Vaewolf: Damn the Darkness: The Prophecy's Promise (Hearts of Darkness Book 3) (7 page)

He pressed higher, burying his full length within her while she fed. As she drank her fill, he moaned, and Caitlin sensed his mounting pleasure as her own peaked. With each mouthful of blood she took from him, his need to please her increased.

Having satisfied the blood lust and her sexual need, she closed his wound with her tongue and leaned her head on his shoulder. Dylan cupped his hands under her thighs, close to where they were joined, and stroked her sensitive flesh. Another round of sparks, another tremor of desire, another climax rose and exploded through her, and then her body relaxed, boneless within his embrace.

“No sleeping, my sweet lassie. I’m not through with you, yet.”

His lips curled against hers, and she returned it. Her favorite kisses were the ones they smiled through.

“Good,” she murmured while he continued to thrust within her, taking a different angle each time, stimulating places she never knew existed. With her lover inside her and his blood on her lips, like the rising Phoenix, she was reborn in his fire. And with each stroke, she felt his incredible satisfaction knowing she neared her climax.

Again, heat blazed, rising like flames through frozen crystal, and then she shattered. The tension within her released and floated all around them like ashes, dust motes, soft feathered down. He took her to her sexual breaking point, and from there, all it took for him, after a few deep strokes, was one final thrust. Only then, after she trembled and collapsed, did he succumb. Finally, shuddering in her arms with each hot release, he filled her, thrust after thrust.

Caitlin felt stronger, invincible, powerful, but the experienced was short lived when the impact of making love with so much effort washed over her. As her last spasm gripped him with an internal embrace, she relaxed in his arms, and he pressed his forehead to hers and opened his mind to her.

Love. Pleasure. Gratitude. His admiration. She experienced it all. All too much to process.

She closed down her own emotions, once again unwilling to expose how vulnerable she suddenly felt when it came to this man. And yet, for a moment he’d exposed all of himself for her. All that power in her arms, and he was hers, body and soul. Could she believe her good fortune or trust what destiny had in store for her? He was here now. They were together. Hearts, minds, and bodies.

Tears of happiness filled her eyes and spilled.

He gently brushed a thumb across her cheeks and sounded concerned. “Did I hurt you, lass?”

“Shhh...” She kissed him, then reopened their mental link with a reassuring hug. “
No. You were in my head the whole time. You know how I felt.”

“But...you’re crying.”

“Did it feel like I was hurting?”

His mental laughter touched her as she watched his lip quirk. The lopsided smile held humor.

“Uh, nay. ’Twasn’t pain I sensed.”

“Right.”
Caitlin experienced his gratification at being able to satisfy his mate.
“Because it wasn’t pain I felt. It was pure ecstasy.”

His emotions washed over her. There it was, the masculine satisfaction she sensed when he pleased her. Pride.

“’Tis not pride. ’Tis true love, darlin’.”

She hoped so. “Nothing in my life has ever felt so right.”

Dylan had been what was missing, and he’d be all she ever needed…besides
air. She hadn’t learned the nuances of controlling her new bodily functions, and yet Dylan was breathing hard, also. Each of them struggled for air, trying to contain their rate of breathing and bring it back to normal.

“If we...don’t have to...breathe,” Caitlin asked, “why do I feel as if I can’t catch my breath?”

“Our bodies remember we needed to breathe at one time.” Dylan entered her mind and slowed her heart rate and her respirations, as well as his own. “At times, you’ll have to focus your mind on your involuntary reflexes to get them under control.”

