“I’m the womanizer? Me? When that asshole boyfriend of yours has been fucking his hot little band mate?”
“I really hate you right now.”
“You’d do well to hate him. And if you were smart, you’d confront him after the show and demand for him to come clean.”
“Based on your parents? Now there’s a logical reason for me to ruin what I have.” She took an angry sip of her wine.
Nicholas wished that he were mortal so he could belt back his favorite brand of whiskey and get rip-roaring drunk. But his stupid body wouldn’t tolerate anything but blood. “I’m still feeding from you tonight. You have to let me feed.”
“Only so I can get engaged to Keith.”
“Sure. Fine. Marry a cheater. What the fuck do I care?”
The lights went low and Scarlet Kitten came on stage. Randi strutted up to the microphone in her catnip clothes. Keith stood in the background with the rest of the band.
Once they started their set, other club goers got up to dance. Marie and Nicholas stared straight ahead. The music was original, tough and tangy, and Randi had a husky voice, as seductive as the rest of her. Later, during a song that required Keith to lean into the mic and harmonize with her, Nicholas glanced over at Marie and saw her troubled reaction.
Was she becoming aware of the disturbing vibe? To Nicholas, it was painfully obvious how the couple on stage was trying not to get too close and how when their shoulders accidentally brushed, they tensed and he moved quickly away.
Scarlett Kitten played for about an hour, but it seemed like forever.
During the break and before the next band came on, Marie drank another glass of wine. She’d had four so far. Nicholas was counting.
“I’m going to have to drive home,” he said. “You’re not going to be in any condition to get behind the wheel.”
“Can’t you just wave your hand and beam us back home?”
Actually, he could. He could place her car in the garage that way, too. “However we get home, you need to talk to Keith first.” He put his hand on her shoulder. “You felt it, too, didn’t you? What’s going on between them?”
“I felt what you insisted that I should feel.” Her voice turned quiet, fear and worry evident in her ragged tone. “You planted the seed, and now you’ve got me scared that it could be true.”
“I’m sorry. But I had to tell you.”
She got up, teetering on her feet. “I’m going backstage. I’m going to say something to him. But I hope to God that I’m not blowing the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
“By accusing him of something he didn’t do?” Nicholas stood, too. “He’s guilty, Marie. I know he is.” He escorted her to her destination and waited outside the dressing room door. “If you need me, I’ll be right here.”
Marie wanted to run as far away from this situation as possible. But she approached Keith instead, and when he smiled, she noticed that it seemed forced. Why hadn’t she been aware of it earlier? Because up until now, she’d trusted him?
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“What do you mean?”
“With you and Randi.”
He stared at her, like a cowboy caught in the headlights.
Her heart dropped to her stomach, the wine she’d consumed turning sour. “You’re sleeping with her, aren’t you?”
He moistened his lips, as if his mouth had gone unbearably dry. He fussed with a piece of lint on his shirt, too.
“Damn it, Keith. Answer me.”
The lint landed on the floor. “Yes, I’ve been sleeping with her.”
Marie squeezed the back of a chair. “For how long?”
He cleared his throat, stammering. “About two years. But it’s been on and off.” Another stammer. “Every time it ends, we vow to never do it again, but somehow we end up back where we started. It’s a vicious cycle and it’s making me sick.”
“It’s making you sick?” She felt positively nauseated.
“I thought it was over for good. Then last week she got in a fight with Paul. One thing led to another, and...”
Her nausea worsened. She envisioned Randi splayed across his lap, bouncing up and down, with her head tipped back, her phony-red hair flying. “How could you do this? And for two years?”
“We never meant to. It was an accident.”
“You just keep colliding into each other? Like Mac trucks?” That created another visual, only it was even louder and raunchier. Crash fucking.
“We wanted to tell you and Paul, so many times, but we couldn’t seem to find the words.”
She ignored his feeble excuses. “Do you sleep with her at your house? In the bed you sometimes share with me?”
He winced. “Yes.”
“Have you been with her at her house, too? In the bed she shares with Paul?”
He winced again. “Sometimes.”
She clutched her middle. And here I’ve been fantasizing about marrying you.”
“You have? Oh, God, baby, I’m so sorry. If you want to get married, we will.” He dropped down on bended knee. “Forgive me, Marie. Forgive me and marry me. I swear I’ll never be with her again.”
Stunned, she stood there like a statue. This was not the proposal she’d imagined. This was not how her wish was supposed to come to fruition.
He persisted. “Please. If we get married, I’ll be faithful.”
“The way Randi has been faithful to Paul? I need to go home.” Dizzy and confused, she backed away from him.
He got up off his knees. “I’ll go with you.”
“I’m leaving with Nicholas.”
Keith squinted. “Who is he? I mean, really. You show up with a guy who looks like a gigolo, and I’m supposed to feel badly about what I did? You’ve probably been fucking him.”
“No, you prick, I haven’t been. But I could if I wanted to. He’d be more than happy to handcuff me to my bed and give me the orgasm of my life.”
He stared at her as if she’d gone certifiable. And she probably had. She was shaking something fierce.
