Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (65 page)

Yes, that must be it. I’d gone mad,
insanity brought on by the unnecessary heartache heaped upon me by
an uncaring world. Either I’d gone crazy, or he was crazy—some
unstable man, who just so happened to look exactly like the man of
my dreams, and who also knew my name and other important, personal
details a stranger would have no way of knowing.

A low, deep rumble escaped Lucius’
chest. “Sweetheart, I am very sane, and so are you. Stop
questioning what is happening; trust yourself to know the
truth.”

“
I don’t understand,” I
said “Why me? You don’t even know me, Lucius.”

“
I have heard your heart
cry out for so long now, your soul broke through the hardened walls
of my cold heart and sang to me a lullaby so serene, I knew
immediately you were my chosen. Make no mistake; I am yours for
eternity.”

Oh, good
God, he can’t mean what he is saying
. My
heartbeat thundered in my ears, and my face flushed a violent
blush. I desperately looked around, searching for something,
anything to distract my wanton body and delirious mind. I knew then
as I do now, I was falling dangerously in love with the man in
front of me. How he could capture my heart so quickly unnerved me
to no end.

Lucius smiled at me, stroking my
cheek. “Hush, little one. Stop your fretting, and allow me to
explain how I awoke and came to you.”

I found myself leaning into his touch.
He caressed my cheek so tenderly; every cell in my body came to
life, awakening to Lucius.

“
Ivy, dear, several years
ago now, I awoke from a long sleep and found my heart beating. I
could not comprehend what had done this—my kind only comes back to
life when we meet our chosen one, so that we are then able to love
for all eternity. However, I searched the world over, Ivy, and I
could not find my chosen one. Had fate played some cruel joke on
me, in order to punish me for my previous sins? I truly believed it
to be so. And then, in a moment of sheer frustration and utter
despair, I heard you heartbreaking sorrow. I could not bear the
pain you were going through. I began searching once again, but I
could not find you, to help you, to comfort you. You had to call me
forth, to release me so that I might come and find you. For years,
sweet Ivy, I listened to your soul’s agony. I will spend my
lifetime trying to heal your hurts; I feel I have failed you by not
being there when you needed me most.”

I shuddered at Lucius’ revelations;
surely, he did not know the evils that were done to me. No one
knew; I refused to speak the words out loud, thinking, somehow, if
I didn’t tell anyone, then the events truly never happened in the
first place. Of course, a psychiatrist would have a field day if he
heard my tortured logic. Lucius’ sorrowful moan brought me crashing
back to the present.

“
Darling Ivy, what happened
to you is very real, but no longer will you hang your head in
shame. You survived a brutal assault, and yes, you have scars—both
mentally and physically—but Ivy, you survived. A great many would
not. I will help you come to terms with this. You must, you know,
or we’ll never have a chance to become one. But don’t be afraid; I
am here for you.”

My eyes smarted at this beautiful
man’s caring words. Never in my life would I ever have believed
someone could feel so strongly about another person, the way I was
feeling for Lucius right then. Of course, what did I know of how
relationships progressed? My record was dire, at best.

Lucius slid his hand around my neck
and pulled me into him, and just when I thought my heart couldn’t
beat any faster, my dream man proved me wrong. Breathing grew
painful, and I gasped as I stared into those beautiful, molten eyes
framed by thick, curling, dark lashes. Neither blemish nor scar
marred his porcelain skin, and I found myself reaching out to trace
a finger along jaw. Such angelic features and yet, his eyes spoke
of true torment and pain. Who or what was this man before me? Where
did he come from? He’d said something about my calling him forth.
What did he mean? Just when I believed I’d found my voice to
question him, all thoughts fled as he dipped his head and placed a
chaste kiss on my tingling lips. Oh, dear heavens, how could
something so innocent create such a volcanic reaction throughout my
entire body?

