Lord of the Vampires (Royal House of Shadows #1)(51)
Author: Gena Showalter

He loved that she accepted his need for vengeance so easily. He loved that she clung to him, as desperate for closer contact as he was. But nothing would ever be close enough, not for either of them. He loved that she was smarter than he, and sometimes got lost in her own thoughts.

He just loved…her. Yes, he realized. He did. He loved her. He’d fallen in love with her soon after she first appeared in his world. They’d been strangers, but they’d soon bonded. From the bond, caring had sprung. From the caring, love. But the desire…oh, the desire had always been there.

A glimmer of resentment in his chest. Not directed at her, but to the vampire who had cursed her. Nicolai could never tell her how he felt. She might return the sentiment and vanish.

“I missed you. So much,” he said, willing to confess that much but no more. “The separation was like being stabbed.” Over and over again, the wound and pain never ending.

“I missed you, too.” She kissed and nipped a path along his jaw, his neck, licking and laving. “Where’d you go?”

“Elden.”

“Home?”

“Yes.”

“Me, too.”

“What?” He disengaged from the erotic contact, and peered down at her. “Home home?”

She refused to stop. With a little leap, she was back in his arms and sucking on his pulse. “Yes, home home. My world.”

Nicolai cupped her chin, forcing her to still, to look at him. Her eyes were glazed with passion, her lids at half-mast. His heart constricted at such a lovely sight. A shake of his head was required to put him back on track. “Let me be clear on this. You left my world and returned to yours.”

“Yes.”

He’d almost lost her again. And he’d had no idea! “How did you get back?” he croaked.

A secret smile played at the edges of her lips. One that burned through him, deepening his arousal. “Apparently, when you gave me your blood, you gave me your ability to teleport, too.”

Dark Abyss. He had never considered that possibility. Maybe because he’d only ever shared his blood with his father, and his father had already possessed some of Nicolai’s abilities.

“And you came back to me.” He’d never been one to see fate’s hand in his life, but now…if Jane hadn’t been injured by the ogres, he wouldn’t have given her his blood. If he hadn’t given her his blood, he wouldn’t have found a way to tie her to his side for the rest of their lives.

“I’ll always come back to you.”

A heavy weight lifted from his shoulders. The curse had somehow lost its power over her. Otherwise, she would have remained in her world.

He traced his thumbs over her cheekbones. “I’ve told you this before, but I want you to listen closely. I don’t care if I have a thousand betrothed females waiting on me. You are all that matters.” He would have only one woman. This woman. Forever.

He swooped back down, plunging his tongue past her teeth and into the sweet recesses of her mouth. She welcomed him with a moan.

He’d been cold and detached with females most of his life. Oh, he’d treated his mother and sister as the treasures they were, but everyone else he had never even given a second thought. He’d been a prince, and they his due. Or so he’d convinced himself.

Fate, he mused again. Had he not been a slave, desperate to escape, he might have treated Jane the same way. And that would have been a shame, to never have known her and the nuances of her personality. Unselfish, brave, stronger than anyone he knew, capable and honorable.

Honorable. Yes. He would never have to wonder where he stood with her. She would always tell him, whether he was a prince or a pauper. She would never be intimidated by him, would always challenge him.

“I want you naked.” He tugged at the shoulder straps of her robe, shoving the material to the floor. In seconds, emerald material pooled at her feet. He lifted her out of it, and settled her more firmly against his body. Skin-to-skin. Finally.

Every time she exhaled, their chests rubbed together, and he thrilled at the contact. She was hot and silky against him. Her ni**les were beaded, rasping against the fine mat of hair he possessed. His shaft pressed to both their bellies, moisture seeping from the tip. He arched his hips, creating a delicious glide.

She arched to meet him, the friction sparking exquisitely. “I can’t ever get enough of you.”

“Good.” He traced his hands down the ridges of her spine, loving the goose bumps that jumped up to meet him. He cupped her ass. “No panties?”

“None were given to me.”

“I’m glad.” If he had his way, she’d never wear them again.

“I—I want you. Now.”

“You’ve got me. Nothing will separate us, Jane. Do you understand?”

Her breath hitched. She toyed with the ends of his hair. “I think so, yes.”

“Know so. I don’t want to lose you. I can’t lose you. I want to wed you. To be with you always. I choose you, Jane. Over my crown, my people and my vengeance.”

Tears welled in her eyes, creating amber pools. Nicolai tensed, waiting, unsure in a way he’d never been before.

“Just as I choose you,” she said brokenly.

Thank the gods. He would have dropped to his knees and begged if necessary. “I want to be your family.”

“You are.”

A soft touch along his check. Jane’s expression was so tender, tears filled his eyes.

“Jane. I love you.” No reason to deny it now. “I want to show you. Let me show you.”

Her mouth fell open on a gasp. “You…you love me? I mean, I know you mentioned marriage, but this is the first you’ve said of love and I…I…”

“I love you. With all my heart.”

“Oh, Nicolai.” She threw herself at him, laughing and crying at the same time. “I love you, too. So much.”

Hearing her declaration was like stepping into a warm ray of the sun after an eternity spent in the cold darkness of winter. Something he hadn’t known he needed, but now that he had it, he knew he couldn’t live without it.

He drew her down to the floor. Her ni**les were flushed and rosy, and he couldn’t resist. He circled one with his tongue, flicked it until she moaned, then moved to the other. His fangs extended and ached. Now wasn’t the time to indulge in the delight that was her blood, however. He’d fed before coming to her, hoping to dull his hunger for her.

No other blood had ever affected him the way Jane’s did. So powerful, so consuming. And while he wanted his memory back in full now, he would rather not disappear without warning again and have to track his woman’s location, leaving her in danger.