He said, “That’s disgusting, Marie. You’re disgusting.”
Her emotions roiled. How quickly he was making this out to be her fault.
Turning on her heel, she slammed out of the dressing room and straight into Nicholas’s waiting arms, where she burst into tears.
While she bawled against his broad shoulder, he rocked her back and forth. Then he waved his hand, sweeping her into a mystical blur and taking her home.
Nicholas placed Marie on her bed, determined to give her the tenderness she deserved. “Lie down and try to relax.”
“I need to get my pajamas on.”
“I can take care of that.” He used his magic, putting her in a soft and flowing nightgown, without even having to undress her.
“This is pretty.” She sniffed through her tears.
“Glad you like it.” He conjured a box of tissues and handed her one. “I’m sorry Keith hurt you.”
She dabbed at her runny nose. “He proposed tonight. Can you believe it? I got my wish, right after he admitted that he’d slept with Randi.” She relayed the details of the affair. “How could I have trusted him the way I did? Or believed that he was my best friend?”
He didn’t know what to say except for, “Humans are notorious for hurting each other.”
She frowned. “Then why do you want to become human again?”
“Because I was born a man and I want to die a man.”
“Love isn’t worth it. You should just be happy being a gen-vamp.”
“It’s tough to be happy when I gave you such a rotten wish.”
She heaved a life-sucks sigh. “You didn’t have any control over that.”
He noticed that her nose was running again. He handed her another tissue.
She gazed at him through red-rimmed eyes. “You would have been proud of me. The way I talked to Keith. I even told him that I could fuck you if I wanted to. That you would be more than happy to ha
ndcuff me to my bed and give me an orgasm.”
Nicholas’s cock jumped in his pants. “I shouldn’t have let you drink all that chardonnay.”
She shrugged through her sniffles. “You should have seen his expression.”
“I can imagine. And just so you know: you just gave me a boner.”
“I did?” She glanced down at his fly. “How big of one?”
“Huge. And quit encouraging it to get bigger. It’s painful enough.”
“Maybe we really should mess around.”
“Tonight? Like this? Are you serious? I’m not going to take advantage of you.”
“I don’t care. Besides, what’s wrong with rebound sex?”
“Nothing. If you were sober and weren’t blubbering like a baby.”
“I’m not blubbering anymore. Come on, restrain me and make me beg.”
“Don’t tempt me.” Not while his cock was straining like a viper. “You don’t know what the hell you’re saying.” Between the jilting and the wine, she was a mess. A beautiful mess. But still.
“My wish was a bust, but you still have to feed. So at least gorge on my blood. Take it until I pass out.”
“I’ll take only as much as I need.”
“Of all times for you to be a gentleman.”
No, shit. He’d just turned down his dream lay: fucking, gluttony, and handcuffs. Maybe even a blindfold for good measure. Cripes. What a fool he was, saying no to her. But he stuck to his guns and fed lightly.
While he drank, she moaned, getting high on the sensation.
The bracelet reappeared on her wrist, and she said, “You don’t have to make it disappear again. It doesn’t matter now that I’m not with Keith anymore. But I don’t want to talk about him.” She closed her eyes, then whispered, “Thank you, Nicholas.”
As to what she was thanking him for, he wasn’t sure. Telling her about Keith? Comforting her? Refusing to take advantage? Getting her stoned while he fed?
Whatever the case, he softly replied, “You’re welcome.”
She cuddled closer. “Maybe tomorrow you can chain me to the bed.”
He wrapped her in his arms. “Maybe, I can.”
Maybe. Absolutely. He would.
Chapter Six
Marie woke up feeling the fallout of Keith’s betrayal. He’d flushed five years of her life down the drain. But what complicated the fallout was waking up beside another man. There was Nicholas, surprisingly tender, insanely gorgeous Nicholas, with his arms tucked around her.
She peered over at him. He was awake, of course. Gen-vamps didn’t sleep.
Mortified, she told him, “I’m sorry I said those embarrassing things to you last night.”
He released her. Then he leaned on his elbow and replied, “You mean offering to let me chain you up? Nothing embarrassing about that.”
“Well, it is to me.” She felt foolish for being so bold.
“I guess that means I don’t stand a chance of taking advantage of you today.”
A darkly delicious sensation erupted in her nether region, and she squeezed her thighs together. “Are you saying that you want to?”
“If you’re not too hung over to handle it.”
Surprisingly, she didn’t have a hangover. But whether she could handle being restrained was another matter. “I’m not into bondage.”
“You sure about that?”
“I wasn’t myself last night.”
“I’m talking about right now.”
She did another thigh squeeze. Thank goodness she wasn’t naked underneath the nightgown Nicholas had created for her. She was wearing panties. Her underwear, not a pair he’d manifested.
“Just say the word, Marie, and I’ll chain you up as romantically as I can.”
God help her, her skin went warm. Then again, what woman wouldn’t react, especially after the man she’d been hoping to marry had made mincemeat out of her heart? “You’re going to make it romantic?”
“I’m going to try.”
“Why?”
“Because I think it’s what you need.”
Unsure of what she needed, she replied, “Can I see your stomach?”
