24. Conrad #3
I poured two glasses of wine and carried them into the living room. Everything felt comfortable. Safe. Like the world had finally decided to give us a moment to breathe.
I set the glasses down and crossed to the record player. A few seconds later, soft jazz drifted through the room. When I turned back around, Winnie was watching me.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing.”
“That’s suspicious.”
“I was just thinking.”
“Dangerous.”
She pointed toward me. “See? You do listen.”
I laughed. Then I held out my hand. “Dance with me.”
Surprise lit in her eyes, then she let out a tiny, breathless laugh, her shoulders dropping as she looked down at my palm. “I’d like that.”
She placed her hand in mine. I pulled her gently toward me.
The music filled the room. Neither of us were particularly good dancers, but that wasn’t the point.
I slipped an arm around her waist. She rested a hand against my shoulder.
We swayed slowly across the living room with no audience and no interruptions.
It was just us. The simplicity of it felt strangely intimate.
I breathed in the scent of her hair, still awed that I was holding this woman. I’d spent days believing I might never see her again. Now she was here and in my arms, looking up at me with those gorgeous, gold-flecked eyes.
“You’ve been staring all night,” she murmured.
“I know.”
“Any particular reason?”
I smiled. “A few hundred reasons.” I pulled her closer.
The song changed. Everything narrowed until there was only Winnie. The cool touch of her hand. The curve of her smile. The way she looked at me like I mattered. Like I was more than a father. More than a man trying desperately not to fail the people he loved.
Her gaze drifted down to my mouth, and my pulse jumped. The invitation was subtle, but unmistakable.
I lifted a hand and brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
Then I kissed her.
Months of tension seemed to collapse all at once. The music faded into the background. The room disappeared. There was only her.
When we finally broke apart, neither of us had gone very far.
Her forehead rested against my chest. I could feel her smiling.
“So,” she whispered.
“So.”
“We’re really doing this.”
I laughed softly. “I think we are.”
Her fingers curled into mine.
For a long moment neither of us spoke. We simply stood there together. Holding on, neither of us particularly eager to let go. After everything we’d survived, the future suddenly felt possible. Somehow, that possibility didn’t scare me. It made me hopeful.
I tried to focus on the innocence of the moment, but I couldn’t help but notice her ample breasts pressing firmly against my body. My heart rate ticked up a notch. Winnie must’ve noticed, because she lifted her eyes and tried to read my expression.
Her eyes dragged down my face, landing on my lips again. That was all the permission I needed. I kissed her, passionately this time. We moved together without speaking. I lifted Winnie and she instinctively wrapped her legs around me. I walked us back until she was pressed against the wall.
When she moaned, my cock twitched. God, I wanted her so bad. I kissed down the side of her neck as I unbuttoned her blouse. Within seconds, I had one of her breasts in my hand. I gasped at the heaviness and stroked the tip of her hard nipple with my thumb.
Her body trembled as I kissed and massaged her breast, my hand moving faster and more insistently.
Her nipple was hard as a pebble now, begging for more attention.
Winnie’s eyes fluttered shut as she arched into my touch, moaning softly.
She tasted sweet and salty at the same time.
It fueled me. I pulled back and looked at her.
Her fangs had descended. I tried not to react, but I couldn’t stop staring.
“Oh, shit.” She reached up and touched the tip of one of her fangs. “I’m so sorry.”
“No, you have nothing to apologize for. You’re so beautiful, Winnie.” I tried to shift my focus, but I couldn’t stop staring at her mouth. I was drawn to it.
I lowered her to the ground. “Is that a sign that you want to drink from me? I don’t completely understand how this whole vampire thing works.”
“I haven’t drunk from a human in many, many years. The blood I drink comes from a dealer and is sourced ethically. Well, as ethically as stolen blood can be sourced.” She paused and bit her lower lip gently. “Honestly, this is a sign of me being… turned on.”
I gulped.
Winnie continued. “Drinking from someone isn’t always for sustenance. Sometimes it can be very sensual.”
“Does it hurt? Is that a dumb question?”
She shook her head. “No, it would be pleasurable for you.”
I couldn’t believe this was my life. There I was, wanting to fuck a vampire and considering the possibility of her drinking from me. And I loved every damn second of it. “How much blood would you take from me?”
“It would be a small amount. Just enough to… taste you.”
That’s all it took for me to step into her again. I pressed her against the wall and kissed her hard, my hands moving to her breasts. Losing all self-control, I licked up the side of her neck, stopping at her ear.
“Taste me, Winnie,” I whispered, offering my neck to her.
It wasn’t painful—just the opposite. The sensation was incredibly erotic.
I groaned as her fangs pierced my skin, electricity shooting through my body.
Heat spread from her mouth directly to my cock.
I’d never felt anything like it. I wanted her to take more, take every drop.
I wanted to come right then and there. I needed to be inside her, to feel every inch of her all at once.
It was raw and unapologetic passion wrapped in an undeniably unconventional package. I let out a low growl. “Don’t stop. God, Winnie. Please don’t ever stop.”