Marked: City of the Damned Book 1 (5 page)

“Why wouldn’t I be fine? You healed me,
didn’t you?” Sara flexed her fingers as if to make a point.

“Yes, of course I did, but I didn’t know what
effect the silver would have on you.”

“I don’t understand.” The pained look on
Gedeon’s face tore at her heart.

“You’ve seen what a silver stake can do to a
vampire. I had no idea what would it would do to a marked human,
and when you still didn’t wake up after two days…” Gedeon shook his
head as he thought about what could’ve happened. “I wasn’t sure you
were going to wake up at all.”

“Exactly how long have I been out of it?”

“Three days.” Gedeon reached out and took
Sara’s hand in his. “I’m so sorry. This is entirely my fault. I
never should’ve pushed you.”

“Gedeon,” Sara snapped “how is any of this
your fault? You’ve spent the past week going out of your way to
protect me.” Her temper flared. How could he possibly blame himself
for any of this? “And while we’re at it, why
did
you push me
out of the way? I’m a tough girl, I could’ve handled myself.”

Gedeon forced out a laugh. “I don’t think
that there’s a human alive that’s strong enough to puncture vampire
skin. It would be like you trying to use a pencil to poke a hole in
a rock.” He raised Sara’s hand to his lips and gently kissed the
back of her hand.

Sara lifted her other hand to his cheek. Her
fingers trailed lightly over the rough, unshaved skin of his face,
and she watched as Gedeon’s stunning aqua blue eyes flared black.
She knew that look, and she knew that only one thing could cause
his eyes to change. Slowly, she tilted her head and brought her
lips to meet his. Wrapping her arms around his neck, the sheet that
had been covering her slim naked form fell down and gathered around
her waist.

Gedeon hesitantly pulled away. How could this
stunning creature still want him after everything she’d been
through, after everything he’d put her through? Sara should be
running in fear, but instead she sat on his bed, offering herself
to the beast. His gazed drifted down her long slender form, and his
body trembled as he drank in the sight of her. Never in his life
had he seen such a beautiful woman.

Sara moved over to make room for him on the
bed. She could see his body shudder as she pulled down the sheet,
exposing herself to him, and waited patiently as Gedeon removed his
shirt and boots. Gedeon lowered himself onto the bed beside her.
“What about your jeans?” she whispered as a lopsided smile played
at the corner of her mouth.

“All in good time,” he whispered. Bringing
his lips to hers, Gedeon kissed her hard, his moist tongue
exploring every inch of her hungry mouth. He wanted to take her
right then and there. The need to have her was overwhelming. But
first he had to make sure she was ready for him, he had to know
that this delicate little body that lay open and waiting before him
could accommodate his massive girth. He reached up and gently
stroked the tip of her nipple with his finger, but a touch wasn’t
enough. He had to taste the sweetness of her skin. Kissing his way
down her long slender body, his mouth found her perfect shapely
breast. A moan escaped his lips as he took her into his mouth and
suckled.

Sara gasped at the feel of his mouth against
her skin, his kisses leaving a trail of fire in their wake. Her
body ached for him. She reached over and tried to unbutton his
pants, but Gedeon swiftly pushed her hand away.

“Not yet,” he murmured. Gedeon was amazed at
how responsive her body was to him, and his erection grew even
harder. He lifted his hand and cupped her other breast, the one he
had been neglecting, and could feel her body stiffen at his touch.
The tips of his fingers played with Sara’s rock hard nipple,
flicking and squeezing her rigid bud until she groaned with desire.
His cock twitched at the sound of her groan, and strained painfully
against the confines of his jeans. He would have her soon, but not
yet. She wasn’t quite ready for him yet. Gedeon continued suckling
her breast, laving her with the tip of his tongue, tantalizing her
nerves and fueling the raging fire as his hand trailed lightly
across the skin of her belly, and to the small triangle of hair at
the juncture of her thighs.

“Let me in,” he demanded, his voice hoarse
with need and desire. Gedeon gripped her thighs and parted her
legs.

“Please, Gedeon,” Sara begged. She moaned as
his fingers gently stroked the soft folds her pussy. She could feel
the tension mounting, but she wanted to come with him inside her,
filling her. She wanted him to feel the pleasure of her
release.

