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  Gregory said nothing as he covered me with a blanket. The tears running down his face told me that he loved me, I just didn’t understand why.

  Chapter 22

  "I’m bored," I said looking out at the city below. Philadelphia wasn’t what I’d thought it would be. I’d had grand illusions of the new world and seeing it now made me feel like a fool. Kerr hadn’t wanted to come at all, but I knew that if I came, so would he. I put my arm in his and pulled him to the window.

  "Do you smell that? There are so many horrible people here. We could feed for months and still there’d be more to drink from," I said.

  Valentino laughed and Kerr’s arm flexed. The two hadn’t gotten along once since I’d met them, and now ten years later, they were not showing any more signs of getting along. Valentino had received word from one of his higher ups that we were to go and explore the Americas to see if they were suitable for some of our older vampires to be transported to. Europe wasn’t as safe as it had once been. Our kind had come under heavy attack by the forces of good in the last ten years.

  Valentino came up behind me and put his arms around me. He pressed his body hard against mine so that I would notice how willing he was to take me where we stood. I rolled my eyes and rubbed Kerr’s arm. Valentino leaned down and whispered in my ear. "I can smell your need for a fuck. I can give you that and so much more, Linnea."

  "You have nothing that I want. The one I want still does not want me, so I will be heading out shortly to handle my little problem."

  Valentino twisted my body to face him and did his best intimidating face. He didn’t scare me. He could be ruthless, but so could I. "You forget that I am the one who made you. You are mine, and you share my weakness for sex. If you would just give in, we could satisfy both our needs. I am not an unattractive man, so why do you continue to push me away?"

  I let out a laugh. "Oh, it’s not your looks that I have a problem with, Valentino, it’s your meal choices."

  He rolled his eyes and let his tongue slide over his lips. "Not this again, Linnea. I am tired of your quest to save innocents and only feed from evil doers."

  It was Kerr who spoke next. "You knew what she was when you made her, you could not of have thought that she’d give up her ways of tryin’ to do good. It’s her nature."

  I waved my hands in the air and walked towards the door. "Enough with boring talk of days I have no memories of. I live for the moment, and right now the moment is telling me that I want to find a man. I have a burning between my legs that needs to be satisfied." I opened the door and started out.

  "You claim that you have feelings for her, yet you let her whore around with any human she chooses," Valentino said to Kerr as I stepped out into the hallway.

  I heard Kerr’s deep voice and knew that he was close to striking Valentino. "It keeps her grounded—making love to the humans. If she sees them as something to be taken care of, caressed, and loved, then she does not fully turn into what we’ve become."

  I left the two of them arguing and headed down to find my next snack. I didn’t need blood. Kerr and I had found a group of men trying to rob a local merchant and they’d made a fine meal for the three of us. I did need sex--I always needed sex. I’d had so many human lovers back in Europe who kept me satisfied, but none that I wanted to keep. I was never really attracted to them to start with. I normally selected a man who I found to be handsome and used him for sex—most were only good for that, so it worked well.

  I made my way to the crowded street. I had no worries about walking the streets alone in a big city at night. No, if anyone tried anything foolish it would be the last thing they ever did. The streets had been crowded since we’d arrived and now the masses were gathering around men who were shouting about the death of Benjamin Franklin. I tried to walk past a group. The men backed up and two slammed into me. They fell to the ground, I didn’t. I had to fake stumbling just to keep their suspicions down. It wasn’t everyday that a five foot seven woman knocks two burly men on their backsides just standing still.

  I dropped down onto the cool brick and regretted it the minute I felt the water from the earlier rains soaking through my dress. Neither one of the men seemed interested in my well-being—they were more interested in what one of the local loons was going on about. I pushed myself up and started to wipe my soiled dress off.

