Page 77 of The Vampire Always Rises
Considering the fact that you must have taken in some of my blood when you kissed my face, and thus have completed the steps to Joining, yes, you are a Beloved.
Is that why you tasted so spicy? Wow. Do you have your soul back?
No.
What? Why not?
I don’t know, and now is not the time to worry about it.
He had a point, although I felt oddly cheated.What are you going to do? I don’t want to go away with Carlo. I want to stay with you and make you say those romantic things over and over again until you can easily admit that you love me. You do love me, don’t you? Just a little bit?
He sighed in my mind.Would I risk sounding like I should be in one of Christian’s damned books if I didn’t?
I giggled at him, something Carlo evidently found objectionable.
“Up,” he snarled, jerking me up to my knees. He caught my hair in the process, yanking on it painfully while he tried to pull me upright. A little exclamation escaped me, and suddenly, my mind was filled with rage, a red, boiling rage, and just as suddenly, I was free.
I spun around to see Carlo against the wall where minutes before Merrick had been, only Carlo was a good two feet off the ground, and was being throttled. His face was blotchy and he struggled against the one hand that Merrick used to hold him.
“Wow, that is seriously impressive, Merrick. I can’t believe you can hold him up like that. But don’t you think you should, you know, let him have a bit of air? Otherwise he’ll die, and we won’t have the satisfaction of turning him over to the police.”
“We aren’t turning him over to the police,” he answered, but loosened his grip and allowed Carlo to slide down the wall to a gasping heap on the floor. “Both Nico and he will be going to see the Council.”
“What council?” I asked, moving over totskat the thin line of blood that had dribbled down Merrick’s throat. “Wait, back up a bit. I don’t understand why your Horseman guy is here. Was he trying to get Carlo?”
“No. He was working with him. What are you doing?”
“Dabbing at your neck.”
He had stopped me when I pulled a tissue from my cleavage and was fussing over his slight wound. “Why?”
“Because it’s what a Beloved does. We worry.”
A corner of his lips twitched. “Did you get that from Christian’s books, too?”
“No.” I leaned forward to kiss him. His mouth was as hot and sweet as I knew it would be, and just the taste of him was enough to make me want to strip off every bit of his clothing, and rub myself all over him.
I’m quite willing to let you do that, but I would suggest you wait until we are in a less public place before doing so.
Stop reading my smutty thoughts.
Why? You are enjoying them.
Yes, but you’ll think less of me if you know I want to lick you. All over. Hoo baby.
He laughed aloud. “I assure you that I enjoy your smutty thoughts as much as you do, and I would never think ill of you. Now if you’re done wiggling against my cock in a manner guaranteed to make me throw you on the nearest couch and do exactly what you’re thinking about doing to me, then I really should make some calls and have these two bastards taken into custody.”
I glanced over at Carlo’s now empty table and thought seriously about making love to Merrick.
“Tempest,” he said in a warning tone, but there was laughter and heat in his eyes.
“What? Your buddy is out, and I bet we could knock out Carlo easy enough.”
“Garg!” Carlo said from where he was prone on the floor, wheezing like an elderly bulldog.
You’re a bloodthirsty little thing, aren’t you?
Just in love, my darling vampire.
