Drawing Blood (27 page)

She frowned and said hopefully, “Could it have been one of the men who are watching the kids? Maybe he was just checking to make sure I was safe. Couldn’t it have been harmless?”

Stryker didn’t lie to her. “My men are assigned to the children. They would die rather than leave them. It was a human.”

Before he could say more, Holly piped in, “Don’t tell me. You could smell him.”

Stryker nodded gravely. “Exactly, and soon with some guidance, you will too. It’s started already. You knew you were in danger and acted immediately. Humans are socialized to ignore their animal instincts. We vampires have learned to heed our inner warnings or die.”

Chapter 20

“Are you suggesting that because I’m part vampire, my life is in danger?” she asked him tentatively, afraid of the answer.

“I’m afraid so. Obviously given what happened just now, I should have been clearer. There are those who would wipe us off the face of the earth. People such as you, who are half human and half vampire, are living proof that our species are compatible even enviable.” He leaned an arm on the fireplace mantel and Holly couldn’t help but feel drawn to him. The adrenalin the chase had shot through her veins wasn’t gone. It was just channeled in a different direction and her chest heaved. She remembered vividly what it had felt like to be in his arms with her ear to his heart and for the moment, she lost her train of thought.

He continued to speak and a part of Holly’s brain registered that the subject was serious, but Holly couldn’t concentrate on his words and meaning. She watched his neck muscles move as he swallowed and felt an undeniable desire to press her lips to the side of his throat and gently suck. She wanted to feel his skin beneath her teeth, not to taste his blood, but to heat it. Licking her lips, Holly could almost taste his skin and she longed for more. Her body temperature rose a full degree.

Fever, she had a fever. Her heart pounded strangely, sounding unfamiliar to her ears. Pushing aside her own response, she made herself deaf to all sound that didn’t emanate from Stryker’s body, listening to his heart beat a reply. She watched as he took a deep breath. A rise in body temperature could bring on all kinds of delirium Holly knew, but she’d never experienced anything like this. She couldn’t think, she could only feel.

For the second time that night, but for an entirely different reason, the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Her skin felt over charged, suspended, almost painfully anticipating his touch. He was speaking, she could even see his lips move, but Holly didn’t listen to him. Her body was hearing him on a different level. Words weren’t necessary. Besides, there were so many better uses for his mouth. Talking seemed so mundane, so pitifully inadequate in comparison to the way their bodies were communicating. From the tip of his shoe to the strands of golden hair on his head, Holly examined him. Somehow her body recognized his on a level she couldn’t fathom. She breathed in, savoring his primal scent. Her eyes swept up, locked on his and in that moment she knew. He understood what she was feeling because he was feeling the same thing.

Muscles Holly didn’t know she possessed tensed, as her body prepared to pounce. She hadn’t a thought in her head except to get to him as quickly as possible. Something in his eyes broke the spell. She hesitated for a split second and it was lost in the blink of an eye. The moment was gone. How did he do that? How could he diffuse the situation with just a look?

Stryker’s eyes filled with regret. Strangely enough, Holly could taste it. It didn’t appeal to her. She winced and breathed air in through her nose and out through her mouth trying to expel the acrid taste of his regret. Confused, she looked at Stryker helplessly. What was happening to her?

 
Frightened by these new sensations, Holly moved to put an armchair between them. She braced her hands on the back of the chair and pressed down on the fluffy cushion. She clutched the thick fabric in her hands desperately, trying to pull herself back under control. Somehow, she’d lost all sense. Her pride demanded she get a grip.

Stryker looked infinitely sad and said, “I’m sorry, Holly. This isn’t fair to you.”

She frowned at him, not understanding what he was saying and almost too worked up to care.

Giving her a wide berth, he moved to the couch opposite her and sat down. He extended a hand, palm up and indicated the arm chair Holly had clutched in a death grip.

“Please sit down. There is more you need to know.” He shook his head so regretfully that Holly wanted to soothe away the lines of tension in his face. But she didn’t. With a stilted gait, she walked around the chair and dropped into the seat. She didn’t dare speak for fear of having no control over her own tongue. She closed her eyes tightly and clung to her self-control when she thought of the word tongue. The simple word conjured up all kinds of erotic images. If she was to survive this little powwow with her dignity in tact, Holly knew she had to pull herself together. She started multiplication tables in her head, praying that the dreaded numbers would snap her out of it. Being hopeless at arithmetic, Holly got stumped at 8 x 13 and finally looked at Stryker clear-eyed and ready to listen to what he had to say.

“This is hard to explain, but please bear with me. I know what’s happening to you.”

Holly stayed silent and waited for him to explain.

“Please forgive me for not telling you sooner, but there was so much you didn’t know. Finding out that you’re half vampire couldn’t have been easy for you.”

She sent him a meaningful look, but didn’t say anything.

He said, “I know what you’re going through right now because I’m going through it too. It’s easier for me, however because my kind consider the phenomenon one of the richest, most fulfilling gifts we are given.” She still looked at him patiently, but there was heat behind her eyes and she knew it. How come he didn’t burst into flames?

 
He said, “You and I are what my people call bloodmates.”

