Vampire King of New York (31 page)

“I doubt it. David was adamant that I,  we, stay here. He says he senses something looking for us. Something that carries my scent.”

Evelyn bit her lower lip. “We’re back to your old girlfriends.”

After bringing two bowls of soup to the table, Max sat down. “I know you’ve heard the David stories, the ones about his past girlfriends. I’ve never been like that, not with humans, and not with vampires. If I was interested in a vampiress, the relationship never lasted beyond three months.”

“Why was that?”

“I guess I was still looking for you, and once I realized it wasn’t you, I wanted to move on.”

“And you always parted amiably?”

“Nicoletta of Paris screamed when I left her. She put a curse on me.”

“A curse?” Having grown up in New Orleans, Evelyn couldn’t entirely discount this. “What kind of curse?”

“That I would spend the rest of my existence as a frog.”

“Hmm. I don’t think it took.” Evelyn ate a spoonful of the soup. “Except when you say rib-it in your sleep.”

Max dropped his spoon. “I what?” Then he caught the mischievous gleam in her eyes.

She burst out laughing.

“You’re joking.”

Evelyn smiled and ate her soup. Beyond the closed blinds, the afternoon sun broke through the dark clouds. When did she develop the ability to sense changes in the atmosphere?
Was it by living with vampires?

No. You’re a Telkhine. Silly
.

Max caught the change in her expression. She was inner focused now. Functionally she couldn’t see him. The visual was elsewhere.

“Evie, are you talking to your sister now?”

Her eyes changed, not the summer blue that sparked his heart, but the focal point.

“What did she say?”

She looked up from her soup. “Nothing much. I was just doubting myself again and Laura won’t let me. “Max, there are times when it’s wonderful and helpful to have Laura in my mind, but there are other times when I need the privacy. Tonight will you teach me to block my thoughts?”

All his tactics for avoiding this subject weren’t working.

She finished her soup and set it aside. “You think I’m not going to be able to do it, huh?”

“No, just the opposite. I was hoping that someday I’ll be able to read your thoughts and have the luxury of going anywhere in your mind—exploring the deepest reaches of you.”

“But you can’t read my mind.”

“That might change over time. You’ve seen flashes of pictures in my mind.”

“You mean seeing you encased in ice.”

“Yes, that would be an example.”

She put her hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle but it didn’t work. Evelyn burst into hysterics. “I can’t believe you did that to yourself.” She laughed even harder.

Max crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. “It isn’t that funny.”

“It is.” She giggled again. Evelyn got up and walked over to Max’s side of the table and sat in his lap. “Don’t worry. I haven’t changed my mind. I am going home with you, but I’m a little nervous about Iceland, and I’m depending on you to keep me warm.”

He enclosed her in his arms and nuzzled her cheek. “Evie, you can depend on that.”

She tousled his hair and kissed him, nibbling first on the lower lip and then the upper. He became so crazed that he possessed her mouth, capturing her tongue and sucking on it. Max loved that he could feel her swoon, feel her body cry out for his.

When she got up from his lap and took the bowls to the sink, he gasped. Why? She left his embrace quickly, without a word.

He got up and hugged her from behind. “Why did you just leave me all panting like that?”

Evelyn finished the last dish and put it in the draining bowl. She dried her hands on the towel and turned around.

“Max, I need you to make a promise.”

“That I will love you forever?”

“No, a harder promise. I know you’ll always love me. I feel that from you.”

“What then?”

“Promise that you will never leave me, not for any reason. If you go to Hong Kong on business, then the children and I will go with you. If you go to Paris, we go to Paris. I lost you when you went away on business before, Max. I’m not willing to lose you again.”

He gazed into those eyes he loved. “I promise that I will take you wherever I go.” Then he smiled. “The children, huh? How many were you thinking?”

“Two or three.”

He grinned and lifted her into his arms. “I wish we could get started on that right away.”

Now she was the one gasping. “Since you want a wedding, I think we should make those plans first.”

“Any place, any time. You choose, my love, and I will be by your side.” He carried her like a child through the house and up the stairs, finally putting her gently on the bed.

He leaned over her, pulling at her clothes.

