Page 20 of Forsworn By The Vampire
Still chuckling here and there, she watched me try to fight my way into the house.
"Let me go," I said through my teeth.
"I'm not making you stay," she responded.
I hissed in pain as the sun peeked up over the horizon and smoke rose from my exposed skin. Fucking witch was about to burn me alive. I opened my mouth to call for help, but then I shut it again.
Let her do it. Maybe then I would be free.
Chapter 12
Angel
Stupid damn vampire would rather stand there in the sun and burn to death than admit he and I were now a "thing." And I meant that term loosely. I mean, come on. Was I really that bad?
I fought back a sudden rush of tears, blinking them away. What the hell did I care if he liked me or not?
The truth of it was I didn't care. Not in the way you'd think. But the fact that it was so abhorrent to him to even consider the fact that fate had chosen me as his mate...something sad and angry twisted inside of me. It wasn't like I was thrilled with this whole arrangement, either. But at least I wasn't such an ass that I'd just let him run off and starve himself to death.
Because as much as he tried to deny it, I could see the way he looked at me. The way he...hungeredfor me, even now.
I wasn't sure how to handle all of this, to be honest. I mean, I barely knew the guy. But on the other hand, the gods do what they do. And as far as I knew, there was no way to break the blood bond once it happened. And come on, the guy just saved my life. The least I could do was return the favor.
So I walked toward him, watching him closely. When he hissed at me, warning me he was about to strike, goosebumps chased each other across my skin, but I only hesitated for a brief second before I rushed him and pushed him up against the doors of the building he'd been heading toward when I got there. Reaching around his lean waist, I ignored the deep growl that vibrated his entire chest cavity, opened the sliding door, and shoved him inside. Then I slammed it closed behind us, sending up a quick thank you to the gods that it hadn't been locked. That would've been awkward. Other than stiffening up when I threw myself against him, he'd made no move to stop me or push me away.
But as soon as we were inside, I stepped back and put some space between us, using the doors behind me to rest against. Then I waited to see what he would do, ready to defend myself if need be. His dark eyes tracked every subtle movement I made, his nostrils flaring wide as he scented me, but otherwise he was completely still.
As I watched and waited, I wondered how old Jamal was. That would tell me a lot. Older vampires had a lot more self-control than newer ones, but of course it was impossible to tell just by looking at him. I didn't know if that self-control applied to mated vampires or not, but it wouldn't hurt to know. "When were you born?" I asked quietly.
He stood eerily still, like he was carved from stone, the way only a vampire could. Every muscle in his body coiled tight. Watching. Waiting. His entire being focused on me. It was unsettling. A nervous shiver slid down my spine and I mentally calculated the time it would take me to get back out the door and into the sunlight that was beginning to warm my back through the glass.
"You won't make it." His voice was calm enough, but I didn't miss the underlying tone of danger.
"I might," I argued. "I've had a chance to rest a bit. I think I have it in me to zap you again if I needed to."
His chin raised in a sudden motion of defiance, but then he smirked as his body once again became animated, turned, and walked further into the house, taking off his leather jacket and tossing it on a navy upholstered chair. "Are you asking when I was born? Or when Killian made me into a walking dead thing?"
"The second one."
He glanced up at me a moment, his eyes searching my face, and then sat down on the edge of the matching couch. Resting his elbows on his knees, he looked up at me. He appeared calmer now that he was in the shadows and not so close to me, away from the direct sunlight I stood in. "I'm old enough," was all he said. "I'm not going to attack you, if that's what you’re asking."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Positive," he deadpanned. "I was injured earlier. Lost a lot of blood. The only reason I wouldn't be able to control myself now is if you were...more to me than any other human. Either by magic or other means. So, if you do have some sort of spell on me, it'll be no one's fault but your own if I drain you dry."
This guy was unreal. "You're still hung up on that, huh?"
His only response was a grunt.
I laughed, but there was no humor in it, only disbelief. "So, you seriously think I just spent three days in a cemetery tomb making some kind of love potion I could ingest, just a-hopingyou would show up and drink from me, so I could make some guy I barely know think he was my new vampire husband? Why the hell would I do that? What would I get out of it except a severe case of anemia?" I stared at him, waiting for him to realize how stupid that sounded and laugh with me about it.
He didn't.
"Whatwereyou doing there?" he asked. "And how the hell did you wind up in a fight with a djinn?"
My smile faltered. New vampire husband or not, what would he do if or when he found out it was me who'd told the djinn about Alex and Alice? Who'd put the female vampire--his friend--in mortal danger? I had no idea how he would react, but I would bet money it wouldn't be good. So telling him how I'd ended up there was out. However, I could give him a partial truth. "I was there working on a spell to kill him. But he found me before it was completed."
His eyes, which had wandered down around my hips, flew back to my face. "You were going to take on a djinn alone? Are you fucking crazy?"
