“We’ve been formally introduced, but I’ve never had the pleasure of speaking with you one-on-one. This is somewhat unorthodox, and I realize I’m running the risk of offending your father, but I can’t seem to help myself.”
“I’m glad you found me. I’m flattered, and I’d also like to spend more time with you. Do you plan to speak to my father about this?”
“I do. But he mentioned in passing that you’re to marry a man in England. Did I misunderstand that?”
“Yes and no. It’s complicated. The fact is I am engaged in words only. An announcement of our change of heart hasn’t been made yet. We’d rather spare both of our families the embarrassment of a mismatched union as long as possible, give people time to move on to bigger and better news first.”
“Any man who thinks you’re a mismatch for him is a fool. But, selfishly, I’m very glad to hear you’re not marrying him.”
“He really is a nice man. We’ve been friends since we were children. It’s just not meant to be, and I’m glad my father realizes that. But what about you? What brought you to America?”
“My brother and I run our business together. With the opportunities to expand our enterprise, we couldn’t pass it up. So, we crossed the big blue ocean and have been here for quite a while. We like it and have no plans of returning anytime soon.”
“Where is your brother? I don’t believe I’ve met him yet.”
“He’s working with a couple of our other clients. Clarence has kept me very busy with his contracts, so we decided to divide and conquer. I’ll be glad to introduce you to him when he’s able to join us. Do you have any siblings?”
“No. I’m an only child. From what I understand, my parents wanted to have more children, but my mother had a difficult pregnancy. Neither of them is big on taking unnecessary risks, I’m afraid.” I averted my eyes from his, because my entire life had been spent avoiding unnecessary risks, and it was stifling and suffocating.
“A little risk now and then can be so much fun, though. The thrill of getting away with something you never thought you’d do. I have a strong feeling you’d enjoy a little risk-taking.” His eyes glimmered with playful mischief, and I found myself smiling and agreeing with him.
Voices carried down the hall, signaling an end to the festivities as our guests moved toward the door. Ramses stood, took my hand in his, and lifted it to his mouth. I watched, mesmerized, as he kissed the back of my hand. His lips were so soft against my skin, but the predatory gleam that held my gaze was unmistakably all-masculine.
“Until tomorrow night, my dear, sweet Alea.”
Ramses is coming back over tomorrow night for a celebratory soiree Father has planned for the closure of yet another successful business venture with different guests. Ramses was instrumental in helping to secure it, and Father wants to recognize Ramses as the man of the hour by introducing him to even more influential businessmen. He said this one contract Ramses facilitated is large enough to keep our shipping business busy flowing out of America for the next several years, ensuring a yearly return to America to oversee the holdings.
I’m so excited I get to see him again, I’ve already planned my entire wardrobe and hairstyle. He’s been the perfect gentleman, but I’m concerned he only sees me as a child. I’ll be eighteen this year; I’m plenty old enough now, and my plan is to demonstrate that very fact to him tomorrow night.
Chapter 2
Ramses Barnett, 1790
I spent the evening at the same place I’ve been for the last couple of weeks—the home of Clarence Dunn, a wealthy shipping tycoon who traveled across the Atlantic with his wife and daughter in tow. His business is growing, and he’s expanding it to a new continent. His daughter is young and beautiful, and my thirst for her has surpassed being painful and entered the realm of cruelty. The first time I visited their home, I almost turned around and left as soon as I walked through the door. I know myself well enough to recognize the early warning signs of losing control.
However, I stayed and worked on my issue of being too impulsive. I’ve returned there several times, torturing myself in her presence, and becoming somewhat of a masochist in the process. The more I’m near her, the more my thirst commands me, and the more I’m forced to command it in return. It’s strange because the more I control my whims and the more pain I subject myself to, the sweeter my reward will be when I finally have her in my grasp.
