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“Stand up,” Trucker ordered. Julie stood and
turned to face him. Trucker bounced to his feet but didn’t touch
her. “Take off your bracelet.”

Julie unsnapped the bracelet and slipped it
into the palm of Trucker’s hand. His eyes instantly got brighter,
shimmering with raging blue flames. Julie had a pulled in her that
was indescribable. Without a word from the both of them, Julie
tilted her head, offering her neck up for Trucker’s taking. He bent
slightly and sealed his mouth around her neck. True to his word,
the only small part of his body touching her was his lips and teeth
as they scraped over the throbbing vein on her neck. He didn’t bite
down instead he pulled back and held up one finger.

“My favorite way,” he whispered and
immediately

Julie placed her wrist up to his lip. Trucker
still didn’t bite down. He simply placed a light kissed on it then
fell back on the sofa.

Julie wasn’t sure if she was relieved he
didn’t bite her or hurt.
Courtney, my arch rival, gave you
something I haven’t. Can I even do it?

“Do you want my blood?” she asked and sat
down beside him.

“Yes, you smell amazing and your life force
is strong. It’s actually the strongest life force I’ve ever came
across.”

A lump formed in her throat as she held her
arm out and placed it to his mouth. “Here.”

“Oh, babe, I don’t want it out of your wrist.
I want to plunge my teeth deep in your neck as I make love to
you.”

“Is that why you haven’t . . . we haven’t?”
Julie asked as Trucker nodded his head slowly and deliberately.

Julie squirmed out of Trucker’s arms and lay
back on the couch. She swept her hair off her neck as Trucker
crawled over on top of her. His mouth closed around her neck, she
let out a cry as his teeth sunk in. A sudden and sharp sensation
tingled across her skin. She found herself floating in a
pleasurable haze, and felt a tug in the pit of her stomach as he
let out a moan. He sucked greedily, her precious blood pooled in
his mouth. Julie became dizzy as her life force slipped from her
body. The sheer undiluted ecstasy she felt started to turn into a
sharp prickling. He was taking too much. Julie was unsure if he was
capable of stopping.

“Trucker, it’s hurting.”

He kneaded his fingers painfully into her
breast, and twisted his head trying to pull away, but he latched
deeper into her skin. He rocked back and forth, fighting a battle
within himself. His eyes went black.

“Trucker, you have to stop. Fight it, baby.
Fight it for the both of us.

His eyes flickered blue. He shoved her body
deeper into the sofa cushions and sprung to his feet. “No, Angel,
why did you do that? I could’ve hurt you.” He wiped a spot of blood
off the corner of his mouth. “I could’ve bonded with you.”

“No, you couldn’t. You love me.”

“I don’t need blood to survive. I use it to
draw life and power from you. It makes me feel alive and strong.”
He hesitated. “It takes a piece of your soul away. I don’t want to
hurt you. I’ve taken so much from you. I’m not feasting on you.” He
sat back down and lifted her body onto his lap. She froze. He
tenderly brought his face to snuggle against her neck, and slowly
licked the mark left behind by his teeth. It vanished. “You didn’t
think we left behind evidence.” He licked the corner of his mouth
as his eyes finally went back to normal.

She didn’t know what to think or why she did
it. She didn’t know if it was the fact she wanted to share her
entire self with him or if it was the fact that the last time he
shared that experience, it was with Courtney. She did know, she
didn’t regret it. “You want to bond with me. How is that
different?” She placed her hand on his cheek and shifted his face
toward her.

“I will release my bonding agent in you. It’s
unlike anything I can describe.” He angled her head to the side,
and started trailing his nose up and down her exposed neck,
inhaling. “You will take my blood too,” he murmured into her
neck.

She shoved him off her. “What?”

“My special smell that you love?”

Julie nodded her head
.

“That’s my blood calling you. I knew how much
my human side wanted you, but when you mention my smell, I knew my
demon side wanted you just as much. It wants to bond with you, and
baby, you will want it one day too. When I bite down and pour my
bonding agent in you.” He stopped and kissed her forehead. “You
will gladly take it.”

