Jake, being an ancient, pureblooded vampire, was responsible for destroying vampires with tainted blood. He knew that proceeding was suicide, but there was no way he’d leave Lee Anne in such a dangerous situation. He reached for her and found her dancing in a group of vampires. It was far worse than dangerous; it was a deadly situation, and he needed to end it.
As he made his way toward her, pushing his way through the crowded building, he felt Demetri reach for his mind to search out his motives. Jake opened his mind fully, hiding nothing, knowing Demetri would seek to destroy him if he viewed him as a threat to whatever he and Mary were doing. Jake knew the moment Demetri turned his focus to Lee Ann and found her. Every muscle in Jake’s body tensed to point of pain as he waited for what would come next.
Demetri was an extraordinarily powerful demon who could effortlessly kill Lee Anne with a thought. Normally, a demon would never harm a human. They protected humans. Demetri, however, was no ordinary demon. He was a rogue. His own kind feared him. If you manage to get her away from your fellow leeches you may leave with her. He heard the amusement in Demetri’s voice. He was slightly relieved, but he knew better than to truly believe the demon would allow him to proceed without any interference for the sake of entertainment.
~ Five ~
Strong arms reached around Lee Anne from behind and pulled her backside against a very large, solid body. Tilting her head back against his chest, she closed her eyes, savoring the way her mystery dance partner was holding her so close. His body felt so incredibly hot, so solid and muscular against hers.
He leaned down to kiss her neck and shoulder. It was the perfect, most erotic moment. The moist heat of his breath and lips on her flesh sent waves of scintillating flames from the bottom of her feet to the top of her head as his body moved against hers in perfect rhythm with the music. She was certain her heart was beating faster than ever before. His body flooded hers with desire that sent pulsating currents of pleasure surging through her veins until her flesh cried out for out for more of his touch.
She was suddenly very aware of his hands roaming, fingers massaging, exploring her body as he continued to kiss her neck and shoulders. Her breaths came in short, ragged gasps. Pure, hot ecstasy wrapped around her. No pleasure could compare to the sensations racing through her body. It didn’t matter that they were in the middle of a dance floor surrounded by people. It didn’t matter that they were strangers. She didn’t care. Her sense of discretion was long gone.
She was shocked when he was cupped her breasts, but she was so incredibly aroused by it that she didn’t try to stop him. No part of her wanted his to stop. It was more like making love than dancing. He continued to tease her neck with his lips and tongue. Then, his teeth gently scraped back and forth. Her nipples were so hard and sensitive. They ached for his attention. And he didn’t disappoint them. Still cupping her breasts, he squeezed her nipples between his thumbs and fingers.
Oh hell yeah, it was fabulous to be a woman. She could get definitely get used to the way her mysterious, dancer, so skilled in the art of seduction, met her body’s every need. She smiled. Suddenly, shaving her legs seemed a worthwhile punishment. Night after night, she’d dreamed of what she needed. And this exceeded every dream she’d ever had. She knew it was wrong to allow a stranger to touch her so intimately. She knew that she should stop him. But it was the last thing she wanted to do.
Pressing his lips against her ear, he whispered something in a foreign language. The deep, sexy sound of his voice caused her body to shudder with pleasure so intense, so magical. She couldn’t prevent the husky moans that escaped her throat. Her marvelous, secret lover was touching her in every way that she’d dreamed of Jake touching her.
Wait—that was Jake’s voice! Her heart jumped, and her eyes flew open. “Oh, shit.” Once again he was ruining her chance to find romance. He was her dance partner!
Jake whirled her around so quickly she nearly lost her balance. She would’ve stumbled if he hadn’t been holding her. Her gaze collided with his. “Why … how … oh, shit.” She turned her back to him.
“Oh, shit?” Jake grabbed her shoulders and turned her around to face him. “Now that’s an interesting choice of words.” Gently lifting her chin with his hand, he bent his head and kissed her forehead. “You look a little pale. What’s the matter, love?”
“You tricked me.”
“I tricked you?” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, forcing her to rest her head against his chest.
