Red Blooded: The Gods of Midnight Series, Book 3.5 (Paranormal Romance)

by Deidre Knight

  “Why are you hiding against me?” he asked, trying to cup her jaw. “Was I wrong? Cause if I was, then you probably think I’m the biggest jackass in the universe, talking about vampires’ needs and—”

  “You weren’t wrong,” she admitted, still feeling mortified. Now he knew she was exuding her hormones and scents because of how sexed up she was for him. It was an embarrassment worse than dropping your tray in the school cafeteria. Worse than waking up naked on the beach after partying too hard the night before. Worse than…telling her father and brother that she had mated with a Normal. But she’d cross that bridge when she got to it.

  “So are you gonna kill me? Or bite me?” he asked curiously, seeming entirely unafraid. “Cause I’m thinking the answer’s no to both of those. Although the thought of your hot mouth on certain of my body parts is an extremely happy thought. So long as you don’t drain me dry.”

  “I’d never hurt you, Dillon. We don’t hurt anyone. We don’t drink from Normals or drain them or kill them. We only feed among each other…with our….with….” She just couldn’t bring herself to say it, and buried her face against his shoulder out of pure shame.

  “With your…what?” he prompted, cupping her hips. “Tell me all of it.”

  “From our mates,” she whispered, blushing furiously. “It’s the only time we feed.”

  “So why do I want you to drink from me? It’s crazy. I never believed vampires were real before today, and suddenly, I’m burning with need for you.” He sank back into the sofa and sighed, arms still wrapped about her waist. “It must be because we’re supposed to be together. Just like with the dreams. Is that it? Part of the whole hoodoo vampire love dance?”

  She wasn’t prepared to answer his questions, not until she understood his true intentions.

  “So Mason put you up to this?” she asked. “To find out our secrets, learn about our society?”

  “He wanted to know if you feed from humans.” Dillon’s bluntness and honesty instantly put her at ease. He didn’t hedge, didn’t dodge, just put it all on the line. “He wanted me to find your mating ring. But gauging by your reaction to me…you’re still unmated.”

  She wouldn’t answer that one, either. Not yet. Dillon’s lovely blue eyes grew wide and agitated. “Tell me you’re not mated,” he murmured in an oddly plaintive tone. “Tell me…you can be mine.”

  “Why were you willing to try and expose me? You agreed to work with Mason or something like that?”

  He stared into space for a long moment, eyes unfocused as always, but a pained expression filling the blue depths of his gaze. “No one had needed me for a year, Kate. After…well, it’s hard to explain what it’s like to have a brain injury. The way it changed me. It was way more than just being blinded. I live with…well, there’s chronic pain and memory issues. I’m not all pretty.”

  “Well…” She smiled and touched his cheek tenderly. “I’d have to disagree on that one.”

  He smiled faintly then grew somber again. “It’s like…I’ve been living as damaged goods. No longer a Gunnery Sergeant, no longer a Marine…My injury put me on the shelf, you know?”

  Oh, she knew. It was exactly how she felt about her own life, the way her family had held her in reserve, her virginity a powerful bargaining chip they were simply waiting to play—with or without her consent.

  “I guess,” he said quietly, “I’ve known all along that I’m used and ruined goods.”

  “That’s not true,” she promised him, her heart already softening against the fear and anger that had spiked between them.

  “And then Mace wanted my help…” he trailed off.

  As much as she yearned to reassure him, she forced herself to ignore the almost desperate tone of his voice. “And then Mason brought you here, to me,” she pressed. “Why you?”

  “Because he thought you’d find me attractive,” he said evenly.

  “And I did…I do.” She felt her eyes burn. The whole thing had been a set up? She pressed both hands to her temples, trying to think clearly. “Are you…were you just making it up? All that stuff about how beautiful I am?”

  “Kate!” he said, then silenced all her fears with a burning, branding kiss on the lips, one that became open and deep. Deep enough that she knew he felt the tips of her small fangs prick his tongue, and then she had the tangy taste of his blood in her mouth, mixing together with their tongues. With the heat.

