Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (121 page)

My entire body went rigid in his arms.
“What do you mean?”

“
This is part of the
demons’ game. It’s the hunt that entices them. When Alichino brings
an unsuspecting person here, he sets a new path for them across
this wasteland. If they fail to make it to the river, they die. We
have to get to the river before they find us.”

“
How do you know he’s after
us?” I asked as I looked into his eyes, wanting to meet this
Alichino and introduce him to the Wolf straight away.

“
Trust me. I know. In his
mind, the Season of the Games has already begun. And if he has
realized you aren’t in my rooms which I suspect he has…” His voice
trailed off as he looked out across the dark horizon. A great
struggled raged in his soul. For a long time, he remained
silent.

Then finally, he embraced me again.
“Not this time. He won’t succeed this time.”

The moment I felt his hand on the back
of my neck, I moaned quietly. The emotions in me rose to the
surface. I couldn’t control it. And I couldn’t deny it. I had found
love in the most unlikely place, at the most unlikely time. I
remained frozen in this vampire’s grasp. If my freedom was at the
hands of this vampire, so be it. If it meant losing my virginity to
him in the process, so be it. I wanted to spend eternities being in
this man’s arms. Forever.

“
I’m sorry about before. I
didn’t realize my words would hurt you, Vincent. Please forgive
me.” I swallowed down the words as I recognized the fact that my
priorities were quickly changing.

Vincent’s arms tightened closer around
me.

“
If you can help me escape,
I’ll be in your debt,” I stated as I returned his embrace, resuming
my part.

Pulling away from me as he gazed into
my eyes, he tucked a portion of my long blonde bangs under my cap
again. He searched my face for answers. A million problems seemed
to be knotted up behind his eyes. His brows drew together in an
agonized expression. “You don’t owe me anything. This is between me
and Alichino, not you. These games must end now. I know that now.
He’ll never stop unless someone stops him.”

His discourse didn’t seem directed at
me.

“
I can say that I only wish
we had met under more favorable circumstances because I fear that
when you leave you will be taking my heart with you,” he
added.

Tears
rose in my eyes and I pressed my face into his chest. “I’ll keep it
safe, Vincent. I promise. But first I must tell you something.”
After realizing he had just handed his heart over to me, I decided
to come clean and tell him everything.
Would he understand?

Chapter 3 – Vincent’s
Idea

This chapter is told from Vincent, the hero’s point of
view.

I didn’t give Emily a chance to
respond. Instead I grabbed her hand and we ran as fast as we could
across the wasteland. “We have to move. Try to keep up.”

She replied with a few choice words
that I elected to ignore. I wondered if she realized just how far
from home she was, being in the Dark Place. Didn’t she understand
the danger waiting for her if we were caught? Didn’t I risk too
much by trying to save her? I knew I was risking everything and
that was fine by me. I’d never felt more alive than that moment
when we touched. The electricity radiating through my veins was
undeniable. The revitalization of my heart overwhelmed me. We had
to make it to the river in time.

***

“
Vincent, stop yanking on
me.”

“
I have an idea,” I
announced as I paused near a large rock.

“
What?” Emily asked. She
was out of breath.

“
So we can understand each
other telepathically if something comes up. The language. You’ll
understand the language too. Well perhaps.”

She watched me in amazement and
wonder.

“
I’m not making any sense,
am I?” I asked. I threw my trench coat to the ground, beginning to
pace manically before her. I stopped and collected myself. It
wouldn’t do for me to lose control of the situation. I’d be useless
to her then if my dark side rallied.

Emily continued to stare at
me.

“
Okay, I apologize. I’m
moving too fast. My blood. If you drink some of my blood, you’ll
understand the language of the Lunar world. The language I use to
speak to others who practice the Magics. The blood may help you
with your wolf strength too. You haven’t fed or anything, have
you?”

