Vampire Mage: A Clutch Mistress Book

by Janelle Peel

  Quickly washing up, he stood under the spray of warm water. The thought of her nude form on the other side of the wall made him become enlarged again.

  With a heavy sigh, he stepped out and toweled off aggressively. He needed her, wanted her, like he’d never wanted anything in all the 997 years of his second life... Just the thought of her blood caused his engorged member to bob in approval. His fangs snicked down, aching to mark her as his and smother her in his scent.

  Talking down his raging hormones, he dressed. Picking up his Android, he texted Jackson.

  ‘I’m ready for your report, in the suite beside my normal accommodations.’

  The phone pinged.

  ‘On my way.’

  He paced while he waited. Even though she was right next door, he was restless and agitated. His need to mark her as his was slowly driving him insane.

  A knock sounded at the door. Finally, he thought, and barked a quick, “Enter!”

  Jackson strolled in with his chin tucked and his eyes on the floor.

  Noting his submissive behavior, Blaze stopped and tried to temper his tone, “Report.” He tacked on, “Please.”

  Rolling his shoulders back to his normal posture, Jackson met his eyes. “Three Shifters tested the ward last night; Bear, Dingo, and Wolf. I believe the Wolf was Mel. Mason reported a large brown Wolf with a bald left foreleg.”

  Blaze began pacing again.

  Jackson took a breath and continued, “The same Wolf has been scented once since sundown.” He braced himself, seeming to expect a blow.

  Sighing, Blaze tried to pull his power back in. He was probably smothering his own brother with his aggression. “Apologies Jackson, I’m a bit out of my depth with Sora. Keeping a level head is harder than I’d previously imagined.”

  Jackson relaxed and snorted, “Trouble in paradise already?”

  Blaze chuckled, “Not quite. I just don’t want to do anything she might come to regret. She’s almost a Fledgling in our world.” Staring at the ceiling, he sighed, “It’s becoming increasingly difficult to control my instincts. She is here,” he placed his large hand on the wall, “but she is not here.” He moved his hand and tapped his chest.

  Jackson nodded, “The mating instinct is driving you mad, yes?”

  “God, yes,” he groaned. “I can still scent her on my skin, feel her in my blood,” he rubbed his sternum for emphasis.

  “That seems faster than normal, right? I mean, your reaction at the pool was similar to a new pairing.” He sat in the plush wingback that accompanied every room in the house, leaving Blaze standing. “You didn’t mark her yet, did you?”

  Logically, he knew his brother seated himself so he wouldn’t appear as a threat. However, instinct took over and he still growled a warning. Mine! His mind screeched. Clearing his throat, he bit out, “Not yet.” Baring his teeth, he loomed over Jackson threateningly.

  Dropping his eyes once more to the floor, Jackson replied in pleading voice, “Focus, please Blaze. I am not your enemy. We very well may have a war coming with the Shifters.”

  Blaze continued to pace a circuit around the room. After a few moments, he replied, “I’m trying, Jackson. My control is very limited.” Rubbing a hand over his face, he continued, “Please keep all the males in the west wing.” He sat heavily on the bed, “I don’t want to hurt anyone regardless of the outcome with Sora. If you could send the two Mated females out, it would be better. Perhaps she could make a friend or two to help her through the transition.” Laying back on the mattress, he locked his hands behind his head and glanced at Jackson. “I am truly sorry. Hopefully this will be resolved soon. Can I count on you, to handle whatever comes from the Shifters?”

  Jackson met his gaze, “Always brother. Always. I am happy for you.” His voice took on a dreamy tone, “Maybe one day, I’ll know how it feels.”

  Blaze sat up and padded over on silent feet. Dropping to his knees before Jackson, he knelt like a giant child. His face was resolute as he swore, “You will. We will not stop searching, I swear it.” Blaze knew Jackson was a millennium this year. He refused to lose his brother to the madness that takes hold after walking the Earth for so long without a Mate.

  With a far-off smile, Jackson slapped Blaze on the shoulder. “Hope brother, that’s all we have in this world.”

  Blaze knelt with his brother’s words echoing in his ears long after he departed.

  Sora

  A loud knock startled me.