  Strong arms grabbed me and ripped me off my feet. I was halfway down an alley before I was able to get my wits about me enough to fight back. I twisted and my body dropped to the ground. I looked up into my attacker’s pale face and knew that he was like me—a vampire. His thin oval face and beady black eyes made me uncomfortable. I knew this brown-haired man from somewhere, but I couldn’t place him. I knew that I didn’t like him, but I didn’t know why.

  "Linnea, you’re too late again," he said dryly.

  "Too late for what?" I asked, unsure if he was mad or simply stupid. I leaned towards the latter of two.

  "Come now my dear, let us not play games, it is I, Captain Corbin, as if you didn’t know. You have been a worthy opponent all these years, but you will not be taking the wizard back with you, he belongs to my side now." His fangs flashed and his face twisted.

  I smiled and let my fangs show. He stopped his show of power and stood very still. "And what, may I ask, side is it you are referring to, Captain Corbin?"

  "No!" he shouted as he lunged at me. I sidestepped him and he fell flat on his face. "This cannot be. I bit you, my master gave me some of his power, he said that it would allow us to track you, not turn you."

  I let out a loud laugh. "Oh, little man, I have no clue what you’re talking about, but I can assure you that you had nothing to do with me being here today."

  He rose quickly to his feet and tried to lunge at me again. He caught the side of my arm with his nails and ripped it open. I cried out, and pushed his body away from mine.

  The air around us grew cold. Corbin tackled me to the ground and I brought my leg up fast to deflect him from me. I turned to get to my feet and he was suddenly on my back. I screamed out and felt like someone poked thousands of tiny icicles in me at one time. Corbin screamed out too, and rolled off of me. I turned and looked at him, he was covered in blood. I looked at my arms, expecting to see the same—I was fine. I touched my face to be sure, but nothing was hurt on me. Another blast of icy wind blew past me and Corbin screamed out again.

  I turned around and saw a man standing at the end of the alley. His brown eyes found me and he smiled. I drew in a deep breath when I saw his white teeth shining at me through his rose-colored lips. His creamy olive skin and long black curls told me that he was most likely Italian, and I liked Italians. He took a step towards me and I heard Corbin get to his feet and run away.

  The tall muscular man came running towards me. He extended his hand out to me. "Are you alright?" He asked, his voice thick with an Italian accent. I was right about him. I nodded and took his hand. He pulled me to my feet and looked in the direction in which Corbin had run. "I am sorry for you. He has been following me since I arrived here. I would have stopped him earlier if I had known that he was such a threat. I just thought that he was another crazy vamp…." He stopped before he finished his sentence.

  I took a deep breath in, this man was full of power and magic, but he was mortal. He reached out and touched my lip. He wiped it off and came away with blood on his hand. "We should get you cleaned up."

  "What are you?" I asked.

  "Do not worry, I would never hurt you." He pulled a piece of debris out of my hair and let it fall to the ground. "Mi chiamo Lucha," he said, and then shook his head. "Sorry, my name is Lucha. And you are?"

  "Linnea."

  He touched my hand and then looked down at me. "You are cold, like…."

  "A vampire," I finished his thought for him, and smiled. "Don’t worry I would never hurt you." I said smiling at up at him as I spun his promise back at him.

  Chapter 23

  "This is lovely," I said looking around th
e large house. Lucha didn’t seem that impressed with it. He shrugged and smiled.

  "It is small compared to my home in Italy."

  "Why are you here then?"

  He nodded. "My father asked that I come to the new country to set up his business here as well. I have been here for close to a year now and am scheduled to return home within the next year."

  I looked around at all the gold and fine silks and wondered what exactly Lucha’s family business was. He led me into the dining area and I immediately noticed that he had no chairs around his large richly colored table. There was a vase full of flowers on it, and several books, but no chairs. I looked up at him. He watched me, grinning from ear to ear.

  "I live alone, and never do I entertain. Come," he said, motioning me towards the large staircase.

  As much as my body needed sex, I couldn’t take it from him, it didn’t feel right. He had been kind and he had a way about him that put him a step above the mortal men that I used to satisfy my needs with. No, Lucha did not fit that particular mold, problem was, I didn’t know exactly what I felt for him. Intrigued maybe?

