Dark Fates (A Paranormal Anthology)(99)



“I couldn’t stand the stink of Arcadia’s madness on her,” Sargon said in a low voice as he began to stroke her foot, his touch as familiar as her own. Even now, after all these years, she never failed to be surprised at how hands that knew eons of violence were so gentle when they touched her. “I knew beneath the corruption, beneath his efforts to make her as insane as he was, there was a strong woman worth saving.”

Affection filled her, and she shared a long look with Sargon, the wisdom of his years calming her. Tyler stroked her arm, bringing her attention back to him. “How did he change you?”

She flushed, stuffed with Tyler’s blood and unable to help her reaction. “Through lots and lots of blood exchanges and sex.”

“Lots,” Sargon said with a leering grin.

“Shut up,” she muttered and kicked at her Maker while the men laughed. “I was just glad it didn’t hurt like my first transformation.”

“Arcadia hurt you by denying you enough blood to get through it properly. Your vampiric essence tortured you with a pain in an effort to get you to feed,” Sargon said in a patient voice. “A normal transformation takes two weeks. Your transformation took two years because Arcadia strung it out in hopes of breaking your mind. But you, my beautiful child, were too strong for that.”

A chill ran through her, and Tyler gathered her into his arms. She sank into his warmth, allowing him to carry the weight of her soul for a moment. To her surprise Sargon curled behind her, sandwiching her between two deliciously virile males. If Tyler smelled like heat and sunshine, Sargon was a cool spring night breeze, scenting of moonlight and new growth. She inhaled both of them, her own earthy spice mixing with theirs.

Looking into Tyler’s face, she studied his expression, noting the serious tilt to his lips and the way he watched her so closely, so carefully. He looked at her like she was someone special, and she tried to put into her gaze her need for him. If what Sargon and hundreds of others had told her over the years was true, and she could offer Tyler a pain-free transformation, then that changed things immensely. Her heart sped up, and she studied the man watching her with such warmth. She almost felt like Tyler was the one who was hundreds of years older because there was a wisdom to him that most mortals, hell, most immortals, didn’t possess. Then again most vampires had been made during the prime of their life, at least physically. If she transformed Tyler, he would have the wisdom of his years to bring with him in addition to a fantastic body and a face that she could stare at forever.

Stroking her still-mortal lover’s lips with her fingertips, she whispered, “Tyler, do you want to become a vampire? To never know the sun again, to lose any chance at having another child of your own? You will outlive your friends, your family, everyone that you care about. It is a heavy burden and not one to be approached lightly.”

Tyler gave her a small smile. “Little girl, I’ve spent the past five weeks making sure this is what I want. If you turn me, in a couple months I’ll sell my company and retire off into the sunset, never to be seen again with enough money to get all three of us through eternity. Sargon has already set me up with his banker and begun to move my assets around.”

She shook her head then pushed at Sargon, as he chose that moment to run his big lion fangs over her throat. Damn that felt good. He knew just how to touch her to drive her insane. Worried that Tyler would be mad at Sargon’s familiar touch, she bit her lip and waited for Tyler to say something, but he only groaned and pressed his pelvis against hers, his thick cock leaving a trail of precum on her belly.

“If you wish to turn him,” Sargon murmured against her throat, “I will help you feed him. My blood is strong enough to keep him from suffering.”

She laughed softly. “Why do I get the feeling you just want to make Tyler moan your name?”

The soft brush of his chuckle caressed her skin, and she sighed as he whispered, “I want more than that. Much more.”

“What do you mean?”

To her surprise Tyler was the one who said, “He wants to be a part of every aspect of your life. He’s afraid that once you transform me he’ll lose you.”

Sargon hissed at Tyler but didn’t say anything in response.

“My Maker,” she whispered and closed her eyes, cuddling into him. “I will never leave you. You’ve bound me to you with your love, your affection, your endless patience with me. You’ve seen me at my absolute worst and loved me anyway. I know I’ve tried to keep my heart from you, tried to eliminate all emotion from my life, and for that I am sorry.”

The sounds of the night stirred the air around them, and Tyler sat up a little then looked at Sargon. “You know how I feel about you.”

Confused, she narrowed her eyes at Tyler. “And how do you feel about him?”

“While I was falling in love with you, Lisabetta, I was also falling in love with Sargon. I’ve never, ever been attracted to a man before, but…” He gestured to the man cocooning her body with his own. “Well, f*ck, you know how he is.”

His exasperation made her giggle, lightening her heart. “I do know how he is. As I’m sure he’s told you, the sexual norms of the vampire world are far different than humans. Are you prepared to have the vampire world know that you belong to both of us?”

“Sargon explained it to me. Basically you’ll always be my Mistress and he’ll always be our Master.”

Carrie Ann Ryan & Ma's Books