Accidentally Married To...A Vampire? (8 page)

Helena launched herself and pounded the side of his skull.

He fell to his side. “
Ah!
You
bitch!”

The other men jumped in and grabbed Helena. She felt a fist slam into her face. Blood poured from her lip as she crumbled. Next, Jess screamed, and then…there were blood-curdling cries from one of the scumbags.

Helena rolled onto her back to witness the men collapsing one by one like falling dominoes, landing face first in the sand around the bonfire, grasping their gushing throats.

“What the…?” She heard a gurgling sound to her right and turned her head. An enormous man held the largest of the scumbags by his neck. Only now that man didn’t look so large. He looked like a tiny bug about to be squashed by an angry giant.

Helena gasped. The giant was Niccolo. His shoulder length black hair was loose, and he was dressed like he'd walked straight off the Milan runway, wearing a black turtleneck and slacks.

Niccolo snapped the man's neck and threw him like a rag doll. He rushed to her side, immediately reaching for her face. “The bastards! Killing them was too kind!”

“How did you find me?” she whispered, her eyes wide with shock.

Niccolo swept his hand over her forehead with affection. “
Mio cuore
, I will always find you. Forever.”

***

The phone ringing in Helena's ear jolted her from a coma-like sleep. Her hand fumbled with the handset, twice knocking it to the floor before she finally managed to connect it with her face. “Hellooo?” Her voice sounded like she'd eaten sandpaper-covered jalapenos.

Although the curtains were drawn and blinds closed, a sliver of light sliced through a narrow gap at the bottom of the pane. She glanced at her clock on the nightstand.
Two P.M.?

“Lena. Jeez, there you are! Why aren’t you answering your phone? Are you hung over or something?” said the voice on the other end.

“Jess?” Helena's memory jogged. She rocketed from the bed and fell to the floor with a
thump!
She reached for her lip as she righted herself back into bed. It was swollen and definitely tender.
No, not a dream.

“Oh my God. Are you okay?” she said into the phone. The last thing Helena remembered was Niccolo holding her.

Jessica laughed. “Depends on your definition of ‘okay.’ Did you have to bust out the tequila last night, Lena? I've got the worst hangover. We’re talking permanent brain damage. I don’t even remember going to bed.”

Hangover? Jess didn't drink last night, and there was no tequila. Only drunk biker rapists and one very, very pissed off vampire.

“But, I do remember,” Jess added, “your smokin’ new boyfriend and his buddies! Can you say ‘yummm?’ Why didn't you tell me you were seeing a sex god? In fact, they all looked like they just hopped off of the fabulous-man-bus. Can I have one for displaying in the new shrine I’m going to build in their honor? Or a photo? An autographed photo? Naked, of course.”

What the hell is going on?
“Sorry? But could you repeat that part about…” Helena realized the shower was running in her adjoining bathroom and had just been shut off.
Oh my god…Niccolo.

“Jess, let me call you right back. I don't feel well,” she whispered.

Helena silently put down the phone and tiptoed to the bathroom door. What should she do? Run? Knock? Walk in? Get naked? And…how should she feel? Excited? Freaked out? Angry because he hadn’t called for three weeks? Relieved, because the wait was over and she could finally start asking all those questions swimming in her head?

The door swung open, and Niccolo boldly stood before her in his birthday-suit-glory, his unforgettable diamond-cut abs glistening with drops of water.

A whoosh of air left her lungs.
I’m going with…naked and excited!

His thick black hair dripped as he ran her pink towel over it. She wanted to swoon at the sight of him: there in her room using her favorite towel. Dreams really did come true. The only things missing were the hour-long foot rub and a happy ending.
Pervert! Stop that.

The muscles in his right bicep flexed underneath the solid black tribal symbols tattooed down his arm in a neat line. “Helena, love. Glad to see you’re up,” he said all too casually, as if the entire situation were just another day in the life of a domesticated sitcom couple.

“What are you doing here? How did I get home last night? And what did you do to Jess? Hey! And why aren't you asleep in some coffin right now?”

Niccolo looked amused as he strolled past her toward a pile of neatly folded black clothes on the foot of her bed. She tried not to stare at his ass. It was rock hard and perfect. His skin, although slightly pale, had a light golden hue, like he’d been dusted with cinnamon.

Eyes twinkling, he turned, giving her a clear view of his front.

Her breath whooshed from her mouth again.

The smirk on his face said it all. He was giving her a show and enjoying the reaction.

Well, why wouldn’t he flaunt it? Every inch of him was built to please a woman all night long
, she thought.

He cleared his throat.

She blinked and looked away from his male anatomy. “Just observing in the name of…science?” She focused her eyes on the hieroglyphics streaming down his arm instead.

“The tattoo was given to me during my lengthy slumber,” he said in a slow, deep voice. “I’ve been able to decipher only half... ‘True to the gods, you shall enter. I brake…’ that’s as far as I got. But I believe it is a spell of some sort.” He shrugged. “I'm here because you are here. I brought you home after you passed out last night. I glamoured Jess—she thinks she had the best night of her life, but really my men took her home. The sun severely weakens vampires, but does not kill us unless we’re already injured or out too long.” He slipped on his black pants and pulled on his sweater. “And,
sì
. My manhood was created to give you pleasure all night long.”

She gasped and covered her mouth. “I said that out loud?”

He nodded.

Oh great. Internal dialog leakage. Again.

