"What I meant to say was that you may rest here while I have dinner. Give me a moment to read the letter. If you don't mind." She opened her door, then turned back to him in the doorway.
His smile nearly buckled her knees. "I would love nothing more." Then he sauntered into her home.
Chapter Two
She was the most exquisite creature Nikolai had ever seen. More so than he remembered. Since their all-too-brief meeting a few months ago before he was swept away to Cutters Cove with Marius, his new wife and leader of the Black Lily, Arabelle, and the rest of the resistance, he had been haunted by the image of this woman now moving about the room. When Marius had mentioned they needed more soldiers to stand against Queen Morgrid's Legionnaires, Nikolai had swiftly pointed out that they needed someone to recruit on the mainland, someone the Legionnaires would never suspect. Arabelle finally came around to the idea of Sienna, giving Nikolai the perfect reason to return to her. Just as he'd hoped.
And so here he was, examining her with a subtle eye while she pulled the stew off the fire and served herself a bowl. Yes, he was there to serve as her protector and to recruit for the Black Lily, but his primary quest was of a more personal nature. Her alluring scent had gotten under his skin, and he wouldn't be satisfied until he'd gotten under hers. His fangs ached at the thought. He shifted his cock in his pants where it strained against his trousers. He'd planned to tread carefully and slowly, but that idea fled the second he saw her.
What had he been thinking? The lie he'd told himself was that he'd serve as her guardian and keep her safe on this mission. For the Black Lily, of course. And if they happened to fall into bed together, then so be it. Fool that he was. What he'd completely forgotten was the maddening pull this woman had on him. She drew out his fangs too quickly. If he was anything in life, it was calm and controlled. Especially when feeding. Therein lie danger.
A flicker of memory-dark hair, a foul room, too much blood, distant laughter.
No. He mustn't lose control. Never with her.
He had refused dinner but accepted the hot tea she'd offered. She ate quickly, hopping up repeatedly for a glass of water, a napkin, or to refill his tea. Finally, she settled down in a chair opposite him to read the letter.
While many vampires ate and drank human food as a pleasure rather than sustenance, Nikolai had long since given up the practice. He was a vampire of efficiency. But he could see in her wary gaze and hear in her fluttering heartrate that he made her nervous. So he sipped the tea to assuage her fears. The truth was, she had every reason to beware of him.
She flipped the letter over to read the back. A thin line along her smooth brow showed concern. Her milk-pale skin and slender throat called to him like a siren song. Moss-green eyes darted up from the parchment as she flipped to the second page. Firelight danced on the auburn waves she left loose about her shoulders.
He warred with this driving need to haul her into his lap and kiss her senseless, to feel her in his arms, pressed close. His craving for her went beyond the desire for her flesh and blood. Her sweet innocence combined with her independent nature was a heady concoction to a man like him. He'd only ever been surrounded by the vapid ladies of the aristocracy and the wanton women of the peasantry who sought him for one night's pleasure or silver sovereigns. Often both. And while his lust for this red-haired beauty was a dangerous, feral beast, he was cautiously aware his unusual possessiveness meant something deeper. Stronger. Something he wasn't prepared to confront just yet.
With a sigh, she refolded the letter and looked up, clearing her throat. "Do you know what the letter says?"
"I did not read it, but I know what Arabelle asks of you. Will you do it?"
Leveling her chin up a notch with determination, she replied, "Of course I will. Whatever the Black Lily needs of me, I will do. How far north must we go?"
He set the tea on the side table and leaned forward, elbows on his knees, hands clasped casually together. "Marius has heard from Friedrich at Winter Hill. There are signs that the blood madness sanguine furorem has spread into his region. We are to go there and recruit all we can along the way."
Back straight, her hands sitting in her lap like any aristocratic lady, she asked, "Why didn't Arabelle send Ivan or Evan? They're capable enough of recruiting."
A twinge of jealousy twisted in his gut. "Would you prefer one of the Barrow brothers as your guard?"
"No. But if her need for me is to have a human member of the Black Lily to recruit and not a vampire, why did she send you?"
"Because we must cross the countryside while the Legionnaires hunt down revolutionaries and the blood madness runs rampant. You need a vampire to protect you against vampires."