Eternal Breath of Darkness (24 page)

Tears burned behind her
eyes. It was all too wonderful to be real—it had to come to an end. This wasn’t
her; she didn’t belong with him. Gathering her hair, he pulled it over her
shoulder to expose her back to his admiring gaze. She turned her head to look
up at him. He bent his head to kiss her shoulder, her neck, and her ear.
Breathing deeply, he inhaled her scent, savoring it. There were no words to
describe his need for her, his love for her at that moment.

He massaged her shoulders
and back, softly caressing the oil into her skin. His hands trailed from her
sides to her hips, touching her everywhere, tracing her feminine curves,
adoring her body, every inch of it. “Turn around, little love.”

When she did, he was right
there, solid, real, larger than life. Her man. His gaze was feasting on her. He
was touching her, loving her, needing her, massaging her. Her gaze wandered.
His body was built to perfection. Tall. Powerful. Muscled like a god. Men like
him didn’t exist. Not in her world.

Biting her lower lip, she
looked up him. “Haden?” She was breathless, hot tears streaming down her face.
Yes, he loved her now, but would he eventually grow tired of her? He’d live
many lifetimes, shared many lifetimes with women he loved. “What if you …
Haden, I’m afraid of the way you make me feel. Of having you only to lose you.”

“Caylee.” Tossing the oil,
he dragged her close. “See yourself as I see you. Know what you mean to me. We
are one. There was, is, and never will be a me without you. Yes, I lived many
lifetimes, but I’ve never shared my life with a woman. It would be impossible.
For a long time I waited for you, hoping you would come, but eventually I no
longer had the strength to hope.” He closed his eyes, searching for best words.
“No matter what happens, I will never allow us to be separated by anything or
anyone.” Looking very naughty, he smiled at her. “I have a small confession to
make, little love.”

That brought her eyebrow up.
“What?”

“You’re going to have my
child.”

She nodded. “Maybe
eventually, but it’s a little soon for us to even think about having a child.”

“You conceived the first
time we made love.”

“No, I didn’t.” She frowned.
“I’m taking birth control.”

“It failed.”

“How would you know?”

“I wanted you to conceive.”
He shrugged casually. “My kind has the power to choose whether or not a child
is conceived.”

“You did it on purpose?” She
splashed water in his face. “You got me pregnant and didn’t even ask what I
thought about it?”

“Yes.” He smiled, looking
quite proud of himself. “What do you think about it?”

Caylee stared him for
several seconds. She’d never really thought about bringing a child into the
world. She’d never wanted to be responsible for raising a child in such a sick,
twisted, and loveless world. But the world didn’t seem so sick and twisted
anymore. It definitely wasn’t loveless. She had Haden. Their child had Haden.
He was serious. She was pregnant. And he was very happy about it. To her
surprise, she was happy too. She smiled at him. “It makes me very happy.”

~
Seventeen ~

“THIS ISN’T RIGHT.” Caylee took a deep breath and released it with
a sigh. “What’s wrong with me?”

“There’s nothing wrong with
you,” Haden said. It was a fact he wasn’t going to argue.

Looking down at her feet,
Caylee frowned. “I’m standing at my uncle’s gravesite, and the only thing I
feel is relief.”

Taking her chin, forcing her
to meet his gaze, he said, “Good.”

“I should feel some form of
sadness, shouldn’t I?”

“Nope. No way,” Mia blurted.
“Why should you? The bastard was absolutely terrible to you. He’s lucky to be
dead. If I would’ve known he was blackmailing you into marrying that nasty
little weasel of a man, Phillip Wicks, I would’ve made his life a nightmare. He
would’ve wished he was dead.”

“You don’t understand,”
Caylee explained. “I know he wasn’t a good person, but he was my uncle, my
flesh and blood.”

“Stop it, Caylee. I won’t
allow you to beat yourself up over your lack of tears for the man. It doesn’t
matter if he was your uncle or a stranger. There’s no reason for you to feel
any sadness over his death at all.” Haden wrapped his arm around Caylee and pulled
her close to his side. He didn’t regret killing Emmett, but he felt a little
guilty because of how negatively the man’s death was affecting Caylee. “Of
course you feel a sense of relief. He was treating you badly, abusing you. Why
would you feel anything but relief?”

“He’s dead, Haden. His life
is over. It’s done. He will never have another chance to change, to be a better
person. They just lowered his casket into the ground, and I couldn’t force
myself to shed a single tear for him if my life depended on it.”

“Oh come on, Caylee. You
need to focus on the facts. Emmett was a dirty, rotten bastard. And don’t you
dare try to deny it,” Mia said. “Listen, I hate to admit it, but Haden is
right.”

She paused to glare at
Haden. He’d better never use the fact that she’d agreed with him against her.
Just the thought of being like-minded with Haden nearly caused her to hurl her
breakfast. “There’s no reason for you to waste any time crying for him. The
world is a better place with Emmett six feet under. Honestly, when you asked me
to come here with you today, I was shocked. I tried, I really did, but I didn’t
and still don’t understand why you wanted to come here.”

