The Wicked Kiss (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #2)(94)

“Alexa…” Arys murmured, pulling me into his arms. He nuzzled my hair, inhaling my scent before tasting the blood on my tongue with a deep kiss that had me swooning.

My heart pounded until I thought it would burst. The exhilaration of the feed along with the rush of the hunt was better than any drug known to man. This was why vampires and Weres lost it. It was why I took them out before they did something stupid to expose the rest of us. Control was not an option; I had to have it.

I was curious as to what Veryl would say when he returned from out of town. After the secrets he’d hid from me for the past ten years, I didn't feel that I owed him anything, least of all explanations regarding my personal life.

If Arys and I hadn't been standing in a dirty back alley behind a filthy nightclub, I would have been tempted to hike my skirt up and take him right there. The high that I was flying was that spectacular. Instead, I took his hand and led him down the alley, towards the light at the far end. I wanted to go home.

It was strange still to think of Raoul's house as home, but that got easier the longer I stayed. I still hadn't braved his bedroom, but I had been thinking long and hard about what I was going to do with it. Though I missed having the stretch of forest behind my house, Kylarai's was just a short jaunt across town. Easily accessible.

Strolling down the dingy alley with my vampire lover, my senses were working on overdrive. I was informed of everything from the sound of each and every separate car on the parallel main street to a couple having sex in the bathroom of the nightclub we'd just walked away from. The smells were a whole other world unto themselves.

Perhaps the best part was that I could now feel every supernatural creature in the surrounding vicinity. Like a hot red glow, I could sense two vampires four blocks to the west and a werewolf sitting in a coffeehouse at the end of the street. If I really concentrated, The Wicked Kiss stood out like a blinking beacon in my mind, ablaze with the energy of all those inside.

I couldn't help the satisfied smile that curled my lips. There were certainly perks to this blood bonding thing. The increased psychic awareness was almost worth the occasional agony. It gave me great peace of mind to know that Harley wouldn't so easily catch me off guard again. There is more to being empowered than an increased arsenal, but nobody can say it doesn't make a difference.

“So,” Arys began hesitantly, drawing my attention. “What do you think the point is to all of this?”

That was random. I frowned, pondering what he was getting at. “What do you mean?”

“Uncanny abilities don't just happen. Isn't there usually some reason, some purpose for the greater good?”

That drew my eyes to him, and I gave him a studious look that had him glowering in response to my scrutiny. Was Arys feeling the need to justify what we had, or could he possibly be seeking a greater purpose to his existence? I was baffled. I'd never heard him give any thought to the meaning behind everything.

“Maybe it's up to us what we do with it. That whole good versus evil kind of deal.”

I'd asked myself the very same question that Arys was voicing now. I had no answers for either of us.

“Yeah … maybe.”

We ambled along in silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts. Walking in darkness didn't mean having to become one with it, did it? Could we not live with our inner natures without embracing the true evil we all are privy to? Humans are no less evil than the worst of vampires at times. Surely right and wrong couldn't be so perfectly cut and dried.

Reaching the end of the alley, we stepped out into the glow of the streetlights. The city traffic flew past us as those out and about for the evening sought entertainment, companionship or things unknown to the rest of us.

A homeless man on the corner began to shout, “I see you, bloodsuckers. You ain't gonna get me. No sir, I know your kind.”

It was somewhat expected. The mentally ill had a tendency to see right through our human appearance. Thankfully, nobody paid them any mind when they ranted and raved about it.

We strode past him without a second glance. I didn't want to encourage his shouting by making eye contact. The heavy stare of a young woman waiting for the bus drew me.

She wore a knowing expression but quickly averted her eyes when I met them. Psychic?

Possibly. Those with sixth sense abilities could often detect our inhuman energy. For the most part, they were smart enough to keep their mouths shut.

The werewolf I'd sensed in the nearby coffee shop watched us with little interest from his place in the window. He held a coffee cup in one hand and a book in the other. I chuckled to myself, finding it amusing that so many supernatural creatures were nothing like the average person would assume. Of course, I was probably exactly how they would assume: blood hungry and power tripping.

Arys reached for my hand, stroking my fingers gently with his thumb. The zap of our energy making a sudden physical connection tingled all the way up my arm like a bad static shock. It created a warm feeling in the pit of my stomach, which spread to encompass my limbs. The sexy grin he shot me stirred the sensations into a fire that blazed just for him.

As we drew closer to the car, my anticipation grew. I hungered for many things, but my need for Arys and Shaz was something I was happily learning to live with. I'd just opened the driver's door when the strange awareness struck me.

That glowing place in my mind, The Wicked Kiss, had just spawned another vampire. I felt the new undead existence as surely as if I'd been inside the club. Perhaps I should look into how often that was occurring in the blood bar. I wanted nothing more than to chase Harley back to Vegas and out of my domain. Maybe that would get the ball rolling.