“Yes.”
“What about the woman you convinced to climb up onto my lap and molest me?”
“I’ve absolutely no idea what you’re talking about,” she lied. And she thought she sounded quite believable. But it was a good thing her head was tucked beneath his chin so he couldn’t see the smirk on her face.
“You’re lying.” Forcing her to meet his gaze, he stepped back and held her at arm’s length. “I’m surprised you would deny pulling off such a brilliant, well executed prank.”
She bit her lower lip hard to keep from smiling or laughing. He was right: it was pure torture to deny it. She’d definitely got him good. She felt heat rise from her neck to cheeks. She really wished she didn’t blush so easily. Now there was no hiding it.
“You think it’s funny.”
She shrugged. “Maybe a little bit.”
“Do you want to know what I think is funny?”
“Not really.” But of course she did. Denying it didn’t matter; she knew he was going to tell her.
“I think it’s very funny you believed another woman could distract me from noticing you were leaving the restaurant.” He brushed a kiss on her cheek and drew her closer to rest his chin on the top of her head. He started dancing again, moving his body against hers. “I thought while we were dancing you knew it was me.”
“How would I’ve known?” She struggled to pull herself out of his arms. Of course it was useless. He was too big and too strong for her to overpower him. Besides, she didn’t really want to get away from him. He easily held her in place, forcing her to feel the heat of his erection against her belly as he massaged the round curves of her bottom. “You … oh, damn it, Jake.”
“I wouldn’t have ever thought you would allow a stranger to touch you like this,” he whispered in a deep, seductive voice in her ear.
She was definitely sober now, but it was much more difficult to keep a clear head than earlier at the restaurant. He was making her crazy with lust though she knew he was mad. He was messing with her, paying her back for humiliating him at the restaurant. “You’re just mad.”
“I’m not mad at all.”
“You’re lying.”
* * *
“No. How could I blame you?” Jake knew this was the point of no return. If he proceeded the danger would be great. He would become an enemy to his people. They would be hunted down, and if they were captured he would be killed and she would be taken captive. But there was no other choice for him, for her. He wouldn’t allow her to live another day clueless of how deeply, completely he loved her. “When I asked you to have dinner with me tonight, I planned to say good-bye to you.”
“What?” Lee Anne blurted.
“I’ve never tried to be intimate with you before tonight, but it was never due to a lack of desire to do so.” His hands slid down the curve of her back to the firm, rounded curves of her hips. “It’s the opposite.” Unable to resist the urge, he pulled her closer, pressing her body against his. “I’ve always wanted you, Lee Anne.”
“Why, after planning to say good-bye to me, are you doing this?”
“I could never say good-bye to you.”
“But you just said that’s what you were intending to do.”
“I was lying to myself. I always knew I could never hand you over to another man.” Revealing his anger, his voice had lowered and sounded more like a growl. The silence stretched on as he searched for the right words. “We have so much to discuss.”
“What are you talking about? Another man?” She shook her head. “Just … just forget it. I’ve given our friendship a lot of thought lately. I will always be grateful you saved me, but I can’t be your friend anymore. It’s just too much.”
She blinked up at him and gasped. He heard her heart rate speed up. She blinked again. He knew that she’d just realized that his eyes had changed color. “Jake?”
He groaned as his hands molded her ass and he pulled her deeper into his embrace, pressing her body so snugly against his that she would feel the heat of his rock-hard cock against her belly. “Of course it’s me.”
He bent his head and pressed his lips to hers. Palms flat on his chest, she shoved him. Well, she tried to. He wasn’t going to allow her to get away from him. But he did allow her to back up enough to look up at him.
* * *
Lee Anne stared up at Jake. He was too calm. He was too sure she wanted to kiss him. Smiling, she swallowed the lump in her throat. And damn it, he was right. She did want him to kiss her. And double damn it, she was so far beyond wanting. She needed him to kiss her.
“What did you mean when you said that you were planning to hand me over to another man?” She didn’t know what else to say, so she just stared up at him.
