Blood Choice (Deathless Night Series Book 6) Read online

  Blood lust fogged her thoughts, yet her vampire instincts were razor-sharp. And right now, they told her to hunt. To feed. To claim.

  She took a step forward. Stopped. Her head twitched to the side. Pulling her lips up into a snarl, she flashed her fangs at him in a last desperate warning. Coherent thought was nearly beyond her now.

  Jesse stood with his feet braced apart, the white towel slung low on his narrow hips. He was breathing hard, his arms at his sides, his hands balled into tight fists, his eyes alight in sinful triumph at every second that passed with her still in the room.

  Shea was losing the fight. The rest of the room faded away as her focus zeroed in on her prey. Another growl ripped from her throat, but he showed no fear. Not even a twinge of nervousness.

  “I’m not afraid of you, Shea. I crave you. The weight of your body, the satin of your skin, the silk of your hair. Even the craziness of the thoughts that bounce around in your head.” Golden fire flashed from his eyes. “The very idea of those razor fangs of yours slicing into my throat excites me. And the only thing I fear is that I will come too soon while you feed, before giving you any pleasure.” His eyes narrowed in challenge. “What are you waiting for, vampire? You need blood. You need to be pleasured.” He opened his arms wide. “And I’m right here.”

  He had a point.

  Shea slammed into him, the force of her momentum sending him flying backward. Yet, instead of catching himself, his arms wrapped tight around her as he fell, taking her with him. They landed hard in the shower with her lying on top of him. Grabbing a fistful of his hair, she wrenched his head to the side and sank her fangs into his throat.

  Jesse cried out in pain and pleasure, his fingers digging into her flesh. But he didn’t pull away, or even try to. Instead, he cranked his head over even farther in the small space, giving her more room to latch on to him.

  Shea moaned as his dark blood flooded her mouth, arousing more than the blood lust as her body responded to the feel of him…the taste of him. She swallowed, and it was like taking a shot of raw power. It rushed through her system, flooding every cell, every muscle, filling her with his dark sorcery.

  She was invincible.

  Another strong pull, and her blood lit on fire. She wanted him. Gods, how she wanted him. But she was thirsty, so she drank. She drank while he moaned with pleasure beneath her, his hands running all over her body now. Slipping under her shirt and down the back of her loose pants.

  “Shea, stop. Stop. Ah! I’m about to come.” His hips rolled up, and she felt the hard length of his erection against her thigh.

  Lifting her head, she released him from her bite and licked the wound clean as he moaned in disappointment and relief. Then she reared back, quick as a snake, and struck again. Pulling hard on his vein, she groaned with pleasure and adjusted her hips until she felt him right where she wanted him, and then she began to move.

  His muscles tensed, his body jerking beneath her as he lost control and came into the towel. Her name left his lips on a cry as he rocked his hips against hers, holding her tight against his body.

  Shea growled with need and sucked harder. His blood filled her, his arms held her close, and his raw cries sounded in her ear until she wasn’t sure where she ended and he began. But it wasn’t enough. She wanted more. She needed more. Withdrawing her fangs, she again licked the wound clean.

  But before she could bite again, Jesse cupped her face in his large palms and brought her mouth to his. He kissed her with desperation, heedless of her fangs cutting his lips, until they were breathing the same air and Shea’s heart pounded in rhythm with his.

  She needed more. Needed to feel his skin on hers. Needed to feel him inside of her. She felt his cock swell beneath her at the thought and knew he was in her head even as he was taking control of her body.

  Suddenly, Jesse sat up, bringing her with him. Cupping one arm around her bottom, he stood with her in his arms. He was stronger than one would think. The bathroom door slammed into the wall behind it as he flung it open, and Shea pulled her T-shirt off and dropped it on the floor between kisses as he took them over to the bed. She smiled as he stole a glance to check the curtains, and her gaze dropped hungrily to the pulse in his throat. She tore her eyes away as he looked back and caught her.

  “Go on, love. Take all you want. I can handle it.”

