Page 14

Chapter 13

Adeline

A deline let him carry her, his large hands cradling her against the flat planes of his stomach. Her breath caught in her throat, her nose mere inches from his as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Hunger rolled off him in waves, and she wondered how long he had been here alone. There were no other signs of visitors—of any kind. No women’s garments, no differently sized shoes. Only his set of clothing in the wardrobe and a few extra blankets. And that mysterious coat covered in vampire blood.

Sly fox, he will answer me about it.

But, since he insisted that she feed from him, perhaps she’d get her answers that way instead, and it would save her the trouble of having to hold him down when she was still weak. All she needed was a tiny pull to clear out the last feeding, and she would feel right again. And she needed to sooner rather than later because her coven was still coming.

It always felt the same, the way that everything seemed to slow right before she was called back. And now even the snow had ceased its onslaught in the last few minutes, as if nature parted the curtains to let the world know she was here.

She had always known her bargain had an expiration date, but only now had she let herself start to doubt what she was doing here. Throughout her centuries as an assassin, Erik had never led her astray. She always found her mark and got rid of it effectively. But all of her kills had been for him, for maintaining his power.

The world sharpened into focus, and she stilled in Rolf’s arms. This hunt was entirely new territory, and she realized too late that Erik had been playing her all along.

Did the were-shifter even exist?

She doubted it. She had followed the evidence and still came up empty-handed.

“Always the dreamer.” Her mother's and sister’s words echoed in her head, reminding her that some things never change. Though she had hardened herself to the whims of Erik as a means to survive, there was always a tiny part of her that hoped she could make things work out in her favor. She was blindingly optimistic.

Perhaps that was why she was one of the Originals. Her optimism let her see the best in every possible outcome and helped her refuse to accept defeat. And besides, if her fate had already been decided by Erik, she supposed she could let go and have a little bit of fun with the stranger in the cabin.

For old times’ sake.

Rolf set her down on the bed, and his fingers made quick work of loosening her clothing. Her pants slid off with ease, and he tossed them on the floor. She started unbuttoning her shirt, and when their hands met on the middle button, he snatched her wrists and pinned them above her head.

Rolf covered her with his large body, pressing her down into the mattress. The bed frame creaked under their weight.

Adeline must have made a face because Rolf smirked. “Worried it won’t hold?”

She shook her head, and his hands squeezed her wrists.

“Good. Because if it doesn’t break by the time I’m done with you, it’s worthless.”

Words. She was at a loss for what to say. Had she ever been spoken to like that by a human lover?

No. They had all been weak and scared when she finally told them what she was.

Except one.

Colin had been reckless and daring. He stole kisses in the street, proudly flaunting her on his arm, but she had let him because they were in love. He knew the way to her heart and never felt threatened by who she was.

Rolf, though, was a different beast entirely. That self-assurance in his movements, the strength, the way her body hummed when he growled. That strange scent layered underneath the pine and juniper that she still couldn’t place.

Could he be what she sought?

No, she thought.

Were-shifters almost always gave themselves away by how quickly they angered, or even through the musky scent that seemed to linger on everything they touched. He was calm and measured. Practiced and almost indifferent. That is, until the tension between them finally broke.

Besides, he smelled lovely, a scent that triggered something deep in her core that filled her with longing.

If she could lean in, let herself go, and allow him to take control, then she knew it would be easier for her to feed from him when the timing was right. It would be simple, painless, and she promised herself she wouldn’t take more than needed. At most, she would feed enough to have the energy to run or fight off her coven.

How many would come after her this time? Ten? Twenty? On a good day, with her full strength, she could quickly dispatch five, but she had been weak for far too long. And now she would pay dearly for it. She didn’t want to drain Rolf—she didn’t want her last moments of freedom to be spent killing the only one who had shown her a shred of kindness in a century.

“Is this where you bit your other lovers?” Rolf whispered in her ear, pulling her from her thoughts. He pressed against her, settling between her legs, planting kisses down the side of her neck. His tongue flicked against her vein, and she shuddered.

His heart was so loud she could feel it beating through his chest and into the palm of her hand. She clawed at his shirt, desperate to get it off so she could feel his skin against hers. But he chuckled as he nipped at her throat, and his hands continued their exploration, toying with the tops of her thighs.

“Yes,” she replied and turned her head toward him. She inhaled that scent again, letting it sink deep into her bones so she would never forget that this was her last night of freedom. Her fangs elongated at the thought of being at the mercy of his carnal need.

Rolf’s hands moved fast, and in seconds, he had pulled out his whittling knife, poised to slice through the laces of her corset. He cocked his brow, and she nodded eagerly, wanting to feel his bare hands against her skin.

“What will it feel like?” he asked, his knife brushing against the stiff boning of the corset.

“What will—” Adeline asked, but then he sliced upward.

The sound of the laces shearing away and the sharp intake of his breath when she lay almost naked before him would be forever ingrained in her mind. There was nothing sexier than a lover ravenous for your body, and he looked at her like he was starved.

He trailed his fingers over the thin chemise. The unabashed hunger in his eyes melted any regrets she had. His thumbs grazed the hardened peaks of her nipples, and she moaned. He took his time, touching every part of her, delicate in a way she hadn’t been treated in a long time. Her hands trailed down her chest, and she played with her nipples, watching his face change from hunger to reverence.

