In Darkness

IN DARKNESS An Ellora’s Cave Publication, November 2004 Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc. 1337 Commerce Drive, #13 Stow,OH44224 ISBN MS Reader (LIT) ISBN # 1-4199-0047-1 Other available formats (no ISBNs are assigned): Adobe (PDF), Rocketbook (RB), Mobipocket (PRC) & HTML IN DARKNESS © 2004 ELISA ADAMS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. They are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously. Edited byMartha Punches . Cover art bySyneca .

Warning: The following material contains graphic sexual content meant for mature readers.In Darknesshas been rated S-ensuous by a minimum of three independent reviewers. Ellora’s Cave Publishing offers three levels of Romantica™ reading entertainment: S (S-ensuous), E (Erotic), and X (X-treme). S-ensuouslove scenes are explicit and leave nothing to the imagination. E-roticlove scenes are explicit, leave nothing to the imagination, and are high in volume per the overall word count. In addition, some E-rated titles might contain fantasy material that some readers find objectionable, such as bondage, submission, same sex encounters, forced seductions, and so forth. E-rated titles are the most graphic titles we carry; it is common, for instance, for an author to use words such as “fucking”, “cock”, “pussy”, and such within their work of literature. X-tremetitles differ from E-rated titles only in plot premise and storyline execution. Unlike E-rated titles, stories designated with the letter X tend to contain controversial subject matter not for the faint of heart.

IN DARKNESS

Elisa Adams

Chapter One

He remembered everything. The heated touch of her hand. The soft caress of her lips brushing his jaw. The soft flesh of her neck yielding as he sank his fangs deep, the sweet taste of her blood running over his tongue. The feel of her sweatsoaked skin sliding against his. The way she moaned when she came, her fingernails cutting into his shoulders. Every second of every time they’d made love had been burned into his brain. He couldn’t forget. Didn’t want to. But at the same time, his memories ate him up inside. Why had he walked out on her so long ago? He’d had his reasons—which he thought had been valid at the time. Now that he looked back, he realized how selfish he’d been. Hownoble of him to want to protect her from himself. Where had it gotten him? Where had it gottenher ? Nowhere. When they’d met, she’d been so full of promise, a talented painter with high expectations of herself and everyone around them. She’d planned to be somebody. Someone important. What had happened to those dreams? Had his leaving been the cause? Or was it something else? He wasn’t so vain as to think she hadn’t lived in the years before he’d found her again, though the idea of her dating other men—sleepingwith other men—made a knot of anger twist in his gut. Irrational, since he’d given up all claims to her ten years ago, but there nonetheless. He knew about her brief marriage—had found her and started watching over her just after her divorce—but how many other men had there been in her life? It didn’t matter. Nothing did anymore, except getting her back. In his many years of existence, he had never met another woman like her. One who stirred his soul and owned his heart. And he had spent years looking. Decades. As a young man inGermany, before he’d accepted the change that made him what he was today, there had been several women who’d caught his attention. And in the hundred odd years since, there had been many more. But they all paled in comparison to Felicia, the one woman who had stolen his heart. He sat in the dark corner of the bar, his gaze locked on her as she worked. She’d cut her blonde hair short. It barely brushed her shoulders and fell in soft layers his fingers itched to touch. Her skin was still the same creamy, pale color he loved so much. Her eyes still haunted his dreams to this day… eyes the blue of the ocean in the dead of winter, too dark for a woman with such fair coloring, but striking in an exotic way. Mesmerizing. It had been those dark, knowing eyes that had first caught his attention all those years ago.

They still captured him in his dreams at night. Her short black skirt swished around her thighs as she brought customers their drinks. The smile she gave a bar patron reached Jace from across the room, and he couldn’t help the icy jealousy that sliced through him. She didn’t smile forhim . Not anymore. He sighed. He’d done nothing to deserve her smile. He’d only managed to chase it away, at least in the end. She wouldn’t welcome him back with open arms, but maybe she’d accept his reasons once he had a chance to explain himself. A rowdy, drunken fool grabbed for her, giving her a pat on the ass as she walked by.Unacceptable. He gave a silent cheer when Felicia turned, her face screwed up in aggravation, and issued what looked like some kind of a threat.Good girl. She’d always been able to take care of herself. If this had been another time, another place, he would have felt the need to fight for her honor. But times had changed since the days of his youth, in so many ways, and Felicia no longer belonged to him. Breaking the other man’s neck—no matter how much he might enjoy it—wouldn’t impress her. Wouldn’t win her back. And that was exactly what he intended to do. Tracking her down had been easy, once he’d finally realized he didn’t want to spend any more time without her. She hadn’t left the area where they’d met. Had been working as a secretary in a small legal office at the time, living in a small apartment a block away from where she worked. Of course, he’d checked up on her every couple of years. In the time they’d been apart, she’d graduated college, married and divorced, and moved all the way across the country fromConnecticuttoOregonthree years ago. He’d followed, but he hadn’t let her know. He’d watched her silently from dark corners and shadows, hiding himself from her, but there in case she ever needed help. Being the strong woman she was, she’d never needed him. But over time, he’d come to a realization. Heneededher . Tonight, he would let her know. He would finally get the chance, after so many years, to tell her how he felt about her. And, despite his aversion to any kind of groveling, he’d beg her to take him back. The connection between them was still there. It had to be. Something that strong didn’t just fade away. They’d both moved on to live separate lives, but he’d be willing to bet everything he had that she hadn’t been able to forget him, despite the other men she’d seen in their time apart. One of those men was there, in the bar, that night. Jace had felt the man when he first walked in. A quick scan of the room had revealed a blond man sitting at a table against the wall, nursing a beer, his gaze sliding to Felicia every time she walked by. A baseball cap hung low over his eyes, obstructing Jace’s view of his face, but he didn’t need to see the man’s features to know who it was.

Her ex-husband. The only rival he’d ever truly had for Felicia’s attentions. The only man who’d gotten close enough to her heart for her to let him slip a ring on her finger. It incensed Jace that Randall Carson had been able to do that, when Jace himself had been too much of a coward to take that big step. He’d taken a step, a huge one, but in the other direction. He narrowed his eyes at the other man, wishing he had the ability to strike him dead with just a glance. Being a vampire—and not a young one—he had his fair share of gifts, but heightened senses didn’t do him much good from across the room. He smiled, fighting the urge to walk over toCarson’s table and show off his fangs. No doubt that would have the man running in the other direction as fast as his legs would take him. But making a scene wouldn’t solve his problems. It would only create more. Instead, he’d have to do something else—like showCarsonwho Felicia really belonged with. Using a lifelong talent, he opened his mind just enough to let her sense him. His mind slid into a connection with hers almost immediately, effortlessly, as if ten years and many miles hadn’t separated them at all. Longing, love, pain, and regret welled in him, the emotions almost too strong to take. He willed himself to remain calm or he would alert her to his presence too soon. He stayed silent for a few minutes as he reveled in the feel of being with her again. For an endless minute, he let himself float on the soothing tide of what had once been their love. When the warm sensations of their connection started to grow and morph into something stronger, he spoke into her mind. Felicia. Her spine stiffened and she snapped her gaze around the room, hearing him but not yet seeing him. From the dark expression on her face, he guessed she’d want to kill him as soon as she found him. He smiled to himself. He had always loved that independent streak in her. If he had to be honest with himself, he lovedher . He’d never been willing to admit that before, not out loud, not to her, but now everything had changed.He had changed. No longer the selfish ass he’d been when they had first met, he wanted to show her just how good things could be between them now. He wanted to shower her with love, with passion. If he judged by the fire in her eyes and the red splotches on her cheeks, she wanted to shower him with knives and daggers. He lifted his glass to his lips and took a sip of water. He could handle knives and daggers. Coming from the right woman, he could handle just about anything. Look at me, Felicia. I’m right here. The world seemed to turn in slow motion as she pivoted on her heel and looked in his direction. Her eyes widened. Her lips parted, her tongue darting out to wet them, conjuring all kinds of erotic images in his mind.

He knew what she could do with that tongue. Come to me, love. She closed her eyes and drew a breath so deep, he saw her chest rise and fall from across the room. When she snapped her eyes open, none of the fire had faded from their depths. It seemed to have deepened, taking on a life of its own. She set the empty tray on the table next to her, clenched her hands into fists by her side and marched over to the bar. The young, burly bartender put his hand on her arm, and Felicia shook her head. Even though Jace couldn’t make out the words, he caught enough from watching her mouth to know more than a few cuss words escaped those luscious lips. He laughed softly. She hadn’t changed one bit. Still the same wild, stubborn woman he’d fallen in love with so many years ago. He wanted her back. This time for good, and he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

***** Felicia stomped over to the back booth wherehe sat, heat fueling her raging temper with every step. How dare he come in here, after all these years, and act like nothing had happened? How dare he show up out of the blue afterten years and expect to be able to control her through her mind? Hewas the one who had walked out all those years ago.He was the one who’d gotten cold feet and hadn’t been able to deal with the looming idea of commitment. She’d been willing to give up everything for him. Everything. And he’d left her without so much as a goodbye. She’d lost everything that night. It had taken her years to get herself back, but she’d done it. She’d become strong again, independent. She didn’t need a man in her life, especially not a vampire with an inflated ego and more balls than common sense. If he thought he’d just waltz into the bar and she’d drop at his feet… well, she’d show him different. The arrogant ass deserved to be knocked down a few pegs. He was lucky he’d come to her at work, instead of at home. If he’d come to her cottage with his arrogant attitude and his orders, she wouldn’t have been held responsible for her actions. She stopped in front of his table and glared at him, her hands on her hips. “What the hell do you want? Didn’t you see the ‘No Vampires allowed’ sign out front?” He smiled that sexy half-smile that always made her melt. Even now, after so long a separation, Jace Weber had that effect on her. She leaned down and gripped the edge of the table to keep from falling into his lap as a knot of arousal tightened in her stomach and a wave of heat washed over her. God, he was gorgeous.

He hadn’t changed a bit—but then, she really hadn’t expected him to. With his dark brown hair left long enough on top to hang past his eyebrows and eyes the color of melted dark chocolate, he looked exactly as she remembered. Impossibly sexy and good enough to eat. She knew how his eyes darkened to black with desire, and how sexy that silky hair looked damp and plastered to his forehead as he pumped into her… She cleared her throat, desperately trying to bring herself back to the present—a present thatdidn’tinclude Jace. She also knew how it had hurt when he left, scorched her soul and left her empty for so long. She’d washed her hands of him years ago, though at the moment, her body begged to differ. He still affected her as he always had, with a gut-wrenching, primal form of arousal that could reach the boiling point in a matter of minutes. “Again I’ll ask. What thehell are you doing here?” “I needed to see you.” The deep tone of his voice vibrated through her lower body and sent chills up her spine. Sad, really, that just hearing him speak could get her panties damp. “Well, you’ve seen me. Now you can leave. Don’t let the door hit you too hard on the way out.” “Felicia, love.” He spoke the words slowly, sensually, creating an erotic fog that swirled around in her mind and nearly made her forget the pain he’d caused when he’d walked out on her. “I’m sorry for everything. I understand now what a terrible mistake I made in letting you go. I don’t plan to make it again.” “You’re right. You won’t. Youcan’t , because you don’thaveme anymore. I don’t belong to you.” Even as she said the words, a small part of her cried out in agony at the thought of never seeing him again. That little bit of her would always belong to him, no matter how many years passed and how much distance separated them. She fought against the rising surge of emotions—too many to name, too strong to ignore. She couldn’t let him know how he affected her, or else she might not have the strength to hold him off. If she let him back into her life, he’d only bring her more heartache. She had to be strong, for no one else’s sake but her own. “You need to leave now, before I have the bouncers see you out.” “They can’t do anything to me, can’t even touch me, not if I don’t want them to. You know that as well as I do.” He leaned his elbows on the table and stared up at her, his eyes darkening and his jaw set. She gulped. She knew that look well—the look of a predator. A predator who didn’t give up until he’d snared his prey. A chill skittered through her as she realized thatshe was his prey of choice. “I know they can’t hurt you.” Her voice sounded small and weak, foreign to a woman used to independence. “I’m asking you. Begging you, Jace. Please leave before you cause a scene. You’re only here for one night. I’m here five nights every week. I don’t want to lose my job.” “Just give me five minutes of your time, love. That’s all I ask. Aren’t you due for a break?” He reached up and encircled her wrist, giving her a sharp tug so she landed on the bench seat next to him. Her ass hit the hard

wood with a soft smack. “Hey! What was that for?” His low, soft laughter rumbled through her middle. “Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?” Yes, please.“No! I want you to go away and leave me alone.” With his body so close, so accessible should she want to touch him, her heart rate went into overdrive. Her body absorbed the warmth he radiated—not cold at all like the legends of vampires would lead a person to believe. Likeshe’d believed, before she’d met him. Despite his acute senses and what most would deem superhuman strength—plus the nerve-racking ability to speak into people’s minds—he lived in much the same way as ordinary humans did. Though a nocturnal creature, his heart beat the same as hers. His blood pumped through his veins and his lungs drew breath, though instead of food, he needed blood to sustain himself. She shook her head. The hold he had over her wasn’t supernatural. It was something far more simple, more basic than that. “I need you to leave, Jace. I mean it.” “You don’t want me to leave any more than I want to walk away.” He lifted her hand and brushed a kiss across her knuckles, further dampening her panties as well as melting her heart. “I can see it in your eyes. Part of you may want me to leave, but a larger part wants me to stay. Admit it, love. We’re connected. We always will be.” His fingers brushed her thigh, just below the hem of her skirt. Her hand moved to his, covering it to stop him from going any further. “What do you think you’re doing?” A ghost of a smile played across his lips before he leaned in and nuzzled them against her neck. “I know you’re angry, and you have every right to be.” His fingers trailed up another inch, pushing the hem of her skirt along with them. “And I know I have no right to ask you this, but I want another chance. Ineed another chance.” Another inch and they came into contact with the tops of her stockings. He sucked in a breath. “Are you wearing these for someone, Felicia?” “No.” Her voice sounded as far away as her mind felt. Arousal curled in her belly and her nipples tightened against the smooth satin of her bra. “I don’t like nylons. They bind.” Yeah, like he really needs to know that.She cursed herself for her stupidity, both in making such inane comments and allowing him to touch her so intimately.Walk away, Felicia. Walk away and don’t look back, before it gets too late. The words made sense, in some distant part of her mind, but his breath felt warm on her neck and his fingers inched closer and closer to her cunt. But she didn’t push him away, didn’t tell him to stop. Not yet. For one simple reason.

She’d missed him. No matter how many miles, or how many years had separated them, she’d never forgotten what he’d meant to her. And part of her mind, the part that refused to let him go, reveled in the feel of him so close again, touching her like they’d never been apart. And then his fingers brushed the crotch of her panties and she snapped to her senses. She clamped her thighs together, at the same time clamping her fingers around his wrist. “Stop. You can’t do this. Not here. Iwork here.” He froze for a second and she waited, breath held, until he pulled his hand away. A soft curse escaped his lips. “I’m sorry. You can’t know how sorry I am. But I can’t help but touch you.” “Well, learn to help it.” Because if he didn’t stop, she might not remember to tell him to. “I don’t know what you were thinking, coming here like this, but it was a bad idea. You aren’t part of my life anymore, Jace.” He pulled back and looked into her eyes, all hints of humor gone. He opened his mouth and whispered, “I wouldn’t be so sure of that.” She closed her eyes against the sensual onslaught of his presence and his gaze. Damn him, he was right. Why did he have to do this to her now, when she was finally getting her life together? She couldn’t deal with this. “I need some time, Jace. I need to be by myself for a while. You don’t understand. You never did. It was all just a game to you, and I played along for a while. But I’m too old for games now.” She opened her eyes and stood up, pulling out of his grasp. “It was really nice seeing you. Have a safe trip back home, and have a nice life.” “I hunger for you, Felicia.” His words were so soft, she had to strain to hear them. “With the deepest part of my soul, I’m yours. Forever.” Oh God.How could he do this to her, now of all times? A few years ago, she might have fallen right back into his arms. But now, she wouldn’t let herself get close enough. Jace, as well as the asshole she’d married, had shown her men weren’t worth her time. Not even a minute of it. Her mind understood this, but her body rebelled against her new way of thinking. She turned away from him as her stomach clenched tight. She swiped at the tears welling in her eyes with the backs of her fingers. Why did he always have to know the right things to say to get her hooked? Couldn’t he just leave her in peace? She rushed away from his table, not looking back. If she looked, she’d give in to anything he wanted. If she gave in… She hadn’t forced herself to forget him, and what he’d meant to her, for nothing. She would not allow herself to fall for any of Jace’s lies. She’d done it once, and it had gotten her nothing but loneliness.

Chapter Two

Randall hunkered down in his car with the heater cranked on full blast, his gaze glued to the little cottage where Felicia lived. At a little after one in the morning, any normal woman would have been home in bed, sound asleep. But, no. Not Felicia. She chose to work as a waitress in a seedy little bar like some two-bit hussy. Once he had her back where she belonged—in his home and in his bed—she wouldn’t need to stoop to such levels any longer. She flirted with the men, wore clothes too skimpy to be anything but trouble, called attention to herself in ways that were not appropriate to women of her social standing—at least not the social standing she’d had when they’d been married. Her behavior was unbecoming, to say the least, and he never would have allowed it before the divorce. And then there was… him. The man he’d seen her with tonight.That one he couldn’t tolerate spending time with Felicia. Ever. Something would have to be done about him. He had to find some way to get the scumbag out of her life. He’d enjoy taking care of the man himself. It would be a definitepleasure . But the ultimate pleasure, the thing he’d been waiting for, would be Felicia herself. He smiled. He knew just what he would do to her, the traitorous bitch. She thought she could leave. Walk out of his life without a second glance. Cause so much damage to his reputation that he still had yet to repair it. She’d pay for what she’d done to him. She wouldn’t get away with it.Couldn’t be allowed to treat him like a doormat. He would get her back into his life, and she’d spend the rest of her days regretting what she’d tried to do to him. Hadn’t he told her before that she would never truly be free of him? She hadn’t believed him. Had thought moving across the country would solve her problems. But it hadn’t. He smiled to himself. Money could buy him many things, including the top-notch private investigators that had no trouble locating her. By this time next week, he’d have her back inNew Englandwhere she belonged. At least he had the money to do this before his fall from grace with his family. He glanced at the glowing green numbers on the digital clock and let out a rough sigh. Where was she? In the past few days he’d been watching her, she’d always been home byone o’clock. But now, at quarter past, her driveway still remained empty and her house still dark. His heart picked up a fast, erratic rhythm. She was withhim . She had to be. Why else wouldn’t she have come home by now? He tried to push the anger aside, closed his eyes and took deep, calming breaths like his therapist had instructed, but it was no use. The tide of

anger washed over him, leaving him cold. Who did she think she was, running around on him like that? She’d learn, soon enough, that he’d no longer tolerate insolence of any kind from the woman meant to be his. He’d put her in her place. After five more minutes had passed and she still had yet to return home, he knew he could wait no longer. He’d wanted to deliver his gift in person, but he would have to leave it on her doorstep. He’d already been there for a half hour, which was, if he had to admit the truth, much too long. The neighbors would get suspicious, and he didn’t need cops involved. That would cause too much trouble in a time when he didn’t welcome trouble at all. If the law got involved, he would lose everything. Everything he hadn’t already lost. Whatshehadn’t taken from him when she’d filed for divorce—and filed false abuse charges. He let out a rough sigh and shook his head. Lying under all the thoughts of anger and retribution, there were some things that had never gone away. It tore him up inside, wanting to hurt her and at the same time wanting to make her pay for all she’d done to him. Why, after all she’d put him through, could he not stop the love that welled inside for the woman who had torn his life apart? Even after she’d lied to the police and caused him to lose everything he held dear, a small part of him wanted her back. In his twisted mind, no other woman would ever do. And that was all the more reason to make her pay for what she’d done to him. Her callous, hurtful ways had ruined his life. The affection he still felt for her drove his need for revenge, made the pull that much stronger. She would suffer for what she had done. For the rest of her life. The thought of Felicia with other men incensed him. He hated seeing her with that other man in the bar tonight—the one who’d dared put his hand on her like he had every right to touch her. Randall’s stomach had clenched just watching the other man put his hands onhis woman. He wouldn’t have it. Any of it. The man looked familiar… too much like the man he’d seen in many of her old paintings she used to keep in a corner of their attic when they’d been married. The man from her past, the one he himself could never make her forget. The one who had always stood between them, even in the first couple of months when the marriage had been nearly perfect. Now, when he’d finally found her and his chance had seemed to hover on the horizon,he had come back into her life at the same time. He had to stop the other man from stealing Felicia away. Whatever it took, he would do it. A sharp pain shot through his head, from temple to temple. He groaned and let his head flop back against the seat. The headaches were getting worse. Too many more of them and he feared his head would explode. They’d been coming on, without warning, since not long before Felicia left him, but her leaving had made them infinitely worse. Yet another issue in his crumbling life he could blame on her. He pinched the bridge of his nose and took a few deep, slow breaths to ward off the pain. It ebbed a little, enough that he could

function, perform the task he’d come to her house to do. But as soon as he returned to his hotel room, he’d need to take a pain pill, which would knock him out for the rest of the night. “Do it now,” he told himself, his voice husky, strange to his ears. “Do it now before it gets too late.” Before the pain took over and driving became impossible. He got out of his car, rubbing his hands together against the chill in the air, and grabbed the bouquet of roses from the back seat. She’d always loved roses. Always said no man had ever given her as many as he had. He smiled to himself as he brought them up to her front door. When she saw the flowers, she’d know he brought them and realize how much he still cared. She’d come back to him, if he could just convince her that he was the one for her. Not accepting him wouldn’t be an option. He’d try it the nice way first, but if she resisted, he was prepared to do anything to keep her with him. No matter what it took. She was strong, but he was stronger. He’d have his revenge, many times over. And then she would finally admit where she belonged. With him. In his house, his bed. The thought brought a smile to his face. Before he had his revenge, he’d have Felicia. Many, many times. When he finished with her, she’d never think of running away again. He set the roses on the mat by the front door—some inane butterfly scene she’d have to leave behind when she moved back in with him—and walked to his car. “Soon, Felicia,” Randall spoke into the silence of the night. “Soon, you’ll be back in my arms. And this time, you won’t get the chance to run away. Ever.”

