“I hate you,” she said between clenched teeth. “I really hate you.”
He laughed softly. “Sure you do.” He ran one finger down her cheek. “I’ll take your blood when it pleases me. I am, after all, a vampire. I need it to survive.” His gaze moved over her, his eyes smoky with desire. “But I won’t bed you against your will. When I take you to my bed, the decision will be yours. I’m not a rapist. Not now, not during the Crusades.”
Kadie couldn’t help noticing he’d said when, not if.
He lowered his head ever so slowly, giving her ample time to avoid his kiss.
Undecided, she met his gaze. Surrender or not? His breath was warm on her face when she turned her head to the side, denying him her lips but giving him access to her neck.
Moments later, she felt the brush of his fangs at her throat. And wished, fleetingly, that she had taken him to her bed.
Chapter 10
Vaughan’s gaze moved over the other vampires seated at the table in the back of the tavern. The vampires didn’t socialize very often. Even here, in Morgan Creek, they tended to be solitary creatures, suspicious of one another.
Nolan Browning had resided here for almost fifty years, longer than any of them except Saintcrow. Quinn and Felix were relative newcomers, having only lived here for the last thirty-five and forty years, respectively, while Wes Lonigan was their newest resident; he’d arrived less than thirty years ago. And then there was Lilith, the lone female in their group. She was a short, skinny creature, with straight brown hair, pale gray eyes, and the demeanor of a shrew. No one liked her. He’d often wondered why Saintcrow allowed her to stay. She’d been here almost as long as Browning. Only Kiel was missing.
“He’ll give the new female to us sooner or later,” Trent Lambert remarked with a shrug. “He always does.”
Vaughan scowled at Trent. Lambert had long ago resigned himself to the way things were. He had a safe lair and a variety of prey and he was content.
“You can’t blame Saintcrow for not sharing,” Felix said. “After all, he hasn’t had a woman in thirty years.”
“What’s the big deal, Vaughan?” Wes Lonigan asked. “This new female’s no different from all the rest.”
“She was mine,” Vaughan said, slamming his fist on the table. “I saw her first. He had no right. . . .”
“He has every right,” Browning said, his voice flat. “This is his town. We’re here on his sufferance.”
“Am I the only one who misses hunting?” Vaughan asked, his voice rising with his temper. “Sure, the women here are sweet, but where’s the excitement? The challenge? It’s been so long since I hunted, I think I’ve forgotten how.”
Quinn nodded, his long blond hair falling over his forehead. “I hear ya.”
“He took her out tonight,” Vaughan said. “Did you know that? We can’t leave here, but he took her out.”
Vaughan’s revelation gave rise to several disgruntled murmurs.
“If he can go out, why can’t we?” Felix asked.
“You’re forgetting that out there, we’re the hunted,” Browning reminded them. “We’re here because we wanted to be here. Saintcrow didn’t drag us here kicking and screaming. We all thought it was a good idea, remember? With hunters crawling out of the woodwork, there are damn few safe havens left. We’re lucky to have this one. Saintcrow’s one of the few master vampires this side of the Mississippi.”
“Right,” Gil said, nodding. “And if he wants that new female, so what? Without his protection, where would we be?”
“Anywhere but here,” Felix mumbled.
“We’re living like frightened sheep instead of wolves!” Vaughan exclaimed.
“You’re right,” Lilith said, speaking up for the first time. “We are living like sheep. And I’m damn sick of it.”
Trent and Felix looked at each other, then nodded in agreement.
“So,” Vaughan said, his eyes showing red, “what are we going to do about it?”
Chapter 11
The men were still making plans for their rebellion when Lilith left the tavern. Darrick always had such big plans, but he was all show and no go. All that talk about wolves and sheep had aroused her hunger.
A thought took her to Freeman’s house. According to Saintcrow’s rules, she wasn’t supposed to feed on any of the sheep more than a couple of times a week, but she didn’t like to feed on the women, and there were only a few men. And Carl was her favorite, simply because he hated her the most.
She didn’t bother knocking on the door.
“Good evening, Carl,” she purred. “Ready for a little fun?” She couldn’t hold back a malicious grin when she saw the look on his face. “Surely you’ve been expecting me?”
He sat frozen on the sofa, his eyes reflecting the horror he knew was coming.
Holding out one hand, she beckoned him, felt her excitement rise when he tried to resist. She loved being a vampire, loved the power it gave her. Try as he might, the fool could not ignore her summons.
Falling to his knees, he crawled toward her.
“What a good boy you are!” she exclaimed, and dropping down beside him, she tore off his shirt, her long nails ripping the skin off his back. He shuddered with revulsion when she ran her tongue over the bloody furrows. She always loved a little taste before the main meal.
She bloodied his chest and his cheeks, licking the wounds dry, knowing her saliva would heal them by morning.
He shuddered again when she took him in her arms, a wail of pain and helplessness exploding from his lips as she buried her fangs in his throat.
One night, she might take it all. But not tonight.
Chapter 12
Kadie woke with a raging thirst. Flinging the covers aside, she hurried down to the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee, then drank two glasses of water.
Why was she so thirsty?
Of course, she thought with morbid humor, lifting a hand to her throat, she was a quart low. She was exaggerating, she hoped, but she was certain Saintcrow was the cause of her unusual thirst.
She knew now why the other women didn’t complain about the vampires feeding on them. It was an amazing sensation. Sensual when it should have been sickening, amazing when it should have been abhorrent.
Would making love to Saintcrow be the same? Did vampires make love like human men? Or was it some totally different, bizarre experience entirely? And did she really want to know?