  I climbed the staircase behind him, watching how his pants fit snugly around his lovely backside. The more I looked at his six foot tall frame, the more I was able to see beneath the richly dressed exterior to the muscular man that hid below. Lucha’s strong body told me that he wasn’t just a rich man’s son, no, he was physically active as well, and that combination was hard to find. More often than not, I’d find myself sleeping with men who were thin and void of any real definition, only because they were rich and didn’t bother with manual labor or working their muscles. After spending years with Kerr by my side, I craved a man who was toned and powerful. I craved Kerr, but he was untouchable. He’d made it very clear that he would not sleep with me.

  Lucha opened the first door on the right for me and stood back. He lifted his arm and motioned for me to go in. I peeked around the corner and the room took my breath away. Its walls were a peach color, like none I’d ever seen before and the wall opposite the large bed was strikingly beautiful. Someone had painted a scene with a woman lying on a fainting sofa. Her naked backside showed, and every bit of her looked soft, and exotic. Her arms reached upward and there was a ray of light coming from somewhere that the artist didn’t show, but made you feel was heaven. I tried to see the woman’s face. I wanted her to turn her head, as if she were truly there. Her long, wavy, dark brown hair that bordered on black was swept up, but just enough of it had fallen to avoid being able to see her facial features. It looked so vivid that I had to touch it to make sure that she really wasn’t standing there. I looked at Lucha with my hand out and he nodded. I let my fingers slide gently over the masterpiece and could feel the love that had gone into it.

  I turned to Lucha. "Did you do this?"

  He smiled and nodded his head. "Yes, do you like it?"

  "It’s exquisite, it reminds me of Michelangelo."

  "Yes," he said moving closer to me. "I was greatly inspired by him among others. I do not care so much for the way artists are painting now. I prefer this style." His hand moved over mine and I felt a rush of excitement go through my body. I wanted him and I could smell his desire for me, yet still I did not want to use him for my needs. I turned to leave him. I needed to feed the sexual beast within me, then, and only then, could I concentrate on Lucha.

  "I have to leave now. Thank you for trusting me enough to show me this," I said, keeping my hand on his painting.

  His fingers laced in mine and his body pressed against my back. I laid my head on his chest and closed my eyes. His large arms wrapped around me, and I wanted to stay in them forever. He was so warm, and there was something so amazing about him that I hated the thought that I had to leave him.

  "Stay here with me."

  I let out a small laugh. "Lucha, you know what I am."

  "Yes, but why should that matter?" he asked moving his head down towards my neck. "If you wanted me dead, I would not be standing here now, right?"

  I leaned forward and found that my body was now pinned between Lucha and his painting. "Lucha, please understand that I have to leave you. I need to feed before the sun rises."

  He spread my arms out and pushed my body against his painting. I tried to keep from doing any damage to it, but Lucha pushed so hard that I was now pressed tightly to the wall. "Feed from me," he said, moving his hands to the top of my dress. I felt him unhooking it and turned my face towards him. His brown eyes held a hunger much like my own, he too needed sex.

  "Lucha, I can’t take from you."

  "Consider my blood yours," he said, fully opening my dress.

  "I not only require blood, I require…." I started to say sex, but he cut me off.

  "I know that you need to have your body pleasured, I could sense it on you in the alley. I also sensed your want to shield me, and for that, I am grateful. However, it is not necessary. My body craves yours too, as you do mine, and I have a hunger of my own that follows closely after I use my magic."

  "Lucha, I can’t…."

  He ripped my dress down and I felt his warm hands moving over my hips. I looked back at him one more time, the soft glow of the oil lamp reflected off his olive skin and he looked like one of his paintings, perfect, and alive. I reached up and pulled my dress forward. It fell from my body.

