Half in Love [Willie Krenshaw] (Siren Publishing Classic) Read online

  As they traveled in silence, she could feel her body reacting to his nearness. She was uncomfortably hot under her coat, but she couldn’t remove it without bringing attention to her peaked nipples. They’d contracted upon smelling his spicy scent and hadn’t relaxed since. She was decidedly warm and wet between her thighs. The smell of her own arousal made her blush and turn to look out the window. She searched her brain for thoughts to steer herself from the mounting need to touch him. She jumped when his low, husky voice vibrated through her body.

  “So, are you going to tell me your name yet? I think I’ve proved to you that I’m not going to harm you,” Nick said, turning his body on the seat to better see her face. She refused to accept the unspoken invitation to look at him.

  “Nope.” She continued staring out the window, willing the cab to make it through the quiet streets faster. The sound of his voice had melted her a little further. Her breaths were coming in short gasps as her skin heated more. Her clit throbbed in time to her heartbeat, begging to be attended to. She rubbed her temples, trying in vain to stem the biological reactions to this man. “Now, please don’t talk to me. I’ve got a headache.”

  “Would you rather me touch you?” he whispered across her cheek as he leaned in close, causing a shiver to race down her spine. He knew. Shit. A ghost of a caress skated down her neck before she realized it was his tongue lazily caressing her throat. Her eyes closed on their own as she savored the sensual feel of his mouth on her body. She rumbled a slight purr from her chest. “I can smell you, angel. You’re aroused and wet beneath all that bluster. You make me want to taste you.”

  His words pulled her from the slippery slide into passion-hazed thought. Anger, indignation, and panic warred for top honors as she spun in the seat to glare at him. No one ever spoke to her that way. She wasn’t one of those women that men felt comfortable seducing. She was the scary chick that they all avoided. She didn’t do intimate, ever. The few relationships she’d ever had were with men that knew she wasn’t looking for long-term commitment. Relationships with humans were tricky. Without telling them of her dual nature, being emotionally close was not in the cards. Most of the time if she had the itch for a release she just took care of it with her own fingers or battery-operated friend.

  She narrowed her eyes and snarled. “Touch me again and I’ll cut your fucking head off before you can blink, and then shove it up your ass so you can stare out your anus until you die.”

  “Such violence from someone going to a lot of trouble to get me home safe, don’t you think?” He smiled at her discomfort. A flash of dimple made her warm. “What is that saying? Me thinks the lady doth protest too much?”

  She turned her back on him again and tried to keep her mind off the man sitting next to her, swamping her senses with his warmth and smell. She didn’t do the mate thing, and nothing was going to change that, she decided. They’d get to his house, and she would just stay in the cab and go home. Screw the money. She didn’t trust herself to go into a secluded area with him. Her fingers were twitching with the need to touch his hand, which lay inches from her thigh. Her lioness was chuffing at her to look at him again and not happy that she wasn’t doing something like licking his chest.

  When she continued to refuse to look at him, her cat yowled loudly, making it difficult to think. The cat clamored for the dominant position in her head. That wasn’t something she ever had to deal with before. Her two selves had always coexisted peacefully within her skin before now. The fight for dominance was making it difficult to think at all, and with each breath, the animal’s fury that she wasn’t taking their mate made her head pound and a chilled sweat break out on her skin. She felt heated and icy at the same time. Tremors were shaking through her body as she succumbed to something she rarely felt. Fear was bitter on her tongue. How could her body betray her so quickly and completely?

  “Look, I’ll give you my credit card. There isn’t much on it anyway, and honestly I just need to get out of here,” she said as she started digging into her back pocket. She needed out of the car, now. She couldn’t sit another second next to the delicious vampire sharing her seat, without either attacking him and ripping his clothes off, or begging him to do the same to her. In her panic, she ripped one of her back pockets off her jeans. She didn’t even care. Worthwhile sacrifice if it meant she could get away from him. She sighed in relief when she finally found the plastic card. She tapped on the glass to get the attention of the cabby.

  “No, wait. I’m sorry. I’ll behave. I don’t want to take your credit card, especially after you’ve gone through so much to assist me.” Nick looked at her with concern and sincere apology on his face. “I didn’t mean to upset you. There is just something primal that comes out when I scent you.”

  Willie studied his face for a few moments and with compressed lips nodded once. She slipped the card into her other pocket and slouched back into the seat. She continued looking out the window, doing her best to ignore her body’s betrayal. She rested her heated forehead against the cool window, hoping that the torture would be over soon. She tried to slow her breathing and heart rate, but nothing she did helped her tame her response. She begged her animal to settle down, but it was growling and nipping at her thoughts.

  She was brought out of her thoughts when the cab started to slow. She looked around and noticed the cul-de-sac they had entered. Identically expensive homes sat on perfectly trimmed and manicured lawns. When they pulled to a stop in front of a gray, stone two story she was surprised. It was elegant, but not the most outwardly expensive house on the street. The dark trim and white columns added a tasteful touch to the cold, castle-like home.

  “We’re here,” Nick said in a low voice. He still looked at her with apologetic glances. She knew that he used a soothing tone to keep her calm. Smart man.

