by Suzy Shearer
“Does that make her harder to kill?” Julie asked fearfully.
“No, we still use the same tactics as a master but now we know exactly what we are up against. Still they are often more aggressive than the males, especially now when in heat.”
“What happens when they have a baby? I mean, Tomas told me how your children can live in the sunlight. What happens with theirs?” Julie asked.
“They are born as they will always be. Unable to go into the sunlight and needing blood. A strigoaică is pregnant for only a few months. Their mother will tend to them for the first six to eight years but after that they are on their own. They mature much faster than we or mortals do. By the time they are old enough to be left they are fully grown.’’
Julie shivered, thinking of the horror she had seen having a child.
Martin looked over. “The good thing is they are very easy to destroy when young. They have no fighting skills and no idea how to survive. Many actually starve because their mother didn’t teach them how to feed properly.”
“It was bad enough to know there are vampires but knowing they breed seems to make them even worse.” Avril grimaced.
“I know what you mean, Avril,” Michael agreed with her. “By the way, I have to repeat, unless Martin is with you, you stay here at night where Louisa can watch over you both.”
Avril didn’t need a second suggestion, and she nodded her agreement. Michael continued.
“Despite Tomas’s anger, your idea with the spray bottle was rather clever.”
Tomas glared at Michael as he went on. “It was foolish not to speak to us about it. If you had a premonition you should have let us know and we would have ensured one of us was here. Still we could have refined your idea and told you how to keep yourself safe. You know there may be a way of using it so those people who we identify as potential ‘Ones’ could have some safe guard.”
Avril nodded her head. “I’m terrified when the sun goes down. If there were any way of giving myself some security, I would jump at it. I was going to look for a dog, like Julie did, until Martin was assigned here.”
“I’ll let the Council know and see what ideas they can come up with. Maybe some sort of sprinkler system that you could activate inside the house, or that only activated if the door was unlocked at night.”
“Actually that sounds like a good idea. I now know I was stupid not to mention my plan but the thought that these things can take away my nights is so frustrating. Before I knew about them, I would go outside. I would camp in the mountains. Now I’m frightened to open the door once the sun has set.”
Tomas hugged her tight to him. He was still disconcerted by his own actions as well as Julie’s.
“Well, no more attacking strigoi unless we are with you, even when you have converted. Until you have been taught how to fight, you are still vulnerable, even though you could survive injuries that would kill a mortal.”
Julie looked chastened. She nodded her head in agreement.
“So now we know where it is and what it is, when do we attack?” Tomas questioned.
“I suggest you make the fifth exchange when you wake. With Julie converted, she’ll be safer. She will also be able to talk to us all, rather than just you. Julie you will have added strength and would be able to prevent Avril from going outside. Avril, I would suggest you still get a dog immediately. A dog can alert you before you feel the strigoi’s presence and give you time to concentrate on blocking it out of your mind.”
“I will. Julie, I’ll go to the place you got Milly. You said they had other dogs and they keep getting more.”
“I’ll give you the phone number. John, the attendant that helped me, told me they have dogs coming in all the time. They rescue them from wherever they can.”
“Right. It is settled. Conversion first, then we attack. We’ll stock up on holy water.”
“Is it wise to wait another day? Maybe I should convert after.”
“One day isn’t going to make much difference, Julie. Plus, the benefit of you being a Hunter, albeit a very new one, gives added protection to Avril.”
“Oh. Okay, I guess that makes sense.”
Michael put his boot-clad feet up on the coffee table, a container of slices on his chest. Louisa shook her head when she looked at him.
“You know, Julie didn’t make them all for you, Michael.”
“She didn’t?”
Julie laughed when Louisa smacked his arm. He moved the container so she would be able to get it but unfortunately for him, it was right under Martin’s nose. He reached in and grabbed the last handful while Louisa was distracting Michael. When he realised what had happened, he grabbed his mate and began to tickle her.
Milly got excited and decided to play as well. She was trying to pull Michael off the couch, her teeth grabbing hold of the bottom of his jeans.
Avril was stunned when Michael changed into a wolf and pinned Milly. The dog was so excited, her tail was wagging like a propeller. The pair wrestled on the floor until Louisa told them the furniture was in danger. Tomas and Martin watched from the sidelines but Julie noticed they had picked up a slice of cake each.
The remainder of the evening was spent laughing and relaxing. It seemed like they were all letting off steam. Julie could understand why Louisa said Hunters love children, they were just big kids themselves. Martin and Tomas had an arm wrestling match to see who would get the last piece of cake only to discover that Milly had eaten it when everyone was busy watching the two men.
Julie could not believe how much she laughed, in the end her sides were aching. By two thirty she was exhausted. The stress from earlier in the evening had finally caught up with her. Tomas told her he was taking her to bed.
Michael thought it was an excellent suggestion, winked lewdly at Louisa, and kissed her soundly, telling her they had the apartment to themselves.
Martin and Avril bade everyone a good night, after Martin kissed Julie and told her she would be fine with her conversion. They walked out to Avril’s car and drove off. Louisa and Michael wished Julie the best for her conversion, telling her they were excited that next time they met she would be immortal.
