by Folsom, Tina
In the distance, a question emerged: why then had the machine glowed blue instead of orange? He had no time to find an answer, because at that moment, the man’s fist struck down on Oriana, knocking her toward the narrow stone stairs that lead down to the canal next to the bridge. She stumbled backwards, crying out.
“Nooooo!!!!” he roared, drawing the Guardian’s attention on himself.
But he couldn’t deal with the man right now. Oriana was falling backwards, her feet getting caught in her petticoats and her hands flailing. She’d dropped her machine to the ground the moment she’d been struck. Nico jumped toward her, reaching his hand out from under the protection of his cloak.
Muted sunlight hit his skin. He ignored the burning sensation, his eyes focused on his wife as her back crashed against the metal handrail. Her hand gripped it, but the metal made a cracking sound. Without a conscious thought, he lunged for her, reaching for her with both hands. He’d neglected to wear gloves, and now the skin on the back of his hands was blistering. He ignored the pain and got hold of one of her arms just as the handrail gave way, and she fell.
Oriana’s scream was a mere croak. Nico felt her full weight, now only supported by his hand clasping tightly around her forearm. From the corner of his eye he saw the Guardian approach. Nico whipped his head toward him and saw the blade he now wielded.
“I’ll teach you to cheat me!” he ground out and lunged toward them.
With one hand holding onto Oriana, trying to steady her swaying body, which hung suspended over the canal, he reached for his own knife under the cloak, realizing too late that he hadn’t armed himself before leaving the house.
The Guardian barreled toward him. Nico kicked his leg out, grazing his attacker’s thigh as the man sidestepped him. Knowing he was at a disadvantage, both because he was still holding onto Oriana, and because the late afternoon sun was quickly robbing him of his energy as it damaged his skin, burning through the upper layers, he made a split-second decision.
He turned away from the Guardian and reached for Oriana with his second hand, gripping her other arm. He heaved her up, depositing her onto the steps, just as a knife sliced into his back.
Pain seared through him. He knew the knife wound wouldn’t kill him, but in his current state, it debilitated him further. Swinging around, he faced the Guardian. This time, his attacker sliced through Nico’s cloak. It got tangled up with the knife, and as the Guardian attempted to pull his knife from it, he inadvertently ripped the protective cloak even further, pulling it halfway off Nico’s body.
Instantly, Nico felt the sun’s rays on his body, his white shirt and thin waistcoat providing no adequate barrier.
Stunned, the Guardian stared at him, seemingly only now realizing that he was fighting a vampire. With an evil grin, he pulled on the remainder of the cloak, pulling it clear off Nico. Now he was fully exposed. His face and neck instantly started to blister. From his damaged hands smoke already started to rise.
Despite the pain, Nico lunged at his attacker, knowing that if he couldn’t defeat him, the Guardian would kill Oriana. He landed a punch in the man’s face, wiping the grin off it. But Nico immediately realized that his strength was already waning. Under normal circumstances, his fist would have knocked his attacker unconscious. Now it only numbed him for a short moment. Already, his attacker was fighting back.
Nico eyed the archway. He had to push the Guardian back toward it so he could fight him under its shelter and avoid any more damage by the sun. Ramming his entire body against the man, he managed to get a few feet closer to the shaded area, but then a kick to his stomach pushed him back toward the bridge again.
The scent of charred flesh rose to his nostrils. Nico caught sight of his right hand, the one that had been exposed to the sun the longest and saw that the back of it had turned black like charcoal. Shit! He didn’t have much time left or the damage would be irreversible.
The Guardian’s hand holding the knife flew toward him. Nico twisted, avoiding it by a hair’s breadth, then landed a punch in his attacker’s neck, throwing him off balance. The Guardian tumbled for a brief moment, but caught himself and aimed his knife again.
Nico saw it coming toward him and tried to avoid it, but his movements were slowing, and his breath deserted his lungs. He was done for. The sun was killing him. He’d failed. The knife came closer. The Guardian didn’t need a stake to kill him now; he knew that: by debilitating him sufficiently so Nico wouldn’t have the strength to crawl inside, the sun would finish the job for him.
