Chapter 13
GAbrIEL
Nico escaped the safehouse like the roof was on fucking fire, and I didn’t blame him one bit.
I wasn’t blind.
He was as in love with Emberline as I was. Both of us, tangled in a fucking disastrous catastrophe, neither of us could extricate ourselves from.
Not that we wanted to.
No, this shitty little house had become my favorite place in the world, with Emberline’s empty coffee cups on the kitchen counter and her scent in every hallway.
I used every excuse to spend all my time here, picking fights with her, just so I could hear her voice, sitting in the most uncomfortable chair in the house, just so I could watch her rummage around in the kitchen.
I was a pathetic fool, and there was nothing I could do to stop myself.
My foul fucking mood had only grown darker when I realized there was zero chance Emberline would stay here where it was safe. That she would listen to reason. That she had a reasonable bone in her petite, stubborn body.
“We’ll do this over by the fireplace,” I decided, loosening my tie, shoving down my rush of excitement, telling my cock to calm the fuck down. This was nothing. Only a feeding. A necessary biological act.
“I won’t be a liability,” she muttered, trailing a few steps behind me. “I can handle myself in a fight. I’m not some…” She paused in the doorway and sucked in a breath. “I’m not the pampered aristocrat you think I am.”
I sprawled across the couch, legs spread as I slowly unbuttoned my shirt, monitoring every miniscule shift in her expression.
The way her pupils dilated, the flush of color in her cheeks, how her tongue darted out and rimmed her ripe bottom lip. The one I dreamed of biting.
“All the training in the world won’t help you if we’re captured. Did you even consider that?” I couldn’t keep the harsh edge from my question. “That if Nico and I fail, that if my brother is dead, you would still be alive?” I raked a hand through my hair, fear and anger boiling in my veins.
I was a fool, falling in love with my brother’s wife, but fuck if I could stop myself.
No, I wanted to do bad, bad things to Emberline.
“Stop trying to talk me out of going, Gabriel.” Her tone was determined, but she plucked at the bottom of her shirt, looking so unsure, my heart nearly gave out. “I’m here. I agreed to feed from you. How do you want to do this?”
I dragged my hand over my face and willed myself into some semblance of calm.
“Come here,” I barked. “We get this over with, then I’ll help Nico with arrangements.”
“Don’t act like I’m the one holding you back,” she snapped, giving every bit of my anger right back to me. “Feeding was your idea, protecting me like I’m some kind of—”
“This isn’t about protecting you,” I cut her off, tie crushed in my hand.
“Gods know you fight me tooth and nail just for trying to keep you safe. This is about splitting up so at least one of us survives.” I waved my hand between us.
“But be my guest. Come along, die a fucking martyr in the dirt for no good reason.”
“I’m going to save Dante.” She crossed her arms over her chest, the picture of stubbornness. “To get him out of that hellhole.”
“You think I want my brother there?” My blood boiled as I met eyes as hard as diamonds.
“Do you think, bella, for a single second, I don’t want him back as badly as you?
You’ve known him for what? All of a few weeks?
I’ve known him for over fifty fucking years, so don’t get into a pissing contest with me because you will lose. ”
Face twisted in anger, she prowled toward me, and the clean scent of her, that fresh citrusy floral, punched me in the face, making my cock harden, and I suddenly realized this whole thing was a very, very bad idea.
I wanted to act out on every sick, twisted fantasy I’d ever imagined, right here on this faded couch, until she writhed and screamed out my name like a curse and begged me to fuck her harder. Damn it, what a mess.
I was in love with Emberline.
My brother’s wife.
Hopelessly, deeply, completely in love, and now I didn’t know what to do since keeping her safe was obviously off the fucking list, as was talking any kind of sense into her thick, stubborn skull.
“Come here,” I repeated, “The faster we get this done, the faster we get out of here.”
“I…” She stopped in front of me, tipped her head to look me in the eye, lips parted, dark hair spilling over one shoulder, so thick and glossy I ached to bury my face in those curls. “I should tell you something first.” She said shyly. “I’ve only ever fed from Dante, so… I’m not very good at this.”
Good gods, why bother even going to the Fossa? I can just die here on the spot.
“Stop stalling, Emberline.” I patted my thigh like this was no big deal. “All you have to do is close your eyes and let instinct take over. This is just feeding, and once it’s over, you’ll have gotten your way. Again.”
The next second, she was trembling between my spread knees, her pert breasts right at mouth level, and gods, all I wanted to do was fasten my mouth over one of her hard nipples and feast. I pulled her down onto my thigh, tipped my head to the side, and tapped a finger on my vein.
“Right here. Take as much as you can; you’ll need your strength later.”
She drew a shuddering breath, fingers curving around my shoulder as she steadied herself, careful not to rub up against me, which I appreciated and regretted at the same time.
“Clock’s ticking, bella. All you have to do is— Fucking hell.”
Her fangs sank in deep, and my entire body jolted as if I was plugged into an electrical socket, chest heaving as her soft lips suctioned around the bite, her tongue flicking back and forth over my vein.
