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HE WAS EVERYTHING that she wanted
She loved the way he held her, the strength in his arms when he swept her up True, she wanted him on a purely sexual level, but there was more She had fallen beneath the spell of his eyes, which were caring when he faced the travails of others, intense in anger, like the sun when he laughed She loved the touch of his fingers, gentle when they stroked her face, strong when he held her In his arerously wicked
She felt no sense of fear as they walked through the doorway to her roo The feel of the sheets beneath her as he laid her down, the pressure of his body, the cotton of her gown brushing against her flesh She felt his bare feet against hers and the rough fabric of the pants he still wore, the sleek, hot flesh of his chest burning against her, lighting a fire within her blood
Moonlight, pale and ers along the contours of his features, fascinated She cradled his cheek and jahen she saw his ith hiain that he should not be with her, and she whis pered, "You have to believethat her voice didn&039;t sound as desperate as she felt, and that he would not leave her
He didn&039;t He only shook his head ever so slightly, and in a strange way, it was as if he were surrendering
Then his mouth found hers, and in that kiss, it seemed as if the world around her exploded in a brilliance of wonder Heat swept through her like a blaze in the desert, and she felt her body arching andwith his lean and entle, playing erotically against hers, and his hands cradled her face, giving hireater access to herto his bare shoulders, then exploring the length of his back with eager hands She felt her gown tangle around her as they twisted and rolled in passion They broke the kiss and laughed together, and then he lifted the gown over her head and held still for a breathless ain
They kissed again, clinging together, flesh against bare flesh, growing slick despite the coolness of the night air His ed over her shoulders as he cradled her breasts and groaned deep in his throat, and his hands ran down the length of her back, pressing her harder against hi lines on his flesh, breathing in the essence of hireater
At last he rose to remove his pants, and for aa ht, and a rush of desire swept over her again She knehatever he ht, this tiile She had seen it slip away too often, but she herself was far stronger than he would ever truly realize
He ca out beside her, his body close, touching, one leg thrown over hers, his hands on her, brushing over her skin like an artist of the flesh She ain, and she felt his vitality and power coursing beneath the skin She ainst hiers threading through her hair, thenher nape and down to the s her ever closer, until he shifted suddenly, and his lips and tongue began a tour down the length of her body, blazing a trail of liquid sensuality that ony of need
He was a practiced lover, she thought vaguely, and yet all that mattered was that he make love to her at thather with the touch of his hands and tongue, arousing her with his kiss on her lips and then the stroke of his tongue against her hips and thighs, and between She gasped out a soft cry of wonder at the lightning streak of ecstasy that swept through her, her body shivering, shaking, tre, as she rose to join the moon And then she felt him inside her, and the desire that built within her then was like so out of control A slow rhythan drumbeat She barely had time to savor the feel of hi, writhing, falling into the rampant blaze he&039;d stoked in her
The world shrank down to the feel of the th of his eainst hers Finally, just when she felt she couldn&039;t bear any more, they were seized as one by the power of cliled limbs became a moical coht, the air cooling her skin
And his eyeshers
His touch was tender as he smoothed back her hair
"You areunique," he told her "Incredible"
He started to pull away, and she shook her head "Don&039;t leaveany claio, I proain "You thought I was going to walk away tonight? Not a chance in hell," he assured her
There was so much she wanted to know about him, so much she wanted to understand But not at that moment At that moment she was afraid of words She just wanted to be with hi absolutely alive and vital and real
The as a world away, along with all the horrors she reue that had descended upon it had been pushed to the back of her ood and it was hers
They lay together for hours, drowsy, half asleep They brushed against each other, they ain, and at last they slept
And this tiood, for he was holding her tight as a benevolent ent that I speak with you It&039;s about Amy
Dolores Simpson akened fro the covers to her breast, then looked to the side, thinking Billsoftly
She frowned, certain she had heard someone call her name And they had mentioned Amy Precious Aht she heard her daughter call out, her voice stronger every time
That nice Mr Vincent had coht she heard Anore it That it was very inore it
He had talked to Bill and the boys about locking the house and how to destroy the evil that was stalking the town, cutting out the heart or severing the head
Brendan Vincent was a fine ood Christian wos to a human body, even the body of an eneot up and slipped on her robe, then glanced again at Bill, as still snoring softly He was a hardworking ood husband She pulled the covers up higher around his shoulders, then walked down the hall and looked in on the last two children still living at home, Gary and Jared, their adopted sons, now fifteen and thirteen She loved theest daughter Golden and sweet, so precious Everyone had loved her
The boys, too, were sleeping
Dolores, please! It&039;s urgent!
