Dawn Rising

Janine's mind fumbled, struggling to grab hold of a fleeting moment of wakefulness. She was in bed. Patrick had put her there. A gentlemanly gesture, perhaps. Gently pulling off her shoes and tucking a blanket under her chin like he might actually care about her comfort. "Damn you, Patrick," she mumbled before sleep pulled her under.

Patrick chuckled. Janine was stronger than he thought. Maybe there was something in her head besides empty air space after all. "Hate me later. Sleep now, Angel." That was what she reminded him of, an angel with her wings clipped, grounded when she should soar in the clouds. Almost timidly, surprised by the gentleness of his touch, he tucked a stray curl behind her ear. The texture of her hair was soft without the layers of goop to tame it into obedience. He could...never mind, he couldn't think thoughts like that, not about her, not about anybody with a pulse.

Chapter 31

Alex yielded to the gentle pressure of Lucien's hand against the back of her neck, guiding her head to his chest. He hummed softly, his chin resting lightly on the top of her head, as he ran his fingers through the ends of her hair. There were still a lot of unasked and unanswered questions hovering in the air between them. So many things she still didn't know. Too weary to worry about them now, she exhaled a sigh and snuggled in closer to Lucien's warmth, closing her eyes.

His closeness scent sparks running along her spine, setting each nerve ending on fire. Alex caught random thoughts from his mind; like a catcher captured baseballs in a mitt. Lucien's thoughts were pretty much about her. Touching her. Tasting her. Sampling every inch of her skin.

He played his hand close to his chest. Tending to her tenderly, like a friend instead of a lover. Maybe, he could be both. She hadn't really thought much about his role in her life up until this point. At one time they had been best friends. But, currently Janine occupied that position in her life. By making love to him, some invisible line had been crossed and they couldn't go back to that casual, although filled with teenage sexual tension, carefree relationship they'd once had. Too much water had passed under that particular bridge. Besides, they weren't kids anymore.

Lucien traced a path down the ridges of her spine at the curve of her neck. Causing her skin to rise in goose pimples. His mind peaked her curiosity. She certainly didn't see herself the way he saw her. He had quite the vivid imagination. Envisioning her naked, wriggling in passion beneath him as she cried out his name. Her red lips pursed in moans of fulfillment. Her hair a crimson waterfall spread over satin pillows. No, she wasn't that girl that his mind's eye imagined, at all. Alex knew she was pretty. But, sex goddess draped in black satin? Not by a long shot.

Lucien liked the soft feel of Alex's silky skin underneath his fingertips. The closeness of her and her natural floral scent was enough to drive his thoughts to more erotic ones. He imagined the feel of her touch. Fantasized about the rise of her nipples, as they grew taught beneath his palms. Pushing her wouldn't accomplish the goal of getting her beneath him. And it certainly wouldn't win her heart. Right now, he was content, impressed even, that she let him touch her. That she felt comfortable in his arms.

He felt a cool sensation as Alex entered his mind. He allowed her to share his thoughts. Using them as a means of seduction. He thought about how good it would feel to have her beneath him, wriggling in the throws of passion, crying out his name as he pushed her over the brink. His jeans grew uncomfortably tight. The bulge confined into submission by his zipper, painfully so, expanded, right on line with the idea. Lucien wanted her to know that he found her beautiful and maddeningly desirable.

Lucien knew Alex loved him. He loved her in turn. She just needed time to come to terms with the idea. Here he was, some big warrior he was, brought to his knees by a woman half his size. Battling Rogues didn't frighten him. But, Alex, the thought that she might reject him, had him scared to death. She didn't know the power she had over him. He was helpless as a kitten. His heart fragile, like silken threads, wrapped around her little finger.

Alex shuddered and gasped at the cool sensation of Lucien's invasion of her mind. Her breath came out in a series of short little pants with the vividness of the images he fed her. His big, skillful hand hands ran along her naked flesh. His lush, full, mouth on her nipples, lapping at them. None of it really happening, but it felt so real as if it were. He continued to hum and stroke the back of her neck as if his mind were someplace else rather than in her head. "Lucien," Alex moaned breathily. Shaking, grasping onto the blankets with clutched fists to maintain control. "What's happening?" She could feel his want for her like fingers on her skin. His thoughts traveled lower and he continued the fantasy probing the wetness between her thighs.