***** There were roses on the doorstep. Unease settled in Felicia’s stomach, a little more with every step she took up her front walk. The hollow click of her flats against the brick steps sent frissons of ice up the length of her spine. She stopped on the second to last step and listened into the night. Nothing but silence greeted her. Still, she glanced over her shoulder and scanned the yard. Nothing moved. No shadows danced in the moonlight, no monsters jumped out from around the sides of neighbors’ houses or parked cars. She was safe. Alone. But the flowers hadn’t been there long. She shivered. The delicate petals were red, full—they would have been shriveled and frozen had they been out in the cold for too long. Jace couldn’t be far away. Maybe he stood in a dark corner somewhere watching her from a distance. She narrowed her eyes, resisting the urge to scream out into the air.

“What have you done now, Jace? Do you really think grocery store red roses are going to butter me up? You’re going to have to try a little harder than that.” Anxiety prickled the fine hairs on the back of her neck and her dread turned into a cold ball in her stomach as she bent down to pick up the green tissue-wrapped bouquet. Whyhad Jace bothered? She’d been very clear when she’d told him to leave her alone. Another thought hit her as she stood there looking at the blooms. Maybe he hadn’t left them at all. Roses weren’t Jace’s style. Romance as a whole, seemed to go completely over his head. He spoke pretty words when he wanted to but the attraction she felt for him had nothing to do with gifts or candlelight dinners. It was a raw, basic passion that burned in her whenever he got close. A desire, a need for him to touch her, to touch him in return. With them, gifts had never been necessary. She knew how he felt about her. Didn’t need something silly to reassure her. It had nothing to do with material possessions or tokens of any kind and everything to do with a chemistry that boiled just below the surface, ready to break free at the slightest nudge. He only had to look at her and her panties dampened. Stroke her skin and her mind clouded with lust. He showed her he wanted her—lovedher— through his actions, not with his money. No, Jace would not have left the flowers. He’d shown her earlier tonight what she’d always known to be true. He took a much more direct approach to her heart—through her body and the connection they had forged so long ago. Then who had brought her the gift? It had been months since she’d been out on a date, and years since she’d dated any man more than once or twice. The last man to give her flowers had been… she rolled her eyes toward the sky to think. Randall. Her exhusband had brought her flowers at least once a week during their marriage. Roses, just like these ones. Another chill, this one much stronger than the first, zapped her spine. Back in the time she’d worn his ring, Randall had given her the flowers as peace offerings, thinking they would make her forget all the times he’d put her down, called her stupid, told her she wasn’t worth the air she breathed. But what he hadn’t known was that every time he spoke to her that way, a little of the affection she’d felt for him died until there was nothing left. Eventually, she’d stopped crying and started ignoring his hurtful words, just as she’d ignore his empty, misplaced gestures. She shook her head. The jerk could have saved himself the trouble. She’d have thought he learned his lesson the last time he tried to get back with her, a month after the divorce had been final. When things hadn’t gone as he’d planned, he’d turned to insults. And when the insults hadn’t worked to his satisfaction, it had gotten ugly. His escapade, to put it mildly, had resulted in her calling the police.

She wouldn’t hesitate to do it again, if that’s what it took to keep him away from her. Though she doubted it would come to that. After the mess his arrest had caused in both his personal and professional lives, he wouldn’t be so eager to raise his fist to her again. She let herself into her house and locked the door behind her, dropping her keys on the small table in the foyer on her way to the kitchen. She flipped on the overhead light and set the bouquet on the table, pulling the card from the blooms with the tips of her fingers. She took a deep breath before she slit the top of the little white envelope with her fingernail and pulled out the card. The name ‘Randall’ and a local phone number scrawled in heavy black script glared at her from the pastel print card. So it was him. But why? Her stomach tightened and she swallowed against the ice forming in her throat.Not now. Not in the middle of everything else. Why Jace and Randall in the same night? What had she done to deserve this? Her heart, locked away for so long behind its high protective walls, wouldn’t be able to take this. She didn’t want it, didn’t need it. For years she’d done all she could to get past the horrible times in her life, and she’d made it. It had taken time to heal the pain. A lot of time, and a lot of distance from everything she’d ever known. The last thing she needed was to fight against emotions better left under lock and key. She wouldn’t let Randall control her again, just as she wouldn’t let Jace back into her heart. She dumped the card, along with the bouquet, into the trash can near the back door, putting the entire situation out of her mind.

***** Jace stood in the shadows across the street from Felicia’s little house, his back against the post of a streetlight with a broken bulb, his hands shoved in the pockets of his leather jacket. The biting wind chilled him to the bone and turned his blood to ice in his veins. On nights like this, he cursed the heightened senses that made him feel everything to such an extreme degree. He’d give anything to be inside with Felicia, toasty and warm in her house. Maybe in her bed. His cock hardened at just the thought, but he shook his head. She’d only turn him away if he asked. He wouldn’t even try to break into her mind to convince her. It wouldn’t be worth the trouble in the end, and wouldn’t earn him her forgiveness. But the idea tempted him. Sorely. His breath crystallized into tiny droplets of fog, swirling in front of him like ghosts in the deep of night. The promise of a late fall storm hung heavy in the air, threatening snow. Small puddles on the sidewalk left over from the morning’s rain had turned to ice, as cold and black as his mood. Tonight hadn’t gone at all how he’d planned, from start to finish. Years ago, she might have accepted him back into her life without question. But time had strengthened her, hardened her heart, and it would take a lot more effort on his part to convince

her to give him another chance. He should walk away, give up for the night and drive back to his apartment, but something nagged at his mind and wouldn’t let him go. Something wasn’t right. She needed him, but to his aggravation, it had nothing to do with her love for him and everything to do with the man he’d spied in the bar earlier that night. He pulled his pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, shook one free, and cupped his palm to protect the lighter flame from the wind as he lit the cigarette. He took a deep drag, letting the pungent aroma fill his lungs, wishing it helped heal the hole in his heart. What a mess he’d made of her life. Of both their lives. He’d only wanted her to be happy. To move on, forget about him and meet a human man who could share her life. Someone to come home to every night, waiting for her in her quaint little house in her quaint little neighborhood after a long evening at work. Someone to share her bed, to warm her on the cold, dark nights when she didn’t deserve to be so alone. The thought made red-hot anger tear through his gut. Though he’d wanted nothing more than her happiness, it had killed him to stand by and watch her with the few men she chose to let into her life. Most lasted a few days, weeks at the most. All except the one she married. But even he couldn’t satisfy her. Not in the end. Not the way Jace had. She wouldn’t find anyone to replace him. He knew that now, as surely as he knew he’d find no woman who could compare to her. He’d spent ten years—an eternity for most humans, but nothing more than a blink of an eye for him—waiting for her to find true happiness. It had taken him that long to realize she wouldn’t find it. Hecould make her happy. If he could convince her to give him another chance. He’d seen the longing in her eyes earlier that evening when he’d surprised her at work. He’d seen the love there, buried under years of hurt and anguish. She wanted him still,loved him still, even if she refused to admit it. No other man would ever make her feel the way he could, just as no other woman would ever do for him. He knew, somewhere deep inside, she was as alone as he was. The certainty of it attached itself to his heart and burrowed into his soul. But her ex-husband showing up at the same time could turn into a problem if he didn’t take care of it quickly. He sensed a presence surrounding the house, tight, almost suffocating in nature. Someone had been there. Another man. And his intentions hadn’t been entirely good. He took another drag from the cigarette and blew out a puff of smoke. He had a feeling he knew who the interloper was. Randall Carson. It would be too much of a coincidence for yet another man from her past to suddenly come back into her life. He didn’t like him hanging around. Not one bit. The man could mean

serious trouble for Felicia. His state of mind couldn’t be described as secure. Not by a long shot. Though not dangerous at present, it would take one small shove to send the man over the edge into a hurtful, violent act. An act that could possibly cause Felicia a lot of harm. So he stood in the dark, watched and waited. Protected, though she wouldn’t appreciate the gesture if she found out. Jace slumped hard against the streetlight post, the breath sucked from his lungs and his head spinning. His powers didn’t normally extend to precognitive abilities, but the certainty of the danger to her hit him with the force of a truck, nearly bringing him to his knees. If he didn’t watch over her, find a way to flush out and get rid of the man chasing her, something terrible would happen. Something that would change both of their lives forever. There was no way he would let the other man harm one inch of Felicia’s delicate body. Hewould protect her. He would see to it that she was safe. Forever. No matter what it took. Even if it took him the rest of his life, he’d make things right. He’d make her his again, take her away from the danger. He’d have to. Her life might very well depend on it. He’d made many mistakes in the past, some worse than others, but all of them paled in comparison to the way he’d left Felicia. She deserved more. Better than him. He’d only wanted to do what was right for her. But now, he could no longer hold back his feelings. He needed her. Years ago, he would have thought begging to be beneath him. Now things had changed. Now he’d do anything to make her see that they were made for each other. Soul mates, if the legends were to be believed. He never used to buy into what he’d thought of as silly fantasies. Now he knew different. A light flickered on in the upstairs of her cottage and she appeared by the window. He stilled and waited, his nerves on edge. He didn’t need her to catch him spying on her now, not when he’d made a small amount of progress in getting her to trust him again. If she knew he’d been there all along, watching from the shadows, she’d never forgive him. He’d be doomed to spend his life—a virtual eternity—without her. The thought did nothing to settle the raging nerves twisting his stomach. Her gaze fell on the street below before she glanced over her shoulder. Her blonde waves, illuminated by the lights in the room behind her, looked like a halo circling her head. The vision fit to perfection. His angel. His love. His life. He narrowed his eyes. He would share her with no other man. Though he’d fed not long ago, the cold, bagged blood he’d grown accustomed to had done nothing to satisfy his renewed hunger. A hunger only the woman in the window could assuage. How long would it be before he had a chance to taste the rich warmth of her blood again? Days? Weeks? He’d been waiting years. Didn’t want to wait any longer. His fangs burned in his gums, ready to elongate—to sink into the soft flesh of

her neck. He tamped the urge down. Barely. She pulled down the shade, casting the window into darkness. The same cold, inky darkness shrouded his heart at the same moment. He should be there with her. Tonight, and every night after. Lying with her between the soft sheets, his body sliding over hers as he slid his cock into her waiting cunt. Pounded himself into her as he had so many times before. His cock tightened painfully against his jeans. What he wouldn’t give to be able to sink into her, to alleviate some of the incredible pressure. To slake years’ worth of pent-up lust and desire in one long, intense night. He lifted the cigarette to his lips and took a last long drag before crushing it out on the lamppost. What would it take to convince her? What would it take for him to get her back? He was a patient man, but patience only went so far and his was about to snap. An idea formed in his head, one so brilliant, he should have thought of it sooner. He knew the way to get her back. It had been staring him in the face from the second she’d set eyes on him in the bar. Maybe even before that. In sleep, she’d be more open to suggestion than any other time. She’d welcome him into her mind, into her life in a way she’d never allow while she was awake. While she slept, he would have his chance. Very soon, he would have the perfect opportunity. He’d be a fool not to take it. In just a little time, she’d be sound asleep. He smiled to himself.Exactly how he wanted her. Felicia belonged to him, and always would. It was well past time that he showed her exactly where she belonged. Tonight, he’d re-stake his claim after much too long an absence. Once she’d given her body to him, as fully and completely as she always had, he’d work on reclaiming her heart.

Chapter Three

Felicia tossed and turned in her bed, hovering in the turbulent void between sleep and awakening. Sweat soaked her nightshirt. Lust and heartache knotted her insides, her mind unable to banish images of Jace from its deepest, most secret recesses. Tangled in her sheets, she fought to break free from his spell. It was no use. When he’d walked back into her life, he’d opened a part of her she’d long forgotten—or at least tried to. A wanton, needy part that cried out for the release only Jace’s body could provide. In the ten years since they’d been apart, no other man had been able to coax such a strong arousal out of her. She’d been accused of being dull, frigid, even glacial on the rare occasion. She’d heard the comments so often, she’d started to believe them, given up on dating and men and sex. Her orgasms had become selfservice, and even then, they’d been merely adequate. No one’s touch, not even her own, could compare to her first lover. The man who had ruined her for all other men. She’d begun to think of sex in the same way she thought of her art she’d loved so much. It had become something she did in the past. When Jace had walked out, he’d sucked all the enjoyment out of her life. For a long time, too long, she’d been an empty shell, flitting along the edges of life. Standing outside a window, looking in on the rest of the world. She’d come back from that desolate point, gotten her life together. Started to feel human again. Jace had chosen the wrong time to come back into her life. He’d waited too long. She’d changed, gotten so much stronger than she’d been. She finally had the strength to lock him out of her heart. But did she want to? She rolled over and punched the pillow under her head. Yes. Of course she wanted to keep him out of her life. He’d had his chance with her, and he’d made his choice. His leaving had shattered her into thousands of pieces. But she’d pulled herself together, forged the pieces back together in fire, and nothing would ever break her apart again. Not pain or heartache. Not Randall. Not even Jace. She knew neither man would give up easily, but she’d learned to be just as strong, just as stubborn. If she chose to commit to a man again, it wouldn’t be either of them. Jace had walked out on her, and what Randall had done had been ten times worse. If either of them thought to win her back with pretty words or empty gestures, they’d lost their minds. But it was different with Jace. Yes. Different because he had a certain aura around him that drew her like a moth to a flame. Whether is was purely physical chemistry or something unique to vampires, she’d never been able to figure out, but she

hadn’t been able to stay away from him after the first time they’d met. But she’d been young and stupid—and starved for attention—then. Now she had neither youth nor ignorance to fall back on, and with Jace and Randall suddenly back in her life, she couldn’t classify herself as attention-starved. Not even close. She sighed. She’d come to prefer being alone over the company of egomaniacal men who thought they could control her by twisting her emotions. So how was she supposed to get rid of them? Randall would be easy. She had no issues telling him to take a hike. She wasn’t interested in anything he had to offer. But Jace… He wouldn’t be so simple to push aside. They had a past. More than she’d had with Randall. More than Jace had even understood at the time. She’d been prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for him. In the end, she had. And he hadn’t even known. A tear formed in the corner of her eye, but she swiped it aside. Now wasn’t the time for tears. It was the time for iron strength and unwavering willpower. If Jace knew what had happened to her all those years ago, just after he left, he’d never want to leave her again. He couldn’t find out. Ever. She closed her eyes and tried to will her body back to sleep. The minutes passed like hours, each of them an eternity in her mind. A long-forgotten ache clutched her belly, turned her stomach inside out. Why couldn’t he have just left her alone? She didn’t need him. Didn’t need anyone. She’d rather spend the rest of her life alone than risk that kind of heartache again. Open your eyes, love. I’m here. She snapped her eyes open and bolted upright in bed at the sound of Jace’s voice in her mind. Her heart beat a frantic rhythm against the wall of her chest as she searched the dark corners and shadows. She saw nothing. The room was empty. Her fingers swiped across her clammy forehead and she let out a shaky laugh. All her twisted thoughts, all the stress seeing him again had put her through, must have her hallucinating. He was a vampire, not a magician. There was no way he’d be able to be in her head, and not in her room. And unless he’d broken into her house, he couldn’t be in her room, either. It’s entirely possible, and you know it. She tried to shake off the voice of reason chirping in her head, but it wouldn’t go away. Yes, she knew he had powers beyond what most would consider the normal range, even for his kind. He’d always been able to get inside her head, to speak to her without words. It sent a chill up her spine to think he’d broken into her mind. She tried to slam mental barriers into place, but it was too late. She couldn’t kick him out of her head any more than she could lay back down and fall asleep. The thought sent a jolt of icy anxiety through her gut, one she tried to pass off as fatigue-induced hallucinations.

But lack of sleep had nothing to do with her current state of unease. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she felt a foreign presence in the air. She couldn’t describe how she knew, but sheknew he was there. Watching. Waiting. She wrapped her arms around her middle to ward off the sudden chill.Oh God. Not now. Could she turn him away, with their minds locked in such a strange, intimate embrace? She sucked in a breath to steady her wild pulse. “Jace?” I’m here. “Where are you? I can’t see you.” He didn’t reply, yet warmth spread from her stomach out to her limbs, tingling as it went. A nervous laugh bubbled up from her throat. It had to be a dream. There was no other explanation for it, other than maybe she’d lost her mind. He might have been able to break into her mind, but he couldn’t control her body’s physical reactions. And he’d never before spoken into her head without being within seeing distance. She flopped back on her pillow and closed her eyes, even though she knew there’d be no more sleep for her that night. It had to be stress. The stress of Jace surprising her at work caused her to imagine hearing him— feelinghim. She hadn’t really heard his voice, because that would be impossible. And she certainly hadn’t felt him anywhere near her.He wasn’t in the room. She tried to ignore the little voice that piped in again, telling her that with Jace, anything was possible. “Go away!” She tossed her spare pillow across the room. It hit the closet door with a soft thump and slid to the floor. She groaned as she stared at the fallen pillow. The action did nothing to ease the tension inside her. It only made her stomach tighten into knots and her head ache. What would it take to finally be free of him? She’d do anything, anything at all to finally have him out of her life, once and for all. You don’t mean that, Felicia. She stilled, listening into the silence for clues to his whereabouts. She heard nothing beyond the hollow tick of the old-fashioned alarm clock on the dresser and the occasional car passing on the quiet street two stories below. Admit that you want me, love, he continued in the silence.Admit that you don’t want me to go away. “Awfully cocky, huh?” She snorted. “What makes you think I want you, after what you did? Contrary to what you may believe, I’m not that stupid. Get out of my head, Jace. Get out of my life.” I’m afraid it isn’t nearly as simple as that. She felt him again, even stronger than before. She felt him with her heart, her mind, and with every fiber of her soul. His presence filled the room as if he perched on the edge of her mattress, his hands hovering over her

body, her skin absorbing the heat from his. Torn between screaming again for him to leave her alone and begging him to show himself, she balled her hands into fists and clamped her eyes shut. Whatdid she want? Did he really think he knew her mind better than she did? Did he think he could come back, after all these years, and everything would be okay? Not likely. She wasn’t as accepting as she’d been ten years ago. Time had taught her too many hard lessons. If he wanted a chance with her—though she still had yet to decide if he even deserved one—he’d have to work a little harder than this. “I’ve got news for you. Nothing will ever again be the way it used to be. I’ve changed. A lot. I’m no longer the weak girl you can come in and seduce into hanging on your every word. It isn’t going to work that way this time, Jace. Not like before.” His laughter rumbled through the room—and through her core—like thunder on a stormy summer night. I wouldn’t expect anything different, love. You were never a weak woman. I would hate to have you disappoint me with anything but strength now. Yeah, right. She hadn’t been weak? She snorted. She may not have been passive, but she hadn’t exactly played hard to get, either. “Give me a break. I might have fallen into your arms without so much as a push before, but it isn’t going to happen like that this time.” We’ll see. She had no time to question his bold statement. The air in the room changed, became almost electric. Her skin prickled, her nipples beaded, and her sex soaked with her juices. Little jolts of arousal danced across her skin. A wave of sensual heat washed over her and she snapped her eyes open. Invisible hands touched her, all over her body, but she saw no one in the room. Her pulse raced, her breath caught in her throat. “Jace?” Feel me, love. I’m with you, and I’m not leaving. I will have you tonight. The caresses grew stronger, rougher and bolder. They raked her body and tugged at the thin nightshirt covering her skin. Thumbs brushed her nipples. Fingers squeezed and kneaded her breasts. Her breath escaped on a soft moan and she shifted on the mattress, at the same time trying to get closer and further away from his invisible touch. “Jace,please .” She grimaced at the needy sound of the words, not telling him to stop but begging him to continue. To show himself and pick up where they left off all those years ago. The covers flew from her body. Unseen hands traveled up her legs, gripping the hem of her short nightshirt. The material lifted from her skin and tore in half down the middle, exposing her otherwise naked body to the cool night air. Goose bumps rose on her flesh and she shivered, more from the strange, shimmering arousal the actions caused than the cold. The whole situation felt strange. Surreal. Her phantom lover. He’d come to her like this once before, in the

early days of their relationship. She’d been young and inexperienced at the time, and had written it off as a dream. But now, the truth slammed its cold fist into her stomach and knocked the wind from her. She knew him better than she’d known any man, but she didn’t know him at all. The scope of his power amazed her. Frightened her. Aroused her to an unbearable level as it discomforted her. She whimpered. “Jace, please. Show yourself.” He didn’t respond—at least, not with his voice. Her legs were spread apart and what felt like dozens of fingers trailed their way up the insides of her thighs. Stroking, caressing, whispers of touch that send chills shooting through her and drenched her bare pussy even more with her juices. He touched her everywhere but where she needed him. The soft skin of her inner thighs, stroking up and down from the backs of her knees, teasing the flesh of her abdomen, but ignoring her weeping pussy until she cried out with the agony and the pleasure. When the fingers finally reached her waiting vulva and brushed across her soaked, sensitive skin, she cried out. Her inner muscles fluttered and her hands clenched into fists. “Please.” “What is it you want, love?” He spoke the words into the room this time, not just in her mind. But still, she was alone. The thought was both disconcerting and exciting. She wanted so much… so, so much. Her nipples hardened to stiff peaks, aching for his lips. Every muscle in her body tensed, waiting to see him, waiting for his touch. The real touch of his hands, not the phantom caresses that had brought her to such a state. Her fingers itched to run down his back, to tangle in his hair and guide his head to her waiting pussy. But he insisted on hiding, on keeping her from what would make both of them very happy. “I want… ” Her voice trailed off as the maddening caresses grew stronger, more insistent. “I want you. I need you. Not this… not these games. The real you, and nothing else.Where are you? ” I’m everywhere.Fingers lightly pinched her peaked nipples, rolling them until she arched her back, thrusting her breasts higher into his touch. Something warm and wet trailed lower and lower down her abdomen, finally settling between her thighs. Lips kissed every inch of her body as the tongue invaded her cunt, stroking in a long, languorous rhythm that had her panting and crying out his name. He was right. He was everywhere, all at once. She might die from the sheer pleasure of what felt like a thousand hands, a thousand tongues. She hadn’t a clue how he did it, but at the moment, she was too far gone to question anything. His tongue delved deeper inside her with a hard, short thrust that lifted her hips off the bed. At the same time, a finger pressed down on her clit, circling the nub of nerves with maddening slowness. More phantom mouths closed over her nipples, wrapping them in moist warmth, as even more lips settled against the sensitive skin of her neck.