Tonight, I tested myself by joining her in the library where she sat completely alone. Though I was able to carry on a completely civil conversation, my eyes continuously strayed to her neck where I could see her jugular vein jumping with every beat of her heart. Kissing her hand good night signaled I’d passed the test, since I didn’t sink my teeth into her right then and there. My younger brother is correct when he reminds me our business ventures are more important than my thirst. With prudent investing, the money we make from it will sustain us for a considerable time.
But I passed a girl on the street while walking home tonight I was unable to resist—not physically and not by bloodlust. She was one of the working girls, but there was no denying she was new to the trade. Unlike the others who smelled as if they only bathed once a week, she was fresh and clean. Her long hair was black and shiny, a natural sheen that shimmered in the candlelight. Her corset was too small, forcing her ample cleavage to spill over the top. Her nipples were barely hidden by the lacy fabric, the upper curve of her areolas completely visible. My fangs nearly took on a life of their own as desire coursed through me. And hunger. Deep, physical hunger pangs that urged me to bite into her beautiful skin.
My physical needs didn’t end when I became a vampire. My enhanced senses made my sexual desires become even more pronounced and demanding. It had been several weeks since I’d last indulged, but tonight’s whim was more than enough to make up for my dry spell. Her name was Richelle, and she was perfect in every way. Her sweet, shy smile. The innocent way she batted her eyes at me. The furtive way she cast sidelong, come-hither glances at me. My cock was hard as steel from the aroma of her arousal alone.
She wasn’t acting, putting on a show to earn money. Her attraction to me was genuine, and that excited me more than anything.
“Hello, beautiful.” I approached her as a gentleman would, not giving away I knew she was a prostitute. Making the game a little more interesting.
“Hello, yourself,” she purred. “Are you alone tonight? A handsome young man like yourself?”
“I am, actually. I haven’t found that special lady to spend my life with yet.”
“Maybe you should try one night instead of a whole lifetime,” she offered suggestively.
“Does that mean you’re free tonight?”
“I’m available, but I’m not free.” Her coy smile left no doubt of her meaning. And I had no doubt I’d take her up on her very tempting offer.
“I would say the pleasure would be all mine, but that would be a lie. You will thoroughly enjoy a night with me. Shall we?” I extended my hand to take hers, and she slipped her small hand into mine willingly.
“I’m all yours. Where to?”
“It’s only a few blocks to my brownstone. Let’s take a walk.”
We chatted on the short walk to my place about everything and nothing special. She said she’s an orphan after both her parents fell ill with yellow fever. As she walked and talked, I couldn’t take my eyes off her breasts and the way they bounced. She was oblivious to it, or perhaps she was accustomed to the way men stared at her. As we passed a darkened alleyway, I pushed her into it and held her against the brick wall.
To calm her frightened response, because I was nowhere near ready to be done with her, I smiled warmly. “I just need a taste of you before we get to my place. Watching you walk is too much for me to resist. Just a little nip.”
She didn’t catch the double entendre of my words. But it was no matter. She relaxed just the same and wordlessly offered her body for my taking. A slight tug on the top of her corset freed her
breast, and I quickly covered her taut nipple with my mouth. I sucked on the sensitive peak, changing pressure from hard to soft without warning. My teeth grazed over the edge before I pulled more of her flesh into my mouth again. I kneaded her breast with one hand, while holding both of her hands above her head with the other. I had to consciously remind myself not to get carried away and accidently hurt her with my innate strength.
“Mmm,” she moaned. “You’re so good at that. I knew you would be a wonderful lover by just looking at you.”
“And tasting you like this only makes me want more. Come, my dear, let’s see if we can make it all the way to my place without stopping again.”
She began to stuff her ample breast back into her corset, but I stopped her with a gentle touch of my hand. “Leave it out. I’ll make sure it’s covered for you.”
