Inferno (Book 4 The Kindred Series) (32 page)

CHAPTER 17

Cassie sat silently as she watched
Devon make the bed, he moved with startling speed and agility. His
grace was unparalleled, his good looks unmatched. Robert had been
wrong when he had said he was the better looking brother, he had
been very wrong. Devon fluffed up the sleeping bags, before
unrolling them on the floor. Cassie realized that he was stalling
as he set everything up, biding for time before facing
her.

She sighed softly, her impatience
getting the better of her. There were a million questions that she
wanted to ask, the foremost of which was about his brother, but
right now all she really wanted was Devon. She knew there were
things he wanted to keep her sheltered from, things he never wanted
her to know, and she understood that. But unfortunately, some of
those things had walked into their lives again today, and thrown
them even more upside down. However, for now, the time for
questions could wait.

He finished fluffing the
blankets/pillows. She could tell he was looking for something else
to do, some other way to stall, but unless he planned on fluffing
the down right out of the blankets there was nothing left for him
to do. His shoulders were stiff as he turned toward her, his body
braced for the onslaught he suspected was coming. His beautiful
emerald eyes were wary as they hesitatingly met hers.

Cassie sighed softly. “Are you ok now?”
she inquired. His dark eyebrows drew tightly together. “Can you
stay around me?”

Guilt and anguish surrounded him as his
gaze darted away. “Cassie…”

“It’s ok Devon, I understand more than
you think I do, but I need to know.”

“And why is that?”

Cassie braced herself for rejection as
she readied to hand herself over to him completely. “Because I want
to spend the night with you, and I mean really spend the night with
you.”

She fought back the red wash of
embarrassment that crept up her cheeks, heating her skin. She
didn’t want to seem childish and insecure right now, she wanted to
sound confident and determined, but she couldn’t stop the flush in
her face. Unfortunately her body did not want to react the way that
her mind wanted it to.

His gaze snapped back to her, wide with
surprise and wonder. She could feel the desire, the need that
washed over him, but she could also feel his hesitance, his
reluctance. “Cassie there is nothing more that I would want, but
not here, not now…”

“Then when?” she interrupted
softly.

“When this is over…”

“We may not survive this.”

He recoiled from her words, his eyes
narrowed fiercely. “I will not allow anything to happen to
you.”

Cassie sighed softly as she squeezed
her hands tight in her lap. “I know that you will try Devon, but
there are some things you can’t control. There are some things that
you cannot stop. No one knows what will happen to me when this
change occurs; no one truly knows what the outcome of this battle
will be. All we know is that we have this moment right now. We have
this, and I want to know, no I need to know what it is like to be
with you. I need this night.”

Devon shook his head, but she could
feel his wavering, his desire to crumble to her wishes. He glanced
around the dusty, cobweb filled attic. Shaking his head he turned
back to her. “You deserve better than this, you deserve so much
more than this.” His arm swept around the room.

“It’s better than the backseat of a
car,” she replied, trying to sound light but knowing that she
failed miserably when his eyes narrowed upon her. Cassie sighed
softly as she rose to her feet, her hands hurt from clenching them
so tightly together. “It doesn’t matter where Devon, as long as it
is with you.”

His eyes flared hotly, burning into her
with an intensity that left her shaken. “This may be our only
night,” she continued, pushing at his weakening defenses. “I don’t
want to pass it up because you feel that this is not good
enough.”

“I may hurt you.”

“You won’t.”

For a moment red fire filled his eyes.
Though it startled her, she did not move, did not react. If she did
she knew he would shut her down completely. “How can you possibly
know that?” he demanded. “After yesterday, after what I wanted to
do to you, what I still want to do to you, how could you possibly
know that I won’t hurt you?”

Cassie swallowed heavily. “Because you
love me,” she whispered. “You left so that you wouldn’t hurt me;
you cared nothing for your own safety when you left, only
mine.”

“I left you unprotected,” he
snarled.

“You left me in a building full of
fighters, strong ones too. I hardly feel that is unprotected. You
were the one who was out there alone, exposed and vulnerable. You
are too hard on yourself Devon. You are a good man.”

“You have no idea what kind of a man I
am, or was. No idea what goes through my mind when it comes to
you.”

Though she knew he was trying to push
her away, she did not back down. “I know you Devon. I may not know
everything about your past, but I don’t need to know it all. There
are things I may never know about you, and I accept that because I
love you! I know who you are. I know what you want and need from me
far more than you think I do, because I want the same things from
you.”

He stared at her for a long moment, his
eyes hooded like a snakes. Beneath his lowered lids they shone as
bright as rubies in the dim light of the room. And then he was on
top of her, moving so fast that she only caught a whisper of
movement before he seized her. His hand wrapped around her neck as
he pulled her head to the side. Cassie gasped in surprise, her
heart leapt wildly as his finger trailed lightly over her frantic
pulse.

She could sense the wildness in him,
the instability, but she didn’t move. She knew if she did that he
would withdraw from her. He would leave her within this room, alone
and lost if she reacted in any way. She didn’t care what he did to
her, or what he needed from her now, because she would give him
anything he wanted. No matter what it was. She had wanted to wait
to make the change, knew that to do so would be for the best, but
if he lost control and it happened now then she would not regret
it, and she would not fight it.

“Right here,” his voice was soft,
hoarse and grating as his finger stilled upon her vein. She could
feel his struggle for restraint battling against his ever present,
driving hunger. She remained frozen, her eyes half closed as she
fought against the fear and excitement tearing through her. She
knew that he was unstable right now, but she also knew that he
would not hurt her, no matter what he feared. His touch was
thrilling, enchanting. Her heart danced, her body quaked with the
urge to touch him, but if she moved now he would withdraw from her.
“Right here is the pulse of your life, and I want it.”

