Shain’s silent response to Tanaka’s veiled disappointment was the corner of his mouth lifting, before he looked at her, reassurance in his eyes.
That helped.
“Your name?” Tanaka asked, keeping his eyes on Shain, but holding out his hand, silently asking for hers.
As her pulse galloped, Kimber extended her arm, palm up. “Do you always need to know the name of the woman before you feed from her?”
Tanaka transferred his attention to her. “No. But I have a feeling I’ll want to know yours, before our encounter is through.”
Should she give her real one?
She shouldn’t look to Shain for the answer. Doing so might reveal more of that intimacy they were trying to mask. The first name she could think of came out: “Savannah.”
“Hm. Savannah. A common name for an uncommon face.” He leered at her for a moment before lifting her arm up to his nose and inhaling.
Kimber softly gasped, feeling her energy being extracted like a magnet pulling smaller magnets. She didn’t know he’d be feeding off her that way too, from her sensa, though she should’ve expected it. A tiredness came over her.
It wasn’t until Tanaka’s fingers twitched that she realized he knew.
He looked up to Shain, stark surprise and dark delight swimming inside them. “A shiya?”
Shain bowed his head once.
By the surprise in Tanaka’s tone, she tried to gauge his final reaction.
He traced his fingertips from her wrist to her elbow. “How unexpected.”
Good or bad unexpected? Though his touch wasn’t altogether disturbing, it was weird, like he was petting her. Petting Shain’s pet.
No. Not his pet. His… His…
Tanaka continued to strum her arm, in no apparent hurry. “I don’t know anyone who has a shiya in service. I’d think it rather impossible, since they rarely stray from their packs. If they do, they never assign themselves to our kind for use.” Without turning his head, his eyes flicked her way. “Ever.”
Kimber kept her gaze forward, staring in the ever-changing flames of the fire, still and compliant. Like a doll waited to be toyed with. But she was no doll, no toy. “I don’t serve anyone but myself, and it was my idea to expose our arrangement to you. A challenge for Trevyn to reveal his greatest secret, in order to meet your challenge. If you think I’m here by force or demand or to be used, you’re very much mistaken.”
The vampire’s fingers stopped.
She raised a haughty eyebrow and flicked a glance to Shain, who displayed brief astonishment at her words. Good. She’d surprised him yet again. And herself. Who was this confident, poised woman in the company of two vampires?
When Shain spoke, his tone conveyed boredom. And a little impatience. “You challenged me to present something unique. As you can see, Savannah is that and more. Nothing to me, Tanaka, is impossible.”
The older vampire made a noncommittal sound. “Do you really need to be here to watch me? Are you afraid I’ll harm her?”
Her heart pumped faster. Things could turn without him in the room.
Don’t leave me alone with him, Shain.
She closed her eyes.
Never.
Kimber’s heart seized.
Did she actually hear that? Had Shain said it aloud?
Her gaze moved to his, but he was already meeting her eyes with the same amazement. No, her ears were working fine. Maybe she just imagined in her mind he would say “never” to her question. Or maybe he’d heard her thoughts, and she heard his—
Shain broke eye contact. “I stay or she leaves. It’s your choice, Rhyuu.”
“Oh, she stays,” Tanaka murmured. “Tell me, Savannah. Do you enjoy Trevyn’s bite? I’ve found that, with my own, some women do and some women do not.”
I wouldn’t know. But she had to reply and thought of her answer carefully. “Pain and pleasure have their place. You can’t appreciate one, Mr. Tanaka, without the other.” She let her gaze lower as she added, “When Trevyn feeds from me, I find I experience a bit of both.” True words, just not related to bloodfeeding.
Tanaka let go of her arm and stood from his chair.
Shain stood, too.
Oh God, was it already over? Was he disappointed? Was he going to leave?
Kimber remained seated, concealing her panic.
Tanaka noticed. “Pardon. I’m going to retrieve something from my coat.”
He walked to the other side of the room, returning with a small oval tin box. He sat closer to her, at the end of the sofa. Once again, she gave him her wrist.
“I’ve been experimenting with salves for many years, off and on, when I have the time,” he explained, dipping only the tip of his finger in the mixture and smearing it over her wrist. “However, its effectiveness varies from person to person. Do you feel anything?”
Was she supposed to?
There was a warmth, then a coolness, but both were gone before she could give her assessment. “No.”
Tanaka nodded, then removed the flower from his lapel, and plucked the pin that’d secured it. He held it up in the firelight for her to see and then slowly motioned to her wrist, as if expecting her to object.
She didn’t, and he poked the needle in.
Nothing.
To her shock, he put it in deeper. Still, no pain.
It seemed he’d concocted his own anesthetic.
“Good,” he said, removing the needle. “I want to distinguish myself from Trevyn, you see. I refuse to be like everyone else. You shouldn’t experience any displeasure at this point.”
A vampire concerned with a shifter’s comfort? She’d take it. In fact, she was feeling a little woozy, enjoyably woozy. “I understand,” was all she could murmur.
Tanaka smiled, his canines lengthening, raising her wrist to his lips.
“Stop,” Shain ordered.
Tanaka froze and looked up.