  Crap, I’d nodded off in the tub. The water was cold as I lifted a pruned hand and looked out through the open door to the bedroom.

  “Yes?” My voice raised in question.

  The handle turned and Blaze poked his head in. “Sora?” he said, looking to the bed.

  “Just a minute!” I yelled, sloshing water over the edge of the tub as I knelt, holding my breasts with one arm while extending the other as far as possible to shut the bathroom door. Flipping the drain with the ball of my foot, I stood and grabbed a grey terry cloth towel. Wrapping it around myself twice, I slipped my way to the door on the travertine floor and opened it. “Yes?”

  He gawked, “Hey. Um, I didn’t hear from you. I was a little worried.”

  Rubbing the sleep my eyes, I yawned. “Sorry, I dozed off in the tub. Give me a minute.”

  “Sure,” he uttered as I closed the door.

  Crap, I threw my hands up, tugging on my wet hair. The man that I had practically taken advantage of was here. In. My. Room. Er, his room. “Dammit,” I muttered to myself, throwing clothes out of my tiny bag. A black thong and leggings followed my wrinkled holy hot pink tunic style ACDC shirt onto the floor. Grabbing my slightly damp black bra that matched my panties, I quickly dressed. Finger combing my hair, I opened the door.

  “Hey,” I called, “um, what’s up?”

  Sitting on the wingback chair, he sighed.

  After his hesitation, I zipped to the bed attentively. Reaching out, I took his large hand into my smaller one, “What’s wrong?”

  He smiled down at my worried expression. “You’re embracing your Vampiric side, and well, honestly, I am having difficulty controlling myself as a result.”

  My brows made a v on my forehead, “How so?”

  Tightening the grip of his hand on my own, he lifted his brows. “Can we start where we left off earlier? There’s still much you need to learn. We haven’t even practiced your magic today.”

  Apprehension marked my face as I pulled my hand from his and sat on the bed. “Okay. Fire away.”

  Resting his head on the chair back, he once again adopted his lecturing tone. “We’ve covered a portion of my Menagerie, but not all. I took in multiple members of the Felidae Family when Mel turned them out; 27 actually.” He paused and specified, “Feline Shifters. They handle much of our security, and work closely with our Protectors. Now that brings me to the Protectors,” he said, holding up a finger to my questioning look. “They are comprised entirely of my Menagerie. Humans that have increased physical attributes, strength, speed, agility, and longer life spans. They regularly drink small donated amounts of our blood to gain and keep those attributes. Protectors and Feline Shifters work and train together with a military like efficiency; they even have their own barracks and training grounds.”

  I nodded, trying to digest all the information. “What kinds of Cats?”

  “Puma, Cheetah, Lynx, Tiger, Leopard, Lion; pretty much all of the big cats.”

  “I didn’t know so many breeds existed as Shifters.” I said, waving my hand in a ‘continue’ motion.

  “We also have a Mage; however, she is currently abroad at the moment.”

  I shook my head, “That sucks.”

  He chuckled, “Yes, it does.” He paused and his face sobered, “That brings me back to you. Dhampirs are only known as myths to our kind, rumored to possess all our strengths, and none of our weaknesses. Add in your Mage heritage and the dose of venom you received,” he inhaled sharply, “I don’t really know the extent of your pow
ers. For instance, do you know why I threw us into the pool?”

  Cheeks heating, I muttered, “No.”

  He placed an ankle on the opposite knee and stared at the ceiling. “It refers to the bloodlust we discussed earlier, the first feed is always the hardest. You couldn’t have truly hurt me, but I didn’t want to traumatize you either. The pool was a simple solution.”

  He met my eyes again, need and want clear in their sapphire depths. “I want you to embrace the life you have now, without any regrets. The bloodlust is strong, as I said before, but you’re already bouncing back.” He smiled, “It’s astonishing, really.”

  “Um, thanks?” I laughed lightly. What was I supposed to say to that? “Wait, I have a question,” I tipped my head, “Where are the female Vampires? I’ve only seen guys so far.”