A moan stuck in her throat. It was all so much,too much to take. Too many sensations. Her mind threatened to shut down, getting closer and closer to the melting point the more he touched her. She dangled on the precipice of climax, seconds away from tumbling over, when the light on her nightstand snapped on and all the touching and caressing stopped. Every nerve she possessed screamed in protest. She cried out and reached for him, grasping nothing but air. “Jace!” Do you want me, love?“Do you need me?” “You know I do.” Her gaze darted around the room, trying to catch some sign of him, but still he remained stubbornly unseen. “Please, Jace. I’ll die if I don’t get you inside me.Now. ” His deep chuckle once again filled the room, but this time, his voice held a strained, husky edge. “I highly doubt it. Look at me, love.” And then he stepped from the shadowy corner of the room and walked over to the bed, standing over her in all his naked glory. His erect cock stood straight out from his body, a drop of fluid glistening at the tip. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, wanting to lick the pre-cum from his skin, to taste the salty, familiar flavor of him. She glanced up just in time to see his eyes darken. “Do you see how much I want you, love?” She tried to smile, but her muscles were wound too tight. Instead, she reached out a hand to him. “Yes. I see. Please, come here.” “I intend to have you, Felicia. You won’t tell me no.” This time, a small smile did flit across her lips. His words were strong, tough, but she understood the meaning behind them. He was scared she’d turn him away as she had earlier in the bar. Afraid she’d tell him to leave. But she had no intentions of kicking him out. Not until they did something to appease the ache that had settled into her pussy the second she’d heard him speak into her mind. “I have no plans to tell you no.” Though she might regret it in the morning when, inevitably, she woke up alone. He wouldn’t stay. Couldn’t, due to the sunrise. Her heart clenched at the thought, but she brushed her emotions aside. Tonight wasn’t about feelings, or love, or even attachment. It was about sex. Great sex— something she’d had far too little of since he’d walked out of her life. He’d come to her, offered her a way to stop the ache inside, even if it was just for a little while. She’d be a fool to turn down an aroused man who promised a night like one she hadn’t had in way too long to remember. He stepped closer, close enough that she could reach out and touch him. Without thinking, she leaned forward and licked the drop of silky fluid from the engorged purple head of his cock. Her eyelids slid closed and she moaned with the familiar taste. She’d missed him in so many ways. She opened her mouth to draw

him inside, but he shook his head. “Not now. I have other plans for you tonight.” She snapped her eyes open and frowned at him. “Plans? What kind of plans?” “You’ll see.” Without warning, he pulled her out of bed and walked her across the room. Her legs shook with her arousal, threatening to give out. What did he have in mind? An anxious shudder ran down the length of her spine. She stumbled, but he held her up as he hurried her along. He stopped her in front of the window, lifting the shade and placing one of her hands on either side of the window frame at shoulder level. “What are you doing?” A chill sliced through her as she looked down on the dark street below. Her neighborhood wasn’t a busy one, but they still had a slight chance of someone driving by, even at this time of night. And she had her fair share of nosy neighbors. Neighbors she wouldn’t be able to face again should any of them catch a glimpse of her now. “Anyone could see us here.” He pressed a kiss to her shoulder and she felt his smile against her skin. “I know,” he whispered into her ear, his hot breath tickling the tender flesh. Another wave of arousal washed over her and she moaned despite the discomfort welling low in her stomach. “Trust me, love.” He licked the tender skin just below her ear, sending a quiver through her pussy. “This will be well worth it. It will add a measure of excitement you’ve never felt before.” He lifted her leg and placed her foot on the windowsill. She gulped. The windows in her bedroom were large and low enough that anyone passing by would see… everything.No. She’d been willing to accept him into her bed, but she wouldn’t let him do this. It was so far out of her comfort zone that it made her heart pound against her rib cage and her pulse rush in her ears. Her sweaty palms started to slip down the wooden window frame and she had to force them to stay in place. “Jace, you need to stop this. Now.” He trailed his hand down her stomach until he cupped her mound in his palm. His finger found her clit and rolled it in slow circles, sending little shocks of pleasure through her. Her reservations faded, replaced with an intense lust—along with an intense desire to please him, to trust him to do whatever he wanted to her. He’d never forced her into something she hadn’t wanted to do before, and though they’d experimented with a few things she wouldn’t have otherwise considered, she always enjoyed herself. He seemed to read her thoughts, to sense her hesitation. “Let go, Felicia. I promise this will be good. So good, if you just trust me.” She dropped her head back against his shoulder, allowing him free rein of her body. He took it, one hand stroking her pussy while the other came to her breasts to pluck and roll her nipples. He asked a lot of her.Trust me. She’d trusted him before, and where had it gotten her? Nothing but pain and heartbreak. But she’d been young then, and he’d been… not ready to settle down. They’d wanted different

things. Now she had no interest in anything permanent. But what harm could there be in indulging in her fantasies? She’d be lying to herself if she said she’d never thought about him, about how good it had been between them. She sighed. If she hadn’t known better, she’d swear he was planting suggestions in her mind. But the conflict came from within her. Part of her wanting him and what he could offer her—just for the night. Another part of her begging her to push him away, to tell him he had no right to even ask to come back into her life. But he slid a finger into her cunt and all reason fled. He curved the finger and stroked in and out of her, her slick flesh welcoming his invasion. His erection pressed against her back, reminding her that she wasn’t the only one in desperate need of a little relief. Within seconds, he’d brought her back to full arousal, her cunt muscles clenching around his fingers and her nipples so hard, they tingled. She dug her nails into the painted window frame and dropped her head to her chest, her breaths coming in harsh pants. “Do you really want me to stop?” he asked, his tone amused as much as aroused. She had to be honest with herself. As uncomfortable as the situation made her, it aroused her even more. At that point, she’d do anything to end the delicious ache inside her, even if it meant surrendering her body to a man who would tear out her heart. She was strong. Independent. She could let him take her body and not give him her soul. She’d never make that mistake again, but if he left her now, she might jump out the window to end the sensual agony. “No. Please don’t stop.” “Good.” He nipped gently at her shoulder blade and she felt the tips of his teeth graze her skin.Fangs. Her vampire lover. She waited for the sharp pinch of his fangs piercing her skin, the sensual, heated rush of his lips suckling her neck. Craved the feeling of sexual power she got from his feedings. It was like nothing she’d ever felt, and it had been way too long since he’d given her the pleasure. Jace had always been able to draw her out of her comfort zone, make her feel every sensation in the extreme. He made her feel things she’d never known she wanted to feel. Made her forget every other man she’d cared about. At this moment, in this place and time, nothing existed but Jace. A car passed on the street below, its headlights illuminating the darkness of night, and she wondered if the driver had seen the way Jace touched her. It gave her a little thrill to think they had. At the same time, a sliver of unease shimmied down her spine and she stiffened. Jace, seeming to sense her hesitation again, increased the pressure of his touch. She arched her hips into his fingers, the car forgotten as he brought her closer and closer to sweet release. “More.” “Whatever the lady wants.” He bit down on the back of her shoulder in earnest. Arousal quickly followed the sharp sting, her juices gushing in her sex and dripping down her thighs. Her eyelids drifted closed. She felt

like she might come at any second, but Jace held her back from what she really wanted. What she needed. He pushed another finger into her hot channel to join the first. “You’re so wet. Drenched. Are you wet for me, or would any man do?” “You. Just you.” She moaned as he curled his fingers and stroked slowly, a maddening touch against the soft pillow of her G-spot. Light exploded behind her eyes and a quiver raced through her inner muscles. “It’s always been you. No one else would… ” Her voice trailed off on another moan as talking became impossible and her body’s responses took over. “Good. That’s the way it should be. The way it willalways be.” He pressed his front against her back, his rock-hard cock sliding between her ass cheeks to come to rest against her slit. He thrust his hips a few times and his cock brushed her pussy. “I want you now, Felicia. I don’t want to wait another second.” With that, he drew his fingers away and replaced them with his cock. The sensation of him stretching her, filling her cunt with an intense, burning pleasure that bordered on pain, had her knees buckling as she cried out in sheer bliss. He put his hands on her hips to steady her as he thrust hard into her. She bit back the scream threatening to erupt from her throat. It had been so long—too long—since she’d felt this good. Would she ever find another man who could do to her the things Jace did, make her feel the way he did? Push her to the edge of the extreme, nudge her over the cliff? She doubted it. She’d never felt like being adventurous with anyone but him. Another car came down the road, but didn’t pass like the first one had. The driver slowed the vehicle to a crawl before pulling over to the side of the road. The hair on the back of her neck prickled. “Jace, someone is watching us.” “I can see them, Felicia. It’s two people, a man and a woman.” Glad she didn’t have Jace’s vampiric night vision, she closed her eyes and tried to pretend they weren’t there. It was one thing to think someonemight see them, but something completely different to have a couple watching as Jace thrust so deep inside her. She shook her head to ward off the unease creeping through her mind, dampening her arousal, but at the same time, heightening it in an unexpected manner. She dug her nails into Jace’s arms. “Please, can we take this to the bed?” Jace showed no signs of stopping. Instead, his thrusts grew harder, shorter. Fiercer. He grunted as he rammed into her, pressing her even closer to the cold glass. “No, love. They’re enjoying this too much. Do you think the man is growing hard watching me pound into you? Is the woman’s pussy wet with arousal, thinking of her man doing to her what I’m doing to you?” She whimpered, his words arousing her more than she cared to admit. “Jace.” She meant the word as a protest, but it sounded more like a moan of agreement. When his fingers again brushed her clit, a jolt of

electricity snapped through her. Her body thrummed, her blood pumped so loud, she heard nothing past its rushing in her ears. Her muscles tightened, her body poised on the edge of what promised to be a fierce, intense climax that would break her into millions of pieces. She had no time to prepare as she hurtled over the edge. She exploded, her inner muscles contracting tightly around him, pulling him deeper. He groaned, his mouth moving back to the small wound on her shoulder as he suckled her hard, drawing her skin—and her blood—deep inside the moist recesses of his mouth. The sensation sent another furious climax through her, right on top of the first. She could do nothing but hang onto his arms and ride out the sensual waves threatening to tear her from the anchor of her sanity and pull her into a tidal wave of need and lust. “You’re amazing,” Jace whispered in her ear. From the taut, strained tone of his voice, she knew he was close to his own release. Her cunt, clenching and unclenching around his cock, welcomed it. He pressed his thumb to her clit, drawing another shudder out of her. She bucked against him, felt him stiffen behind her, pumping his climax deep within her. As her body writhed in aftershocks, the car sped away. Jace leaned in, pressing his mouth to her ear. “I bet they’re going home to fuck.” She whimpered, his words causing yet another aftershock to race through her, milking a few last shudders from her body before her muscles went limp. She sunk down a little, her legs refusing to support her much longer. “Jace,” she whispered. “I need to sit down.” He disengaged himself from her and turned her around, pulling her tight against him. “I love you, Felicia. You know that, don’t you?” “Of course I do.” She mumbled the words, not able to manage much more. Her voice felt thick in her throat, her mouth Sahara-dry. The world grew fuzzy and tilted on its axis. Dizziness overtook her as vibrant colors swam past her eyes. One minute she was standing in Jace’s warm embrace, the next lying down… She bolted upright in bed, her body soaked with sweat. The salty scent of her arousal, of sweat and sex, assaulted her senses. She drew deep, gasping breaths and glanced around the room. No sign of Jace anywhere. It had all been a dream. Every muscle in her body ached, and her sex tingled. How could a dream seem so real? She’dfeltJace with her, around her, inside her. Her mind wanted to cry, wanted to find him and hold him, never let him go. How could it have felt so real, when it had been nothing but the product of her overactive, and overstressed, imagination?

She scanned the room, taking in the pillow against the closet door and the moonlight filtering in through the uncovered window. Her gaze fell on something lying on the carpet. Fabric. She sucked in a breath. The nightgown she’d been wearing when she went to bed. The one Jace had torn off her in her dream. Not a dream.It couldn’t be. She scooted to the edge of the bed and pushed herself to a standing position. Her legs shook and she had to force them to walk across the carpet. Only when she moved did she feel the warm, sticky trickle run down her inner thigh. She didn’t need to touch it to know what it was—or to know that she hadn’t dreamed the night’s activities at all.

***** Felicia stepped from the shower and dried herself with a fluffy blue towel, letting the soft terrycloth caress her skin. The light touch brought to mind Jace’s hands on her body, his lips on hers, his tongue doing things to her she’d only dreamed about for the past ten years. A shiver racked her body, more from the memories than the chill in the damp air. Her legs, still rubbery from countless orgasms even though nearly an hour had passed, refused to hold her up any longer and she sank to the floor. What had Jace done? What hadshe done? Giddiness welled up in her, fighting against the guilt rising in her gut. Why should she feel guilty for taking advantage of the mutual chemistry that had always sparked between them? She was an adult, a grown woman with needs and emotions and sense enough to stop if it got too complicated. What would it hurt to let him into her bed, just for a little while? It didn’t mean she had to let him back into her heart. She shook her head. If only it were as simple as that. Her hand flew to cover her lower abdomen and a ghost of the pain she’d felt for so long slashed through her elation. It had been years since she’d thought about the child she’d lost on anything more than a cursory level. She’d put that part of her past behind her, packed it in a box and stuffed it into the deepest corner of her mind. Now it all came rushing back, a tidal wave washing over her, breaking her loose from shore, tossing her into the tumultuous ocean of memories better left forgotten. Her mind flew to the small packet of birth control pills stored in the medicine cabinet. Why hadn’t she been so careful ten years ago? When he’d confessed to being a vampire, he hadn’t warned her that not all of the legends were true. Many parts of his body worked just as a human’s did. But she hadn’t known that, had assumed that there would be no chance of conceiving a child.

She’d been wrong. What would their child be like, had she not lost it? Would it have been a girl with blonde hair and blue eyes? A boy with his father’s dark looks and even darker charm? A child with Jace’s talents? The ability to break into the minds of others and speak, plant suggestions? A vampire or a human—or maybe some cross between the two? She shook her head, refusing to acknowledgethatidea. It wouldn’t have mattered what kind of child their union had created. She would have loved her baby, vampire or human, psychic or not. She would have loved the child because it would be hers. Hers and Jace’s. A child born out of an intense, overwhelming love that could never truly be torn apart. A single tear burned a hot path down her cheek. She swiped it away, cursing her sudden weakness. How long had it been since she’d allowed herself to cry? She couldn’t remember the last time. Maybe it had beentoo long. Maybe now, more than ever, she needed to let her emotions out. Let herself feel everything inside she’d tried for so many years to ignore. The child would have been nearly ten years old. Going to school, playing with friends, keeping her company on those lonely Saturday nights. Her life would have been so different if the car accident hadn’t caused her to miscarry. She might never have moved away from home, never have married a man she hadn’t loved. A man who didn’t love her, either, but thought of her as a trophy to put on a shelf. So many mistakes, so many heartbreaks… if Jace hadn’t come back, she would have been able to go on with her life as she had been, leaving her past behind as she forged a new path for herself without the things that used to mean the most. Another tear trailed down her cheek, soon followed by many more. Unable to stop the sobs racking her body, she rode along on the waves of hurt and pain, rolling with them, letting them out and pulling them back in to become part of her again. The years of tears and anguish had helped shape her into the strong woman she’d become. She wouldn’t sink back into the well of despair she’d slipped into after losing the baby. She’d remain strong, unyielding in the face of agonizing memories, taking the power from them to strengthen her resolve of steel. This would pass. Shewould survive. She always did. The pain began to fade to a dull throb. Ten years had passed. It still wrenched her heart, but it no longer controlled her life.She controlled her life, her choices, her destiny. Not the memories of what could have been, the memories of a child not meant to be of this world. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, releasing her inner turmoil along with the rush of air. Something broke inside her then, one of the walls she’d built so long ago to keep from getting hurt again. She

smiled, something she did only on rare occasions, and pushed herself up from the floor. Jace’s return might not have been such a bad thing, after all. She hadn’t felt so light in years. A forgotten urge filled her, pulsing deep inside her, calling to her from the hidden recesses of her heart. The time had come. She rushed into the bedroom and threw a big, worn t-shirt over her head. For the first time in as long as she could remember, her fingers shook as inspiration filled her head to bursting. Her smile widened to a grin as she dug in the closet for the supplies she’d need. Finding everything right where she’d left it, in the same box it had been packed in for years, she piled the supplies in her arms and hurried to the kitchen to set up. Ten minutes later, she stood in the middle of her kitchen floor and did something she hadn’t been able to do, no matter how much she’d tried to force herself, since Jace had walked out. Something she’d lost along with her first love and the child she’d wanted so desperately to hold in her arms. She painted.

Chapter Four

Randall stormed through the door of his hotel room. The door slammed against the wall and bounced back toward him. He shoved past it, stalked into the room, and slammed it closed. His keys landed on the small, round table next to the bed just before his fist hit the wall. Who did she think she was, running around with that other man? He’d driven past her house, just to make sure she’d made it home okay, and what he’d seen had nearly scorched his eyelids. She’d been naked, in the window, of all places, withhim . A single room light had been on, illuminating their activities for the world to see. Broadcasting their… debauchery for anyone who might happen to drive by. His stomach roiled and his head pounded. How dare she? Didn’t she realize that behaving like that would ruin her for every other man—ruin her forhim ? Didn’t she care that her reputation would be ruined once they got back home, if anyone found out about her indiscretions? He snorted. Indiscretions didn’t seem a strong enough word to describe what he’d seen. She’d been there, in the window, withhis hands in places that should never be touched in public. Places that another man’s hands shouldn’t ever be on his woman. He wouldn’t be able to let the other man live, not now that he’d tarnished Felicia. The only way Randall could accept her back into his life now was if he made sure the other man never got the chance to touch her again. He would have to go, and the sooner the better. He flopped back onto the mattress and tried to calm his raging anger. His face had flamed as soon as he’d seen her, and the heat had yet to leave. His hands clenched and unclenched, his fingers as numb as his soul. Her betrayal sliced through his insides, leaving his heart and his pride torn to ribbons. She would never have hurt him that way. Not on her own.Someone had helped her sully herself. Hehad. The other man Randall had known from the beginning was nothing but trouble. Once the man was out of her life, out of her mind, she’d come back to Randall with open arms. He’d make sure of it. She’d embarrassed him for the last time, and he wouldn’t stand for it another second. She would know how much she’d disappointed him, and she’d find herself on her knees begging for his forgiveness. On her knees. A slow smile crept over his mouth. Nowthat was a visual that eased some of the tension inside him. On her knees, her mouth open, accepting the full length of his cock for as long as he chose to give

it to her. She’d take everything he gave her, and he wouldn’t give her a chance to argue. She’d swirl her tongue over the thick head, take him so deep into her mouth that he bumped the back of her throat. And when he was finished, he’d make her swallow every drop of his cum. And then he’d make her lie down and touch herself. His cock hardened to the point of pain as his thoughts grew more and more lurid. But he resisted taking himself into his hand. Soon he’d have Felicia to take care of the problem for him, and all would finally be right with his world.

