The Progeny (The Progeny Series) (14 page)

Ascher scooped Shauna up, landing her across his lap again.
“Gabriel and Father searched France for the perfect woman to carry the child. My mother volunteered herself, knowing the risks involved. Father was livid and vehemently refused her. They argued about it for months.”

“Bea was stubborn,” Jonas added
, smirking at Ascher. “Much like her half-blooded son.”

At this observation,
Ascher allowed a small smile to appear on his face.

“The insemination took place July
25, 1923. The first three weeks were uneventful. She had morning sickness and fatigue—normal human pregnancy symptoms. Around week eight, it got interesting. Bea was eight weeks pregnant but looked well into her second trimester. The pregnancy progressed at twice the rate of a human one.” The room darkened as Jonas flipped a switch on the projector, causing a bright beam of light to shine onto the white wall.

Various p
ictures of a pregnant Beatrice Westridge flashed on the wall. The brown-eyed beauty’s condition seemed to deteriorate with each week, each slide a postcard from the grave. Her creamy, radiant complexion soon paled and grayed, to become more transparent and tight. The spark in her eyes dimmed into a sunken replica of her former self.

Shauna’s eyes strained to hold back the tears
, because the images really bothered her. She believed that a person had many portals with which to be born into the world. If Ascher was truly her destiny, he could have been born to someone else—vampire or not. “Why didn’t you terminate? She’s dying. It’s so obvious.”

“I tried to convince her
, but she refused. She wanted the baby born, even if it meant her death. By week fifteen, she was too big to do much. Her skin was as thin as parchment paper, the veins protruding. We made a birthing plan for when the baby came, because we weren’t sure what was coming or what it would be.”

Shauna wondered how any amount of planning could prepare anyone for such an event.

“The night Ascher came, it stormed. It was as though the heavens were shouting their disapproval for what we were doing. I loved Bea, but the scientist in me wanted to see the pregnancy through. I thirsted for the knowledge that the answers would provide.” Sadness crossed Jonas’s face, as the light dimmed in his eyes. “The birth was hard on her, but she was brave. Unfortunately, she died when Ascher was only hours old. Over the span of his lifetime, we’ve studied him as much as we’ve loved him. He’s a miracle. If we can ever get the serum done, Ascher may save millions of lives...become the hope of the world.”

The projector snapped off
, and the room lit again.

Sh
auna glanced over at Ascher and couldn’t decipher the look on his face. It was too complex, too many emotions displaying to get an accurate read.

“Still love me?”
he asked.

“I’m still here. What do
you
think?”

“Now that you know about my origins and you’ve seen exactly
what
I am, there’s one more place I want to show you. It’s someplace really special to me.”

“Okay
.”

Jonas
nodded and gave her a warm smile, his attention dropping to the microscope to resume his tireless work.

Ascher
tugged Shauna to him. “One of the best parts about being a vampire is soaring high above the city. My brothers and I do it often, and it helps me think when I’m confused.”

“You get confused?”

“I
am
human, too, love. Eternal life doesn’t give you infinite wisdom. I know you’re afraid of heights, so hold on to me okay?”

Shauna
flinched and nodded her head.

“Up we go
.” Ascher embraced her tightly, levitating them up and out of the window, into the night.

Fourteen ~
Laurel Pointe

Weightlessness—Shauna marveled at the feeling. Her heart pounded, beating so rapidly that she thought it might explode, while her fingertips numbed from the force of the cool air gusting around them. Her dizzy head felt like it might just float off her disoriented body. All that said, she’d never felt so exhilarated, afraid for her life—or more alive. She inhaled a deep breath and giggled as the cold breeze tickled her nose.

Ascher
glanced at her and smiled. “You have no idea how freeing this is. There are no secrets between us. If there’s a better feeling in this world, I’ve never felt it.” He paused as his face flushed with the tiniest blush of crimson. “There was one moment though, that was almost equal in its gratification.”

“I’m not following you.”

“That night we almost made love in your apartment.” He brought them down onto the rocky mountain floor.

A wave of vertigo washed over her
when she attempted a step and stumbled, falling back into his arms.

He scooped her back up.
“Maybe I should hold on to you for a little while longer. So, what do you think about the view?”

Sh
auna gazed down at the twinkling lights below them. At a loss for words, she only uttered, “Wow!”

He
pointed to a particular cluster of lights. “That’s Sheridan Square.”

“It looks so small from up here.”

Ascher sat on the rocky ledge, his legs dangling. “It’s late, and I don’t want to overwhelm you with too much information.”

She shivered.
Heights were her greatest fear, heights and large bodies of water. She sat near him, keeping her distance from the edge. “I’m afraid of heights.”

