Sexual intent blazed through him. Indigo, the half vampire, half werewolf. His blood was now rushing through her body.
He wanted to sink his fangs and his cock deep inside her. Feed from her while possessing every luscious inch of Avril’s lovely body. Watch as her long, silky hair feathered over his pillow, her eyes closed with sheer pleasure as he brought her from one exhausting peak to another.
The dominant male roared to take her.
Avril licked her lips. Arousal flared in her eyes.
Damn, she was ready, too. But how could she return to her clan, the scent of him stamped on her like an ink pad, his bite mark an announcement of their intimate bond?
She traced his lower lip with a finger, dipped it inside. He nearly moaned as she touched one fang.
Avril raised her brows. “You’re hungry, too.”
Stunned, he prodded his teeth. Instead of the wolf canines that emerged when his Draicon self was aroused, these teeth were sharper.
“You brought back the vampire in me.” His passion rose at the feel of the warm female curled against him. Her tight, rounded bottom ground against him, making him rock-hard. Her long blond hair was a mass of tousled curls, her cheeks glowed with a rosy flush, her mouth…
Indigo drew her gently to him, and nuzzled her neck above the wide velvet band. He breathed softly into her ear. Satisfaction filled him as she writhed against him.
Kissing her, Indigo cupped her breasts. He kneaded and caressed, his tongue thrusting deep into her mouth.
He unbuttoned her shirt, smiling a little as he saw the bra’s front clasp. With swift ease, he unhooked it. Passion rose as he watched her pale breasts spill free. A rosy flush of arousal tinted her delicate skin. He took one raspberry peak into his mouth and suckled her, loving her excited whimpers. Avril slid back and forth against his throbbing erection. His tongue flicked circles around the cresting peak, lust spiking into a fevered hunger.
Hunger to sink his fangs deep into her.
Startled, he recoiled violently, staring at the reddened mark he’d left. The vampire inside was dangerously aroused.
Wrestling for control, he gently pushed her off his lap. Indigo moved away from the temptation, trying to erase the fantasy of sliding between her open legs.
“Indigo. I want you.” Longing filled her voice, but he heard fear and hesitation, too.
“More than the risk of never going back, Avril?”
When she made no reply, a heavy weight settled on his chest. He was Changling, shunned by his vampire clan who had always looked down their noses at him. I have a home here. I can’t go back.
He pulled free the Anastasia charm, stared at the lovely blue glow emanating from it. This was the only reason Avril had come to him. Even though every cell in his body cried out for her, he had to remember.
As Avril dressed, Indigo went to the kitchen. He opened the stainless steel fridge, withdrew a packet of raw meat. Sitting at the glassed table, he ate the beef off a china plate.
Her scent hit him like a freight train as she glided into the kitchen a few minutes later. Like all her kind, Avril moved in silence.
Curiosity flared on her face as she glanced at the bones he dumped into the trash. “Don’t you have to feed?”
Indigo shrugged. “I’m Draicon, sustained by meat. Feeding for me was more pleasure than nourishment.”
Appreciation flickered in her eyes as she ran a slender hand over the polished granite countertop. “Your home is stylish. That antique iron headboard is lovely.”
“You sound surprised. Why? Because Draicon wolves have no taste?”
He dropped the plate into the spotless sink. The clatter echoed his own shattered emotions.
Eyes the color of spring blooms narrowed. “Back off, Indigo Mercier. You know I’m not like my clan, my nose up in the air. You always had sophisticated style.”
Abashed, he offered a halfhearted shrug. “Except when it comes to clothing. More functional, less fuss.”
Avril’s smile punched him in the gut. It radiated warmth and home. Damn, he craved her, and the closeness of having sex with her.
It clicked. “The headboard… You checked out my bedroom?”
Pink flushed her cheeks. “It’s a nice bed, very comfortable-looking.”
She hugged herself, her body seeming to fold into itself. “I suppose you’ve had many women in it.”
Indigo crossed the distance between them, lifted her chin with one palm. He forced her gaze to meet his.
“Never,” he said softly. “I’ve never taken another woman here.”
Surprise flared in her eyes. “But you’ve had other women?”
“Their places. I’m no celibate, but I wanted only one woman in my bed. And if I could never have you again, then I vowed to sleep in it alone.”
Stark longing filled her expression. “Then maybe I should do something about that. No regrets.”
The delicate aroma of her arousal sailed straight to his groin. Oh man, she was breathing heavily, her pupils dilated until nearly all the violet vanished. Avril moistened her mouth.
No regrets.
Indigo took her by the hand and led her into his bedroom. He closed the door, leaned against it. Intent blazed in his eyes.
He would claim her and nothing could stop him. It was like halting a locomotive.
