A Vampire's Soul (13 page)

As if my consciousness were caught inside each mouthful of blood that Gabriel took, I could feel myself being drawn up, sliding over his teeth and tongue before slipping effortlessly down his throat. Every nerve ending I had expanded and contracted as the pleasure that washed through him also washed through me. The ecstasy I was feeling was part mine, part his; blended together, it was incredible. He rolled over again so I was beneath him once more, and now I wrapped my legs firmly around his waist and surged upward with my hips. Needing no second invitation, Gabriel began to move. Each forward thrust synchronized itself with a draw of my blood, and I gave myself to him willingly and without any hesitation. As he pulled his mouth away, the rumble in his chest became a growl that rattled the window over the sink. I watched him shudder as his orgasm surged through him, feeling him explode inside me with a ferocious, final thrust. When the tremors finally subsided, he leaned forward and licked my neck. His tongue traced a path from my ear to my collar bone, sealing the open wound as he did so.

“I wish you didn't have to do that.” I murmured with a sigh of absolute contentment.

“Why?”

“It would be nice to see your mark on me all the time.”

He chuckled low in the back of his throat. “If I didn't seal it, you'd bleed out, love.”

“Hmmm, well, I guess that wouldn't do.”

“No”—he swept his tongue across my neck again—“it most certainly wouldn't.”

I sniffed, and a wonderful fragrance tickled my nose, familiar yet different at the same time.

“What is it?” Gabriel asked, seeing my nostrils flare.

“I can smell your blood,” I told him, “only it seems different this time.” I didn't remember nipping him hard enough to draw blood, but perhaps I had.

“How so?” Locking his elbows, he held himself up on his arms. I closed my eyes and drew in the scent, letting it fill me. “Hmmm, it still reminds me of pine trees and snow, but there's more of a citrus undertone now—and something sweeter. Like cloves and oranges.”

Gabriel let out a laugh, a deep, rich sound that made me open my eyes and stare at him. His eyes still hadn't returned to normal, but I'd already gotten used to seeing the golden pupil awash in a sea of electric blue.

“That, love,” he said, wearing the biggest shit-eating grin I'd ever seen, “is the scent of
your
blood.”

A
t some point Gabriel got up and closed the front door, then carried me back up to bed. Safe in the warmth of his arms, I told him everything I could remember about my dream-memory. He was curiously silent.

“Is it painful for you to remember?” I asked quietly, my head against his chest as I listened to the steady beat of his heart. I couldn't imagine him not being in my bed.

“No,” he said, dropping a kiss on the top of my head. “I am reminded of it every day.”

I felt like the biggest blundering idiot who ever walked the earth. He had already said his tattoos told how he came to be, a phrasing that I had taken to mean how he became a vampire. It had not occurred to me that they had been added at the same time his wings had been so savagely removed. “Gabriel, what happened to you?”

Putting a finger beneath my chin, he raised my head so I was looking into his eyes.

“I will tell you,” he promised, “but not now. You have had more than enough to deal with this night.”

Something in his voice didn't sound right.

“I'm missing something, aren't I?” I could see a glimmer of caution shine in the depth of his eyes. “I haven't remembered it all, and you won't tell me about your back until I do.” I didn't mean it to sound like an accusation, but that's how it came out.

He stroked my cheek with his forefinger. “Rowan, be thankful for what you have already remembered. It has brought us to a point I wasn't certain we would ever reach.”

“Really?” He'd had doubts? “You thought I wouldn't let you feed from me?”

“I wasn't sure you would take me to your bed again, much less give your blood to me.”

Not just doubts, he'd been really worried.

“So, what would you have done if things hadn't worked out between us?”

“This time when I left you, I would not have come back.”

The idea that I'd almost lost him sent a shiver through me. Holding me tightly, Gabriel pulled the comforter up around my shoulders.

“Don't force it, Rowan,” he said gently above my head. “Let the memories return in their own time. It may be that every detail does not wish to be recalled.”

I wanted to protest, but I could feel myself getting sleepy—a combination of a stressful workday, not enough sleep, incredible sex, and some blood loss. Regarding the latter, I had no idea how much Gabriel had taken, but I was hopeful my body would replenish it quickly because right now I was incredibly tired.

“Why would that be?” I mumbled against his chest, wanting to stay with the conversation.

“There are some reasons that are beyond our comprehension,” Gabriel said gravely, “and now, love, I must leave you.”

