Saved By Your Hot Book Boyfriend

45. A Very Scandalous Way to Free the Hot Guy

45

A Very Scandalous Way to Free the Hot Guy

You

All night, you haven’t been able to stop thinking about what the old sorceress said.

You still can’t believe she said something like that so easily.

Something so scandalous.

At least, you’ve never heard someone in her age bracket talk so candidly about sex before.

It’s so easy to imagine elderly folks are all pious and repressed, the kind of folks who might freak out if they knew half the things young people do.

But of course they were once young people, too.

And still young at heart.

Aging is strange like that.

Now, lying awake in this strange cult town in the middle of the high desert far from home, you can’t help but think about Ziros and what it must be like not to age.

Immortality always sounds like a gift until you really stop to think about it.

But you’ve read enough vampire romance novels to know it’s not always the case. Often, the heroes end up lonely, the only immortal in a world filled with humans.

Or if not the only one, still struggling because they ultimately end up falling for the of-course-very-human female main character.

Maybe…

What if that’s why Ziros has been keeping his distance from you all night? Or is that too self-centered to assume?

Even now, though you offered to let him share your room, he’s sleeping on the couch downstairs.

You roll over, struggling to get comfortable in the bed that isn’t your own.

You’ve got your phone back, at least.

Ziros found your purse outside where you were kidnapped, but the screen has a giant crack in it from where it was—apparently—stepped on.

You sigh, holding your phone up above your head.

There’s no cell service here.

You’ve got a text set to send to your boss as soon as you get in range, and hopefully she won’t be too upset that you’ve missed work without notice. At least, you’re pretty sure she won’t be once you’re able to see her in person and tell her the full story.

“Sorry, I was kidnapped. Tell you the details later,” is what you thought about sending, but instead you opted for something a little more…vague.

Because mentioning being kidnapped sounded way too dramatic yet too simple at the same time every time you tried to type it out.

You set your phone back down on the nightstand, letting out a sigh.

It’s one in the morning.

You’d rather be asleep, but your brain is too awake.

Instead, you creep out onto the landing, peering down into the dark living room.

You’re half-expecting to find the couch empty. For Ziros to be working out again, or maybe demolishing every ounce of food in the kitchen. Or maybe for him to pop up behind you when you least expect it.

But, nope.

He’s actually already out.

Sleeping peacefully.

You shake your head, quietly shutting yourself back in your room. At least someone’s getting some sleep.

He must have been more exhausted than he let on.

Maybe being separated by such distance drained him more than you’d realized.

You feel a bit guilty at that realization.

“I’ll set you free soon,” you whisper into the dark as you lay down in bed again.

There’s no two ways about it.

You can’t hold onto him forever, and clearly the longer you take to free him, the more danger you’ll both be in.

After all, it was only because of your connection that you came so close to death.

You lie down in bed again, this time vowing that you’ll really get some sleep.

Who knows. Maybe you’ll even get lucky and have nice dreams, considering you can’t stop thinking about what exactly, uh, you’ll have to do to free him.

It’s not the only way, of course , Elena had said. But it’s certainly the most straightforward .

The idea is this:

When you’re, you know, together , that’s when the link between you should be strongest and most visible—assuming you can manage to focus on it.

And that’s the time when each of your energy cores will be the most charged, so it’s the safest time to cut it.

If you use your own energy to slice the tether rather than trying to snap it like you did before, it should be a permanent cut.

And…in theory, at least, it shouldn’t hurt you or Ziros.

Not as long as your energy core—whatever that is—is fully charged and centered.

Which the old lady assured you, without even a hint of bashfulness, it should be so long as you’re both having a good time.

Ah, to be so old and self-assured, you can talk about such things without regard for what others might think of you.

It was awkward.

For you, anyway. She seemed totally at-ease.

And now you’re even more eager to get home.

Not because you can’t wait to try this theory out or anything.

Definitely not because of that.

Okay, maybe a little because of that.

You blush, burying your face in your pillow.

What are you thinking!? How are you going to bring this up to Ziros?

Well.

That’s a problem for another day.

Ziros

—The Next Day—

We’re finally back at my human’s apartment.

Sure took us long enough.

And she’s way too damn forgiving.

“I still say you weren’t hard enough on them,” I grumble from where I lean against the wall, watching her cook.

