by Crissy Smith
They sat in silence before he moaned. “Paige, I need your help.”
“What?” she asked suspiciously.
“I am lying on my side and I’m bleeding. I need you to help me sit up.”
“I…I can’t,” she practically begged. She needed more time. She couldn’t get too close.
“Please, Paige. Untie your feet and help me.”
She knew it wasn’t a good idea. If she got close to him, she’d bite him. And if she bit him, she wouldn’t be able to stop. Only Grant had been able to save her from the bloodlust the time with Sam, and he’d used sex. That wasn’t going to happen with Grant’s brother.
“Trevor.”
“You can do it. Just untie your feet.”
She took her time untying the ropes. They had loosened just a little but were still hard to undo and her hands were still numb. She couldn’t stand and had to crawl to the corner of the room where Trevor was.
The scent of his blood washed over her. “I can’t…” she told him as she jerked back. “It’s too strong.”
“You’re almost here, Paige. Come on,” he urged.
Paige had stopped moving and was breathing from her mouth instead of her nose. Her teeth had come out again.
“Come on, you can do it,” he encouraged.
She continued to slowly crawl closer until she felt his foot under her hand. She made her way up his body, being careful not to touch him anymore.
“Help me sit up.”
Taking hold of his shoulders, she helped him get his back against the wall. He had chains around his wrists and ankles. As soon as she had him sitting up, she backed away.
“No. Stay here by me.”
She shook her head, even knowing he probably couldn’t see it. “I can’t.”
“Paige,” Trevor kept his voice soft. “You need to feed. You need to feed from me. Come here.”
“What?” Paige backed up again still on her hands and knees. “No.”
“If you don’t, they’ll come back.”
Tired and hungry, she laid down on the cold cement floor. “No,” she said again. Only she didn’t remember what she was denying. She was so tired. She closed her eyes and all she could smell was blood.
She let out a low moan as her stomach cramped. Trevor, Trevor is bleeding. Trevor is Grant’s brother, she chanted over and over in her head.
“If you don’t feed from me, he’ll feed you himself and probably kill me. Paige, you have to feed from me.”
Tears burned at the back of her eyes. “I can’t Trevor, I’d kill you.”
“Honey, I would rather you feed and take the chance than wait for my father to kill me.”
“You don’t understand. I’m too hungry. I wouldn’t be able to stop myself.”
She heard him shift and he gave a low moan. “Paige, you have to feed. You need to gain your strength if we are going to get out.”
“No,” she argued. She wouldn’t feed from this man. She wouldn’t kill Grant’s brother. “No.”
* * * *
Trevor had let Paige sleep and when she finally awoke for good, she stretched her arms, happy they were no longer tied. But her stomach hurt, her muscles were sore, and she was famished. She could tell he’d stopped bleeding but could smell the dried blood.
“Paige. Are you okay.”
“Uh huh. You?”
“I’ll live. For now anyway.”
She felt bad. She knew he was right about his father. If she didn’t feed from him, he’d have no purpose in here with her. But she just couldn’t take the chance. “I’m sorry, Trevor.”
“Paige—” She noticed his voice was stronger. “You have nothing to apologise for. I pushed you, or tried to anyway.”
“I just can’t take the chance.”
“I know. I have to tell you though, I was surprised. I’d never seen a vampire fight the need to feed. My experience with them hasn’t left me too fond. But you’re… different.”
She thought about that. “I’m a new vampire,” she offered lamely.
His laughter was nice and honest. “No, that’s not it. You’re a good person. I was so scared after Jess was taken and changed. I wanted to kill her to keep her from becoming like my father.”
Paige remained silent and listened.
“When Grant made the decision to be changed, we fought about it. I called him a lot of names. None that I am proud of. I decided to look for Jess by myself instead of teaming up with another demon.”
“I understand,” she told him honestly.
“Thanks,” he sighed, and she laid her head back down.
“How long do you think we’ve been in here?” she asked.
“I have no idea.”
Paige pressed her cheek harder into the floor. She was so hungry.
“How much longer can you last?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re going to have to feed.”
“I thought we covered this already.”
“I’m dead. Whether you feed from me or not, I’m dead. I won’t become a vampire. I just can’t do it.”
“You don’t know what you’re saying.”
“Yes. Yes I do, Paige.”
He needed to stop talking about it or she wasn’t going to last much longer.
“Come here.” His hand gripped her arm.
“Trevor, no!”
“Paige. Paige, come here.”
His voice remained soft and calm. Without realising it, she had started to crawl towards him.
“That’s it. Closer, Paige.”
She had made it next to him. “Trevor.” Her voice wasn’t the only thing trembling.
“Feed, Paige. Feed,” he urged. His hand on her head and the chain rattled. “Feed.”
She was pressed against his flesh. The smell of sweat mixed with blood greeted every sense. She licked the salty flesh.
“That’s it, feed,” he urged her calmly.
His skin was cool against her lips. The dried blood didn’t smell bad but wonderful. She opened her mouth, giving her teeth room.