Cassie’s eyes closed, she had to fight
back the tremble that worked its way through her. It was not a
tremble of fear, not anymore. Her heart did not leap in terror, but
in anticipation of what was to come. His hand wrapped around the
back of her neck, brushing her hair aside as he pulled her closer.
He bent over her, his lips pressed to her throat, his fangs skimmed
over her neck, pressing briefly against her throbbing artery. She
couldn’t stop the soft gasp of pleasure that escaped her. She
waited breathlessly for him to bite down, for him to take what he
needed from her.

And then, to her surprise, he kissed
her softly. His lips pressed gently against her vein, his fangs
receded as he touched lightly upon her. Cassie’s head spun, her
legs quivered as his arms wrapped around her, pulling her tight
against him. “You foolish foolish girl,” he breathed in her
ear.

Her trembling increased, tears burned
her eyes as she melted against him, her arms wrapping around his
waist. Maybe she was foolish, but she didn’t believe so. No matter
what he thought she had absolute faith in him, absolute belief that
he would never hurt her. That the man in him would always win out
over the demon when it came to her.

His mouth moved slowly over her neck,
placing gentle kisses along her skin that left her completely weak.
Her legs gave out when his tongue swirled over her ear. He held her
up as her heart leapt as wildly as a bird trapped in a cage.
“Cassandra,” he whispered. “Are you sure?”

“I’ve never been so sure of anything in
my life,” she managed to get out through the constriction in her
throat and chest.

He lifted her effortlessly, his hands
skimming under the baggy flannel she wore. His touch upon her bare
flesh was almost her undoing. She clung to him, shaking, unable to
move as he carried her to the makeshift bed he had created. Laying
her gently down, he followed her, his mouth seizing upon hers.
Though Cassie had expected his kiss to be desperate, frantic, it
was surprisingly gentle and achingly loving.

Her whole body reacted to it. Her
fingers entwined in his hair, holding him close as he slowly pulled
her shirt from her. Cassie’s mind swam with pleasure; she forgot
everything and everyone else as her entire world became focused
upon him, and the joy that he brought to her. The beautiful new
sensations he arose in her, sensations that might have been
frightening if they had been with anyone other than him. However,
with him, there was no fear. There was only joy and a sense of
wonder that she had never thought to experience.

All of her fears and doubts from the
past, all of the things that had held her back from this moment
completely faded away. She never thought of the women of his past,
never wondered if he would compare her to them and find her lacking
in the end. For she knew now, that he would never find her lacking,
never want or desire anything more than her.

When they finally joined together, she
knew true bliss. She knew what it was to belong and fit. She knew
nothing of pain and misery and fear as she clung to him, riding out
the storm of their love. She didn’t know she was crying from the
complete bliss that he brought her until he kissed away her tears,
whispering words of love as he touched her reverently over and over
again.

And later, when she offered him her
vein, and he fed from her, she knew that she had been right. He
never thought about other women with her, and he could never find
her lacking. For him, when he had met her, it was as if every other
woman had ceased to exist. It was not that he did not think about
them, it was that they had simply faded from his mind. They were a
part of his past that he didn’t think about, and didn’t want to. He
didn’t compare her to them because he could not recall them. For
though she had lacked experience she had brought him more joy and
pleasure than he had ever known, or ever thought to experience in
his very long life.

Cassie drifted asleep, blissfully
content within the strong embrace of his arms.

***

Devon padded silently down the stairs,
trying to be as silent as possible so as not to waken anyone,
especially not Cassie. After what they had just exchanged, he
didn’t want her to awaken alone. Though he knew that she no longer
felt vulnerable, he didn’t want her to wake up and find him gone,
but there was something that he needed to take care of right
now.

He moved swiftly through the empty
front of the store. Everyone had retired to the back for what
little remained of the night. Joey and Patrick had been placed in
the back room, untied from their chairs, but retied to some of the
wooden beams. The store was silent as the first rays of sunlight
broke over the horizon.

He reached the open cellar door and
moved swiftly down the stairs. Julian was standing by one of the
windows. The sun was not bright enough for him to move away from
the glass yet, but it would be soon. Devon knew that he had
retreated here hours ago; before Cassie had offered Devon the
greatest gift he had ever received. He was still thrilled and awed
by the gift she had given him, by her openness and willingness to
trust him, especially when he didn’t even trust himself. She had
far more faith in him then he deserved, far more love and
understanding than he had ever thought to receive, and he was
humbled by it. There was nothing he would not do for her; there was
nothing that he would not give her.

He hated to part from her for even this
short bit of time, but he needed to speak with Julian, and now
would be the only time that he would get Julian alone. Julian
turned toward him, the faint light filtering through the windows
lighting his ice eyes, warming them to an almost soft ocean hue.
Julian’s face was blank but there was a flicker in his eyes as he
scanned Devon quickly.

“Is she ok?” he demanded, his voice
oddly hoarse.

Devon nodded, his hand tightening on
the thin railing of the stairs. Though Devon had known that Julian
would have knowledge of what had passed between them, he still did
not like the fact. What had passed between them had been so
wonderful and precious that he didn’t want to share it with anyone,
but there was no keeping it from Julian. Not only would Julian
smell it upon him and Cassie, but a simple touch would reveal all
to him.

That was why Julian had retreated
immediately down here when Devon had taken Cassie upstairs. “You
knew what she intended.”