A love worth dying for.”

  “Oh, yeah,” she said on a sigh.

  Kaelen could see the conflict in her eyes, feel it in his gut. She fought her attraction to him like a valiant warrior. Unfortunately, he was losing his battle. He could already feel a tightening in his shaft as he let his gaze wander down her legs to her bare feet. Her black-painted toenails made him smile before he let his eyes wander back up her legs to her glowing pink cheeks.

  This talking and getting to know each other was highly overrated. He wanted to have sex, damn it, and if the lust shining in her eyes was any indication, she did as well.

  “You’re killing me, woman,” he growled.

  Without a word, Amy leaned forward and put her hand at the back of his head, pulling him to her. Kaelen met her halfway, slanting his mouth over hers as her hand buried in his hair and held tight. Her kiss was almost frantic, wild and erotic. For a few seconds, he let her lead, let her be the one in charge.

  That didn’t last long.

  He broke the kiss and grasped a handful of the flannel shirt, tugging her over his lap. She yelped as her body fell forward onto his, and her hands landed against his chest to stop her fall forward. Letting go of her shirt, he grabbed her ass with both hands and lifted her over his thighs, settling her pussy against his growing shaft. He could feel her heat, and he growled against her neck before sucking softly at her flesh.