"No." The growl slipped from him.
Iona looked back at Jamie.
"I can"t control everything. If I could, there"d be more than six members of my pack still alive." He stalked to her, aggressive, deliberately so. "If I could control everything, my family would be alive. I wouldn"t have come home to find my mother and father dead, their bodies savaged. Latham wouldn"t have killed them." His parents had come to this country because they"d wanted a fresh start. They"d brought their pack over with them. Everyone had been so hopeful, at first.
What could have been sympathy or maybe even pity flashed in her stare. That faint emotion just stirred up his anger even more. Pity was the last thing he wanted from her.
His body brushed against hers. "And if I could control everything," his voice was for her alone, "then I"d already have gotten you, naked, under me, and I wouldn"t be so wild with l.u.s.t that I want to rip apart my own best friend...because you"re about to put your mouth on him."
The words surprised him with their brutal truth. The l.u.s.t he felt for her...it was just growing. Stronger and stronger. Almost like he was under some kind of spell.
She"s part witch. Maybe I am under her spell.
Under, and falling fast.
"One taste," he told her, "but you"re going to regret it."
Her gaze searched his. "There are few things I regret."
He could believe that.
"This won"t be one of them." Then she turned, head high, back straight, and marched to the door at the far end of the hall.
He didn"t follow her. He didn"t want to see her with Sean. "You"ll be coming back," Jamie said, the words drifting after her.
And they were a promise. Iona was about to realize that no other man would ever do for her again.
Only me, baby. Only me.
He"d already realized that no other woman would satisfy him.
Chapter Four.
Her fangs had stretched and sharpened as she prepared for the bite. Iona had locked the door behind her-locked Jamie out-and now she and Sean were alone together in the small storage room.
"So...how does this work?" He asked her with a nervous glance at her fangs.
She almost rolled her eyes. Really? How did he think it was going to work? "The usual way. I bite you. I drink. That"s how it works."
Sean was nearly as big as Jamie. His shoulders weren"t quite as broad, his muscles not as big. He was probably a few inches shorter than the alpha wolf, too.
But Sean was...handsome. His features were even and smooth and had no doubt drawn plenty of female attention over the years.
Iona realized that she preferred the rough danger of Jamie"s hard face. Story of her very, very long life. The bad boys often drew her in.
Then, frequently, they"d tried to kill her.
So she"d had to kill them.
"Give me your hand," Iona ordered.
But Sean shook his head and shoved his hands behind his back. "No way. I"m not supposed to touch you!"
For the love of...She grabbed his arm and jerked up his hand. Then she lifted his wrist to her mouth. "Calm down." She could probably try to soothe him. She"d always been good at lulling her prey, when she wanted. Seduce with a look. Kill with a bite.
Been there, done that.
So many times that it rather bored her now.
But, yes, if she wanted, Iona could seduce just about anyone.
Only she didn"t want to seduce Sean. She just wanted to find out what his blood would do to her. Don"t burn me, don"t. Because if she was stuck with only taking from Jamie, then she"d be tied to him.
Forever.
Iona parted her lips. Her fangs pressed into Sean"s skin, and just like that, with one quick press of her teeth, his blood flowed onto her tongue.
Sean gave a little moan. "Oh, s.h.i.t, no one said it would feel good." For the first time, she heard the whisper of an Irish accent in his words.
Only...his blood wasn"t "feeling good" to her. It felt horrible. His blood tasted rancid, and she was already yanking her mouth away from him and backing up even as her body started to shake and spasm.
"Iona?" Sean called her name as he came toward her. "Iona!"
The door burst in, heaving right off its hinges. Jamie stood in the doorway. His gaze swept around the room, from Sean-and his outstretched hand-to Iona.
When did I curl up on the floor?
She didn"t curl. She didn"t hide.
I do when I realize my choices are gone.
Because Sean"s blood tasted just like the human"s, and instead of strengthening her, it had made her feel even weaker.
Now the hunger was ripping through her insides. Hollowing her out.
"I told you not to touch her," Jamie tossed Sean back against the wall. "I told you."
It wasn"t the touching that mattered. It was the blood. Blood she couldn"t drink.
"Iona?" Now Jamie was the one calling her name.
She forced her head to lift. Made her body rise. She was still shaking, but those trembles couldn"t be helped because they came from the hunger and the weakness that filled her veins.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen. So many would laugh to see her brought so low.
Jamie wasn"t laughing. He was staring at her with eyes that saw far too much. "Get out of here," he said.