Gedeon lifted his head, and once more his
mouth found hers. His kiss was rough and fervent, and he couldn’t
hold back any longer. His thumb pressed hard against her clit as he
parted the folds of sex and slid two fingers deep into her core.
God she was tight, so tight, and he would enjoy having her. His
finger moved in rhythm to her thrusts, and he plunged deeper into
her again and again as she screamed his name.

Sara moaned into his mouth. Her hips, now
moving at a frantic pace, drove harder against his hand. “Take me
now.”

“Soon,” he promised. Gedeon brought his hand
up to his lips and licked the sweet cream from the tips of his
fingers. The beast inside him broke free. He could wait no longer
to take this beautiful creature that lay open in front him, waiting
for him,
ready
for him. He would take his time with her,
savor every stroke, and savor the tightness of her as he entered
her. Yes, she would take him. She would take every inch of him, but
first he needed to taste her.

His unshaven faced brushed roughly against
the soft, tender skin of her thighs, and she gasped as his tongue
took her in one long luscious lick. Sara arched into him, pressing
herself harder against his mouth as his fingers gently parted her
slick folds, his tongue driving deep into her sex. Her body
shivered in anticipation as his hungry tongue found her swollen
clit, licking it and stroking it as he brought her to the brink of
release. Just when she thought she couldn’t take anymore, he
plunged his finger deep into her core.

“Gedeon,” Sara cried out as the climax tore
through her body.

He could feel the ripples of her release
against his tongue, and drank deeply as her pearly cream filled his
mouth. Gedeon reached down and unzipped his jeans. His erection
sprung forward, finally breaking free from its denim restraints.
Pulling off his jeans and tossing them on the floor, Gedeon
positioned himself between Sara’s silky thighs. The scent of her
sex was driving the beast into an uncontrollable frenzy. A snarl
escaped his mouth as the tip of his shaft brushed against the warm,
wet folds of her pussy. He watched fervently as the plump head of
his cock penetrated her, his shaft slowly inching further and
further into her. But his body stiffened as he met resistance.
“Sara,” he groaned.

“Don’t stop,” Sara begged.

“I can’t,” Gedeon said in a pained voice. “I
can’t be gentle like you need me to be.” The beast roared in
disapproval.

“Please, Gedeon. Fuck me!” Overcome with need
and desire, Sara pivoted her hips upward, inviting him in. She
cried out in pain as Gedeon entered her in one swift thrust. His
girth proving to be more than her delicate body could handle.

Gedeon froze at the sound of her cry. Afraid
to hurt Sara if he moved so much as an inch, he waited until her
muscles relaxed around him. But the tightness of her sex drove him
to the brink of madness, and he didn’t know if he could hold out
much longer. He needed to feel the softness of her flesh against
him as he drove balls deep into her. If he pulled out now, stopped
before the beast took control, he wouldn’t hurt her. Slowly and
reluctantly, Gedeon eased himself out, taking extra care not to
cause her any undue pain, but Sara resisted.

“No, don’t stop.” She raised her legs and
wrapped them tightly around his waist, driving him further into her
warmth. She winced as Gedeon slid into her, but with each stroke of
his cock, the burning pain faded.

“Sara,” he groaned, the sound of his words
muffled against her skin. Gedeon’s control shattered. His movements
became faster, his thrust harder as he plunged into her again and
again.

Pleasure replaced the pain as Gedeon drove
deeper into her, his cock filling her, stretching her, with every
move of his hips. The tension in her body grew as he brought her
closer and closer to climax. “More,” she screamed as she arched her
back and pressed her body into him, her hips moving in sync with
his. Sara tightened her thighs, feeling him pulse within her, and
it was glorious. Each luscious stroke brought her closer to the
edge. Hesitantly, she brushed aside tendrils of loose hair and
tilted her head, exposing her neck. She offered herself to him and
watched in wonderment as Gedeon’s fangs unsheathed.

“Sara,” he murmured between short ragged
breaths. “Are you sure?”