“I never wanted to be here.
I didn’t have a choice. I’m his only living relative. I need to be here. Just
take a look around. There’s no one else here to mourn his death.” Caylee looked
up at Haden. “It was a heart attack, right?” She knew he could and would kill,
but she didn’t want to think he’d killed her uncle. Especially if he’d killed
Emmett on her behalf.

Mia’s gaze shot straight to
Haden. Maybe she’d judged his character too soon. If he had killed Emmett, she
would be inclined to like him a little.

Grinning, Haden nodded at
Caylee. “That’s what the autopsy report indicated,” he said.

Mia smiled. Haden had killed
Emmett. Maybe she would like him a lot. She shook her head. Nah. There was no
reason to get carried away. He was still a man. Liking him a little was more
than enough.

Eyes filled with suspicion,
Caylee tilted her head to the side and studied his way-too-innocent, naughty
schoolboy grin. She, like Mia, instantly caught on to the fact Haden had used
his words carefully to avoid lying. “Yes, it did.” Haden had killed Emmett. The
only doubt she had was that she could live with her uncle’s blood on her hands.

Haden bent his head to
whisper in her ear. “How could you forget I was with you, little love?” His
deep, sexy voice caused images of their lovemaking to flood her mind. Hot
desire raced through her body, heating her blood and causing her heart race.

Haden wasn’t sure why he was
attempting to convince her he hadn’t done it. He had every right to kill
Emmett. It was his responsibility to do it. Killing Emmett was the right thing
to do. It was a good thing. It was the only thing to do.

Mia looked up and saw a man
approaching them from the far side of the cemetery. She pointed. “Do you know
him?” She instantly knew she didn’t like him at all. Studying him closely, she
couldn’t decide what really bothered her, but there was something very dark and
threatening about him.

Caylee looked up. “Oh sure,
that’s Haden’s friend, Joseph.” She grabbed Haden’s hand.
What’s happening,
Haden? What’s wrong?
She knew Joseph and Zack were hanging around the
cemetery in case there were any problems with Paul, but they were supposed to
stay out of sight.

Haden brought her hand to
his mouth and kissed it.
There’s nothing for you to worry about. Paul is
nearby observing us. We knew it would happen. I told you it would, remember? We
haven’t been able to pinpoint his exact location. Joseph is just letting him
know we’re aware of his presence as a preventative measure. Zack will continue
to watch from a distance and wait for Paul to slip up and reveal his location.

In truth, there was plenty
to worry, but as far as he was concerned, she didn’t need to know about it.
Joseph and Zack had spent two days and nights searching for Paul, but they were
unable to find him. He was always close, but he always managed to hide. The
vampire’s ability to continue hiding his exact location from the demons was
strange. They knew Paul’s ability to elude them had something to do with
Demetri and Mary Tate. But what? Mary wasn’t a huge concern. She was only a
problem as long as Demetri remained loyal to her, but why was Demetri remaining
close to her? How was he aiding the undead? Why was he doing it? More
importantly, how could they stop such a powerful demon?

***

Vampires naturally preferred
a variety of sexual partners, never lovers, but possessing and keeping Caylee
was all that mattered to Paul. It went against his nature, but he knew he would
enjoy her company for a number of years. Unable to stay away from her, he
remained as close to her as possible at all times. His obsession with her was
growing every minute of every day. She should’ve remained nothing more than a
source of nourishment and entertainment, but it was impossible to listen to the
voice of common sense when she was his obsession.

Caylee was always surrounded
by demons. If not Haden, Zack or Joseph were near her at all times, but Paul
refused to give up. Why should he? He believed he had the upper hand. It was
only a matter of time before the demons slipped up. The demons were confused
and acting accordingly. They didn’t know how to handle a vampire with his
extraordinary powers and abilities. They feared him—and for good reason. Paul
was in the process of altering the unfair balance of power that for thousands
of years enabled demons to nearly wipe out the existence of vampires. He was
the first of his kind to wield the ancient demonic and human spells that were
enabling him to stay one step ahead of demons. Word of Paul’s certain victory
was spreading like a wildfire. Soon, many more vampires would rise up to stand
by his side to annihilate the demons that nearly destroyed them.

***

Joseph walked straight up to
them. He glanced at Haden and then took Caylee’s hand in his. “Good morning.
I’m very sorry for your loss, Caylee.”

Mia was extremely irritated
Joseph would add to Caylee’s guilt. She snorted indignantly. “It isn’t a loss.”
She smiled up at Haden, secretly letting him know that she approved of the fact
he’d killed Emmett and that she had his back. “The man was a no-good asshole.
He deserved to die.”

Frowning, Caylee shook her
head at Mia.