“I’ll focus better in the shower,” she said, making him grin. “Alone.”

~~~~

An hour later, Caitlin stretched out in the library adjoining the bedroom and sipped the drink Dylan prepared to calm her nerves. This spot in the house, overflowing with tropical plants flourishing in the artificial light, was her favorite place of refuge. The room reminded her of a Hawaiian rain forest, a place she’d always dreamed of visiting.

And the scent of books—leather, paper, and wood, ancient and new—filled the air, a reminder of a time when she was young and had leisurely enjoyed reading and relaxing on summer vacation...before her family’s troubles. Maybe the drink was working, or perhaps her control finally kicked in. She felt better because of this spot in the house or even the man. Dylan would always be her comfort—

Just as Dylan entered the room the doorbell rang, and he grinned. “Aye lass, all that fun, and we beat Shelby, too.”

“Get the door,
Romeo
and bring her in here so she can take my blood sample. I can’t move.”

“Did I wear you out?”

“Exactly. Didn’t know a vampire could experience noodle knees after sex, but that’s exactly what I have.”

His grin broadened and made her laugh. Dylan had pulled the final ounce of energy from her with the last orgasm.

She narrowed her eyes on his retreating rear end thinking the way he moved was perfectly appealing. “Feeling all full of yourself are you? Pay back will be fun.”

“Aye, lass. I heard that. And that it will.”

Chapter Eight

Blood and Questions

He opened the door and invited Shelby and Max in, then led them down the hall to his den.

“She’s waiting for you in the library, Shelby. Come in and make yourself at home, Max. I’ll get you a drink while Shelby and Caitlin talk girl trash. She can take a look at Caitlin for symptoms, too.”

“When I get back with the blood, Max can get to work.”

Dylan wanted to discuss Caitlin’s symptoms privately with Max without anyone present to know about his guilty concerns. He stretched his hearing and waited to be certain they had complete privacy before getting to the subject bothering him.

“Can we talk?” He rose from the leather chair, rounded the desk, and leaned casually against it. Dylan sighed and offered Max another drink.

The grin said it all. “If it’s your private stash, of course.”

For as long as he’d been in the New World, Dylan had been importing scotch from his homeland. Over the years, the whiskey was his only reminder of home and the one way he found he could stomach being away from his old keep in Scotland for all this time.

“The one great thing about being a vampire is not getting drunk unless you want to. You can appreciate the Scotch whiskey and never suffer the consequences.”

“Very true, my friend.” Max gripped the glass, took a small sip, and smiled. “Mmm,” he murmured, then he sat back in his chair. “So when you used Shelby’s blood to turn Caitlin, why didn’t you consider all the ramifications then? And why did you supplement Shelby’s blood with yours?”

Direct and to the point, the question was one Dylan asked himself several times a day, and he still had no satisfactory answer. Had he brushed the concerns off to get what he wanted?
No. No, I wouldn’t have done that. Would I?
The idea jacked all his defensive machinations to the forefront.

“Hell, man, she was dying. My life mate was a heartbeat away from eternal death, and I could not stop it any other way.” From his position at the bar, he lowered his head and eyeballed Max, pointing a finger. “How dare you? You made the choice once yourself, did you not—?”

“I did. Not knowing what I was doing, either.” Max tossed up his hands. “I turned Shelby myself—not even considering for a second what it might mean. I’ve loved her my whole life. Even now, my world couldn’t exist without her. She’s my friend, the family I brought from my previous life, and the progeny I made in this one. But had I known how difficult giving her up as a lover would be, I wonder if I would have made the same choice.”

“Aye,” Dylan said, “ye would have. You did—”

“I didn’t.” Max raised a brow, and shook his head. “I didn’t know we’d no longer feel the mate bond between us. But you’re right. I would have turned her, anyway, because I loved her the way you love Caitlin, the way you were ready to use your own blood knowing the consequences, before Shelby offered hers.”

“Aye, but now, what kind of life have I doomed my Caitlin to?”

Kyle infected Shelby accidentally with the rogue jaguar virus, and she survived because of her fae DNA. Max ended up being the one to turn her and the bond they had before changed. Because Dylan used Shelby’s blood, no one was certain what effects it would have on Caitlin when she entered stasis.

“Kyle helps Shelby, and I deal with the demon inside us. We’ll all be there for Caitlin. We all survived.” Max threw back the rest of the drink and added, “You should relax.”

“I keep thinking of all the DNA and the potential backlash. Caitlin has a bit of everything, now. When Shelby offered her blood, I never thought about the repercussions.”

“Dylan, think about her potential while you’re at it. If we’re being hunted by demons with highly developed psychic abilities, she’ll be an excellent asset for our side.”

“Yes, but it also puts her in greater danger. They almost killed her before, and I think once they learn of her ability to track them, she’ll be their number one target. What’ll they do when they discover she has greater powers? Powers that exceed those they believed were reason enough to kill her before.”

Imagining one of those demons ripping out her heart or taking her head made Dylan weak with fear. Worse...he imagined them capturing her and using her powers against her...and them.

“Think, Dylan. I can’t believe I’m the one with the clear head advising you. She’s strong and smart, and don’t forget...soon, she’ll be immortal.”

“Aye, but even immortals can be destroyed—especially young immature ones.”

“Not so easily. And we’ll all have her back. Besides, think how any single one of those DNA gifts will enhance her chance at survival.”

“Aye, it’s true. But which dominant DNA will surface is what worries me. Months will pass before we know the full extent of her abilities, and she’ll need training.”

“Think how lucky you’ll be if some of Shelby’s sex fae is dominant.” Max wiggled his brows.

Dylan choked on his drink. “Any more sexual need will likely kill me.”

“Getting old? At three hundred plus, does the old berserker need a little blue pill—”

Dylan stood over Max and poked him in the chest, several times for emphasis. “I’m doing fine in that department, laddie...without any chemical assistance. What I could use is time.” Caitlin’s approach to stasis threatened to start within days, and the side effects she was already suffering had everyone concerned.

“When I call Victor about Caitlin’s blood, I’ll also check about her rapid onset stasis—and some of your other concerns. If anyone knows it will be Salazar.”

“Aye, I thought so, too.”

“The fact you fed her your blood—indirectly Niccolai’s blood to ease her through the change—has to account for her transition happening so quickly. On the bright side, under the circumstances, I think the sooner metamorphosis is completed, the better. I know I’d feel better knowing she was immortal. We can deal with her
gifts
when they manifest.”

“I’ve never heard of anyone having such a difficult time at this stage—”

“Don’t sweat it. As soon as the blood sample Shelby drew is finished undergoing analysis in the lab, I’ll call Victor with the results.”

“All I keep thinking about is what happened to Shelby.”

“The sex fae? Or losing the life mate bond with me?”

“Both. Let’s hope Victor has some answers once he sees Caitlin’s blood results.”

“After the DNA study, we’ll confirm it.” Max winked as Dylan left.

In reality, yes, Dylan should have thought about all these consequences sooner. But when? When the blood was pouring from Caitlin’s wound, and he’d fed her his blood to keep her alive long enough to get her to Kyle and Shelby? Or later in the hospital, when they’d shaken their heads giving his life mate no hope of surviving? When his heart very well may have been ripped from his chest while still beating?

Once the DNA from all the others merged with hers, what gifts would she retain, and what had he cursed her with? To keep her, had he damned her to darkness with his decision to use Shelby’s blood? Or would the light fae within her overrule the demon blood?

Chapter Nine

Rapid Onset Stasis

Dylan crossed the hall to check on the women, but before he opened the door, he heard the soft sound of Caitlin breathing and confirmed she’d fallen asleep. Shelby returned with him, and they joined Max in the library,

She handed Max the blood sample. “Caitlin slept through it.”

“You wearing the poor girl out?” Max grinned at Dylan.

“Eh, more the other way around.” Dylan chuckled. “Have a seat, Shelby. While she’s sleeping, there are a few concerns I want to discuss.”