Forbidden Blood (3 page)

“Hey there, I’m Vaughn,” he said when their eyes met.

“Naya.”

The corners of his mouth tipped down as he brushed his thumb over her cheek. “Are you okay? Did that guy scare you?”

She wondered if he was really asking if
he
had scared her.

She shook her head. “I’m fine,” she said with a smile. “In fact, I’m more than fine.”

His gaze heated as he looked down at her body. “God, I want you,” he muttered more to himself than to her. He probably didn’t think she heard him, and if he knew she had, he’d most likely worry that he’d offended her. Instead, his words had a stimulating effect. Her heart was hammering in her chest, and her blood was rushing through her body. Something about Vaughn made him seem much
more
than human. Upon first impression, she’d thought he wasn’t human, but she knew he wasn’t a vampire, so that made him the most magnificent human she’d ever met.

V
AUGHN
L
LEWELYN WAS staring down into one of the most beautiful faces he’d ever seen. Naya had chocolate brown hair, full red lips, and violet eyes, along with a strong jaw line and a nose that could be described as broad. He appreciated it, though, since it fit her face and gave it character. Besides, he didn't care about her nose when she had a curvaceous body wrapped in a little black dress that would tempt any man.

She’d first caught his eye when she walked into the club, and immediately he’d known he wanted her.
Finding female companionship never posed a problem, but it had been a while since he was with a woman. Easygoing, he loved the softer of the two sexes and wasn’t terribly picky about who he shared his time with. After he’d spotted Naya, he knew she was the one he craved, and no one else would do.

There was just something about her.

From his vantage point upstairs, he’d observed as she neared the bar, and when she’d paused for a second and glanced up, he’d worried that she sensed him. Thankfully, a clumsy waitress had drawn her attention away, and he had been able to blend in with the crowd before she looked up again.

He
had planned to approach her, but he hadn’t wanted her to catch him spying on her like a stalker. That would have probably sent her running. He’d figured he would give her some time to relax first, and he could finish up with what he’d come to the nightclub for. He could tell she was edgy, and he hadn’t wanted to be one more thing she would have to deal with tonight. He’d been around women long enough to know which ones were easy and which ones weren’t. She was definitely one of the latter, so he’d decided to leave her alone for moment. His idea had been to let her hang out with her friend, drink a few cocktails, and hopefully loosen up. Then, he would have made his move.

Besides, he
’d liked watching her. She moved with grace and elegance. Almost regal. Yet, he could tell she wasn’t a snob. In the past, he’d met other women like her. They always knew they were pretty, so they thought they were better than others just because they had been blessed with good genes. But not her. She would smile politely at others, and when someone had bumped into her, he didn’t think she’d even noticed.

He
’d arrived tonight with his friend and coworker Sawyer in hopes of getting a feel for the new club. Technically, they had the night off, but they had already planned on coming, so they had been told to check it out. Thankfully, nothing had struck them as odd, and Vaughn had been ready to unwind when he noticed Naya heading to the bar for the second time.

And
that had been when the visibly intoxicated man hit on her. It had pissed Vaughn off. One, he hadn’t wanted anyone to bother her—which was funny because he hadn’t even met her yet—and two, the drunk had ruined his well-laid plans. He’d guessed he would either have to pull the drunk away—which might have made him look like a bully and gotten security involved, turning the whole thing into one big mess—or convince her to move to a different area with him, which might have made her think he was just another guy trying to seduce her. Okay, so in an ideal world, he would take her home, but he hadn’t wanted to be lumped into the same category as the lush who obviously couldn’t see she didn’t want anything to do with him.

Considering his choices, he
’d descended the stairs, moving closer to her and forcing himself to make a decision about what to do when he reached her. As he’d neared, he’d heard her say she arrived with someone tonight even though he knew she was alone. Of course, the loser hadn’t taken the hint, and then Vaughn had known he had a third choice. That was when he’d advanced toward her and pretended to be the someone she’d claimed to be with.

It
had also given him an excuse to touch her, something he assumed he would have to work up to.

Now, here she was, in his arms
. He’d gone further with her in the last ten minutes than he had with some of his past dates. To say he was surprised was an understatement. But it wasn’t a turn-off. It only made him want her more. He was stiff as iron in his pants.

He leaned in to put his nose in the crook of her neck
, and she sighed. She smelled as good as she looked. Like vanilla. Her rich scent had a rare, underlying sweetness. He’d suspected there was something special about her, starting with her unusual purple eyes, and now, he knew for sure that no one in the club was like her. Grateful that her chocolate brown hair was up and out of the way, he rubbed his lips across her neck as he breathed her in again. Her scent amplified, and he smiled. His actions had aroused her. He liked arousing her.

