That the concept seemed as natural as breathing to him, tightened the very bottom of Samantha’s heart. Again, ‘go the distance’ came to mind.
She turned to face the circle once more.
How would you like me to hold you?
The question made her smile. Tight, both arms wrapped around me, front-to-front, my arms sliding around your neck as you kiss me.
He chuckled. Enough of that or I’ll embarrass myself in front of Vojalie and you know exactly what I mean.
Yes. And I’m hoping we get to do that again soon.
A slight pause, then his voice seemed softer within her mind as he responded, Me, too.
He met and held her gaze but no words, telepathically or otherwise, followed. He just looked at her.
Samantha looked back, savoring his smoky gray-brown eyes, the hungry look coming from the depths of him. She could even feel that she would need to donate again. She nodded, wanting him to know that she understood.
He dipped his chin in return.
“Put your arm around my waist, walk me beneath the minaret roof, then hold on. I have a feeling that what will happen will be as sudden as before, maybe even more so because you’ll be with me.”
“Understood.”
He slid his arm quickly around her and without hesitation, she resumed her place. He shifted to stand behind her but enfolded her in his arms. She’d never felt more secure.
As before, her faeness formed a quick river of energy through her body and she connected with the crystals overhead. She waited for the light to consume her, to take her consciousness yet again, but instead, Ethan acted as a ground and the light moved through her and through him.
Power. That was what she felt. A wonderful stream of fae power that she could access, at least so long as Ethan anchored her.
Extraordinary. His single thought slipped through her mind.
I could stay here forever. And here was her truth, that being held in Ethan’s muscular arms and at the same time having this power flow, made her want to stay in Bergisson forever.
She couldn’t imagine though, to what purpose such power could be put, but right now that wasn’t important. The only thing that seemed to matter was feeling Ethan, knowing him, embracing who he was in his world.
Was this just the blood rose part of her talking? Was it her faeness in response to his realm-ness? Or was it him, that he could go the distance, that she’d already made love with him and it had been incredible?
She didn’t have answers, none that made any real sense. She’d lived long enough to know that this moment, as amazing as it was, would pass and the cold reality of day-to-day life would return, of waking up grumpy, of PMS, of having a bad hair day. He would become irritable with Finn or his realm-rule and she’d argue with him about why he left his deodorant sitting on the bathroom sink, all those little things that robbed a relationship of its magic and mystery in that thing called life, whether long-lived or not.
So a kind of war waged in her mind, between just enjoying the moment or holding it up for swift examination. Maybe the trick to life was knowing when to do which of the two.
So, she chose in that moment to let the future go and to just savor.
Ethan seemed to know when that happened because his arms tightened. I need you, Samantha.
And I need you. More hard truths. She needed him in her life, a man who could go the distance. But we should step out of this stream. Vojalie will want a report.
He moved her easily, side-stepping them both off the red disk, but once the flow of crystal-energy stopped, he didn’t let her go. Instead, he turned her in his arms and kissed her, a full-blown, tongue-invading kiss that sent her hands sliding over his back, over the buttery leather of his Guardsman coat and beneath his long mass of golden hair. She kissed him back, not caring that Vojalie stood nearby.
She wanted Ethan to know that he wasn’t alone in how he felt.
After a moment, he pulled back and looked at her, smoothing a hand over her face, searching her eyes. What the hell is this between us?
I don’t know. And she didn’t, though it felt like love. But how could she possibly be in love with a vampire, and one she’d only known for a couple of nights? Yet love was what she felt, flowing through her right now, just as the power of the crystals had poured along her fae pathway.
Vojalie cleared her throat.
Samantha drew back and blinked several times. Only then did she discover that at least a dozen powerful fae women stood in various places throughout the space.
She might have been embarrassed, but the sisterly spirit of the fae rushed toward her, a sensation of communion and excitement. Ethan must have felt it as well, because he stepped back several feet, then yards, as all the women drew near Samantha, Vojalie as well.
Questions flew: ‘What did it feel like?’ ‘Does the power stay with you?’ ‘What does it mean?’
Vojalie met her gaze. “Did you have the vision of Ry?”
Samantha shook her head. “No, I didn’t get there. But I want to try again.”
More questions flowed and Samantha took time to answer each one as best she could but mostly she kept saying, ‘I don’t know’. All the while, her gaze sought Ethan’s, but he rarely made eye contact. He seemed distressed, or maybe it was just his overpowering desire for her that she felt.
As she focused for a moment on her suddenly pounding heart, she realized her vampire needed to be fed again.
She was about to suggest they take a break and take care of business, when another vampire, a male, appeared in the doorway opposite from Ethan. The fae all turned and Samantha’s heart now pounded heavier than before, recognizing the vampire for who he was: Another starved but powerful mastyr.
Quinlan had arrived.
Her feet were in motion, heading toward him, before she realized she was moving. This new vampire needed her as well, needed to feed. She could sense his blood-starvation like a metallic flavor on her tongue, starvation that needed easing. Now.
He moved in her direction as well, a dark force; dark hair, black eyes, lowered chin, bigger than Ethan, the one in her vision, and coming at her like a freight train.
Then a wind blew past her, but it wasn’t a wind.
It was Ethan.
Chapter Seven
Ethan saw red, lots of it, a bright haze over his vision.
He rammed into Quinlan which sent both of them into the air, then into the wall opposite. The building might have shook, he wasn’t sure.
He came up lunging and battling, striking Quinlan with his fists then gathering his power into his shoulders and his arms, until his hands sang with killing energy.
Quinlan did the same.