He leaned down, wrapping his arms around her, his lips barely touching her ear. “I don’t know what I was thinking.” He trailed kisses from her ear to her jaw. The heat of his body wrapped around her. Then, once again, his lips were on hers. It was long, slow, tender kiss—nothing even close to the crushing kiss she needed.
The moment the thought entered her mind the kiss deepened. His tongue parted her lips, and his kiss turned into a living, breathing entity of violent, heart-pounding lust. She was lost. Oh yeah, she was in serious trouble. What if he went back to not wanting her tomorrow? Oh … damn it. To hell with tomorrow. Tonight she was taking a wild, delicious ride on a tidal wave of the sinful delights of sheer, primal ecstasy.
“I’m so sorry for hurting your feelings, Lee Anne,” he whispered against her lips. “I was so wrong to ever believe I could hand you over to another man.”
“Huh?” With strength she’d never known she possessed, she ripped herself right out of his arms. She kept her back to him for a few seconds, and then she turned to glare at him. “I want to know what you are talking about right now.” She was furious with him, but mostly with herself for aching for his touch. Even still, her body ached so terribly. She continued to glare up at him, her mind a whirling mess as she tried to figure out what the hell was wrong with him.
He smiled widely. The first thing she noticed was the total lack of humor in his smile or his eyes. Then, she saw his fangs. She shook her head in denial. “Jake?” She blinked just in case she was seeing things. But he still had fangs. She’d certainly never seen that coming. “You’re a … Jake, you’re a vampire?” She drew her bottom lip into her mouth and chewed on it.
He nodded. “I am.”
“No.”
“It’s true.”
“I don’t believe it.” She shook her head. Clearly, in such a moment denial was the best response. She waited, but he didn’t say anything else. He was obviously waiting for her to digest and accept the truth he was revealing to her. He just nodded his head slightly and stared into her eyes.
The situation had gone from confusing to ‘holy crap’ to ‘I’m going to die tonight’. She needed to get away from him. Now that she knew what he was he would kill her. She didn’t have a chance.
Grinning, he lifted his brow. “You need to calm down. You’re getting carried away. I’ve no intention of killing you.”
She snorted. “Lying bastard.” Of course he was going to kill her. A vampire would never allow a human eyewitness of his existence to live. Yep. She was going to die.
“You don’t seriously believe I’m going to kill you.” He shook his head. “While you were in the hospital, didn’t I tell you that you needed to stop watching horror movies? They aren’t good for you. They make your imagination run wild with all sorts of unsavory thoughts.”
She smirked. Sure. Blame it on her love for horror movies. Why not just relax? Maybe he’d rip her clothes off and ravish her body before he killed her. She frowned. Where the hell did that thought come from? Oh, Jake, it’s perfectly fine if you kill me as long as you get naked and ravish my body first.
Running his hand through his hair, he shook his head. “Not ravish. But I would love to get naked with you and worship your body with mine.” His lips slowly curved into a sexy smile. “Well … maybe ravish. But I would never hurt you.”
She blinked. “You read my mind?” She narrowed her angry gaze on him.
“Not really. You’re broadcasting your thoughts very loudly.”
Of course he’d read her mind. He was a vampire. She glared up at him. “How long have you been sneaking around in my head?”
“It’s not difficult to hear your thoughts. I never need to sneak. You think loudly.”
She snorted again. Yeah. Right. Vampires were sneaky. They also used compulsions to seduce and take blood from and murder unsuspecting victims. “How long have you been poking around in my head, Jake?” Her hand went up to her throat. “Oh, crap.” Had he ever used a compulsion to use her as an unknowing blood donor or a lover? She felt so violated, and so strangely excited all at the same time. But she was also shockingly angry because she had absolutely no memory of it.
He tilted his head to the side and placed his hand over hers. She felt her pulse leap in response to his touch—and it wasn’t a fear response. “Have you … oh, shit. I swear if I find out that you …” Great. She was an idiot. Was she seriously going to threaten a cold-blooded killer? Not just a killer. A predator that hunted humans. And why was she so mad? Because she didn’t remember him biting her and feasting on her blood. She was sick. She was losing her mind.
