His Captive Mortal (2 page)

He didn’t want her to break. Though he knew comfort from him would not be welcome, he pulled her against his chest, tucking her head in against his neck and stroking her back like a kitten. She smelled fresh and sweet, like wild strawberries.

She wrestled against his embrace, but he held her fast, not allowing her to pull away.

She gave up her struggle and surprised him by letting out one giggle and then another, though he smelled the salt of her tears. “And I can’t believe you spanked me!”

He smirked. “Yes, I’m a bit old-fashioned when it comes to ladies. I come from a different era.”

She laughed again. “No, I mean, I tried to kill you with a wooden stake, and all you did was pull down my panties and spank me like a child.”

He smiled. “Well, you were afraid when you went vampire-slayer on me,” he said, thumbing the moisture from her lovely cheeks. “I can’t really blame you for that, can I?”

She studied him with big brown eyes flecked with gold, her copper-colored hair falling in her face again. Even if he hadn’t seen the bubble of light she’d cast on the street, now in her presence, he recognized her uniqueness. He hoped she would cooperate, because it would be a shame to have to truly frighten her. He cupped her cheek, stroking her lower lip with his thumb. “Lovely mortal. Sasha, was it?”

She didn’t pull away from his touch, reading him with the same amount of attention he paid her. “Yes. So what era are you from?”

“I was turned in 1825.”

“Turned to vampire?”

He nodded.

A tiny shudder ran through her, but she continued to regard him boldly. She reached out and touched his side burns, sending a tiny shock of electricity through him. “Hence the pork chops?”

He caught the little hand touching his face and turned it over, his gaze inexorably drawn to the blue vein at her wrist. She noticed and snatched it back, holding it against her chest as she eyed him, warily.

“I’m not going to drain you and I won’t turn you, but I do require your full cooperation.” He put a finger under her chin. “Can you give that to me, Sasha?”

She lifted her chin, but he saw fear in her quick swallow. “What happens if I say no?” she asked defiantly.

He smiled. “Nobody tells a vampire no. You’re my captive now. You’ll win your freedom when you’ve figured out how to rid me of my curse.”

Receiving a bare-bottomed spanking by a vampire was surreal enough. Being told she would not be rid of him until she performed magic—which she didn’t have the first idea how to do—chilled her to her toes. She took deep breaths, trying to calm her thudding heart.

“What makes you think I’m a fairy? Wouldn’t I have had, like, fairy parents? Or something like that?”

His lips twisted into a sexy smile. “Yes. But there are no fairies like that left. There are just some mortals who carry traces of fairy blood. In some, the fae shows up stronger than others.”

“And you think that’s what I have? Fae blood?”

“Yes.” He lifted her up off his lap. “How about making me a snack?”

Unfortunately, being frightened only made her snappish. “Why don’t you make your own snack?”

He yanked her back down on his lap and tugged her head back by her hair, his fangs lengthening as he stared at her exposed neck. “Shall I?” he asked.

She made an incoherent sound, somewhere between a groan and a whimper.

He lowered his long fangs toward her carotid artery. “Shall I choose my own snack, little fairy? Or will you make me something from your kitchen?” He spoke with the satisfied purr of a man who knew exactly what answer she would give.

“I’ll make it,” she choked out.

He released her hair and helped her to stand again. “Thank you.”

She walked away, practically panting to catch her breath, her legs trembling. “I didn’t think vampires ate food,” she said, falling flat in her attempt to sound unaffected.

“We don’t have to,” he said in a bored tone. She didn’t turn around, but she pictured him examining his fingernails. “But we can. I certainly prefer blood.”

She shuddered.

As if he sensed her fear, he said, “Sasha...if you behave yourself and do what I ask, I won’t even hurt you.”

It had been nice until the even hurt you. Like hurting her would be the norm for vampire behavior. She did not give him the satisfaction of an answer. She opened her refrigerator and looked inside. She didn’t have much. Living alone made her a lazy cook, although she did like to prepare food for others.

“Master, what shall I cook thee?” she asked sarcastically.

“Be careful, love, or I’ll punish you again and I promise this time it won’t make you laugh.”