She walked to the oht she knew her, but she couldn&039;t recall from where
She hesitated They&039;d been warnedbut the woentle, so co
Dolores, come to me, I can help you I can take you to Aave herself up to her feelings She loved her husband and she loved her sons, but A had ever before promised her such a sweet peace as the voice did now
She walked straight to the front door and quietly slid back the double bolts, then carefully opened the door as quietly as she could
She stepped out onto the porch and paused, frowning, rational thought whispering at the back of her lided forward, looking for all the world like a shiel wreathed in e for you, aherself embraced by the salow of ht The woman embraced her and leaned down, eyes filled with compassion Coone
And the reality that remained was pure horror
Dolores saw, eyes wide-open at last, that she had been deceived
Too late
Oddly enough, there was very little pain Like two little pricks
The sound was far worse as the wo like a greedy ani with ultimate pleasure
I will not use you up Not yet Butyou areBut softer now Careful, even
When the vampire was done, she pulled away from Dolores and smiled There was a touch of blood on her upper lip Perhaps she felt it, or perhaps she saw it reflected in Dolores&039;s eyes, but she extended her tongue, long and red, and lapped up the last drop of blood
You will await o of Dolores, who fell as if boneless When she looked up, the woone
Dolores blinked, confused, then realized she&039;d had a dreaone outside She winced, thinking that Bill and the boys would be horrified, that they would worry about her comet back inside before they realized she was
She tried to rise, but she couldn&039;t She was too weak
Finally sheherself to the porch and through the front door
It took all her strength to relock the bolts
Leaning on the wall for support, she finallyhard not to stumble, she reached the bed and nearly fell back onto thethat she hadn&039;t awakened Bill, but he continued to snore softly
She closed her eyes and-aain of the woirl ithin her reach, s at her The woman was there, too, surrounded by ain as she waved to Dolores
It&039;s so, so beautiful here, with Aed to join therew dark, and the distant sound of shrieking rode the air as deep red cloudsrolled in
But then she saw Aain, and in her dream, Dolores wept, and real tears slid down her cheeks
A LEX SLEPT LATE THE NEXT one
She sh He hadn&039;t left her, she was certain
Not yet
He had simply risen for the day
She was about to rise herself when there was a tap at her door She drew the covers up over herself and called out, "Yes?"
"It&039;s ot hot water for you"
"Thank you Bring it in"
Just as the door opened, she spotted her discarded nightgown lying in a heap on the floor She made a dive for it and stuffed it under the covers with her, then pulled theht?" Tess asked, co over to the dresser with the pitcher of hot water
"Yes, thanks, just fine," Alex said, trying to sound co worried down there"
"I&039;ll be right down I proht, but you know Beulah She says her freshto be fresh forever, and you&039;ll be having chicken if you don&039;t cos soon"
"I&039;m on my way"
As soon as Tess left the room, Alex leaped out of bed and hurried to her washstand
In theup, she paused, closed her eyes and breathed deeply, wishing she could carry the scent of hiht of the wild mane of her hair in theles and smooth it down into the semblance of a proper coif Next she dressed hastily Re the way the shadow-bats, the va breeches, boots and a tailored shirt, for mobility
She couldn&039;t resist the temptation to pause before she left the room and picked up her pillohere a hint of his scent re silly, she told herself
Silly, and sad There was so to stay in her life He had rets over what she had done, the pleasure they had shared Nor would she ever attempt to hold him back from whatever he felt his future demanded of him
She bit her lip and set down the pillow
She had been in love the proper way once She&039;d met afor her hand She had loved him back, and she&039;d felt as if her heart and soul had been torn from her when he died
And yetshe hadn&039;t felt like this As if every breath whispered of him, as if he had become one with her, body and soul