She eyed me suspiciously, but she did as I asked anyway. I pulled her to my side and draped my arm over her shoulder. She was so small, especially compared to me, I had no problem hiding her exposure by sliding my hand over it. The intimate gesture made her giggle, and the sound of her laughter mixed with the weight of her breast in my hand shot electric surges straight to my cock.
“Turn into me slightly and put your hand on my cock, Richelle.”
She did as I asked without question, and she gasped when she felt the thick bulge in my pants. “It’s so big.” Her small fingers traced the outline of me to test the full size and girth I had to offer. “I’m glad it’s already late. I’m sure I couldn’t handle another customer after you tonight.”
“No, Richelle, I can guarantee you won’t have another customer after I’m done with you for the night.”
I opened the door of my brownstone and let her enter first. Her eyes roamed around, taking in all my fine décor, and uncertainty settled in her eyes. “Sir, you have a fine home. It’s not my place to say, but you should have a wife to take care of your needs. Not someone like me.”
“You are exactly what I need to take care of my needs, Richelle. You can call me Ramses. It’s a name you’ll be screaming in pleasure very soon.”
Her eyes flitted down to my crotch, and she licked her lips. “I have no doubt of that. Where do you want me first?”
“Take off your clothes and bend over the back of the settee,” I commanded without hesitation.
She complied without reluctance. It was beautiful. The perfectly round globes of her ass called to me, and I planned to have her in every way imaginable. But first, the glistening folds of her already wet pussy needed attention. I shed my clothes in a split second and gripped her hips from behind.
“Hold on tight. I’m going to fuck you tonight until you’re my personal rag doll. But my intentions are not to hurt you, so tell me if I’m too rough. Otherwise, I’ll assume your screams mean you want more.”
“I can hardly wait as it is. I’m ready, Ramses.”
Though she couldn’t see me, I smiled at her reply. She’s ready, is she? My engorged cock said we were more than ready. I positioned myself at her entrance and slid the head of my dick up and down her soaked slit. Coated with her desire as a lubricant, I thrust my hips forward and drove into her to the hilt. She cried out in a mixture of pain and pleasure, unable to distinguish one from the other. She adjusted her stance, widening her legs, and began to move back and forth along my shaft of her own accord.
I guessed that meant she wanted more. And I was all too happy to oblige her.
She met my thrusts, pound for pound, and my fingers dug into her skin and held her hip bones in my grip. The ripples from her repeated orgasms gripped my length like fingers, tightly holding on and heating me to the core. I leaned over, my chest flat against her back, and slid my hand around to her clit. With the change in angle and the additional pressure on the bundle of pleasure sensors, her screams echoed off the walls around us.
My fangs slid out, ready to bite the back of her neck, but I reined them in. It was much too soon to stop fucking her. She felt too good with her tight little cunt wrapped around my thick cock. The scent of her arousal that filled the room was too intoxicating. And I had so much more energy to expend before we ended the night. Instead of using my fangs, I left my mark on her smooth skin with my teeth.
After moving around to the padded seat of the settee, I laid her on her back and resumed making good on my rag doll promise. Her breasts, free from the constraints of the corset, bounced in cadence with my thrusts. I slid my hands up, gripped her breasts, and held on as she reached the pinnacle of pleasure once again.
“This will be mine tonight, too.” I slid my finger in her ass, and she dug her fingernails into my skin. With every thrust of my hips, my finger pushed deeper inside her puckered rosebud. When a wave of wetness coated my cock, I knew her body welcomed the foreign intrusion, and I added a second finger. “You like that, don’t you?” She moaned in pleasure, her wetness running down and coating my fingers. Her own fluids provided the perfect lubricant as I continued stretching her.
“Fuck, you feel incredible,” she panted. “I love how you fuck me.”
Her crude language was unheard of in the prim and proper circles my brother and I normally associated with. It turned me on and fueled my carnal desires even more than usual. I drove into her harder, still using only a small fraction of the power I possessed, but her human body wouldn’t be able to handle me at full force. It only took a few more seconds before her entire body shuddered as her climax tore through her.
