“So, will it do?”
“Will it do?” she echoed, amazed at the question. “I’ve never seen a room like this before, Lucian, much less stayed in one. How could it not do?”
He grinned and she felt her heart thump hard in her chest. “Well, you might not like the color,” he said, his hand going out to touch the soft drapes that hung around the bed. There were pink rosebuds against a snowy white background. “These remind me of your cheeks.”
She felt the heat of her blush and turned her head, refusing to look at him. “It’s a beautiful room, Lucian. I don’t know how to thank you.”
His hand came up and turned her so that he could see her eyes. “You’re welcome. But it’s no more than what you deserve.” He bent his head, his lips covering hers again. This time, his tongue pressed into her mouth and she welcomed it eagerly, feeling the trail of heat that rose from her depths. His cold lips moved over hers, his body pressing against the soft heat of hers.
The moan was ripped from his chest and he pushed himself away, freeing his jacket from her grasping hands. “You go to my head,” he growled. “You make me want to forget what you are.”
“What am I?” she asked, her voice just as husky as his.
“Forbidden.” He took two steps from the bed. “I’ll be back in a little bit with some food for you.” He gave her one last smoldering look from the deep blue of his eyes and then he was gone, closing the door behind him.
Lucian hurried from her chambers, avoiding eye contact with the beauty he’d met that morning. A beauty she was with her long fiery tresses and blazing green eyes. He inhaled deeply, her scent filling his nose and making him wish he could turn around and feed from her, his vampiric nature almost eclipsing the other strange need he had.
He needed to keep her safe.
This feeling of protectiveness was strange for him, he’d never felt quite this way for any woman. Even the women of his family didn’t much need protecting. They were stronger than any normal mortal man and knew more of the art of battle then he probably did. Even Lira, with her gentle beauty and slender physique, could handle any man easily.
So what was it about Kendra that he couldn’t get her out of his head? He found himself at the doors of the library, his keen hearing letting him listen in on the conversation that was being bandied around the room.
“He’s brought her here, Lira. This is a first for Lucien.”
“Raine, you leave her be. She’s not here as a snack for you. Lucien cares about this human.” Lira’s words were sharp but considering who they were meant for, Lucien couldn’t fault her. His brother, Raine, was the biggest of the four boys or brothers as they considered themselves. Raine also had the least will power when it came to anything he wanted. He was tall and blonde, looking more like Lira than any of the rest. His gentle side only came to the fore when he was dealing with their “mother.”
“But Lira, why else would he have brought her to our home?”
“Alaric, you know Lucian. He’s not one to be rushed. When he wishes us to know, he will fill us in. Until then, we abide by his wishes and leave the little human be.”
Lucien let out a deep sigh, a strange almost glitter of relief shuddering through him. He should have known he could count on Lira and her ability to read him to understand what he wasn’t saying more than any of the others. He reached for the door handle, pushing it open silently and stepping through. “Thank you, Lira,” he said, going to her side and touching his lips to her cheek.
She waved away his response. “Of course, my son. What else could we do?”
Lucian nodded. “She has a strange affect upon me,” he said softly, as if he were talking to himself. “I don’t understand it.”
Gideon Davalos, the patriarch of the Davalos family, rose from his seat in front of the roaring flames, going to stand next to his son. They were as different as night and day, Gideon with his white blonde hair cut in the current fly away style, his taste in clothing more up to date then his son. He was more slender, a flush upon his cheeks from feeding earlier in the afternoon.
“We noticed,” he said to Lucian. “But as your mother has stated, she is your guest and she will not be touched in any way.” He stared at each of his sons until each dropped their eyes in a show of submission. His eyes then went to the only other female in the room besides Lira. “That means you, too, Arabella. She is off limits.”
“I figured as much, Gideon.” Bella’s words were clear, her voice melodic, like the sound of a flute in the hands of a master. “I won’t touch a fang to any part of her.”