Odyssey (The Vampire Destiny Series Companion Book 1) (15 page)

I was no better.  My cock pulsed and my release was violent, a guttural cry escaping from my lips. “Fuck it.  I am coming!”  My head fell back against my shoulders as my orgasm overtook me.

For the briefest of moments, time did not exist.  Nothing mattered…only this Valhalla I had found in this woman’s embrace.

My arms trembled as I caged myself above her.  I raised my head slowly and lowered my lips to press fleeting, soft kisses on her waiting mouth.  Again, I found myself speaking in my native tongue.  “That was unbelievable. You are a goddess.”

Rolling to her side, she rested her head lightly against my shoulder.  My body curved protectively around her, our combined breathing ragged.  She raised her head slightly to stare into my eyes, her fingers absently stroking through my hair.  The smile on my lips was one of contentment, every muscle in my body relaxed and euphoric.

“You need to tell me what you said.  My brain doesn't have Google Translate,” she managed to murmur weakly.  She shifted to my side, placing her head on my chest, curling up against me.

I felt her rising panic before she visibly reacted.  She had figured out my secret.

She struggled to sit up, her lower lip between her teeth.  She edged away from me as her mind shot off in a million directions.  She was moments away from reaching her breaking point.

“Josephine,” I spoke her name calmly.  My hand wrapped gently around her arm, keeping her from fleeing.  If she would only give me the opportunity to explain…I could make her understand.

“What are you?” She sputtered, her heart racing even faster.  She placed a timid, shaking hand over my chest again.  She was hoping that she had made a mistake and she would feel the steady strum of my heart underneath her fingers.

Her sharp gasp was all the response I needed.  There was no heartbeat for her to feel; only my silent chest was there to greet her.  Her tear-filled eyes searched mine and I felt my shoulders slump in defeat.  This was not the way I wanted her to find out what I truly was.

“Josephine, I did not want you to find out this way.”  I looked away for a moment, focusing on the wall as I gathered my bearings.  My face was stone and my shoulders were tense when I finally looked back at her. “I am a vampire.”

I simply waited for her to respond.  A multitude of expressions flickered across her beautiful face.  Denial, anger, betrayal and sadness darkened her delicate features. She yanked her arm away from me and jumped up from the bed.  She frantically paced the room, grabbing a silk robe from the chaise lounge chair.  She pulled it on and tied the belt tightly around her waist.  Now that she was dressed, she seemed much more in control and ready to confront me with her questions.

“Josephine, please let me explain,” I pled, pulling myself up into a sitting position.  In hundreds of years, I had begged for very few things.  This woman made me lose my sense of reason; I had to make her understand.  I could not lose her now.

“You're a vampire.  And you chose me for dinner? Is this what you do, Stefan? Pick up unsuspecting women, seduce them and then...bite them?  Or kill them?” Josephine asked bitterly.  Her green eyes glittered with unshed tears.

Her irate words struck me like a blow to the chest.  She thought she was just one of many women I used?  In this moment, she thought of herself as disposable.  I should have never lost control with her...I never should have taken her to bed.  I should have explained things to her…and instead, she was left confused and angry by my omission.

“Is that what you think? That I chose you for dinner? Josephine, I have been waiting for you for many years.  And here you are,” I reassured her, reaching for her arm to halt her rapid pacing.  “Please.  All I ask is that you listen to me for a moment.  I beg you.”

Sighing heavily, her face was conflicted as she considered my plea.  Her eyes closed and it was clear she was struggling to control her temper.  I could only sit by and wait for her to decide my fate.  Afraid to make any sudden movement, I sat as still as a statue and simply waited.

“You can explain in a minute, but first I have questions.  How old are you?” Josephine asked awkwardly. The silence between us grew tight with tension, a cold knot coiling deep in my stomach as I prepared to comply with her questioning.

“How old am I now or how old was I when I became a vampire?”  Now I was the one that suddenly had the urge to leave, to make her forget she had met me.  What had I done?  I was so fixated on finding and claiming her; I did not stop to think of the repercussions to her…or to myself.

“Humor me.  Both,” she blurted out, easing down nervously on the edge of the bed and tucking her legs beneath her.  I could see her closing herself off from me.  She looked tiny and delicate.  I wanted nothing more than to wrap her in my arms, to reassure her and make her understand.

Instead, I rose and stalked to the opposite side of the room.  The only solace was the weight of her eyes on me and I could feel the power of her longing as she watched me.   Bracing my arms against the window frame, I told her the condensed version of my story.