And it’s an oddly comforting sight.

Sure, I can cook, but seeing her do it…it’s nice.

I don’t know what this feeling is.

I’m not used to having other people do things for me.

“Eat this,” she says, pushing a bowl of noodle soup into my hands. Ramen , according to the word that pops into my head. “Then you can have the shower first.”

It’s good, these noodles.

Instant food really is an amazing invention. So maybe modern times aren’t so bad, after all.

* * *

Is it my damn imagination, or has she been… off since we got back?

No, since before that.

She drove us back in a rental car after the cult sorceress and her broody, teenage grandkid dropped us off in the nearest city.

It’s been a long day.

I stand in the shower, letting the water run over my shoulders.

I should be relaxing. Instead, I can’t get my stupid brain to shut the hell up.

Maybe it’s all that damn Eli kid’s fault.

I keep hearing his voice in my head, telling me to just tell her how I feel already.

But I can’t do that.

If I do, then it’s over—the promise I made to myself about not getting close to a human.

I’m an idiot for even letting myself get as attached as I have.

As soon as she sets me free, I’m out of here.

That’s the only reason I’m here at all.

Then I’ll taste all that beautiful, sweet, sweet unlimited power all over again, and then I can put all this wasted time behind me for good.

The years will fly by again, and soon enough she’ll be dead.

Humans always die.

So why…why does that thought leave a bitter, lonely ache twisting inside me?

None of it makes sense.

I want to punch something.

But since the only things around belong to my human, I can’t do that. To the human. I’ve got to stop calling her mine.

She’s not mine.

She’s just a human who I’m stuck with until I’m free.

And maybe she finally recognizes that, too, because she’s been extra distant all day. We barely even talked during all the hours from there to here.

And now, once I step out of the shower, she only gives me a strange, hurried glance as she rushes into the bathroom carrying a bundle of clothing.

Humans.

I’ll never understand them.

I lie back on the bed, closing my eyes, city lights glimmering through the edges of the blinds. Wearing just a pair of sweatpants. No shirt.

And it seems I’m even more spent out from the trip than I’d realized, because I find myself drifting off to sleep.

It must only be a few minutes later when I open my eyes again, the room quiet. The shower is already off.

And the bathroom door creaks tentatively open, my human’s footsteps cautious and slow as she creeps toward the bed.

Maybe she doesn’t want to wake me up.

She must think I’m still asleep. She can’t see my eyes are open.

Hang on.

She’s wearing… what the hell is she wearing?

Was this why she was in such a hurry to get into the shower? Because she didn’t want me to see what she was carrying?

I shoot straight up—in more ways than one—my body already wide awake before my mind understands what’s happening.

She’s leaning back against the wall, one knee bent, as if intentionally displaying her curves even more. And holy damn, does she have curves .

I hope this is lingerie.

This had better-as-hell be lingerie, otherwise things are about to get real awkward, because these sweatpants don’t hide much.

She’d better be trying to seduce me.

Because if she isn’t…

But if she is—

I push off the bed, at her side in an instant.

You

Your heart is racing. Was this a bad idea?

Is he going to turn you down?

Will he ask what you’re doing?

Are you about to embarrass the hell out of yourself?

After all, without any warning, you just walked out of that shower dressed head-to-toe in the wildest thing you’ve ever worn.

Possibly even wilder than that bikini.

You’ve got on black, strappy heels, a matching lacy bra and thong, and—perhaps the best part—a garter belt complete with sexy, criss-crossed straps across your middle.

You even put on a pair of never-before-worn lace-topped lingerie stockings to match the garter belt.

You’ve never worn something like this before.

For anyone.

You bought it months ago on a particularly-inebriated night of daring online shopping. And then you promptly tucked it away in the back of your closet, wondering what the hecking heck you were thinking when you purchased it.

Until now.

Instead of trying to explain to Ziros how exactly you intend to free him, you’ve decided just to show him.

After all, showing is better than telling, right?

Okay, so maybe that’s not always the case.

But it’s too late to go back now.

One moment Ziros is lying on the bed. Toned abs. No shirt, just sweatpants.

And you swear you see a certain, uh, shape in those sweatpants.

Or maybe that’s just a trick of the light.

The next, he’s got you cornered against the wall, one hand braced on the wall beside your head.

