by Fiona Archer
Yep. She had found the perfect dress to commemorate the day her best friend became the undead. The day she had almost lost him. The day that had opened her eyes… even if she didn’t recognize right away what she was seeing. What the changes in her meant. Even then, the fear… the fear of losing her best friend by making it weird was too real.
None of that now. She reached around to check the price tag. As she did, she gave herself a pep talk. She was done living for fear. She was going to live for lif— What the hell? Who the hell pays $1950 for something that has so little material in it that it could pass for a swimsuit? It might be the perfect dress, but Sean was just going to have to bite her in something less “right.” There was no way she was going to be able to afford it on her phlebotomist’s salary. She enjoyed her job, but it was not a lucrative calling. That didn’t bother her… she was doing just fine, but she wasn’t doing that fine.
Sad but resigned, and a little panicked at even having something that expensive on her body, Alexis reached behind her to get at the zipper. Unfortunately, the clingy dress was kind of like a clingy relationship… Easy to get into, but so hard to get out of. She stretched her arms over and under behind her back to no avail. The material had somehow gotten tighter. Why would a dress get tighter? She was beginning to feel like someone had vacuum-sealed her into this damn perfect dress. What if she couldn’t get this fucking thing off before hurting it and then was forced to buy it?
Nope. “Not today, Satan.”
Alexis was going to get out of this dress. Centering herself, she took a calming breath to counter her overly-restrained heaving bosoms. She pulled the dress up to her waist so she could brace one leg up on the seat in the dressing room. Like a gymnastic feat from Simone Biles, she threw her arm back hard, angling her body in uncomfortable ways.
She almost had it but jumped, losing her grip, at the sound of an alarm blaring throughout the Lacy’s department store.
No! No! No! She had to get this damn thing off before she left the store.
She reached back again with one arm, bracing the other against the wall, all the while seeking divine intervention, and “Yes!” The zipper began to inch down like the parting of the Red Sea. Hallelujah! Let my breasts go.
There was no explaining what happened next even to herself. Her adrenaline riding high to the sound of the alarm, twisted within an inch of her life while wearing what had begun to feel like a cocoon of death instead of the perfect dress, somehow… she had a sudden, and very powerful sneeze. The propulsion of the sneeze, like one of Wile E. Coyote’s rockets, sent her flying off of her balanced leg. She reached out to grip on to something, but was only able to find a hanger, which snapped as she tumbled.
Pain flared as her head struck the wall behind her. And an even worse pain as she simultaneously felt the sharp edge of the hanger rip into the dress at her thigh. Alexis had two final thoughts before everything went dark. The first… Sean was never going to see her in the now damaged perfect dress despite her having to pay for it. The second… she never even had a chance to find the right matching shoes. Dangit!
When she came awake sometime later, she thought she must be hallucinating. She was staring up into the blue-gray eyes she had been dreaming about for the last couple of years. Eyes as familiar to her as her own. “Sean? Are you okay? You look terrible.”
Chapter Three
Wood
If Sean could bite the idiot who decided it would be funny to pull the fire alarm, he would. Okay. Maybe he wouldn’t, but he sure wanted to. When they arrived at the shopping center—the location of their call—it turned out to be a false alarm. As they were in the process of resetting the alarm, cussing out their frustrations, a sales clerk tentatively began to speak to him.
“Excuse me, sir. I need your help.” He turned fully toward her as she continued, “There was a woman that had gone into the dressing room before the alarm went off. I just went in to make sure she made it out and found her on the ground.”
Sean was about to request Sloane, one of the women on his crew, join him to help with the unconscious woman in the dressing room. He stopped when he caught the tiniest trace of a scent he knew all too well coming off the clerk.
“Take me to her, please.” Sean couldn’t know for sure, but of course he did. The scent. He indicated to his chief that he was checking something out and got a nod of approval as he followed the clerk.
What was Alexis doing here? And… why was she unconscious? She better fucking be okay. She had to be. Tonight was their night.
He asked the clerk as they walked to the dressing room about the health of the woman. They arrived at the stall and there she was. His Alexis. He knelt beside her, going through the motions of checking for a pulse, since he already heard she had one. Still, he could scent her blood in the air, causing his teeth to elongate and his body energy to rise against his will. He spoke to the clerk without looking her way. “Could you please bring me a glass or bottle of water?”
“Of course. I’ll be right back,” he heard as she scurried away.
He felt the back of Alexis’ head and found the spot where she must have hit it. She moaned and shifted. Yeah. He bet that hurt. Her eyes fluttered open and, in gloriously Alexis fashion, she asked if he was okay. Him. “It’s you I’m worried about.”
He inspected the rest of her, and that was when he realized what she was wearing. More to the point, that there wasn’t much of it to begin with, and much of it was bunched up at her waist. Her blue cotton underwear was the only thing on the lower half of her. The same underwear where he could scent her arousal now that he wasn’t so focused on the smell of her blood.