  Gasping, she broke the kiss, and he stared in her direction, a little glassy eyed, trembling slightly. “Good fucking grief. I’m in trouble here, aren’t I?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve never been kissed like that. Not by any woman, anywhere. You’re mine. That’s what this is all about, isn’t it?”

  She closed her eyes, pressing her forehead against his, trying to find the right words. It wasn’t an easy thing to explain. “Dillon. When we make love? We’ll become mates. That’s what will happen. It won’t be something that can be turned back because… well…it’s a supernatural connection. The dreams? They’re to point us to each other, to prepare us. That’s how vampires find their mates, by dreams just like we’ve been sharing.

  “What are you saying?”

  “Nature has taken over between us. The dreams, the lust, the scent marking. It’s coming from both of us now, demanding that we consummate. That we join our bodies and souls.”

  “And I’ll be a vampire, too?” he asked, blue eyes wide and amazed. But not afraid. He was a warrior through and through. No fear, not ever, it seemed.

  She smiled. “No, you’ll always be human.”

  “Okay,” he said, bobbing his head. “Okay, it’s nuts, but I’m in. I may roll over and tell you to explain this all again in the morning. To tell me I wasn’t drugged. But, yeah, Kate. I want you. I want this. And…can’t believe I’m saying this, but I want to be your mate. I want the whole enchilada, fangs, blood, babe, sex, life together.” He rubbed a hand across his eyes. “Shit. I think I might actually be drugged.”

  She kissed him full on the mouth, slow and tenderly. “You’re perfectly sober.”

  “Then I’m high on you. I’m high on Kate Rabineau.”

  “Watch out,” she said, reaching down and unfastening the button of his shorts. “Because I’m going to be addicting from the very first taste.”

  He froze. “Wait, I thought you just said I won’t be turned.”

  “You won’t. But you’ll still drink my blood. You won’t be able to not drink it, as a matter of fact.”

  “Will it taste like you smell? Have the same…amazingness?” he asked, his large blue eyes filled with wonder and desire.

  “Pretty much.”

  He grinned big as a life, and began unzipping his shorts. “Oorah, baby. Oorah. Let’s get this party started.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  “I feel like a mail order bride,” Dillon laughed, stripping out of his boxers. All naked, ready to roll. “Like you got me from Russia, and I don’t know you, but now we’re gonna clench the deal big time.”

  He heard the sheets rustle and the bedsprings creak, and knew that Kate was moving over, making room for him.

  “I would be the bride, Dillon. Not you.”

  “Nah, I like being the bride. It’s naughtier.”

  “You like the word naughty, that’s what you like.”

  “See? Just one of about ten million things you’ll get to learn about me.” He sat down on the bed, feeling his way with both hands, and scooted closer to her. “Just think of all the mysteries you’re going to unravel. Of course, you might hate me after a week. What then? Can you return me?”

  “I won’t hate you and I’d never break our mating bond.”

  “Can that even be done?” he asked, wildly curious. The entire situation was surreal, enthralling. He felt more alive than he ever had in his life, even more than he did in the moment when the blast had rocked the rooftop in Iraq. The moment seemed slowed down like that one, though, hyper-real in some very intense
way.

  “In rare cases, yes, our bonds can be broken. But I know I’d never want to ‘return’ you. You’re everything I’ve literally dreamed about. More. You’re meant to be mine, I know it. Naughty and all.”

  She slid both arms about his neck, drawing him flush against her own soft, warm body. The sensations that swept over him were delicious; the sweet nectar of her skin, her curves pressed up against him. So soft, so eager, with her lush hips moving slightly, urging him to touch her.

  He slid a cautious hand along her thigh, savoring the smooth, silky skin beneath his palm. “Last time I did this was nearly a year ago,” he told her quietly, “I was still doing therapy at the Naval hospital. Anyway, I managed to poke the woman in the eye while trying to touch her hair. Really suave stuff. Hope you’ll fare better.”

  “It’s been a year?” she asked, surprise obvious in her tone. “I figured you’d have a girl in every port.”

  “Marine, not Navy, remember.” He tried to make light of the topic, didn’t want her to hear the pain in his voice. When she’d dumped him, Lindy had really done a number on his heart—and on his confidence and ego. He’d been hounded by self-consciousness ever since, not quite sure of himself around women like he’d always been before. Until now. Until Kate. Being with her was like having come home after wandering in the desert for a very long time.

