pushed those images away and concentrated. Her life force was strong within her and
that was all that mattered.
He burst into the clearing, across the yard and was on the porch in a blink of an eye.
Slamming the back door open, he came to a sudden halt as he swiftly scanned the room
and took the entire situation in at a glance. Laurel Rose hadn't so much as moved a
muscle. Instead of fright, he could feel waves of relief flowing from her now that he was
there.
Raising his arms high in the air, he focused his power. "Come," he commanded.
The snake resting on the countertop quickly dropped over the side of the counter to join
its kindred already on the floor. They gave a long, low hiss and then both reptiles began
to slither toward him. Stefan could feel Laurel Rose's surprise and awe as the snakes
obeyed him. He bent over and both snakes slowly wrapped themselves around his
arms.
Slumping against the counter, she stared in disbelief. "I knew you'd come."
Her simple words caused his chest to expand and an ache to form in his heart. Her
belief in him was a balm to his anger. "Are you all right?" He could see for himself that
she was, but he needed to hear the words from her.
"Yes," she nodded as she spoke, leaning against the counter for support. "I'm fine."
As if her legs could no longer hold her, she slid slowly to the floor. "At least I think I'm
fine." Her voice was shaky but strong.
"Stay here." He didn't wait to see if she obeyed him but strode through the house,
scanning each room as he went. Taking the stairs two at a time, he bounded upstairs to
continue his search.
He found nothing until he reached her bedroom. Sensing the creature within, Stefan
flicked back the bedcovers and stared at the coiled snake hidden beneath. Someone had
left nothing to chance. If Laurel Rose hadn't seen the other two in the kitchen, then this
snake would have been waiting for her when she rolled into bed. Her movements
would have definitely caused it to strike. She would have been harmed.
The very walls around him and the floor beneath his feet seemed to shake with the
force of his fury. Lowering his arm toward the snake, he waited while it docilely wound
itself around his forearm and settled there. He would find the person responsible for
this and he would punish them.
"Stefan." Her soft whisper startled him. How had she snuck up behind him without
his knowing?
Whirling toward the door, he stopped when she sucked in her breath, her eyes
round with fear and amazement. Stefan was surprised that she didn't run screaming in
terror. Big and dark, he knew he was like an apparition out of someone's worst
nightmare. His long black hair hung down his back and his fangs were razor sharp. He
knew his eyes were glowing red, making him appear as if he were some demon from
hell. Massive and tall, clad entirely in black, he stood with his legs braced apart and
three poisonous snakes wrapped around his muscular forearms.
He took a deep breath and fought with his anger, subduing it. Control had always
been something he'd taken for granted. Years of practice and training had made it part
of his personality--indeed, part of his very makeup. That was, until he'd met Laurel
Rose. Around her, his self-control seemed to vanish like a puff of smoke. It was
disconcerting and troubling, but it was something he was going to have to learn to deal
with.
"Everything is fine." He kept his voice soft and calm. He sighed with relief as he felt
the reddish hue gradually fade from his eyes and his fangs recede, but he still made no
move toward her. "You're safe now. They will not harm you."
She nodded, her head bobbing up and down. He watched the muscles of her throat
ripple as she swallowed and it reminded him of how soft and supple her skin was.
Desire exploded within him, swiftly displacing the anger. His cock thickened and
hardened as he caught a whiff of her sweet scent. The compulsion to strip her naked
and fuck her while he drank from her was almost overwhelming. The snakes coiled
tighter around his arms, sensing his changing mood and the tensing of his muscles.
Now that he knew she was no longer in danger, he wanted to claim her in the most
primitive way possible, marking her as his. Her hand trembled as she reached out to
support herself against the doorframe. Once again, his heart turned over in his chest.
Laurel Rose caused such a mixture of emotions within him, he hardly knew himself.
One minute he wanted to fuck her senseless, and the next he wanted to wrap her in his
arms and keep her safe for eternity. He wanted to hear her screams of pleasure as he
rammed his cock into her sweet, hot depths again and again, but he also longed to hear
her laughter of joy and to see her soft smile. There was nothing he didn't want from her.