***** Felicia stood back from her easel, paintbrush still in hand, and surveyed her latest work. Through narrowed eyes, she took in every detail of the man painted on the canvas, from his dark hair and knowing eyes to his sweat-drenched, bare skin and toned muscles against the backdrop of the woods and night and the moonlit sky. Perfect. A wide, satisfied smile spread over her lips. Her mind had captured Jace exactly as she saw him—bold, sensual, dark, dominant—but even her subconscious hadn’t missed the spark of caring in the depths of his eyes. The half-smile that curled a corner of his mouth caught the playfulness she’d seen in him so many years ago. Something she missed. Something she hadn’t had in her life in much too long. She cleaned up her brushes in the sink and set them on the wooden sideboard to dry while she brewed a small pot of coffee. A quick glance at the clock told her it was a little after one p.m. She gasped. She’d stayed up the rest of the night, into the following afternoon, and she hadn’t even realized it. Somewhere in her mind, she’d noticed sunlight bathe the small kitchen and overcome the harsh glare of the fluorescent lights, but she’d been too busy capturing Jace’s essence to pay much attention. She flipped the overhead light off as she left the room to change out of her shirt, now splattered with paint. In most instances, she would have preferred to wait until the light of day to begin a painting, knowing that natural light would produce the best results. But with Jace, a creature of the darkness itself, it seemed only fitting to paint him by the only light his body would ever be able to stand. Artificial light. Though not a masterpiece by any standards, the painting brought a joy to Felicia’s life she hadn’t felt in far too long. Painting had been her dream since early childhood, but she thought she’d lost it along with Jace and their baby. To know that she could still create, still let her mind guide the brush across the canvas, was unbelievable. She beamed as she rushed to dress in jeans and a black t-shirt and headed back into the kitchen.

She might have worked on the painting a little more, added detail and shading, but she had errands to run that couldn’t wait until later. She poured coffee into her travel mug, grabbed her purse, coat and keys, and walked out the door with a bounce in her step that felt strange, almost foreign. Her serious nature wanted to push the giddiness aside, banish the emotion she couldn’t control and therefore didn’t want to feel. But she didn’t. For the first time in as long as she could remember, she embraced the bright, happy feelings. Held them close to her heart, right where they belonged. It was well past time that she let herself be truly happy again. She unlocked her little blue hatchback and slid behind the wheel. Nothing would get her down today. Nothing at all. Not Jace Weber and his vanishing—and reappearing—act, and certainly not an ex-husband who had no business contacting her in the first place. She pulled out of her driveway and headed down the street toward the market, all of her problems behind her. She hoped.

***** Jace paced the length of his darkened bedroom, his head aching and his stomach twisted in knots. The glowing green numbers on the alarm clock taunted him, teased him, reminded him of how stuck he was inside the darkness of his lair while she was out there all alone. One p.m. Still daylight. Though the room-darkening shades prevented him from seeing the bright sunshine just past his walls, he felt the sun’s heat squeezing him, burning his every nerve. His muscles bunched under skin that felt too tight, too heavy to belong to him. He should be in bed, sound asleep for at least another four hours. But something tugged at the corners of his mind, making rest impossible. After hours of tossing and turning, he’d thrown his covers across the room and jumped off the bed. He slammed his fist into the wall next to the closet door, punching a hole in the soft plaster. He couldn’t focus, couldn’t relax, and he’d be useless come sundown if he didn’t get some rest. He growled softly as he paced to the bed and flopped down on the mattress. The air crackled with an electricity he could see, could almost feel. Unease swirled around him, tugging him into a whirlpool of anxiety. Where was she? He’d called Felicia’s house, but she hadn’t answered the phone. Normally, it wouldn’t be a source of worry, but his gut told him something wasn’t right. He’d bet everything he had that it involved her ex-husband, the man he’d seen in the bar and sensed around Felicia’s house the night before. He didn’t take the man for the dangerous sort, not really, but he didn’t like her alone out there, defenseless against the much larger man in case their meeting came to violence. And theywould meet today. He knew that somewhere deep inside, though he was hard-pressed to explain where he’d come across the information.

His powers, though strong after many years of honing, did not usually extend to future sight. The gift he had been bestowed with at birth, even longer than he’d been vampire, allowed him to tap into the emotions of others, and to insinuate himself into their minds. He couldn’t read minds, but he could speak to people without his voice. Bend their wills to his command with a bit of effort, though he most often refused to do such a thing. As a child, he’d amused himself for hours sneaking into his parents’ minds and toying with their thoughts. But now… it didn’t hold the same appeal, knowing the havoc it had caused. He’d wanted Felicia. He’d done everything in his power to get her, including things as immoral as planting suggestions in her mind. And in the end, he’d only hurt her, more than he could bear. With a heavy sigh, he pushed himself into a sitting position and leaned his forearms on his thighs. He had to make things right with her. But his rival had an unfair advantage—the ability to walk in sunlight. In the end, that might make all the difference. Would Felicia go back to a man she didn’t love?Did she love the man she’d married? He would like to believe she didn’t. That, like him, she hadn’t been able to get what they’d once had out of her heart. But why would she have married if she didn’t love Randall Carson? The answer came to him like a sucker punch in the gut. To alleviate the loneliness. He himself had done his best to keep Felicia out of his heart, blocked from his mind. He’d had more than his share of women—too many to count—but none of them had done for him what Felicia could do with just a look. The whisper of her fingertips across his cheek. The silken softness of her lips against his. The other women meant nothing. There was only one who mattered, who ever would matter in the course of his long life. A life he wanted to share with the woman he loved. She’d wanted that, too, so long ago. Did she still? Or had she grown up enough to realize that a life of darkness wasn’t a life she wanted to live? He had to find out. But he couldn’t. Not for hours. It wasn’t often that he cursed the fate that had made him what he was. So many years ago he’d asked for it, begged for it from the woman who had become his first lover. He’d been a lonely young man without family or friends, and he’d never looked back. But now, today, when he knew she was out there talking tohim , he wished for one day to walk in the sun again. To be free from the curse that had changed him into what most would consider a monster. Just long enough to go to her, take her away from a man who could hurt her more easily than Jace himself. Jace would never lay a hand on his woman. Onany woman. Randall wouldn’t hesitate, if provoked enough. The sense that the man could cause Felicia great harm filled him, churning inside him, making him

want to scream with his frustration that she might be in danger and he could do nothing to stop it. Nothing but sit and wait for the sun to set. Wasn’t tonight one of her nights off from the bar? If memory served correctly, he’d find her at home later. She wouldn’t want to see him, but he wasn’t going to give her a choice. He had to find a way to make her listen to reason, a way to get her to give him a second chance. And he had to do it soon. Instinct told him he didn’t have much time left.

***** Felicia balanced a brown paper sack of groceries on one hip and another bag in her arm as she tried to unlock her front door. Her shaky fingers, numb from the cold that hung in the November air, had trouble fitting the key into the lock. The key ring slid from her fingers and hit the concrete steps below. She cursed and started to set her bags down when someone appeared from behind her and picked up the keys. Her heart lurched in her throat as recognition hit. Randall. He stood up, dangling her keys from his beefy hand. “You look like you could use a little help.” She shook her head. She should be grateful for his help, but given their last conversation after the divorce, she couldn’t muster much emotion past revulsion. “Thanks. I’m okay, though. Really.” “Let me give you a hand.” He took one of the bags, leaving her gaping at his gallant move. What was he up to? She narrowed her eyes as he slid the key into the lock and opened the door. “Here you go. After you.” He wished.She scooted past him into the house, careful not to let any part of her body touch any part of his, and set the bag she’d been carrying on the foyer’s stone floor. She took the other bag from Randall and set it down before half closing the door, putting the solid oak plank between them. He seemed different than he had before. Colder. Meaner. His eyes smiled at her, but behind the mirth, she saw nothing but anger. She glanced over her shoulder to the phone that hung on the wall near the kitchen doorway. “Thanks for your help, Randall. But you can’t come in. I really think that you shouldn’t come here again.” If Jace found out, he might want to hurt the weaker man. She didn’t want to be responsible for Randall’s safety, and instinct warned her that she shouldn’t trust him. Randall just shook his head. “Why won’t you let me in, Felicia? It’s been years since we’ve seen each other. I was hoping we could catch up on old times.” Her heart clenched at the pleading look in his eyes, but she pushed the sympathetic thought away. She sighed. The “old times” they’d had—the few that hadn’t been tainted with his domineering, insulting

behavior—were much better left in the past. “We both know that’s not a good idea. You shouldn’t have come here. You really should leave, Randall.” His eyes glazed over with hurt and his lips turned down in what she knew to be a façade. He might look like a downtrodden puppy dog, but inside, his heart beat as cold and hard as a lump of ice. Blood didn’t run in his veins. Poison did. For the few years they’d been married, he’d poisoned her self-esteem, taken advantage of her heartbreak, torn her apart, and pulled her inside out. She had to remember that the gallant gentleman she’d agreed to marry—the same one who stood before her now—wasn’t the real Randall Carson. The real Randall had everyone fooled, right down to his secretary at work and even his brothers and parents. Though it had taken a bit of convincing on his part, in the end, they’d all sided with him. His father had even offered to pay her off to drop the accusations and leave Randall alone, but she hadn’t accepted the money. She’d gotten enough from the divorce proceedings that she’d been able to finance her move. He hadn’t paid alimony like the courts had ordered him to, but not wanting to deal with a lying abuser again, she hadn’t pressed the matter. It had been the right choice, because she’d been free of him for years. And she’d be free of him again soon, one way or another. Why had she ever thought he would help her get over Jace? Randall hadn’t wanted a wife. He’d wanted a trophy. He wanted someone he could dress up and show off to his family and friends, someone who would obey everything he said without question, never speak her mind or argue with what he said. He’d taken care of her very well, as far as material possessions went, but emotionally, he’d stripped her raw at a time when she’d already been fragile. She refused to be used in that way ever again. “Just let me in for a minute, Felicia. I want to talk to you.” Icy anger flared in Randall’s blue-eyed gaze. He stood in front of her, his hands in the pockets of his khaki pants, his lips curled in a cross between a frown and a sneer. With his light blue dress shirt, navy blue blazer, and impeccable blond hair, he reminded her of a few of the professors she’d had in college. Clean-cut. Polished. Sophisticated. But beneath the surface, Randall was just as dangerous as Jace. Maybe even more so. No. Definitely more so. Jace could break her heart, but he’d never hurt her physically in anger. Randall would have broken her heart, had he been able to reach it, but since he hadn’t been able to get through to her, he’d attacked her instead. Though he’d apologized profusely and promised never to hit her again, she had to believe that under the surface, the anger still boiled. The threat was still there, though he hid it well. Her pulse kicked up a couple of notches and she tried to hide her anxiety. “No, Randall. I have to be at work in a little while, and I need to get ready. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”Please don’t let him know it’s my night off. She watched his expression for signs he knew she was lying, but if he caught on, he didn’t show it.

She tried to shut the door, but he stuck his foot between the door and the doorframe to stop her. His eyes darkened and a muscle in his jaw ticked. Fear rose in her, sharp and strong, at what he might do. But the moment passed. The sad look in his eyes returned and he pulled his foot back. “Okay. I’ll go. For now. But I’m not giving up this easily. I know when something is right, and what we had was it. I refuse to just throw it away. I want to take you out to dinner. Are you free tomorrow night?” “No. I work nearly every night. I don’t have much free time.” He tried to take her hand, but she pulled it away. “If you came back to me, you’d never have to work again.” He’d lock her in the modern version of a gilded tower, allowed to go out only when on Randall’s arm, and allowed only the friends he chose for her. She strengthened her resolve and faced him with an expressionless face. “I don’t think so. I told you this before and I have no problem saying it again. We’re finished. Forever. There’s no going back to the fractured days you call a relationship.” She slammed the door without waiting for a response. The hollow click of the deadbolt lock sliding into place echoed deep inside her heart. Would he understand that she didn’t want to see him again? Would he stay away as she asked? She shook her head. Pampered and spoiled as a child, Randall Carson had grown into a spoiled man who threw adult-sized tantrums when things didn’t go his way. She’d been on the receiving end of one of those tantrums. Once. It had been enough for her to learn not to trust anything he said or did. She pressed her back against the door and willed the tears welling in her eyes not to fall. She didn’t need this now, on top of Jace coming to town. She needed to be away from both of them. The two men who used to be in her life were wreaking havoc on her emotions. She pushed away from the door and brought the grocery bags into the kitchen, ignoring the hot tears streaming down her face. With the amount that she’d cried since Jace had walked back into her life, she was surprised she had any more tears left. When the last of the groceries had been put in their places and the bags folded and put away for later use, she wiped her hands down her thighs and shook her head. If only she could put Jace and Randall out of her mind as easily as she’d stored away the next week’s meals.

***** Hours later, a knock at the door startled Felicia from a late dinner. She pushed away from the table, her hand shaking with rage, ready to tear into Randall for having the gall to show up at her door again. But when

she glanced through the peephole, she didn’t find Randall standing on her porch. It was Jace, his hands shoved into the pockets of his leather jacket and his expression contrite enough to make her curious. With a heavy sigh, she swung the door open. “What doyou want?” He laughed. “It’s nice to see you, too.” She put her hands on her hips and glared at him, in no mood for jokes. Where did he get off being in such a good mood when her world had suddenly taken a turn for the worse? “You snuck into my room—I don’t even want to think about how you accomplished that little show, by the way—and snuck out without even a goodbye. Did you really think that would make mewant to see you again?” “No, but I’d thought what happened in between those two events might have made you happy.” He pulled his hands out of his pockets, along with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. He shook a cigarette out of the pack and lit it. “Can we talk for a little while?” She frowned. “What’s with the smoking? When did you pick up that bad habit?” “A couple of years ago.” He took a drag and let out a puff of smoke. “And it would only be a bad habit if it could hurt me.” She didn’t agree, but she didn’t protest. She merely shook her head. “If you say so.” He smiled. “I do. So, are you going to let me in or what? It’s freezing out here.” As if he didn’t deserve the torture the cold air put his sensitive nerves through. “It’s my night off. I’d kind of hoped to enjoy it in peace. I’m not really up for talking.” “I’m sure we could find other ways to amuse ourselves.” The single sentence, accompanied by his dark, intense expression, sent a wave of sensual heat straight to her pussy. Yes, they could most definitely find ways to pass the time… ifshe chose to let him in. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.” “Why not?” A sensual smile tipped up one corner of his mouth. “Do you have something against multiple orgasms?” Her knees buckled and her throat went dry. “Jace, don’t do this. Last night was a mistake.” He took another drag on his cigarette. “No, it wasn’t. It was nothing short of amazing, and destined to happen. You know that as well as I do. Why are you fighting the chemistry between us?” Because if I’m not careful, you’ll break my heart all over again.“I won’t deny the chemistry is still there, but it’s only physical. Any emotional connection we’d had was severed when you walked out.” She pursed her lips, knowing she sounded like a petulant child but unable to stop herself. She had to defend herself against his not

entirely unwelcome advances somehow. “If you say so.” He shook his head, glanced over his shoulder at the darkened street behind him. When he turned back to her, the hopeful glint in his eyes nearly undid her resolve. “So, can I come in or not?” Would it really hurt that much to let him in and hear him out? Probably, but she pulled the door open anyway. “Okay. Fine. Come in. But first, you have to lose the cigarette.”

***** Jace sat on Felicia’s couch, his limbs still numb from the cold. He rubbed his hands together to try and get some feeling back into his frozen fingers. His cock seemed to be the only part of his body not affected by the low temperatures—it had sprung to life the second she’d opened the door in a tight, midriff baring tank top and a pair of threadbare black leggings. Every curve she had was exposed to his view and his mouth watered. It took all he had to form coherent sentences. The love they’d made the night before hadn’t been nearly enough to satisfy ten years without her. He needed another week, at least, to even put a dent in the loneliness he’d felt for so long. Felicia leaned forward, her elbows on her knees, exposing a good deal of her breasts in the process. She clasped her hands together and wet her lips with the tip of her tongue. If it wasn’t for the knowing look in her eyes, he’d have thought her sensual behavior to be accidental. But it wasn’t. She knew what she was doing to him, and she was enjoying it. No doubt payback for how he’d snuck into her house the night before. “What did you want to talk about?” she asked, a small smile on her face. Talk? Did she really expect him to be able to talk? He shook his head. “Why are you sitting so far away?” She shrugged. “Distance is a good thing right now.” No. It wasn’t. He needed her close. With a lot less clothes on. Responsive, like she’d been last night. Hell, she’d been so tight, so slick, that he’d barely been able to control himself. He blew out a harsh breath and heaved himself from the couch. Talking could wait. Now he needed something more. They both did. Her eyes widened and her lips parted as he approached. “What are you doing?” “For some reason, I don’t feel much like talking anymore.” He took her hand and pulled her to her feet, tugging her body against his. His denim-covered cock nestled against her soft stomach and he groaned. “Would it be a problem if we saved the conversation for later?” She laughed. “I’d prefer if we didn’t talk at all.” Her words froze him in his tracks. “What do you mean by that?” “Like I said, the chemistry between us is purely physical now. Why bother talking, when there are better

things we could be doing to occupy our time?” He blinked, stung by the unemotional tone of her voice. “Don’t do this, Felicia. You know we mean more to each other than that.” “Do I?” She snorted. “I know what we meant to each other, once upon a time, but I don’t live in Fairy Tale Land anymore. You really need to pull yourself out of your fantasies. Sex between us is one thing. Emotions… Don’t even go there. I won’t. Ever again.” He let her go and walked across the room, not willing to meet her eyes. Why did she have to make this so difficult? Yes, he’d been wrong to leave her. He’d been sufficiently punished, most of it self-inflicted berating. She could deny it all she wanted, but the connection between them was still there. If she’d stop fighting and give in to it, they could both be happy. But she insisted on driving a proverbial stake through his heart. And if that wasn’t enough in itself, every chance she got, she twisted the stake until he felt like he was coming apart from the inside out. He raked a hand through his hair. It was so much more than physical between them. Had he made a mistake in what he’d done the night before? No. He’d made the correct choice. If she wanted to believe that there could only be sex between them, then he’d let her have her illusions. For now. But he wouldn’t let her hang onto them long. He spun to find her standing right behind him, a worried expression on her face. “Are you okay, Jace?” He nodded, not trusting his voice to sound as strong as he needed it to be. He wouldn’t beg her to come back to him, not yet. Not until he’d exhausted every other possibility. The plan he’d formed the night before had been a good one. But it was going to take more than one night together for him to convince her to trust him again. The wait would kill him, but he’d do whatever it took. This time, when he got her back in his arms, he didn’t plan on letting her go. Ever. “I’m fine.” He stood where he was and let her approach him. And she did. Slowly, a little unsure, she moved across the carpet until she stood in front of him. Her hands came up to rest on his chest, stroking lightly. “What are you doing?” “I do want you, Jace. That hasn’t changed.” She sighed, her expression turning even more uncertain. “I don’t know what to do. I just know that I need to keep my heart out of it this time.” He put his hands over hers to still her movements. “Is that what you really want?” “No. But it’s what I need.” Because he didn’t know what else to do—and because he wanted to ignore how her words nearly broke his heart—he leaned in and kissed her. At first, the kiss was soft, calming. Teasing. But when Felicia pulled her hands out from under his and ran

them through his hair, he groaned. He angled his head to deepen the kiss, his tongue seeking entrance to the warm cavern of her mouth. She obliged, parting her lips and meeting the thrusts of his tongue with thrusts of her own. The kiss went on for what seemed like an eternity before he felt her hands drop from his hair and work on the zipper of his jeans. She had them unsnapped and unzipped in record time, her hand snaking under the waistband of his boxers.Damn it, not yet. He pulled her hand away and stepped back. If she touched him now, he wouldn’t last five seconds. He could wait. First, he wanted to take care of her. Many, many times. To show her what she’d been missing all these years—and that things hadn’t changed between them as much as she thought. Soon, if things went as he’d planned, she wouldn’t think anything had changed at all. His fingers flew to the hem of her tank top and lifted it over her head. Once he freed the scrap of material from her body, he tossed it onto the floor a few feet away. Felicia’s expression turned nervous again, her face pinkening with an attractive blush. Even after all these years, some things never changed. He leaned in and kissed her shoulder. “You’re beautiful. Do you know that?” “Don’t start, Jace. I look in the mirror everyday. I know I’m nothing special.” He trailed his tongue down the side of her neck, delighting in her little shiver. “But you are. You’re special to me.”And to your ex-husband, apparently. He shook off any thoughts of the other man, not knowing yet what Felicia thought of him and not really wanting to know the answer. He had enough trouble pushing past her reservations. He didn’t even want to think about possible competition. She didn’t have a reply to his comments, and that was fine with him. They would have plenty of time to talk. Later. Since she wouldn’t believe his words, he’d have to show her how much she meant to him through actions alone. He stole her mouth in another kiss, this one harder and longer than the first. His tongue tasted the deepest recesses of the inside of her mouth, ran across her teeth and stroked her lips. She responded in kind, sending a jolt through the length of his body. His fangs elongated from his gums, readying themselves to drive into her tender skin. They tingled, wanting to bite down, but he forced himself to wait. It would be so much better for her if he did. She pulled her lips away from his and tipped her head back, giving him access to the slender, pale column of her neck. His heart rate accelerated, his blood pounding in his ears. Did she know what her small offering did to him? His cock pulsed, threatening to break free from his jeans. If he didn’t get inside her soon… No. Slow down.He closed his eyes and sucked in a couple of deep breaths. Being this close to her, drawing

