Thirst [All-American Vampires 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) (8 page)

He understood her skepticism. “They tend to keep to themselves more than weres and vampires do. Anyway, Gia owes me, like I said. Her primary ability is psychometry, which means she’s good at locating people using objects they have possessed. If you have something of Cassidy’s, she might be able to find her for us. It isn’t one hundred percent, but it is another option.”

He could tell from the expression on her face that she was skeptical. That’s why he had presented the other one first. “So, what do you think?”

She took her time answering, and he could tell that she was going over all the ramifications of what he was proposing.

Finally she spoke. “What if those bloodslaves don’t want to talk to me? They’re probably frightened of vampires after what they’ve been through.”

“I’ve already cleared it with Quinn, who has spoken with the people who have temporary custody of the rescued bloodslaves. The women have agreed to help as much as they can. They don’t hate all vampires. After all, it was vampires and werewolves who rescued them.”

He could see an eager gleam finally lighting her eyes.

“All right. I agree. I’ll help you. When can we get started?”

Hawk was relieved that she had agreed, though he’d been pretty sure that she wouldn’t miss out on any chance in finding her sister.

“We can head out tomorrow night.”

“I’m working tomorrow.”

“You were. I’ve made arrangements for you to have the next week off. There were five human bloodslaves and one werewolf female rescued. The humans are in a private halfway house in Hattiesburg. The werewolf is with the Piney Woods pack. I talked to Ricardo Diaz, the Alpha, and he’s agreed to let you speak to her tomorrow night. After that we’ll head up to Hattiesburg. We’ll spend the day there and speak with the rest of the women. If that doesn’t pan out, we can go on to Jackson, where Gia lives.”

“Sounds like you have everything planned out.”

“I’ve been working out all the details the last couple of nights. We’ll be gone at least three or four nights, much longer if we actually locate Cassidy.”

He studied her as she took it all in. He knew he had been a little high handed with everything, and she’d looked annoyed when he’d told her he’d already made the plans for her to be off work. But the thought of possibly finding her sister had kept her from arguing with him.

“Why are you doing all this for me?”

“I told you, I think you have information that we would find valuable.”

“I know, but still it seems like you’re going above and beyond what you would need to do. I’d have probably given you whatever information you wanted in exchange for knowing whether or not my sister was on that list.”

He noted the suspicious way she was eyeing him. “Let me ask you a question. Why didn’t you just go to Quinn or Ty Buchanan in the first place and tell them your story? Why try to sneak around and risk getting caught?”

“I wasn’t sure they would help me. I couldn’t take the chance that they might turn me down and throw me out of the casino.”

“That’s what I figured. You don’t really understand a lot about the Buchanans if you really thought that. They want to help. All you had to do was go to them, and they would have done anything they could to find your sister. And that is why I’m helping you now. Once we knew your story, we had to help.”

She studied his face as though seeking for the truth in what he was saying. At last she nodded. “Okay. I guess it’s just hard for me to know who to trust these days. I’ve had kind of a rough year.” She grimaced.

He allowed himself a small smile. “Yeah. So I understand. You seem to have come though okay, though. There aren’t a lot of people who can make it through the change with their sanity intact.”

“I knew I had to help Cass. Without that”—she shook her head—“I honestly don’t know what would have happened to me. This is certainly not what I expected my life to be like. Just learning how to survive as a vampire was hard enough.”

“How did you manage? You said you escaped from the men who changed you, but you had no resources. I can’t imagine how difficult it would have been.” He couldn’t completely contain his curiosity about her.

“I was scared. Really scared. But I was still pretty close to Atlanta. After I got away, I managed to make it back to my home, hiking and hitching rides. As soon as I arrived back at the house, I packed up whatever I thought I might need, grabbed my bankbook and other important papers so I’d have access to my money, and got the hell out of there.”

“You were afraid they’d come looking for you?”

She nodded. “I wasn’t sure if they’d just stumbled on us by accident or if they’d been watching us. I thought it would be safer if I just disappeared for a while. I called the neighbors and told them that a relative of ours had invited us to visit her in California. They agreed to watch the house for me. Then I cleared out, planning on finding somewhere to hole up until I could get some kind of handle on what I’d become. I knew I had to figure out how to survive before I could find Cassidy.”