God, how she loved Shain more with that one word, but he was doing it out of his own fear, not hers. And he was denying her what she asked for.
She set out a hand. “No. Let him continue. I want him to.”
Tanaka met her gaze, gave a single nod, and set his teeth in.
She didn’t want to watch, but couldn’t resist.
Kimber’s free hand gripped the arm of her chair as he opened his mouth and sank in. She felt pressure, but nothing else. No jolting pain or strike to the nerves like she expected when sharp teeth penetrated skin.
Her blood seeped out and made a river from her wrist to her elbow, leaving a single drop on the black sofa, absorbing and disappearing in the black upholstery.
Kimber wanted to cry out, just witnessing how deep he was in her flesh, but her body didn’t require her to make any noise, because it truly didn’t hurt.
But there was no pleasure either.
Though, she felt…powerful, like Sasha had mentioned. Not only because her blood was special, but because she knew she could stop him at any time.
Tanaka swallowed, and swallowed again, his gaze fixated on no particular spot on the table.
Kimber’s heart pumped wildly in response.
How much could he drink before it wasn’t safe? When was the pleasure aspect going to begin?
The dizziness swirled in front of her eyes like watercolors.
Kimber dropped her head back, feeling high, languid, lost.
Only Shain’s voice brought her back to reality. “Enough.”
Kimber didn’t know if Tanaka obeyed before she blacked out.
I will never, ever let another feed from her again, Shain silently vowed. By the fucking gods, that was hell.
Tanaka removed his teeth from Kimber’s wrist immediately. Shain swept her up in his arms, went to the foyer, ordered Tanaka’s men to go outside, and took her to the library to lay her on a comfortable sofa.
Her pulse was slow but steady.
The puncture wounds on her wrist were already gone, thanks to her shifter powers, but Tanaka took too much for
Shain’s comfort…his comfort being more than a single drop. He’d only tolerated it because she ordered him to back off.
He wanted to stay with her, hold her hand and whisper his support, but he still had a role to play.
When he reentered the formal living room, Tanaka was facing the fireplace, whipping out a handkerchief from his pocket.
Shain wanted to despise the man, but found it difficult. It could’ve gone very differently. Tanaka had treated her with care, deference and—with the last thing Shain expected—kindness.
As he drew up beside him, the man wiped down his mouth and chin with the handkerchief, then his hands, and sighed.
Well, what does she taste like? Shain was desperate to know.
“Is she okay?” the older vampire asked.
“Yes.”
“That was…” Tanaka turned away from the fire, sighing, “special.”
Shain nearly delivered his own sigh. Of relief. “I know.” I know nothing about her blood, actually.
Tanaka faced him. “Absolutely exquisite.”
That good? Shain assumed a man of his long years had sunk his teeth into all kinds of exotic blood. “I’m pleased you’re satisfied. I was fortunate to find her.”
“And how you did, I’m most interested to hear.”
Good thing he was prepared for that question. “I caught her trespassing on one of my properties.”
Tanaka’s brows lifted. “In her wolf form?”
Shain chuckled, recalling the first time he met Kimber. “No. Human form, fully naked, swimming in the pond.”
“Was she not aware she was on vampire property?”
“She wasn’t. And since it was vacant, she thought she couldn’t possibly get caught. But she did. Much to her horror.”
“Did you know she was a shiya at the time?”
“That I didn’t, not until she was close. I assumed she was one of us, another vampiress from a different coven trying to get my attention. She, of course, sensed what I was.” He sighed long, remembering that he hadn’t known until he kissed her. Thus, he began the rest of his lie. “I was going to snap her neck, but I was hungry, so I bit into it instead.” Ugh. He sounded like such an asshole.
Tanaka finished the sentence. “And then you tasted her blood.”
Shain forced a smile, confirming it. “I thought to myself, why kill her? She’s attractive, intelligent, and tastes divine. I told her I’d pay her to be in service of me. She could’ve run home and never returned, but the offer was too enticing for her to refuse.”
“I see. She seems to be quite comfortable in your service.”
“You have to take care of your pets, if you don’t want them to attack or run away.”
Tanaka found that humorous. “True. I have my whillings for normal feedings, but I don’t possess a shiya. To be honest, it never occurred to me to have one. Least of all, a pure shiya like your Savannah. Finding one like her would be a task.”
A pure shiya? What did that mean? Well, he had to pretend to know. And it had to be the purity of her blood, since Kimber didn’t abuse drugs or alcohol. Those tasted the worst. He glanced at the doors, desperate to check on her. “She’s one of a kind, if you’ll pardon the pun.”
Tanaka chuckled. “Perhaps when you tire of her…”
Shain frowned. “If you’re hinting we can share, the answer is no.”
“Can you blame me for asking?”
He met the man’s eyes again and relaxed with a knowing smile. “No, I can’t.”
“What about her pack? How do you set up these clandestine feedings?”
“With care. I pay her generously, as agreed, which she has to share with them. They think she has an on-call arrangement with a reclusive, human millionaire.”
“And what service do they think she performs?”
Shain deliberately paused. “Dog sitting.”
