Reclaimed(46)
Author: Diane Alberts

“I can’t sense him. I wonder why you could find him before? It’s like he wanted you to find him. But why?”

Isaac cursed Elijah inwardly and forced a shrug. Connor being suspicious of his actions didn’t bode well for him. “I haven’t a clue. But he’s gone now, and that’s all that matters. Now, if you’ll excuse me?”

Isaac stared at him until Connor jumped to his feet. “Yes, of course.”

“Let me look at your back, Isaac,” Sabrina stated. Connor seemed to relax at the physical evidence of an altercation.

Thank God.

“I’ll keep an eye out for any trouble, Isaac.”

“Thanks. Especially Elijah,” he added for good measure.

Connor nodded and left, and Sabrina rushed after him to lock the door. Isaac motioned her to wait when she tried to question him. “Okay, he’s gone.”

“What happened?”

“Elijah made himself traceable, and I went to him. He wants us to join forces to defeat Louisa.”

She gasped. “What did you say?”

“I said the only thing I could. No. If I were to join forces with a vampire, I’d be betraying everything I stand for. My people would turn on me, and kill me. We’re enemies. I can’t form such an alliance. It wouldn’t matter to them if he’s my brother, or even if we were trying to defeat a more evil vampire.

“I would become something worse than a vampire, I’d be a defector. They would search for me more avidly than any vampire or werewolf. I would be the priority for all of my kind, the number-one objective to kill. Especially since whoever had the pleasure of finding me would become the next Ruler, which is a bit of an added incentive. And if you were beside me, you could be hurt. If you were not, they could use you to catch me, and you could be hurt. They are smart enough to know I wouldn’t allow anything to happen to you. I can’t be around Elijah. It just isn’t safe for any of us.”

She stared at him in dawning horror. “Oh my God, so if they knew you met him, and didn’t try to kill him—”

“They’d kill me,” he finished. “Those are our rules. The rules I have been required to enforce over time as well. If we do not follow the rules, the waters become murky, difficult to navigate. We would be lost at sea within moments.”

“I understand.” She put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “Elijah has to stay away. Surely he sees it now?”

“I hope so.” He ran his fingers through his hair and stared at her in determination.

She shifted on her feet, uneasy at the scrutiny. Now that the urgency of finding out what had been going on was gone, she remembered all too well why she had kicked him out earlier. “Well, maybe you should get going.”

“Sabrina—” he pleaded.

“What, Isaac? What more could you have to say to me? I’m certain it won’t change my mind.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have acted the way I did. I f**ked up. Can’t you forgive me? Give me another chance?”

Put so prettily, it seemed hard to say no. But she didn’t want to give in yet. He’d been wrong, and he damn well should suffer for a bit before she forgave him. “Maybe someday. But not now.” She shook her head and tried to pull away from him. “I need time. And I think you do, too.”

“No,” he insisted. He yanked her toward him and stared intently into her eyes. “Time away from you is never a good thing. I need you,” he whispered.

Oh, God, he’d pulled out all his cards now. She’d always been a forgiving person, always the first to let go of her grudges. But this time, she really didn’t want to give in, hence the reason she had kicked him out in the first damn place. To resist his blue eyes pleading at her felt like more than she could bear. Seeking a respite from the force of those suckers, she spun him on his feet so she could study the wounds she’d noticed earlier. At least his eyes would be hidden, and she could maybe think clearly. “Let me see your back.” She lifted his shirt and drew in a quick breath at the sight. “It’s gone.”

“Yeah, remember how I told you we heal fast? Exhibit A, in front of your eyes.”

“Oh my God.”

“Yeah.”

“How amazing.” She exhaled, running her fingers over his smooth skin. The faded red marks that remained were the only sign he’d ever been hurt, and even those disappeared before her eyes. His muscles clenched as she trailed her fingers over his skin, and a stab of desire shot through her. There were at least a million reasons why she should step away from him and kick him out again. A million reasons to resist the urge to find pleasure in his arms.

But the need to feel his lips on hers, to feel him inside her, overcame all rational thought, and moaning at the torture, she pressed her lips to his back and wrapped her arms around him from behind. She gently dug her nails into his taut abdomen and scratched his skin through his chest hair. He gave a low curse and turned to grab her shoulders. No sooner did his arms close around her than his lips were on hers in a thirsty need for satisfaction. No longer was it an issue of stopping if things got out of control for them. She could feel it in his kiss, and she could damn well feel it in herself. This wasn’t about desire anymore; it was a matter of life and death. To live, they needed each other. To breathe, she needed his kisses.

Her legs buckled under the force, and he cradled her in his arms as they collapsed to the ground. He gripped her hips to pull her against him before grinding against her. She whimpered as liquid warmth flowed through her and settled between her legs. They both ceased to breathe out of sheer pleasure when she wrapped her legs around his hips. They ripped at each other’s clothing in their eagerness to be naked, for the erotic feel of skin meeting skin in all the right places. The only sounds besides their harsh breathing were the sounds of clothing being torn.

As he ravished her mouth, she dug her nails into his shoulders and thrashed beneath him, desperate for something solid against her fingers. The marks would be gone by the time they finished, so neither paid much heed to them. His lips burned a hot trail from hers and down the side of her neck, where it focused. She shuddered and grasped him even tighter.

“Isaac….”

He tore his mouth from her neck, and she breathed a deep sigh of relief. She couldn’t handle the wait; she needed to feel him inside her now. Normally, she would be all about the foreplay, but if he didn’t hurry the hell up, she’d burst into flames. Lust licked at her in hot bursts, causing her stomach to clench and her legs to wrap around him in desperation. When he pulled back from her neck, she thought her wait over, but he only teased her, as he kissed a trail of hot kisses to the other side of her neck. She couldn’t take any more of this sweet torture, surely she couldn’t.