He traced his fingertips over them again, struggling against his desire to pull her into his arms and sink his fangs into her neck. Her heart thundered in his mind. The smell of her blood permeated the air and his senses, pushing him to go through with it. He breathed slowly and deeply, trying to rein himself in and change back, trying to force his fangs away and the urge for her blood to the back of his mind.
Shannon placed her hand over his, holding it to her neck, and his eyes darted to hers.
They were honest, open, but he still couldn’t believe her when she spoke.
“You can... if you want to, Rafe.”
****
Chapter 7
“I will be fine.” Rafe slipped his hand out from under hers and Shannon knew he was lying again. He wanted to bite her, and deep inside, far beyond her fear, she wanted it too.
It frightened her, stirring a whirlwind of anxiety in her stomach, but there was so much ardent desire in Rafe’s eyes, and so much care and affection in his touch, that she found herself wondering what it would feel like if he bit her. She knew in her heart that he would be as gentle as possible with her, would try not to hurt her even when that would be impossible, and that he would find a way to make it pleasurable. He had proven himself a gentleman and had always taken care of her. She trusted him. The hunger in his eyes said that her trust and his love for her were part of the reason he had refused. He didn’t want to scare her or make her hate him.
She wouldn’t feel either of those emotions if he went through with it. Just the thought of it happening thrilled her and knowing how special it would be to Rafe, how much pleasure he would take from it, added to her desire to go through with it.
She nodded and didn’t press or question him, even when she wanted to. Would it make a difference if she told him that she wanted it? Would he see that she was strong enough to handle that side of him, and that she knew he wouldn’t hurt her? If he bit her, it would feel different to how it had when the vampire had attacked her. It was Rafe after all. It would be his arms that held her, and they would do so with care. It would be his body against hers, and she would thrill because of it. It would be his fangs in her throat, and he would make it blissful.
She wasn’t afraid of him biting her.
There was another reason why she wanted him to go through with it too. She wanted to move on, and Rafe could help her do just that. If he bit her, maybe she would finally get over what had happened to her all those years ago.
Shannon held out his black bathrobe to him. He seemed relieved to see it.
“It’s not as though I was going to keep it,” she said to fill the silence.
“It is not that. I had forgotten you had it and I was half expecting you to give me a pink bathrobe.” He smiled and her heart fluttered. He was so handsome even when he wasn’t trying. He took the robe from her and dabbed the side of his head with it.
A drop of blood slid down his neck. Had she reopened the cuts? She had tried to be gentle when cleaning his hair and then drying the wounds. Had she not been gentle enough?
Shannon reached up, caught the drop of blood on her fingertip, and followed it upwards, wiping it away. She stared at the crimson liquid on her fingers. Their blood looked the same but it was so different. The agency had shown her in one of the science labs when she had questioned them about it. Vampire blood needed human blood to regenerate itself. Without human blood, vampires grew weak. They could even die if they didn’t feed for months. She didn’t want Rafe to grow weak.
Rafe caught her wrist, brought her hand up to his face, and licked the blood off her fingers. She stared at his mouth and the tips of his canines between his lips. She had expected the sight of him tasting blood to be revolting but it didn’t bother her in the slightest.
“That won’t help you,” she said, distant in her ears as she looked at his mouth and her fingers still beside it. Shannon’s heart beat harder, drumming in her chest. She held her breath and pushed her fingers forwards, past his lips, catching her index one on the tip of his left fang. He pulled away, both horror and desire in his eyes, and she flinched when his fang sliced her finger open.
“Damn it, Shannon.” Rafe held her wrist and frowned at her, and then his nostrils flared. His pale blue gaze shot straight to her finger. A bead of blood blossomed from the ragged cut. His voice dropped to a bare whisper. “Damn it.”
He swallowed hard.
His hand shook against her arm.
Shannon took a steadying breath and offered her finger to him. “Take it.”
It seemed he didn’t need much convincing when her blood was already on display. He seized her waist in a tight grip, dragged her against his hard body, and sucked her finger onto his mouth. His eyes closed and he frowned, breathing out hard through his nose as he suckled her finger. She stared at his mouth, so focused on it and the way his tongue lapped at her finger, that she didn’t notice him open his eyes, or the way his gaze fixed on her throat.
He growled.
She stilled.
Her eyes darted to his.
His stayed on her neck.
A split second later, he was across the other side of the bathroom, leaning into the wall near the shower cubicle as though he needed to place more distance between them and was going to do so by somehow melting through the white tiles and into the next room.
“I am sorry.”
Shannon might have been more convinced if he hadn’t been staring at her throat with so much hunger and desire in his eyes.
“I’m not,” she said and his eyes finally came back to hers. They widened, his expression asking her if she had gone insane. “I’m not sorry. It was my choice. It’s all my choice, Rafe.”
She held her hand out to him.
“Maybe we should dress and go downstairs where it is warmer.” Rafe tugged the black bathrobe on and fastened it.
Shannon sighed and put her white one on. She dabbed her finger on the bloodied towel and caught Rafe staring at her hand. He wanted it. She wasn’t blind or stupid. He could deny it all he wanted, but she knew that deep inside him, he was battling his desire to taste her blood. She was stronger than he gave her credit for. He wouldn’t break her if he followed her lead. She could handle him, every aspect of him, and she was going to prove that.
