Oh God, oh God. Every nerve ending crackled and jumped as she sucked. At least she didn’t protest when he buried his hands in her hair. He was going to climax and she hadn’t even touched his erection yet.
A hot surge of energy, starting at his toes, coursed through his body as she released his balls and slipped her mouth over the head of his shaft, encasing him in warmth and wetness.
He wasn’t going to be able to stop and didn’t give a damn if people milling the streets in the city below could hear him. And they probably could.
HIS HANDS WARMED her cheeks and ears as he gently pulled her up. His enormous erection hit his belly with a slap as it fell from her mouth and her lips throbbed in the rhythm of her heartbeat.
“I need me in you. Now.” His voice was husky as he reached for his jeans.
“Don’t bother. I can’t get pregnant. Unless you’re worried about—”
“You don’t worry me. I was only thinking of you. You are safe with me.”
His hands were urgent and she let him roll her over. With the cushion warmed from his body, she settled against the pillows, and her heart pounded a symphony in her head. He climbed into the eager triangle of her legs and draped his large body over hers.
She had just dominated him, taken what she wanted, toyed with him like a brush against a canvas, and now it was his turn. She ran her hands over the bunching muscles of his shoulders and delighted in the musky fragrance of his skin. As if on cue, she felt another silky rush of pleasure to ease his entry.
Something nagged at the back of her mind. Her daydream. This was just like her daydream. His arms, his shoulders, her body’s response. Could it have been some sort of premonition? Before she could consider that further, his mouth came down hard over hers, stealing the breath from her lungs and any other thoughts from her mind.
“I love the taste of me on your tongue,” he said.
She held her breath as best she could, focused on the tip of his erection hovering at her center. She wanted to remember every sensation, every sound, every smell.
His hips flexed back to drive himself inside but before she could reach between them to move the thong aside and guide him in, his tip poked against the fabric and denied him access. With a grunt of frustration, he slid down her belly, grabbed the thong between his teeth, and ripped. But instead of coming back up to continue where he left off, he drew her knee over his shoulder, dipped his head to claim her.
Panting, shaking, she ran her fingers over his scalp, grabbed a fistful of dark strands and held on for support. His hair teased the inner skin of her thighs and his breath was hot as he buried his face in her tender folds. He slipped two fingers inside and moved them in the rhythm of his tongue.
Her release rushed to the surface, as if it had been waiting all night, which it had been, every muscle in her body clenched around the apex of his fingers. And for that moment, that splendid, celestial moment, it was the center of her universe.
When she was done, he pulled his face away, lips moist, eyes smoldering with desire. “You are like honey and now you’re ready for me.”
She could hardly keep from shaking. This was just the beginning. She gripped his powerful triceps, felt them flex as he reached a hand down to the junction between his legs. He palmed himself, rocked back, and his erection slid downward along her belly, searching for her. She waited, hardly able to breathe, as her folds surrounded the tip of his shaft, beckoning him inside. When he dropped his eyes to hers, she saw the desire in his face and knew it mirrored her own, but she saw something else, as well. Tiny lines creased his forehead, lines she hadn’t noticed before.
He was worried? About what? She responded by circling his legs with hers. Now was not the time for thinking; there’d be a time for that later. Now was only about this very moment, and this very moment she needed him.
Carefully and agonizingly slow, he pushed himself inside, sliding in through her body’s silky welcome. Oh dear God, he drove deeper and deeper until finally the hilt ground against her opening. Every pore flushed hot and the beautiful humming sound in her head lapped invisibly on the backs of her eyelids. Her climax rose without movement or friction, just from the feel of his overwhelming presence in her mind and body. Cleaving her in half, he stilled and she clung to him, wanting this to go on forever.
He looked down at her, his eyes wide with surprise. “Is this okay? Are you okay?”
“God, yes.” She could hardly get the words out as her body adjusted to his girth, stretching and expanding around him.
There was an intensity in his expression, almost disbelief. With his eyes riveted to hers, she saw that his irises were completely black. She wasn’t frightened of him, though; she never had been, and now she understood. It was the look of longing, the ache of a hungry man. She wanted to be what he was searching for, whether it made sense or not.
He hooked an arm under her thigh and pressed himself a notch deeper. “And this? This is fine?”
“I’d say it’s more than a little fine.”
He made a few tentative thrusts. “This doesn’t hurt? You’re so…damn tight…around me. I’ve never—”
She dug her nails into the flesh of his backside, rolled her hips. “Oh God, Dom, I’m not going to break.”
That must’ve been the reaction he wanted because he slid himself outward, almost to the point of breaking their connection, the ridge of his sex rubbing against her now ultra-sensitive center. Her shallow breath zigzagged in her chest a few times before it lodged in her throat and waited.
Finally, with the corded muscles of his neck straining, he drove in hard and she cried out in blissful ecstasy. The friction. His thickness. His smell. Everything.
Over and over he pounded into her until the dark margins of her vision threatened to expand. It was as if her spirit soared in the updrafts of a wondrous wind, spiraling to the heavens with this man inside her body.