“Most humans are
afraid of heights, Shauna. I suppose
I
would be, if the other part of me didn’t exist.”

“Since we’re talking about what I fear
.” She paused, drew a deep breath and stared over at him. “Ursula was your first.”

“You really want to talk about
her
again?”

“Not
her
so much as your lack of
human
bonding.”

“Ursula and I were never meant to be together
, but you and I are. What Ursula and I did was
not
making love. In order to
make love
you have to be
in love
and I never loved her, Shauna. You’re the
only
woman I’ll ever love.”

“So
, you’ve never made love to a human. Is that why you stopped us?”

“That’s part of it
, but mostly I felt guilty. I wanted you to choose me, knowing everything about me.”

Sha
una grasped his face. “I choose you, Ascher. I love you.”

He
pulled away, his eyes blazing blue. “No! Never forget what you’ve seen tonight—what I am. I’m so dangerous.”

“You’d never hurt me.”

“I’m not as strong as you think. A human like you is a rarity. You possess the trinity—a combination of properties that make blood delicious. One of the three makes a human’s blood irresistible. All three are maddening to us.”

“What are the three properties?”

“You are a non-drinker, a vegetarian and a virgin. I knew you were all of these things after one sniff.”

“
If it’s driving you so mad, we can take care of one of those right now.”

Ascher
gave her a perplexed look, as she gave him a seductive smile.

“I’ve been thinking about that night a lot. Even when I was angry with you, I still thought about it. I wish
ed that you hadn’t stopped us.” She ran her hand along his neck. “Now seems like the perfect place. What do you think?”

“Don’t tell me you’re serious. Were you not listening the last two hours? Did you not hear what
my father said?”

“I heard everything he said
, and it still doesn’t change how I feel. I’ve wasted enough time, and I want
you
to be my first.” Her hands slipped under the lapel of his shirt, unbuttoning three buttons. “Make love to me Ascher, right here—right now.”

“Shauna, we
—”

Sh
e covered his mouth with her hand. “You think too much and what’s with you and words? No more words, Ascher.” She pulled him down on her, securing his lips to hers.

* * * *

Ascher kissed her with hesitance. This wasn’t a good idea at all, as her scent made him thirsty.

The burning
, the torture, he wanted so badly to bite her.

Sh
auna kissed him with fervor, shifting herself on top. Her lips brushed his forehead, closed eyelids and nose before merging with his anxious mouth.

H
e smoothed his hands along her spine, stopping to knead the small of her back. His body was ablaze, each touch of her lips bringing more fire. Exhilaration bubbled up then exploded, igniting his rabid thirst and uncontrollable passion.

She
gazed down at him, beaming the dark depths of her eyes into him. “I want you so much. Do you want me, Ascher?”

“More than I want my own existence
.”

Shauna diverted her kisses to his neck—h
is spot, his
vulnerable
spot. One of two places that made him crazy when kissed or stroked. She’d figured him out. If his body was a treasure map—with various points of pleasure marked along the way—the two moles along his neck were the “x” that marked the spot of his unlikely weakness.

Fire blazed in his blood.
Grabbing her tighter, he flipped her beneath him.

S
ilent, she laid there, her chest heaving and her pulse racing.

He ran his fingers
along the buttons of her shirt.

She continued suckling his neck.

Pop
. One of her buttons flew off.

Shauna's gaze burned at him,
her eyes flickering with lust. “Do it!” she taunted, unbuttoning the last two buttons on his shirt. “C’mon, Ascher. Don’t stop!”

Pop, pop, pop.
Three more buttons vanished. The one button left, strained to hold her breasts in.

He lifted her, placing his mouth against her neck as he ripped the shirt from her body, tossing it against the rock wall. Her breasts were tw
o perfect, perky globes with eager and erect nipples. Her pulse thumped against his lips. He closed his eyes, trying to escape the feelings her throbbing carotid caused him.

“
Ash, what is it? What’s wrong?”

“Your carotid.
I don’t know if I can control myself. I haven’t fed and I’m weak. I didn’t take precautions before we came up here.”

Her carotid jumped
and he bit at his lip in response.

She gave him a look of bewilderment. “Precautions?”

“My brothers suggested that I feed before I was close to you. It’s easier to resist the urge if the thirst is satiated.”

“You drink human blood, right?”

He nodded.

“Where does it come from?”

“Volunteers.”

“Women?”

“Yes.”

“What about vampire women? Do they feed on men?”

Ascher smirked, grateful for the distraction. “Are you asking for future reference?”

“
Possibly.” She leaned her head back, showing him the creamy skin of her neck. “I’m a woman, and I’m definitely human.”

