Love's Eternal Embrace (4 page)

She remained silent for a heartbeat of time.
Her brows furrowed over the bridge of her nose, then smoothed again
as an array of emotions washed over her. “Why did you come
back?”

His arm lowered and he sheathed his sword
before facing her with the truth. “I could not forget you. I
suppose I crave your touch as much as you crave my blood. Tell me I
am not a fool.”

With a blink of an eye, she was in his
embrace. Her eyes glowed red like a predator on the hunt, but it
didn’t frighten him. To prove it, he pulled her closer. His hands
slid down her lithe body, wanting to take her there where they
stood. His mouth sought hers with a kiss that singed through his
body.

His hands made short work of their clothing.
On the ground, she straddled him as he leaned against the tree
trunk for support. She guided him inside her and groaned in
satisfaction. His hands held onto her hips as they made love. Her
gaze never left his. He knew what she wanted, what she craved, but
she held back. He tilted his head to the side to make it easier for
her, but her palms touched his cheeks, forcing him to meet her eyes
again.

“I shall not take without permission, Sir
Knight.”

“Liam.”

Her lovely arched brows furrowed.

“My name is Liam and I give you permission.”
He exposed his throat once more.

Her lips caressed his flesh with a sweet
kiss, her tongue licking over his flesh. When her fangs finally bit
into him, pain and pleasure mixed as she drank and made love to
him. Pain. Pleasure. Rapture.

Much later, she lay in his arms, her flesh
warmer since she fed from him.

Her hand smoothed over his face and worry
shadowed her eyes. “You look pale. I will hunt for you. You must
take nourishment.” She made to move, but he held onto her.

“Later, my love. Right now, let me hold
you.”

Later never came. He made love to her again,
this time slow and meaningful. “You are mine, Glamis.”

“As you belong to me, Liam. I give myself to
you completely.”

“As do I.” He lowered his mouth to hers,
sealing their pledge with a kiss.

Chapter Seven

Liam sat down at his usual table in the back
of the tavern where he could see the exits and his back faced no
one but the wall. His hand gripped the tankard as he nursed the
warm ale. After his visits with Glamis, exhaustion made him yearn
for a soft bed to lie down upon. He’d finish his drink then head
upstairs. His fingers rubbed his eyelids and he leaned back against
his chair. When he opened his eyes again, the old man, who first
told him of the fiend in the forest, stood at the edge of the
table, holding a plate. He placed it before him. The slab of meat
was barely cooked, all bloody and pink. His stomach lurched and he
pushed the plate away.

“What is this, old man?”

The man didn’t ask permission to be seated,
but invited himself as he pulled out a chair and plopped down in
it.

“See here.” Liam sat up straighter. Insulted
that the man thought it was all right to join him.

“I’m a friend,” the old man whispered.

He harrumphed at the old man’s gall. “You
sent me off to the forest to meet your fiend and we both know what
you expected to come of that visit. Forgive me if I fail to see how
we are friends.”

The old man refused to be put off. “You are
bedding the
Dearg-due
, are you not?”

His brows drew together. “I know not what you
speak of.” The man reached across the table and lifted Liam’s hair
away from his neck. Liam jerked away. “Do not touch me again, old
man, or else you may lose a hand.”

The old man would not be put off. “The marks
on your neck are from the
Dearg-due
, vampir, vampire…fiend.
The being goes by many names.”

He licked his lips. Maybe he should hear the
man out and find out where this conversation would lead. “Say your
peace then and be gone.”

“Eat and I will talk.” He pushed the plate
toward him again. “The meat will keep you strong for her.”

To pacify the old man, he cut a small piece
of the meat away and stabbed it with his dagger. His palate
rebelled at first, but as he took another bite and another, he grew
accustomed to the taste. “I believe you were going to talk.”

The man sat forward, resting his arms on the
table as he folded his hands. “The
Dearg-due
has plagued our
village for some time. We sacrifice one man every six months to
keep her bloodlust at bay. It is our curse for betraying her. We
tried to kill her kind, but we failed in eliminating her.”

