Blake's Pursuit (Scanguards Vampires, #11)(83)

Was she not ready?





42


Lilo turned the light off in the bathroom and walked into Blake’s bedroom, dressed only in a short, thin nightdress. Her eyes fell on the bed where Blake was already waiting for her, sitting halfway up, his head and shoulders resting against the headboard. His chest was bare, and she knew he wasn’t wearing anything underneath the sheets either—he hadn’t in the few days that they’d spent together after her and Hannah’s rescue. Every day with Blake seemed better than the next. But she also knew that neither she nor Blake had raised the subject of what would happen now. As if they were both afraid to talk about it for fear of destroying what they had. It certainly was the case for her.

Slowly her gaze wandered up to his face. His eyes were like embers, already shimmering golden at the rim, the vampire inside him awakening. She could tell now whenever he was close to showing his preternatural side, because she’d seen him make the change many times. A week ago she’d been frightened by it, but now she welcomed it, no, hungered for it. And just like she craved his kisses, she yearned for his bite. She understood the draw now, because she felt it physically. She felt the power he had over her, a power he could unleash with a mere smoldering glance, a casual touch, or a quiet whisper. This kind of power would have frightened her not too long ago, but it didn’t anymore, because she knew she exercised the same power over him.

Her vampire lover fulfilled her every wish before she was even able to utter it. Whenever they made love, she felt his desire for her. But there was one thing he hadn’t said since the night she’d been taken. He hadn’t said the words he’d so freely uttered before he’d made love to her in his office. Did he regret having confessed to her that he was in love with her? Had it only been a temporary feeling that he realized wasn’t love after all, but mere lust?

“Aren’t you coming to bed?”

His seductive voice drifted to her, and she approached. He lifted the duvet, revealing one naked leg, and she slipped under the covers next to him. Immediately, he pulled her onto his lap, making her straddle him.

“Is something wrong?” he asked, brushing his fingers along her cheek, before sliding them into her hair.

She forced a smile. “No. It’s just, I’ve been staying at your house for a week now, and maybe it’s time…” She hesitated, not really knowing how to bring up the subject.

Blake nodded. “Yeah, I guess it’s time.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “Time to talk.”

Her heart beat erratically, but she needed to say what was on her mind. “The night I got captured, you said you loved me. But you haven’t said it since.”

He searched her eyes. “Did you want me to say it again?”

Lilo dropped her lids. She hadn’t expected the question.

Blake put his fingers under her chin to make her meet his eyes. “You didn’t say it back. So I figured I needed to give you more time to let it all sink in. You’re human. You need more time than I do: a vampire’s emotions are amplified. When they fall in love, it can happen so quickly that they sometimes frighten the human they care about.” He sighed. “When you revealed at the party that you were Maxim Holt, I realized something: you have a whole other life away from all of this. I realized I have no right to take you away from your old life. I didn’t want to pressure you, that’s why I didn’t declare myself again. All I could hope for was that you’d fall in love with me in time.”

Her heart leapt. “Does that mean—”

“That I love you?” He smiled. “More than I thought I’d ever be able to love anybody. It frightened me at first, but then I realized my heart would be safe with you. And when they took you, I knew I wouldn’t survive if I lost you. What I feel is real, and it won’t vanish.”

She sighed in relief. “Oh, Blake!” She threw her arms around him and buried her face in the crook of his neck.

“Maybe now would be a good time for you to tell me that you love me, too,” he said into her ear.

Lilo lifted her head and looked at him. “I love you, Blake.”

He rubbed his thumb underneath her eye. “No need to cry about that, baby. I’m sure you could have done worse than me. I’m not such a bad catch.”

She laughed through the tears.

“Lilo, there’s something else.”

She jolted a little, shifting back.

“Don’t look so frightened. It’s something good. Or at least I hope you think it’s good.”

He turned to the nightstand, opened the drawer, and reached inside. When his hand emerged, he was holding a small black velvet box.

Was this a dream? She gasped.

“Wait,” he cautioned, chuckling. “You’ve gotta let me get to it first.” He opened the box, revealing a solitaire with a beautiful round stone in its middle. “I called every jeweler in California to find a diamond the color of your eyes. I finally found one, but not even this blue diamond is as brilliant as your cornflower-blue eyes when you look at me. I want you to always look at me like that.”

She shifted her gaze away from the ring and met his eyes. “Blake, I don’t know what to say.”

“Say yes to becoming my wife.”

“Yes,” she choked out, while tears streamed down her cheeks.