  Chapter 22

  Jesse moaned as she bit him again, those sharp teeth sliding effortlessly through his skin and into the vein. When she sucked, he felt it all the way to his balls. His arm tightened around her back, pulling her closer.

  If he were to die by vampire, he didn’t think there was any better way to go.

  Somehow, he managed to yank his towel the rest of the way off and get them both onto the bed without breaking her hold on his throat. The blood he had remaining concentrated in his cock, and he pressed his hips into hers. The softness of her skin was warmer than he’d imagined, the feel of her feeding from him the most erotic thing he’d ever experienced. But it wasn’t enough, wasn’t nearly enough. “Let go, love. Just for a second. I need to be inside you.”

  She made a sound of protest, but released her bite.

  Jesse wasted no time in getting her pajama pants off. Tossing them onto the floor, he took a few seconds just to gaze upon her, part of him wondering what he’d ever done to deserve her. She was all soft curves and long legs. He wanted to take his time—explore her, make it last—but even though he’d already come once, his body had other ideas.

  Kneeling between her legs, he pulled her up until her face was inches from his and moved her into position on his lap. With one hand around the base of his cock and one hand on her hip, he found her entrance. As soon as she figured out what he was doing, she sank down without pause. Jesse slid into her warm sheath until he was entirely inside of her. Her husky voice cried out in his ear, and he worried for a moment that he’d hurt her. But she was wet and ready for him, her body squeezing him tight as she rose up and came down again.

  He threw back his head as she moved her hips, exposing his throat, and Shea struck. Gripping her hips, he let her feed while he started a steady rhythm, not rushing, enjoying the feel of this female he’d waited so long for. His heart thumped with strong, steady beats, pumping his blood through his veins for her while his breath came in short bursts of air.

  But too soon, he felt his orgasm rising. Taking her with him, he rose up and leaned forward. None too gently, he laid her on her back and moved into position. Her teeth tore through his skin until she had to release him, but he barely felt the pain. Bracing one arm on the headboard and one on the bed, Jesse fucked her as he’d dreamt about ever since that first day in the altar room—fast and hard and quite thoroughly. His balls tightened up against his body and his cock swelled, filling her until she was almost uncomfortably snug around him. He gritted his teeth, but there was no way he could hang on, or wait for her. It was too late. He couldn’t stop.

  Turning her head, she bit his wrist. Jesse grunted at the slight pain and pumped harder as she strained beneath him, her hips meeting his thrust for thrust. She drank, sending electric shocks straight to his groin. Her fingers dug into his hips, urging him on. He memorized every sound she made, every look, every touch. And when she came, with her body arched and her fangs bared, it was the most erotically beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Her name tore from his lungs as he joined her, burying himself deep until he was spent. Catching his breath, he collapsed on top of her.

  When he could finally lift his head, he gazed down into her green eyes. They were filled with concern.

  “Are you all right? I didn’t mean to take so much, I was just so thirsty.”

  His head buzzed like a swarm of bees had taken up residence, and his body felt weak and satiated. “I feel wonderful, Shea.”

  She scowled up at him. “Then why are you slurring your words? Get off me and I can help you.”

  “No. I like you right where you are.”

  She stopped wiggling aro
und and settled underneath him with a sigh. She searched his face, and he suddenly felt exposed, like somehow by taking so much of him inside of her she saw right through to his black soul. With a soft kiss to the tip of her nose, he hugged her to him for a minute before he rolled away and sat up. “Shea, I need to tell you some things. Things I should have told you right from—”

  “No, Jesse. Don’t.”

  He looked over his shoulder. Her long, dark hair spread over his pillow, and those mysterious cat eyes fixed on the ceiling. She didn’t try to cover herself, or hide from him.

  One slender hand slid across the comforter until she touched his hip with the tips of her fingers. He understood her need for the contact, and didn’t want to say anything that would ruin this moment between them, but she needed to know. Needed to know who exactly she’d mated. Especially now that things between them were changing. This female was a gift he didn’t deserve. He may not be what she’d always dreamed of, but he never wanted there to be a reason for her to mistrust him.