  “Yes, I know you weren’t a sailor, silly. Stop with the topic dodging. Why so long?”

  He drew her up against him, sliding a leg between her thighs. He was hard and ready, but it was important that Kate know about Lindy, how she’d hurt him. “I…had a girlfriend, you know. When this happened.” He pointed to his eyes and then continued, “Hadn’t seen her in almost a year. My rotation was almost over when I was hit. Anyway…we tried at first, when I was in Maryland. She came to visit, spent some time. I just wasn’t in a great place yet. So, yeah, we made love and it was just a groping, awkward mess. She broke up with me the next day.”

  Kate pulled his head close, kissing him. “That bitch. I should go drink her blood.” Then she laughed. “But don’t worry, I won’t. I’m just going to love you with all my heart, okay?”

  He swallowed hard. His eyes burned with sudden, unexpected tears. “Okay,” he managed after a moment, still holding Kate. Not even thinking about sex, just for a minute.

  When he finally found his voice again, he nuzzled her, whispering in her ear. “So how’s you feel about getting down and dirty about now, huh, Katie?”

  ****

  She loved the feel of him between her thighs, the way his broad shoulders sheltered her beneath him, the strength of him. Yet he was gentle, too, shockingly so as he pressed against her opening. Tentative at first, just the slightest pressure. “I wish this wouldn’t hurt,” he told her, kissing her forehead. “It will, but it won’t last, sweetheart.”

  She smiled up at him, even though he couldn’t see. She was ready, primed and slicked and driven to take him deep inside of her. “I’m told vampires don’t feel the pain the same way Normal women do. Just go for it.”

  “Are you sure?” He asked, frowning slightly. “I don’t want to be too rough.”

  “I always prefer to get bad things over with,” she reassured him, taking hold of his hips. “Come on, I want you, baby. I want you now.”

  He nodded, capturing her mouth with a deep kiss and all at once she felt a sharp spike of pain, then he was inside of her. Her body stretched to accommodate him, clenching, needing him. Her instincts took over after that, no pain at all. She cried out, arching into the pillows, lifting her hips toward him. He began a rhythm then, gentle at first, but her own aggressive hunger quickly set him in motion, the two of them rocking and pulling and moving together.

  Sweat slicked his chest and abdomen, causing them to slide together. The sensations were tightening within her, making her want even more of him, to take him even deeper inside her. Was it like this for a Normal virgin? She doubted it. Her mating demands were so intense, it was impossible not to yield to them, to follow the drive.

  And she was driven, absolutely compelled, to taste of him. Right then, no waiting. She pressed a slow sweet kiss to his neck, suckling at first, licking. In a way, he was a virgin of sorts himself, and she knew she should prepare him. “Dillon,” she whispered. “This hurts the first time, too. But only for a moment.”

  “This?” he panted, eyes closed, lost in their coupling.

  “When I drink….here.” She nibbled his pulse point, feeling her fangs elongate slightly. She nicked him intentionally, to prepare him. “I’m going to mark you here. It’ll only last a moment and will heal over immediately.”

  “Do it,” he groaned, rotating his head to give her free access. “I’m ready. Just like you were.”

  Striking fast and hungrily, she latched on, suckling and moaning as his warm, coppery essence filled her mouth. It was intoxicating. Beautiful as he was. And she came on the spot, rising up and groaning as Dillon answered in kind. He shuddered inside of her, crying out, pressing her face closer against his neck. “More,” he grunted, riding out the release. “Take more.”

  She’d heard that the act of blood sharing was erotic and arousing. Dillon’s obvious pleasure definitely confirmed those rumors. She sucked harder and he groaned atop her, rubbing his thumb along her own neck, feeling the vein. Vampires rubbed veins out of an itch and burn to taste their mate’s blood, and although she would have to help him drink from her, the compulsion was a confirmation of their mating.