I muttered a half-hearted protest as he slipped out of bed and began dressing. When had he gotten our clothes from the kitchen? I decided it didn't matter and let myself enjoy the reverse striptease he was giving me. The mattress sagged as he sat down to put on his boots. Turning my head, I saw faint streaks of light splintering the night sky. The significance of dawn's arrival was completely different now. Gabriel was still leaving me, but it was only because I lacked an appropriate place for him to bed down for the day. It made his departure a little more bearable. I plumped up the pillow he had been using, releasing his familiar scent. I'd make a fortune if I could bottle it.

“I wish I could be with you,” I said, knowing it was a completely irrational request.

“I wouldn't be much fun,” he responded playfully.

“Why's that?”

“Because, love, daylight puts all vampires into a state of inertia until the sun sets again. Our bodies simply shut down during that time.”

I frowned. “But you've called me at lunchtime before.”

Sitting back down on the bed, he pulled me to him. I would never tire of being in his arms. “It's true I am able to be awake for longer than most with no ill effects, but I need my own surroundings to be sure I am protected. And even I must rest sometimes.”

Being in his own surroundings made sense, and also made the possibility of him staying here highly unlikely. “Are you aware of anything that happens when you're asleep?”

“Only in a nebulous way. It is why I have a sentinel.”

“What's that?”

“Someone who watches over me while I rest.”

Aleksei hadn't said anything about this. “You mean like a bodyguard?”

“I prefer to think of my sentinel as a personal assistant with refined skills.”

“But it would be a man, right?” I gave him a sideways glance and saw mischief twinkling in his eyes.

“Not always, no. It actually arouses less suspicion to have a sentinel of the opposite sex, the presumption being they are either wife or husband, mistress or lover.”

“But wouldn't a man be better at providing protection?”

“Not necessarily,” Gabriel said with a chuckle.

I swallowed and fussed with the comforter before asking, “So, is your sentinel a man?”

The idea of a woman watching over Gabriel while he slept stirred up some pretty strong feelings in me, feelings I wasn't particularly proud of. My experience with Katja was still too fresh and raw, skewing my reasoning where Gabriel was concerned. The notion of another female being this close to him did not make me a happy camper, even if he was in a state of inertia—
especially
if he was in a state of inertia. I tried to curb my jealousy by telling myself whatever their relationship, it had begun long before he'd met me and was purely platonic.

My inner bitch sometimes forgets whose psyche she lives in. Shoving her in a box, I slammed the lid shut. I didn't need to have my insecurities paraded around inside my head.

“Yes, Tomas is male,” Gabriel said, relieving my fears.

“Ah, that's his name, is it, Tomas?”

Taking hold of my chin with his fingers, Gabriel turned my head and brushed my lips with his. “Yes . . . and he's going to adore you.”

Happiness bloomed in my chest. “How long has he been with you?” Gabriel wrinkled his forehead. “Five hundred years, give or take a decade.”

I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped open. “But I thought a vampire couldn't watch over you?”

“Vampires are not the only supernatural creatures with an extended life span,” he told me, tapping the end of my nose playfully.

Oh shit!

“Would I be able to see where you sleep?” I asked. “I'd really like to have a visual image of where you are during the daytime.”

“I would like that very much.”

“Great, then it's a date.”

I tried to stifle a yawn as Gabriel glanced out the bedroom window. It was still dark, but he needed to go. Throwing back the comforter, I started to sit up and immediately felt dizzy.

“Whoa, is this going to happen every time I give you my blood?” I asked.

“No, but this was the first time. The more often I feed, the quicker your body will adjust.”

I had a sudden vision of Oliver Twist holding out his bowl and asking for more. “How often is often?”

“Perhaps every two or three days.” He flushed and looked a little guilty. “I will take only enough until you are comfortable with me.”

I smiled. “Gabriel, I'm more than comfortable with you, and you can take a whole friggin' pint if you promise me one thing.” He raised a querying eyebrow, and now I smiled slyly. “That you'll always be inside me every time you need to take my blood.”

“I doubt I'll ever need to take so much from you as that, but I promise to do my best to meet your condition. Now, love, I must go,” he paused and looked at me with concern. “I don't suppose I can persuade you not to go to work today?”

“You're kidding, right?” I don't think he even realized he growled. “You want Angela to spend Christmas in a padded cell?”

“I think it's time I met this Angela of yours. I feel certain we could find much to talk about.”

I didn't want to tell him it wouldn't be much of a conversation, what with Angela drooling all over the place. But I did give him my reassurance that I wouldn't overdo it at work.

