Love Bites (14 page)

“Have you had enough blood to get back into the house to finish recovering?” Bastien asked abruptly.

“Yeah, yeah.” Etienne handed him the last empty bag and sat up, then got to his feet with Bastien's help.

Rachel accepted the hand Thomas offered and got to her feet as well. Some of the embarrassment and discomfort she suffered slipped away when Etienne claimed her hand and held it on the walk back to the door. This had been a new experience for her, but it would seem she was in for a lot of those. Life had definitely taken a twist.

“So?” Bastien asked as they stepped into the kitchen. “Have you talked to Rachel about—”

“No,” Etienne interrupted.

“Well, are you—”

“I will,” Etienne interrupted again. “Soon.”

Bastien sighed but apparently decided to let the subject, whatever it was, drop. Clapping a hand on Thomas's shoulder, he turned him to the door, announcing, “You'll need more blood. You'll probably use this up quickly, repairing the damage you've done to each other. I'll send Thomas back with more later. Try not to kill each other in the meantime.”

Etienne's answer was a grunt.

His two relatives left the kitchen and started up the
hall. When the front door closed behind them, some of the tension left his shoulders and he grabbed another bag of blood from the cooler Thomas had set on the table.

“So,” Rachel said quietly as she accepted the bag. “What is it exactly that you were supposed to talk to me about?”

Etienne stared at Rachel. He supposed it really would be a good thing to talk and try to convince her that it was in her best interests to claim Pudge had kidnapped her. But he was reluctant to spoil the rapport they had shared since Night Club—the bond they were building so new and fragile, Etienne was hesitant to possibly ruin it with an argument. Distracting her with something that would bring them even closer together seemed the better option.

“You don't like the night,” he said abruptly, and could tell by her expression that he had startled her.

“I don't dislike it. It's just…” She frowned, then shrugged. “I don't like working at night while everyone is sleeping. I'd rather sleep, then work during the day like everyone else.”

“Why?”

“Well…” She scowled at him, obviously annoyed. “It's not so bad on work nights,” she said finally. “But I can't stay up on work nights and keep normal hours on my nights off, so I'm up all night then and there's nothing to do but sit around twiddling my thumbs or playing video games by myself. Everyone I know but
my co-workers on the night shift work normal hours. There's nothing to do.”

“Nothing to do?” He gaped at her, then shook his head. “I'm afraid you need an education, my dear.”

 

Rachel took in Etienne's certainty with doubt. She'd worked the night shift for three years now and doubted there was much he could teach her. She'd searched desperately for things to do on her evenings off, and while she could always hit the malls or a movie early in the evening, it was the wee hours—11 to 7, when she would usually be working and was awake as could be—she had trouble filling. Other than the bars that closed at 2
A.M
., and Rachel wasn't really a bar person anyway, there wasn't much to do but wander around her apartment lonely and bored.

“Go get changed,” Etienne ordered. “Dark pants and top. And a jacket—it's chilly out.” When Rachel merely stared at him, he waved her away. “Go on. Get changed.”

Giving another shrug, she tossed her last blood bag into the garbage and left the kitchen. Change, he said. She would change. But Rachel didn't believe for a minute that he was going to teach her anything about the night that she didn't already know.

“I've never been on the beach at night,” Rachel admitted with a sigh. She leaned back in the sand as the warm breeze brushed her arms. This was the second evening Etienne had taken her out to show her the night. Their first jaunt had been a night walk in the woods. They'd walked hand in hand, listening to the sounds of animals and catching glimpses of them. Surprisingly enough, Rachel hadn't had any trouble navigating the uneven path beaten into the dirt. It seemed her senses were really improving—she had been able to see almost as well at night as in daylight.

Etienne's eyes shone silver in the night, or perhaps they simply reflected the moonlight, so she asked if her own eyes were glowing. Etienne smiled and nodded, and Rachel contemplated that. She was now a
nocturnal animal. She was a vampire. A hunter.

Rather than alarming her as the idea had once done, the thought gave Rachel an odd surge of confidence. As a woman in the modern world, working at night, she was rather used to being threatened by any number of perverted sickos out there. She had spent most of her life darting from her vehicle to wherever she was going, ever alert for trouble. Now she was experiencing the first tastes of her new strength and abilities.

Her vision wasn't the only thing improved. Last night they had climbed and run and played in the woods, and she had learned that her body was stronger and faster than ever. Much stronger. Inhumanly strong, though she wasn't sure how the nanos managed that. She hadn't bothered to try to figure it out. She was enjoying it too much to care.

“It's a nice night. Want to go for a swim?”

Rachel glanced over the deserted beach and the water reflecting the moonlight. It
was
a nice night. While yesterday was unseasonably chill, tonight was warm as a summer evening should be, and a moonlight swim sounded enticing. But they hadn't brought any swimsuits.

She smiled to herself and peered up the beach again. They had it all to themselves, which would have been impossible during the day. The few policemen who patrolled at night were watching for under-aged partiers who had already arrived and been sent
away by Etienne. Really, she supposed, a swimsuit wasn't absolutely necessary. Etienne had already seen her naked. Several times.

