Page 32

ZAVIER

I can’t stop the boisterous laugh that bursts out of my chest. Celine continues to astound me. Here I am a living, breathing vampire and her first question is a vampire joke.

“You think you’re so funny.”

A small smile tugs at her mouth which turns into her biting her lip.

I want to tug it out from her teeth to prevent her from hurting herself.

I wasn’t lying earlier when I told her I’d never hurt her.

Vampires physically can’t hurt their mates.

The worst we can do is lose ourselves to the pull of the mating bond and let our baser instincts to claim take over.

“You’re a vampire.” Celine reiterates like she still can’t quite believe it. I don’t blame her. The world likes to tell you what is and isn’t true and when that philosophy is challenged it’s hard to accept. “You drink blood. But I’ve seen you eat food.”

I understand what she’s getting at. “Vampires can eat normal food. Obviously, we prefer blood and that’s what sustains us, but some vamps, depending on their age, still like to eat human food.

Whether they still like the taste or it’s a nostalgia thing, it happens.

” I shrug, personally falling into both categories.

“Hmm.” She’s so cute when she’s thinking. Her brow furrows and her mouth twists to the side in contemplation. “When were you turned?”

“Oof. Going straight for the age, huh?” I try not to show it, but a large part of me is afraid once she gets her answers, she’ll be turned off by me.

Vampires feel the pull of the mate bond much more strongly than humans and I don’t want to run her off.

Besides, I want her to choose me for more than just the bond.

“You sure you want to hear about the old fart you went on a date with?” I try and cover my concern with humor hoping she won’t pick up on it.

“The fact you’re a vampire is the biggest shock. I don’t think your age will be more shocking than that,” she reasons, and crosses and uncrosses her legs for the fifth time in the last few minutes.

“I’m three-hundred years old. I was born in 1725 and turned when I was twenty-six.” Even with her earlier statement of reassurance I still see her brows creep up her forehead.

I am indeed crusty, but hey, at least I’m the sexiest crusty vampire she’ll ever meet.

“Okay.” Celine takes it better than I thought she would and keeps on trucking with her questions. “How did it happen? Is it the whole other vampire bit you, drained you to the point of death, and then fed you their blood sort of thing?”

I smirk at her hypothesis. “You read too much fiction.” The plush pillow behind me pushes against my back as I settle in to tell her. “The shows and movies have always gotten paranormal creatures wrong. Vampires didn’t start by supernatural means.”

“Wait, what do you mean?” Celine’s voice goes up an octave and she rubs her palms nervously on her thighs.

“The start of us actually came from scientific experiments. It’s not like in fiction where some witch cursed our ancient ancestors and it led to vampires or some other nonsense.

” Midnight’s fur is soft against my hand as I stroke him for comfort.

“Back in the 1700’s the world was rampant with illness and disease it had no cure for, at least none that were guaranteed cures.

Smallpox, dysentery, cholera, I could go on and on.

Countries around the world decided to start putting the dead and dying to good use and began to experiment on them.

How could we come up with a medicine to strengthen humankind, so they were stronger and didn’t fall ill to these silent killers?

” My hair falls in my eyes as I shake my head in disgust.

“Were you one of the people they tested on?” Celine asks quietly.

I hesitate before answering. “Yes. But not in the way you think.” Guilt wracks my body as I remember one of the darkest periods of my life. “I offered myself up for it.”

“What? Why would you willingly offer yourself up for testing?”

“I had no choice.” Midnight curls up next to me with his tummy in the air and I grab his little paw in a handshake.

“My family was in a bad way, and I caught wind they paid for healthy candidates to test on. Thought I could help the family out by doing the tests and coming back but...” I trail off and stare into the corner.

“That didn’t happen, did it?” Celine slowly stands and walks toward me when I shake my head sadly. Since Midnight is sprawled by my side she perches on the arm of the couch and rests a hand softly against my arm.

“As I’m sure you can imagine the testing resulted in .

.. this.” I let out a humorless laugh and gesture to myself.

“We were indeed stronger beings, but we were also mutants and changed in a way that was unnatural. Both in awe and disturbed by the results they tried to see how far they could push us with experiments. How tough was our skin, how much pain we could endure, what kind of conditions we could live in before our bodies gave out. All in the name of furthering the human race.”

Memories of needles, poking, prodding, and dark cells flash through my mind, and I cringe. My happy go lucky personality helps me cover up my pain and trauma but it's seeping through right now.

Fuck.

I try so hard to keep it locked away.

Pain.

Suffering.

Darkness.

My breathing quickens and I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to pull myself out of the prison in my mind. Whips, chains, musty air, and blood. So much blood.

A gentle hand grabs me around my neck and pulls me to a soft chest. Celine’s scent fills my nose, and I lean into her.

Breathing deeply, I whimper and feel myself slowly grounding in reality.

Silent tears track down my cheeks and she wipes them away with the pads of her fingers.

The steady rhythm of her heart and the comforting touch of her hand on my shoulder calms me down.

“You’re okay. I’ve got you.” Her hands are warm and comforting on my cheeks.

Twisting toward her, I hold her to me like the most precious thing in the world.

Because she is.

“Man, hydrogen peroxide really does wonders getting blood out of hardwood floors and carpet, doesn’t it?” Celine muses as she finishes wiping up the kitchen floor.

I made quite the mess.