“I can't expect Angela to handle things by herself. It wouldn't be fair.” I shut off any further protest with a kiss, which he returned with a spine-tingling, curl-your-toes deal that left me breathless and even more dizzy than I already was. I decided it wouldn't hurt to go to the health-food store and get some supplements—iron or B-12 or something.

“Will I see you later?” I asked, playfully tugging the end of his braid.

He shook his head. “I might have to be gone for a day or two.”

Dismay washed through me. I was missing him already. “Where are you going?” I didn't care if I came off as needy.

“Canada.”

“What's in Canada?” Other than moose and Mounties.

“Katja. She has a home there.”

He really should have said house not home. In my mind the word home conjures up images of a Norman Rockwell painting. Miss Psycho was definitely not the Suzie Homemaker type. “Is that where you think she is?”

He made a noncommittal grunting sound and shrugged. “Possibly, either there or she might have returned to—” He said a name that I supposed was either a town or a city, but it was a place I'd never heard of. Like a lot of people these days, my knowledge of world geography is more than a little sketchy. I find it challenging enough keeping track of all fifty states. Seeing the blank look on my face, Gabriel explained “It's a small town, not too far south of Vladivostok.”

Now that I had heard of. Wouldn't be able to find it on a map if my life depended on it, but it had been the answer to a question on
Jeopardy
about the Trans-Siberian Railway. Odd, the things you remember.

In my mind I could see Katja's face once more, see her hatred for me glowing like a neon sign. “Do you really think she wants to hurt me?”

“Your safety is more important to me than anything, Rowan.” His expression was as close to anxious as I was ever going to see. “I promise I won't let anything happen to you.”

I didn't doubt it, but he also hadn't really answered me. I figured it was just a matter of time before Katja made her move. “Call me when you get back.”

“Of course,” he said, now standing by the side of the bed.

I hated to add to his worry, but it couldn't be helped. Tilting my head to look up at him, I asked, “What was surrendered to me, Gabriel? Was it something you gave me?”

The expression on his face changed, becoming the most serious I'd ever seen. “If you don't remember, then I'm not going to tell you.”

“But . . . why not?”

“Because just as you are bound by ritual, so am I. Besides”—his mouth lifted in a smile that wasn't quite as reassuring as he might have thought—“its return is no longer necessary, and taking it back will not change anything.”

 

By the time I got home that night, I was so tired I could barely see straight. I grabbed a pint of rum raisin ice cream from the freezer and headed upstairs to soak in a hot tub and get into bed.

I came awake certain my cell phone was ringing, but it sat silently on the nightstand. I checked for missed calls anyway, but there weren't any. Despite my physical exhaustion, sleep hadn't come as easily as I had hoped, so I'd relied on an old friend to help me drift off. The last thing I remember was Jane Eyre being all torn up thinking Mr. Rochester was going to marry that bitch Blanche Ingram—as if!

The clock on the nightstand told me it was past midnight. Something had woken me up, and I lay quietly, straining my ears to catch any sound that shouldn't be there. I wondered if Aleksei was skulking about downstairs. I giggled at the image that popped up inside my head. The big guy was most definitely not the skulking type. Still, I wouldn't put it past Gabriel to ask Aleksei to check in on me, and having access to my house seemed to delight the Russian no end. I have no idea why, it's not like my house is that special, but I like it. Apparently so did Aleksei. Or so Gabriel said.

I heard nothing except a tree limb scratching at the window and the far-off sound of a dog barking. Perhaps that's what had woken me. I fluffed up my pillow and turned over, but after ten minutes of staring at the ceiling, I knew I wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon. Getting out of bed, I decided a cup of coffee would go well with poor Jane's convoluted path to finding true love. As I got the filters out of the cupboard, I wondered how cold it was in Canada, and if Gabriel had found Katja at home. The thought of him being there—with her—woke up the green-eyed monster in a big way.

You don't know that she's even there,
my inner bitch chided
. She might be in Vladi-friggin-vostock or wherever.

I hoped she was, because then Gabriel would return all the sooner.

As I was pouring water from the glass carafe into the coffeemaker's reservoir, something outside the window caught my attention. Leaning forward over the sink, I looked out and saw a dark shape moving across the porch. It took me three tries to get the carafe back under the brew basket.

My brain told me it was nothing more than an owl. Most likely the same bad boy I suspected spent his time spying on Gabriel and me whenever we had sex on the porch. If he was looking for a repeat performance tonight, he was out of luck. I've never seen an owl up close, and the possibility was tantalizing. Opening the back door as quietly as I could, I stepped outside. The porch was empty, but the swing seat was moving as if something pretty big had used it as a launching pad. Like maybe an owl.