Rather than answer his question verbally, Rachel tossed a wicked grin Etienne's way. Reaching for the hem of her T-shirt with both hands, she raised it up and over her head.

“Beautiful,” Etienne murmured as her breasts were bared.

His suddenly serious expression made Rachel laugh, and she tossed her T-shirt in his lap as she got to her feet. She hadn't bothered with a bra tonight. Actually, she didn't wear them much at all anymore. There was no need. Her breasts were firm and perky, as they had never been, the nanos keeping them that way. She was going to save a ton of money in the future.

Standing before him, Rachel unsnapped her jeans and shimmied out of them. She felt herself blush as she did so, but he
had
seen her naked before, and besides, she was aware that her body was now flawless. It was really rather freeing. Well, mostly. Someday she could actually envision managing undressing without blushing.

A featherlight caress up her calf made her glance down. Etienne was looking heatedly up at her, trailing his fingers lightly along the sensitive skin of her inner leg. If she gave him the chance, Rachel knew they would be rolling around on the sand within minutes,
growling like animals—but he was the one who had mentioned a swim, and now she really wanted one. She danced lightly out of his reach and, leaving him seated upon the blanket holding their picnic basket, Rachel turned away to jog lightly to the water's edge.

Her first step into the water was a bit of a shock. While the night was warm, the water was cold. It closed around her foot, but she barely let that slow her down. Rachel continued determinedly forward for several steps until the water reached her waist, then raised her hands and dived under the rounded waves. She swam underwater for what seemed an impossible time, surprised by the fact that she could. When she finally surfaced, it wasn't out of a need for air so much as a curiosity as to how far she'd swum.

Deciding she had a lot more questions to ask Bastien about the effects of nanos, Rachel swiveled in the water. She stopped treading water and nearly sank under the surface upon seeing how far she was from shore, but she then caught herself. Stronger and faster didn't begin to describe her new state. Rachel hadn't been swimming very hard, but she had propelled herself an incredible distance.

A dark shape broke the surface of the lake on her right, and Rachel smiled as Etienne appeared. His hair was slicked close to his head, his eyes again aglow in the moonlight. He swam closer.

“You look beautiful,” he said solemnly.

Rachel glanced down at herself. Her breasts were
half-revealed above the water, and the silver moonlight gave her skin a pearlescent sheen. Etienne shifted closer, reaching out to catch her hand and draw her forward. As her breasts brushed his chest, he rolled onto his back, taking her with him so that she draped half over his floating chest with her lower body in the water beside him. He began to paddle his feet, propelling them back toward land.

Rachel slid her arms around his waist and went with him, kicking halfheartedly to aid. At last, Etienne stopped and stood. The water reached to just above her breasts as Rachel also stood, but she barely noticed before he pulled her into his arms. She went willingly and lifted her face as he claimed her lips. Rachel first let her legs brush his under the water, then wrapped them around his hips as she twined her arms around his neck. She arched against him, her body stretching and lengthening with awareness. She was conscious of several sensations: the night air now slightly chill on her damp skin; the water itself, warm and silky around her now that she had adjusted to the temperature; his body hot everywhere it touched hers; her passion feverish as it built inside her.

They had made love several times now, each time more explosive and better than the last, so the rush of excitement Rachel felt was overpowering. She had felt like this before—this hunger for him, this pleasure in him, this desire—but this encounter would be even better. Their minds opened to each other, and his de
sires joined hers. The first rush was almost unbearable as it attacked her nerves, making Rachel swoon.

She heard the half-growl, half-purr that erupted from Etienne's throat as she slid her hands into his hair and scraped her nails across his scalp. She responded with one of her own as the sensations echoed inside her. The feeling was so enjoyable, she did it again, then again, before finally sliding her hands down his neck and running her nails over his upper back and shoulders. Rachel had never known that such a simple action could be so erotic, but her own back muscles rippled in sympathy and desire.

Etienne's hands were wandering over her body at the same time—caressing her back, following the curve of her hip, cupping her bottom then squeezing briefly, before smoothing along her legs. The combination of their caresses and pleasures quickly had Rachel trembling. Etienne had stripped off his clothes on the beach, and she could feel his erection, hard and excited, where it was trapped between their bodies. Rachel tightened her legs around him and shifted herself upward. Rubbing against him, she stilled and groaned deep in her throat as his urge to climax swamped her mind.

Recalling every time they had made love, and the way she had fainted after each, Rachel wanted desperately to break their kiss and suggest they move back to the blanket—but it seemed too much effort,
and breaking the kiss seemed impossible. It was as if she needed it to breathe.

“Rachel.”
Her name was a growl in her head, for Etienne was still kissing her and not speaking. It took her a moment to realize he was speaking mentally; that with their minds fevered and wide open, they needn't speak to communicate.
“I want you.”

Rachel sighed and tried to answer mentally that she wanted him too, but she wasn't sure he got the message. She had no idea if she had attained the ability yet. Still, she didn't repeat the thought aloud when he broke the kiss and propelled her backward through the water. Rachel felt sure he was taking her to the blanket, but he stopped while still in the water and urged her up to the surface. She floated on her back with her knees bent. He grasped her legs and shocked her by suddenly pulling them wide open.

