Lucian was on his knees and he just came all over me.
I had been holding my head up to look at him, but I let it flop back down. “What the hell was that?” I asked.
“It’s semen. If I release it inside your pussy, there’s a chance it will create a vampire baby.”
I lifted my head again to make sure he could see me rolling my eyes. “I mean the other thing.”
He grinned knowingly. “That’s the nature of the bond. What we did seals the connection. It’s a sort of sharing of sensation, but it won’t usually be perceptible unless we’re sleeping together.”
I shook my head. “That was weird, but amazing.”
He found a towel and carefully cleaned me up. I enjoyed the silent minute or two of his care almost as much as I’d just enjoyed my first experience with supernatural sex. He ran the cloth across me carefully, rubbing the spot with his fingers when he was done as if making sure he’d got me completely clean. Although the amount of time he spent on my breasts made me suspect this little ritual wasn’t purely for my sake.
I grinned sleepily. “That feels good.”
“You’re magnificent,” he said quietly. “I’ve lived a very long time, and no woman has ever captivated me like you do.”
“You’re just saying that because you were inside my pussy.” I paused, then felt my smile widen. “In more ways than one.”
Lucian chuckled. “I’m saying that because you’ve given me something I thought I would never have again. I won’t lie. I still feel conflict over the choice to put you in danger by staying. But selfishly, I’m glad you’ve taken away the choice from me. I want this. I don’t know how I would’ve gone on watching you grow apart from me.”
“You don’t need to know,” I said, reaching up and pulling him in for a kiss. “Because I’m not going anywhere. Unless you make me. And I’m a vampire now, right? So that means I won’t be as easy to get rid of. I’ll bite you or something.”
“I suppose you are. Especially now that we’ve done what we just did.”
“Yeah,” I said, play biting his chin. “So don’t cross me.”
“I wouldn’t dare.”
I think we both knew danger was still out there—still planning to come for us before we could really rest—but neither of us seemed to want to be the first to move.
I dozed off with his naked body on top of mine, relishing the comfort of his weight on top of me and his breath against my neck.
When I woke, he was dressed again and my clothes were laid over me to keep me covered, but my stomach was cramping angrily. “Uh,” I said, trying to make sence of my surroundings. It was still dark, but I sensed that some time had passed, and Lucian was sitting up like he was keeping watch. “I think I’m hungry.” My stomach let out another low, keening groan. “I’m really hungry.”
Lucian nodded. “You may need human food, or…”
“Let’s test the human food theory first.”
He got out of the car and slid into the driver’s seat. “Is there any place you like that’s open this late?”
38
Lucian
We were in a horrible, mustard colored diner with depressed employees wearing ridiculous uniforms. They had on white, crinkly paper hats and frocks. A sweaty man with as much knuckle hair as Vlad was pushing eggs around on a cooktop and occasionally mopping his forehead with the back of his hand.
“You’re sure this is where you want to eat?” I asked Cara as we were led to a table and sat down.
“Where’d you find this absolute snack, girl?” Our waitress asked as she sway-walked us to our table. She looked like she was in her mid-forties and was the proud owner of a literal tower of tightly curled red hair. She ran her eyes up and down me as she abused a piece of gum, rolling it between yellowing teeth and cherry-red lips.
“Huh?” Cara said.
The waitress poked me. “He’s yummy. Y’all ever swing? ‘Cause I got this guy I kind of hook up with named Clint. I’d share if you will. He’s got a prosthetic leg, but what he lacks in the leg department he makes up for in the—”
“What?” Cara said. “No.” She hesitated, then shook her head more firmly. “No. We’re just here for food.”
The waitress gave me one last lingering look, then sighed. “I gotta grab a smoke. I’ll be back in ten.” Without waiting for a response, the woman huffed off.
“There aren’t many places open this late. It’s like three in the morning,” Cara said. “Besides, waffles and pancakes sound perfect right now.”
She lifted the menu and started scanning it. I’d hardly been away from her, but I was struck by how much I’d missed her. I’d missed those thick eyelashes and the delicately curved nose. I missed the big eyes and her tendency to flash shy half smiles, as if she was never quite sure if it was okay to be amused.