Magick Marked (The DarqRealm Series) (36 page)

“They were humans, okay?” She glared up at him. “We didn’t do magick in my house. I never knew about the DarqRealm until I turned vampire.” What a shock that had been. And still was.

“It’s possible that…” He set the book down on the table carefully, his face pinched in thought. “Never mind.”

“What?”

He shrugged a shoulder dismissively. “Nothing. Just a random thought.”

The look on his face tattled on him. It was more than nothing. “Tell me.”

He rubbed his chin as he stared off into space. Funny, Eldon always rubbed his chin like that when he was deep in thought, too.

“It’s
possible
—and I use that word loosely—that your human half could have been turned.” He paced along the floor as he seemingly thought out loud. “I mean, without knowing who your parents were, it’s hard to say. But if one of them was a human and one of them was a Siphon, it’s possible something like this could happen.” He shrugged a shoulder. “It’s only a theory.”

She closed her eyes and shook her head, the pieces of her past falling into place.

Of course she wasn’t normal. Her entire life had been spent trying to fit in and never succeeding, and this had to be why. She hadn’t been ordinary from the beginning, even before she’d turned vampire. Her parents had always been way too protective, always scared of her going too far away from them.

Like they were waiting for something bad to happen.

Holy hell. Who was she?

Glancing down at her socks, she clamped her mouth shut. There were a million things that needed to be said and she didn’t know where to start. She wanted to say something, anything, but for once she was at a loss for words.

She felt his warmth closing in on her as he crossed the room. “Rho?”

Daring to look up at him, she caught his stare. And couldn’t look away.

His eyes were brilliantly blue, serious yet kind. He approached her slowly, only stopping inches from her. With a finger, he tilted her chin up. “I asked you a question.”

The statement was a demand, really. A demand for an answer she was terrified to give because she’d never be able to take it back. But the words left her mouth anyway. “I couldn’t let you die.”

Oh, come on. You can do better than that,
she told herself, trying to summon the courage that had somehow vanished, leaving her mouth dry and her chest heavy.

His voice was soft and low, every word caressing her skin. “I’m really unhappy with you right now. Jess told me what happened. And what you did.”

She squared her shoulders. “I don’t regret it.”

“You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Don’t tell me what to do.”

They stared at each other in silence for a long moment, neither willing to give in to the other. His stubbornness was only another part of what drew her to him. He damn sure would have done the same thing if he were in her shoes last night.

Eldon broke the silence. “Why didn’t you let me die?”

She opened her mouth then shut it again. What could she tell him? She’d been wrong about so much and she’d pushed him away. From the moment he’d used the word
gravity
, she’d known he was soul struck. Only when he lay there on the edge of death had she realized it was a two-way street. She’d been struck, too.

He took another step forward, forcing Rho to step back. Her spine hit the bookshelf and trapped her in place.

“Answer me,” he said, his blue eyes vibrant in the flickering candlelight.

A hundred phrases lingered on the tip of her tongue but not one of them left her lips.
I’m sorry. I was wrong. I want you.
She settled on, “I don’t know.”

“You’re lying.”

She was lying through her teeth. Because even though they’d only known each other for a short while, he could see right through her.

Come on Rho,
she gave herself a pep talk.
Be honest. Tell him the truth. You owe him that.
“I was wrong.” The moment she said the words, a tremendous weight lifted from her shoulders.

He lifted a brow. “How do you figure?”

“Before. When I told you we couldn’t make it work. I was wrong.”

His eyes flared. “What made you change your mind?”

“This whole thing with you and me, it isn’t normal.” She studied him, trying to be stronger than she felt. “I’m… not normal. I don’t know what I am anymore.”

Green fire had spilled from her hands. Vampires shouldn’t be able to manipulate magick, and she was very much undead. Frankly, what she’d done was unnerving. To know that she’d unleashed something inside of herself scared the shit out of her.

“We’ll figure it out,” Eldon murmured as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“What if we don’t?”

“We will.” He traced a finger along her cheek. “I’m still angry with you for doing what you did.”

“I figured you would be.”

He ran his fingers through her hair, staring at it for a long moment before lifting his eyes to meet hers. “I’m going to kiss you now.”

She sucked in a breath and placed a hand on his chest. The spark of magick at her fingers felt like static shock, only momentary but strong. “Eldon…”

“Tell me no.” He stared at her intently, as if waiting for her cue to back off. “Say the word, and I won’t do it.”

She didn’t want to. Embarrassed at what she was about to say, she turned her attention back to her socks. “Um, I haven’t been with someone for… a long time. Since before I turned.”

“Even with the lust?” He sounded shocked. She’d been pretty surprised herself, considering how strong her vampire urges had been, especially in the beginning.

With a tight nod, she gulped again. Somehow, even though it hurt, she had the impulsive need to tell him everything. “The last time, um—it wasn’t good.”

He drew back. “Were you hurt?”

She nodded.

An angry growl rumbled in his chest.

“Frederick killed them,” she said quickly. “My maker, he killed them.”

“That’s good.”

“But they did enough damage that he had to change me over. That’s the last time. The night I turned vampire… that was the last time.”

Strong arms drew her into a wall of muscle, his heartbeat ringing loudly in her ears. He held her for a moment before speaking. “I would never hurt you.”

“I know.”

“I’m so sorry that happened to you.” He squeezed her tighter. “Are you okay?”

“It was a long time ago,” she answered.