Hawk felt his admiration for her grow and with it his attraction to her. “And how did you do that? Figure things out?”

He saw a smile crease her lips. “You know I’m a techno-geek, right?”

“Ahhhh.” Realization struck him. “You started looking online.”

“Of course. Oh, a lot of it was just crap. Wannabes and fantasy writers and some real sicko stuff, let me tell you. Then I stumbled on this blog. It was called
Blood Ties
by a woman named Anabel St. James. And I just knew.” She rolled her eyes. “Sounds stupid, but I knew she was the real deal just from reading some of her blogs. I e-mailed her, asking her all kinds of questions, and I guess she felt sorry for me and how ignorant I was. We started chatting online. She sent me the link to the NPA website.” She sent him a sideways glance. “I don’t know if you’re aware, but they have a whole section devoted to New Turns who have no one to help them cope with their new lives. It actually was a lot of help. Of course, you have to be registered, which puts you in their database. I wasn’t too crazy about that, but I was feeling pretty lost.”

She licked her lips, and he was careful not to show how much the simple movement affected him. How much he wanted to bend down and lick them himself, to sample their sweetness before sliding his hand across the silky softness of her cheek and burrowing into her hair as he held her still while he took her lips in a hard tasting.

“I can understand that.”

“Wow, I’ve been doing a lot of talking. Are you sure you don’t want something to drink? I think I have a bottle of A positive that I’ve been saving.”

“Sure. I’ll take a glass.” He knew he should probably leave. They would have a long night tomorrow, but he couldn’t resist the urge to find out as much about her as he could. Maybe he would be able to figure out what it was about her that appealed to him so strongly.

“I’ll be right back.” She got up and walked into the kitchen. Hawk sat there, listening to the domestic sounds of Claire rummaging through the kitchen cabinets. It was actually quite a comforting feeling, and he’d almost managed to relax when he heard the splintering noise of glass breaking and a sharp cry of pain.

“Claire!” He jumped up and rushed into the next room to see her standing over the sink, a large gash in her thumb oozing blood. He immediately stepped behind her and lifted her hand to examine it. “What the hell happened?”

She managed a trembling smile over her shoulder. “I’m such an idiot. I accidentally broke one of the glasses.” He looked down and saw the broken shards in the sink. He studied the wound and realized she wasn’t seriously injured, especially not for a vampire.

He turned on the cold water and held her hand beneath it, letting the flow wash away the worst of the blood. The gash was about an inch long and fairly deep. He looked it over carefully to be sure there were no small pieces of glass embedded in the wound. Spotting a dish towel sitting beside the sink, he grabbed it and held it over the gash to absorb the worst of the blood. The tantalizing smell of Claire’s blood taunted him. Knowing he was probably making a mistake, he lifted the dish towel from her hand and stepped closer. He pressed against her back, letting the heat from her body seep into his. As he reached around her, the back of his hand brushed against her breast, and he heard her gasp at the contact, but she didn’t draw away. Without thought, he grabbed her wrist and twisted it around so that he could see the injury more clearly.

Slowly he lifted her hand to his mouth. He felt Claire stiffen as his tongue stroked across her skin, licking up every drop of her blood, the coagulant in his saliva stopping the bleeding and healing the wound. The taste of her blood sent arousal slamming into him. She relaxed, leaning back against him. He wondered if she could feel his hardened shaft pressing against her buttocks and then was left in no doubt as she rubbed against him in a tantalizingly sensuous movement. He was surprised but pleased at her response and knew that she’d sealed her own fate. Still, he tried to give her a chance to stop things from progressing further.

“Claire. This is probably not a good idea.” He said the words even as he pulled her closer, his hand tunneling under her shirt to spread with eager possession against her skin. He felt the quiver of her stomach muscles as his hand spread out wide over her midriff. She leaned back and rested her head against him, and he bent to nuzzle against the tender spot where neck met shoulder.

“No.” He heard her whispered agreement before she turned around to face him. “No, probably not.” She lifted her face, offering her lips to him.

