Shades of Amber (18 page)

I withdrew my fangs and
sealed the bite before tucking her in.

“
One day you will come to
me of your own free will.”

The robe fell open as she
rolled to her side, showing cleavage. It would have been easy to
coax her into letting me have her body, but I didn’t want to force
it. In order for our relationship to work, she’d have to offer it
freely.

Rubbing my jaw, I changed
into black clothes and contemplated where to get “takeout” at half
past midnight. My footsteps were silent as I walked to the door,
easing it open before allowing myself to look back at
her.

She was an angel for a
moment before she rolled over and punched her pillow. I stepped
closer, ready to soothe her until she whispered my name, and
punched the pillow again.

I cleared my mind as I
eased into her dream. She wasn’t just fighting me, she was battling
the part of herself that wanted to be with me.

I walked into the hall and
locked the door behind me. “No maid to help you escape this
time.”

The night was cool as I
stood in the driveway, casting out my senses. I wasn’t sure who
would be out this late, but right now, I didn’t trust the beast
around Jade without a full stomach.

Pulling my hood up, I
materialized at the park. I waited in the shadows as I observed the
quiet area. My fangs lowered at the promise of fresh blood. I could
hear the victim’s steady breathing as she ran along the lit path.
The small woman was eight feet away when I stepped into
view.

“
Come here.”

She drew closer, armed
with brass knuckles, stun gun, and super-sized can of pepper spray.
Unfortunately, none of that would protect her from something like
me. She walked slowly, eyes glazed. With two fingers, I tilted her
head to the side and sank my fangs into her throat.

Ten minutes later, my
donor was back on her way, and I was
at my
bedroom door. The second, I reached the landing, I knew something
wasn’t right.

It was too
quiet.

¤¤¤¤

Jade

It took a minute for me to
focus on the shadows, but I remembered where I was this time. I put
my hand to my neck and felt for evidence of his bite.

The thought of him
drinking my blood repulsed my mind and made my body feverish.
Unfortunately, my traitorous insides weren’t sick, so much as
turned on. I heard a noise downstairs and got to my
feet.

I couldn’t let him keep me
here and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to resist him. The old Troy was
charming, but this Troy had the ability to make my body override my
brain. He was a hazard to my health, and I needed to escape before
it was too late.

Weapons were sparse, so I
grabbed the footstool by the couch and tiptoed to my hiding spot.
As soon as I put my ear to the door, I heard a creak on the steps.
One by one, I imagined him getting closer. I gripped the stool and
tried to slow my heartbeat.

My plan was to jump him
from behind, steal his keys, and run. I held my breath as the knob
rattled. He slipped in, kicked the door shut, and stared at the
empty bed.

I raised the stool and
aimed for his head because I didn’t think it would kill him. I hit
him like a brick against a solid wall.

Troy fell, and I landed
next to him. I scrambled away, but he grabbed my wrist, flipped me
on my back, and pinned me to the carpet. I wheezed.

“
I’m stronger than I look,
remember?” His eyes blazed as he watched me take shallow breaths,
and just when I thought I might faint, his weight shifted. His
voice was low as his free hand moved my hair away from my eyes. “I
have to admit you caught me off guard. I wasn’t expecting you to
wait quietly and ambush me.” His knuckles caressed my cheek. “Every
time you fight me, I think, that’s my girl. She gives it her all
even when she knows she’s fighting a losing battle.”

I squirmed, knowing I only
had so much time before I fell for his magic. “Why do I have to be
your girl?”

He let go of my wrist, and
stared at me. “You’ve forgotten what I told you when we first
met.”

“
Why would I pay any
attention to what a cocky stranger told me in a
library?”

He sighed and held my chin
so our eyes met. “Did you think I wasn’t serious when I asked you
to share a lifetime with me, Jade?”

I inhaled his heady
cologne and closed my eyes, willing myself not to crack. Don’t fall
for it, Jade! Don’t give into his lulling voice. I screamed inside
as I felt my walls begin to crumble, he was trying to make me need
him; make me admit that I wanted him. I shook my head and covered
my ears with my hands.

He pulled them away.
“You’ve shared your love with me, why won’t you share your
life?”

I gulped as a tear ran
down my cheek.

He wiped it away. “You’re
breaking yourself for what? So you can hide your feelings for me? I
already know, cher.”

“
You don’t have my love
anymore and if you don’t want me to break, stop tearing me
apart.”

“
Look me in the eye and
tell me that.”

I glared at him and felt a
warmth other than anger flood my body. “I would look into your eyes
more if you didn’t try to influence me!” I covered my eyes with my
arm.

I was on the verge of
breaking and he didn’t care—because that was his goal. He wanted me
to break.

I moved my arm and found
him smiling. “You heard my thoughts.”

“
I’ll have you one way or
another, Jade. You can either accept it now or you can let me pick
up the pieces after you rip yourself in half.”

“
Get off me!” I screamed,
kicked, and tried to wriggle away.

“
Shh, Jade. You don’t want
the neighbors to hear you.” He shifted again, stilling my
movements.

I screamed as loud as I
could. Long, bloodcurdling screams.

He touched my bottom lip.
“Scream all you want, the walls are soundproof.”

I stared at him, mouth
agape. “Why did you…?”

“
What, cher? I think
you’ve overextended that sweet voice of yours.”

I swallowed and tried
again. It was a little louder.

