Chapter 12
Twelve
CHERYL
I died. That much I know. When Ronan was holding me in his arms, my life force deserted me. Then I floated away from the pain that riddled my body, but I was not at peace. I couldn’t feel the carnal aches any longer, but my soul burned like it was being ripped apart.
I agonize outside of my body, watching Ronan’s desperation. Despite all the sorrow he caused me, I don’t want to leave him. I reach a hand toward him, but it passes right through his shoulder. I’d do anything to touch him once more.
No sooner does the thought cross my mind than I’m back in my body, his blood filling my mouth. I choke on it, and when I cough, most of it spills out.
“Cher, sweetheart, you need to drink from me,” he tells me as he offers me his open wrist. “You need to drink as much as you can for it to work.”
I don’t understand what he’s saying, but with the first swallow of his blood, something changes within me. I always thought drinking blood would be disgusting, but his tastes like the sweetest nectar. I suck harder, needing more and more of what he’s offering me.
With each pull, I become stronger and… hungrier . It’s a feral hunger like I’ve never experienced before. I grab his wrist and bite hard, needing to increase the flow of the most delectable thing I’ve ever tasted.
I lose track of time, but in the back of my head, I know I’ve latched on to Ronan’s vein for far too long. I can’t seem to stop, though. That is, until his eyes roll back in their sockets and he collapses.
I let go of his arm at once. “Ronan!”
My strength has returned tenfold. I feel different… invincible. I think Ronan was able to turn me into a vampire, but that doesn’t matter if I’ve killed him in the process.
I shake him, then lightly tap his cheek. “Ronan, please wake up.”
He’s not dead, that much I can tell. But he probably needs to feed. I bite my wrist, piercing the skin, then press it against his lips. “Come on, you want this.”
What if my blood is no good for him now?
His eyes fly open, and then he licks my skin. A shot of desire spreads through my body like wildfire. I’ve felt this before when he drank from me, a raw need capable of making me climb up the wall. Then he bites me a little and sucks hard.
Pure lust overwhelms my senses. The craving to touch Ronan and be touched by him is all I can think of. There’s an ache between my legs now, impossible to ignore. I might combust on the spot if I don’t find release, and there’s only one male who can satiate me.
Ronan’s gaze turns crimson, and in the blink of an eye, I find myself flat on my back with him on top of me.
He claims my mouth before I can say a word.
His tongue pries my lips open with a savagery that matches my own.
It’s a fight of fangs, tongues, and claws.
I’ve heard about bloodlust, but this is different.
This pure, raw need. I don’t crave his blood now; I just want him to fuck me so hard that I forget who we are.
I’m desperate to feel his skin against mine, so I yank at his clothes, not caring if I’m tearing the fabric. My sole purpose is to remove all the barriers between our bodies.
As if reading my mind, he pulls back and undresses me with the same careless urgency, tearing through my layers of clothing—and there are far too many of them.
When my tunic is tossed aside, he stops and stares at my breasts.
My nipples are as hard as pebbles, and not from the cold.
There was a time when I hated his attention, but now it feels like a heated caress.
I want his hands back on me, but he remains paralyzed. I don’t think he’s even breathing.
“Ronan?”
“You’re the most beautiful female I’ve ever seen, Cher.” He looks into my eyes, then captures my face between his calloused hands. “So beautiful.”
He kisses me hard, making the throbbing between my legs increase. Impatient, I sit on his lap, and in this position, my aching pussy rubs against his shaft. God, it feels glorious. But Ronan hisses as if he’s in pain.
I lean back. “What’s wrong?”
He presses his forehead against mine. “I want you like I’ve never wanted anyone in my entire life.” His hot breath against my skin serves to fan the flames burning in my core higher.
“It’s the same for me.”
He pulls back and looks into my eyes as if searching for something. “You drank my blood, and it changed you. It changed us . We’re now linked for all eternity. I can feel what you feel, and it’s the same for you.”
My eyes widen. “Like mated wolves?”
He shakes his head. “No, mated wolves need to be together like this. The relationship between a sire and their made vampires is different, and it often doesn’t involve sex.”
“Are you saying that the ache I’m feeling here—” I grab his hand and bring it to where I so desperately need him to be. “—it’s coming from you?”
He shivers. “I… I don’t know. All I’m sure of is that I need to feel your heat wrap around my cock. I want to hear you scream my name as I plunge into your tight cunt until oblivion claims us.”
Warmth spreads throughout my body, and I’m shaking. “That’s what I want too.” I lean forward and lick up his neck until my mouth is an inch from his ear. “And you can be certain my desire is my own.”
Something in him snaps. I sense his self-control slip away right before he pushes me down on the rug and lets his craving run free.
I bring my knees up, opening my legs for him.
His eyes burn bright red now, and his fangs peek from his partially open lips.
He looks like a god, powerful and so very hungry… for me.
I don’t have time to appreciate all his glorious power before he lifts one of my legs and props it against his shoulder.
With his free hand, he presses his erection against my clit, rubbing the tip over my sensitive nub.
Pleasure explodes within me, spreading so fast, I don’t even know what’s happening to me. I arch my back and shout his name.
He grunts, and then he’s inside me, stretching me to the max. I’ve heard the first time with a male can be painful, but I feel nothing but pure bliss.
Ronan pulls back almost all the way, then slams back into me, harder than before. “God, you feel so good, Cher. So fucking good.”
I touch my breasts and play with my nipples, needing more friction everywhere. I’m not sure what made me do it, but Ronan’s mouth is suddenly there, sucking on one of them, while he continues to pound into me. I cry out when another wave of pleasure hits me.
Ronan moves faster, getting larger inside me. The frenzy that hits us both is so intense, it makes me delirious and ravenous once more. This time, I don’t know if the feeling is mine or Ronan’s.
He releases my nipple with a loud pop and brings his face level with mine. “Bite me, Cheryl. I want you to drink from me again.”
“But I almost killed you before.”
“You won’t now.” He kisses me long and hard, scrambling all my thoughts. “I want you taking from my vein when I come inside you.”
He turns his face, offering me his neck. I’m salivating already, and my fangs are longer and sharper than they used to be. I don’t have as much faith in my self-control as Ronan does, but the temptation is too much. I lick his throbbing vein, and then I bite.
Ronan shudders against my body and starts to move again, thrusting even harder than before as I drink his blood.
He roars when he finally climaxes, his pleasure resonating deep in my bones.
It mixes with my own. I can’t feel my body anymore, but I know I’m not dead.
On the contrary, I’ve never felt more alive.