He’d meant to declare his feelings and seduce her that night. Seconds later, taken completely off-guard, that ship had sailed when a low, guttural growl escaped his lips as he stared at the juncture of her thighs. Sean’s teeth extended completely out as his baser instincts briefly took over. “That’s my pussy.” I can’t believe I just said that.
“Excuse me?”
“I can’t believe I said that.” He couldn’t blame her incredulous tone. What did he expect would happen?
“Did you seriously just claim my pussy without even a please and thank you, while I lie here injured? I know my mama taught you better than that. She’s probably rolling in her grave. Put those teeth away and help me up.”
Shit. He’d just single-handedly torpedoed all of his plans for the night. Even his predator felt the sting of Alexis’ response to his ill-timed words. His teeth receded back in shame. As she struggled to get up, he said, “I don’t think you should move until I can fully inspect you.”
“I think you’ve inspected enough, don’t you?”
“I—”
“Sean. If you don’t help me up, I’m just going to do it on my own.”
And she would, too. “Are you sure you’re well enough—”
“Yes. Only a mild headache and my pride were hurt.”
He stood and carefully helped her up by her hand, watching for signs she might fall or get dizzy, but she seemed genuinely okay. Nothing else appeared wrong with her, and even the blood from her injury, visible now that she moved, was minimal. “We should get you to a hospital, just in cas—”
Shock gripped him as she put her mouth on his. Wait. Wait. Hold up. Alexis had her mouth on his. Apparently, his brain was the foggy one. She seemed perfect. Or… maybe she just felt perfect? All he knew was that she was kissing him. Her arms were wound around his neck. And what was he waiting for?
He pulled her in close and sucked at her lip, sliding his tongue out and asking permission to enter her mouth. She didn’t just grant it to him. Nope. She slid her tongue to meet his, and it came ready to tussle. Fuck yeah!
He was so hungry for her—starved—and she tasted so damn good. A mix of what he’d imagined she’d taste like based on her scent, but so much more. As they kissed, it was like swirling an expensive whiskey just to make sure it hit every note on your pallet. And just like a stron
g whiskey, the taste and feel of her intoxicated him.
He couldn’t remember lifting her by her bare-except-underwear ass nor when her long legs wrapped themselves around his hips. All he knew was that the core of her was cradling the only piece of him doing any thinking. And boy, it had a lot of thoughts like, Take her, or Damn she’s hot, or Fuck, yeah, or—
A throat clearing from only a few feet away jolted him back into full awareness. He nearly dropped Alexis in his rush to right them. He didn’t, of course. Drop her that is. No way would he risk injuring her even more. The clerk, on the other hand, was lucky. His power, already high with lust, had almost exploded out of him at being startled. Wouldn’t that have been a bad scene? He turned to the door, and there was the clerk, with a glass of water and a disapproving disposition.
Wanting to cover up their indiscretion, he issued his power out gently, stared into the clerk’s eyes, and said, “You’ve just returned. All you’ll remember is that you brought the water, and you found us standing in the stall waiting for you.”
The clerk blinked in confusion for a moment. Sean took that moment to make sure Alexis righted herself, including, disappointingly, having to pull down her dress. Her very tight, wickedly sexy dress. He diverted himself from those thoughts by turning back to the clerk. She smiled at him and offered him the glass of water.
“Thank you.”
He took the proffered water and handed it to Alexis. She stared at it like she didn’t recognize water at first. Then she brought it up to her lips, and her eyes met his over the rim. And damn, her look made some pretty seriously dirty promises. He’d never seen that look in Alexis’ eyes before, and seeing it now sucked since he couldn’t act on it. He had a job to do, an onlooker to appease, a boss to report to.
He threw back a look that hopefully said, Behave.
She didn’t.
Chapter Four
Match
Walking around with wet panties was not okay. Not when she had to assure everyone that she was well, sign away medical help, and practically cry through paying for the dress she still wore. She’d enjoyed secretly flirting with Sean—as he glared—knowing he could still smell her across the room, putting him on edge. Well, good. He should be on edge. After kissing her and holding her like that… how dare he?
She wasn’t mad about the kiss. She was mad that he kissed her like that and hadn’t done it sooner. How dare he keep all that under wraps? Not tonight, though. Tonight would be a new start for them.
Sean left with his crew, heading back to the station, but she knew he’d make a quick turnaround to meet her at his apartment. If she went straight there, she should beat him, but only by a short amount of time.
She raced over, abandoning all her other plans for the night. Using the key he’d given her ages ago, Alexis entered. One hand closed the door behind her as she looked at her purse to make sure she put the keys inside the right pocket.
“Oomph!”
A solid wall blocked her. She looked up and it was Sean. “What? How? How are you here?”
He pointed at himself and smirked. “Vampire.”
She deflated a bit. Damn. “Why are all my plans failing today?”
He must have heard the frustration in her voice because she found herself in his arms. Not in the way she’d originally planned but in a comforting, all-engulfing hug instead. His black hair curled around his ear, tickling her cheek, and he smelled like home.
He whispered, “What’s wrong, and how can I make it better?”
She took a deep breath and said the scariest thing she’d ever said.