Rhyuu chuckled. “Obviously you haven’t touched her.”
Why was that obvious? Oh, right, because sex with a shifter would be beneath him. “Obviously.”
“But you do desire her.”
Shain drew in a breath. “You’d have to be dead not to, but I don’t want my food to spoil.” Gods, he made himself ill by saying such things.
“Hm. Agreed.” Rhyuu smiled. The first one Shain could recall. “Well, it goes without saying I’m impressed. Now I know your secret weapon. I feel like I did when I was a boy, like I could fly, like I could touch the sun. By gods, their blood has ten times the potency of a human’s. I’d like to take this renewed energy out to play, by myself, if you don’t mind.”
“Of course.”
He shook Shain’s hand. “You have my most sincere thanks. And of course, the utmost discretion. I will tell no one, not even my inner circle, about what you have. For I might have to duplicate this idea. I’d find it distressing if word got out. I would know your little secret, and you would know mine.”
Gods, he hoped he wasn’t about to start a trend with his lie. “At your own risk, Tanaka. It’s different to stumble upon a shiya on your property than to seek one out on purpose.” Shain walked out with him. “Call me if you require anything.”
Tanaka turned as the Maybach came around. “I will.” He started to climb in the backseat when he concluded with, “I’ve made my decision. In fact, I’d nearly made it during our meeting in your office. But tonight put you over, Trevyn. She did, with her spirit, and of course, her blood. And you did, when you ordered me to stop. A man defending his treasure? Expected. A vampire putting his ambition aside to spare a shiya pain? Unprecedented. It’s not something I’ve ever seen, nor do I predict I ever will again. So. Congratulations. I’ll require your blood signature for our alliance to be official.”
Shain had nearly forgotten what this was all about.
By the gods…it was done.
He bowed his head, stunned. “Gratitude.”
As soon as the car was out of sight, Shain marched inside to attend to Kimber. Her pulse was stronger than before, though her paleness concerned him. He moved her to a bed upstairs, removed her dress and zippered corset, retrieved a blood bag with human blood he had waiting in the walk-in cooler, and hooked her to the IV. He’d bring her to the villa once the IV was drained.
Once the blood flowed, he covered her with the duvet, sat by her side, and watched over her.
His world had just turned to gold. With blood.
Shiya blood had helped him make his dream come true. Tanaka had said his decision had been more or less made after their conversation in his office, but that succeeding in meeting his challenge had sealed it. Separately, yet in a way as a team, he and Kimber had made it happen.
He gently took her hand in his.
And she’d done it because…well, he wasn’t exactly sure why. She claimed it was because she wanted to help him achieve his goal, yet she didn’t get much out of it. In fact, she hadn’t asked for anything in return yet.
Though, he couldn’t think of comparable compensation, other than money.
Something told him she’d be insulted if he offered it. Still, it was the least he could do. Although, any money she made had to be shared with the pack. Even if he gave her enough so she could live on her own for decades to come, she wouldn’t be happy for long. All shifters, even independent ones, needed a family to belong to. They were social creatures, like humans.
Then again, he thought, tracing the top of her hand with his fingers, Kimber wasn’t like her sister shifters. She was different. She longed to travel the world, taste what life had to offer.
It was easy to imagine taking her to exotic places, dressed in the best styles, living decadently from place to place like royalty. It was so natural to picture them together, exploring every world within worlds.
“What if I was your family?” Shain whispered, then dropped her hand.
He slid back and shot up from his seat.
He couldn’t believe he’d said that.
A voice of reason rushed in.
You
are simply grateful. Nothing more. You care for her. Nothing more.
He paced back and forth, unnerved.
But what about earlier? When you heard her thoughts?
Shain’s heart pounded. He curled a hand to a fist and brought it to his mouth, eyes searching the floor for answers.
It didn’t really mean anything. He just saw the words written on her face. One didn’t always need to hear the words when one could read them in another’s eyes.
Right?
Fuck. This was getting complicated.
But it didn’t have to; he still had control. Control over their time together. Control over his feelings for her. Control of when to stop.
Yes, damn you, calm down. You’re making too much of it. Kimber’s right; you are dramatic.
Or was he?
When it came to Kimber, nothing so far had been simple. The emotions running through him when she arrived had said so. They were beyond what he was willing to admit, even to himself. Because once admitted, who knew what he’d do to keep her? And he couldn’t do that.
Grateful. That was all.
Then again, grateful barely scratched the surface. He owed her a debt that, if she was truly aware of its significance, he could never actually repay, not unless she was by his side forever. And that was the most impossible of impossibilities.
The only thing he could do was give her the best weekend of her life. Spoil her, lavish her with attention. The best sex she ever had. She’d get all the passion and romance a vampire was famous for, and then enough money to do what she wished. Great sex and lots of money were the next best things to…something that would cost them both a lot more.
Kimber made a soft sound, and he jerked his attention on her as she turned her head, still asleep.
Three nights.
And then he’d have to end it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Kimber woke up in luxury. Silk sheets, a soft breeze, the smell of fresh flowers, birds singing merry songs outside.
Only the barest hint of sunshine came through the slit in the curtains.
His Dark Embrace Page 24