I was going to fucking come from the sensation of her mouth, every inch of me crackling with unleashed heat.
Emberline’s hand curled around the nape of my neck, her other slid beneath my shirt, palm pressed against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and lay back, bringing her with me, keeping our bodies flush, her breasts crushed against me.
Yes, I thought hazily, I could die happy now.
After a minute, she tried pulling away, so I held her to my throat. “More, bella. You need more. Then you can sleep this off for a few hours.”
She made a pleased sound against my throat, and a rush of male pride filled me. Pride I had no right to feel but was helpless to stop. The female I loved was in my arms, taking from my vein, humming happily against my skin, and I felt like I’d won the godsdamned lottery.
And even though I had no right to feel so happy, I’d enjoy this moment. At least until the guilt kicked in.
Emberline took three more swallows, then unsealed her lips and ran her tongue slowly up my throat. My cock kicked hard with every pass, and I adjusted my position ever so slightly, so I wasn’t a total creeper.
“Stay here for a minute.” I kept my arms around her. “You’ll be dizzy since it’s been a while since you’ve fed.” We sat like that for longer than was wise, but I’d be damned if I was going to cut this short.
“Gabriel, can I ask you a question?” she asked drowsily, fingers playing with my shirt collar. “Have you ever wondered what might have happened if Dante hadn’t shown up that night?” She looked up at me, her gaze softening as she searched my face.
“You would have stabbed me in my sleep and burned our palazzo down around us, and we would have deserved what we got,” I answered, my arms tightening around her, hating the way my heart sped up at this line of questioning.
“No,” she murmured, eyes fixed on my lips. “I don’t think that’s what would have happened at all. I’ve been thinking a lot about it, and…” Her tongue darted out, and every drop of blood in my body rushed back to my cock it was trying to win a fucking race.
I could kiss her.
We were alone, and she was right here, and her eyes were so soft and her lips so plump, and there was a bed upstairs, three of them as a matter of fact, and…
All the air rushed out of my lungs as I leaned back, away from the irresistible temptation that was Emberline Dominico, my brother’s wife and the most dangerous threat to my sanity I’d ever met in my life.
“You are my brother’s wife.” I sounded shaky as I reminded us both of who we were, where our loyalties lay. I lifted her off me and set her on the sofa, barely able to catch my breath at what had almost happened.
Gods, I’d nearly cuckold my own godsdamned brother. While planning his rescue mission, no less. What kind of shit male was I?
She flushed, scrubbing her arms where my hands had just been. “I know,” she said miserably, her voice choked. “I know, but I can’t help but feel like I…”
I pointed my finger in her face. “Do not finish that sentence, Emberline.”
This was worse than all of us dying at the Fossa.
Love was the blade that severed. Love made you reckless. Love made you bleed until there was nothing left but an empty husk.
And yet…
She might have been the only thing in this life I had ever truly loved.
Strength disguised as softness, cleverness masked by beauty, and now I couldn’t imagine living a single day without her in it.
These past weeks—as draining as they’d been—had given me more joy than the fifty-some years that came before.
I swallowed, “You are married to Dante,” I said firmly, my voice coming from somewhere far away. “There are no feelings between us, Emberline. None. I think of you as my brother’s wife, to protect until he returns. That is all.”
Gods, what was wrong with me? Why did hurting her make me want to fucking die?
“Okay, yes… that’s… I was just…” She clamped her lips together, tears lining her eyes. “You’re right, of course. I don’t know what got into me. I apologize.”
Fuck. I dragged my hand down my face, wanting to tell Ember she had nothing to apologize for. That her wanting to kiss me had nothing on what I wanted to do to her. What I fantasized about doing, every fucking night.
“Try to get some sleep before we leave. I’ll make some arrangements, then check on Marcello.
He’s getting sicker,” I admitted for no particular reason except this was Emberline, and apparently, I couldn’t stop saying stupid shit around her.
“Of course, he refuses to see the healers, or Emilia, or listen to common sense, but he’s definitely dying. ”
She went still, something like betrayal flitting across her face.
Oh right. She feels cheated by the bastard’s early demise because she was planning to carve out his heart for herself.
“Whatever this illness is, it’s taking him quick. I know you craved vengeance, but it appears nature got there first.”
I kept myself from reaching for her as I tried one last time to keep her safe, the only way I knew how.
“We’re walking into hell, bella. The guards drink the blood of the prisoners. Prisoners fight each other to the death. The Fossa isn’t a prison, it’s a gauntlet, and if we are caught, they will rip us apart for sport.”
I held her gaze, ignoring the sheen of tears. “This is your last chance to make the smart play.” I shrugged, as if her choice didn’t matter to me in the least, when my entire future hung on her answer. “Are you staying or going?”
“I’m going,” she said without a hint of hesitation.
“So be it.” I dipped my head, wondering if I could get away with tying her to one of these chairs.
I could, but once she was free, nothing would keep her from finding Tazroum and my brother.