Every hair on my body stood up, goose
bumps formed everywhere, and my nipples hardened, making me fear
he’d think I was easy prey. Ha! Who was I kidding? He had me in the
palm of his hand, and he knew it. His nostrils flared, his eyes
darkened, and his breath came fast. I found my body reacting before
my brain could register. I reached up and pulled his face toward
me, and just before our lips met, he flashed a smile. A flood of
moisture drowned my panties. Trouble . . . this man meant nothing
but trouble for me.

Lucius’ dangerous smile faded as he
closed the distance between us and claimed my lips. My brain ceased
working, allowing my body to function on its own and respond
wantonly. The feel of his mouth on mine was the closest thing to
divine, this side of heaven. He drew my upper lip between his,
suckled it tenderly while rubbing the back of my neck. I pressed my
body against his, and Lucius pulled me tightly into arms. I heard a
moan and realized the sound came from me. Lucius took advantage of
my parted lips, and his tongue found its way inside my mouth. I
gasped, but he quickly vanquished my fears with his gentle
expertise. So skilled was he, I briefly wondered how many lovers
he’d had, upon which to practice and fine tune his technique. But I
soon became caught up in a duel of tongues that sent my temperature
soaring and my insides quivering. If I died right then, I would not
have cared; the kiss had more passion in it than any intimate union
I had ever had.

Lucius suddenly pulled back, and my
body immediately protested the sudden distance between us. I moved
toward him, but he held me back.

“
Ivy, no, we have much to
learn about each other. Now is not the time for this. I need you to
trust me completely before I claim you as my chosen.”

My mind was slowly returning to a
functional level. God, what he must think of me, throwing myself at
him like that. My cheeks burned.

“
Ivy, dear, I would never
think badly of you. You reacted to me because I am your chosen; it
is natural for us. Your body recognizes mine. My sweetest heart,
understand me when I say I love you. No matter we’ve only just met,
in the flesh; it truly is that simple.”

Chapter Two

Lucius took my hand in his and helped
me to my feet.

“
Come,” he said, and guided
me along the cobbled path through the cemetery. We’d only gone a
few feet, however, when he stopped suddenly and rubbed my tender
wrist. “Ivy, how long have you had this marking?”

I shrugged casually. “After something
that happened to me as a teenager.”

Of course, I didn’t want to tell
Lucius about my past. About how I could not defend myself from a
horrific assault that ended up taking my innocence, in more ways
than one. The small scar symbolized the loss of all of life’s joys,
an outward symbol of the memories lurking in the dark recesses of
my mind. Memories I refused to consider ever sharing with
anyone.

“
Ivy, this is very
important to me, to my kind.”

I did not truly understand what Lucius
was going on about, and I did not want to talk about my scar or the
things the tiny mark represented. I tried to pull my hand out of
his, but he held onto it effortlessly.

“
Ivy, we need to talk as
soon as possible. Come, let’s go somewhere more
comfortable.”

I let Lucius lead me for a while, as I
did not want to talk. I felt uncomfortable, almost naked, now that
Lucius found my scar. I never liked being venerable, and now, here
I was, feeling insecure all over again.

“
When we get to my house,
we will sit, and I will listen to your entire story, and you will
tell me, Ivy, all of it.”

I stopped walking and held up my free
hand. “Stop, Lucius, I cannot go with you. This is crazy. Why would
I want to tell you things I’ve never told anyone? I don’t even know
you. I think I should just go home, now. It’s been different, but
this is where it ends.”

Lucius’ eyes turned dark, nearly
black, and a red outline formed around his pupils. His face changed
before my eyes, his cheekbones becoming more prominent and fangs
dropping from his upper gums. I gasped and jumped back from his
reach. What the—? I blinked rapidly, closed my eyes against what I
knew must be an illusion. When I opened them, Lucius looked normal
again. I released my pent-up breath on a relieved sigh. Surely, the
atmosphere—having encountered this man . . . the man of my dreams,
here in a cemetery—had caused me to hallucinate. No other
explanation made sense. My brain seemed to have lost the ability to
think rationally. After all, what was I thinking, talking to a man
about whom I knew nothing? In a graveyard, of all places, in the
middle of the night! Surely, no good could come from
this.