Her bottom seemed to tingle in response, the warmth traveling even lower, to her sex. What was wrong with her that the idea of being punished by the sexy vampire turned her on? She closed the refrigerator door and fished a box of graham crackers from her cupboard, along with a jar of peanut butter and the bottle of chocolate syrup. Pulling out a plate, she arranged eight crackers on it, then spread each one with peanut butter and drizzled chocolate over the top.

She carried the plate back and handed it to the vampire.

He raised his eyebrows and looked doubtful. “What is this?”

“It’s my version of s’mores,” she said.

His lip curled.

“Just try one. They’re tasty.”

She picked a square up and held it to his perfect lips, her heart skipping at the boldness of the gesture. “I promise I didn’t poison them with roasted garlic spread or anything.”

His mouth twitched in amusement and he opened it a crack, as if only to let the tiniest bit of food in. Nibbling a corner, he looked up as he sampled the treat. “Not bad,” he said, taking the cracker from her hand and accepting the plate. “I guess I won’t make you crawl around on your hands and knees and lick my hand.”

Her jaw dropped and she didn’t know whether to laugh or kick him in the shin. “I beg your pardon?”

“My dear fairy, I have many ways of punishing you, and all of them involve your humiliation.”

She stifled a shiver, meeting his eyes with a narrowed gaze.

“If you would like to sit at my feet, I always enjoy subservience, but you are also welcome to sit beside me.”

Catching his smirk, she gave a nervous bark of laughter. She plopped beside him and made a show of snatching one of the crackers from the plate on his lap.

She bit into the cracker and watched him chew, studying his beautiful face. A pierced eyebrow and multiple studs up his earlobes roughened the look, but he had a Hollywood mug with a firm jaw, blue eyes and sensual lips. He wore a black t-shirt, fitted snugly over a muscled chest, faded blue jeans and Converse sneakers, looking every inch the part of twenty-something mortal hipster. A very sexy hipster. Her body grew warm sitting next to his, the contact of his shoulder against her becoming a conduit of electricity between them.

When she finished her cracker, she reached for another one, but he slapped her hand, holding the plate away.

She made a sound of outrage and he grinned.

“Say please.”

“They’re my crackers!”

“Are they?” he challenged, the ice blue eyes connecting with hers in a stare-down she could not win.

She blew out her breath and looked away. “Nevermind.”

He crossed one long leg over the other. “You see, there’s a pecking order here, love. The sooner you learn it, the easier things will go between us.”

“Go to hell,” she muttered, pushing to stand up.

He picked her up and plopped her onto his lap. “I am your hell, sweetheart. Believe it.”

His words would have irritated her more, except she knew he spoke them to purposely get a rise out of her, so she rewarded him with a roll of her eyes. But his continued belief in her magic concerned her. “Listen,” she said, hoping this time he might believe her. “I’m not a fairy. I don’t know anything about curses, or magic. Even if I wanted to help you, I can’t.”

He reached out and wiped the corner of her mouth with his thumb, turning it around to show her the chocolate syrup she had sported before he popped it in his mouth to suck it off. Her nipples tightened as she considered the effect of those lips sucking parts of her body. As if he could see through her clothing, his eyes traveled down to her breasts then back to her face, a smug look on his face. “I believe you don’t know or understand your abilities,” he said. “But I will help you get up to speed.”

“How?”

He shrugged and offered the plate of crackers. As she reached for one, he said, “Say please.”

She huffed. “Please?”

He grinned. “You see? That wasn’t so hard.” He offered the plate. Returning to their discussion, he said, “I’m not sure yet. It’s been a long time since I’ve been around anyone with fae blood. We thought them mostly extinct on Earth by now, most moved to living in a parallel dimension where nature ever grows.” He affected a dramatic tone, as if making fun of the Fae. “But you have so much natural power, it can’t be that hard.”

“What is the curse?”

His expression hardened, a muscle in his jaw twitching. “You’ll know when the time comes,” he said stiffly.

She shrugged, stifling a yawn. “Okay. Look, it’s way past my bedtime. I know you’re nocturnal, but I need my sleep or I get very crabby. So...ah, are you going to let me go to bed?”