Nico’s eyes darted to where he’d left Oriana, hoping for one last glance at her, but she was gone. Disappointment and relief collided in him. At least she had escaped. Nico’s vision blurred.
Suddenly the Guardian froze. There was a movement behind him. His hand holding the knife dropped, then blood seeped from his neck.
Nico focused his eyes just as the Guardian fell. Behind him, Oriana stood, still holding her machine with both hands, blood dripping from the metal rod that protruded from its front.
Stunned, he stared at her.
Concerned eyes looked back at him. “We have to get you out of the sun.”
She rushed to him, put an arm around his waist and dragged him toward the archway. His feet barely cooperated, his knees already buckling, but Oriana didn’t give up. A moment later, he found himself sitting in the darkest corner of the archway, away from the sun.
His body still smoldered, the damage to his skin and flesh severe. He needed blood, and he needed it soon. But he needed to know something else first, otherwise his heart would never rest.
“Why did you save me after you betrayed me?”
A tender hand stroked over his chest. “I didn’t betray you.”
He closed his eyes, unable to look at her. “You demonstrated the machine to a Guardian.”
“I did. To prove that it doesn’t work.”
“But it works. The night you were attacked, it worked. You didn’t see it, because you fell, but when I touched it, it turned blue.”
“As it did when the Guardian touched it a moment ago,” she confirmed. “I secretly connected the machine to a different chemical to make sure he would think it doesn’t work.”
He stared at her, not understanding. “Why?”
“Because they’ll never give up if they think there’s a machine out there that’s working.”
Nico motioned his head toward the bridge where the dead body of the Guardian still lay. “But he’s dead. He won’t be able to tell his fellow Guardians that the machine doesn’t work.”
“But he was also the only one who knew who I am. The others don’t know. They’ll never find us.”
“How do you know?”
“He was using the knowledge of who I am as leverage with the other Guardians. He said, a wise man never reveals his sources. He was too greedy to share the information. We’re safe.” She sighed. “Now, let’s get you home.”
He shook his head. “I won’t make it.”
Oriana’s breath hitched. “No! Don’t do this to me! Don’t die on me!”
He shook his head. “What I meant to say is that I won’t make it home without blood. My body is too damaged to sustain another moment in the sun. I left our gondola on the canal parallel to this. I won’t make it that far unless I have a chance to heal first. To heal I need . . . ”
His eyes dropped to her neck, and he saw her shiver.
Then a smile suddenly curved her lips. “I suppose it’s the least I can do after you saved me from the Guardian.” She inched closer.
“Yes, it’s the least you can do,” he confirmed, smiling too.
Oriana tilted her head to the side, exposing her pale neck. He raised his hand to brush over her skin, then caught sight of the charred surface of it, and pulled it back.
“I’m sorry, I’m not much to look at right now.”
“I don’t look at the exterior, my love,” she murmured. “Because I can see your heart.” She pressed her hand over the s
pot where his heart was pounding out of control. “You risked your life for me.”
Then she brought her neck to his lips. He inhaled her scent.
“Drink from me.”
His fangs lengthened and nudged against her neck. He opened his mouth wider, then drove the sharp tips into her skin. A momentary tensing of her muscles was the answer, but then she relaxed against him, and he began to pull on her vein.
Her blood was rich and sweet. Greedily he drank from her, feeling how her blood spread in his veins, nourishing him, healing him. His cells restored themselves, the charred skin falling off him and new skin covering the exposed flesh. His hair grew, replacing the strands that had been burned off.
With every drop of her blood, his strength returned. And with it came the desire for her. The desire to have her. He pulled her up, having regained his full strength, and without removing his fangs from her neck, pressed her against the wall.
Then his hands pushed her skirts up and pressed the fabric into her hands to hold it up. She complied without complaint. Opening his breeches a moment later, he freed his cock. He was hard.