“No.”

Max sat back. “Why no?”

“You said you would teach me how to block people from my mind. This is a perfect time to teach me.”

“Okay.” He pulled her up to a sitting position facing him. “First, think of yourself as a ball of light and visualize building a wall around that ball of light. Leave a sizeable courtyard for yourself.”

“What should I make the wall out of?”

“It doesn’t matter. Just make it high and know that it’s impenetrable.”

Evelyn closed her eyes and started the visualization. Funny, halfway through Laura started talking to her, but she didn’t pay attention to her sister. She kept on building the wall and then realized she couldn’t hear Laura at all.

“I can’t hear Laura anymore.” She opened her eyes.

“That’s good. Now you want to keep thinking about the wall.”

“How hard should I be concentrating?”

“Not that hard.” He moved a wisp of hair out of her face. “Think about the wall lightly and think of something else at the same time like making out a shopping list.”

“Why?”

“You’re building strength, so you can get to the point where you can block out others without any effort.”

Evelyn started to hear her sister and she focused on the wall again, while looking into those wonderful glacier gray blue eyes of Max’s. She eased into his lap and those strong warrior arms of his held her. Letting the heat between them build made her lightheaded, and Laura’s voice became louder. Again she concentrated on the wall, and her sister’s voice faded away.

“Your goal is to merely think ‘wall’ and you will block them out.”

Evelyn closed her eyes.
Laura, I need some privacy. I will be blocking you out for a while.

When did you learn to block?

Max is teaching me.

I bet that’s not the only thing he’s teaching …

Wall.
Evelyn smiled. It was working. She opened her eyes and saw she had Max’s complete attention. “Thank you. That was wonderful.”

“You’re a quick learner. The next step is to keep your eyes open and function normally. You don’t want people to know you are mindtalking.”

“No more closing my eyes?”

“That’s it.”

She stared at him leaning up to his face, nibbling at his mouth. “What kind of wedding do you want?”

He chuckled. “Whatever you wish. I want you to be happy.”

“I was thinking that after this problem with the master vampire is resolved, we could have a ceremony at the Arnhem Society. All the vampires would be invited, of course.”

You’re making wedding plans? Laura asked.

“Wall.”

“It’s best if you do not say wall aloud. You might be facing an adversary. You wouldn’t want them to know they no longer had access to your thoughts. You also have the option of putting false thoughts in your head that you know they’ll pick up.”

Max and I have broken up.

No. That’s terrible. What happened?

Laura, I didn’t really break up with Max. I was just trying something out in mindtalk.
Evelyn kissed him. Pushing her tongue into his mouth, she stroked his fangs.

You’re experimenting on me?

Well, I can’t do it with Max. He still can’t hear me. I don’t understand why he can’t. I know everything he’s feeling, just not thoughts.
She felt him gasp and quiver, his heat increased. He returned to the task of unbuttoning her blouse.

“Tell your sister goodbye and you’ll talk later,” he breathed into her ear.

I’ll talk to you later, Laura.

Okay.

Wall.

“How do you think you did?” He fondled her through her bra.

“Surprisingly well, though it was hard keeping my eyes open when I kissed you. I normally close them for that.”

“I noticed.” He lay her down on the bed.

“Max, we still have clothes on.”

In a blink, they were both naked. Their clothes were draped on a chair on the other side of the room.

“How did that happen?” she squeaked beneath him.

He kissed her eyes. “Ah, my lifemate, usually I like the fun in undressing. This time I was just a bit impatient.”

“You impatient? Hard to imagine.” Evelyn giggled, reaching up to pull him down for more kissing. “I want you, my lifemate.”

The use of that single word rippled hot and raw through his veins. Lifemate. She accepted being his. Evelyn wanted him. He kissed her slowly savoring her taste in his mouth, like honey mead, the kind made from spring honey, fresh with cold mountain air warmed by new sunlight. Max wandered over her face with soft nibbles on her lips and cheeks and ears. Evelyn’s giggles of satisfaction changed to pants of anticipation.