He gave a lopsided smile. “I’m glad you’ve realized who is master here.”

“Alone?” she clarified, catching a glint in his eye.

He lifted her to stand and rose. Grasping her jaw, he tilted her face up to his.

She stiffened, eyeing his fangs as they lowered, his heavy-lidded gaze mesmerizing. He merely brushed his soft lips across hers, kissing her as if they’d just ended a first date, rather than the bizarre exchange of attempted murder, spanking and...what? Kidnapping? Claiming? No words described her position. She couldn’t move, frozen under his light caress, smelling the sweet chocolate on his breath.

He gazed at her. “Sasha.” He said her name as if committing it to memory. “Lovely little fairy.”

And then he dematerialized, leaving her standing alone in her living room, her heart beating in an irregular pattern.

“Wait,” she said, although she knew he was already gone. “I don’t even know your name…”

He materialized in his bedroom and though he planned to return shortly with supplies, he immediately felt too far away from her. What if she ran away? But she hadn’t seemed that afraid, the scent of her arousal proving her curiosity equaled his own.  Which suited him just fine. While he needed her and had no intention of backing off until he got what he wanted, he’d rather win her cooperation through the dance of sexual domination than to actually harm or threaten her or her loved ones.

Not that he was above such a thing. He was a vampire, after all—concerned only with numero uno. And as a lone vampire, as opposed to those who lived in nests, he gave to no one. Since his bitch of a lover had cursed him, he’d gone it alone, friendly with many, trusting none.

He gathered the necessary supplies, chuckling over the way she’d come at him with the sharpened stake. It had been quick thinking on her part, assuming she’d never met a vampire before or contemplated killing one. He’d been impressed. And aroused.

And it wasn’t just her lithe body or beautiful face. Perhaps it was her innate power, which made the rest of her so intriguing, so adorable. He thought of her thick, shimmery hair and how he wanted to fist it while he banged her hard from behind.

But no...he’d get no satisfaction from that. Thanks to the curse, it would only drive him crazy.

He picked up some of his supplies and dematerialized, tracing back to Sasha’s. Opening the door to her bedroom, he found her curled in a ball under her covers, her brows drawn together as if in concentration. She looked so young and innocent in sleep and he experienced an odd tugging on his lifeless heart. Was he still capable of...what? Compassion? Affection? Caring of any kind?

No. Impossible.

He dematerialized to his apartment and returned with another batch of supplies, until he had brought everything he needed to move in. Grabbing a roll of duct tape, he covered every window in the place before nailing sheets of plywood in front of them in every room but Sasha’s. He didn’t want to wake her now. She would need her rest to begin her studies tomorrow.

He returned home once more to grab a change of clothes and his laptop, which he used to look up Sasha’s workplace. Tucson Center for the Developmentally Disabled. The more he read about it, the more impressed he became. It was a live-in facility for children with developmental challenges. Judging from the hours she worked, she was a counselor, which didn’t pay much more than minimum wage. And it had to be challenging work. Despite all her tough exterior, Sasha must have a heart of gold.

He smiled, looking forward to shadowing her. He opened a new window and went on the internet to search out any books that might help her understand and hone her powers. Those on witchcraft seemed useless, and there was absolutely nothing on the fae, other than fiction, but he found a great deal under the new age and metaphysical. Working with light, sound and color as vibration, using energetic medicine all seemed like what the fae did. He ordered every book he thought might be even remotely of use and had them overnighted to Sasha’s address.

Of course, empowering her could prove dangerous. She would be able to protect herself against him and his influence. It would be a tricky game to keep her believing he had the upper hand. Because once she understood her magic, aside from turning her, he would have no way to control the young mortal.

Mortal descendants of the fae, which must be what Sasha was, were impossible to find in present times. Vampires loved their taste and often drained them for their energetic structure. They claimed it built their power, but he believed it really lightened their darkness.

He remembered how much better he used to feel around Anka. Not quite so much of a monster. Not quite so soulless. He had loved her, but over time, he came to realize she had only been using him. Sending him off to do her bidding, frightening people or glamouring them while she built her wealth. She lied and pretended he was her one true love, but he’d found her entertaining another man in her bed.