He told himself that he should back off. That she had no idea what he was like, what he might expect of her. But he didn’t want to. He wanted to explore every inch of her slender body, to find out all the secrets that were concealed beneath her clothes. He knew he was taking a fucking huge risk here. She didn’t know him, barely trusted him. And he still wasn’t one hundred percent sure he trusted her. Still…he couldn’t resist her.

His gaze focused on her trembling mouth as he bent closer, moving slowly to give her every opportunity to pull away. Her eyelids fluttered closed, and he slid his tongue across her lower lip, relishing the taste of her. She was delicious. Somehow he’d known she would be. He moved his hands to her shoulders, trailing them down her arms as his mouth parted hers and he slid inside. He encircled her wrists, pushing them behind her and arching her body into his. His cock nestled into her soft belly.

He explored her mouth, searching out every hidden, dark corner and claiming it for his own. She moaned as he tore his mouth from hers and kissed his way down her neck and across her delicate collarbone. He needed to touch her everywhere. Transferring both wrists to his left hand, he burrowed his hand back under her shirt, pushing it up until he cupped her breast. It was small and delicate under his fingers. Peeling the lace cup of her bra aside, he claimed her nipple, rolling it between his fingers. He pulled back and looked at his hand as he stroked her until she’d tightened into a stiff peak. She was small but perfectly formed, her nipple a dark pink that reminded him of a delicate rose.

“Hawk, please.”

Unable to resist, he took that tip into his mouth and sucked. He heard her moan his name as he drew the nipple between his teeth to nip lightly. The sweet smell of her arousal drifted up to him, and he worked his hand down to the front of her pants, unfastening them and sliding his fingers inside. The moist folds of her pussy parted at his insistent touch, and he wedged his fingers deep inside her. She cried out and arched upward.

“Fuck, yeah. That’s beautiful, Claire. You like that, don’t you?” He dragged his fingers out and pressed back in, and he felt her as she struggled to free her hands from the tight clasp of his. “Be still, Claire. Don’t move, and I promise you’ll get what you want.”

She froze. Damn, this might be a mistake, but he wouldn’t have missed it for anything. She was so fucking responsive. He brushed a finger across her clit, and she whimpered, rocking against his hand. “Please. More.” She was wet but so tight. He’d have to work to get his cock inside her, but it would be worth it. He could just imagine the tight clasp of her pussy around him. She’d be tight as a fucking fist.

“Move your hand.”

He responded, “Don’t tell me what to do, Claire. I’m in charge here.”

She just moaned again when he stopped the motion of his fingers.

“Don’t stop. I want to come.”

“Do you? Beg me, Claire. Beg me, and I’ll let you come.”

Her harsh breaths heated his face. “Please. Oh, please, I’m begging you, Hawk. Anything you want. Just please, let me come.”

“All right, Claire. All right.” His fingers began working her faster and faster, and her moans became louder. “Come for me.” He pinched her clit between two of his fingers, and she let out a little scream. He took her mouth again in a hard kiss, muffling the sounds she made as she went over the edge. Her cream flooded his hand, and the arousing perfume of her climax scented the air.

He held her as she trembled in the aftermath of her release, his cock stiff and aching. When she had quieted down, he picked her up and carried her down the short hall and into her bedroom. Laying her down on top of the soft, pink comforter, he efficiently stripped her down to her underthings and covered her with the light blanket that had lain at the foot of the bed. She blinked and reached out toward him. He caught her fingers and kissed them before pressing them down onto the bed.

“Go to sleep, Claire.”

“But you didn’t—” She looked down at his lap, where his obvious erection pressed against the zipper of his pants.

“No. That’s not necessary.” He’d taken things farther than he should have already. He wasn’t going to demand more of her tonight than she’d already given so beautifully.

“But—”

“I’ll survive. I promise. Go to sleep. It’s almost morning, and we’ve got a busy night tomorrow.” She blinked up at him drowsily, and he wanted nothing more than to crawl on that bed with her and sink himself into her warm heat, but he knew it was too soon. Hell, he needed to think about what he was doing here. Claire was sweet, too sweet. But he wasn’t, not even close. He hadn’t been sweet in a very, very long time, if ever. And he usually didn’t like women who were. He preferred his sex hard and rough, and the women he took liked that, too. They enjoyed being tied up and fucked any way he wanted it. So what the hell was he doing with Claire?