Holding her gaze, Dante lifted his hand to his neck. Before she could protest, he used his nail to make a small incision. Only after he felt the precious blood begin to trickle down his skin did he cup the back of Abby's head and press her mouth to the wound.
"Drink," he commanded softly.
There was a moment of hesitation before he felt her lips part and gently suck at his life force.
Dante nearly jolted off the bed as his body clenched in raw, primitive bliss. Holy hell.
He had known what Abby would experience. With his blood in her veins, her senses would be sharper, clearer, brighter. The world itself would seem to come into crisp focus. And, of course, she would become aware of him in a way that mortals could not imagine.
But he had not realized the sheer erotic nature of allowing her to feed from him.
Passion and hunger flooded through him. An overwhelming need to brand her as his own.
His ringers tangled in her hair as he pressed her even closer. He felt as if he was being consumed and nothing had ever been so glorious.
With every tug of her lips, his hips began to thrust forward, his need growing to an unbearable ache. She moaned. He growled. They clutched at each other. They surged together.
And then the powers of the Phoenix within Abby began to smolder and flare, engulfing them in a sizzling cloak of heat.
Dante choked out a groan of shocked pleasure as he thrust himself to the very heart of her. Mist-red desire clouded about them, driving them ever upward, until with an explosive climax they combusted in flames together.
Chapter 17
Still panting and drenched in sweat, Abby slowly floated back to earth.
"Yowza," she breathed.
Sex with Dante was like running a marathon. Only a lot more fun.
Rolling to his side, Dante gathered her in his arms. 'Yowza, indeed."
She pressed her lips to his chest, absently noting his skin was cool and dry. She was afraid to glance higher. No doubt his hair was perfect as well.
Damn vampires.
A smile abruptly curved her lips.
Her vampire.
She briefly closed her eyes, absorbing the unfamiliar sensations that had settled deep within her. Like a whisper in the back of her mind, she could feel Dante. His small glow of sated pleasure. The fierce love that flowed through every part of him. And, overall, his gnawing concern that he wouldn't be capable of protecting her.
She wrenched open her eyes to discover Dante regarding her with a searching gaze.
"I had no idea." She gave a faint shake of her head. "It's so intense."
"How do you feel?"
"Amazing." She watched Dante smile his sexy pirate smile. Made even more sexy by the fangs that were still fully extended. How weird was that? Suddenly her eyes widened in horror. "Oh."
His arms tightened about her. "What is it?"
"I'm not going to turn into a vampire, am I?"
"No." He dropped a kiss on the top of her curls, thankfully not insulted. "Turning someone is a bit more complicated. And it would not even be possible as long as you are the Chalice. The Phoenix would do whatever necessary to protect itself."
Reassured that she wasn't about to morph into anything else inhuman for the moment, she snuggled closer to his hard body.
"I wish we could just stay here."
"Hide from the world?"
"At least an extended vacation." She pulled back her head to meet his silver gaze. "I think we deserve a few days off, don't you?"
He regarded her with a hint of regret. "I can't think of anything that would please me more."
"But?"
He blinked. "How did you know there was a but?"
Abby heaved a sigh. "In my world, there's always abut."
"You're a very odd woman at times, lover."
"I thought I was beautiful and courageous and sexy as hell?"
"All of the above," he swiftly agreed, a faint smile playing about his lips, "and occasionally odd."
"Rather ironic coming from a vampire."
He bent down to press a swift kiss to her lips. Too brief.
"As much as I hate to admit it, we must not linger any longer."
That wasn't what she wanted to hear. Not when she felt warm and fuzzy and, best of all, safe.
"We have to leave now?"
"It's too risky to stay here for long. If the house is being watched, then we could find ourselves surrounded by the sort of nasties that no one wants to meet on a dark night."
"They couldn't get in here, could they?"
He gave a lift of his shoulder. "Probably not, but we'll eventually have to leave."
Dante rolled off the bed, and before she could even appreciate the sight of his hard, alabaster body, he was impeccably attired and looking Gucci yummy.
Damn. That was starting to be a real sore spot with her.
"If we're safe, why do we have to leave?" she demanded.
He gave a lift of his raven brow. 'You don't want to be locked in a room with a hungry vampire, lover. Even if I can't drink human blood, I don't doubt I might get a bit testy. Besides, I doubt that the witches will be considerate enough to make an appearance upon our doorstep."
Heaving a sigh, Abby sat up and pushed her tangled curls out of her face. "Fine, go ahead and make sense. At least you can hand me the clothes you ripped off me."
"Your wish is my command." With a flourishing bow, he bent to retrieve the clothing that had been scattered across the floor.
'Isn't that what a genie is supposed to—" Her teasing words trailed away as she watched Dante scoop the clothes in his hands and then slowly stiffen. With a strange expression, he pressed her shirt to his nose. 'Dante? Are you sniffing my shirt?"
His silver eyes shimmered with a dangerous glow. It smells of demon."
Abby stiffened. Did he just say she smelled like a demon?
She had probably suffered worse insults, but she couldn't think of one at the moment.
"Excuse me?"
He took another deep sniff. "I don't recognize the breed, but you have definitely been close to a demon."
Oh. Well, that was better.
Marginally.
"Yeah, I've been close to a demon." She gave him a pointed glance. "About as close as I could get. You don't remember? I know you're old, but holy crap."
His expression remained closed. Hard. "A demon, Hot a vampire."
His blood stirred within her. She could easily sense his lethal focus. A predator on the scent.
'That's impossible," she groused. She would have known if some demon had been rubbing on her shirt That wasn't something a normal woman… "Oh."