Julie felt nervous at their words but Louisa told her not to worry as she kissed her cheeks. When they left, Tomas walked with her into the bedroom, Milly following to settle onto her bed.
“Get into bed, iubită, I’ll go and lock up the chickens, we forgot with all that happened.”
Julie used the bathroom and then climbed into bed. Tomas came back in and stripped off. He got in alongside Julie, pulling her into his arms.
“Iubită, I’m so sorry for what happened. I should never have hurt you. Please understand I didn’t choose to do it. I just got so frightened.”
“Hush, it’s over now. I understand, I really do. Honestly I just didn’t think it through either.”
She could hear his heart beating as he held her tight.
“I was so frightened you’d be hurt. Thank goodness you’ll soon be immortal.”
“Don’t remind me! I’m trying to forget about the pain that comes with it.”
“I’ll be with you all the way, iubită, never fear. You’ll be amazed at how you’ll feel, I just know it.”
She snuggled tighter into the safety of his arms, her eyelids getting heavier. Before too long she fell asleep, Tomas’s arms holding her tight.
He spent the rest of the night thanking the gods for sending her to him and promising never to do anything to hurt her again.
Finally, the sun rose and he settled comfortably alongside Julie to sleep, joyful in the knowledge that the next time he slept it would be with her as his equal at his side.
Chapter Eighteen
Julie woke around nine. She showered and dressed, then did her usual routine of feeding the chickens, collecting eggs, then feeding herself and Milly. She made a coffee and a few pieces of toast for breakfast. Her stomach was feeling unsettled, as if a hundred butterflies were trying to escape. Trying hard to ig
nore what was to happen that night, she made some more slices and biscuits to replenish what they had eaten last night.
The phone rang around two in the afternoon. It was Stuart Day wanting a few details so he could give them a better idea of figures when he came out in a week’s time.
Earlier she had found the sketches that Tomas had made and all his notes from the other day and realised that she needed to think big. Tomas was obviously intending to triple the size of the house but she had noticed he had written that he wanted to keep the original character of it. He also didn’t want to do anything that Julie didn’t want—he had written a note saying just that. Julie was glad that he shared the same feelings for the house that she did.
Stuart and Julie spoke for about twenty minutes and when she hung up, Julie had to laugh to herself. There would be more than just repainting the house and hanging shutters, she had discussed putting in two more large bedrooms and redoing the ones that already existed. Then adding another bathroom, increasing the size of the master bathroom, not to mention two offices and renovating the kitchen.
If Stuart were able to make something that was complimentary to the original design, she would be very pleased. She loved the feel of the old house and she faxed over Tomas’s rough sketch and her ideas to Stuart.
By four o’clock Julie was a bundle of nerves. She actually felt sick with worry about what was to happen and if it would be as painful as she feared.
She couldn’t sit still so she decided to lie beside Tomas until he woke. She quickly locked up the chickens and replenished Milly’s water, giving her something to eat, then went into the bedroom. She quickly stripped off and climbed under the sheet.
Lying alongside Tomas, she tried to calm her racing pulse with little success. Around twenty past four, she heard Tomas’s breathing change and knew he was waking. Those brilliant green eyes opened and she caught her breath as Tomas smiled at her, his face full of love.
“Hi, iubită.”
“I’m frightened.”
Julie could not hold back the tremble in her voice. Tomas quickly gathered her in his arms.
“We don’t have to do this now, iubită. We can wait until you’re not scared.”
Julie gave a nervous laugh. “We’ll be waiting forever if we do that, Wolfie.”
Tomas grinned down at her, then took one hand and began to kiss her fingertips.
“If we do then we do. Relax, dragostea mea, tell me of your day.”
“Stuart rang. I found the sketches you’d made and told him about them. He asked me to fax them over. He said he’d be here on the weekend. How we will be able to get him from the airport?”
“Don’t worry, he knows all about Hunters, so he’ll be getting a late afternoon flight on the Friday so we’ll be able to collect him with no problems.”
Tomas could hear Julie’s heart racing, so he carefully entered her to match her pulse with his calmer one. He was running his hand up and down her arm, trying to get her to relax.
“I imagine you were a little taken aback when you saw my sketches.”
Julie giggled. “I was thinking shutters, paint, and maybe add a bedroom. Instead you want to make a whole new house, maybe two.”
“Iubită, please don’t think I want to change your lovely house. I would never do anything that you didn’t want.”
Tomas sounded upset and Julie reassured him, “I know that, Tomas. It was just a shock. I mean I never thought I would have enough money to even renovate the kitchen and now I have to come to terms with being able to do anything we like to the house.”
She thought for a moment. “You know, I actually love the idea of having such freedom to do whatever I want with it.”
Tomas nodded. “It just makes sense to renovate and extend. We will probably be assigned here for a long time, so why not be comfortable? Plus you will have to get used to Hunters visiting.”
“Just hard to get my head around it all.”