her familiar scent into his lungs, undid him every time. If she came back to him, he’d spend every waking minute making sure she knew how important she was to him, how he never wanted to live without her again. All those years ago, she’d been willing to make a giant sacrifice for him. Would she still be willing, or would he only have her for as long as her human life allowed them? It didn’t matter. She was meant to be his, even if it meant for only a few decades. He leaned in and ran his tongue down her neck, from her chin to the hollows of her collarbone. He dipped his tongue inside those hollows, flicking the skin, and she gasped. His hands came up to cup her breasts, weighing them in his palms. His thumbs grazed her nipples, which hardened to tight peaks under his touch. A groan rumbled through his chest. Could it get anymore perfect than this? He leaned down and captured one of her nipples between his lips, rolling the tender point lightly between his teeth. A sharp breath escaped her lips and her hands flew back to his hair, tightening in the strands until he feared she’d rip them from his head. Still, he kept working her nipple with his mouth, twisting and turning until she writhed against him. Only then did he pull away from one nipple and concentrate on the other. The soft, musky flavor of her skin burst on his tongue, bringing him back to all the times, so many years ago, when she wouldn’t let him do much more than touch her breasts. He’d spent hours at a time kissing her, fondling her taut nipples, until both of them were ready to come. It had been such sweet torture, at times making him want to scream out his frustration, but the wait had been worth it. When he finally got his cock into her tight cunt, he’d seen fireworks. Now they’d both matured—her more so than he had—but the chemistry that had caused those explosions hadn’t faded with time. They’d proven the other night that now it could be so much better than it had been before. He trailed a line of kisses from her breasts to the sensitive skin just below her ear, nibbling gently on the lobe before he stood and ran his hands down her sides. When he reached the waistband of her leggings, he slid them down enough to allow him uninhibited access to her pussy, already drenched with her cream. He smiled and slid his finger along her slick folds. Mentally, she might not be ready to accept him, but physically, she was. His thumb found the erect nub of her clit, circling the delicate flesh. Her hips bucked against his hand and her fingers tightened another notch in his hair. If they kept going at this rate, he’d be the happiest bald man in Oregon. He pushed her leggings down even further, to her ankles, freeing his hair from her grasp and her body to his sight at the same time. She stepped out of the leggings and panties and he tossed them aside, neither watching nor caring where they landed. His clothes unceremoniously followed hers to the floor. At the

moment, his sole focus was Felicia, and all the soft skin he’d just exposed. He drew in a deep breath and did what he’d wanted to do for so long. He looked. Though he’d seen her body the night before, he hadn’t allowed himself the time to study her, to really enjoy how much she appealed to him. Standing over him, her legs spread enough to reveal her pink, wet pussy… he’d never seen anything so beautiful. The thatch of neatly trimmed blonde hair that covered her mound, the soft swell of her stomach, the glazed look in her dark blue eyes told him she was just as aroused— it all added up to the perfect picture of a woman. Something he’d never found in anyone but Felicia. She was everything. Beautiful, intelligent, strong-willed. And he was hers. For as long as she chose to keep him around. The thought both excited and scared him. His baser instincts fought against allowing her such a claim over him, but in the end, he couldn’t deny it. He loved her, would do anything for her. Except walk away. To keep his emotions from getting the better of him, he shifted his focus back to where it needed to be, at least for the moment. He had a warm, willing woman standing over him, waiting for him to make his move. He wouldn’t keep her waiting another second. He pulled her closer, his hands on the soft cheeks of her ass, and delved his tongue into her slit. She cried out, her fingers finding his hair once again. “Jace, not here.” He pulled back and looked into her eyes. “I can’t think of a better place.” “No. I’ll fall.” She offered him a small half-smile that did nothing to lighten the lust in her eyes. “I won’t let you.” His hands came around to her hips and he tightened his grip, determined to show her he could hold her up, no matter how much her body protested. “I’m strong enough to support you. Don’t worry about a thing.” He didn’t give her a chance to respond. He stroked his tongue along her folds, lapping the musky essence of her cream, savoring every taste. He nearly moaned at the feel of her slick flesh on his tongue. He hadn’t tasted her last night, not in the way he’d wanted to. He’d missed it so much. He flicked his tongue over her clit, swirling it in long, languorous strokes. Small moans broke free from Felicia’s lips, floating through the air and tickling his nerves. Urging him to do more, to make her feel every sensation to the fullest. He slid his tongue down to the tight entrance to her cunt, tracing the rim before thrusting inside. The single, short thrust had her legs buckling. She let out a keening moan. “God, Jace. I’m telling you. I can’t stand like this.” He smiled against her drenched flesh and thrust his tongue into her again. She’d come standing over him

like this, and she’d love every second. Within minutes, she cried out her release, her whole body bucking and writhing until he couldn’t hold her any longer. He helped her to the floor and laid her on her back, planting gentle kisses on the insides of her thighs to her stomach as small jolts ran through her body. When he glanced up at her, he found her smiling. “I told you that you’d be fine standing.” She laughed. “Fine? Hardly. It’s a good thing I have the night off, because I don’t think I’ll be able to stand for a week.” It was a good thing she had the night off, because he intended to keep her very busy. He kissed his way up her body, lingering for a few moments at each breast, before he settled his lips over hers in a tender, lingering kiss. Her arms came around his neck, toying lightly with the hair at his nape. Her tongue touched his, a playful move without any urgency. He nearly laughed at the thought. She had no reason to feel urgent. He, on the other hand, felt like he’d explode at any second. Having his cock pressed against her drenched, still-pulsing pussy didn’t help matters. She surprised him by wrapping her legs around his waist. “What are you waiting for?” “Are you ready for me?” Her smile faded, her eyes darkening just a touch. “Always, Jace. I’m always ready for you.” He frowned, opened his mouth to ask her exactly what she meant by her enigmatic confession, but she didn’t give him a chance to respond. She angled her hips and at the same time pushed down on his ass with her heels. The head of his cock slipped inside her. He let out a noisy breath, something between a growl and a gasp. All thoughts of asking her to explain herself fled his mind, replaced by the incredible sensation of being one with his woman again. She arched her hips, driving him even deeper inside her, and he forgot all about enjoying the sensation. One thought filled his mind—the urge to push even deeper, thrust harder, to claim her in the basest, most instinctual way possible. His thrusts were hard and fast, his rhythm uncontrolled. Felicia’s hips rose to meet his every thrust, her nails scraping his shoulders. Her breaths matched his—nothing more than sharp pants that sounded absurdly loud in the otherwise quiet room. When he felt her cunt muscles tighten and release around his cock, he allowed himself to let go, stiffening above her as his semen spurted from his cock in long bursts. He collapsed on top of her and it seemed like an eternity before he was able to move again—and even then, the most he was able to do was flop onto his back on the carpet and pull her against his side. Worry over Felicia had led to his lack of sleep, which in turn wore him out much too early in the night.

Felicia’s fingers stroked over his nipples, sending little jolts of pleasure through his spent body. “Are you okay?” He nearly laughed. He should be asking her that same question. “I’m not as young as I used to be.” “Neither am I.” She leaned over and brushed a soft kiss across his chest. “But I think we can make do with what we have.” He froze. “And what exactly do we have, Felicia?” “I don’t know.” She dropped her head to his chest, hiding her eyes from his prying gaze. “Right now, we have good sex. No. Great, incredible sex. But I can’t promise you more than that. Not just yet. You’ve got to give me some time to make this decision, okay?” He wanted to pull away, to run far away from the sting of her words and find some place quiet to regroup and lick his wounds, but he didn’t. He hugged her closer and stayed where he was; his heart in agony over her indecision but his body craving the feel of her pressed up against him. “Okay. If time is what you need, you can have as much of it as you like.” But if she thought he’d give up on anything past the sex they’d shared, she was sorely mistaken. If anything, her continued emotional distance fueled the fire inside him, provoked him into doing whatever it took to convince her to take him back. But first, he had to find a way to remove Randall Carson from the equation.

Chapter Five

Concentration was impossible to come by at work the following night. Felicia spent too much of her afternoon trying to banish Jace from her mind, but nothing seemed to work. He was stuck there, permanently, and the only thing she could do was try to go on with her life. Soon he’d leave—she didn’t even have to question that. It was a given. He might try to tell her that he wanted her back for good, but why should she believe a man who’d lied to her in the past, first about being a vampire, and later about staying with her forever? He’d walked away without a word to her. If she trusted him now, she’d be nothing but a fool. If she let herself fall in love with him all over again, she’d only wind up hurt. What was that saying her father used to recite? Something about repeating history if you didn’t learn from it? Well, she’d certainly learned her lesson with Jace. But it still hurt to think of him walking out of her life. Especially after what had happened over the past two nights. The first night she’d been woken from a sound sleep. She hadn’t been in her right mind, not enough to tell him to stop before he had her so unbearably aroused. But last night… She had no excuse for that. He’d wanted to talk. She was the one who had insisted onnot talking. On keeping whatever was between them strictly about sex. What had happened had been her fault, and though she’d loved every minute, second thoughts had barraged her in the harsh light of day. He’d been gone when she woke, as she’d known he would be. Still, knowing didn’t help stop the emptiness taking over her heart. He said he wanted her back, but for how long? A week? A month? A year? She scoffed. Just long enough for her to get attached all over again, and then he’d walk away. But something inside told her this time it would be different. She tried her best to shake off all thoughts of Jace. He was the last person she needed to think about right now, but unfortunately the only thing on her mind. Randall was so much easier to push aside. She wanted nothing more to do with the man, and that was that. After he’d left, she’d barely given him more than a passing thought. Jace, as usual, was a different story. He hadn’t burrowed his way into only her mind, but also into the very core of her being. In every breath, every pump of her heart, every movement of her muscles, she felt him there. It had been like this before, too, when they’d first met. The uncontrollable passion, the lust they’d tried so

hard—but never quite managed—to slake. The love that filled her heart to bursting with both bliss and bitter pain. When she’d first met Jace, she’d been a senior in college working toward degrees in liberal arts and fine arts just to make her parents happy when she really dreamed of doing nothing more than paint. She had the drive, been told she’d had the talent, but hadn’t had the support she needed to pursue that kind of a career. To appease her parents, she’d agreed to take liberal arts courses along with the art courses, though academics held no interest for her. She’d welcomed the distraction brought by a mysterious man she met at a coffee shop near campus. Jace had been young—or so she’d thought at the time—but worldly, strong yet sensitive, with a romantic streak she hadn’t seen in another man his age. She hadn’t anticipated the truth about what he was, but by the time he confessed to being a vampire, he had her tangled so tightly in his web, she didn’t care. She fell head over heels in love, and within weeks, couldn’t have imagined being separated from him. Ever. He hadn’t felt the same. One night, she’d gone to see him, to tell him about the baby she carried, and found his apartment empty. Everything that had been his had been removed, as if he’d never lived there. All his clothes were gone, all his personal items, with only the sparse furniture left behind. He hadn’t even bothered to leave a note. And then the car accident… she barely remembered smashing her car into the tree, couldn’t recall much after that. Her first memory after finding Jace’s apartment empty was of waking up in a hospital bed with a doctor telling her she’d lost the baby. Her parents, retired to Florida, had flown up the next day. She never told them about the baby. She’d waited for days, weeks, months, for a call or a letter explaining why he’d left the way he did, but he didn’t contact her at all. She heard nothing from him but silence, and it had torn her up inside. Heartbroken, she’d finished college just going through the motions. She got her degrees, but had never done anything with them. Her life had changed so drastically that she hadn’t even wanted to try. She’d worked various jobs, waiting tables, answering telephones, data entry. Nothing that pleased her. She kept to herself, going to work and then going home. She forgot how to live. Unable to summon her muse, she packed her painting supplies in a box with all other reminders of her past life and hid it away. A friend had once told her she’d been punishing herself for something that wasn’t her fault, and it had taken her several years to see that it was true. She hadn’t been the one to leave. Jace had. And the accident hadn’t been her fault. Once she was able to accept that, she had started to move on with her life. Things had changed, and she had to learn to accept that or cave under the pressure. She’d taken a long time making the decision, but in the end, she’d chosen survival. When she met Randall, he’d seemed like the perfect solution to lessen her loneliness. She’d been wrong,

and she found herself married and divorced within two years. She hadn’t been able to break out of her depression until she’d packed up and moved to Oregon and started brand new. She sighed and wiped her hands down her apron. She’d moved to get away from her memories of Jace. She’d been fine for years, and each day got a little easier. Why did he have to pick now, when she’d finally been able to get her life together, to come in and mess it all up again? She’d been young and naïve in college. She’dwantedto live the life Jace lived—forever, free. But she’d changed. Grown up. She didn’t want that kind of life anymore. “Liar,” she mumbled to herself as she lifted a drink tray from the bar. “You still want it, and you know it.” She did, too. She had thought she’d forgotten about him, but now she realized how far from the truth that was. She’d never be able to forget, and as much as she wanted to hate him for leaving the way he did, she couldn’t. It sickened her to think how easy it would be to fall back under his spell. Shewanted to fall all over again. That didn’t change the fact that she was going to skin him alive the next time she saw him. Who did he think he was, sneaking into her dreams, into her bedroom, in the middle of the night? She still hadn’t forgiven him for the betrayal so long ago. His showing up at the bar two nights before and acting contrite—or at least as contrite as Jace could get—was a start. But he still had a long way to go for forgiveness. “Something wrong?” She jumped at the sound of the deep male voice next to her. “No, nothing, Scott,” she told the bartender. “I must have gotten lost in my thoughts for a second there.” “Yeah, I noticed. It wouldn’t possibly have anything to do with him, would it?” He gestured with his chin toward the door. “He’s the same one I saw you talking to the other night.” She followed his gaze, and sure enough, Jace stood leaning against the doorframe with his hands in the pockets of his jeans. Dressed all in black and filling the doorway with his formidable size and presence, tonight he had a menacing air that reminded her of vampire movies she’d seen as a kid. If she didn’t know him as well as she did, she’d probably be shaking in her shoes. “He’s kind of scary, isn’t he?” Scott’s question echoed her thoughts. “Is he really the kind of guy you should be hanging out with?” She shrugged off the question. “He’s nobody to worry about. Just my ex.” “Yourex ?” Scott coughed, cleared his throat. “You’ve got to be kidding me. He doesn’t seem like your type.” “You’d be surprised.” She set the tray back on the bar. “I’m taking my dinner break. I’ve got to take care of

something.” Leaving Scott gaping at her confession, she walked away from the bar and headed in Jace’s direction. His heated gaze didn’t leave hers the whole way, and she tried not to shiver against the sudden onslaught of sensual memories of the nights before. She stuck her hands on her hips as she stopped in front of him. “Please don’t tell me you’re going to make a habit of this.” “Of visiting my lady at work?” He smiled rakishly and ran his tongue over his teeth. “What could possibly be wrong with that?” “Yourlady ? I don’t think so.” She grabbed his arm and led him toward the door. “Come on. We obviously need to have a talk, and I refuse to do it in public.” She dragged him outside and to the side of the building, away from the bustle of the customers moving in and out of the bar. She tried her best to look intimidating, but from the humor she saw in his eyes, she guessed she failed. She shivered in the cold night, wishing she’d had the foresight to grab her jacket. “Why are you here?” He leaned in close, his breath heating her cheek. “I wanted to make sure you were okay after last night and the night before.” “Is that all?” She trembled as he stroked her jaw with the backs of his fingers. It took all the willpower she had not to melt into a puddle on the dirty, icy ground. After he’d left her alone without even a note of goodbye, she’d thought he got the message she’d been trying to convey to him for several days. Sex was fine, but anything beyond that was forbidden territory. “Did something happen last night that I should know about? I don’t remember anything significant, except for waking up on my living room floor alone.” She heard his chuckle as his breath feathered through her hair. He pressed a kiss to the side of her neck. “Do you need me to refresh your memory?” Her memories were crystal clear, replaying over and over in her head in vivid Technicolor, dampening her panties and making her yearn and sweat. But he didn’t need to know that. If she intended to keep her heart out of the equation, she had to show him nothing but emotional detachment. “Of course not. There’s nothing wrong with my memory.” She cursed herself for the shaky sound of her voice, cleared her throat to try to free it of the hot lump that had formed there when she’d seen him standing in the doorway. “Maybe it’s you with the memory problems. Being alive for a hundred years can really mess with a person’s mind.” “It can… ” He nipped her neck, dragging the tips of his elongated fangs across her skin, not biting but holding the sensual threat over her. “But it hasn’t. The only thingmessing with my mind , as you so eloquently

put it, is you.” She whimpered. She couldn’t help it, though she knew it would betray too much of her true feelings to the man. Before she could bite it back, the little sound slipped out. “Jace, don’t talk to me like that. You make me want things I gave up on a long time ago.” “Tell me what you want, Felicia. You can have anything.” He cupped her face in his palms and kissed her, long and deep. His tongue darted into her mouth, stroking hers, bringing her arousal to a fevered pitch and chasing away the cold. He had a power over her he didn’t deserve. Didn’t need. But she was helpless to do anything about it. When he finally pulled away, both were breathless. “What can I give you?” She let out a harsh sigh, her breath condensing in front of her as she shook her head. What could he give her… how could she trust him to give her anything? He spoke the right words, knew just how to touch her to make her melt, as if no time at all had passed. But would he stay this time, or pull another disappearing act? If he’d known about the baby, would that have made him stay? She pushed away the thought, as well as the tears that threatened to form in her eyes. She wouldn’t tell him about the baby. Not yet. Not until she knew he was sincere about wanting to come back to her. Until she knew for sure, she wouldn’t be stupid enough to set herself up for more heartache. Though once he knew that she’d lost their child… She shook her head. That might be enough to push him away. How would he take the news? Somehow, she didn’t see him as a father figure to a small child. Not in any way. He’d always liked his life the way it was—going wherever he wanted, answering to no one. Would he have been willing to give that all up to help her raise the child they’d created? Somehow, she doubted it. But still… “I… I don’t know. I have a lot to think about.” She turned away, facing the brick wall of the building, and crossed her arms over her chest. Could she give him another chance? Her heart screamed yes, but her mind told her to take it slow. To wait and see what came of their… relationship this time. Not to rush into something that could ultimately tear her into pieces. “You walked out on me. I don’t know if I can forgive that.” He wrapped his arms around her in a gesture that wasn’t sexual, but comforting instead. It warmed her straight through and she leaned into his touch. She’d missed him so much, on so many levels. In the short time she’d known him before, when times had been good, he’d become her life. She’d lived for him. Now she understood how wrong that was, but it didn’t stop her from wanting to snuggle closer, to burrow her way under his skin the way he’d done to her. He kissed the top of her head. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I walked away to protect you from living the way I do. You didn’t deserve it.” She gulped back a sob and fought the tears that still threatened to spill from her eyes. They burned the insides of her eyelids, reminding her of all the tears she’d shed ten years ago. Tears that had seemed to go on

forever. Could she take the chance that it would happen again? Did she even want to? “So what’s changed? I’m still just a plain old human. I won’t let myself get attached to you all over again just to have you walk away in a few months.” He shook his head with a vehemence she rarely saw from him. His behavior bordered on begging, and it brought a smile to her face. It was about time he realized what a mistake he’d made. And even if she decided to take him back, she’d make sure he understood the torture she’d been through firsthand. “I won’t walk away. This time, I want you for good. Forever.” “Forever is a very long time, especially for a man with a lifespan as long as yours. You need to think long and hard before you make that kind of a decision.” Despite her words, a small glimmer of hope flared inside her. Would it be real this time? Lasting? He’d come back, followed her across the country to tell her how he felt. That right there should tell her what she needed to know. Hewas sincere. Hedid want her back. But with his lifespan lasting several of hers, how long would it be before he tired of his human lover? His arms tightened around her until she felt his heartbeat against her back. “I don’t need to think about it, love. I already know what I want.” “You ruined my life,” she whispered, her throat closing around the emotions he brought out in her. Confusion ran rampant in her mind, stomping out rational thought. What was she supposed to do? How was she supposed to make this decision? He asked way too much of her. “I wanted to give you forever.” “You had your whole life ahead of you.” “My whole life? That’s a crock. I have no life. I work in a bar, getting hit on a hundred times a night. Then I go home, and go to bed. This is it, Jace. I never did make anything of myself. Are you happy now?” She tried to pull away and he let her go, staying by the wall when she stomped back toward the front of the building. “I can’t talk to you anymore. Not right now. I’m going back inside to finish my break in peace. When you come to a decision about whether you’re truly ready for a commitment, let me know. I’m not going to waste any more of my life waiting for a man who doesn’t want me the way I am.” He called her name, halting her quick footsteps. She turned back to him, hoping he wouldn’t see the myriad of emotions in her eyes but knowing she was powerless to disguise them. “What now?” “Would you turn for me? Become a vampire?” She drew a deep breath and let it out slowly, pushing aside the excitement and anger his question rose in her. She couldn’t let him suck her in all over again. “I would have, ten years ago, but now I really don’t know. I don’t think I’d want to take such a chance, not if it would mean more heartache when it ended between us. I need time, Jace. Please, just let me have some time to think about everything and come to a decision.” She turned and walked toward the bar door, not looking back, but she felt Jace’s gaze on her and his

loving words in her mind. She’d lied—he knew it as well as she did. She’d seen in his eyes that he didn’t believe a word of her denials. But would he do anything about it? Would he call her on it and make her admit the truth? That remained to be seen.

***** Jace watched her go, wanting to grab her and pull her back but knowing she needed space to make the decision to accept him back into her life. If he didn’t give her what she asked for, she’d run away and he’d lose his last chance to have her in his life. She’d been so young, so sweet all those years ago. He hadn’t been able to bear the thought of turning her into what he was. But now… now that he’d touched her again, he knew he couldn’t live without her. Didn’t want to. He’d do whatever it took to get her back, including accepting her as a human if that was what she asked him to do. She wanted him, too. He didn’t have to tap into her emotions to see that. It was written in her expression every time she looked at him. Last night, he’d shown her how perfect they were for each other. He planned to do the same thing tonight, but on a grander scale. Tonight, he would go all out, do it right. He knew what she liked, and he would use everything in his power to convince her to let him stay. In his hundred years in this world, he’d never met a woman who affected him like Felicia. He never would again. He couldn’t risk letting the opportunity pass for a second time. He smiled to himself as he walked back to his car. Tonight, Felicia was in for the surprise of her life.