I saw the
hesitation written across her lovely tanned face. She looked
ethereal, almost unreal in the dim light. Her facial bones were
delicately carved, her mouth full, her cheekbones, exquisite, even
exotic. Her eyes were large and questioning as her mouth curved
into a tempting smirk like she naturally disagreed with most
anything I said. She had been doing that at every turn. It was
exhilarating to see. I wanted to devour her in more than kisses. I
glanced at a blonde curl of her hair peeking out from beneath one
of my knit caps she wore. It had taken ten minutes to convince her
to hide her hair. The more camouflaged she appeared, the better.
Along the desolate landscape, Alichino’s hounds would pick out her
blonde hair instantly. Finally, at my insistence, she had tied her
mass of golden-bronze hair up and stuffed it under the cap.
Delightfully defiant
, I
thought.

“
How much blood are we
talking here, vaa…” Quickly she added, “Vincent.”

“
A few drops, that’s all.
Anything more and we’d have to get married.”

She laughed hesitantly, but I heard
her voice go up an octave. “Are you serious?”

“
Somewhat, yes. An exchange
of blood between a vampire and werewolf is a sacred act. A bond
between the two. Do you know what I’m talking about? You’re
familiar with this concept, right?”

“
No, not really. My aunt
couldn’t tell me anything really about the Lunar world. She said
they are supernatural creatures who fight against evil. That’s all
she really said. Is that who you mean?”

“
Yes, exactly. I wish I had
time to tell you more.” I kept wondering over and over why I had
not claimed Lord Alichino as my father. I spoke of him as some
demon I didn’t know, some ruler beyond hope. Wasn’t he? He took
great pleasure in delivering pain and death at every turn. It was
his goal in life. I should have told Emily the truth, but I
couldn’t. How could I admit to this lovely angel that he and I were
related? Moreover, how could I tell her I suspected her relatives
had been added as decoration for my father’s trophy wall? And that
she was probably next? If she drank some of my blood, she’d be safe
and perhaps she could escape Father’s wrath. It was the best I
could offer her.

“
What if I say ‘no’?” Emily
asked with an amount of resistance I was starting to expect. She
lifted her chin, meeting my stern gaze straight on. A challenging
smile crossed her face.

I arched
an eyebrow at her and gave her my seductive vampire expression,
hoping to convince her without any more argument.
Defiant.

Emily tilted her head questioning and
then nudged her cap a time or two, scratching the side of her
temple. “This thing itches. Can’t I take it off?”

“
No,” I growled. “I
apologize. Just keep it on for now, okay?”

She fidgeted with her jacket and the
cuffs of her sleeves. I realized I needed to get her attention
without barking at her. Since nothing else seemed to work, I
rattled off a few phrases in Italian. Surely that would focus her
attention.

“
Con la luna e le stelle,
deve essere così testardo mia bellezza? Cosa c'è di qualche goccia
di sangue tra amici. Siamo amici. Non siamo?”

“
You’re
not cursing me out, are you?” She stuck her nose up in the air and
popped her fists on her hips more violently than I think she wanted
to do. A twinge of pain crossed her beautiful features.
Definitely defiant.

Glancing around us again to survey the
situation, I stifled a low laugh and sighed. “We don’t have that
much time, Emily. Decide. Forget your fear or your apprehension, if
you want to call it that, and trust me. I’m the best option you
have.”

“
You’re the only option
I’ve got I do believe,” she grunted as she rescued a long strand of
her golden hair from her cap and twirled it around her long
fingers.

She remained quiet for some time,
playing with her hair. She glanced up at me now and again, refusing
to speak.

“
Fine,” I finally said. “By
the moon and stars, must you be so stubborn, my beauty? What’s a
few drops of blood between friends. We are friends. Are we not?
That’s what I said to you, my princess. Now stop horsing around, so
we can make tracks. Please.” I tapped her on her deliciously cute
button nose and waited for her response. I knew that would get a
rise out of her.

She rubbed her nose a few times,
obviously debating my offer and considering her situation. I didn’t
want to tell her I had already smelled Father’s scouts and they’d
be closing in fast if they picked up her scent. I’m sure Father
failed to tell the hounds to track my familiar smell as a way of
finding the she-wolf.

Suddenly Emily exclaimed, “What is
that smell?”

“
A lovely aroma of rotting
corpses and burnt onions?” I mused.

“
Yes,
what
is
that?”

“
Hellhounds. They haven’t
caught our scent yet, so we have a little time.”