  Willie handed her card to the cabby and signed the slip he produced for her. She tried to talk him into staying while she collected her money from the vamp, but the cabby didn’t want to have anything to do with staying. She continued arguing with him even as she exited the car. With a grunt he turned on his light again and sped down the street. She watched him go with a sense of inevitability creeping over her body. She blew out a breath of exasperation and turned to her stoic companion. Since his sensual slip of the proverbial tongue, he’d been contrite. She hoped that he would maintain that course and she would make it home without being mated.

  “All right, let’s get this over with.” She huffed and turned to climb the steps to the house. She ignored the chuckle behind her and stood expectantly next to the door. The night air had helped clear her thoughts, and she could feel her body cooling. She took a few deep breaths to help with the cleansing. Her heart rate slowed, and she sighed in relief. Close proximity to this vampire was definitely dangerous to her self-preservation.

  “I’ll grab some cash and then drive you home, angel,” Nick said as he turned the key in the door and gave it a quick push. His body stilled and a low growl rumbled in his chest. He grabbed Willie’s hand and swung her behind his body, protectively positioning her behind his back. She could feel his anger rolling off him in waves. He growled deep in his chest. “Someone’s been in my home.”

  Willie peered around Nick’s back and inhaled slowly. She could just barely make out the smell the other vampires. From the strength of the scents, she would guess it had been days since they’d entered his home. She could see that his house had been tossed literally from top to bottom. What she was sure had been beautiful oriental furniture and artwork lay in heaps of destruction throughout the open room. Shards of vases and other ceramic items caught the light from the doorway and sparkled from the creamy marble tiles. The beige and red toned oriental carpet was shredded into tiny pieces of confetti littered across the floor. Nothing was left standing. The furniture had been turned into kindling. She cringed at the fury pouring off Nick in thick waves.

  “What day is it?” He growled, staring into his home with glowing eyes. His hands
were clenched tightly at his side, shaking with his anger.

  “Um, it’s Friday. Why?” Willie couldn’t help feel horrible for him. He was having one hell of a night between being drugged or whatever had caused his issues in the alley to now coming home to find it completely destroyed. The need to stay away from him was eclipsed by her sense of compassion. She knew what it felt like to have your world shattered. She reached out and lightly touched his arm, hoping that some of her emotions could help bring him down from the rage.

  * * * *

  “That is impossible,” he spat, throwing her hand off his arm, growling at her with bared teeth. His body trembled with the effort it took him not to howl his rage to the sky. He wanted to throw his head back and scream his anger to the inky blackness, to announce his murderous intent to rip apart those that felt they could enter his sanctuary.

  The berserker rage that took some vampires and turned them into mindless, blood-lusting animals was on the doorstep of his mind. It would be so easy to step off into the black fury coursing through his body. To give in and tear apart the well-formed being he’d become. To give into the animalistic nature and shred his way through some bodies until his bloodlust was sated, until he’d meted out enough punishment on those that had entered his territory and damaged his property. He could feel his eyes start the change to red, the first change his body would go through when the rage took him. The sensation of blood flowing into his eyes, filling his iris, changing the color was enough to break into his thoughts. Nick bent over and took deep breaths, forcing his vampiric needs down, forcing his human nature to take control again. His voice was rough with emotion and with the effort it took to rein in the beast. “It can’t be Friday. The last memory I have is leaving my home for a walk on Monday evening.”

  “Nick. It’s Friday. I know because I worked tonight,” Willie whispered. She’d taken a few steps away from him and was standing very still, eyes riveted on his vibrating form. He knew what she would see, knew what she was staring at. The normal emerald green glow that she’d witnessed in the alley had bled to bloodred, a sickly burning in his eye sockets. His skin had tightened, pulling against his bones. His fangs had fully elongated and strings of saliva were glistening on his thinned lips. Madness would be swirling in his eyes, and would slowly dim as he gained control over his emotions.

  “No. It can’t be.” He groaned and bent at the waist, hanging his head as he rested his hands on his thighs. “I can’t have lost almost an entire week. How can that be?”

  “I don’t know. Let’s go inside while you get a grip before someone sees you.” She gently placed a hand on his arm. He could feel her hand shake as she touched him. “I can help you look around for signs of who entered your home.”

  Nick nodded and stepped into his home, growling deep in his chest. His emotional reaction was still burning through his veins. Friday. He couldn’t believe that he had no memory of days passing. Fear of the unknown skated down his spine. What if he’d become rogue, and had lost himself to the rage for four days? If that was the truth, the Council would come and put him down.

  He was pulled from his musing by the small hand on his shoulder. Her scent rolled off her body, tainted with fear as she lightly squeezed his arm. His restraint snapped. It was too much. The house, the days gone, the fear of rouge status. He spun, pinning her to the wall with the full length of his body. A slight huff escaped her lips before she clamped her eyes and lips shut. Her body relaxed against his body, and she offered her throat to him. Nick knew that he needed to let her go, but something deeply imbedded in his psyche pulled him to the cradle of her thighs. The submissive gestures only inflamed his need to take her and mark her as his. Her warmth and arousal called to the baser side of his vampire-self. He groaned from a deep, dark place inside and thrust his hips against hers in a slow, sensual grind, mimicking all the things he wanted to do to her. His cock rode against her softer body like heated steel. The need to push himself into her wet core made his balls ache. He wanted them to be naked, sharing the slick slide of sweat as he entered her.