Her lips parted.
"Yank the door back up after you, Sean, and get the h.e.l.l out," he said, never looking away from her.
Sean hurried to comply.
Jamie didn"t touch her. Didn"t move another inch. Not until the door was partially up, giving them a bit of privacy, and Sean was gone.
"It didn"t work," he said flatly.
Of course, he"d known the truth. Maybe she had, too. She"d just been desperate.
"It makes you sick, doesn"t it?" He asked. "When you take blood from others."
Yes. A vampire who could only bite one man? Talk about falling far from her perch of power. She wasn"t exactly the big terror of the town any longer.
The faint lines deepened near Jamie"s mouth. "I want you to bite me. Take my blood...I don"t care. I can give you what you want, always."
He didn"t understand. But right then, she just didn"t have the energy or the control to make him understand.
Fifteen years. For all intents, she"d been dead then. Even if her mind had been crying out in agony.
Now that she was free, Iona wanted to live.
She was about to break apart because she just wanted to let go-to lose her control and take the blood that he offered.
But with vampires, when control broke and blood was involved...
There was a reason she"d been trying to push her vampire coven away from taking blood from live sources. She"d seen the carnage that came from centuries of bloodl.u.s.t and violence.
When you took straight from a source, when your control shattered, the l.u.s.t wouldn"t just be for blood.
"Blood and s.e.x," she whispered.
Jamie"s gaze burned into hers. There was no fear or revulsion or even a hint of hesitation in his eyes. There were just answering hunger. "Yes."
He knew what he was getting with her. No secrets there. And she needed to feel alive again. She"d gone too long in that cold darkness. There would be no holding back for her. More blood.
She reached for him. Sank her teeth into his throat.
His blood was perfect on her tongue. Delicious. Addictive. Like a mix of wine and chocolate.
His body brushed against hers.
Pleasure. Close. So very, very close.
Her nipples were tight. Her s.e.x already growing moist. Iona"s control was fracturing. She could feel the ripples as they shook through her body.
His hands locked around her wrists. "Don"t worry," he told her, the words rumbling against her as her tongue licked lightly at his throat. "I"ve got you."
Maybe he did.
They were about to find out.
In the next instant, he"d lifted her up. Took two fast steps, and then her back shoved against the wall.
"When you bite me," his words were a dark rumble that had her s.e.x clenching, "I want to f.u.c.k."
Not an unusual reaction. The bite did something to prey. Gave them a boost of pleasure. Made them want more.
The vampire could usually control the bite, especially a vampire as old as she was. Could give pleasure or pain.
Her fangs scored lightly over his flesh. He growled. With this bite, she wanted to give pleasure.
His fingers were on her stomach now, under her shirt. His hands were warm and strong and they were sliding up, up, and cupping her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Her breath hissed out as her nipples pebbled beneath his touch. She arched against him, wanting more.
His blood had already made her stronger. So now she wasn"t just drinking from him. She was kissing. Licking. Learning what the werewolf liked.
"My turn," he muttered as he lifted her even higher. Strong wolf.
Then he yanked away her top and put his mouth on her breast. He used his teeth to lightly rasp over her sensitive flesh. Her s.e.x ached. So long...
Iona wrapped her legs around him even as he kissed and sucked her breast. She pushed her hips against him. He was aroused. No mistaking that hard bulge that shoved back against her.
Pity his jeans were in the way.
Not for long.
This time, she was the one to jerk open his jeans. To pull the zipper down and slid her fingers past the denim. She found him, long, thick, hot, pushing eagerly toward her.
Her tongue slid over the edge of her left fang. She"d had his blood. Now she just wanted him.
His rough breaths filled her ears. Then she heard the sound of a frantic heartbeat. His? Hers? Maybe both. Racing too fast.
"Jamie." Her demand. "Now." She didn"t want foreplay that lasted for hours. That could come another time. Right then, she was already clawing at his back. Pushing against him as her control shattered around her. She wanted him inside of her.
Wanted the pleasure to erupt and sweep everything else away.
Then his hands were between their bodies. He had her jeans open, and she had to lower her legs, just long enough to kick out of her heels and jeans. She wasn"t wearing any underwear, so she didn"t have to worry about- "f.u.c.k." His hand was between her legs. Pushing into her s.e.x and her head tipped back because she liked the sensation of his fingers sliding in her. Her body was humming, so tuned up that she knew the first climax would hit her soon.
His thumb pushed over her c.l.i.t.
The climax hit.