“
Buon
. Any more questions? Wait.” He held out his hands. “Hold that thought. We can talk after the plane.”

“Plane?”

Niccolo gave a playful smile and crossed his arms over his broad chest. “
Sì
. That large flying machine you humans invented while I was sleeping for three fun-filled centuries.”

It was then that Helena caught a mental whiff of something off, some undercurrent of anxiousness and stress.

Must be me.
“You’re funny,” Helena chirped. “I know what a plane—“

“Good. Because they're quite handy for traveling long distances. Which is what you'll be doing since the home I just purchased for you is in Manhattan,
mio cuore
.”

Whoa. What?
Yesterday she'd seriously been thinking about being with him—if he ever showed. Now, she felt like she was being bullied. She hated that.

“Don't you think you should ask me what I want? Shouldn’t we get to know each other before living together? How come you sound…different?”

Like a modern guy, but with a hint of “Hi. I’m not from around these parts” and a sprinkle of Italian.

“More questions?” He raised one dark brow. “Fine. Then I shall answer. What you want is obvious: me. Just as I want you. And, no. We should not get to know each other before we live together. Because I plan on slowly savoring that task, learning every inch of you—inside and out—over the course of many long nights for years to come. And like any good vampire, I have spent my time assimilating this new world. I must blend in. Now, if you’re satisfied, I’ve been deprived for far too long of this…”

Niccolo closed the distance between them with one stride and looked down at her with his dark, delicious eyes before he pushed his lips against hers.

His smell filled her lungs, and his touch made her feel exaggeratedly pliable.
Silly-Girl Putty.

His tongue slipped past her teeth and stroked the inside of her mouth. Helena leaned into him, her knees undermining her vertical position. She completely forgot about her split lip as her mind drifted into the bliss of his embrace. Once again, being with him made her feel safe yet vivid and alive—three dimensional instead of two.

But there was something about him undulating just beneath the surface. Something mesmerizing she couldn’t begin to articulate. Like gravity. She could feel his invisible pull as he enveloped her with his entire body. From this day forward, she would do anything to avoid being separated from him ever again. She needed him. She craved him.

What was happening to her?

Her mind was a jumbled mess of fear, lust, anticipation, and other varies of irrational emotions that radiated from some unknown place in her mind.

Just as she fully gave into the kiss, he pulled away. His warmth was replaced with raw determination. “Helena, you are my mate. You must come with me now. I’ve taken care of everything so you will be safe.”

Helena snapped back to planet Earth. She found herself feeling angry and resentful over what was happening to her. Her life was the world of science where everything had a reason or an explanation. This situation did not.

“Excuse me? Listen, Fred Flintstone you may have upgraded your syntax and brushed up on modern technology, but you obviously missed one major milestone in social evolution: women are no longer chattel. We make our own decisions and take care of ourselves. Which leads me to my next point—closely related to the ‘taking care of myself’ topic—I don't know you, and up until three weeks ago, I didn’t even know vampires existed. Now you just expect me to believe I'm your mate, whatever the hell that is, leave my life, and run off with you because you tell me to?”

Niccolo appeared to be forcing a polite smile on his face. Perhaps he wasn’t used to people not following his orders. Then, without warning, he pulled her body into his once again, making sure she was well aware of his hard flesh. She shuddered.

“No,” he said in a low, rumbling voice. “I expect you to come with me because we belong together. Because you will never be content with any other male. And because I am your one true mate. Finally, you will come with me because you are clearly an educated, independent woman who goes after what she wants regardless of the opinion of others.” He looked deeply into her eyes. “Now, I believe I’ve answered your questions and have provided adequate avenues for you to save face. You must now come and do as you’re told.”

What?
She wanted to tell him to take a hike, but the words danced away. There was that crazy pull again. She couldn’t think straight.

His voice smooth and deep, he said, “You see,
mio cuore
. You feel the truth. This is why you will come to our home in New York, where you will be treated like a queen. I then plan to marry you and make you mine forever.”

Forever?
There was that dang word again. This was so confusing. Did he really believe she was his “mate?” He really wanted her? Out of every female on the planet?

Illogical.
They were too different.

He was indescribably gorgeous and strong. He was also apparently very wealthy and wasn’t lacking in the intelligence department. Or the ego department. Did she mention gorgeous? How about really strong?

She, on the other hand, was an outdoorsy bookworm who actually liked playing with worms. Science, life, understanding how it had all evolved—putting order to it—nothing made her feel more at home.

Helena, you idiot, he said he wants you. Why fight it? Not like you have a chance in hell of forgetting about him.
The attraction was undeniable. Like hunger. Like thirst. She felt like she might simply burst into flames if she didn’t go with him. Her need to understand this attraction, the “why,” was even greater.

But he was a vampire.

“How do I know you won't kill me?” she whispered, instantly regretting the stupidity of her question. Who would admit to being untrustworthy and murderous?
A vampire might.

Niccolo frowned. Clearly he didn't appreciate having his honor questioned. Helena felt that odd sensation once again. Anxiety. Stress.

“As you heard from my conversation with Reyna, I slay Obscuros who prey on innocent humans,” he admitted freely. “And as you’ve witnessed, I kill evil men who do the same. However, before you judge, I urge you to recall how my willingness to do so saved your life. Twice. Not to mention your friends.”

“Okay. Good point.”
He’s very honest. I should ask how he is in bed.
She slapped her hands over her mouth. “I didn’t just say that out loud again, did I?”