He made a perplexed face. “What for?”
“I’m curious if you really have a hernia scar.”
He sat up. He was fully clothed, wearing the same attire as when he’d climbed into bed with her last night. He unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it aside.
Marie scanned his bared flesh. He had the abs of a god, rippling in male perfection.
He undid his jeans and pushed them down. Not far enough to see his penis, but enough to expose to the area that would have required surgery. He didn’t have a mark on him.
She stated the obvious. “You don’t have a scar.”
“It used to be right here.” He showed her the spot, drawing a line with his finger. “And when I become human again, it will probably reappear. I hope it does. I want to have a reminder of my past and my mortality.” He readjusted his pants. “Did you know that the woman my brother fell in love in with has scars all over one side of her face from being burned in a fire?”
“No, I didn’t know that.”
“Her wish was to be beautiful, but after the two weeks ended, her scars came back. Anthony couldn’t make her beautiful forever. But to him she is anyway.”
“Your brother sounds like an amazing guy. He was my favorite when I was a kid.”
“Your favorite what?”
“Gen-vamp.”
“Now who’s your favorite?”
“You know it’s you.”
“So what’s your decision? Are you going to let me restrain you?”
Was she? The idea excited her. But it scared her, too.
He skimmed his thumb along her cheek, giving her sexy goose bumps and prompting her to say, “If we become lovers, you have to promise that you won’t try to make me fall in love with you. I’m not the woman who’s going to make you mortal. I’m just a girl who needs to blow off some steam because her boyfriend cheated.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to imagine what falling in love with me will feel like?”
Marie smiled, but only half-heartedly. She knew better than to get attached. “I’m positive. It’s too soon for me get emotionally involved with anyone. And you’re not ready, either. In spite of how badly you want to be mortal, you can’t force yourself to find true love.”
“At least I get the importance of being faithful.”
“I’ll give you points for that.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “How stupid could I be? Convincing myself that what Keith and I had was genuine. I was blinded by how much I wanted a family. I still want kids someday, but I’m willing to wait for the right man. And if he never comes along, then I’ll accept that it isn’t in the cards for me.”
“Quit with the defeatist attitude. You’ll find the right guy someday.”
“Thank you. That was a nice thing to say.”
He leaned forward, preparing to kiss her. Marie had no will to stop him. She wanted to taste his mouth, to feel his tongue dance with hers. Passion flared, and he nudged her onto the bed. They kissed like their lives depended on it.
“Ready to be restrained?” he asked.
“Yes.” Afraid as she was, she longed to try something new, to explore her sexuality. Just days ago, she’d called this type of activity depraved, but with Nicholas at the helm, nothing about it seemed depraved. Nor was it disgusting, as Keith had implied.
“Then turn over and get on your hands and knees.”
“Should I get undressed first?”
“No. That will come later.”
With her pulse jumping and her pussy clenching, she got into the doggie-style position.
In the next instant, he transformed her room into an elegantly Gothic dungeon: heavy drapes on the windows, antique candelabras on the walls, decorative tapestries. The bed frame became a scrolled work of iron. But the boldest addition was a huge mirror—an ornate piece that looked as if had c
ome straight out of a castle. He placed it on the wall directly in front of the bed.
“So you can watch,” he said.
Already Marie could see herself, there on her hands and knees, with her make-up from last night smeared around her eyes and her hair in sleep-crazy disarray. “I look a fright.”
“You look beautiful,” he countered. “Wild and vulnerable.”
“I’m scared.”
“I won’t hurt you.”
She gazed at his reflection. Obviously gen-vamps could be seen in mirrors. By now, he was standing beside the bed, dangling a pair of heart-shaped handcuffs. Was that what he’d meant by romantic?
He came forward and cuffed her wrists to the iron posts on the bed frame. “Does that feel okay?”
It felt completely foreign. Never in a million years had she imagined herself like this. But at least the cuffs were padded. “It’s fine.”
“I can make them tighter.”
“No. It’s fine.”
“I think they should be tighter.” He ratcheted up the tension. “That’s better.”
She rattled her bonds, just to hear them clank. She was ridiculously excited and insanely nervous. It was like losing her virginity all over again, only in a dangerously erotic way.
He said, “Spread your knee stance. Make it wider.”
She did as instructed, holding her breath, waiting.
Nicholas waved his hand and made her nightgown disappear. But how long it would take him to remove her panties was anybody’s guess. He sat on the edge of the bed. His eyes were vampire green, but she knew he wasn’t going to feed. He’d changed them for effect.
“Describe yourself to me,” he said.
“But you can see me.”
Just do it.” He spoke gently yet dominantly, creating a whirlwind of emotion.
“I already told you I look a fright.”
“Wrong description. Say something like that again and I’ll leave sweet little marks on your ass.” A wooden paddle, riddled with raised hearts, appeared in his hand.
She jerked from genuine fear. “You said that you weren’t going to hurt me.”
“And I won’t.” He tapped it lightly against one of his palms. “As long as you obey.”
The Vampire Bracelet: Erotic Paranormal Romance ( # 2: Blood Genies series) Page 4