Broken (The Captive #5.5)(30)

She grabbed hold of his hands and flattened them against her ribs so that he couldn't make a move against her again. It would be so easy to free himself from her grasp but he remained still against her. Her laughter drifted away and her head tilted back to look at him. Her hair had loosened from her movements; straggling strands of it now fell free to frame her angular face. All merriment faded as desire lanced through him so swiftly that for a second it took everything he had not to pull her from the saddle and lay her down on the forest floor right here and now.

He knew she sensed his mood, he could see it in the smoky haze of passion clouding her eyes. "I think I'll have to read it to see what you've said about me," he said in a hoarse voice.

Another burst of laughter escaped her as she shook her head. "I don't think so. Tell me something about you now."

"What would you like to know?"

She impishly tapped her chin but a serious look came over her face when she met his eyes again. "Have you ever killed a human before?"

Her words were spoken in a conspiring tone even though they were alone in the woods. "Not in this lifetime," he told her with a wink. "Though I had a hand in a human life being lost in order to save Merle from death. I did not enjoy that incident though and never want to experience it again."

She rested her hand tenderly against his cheek. "I'm sorry that happened but it sounds like you did what had to be done."

He turned his lips into her palm and kissed her. "I did. And what of you Genny, have you ever killed a human?"

"No! Of course not!" she blurted.

He kissed the tip of her nose and focused on the woods ahead of them in order to try and distract himself from the temptation nestled within his arms. The faith she had in him rattled him even more than his growing feelings for her did. Her floral scent filled his nostrils; he savored in it as his eyes fell on the blue vein running through her slender neck. Without warning, his mouth filled with saliva and his fangs lengthened. He hadn't been rocked with the craving for blood so forcefully, and with such a loss of control, since he was a child. The overwhelming urge to taste her, to have her blood fill his mouth, to have it fill him hit him hard.

He shifted his hold on her as he tried to shake his sudden thirst. It was an insane notion, no vampire ever wanted something like that to occur. Drawn closer by her enticing scent, he bowed his head further down. The out of control feeling consuming him was something that he'd thought he would hate, yet he relished in it as his hand stroked her waist.

"Genny," he whispered.

There was a dreamy expression on her face when she tilted her head back to look up at him. Her eyes widened, he didn't know what she saw when she looked at him but if he looked as out of control as he felt, then his hunger was evident in his fangs and reddened eyes. She came out of his arms and sat up straighter in the saddle.

"Atticus, what's wrong?"

He pulled the reins up, halting Drago so that he could attempt to regain control of himself. He wasn't sure that was going to be possible though as his aching fangs pressed against the inside of his mouth. His muscles began to shake; he'd never experienced anything like the sensations tearing through him right now. He didn't know what was going on but he had to get away from her before he did something that she might end up hating him for.

The thought of her turning against him made his stomach turn. Adjusting his hold on her, he moved her out of his lap and made sure she was securely settled before swinging out of the saddle. "Atticus?"

"I need a minute," he told her. He walked over to the closest tree and rested his forearm against it. His head bowed; the bark bit into his skin as he fought to get his fangs to retract. He'd never had so much trouble getting his body to obey his commands before. Her approach caused a twig to crack but though all he wanted was to turn around and take hold of her, he couldn't bring himself to move.

"What is wrong?"

He almost knocked away the hand she rested on his arm. All it did was arouse his appetite even further, but though he grabbed hold of her hand with the intention of removing it from him, he found his fingers wrapping around hers. Something primitive inside of him was completely unraveling; she was going to be his downfall and yet as he felt her skin against his, he realized she was also his savior.

"You affect me so strangely," he murmured.

Her night colored eyes were troubled as her head tilted to the side. "Is it in a bad way?"

He didn't know how to answer that question. This lack of control couldn't be good for anyone around him and yet she made him feel a thousand times more powerful than what he was. When he was with her, he felt like he could do anything. "No," he whispered. "I don't think it could ever be in a bad way Genny."

She appeared doubtful as her eyes were still questioning upon his. Her body appeared to brace for the final blow as her shoulders thrust back, her face became distant, and her lips pressed together. She was rigid in his grasp when he tugged her closer to him.

"Never in a bad way," he whispered.

"Atticus…" her voice trailed off when he placed his hand against her neck.

He pressed his lips to her forehead. "I could hold you forever," he murmured against her ear.

His lips moved over the thin column of her throat. He tasted the sweetness of her skin as he kissed her from her ear to her collarbone. A small moan escaped her lips, her hands dug into his flesh where they rested against his hips. She turned her head to allow him better access to her neck. She wouldn't have made the gesture if she'd had any idea what she did to him, what he wanted from her. His lips paused over her vein; he fought the urge to sink his fangs into her vulnerable flesh. Though her heart didn't pump blood through her body like a human's did, there was still blood within her, blood that was driving him crazier than any human's could.