  Burying his nose in her neck helped soothe the raging need. Her scent calmed him like nothing else ever had. Blood pounded through her body in a beautiful rhythm, making his gums itch with the need to extend his teeth and sip of her nectar. Instead, he placed a light kiss on her throat and nipped her collarbone before trailing his tongue to her ear. She moaned and arched slightly against his chest. That was all the invitation he needed. The rage still pounded through his veins, fuzzing his thoughts and allowing his primal self to emerge with a roar. He would take her and make her see that they were meant to be together.

  * * * *

  Willie couldn’t stop her body from responding. Every cell cried out with greed for his touch. His scent enveloped her mind in a hot, sexual stupor. With the slight pain from the nibble on her collarbone, her body took over. She reacted with instinctual need. No more thought. No more worrying about claiming her mate. She needed to feel his body against hers. Needed to feel his shaft sliding through her folds and pumping into her, spilling his seed deep inside her body. A hot rush of want flowed through her body, making her gasp and squirm in his arms. The already soaked panties she wore were drenched with new arousal. She wrapped her legs around his waist, welcoming him further into the cradle of her body. She rocked against him, grinding her pussy against his cock trying to get the sensation she craved. She could feel the tightening of her clit with each pulse of their pelvises. His hands moved over her sides, sliding under her shirt, sending passion threading through her body. She flexed her back, trying to coax his wandering hands to her aching breasts. They wanted his hands on them, plucking and kneading her flesh. With a satisfied sigh, she threw her head back as his fingers finally encircled her engorged nipple, pinching and twisting. The slight pain ramped up her passion. She groaned when his fingers left her breasts, only to be replaced by his mouth. Hot licks of desire flicked across her nipples as he suckled. Each pull of his mouth made her climb closer to a release.

  Her hands threaded through his hair pulling his mouth to hers. She licked along his lips until he opened his lips, inviting her inside the warm depths of his mouth. Their tongues twined together and slid along each other. One of his hands caressed her back and pulled her closer. The other traveled over her ass and pushed the seam of her jeans against her slit, adding more pressure and friction to their grinding. She moaned her need into his mouth. Her orgasm was so close, and they hadn’t even gotten skin to skin yet. She ground against him faster, harder, trying to get to the top of the climax climb. She wanted to fall over the edge, feel the release of the tension and lust crawling over her skin.

  She pulled her lips from his with a groan and slid her lips down his neck, laving the skin with wet kisses and licks. Instinct had her flexing her jaw muscles, enticing her canines to descend. She nipped the muscle at the base of his neck and reveled in the dark growl that vibrated against her chest in response.

  A niggling thought crept through the heat of the moment. As her cougar pushed at her mind and wanted to taste his blood with wanton bloodlust a flash of reality flickered through her mind. Oh, God. She couldn’t bite him without claiming him. She whipped her head back and slammed it against the wall, hoping the pain would bring some sort of semblance of control back to her. A tremor of fear skated down her spine.

  “Please don’t let me bite you.” Her whispered plea jerked both of them from the passionate fever igniting their bodies.

  Nick reared back like she touched him with a lit match. His eyes glowed an unearthly red, irises still flooded with blood. Passion pinched his beautiful face, but control slowly bled into his features. Their breathing, harsh and shallow, echoed through the cavernous room. Panic and regret crossed his face before he closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers.

  “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to do this to you. Just give me a minute. The rage is riding me hard, and you smell so good. Stand there for a moment, please,” he croaked. His b
ody trembled against hers. He leaned against her almost as if she was holding him up. He sucked deep, shaky breaths in. She could see him struggling for control. After a few moments his breathing slowed, and she could feel his strength returning. She wanted to rub his back, stroke his skin to try and comfort him. She was afraid to move, though, and reignite the lust between them.

  Once he seemed to be in control, he turned to face her and whispered, “I’m so sorry.”

  “Please don’t apologize. Come on. I’ll drive us home and you can stay with me tonight. It’s too close to dawn to stay here, especially with the way your home looks. I have a safe room in the basement that you can rest in.” Willie quietly touched his shoulder and tried to keep her fear in check. Her body was still trembling from the near orgasm. Her panties were sopping wet and she was sure her jeans were soaked through. Having him in her house was probably the dumbest thing she could do, but she felt sorry for him and really didn’t want to hold the whole “being taken against the wall thing” against him. Stupid mating instincts.

  Surprise flickered across his face before he nodded and walked through the house to the garage. She followed a few steps behind him, glancing around at the destruction as she walked. There were words and threats spray painted on the cream walls, piles of debris strewn across the cool marble floors, and everywhere the stench of multiple vampires.

  Once in the garage he silently found keys and handed them to her. He climbed into the passenger seat of a glassy black Hummer. She walked around to the driver’s side and hoped she wasn’t making a huge mistake by taking this man, this vampire, home with her.