“I’m in love with you. I had grand plans to tell you tonight, but my plans are all fucked. I didn’t even get to put on my sexy underwear instead of my cotton-forgotten.” She rested her forehead on his shoulder and her hands on his hips. Taking a deep breath, she released it in acceptance.
His chest moved, lifting her head. His arms loosened. Was he pulling back? Was he about to tell her their earlier kiss was a mistake? She hoped not. She was missing the comfort of his embrace already. She didn’t have to miss it for long, though, because he moved his hands up to cup her face. His deep blue-gray eyes bored into hers with so much intensity she was compelled toward humor. “Hey. Buddy. My breasts are down here.” She indicated her chest, barely contained in the soul-stealing, perfect dress.
His seriousness dissolved with a snort and an ogle. That’s better.
“Yes, they are. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever tried talking to your breasts before. Excuse me.”
The bastard actually began to kneel, as though he was going to start a conversation with her boobs, and she was going to lose her damn mind waiting for him to respond to her proclamation. He didn’t stop for a chat, though. She let out an involuntary scream as he scooped her up into his arms and carried her off to bed.
“I’m sorry that all of your plans were ruined. If it makes you feel any better, I had plans of my own for tonight. I’ve abandoned almost all of them. The only plans that matter, though, overlap with yours. I’m in love with you, Alexis Cavill, and I look forward to telling your breasts all about it… personally.”
Her heart picked up its rhythm. He placed her on her feet and began to reach for her dress. Hell no! “Uh-uh. You will not be manhandling this dress. No, sir. Did you see how much I paid for it? And it already has a small rip I have to fix. Just unzip the back for me please.”
His deep chuckle warmed her as she turned. He slid the zipper down, grazing his mouth across her shoulder. Oh. That felt good. A sensual shiver ran the length of her spine, and she gasped. Sean trailed his nose and lips along her skin until he reached her neck. He nipped lightly and she could feel his sharp, elongated teeth. Oh, yeah.
This was why she wanted the dress in the first place.
“Bite me.”
“Um…Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“What about your dress?”
Yeah. Okay. True. She swiftly but carefully pulled her hand out of the sleeve, letting the bodice drop around her hips. Bending over, her ass in the air, she grabbed her underwear along with the dress and pushed them down to a grunt from Sean.
She straightened back up even as he knelt behind her, holding her hips in place with firm hands. His mouth trailed kisses up one of her thighs, paused over one butt cheek, and bit. Not to break skin but so he could suck. “Sean! Are you marking my ass?”
He stopped, and with arousing satisfaction, said, “Most definitely. I love your ass. Now stop talking and let me worship you already.”
“Could you worship me a little faster?”
“Whatever the lady wants.”
Chapter Five
Blaze
Sean continued his way up her back with kisses, licks, and nips until he was poised over her neck again. He hesitated briefly, but she demanded again, “Bite me.”
He wound his arms around her, resting one palm just over her pussy and the other taking a firm grip of her breast. The moment he bit into her flesh, he redirected Alexis’ thoughts from the pain by pinching her nipple and playing his fingers through her folds. Her body relaxed into his embrace as he released the optional pleasure chemical in his bite.
He continued to knead one breast and then the other, pinching and tugging at her firm nipples. Gazing over her shoulder and down her body, his mouth watered with the need to suck and bite at her beautiful brown areolas. With his other hand he delved into her entrance, just the tip of his finger, gathering some of her wetness. He used that finger to circle her clit.
“Sean. Sean. I want your cock.” Her voice was husky with need.
He licked the bite closed and whispered in her ear, “You’ll get my cock. Don’t worry. I’ve been wanting to fuck you for two long years. My cock will come out to play soon. But first, I want to watch you come in my arms. I want to watch your pleasure on your face. Only then will I be pulling out my cock. So… How badly do you want it?”
The whole time he talked, he continued to pla
y her body to his tune. He could tell by her rapid breathing and the rush of her blood under his touch that she was close.
He growled, “If you want me inside you sooner, I suggest you come for me.”
“I would, if you would just move your hand faster. I need more.” Her body quivered. “Do something.”
So he did.
He didn’t change his slow, maddening strokes, but he said, “I love you.”
Her guttural response to his declaration and her subsequent, “Oh fuck!” as she came was the sexiest thing he’d ever heard. He held her tight as she went limp.
Sean wasn’t able to wait another second. He needed her so much. He carefully flung her onto the bed, then worried about her head. “Oh shit! Are you okay?”
Alexis just laughed. “I told you. I’m fine and happy that you’re so eager.”
He ripped off his clothes at a speed no human could track. She gasped in surprise as he climbed on top of her and positioned his cock at her entrance. She wrapped her legs around his waist, opening to him completely. “God I want to fuck you so bad. Tell me again.”
She knew what he wanted to hear, and she gave it to him. “I love you.” Then she continued with, “I also love your cock. So… Get in here.”
He chuckled. He was glad to see they wouldn’t lose the essence of who they were. He kissed her deeply as he thrust home. She was so ready for him. So wet. So hot. So his. His best friend. And now his lover. His.