Authors: Diana Bocco
“We will,” she said. “Let me take care of her first.”
Alex nodded.
** **
The next couple of hours sort of melted into each other. The ambulance, sirens, a few lies here and there to explain Alex’s presence and to hide who Corneliu really was. Alex could tell Laurie was conflicted about the whole thing, but leading the police to Corneliu would have only resulted in more people getting hurt. His cousin was still more powerful than any human around, and he wouldn’t be afraid to use those powers to protect himself, even if it meant exposing the family secret. No, Alex couldn’t risk it. When the time was right, he would be the one to take Corneliu out.
After Emily was admitted to the hospital, Laurie seemed to relax. The adrenaline rush wore off, and she looked exhausted. Despite her protests, he eventually managed to get her into his car so he could drive back to the Hamptons. No other place was truly safe as long as Corneliu was out there. He was expecting her to fight him on that, but she fell asleep almost as soon as she got in the car.
Resting against the seat, with her hair messy from the shaky events of the day, she looked almost angelic. And he knew, right then and there, that they were destined to be together. No matter how crazy it sounded, even if it defied all logic, he wanted her in his life. Whatever the ritual had awakened between them, it was powerful, and there was no way he wanted to let go of it. Ever. He knew it sounded irrational, and his only hope was that Laurie would share in the madness.
By the time they got to the house, it was already dark. Laurie woke up as they were pulling into the driveway.
“Where are we?” she looked out the window for a few seconds. “Did I really sleep all the way here?”
He nodded. “Are you hungry? I can ask Sonya to cook something for you.”
“No, I’m okay.”
He stopped the car and took her hand.
“Then let’s figure this out.”
Part of her was still shaken up from that afternoon. From the most intense, strangest week of her life. The rest of her was vibrating because of Alex’s proximity. With him around, her whole body felt musical. Even now, with her
heart still thumping loudly in her ears
, all she could think about was how glorious it felt to be around him.
They walked into the study, and Alex immediately swept her into his arms. His lips found hers, first warm, then passionate. He grunted against her mouth, holding her tighter. One of his hands slid under her blouse to touch her back.
“How do you feel?”
She smiled against his lips. “Good enough for this.”
He returned the smile. “I’m not going to ask twice.”
Her hand reached for the back of his head, bringing him closer.
“So don’t,” she whispered.
His mouth found hers again, and the hunger was more obvious, less restrained. He unbuttoned her shirt and quickly slid it off her. Then he pushed her backwards onto the sofa as she fought with his clothes.
She pushed against him, searching for his lips. With a low growl, he pushed his mouth against hers, slipping his tongue in to slide against hers, savoring her slowly.
The vibration in the room strengthened.
Tell me what you want, Laurie.
His thoughts reached out to her.
You,
she responded.
You. Touch me.
The connection felt like a wave of pleasure reaching through her body.
And then he stopped, looked into her eyes and whispered, “Stay here, Laurie.”
The request was so unexpected that for a moment she was confused.
“Stay here?”
“I’m going to talk to Anton today to see what he knows, but I’m pretty sure Corneliu isn’t done with me, with us.”
“I’m not your responsibility, Alex. I agreed to do the ritual because I didn’t want Corneliu to hurt anybody else. But I don’t want you to feel obligated to protect me forever because of that.”
Alex reached under her chin and tilted her face up so he could look into her eyes.
“Laurie, I want to protect you. But more than anything, I want you near me.”
Her heart skipped a beat as her head fought with her emotions. “Alex, we don’t even know each other.”
“Are you sure? Because I feel closer to you than I’ve ever felt to any woman I’ve known.” His other hand came up to touch her face. “Am I the only one who feels it?”
Laurie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Did she want to admit her feelings? It seemed like walking into very dangerous territory.
She opened her eyes and found that Alex’s were focused on her face. She could feel the tension in the air, but she could also feel the soft humming of the energy passing between them. There was something special between them, and she couldn’t deny that. Something that made her feel unique.