He paused in taking another bite. “There were
more like her then?”

The old man nodded. “She had a mate once and
she lived with him within the Sidhe Comhairle Forest. You know the
wooded place as the forbidden forest. Perhaps you’ve seen the keep
across the loch?”

He did not deny or confirm he had. “Are you
telling me you killed her mate?” He pointed the dagger at the old
man, not sure if he wanted to murder the man for hurting Glamis or
kiss him for leaving her available to love again.

“Nay, I did not kill her husband. Our
ancestors were the superstitious lot. The
Dearg-due
is a
being not unlike the Sidhe. They have long lives.”

“Hmm.” Liam lifted on brow. “Get to the heart
of your tale. I grow weary.”

The old man cleared his throat. “Our
ancestors believed the
Dearg-due
was too different and
feared the beautiful couple that never aged. They wanted to rid the
village of such creatures.”

“If the
Dearg-due
preyed upon the
village, I may understand their need.”

The old man shook his head. “You do not
understand. A
Dearg-due
takes a mate for life and they feed
off of each other to survive. They did not seek human blood. They
lived in peace. They only ventured into the village for supplies
and for company. It was jealousy of their strength and beauty that
led to treachery. One night, the men convinced the male
Dearg-due
to stay in town and share stories with them, but
instead the men trapped him. They left him staked in the courtyard
to face the sun. By the time the female realized the betrayal, it
was too late to save him.”

Liam swallowed hard. He knew Glamis slept
during the day. The sun would harm her, she had told him, but he
thought not to ask her how. “What became of her mate when the sun
rose?”

“He burned, becoming nothing but ash. It is
said his screams were unbearable.” He looked away as if ashamed by
what his ancestors had done.

Liam finished his meal and pushed his plate
away. “Why tell me this horror story? You must have a reason for
it. Get to the point, old man, before I lose my patience.”

“You are the only one to survive her bite. We
wish to keep you here, to keep the
Dearg-due
happy.”

“So you do not have to sacrifice one of your
own, is that it?” He didn’t hide his sarcasm or his disgust at what
these people did. He had no doubt they lured travelers to their
deaths when it suited them.

The old man swallowed hard and nodded.

“If I stay and make this sacrifice, what is
in it for me?”

“We would supply all you need. Whatever you
want will be yours.”

He felt strong after devouring his meal. The
old man had been right. He needed the proper nourishment if he was
to remain Glamis’ lover. He would never leave her, but the
villagers did not need to know the truth. He pushed his tankard
toward the old man. “I shall have more ale. I believe you are
buying.”

Chapter Eight

Every night Liam took his leave of the human
world and entered Glamis’. Loucetios would take him to the edge of
the forest and wait for his return upon the morning to ride him
back to the Tavern Inn.

The villagers looked upon him with reverence,
both grateful and a little fearful, too. He was human, but he had
the power to control the
Dearg-due’s
appetite. In their
eyes, he’d become as untouchable as the creature they feared.

Glamis snuggled close to him this night in
her bedchamber. Furs covered them and fire burned in the fireplace.
He could hear the rain softly falling, the sound a soothing
comfort. Glamis’ contentment brought him joy, but he sensed a sort
of restlessness in her.

“I wish you did not have to go.” She kissed
the side of his mouth. The sun would rise soon and he would leave
her side as he did each day.

“I could stay.” He returned the caress,
nuzzling the tender flesh between her neck and collarbone. She did
not feed off of him every night. She took her nourishment from
animals also, but he had a hunch that was for his benefit. She knew
when he needed to rest, giving his body time to replenish the blood
she’d taken.

After the first week, he realized the taking
of his blood wasn’t just for feeding. It was for pleasure as well,
a bonding of some sort. When she fed, she could hear his thoughts
clearly, not just fragments or hunches, but as if she touched his
soul in some way. He wondered often what it would be like to taste
her blood, to be completely bonded with her. “I wish I were like
you.”