  With a gasp she released her hold on him, and turned her wrist, sinking her fangs into the vein to open it. “Take me,” she moaned, lifting her wrist to his eager mouth. “Drink, Dillon,” she encouraged and with a visible swallow, he bent his head low and latched on. The pain spiked worse than when he’d entered her moments earlier, but was washed away in an explosion of lights behind her closed eyes. Had Dillon experienced that, too? Seen these strange stars just from the impact of sharing blood?

  He moaned against her palm, thrusting his hands all through her hair, and she felt his cock stir against her again. She’d read and heard enough to know that normals didn’t usually get hard again so quickly, and his stiffening erection was yet more evidence that they were now mated.

  At last, he began to slowly disengage his mouth from her vein, clearly having a hard time making the break. But he did, and with a satisfied, deep sigh, lay his head against her shoulder for a moment. His breathing was heavy, labored, but his deep satiation was more than obvious.

  “Okay. It’s official. I know I’m gonna fall in love with you, too,” he said, his eyes drifting shut.

  ****

  Dillon woke from a dreamy, satisfied nap with the pressure of cold steel against his jugular. “Who the fuck are you?” a man with a thick southern accent demanded. “And why are you in my sister’s bed?”

  Uh, oh. Dillon moved cautiously, indicating the blade. “Drop this and I’ll tell you everything.”

  The knife remained pressed hard against Dillon’s throat; beyond the bedroom, the thumping sounds of dance music indicated that the party still raged. There had to be a way out of this situation, a rational way to explain to Kate’s brother that they were kin now. No knife fights between family members. Just not cool.

  “Tell me what you did to my sister,” the guy demanded.

  Dillon countered. “Move. The. Blade,” he insisted, smelling bourbon on the brother’s breath as he hovered over Dillon. “Then we talk.”

  Why wouldn’t Kate wake up? Was she still beside him? Dillon couldn’t be sure, but he moved his left leg slightly, trying to feel for her with his toes.

  Then suddenly the blade was gone, but only for a second—that chilly, sharp object was now pressed against Dillon’s balls. Beside the bed, Dillon could hear Lulu starting to growl. Good doggie. Protect your master’s prize jewels.

  Kate’s brother continued in a seething voice. “I’m of a mind to make sure you never touch Kate again.” The blade pressed cold and hard aga
inst Dillon’s groin, the point well made.

  Beside Dillon there was a rustling sound as Kate moved groggily beneath the sheets. And then she sat up with a gasp and a cry. “Toby! Move that knife right now!”

  “Did this guy fuck you? Or, no…more than that, wasn’t it? I can tell. You mated, didn’t you? That’s what went on. You’re both naked…oh, Katie.”

  “Nice to meet you, too, Toby,” Dillon said sarcastically.

  “He’s mine,” Kate said proudly. “Yes. We mated.”

  Toby’s voice reached new decibels. “Have you lost your ever lovin’ mind? Daddy’s gonna be pissed as hell. What were you thinking?”

  “I love him,” Kate announced, strength and pride in her voice. “Now put the knife away, Toby.”

  Dillon released a tight breath when the pressure was removed from his balls. He slid backward in the bed, feeling for Kate and pulling on the covers so neither of them was exposed.

  “This is my younger brother. Toby,” Kate whispered, leaning against him slightly.

  Dillon nodded. “Got that one already, sweetness.”

  “Why’s there a dog in this room? Is that his?” Toby asked, annoyed as ever.

  “Toby, let us get dressed and we’ll come talk to you out in the living room,” Kate said.

  “We still got about sixty people here, Katie. We ain’t talking about anything out there. The party is mid-swing.”

  Lulu growled again, sounding even more agitated. “Uh, Toby,” Dillon suggested. “You better bring it down a few notches or Lulu’s gonna go for your leg. Just a guess, can’t say for sure.”

  “Why the hell did you bring a dog to the party?” Toby demanded in an exasperated tone.

  Kate just started to giggle beside him and said in a stage whisper, “You’re going to feel like a real shit in about ten seconds, brother of mine.”

  “For what?” Toby said, and it sounded like he slapped his thighs.

  Kate nestled up against Dillon’s side. “Because Dillon’s blind, Toby. That’s his guide dog.”

  “Shit.” Toby cursed some more. “Sorry, dude.”