  Anyone else. But not her. “I have to. I don’t want secrets between us anymore.”

  She sat up and pressed against his back. He closed his eyes at the feel of her soft breasts. The simple gesture was nearly his undoing. She dropped a kiss onto his shoulder. “I don’t care who you are.”

  “Yes, you do,” he whispered.

  She sighed. “All right, I do. But, there’s not much to do about it now, is there? Fate has chosen you for me, and I don’t seem capable of fighting her whims or controlling myself enough to commit a slow suicide. I need your blood to live. And I want to live. It is what it is.”

  Her words cut him to the quick. She sounded so matter of fact, so resigned to her fate. Twisting around to face her, he dove into her thoughts. She was lying, her casual attitude hiding what she truly felt. It was much more than that to her. “Don’t hide from me, Shea. Don’t do that.”

  She pulled back and narrowed her eyes. “If you don’t like what I’m thinking, then get out of my head.”

  “I can’t. Not when you insist on lying to me. How else will I know how you really think or feel?”

  Getting up from the bed, she marched into the bathroom and slammed the door.

  Jesse gave her some privacy. He could use a little himself. Pulling on a pair of boxer briefs, he went to the window. The sun was just cresting the horizon, and he quickly dropped the curtain back into place. It worried him that Shea was so exposed up here. The slightest breeze from the ventilation could take her away from him forever.

  Taking a deep breath, he quieted his thoughts. Speaking to the dark souls that hovered around him, he ordered them to guard the window. When he looked again, a large dark shadow blocked the sun’s rays from coming into the room, just as they’d done in the small cave. He turned away as the bathroom door opened, a bit easier than it had been closed.

  Shea leaned in the doorway, gloriously nude, and regarded him with a guarded expression. Her hands twisted in front of her. “I don’t want to hear what you have to tell me. Not right now. I’m still trying to get used to this. To us.” She paused and looked down at her bare feet for a moment. Her dark hair hid her face, and Jesse resisted the urge to move it out of the way. When she lifted her head, she gave him a small smile. “Can we talk tonight? And just take today to enjoy being together?”

  A sense of relief filled him. “Yes. We can do that.”

  She nodded. “Good. There are things I need to tell you, too.”

  Ah. So, they were getting to that. “I know.”

  Chapter 23

  Keira waved at the doorman of her apartment building, pulled up the hood of her raincoat, and walked out into the Seattle drizzle with Emma, Grace, Ryan, and Laney. He would tell Luukas she’d snuck out as soon as the sun went down, but she’d be back by then and could show him no harm was done. As far as he needed to know, she and the other girls just needed a little daylight and went to get a coffee.

  Which was true, and which they were.

  What he didn’t need to know, is they decided to meet at the coffee shop down the street instead of the one he’d had newly installed in the building specifically to get away from listening ears. It was the middle of the day, there were tons of people around, and it was perfectly safe, despite what her overprotective mate thought.

  Normally, Keira wouldn’t do something like this. Luukas, although getting better, wasn’t completely healed from his years in Leeha’s company. And perhaps he never would be. He totally freaked out every time she so much as mentioned doing anything other than sitting around the apartment under his watchful eye.

  But after everything they’d been through, she wasn’t about to lose him now.

  She held the door open for the other girls and they filed in and ordered their drinks, then claimed the sitting area in the back corner of the shop. The brown, faux leather chairs there were thick and comfy, and it set back from the counter and the other customers.

  Keira waited until they’d all gotten comfortable. “Okay, ladies. We can’t be gone too long, the guys are gonna freak later as it is.”

  “Right, though?” Grace said. “Aiden almost didn’t want me to hang out with you guys this morning. He wanted to ‘snuggle’. It took some doing to convince him we could snuggle all he wanted once that damn demon was out of him. He tolerates our girl time, but he doesn’t really get it.”