Lucius growled a low, deep resonating
sound that rumbled from some dark place in his soul. I shuddered to
think what such a strong man might be capable of doing. His eyes
grew wide. Had he once again guessed the direction of my thoughts?
Read my mind?

“
Ivy, please; give me a
moment. Do not fear me, ever. I would never hurt you. I would
rather kill myself than see fear or pain reflected in your
beautiful gaze.”

I stood there quietly, taking this in.
I truly did not know what to think. Logically, I should run away,
as fast as my legs would carry me, but something about Lucius held
me captive. He’d enthralled me. His very heart spoke to mine in a
language I had yet to understand.

Lucius took a deep breath and closed
his eyes. When he opened them again, their coloring, too, appeared
normal, back to their beautiful molten hue. He held out his hand
slowly. I stood there wondering what to do, but my body apparently
knew how to react. A moment later, I found myself holding his
hand.

I knew then my life would never be the
same. I truly felt as if I were stepping off a cliff into an abyss.
I had no idea where I would end up or if I would even live through
this grave exchange. No pun intended.

I nodded, silently indicating my
temporary agreement to continue our conversation.

We walked from the cemetery to a
beautiful, sleek, black Jaguar. Eyebrows raised, I turned to give
Lucius an inquiring look, only to finding him gazing down at me,
grinning wickedly.

“
Sweet Ivy, I am ancient. I
have lived many, many lifetimes, and over the years, I have amassed
a vast amount of wealth, both physically and monetary.”

Of course he did. He was perfect in
every way; stupid of me not to have guessed he’d also be wealthy.
But what could he mean when he said he’d lived many, many
lifetimes? I shook my head. Nothing about this night made much
sense.

Lucius opened the passenger door, but
I hesitated, pausing a moment to gaze into his eyes.

“
Trust me, Ivy; just trust
me.”

Again, my body reacted before my mind
could reach a rational decision based on all the facts. A second
later, I found myself pulling my seatbelt around me and snapping it
into place.

Lucius drove us through town and onto
the country roads. Once again, I questioned my sanity. No one knew
where I was or who I was with, and yet, I felt at peace. At least,
for the moment. I sat there silently staring out the window, taking
in the beautiful October night. The full moon now shone brightly in
the clear sky, and fall leaves floated on a soft breeze, performing
their traditional autumnal dance. I found myself being lulled into
a sense of relaxation watching this seasonal display of beauty.
Lucius took my hand and gently kissed the inside of my wrist. A
burning sensation flared where his lips met my skin, and I gasped.
I pulled from his grasp and tried to see what had caused my flesh
to become so overly tender. I could not see very well in the car,
but I could feel a change in the scar. In addition to feeling hot
beneath my fingertips, the once smooth, flat, tiny mark now rose a
bit.

“
Ivy, I can explain to you
why that is happening.”

“
What, Lucius? How could
you possibly know why my scar is so sensitive tonight?”

“
I can explain many things
to you tonight, all of which you will find very hard to accept, but
in time, everything will make sense. All you must do right now is
trust me completely and believe me; can you do that for
me?”

I sat there staring out the window.
Could I? Could I trust a person—a man, no less . . . a stranger to
me—and do as he requested? I’d gone off with him, alone, so
obviously, some small part of me already did believe he wouldn’t
harm me. Oh, what fun the psychologists would have right now, if
they knew I’d actually come to trust someone. A man I’d only just
met, no less.

All too soon, we pulled onto a long,
winding, dirt road. We drove along endlessly, as the country lane
ran up and down and meandered for what seemed like miles.
Eventually, a house came into view, an old colonial, no less. I
gasped and sat forward to take it all in. A welcoming candle lit
each window of the beautiful home.