Chapter Six

Jace stood at the end of Felicia’s bed, taking in the sight of her naked body bared to the night. To him. She looked so beautiful, so peaceful in sleep that he almost hated to disturb her.Almost. He had plans, so many ways he wanted to show her he loved her, but for now, he contented himself with watching. And dreaming. She decorated her house exactly as he’d expected her to, in the same style of her bedroom—soft neutral tones in an earthy style that fit her personality. Her casual manner had been one of the first things that had attracted him to her. When all the other women he met had been concerned with fashion and appearances, Felicia was more comfortable in jeans and soft shirts. She concentrated hard on her studies while she’d been in school, even though he knew they hadn’t interested her. He had admired those qualities first, but had soon learned there was so much more about her that he loved. Maybe too much. It had reached the point where he couldn’t stay, not without asking her to become something he hadn’t dared ask her to be. So why was he back now, after he’d vowed to stay away from her? He couldn’t name every reason. She was almost like an addiction, something he couldn’t get out of his bloodstream. He had to have her, in any way possible. He needed her in his life. The need had started as a slow simmer, but increased to the boiling point over the years. Now he burned for her. Ached. Wouldn’t give up until he had her right where he wanted her. He knew exactly what she wanted—what she craved—as well, even if she was too stubborn to admit it. He flicked the end of one of the black silk ties binding her wrists to the headboard.Perfect. She wouldn’t push him away tonight. She wouldn’t be able to. She’d let him see to her pleasure. Over and over again, just as she’d enjoyed so much in the past. “Felicia.” She rolled her head and moaned, but her eyes didn’t open. “Felicia. Wake up, love.” “Jace?” She spoke the words on a whisper, barely audible in the silence of the room. Her eyelids fluttered open and she looked up at him, her deep blue eyes filled with confusion. “What are you doing here?” “I had to come. I couldn’t stay away.” He brushed a lock of pale hair from her face and stroked her cheek. “I want you. Tonight. And every night after that.” “I told you to give me time. A few hours aren’t nearly enough.”

“A few hours for you is like a blink to me, but it still was too much. You have to feel the way I do. I see it in your eyes. You don’t want space, time, as much as you keep telling me.” “Yes, I do.” He smiled down at her. “Who are you trying to convince?” Her silence was answer enough. He resisted the urge to gloat over her silent admission, choosing instead to flick his thumb over her nipple. She shivered and tried to raise her hands. When the ties held her arms down, her eyes widened. “Jace, what’s going on? What did you do to my arms?” “You used to love this. You used to beg me to tie you up and play with you all night. You wanted to give me the freedom to do whatever I wanted to you, to make you come so many times, you’d sleep all day the next day. Do you remember?” She nodded, her eyes round. A small whimper escaped her lips as a sliver of fear passed over her expression. “Yes,” she answered in a small voice. “I thought I’d surprise you. For old times’ sake.” Her sharp intake of breath broke through the relative silence of the room.

***** Old times’ sake? He had to be kidding. He’d snuck into her room in the middle of the night—again, stripped her naked, and strapped her to her bed—and he expected her to be aroused? Well, mission accomplished. She was. She swallowed against the lump in her throat. It had been so long since she’d allowed anyone to do this to her. No other man had ever even asked. Jace was the only one. And he’d neverasked . He’d just… presumed. Being young and so willing to please, she’d let him do what he wanted. But so much time had passed and she’d changed so much. Could she let him do it again, or would it only drive the wedge even further between them? Cold fear knifed through her, followed by white-hot arousal. “Jace? Are you sure this is a good idea?” “Scared, love?” He knew she wasn’t, not really. He had to see it in her eyes, hear it echoing in her voice. Being laid out

before him excited her. Very much. From past experience, she knew she would love what would follow. It would be incredible, and he would never do anything to hurt her. Her heart swelled a little at the thought. She trusted him. When had that happened? She shook her head. “I’m fine. Not scared, not really. I just wish you’d let me know what you had planned.” “What fun would that be? It would ruin the surprise.” She shivered at thesurprises Jace might have in store for her. There was one thing she could say about him—he was never boring. “What are you going to do to me?” He moved to the foot of the bed, his gaze never leaving her body. His smile grew predatory and he rubbed his hands together. A sensual light glinted in his eyes. “Again, love, I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise. You’re going to love this. Trust me.” He knelt at the foot of the bed and nudged her legs apart. She whimpered as his damp, hot breath hit her most sensitive places. He leaned in and drew his tongue along her slit, dragging a low moan from her throat. “You’re so wet already. Were you dreaming about me?” It never took long for her to get wet for Jace. All she had to do was look at him, think about him, listen to him speak and her sex drenched with her juices. And in this instance, waking up tied to the bed had helped things along very quickly. He shook his head. “So beautiful, all glistening wet and pink. I want to sink my teeth right into that soft flesh.” She closed her eyes as a wave of pure lust washed over her. With Jace, he meant the words literally as well as figuratively, and it only served to increase her arousal. She felt his fingers kneading the insides of her thighs, closer and closer to her pussy. She tried to wriggle herself down on the bed to get closer to those magic fingers, but the straps holding her wrists kept her from going too far. At this pace, she’d die before he touched her where she truly needed him to touch. “Patience, love.” His voice was low, his tone chiding as much as it was sexy. “We have plenty of time. Just lie back and enjoy this.” Lie back and enjoy? Was he kidding? She’d never been a passive woman in bed, and lying still seemed nearly impossible with his hands so close, yet too far away. She grunted in frustration, her patience already wearing thin. “Just a little higher, Jace.” “Soon.” He leaned in and trailed a line of kisses from her calf to just above her knee before switching to the other leg. Every inch of flesh he touched quivered in anticipation and sweat broke out on her brow. She felt so hot, so turned on, that she didn’t think she could last another second. The moment he touched her, she would explode.

He kissed her inner thigh, no more than a few inches from her waiting pussy. This time, though, he didn’t stop. He brought his tongue to her clit and circled the wet tip around it, making her buck beneath him. He thrust his tongue into her cunt in a rhythm designed to drive her wild. Just as she felt the first stirrings of orgasm in her belly, he increased the pace and found her clit with his finger. Just one touch sent her sailing into a powerful orgasm. Her body bowed, arching to increase the sensations. Her limbs tingled and went numb. Her mind threatened to shut down as her inner muscles clenched and unclenched, quivers of shocking sensation running through them. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d come so hard, been so satisfied. No other man had been able to do that for her. Only Jace. Sex since Jace had been good, but it had never been classified as earth-shattering. She tensed in anticipation, expected him to stop the ministrations with his mouth and thrust his cock into her, but he surprised her yet again. He swirled his tongue over her clit in soft, short strokes, growing bolder by the second. Light exploded behind her eyes. Her body bucked hard against the mattress and she struggled to draw a full breath. When her breathing finally started to return to normal and he showed no signs of stopping, she thought to tug on his hair to pull him up to her. But she couldn’t move her bound wrists more than an inch. “Jace, I can’t take anymore. Not yet.” He laughed against her skin, sending a shiver through her. “Yes, you can. And you will.” He went back to work with his tongue, and soon, he had her tugging on her restraints, struggling to get free. Her wrists would be raw and sore in the morning, but she didn’t care. She wanted this, wanted everything he did to her, more than she could explain. But she wanted him inside her—his cock, not his tongue—and she wanted her arms around him. Just as she came again, Jace sunk his sharp fangs into the flesh of her labia. She cried out, the pleasure-pain sensation adding to her orgasm. She saw stars. Floated through the sky on a sensual breeze. She’d never felt anything so strong in her life, and she didn’t know if she’d ever recover. She lay back on the mattress, her eyes closed and her legs lying limply open, as Jace continued to feed. The pain ebbed, the sensations growing warm and comforting as she tried to slow her breathing and get her head to stop spinning. It was too much. But it would never be enough. After what seemed like an eternity but couldn’t have been more than a few minutes, Jace moved slowly up her body and untied her wrists. She let her arms flop to the sides and her eyelids drifted open just in time to see him strip off his clothes. Wonderfully naked, hard and aroused, he came back to the bed and lay down beside her, stroking her cheek with his fingertips. “Did you enjoy that?” She nodded, not yet able to form words. “Good.” He smiled down at her. “There’s still more. So much I want to do. So much I want to make you

feel.” He pulled her close to him and draped her leg over his hip, guiding his cock to the entrance of her cunt and pushing the head inside. She moaned at the tiny aftershocks that ran through her as he slowly filled her. Once seated fully inside her, he just held her there, close to him, and slowed his breathing to match hers. “Do you know how much I love you?” “Yes.” He shook his head. “You can’t even imagine. A love this deep is unfathomable. I can’t live without you. I won’t.” He stroked inside her then, a languorous rhythm she found herself matching with her own hips. There was nothing hurried about their lovemaking, just slow and sweet. She clung to him, her heart filling with as much love for him as he professed to feel for her. “Do you still love me, Felicia?” He knew she did, of that she had no doubt. He could tap into her thoughts at any time, and she was helpless to put up mental blocks against him. Not in this raw, emotional state he’d brought her into. But when she looked into his dark eyes, she knew he needed to hear the words. “Yes, Jace. I love you. More than life itself.” She spoke the absolute truth. She’d never felt that way about anyone, not even the man she’d chosen to marry. Randall had been a filler—a replacement for the love of her life who’d left her without explanation. She liked to think she could be strong and tell Jace she didn’t want him around after what he’d done, but she couldn’t do that to either of them. She needed him as much she needed her next breath of air, her next meal. She’d thought she had put him out of her mind, but now that he’d come back, she realized how wrong she’d been to even try. “We can make this work,” he whispered. “I’ll do whatever it takes, love. Anything you want, you can have it.” His hand trailed down her back, settling on her ass and pulling her closer. His pace increased and soon, he rolled her to her back and thrust harder. Despite her previous string of orgasms, his position and rhythm stirred something inside her. Soon she toppled over the edge into a long, shimmering orgasm that had none of the explosive qualities of the previous ones but seemed to drag on for eternity. She clung to him as her body racked with shudders, milking Jace’s cock as he came with a harsh groan. He collapsed on top of her, his panting breaths heavy in her ear and his chest heaving. “Incredible.” He spoke barely above a whisper, so low that she wouldn’t have heard him if his mouth hadn’t been against her ear. “How is it that you make me feel like that, every time?” She couldn’t help the peal of giddy laughter that bubbled inside her, the result of a potent male so close to

her and a few too many orgasms to be serious. “I don’t know. All I know is I don’t think I’m going to be able to walk for a week.” He laughed at that and rolled to his back on the mattress, pulling her against his side. She rested her head on his chest and contented herself in listening to his heart drum a steady beat against his ribs. He felt so warm, so alive, and he made her feel the same way. “Tell me something, love.” He brushed a kiss on the top of her head, his tone solemn. “Did you love your husband?” She let out a slow breath, unsure how to explain the situation. “At the time, I thought I did. I really tried. But now that I look back at the whole thing, I realize I was just trying to get my mind off you. Randall didn’t show his true colors until months into the marriage, and at first, I just hoped stress made him act the way he did. Marrying him was a bad choice. A big mistake.” “You didn’t do anything wrong. You wanted a little happiness.” She sighed and shook her head. “Yeah, but I tried to reach that happiness without thinking clearly about what I was getting myself into. I was hurt, and lonely, and he was convenient. That was all.” “You had to have cared about him at least a little, or you wouldn’t have married him.” “I did care, at first, but I didn’t feel the romantic love a marriage should be made of. Whenever I thought about love, all I saw was you.” She kissed his chest just above his nipple and darted her tongue over the flat disc. “I think, on some level, he sensed that. Maybe that’s why he was so… ” Jace stilled. Even his breathing stopped for a brief moment. “Why he was so what?” Oh, boy. His tone of voice sent a sliver of anxiety skittering up her spine. She licked her Sahara-dry lips. Jace didn’t need to know about her problems with Randall. It would only make him angry, and that was the last thing she needed right now. “He was a little on the… chauvinistic side.” “How far on the chauvinistic side?” he asked, his tone angry and urgent. “Did he ever hurt you?” She nodded her head against his soft, firm chest. “He tried. Once. That was right before I filed for divorce. He was just mean, controlling. Something I could definitely live without.” Her heart clenched as the memories of her afternoon meeting yesterday with Randall raced through her head. She shoved them back into their dark corner, not wanting Jace to know that Randall had been around.Time for a change of subject. “What about you? Did you marry? Or, um… mate, or whatever you vampires call it?” His nervous laughter struck a chord somewhere within her. “I never married, but I’ve had my share of lovers. I tried to assuage my loneliness in other ways. Remember, I’ve been hanging around this planet for a good number of years more than you have. I understand the loneliness completely.”

He paused and she listened to his low, even breathing. He continued, his tone even graver. “No one has ever compared to you. No woman has ever inspired such feelings of love and possessiveness. Not like you do. It’s been this way since the first day I saw you sitting in that coffee shop with a book in your hand. You caught my eye, and I haven’t been able to look away since.” “You’re lying.” She knew how she’d looked back then. Plain, boring. Certainly nothing to inspire such feelings in a worldly man. “I’m not. It’s always been you, Felicia. We’re made for each other. I can’t find any other explanation. I can’t get you out of my head, and I don’t want to.” He lifted her chin with his thumb and kissed her softly on the lips. “Now, get some sleep. You need it after the night we had.” She smiled at him even as her eyes closed, and she drifted off to sleep in the arms of the only man she’d ever love.

Chapter Seven

Felicia woke up early the next morning very sore—but deliciously so. She ached in places she’d forgotten she had muscles. She rolled over and checked the clock. Four a.m. Jace would be leaving soon, so he could get to sleep before the sun came up. The thought of him leaving made a ball of icy dread form in her stomach. As much as she hated to admit it, she didn’t want to see him go. She brushed her hand over his arm. He opened his eyes, his dark gaze warm and hazy. “Morning,” he mumbled, a sleepy smile on his face. “Good morning.” “How are you? Not too sore, I hope?” “I’m fine.” Her pussy ached a little where he’d bitten down, but it served as a reminder of all he’d made her feel. She’d let him do it again and again, with no second thoughts. “What about you?” “I’ll be fine, love. I always am.” He laughed and kissed her forehead before moving onto her lips. As he kissed her, anxiety settled once again in the pit of her stomach. Why couldn’t it be as simple as it had been ten years ago? Why couldn’t she let go of the idea that he’d leave as soon as he got bored with her? He’d promised he wanted forever this time, but he’d said the same thing the first time, not long before he’d walked out of her life. As always, guilt settled hard in the pit of her stomach and ate her up inside. She knew what she wanted from their relationship. It hadn’t changed much in the past ten years, but did he want the same thing? Would he want it ten years down the road? Or twenty? When he finally pulled back, she looked away, unable to face him with apprehension churning inside. “Where do we go from here? We can’t just go back to the way things were. Ten years have passed. Things have changed.” There were too many years, too much between them to go back to the beginning, and she didn’t know if she had the fortitude to start all over again. Lord knew she wanted to, but she’d learned the hard way that what she wanted wasn’t always what would be best for her. “I understand that. We need to be able to find some middle ground.” “I haven’t even decided if this is going to continue.” He gave her a look so wounded that she couldn’t help but laugh. It was that look alone that cemented her decision. She couldn’t let him walk out of her life again, not without giving their love a second chance. “Don’t, Jace. You know I don’t mean that.” “I was hoping you’d say something like that.” A smile broke over his face, so bright, it warmed her straight through. “Will you consider allowing me back into your life?”

She’d done nothing but consider it since she’d seen him in the bar that first night. She found it hard to believe that it had only been a few days since then. It seemed like forever. She couldn’t imagine being without him. “I want to be with you, Jace. I’ll do whatever it takes. We can find some way to work this out. But you have to understand, it’s going to take time. We can’t rush into anything.” For the first time since he’d returned, he smiled a truly genuine smile born of happiness and not lust. “Thank you, love. I promise I won’t make you regret your decision. I’ll do whatever I can to show you I mean to stay this time. We’ll take it slowly—but not too slowly. I want you all to myself.” The thought of Jace having her all to himself thrilled her and shot a jolt of electricity through her core. Her pussy quivered as she thought about all the nights they could share, all the lovemaking they had to make up for. She shook her head.You’re getting ahead of yourself. Slow down. You don’t even know for sure if this is going to work out. “I know you need to leave, but we still have a lot to talk about.” “I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me for at least the rest of the day, though I won’t be much company come sunup.” “Really?” She couldn’t help the happy feeling that welled up inside her at his words. Though he wouldn’t be awake to talk to her, to keep her company before her shift started, it would be enough to know that he slept in her bedroom, close by should she need him. “Really, love. If I get my way, we won’t be separated ever again.” Though it sounded like heaven, Felicia couldn’t quiet the little voice that cried out inside her. The one that told her something was wrong. Not Jace, not necessarily, but things wouldn’t be as easy as he thought. She pushed out of his arms and grabbed her robe. “I’ve got to go get some coffee. You get some sleep. I’ll be back to check on you later.” She frowned when Jace climbed out of bed and followed her to the door, gloriously naked and too much of a distraction to her warring thoughts. “What are you doing?” “The sun won’t be up for a few hours. I don’t need to sleep yet.” He touched her chin and pinned her with an intense stare that sent an anxious shiver through her. “I think it’s time we had a very important talk.” She gulped against the lump forming in her throat. “What do you mean? What do you want to talk about?” Jace was silent for a small eternity, his only movement the small tic on the left side of his jaw. When he spoke, his voice sounded harder, colder than she’d ever heard it. “We’re going to talk about your ex-husband. I want to know what the hell he’s doing trying to worm his way back into your life.”

***** “I’m going to move in here until he goes away.” Felicia frowned at Jace over her morning coffee. He’d said not a word while she set up the coffeepot, remained silent as she waited for the four-cup machine to brew the rich liquid. Now, as soon as she sat down with her mug of morning addiction, he wanted to talk? She shook her head at his domineering, imposing tone. “Excuse me? I hardly think that’s necessary.” Jace nodded. “You’re right.” She smiled, until she heard his next words. “You should move in with me. Then I know I’ll be able to keep you safe, and the asshole won’t bother you again.” He smiled and tugged at a lock of hair that had fallen across her cheek. She shivered, despite her annoyance at his overbearing behavior. Pushing any sensual thoughts aside, she frowned. “He’s not going to bother me.” “Don’t be so sure. I’ve been watching him for a little while, and—” She held up her hand to stop the rest of his sentence, her stomach twisting in knots and her head suddenly aching. “What did you just say? You’ve been watching him? How would you even know who he was?” Jace’s gaze dropped to the tabletop, but not before she caught the guilt shining in his eyes. She smacked her palms down on the table. When she lifted her hands, tiny pinpricks of pain danced along the surface of her skin. “Explain, Jace. Now. How did you know where to find him? And while we’re on the subject of your sudden incredible detective skills, how did you know where to findme ?” He drew a deep breath and let it out on a rough sigh. His gaze returned to hers, and all she only saw was steely determination. Typical Jace. On the rare occasion that guilt plagued him, it didn’t stick around long. He just wasn’t made that way. Strong, unapologetic, sometimes downright infuriating. When he remained silent, she barked a laugh. “Oh, this is great. How long have you been watching me, Jace?” The pained look on his face intensified. When he spoke, she had to strain to hear. “Since a little after your divorce.” What?She’d expected him to say a few months. But for a few years? This was more than she could take. Ten years… all that time she’d been hurting, moving through life without caring what happened, wondering where he was and what he was doing. But he hadn’t been far, not if he’d found her after her divorce. He’d seen her run away, crossing the entire country from New England to all the way to Oregon to get away from bad memories. Not once had he let her know he was there. Not once had he tried to stop her, or even to speak to

her and apologize for leaving so abruptly the first time. He’d seen how much she needed him, and he’d done nothing.Nothing. He’d sat back and watched like her life was some kind of sick reality TV show, let her stumble and fall God knows how many times. And all the while, as he’d been trying toforgether, he’d taken other women to his bed. Her palm itched to reach out and slap him. She gripped her mug to keep from doing something so rash. Physical violence, no matter how immediately gratifying, wouldn’t solve anything. “I can’t believe you. All that time. All that heartache. Do you know what it was like to go through a divorce from that man, with no friends to rely on for support? I needed you, Jace. I needed you more than you’ll ever know. And the whole time you were right there.” A tear slipped down her flaming cheek and she batted it away. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing how much he upset her. He didn’t deserve it. He didn’t deserveher. “How could you do that to me?” The tears streamed down her cheeks in hot rivulets, some landing on her robe and some on the table. She ignored them, no longer tried to stop them, her only focus her white-hot anger and hurt toward the man who professed to care but didn’t show it in his actions. “Do you know what you did, Jace? Do you have any idea what you left behind?” If the venom in her voice shook him, he didn’t show it. “What are you talking about?” She set the mug down with a clatter of pottery against wood. Coffee sloshed over the rim and splashed onto the table. “The night you left, the night you chose to leave me behind, I was so upset when I couldn’t find you that I got into a car accident.” “I didn’t know.” Worry creased his brow and the corners of his lips turned down. “Where do you hurt?” She snorted. Years of anguish, of a lost life and another put on hold, came flooding back, threatening to choke her in their intensity. “More than you’ll ever know. I lost the baby I was carrying.Our baby, Jace.” He sucked in a breath. “No, you weren’t… I would have known.” “You’re so dense. I was pregnant. Youwould have known, had you stuck around instead of running away like some spoiled child.” She shoved a hand through her hair, her fingers getting stuck in the early-morning tangles. “If you hadn’t left, I probably wouldn’t have gotten into the accident. If you hadn’t left, you asshole, our child would be here now.” Unable to face him a moment longer, she pushed away from the table and stood. The chair fell back and smashed against the tile floor. She ignored it, ignored everything as she rushed out of the room into the short hallway leading to the stairs. “Felicia, wait,” Jace called to her, his voice so desolate, it twisted her heart. She stopped running away, but couldn’t go back and face him. She broke down into sobs and leaned her back against the wall, wishing everything had been different. Why couldn’t she go back in time, back to the

night before Jace had left? If she could have convinced him to stay, none of this would have happened. She would have been happy.They would have been happy—she and Jace and their beautiful, wonderful child. She felt his palm on her shoulder, felt his emotions wrap around hers and warm her from the inside out. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know. If I’d known… ” His voice trailed off, but she didn’t need him to finish the sentence to know what he’d planned to say. “You would have stayed.” “Yes.” The words she’d longed to hear for ten long years only made the tears worse. Would have, should have, could have… nothing changed the fact that he hadn’t. And, all that time she’d been alone and afraid of Randall and what he might try to do to her again, Jace had been watching from a safe distance. Keeping out of her life. Keeping away from her, when he professed his love would never die. Bullshit. He might care, but he’d proven with his actions that he didn’t understand what love was. She’d been a fool to hope different. Jace pulled her into his arms and held her until she stopped crying. Every time she tried to pull away, he held her tighter, stroking her back and kissing her head and making her feel exactly how she shouldn’t feel. Wanted. Loved. Cherished. All the emotions she didn’t want from a man who’d broken her heart years ago, and again in the wee hours of the morning. She regained her composure, hard as it was, and brushed his arms away. “Knock it off. If I needed your help, I would have asked for it.” He studied her for an endless minute, his eyes hard, his mouth set. Finally he spoke. “I’m only trying to do what’s best for you. I don’t want to see you get hurt.” Of all the nerve. How many times in the past few days had she heard similar words? Too many to count. She pushed away from the wall and stormed toward the stairs. “I’m going to take a shower. I suggest you aren’t here when I get out.” “There’s only one problem with that,” he called after her, his voice more desolate than he would have expected. His words stopped her dead in her tracks. How could she have forgotten? The sun would rise in minutes. Not enough time for him to get where he needed to go. “Sunlight. Well, just because you’re stuck here doesn’t mean you need to hang around and annoy me. Why don’t you slither into my bed, like the snake you are, and sleep off the daylight? Just stay out of my way.”