Tomas had bent his head and was nibbling on Julie’s soft ear lobe. He whispered in her ear, “As long as we get those shutters in as soon as possible, then the rest can be decided when we talk with Stuart.”
His warm breath and low seductive whispers were making it harder for Julie to concentrate on their conversation. She guessed that was the idea and decided to just relax and let it happen.
“Shutters, mmm—yes, shutters.” She tilted her head slightly and Tomas began raining soft kisses up and down her neck.
When he reached her ear again he murmured, “Big shutters.”
One hand had begun trailing across her breasts, his fingers feathering across the sensitive areas as her nipples began to peak.
“Big ones.”
His voice was pure sex as he purred in her ear again. “Very big, hard ones.”
His fingers were now tweaking one nipple and Julie felt her pulse beginning to race as he licked her ear again.
“Hard,” she replied breathlessly.
He lifted her hand and placed it over the large bulge under the sheet.
“Very hard.”
Tomas moved her in his arms so he could run a line of kisses from her ear across her neck until he reached her mouth. Julie almost swooned into his arms as his lips captured hers. Softly at first, his lips pressed against hers and Julie opened her mouth slightly. Tomas forced his tongue between her teeth and had the satisfaction of hearing her little moan.
One hand was still rubbing and pulling at her nipple, and Tomas ran his other hand down her body to tangle his fingers in the curly thatch between her legs.
Julie wriggled slightly and put her hand under the sheet, grasping Tomas’s erection. He was right, it was very hard—and big. She began sliding her hand up and down the length of his shaft, while Tomas’s fingers were now rubbing along her hot, wet slit and across the hardening clit.
The feel of his mouth on her and his hands caressing her body sent any fear from her mind. Instead, she luxuriated in the feelings of passion he was generating in her body. His tongue, dancing with hers, was sending signals to her clit and the feel of his fingers pressing against the hard bead were driving her close to the brink of orgasm. She increased the speed of her hand on his shaft and was rewarded when he pushed her onto her back and rubbed his cock against her wetness.
She loved the feel when she knew he was going to thrust into her, it was exciting and arousing. Lifting her buttocks, she widened her legs as he drove his hardened member forward into her. Settling into a matching rhythm that brought increased breathing, Julie merged her mind with Tomas, revelling in the double sensations of her and his excitement. She began kissing his neck, licking across the pulse beating hard. Tomas reacted by extended his fangs and sinking them into her shoulder.
The feeling of him drinking her blood, together with how it felt to him, sent her over the edge and she felt a climax building. She tried to nip at his neck with little success, but Tomas reached up with one talon and made a thin nick. Julie almost pounced onto it as the blood began to seep.
As she drank, her sensations were so mixed with his that she couldn’t work out whose were whose. Instead she let them take her to a higher plateau as an enormous orgasm shook her body. She felt her muscles grab onto his turgid cock, that, plus her own climax, made Tomas increase his thrusting. She felt his body stiffen as they both felt his orgasm fill her with his seed.
* * * *
Tomas rolled to the side, pulling her with him to gather her in his arms. He matched their breathing and heart rates to slowly bring them down from their euphoria then licked her shoulder where he had bitten her before rubbing a licked finger across his neck.
Julie lay contentedly in his arms, sated from their joint orgasms.
“I don’t think I’ll ever tire of merging with you as we make love, I can’t believe how much it increases all the sensations.”
“I know, iubită, I could never understand when others told me what it was like. They tried to explain it to me. Part of me thought they were exaggerating b
ut now I realise they weren’t.”
“I love you, my dearest wolf.” Julie snuggled deeper into his arms, feeling Tomas caressing her hair.
“And I love you, iubită, now and forever.”
They lay together for a while, Julie almost forgetting that they had made the final exchanged until she started to feel nauseated. She sat up and looked frighteningly at Tomas.
“Tomas! Tomas, I feel awful!”
“It will be all right, dragostea mea, I’m here with you.”
He kissed her forehead and she tried to lie back down but was suddenly overcome by horrid cramps in her stomach. Doubling up, she began to cry softly. Tomas was worried as her rubbed her back. He sent a quick message to Michael who convinced him that it was normal.
All at once, Julie leapt to her feet, Tomas following swiftly behind her as she raced into the bathroom. He held her hair back from her face as she began violently vomiting. Michael told him he could take most of her pain away and he tried but still Julie was screaming in agony between vomiting and cramping.
It seemed endless.
Michael and Louisa reassured him several times that things were progressing as they should but he was so worried at his Julie going through such pain.
Finally, after a few hours, the vomiting stopped and Michael told him it was now safe for him to send her into the deep healing sleep of the immortal, away from all the pain. Tomas gently cleaned her face, wiped away her tears, and carried her back to the bedroom.
She clung to him, completely worn out from her exertions and unable to even speak with the agony she was feeling. He assured her that everything was going to be fine and she was over the worst then, laying her gently in bed, he sent a command for her to sleep deeply until morning.
“Michael, are you sure this is how it happens?”
“Yes, Tomas, she will be fine now that the worst is over. When she wakes you’ll need to feed her properly, her body will need both blood and food.”