He smiled showing his elongated teeth. Julie
reached up to touch them but he shook his head and brought his
wrist to his mouth. When he pulled his arm back, Julie saw a drop
of blood drip on the front of his shirt.

“Taste it, Angel. It will make you feel
amazing.” Trucker said in a deep, raw voice.

The world fell away around her. Leaving
behind a gaping hole to swallow her up into. He wanted her to take
his blood.

“I can’t,” Julie responded and clamped her
mouth shut.

“Oh, babe, you can, and you will love it.” He
placed his wrist to her mouth and let the blood coat her lips.

She licked her lips and her mouth twisted as
she tasted the blood. Her legs started to tingle. She latched on
tighter and let his blood coat her mouth. Losing track of time, she
greedily sucked his blood down her throat. Trucker’s brows creased
as if the thought of what she was doing was more painful than her
touch.

“Angel, my love, you need to stop. I’m
breaking here, and I won’t be able to control myself much
longer.”

She took in one more gulp of blood before
releasing her mouth from around his arm. Julie leaned against him,
never feeling closer to anyone in her life. She was not sure of the
feeling still coursing through her, but she was sure that would not
be the last time she got to experience it.

He wrapped her curl around his finger. “I’m
sorry.”

“For what?”

“Being me, my mom gave up her life for me and
now I’m asking you to do the same.”

“I’m not giving up anything,” Julie said and
stood up, pulling her cotton shirt over her head. Trucker didn’t
even give her a moment to think before he had her thrown on the
couch and shoving himself down over her.

“Not now, not until after this weekend. I
can’t until I know I’m not going to lose you,” Trucker said and
pushed up, without once looking at her.

Chapter 15

Trucker put the top down on his car, letting
the wind whip through his hair. Trucker was full of life. Too full.
Julie couldn’t help but wonder if drinking her blood was part of
the reason he was so high-spirited. Who was she trying to fool? She
was just as exuberant and for the first time in her life,
horny.

“Where are you taking me?” she asked, and
secretly hoped it involved a bed and her.

“With me. You might not ever want to go with
me again after this weekend, but right now, you’re going to enjoy
herself.”

She hated to start questioning him but needed
some answers.

“Truck?” She reached over to put her hand on
his knee. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything, you know that,” he answered,
placing his hand on hers.

“Why do you keep saying, I won’t want you
anymore?”

He clicked his tongue. “Angel, how can I put
this? It isn’t really a dinner party. It’s for lack of a better
word, a board meeting.” He squeezed her hand. “Some of the worst
evil comes together once or twice a year to strategize. Tomorrow
night is that night and this is the place.” He scrutinized Julie’s
face, her expression frozen in fear. “Can you take it?” he
asked.

“Yes,” she struggled to get out. The thought
of all that evil coming together in one place and the one man she
thought would always protect her throwing her in the middle of it.
“Are you crazy?”

“About you. Angel, I don’t want you anywhere
near that place. I have no choice.” Pleading with her, he gripped
her firmly against him. She felt his cool skin, and knew her
Trucker was still in charge.

“Why?” she whispered.

“I didn’t want to tell you this but I see I
have no choice. Hear me out before you respond, please?

She nodded her head once. She wanted to cover
her ears and scream, but needed to hear how he could put her in so
much danger.

“It was a demand put on my father. We tried
to fight it, but they refuse.”

“Why?” she asked, subdued.

“They want to prove you are not a suitable
match for me. That you would crumble in my world,” he said, slowly.
It was as if he had some confession in his head for days and
dreaded releasing it.

“Why do they care?” she asked. He flicked her
bottom lip to stop her from chewing on it.

He looked away and begged, “Don’t ask,
please?”

“Answer me,” she demanded.

“Angel, my sweet love, I’m under contract to
marry Emily when I’m twenty-five.”

“Stop this car, now!”

Before he even got parked, she had the door
thrown open and was out of the car, ready to puke. The blackness
had rushed over her heart taking all her hopes and dreams away. How
could she win? His future was with Emily, not her. Why did she even
care? He was never hers anyway. Their future was null and
voided.