“Bite me, Paige. It’s okay.”
And it was okay. She was hungry, but his calmness helped her stay in control.
“I won’t hurt you, Trevor. But you may have to make me stop,” she told him.
“Okay. I will. I promise.”
Paige held his free hand to give him comfort as her other had tightened around his neck.
She ran her teeth over his neck again and felt his pulse jump. She gently bit into his soft skin and felt his moan through her entire body.
His warm blood filled her mouth and she swallowed hard, relishing the energy his lifeblood gave.
It felt good…to feed.
She squeezed his hand as she bit down harder, bringing more blood into her mouth. Some of his blood fell from her lips and dripped down her chin.
Lifting up on her knees, she leaned into him, sucking harder. Good, so good. His blood was warm and sweet and his essence was strong.
“Stop.” Trevor’s voice was faint.
She could hear his voice, but the call of his blood was so much stronger. Then she felt his hand tighten in her hair and pull. “Stop, Paige. For the love you have for Grant, stop!”
The yanking of her hair started to bring her back and his words touched her soul. With great effort, she pulled her mouth away, collapsing on his chest.
He murmured, running his hand over her hair, “We did it. We did it.”
Chapter Fourteen
She rested comfortably against Trevor until the door slammed open against the wall, lighting up the small room and causing both Trevor and her to jump.
The growl that sounded immediately after was familiar.
“Grant,” she whispered weakly.
The man himself crouched in front of them before she could lift her head. He growled again and ran a hand over her chin. She could feel Trevor’s dried blood under his touch.
“Grant,” she said softly, unsure how he would take their posi
tion.
“Baby, it’s okay,” he told her as he lifted her into his arms. She felt Trevor’s arm drop away. She buried her face in Grant’s shirt and felt tears she didn’t even know were there start to fall.
“Shh, it’s okay, baby. I’m taking you home,” Grant murmured.
Paige tightened her arms around him. “No! Adam, it was Adam.”
“I know, baby. I finally figured it out. All that matters is I found you. I just couldn’t believe you’d leave on your own.”
She was sobbing now, so glad to be in his arms again. “No. No, he said you called and wanted me to meet you somewhere.”
“Shh. I know, baby”
As he ran his cheek against hers, she heard Sam speak behind him. “Is she okay?”
“Yeah. Let’s get out of here.” He stood with her still in his arms.
“Grant, we have to take Trevor with us.”
She felt his body jerk at the request.
“Your father’s trying to turn him. And unless you took care of him and that other man, he’ll try again. Since you’re not wearing his blood, I’m guessing you didn’t finish him here,” Paige reasoned.
“No, he was gone before we arrived,” Grant admitted.
“Trevor’s hurt and we have to take him to the compound.”
“No Paige, it’s okay. I’ll be fine,” Trevor interrupted.
She moved her head to look down at him. “No. You’re coming with us.” She looked back up at Grant. “He needs our help.”
“She’s right, Trevor. You may not want to, but we can take care of your wounds and protect you while you heal,” Grant told his brother, agreeing with her.
Trevor snorted. “Like you protected her?”
Grant growled and stepped towards his brother.
“Stop it both of you,” Paige snapped tiredly.
“Go ahead to the car,” Sam said, moving to Trevor. “I’ll get Trevor loose.”
Grant remained quiet on the ride back to the compound. He sat with Paige in his lap in the back seat. Sam put Trevor in the passenger seat. No one spoke on the entire trip back into town.
* * * *
Once they’d reached the compound, Grant carried her inside and up to their room. She didn’t see where Sam took Trevor.
Grant remained quiet as he sat her on the bed. He paced away from her and she could see him taking deep breaths.
“I’m sorry, Grant,” she whispered.
He turned back around quickly and she saw his emotions swirling in his eyes. He was trying to stay in control, and she knew she needed to be careful.
“I was working out in the gym when Adam told me you’d called and wanted him to bring me to you.”
“I know. It’s not your fault, Paige.”
“I didn’t know something was wrong until we were almost out of the city.”
“My father had convinced him that he would leave Samantha alone if he took you to him. He traded you for her safety.”
That was a slap in the face. She never thought he would have a reason to betray them. “Oh.” She ran her hands over her legs and looked down at the dirt. “Where is he now?”
Grant just shook his head. “It’s taken care of. That’s all you need to know.”
She knew better than to push him right now. “I need a shower. I need to wash this…all this off of me.”
It proved how close Grant was to losing it that he just stared at her before nodding. “Okay.”
She stood and waited for him, but he just continued to stare. She collected clean clothes and headed for the closest bathroom. Grant remained behind in the room, which surprised her. When they were at the compound, he had always before now gone with her when she showered.
Closing the door behind her, she set the clothes on the counter.
Looking at her reflection she was shocked. Her hair was standing out in all directions. Her face was dirty and she had blood all over her face. No wonder Grant hadn’t wanted to join her.
She turned the water on hot and full force, gingerly pulled off her clothes and dumped them in the trash. She never wanted to see them again.