And then, on the verge of another orgasm, when all of her muscles began to convulse, he pushed impossibly deeper in one final powerful surge and the ridge of his tip locked into something at the very heart of her core. Into something she hadn’t known existed.
Her body clamped onto him like a vise and wouldn’t let go. Rearing his head to the night sky, Dom’s roar echoed through her body as if it was centered inside her. The scent of their lovemaking filled every fiber, every cell of her being. She wanted to swallow him up and never let go. In a blinding fury, his seed spilled into her, pulse after pulse, and shot them both into orbit.
DOM HELD MACKENZIE in his arms, stroking her hair, as she slept in his bed. With every breath she pulled into her lungs, he was lulled by the even rhythm of her chest against his and the sound of the air through her lips.
He was ashamed to admit to himself that before tonight, he had hoped a little fun between the sheets would break him of her, get her out of his system. It had always worked before. A little dinner. A lot of sex. Then goodbye.
His erection stirred again and he reached down to free it from between his legs. Good God, he couldn’t seem to get enough of her body. They’d made love several times already.
He should leave her alone, let her sleep, but he couldn’t. He slid his hand down the flat plane of her belly into the center of her small strip of curls and her legs opened for him. Heat spread out to his fingers and toes and a growl of pride rumbled in his chest. He loved that his presence affected her that way. That her body responded to him with or without her awareness. He slipped a finger inside her silky folds. Of course she was moist. His essence still lingered within her.
He massaged her flesh with his thumb and forefinger and felt the hum of her pleasure inside his head. With her eyes still closed, she hooked a leg over his and snuggled in close, moving her hips against him, forcing his fingers deeper. He was lost in her sweet smell again, and in the gentle sway of her naked body.
And then fangs broke through his gums.
His body stiffened in horror. How could he have let his guard down like
this? He jerked his hand away from her, twisted the thick leather band on his other wrist, and suppressed a hiss. As the protruding spikes jostled the raw skin again and pain shot outward, the holes in his gums closed and his composure returned.
He ran a cautionary tongue over his teeth as the numbness from the cilice spread up his arm. He must never forget what he was capable of doing.
“Mmm, Dom,” she whispered against his neck. Did she sense his pain or was she protesting the sudden removal of his fingers?
He kissed the top of her head and she snuggled closer. She felt so perfect against him, so natural. Like a missing part had finally found home. He thought about what Lily had said about Enlazado por la Sangre. Could any of that really be true? If so, then he’d be able to transfer his energies to her. Should he try? Mackenzie was tired enough that perhaps she wouldn’t even notice anything.
When he sculpted his palm to her cheek and loosened his mind, he felt the familiar electrical flow, but instead of pulling it in, he bore down and pushed it outward.
Suddenly Mackenzie’s back arched and her lids flew open. Her gaze locked onto his. The gold flecks in her green eyes sparkled with such depth he imagined he was looking straight into her soul. She grabbed his face and pressed a half-crazed kiss to his lips, her mouth hard and demanding against his.
He cupped her other cheek and she moaned into him. Like the in and out of breathing, their energies mixed, ebbing back and forth between them. She intoxicated not only his body, but his mind and soul, and he had the glorious sensation that he was floating.
In one commanding movement, she climbed on top of him and speared herself with his stiff erection. As she rode him, he had the answer to his unspoken question, but he shoved aside the gnawing ache to address another time.
The scent of sex was heavy in the room when he blinked his eyes in the darkness several hours later. With his nose buried in the crook of his arm, he smelled her musky sweetness in his pores and knew she was gone. A quick glance at the clock made his gut clench. What was wrong with him? How could he have let so much time go by? A couple of hours, maybe, but he’d blown off a whole night and most of the day making love to Mackenzie. No doubt the rest of his team had been on stakeout like he had ordered. He flung off the sheets and stomped to the bathroom. He was a horny-assed selfish bastard who only cared about getting laid.
Just like he had the night his parents were killed.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“NERVOUS?” DOM HANDED Lily the projector remote as everyone in the field office’s conference room took their seats around the huge mahogany table.
She tried imagining everyone in their underwear, but since she’d seen several of them naked anyway, the trick didn’t do much to calm her jittery stomach. Especially considering she was on live with all the other North American Regions, as well.
“A little. I’ve just never spoken to this many people before.” Not everyone knew how she had gotten the job at the Agency, so at least some of them might think she had something worthwhile to tell them. And for those who did know, she just hoped they’d keep their mouths shut and their comments to themselves.
“You’ll do great. You’re the one with the intel, not them. Everyone listening wants to know what you know. Nice suit.” Dom turned to face the group and Lily ran a hand over the light gray wool skirt, the most conservative item of clothing she owned.
“Okay, people. Listen up.” At the sound of Dom’s commanding voice, the side-chatter ceased and all eyes in the room faced forward. Jackson, who’d been crunching ice from his water, swallowed and pushed his glass away. Cordell, Sadie, Mitchell and a couple of fresh-faced rookies she hadn’t met yet—even Santiago—swiveled in their chairs around the large oval table. “Lily, it’s all yours.”
