Page 30 of The Vampire Always Rises
“That was ... doggy, no, my face doesn’t need washing. That was amazing.” Tempest pushed herself up from where she’d collapsed on him, blowing back a few curls that had sprung free from her hair band. “I had no idea it was like that in a car. Is it better in a bed?”
Merrick lifted a wan hand, and wondered if it was out of line to suggest that they take a little nap right there. He’d never felt so drained—or satisfied—in his lengthy life, but he decided it was due to both his recent near-death experience and the unusual situation.
He opened his eyes to find the dog’s face mere inches from his. While he glared at it, it licked his nose.
Tempest giggled. “You must be a good person. Even our furry friend there likes you.”
“Then he is a poor judge of people. I am not a good person. I am death personified.” He leveled his gaze on Tempest. “I am bound to my job, and have no room for anything else in my life. So despite what you think, we have no future together.”
The light of humor faded in her eyes, and with it, he felt some corresponding bit of hope inside of him die.
Chapter Eight
“You can come inside and meet Cousin Carlo, if you like. It’s only, what, eleven? I think he’s a night owl, because he didn’t get up this morning until noonish.” I waited until Merrick pulled into the drive for Carlo’s house before making that suggestion.
To be honest, I was a bit discombobulated about our recent carnal activities.
Why? You enjoyed yourself.
Stop eavesdropping.
But more than that, I was feeling somewhat deflated. Not by the experience itself—
Good. I made sure you enjoyed yourself.
Stop it!
But because of what he’d said afterward. That he could share something so wonderful, so ... primal ... and then tell me that we had no future together when clearly we did, well, that said a lot about the sort of man he was.
I’ve been telling you that all along. I’m sorry that you are disappointed, but I believe in honesty wherever possible.
“There’s honesty, and then there’s brutal frankness when there should, according to movies, be pillow talk.” I pointed at the gate. “You don’t have to buzz. It’s open.”
“There were no pillows involved, so I don’t see the lack of pillow talk as worth commenting on.”
“That’s not what I meant, and I know you know that, because I can feel you thinking at me. No, don’t bother objecting,” I said, holding up my hand to stop his protest as he pulled up at the front of the house. “It’s clear you don’t want anything from me but blood and nooky, so we won’t discuss it further. C’mon, doggy.”
“One moment.” He put a hand on me to stop me from leaving the car. “It’s not safe for you to go in. Not until I’ve ascertained the true identity of your cousin.”
“If he wanted to hurt me, he could have done so well before this,” I pointed out. “And don’t think I don’t know that you’re making this statement to distract me from the fact that you treated me pretty rotten after our car interlude, because I know you are. Doggy, heel!”
The dog obediently trotted after me when I stomped my way up the white stone steps to the front doors of the villa.
“I have no intention of distracting you from anything, although I will point out that I did ask you if you were sure you wished to continue before I fed and we had sex,” Merrick said, following. “You agreed to my terms, if you recall.”
“Here’s the thing,” I said, spinning around at the door to face him. Merciful marshmallows, he was gorgeous. The light from the sconces on either side of the double doors lit him with a warm amber glow, burnishing his dark hair, and emphasizing the line of his jaw.
Ilovedhis jaw.
“I may not have had sexual relationships with an actual person before, but even I know that you don’t set terms for what we have together. Whether you like it or not, we have a connection, and you grinding your teeth and insisting we don’t isn’t going to change that fact.”
“Neither is embracing the impossible with open arms. Do not mistake me for one of the characters in Christian’s books,” he said, climbing the steps and standing so close to me, I could feel his breath on my lips. “I am not a romantic figure yearning for a woman to redeem my soul. What soul I might have had has been destroyed long ago because of the work I do. If I focus my attention on you instead of my job, people will die—mortals and immortals alike. Do you want to live with that?”
“No, but—”
“Then you will accept that we have no future together.” He strode past me, and for a moment, I felt like slamming the doors and collapsing into a puddle of tears, but I haven’t survived hell for most of my life just to give in when a pigheaded, annoying man doesn’t know a good thing when it walks up and kisses the dickens out of him.
I object to pigheaded.