“Oh my God, Ramses!” she screamed with her release.
The second I felt all her internal muscles relax, I withdrew from her sweet pussy and pushed into her tight little ass. Still high on her last orgasm, her body more easily accepted my drenched cock, though I took extra care not to intentionally cause harm. Her face instantly contorted in pain from the stretching burn of her delicate tissues. Plunging my fingers in her pussy brought her the pleasure she needed to relax again and allowed me to resume my tandem assault of pleasure on her body. Before long, her muscles once again tensed, but that time, from decadent hedonism. The tight muscle in her ass clamped down around my cock as she came and forced us both over the edge into pure bliss.
“Don’t plan on leaving tonight, Richelle. I’m hardly finished with you.” My voice left no room for argument, and the sated expression on her face showed no contention.
“I’m not going anywhere. I just need a nap first, if that’s all right. You’ve worn me out like no other man I’ve ever known.”
“I’ll take you to my bed. You’ll be more comfortable there. Sleep while you can. When I wake you, it’ll be with my cock in your mouth.”
“That’s sure to give me sweet dreams, Ramses.”
Her response shocked me, and I’ve never been easy to surprise. The smile that crawled across her face was tantalizing and enticing—she liked the imagery my words created in her mind.
I picked her up off the settee, and she wrapped her arms around my neck, snuggling her face in close to me. I carried her to my bedroom and deposited her on my bed before I decided to make good on my promise right there, before she’d had time to recover. It was at that moment I had the most perfect idea, and I once again found myself stunned because it had never occurred to me before now. Before I had this young, beautiful whore in my arms.
She wouldn’t die after all, at least, not as a victim of my thirst.
But she would die soon, nonetheless.
She’d die a human death, and then join me as I built our vampire clan.
In my washroom as I cleaned up, I reminisced of how it had been only my brother Slade and me for far too long. It was time to start turning humans into vampires and add more to our little family. I decided right then that Richelle would be the first human in America I’d change. But first I’d need to speak to Slade about my idea. I knew I could keep her in my secluded basement until my brother and I reached an agreement on the size and nature of our clan. She was much too delicious to leave her to chance on the streets.
After all, some madman could get to her out there… One besides me, anyway.
The more I thought about the idea of a large clan, the more I knew it was the right path. We’d have an entire network of vampires with different skills, abilities, and gifts. We’d have to keep it quiet for as long as possible to keep the news from traveling to our old contacts in London before we were ready to face them head on. Watching my little slut as she slept in my bed gave me all sorts of ideas. Vampire brothels, saloons that served both alcohol and human blood, secret business alliances—the possibilities were endless.
First, I needed a taste of her blood. The scent of it still had me close to a frenzied state, and she was sleeping so soundly she’d never know I’d taken a sample. Her bare breast taunted and teased me, so I bent at the waist and pulled her sweet-scented skin into my mouth. She barely stirred. When my fangs slid out and pierced her skin like a quick dart, she jumped and her hand flew to my head. But her eyes never opened because my saliva quickly dulled the pain like a natural anesthetic.
Her blood tasted even better than it smelled.
I showed more self-restraint than I ever realized I possessed.
My mind was made up. Any opposition from Slade be damned.
Coming to America was the best decision of our immortal lives. My brother and I had had quite the windfall of new business ventures, lucrative payouts, and more privacy than we’d ever imagined for the throats that we drained dry.
Chapter 3
Alea Dunn, May 1790
Ramses returned tonight, just as he promised he would. Since the contract that had just been brokered was so significant, Mother had arranged a special sit-down dinner, but she’d transformed the backyard to host hors d'oeuvres and drinks first. She insisted the atmosphere was superior to encourage everyone to mingle. I was inclined to agree with her. With people milling about, talking, eating, and drinking, the chances of my being seen hovering around Ramses were greatly diminished.
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