  “That is our final subject. We have only two. Female Vampires are incredibly rare. Most women don’t survive being turned, we don’t know why. They are highly sought after and coveted by the opposing sex. To find your Mate…” he rubbed his face in thought, “is almost impossible. Most go mad as they age past a millennium, which is what I believe happened in Seattle.”

  “Goddess, that sucks too.” I couldn’t imagine being alone for that long. “One final question, how old are you?”

  Blaze stood and paced as I shifted to the edge of the bed in anticipation.

  Meeting my eyes from across the room, he said, “I’m in the 997th year of my second life. Jackson is in his 999th.”

  The words seemed to echo in my mind. 997 and 999? Goddess, that was an eternity. After a few moments, I replied calmly, “So you’ve never met your Mate?”

  He evaded, “I have never taken a Mate.”

  I let out the breath I didn’t even realize I was holding, relieved at his answer.

  Mine…

  He turned toward the door, “This must be a lot to take in, would you like to be alone?”

  “No!” My abrupt shout startled us both. My mind rebelled at the thought of being alone. “Um, could you take me to meet them, the females?”

  His smile lit, “Yes.” He pulled out his phone and sent a text. “I’ve asked them to meet us in the rec room.”

  His phone pinged, “Let’s go.”

  Before I knew it, we’d arrived. I was getting faster, I thought with a smile.

  Blaze went behind the bar and grabbed a bottle of whiskey, tilting the label toward me, he asked, “Drink?”

  “Sure.”

  He grabbed two glasses and poured while I waited awkwardly. What if they didn’t like me? I was already some weird unicorn hybrid.

  Sighing, I sat on the spinning leather barstool. Funny, I sat on a similar one the night we technically met. Goddess, I was shitfaced that night, I wondered if my tolerance had changed.

  “So,” I nodded toward the rocks glass, “can I still get drunk?”

  He chuckled, “Of course, you are still at least half human. It would take me closer to two or three fifths, maybe half that for you. The buzz doesn’t last long, but take it slow, just in case.” He winked.

  I giggled nervously and downed the entire glass. Damn, that was good.

  Shaking his head at my reaction, he turned it into a nod as he looked behind me, “Sora, meet Allie and Sasha.”

  I rotated back around and got my first look at the females of my other half.

  Beautiful.

  One had eyes the color of a lagoon, a pert nose, Irish skin and full pouty, pink lips. Red hair tumbled around her shoulders in a riot of waves. Her green corset revealed cleavage I could only dream of, and trimmed her waist into to a perfect hourglass figure. The swell of her hips fit nicely in her cropped faded blue jean shorts. She had the nicest legs I had ever seen and apparently preferred to be barefoot.

  The other was just as beautiful as the first. Her skin was a flawless mocha. High cheekbones and sky-blue eyes made her look like an Amazonian warrior. The mostly shaved curly black hair on her head just enhanced her full lips. She was dressed like red, but her corset was black with blue trim. She towered over her polar opposite by at least six inches. Also, sans shoes, her toes were painted silver.

  “Hello,” I said with a blush.

  “Allie.” Red raised a hand and wiggled her fingers. She gestured to her left, “Sasha.”

  I tipped my empty glass, “Sora.”

  Allie approached first, her feet silent on the black carpet. “What ya pouring, ‘Master’ Blaze?” she said jokingly.

  “The usual, whiskey,” he replied with a smirk.

  Sasha zipped behind the bar. “That shit is disgusting. Vodka is the only way to go.” She grabbed a bottle of Grey Goose from the shelf and two glasses.

  Blaze shook his head and rolled his eyes.

  I grinned at their banter, feeling more at ease.

  “Alright, Blaze. Pour our girl another, then off with you.” Allie made a shooing motion with her hands. “We have girl things to discuss and don’t need you stinking up the place with all your,” she paused, waving her hand at his massive frame, “masculinity.”

  Blaze chuckled and met my eyes questioningly.

  I nodded. This was kind of fun.

  “Alright ladies, I’ll leave you to it. Sora, if you need me just text, ok?” he said, tapping his phone.

  I touched my shoulder where I’d put my brick of a phone underneath my bra strap since I didn’t have pockets. “Will do,” I replied, patting it.

  “Blaze!” Sasha shouted in mock outrage, “She’s been here for a couple days and you haven’t gotten her a decent phone?” She snapped her long fingers and snickered with a grin, “Better get to it.”