As
cher shook his head. “No, Shauna.”

“I’m
volunteering
myself.” She placed his fingers over her carotid.

The strong pulsing shocked his heart,
bringing the ache back to his mouth. The lines between his hunger for her and the thirst for her blood blurred again. He seized her, kissing her skin along the throbbing artery.

Shauna
secured her hands to his head, holding it firm against her neck, satisfied moans tumbling from her mouth.

Ascher
sensed the deliciousness of her blood, and she smelled too good. The thought of drinking her was too appealing.

Her carotid jumped, again.

The fangs twitched in his gums. “You have no idea how much I want to taste you,” he groaned against her neck, his lips quivering with need. He felt the tips of his fangs break the gums. “Oh God, Shauna.” Palming her breasts with his hands, he teased her nipples through the lacy pink fabric. They hardened, causing a flood of blood to pool beneath her soft skin.

His fangs slipped further down, reminding him of his thirst.

Shauna concentrated her kisses on the skin of his neck, her tongue sliding along his sensitive spot. She cupped him with her hand, massaging his shaft until he was sure it’d rocket right off his body. “You won’t hurt me if you do it. Come on, Ascher. I
want
you to bite me. I
want
to feed you.”

Ascher
knew if he tasted her, he wouldn‘t stop—if he tasted the first drop, the frenzy for more would begin. He was well aware of all these things, yet he still wanted it. Her perfumed essence taunted and titillated him, tempting his taste buds with its deliciousness. Every part of him quaked and pulsated, acclimated to the vital vibrations thudding in her throat.

He focused his eyes on the throbbing and grew hypnotized by the sight. His tongue
swirled across her carotid. He’d only take a sample, a tiny taste to satisfy the urge. Sanity re-entered his mind. What was he thinking? He couldn’t bite her; he’d kill her for sure. “God, baby, no. No!”

Forcefully, she grasped him
to stall his ascent, pressing her body back against him.

“No, Shauna. No!”
He pushed away from her, closing his eyes to channel his brothers. There was strength in numbers, especially when the numbers were incredibly strong vampires. Handing her pink blouse back, he whispered, “Put that on. My brothers are on the way up.” He lowered his gaze to her button-less shirt. “Oops.” He removed his shirt and handed it to her. “Maybe you should take mine. Sorry.”

She folded her arms. “We aren’t making love tonight, are we?”

Smoothing a shaky hand across her face, he sighed. “Not tonight. We will soon, I promise.”

* * * *

Ascher clutched his head in disbelief before downing two bottles of synthetic blood in four quick gulps.

“We warned you, bro.”
Quinn smirked.

“You okay?” Tristan asked.

“I’m better, but I almost did it. I almost bit her, Tris, and the weird thing about it was that she wanted me to. How crazy is that? Who welcomes death like that?”

“Someone who is either nuts or who trusts you with her life. So
, which is it, bro?” Quinn asked.

“I imagine it’s a little of both.
” Ascher laughed. “She has to be nuts to still love me after what she’s seen tonight.”

Tristan sat down. “So
, she reacted well?”

“Besides fainting, she’s fine. She even said that she wanted to be my volunteer.”

“You wouldn’t have to attend the parties,” Quinn reasoned. “Who knows, maybe it would be better for you.”

“I can’t do that,
Quinn—I’d kill her. I’m not strong enough.”

“Ash, you’re so much stronger than you give yourself credit for. The fact that she’s still alive is proof of that. If it were me, she wouldn’t be
,” Quinn confessed.

They glanced over at her. She was sitting on a rock looking out at Langley, her
expression bewildered and somewhat sad.

“Where is Kara?” Ascher asked when he realized she was missing.

Tristan frowned. “She didn’t feel strong enough to come up. Shauna’s scent is too much for her.”

Ascher gave his brother a sympathetic smile. “I understand.”

Tristan paced the rocky floor. “It’s not just that, I’m so worried about her. She should be ready to venture out. It’s been two years since I changed her. She hasn’t slipped, but I feel like I have to shadow her to make sure she doesn’t. I should be able to leave her more, without worrying.”

“Everyone has a cycle. No two newborns are the same
, and she just needs extra time,” Ascher assured him. “Zach took almost three years, remember? If you think it’ll help, I’ll keep Shauna away from her.”

“No
,” Tristan growled. “My wife has to learn. Escaping scents and hiding herself in the manor won’t change anything.”

Ascher froze, his heart
giving a hard thump.

Something was wrong. The air was thicker, the foul stench of mischief mixing in
, the clouds dark and brooding. He drew a deep breath and smelled the unrest in the air. “Do you feel that?”