“My human life ended in the year 1070.  I was 33 years old when I became a vampire.  I was dying a human death after being wounded in battle.  I remember little during that time.  I was suffering and in agony.”  I glanced at her over my shoulder.  Pushing off the window frame, I avoided her penetrating stare.  Instead, I focused on the floor as I waited for her to continue.

She was silent for a moment before she began firing off questions. “Mirrors?”

“Myth.”

“Sunlight?” She tried again, her voice stronger.

I sighed irritably.  “Another myth.  It is bothersome to our eyes more than anything. Sunglasses help.”

“Garlic?”

“Unpleasant to smell.  No worse than any other human food.  Do you have more vampire legends for me to dispel?”

“One more.  Do you sleep in a...” she hesitated, her eyes rolling skyward.  She shook her head and buried her face in her hands.

“A coffin?  No.  I sleep when I want to sleep.  Daytime.  Nighttime.”  I finished her question and dropped beside of her, my hand rubbing up and down her arm.  I was surprised to find that she settled against my shoulder.  Feeling confident at her small gesture of acceptance, I rested my head against hers.  “I truly did not want you to find out this way.  There really is not an easy way to break this to someone, Josephine.”

“If you're a vampire, why didn't you bite me?  And why tell me anything?”  She cringed after she asked that question.

“You left me little choice.”  I laughed softly, the vibration echoing deep in my chest.  She truly had no internal filter.  Her questions about biting made my gums itch and my fangs dropped softly.  “Josephine, look at me.”

She raised her head from my shoulder and gulped when she saw the proof she could not deny.  My fangs.  Her fingers unconsciously lifted and started to reach out to touch them.  She must have realized what she was doing and nervously dropped her hand into her lap, clasping them together.

I smiled and retracted them.  “As strong as my urge is to bite, making love to you was more important.  The way I tasted you earlier was better than simply biting you.”  I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively, which caused a stunning pink blush to spread across her cheeks.

“Is biting me something you want to do?” she asked curiously.  I realized immediately that she was aroused at thinking of my bite.  Her heady aroma filled the small space and for the second time that night, I found myself holding my breath.

“Ah, Josephine.  Biting you is something I would enjoy.  You would enjoy it as well.  But I will only do it with your consent.” I paused and my hand smoothed her wild curls behind her ear.  “To answer your other question, I told you because I have been looking and waiting for you for over 200 years and you are more perceptive than I had assumed you would be.  You noticed I had no heartbeat.”

Her eyes widened to round circles and her lightly tanned skin blanched.  “I need a minute.  Maybe ten,” she stuttered, scurrying from the bedroom and into the bathroom, closing the door swiftly behind her.

Minutes dragged by.  I pulled on my discarded jeans and forced myself to listen to every sob and muffled cry she uttered because my appearance had caused them.  There were times I wanted to break down the door to console her, to attempt to make amends.  Then there were my weaker moments, the times I wanted to flee so she did not have to experience so much pain because of me.  Her misery was like a million daggers in my chest, and I deserved each one of them for my lies of omission.

I had lost track of time, only marking the moments by the silence that now filled her villa.  I stood silently at her window, staring into the dark Bali night.  Finally, I heard the door to the bathroom open and the soft pad of her feet on the floor.  She had returned but her mind was closed from me.  She stood in the doorway nervously, refusing to come any closer.

“You and I have much to discuss.  It is late and you are tired.  Can we resume this tomorrow?” I questioned.  My eyes never left the window, refusing to look at her.  Her pain was my own; I felt it as clearly as if she had inflicted it on me instead.

“I want you, Stefan.  I don't care what you are.  I just want you,” she said, her voice no louder than a whisper. "You, Stefan.  Only you.  It makes no sense…but I feel something with you that I can’t explain.  And I can’t let it go."

My eyes quickly darted to hers in disbelief.   Even though her eyes were red and swollen from her tears, she was still gorgeous and by some strange twist of fate, she still wanted me.

As if she was on a mission to prove her ardor, she boldly untied her robe and let it fall into a silky pool.  She took small, tentative steps towards me, her emerald gaze never wavering.  She stood mere inches from me, her hands dragging over my arms.  In spite of myself, I closed my eyes to the addictive sensation of her touch, dropping my head back and groaning loudly in approval.

Grasping my biceps, she propelled me backwards until my calves bumped the edge of the bed.  Her gentle push sent me sprawling back against the mattress.  Moving faster than most humans, she had straddled my hips and her fingers were tracing down the muscles of my chest, tickling my nipples.  She propped herself on her arms, letting her lips lightly sweep down the curve of my jaw.  Her mouth was as soft as rose petals against my flesh.  I was momentarily stunned, unsure how I had survived a day without her.  And if that was not enough, she tempted me with the provocative sensation of her soft breasts against my skin.