“Not yet. There’s nothing I’ve ever wanted more. I’ve fought my nature to resist the temptation. It was nearly impossible. I’ve obsessed over the thought of tasting your sweet blood for a very long time. But I’ve never taken your blood. I’ve been your guardian.” He frowned. “It truly irritates me that you had such a bad opinion of me. I’ve been protecting you for a very long time.” He paused. “Of course, to be fair, you didn’t know it. You have reasons to distrust me. But I’m not a murderer, Lee Anne.”
He’d read her mind again. “From what? I don’t have even one enemy.” She really hated the idea of him knowing her thoughts. “I can’t believe … wait. Why?” Emotions were a funny thing. She wasn’t asking why he was claiming innocence or why he was invading her mind. She’d seriously lost her mind. Was she actually asking him why her blood wasn’t good enough? She decided to change the subject. “Why would you need to protect me?”
“A price was placed on your head the day you were born. Your mother and grandmother were murdered by your father that night. He planned to kill you, but the nurse that delivered you managed to hide you. I’ve been watching over you from that day, protecting you.”
He slowly bent his head as if to kiss her again, but he didn’t. “Another vampire has claimed you. But I love you,” he whispered against her lips. “I can’t give you to another man.” He was so close. It would be so easy to just kiss him. “I never expected it to happen, but I’m in love with you. The laws of my people are very strict. You belong to another. He plans to take possession of you soon. He plans for you to have his child.”
“You’re insane.” She needed to get away from him. She needed to go home and forget about all that had happened. And somehow, she needed to forget what it felt like to have his lips brush up against hers. Like that was going to happen. She would need a good therapist after this. She stepped back and held her hand out to stop him from reaching for her.
* * *
Jake was about to reach for her when someone grabbed his shoulder from behind. “She belongs to me. You’re supposed to be guarding the whore, not fucking her.”
“Go home,
Lee Anne.” Jake used a powerful compulsion to force her obedience as he pushed her behind him and turned to face Jeremy. “I won’t give her up.”
“You don’t have a choice.”
Jake immediately noticed something was off with Jeremy. He began to search for the reason. Within seconds, he detected tainted blood in Jeremy’s system. “You’ve killed for blood. You’ve fallen.”
“Fallen?” Laughing, Jeremy shook his head. “No. I’ve risen.”
“You know it’s against our laws. By murdering the weak you’ve condemned your soul. You will be destroyed.”
“You can try. I hope you do. But we both know you don’t have what it takes to destroy me.” Jeremy’s assumption meant nothing to Jake. Jake had killed many fallen vampires who’d thought they were too powerful to be destroyed.
Jake felt the floor vibrate. He felt the enormous waves of demonic power moving slowly toward them from behind. Fear flashed in Jeremy’s eyes. Jake turned sideways to watch Demetri approach while still keeping an eye on Jeremy.
While Jeremy was distracted, Jake reached for Lee Anne. Still under his compulsion, she was walking down the sidewalk. Satisfied she was safe for now, he returned his attention to the dance floor.
Demetri stopped. “You have something that belongs to me, little leech. I thought I would be forced to chase you down. It was so thoughtful of you to come to me.” Completely ignoring Jake, Demetri pinned Jeremy with his dark gaze.
Backing up, Jeremy started to fidget. “Mary gave it to me. Ask her. I didn’t take it from you.”
“Mary cannot give away what is mine.” When Demetri took a step closer to Jeremy, Jake took a step back. It was hard to determine Demetri’s mood. He wasn’t acting overly aggressive, and he didn’t seem to be angry. He also didn’t seem to notice Jake was even present. But just in case, Jake waited to make sure the demon was solely focused on Jeremy.
It seemed to be an odd coincidence, but Jake knew better than to believe Demetri was in any way assisting him. Demetri was pure evil. He had no idea why the demon was at odds with Jeremy, but Jake knew it had nothing to do with him.
Sweet Decadent Fire Page 4