She would go downstairs, but she wasn’t going to give up. She wanted him, and she was going to have him. Now that she had opened the barrier, had overcome her fear and the voice inside her that said she could never love a vampire, she felt strong and courageous, and she felt tired of waiting. She had waited a long time to kiss Rafe, to finally let herself go and to embrace her feelings instead of running from them. She wasn’t going to wait anymore. She had thought that he would give her what she had wanted in the shower, that he would give in to the passion that so often showed in his eyes, but her momentary fear and the words that had left her lips had stopped him for some reason. She remembered that he was over one hundred years old, born in a time of propriety. He had been a gentleman to her since she had met him and had abided by what she had said in the shower, at least until she had started touching him. If she told him that she wanted him, needed him, and touched him again, would he make love with her then? If she made the first move, would he follow her lead?
Shannon walked out of the bathroom and downstairs to the living room. She stopped in the middle of the room and ran her gaze over the Christmas tree in the corner near the closed curtains. The baubles and decorations were her family’s ones. They glittered in the warm light of the fake fire to the right of the tree. She had kept them along with all their other possessions. Most of them were in storage, but she had gone there this year and retrieved all of the Christmas things that she could find.
Rafe stepped up behind her and put his hands on her waist. She leaned back into him, settling against his firm chest, and sighed. How did he give her so much comfort by only being close to her? She placed her hands over his and shifted them, bringing them to settle on her stomach and holdi
ng them there. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She stared at the tree, remembering the good things in her past and pushing away the bad. It was right to move on and start to live again. She’d had her vengeance and Rafe was right. It didn’t make her a monster that she had felt good after she had killed the vampire. It was natural to feel that way.
She turned in Rafe’s arms and looped hers around his neck. The cuts on the side of his head weren’t bleeding anymore. She stroked the short hair at the back of his head and looked deep into his dark eyes.
It was natural for her to love him.
No other man had ever chased her the way he had, had ever persevered when she had pushed them away, or had ever fought to better themselves so they could protect her.
Shannon kissed him for that reason, for protecting her over the past two years and for not giving up on her. His grip on her tightened and he tilted his head, deepening the kiss. Her tongue tangled with his, unafraid of the coolness of it in her mouth. He groaned and leaned into her, until she had to arch her back to remain standing. She traced her tongue over his teeth, teasing his dull canines, aware of how dangerous it was to do such a thing but unable to resist the thrill of it. His groan became a growl and he swept her up into his arms, still kissing the breath from her.
She smiled when he pulled back and then kneeled down on the rug in front of the fireplace. The fake flames flickered in the grate, emanating warmth that chased the chill from her body. She held his gaze as he laid her down on the plush rug and leaned over her, planting his hands either side of her head.
He kissed her again, his mouth rough against hers, stirring her passion and the heat inside her until she was burning to feel his body on hers. She smiled against his lips when he tugged on the tie of her bathrobe and swept it open, and she sighed into his mouth when he caressed her stomach. It tickled when he reached her side and she giggled.
Rafe drew back again.
Shannon stared up into his dark eyes, the passion and desire in them echoing through her. She teased the black strands of his hair, twirling them around her fingers, and then ran her hand over his cheek to his jaw. He closed his eyes when she scraped her short nails down his neck and he growled. The low feral sound sent a sweep of tingles dashing over her skin. She licked her lips to wet them and slipped her hand into his robe, and then her other joined it, pushing the item of clothing down his back. She wanted to see his body again. She needed to feel the coolness of it against hers, quenching the burning within her.
Taut muscles toned to perfection greeted her eyes as he supported his weight on his hands. She smiled and her gaze followed her fingers as they wandered over his body, taking all of him in. She had imagined him naked once or twice, or maybe a dozen times and more, but the fantasy didn’t compare with the reality. He was gorgeous. She eased her hands down further and unfastened his belt. Her hungry gaze dropped to his groin. Every inch of him was gorgeous.
He shuddered when she ran her hand down the cool length of his erection. His lips parted to reveal the tips of his canines. He had changed again. If he opened his eyes, they would be icy but not cold. They were never cold when he looked at her.
She stroked his cock, teasing him, loving the way he trembled and moaned whenever her fingertips caressed his balls or swept across the sensitive head, his breathing turning heavy. He lowered his head, so it hung forwards, and his cool breath washed over her left breast.
Shannon gasped when he dipped his head, swirled his tongue around her nipple, and then sucked it into his mouth. She curved into him and curled her fingers around his length. He moaned against her breast when she pumped him and he thrust through the ring of her fingers. The strength of his thrusts thrilled her and she quaked as she imagined how it would feel to have him do that inside her. She wanted it.
Rafe caressed her side and then her stomach. Her breathing hitched with anticipation as he circled her belly button, still suckling her nipple, and she wriggled her hips, hoping to encourage him to go where she needed him most. He thrust his cock into her hand again, slid his fingers over her warm folds and then dipped them inside, teasing her aroused clit. She tipped her head back into the rug and moaned her approval at the fire. The flickering golden flames blurred as she focused on the smooth slide of Rafe’s cock through her fingers and the determined tempo of his fingertips over her clit.