Her black heels clicked on the wood floor as she walked to the podium. “Thanks, Dom. Good afternoon, everyone.” Lifting her chin, she looked into the webcam and knew similar groups all over the country were watching her, as well. “For the next half-hour, I’m going to cover what we know about the current state of Darkblood operations and what we believe to be the direction they’re heading.”
She pressed a button on the remote to start the Power-point presentation and a map of North America popped up on the screen. “Until now, the Darkblood Alliance has been loosely organized into cells in major cities around the world, with the primary purpose of capturing and subsequently draining-slash-killing humans with Sangre Dulce.” She clicked to the next slide.
“The Sweet they collect locally is sold locally. Supply has always been unpredictable and the price high.” A few more clicks, a few more slides. Her nervousness faded away as she explained each image. Yes, she did know her stuff and she slipped into a rhythm.
“My sources tell me there has been tremendous pressure within their organization to figure out a way to increase supply. As you all know, several weeks ago, the Seattle field team uncovered data suggesting the Alliance has moved from haphazard blood collection to a capture and release operation. Instead of kidnapping the sweetbloods they stumble upon to drain them of their blood, they’re now recording the whereabouts of those with Sangre Dulce. They do a catch, drain, and memory wipe, then return these people to their regular lives to be available for another round of draining later. As you can imagine, it requires a tremendous amount of restraint not to kill them.”
While everyone in the room nodded their heads and made sounds of agreement, Dom sat stiff and frozen in his chair, eyes fixed on his clasped hands, probably thinking about how he’d nearly killed Mackenzie. Yeah, he knew from experience it was hard.
“Of course, some may still die in the process, but this new course of action shows their desire to control the flow, pardon my pun, of Sweet.” That got a few laughs, none from Dom, and Lily strolled to the other side of the screen.
“How is this change worse for humans?” someone from the Spokane field asked. “They go from draining and killing to just draining. Capture and release—sounds better to me.”
Dom banged his hand on the table and everyone in the room jumped. “Because they’re still killing. Maybe not the first or second time. But eventually, they’ll slip and people will still die.” He stormed to the front of the conference room to look into the camera. “For a minute, let’s forget about the simple fact that this collection bullshit is wrong, that they’re treating these people like a herd of oblivious cattle, that the experience itself must be terrifying. Let’s just forget about all that for a moment. By increasing the supply of Sweet, more vampires will have access to the stuff. More will get addicted. The Darkblood Alliance will become more powerful.” He pounded his fist again, this time on the podium, and the remote fell to the wood floor with a clatter. “And that is just not acceptable.”
“Fair enough,” Spokane said.
As Dom strode to the back of the conference room, Lily picked up the remote, thankful the thing didn’t break, and clicked through a few more slides, pointing out trends and patterns in each major U.S. city.
“Here in the Seattle office, we’ve not noticed a spike in the supply levels yet due to this new program of theirs. In fact, it’s decreased and we’re not sure why. But it’s just a matter of time until there’s more Sweet on the streets. If they’re doing this here, they’re most likely doing it in your areas. But word has it that this is just the tip of the iceberg.” Although everyone in the local office was quiet, Lily heard mumbling from the other offices through the audio feed. “My source tells me the Alliance is planning something big. Their researchers apparently are looking for a genetic link or marker among known Sangre Dulce.”
“What for?” someone else asked. “You don’t need a test to tell if someone is sweet.”
“We’re not sure,” she answered. “All we know at this point is they’re telling their people to get ready for large influxes of Sweet to hit the market over the next few years.”
“What do you think is going on?” San Diego this time. “With your ears on the inside
, you must have some sort of idea.”
Leaning against the edge of the table, she crossed her legs and picked off a piece of imaginary lint from her slim skirt as she collected her thoughts. When she lifted her head to look directly into the camera, in her peripheral vision she saw Dom pacing in the back of the room. This was eating him up.
“Well, although this is purely speculative, my source tells me they want to move from harvesting to creation.”
As voices erupted in the room and over the speakers, Lily’s eyes met Dom’s hardened gaze.
A woman’s clear, crisp voice sounded over the video feed and everyone hushed. “Do you suspect they’re developing a synthetically created Sweet product or are you talking cloning?”
Oh my God, was that Roxanne Reynolds? She was the lead scent-tracker instructor for North America.
Lily looked directly into the small camera. “I’m not sure yet, ma’am. Perhaps, but I’m waiting to hear more details from my contact.” She paused to give Ms. Reynolds a chance to reply, but when the woman said nothing more, Lily cleared her throat and continued. “Until then, we need all of you to keep your eyes and ears open. We don’t know where their research facility is located, but we need to find it soon. My source tells me they’re going online within the next few weeks.”
“So your source claims to know the Alliance is conducting some sort of testing but doesn’t know where?” It was the San Diego field office again, but this time she recognized the skeptical voice.
Her euphoria from having Ms. Reynolds ask a question of her evaporated into irritation. “They’re being tight-lipped within their organization. Apparently only the researchers and Pavlos know the whereabouts. It could be anywhere.”
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