His fingers found the slit in her drawers, and he pushed inside her, seating himself to the hilt. Oriana moaned in response. The sound echoed in the archway and accompanied the thrusts with which he claimed her and made her his in every way.
19
They had disposed of the Guardian’s body in the canal, weighing it down with a few stones and wrapping his cloak tightly around him, a task Oriana performed without flinching.
Nico couldn’t feel happier, knowing that his wife had allowed him to drink her blood.
“Did you like it?” he murmured now as they lay in bed, her naked body wrapped around his, their limbs entangled.
She chuckled softly, and the sound warmed his heart. “Do you really have to ask?” Her hand trailed down to where his cock was already swelling again. She wrapped her hand around him. “If you need more . . . ”
He laughed softly. “If you’re worried that my cock won’t be hard enough for you, my wanton wife, then don’t be. For the important things, I always have enough energy.”
“I just want to make certain that you’re completely healed.”
“I am.” He pressed a kiss on her lips. “Thanks to you. And now it’s time to thank you for it.”
Her cheeks blushed. “But you already thanked me. First under the archway, then here.”
Nico pulled her closer, caressing her soft backside. “Oh that? That was only a reflex to reassure myself that I’m still alive.”
“Oh!”
“Thanking you is going to take a little longer.”
Her eyelashes opened, almost crashing against her eyebrows. “How long?”
He brushed his lips against hers. “Eternity.”
Oriana suddenly pulled back and sat up. “For you maybe, but I don’t have eternity. I’m human.”
Nico sat up and faced her. “You have a choice, my love. But not now. Not yet. I want us to have children first.”
“Children?”
“Yes.” He stroked his hand over her stomach. “I want my seed to grow in you. Once we’ve filled this house with our children, you’ll have to make a decision whether to join me and become what I am, so we can live together for eternity.”
Oriana opened her mouth. “Ah—”
Nico placed his finger over her lips. “Not now. I want you to learn more about us first, so you’ll know what your decision means. You’re a scientist, are you not?”
She nodded.
“Then you’ll want to examine all issues before you come to your conclusion.”
“Examine?” she murmured and turned her gaze to his midsection.
A bolt of lightning charged through him. Yes, he had a wicked wife with a sinful disposition. And he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“May I start with the examination now?”
He leaned back into the cushions and pushed the bed linen down all the way, baring himself to her. “You may do anything you want, my love.”
She scooted down and eyed his cock, then licked her lips suggestively. “Anything?”
He groaned. “Yes, and particularly that.”
She glanced at him. “How do you know what I intend to do?”
Nico smiled. “Because I can read it in your face.” Then he pointed to his cock. “Are you going to make me wait forever?”
Oriana bent over his groin. A moment later, her tongue darted out, and she licked over the head of his erection. His entire body went rigid.
“Oh, I’m going to enjoy this,” she claimed.
“Not as much as I,” Nico prophesized.
A second later he lost his ability to speak when Oriana’s lips wrapped around him and slid down his hard length, taking him inside her warm and wet mouth.
And for a long time after that moment, nothing else mattered.
THE END
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Books in the Venice Vampyr series:
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About the Author
Tina Folsom was born in Germany and has been living in English speaking countries for over 20 years, the last 12 of them in San Francisco, where she’s married to an American.
Tina has always been a bit of a globe trotter: after living in Lausanne, Switzerland, she briefly worked on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean, then lived a year in Munich, before moving to London. There, she became an accountant. But after 8 years she decided to move overseas.
In New York she studied drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, then moved to Los Angeles a year later to pursue studies in screenwriting. This is also where she met her husband, who she followed to San Francisco three months after first meeting him.
In San Francisco, Tina worked as a tax accountant and even opened her own firm, then went into real estate, however, she missed writing. In 2008 she wrote her first romance and never looked back.
She’s always loved vampires and decided that vampire and paranormal romance was her calling. She now has 17 novels in English and 21 in other languages (Spanish, German, and French) and continues to write, as well as have her existing novels translated.
For more about Tina Folsom:
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