Max loved how she shivered when his fangs grazed the delicate skin of her shoulder. She didn’t fear him. He knew exactly what she was feeling—excitement. Following her sexy collarbone, he kissed a trail to her breasts.

Evelyn couldn’t stop shivering. Each time his lips touched her skin, he left a hot sensual spot behind that ached for his return. Each kiss multiplied her hunger for him. Then he leaned back and gazed into her eyes with those gorgeous blue gray eyes of his, undoing any shred of control she thought she had.

“Is something wrong?”

His tongue passed over his bottom lip. “I’m admiring the view.” Without breaking his gaze, he massaged her breast, fondling, rubbing lightly over her nipple.

She bit her lower lip in restraint. Grinning with mischief, he bent his head and took the other nipple in his mouth.

The moan escaped her before she could stop it. “It’s not fair, Maximum.”

He rolled the tip with his tongue, then released her. “What’s not fair, beloved?”

“The power you have over me.”

“You have equal power, Evie.” He kissed down her abdomen pausing at the triangle of gold curls. Pushing open her legs, he started at her right knee and kissed hot dime spots on her thigh, until she shook and cried. With her entire body in exquisite torment, he bent to kiss her core.

Evelyn jumped when she felt his tongue penetrate her. One part of her mind realized that he could use his fangs there too. No, he wouldn’t. She was sure of that. Oooh. The tongue was more than enough to make her crazy. Her blood became molten.

“Maximum,” she gasped.

He peered up at her. “Yes, Evie?”

“I want to pleasure you.” Her voice came out a whimper.

He sat back on his ankles. “I’d like that.” In a flash, he was laying beside her. “You may do whatever you wish to me.”

Evelyn was still rattled from what he had done. Her insides trembled, ached with need. Not letting this chance escape her, she leaned over him. Then Evelyn got stage fright.

“Are you okay?”

She shook her head. “No, I mean, yes. I just … I don’t know. I’m just nervous. I mean, we’re going to get married. Max, I’m only human. What if you get bored with me?”

“I seriously doubt we’re going to bore each other.” Stretching out his arms, he closed his eyes. “Evie, please, make love to me.”

Evelyn kissed him in a very chaste way. She moved away for a few minutes and did nothing.

“I need you,” he groaned.

She kissed him again, this time pushing her tongue into his mouth. He immediately took advantage by sucking on it. Evelyn pulled her tongue back and went right for the fangs, stroking them with maniacal intent. With all her strength, she held down his strong, muscled arms. Evelyn suspected he was allowing it.

“You may not touch me, until I tell you.”

His eyes remained closed. A grin of expectation grew wide. “Yes, my Evie.”

She grazed her teeth across his chest, his broad powerful chest.

“Are you going to bite me?”

“I’m considering it.” While surveying his landscape, Evelyn’s dissolved into every changing scenario of sexual fantasy. Tracing the muscles in his abdomen lightly with her fingertips, Evelyn smiled when he squirmed under her touch. She was getting to him.

“Are you thinking wicked thoughts, my love?”

“Are you hoping I am?” She licked him just above his belly button and he chuckled. Traveling downward, Evelyn ignored the obvious and passed his shaft with a fleeting caress.

He moaned.

His strong thighs caught her fancy. Taking a lesson from him, she started at one knee and with tiny licks moved upward. She stopped and moved away. Then moving closer she breathed at the base of his rod. He jumped. With one swift movement, she had him in her mouth and sucked.

She couldn’t see. It happened so fast. She was beneath him and he was pounding into her. Evelyn couldn’t breathe. She gasped for air. Her heart galloped inside her chest.

Max, for God’s sake, I’m human. Remember?

He slowed. She was shaking all over and couldn’t stop. Then the explosion came, that delicious join—
Pow
! Everything in her vision went white. She was somewhere else entirely, her body only an extension. Passion surged through her veins pushing out and melting into a luxurious contentment. Still her heart raced. She struggled for air. One part of her body was in heaven, while the other was struggling to live.

I can’t breathe.

I won’t let you die.
He touched her lips with his tongue. Her mouth was already open gasping for air. He did not cut off her access, but strategically pushed his tongue inside and brushed her wisdom teeth with saliva then the inside of her cheek.