Emily’s eyes grew very wide and I saw
the fear surface behind them. She backed away from me. “You mean
hellhounds, don’t you? I can’t go up against… I mean I can’t. I
can’t shift without the Wolf. I can’t. I…”

“
Stop
that.” My hand clamped down on hers before she ventured any
further. Instantly my heart responded, beating wildly with a new
life I still couldn’t understand. It was as if her touch, her gaze,
her very presence had reawakened my soul. “Yes, you can,” I argued.
“You can do anything you put your mind to. With this wolf you keep
referring to or without. Listen to me.” I pulled her again into my
arms, hoping I managed to be gentler with her than before. A warmth
from her closeness spread through my hands and arms to my chest and
down to my dick, leveling it out into a rock-hard salute.
By the moon and stars, how am I going to let her
go?
I swallowed down the enormity of my
emotions and focused on her eyes, insisting she return my gaze.
When she did, I whispered to her. “We’ll do it together like a
team.”

“
Like friends?” Emily
asked.

“
Yes, like friends. Allies.
A partnership. Whatever you’d like to call it. Just because you are
a werewolf and I’m a vampire, sworn enemies, doesn’t mean we can’t
put that aside and do this. Your life is in danger and I’ll help
you get out of this, okay? I just need you to trust me. I’ll trust
you if you trust me. Okay?”

She nodded and yanked her cap off. “I
hate this thing. I can’t stand to have anything on my head.
Vincent, technically I’m not…”

I waited for her to finish her
sentence, but she didn’t. She bit her bottom lip and refused to go
on. Seeing her mass of glorious golden hair spill over her
shoulders, I was suddenly speechless. She ripped off her jacket and
rearranged the knot in her shirt. I caught a glimpse of her flat
stomach and my body responded. I wanted to take her right then and
there. I wanted to remove the rest of her clothing and delicately
explore every inch of her body, down to the first caress, the first
kiss, the first thrust. I wanted to claim her for my own, not set
her free. My heart ached and I died a hundred deaths inside as I
watched her. She’d be out of my life very soon.

“
Okay, I can do this. Of
course I can do that. I’m a Werewolf Princess. I’m a daughter of
King Lividius. I’m fearless. I can do this. Okay. Okay.
Okay.”

“
Just think, ‘Kill or be
killed.’ My blood will do the rest.” I waited for her to agree with
me or at least acknowledge I had spoken. She continued messing with
her clothes. “Emily, you’re shaking!”

“
No, I’m not.”

“
Quickly, here, drink my
blood. Just remember, I’m on your side. Okay?”

Not wanting her to see me drop my
fangs, I distracted her. “Let me check something. Do you see
anything yet? Look over there for a moment, would you?”

Once she had turned and cried out,
“What, where?” I sank my fangs into the fleshy part of my hand. The
warm liquid coated my hand and I knew I had found a juicy vein in
the meat behind my thumb.

“
Here,” I said as I forced
my hand into her face. “Drink just a few drops and we’ll get
moving.”

Chapter 4 – Emily’s
Rose

This chapter is told by Emily, the heroine.

The luscious smell of Vincent’s
masculinity hit my nostrils the minute I licked the first drop of
his blood from his hand. The Wolf in me awoke and I knew I had to
control my savage lust that sprang up in me or I’d shift again and
possibly run off into the night. As I slowly and purposely cleaned
off the remnants of any remaining liquid from his hand, I thought
of melted butter dripping over a freshly baked loaf of bread or
warm butterscotch oozing down the side of an angel food cake. My
mouth watered. The blood’s salty sweetness reminded me of a flavor
I couldn’t define. Honey? Cinnamon? Vanilla? All three? I couldn’t
make up my mind. I lavished in the thought process as I refused to
let go of his hand. The taste entranced me as I immediately
realized I wanted more. It sent visions of hardcore ecstasy racing
through my mind. I wanted to taste the essence of Vincent’s manhood
again. I savored the flavor of the vampire’s blood in my mouth and
I knew, as a shifter, I had crossed a point of no return. I wanted
to jump someone’s bones, preferably the man I was
eyeballing.