When he didn’t go on, Holly grew impatient and said, “And what are these bloodmates when they’re at home?”

He smiled. “Bloodmates are two halves of one spirit. A vampire can live his or her entire life and never find a bloodmate. Only the truly fortunate ones do. Such as my parents. That’s one of the reasons they were able to have more than one child. Biological siblings are very rare in my world, as I’ve explained.”

“Keep going, Stryker. I’ll save my reaction until you’re through,” she said flatly.

“I knew my bloodmate was in the grocery store that day I first met you. I should have left immediately, but the pull was too powerful for even me to resist. I had to see you, touch you, hear…you get where I’m going.”

She said, “You say you should have left and you speak as if you’re apologizing.”

“You deserve an apology. If I had walked away that day, you wouldn’t have been so affected by my presence. I could have stayed away from you until the time was more appropriate.”

“Oh, so you’re saying that you would have just walked away and picked me up later when it was more convenient? Don’t worry about me. I have no will of my own.” Holly dug her nails into the soft fabric of her chair.

He nodded then shook his head. “You misunderstand. I could have settled my people here safely then turned my full attention to us. As it is now, I’ve dumped a hell of a lot on you, more than one person should have to bear.”

“Yeah, but as you say, I’m a rare person,” Holly said sarcastically.

Stryker ignored her tone. “You are that and then some. Usually when bloodmates meet, all they can think about is being together. Given the situation, you and I have had to deal with other more dangerous matters. The longer we stay apart, the harder it will get for us, but once we’ve consummated our relationship we are bonded for life.”

“You’re sure of that,” she said quietly.

“Yes. We will get into each other’s blood. Our hunger will know no bounds. If we were to separate while living, you would go insane. We cannot be apart.” His words were said with a calm finality that irritated her

“Oh, I’ll be the one to go crazy, eh? Well, what about you? Do you just get to walk away with a residual bulge in your pants, feeling a little uncomfortable? Damn it! Even in the vampire world men roll sevens.”

“It has nothing to do with being male. Trust me, it’s worse for pure vampires. In this instance, the human side of you will give you strength. Separation can be even more destructive for the vampire. We’ve been known to die.”

Holly forced the words out. “What happens if we never consummate the relationship?”

“If we separate, what we feel for each other physically will haunt us. We will be drawn to each other as if we had no will of our own. We’d fall asleep alone and wake up together, somehow having made our way to each other in the night. We’d see each other everywhere we went, subliminally choosing the same activities and locations.” He looked away from her for only a moment, but when he said his next words, his eyes bored into hers. “We would walk in each other’s dreams, and when we awoke, we’d long for each other that much more.”

She looked at him with suspicion. Damn him to hell. “Dreams. So you are aware of the dreams I’ve had.”

He looked ashamed. “Yes, I’m sorry. I’ve disrupted your sleep. I hoped it would give us both some release. I prayed it would give me the strength not to run off with you and forget all my responsibilities.” His right hand clenched and unclenched as it rested on the back of the couch. Holly recognized it as something he did when he was most agitated.

“Please understand, Holly. I have never shirked my duty or ignored a responsibility in my long life. My control over my impulses has been infinite. No small feat considering vampires have very strong impulses. We have not placed taboos on sex the way humans have, so my self-discipline is rare. I’ve not been celibate…for such a thing is preposterous to us, but nothing has ever deterred me from my mission before. I’ve always been able to push my physical and emotional needs aside.” He reached out an arm to her then dropped it. “Until you.”

“I suppose that’s where the danger comes in, eh?” She tried not to lock eyes with him for fear of being drawn in forever.

“Exactly. I should not be distracted from what is happening to my people here, but I am. I know it’s my own weakness, but there you have it. I’m at your mercy. Our mission here is at your mercy.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “That’s an original way to get a woman into bed.”

He looked at her in confusion and she finally took pity on him. She put him out of his misery. Without realizing it had happened, at some point during their conversation, Holly had made a decision. Now she spoke with confidence. “I believe you. I don’t blame you for anything. The things that have been happening to me since I met you now make sense and I’m not frightened.” She paused and grimaced. “Or at least I don’t think I am.”

“But you should be, Holly. There is a bloodstalker out there.”

“Yeah, I know, but by the looks of it, he’s already got a beat on me if tonight is any indication. There’s nothing that can be done about it now. I figure I’m safer with you than without you.”

He shook his head. “I’m not so sure. There is another option.”

Now that she’d made her decision, Holly wasn’t sure she wanted to hear about another option and she looked at him suspiciously.

He smiled. “I could take you to my brother. He could protect you until I’ve handled the situation here.”

“Pffft,” she said, rolling her eyes.

He lifted an eyebrow. “I beg your pardon?”

“I said pffft. I’ll say it again, pffft. Do you really need a translation?”

He laughed. “No, I guess not.” His hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. Without knowing how she got there, she was lying on the couch under Stryker.

She smiled up at him. “Wow. I could get used to this, but please tell me you don’t do everything at hyper speed.”

Words weren’t necessary. Stryker knew how to take his time and he proceeded to treat Holly to a sample.