“Still.” He pulled back and glanced down at her. “No one has the right to hurt you. Ever. And definitely not on my watch.”

She smiled up at him, not sure what to say.

He brushed a thumb over her bottom lip. “I want to be with you. Every day. All the time.”

“I want that, too.” She searched his eyes and knew he meant what he said. “It’s going to be complicated. People are going to talk. The Council, they might—”

“Don’t worry about them.” He shook his head. “Not right now. Let me just… look at you.”

Her skin tingled as he surveyed her body.

He chuckled. “You look good in my shirt.”

She glanced down, realizing that the button-down she’d snagged from the laundry room was several sizes too large. And the buttons were on the wrong side. With one hand, she drew the top together and stared up at him.

“No. Don’t do that.” He grabbed her hands gently and tugged them to her sides. “I want to see you.”

She turned her head away, embarrassed with the attention.

He tilted her chin up with a finger again, forcing her to look at him. His brow creased, as if he disapproved of her reaction. “Why do you look away from me like that?”

She tried to turn her head again but he held it in place. “Hey.” He shook his head, his gaze locked on hers. “You’re beautiful. Don’t ever think anything different.”

The sincerity in his voice broke her in half. She took a deep breath, thankful the bookshelf was holding her upright.

He stroked his thumb slowly along her neck. “I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, Rho. Most of the time it won’t be. But I still want to be with you. That hasn’t changed.” His gaze softened. “I’m going to ask you again—do you want to give this thing a shot?”

She thought about their connection. She’d been in his mind and drank from his body, and he’d never rejected her once. Time and time again, he’d come to her, proving that she could take a part of him and he’d never push her away.

He accepted her. She had no family, no money of her own and so little to offer him compared to what he already had. To top it all off, she now had some weird ability that she had no idea how to summon or control. Plus a death mark. And through all that, he was still here. Asking her to give him a shot. Telling her they’d figure it out together.

Choking back the tears threatening to surface, she answered, “Yeah. Let’s give this a shot.”

He closed his eyes. A smile touched his lips.

“I’m not promising anything, though,” Rho interjected. “I’m strong and pushy and I like to do things my way. You’re not going to change that about me. Ever.”

He smiled and glanced down at her. “And I’m strong and pushy and I like to do things my way, too. So this should be interesting.” He dipped down and pressed a soft kiss against her neck. “But I wouldn’t change anything about you.”

She breathed him in, wanting him to touch her, but he didn’t move. He stood there, frozen, his eyes burning with hunger.

With a swift hand, she grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him into her. Her lips met his instantly as her hands found his hips and drew him closer.

His fingers lifted to the top button of her shirt. She gripped the bookshelf behind her as her breath caught in her throat. He drew away from her mouth to glance down at her and paused, as if waiting for her to give him the green light.

When she didn’t stop him, he unbuttoned the first button. He touched his lips to her sternum, kissing where the button had been. Then he moved to the second button, kissing between her breasts. She was absolutely frozen, caught somewhere between running away and wanting more.

He fell gently to his knees, unbuttoning and kissing as he traveled down the length of her shirt. His shirt. Whatever.

She stared down at him, incapable of rational thought. What had once been a simple want swiftly turned into a need, the lust burning her from the inside out, making her skin hot and itchy. He was everywhere and nowhere, and all she wanted was more.

With the final button released, Eldon reached up and shucked her shirt to the floor. Pressing a kiss to her belly, he glanced up at her with hungry eyes. “Let’s go somewhere more private.”

She barely nodded before he stood up and lifted her into his arms. Palming her ass in his hands, he lifted her off the ground. She wrapped her legs around his waist and ran her fingers through his thick hair, relishing the warmth and feel of him. He supported her weight easily as he carried her toward the adjacent bookshelf.

“Where are we—”

Shifting her weight into one hand, Eldon reached out and pulled a dusty book on the third shelf. A round of clicks sounded off before the shelf slid back and opened completely. She gasped as he took her through the narrow opening.

“That’s how you knew to look for the passage,” she said softly. “You have one.”

“This is my private office,” he murmured as he hit a button on the wall.

The shelf slid shut, leaving a smooth wall in its place. A pang of fear shot through her and threatened to ruin the moment.

As if he could sense her tension, he drew back and met her eyes. “You hit the button on the wall when you want to leave. That’s it. You can come in here whenever you want, but don’t tell anyone where it is. Deal?”

Relief struck her and she nodded. She could do things on her terms. He wasn’t going to force her to stay here. This room and whatever they did in it could be their secret.

He pressed his lips to her ear, reassuring her. “I’ll never make you do anything you don’t want to do. Ever. Whatever you want, I’m on your schedule. I just thought you’d like some privacy.”

She smiled, knowing he meant it. “I like privacy.”

“Since we’re on your schedule, what do you want?” he asked, still holding her against his chest.

His neck was so close that she could hear his blood rushing beneath the surface. God, she wanted to drink from him. She wanted to experience all of him. Hell, she wanted both at the same time.

His chest rose and fell as he laughed softly. “I heard that.”

Shit.
Their connection had opened again. She was busted.

Eldon paced across the room, still holding her close. “Tell me what you want, Rho.”

She smiled but didn’t answer.

He pressed her back against a wall, his massive arms supporting her. “Say it. Out loud.”

“I want you,” she answered.

He groaned as his lips met hers, the touch feathery at first but quickly building into a savage need. The heat of his body cranked her to a new level, his velvet hands brushing over her skin, leaving traces of warmth with every pass.