His Dark Embrace

“Undead,” she purred. She ran her hand over his shoulder and up the side of his neck. “How do you feel?”

“I don’t know.” Sitting up, he scrubbed his hands over his face. His skin felt different, smoother, firmer.

Cassandra smiled a knowing smile but didn’t say anything.

Girard lifted his hands. They were still spotted with age, but the tremor was gone.

He took a deep breath and felt the preternatural power rise up within him like the fountain of youth. “Is this how you feel? As if you could tear the world apart with your teeth?”

Her laughter filled the room. “I have, from time to time.”

Springing to his feet, Girard paced the floor. He felt as strong and invincible as he had in his prime, as if the juices of youth were flowing through him again. “I should have done this years ago.”

“Why didn’t you tell me who you were last night?” The laughter was gone from her voice now and she was watching him like a cat at a mouse hole.

Fear skittered down Girard’s spine. “What do you mean?”

“I know who you are, Girard Desmarais,” she said, her voice as cold as the grave. “What you are.”

“What am I?” His renewed vigor made him insolent.

“A hunter.” Venom dripped from the words.

He didn’t deny it. What was the point? As soon as she had taken his blood, all his secrets had been revealed. “Now what?”

She rose in a single fluid movement and in the blink of an eye, she stood before him. Even though he was a good six inches taller, there was no doubt in his mind who was stronger.

Her power pushed against him, forcing him to take a step backward. “I should destroy you, if for no other reason than to avenge those of my kind that you have destroyed.”

Girard had known fear before, many times, but never anything like the gut-wrenching terror that trapped the breath in his lungs and turned his blood to ice. He had no doubt that she could destroy him with no effort at all.

“Nothing to say?” She raked her nail across his cheek, hard enough to draw blood. “Have you seen Kaiden lately?”

He hadn’t thought his fear could get any worse. He had been wrong.

She leaned forward, licking the blood from his cheek. “Did you know I’m the one who brought him across?”

Incapable of speech, Girard shook his head.

“Still hunting him, are you?”

There was little to be gained by denying it.

She laughed softly. “You were no match for him as a mortal, even when you were in your prime. And you’re no match for him now. If you want to enjoy your new life, I suggest you forget about avenging yourself on him.” She circled him like a shark closing in on a wounded fish, her hand trailing over his back, his chest, coming to rest on his throat. “I was going to destroy you, but I’ve changed my mind. I’m curious to see how you adjust to your new life. But be warned. If you hurt Kaiden Thorne, you will answer to me.”

The heat of her gaze seared him, hotter than a thousand suns.

Girard staggered backward, then tumbled onto the bed. Suddenly, becoming a vampire didn’t seem like such a smart idea after all.

Her gaze burned into him a moment longer and then the red faded from her eyes.

“You must be hungry.”

He nodded.

“Well, what are you waiting for?”

Gathering what dignity he could, he regained his feet and made a big production of straightening his clothing. “I was waiting to see if I was going to be your dinner.”

She laughed, a remarkably youthful, sexy sound. “Let’s go.”

Chapter 16

Skylynn had spent a restless night after Kaiden’s visit. She had gone to bed early, only to lie awake for hours sorting through her feelings.

The next morning, she awoke feeling as though she hadn’t slept at all. Reluctant to face the day, she pulled the covers back over her head and went back to sleep.

It was midafternoon when she dragged herself into the kitchen. Two cups of strong coffee had her feeling a little better.

When she could think coherently, she dialed Tara’s number.

“Hey,” Tara said. “I was just going to call you. How are you?”

“I don’t know.”

“Uh-oh, what’s wrong? Is it ... you didn’t ... oh, Lord, it’s not Sam, is it?”

“No, I still haven’t heard anything.”

“Thank goodness. Well, what is it then?”

“I’m so confused, I just don’t know what to do.”

“Sounds like man trouble to me. Come on, tell me all about it.”

“You remember I told you about the guy across the street?”

“The odd one who mowed his yard in the dark? That guy?”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t tell me he’s mowing the yard in the nude now.”

“No, silly, nothing like that.” Sky tucked her legs under her as she tried to decide what to say. “I’ve been seeing a lot of him, or I was.”

“Really? I remember you said you had a crush on him when you were younger, but ... well, isn’t he a lot older than you are?”

“You have no idea,” Sky muttered. “The thing is, I’m afraid that crush has turned into something much stronger.”

“How strong?”

“I might be in love with him.” Admit it, she thought. There’s no might about it.

“Sky, that’s great!”

“No, not so great. I found out something about him. Something I don’t think I can live with.”

“Oh, no, what is it? He’s not already married, is he?”

“No, it’s nothing like that. I can’t tell you what it is. I’m not sure why I even called except I had to talk to someone.”

“You can tell me. You know I won’t tell anyone else.”

“I wish I could, believe me, but I just can’t.”

“Is this one of those ‘I could tell you but I’d have to kill you’ kind of things?” Tara asked dryly.

“Sort of. The thing is, I just don’t know what to do. He wants us to talk it over, but the thing is, talking won’t help. It’s part of him, something that can’t be changed.”

Tara made a soft sound of sympathy. “He’s not impotent, is he?”

“No, silly.”

“And you know that because ... ?”

“Never mind.”

“Well, I’d love to be able to give you some advice, but without knowing what the problem is, all I can say is, if you really love him ... well, I guess you just have to accept it if you can, and if you can’t ...”