She wanted him equally.
His boots thudded across the wood floor as he neared. Avril raised her chin and looked at him.
Indigo’s fingers splayed her head. His kiss was brutal, passionate and claiming, the kiss of a warrior claiming his true mate.
She surrendered, sliding her arms around his neck. When his mouth moved away from hers, a vulnerable look entered his eyes.
“I’ve felt so alone since I left you,” he quietly confessed, tracing her lower lip. “No matter how many women I’ve had, I could never forget you.”
They tore off each other’s clothing. The space between her legs felt wet and open as she stared at his magnificent male body. His cock was long and thick as it jutted out from a nest of dark curls.
She fell backward as he pinned her to the bed. He kissed her, stroking the inside of her mouth with his tongue. Her fingers traced his collarbone. His rich musky scent filled her senses.
Big hands capable of destruction were gentle as he caressed her. A half sob choked from her as he raised himself up and gazed down at her tenderly. “You’re so beautiful, my Avril. I’ve wished for this moment.”
Indigo’s fingers tunneled into the thick, dark curls covering her groin. When he slid a finger across her slick, wet cleft, she twisted and pumped her hips up in nameless need.
Each stroke brought her higher and higher, aching as the fires built to an incredible tension. She couldn’t stand it.
Avril dug her nails into his shoulders and wriggled her hips, trying to push herself beneath him.
Indigo slid between her opened legs. She felt the knob of his cock nudge her wet entrance, then he thrust deep inside. He felt impossibly big, the pressure making her flinch at first.
Silky hair on his chest rubbed against her sensitive breasts as he moved. Sweat beaded on his temples as he drove his hips harder and faster, her legs anchored around his waist. The pretty iron headboard banged against the wall with the force of his thrusts.
“Give it to me, chère, c’mon, let go, let go,” he told her.
Sensations pummeled her. The pressure escalated until she felt it overcome her. Avril arched beneath him and sobbed as she came.
He growled with satisfaction and pushed into her again, then threw back his head. A loud roar tore from him as his big body shuddered, and the wet warmth of his seed flooded her. He shuddered again, then lay atop her.
Indigo rolled off, nuzzled her neck as he drew her to him. Drunk with sensual lassitude, she curled against him, feeling the heat of their bodies.
His ragged breath echoed in her ear.
“Take it off, chère. I need to see your neck.”
Lassitude fled. Avril clapped a hand over the choker. “No.”
Indigo’s dark gaze burned into hers. “No secrets between us. If you’re blood bonded, I have to know who it is.”
Mouth dry as sawdust, she watched as he removed the velvet band. Indigo’s eyes widened as he gazed at the ugly crimson X on her neck.
“That son of a… Your father red-marked you?”
Avril looked away, humiliation crawling over her. “After you left, Father prohibited males from taking my blood for one hundred years. The mark is more than a warning to vampires, Indigo. I can’t enthrall humans, either, so I can’t even feed from them. My only choice is to feed from Victor, who volunteered.”
Her voice dropped. “You’re the only one who’s ever taken my blood.”
“Come here,” he said gently.
He rocked her in his arms, resting his chin atop her head. “I’m sorry, chère. I didn’t know they’d condemn you as well.”
“The ban lifts next week. After one hundred years of taking only Victor’s pure vampire blood, I’m considered clean again.” Her expression fell. “Father said taking your blood tainted me.”
“Why didn’t you leave?”
“And go where? You saw the mark. I’d starve. It gets removed next week. Until it does, I’m a pariah.”
Indigo drew her close. “I never dreamed I’d cause you so much trouble.”
She ran a hand over his naked chest. “I’d do it again, for you. I want you to take my blood again, Indigo. I want our bond strengthened.”
Instinct flared as she scented his bloodlust.
“Take me, Indigo. Put your mark on me,” she whispered.
He laid her back against the pillows, the bed soft and warm beneath her. Indigo straddled her body. Cupping the back of her head with one hand, he nuzzled the vulnerable curve of her throat. His tongue swept over her skin, then with a cry that seemed to come from deep inside him, he sank his fangs into her neck.
Pain flared, replaced by intense pleasure. Avril slid her arms around him, holding him close. He slid between her legs and inside her once more.
He took her blood as his hips drove into her. Trembling with passion, she arched and flexed with each move. She wanted only his muscled body in hers, his fangs sinking into her trembling flesh. Avril tensed and screamed as a climax slammed into her.
Indigo withdrew his fangs. He flung his head back and cried out her name, as his powerful body convulsed. When it was over, he rolled off and cradled her to him.
She’d never felt more content in her whole life.
Or more scared. What would happen when she left him?
How could she bear to have her heart broken once more?