Why would he offer himself up to her?

She would worry about that later. For now, everywhere he touched made her feel like she would be burned alive. She needed him in ways that would once, long ago, have been considered unholy.

And I have holes. She snickered to herself.

Finally remembering he had asked her a question, she replied, “I can make it painless.”

He pushed the corset aside and nodded. His throat bobbed, and she knew he must be nervous, but nothing in his composure gave him away.

She recalled her first moments when she was turned, the sensation of pain that she now knew could have been avoided. Just a simple swipe of vampire blood before the fangs punctured the skin.

“But when I feed, it might feel… odd. It might light you on fire and burn, a pain unlike anything you have ever felt. Or it could feel like a thousand hands giving you pleasure, until you reach completion, rolling in the waves of the aftermath.”

“Oh,” Rolf said. His hands had stopped roaming, and his thumbs rubbed small circles on the tops of her inner thighs. “And how do we make sure it’s the latter?”

“We can try a few things.” Adeline bit her lip coyly, arching her back so she fell open for him as his thumbs slid closer to her throbbing center.

He knelt on the floor in front of her and grabbed her legs, pulling her to the edge of the bed with a possessiveness that would have usually turned her off. The chemise gathered around her waist, and she sat up and pulled it the rest of the way off. The cool air caressed her nipples, and she shivered when Rolf leaned forward, his lips pressing tentative kisses to the tops of her breasts. Adeline moaned softly and twined her fingers in his hair. She arched her back, urging him to suckle at her breasts.

“No, no, my darkness. I’m going to take my time with you,” he drawled.

Oh gods .

Her stomach clenched at the nickname. His darkness. His darkness. She rolled it around in her head. For tonight, she could pretend because, after all, how could it be that this felt so familiar and so foreign at the same time?

Rolf let out a deep chuckle as he settled before her. He trailed a path along the inside of her upper thigh with his finger. It crept closer and closer to her hot center, teasing her.

“Spread your legs,” he commanded.

And she shocked herself when she did. When had she ever been this easy to command?

She could feel his breath between her legs, and in a moment of hesitancy, the weight of what she was about to let him do to her scared her. The last time she was this intimate with a man was a century ago, with Colin, and her heart had never fully recovered from being so vulnerable. She tried to pull back and clench her thighs, but his large hands held her legs firmly in place.

“No. Stay. Just like that.” His eyes were glazed over and sent a shiver up her spine.

“Stay,” Colin had whispered that night.

But she didn’t. She needed blood, and so she left him in the midnight hour, when the drunks were stumbling home and easy targets. Languidly, she had slipped back into bed, into his arms, and they made a lazy sort of love before falling back asleep. He had kissed her head as the sun rose and told her he would be back. But he never returned.

He was the only human she had ever considered turning into a vampire, so their life could go on forever together. Her coven never even asked where she had been when she disappeared to go looking for him. They knew better than to pursue her while she was hunting, and that was what she had told them. She was hunting for the last few were-shifters, and she would return when she was successful. They didn’t know that she was also looking for Colin.

Her throat closed up. Sometimes, she felt as if Colin only existed in her dreams. Their time together was so fleeting compared to the rest of her long life. But the ones of him had outlasted most of her memories. She shook her head, willing it to stay just that. A memory. She didn’t need the interference of a long-lost lover invading the space she had tonight.

“You’re perfect,” he whispered in reverence.

His fingers played with her entrance as he stared almost lovingly at her. He dipped inside it, toyed with her. She bucked against him, her body begging him to go further, go deeper. But his lips quirked into a sly smile as he watched her reaction when he stuck his finger in his mouth and licked it clean.

“Please,” she begged, and gods, how she hated begging. She was exposed and at his mercy.

But…I like it, Adeline admitted to herself.

It had been too long since she had been worshipped like this. Her body was the temple for an eager disciple who bowed before her, and she wanted more. She wanted him to wash away the centuries of pain, she wanted him to help her forget that after the full moon, she was no longer an agent of her own free will.

The coven would be here soon, and so what if she got to enjoy the final few hours of her freedom? So she’d let herself succumb to his desires, and then she could feed, and then she would leave, hoping to be able to outrun them for at least a few more hours.

Rolf’s hands gripped her waist and tugged her even farther off the edge of the bed. He kissed up her thighs while his hands massaged her backside, winding her up even more. A fire burned in her low belly, the anticipation adding to how wet she was already.

As if he could sense her nerves on high alert, Rolf took her legs and let them rest on his shoulders. His tongue flicked along her sex, and she melted into the bed.

Rolf licked and explored her depths with his tongue in a way that she had never experienced before. Perhaps it was the blessing of their being strangers that let him explore uninhibited. She moaned at the feeling of his face between her legs, and when he slid a finger inside her, she rocked against his hand. He stroked her deeper, finding the spot that made her legs twitch against her will.

“Gods!” she cried out. He stopped, hesitating. She rose slightly and threaded her fingers through his hair, almost shoving his face back down. Desperation leached out of her as she said, “No, no, keep going.”

Rolf gave her a wicked grin and withdrew his finger. “I told you I’m going to take my time with you.”

This was going to be a long day.