“What? It’s the truth. The
man was a worthless asshole.”

“Thank you, Joseph,” Caylee
said.

What’s going on?
More
than a little perplexed, Joseph glanced at Haden.
How does Caylee’s friend
know you killed Emmett?

She’s assuming.

Well, at least she approves
of it so much she was just trying to let you know she has your back.

Thanks for the warning, but
I already caught onto it. Trust me, I’ll be extra careful to watch my back from
now on.

Joseph looked at Mia.
You
don’t trust her.

I would rather turn my back
on a pack of rabid pit bulls than a wolf. She’s a vicious, man-hating woman.

Lycan?
Shocked,
Joseph glanced at Haden and then returned his gaze to Mia. She didn’t appear to
be vicious. As a matter of fact, she was quite petite.
I don’t see it.
Smiling
in appreciation, he opening allowed his gaze to wander over every inch of her
tiny but curvaceous body. He studied her from the top of her head to her toes.
Oh yeah, he liked what he was seeing. The woman was hot as hell.

She was orphaned. Her wolf
is dormant. I don’t even think she knows she’s lycan.
Haden
grinned.
Trust me. You’ll see it if you make her mad enough.

There was a long and awkward
silence. Caylee glanced up at Haden.
What’s wrong with Joseph?

I’m not sure, but Mia is not
liking it. I suppose it would be best to introduce them before she gets any
madder and knocks him on his ass.

“Oh. Oops. I’m sorry,”
Caylee said. “Mia, this is Joseph Payne, and, Joseph, this is my best friend,
Mia Harte.”

Taking a step closer to Mia,
Joseph held out his hand for her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mia Harte.” He
loved the sound of her name and feel of it on his lips.

Mia wasn’t even slightly
impressed. Her only thought was to get him the hell out of her personal space.
He needed to back off. She sure as hell wasn’t going take a step back. She
didn’t even try to hide the fact that he made her sick; she didn’t like him at
all, and there was no reason to pretend otherwise. She glanced down at his hand
and then, locking her gaze onto his, she smirked. “Gee, you bet. It’s so
totally nice I can hardly stand the excitement.” Rolling her eyes, she reached
for his hand.

The instant his hand touched
hers, Joseph’s mind merged with hers. Deeply. Completely. He wasn’t expecting
it to happen. Normally, it wouldn’t happen without exerting some sort of
effort. To say he was shocked was a serious understatement—he was completely
blown away by it. He was drawn so deeply into her mind and body he actually
felt her physical and emotional pain. It was so severe and it hit him so hard
his entire body shuddered. Her flesh was so fragile and weak, but her spirit
was as strong as any ferocious, fearless lycan spirit.

Joseph couldn’t believe she
was standing there as if nothing was wrong. The pain threatened to bring him, a
powerful immortal, to his knees. Her strength and resolve amazed him. Absorbing
her pain into his body and imparting healing energy into her body, he continued
to hold her hand. He had to help her. He simply didn’t have any choice. He had
to do all he could to give her relief.

Mia felt heat penetrate her
hand and spread up her arm. At first it was a tingling sensation, and then it
turned into a magnificent burning sensation that spread throughout her body.
She liked the way it felt, and that irritated the hell out of her. She also
felt Joseph’s powerful presence in her mind. She didn’t know much about her
father and mother, but she knew they were murdered by vampires. Given the way
Joseph was able to enter her mind, he must be a vampire. “Let go of me!” She
yanked her hand out of his. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

She’s dying.
Looking
shattered, Joseph met Haden’s gaze.
She has been in a great deal of pain for
a very long time. I’m serious, Haden. The pain she lives with is so bad it
nearly knocked me on my ass.”

From what?
Haden
looked over at Mia.
I’ve never sensed any illness or pain in her.
Now,
looking at her, it was clear she was a bit thin and pale skinned. He had
noticed her complexion was pale before, but he’d never looked too deeply at her
health. For the most part she appeared to be healthy. She definitely presented
herself as being a healthy woman. As a matter of fact, he was quite certain she
would get into the ring with Mike Tyson if he pissed her off.

It’s an extremely aggressive
form of bone cancer. Does she behave irrationally?

Haden shrugged.
She has
an explosive temper. She doesn’t seem to have the ability to control it.

She’s taking high doses of
morphine.

That’s not good. It explains
a lot, but it’s not good,
In fact, Haden knew it was extremely
dangerous because of her lycan blood. Over time morphine would cause her to go
insane. She would eventually become a sadistic murderer without remorse.

“I’m sorry, honey.” Mia took
Caylee’s hand. “I don’t want to leave you right now, but I’ve never left the
girls alone this long. You know how Julie behaves when I’m gone. I don’t want
her to run Brianna off. You know how shy and withdrawn Brianna is.” She turned
to glare at Joseph, and then she looked up at Haden. “Just in case you didn’t
already come to the conclusion yourself, your taste in friends suck.”