She didn’t know if he was kidding or not. But there were more important things on her mind. “Do you really think Katerina is gone for good?”
“One can only hope.” Andrei wrapped his arm around Tessa’s shoulders and drew her closer. “Let’s not talk about her now,” he whispered, his voice husky with desire.
He gave her no time to respond. Lowering his head, he kissed her, gently at first, then with greater intensity. Somehow, they were lying side by side on the sofa, their bodies pressed so intimately together Tessa couldn’t tell where she ended and he began.
His hand slipped beneath her sweater, his skin cool against her heated flesh as he kissed her again and yet again, his tongue teasing hers in a dance as old as time. She couldn’t think, could scarcely breathe. There was only Andrei, his mouth on hers, his hands caressing her until she thought she might die from wanting him.
She felt his fangs brush against the side of her neck, featherlight, a silent plea.
Gasping, “Yes,” she clung to him as the only solid thing in a world suddenly spinning out of control.
She cried out in protest when he sat up, drawing her with him, straightening her sweater.
Tessa blinked up at Andrei, her whole body throbbing with desire. Before she could ask why he’d stopped, Bailey entered the condo.
The girl blushed to the roots of her hair. Stammering, “I’m sorry,” she averted her face and bolted for her room.
The sound of her door slamming was very loud in the silence that followed.
With a sigh, Tessa ran a hand through her hair, then glanced at Andrei.
He traced her lower lip with his fingers. “And the fair maiden is saved by the bell yet again,” he muttered dryly.
* * *
When Tessa woke Friday morning, the first thing she noticed was Andrei resting beside her. It was, she thought, starting to be a habit, and a dangerous one. They had indulged in some hot and heavy kissing last night before she’d managed to put on the brakes. She wondered how much longer she could play with fire before she got burned, or Andrei ran out of patience with her.
Propping herself up on one elbow, she spent a few moments admiring the strong lines of his face, the width of his shoulders.
“If you keep looking at me like that,” he murmured, his voice deep and sleep-roughened, “I won’t be responsible for what happens next.”
Blushing from head to foot, Tessa jerked her gaze away, only then noticing the beautiful cherrywood secretary she had admired at Andrei’s. Somehow, he had carried it into her bedroom during the night without her hearing a thing. She had planned to put it in the living room by the window, but it fit perfectly on the wall across from her bed.
“Andrei, you remembered.”
“Of course.” He stroked her cheek with his knuckles. “What would you like to do this morning?” he asked.
“I know what you’d like to do,” she muttered.
“Are you reading my mind now?”
“That’s not really necessary.” She glanced at the sheet, and the visible evidence of his arousal beneath it.
Andrei chuckled, not the least bit embarrassed.
It was oh, so temping, Tessa thought, but something held her back. She wanted him desperately and yet, once they made love, she was committed. She couldn’t share her body without sharing her heart. Once she crossed that line, there was no turning back. And as much as she wanted him, as much as she loved him . . . the word, vampire, slithered, unwanted, through the back of her mind.
She met his hooded gaze, her own tormented, his filled with a look of such understanding and sadness that she quickly glanced away before he saw her tears.
“Tessa.”
She shook her head, refusing to look at him.
“Tessa. It’s okay. You have every right to be afraid to tie your life to mine. I don’t blame you.” He placed his hand on her back. “I just want you to be happy, the way you were before I turned your life upside down.”
His hand fell away, though she could still feel his touch.
When she turned around, he was gone.
The tears came then, slowly building in intensity until she fell back on the mattress, sobbing. Why was life so complicated? Why couldn’t she have fallen in love with some ordinary guy? She didn’t want to live without Andrei, but she couldn’t bring herself to have an affair with him. She wanted marriage and a family. A man who would come home from work at night and ask about her day. She wanted a marriage like the one her parents had—a solid relationship built on love and trust. Was that asking too much?
She cried until she had no tears left, then went into the bathroom to wash her face. She frowned at her reflection. If she went into the kitchen, her eyes all red and puffy, Bailey was going to know something was wrong.