After my embarrassing episode on the couch, we decided to finally clean up the absolute carnage I inflicted on the apartment and doorway. I had told Celine I’d take care of it, but she refused to let me do it alone.

“I could tell you all kinds of ways to get blood out of things.” I flash a fang at her from where I scrub, and she stills for a second before trying to pretend like it didn’t happen.

Too soon.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that. It’s just an involuntary reaction.

I promise I’m not scared of you, Zav.” She winces in apology.

“Even though I probably should be,” she adds under her breath with a nearly questioning tone.

“I’m still processing everything you told me.

I know you’d never hurt me.” Celine sets a hand reassuringly over mine and then gets back to scrubbing.

I can’t blame her for needing time. I’m overzealous and want to jump headfirst into things with her.

No other human has even known my true nature and for once I don’t feel lonely.

She still doesn’t know we’re mates, but I think for now it’s safer to keep that information to myself.

I don’t want to overwhelm her more than she already is.

A chirp comes from Celine’s pocket, and she pulls out her phone to check the notification. Whatever she sees must excite her, because she jumps up and rushes to the bedroom.

“Celine?” I call after her now phantom form. “Are you okay?”

She hops back into the room, pulling a boot onto one foot and nearly falling over into the wall. I rush over to steady her. Her hair is back in its standard ponytail, and she grabs her black jacket from where it rests on one of the barstools.

“Yes! It’s fantastic actually.” I follow behind her as she practically skips to the front door.

“Ava just texted me and said there’s been another murder.

My main case has been a little stale lately, but the serial killer left us another body.

” The gleam behind her eyes is that of a predator with a scent of their prey.

I should know, since I’ve seen it reflected in mine many times.

“That’s sounds promising.” Flashing my smile sans fangs at her she nods, and opens the door. I follow her out and she stops abruptly when she realizes I’m right behind her.

“What are you doing?” She peers at me over her shoulder. A neighbor a few doors down walks past and nods in greeting. I notice him staring at Celine’s chest a little too long and bristle.

Welp, another one to add to my list.

“It’s take your man to work day. I’ve dubbed thee so.” My arms flare out and I bow exaggeratedly.

“You are not coming to a crime scene with me.” Celine tries to push me back in the apartment but I’m not budging. “And my man? Man-child maybe.” She tops the comment off with a roll of her eyes. I make a mental note to spank her ass for that later.

“Pfft. Hurry up and close the door or you’ll let Midnight out.” Minty fresh breath teases my face when I hover right in front of her. “And yes, your man-child. Now onward!”

Slyly wrapping an arm around her shoulder and pulling the door closed with my other, I propel us forward.

I can't wait to see her in action up close. Stalking from roofs and trees just isn't doing it for me anymore. I crave more. I need more of her. Plus, Frank was a big bad they’ve been trying to catch, and I know she’ll be impressed.

“Obviously, you’re not budging on this, so you need to listen to my ground rules before we get there.

” Celine presses the elevator button and turns to lecture me while we wait for it.

“Number one, you stay in the car.” She inches closer to me.

“Number two, you stay in the car.” Toe to toe now. “Finally, number three, can you guess?”

“Hmm.” I tap my chin in mock thought. “Stay in the car?” She smiles widely when I answer appropriately.

“Exactly. Shall we?” The elevator dings and we walk in. I purposely stand as close to her as possible even though there’s nobody else with us. Her short breaths bring a smile to my face when I realize she’s still affected by me even after the vampire revelation.

“Most people would be terrified to be stuck in an elevator with me.” Goosebumps flare along her neck where I whisper by her ear.

“Good thing I’m not stuck in here with you,” the smart-ass replies.

Slamming a hand against the emergency stop button I cage her into the corner of the elevator. One arm frames her head against the doors and the other stays on top of the button stopping any escape she might hope to make. It’s silent except for both of our stilted breathing.

“You were saying?” I murmur.

My nose drags through her hair, and I let loose a small growl of pleasure. Time to test the theory I’ve been wondering about. I give into my baser, animalistic urge and let my fangs click down.

If I didn’t let them, they would’ve barged in anyway. Fangboner, hello.

With the utmost care I scrape a fang along her delicate throat like I’ve dreamed of doing since the day I saw her. I make sure not to draw blood, as much as I’d love to. If she protests, I’m ready to back off immediately.

A moan climbs out of her throat, and I feel the vibration against my canines. Her back is a solid weight against my chest, and I bring my left hand down to collar her throat on the opposite side of my mouth. She melts under the contact, and I gently tighten my grip.

“Mm.”

Fuck she’s so sexy.

“Very interesting.” I feather a finger along her jawline. “Looks like I was right.”

She recognizes my power over her and yet isn’t afraid of me. In fact, it turns her on.

My words break the sexually charged spell, and she turns, pushing against my chest. She might as well be a small child trying to push a large boulder up a hill. I don’t move in the slightest. Thankfully I had closed my mouth over my fangs, or she would’ve ended up a bloody mess when she pivoted.

“What the hell, Zav!” Celine shuffles away as far as she can from me and runs her hands over her hair adjusting her jacket along the way. She shakes her hands out like she wants to rid herself of the arousal she’s currently perfuming the elevator with. “Start the freaking thing again.”

Her glare is meant to be intimidating but just makes my erection that much harder. I simply smirk in response and hit the button. It starts back up and we take the rest of our ride down in silence.