  Lucha drew a breath in and I heard him starting to remove his own clothes. I turned to help him, but he gently nudged my body back in place. I stared at the painting of the woman and the resemblance between she and I hit me. There were similarities, like the pale skin, and darker hair, and differences like she was a little bit curvier than me. I was envious of that.

  Lucha’s naked body pressed against mine. He turned my chin towards him and looked from the painting to me. "I have dreamt of you for many years, and now you are here. Visions of you have come to me in my sleep and I thought that I was going mad, but when I saw you tonight, I knew that we were meant to be."

  What he said was so beautiful, and so out of the ordinary that I wanted to believe him—I did believe him. He pressed his body against mine and I felt the head of his cock move between my butt cheeks, making its way home. I leaned forward, as much as I could, and his hand moved around and found my breasts. He caressed them and kneaded them as he pushed his body into mine. I cried out and my face pressed against his painting.

  "Amore eternal," he whispered as he pulled my hips to him.

  I cried out as his body drove into me harder. Lucha’s size made it difficult for me to accept all of him, but it felt too good to have him stop. Each thrust into me sent my body slamming into the hard wall. My cheek throbbed and I knew that it would be bruised come morning. I also knew that Lucha was more than mortal if he was able to be this rough with me.

  I pushed back and Lucha fell away from me. I spun around and pushed his body to the floor. I wanted sex and so did he, but it would be on my terms, not his. His brown eyes widened as I straddled his body. I grabbed his cock in my hand and held it steady as I eased myself over it. Lucha’s mouth dropped open and I knew that he enjoyed this almost as much as I, maybe even more.

  He tried to touch my body, but I pinned his arms back, and rode him hard and fast. Our bodies made slapping noises as the sweat from his body covered us. I laid myself down on his hard chest and continued to move my hips in a circular pattern. His arms wrapped around me and I let them. He cupped my butt and pushed my body down on him harder. I moved my lips to his neck and licked along a vein.

  "Yes … drink from me…." he said, his voice labored.

  I let my fangs come down and I pushed them gently through his skin. His sweet, warm blood filled my mouth. I had never fed from an innocent before, and now knew why Valentino still did. Lucha tasted so pure, so good, that I had to make an effort to pull away to keep from taking too much. I didn’t want to turn him, nor did I want to leave him sick or on the verge of death. I drew one last taste of him in and felt my orgasm hit. My body contracted and I mi
lked Lucha as his hot cum exploded within me.

  He held tight to me and I licked the tiny puncture wound on his neck, and watched it heal instantaneously. I tried to stand up, but he held me to him. "Do not go, stay with me here, forever."

  I lifted my head and looked at him. His long black curls were spread out on the floor. I smiled and went to kiss his cheek. He turned his face to me and our lips met for the first time. His warm tongue moved into my mouth and I circled it with mine. Each swipe, each tug, made my body grow warmer. I realized what he did and I pulled my mouth back from him.

  "No love spells," I said narrowing my gaze on him.

  His rose colored lips curved into a smile. "I am capable of doing such a thing, but I am not … you are my amore eternal, and this is natural between us. It is meant to be." I felt him growing hard within me and knew that he spoke the truth. I leaned in to kiss him, and let my hips sway on him again.

  Chapter 24

  I made my way down the crowded streets and back to the inn. My stomach was tight with fear over what Kerr would have to say about my disappearing act. I had spent four wonderful days with Lucha and had not notified Kerr to where I was. Lucha didn’t want me to leave him, but I knew that Kerr would worry and I couldn’t let him suffer. He could push me away forever, but I would still always care for him. Since the moment I’d awakened to find myself a vampire I had been drawn to Kerr, and I knew that I probably always would be. I still couldn’t figure out why, and Kerr wouldn’t tell me. At least now that I had Lucha, I had a chance at filling that void—that emptiness that had plagued me for so many years now.

  I opened the door to my room and found it dark. I slid in and went to light the oil lamp. "Care to tell me where ye been, lass?" I jumped at the sound of Kerr’s voice.