His mental assault on Alex was relentless. Shame on him, but it was so fun to watch her squirm and lose control. Her heartbeat quickened in his ears. Her lips formed a perfect little O of arousal. Her cheeks flushed with a rush of hot blood to their surface. The mind was more powerful than the body. And where it went the flesh was sure to follow. He sent all his thoughts to her: every want, every need, every desire, and all of his love to her.

Lucien thought of all the things he would like to do to her. All the tasting, probing, teasing, licking and caressing his hands and mouth could deliver. The blood rushed to his groin, causing his member to throb and ache. He didn't think it was possible for his dick to get any bigger, any further engorged than it was. But, it strained against his zipper as if it could tear its way free of the denim that imprisoned it and get to the source of its agony. Alex cried out in release. Her head thrown back in abandon. Breaths clipped and panting. Her tiny fingers dug at his flesh. His hands longed to respond to the suggestions planted by his mind- to actually feel the warmth of her skin beneath them. But, he denied his wants, continuing to love her in his mind.

Alex felt the warmth spread across her cheeks. Her body yielded to his mind's suggestions and shattered into pieces in the wake of an orgasm. She exhaled a long, deep breath filled with both embarrassment and utter contentment. Her eyes roamed over his features, sharp and shadowy in the light of the meager fire. His eyes burned like a flame. Want, the fuel for the flame and desire the spark that got it going.

She slid her legs over his thighs, planting herself firmly on his lap. Feeling his arousal strain against the apex of her thighs. Lucien sucked in a sharp gasp of air as she leaned in against him. Her skin longed for his caress. Real ones, not fantasy ones. Her lips burned to feel his crushing against them. She grasped his hand, guiding it to her breast. "Every night, I dreamed of this. You. Me. The first time you pretended to be somebody else. Tonight, I want you. Lucien. Not an image in my head. Not who you thought you had to be to gain my love. I want you and only you. Make it real for me, Lucien."

He wasted no time fulfilling Alex's request. His hands eagerly traveled along her body, removing articles of clothing and revealing every inch of her creamy, peach colored skin. Alex arched her back in response to the fire he stoked within her. Her hungry lips claimed his with urgent pressure. Her tongue probed along the recess of his mouth, teasing and playing with the tips of his elongated fangs. He could not have concocted the erotic feeling of the tip of her pink tongue, slicking over his fangs in his wildest of dreams. If she kept that up, they weren't even going to make it to the main event. And he so wanted to be there inside of her when it happened.

It wasn't all pleasure the tip of her tongue stirred. Along with his raging hard on. His hunger had been awakened and pressed him with equal force. He wanted to fuck her like a rutting beast. He wanted to make love to her, gently, sweetly, and passionately, like a lover should. He wanted to taste her in every way possible; the way a man craved to taste a woman; the way a vampire hungered to taste his prey. He needed her, all of her, her body, her blood, and her soul. Lay his claim on her as his own. The urge was too powerful to resist. "Alex," he whispered in panting breaths, "I need you."

Alex stiffened, stopping for a moment to consider the meaning of his words. He had willingly given her his blood when she needed it. And now, he needed hers. Skillfully, Lucien coaxed her body and her mind into a frenzied deluge of passion. Kissing her, driving his tongue deeply into her mouth, and wiping away every bit of her fear. Tonight, they would become one, complete and whole in body and in spirit through the bond of blood. "Please."

Lucien held back for all he was worth. His fangs ached to find purchase in her flesh, driving him to the brink of insanity. Gently, he laid Alex back against the blanket strewn over the dirt floor. And lowered his mouth, suckling at the throbbing artery along her collarbone. After what that Rogue did to her, he wouldn't risk frightening her by nuzzling the tender skin along her neck no matter how badly his instincts fought against it.

He relished in the feeling of her body underneath his. Slowly, he made his way down, unfastening her jeans, sliding them over hips with just the perfect amount of curve, and down her shapely calves. Lucien rose up on his haunches and looked down at Alex. She was so beautiful. How could she ever doubt it? Her breasts rose to attention at his gaze, teasing him with their pretty, blush, peaks. Cheeks flushed in arousal. Perfection.

Alex looked up at him with round eyes, glimmering with want. He groaned as he pushed aside his own desires and replaced them with hers. He ripped away at the scrap of fabric that hid her from him, revealing deep auburn curls. The scent of her need tortured him, causing his already erect penis to stiffen to the point of pain. He parted her thighs and languidly, as if he had all the time in the world, and wasn't about to burst himself, ran his tongue along their tender, creamy, flesh.