“
If the walls are
soundproof, why did you warn me about the neighbors?”

He kissed my jaw. “I like
it when you scream, plus that’s what people say.”

I rubbed my throat.
“You’re trying to drive me crazy by toying with me.”

His chuckle was dark and
seductive.

“
You bastard,” I
hissed.

His eyes flashed as the
air grew cold. “You think I’m toying with you? I’m in love with
you, and you won’t allow yourself to feel.” His lips twitched.
“This is the only way I can get you to be honest with yourself… if
you won’t admit what you want.”

I couldn’t stop shaking as
his thumb brushed my lip. My thoughts lingered on his
words.

Was it really worth
tearing myself apart just to keep from giving into my feelings for
him?

“
I don’t want to be a
vampire.”

He touched my neck. “You
don’t have to worry about that right now.”

If he agreed not to make
me like him, could we finally be together?

His words replayed in my
mind until I heard the ‘right now.’ I shook my head. “I don’t ever
want you to turn me.”

Troy maneuvered his tongue
into my mouth and picked me up. A small part of me was afraid of
what would happen next, but the part of me that loved him was
excited. In the blink of an eye, we were under the covers. His
hands caressed my body as his mouth went to my neck.

“
I’m afraid,” I
blurted.

“
There’s nothing to be
afraid of, we’ve done this before.”

I gulped and nodded.
“Yeah, but it was only once and…”

He smirked, playing with
my hair. “And…”

I squirmed under his gaze.
“And I didn’t know what you were.”

He kissed my jaw. “You
knew I was different. So what’s wrong, Jade?”

I sighed. “This seems
different, like there’s more to it. I feel like I’m about to sign a
contract, and I don’t know what the fine print says.” The look in
his eyes said I was making a fair assumption. “What are you
hiding?”

He climbed on top of me
and tilted my face toward his. I closed my eyes and tried to block
the seductive lure of his voice.
“Trust
me, Jade. This will only bring us closer. All you have to do is
admit you love me. That’s it.”

Could I really do
that?

He kissed my hair. “Relax.
You’re thinking about this too hard. I love you, Jade. Stop trying
to fight your feelings.”

I took a deep breath. “I
love you,” I said, letting go of my denial.

Our lips brushed as our
bodies entwined.

“
I’ve loved you for so
long, Jade.”

“
Me too.”

A moment later, he
whispered something under his breath, but I was too far gone to
focus.

My eyelids fluttered as
his warmth overwhelmed me. Sleep followed almost as soon as he
pulled me onto his chest, and then his teeth pierced my
shoulder.

Truth

One kiss from
you

Is not enough,

I deny this
truth,

You call my
bluff.

Like a maze,

You lead me through this
Mystery

Of a future that I refuse
to see,

But I won’t
lie…

I’m terrified

Because you

And I

Are on different
sides.

-Jade

Chapter 23

Troy was at my side
helping me sit up, but I was still screaming. He snapped his
fingers and the light came on. I looked at his mouth, but saw
nothing… No blood, no fangs. I touched my neck, but didn’t feel any
marks.

“
What’s wrong? Did you
have a nightmare?” he asked as his fingers caressed my
face.

How could I tell him that
I thought he’d bitten me again? What if it was just a
dream?

I pulled the sheet to my
chest. “What would it feel like if you bit me? Would I turn into a
vampire from one bite?”

Something flashed in his
eyes as he rubbed his chin. “Why do you want to know?”

“
Does it hurt?”

He slid his hand into my
hair, pulling me so close that his lips brushed my neck. “Have you
decided to let me bite you?”

I shivered, shaking my
head quickly. “I don’t want to become a vampire.”

He kissed my throat before
a melancholy chuckle escaped him. “You won’t become one just by
being bitten. It’s complicated.”

He brushed his fingers
over my pulse. “Your heart sounds like it’s going to beat out of
your chest.”

“
How do you become
one?”

He smirked. “You don’t
really want to know that, now do you? What’s made you so curious
all of a sudden, hmm, Jade?”

When he let go of me, I
grabbed my robe and walked to the fireplace. I ran my fingers along
the mantle as I studied the photos. My voice was quiet, but I knew
he could hear me.

“
How
did
you
become a vampire?”

He exhaled.

I felt him before he
gripped my waist. My eyes slowly trailed up from his feet to his
silky pajama bottoms and open robe. When I finally looked at his
face, his preternatural beauty was staggering. His wavy hair hid
one eye, while the other followed my every move. He lifted his hand
and trailed his fingers down my arm, smiling
mischievously.

“
How about I tell you a
story?”

I gave him my best “Are
You Crazy” look. “I asked how you became a vampire, not whether you
remembered any fairy tales.”

“
You probably won’t think
this has a happy ending.”

“
Then why tell
it?”

He chuckled softly. “That
is where we will probably agree to disagree. In order for you to
understand me, you will have to learn a little history.”

I sighed, “Uhh, you know
I’m not good at history.”

His eyes sparkled with
flecks of gold as he laughed. It was a rich, melodious sound and my
heart instantly fluttered. I thought about squashing the sweet
feeling before it spread, but found that he already had a place in
my heart again.

He pressed a kiss to my
cheek and whispered, “You know what they say about
history.…”

I smiled. “Yeah, those who
don’t study fail the test.”

He kissed me. “That’s not
quite the phrase, but it does share the same sentiment.”

I frowned, trying to
remember the right one. “What is it then?”