  “Well, Nik gets it, but mostly he just finds the stuff I can do amusing.” Emma rolled her eyes.

  “If I can manage to get away from Dante, I don’t want to hear any complaining from any of you,” Laney teased.

  “She has a point,” Ryan told them.

  They all nodded in agreement and took sips of their coffees.

  “Okay, then,” Keira told them. “Let’s get a plan together. The guys are all vampy and powerful and blah, blah, blah. But we all know it’s going to be up to us to send the demons back to hell where they belong.”

  “So, um, how exactly are we going to do that?” Emma asked with a shudder.

  Keira gave her sister a sympathetic smile. Out of all of them, she had the most scars from her run in with those things. Literally. “If you don’t want to do this, Em. You don’t have to.”

  But Emma firmly shook her head. “No way. I’m in. I’m not hiding under the blankets while you guys go risk your lives. While Nikulas is out there facing these things.” She smiled at the other girls. “Besides, we’re stronger together, right? We’ve learned that in our little lessons. Imagine what we’ll be able to accomplish if we really cut loose.”

  Laney squeezed Emma’s hand and turned to Keira. “So, how’re we gonna do this?”

  “With Grace’s spell,” Keira told her.

  “I thought no one could read that spell,” Laney said.

  “Ryan can. Or, rather, her spirits can.”

  All eyes turned to Ryan.

  “Really?” Laney asked her. “They can translate it?”

  “It appears that way,” she answered. “I get the sense it’s a very old language. Not all of them know what it says, but a few do. I wasn’t sure what it was at first, but eventually I figured out it’s not just a spell. It’s the spell. The one that will send them back to the altar.”

  “The spell is strong,” Keira told them. “It will take all of us together to summon it. But with all our skills combined, I think we have a good chance at success.” She nodded at Emma. “When the possessed vampires converge at the altar with their original blood, we’ll be there, and we’ll be ready.”

  “What if they rip us apart before we manage to bind them to the spell?” Ryan asked.

  But Keira shook her head. “They won’t. We’ll be protected within the circle. Grace will bring the salt. Right?”

  Grace whipped out her phone and started typing a note to herself. “Buy salt. Lots and lots of salt.”

  “The guys will be there, just in case, and Emma can freeze them,” Keira continued. “Once they’re contained, Laney, we’ll need you to exorcise the
demons out of the host bodies. Ryan will translate the spell for us, and we’ll bind our magic and execute the spell. Once the demons are gone, Grace and Luukas will save who they can.”

  “You make it sound so easy.” Grace took a deep breath.

  Keira wouldn’t lie to them. “It won’t be easy. Not at all. We’re taking our lives in our hands. One slip, and the circle could break or our magic could come unbound and it will all be over. Are you all ready for this?” She looked at the circle of faces surrounding her. Her family.

  “Do we have a choice?” Emma asked.

  “I don’t,” Grace told her. “I want that damn thing out of my mate.”

  Emma leaned over and took her hand. “We all do, Gracie.”

  The rest of the girls piled their hands on top of Emma’s.

  Chapter 24

  When the sun finally set that night, a pounding on the hotel door woke Shea and Jesse. Shea bolted upright with a hiss, and in the twilight, Jesse saw the glint of her fangs. He calmed her with a hand on her arm, got out of bed, pulled on his pants, and went to the door to look through the peephole.

  Mammot stood on the other side. Jesse should have known by the stench. An old hooded coat hid the demon’s features, and when he turned his head to look down the hall, the bones of his teeth were exposed through the rotted flesh of his cheek. The body the demon inhabited was dying, which meant the others weren’t far behind. They were going to have to move fast.

  Jesse came back inside and found his shirt. “Shea, I need you to go into the bathroom and stay there until I come get you.”

  She was already out of bed and digging around in her bag. Stepping into a pair of cotton underwear, she pulled them up over her hips and bent over again to pull out a bra. “I’m not hiding in the other room. I’m staying out here with you.”