When he slid a lone finger down to the opening of her core and slipped it inside, she bit her lip and struggled not to climax. She didn’t want to come yet. She wanted to wait, wanted this to go on forever, and for her climax to be with Rafe inside her. She wriggled at the thought and rode Rafe’s finger as he plunged it into her warm wet core, driving her out of her mind.
“Rafe,” she whispered, urgent and hungry, desperate to get him to take this further.
He pulled away from her breast and kissed across to her other one, lavishing it with licks and swirls of his tongue. She lost her grip on his cock and held on to his head instead, keeping him against her breast. He slowed his fingers inside her to a stop and then kissed up to her mouth. She devoured his the moment he reached her, so hungry that she didn’t care if he laughed at her desperation. Their teeth clashed and she realised he had retracted his canines again.
Every inch of her hummed as he slid his finger free of her body, eased her knees apart, and moved between them, kneeling there. He pulled his bathrobe off and tossed it onto the floor.
Shannon’s gaze greedily drank in the sight of him naked and hard before her. He was beautiful, every muscle toned and pronounced, speaking of strength that she had witnessed firsthand during their missions and now wanted to feel him use on her. Her gaze roamed down his body, following the lines of his abdomen to his navel. From there, it tracked the dark line of hair that led downwards. Her groin throbbed and her stomach ached at the sight of his rigid cock among the black curls. She held her hands out to him, trying to make him come to her. He smiled, handsome and wicked, his sensual mouth bowing in a way that stirred the heat inside her back into an inferno. She pleaded him with her eyes and he leaned over her, nestling his cock against her warm mound. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he settled his at her sides, resting on his elbows. He thrust against her, his erection rubbing her clit, and she moaned. It wasn’t enough.
She ran her fingers down over his chest and stomach, and then turned her hand when she reached his navel and took hold of his hard cock. He shifted back and she raised her hips, guiding him to her. He closed his eyes as he eased inside, inch by delicious inch, stretching her body with his. She kept her eyes fixed on his face, waiting for him to come out again, and smiled when his hips met hers and he looked into her eyes.
Shannon stroked his shoulder, his neck, and then his cheek, holding his gaze and letting him see that this was what she wanted. She had wanted it for so long now but she had denied her feelings even though she had known they were real. She loved him, and it didn’t matter that he was a vampire. He was Rafe to her—a beautiful man with a beautiful heart who had risked his life to protect her, who had shown her real love and had helped her heal.
His lips captured hers and he kissed her softly and slowly as he thrust his body into hers. It felt like more than just a joining of their bodies as they moved against each other. It felt like a joining of their hearts too, a union that sent hazy bliss coursing through her and made her feel as though she was floating. She moaned into his mouth, echoing his groans, and lost herself in the emotions filling every part of her. Warmth chased over her skin, shivers and tingles that followed the ebb and flow of Rafe. She had never felt this way before, not in all the times she had been with a man. It was different with Rafe. It ran deeper, a feeling of connection flooding her until she was no longer sure what part of this moment was purely her. Was it the same for him? His soft moans against her lips, the tender tangling of his tongue with hers and his tight grip on her shoulders, said that he was there with her, lost in the depth of their feelings and this moment. They were in this togethe
r. There was no going back now.
Rafe’s mouth left hers and she tilted her head to one side as he kissed her jaw, murmuring sweet things that made her smile. The warmth of the fire and the heat of their slow lovemaking washed over her, turning her damp skin tacky. His chest stuck to hers as he thrust into her, deep and possessive, his hands clasping her shoulders. He kissed her jaw and down her neck, and she wasn’t afraid that he was touching her there. She trusted him. She wanted him to be there, to do as she had offered.
Her eyes rolled closed when he sucked her neck. Pleasure rippled outwards from the point where his mouth was on her and she held his shoulder and the back of his head, burying her fingers into his hair and keeping him against her throat.
“I want you,” Rafe murmured softly against her skin, his thrusts slowing, long strokes that made her quiver and took her higher until she was floating again.
Shannon knew what he was asking and moaned her response. In this moment, there was no fear of the consequences. She trusted him with all of her heart, with all of her. She tilted her chin up to show him that he could bite her if he wanted to. He kissed her throat again and she felt his hesitation. She moved her hips against his, tearing a husky groan from his throat, and swept the hand on his shoulder down to his backside. She pressed against it each time he thrust into her, trying to speed him up, and he took the hint. His cock plunged into her, faster now, and she moaned each time their hips met.
He kissed her throat again. “Want you.”
“Want you too.”
It seemed to be all the encouragement he needed. The moment the last word left her lips, he gently sank his fangs into her throat. She flinched with the sting of pain that radiated outwards, fighting the momentary spark of fear that raced through her, and then forced herself to relax as he removed his fangs and started to drink from her. Intense heat emanated from the puncture marks, throbbing through her each time he sucked, and it combined with the inferno coiling in her stomach. Her body tightened and she moaned, thrusting against him, seeking the climax that felt just out of reach.
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