Alex lost all ability to make rational thoughts as Lucien teased his way along her most tender of places. When he dipped in with his tongue, laved a particularly sensitive spot at the top of her sex, she cried out uncontrollably, begging him for more. She had never felt such an onslaught of sensations before and even if she never did again; she'd be a happy and content woman for the rest of her natural life. The link with his mind intensified the experience. She tried to hold out, wanting to do a little experimenting of her own. But, the thought didn't last long as wave after wave of pleasure ripped through her entire being.

Lucien loved teasing and coaxing Alex along. He reveled in the sensations of her body as it quaked beneath the long strokes of his tongue. He backed off and began torturing her with his fingers. He wanted to wait until she begged to plunge into her sleek depths. She caught him off guard. She was so tiny he hadn't expected it. In a movement almost as quick as one of his own, she slid out from under him, flipping him over and pinning him on his back. He hissed at the feel of the warm, moist sensation of her body lowered tightly against his. He had tortured her in the most erotic of ways. Now, it was his turn for the torment of pleasure. Not one to complain, he laid back and let Alex take the reins.

Alex slid her hands down along Lucien's chest, loving the feeling of his rippling muscles beneath her fingers. Slowly, she kissed and nipped her way down to the waistband of his jeans, hesitating just for a moment at the awkward belt, button, and zipper in her way. Finally, she unfastened them, causing his erection to spring free like a jack in the box. She grinned at the throaty growl that escaped his throat. Lucien obediently cooperated, as she jerked his jeans and boxers down his long, powerful legs.

Lucien was amazing in every sense of the word: his body, his mind, his heart, and his soul. All of him was hers for the taking. The tattoos that wound their way around his waist were an intricate blaze of design, expanding and contracting with each breath, seeming to take on a living quality all of their own.

Alex evaluated his manhood. She took it carefully into her palm, gently and slowly stroking along the shaft. He uttered words in Algonquin as she toyed with him, teasing the ripe head till a tear of clear fluid rose to the tip. A little unsure of herself, all she had to go by in terms of experience was Janine's stories of hot nights between the sheets. She wrapped her mouth around the head, licking away that bead with a slow lap of her tongue. He groaned and lifted his hips in response to her exploration. She suckled and sped up her strokes, gauging his response by the rapid intake of breaths. He liked. And that was fine, because so did she.

Lucien grabbed the blanket in both fists. Alex had him whimpering like a pup beneath the skillful onslaught of her tongue. He struggled to keep a tight reign his pleasure. Knowing it was a losing battle soon to be over, he guided Alex onto her back. His length glided along her tender opening, finding her hot and wet, ready to grant him entrance. Slowly, he thrust in and lost himself to the sensation of her tight embrace. Alex lifted hips eagerly to meet every push of his body against hers. Nothing had ever felt this good, so close to paradise.

He wanted to taste her as they made love. He slid his tongue along the pulsating artery he'd found earlier at the hard ridge of her collarbone. His body was impatient, clamoring to sate all its desires in the solace of her body. Overwhelmed with passion and lost to pleasure, he bit down, lapping at the torrent of sweet warm blood that flowed into his mouth. Heaven...he was there and Alex was at its gates.

Alex felt her flesh, yielding and stretching to accommodate his entry. For the first few moments, his thrusts were a little uncomfortable. But then they became a fury of pleasure. His pleasure, her pleasure, the combined force of shared pleasure rolled into wave after wave of sensation, each one more intense than the previous. She wrapped her legs tightly around his hips, urging him faster. She was so close to tumbling headlong over the edge. Sweat formed on Lucien's brow as he concentrated on her, on her needs and held off on his own. Just going with the impulse, Alex rocked her hips and met each push of his erection into his body. There was no way she'd make him wait while she sped ahead of him. This was a joint effort and they'd arrive at the same place at the same time as one.

She felt the sting of Lucien's fangs pierce her skin. At first, his bite frightened her. She was catapulted back to the morning of the attack. This was no rogue hell bent on killing her. This was Lucien. He'd never hurt her. He loved her. The bite was a natural extension of his love, she supposed. Vampires were very sensual people. So wrapped up in the netherworld between the spiritual and the natural. As if they existed in a thin veil of reality unique only to themselves. His bite had nothing to do about food and everything to do with love.