And he would have it all. But first he had to deal with the trouble at hand.
"You heard me, didn't you?" Her eyes kept darting back and forth between his face
and the snakes wrapped around his arms. "I knew that you would."
"Yes." Slowly, he sauntered toward her, stopping a few steps from her. "We are
joined now in a way that can never be broken. I have taken your blood and you have
taken mine. There is nowhere you can go that I will not eventually find you. Nowhere
you can be that I cannot hear you if you call me." Part reassurance, part warning. He
watched her reaction.
She nodded. Her eyes were deep pools of indigo and once again the unusual color
and depth of emotion that lurked there struck him. A man could drown in eyes like
that. When she blinked, they disappeared and her long black lashes brushed her cheeks
like soft fans. Her face was pale and drawn, clearly showing the strain that she'd been
under.
"Who would do this?" Her eyes jerked open at his question and she nibbled her
plump bottom lip as she thought. The blood pumped to his groin and he had to
swallow a groan. His erection was like steel, pushing against the zipper of his black
jeans. He would satisfy his desires, but later.
"I'm not sure." She frowned and he longed to smooth the lines of worry from
between her brows. "Anyone could capture a few snakes and bring them here. The
diamondback is rarer. It would take some doing, but it's possible. Maybe Aaron and
Clem, but I don't think so. They'd be more likely to break into the house and trash the
place. This took planning."
Stefan could see her point. "Think, Laurel Rose. Has anyone else made you feel
uncomfortable or threatened?" A picture of a man popped into his mind along with a
name and he knew that it was coming from her. "Who is Jeremiah Stoner?"
A shaky laugh escaped her. "I can't hide anything from you, can I?" She shook her
head when he didn't deny it. "He's the pastor of a local church and although no one
will admit it, everyone knows that they still practice snake-handling there."
Stefan took the two final steps that brought him right in front of her. His boots
touched hers and his thighs brushed her body. He could feel her heat. Keeping his arms
straight out from his body to keep the snakes away from her, he leaned down and
kissed her softly on the lips. Their mouths touched and clung for the briefest moment
before he raised his head again.
The threat to her safety was the only thing powerful enough to make him leave her
side. He could sense her impending tears and knew that she would shed them while he
was gone. An image formed in his mind of her curled up on the window seat
downstairs, crying. Alone.
His hands curled into fists. He wanted to cradle Laurel Rose in his arms, cuddling
her close as she cried out all her pain and fear. Then he would love her so long and hard
she would never doubt his depth of feelings for her. And when he'd exhausted her with
his lovemaking, he would hold her safe in his arms while she slept. The fact that he had
to leave her was another black mark against the person or persons who threatened her.
His lip curled into a sneer. He'd make sure they paid for their sins.
"Where can I find him?" He could easily get the information by searching her mind,
but he was loath to invade her privacy any more than was absolutely necessary to
ensure her safety. He wanted her to tell him.
"It's just outside of town. You can't miss it if you follow the road. It's white with a
picket fence around it." She hesitated slightly before continuing. "But it might not be
him at all. Other members of the congregation have access to the snakes as well."
He nodded. "I'll keep that in mind, but I have to go now." The snakes were getting
restless, sensing his riotous emotions. Outwardly, his face was expressionless, his body
coiled and ready. All tender emotions had been buried beneath his need for action.
Laurel Rose nodded and turned away. He noticed that her limp was pronounced as
she shuffled toward the stairs. She leaned heavily on the railing as she made her way
down the steps and hobbled to the kitchen. Having to keep her body rigid and still in
one position for so long coupled with the tension had obviously been hard on her bad
leg.
The back door was still wide open and she walked straight outside and onto the
porch. Her quiet acceptance bothered him. Part of him was proud of her bravery and
courage and another, perversely male part of him, wanted her to cry and plead with
him not to leave her. Sighing, he followed her outside.
"I'll be back." He told himself that the reassurance was for her, but it was as much