She pulled away, her eyes glowing red before
dimming again to the bright blue. He tried to draw her close again,
but she refused to come to him.

He sat up, his fingers caressing her arm,
sensing her pulling away from him not just physically but mentally
as well. “Did I say something to upset you?”

“If you were what I am, you would never walk
in the day. Even a cloud-filled sky will not protect my kind for
long. You would have to give up all that you are.”

His hand stilled as he digested what she
revealed, but ended up dismissing her warnings. “I do not see the
sun now, my love.” His lips twitched, making her sigh with a shake
of her head.

“You know what I mean. I do not need to
present all the details to you. You know what I am and what I
do.”

“It is possible then. You can change me?”

Her gaze wavered over him in exasperation.
“It’s a myth, a story told to me when I was a mere child.”

It was difficult to believe she’d been a
child, with her tales of centuries, and what she’d witnessed
through the passage of time. “I have no way of knowing if it is
true.” She leaned forward, resting her forehead against his. “I
will not take the chance that I am wrong.”

His lips pursed, troubled by his thoughts of
late. He couldn’t abide the thought of another man holding her or
kissing the tender areas that made her purr for more. Worse, he
didn’t want another man knowing her secrets or being able to make
her laugh when he could not do so anymore. For once in his life, he
felt helpless. He wanted to grow old with her. Love her as much as
he did now when her hair turned gray, but a
Dearg-due
didn’t
age like a human. He would be dead and buried and she would live on
for centuries more. “One day I will grow old. What then? Will you
find another lover for your bed?”

“No.” He met her gaze. Her hands gripped him
as if she believed he would leave her this instance. “Never. Once
you draw your last breath, I will walk into the sun to join you on
the other side.” She glanced away then, her lovely mahogany brows
puckering. “If our kind can be with yours on the other side, I will
find you.”

“What of your first husband?” He had wondered
about him. She’d been mated to the man for hundreds of years.
Surely she felt something for the man. Yet, she pledged eternity to
him.

“Uriel was chosen for me and I did care for
him, but our bond was a necessity, not one born of love.”

“Love?” His lips curved. “Do you love me,
Glamis? A mere human?”

She rolled her eyes. “You know that I
do.”

“Say it,” he demanded.

She turned toward him so she could straddle
his thighs. Her gaze swept over his features before she leaned
forward and kissed him. “I love you.” He took her mouth hungrily.
Soft and smooth her skin felt beneath his caress. Her earthy sweet
scent, appealed to him, clean and fresh as if she bathed daily in
the loch.

She slid down his body so her head rested
just beneath his chin. He cradled her close, his thoughts returning
to plague him. She never fell ill. She would appear as young as she
did now for centuries more. He didn’t doubt her pledge to be with
him always, but she never lived with a human. She never witnessed
how a human shriveled with age. Death would not have to greet him
before she tired of their union.

“You are still sad. I feel it.” The palm of
her hand smoothed over his chest.

He kissed the top of her head. She turned in
his arms and met his gaze. “Liam, what more troubles you?”

“I have realized we will only have a moment
in time together. It is not enough. It will never be enough.”

Her hands cupped his face. “We’ll make the
most of the time we have, my love.”

Chapter Nine

Liam had awakened only an hour before and was
famished. As always, Jarvis had a plate ready for him at his usual
table in the back. The tavern was near to full this afternoon and
clamoring with conversation about a new babe that was born to Mora
and Paidrig.

“Liam?”

His gaze sought who called for him. An auburn
haired man approached him from the other end of the room. He wore a
reddish-brown coat and a blue surcoat, both fashioned out of costly
material. He was not a local, making Liam more cautious. What
stranger would seek out his company here?

“Liam?” the man questioned again.

As the man drew nearer, recognition finally
hit him. His lips curved into a smile as he came to his feet.
“Diarmuid, is that you, my brother?” He drew his brother close in a
manly hug of thumping backs and chuckles. He had not seen Diarmuid
for over seven years. His little brother had grown thick in the
chest and had grown an inch or two taller than he.