The first pull of his lips on her flesh went straight to the area between her thighs. Alex cried out with the force behind the sensation. Pleasure blossomed into feelings of love and fulfillment with each drop that left her body to enter his. When Lucien offered her his wrist, she didn't hesitate. She tore at it with her blunt teeth, finally piercing a tiny slit in the seemingly impenetrable skin. She suckled and drank the sweetness of his blood, allowing it to fill every molecule of her being.

Lucien winced under the pressure of Alex's teeth, gnawing haphazardly at his wrist. He cried out in delight when she broke through the skin and took her first sip. The sensation of his blood entering her body, fusing them as one in every way possible, pushed him over the brink. Freely, he opened his mind to her, granting her access to the intensity of his love and the depth of his devotion. A few moments later, she tumbled over joining him on the other side of pleasure. They were one, possessing each other completely.

Afterwards, Lucien held Alex tightly, cradling her head against his chest. "Do you hear that?" he asked. His fingers toyed with the ends of her hair. Out of all times he wished for absolute privacy, to be alone in his own head, or maybe just Alex and him, sharing one another's minds, it was now. His brothers did their best to keep their mental distance. But, he could feel them hedging along his mental periphery.

"Hmm?" Alex asked dreamily. "Your heartbeat?"

"The heart that beats for you." Lucien showered Alex with adoring kisses along the apples of her cheeks. Ok, so his words sounded practiced and cheesy as hell. But, he meant each and every one of them. He really did.

"Do you feel that?" Alex asked, guiding Lucien's hand to her left breast. It was a good thing she knew him as well as she did. Otherwise, she'd think his words were a come on line reserved for the tender moments of afterglow. They were sincere. She could hear it in his voice and in his head.

Lucien smiled down at Alex. "Yes."

Alex looked up at Lucien. Her eyes filled with love and adoration. "The heart that beats for you." She could do cheesy and over the top too. Too many lonely nights and too many romance novels haunted her past. But, just like him, she meant each and every word. There was still a hint of regret in her heart for the years they could have had and should have had, if everyone, including him, hadn't done her thinking for her and decided what was best for her instead of telling her the truth.

Lucien claimed Alex's mouth in a tender kiss. And then he claimed body. Together they rode waves of passion that came to a shattering crescendo, sending their bodies trembling and their hearts pounding. Once satiated, they fell asleep, a tangle of limbs on a mound of blankets in a wigwa so far away from the outside world and all the dangers in it.

Chapter 32

Patrick looked down at the roof of Lucien's wigwa from his perch in the trees high above. True love, what was that? He'd need an airsickness bag if he had to listen to anymore of that sappy dribble. The problem was, he was stuck on patrol, well within earshot of the cozy couple below. His eyes rolled in exasperation at his predicament. He personally, had always taken himself for a love'em and leave'em kind of guy. But he couldn't fight the pang of jealousy that washed over him. He huffed out a cloud of exhaled breath into the night air. True love? Who needed that kind of a complication? Especially with a human female who would age, wither, and die, eventually.

Patrick liked Alex. He admired the tenacious way she clung to life. Despite all the odds stacked against her of keeping hold of it for very long. She had a penchant for landing herself in situations that didn't equate to a very long lifespan. That rogue was out there. Biding his time. By now, he had to know where she was. Any vampire worthy of his fangs would have used that fragile link that connected her mind to his to find her. Distance helped. But, was she far enough away to keep her safe?

For a novice barely breaking in his fangs, maybe. This son of a bitch was no baby vampire. He was powerful. Patrick had felt the residual prickling of his power in the air that morning. The bastard was quick, smart, and lethal. And he was coming for Alex.

Patrick looked through the spindly treetops up at the full moon, admiring its beauty. A sudden shift of air carried a scent on its undercurrent. His senses sprung to full alertness as he inhaled deeply, sifting through the smells of the woods. It was there...a scent that didn't belong. Very faint and very distant, a lesser vampire, someone not as good at tracking as he, might have missed it entirely. But, that cloying sweet smell was too close, teasing him, for his liking. He leapt from his perch, scrambling down the old oak tree's branches and darted off into the night. Alerting his brothers through their link, he raced into the forest, hell bent on tracking that scent before it got any closer.