Sara nodded in agreement. She’d never been
more certain of anything else as she was of this. She wanted Gedeon
in every which way possible. Her body stiffened as his fangs grazed
the sensitive skin at the nape of her neck. Pleasure exploded
through her, and every sensation in her body intensified, as the
tips of his fangs slowly and deliberately penetrated her skin. She
wrapped her legs tighter around him and met his thrust with her
own, their bodies moving in perfect sync, fighting for release.

Gedeon tensed as he drank deeply from her.
The sweetness of her blood, sweeter than any he’d ever tasted,
rolled across his tongue and warmed his throat. He had to get
deeper. He had to fill every inch of her as they shared the
blissful passion of the bite. Wrapping his hands around her waist,
Gedeon pulled her closer, thrusting deeper into her than he ever
thought possible, but Sara’s body melded to him as if it were made
for him and only him. He could feel his own release coming hard and
fast as he mercilessly slammed into her again, and again, and
again. Sara’s muscles clenched around him and he knew that she was
almost ready. He drove his cock balls deep into her pussy, savoring
the feeling as her muscles tightened around his shaft. Reaching
down to the thatch of hair between her legs, he gently pressed her
swollen clit with the tip of his finger. One touch was all it took
to send her over the edge. Gedeon could feel the ripples of
pleasure rolling through her quivering body as her sex milked him.
He drove into her, again and again, each time impossibly deeper
than the last, until he couldn’t take it anymore. His balls
tightened and his cock exploded as he thrust into her one last
time, spilling his seed deep within her.

“Sara,” Gedeon moaned, and collapsed into a
heap on top of her, both of them gasping for breath that wouldn’t
come. Pulling her into his embrace, Gedeon waited for his breathing
to slow before asking, “Why me?”

Her body trembled as tiny shockwaves of
pleasure continued to ripple through her. Sara gasped for air as
she cupped his face with her hands, and watched as the blackness
faded from his eyes, “Because I need you, Gedeon.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were a virgin? I
should’ve been gentler with you. I could’ve made things easier for
you instead of taking you like an animal. Your first time should’ve
been better than this. Your first time should’ve been with someone
normal, someone human. I’ll never be able to give you the things
you deserve.” Gedeon let out an exasperated sigh. He rolled off her
and lay beside her on the bed, stroking the long, golden brown that
cascaded down her shoulders, and gazed intently into the depths of
her deep brown eyes.

“You lied to me, Gedeon.” A hint of anger
tainted her voice.

“I’ve only ever told you the truth. I’ve been
straight forward with you since the day we met.”

“No, you haven’t. You told me that vampires
can only feel two emotions; hunger and lust. I could see the hunger
and the lust in your eyes when made love to me. I could see hatred
on your face every time you spoke Pryse’s name, but more
importantly, I can see love in your eyes when you look at me like
you are right now. You may think that love is just another silly
human emotion, but no matter how much you deny it, I see it in your
eyes and I feel it in your touch.”

“Sara,” he whispered softly against her skin.
“Why choose me? Why would you want to spend your life with a
monster?”

“Because, I’ve seen what’s inside,” she
whispered, and placed a hand to Gedeon’s chest “and I know that
you’re not the monster you think you are.” Sara cupped Gedeon’s
chin in her hand and lifted his face to hers. “If you truly want me
to leave, I’ll walk out of that door and never look back, but first
you have to look me in the eyes and tell me that you don’t love
me.”

“Sara, if you choose me, you choose a life of
solitude. I can’t offer you the same things a human can. I can’t
give you children, or marriage, or even do the normal things that
humans do for fun. I can’t even go to the store in the middle of
the day if I run out of milk.”

“I choose you,” Sara whispered.

“I love you, Sara Bishop.” Gedeon pressed his
mouth to hers. The roughness and the urgency was gone, but the need
to be with her, to touch her, lingered just below the surface.
Gedeon could feel the pressure building in his groin, and sighed.
Sara needed time to rest and recuperate, but as soon as she was
ready for him, he would have her again, and again, and again, and
every day for the rest of her life if she would allow him the
honor. “You need to rest.”

“I will, but I want you to answer a question
first.”

“Okay,” Gedeon responded hesitantly.

“What did you mean when you said I could
fight him off? Did you mean I could fight off the effects of Pryse
controlling me?”

“That’s the beauty of being human,” Gedeon
smiled. “Even if you’re marked, you still have freewill. You just
have to learn to use it.”