With the other, he takes your jaw, tilting your face up toward his as he leans in close and growls in your ear…“ What the hell are you wearing, human? ”

You freeze. “Do you…do you not like it?”

His laugh is low and dangerous.

“ No , human. That’s not it at all.” And before you understand what’s happening, you feel the sharp points of his fangs pressing at the base of your neck, making you gasp. “I sure hope…” he growls against your skin, his voice strained like he’s fighting hard as he pushes himself away. “Human. You’d better be trying to seduce me.”

“Does that mean it’s working?”

He laughs again, that dangerous, low rumble that sends a strange thrill tingling through your core. A hungry, feral desire sparking within.

“Oh, it’s working ,” he growls, his hand on your jaw tightening, like he’s still fighting against himself.

And you swear you can feel the heat of his body through those sweatpants as he leans closer, pinning you in place. A wall of heat and muscle.

His fangs press against the base of your neck again, and strange desire rushes through you. A desire for this , whatever it is. Whatever he wants to do.

“I’m going to bite you,” he says, and you’re not sure if he’s trying to warn you or to ask permission.

“ Bite me . Please.”

He half-laughs, half-groans, sinking his fangs in. And you can hear the wall creak as his braced hand strains against it, like it’s taking all his strength and effort to avoid hurting you.

White-hot pleasure spreads through your body as he drinks, and you tilt your head back on instinct, opening yourself to him further.

“Good girl,” he praises, sucking harder as you let out an involuntary moan.

You need him.

You need all of him.

You can’t even remember how to set him free, can’t think. All you know is that you need him right now, need him to take you.

“ Please ,” you moan as he drinks you in, heat coursing through your body, the need deeper and greater than you’ve ever felt before. A need that makes you curve against him, desperate to feel the hard heat of his body between your legs. “Ziros. Please. I need—”

“Tell me,” he urges, pulling away from your neck just enough to speak. And the hungry, predatory glint in his eyes shouldn’t thrill you the way it does, taking your breath away. “Tell me, human. Tell me what you want me to do to you.”

“Get on the bed.”

Without hesitation, he sweeps you into his arms, laying you down beneath him.

Ziros

“Now tell me, human,” I growl in her ear, some strange, primal possessiveness coming over me as I straddle her on the bed. I let my gaze linger on the curve of her breasts where the strappy little top is squeezing them together. “Do you wear this in front of other men?”

“Why?” she asks, and I can’t decide if she’s trying to play coy, or if she really doesn’t understand why I’m asking. “Would that bother you, Mr. Scary-Powerful Demigod Vampire?”

A muscle in my jaw twitches.

Is she trying to belittle me?

No. She’s smiling.

I think this is a game.

She knows what she’s doing. And she’s teasing me.

Alright.

If that’s how she wants to play.

“You think I’m scary and powerful, huh? Well, you haven’t seen anything yet, human,” I rasp in her ear, loving the way her body arches up against mine as I pin her lower, hungry heat racing through me.

I’m going to miss this, I realize with a sharp pang, a strange darkness settling against the heat of the moment.

Would she…if I came back to visit after I’m free, would she want to see me?

No, what am I thinking?

This is a route I can’t go down.

A path I dare not take.

“What’s wrong?” She asks, gazing up at me, and I realize only then that I’ve stopped.

“Nothing,” I lie, loving the way her curves feel as I run one hand along the shape of her body, from her breasts all the way down to her legs.

And before she can ask any more questions, I lean into the heat, letting desire consume me again as I lean forward, grazing my lips over hers, letting my teeth glide ever-so-lightly across the edge of her jaw until she gasps.

Moving to her neck. Sucking. Teasing her until she moans.

I can’t resist any longer.

I sink my fangs in up to the hilt again, relishing the sweet, intoxicating taste of her blood.

Power, magic, life, but it’s also so much more.

I bite down harder until she lets out a sharp gasp, and I worry that I’ve hurt her.

But then her breath melts into a moan again.

Fuck , I need her.

I need her. I need her right now.

Who cares if this is the only moment we have?

Tomorrow doesn’t matter.

She won’t want to see me again after I’m free.

There’ll be no more this .

But that’s okay.

It’s just a thing, just a night, just a feeling.

And I plan to feel all of it.

All of her .