He opened his mouth, tasting her hot skin against his tongue, and she whimpered. He wanted to suck hard enough to leave a mark, telling others she was his, but
he restrained himself. She wasn’t his.

Where
in the hell did that possessive thought come from
?

Tur
ning his thoughts back to her, he noted that she tasted as sweet as she smelled, and he wanted to bite down to see if she would like that, too. Instead, he pulled back and looked into her eyes. They were filled with lust, and he groaned. It seemed impossible, but she caused his testicles to tighten and his cock to get harder. At this point, if he didn’t get inside her by the end of the night, he would have blue balls for a week. Since he had a certain fondness for his balls, he hoped the night might end with the two of them together.

Despite what she had let him do to her earlier, Vaughn knew Naya wasn’t the type of girl to leave with a guy
she barely knew. He wanted her, and he was hoping he could take her home but not at the expense of her self-respect. Guys who forced or coerced women into having sex should be used for firearm target practice, and if it came down to Naya feeling uncomfortable with him versus leaving without him, he would go home alone.

He was hoping to spend
more time with her before that possibility could be brought up, and when the music slowed down, he took it as a sign. “Do you want to dance?”

She smiled. “Yes.”

Vaughn tilted his chin toward the bartender, letting him know they no longer wanted anything, before grabbing her hand and leading her to the edge of the dance floor. Eager to be close to her again, he gathered her into his arms.

Naya was stiff at first, but her
body loosened after a few seconds. He caught her eyeing his shoulder and nudged her head down his hand. She rested her cheek against him, and soon, she was drawing small circles on his back. Her breathing slowed while he struggled with having her near him because he liked the feel of her, and so did his dick.

As the second song neared the end, he
was practically holding her up because she was so relaxed.

“How are you feeling?”

“Mmm…” She nuzzled his chest with her nose. “God, you smell good,” she whispered.

“So do you.” He smiled against her ear. “Are you going to fall asleep on me?”

She lifted her head, her eyes half-closed, as she wore a peaceful smile. “No, but I’ll admit I haven’t felt this relaxed in a long time.”

He’d
noticed how stressed she was when she’d first arrived, and he felt pride that he had been able to calm her.

Suddenly, her relaxed posture stiffened as her eyes opened wide.
Her gaze was directed over his shoulder, so Vaughn turned and saw Sawyer walking toward them. It was no wonder why Naya was slightly alarmed. Sawyer was not a small man.

“Hey
, man. Are you ready to get out of here?” Sawyer said, practically ignoring the fact that Vaughn was with someone.

“Naya, this is Sawyer.”

“Hello,” Naya said.

Sawyer smiled politely. “Hello, Maya.”

“Dude, it’s Naya with an
N
,” Vaughn corrected him.

Vaughn could tell Sawyer didn’t give a rat’s ass, so
Vaughn shot him a look, telling him to apologize.

“Sorry about that, Naya.”

“That’s okay. It happens all the time,” she said.

Vaughn looked down at Naya
. “So…would you like to get out of here?”

Her eyes rounded, and her eyebrows rose.
“Yes?” she said with hesitation.

He chuckled. “Are you sure?”

She sucked in a deep breath and then the corners of her mouth turned up. “Yes,” she said with a nod.

Vaughn took Naya’s hand
, and they walked toward the door.

“Wait.” She pulled on his arm. “I came here with my friend, and we never leave without checking with each other.”

Smart girls
. Vaughn looked at his friend. “Sawyer will make sure your friend gets home safe.”

Naya looked around
Vaughn. “Is that okay with you, Sawyer?”

Sawyer stood silent
, curling his lip, and Vaughn shot him another look. Sawyer really needed to work on his attitude.

Sawyer grumbl
ed, “I’ll do it.”

Naya’s eyes darted to the
dance floor and back to Sawyer.

Vaughn mouthed silently,
Don’t be an ass
. Sawyer sighed. “I promise, I’ll get her home safely if it’s the last thing I do tonight,” he said with more conviction and less irritation this time.

Vaughn knew Sawyer would bitch and moan tomorrow
about taking the girl home, but Vaughn also trusted him to look after Naya’s friend.

“Let me talk to her first,” she said. “I can’t send some strange man over to take her home without telling her what’s going on.”

Vaughn tried to hide his smile. Sawyer narrowed his eyes behind her, but he understood. Naya didn’t know he was a good guy, and she was simply watching out for her friend.