“No,” she finally admitted. “You’re not the only one.”
His lips touched hers softly, and the electricity in the air seemed to move to her skin. Yeah, there was definitely something very special between them.
“Then stay. Laurie, I…”
The knock on the door startled them both.
“Alex, are you in here?” Anton’s voice sounded urgent.
“Uh, one second.” Alex put on his jeans and handed Laurie his shirt so she could cover up faster. He waited until she was ready and then told Anton he could come in.
Anton was startled for a second, then chuckled.
“Ah, sorry to interrupt. This involves Laurie too, though, so it’s good you’re here.” He motioned towards one of the armchairs. “Do you mind if I sit?”
Alex surely wished he hadn’t interrupted, but whatever Anton had to say was important. Laurie would’ve felt more comfortable if she could have actually been dressed for this meeting, but she didn’t mind either. Somehow she felt right at home in the craziness of this family.
Alex chuckled and then turned to look at her. “I heard that.”
Laurie smiled, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She needed to work on learning how to use this communication stream.
Anton looked confused. “Heard what?”
Alex sat on the sofa next to Laurie. “She thinks she fits in well with our crazy family.”
Anton’s face was riddled with a mix of fascination and surprise. “You heard her
think
that? Just now?”
“Yeah, whatever connection we had before got intensified by the ritual.”
Anton’s eyes locked on Laurie for a second before returning to Alex. “Yeah, well, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Turns out the ritual is binding.”
Laurie frowned. “Binding?”
“Yeah, as in ‘til-death-do-us-part’ binding. Whatever connection you have right now is only going to get stronger. Corneliu knew that, which is why he was killing the women he was practicing with. He couldn’t risk an attachment to any of them.”
“Exactly what kind of binding?” Alex asked.
“This is basically the same kind of ritual our ancestors used for
cstorie
.
”
Laurie looked at both of them for an explanation. “
Casia
…”
“
Cstorie
,” Alex corrected. “Marriage.”
Laurie blinked twice. “Marriage?”
“Centuries ago, warlocks in our family rarely married ‘regular’ humans,” Anton explained. “So if they did, they had to go through this ritual to bond the partner to the warlock’s magic. It was a way to offer protection but also a way to commit. I’m guessing that’s why you can read each other’s thoughts.”
Alex’s eyes moved to Laurie’s, and he saw a hint of a smile in them. “I guess that answers my question, then.”
Anton raised an eyebrow. “What question?
“I asked Laurie to stay here.”
“Stay as in….”
“For a long time.” His eyes never left Laurie’s. “Forever.”
Anton’s smile got bigger. “Wow. Either the ritual is very powerful or Alex Volman has met his match.”
She couldn’t help smiling. “I’m going to have a lot of explaining to do once Emily wakes up.”
“We’ll figure out a way.”
Anton seemed about to say something, then frowned and took a deep breath. “The Committee is keeping an eye out for Corneliu, so we should be able to know the next time he’s getting closer.”
“The Committee?” Laurie asked.
“I’m sure Alex will start filling you up on the inner workings of the family later, but yeah, we do have some rules in the family.” He winked. “Even though we seem like a bunch of crazy people.”
She cringed. “Oh, I didn’t mean….”
Alex’s hand came up and shook in the air. “No, no, ignore him. He’s just kidding.” He turned to face Anton. “So the Committee already knows what happened today?”
“News travel fast.”
“What about Laurie?”
“I don’t think they know the details. Whatever you decide about her, they’ll back you up.”
Alex’s mouth softened into a wide smile. “What do you think? Ready to meet the family?”
Laurie smiled back. “They can’t be any worse than what I’ve already seen.”
Anton laughed as Alex smiled and kissed her.
“You’re in for a few surprises, baby.”
** **
Diana Bocco spends a lot of time thinking about vampires, warlocks and other dark creatures. Some end up in her horror books, while others have sexier destinies waiting for them.
Diana also writes nonfiction books.
Learn more about her by visiting her website at
www.dianabocco.com