“Don’t do this, Felicia.” The pleading tone in his voice almost undid her. She turned back to him to find his eyes dark, hurt and angry. Anger at himself, most likely. She nearly smiled. Good. It was about time he felt some remorse for all he’d done. “I’m going to do what I have to. I’m going to carry on with my life. I don’t think I can have you in my life and not think of the child. So we need to go our separate ways after tonight. I think, knowing what you do now, you’ll agree.” Jace surprised her by shaking his head. “No. There can be more babies. I can give them to you. I’ll give you whatever you want.” “No.” Her heart cried out at the single word, her soul felt ripped to pieces. But what else could she do? She wouldn’t stand by and let him hurt her again. He should have told her the truth from the beginning. “I need to do this on my own. It hurts too much to think of more children. Not now. Maybe someday. Butnot with you.” The knowing look in his eyes told her he didn’t believe a word of what she said. But he shrugged, closed his eyes for a fleeting second. “Okay. We’ll talk about it later, when we’ve both had a chance to cool down. But I need you to do something for me in the meantime while I’m asleep.” “What now?” “I need you to stay inside. You can’t go out. I don’t want to see anything happen to you.” “Jace, you can’t tell me what to do.” “Promise me,” he said. “Promise me you won’t go out alone. I don’t trust your ex. I really think he could be dangerous.” She sighed, but relented. At least pretended she did. Once Jace was asleep, he’d have no idea what she did, and wouldn’t be up for an argument. Randall might be unstable, but he wasn’t crazy enough to do something as drastic as try to hurt her.She hoped. She wouldn’t let Randall—or Jace—dictate how she lived her life. “Fine. Have it your way. I won’t go out until you wake up later. Lord knows what I’m going to do with myself until I have to go to work. Now I’m going to take my shower. Maybe the hot water will help clear my cloudy mind. You go lay down. I suspect we both have a lot to think about.” She raced up the stairs, into the bathroom and slammed the door. Just because he had to spend the day locked inside her cottage didn’t mean he had the right to tell her she had to, as well. She didn’tobey him. That wasn’t the way it worked. The sooner he learned that, the better off they’d both be.

***** Jace lay on his back on Felicia’s bed, her scent surrounding him and making sleep impossible. Her scent, and the news she dropped on him without preamble, shaking him to the core and tearing his world from the anchor of stability. Throwing him into the storm, with no warning, no protection, just the intense pain of losing something he’d never known he had. A baby. Ten years, and he hadn’t known. Hadn’t had a clue. His heart ached at the thought of the life growing inside Felicia, a life they’d created together. A life that had never come into the world as their child. He fisted his hands in the fluffy white comforter and fought against the primal yell yearning to break free from his throat. What had he done? She was right. If he hadn’t walked out on her, none of that would have happened. He would have found out about the baby, and he never would have left. Things would have been exactly how he’d always wanted them to be. He’d be with Felicia. They’d be with their child, and life would be as it should have been. With that one stupid move, he’d lost more than he could fathom. More than he could ever get back. He’d lost everything. Life, as he knew it, would never be the same. He needed Felicia now more than ever. She’d had ten years to come to grips with the loss, to learn to live with the pain. He’d had no more than a few minutes. A lump the size of a grapefruit formed in his throat, turning his breathing thick and making it nearly impossible to swallow. He’d never wanted children so why was he upset? He was upset because he’d lost the child the same day he’d lost the woman he loved, and he’d never known. They could have been a family. Could have been happy. But he’d taken it away from both of them. How alone she must have been, her family miles away, her friends busy with their studies. How had she managed to go through her day-to-day activities, knowing what she’d lost? Whatthey’d lost? He couldn’t stand it. He knew she wanted to be alone, but he couldn’t be. He needed her now, more than ever. The pain threatened to tear him apart. He pushed up from the bed and went into the bathroom, where she stood under the hot shower spray. Steam filled the small room and choked the breath from his lungs. He ignored the heavy sensations of hurt and loss and stripped out of his briefs. He pushed back the yellow plastic shower curtain and stepped into the steamy enclosure. Felicia gasped when she saw him, her bright eyes flashing fire. “What are you doing? Don’t you need to sleep?” The red tracks where tears still streamed down her face made him ache even more. He shook his head. “Can’t. I need… ” Unable to put his needs into words, he shook his aching head again. She seemed to sense just what he needed, though, and reached her hand out to him. The suffocating

weight pressing down on his chest lifted a little at her gesture. Even after all he had done, all the heartache he’d caused her, she still reached out to him. She still loved him. He just hoped it would be enough. He took her hand and walked toward her, pulling her against him when he got close. He crushed her lips with his, slid his tongue between her parted lips, reveling in the strong, feminine, familiar flavor of her bursting on his tongue. She was his. It didn’t matter how many miles separated them, or how many years. He’d always known it, and he’d be damned if he’d ever let her go again. This would only make what they had stronger.Ifthey could get past the pain. She might be resistant, and he now more than ever understood why, but he could make her happy again. He wanted to make her happy again. He’d show her all the love he’d denied her for years. Hold her, kiss her, love her until she couldn’t stand it anymore. If he had his way, he’d make her his for all eternity, in spirit as well as in blood. In darkness. Together, the way it was always meant to be. “Jace?” she asked when he pulled away. She blinked, her expression uncertain and her lower lip tugged between her teeth. “Yes, love?” “Make love to me.” Her pleading tone pierced his heart, sending an ache straight through his core. “Please. I need you now.” “Anything the lady wants.” His cock ached for her. His whole body did. He wanted to bury himself so deep in her wet channel that they both forgot about all the hurt and pain. It would be a temporary fix, but he was in no position to deny either of them. He brought his hands to her breasts, cupped the soft mounds of flesh in his palms, kneaded them and felt her nipples peak against his hands. She whimpered and arched against him, her eyes wild, needy. She clawed at his shoulders, her desperation echoing inside him. “Jace, now.Please. ” He would have laughed at her tone had he not felt the same. His need for her ate him up inside, pulling him in every direction. Made him feel things he thought he’d buried long ago. With a strangled groan, he pushed her back against the shower wall and crushed his lips to hers in a kiss of absolute possession. She tangled her fingers in his hair, pulling him closer, her mouth moving in a silent plea. A plea he was more than willing to answer. He lifted her leg, wrapped it around his hip, and pressed the head of his cock against the wet entrance of her sex. She pushed down against him at the same time he thrust, and they came together with a sensation so incredible, he saw stars. The hot water beat against his side as he held himself still inside her, basking in the emotions flashing through him at the feeling of being connected with the woman he loved. The woman he’d give his life for.

“Jace,” Felicia moaned. “Move. Please.” This time he did laugh, and nipped her nose. “Patience, love. We have all the time in the world.” “Make it slow next time, if you want to.” She dug her heel into his ass to accentuate her point. “Now I need more. I need it all.” He pulled away enough to look down at her and his emotions nearly overwhelmed him. He couldn’t stop the words that slid from his lips, a declaration as much as a mark of possession. “I love you.” “I love you, too.” Her smile lacked the luster he’d known so long ago, her eyes deep and sad as she tugged her lower lip between her teeth again and let it go. “But?” She brushed her fingers down the line of his jaw, leaving a trail of pebbled flesh in her wake. When she got to his lips, she traced their shape with her fingertips, her gaze following her movements. After what felt like an eternity of waiting, she returned her gaze to his and spoke. “But… I don’t know if it’s enough. Ido love you. I know I always will, but I don’t know if we’re good for each other. I don’t know if love is enough to keep us together when so many things want to pull us apart.” Not knowing how to answer her heartbreaking speech, Jace cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. Softly. Assuredly. With all the love he could draw into the touch of their lips, the brush of their tongues. He’d make it enough. Somehow, some way, he’d show her that he could be the only man she’d ever need. Show her that, no matter what, he wouldn’t walk away again. Whatever it took, he’d do it. Always. Unable to wait another second, he rocked inside her, pushing deeper and deeper with every long, drawnout stroke, until he filled her completely. He pinned her to the wall with his hips, not letting her move as he thrust into her in short strokes. She moved against him, pushing her hands at his shoulders, her gaze frustrated and lust-filled. He shook his head. “Just enjoy, love. I’ll make you come. I promise.” She groaned. “Jace, I want… ” “What do you want?” He punctuated each of his words with another short, hard thrust that slapped her ass against the tile shower wall. “Tell me what you want.” “I want you.” She moaned and dug her fingernails into his shoulders, dropping her head back against the tile. “Not good enough, love. Talk to me.” He leaned in and bit into the tender skin where her shoulder met her neck. Her blood trickled from the small wound, exploding on his tongue, driving him wild. He wanted to suckle, to drink from her and take in her unique flavor, but he held back. He wanted the words from her, ones

he’d waited too long to hear. He wanted to know she was just as mad with lust as he. “Tell me what you want me to do to you.” A husky, strained laugh burst from her throat. “Just keep doing what you’re doing.” She whimpered. “And we’ll be fine.” “I want the words.” He trailed his tongue down her cheek. “Say it, love. Tell me what you want.” He took another small drink from her shoulder. She thrust her hips against him as much as their position would allow. “I want you to fuck me, Jace. Fuck me hard and fast. Make me come.” He pulled back and thrust into her cunt hard, his strokes fierce. Her groan ended on a near-scream. “Like this? You want it like this?” His balls slapped her ass with every thrust, his cock bumping against her cervix as he filled her to the hilt. She cried out, but he didn’t stop. He stroked harder, faster, just as she wanted. “Tell me, love. Is this what you want?” “Yes!” Her voice was no more than a breathy plea, her tone begging him to take her over the edge. He was more than willing to give her just what she needed, but he wanted something from her first. “You’re mine, Felicia. Do you hear me?Mine. ” He felt the stirrings of his impending orgasm low in his gut, his balls drawing up tightly against his body as he fought the waves threatening to wash over him. Not yet.Too soon. “Tell me, love. Tell me you’re mine.” “I’m yours, Jace.” Her inner muscles quivered around him. “I’m yours. Always.” “Come for me, love,” he pleaded. “Come for me now.” She did. Her entire body convulsed, her muscles clenching and unclenching around his thrusting cock, trying to pull him deeper and deeper. She whimpered and moaned, writhing against him and tugging at his hair. Only when her tremors started to subside did he let himself go. He came with what felt like an explosion rocking his body. His entire world. His vision faded, stars flew in front of his eyes, and everything ceased to exist but Felicia and their love and the overwhelming sensations. He filled her, bucked inside her, pumping her full of his seed and trying not to think about the times long ago, when his seed had planted a child in her womb. Someday, they’d have that again. Hewould convince her.

Chapter Eight

Randall sat in his car across the street from Felicia’s house. The other man—the one who’d turned her into a slut—was still there.He had pulled into her driveway the night before, not long after sunset, and his car still sat in her driveway this morning. His stomach clenched and icy anger grabbed at his throat. What gave her the right to entertain men at all hours of the night, and let them stay until morning? His grip tightened on the steering wheel. He should go in there and give her a piece of his mind, show her the right way to behave. A woman of his wouldn’t sully herself with a man who was no good for her. He couldn’t provide her with what Randall could. Couldn’t give her the status and the money, everything she could ever want. So why did the bitch insist on shoving the other man in his face at every turn? Because shewanted to be punished. He couldn’t think of any other explanation. She wanted him to show her who was boss. Wanted him to stake his claim and get rid of the other man for her. She wanted Randall to come back to her. She had to. She really didn’t have a choice. He didn’t give choices to women who’d proven they couldn’t obey. She hadn’t done what she’d been told. She’d rebelled, left him when he’d needed her most. She wouldn’t get another chance. Once he had her back in his house, she wouldn’t leave unless he was with her. He wouldn’t take the chance on her leaving again. And hewould get her back. He had no doubts about that. Once he’d taken care of the other man, the one who’d so foolishly gotten in the way, Felicia would run right back into his arms. He’d planned all night, and he’d finally come up with a workable solution. First, he had to get Felicia away from the man so he’d stop poisoning her with his suggestions. Then he’d be free to kill the man and get him out of their lives. His hand flew to his coat pocket, his fingers sliding over the cool metal of the gun he’d brought as an insurance policy. She’d come with him. One way or another.

***** Hours later, Felicia opened her eyes and stretched her arms over her head. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and glanced at the VCR clock. A little after noon. Not wanting to disturb Jace’s sleep, she’d come out to the living room and, after an hour or so of boredom, had fallen asleep on the couch. She sat up, grabbed the remote and turned on the TV.

Unable to find anything interesting to watch, she shut the set off and put the remote on the small end table next to the couch. With a sigh, she heaved herself off the couch and went into the kitchen in search of lunch. Her body ached, her pussy still tingled, and her head spun. Jace had broken down the last of her barriers, shown her that things could be just how they’d been before. She should be happy. But she wasn’t. On the surface, things were wonderful. She could forgive Jace for all he’d done in the past, because, on some level, his explanation made perfect sense. He hadn’t wanted her to live the life he knew. He lived decades for each of her years. To him, ten years meant hardly anything. They still had many things to work through, so much to discuss, but she finally saw a light at the end of a decade-long tunnel. Shecould be happy again. But something she didn’t understand niggled at the back of her mind. Something that felt strangely like Jace’s thoughts and emotions. Had he planted suggestions in her mind? No, it didn’t feel like that. Not exactly. It was more of a… she hated to use the word premonition, but she could think of no other term to describe what she felt. It seemed easy now to fall back into Jace’s arms, to let him back into her life, but it wouldn’t be. Would he leave again? She didn’t know. She just knew something wouldn’t work out as planned. She needed to get away, needed to breathe air that wasn’t tainted with Jace’s rich, spicy scent. Finding nothing of interest in the refrigerator, she headed toward the front door, grabbing her purse and keys on the way. She shrugged into her coat before she let herself outside into the brisk, bright morning. The strange feeling intensified as she walked down the stone walkway to her car. Something felt funny, felt off in a disturbing way. When she rounded the corner of the house and caught a glimpse of her car, she understood what had been bothering her all morning. Randall stood by the car, his hip propped against the passenger side door and his hands in the pockets of his navy blue parka. Her heart lurched and thumped wildly against her ribs. Her palms grew clammy and her mouth went desert dry. She froze where she stood, a good ten feet from her car, instinct screaming for her to get no closer. When had she ever thought of him as harmless? He certainly looked dangerous now, his eyes wild and his shoulders squared. “What do you want, Randall?” she asked, hoping her voice didn’t sound as shaky as she felt. “I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to talk to you the other day, too, but you kicked me out.” He shrugged, but his dark and dangerous expression looked anything but casual. “I’ve wanted totalk to you since you walked out on me. I don’t know if this is supposed to be revenge for what that jerk did to you ten years ago, or what, but I’ve learned my lesson. I’ll be much nicer to you now. I will. You’ve got to come back to me.” He was crazy. Certifiable. He said he wanted her back, but the anger in his eyes belied his words. She

licked her lips, a nervous reaction to the tension filling her. “I don’t have to do anything.” She tried to back up, to run back to the house to wake Jace, but Randall didn’t give her the chance. He launched forward and grabbed her arm, his thick fingers digging into her flesh through the layers of her coat and heavy sweater. She cried out in pain. The more she struggled, the tighter he squeezed until she worried he’d snap her arm. “What are you doing, Randall?” He didn’t answer. He yanked her closer, dragging her roughly against him as he started to lead her back toward her car. Something hard pressed against her side and her heart thumped to a stop. “Is that a gun?” she asked, her pulse pounding in her ears. “It is. And believe me, Felicia. I have no problems using it.” She stilled. Everything seemed to move in slow motion, fear compelling her to run but survival skills telling her to stay put. If she ran now, he’d hurt her. If she listened, watched, waited, she would find a safer time to escape.Get him talking. Get him to trust you. But don’t get him angry. She’d known he was cold, known he had no feelings beyond what the world and his family thought of him, but she hadn’t expected this. When had he gone mad? What had happened to push him over the edge? Was it the divorce? She shook her head, refusing to blame herself for Randall’s problems. She sucked in a gulp of cold air, coughing as it settled in her lungs. “What do you want? If you want to talk, why don’t we go get a cup of coffee and talk there?” “Sure, now that I’ve got a gun to your side you’re willing.” He shook his head. “Sorry. Not gonna happen now. Give me your keys.” “Why? What are you—?” “Shut up and give me the keys.” She tried to stuff her hand in her coat pocket, but he wrangled the key ring out of her hand. “Much better. Get in.” He opened the passenger door and shoved her toward it when her feet, frozen in fear, wouldn’t move her along the cold concrete of the driveway. He pushed her into the seat and slammed the door before he ran around to the driver’s side and climbed behind the wheel. After he started the car, he glanced at her, his eyes wild with pain and anger. She gulped, her fingers fidgeting with the nerves spiking inside her. She reached for the door handle, but Randall’s voice stopped her. “I don’t think so, Felicia. You’re staying right there.” He started the car and backed out of the driveway, speeding down the street toward the center of town.

“Where are you taking me?” she asked, desperate to come up with a plan for escape. “I’m not that stupid, sweetheart.” He turned the corner onto a quiet road that would lead north out of town, should he decide to follow it for more than ten minutes. Think, Felicia. Think! You can get out of this. You didn’t make it through hell on earth to let some crazy jerk take it all away. “Jace is at my cottage now. When I don’t come back with lunch, he’s going to come looking for me.” He glanced at her again, heat and ire flaring in his eyes. “Good. You made a big mistake getting back with him, Felicia. Before, I just wanted to hurt you. Now, I want even more. I hope he finds you. Then I can get rid of him, and nothing will stand in my way to what I really want.” “What are you talking about?” He laughed again, the sound chilling her blood. “You.” “You’re crazy.” “Maybe.” Her stomach clenched into a painful knot and tears welled in her eyes. She refused to let them fall, refused to show him how scared she was. If she panicked, she’d never make it out alive. She had to remain calm and keep looking for an opening to escape. “You don’t really want me.” He glanced at her, his eyes cold and hard with hatred. “You’re right. I really don’t. When you walked out, you embarrassed me in front of my family, my friends and colleagues. And those accusations of abuse caused big problems for me. You don’t even know how much. I lost my job in the family business, my father won’t speak to me. I’ve been blacklisted. So in a way, you’re right. I don’t wantyou , but I do want revenge. Believe me, Felicia. You’re going to pay for what you did. You’re going to suffer, and I’m going to enjoy every second. And you’re going to sit back and watch your boyfriend die.” He laughed. “Maybe I’ll even make you pull the trigger.” She bit back the urge to spit in his face. She willed her racing heart to still enough to allow her to speak calmly. “I would never do that.” “You will, if it’s the only way to end your suffering.” “I’d rather suffer a thousand deaths than do anything to hurt Jace.” Randall blew through a stop sign, his gaze glued to the road ahead of him and his jaw set in a tight, angry line. “Sweetheart, by the time I’ve had myfun with you, you’re going to be begging me to end it.” She clutched her purse strap so tightly, her knuckles turned white. This couldn’t be real. Couldn’t be happening. She prayed that she’d wake up and find it had all been a dream. A terrible, nasty, fearful

nightmare. Jace would be there with her, in her bed. He’d wrap her in his arms and comfort her, tell her he’d never let anything bad happen to her. “No. I won’t beg you for anything.Ever. I can’t even stand the sight of you anymore.” His hand snaked out, the back of it connecting with her cheek with a sickening crunch. She cried out as pain and light flashed behind her eyes and blood welled in her mouth. Her hand flew to her face and she cupped the burning skin in her palm, tears of pain and fear now flowing freely down her cheeks. “That, my dear,” Randall told her, his voice tinged with a mad sort of glee, “is just the beginning.”