  He saluted and was gone before I could reply.

  “It’s not so bad,” I said placing my brick on the bar with a loud thud.

  We all laughed at the sound.

  “Okay, okay, it is.” I giggled.

  Sasha topped off their glasses and came around to sit on my other side at the bar. “When I first got here and met him, that was the first thing he did for me. Kind of sweet and insulting at the same time.” She smirked in remembrance.

  Allie sighed, “Me too. He’s a good guy, though.”

  I nodded. “He has his moments. Although the mood swings drive me a little crazy.”

  Allie and Sasha exchanged a knowing look. After a nod from Sasha, Allie became serious and asked, “What has he told you so far?”

  I shrugged, “A lot. It’s kind of hard to digest.”

  She looked at me imploringly, “Do you have any questions?”

  “Yes, quite a few actually.” I sipped my whiskey and addressed them both, “Is he really that old?”

  Sasha nodded with a sad look and added, “Yes. He needs to find a Mate soon. There’s just too few of us.”

  Allie looked at me somberly in agreement. “That brings me to my next bit of business.” Her lips lifted, “He has it bad for you.”

  My cheeks reddened.

  “Hell yes he does.” Sasha pinched my cheek and smiled, “What’s not to like? Gorgeous eyes,” she waved a hand at my chest, “rocking body; and hair to die for. I’m sure you’ve realized by now that silver is his favorite color,” she tugged my hair and pointed to the wallpaper.

  I rolled my eyes, there was a lot of silver and grey everywhere in the house.

  “I don’t know guys,” I mumbled. “I only just met him. I don’t even know how I feel about everything.”

  “We didn’t know at first either,” Allie said, tilting her head in thought. “It started for Von and I with an instant attraction.”

  I interrupted, nearly choking on my drink, “The Tracker Von?”

  She nodded, “Yup, the big dope is my Mate.” A fond smile lit her face and she continued in a dreamy voice, “I love him a lot, though. Plus, with the instinct, he was really hard to resist.”

  “Instinct?” I queried.

  Sasha lifter her arms and curled the fingers of both hands to her chest as she answered, “It’s like your whole body goes a little cr
azy with this need.”

  “Mine,” they whispered in unison.

  I froze. Mine, the voice whispered again.

  At my stillness, they both bobbed their heads.

  “Yup, that’s the one,” Allie replied, reading my face like a book.

  “Does it go away?” I asked in a small voice.

  Sasha patted my shoulder, “Not that I’ve ever seen or heard about.”

  I thumped my head on the bar and spoke to the polished oak, “What if he doesn’t feel the same?”

  Allie rubbed circles on the small of my back. “He does. We could feel the roll of his power before we even entered the room. Plus, he ordered all males to stay in the west wing until you’re settled; we both instantly knew something was going down. The males of our kind get a little overprotective.” She paused and lowered her voice, “He doesn’t want to have any issues.”

  “Issues?” I asked, my nose still pressed to the cold wood.

  “Yeah,” Sasha sighed. “Fights break out when another male even looks at his Mate, if they aren’t properly paired yet.”

  “Paired,” I parroted.

  “Joined. When two Mates come together mutually, they you know, bow chicka bow wow.” Allie laughed at her own joke.

  Sasha shushed her and stood, “Behave Allie. This is a lot to take in for her.” I could hear her steps as she padded back behind the bar and continued, “There’s some chemical in their seed, it permanently marks the couple with each other's scent during completion.”

  I sat up and addressed her, “So, if we had sex it’d happen?”

  “No,” she shook her head. “It’s a multi leveled thing. There’s a blood exchange and the physical completion of sex, during her orgasm she triggers his. Only then can it happen.”

  Allie shoulder bumped me and lifted a red brow, “So… I assume those are your silver flats I fished out of the pool earlier?”

  I gawked for a moment, then giant peals of laughter were rolling out of me. I snorted, causing the girls to join in. Tears rolled down my face. Goddess, it felt nice.

  The mood lightened considerably after that. We played a couple games of pool and continued to drink. It was fun. I hadn’t had true girlfriends in ages.