The hot water stung against her cuts but did wonders to relax her muscles. She’d slept off and on during her capture, which had turned out to be three days as the date on the digital clock in the hallway proved. But she was still tired. Exhausted.
She needed to check on Trevor, make sure Tasha was okay, and maybe see about Samantha but that might be tricky. She also needed to talk more to Grant.
But with the water beating down on her, she closed her eyes and gave herself over to the pounding sensations. The knock on the door startled her.
“Paige! You okay in there?” Sam called from outside the door.
She turned off the water. “Yeah. Give me just a minute.” The fact that Sam was checking on her instead of Grant didn’t give her much hope that Grant had been using the time to get himself under control.
She spent extra time brushing her hair and teeth before pulling on a pair of cotton lounge pants and a T-shirt. Opening the door she smiled up at Sam. “Where’s Grant?”
“He went to check on Trevor and then work out.”
Sam took her arm to lead her back down the hall to the room. It was a gesture she was getting used to, between him and Grant. Sam opened the bedroom door and she entered first.
“He doesn’t want you alone right now. He asked if I’d check on you and stay with you until he got back.”
Paige nodded and headed to the bed. “Is he okay?”
Sam stuck his hands in his pockets and rock back on his heels. “He will be, Paige. Just give him time.”
She nodded again.
“He was scared. He couldn’t find you and didn’t know if you had taken off or were taken.”
Pulling the covers down she sat up in bed and pulled them over her legs.
“I haven’t seen him like that in years, Paige,” Sam admitted softly.
Paige blinked back tears.
“And then finding you in Trevor’s arms didn’t help.”
“But I wasn’t…”
Sam shook his head. “I didn’t mean anything went on between the two of you. Grant’s been hurting about Trevor for a long time. There is a lot of history there. It shocked him more than anything else.”
“Trevor told me some of it,” she confessed.
“Words were said on both sides. They’ll have to forgive and forget, but a long time has passed. Just be patient with him,” Sam advised.
Paige would be more than patient. She would help her lover in any way she could. “Okay. I’m going to rest, Sam,” she told him flopping back in bed.
Sam seemed relieved. “Good idea.”
Paige grinned to herself. Sam might be very talkative but she knew who he was loyal to. If he’d promised Grant he’d watch over her, Paige knew that was exactly what he’d do. That comforted her enough to allow her to fall peacefully asleep, wrapped in the scent of the man she loved.
* * * *
It was hours before Grant returned to her side. Paige was too tired to do more than turn to him and let him wrap his arms around her.
When she was able to wake for good several hours later, she snuggled into his strong body. Still asleep, he wrapped his arms around her. Paige took advantage, closed her eyes, and clung to him.
His cell phone started ringing from the nightstand, but he didn’t move. Knowing how exhausted he had to be, Paige remained still, hoping he could sleep through the noise. After four rings the phone finally went silent. Paige breathed a sigh of relief.
Then almost immediately the ringing started again. This time Grant grunted and tightened his arms. “Can’t they leave us alone for one morning?” he grumbled.
Paige held in a smile. “Maybe we should think about getting our own place.”
She felt Grant tense before he slowly lifted his head and held her gaze. “You’d still move in with me…love me, after I got you captured again?” he asked his voice barely over a whisper.
<
br /> Paige gently placed her hand on his cheek never breaking eye contact. “You didn’t get me captured…”
Grant opened his mouth to argue but she shook her head.
“Listen to me, it wasn’t your fault, it wasn’t mine. I should have seen how you would blame yourself, but you can’t. Please babe, understand me. I love you so much. If I had to go through that again I would.”
Grant swallowed hard.
“We have your brother on our side. We are that much closer to finding your sister. We’re going to win this battle with your father, and then make sure no one else ever has to go through any of this again,” she told him, praying he would believe her.
“I love you so much. I know I don’t deserve you, but God I love you,” he stated before taking her mouth in a soft but intense kiss.
He covered her body with his and situated himself between her legs. Paige wrapped her own legs around his waist and pushed up against his hardness. This was where she could show him her love. She could give him all of her and take him in as well.
They’d just managed to get her shirt over her head when his phone went off again.
They both groaned as he pulled away.
“As soon as we get rid of my father, we are moving,” he promised as he picked up the small black phone. “The number’s blocked,” he commented.
“Answer it,” she told him.
“Hello.”
The change happened so quickly had she not been watching him, she would have missed it. Gone was the sweet, horny man who had been minutes from making love with her. His face paled, teeth clenched and eyes hardened.
“Jess,” he gasped out.
Paige sat up quickly. Grant grabbed her hand, squeezing a little too hard.
“Jess, where are you? How’d you get this number?”
Paige couldn’t hear the answer so she tried to read Grant. Right in front of her, his face lost all expression and closed down.
“Are you with him?” was Grant’s next question. “Fine,” he snapped. “When and where?”
There was a pause before his body jerked and he was watching her just as closely as she did him.
“No. She stays out of this.”
Another pause.
“No.”