Chapter Nine

Jace woke up alone in the dark house and sat bolt upright in bed, his heart racing as he took in the desolate feeling of the empty bedroom. The sun had set not long ago, bathing the world in familiar, comforting darkness, but his stomach clenched and unease welled in him. Felicia wasn’t at home. Where could she be? Hadn’t he warned her not to leave the house? He got up and dressed quickly, the sense of dread filling him more and more with every step. What had happened to her? Why did she always have to be so stubborn and never listen to reason? Because she hurt. She ached inside for all the time they’d lost, and all the ways he’d hurt her. He ached too, and he had to find her. Five minutes later, behind the wheel of his car driving down her quiet street, he tried to tap into her mind. He wanted to believe she’d only made a quick trip to the store, gone out to visit a friend. But the house had been empty too long. He barely sensed her presence at all, and that told him she’d been away for hours. Why hadn’t she just listened to him? Icy fingers of fear wrapped around his throat, strangling his senses. He felt wild, uncontrolled, and ready to kill whoever would harm his woman. She was blocking him, trying to keep him out, but he was insistent. He had to be, if he had any hopes of finding her alive. And he knew, at that moment, that her life was in grave danger. Randall Carson.He would kill the man as soon as he found him. He stepped on the gas pedal, speeding his sleek sports car down the deserted streets of her end of town, driving blindly until he was finally able to crack the steel walls she’d put up around her emotions. He slipped through the small cracks into her mind and wrapped his thoughts around hers. In an instant, she flooded him with emotions—pain, fear, love, anxiety, guilt. Guilt, he thought, for allowing him to tap into her mind. She’d been keeping him out on purpose, and he didn’t like it. Felicia. Jace, stay away. Her tense, sharp command shook him to his core. Did she think Randall would be able to hurt him? He nearly laughed at the thought. He’d never allow that to happen.

No. I won’t. Tell me how to get to you. Where are you?he asked into her mind. He’ll kill you. “Not in this lifetime,” Jace mumbled.I won’t let that happen. I need to find you. To get you away from him before he does something to you. He paused as the implications of his silent words sank in.What has he done to you? Has he hurt you? No. No, he hasn’t hurt me. He knew without having to ask that she lied. He’d have to kill Randall if he’d done any lasting damage to the woman he loved.Where did he take you? I’m on my way. I just need to know where to go to get to you. A hotel at the edge of town. The Continental. Do you know where it is? Yes. He was close, too. Another few blocks and he’d be there with her. The hotel he’d had taken her to was the one where Randall had been staying—the one a few streets over from the apartment Jace had rented for the past two years. Hewould get her away from Randall, and everything would be all right. Are you hurt?he asked again, hoping this time she’d tell him the truth. Knowing her as well as he did, he should have known better. No. I’m okay. But be careful. Randall has a gun. He wants to kill you. I don’t want anything to happen to you. Not in this lifetime, or the next. He pulled his car into the hotel parking lot and severed contact with her mind. He needed all his mental power to find a way to get her away from Randall without either of them getting shot. He’d recover, but Felicia might not. He wasn’t willing to take that chance. He knew the room number from the times he’d sat out in the parking lot, keeping an eye on Randall to make sure nothing happened to Felicia. If he’d known she’d disobey and go out after he’d fallen asleep, he would have handcuffed her to the bed. He got out of the car and crept around the back of the hotel to Randall’s door. How would he get inside without alerting Randall’s attention and putting Felicia in even more danger? He pressed closer to the door, listening for signs of life, and heard Randall’s muffled voice. A chill shot through him at the thought of the other man, a man dangerous to a human, alone in the cramped room with Felicia. When he heard a sharp slap followed by Felicia’s cry of pain, anger overrode common sense. He gave the door a swift kick and it crashed inward, slamming against the wall so hard, it bounced back. Jace pushed past the broken, swinging door into the room, moving more swiftly than an ordinary human could see, and grabbed Randall’s neck. He lifted Randall off his feet, squeezing his throat in his strong hands. “What do you think you’re doing? I’m not going to let you get away with hurting her.”

Randall flailed and sputtered, kicking his feet and swinging his arms. Jace dropped him on his feet, and he stumbled back into the wall. The gun in Randall’s hand didn’t scare Jace. Such a weapon could do no permanent damage to a vampire, so he didn’t give it a second thought as he stormed toward the other man. Until Randall raised the gun in Felicia’s direction. “Stop moving now, or she dies,” he barked at Jace, his expression crazed. Not doubting his threat for a second, Jace stopped in his tracks. He held his hands in front of him in a false gesture of surrender designed to set the man at ease long enough for Jace to make his move. Randall didn’t lower the gun, but his hand faltered long enough for Jace to lash out with his foot. The sole of Jace’s boot connected with Randall’s shoulder with a crack, knocking the gun out of his hand and sending Randall sailing against the wall. His body thumped hard against the plaster surface and slid to the floor in a heap. Before Jace had a chance to react, Randall was on his feet, reaching for the gun on the dark brown carpet. Randall’s hand snaked out and grabbed Jace’s ankle, pulling him to the ground. His shoulder struck the metal bed frame on his way down and Jace felt the searing pain of his skin tearing. The pain only increased his anger. He pounced, wrapping his hands around Randall’s throat. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he heard Felicia’s scream. “Get down, Felicia,” he warned as he saw Randall lift the gun again. “Duck down and get out of here.” She dropped out of sight and he released a sigh of relief. His relief, however, was short-lived. As Jace tried to watch out for Felicia’s safety, Randall swung the gun at Jace’s head. When the cold, hard metal connected with his cheekbone, Jace’s world spun. He let go of Randall’s neck just long enough for Randall to flip Jace onto his back and aim the gun at his head. “You might be strong,” Randall told him, “But I’m stronger. You’re going to die.” “Wanna bet?” Jace used his last choice, something he’d hoped not to resort to, to take care of Randall Carson. He forced his way into the other man’s mind and planted a suggestion there.You’re nothing , he told him.Nothing at all. She doesn’t love you. No one does. End it now, Randall. You’ve got to end the madness. Randall batted at his ears and shook his head. “What the hell is going on?” Just put the gun in your mouth and pull the trigger. It’s easy. A quick way to end all the pain. If you get out of this alive, you’re going to spend the rest of your life in jail. Better to bail out now. When Randall hesitated, glaring at Jace, Jace growled into the other man’s mind.Do it now! Be a man for once, instead of a wimp. Randall closed his eyes, gasping for breath, holding his head with his free hand. Jace pushed him away and jumped up, heading for the door.Now, Randall. The police are on the way. There isn’t much time.

Randall brought the gun to his mouth and pulled the trigger.

***** Felicia crawled out the hotel room door and stood outside in the empty parking lot, not able to walk any further away from Jace. What would happen? Would he be okay? She shook with fear that Randall would make good on his threats to kill Jace. She had no idea if the gun could hurt a vampire, and she didn’t want to find out. She just wanted him out of the room, safe in her arms, and Randall out of her life forever. The crack of gunfire rent the air. She gasped and brought her hand to her mouth. What had happened? Was Jace hurt? Was Randall? Her breath stuck in her throat and her vision grayed. Her knees gave out and she dropped to the sidewalk, knowing she should run to get help but unable to get her body to move. Tears streamed down her face and her entire body shook. Would it be over, or would that single shot be the end of life as she knew it? A scuffling noise sounded at the doorway and she snapped her gaze up. Jace stood there, a weary smile on his face, the shoulder of his coat soaked in blood and his cheekbone an angry blue-black. “He didn’t get you, did he?” she asked, gesturing to his shoulder. “No. I hit it on the bed frame. It’ll be fine in a couple of hours.” He walked to where she sat and helped her off the cold ground. “Let’s get out of here.” She dug her heels in and tugged at Jace’s arm. “Wait a second. Is he… ?” She couldn’t get her lips to form the word. “Dead? Yes.” “You killed him? Don’t we need to wait for the police?” Jace shook his head as he dragged her along toward his car. “He took his own life. We need to go before the questions start. Are you okay to drive your car back to your house?” She nodded. “But I don’t have my keys.” Jace grabbed her hand, turned it palm up, and dropped her key ring into her palm. “Now you do. I promise you can ask all the questions you want, once we get back to your house. For now, let’s just concentrate on getting away from this place, okay?” “Okay. I’ll follow you back.” She said the words, got behind the wheel of her car and watched him walk to his, but with all the emotions swirling and churning in her head, she didn’t know if she’d ever be able to think clearly again.

Above all else, though, she felt relieved. Relieved that Randall hadn’t done to her what he’d promised, relieved that Jace was okay. She allowed herself a small smile. Considering she’d hit rock bottom when Randall had kidnapped her, things had to get better from here.

Chapter Ten

Felicia lay on her side, nude, tracing swirling patterns on Jace’s chest with the tips of her fingers. He breathed softly, evenly, into the stillness of the night, and she wondered if he’d fallen asleep. The sun would be rising soon. “Jace?” she whispered, not wanting to wake him from much needed rest but not yet ready to be alone. When they’d gotten back to her house, he’d taken a moment to wash his shoulder and tend to her wounds before he led her straight to the bedroom. They’d made wild, frantic love, and then slow, gentle love once the adrenaline had subsided. And then they’d talked. Jace had told her what happened with Randall, answered her myriad of questions, let her cry and vent into the wee hours of the night. And then, when she’d spent all her tears and anger, he’d held her. Promised to love her forever. To care for her for all the rest of the days of her life. No one had ever promised that much to her before, and her heart swelled with the thought of spending the rest of her days with a man she loved more than life itself. It was overwhelming, earth-shattering. Mindbending. Perfect. They still had a few issues to work through, but she had no doubts that this time, they’d get it right. “Jace?” she whispered again, punctuating her word with a kiss to his chest. “Yeah?” His voice sounded husky with sleep. She wet her lips. “You’re not leaving me again, are you?” “What?” He opened his eyes and pulled her into his arms. “No. Of course not. I told you that, and I meant it. This time, love, I’m here to stay.” “I just don’t think I could stand being hurt again.” “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I thought at the time, that if I’d stayed, you would have hurt worse in the end.” He sighed. “Now that you’ve had a chance to experience more of life, do you still feel ready to accept becoming a vampire, as you wanted to do so long ago?” She pulled out of his arms and sat up, hugging her knees to her chest. She’d known this question would come, known it was what he’d ask of her. Could she do it? Could she let him change her life forever, take away

her days and cast her into the shadows of the night? There was no easy answer to the question. Part of her wanted to accept everything he wanted to give her, but another, larger part of her was scared. She’d be lying to herself if she said his question, his offer, didn’t bother her. She slid out of bed and walked to the closet to get her robe. “I know you don’t have this problem, but I can’t wake up without at least one cup of coffee. Since we were up all night and it looks like I won’t be sleeping anytime soon, I’m going to have to get my caffeine fix first.” He frowned, sat up in bed and watched her. “I thought we’d just stay in bed and sleep all day. Come back to bed, love. We can talk later.” She didn’t know if she wanted to have this discussion at all, but she knew the longer she put it off, the more difficult it would become. And they needed to talk about it, hash out what would happen in their future. If this would be the deal-breaker, she might just have to let Jace go. She belted her robe and hugged her arms around her to ward off the sudden emotional chill. “I’m already seeing how this isn’t going to work between us. You sleep during the day, and I sleep at night. When are we ever going to see each other?” “We made it work before.” He pushed himself off the bed and walked to her, gloriously and unabashedly naked. And hard.Oh man . Her breath stuck in her throat at the sight of that cock, ready and waiting for her. But along with accepting his body came accepting his lifestyle. She wasn’t yet ready to make that drastic a change. “What’s with the sudden excuses? Are you nervous?” Jace asked, his fingers gliding up and down her arms and setting off little jolts of electricity everywhere he touched. She shook her head, opened her mouth to tell him she wasn’t, but in the end, she couldn’t lie to him. He’d know it, and they both deserved the truth from each other from now on. After what they’d been through, there could be nothing between them except complete and total honesty. “Of course I am. You’re asking something huge of me. It’s not a decision I’m going to take lightly.” He pulled her into his arms, kissed the top of her head. “I understand. Whatever you decide, I’m not going anywhere.” She pulled out of his grasp and forced a smile. “Yes, you are. You’re going back to bed. I’m going to get some coffee and maybe take a shower, and we’ll talk about this later after you’ve had some rest.” A slow, sexy smile spread over his mouth and humor danced in his eyes. “Are you sure you don’t want to come back to bed with me? Just for a couple of hours? I’ll make it worth your while.” She considered it for a moment, but decided she needed the time to think things through—by herself— before she came to any rash decisions. “Not this time, Romeo. Think you can wait a few?”

He glanced down at his impossibly hard cock and let out a breath. “I don’t know.” She rolled her eyes.Men. Why were they all so single-minded? “Take a cold shower, then.” She left him standing there staring after her as she walked out of the room.

***** Ten minutes later, a fresh mug of coffee in her hand, Felicia stood out on the balcony overlooking her backyard in the semi-darkness of the early morning. Her thick robe didn’t offer much protection against late fall’s harsher elements, but she barely noticed the cold. The wind whipped her hair across her face and she breathed in the scents of fall hanging heavy in the air. Crisp leaves, chimney smoke from some of her neighbors. She’d never get enough. She loved her home. She loved living in Oregon, hardly missed New England at all. She didn’t know if she wanted to give it up. Would she have to? Would Jace expect her to? She sipped the hot liquid from her mug as she mulled it over. Not yet ready to give up her quaint little house in her quiet neighborhood, she shook her head. It would have to be one of the terms of their relationship. If he wanted her as badly as he said he did, if he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, he could move in. Otherwise, he could forget anything continuing between them. But he’d told her he loved her. All this time, she’d wanted nothing more than to hear those words. He’d hadn’t said them before, when they’d been together long ago, though she’d known he’d felt them as strongly as she had. Now he didn’t seem to have the same problem admitting his feelings. She smiled to herself, and a giggle escaped her lips. Jace really cared. He cared enough about her to keep up with how she was doing, and to chase her clear across the country when he thought the time was right. He’d protected her from Randall, saving her life earlier that night. She owed him so much more than she could ever repay. As far as she was concerned, they were now even. Yes, he’d walked out, causing her unfathomable amounts of pain. Yes, it would take time and patience to move past that. But the truth of the matter was so much simpler than accusations and finger pointing. She loved him. She always had, and always would. When she was a little girl, her grandmother had told her that fate dictated the courses of lives, not actions. If she bought into that theory, even a little, she’d have to admit that the accident might have happened whether or not Jace had walked away. She might have lost the baby, whether or not the accident had happened. None of that mattered. She’d come to terms with that particular loss years ago. What mattered now was that Jace was back, ready to start over, willing to stay. How could she pass up a

second chance at eternal love? He’d waited a little too long to come back to her, but she had to understand that with his life span, he saw time in a completely different way. Ten years to her would be like a few months to him. Andhe needed to understand thatshe was only a human. She didn’t see things the way he did, on such a grand scale. Her life amounted to a tiny fraction of his, and ten years had passed like an eternity. Could she ever live like that—for what amounted to forever? Could she live on blood, giving up most food and drink? Giving up the day and the sun to live in eternal darkness? Could she live with the heightened sensations, with the power to tap into minds? She didn’t know. But she’d do it. In the years since he’d left, she’d gone nowhere with her life. Her dreams to become a famous painter had been curbed, her inspiration following Jace when he left. Her child had been forever lost. Her marriage had failed, and her liberal arts degree not helpful in finding a job. She’d been better off at twenty-one than she was now, ten years older. Jace offered her a life she’d thought for so long she couldn’t have. An eternity of love and passion, of never floundering or failing again. She thought about the painting, the one she’d done the first night he’d come to her. The night he’d made her feel things she thought long buried. She could do it—she could live life with the man she loved, try again to have the career she’d dreamed of since early childhood. She could finally, after so long living in denial, have it all. Her decision made, she went back into the kitchen and set her half-empty coffee mug in the sink with shaking hands. She needed to talk to him, and she couldn’t wait another second. Her mind practically burst with the knowledge of what she would ask him to do, what she would soon become. She made her way into the bedroom and, when her eyes adjusted to the darkness, found him lying on his back, his eyes closed, a sheet draped partway over his beautiful body. “Jace?” Getting no response, she untied the sash of her robe and let it fall to the floor. She walked to the bed and climbed in next to him, pushing the sheet aside. Even in sleep, his cock remained semi-hard. She smiled as an idea came to her. She leaned down and ran her tongue along his length, glorying in the fact that he twitched under her ministrations. She licked and sucked and teased, swirled her tongue over the head of his cock. He groaned softly and shifted, allowing her better access to where she wanted to be. Once she had him completely erect, she sucked him into her mouth, as deep as she could take him, while she cupped his balls gently in her hand. He moaned and his eyes snapped open. She smiled up at him as he threaded a hand through her hair. “What a way to wake up.”

He tried to pull her up and off him, but she held her ground. She’d see this through to the end, like he had for her so many times the night before. “Jesus. You don’t know how close I am. You had me hard when I went to sleep, and I can’t take this. I’m going to come.” His tone held a warning she chose to ignore. She lifted her mouth from him just long enough to speak, her tone as seductive as she could manage with her emotions in such turmoil. “Do it.” In seconds, she felt his body stiffen as he came hard, his seed pumping into her mouth in hot bursts. She milked him dry as she swallowed, only letting him go when his tremors had stopped and he flopped back, his breathing jagged. When she came up next to him, he pulled her to him and kissed her hard, thrusting his tongue into her mouth before pulling back with a satisfied smile on his face. “That was amazing.You are amazing.” “I highly doubt I compare with some of the women you’ve been with.” “What other women?” He chuckled. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” “What a sweet thing to say.” She pinched his side. “A total lie, I’m sure, but sweet nonetheless.” “When you’re with me, all other women fade away. What would it take to bind you to me? Do you want a Christian marriage? I told you already. I’ll give you anything you want. If it takes a church,” he shuddered. “A wedding in front of family and friends, so be it. Just let me know what you want, and I’ll do it, love.” She didn’t want a marriage—didn’t need one to know they were in this together, for the rest of their lives. She wanted something more, something a little harder to voice. “No. Marriage isn’t want I want. Not a conventional one, at least.” “Then tell me what you do want. I’m dying to know the decision you came to in your time alone. Enlighten me, love.” “I want you. I know that for certain. I’m not willing to give you up.” She took a deep, dramatic breath. “But I’m not willing to grow old beside you, while you stay young and vibrant. It’s bad enough that men look better as they age, and women just age. I don’t think I could stand looking like your mother or grandmother years down the road.” “There’s nothing I can do about that.” “Yes, there is.” She smiled up at him. “You can turn me. Make me a vampire, Jace.” He didn’t move, didn’t speak, didn’t even breathe for a long while. When he finally did respond, his voice sounded strained. “Are you sure that’s what you want?” She had to laugh at his sudden, uncharacteristic insecurity. “Yes, I’m sure. Don’t you know I’d do anything

for you?” He pulled away from her and sat up, a frown marring his perfect features. “Are you really and truly certain? It’s a very big step. We can wait if you want to think about it some more. Once the change has started, there’s nothing I can do to stop it. I don’t want you to resent me later for it.” She propped herself up on her elbows and looked into his eyes. “Yes, I’m certain. I know it’s a big change. I’ve thought about it for a long time. Since I saw you in the bar a couple of nights ago, and even before, when you first told me what you are. I’m a big girl, Jace. I’ve made my decision. It’s what I want.” He stared at her for a long time without speaking, seeming to search her face for the answer to a question he hadn’t yet asked. Finally, he smiled. “Thank you, love. You have no idea how much this means to me.” She laughed at his sudden change in mood. “I just have one question. Does it hurt? I mean the actual change. I’m not going to be miserable for a couple of weeks, am I?” He shook his head. “It’ll probably be a little uncomfortable, but I can help ease some of that.” He waggled his brows, his tone suggestive. “I promise I’ll make it worth your while.” She didn’t doubt him for a second.

About the author: Elisa Adams was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts. She continues to reside in the New England area with her workaholic husband, three children, and a quirky dog named Duchess. A full-time mom, she divides her free time between writing, reading, and spending time with family. Elisa welcomes mail from readers. You can write to her c/o Ellora’s Cave Publishing at 1337 Commerce Drive, #13, Stow, Ohio 44224.

Also by Elisa Adams: Demonic Obsession Dirty Pictures Dream Stalker In Moonlight Just Another Night Midnight Shift of Fate

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