Rachel nearly sank under the water in surprise, so she dropped her hands to keep herself afloat. In the end, she didn't have to paddle; her arms hit sand almost at once and she realized Etienne had moved them closer to shore—close enough that she could hold her upper body up out of the water. He shifted between her legs and bent his head to caress her hot flesh with his tongue.

Rachel jerked, her feet shooting upward and splashing water everywhere as he set to work. Her mind went through myriad emotions—shock, embarrassment, and the brief mad desire to scoot away from
the delectation he offered all shot through her in rapid order, but then pleasure took over.

Moaning, she caught the soles of her feet on his shoulder blades and used them to pivot her hips. Her legs spread wider apart, opening farther to facilitate him. This was…Well, Rachel had never experienced such intense pleasure. She almost feared she might die of it—but it was a heck of a way to go, she decided as the throes of her first climax struck, echoed out to Etienne and then were reflected back even more intensely.

A soft chuckle drew her back to consciousness, and Etienne unhooked Rachel's legs from over his shoulders and crawled up her body. He settled on top of her where she lay on the damp sand. Obviously, he had moved her farther out of the water, which was probably a good thing. She would have drowned if he hadn't. She had fainted again, and even now she didn't have the strength to hold her head or anything else up. It was even an effort to force her eyes open, but she did and dazedly stared at him.

“How? Where did you learn…? How?” she asked incoherently.

Etienne grinned and brushed a damp strand of hair off her face. “Do you remember the garden?”

Rachel's mind was still so befuddled that she had to actually think for a moment. Understanding dawned at last, and she distinctly recalled feeling what he was experiencing as she had licked, kissed,
and caressed him. Obviously he had experienced the same thing tonight, allowing him to hit just the right spots with just the right pressure to send her over the moon. And probably himself with her, Rachel realized, recalling that she had shared his ecstasy.

“Oh,” she breathed, and found herself grinning foolishly. The sex was definitely a plus about being a vampire. She was beginning to discover all sorts of pluses to this business. What had she made all the fuss about? “You're good.”

Etienne grinned back. “Yes, I am. And so are you. We're a pretty good pair.”

“Yeah.” She sighed happily and stretched beneath him. The way she was arching forced her breasts up until they rested mere inches from his mouth, and Rachel grinned when she felt his sex begin to stiffen again. She already knew from experience that vampires had boundless stamina. Another plus. It was starting to look as if those pluses were boundless, too.

Catching her while she was still arched, Etienne scooped one hand under Rachel's back, then shifted to kneel in the sand and caught her under her knees. Lifting her into his arms, he got to his feet. Rachel laughed huskily and caught her hand around his neck as he carried her to their blanket. He took a moment to straighten the cloth with a foot, then dropped to his knees and laid her out. He started to stand, but Rachel tightened her hold on his neck, preventing him and trying to draw him down for a kiss.

Etienne allowed it, but only for a moment. Then he muttered, “Food,” and swiveled to grab their picnic basket.

Rachel was hungry, but not for food. Not for blood either—which was rather surprising, since she had been hungry for blood almost nonstop since he had turned her. She wondered briefly if that meant she was nearly finished with the change but was distracted when Etienne began to pull items out of the basket.

“Strawberries?” she asked with surprise. He set a bowl of the ripe red fruit on the blanket.

“Yeah. Strawberries dipped in chocolate,” he announced with a proud grin. “It's called fondue or something.”

Rachel arched an eyebrow at the squeezable bottle of chocolate syrup he retrieved and set on the blanket beside the strawberries. When he closed the basket and pushed it away, she tried to hide her amusement. “I think fondue is warmed chocolate that
you dip the strawberries into.
”

Etienne shrugged. “Rachel, honey, I'm a guy. A three-hundred-year-old guy but still just a guy. This is fondue to me.”

Rachel laughed.

Etienne picked up a strawberry and squirted some syrup on it, then popped it into his mouth. He grabbed and squirted chocolate sauce on a second, this one for her. Rachel laughed and opened her mouth for it,
then shook her head as she chewed and swallowed. She commented, “I don't think I've ever seen you eat real food before.”

He shrugged then grinned. “I don't very often. Only on special occasions. But I didn't think a picnic basket full of blood bags felt right.”

Rachel grimaced. “No. Not nearly as romantic.”

Etienne laughed at her expression then suggested, “Well, perhaps if we both drank it out of the same champagne glass.”

Rachel arched her eyebrows, and they grinned at each other. Then Etienne shook his head and they both said, “Nah.”

“Ah, well. Guess impressing you with my romantic nature is out of the question,” he said good-naturedly. Pushing the strawberries and basket aside, he added, “Guess my sexual prowess will have to be enough.” Rachel burst out laughing.

Etienne dropped to lay on top of her and covered her open mouth with his. Her laughter soon turned to moans of pleasure. Then Rachel shifted, and she managed to turn him onto his back. The only reason she managed was that she took him by surprise. Unwilling to give up the advantage, she quickly climbed on top of him. Bracing her hands on his chest, she grinned down at his startled expression. “You don't have a problem with me being on top, do you?”