“Of course,” she says, standing quickly.

Swim trunks on, I pull the thin sweater over my head. I pick up my jacket, and the small box drops to the pavement. I lean down to retrieve it as she slides her silky dress over her head.

Reaching for her arm, I pull her to me. “I got this for you.” She stills, and the atmosphere feels even more intimate than before. “It’s another thing I would give you, but I’m too late again.”

A little frown, she lifts the lid and gasps. “Oh! I love it!”

I watch her lift the delicate chain with the small heart floating on it, and I take it from her hands. I motion for her to turn around and fasten it at her neck, sealed with a small kiss.

“Why are you too late?” She turns to face me, her sapphire eyes shimmering with emotion.

I only hesitate a moment. “You’ve already stolen my heart as well.”

Her chin drops and she shakes her head. I pull her to me so I can kiss her head. She’s so beautiful. She can steal everything, and I’m not sure I’d mind as long as she’s in my arms.

Clasping our hands, fingers entwined, I lead her to the elevator. “How do you feel?” I have to know.

She holds out her other hand, fingers spread, and studies it as if it’s not a part of her body. “I feel sort-of magical. Like I could run a marathon.”

Nodding, I pull her to the elevator, into my arms. “I don’t feel like running a marathon,” I say, and she starts to laugh. Blinking at her, a smile breaks across my face as well. “I need to hold you in my arms and rest.”

13

The Hunted Melissa

Derek’s massive body is stretched diagonally across my king-sized bed. One of his strong arms is around my waist, and the other is at his side. His lips are at my shoulder. I thread my fingers through his soft, thick waves, combing them as my entire body hums with a happiness so deep it seems unreal.

I wait for the darkest hours to pass, watching, listening. His breathing is smooth and heavy as if he’s completely relaxed, completely trusting. His blood warms my skin, and the level of possessiveness I feel toward him overwhelms me.

Mine. My voice speaks the word in my brain.

As I lay in the darkness, holding him, touching him, savoring the feeling of his strength inside me, I wonder if that’s how it works as a member of this strange club I’ve been forced to join. We bite, we drink, we claim. I consider Derek mine as much as my maker considers me his. The vital difference is I didn’t give myself. He stole. Derek asked.

Granted, I stole a little of Derek’s blood that first time, but I didn’t force him to drink. I didn’t hold his face against my chest so he had only one choice, drink or drown. The memory of the night I was changed stings my eyes. My maker was such a bastard.

This man is the absolute opposite. He’s fierce and powerful, yet at the same time, he’s protective and loving. My hero. All of these things I keep like little treasures. Touching the delicate heart at my throat, I think of them as precious mementos of the most powerful relationship I’ve ever experienced. Our intense moments are the icing on the cake.

At the same time… a shudder of fear passes through me. Up until dinner tonight, we’d only ever known each other in those stolen moments of danger. Sex in an alley where we could easily be caught, sex with my bites that could easily turn deadly…

It’s childish, but I can’t help wondering if once I’m free of this curse—if I’m ever so lucky—will I lose my allure to him? Will I simply be a girl? No danger, no mystery, simply Melissa. Will he walk away, his work here done?

Oh! The thought fills me with such terrible dread I can’t stand it. I turn onto my side, curling my body around his and burying my nose in the base of his neck. I inhale deeply his strong, masculine scent. It’s like warm fires and comfort. Closing my eyes, I can almost drift away on his heady aroma.

Through the slim crack in the curtain, I see the sky has gone from darkest black to thin grey. My eyes are starting to close, and I’m falling into that deep sleep. For now, Derek holds me as if I’m something precious to be protected. He’s pledged to save me, and I’ll hold onto that for now. It’s all I have, and I can’t let the demons win.

When I open my eyes again, he’s lying on his back in the bed beside me. Pillows prop him up, and one arm is bent behind his head. It takes me a moment to realize the voices I hear are coming from the television. I haven’t turned it on since I’ve been here.

“How long have you been awake?” For a moment, I’m afraid I’ve slept through the day like I normally do now.

He lifts the black controller and switches off the set. “An hour or so.”

Sliding down in the bed, he’s face to face with me. I’m suddenly aware of morning breath and pillow wrinkles on my cheeks, and do I have crust in my eyes? Oh, god! I don’t want him seeing me like this. Pushing myself to sitting, I grab a bottle of water off the nightstand and take a drink.

“What are you doing?” He watches me with a grin.

“I look terrible. I’m sorry.” My confidence has completely abandoned me this morning following my moment of self-doubt last night.

“You look like the best thing I’ve ever seen.”

My chin drops as I shake my head. He reaches for the bottle, and I hand it to him. Then I touch my eyes, checking for any offending debris. He takes a drink, swishes it around his mouth, and before I can think any more negative thoughts, he’s got me by the waist, pulling me down under him.

“Derek!” I squeal.

“You’re my vampire.” A teasing growl is in his voice, and his eyes sparkle.

My stomach thrills, but I argue. “I’m not something to be proud of.”

“I’m so proud, I’m arrogant, and you’re not even a vampire yet.”

Reaching up, I curl my fingers in the sides of his dark hair, smiling. My fears melt away in his arms. “What in the world made you want to hunt vampires?”

He doesn’t miss a beat. “I had a dream that one day I’d meet a beautiful, sad one with gorgeous blue eyes who’d steal my heart away.”

Every one of his words is a little boost to my feelings for him driving them higher and higher like a balloon in my chest. Clearing my throat, I press for more. “Seriously. What made you want to do this?”

I’m still encased in his arms, and he ducks his head to kiss the little heart at my throat. It’s like a red-hot brand to my skin.

“I’d been a Marine, so I knew about going into dangerous places, hunting down and eliminating truly bad guys—”

“You did it because you’re a Marine?”

“No.” Another red-hot kiss to the side of my jaw. I feel his erection growing at my thigh, and my insides immediately respond to him.

“Tell me why,” I insist, even though my voice has changed.

“Maybe I thought I could be like one of those knights of old… fighting God’s battles, searching out the evil one, setting the captives free.”

If the image of Derek in combat gear fighting terrorists was a turn-on, the thought of his broad shoulders filling out a suit of armor sends me over the edge.

“You’d be a perfect knight,” I say, but my words are lost in his kiss.

His mouth covers mine, pushing my lips apart, finding my tongue. I exhale a soft sigh, and his hands move up my waist to my breasts, circling and pinching.

Lifting his head, he looks in my eyes. “I want to drink you.”

My eyes blink wide. “What? Why?”

He pauses a beat. “It might help me protect you.”

“But… couldn’t it put you in danger?” I try to remember everything Mariska said about him drinking my blood, me drinking his blood.