“Please don’t leave me.” He hovered over her.
She could tell by his stance, he was terrified. “I never wanted
her. The contract was signed when I was five.” He fisted his
fingers through his hair. She wanted to reach out and touch him,
but knew each moment they were together her heart would entwine
more deeply into his, until her heart no longer beat too. He would
soon be twenty, could she save him from himself in five short
years. She looked at him broken and battered and knew she had to
try.

With her heart screaming out in pain, she
reached out for him. “Don’t you have a choice?” she asked,
hopeful.

“No, my own life was planned before I was
even born. Even our move to your little town was foreseen. There
was a great debate when I was small at who would run the
Brotherhood. They knew what the prophet foresaw in me. So it was
agreed that if my father would sign that I would marry Emily he
could rule the Brotherhood. That way both families could have a
part in the greatness of my mission.”

Julie felt her mind wanting to close up; she
had to stay strong for him. “What’s your mission?” she asked,
cautiously.

“All I know is it has to do with politics.
Some of the greatest leaders in history have been a.” He stopped,
unable to say the simple word, demon. What he was, was more than he
could bear.

“Demon,” Julie finished his sentence.

“Yeah, I’ll do all I can to be with you, to
be good for you,” His brow creased together, his expression riddled
in pain. “Don’t leave me,” he whispered.

“Is it hard to be with me? To be good around
me?” Julie wanted to know if he could even keep up his facade for
her.

“Yes,” he kissed the top of her head and then
took a long, hard, deep breath. “It’s almost impossible. First,
your aura is that of an angel, the pain is horrendous. I can fight
through the pain, but then the rage boils deep in the pit of my
stomach. It is like a boiling pot with a tight lid. It boils and
boils until it knocks the lid off.” He paused taking a deep breath.
“But baby, that pain has nothing on the pain I would experience if
I couldn’t touch you.”

“Can demons even love?”

“Not like humans, theirs is a possessive
nature. Kind of like a child with their favorite toy, they care
about it and want it with them, but they can throw it down to play
with another toy. Then let some other child come pick it up and it
infuriates them.”

“Possessiveness is not love. It’s control.
What kind of love do you have for me? Human kind or demon
kind.”

“Both,” he acknowledge. “but don’t you see
that makes you the most loved woman ever.”

“Huh?” she asked, baffled.

“I do have that possessive nature over you.
You’re mine, and I would fight someone to the ends of the earth for
you. I also have the humanly love that will always put you first.
We don’t have many feelings but what we have is heighten. Those
feelings are never changing. My dad doesn’t love my mom the way you
think of love, but she is his. He will protect her. He has a
powerful need to protect her, but his needs come first. The same
way with Sea and me, he’ll protect us to the death. My demonic side
considers you its favorite possession. He’ll fight for you. My
human side loves you beyond measure and wants your needs to come
first. So see, Angel, this is a hard world to be in but you’re
lucky because no one is loved like you are.”

She looked at this deeply damaged boy who she
loved beyond reason. She smiled, realizing yes, he was totally
screwed up, but he was hers. Her heart sung when he returned her
smile with one of his own. She started to speak when he put his
finger on her mouth to stop her. He rubbed his forehead against
hers and planted the sweetest kiss on her lips. “Please, Julie,
please try.”

“Truck, just stop with the please try.” She
got up and whirled around on one foot. She practically fell in the
car, taking with her the memory of his wide-eyed stare and
melancholy expression. She was taking on his usual role by being
mercurial. She sunk in her seat and gave into the overpowering
emotions of the last few days. She finally released her pent up
emotions as she sobbed huge gut-wrenching tears.

“Angel,” Trucker said gently as he climbed
into the car.

She laid her head over on his shoulder. He
reached across and stroked her hair with his other hand. He didn’t
speak just let her cry. She needed it and it felt good to finally
let it out and have him close to her. They sat there at what seemed
like forever. Eventually, she was cried out.

“Will you take me back home?”

“Whatever you want.”