Longing for You, стр. 47
Katie kept her palm on Alexis’s heart and never looked away, evenas her orgasm was building towards the edge.
“Come for me,” Alexis said.
She smiled as Katie went taut and struggled to keep her eyes andtheir hearts’ connection open. Katie cried out and pulled Alexis down to kissher.
“Oh God, that was so…I mean, it felt like you were inside myheart.”
Alexis smiled. “Good, I only want to make you feel good.”
She went to Katie’s lips for another deep kiss, but Katie pushedher back. “Oh no, no more. You’ve killed me already.”
Alexis laughed and lay back on the bed, and Katie took her placeunder her arm. “You humans have no stamina.”
“How am I supposed to keep up with an immortal vampire forstamina? It’s lucky I’m so much younger than you, at least,” Katie joked.
They lay in the quiet for a minute or so, enjoying the afterglow,but there was one thing that was niggling at Alexis, and she knew it was maybetoo much to ask, but she had to get it out of her head.
“Katie, when we go back to London…I feel stupid asking this.”
“Don’t feel stupid, ask me anything, Alex.”
Alexis smiled at her new nickname. “I like that you’ve started tocall me Alex. My best friend in the army, Angus, used to call me that.”
Katie took their clasped hands and kissed Alexis’s knuckles. “Iwant something that nobody else would ever call the tough, scary Debrek Duca.Ask me what you want.”
Alexis felt like a jealous fool, but the thought that anothervampire—one under her, one of her foot soldiers—would sink their fangs into thewoman she loved tortured her. But she had no say in that. It was Katie’s bodyand only she had a say in what she did with it. Consent meant everything, evenif she had tested that tenet’s limits recently.
“I wondered if you would be going back on the blood rota. It’s upto you of course, and I don’t—”
Katie silenced her with a kiss. “Of course I won’t. I’m yours foras long as you want me.”
“Thank you. I really don’t want to share you.” But Katie’s wordsreminded her of Katie’s mortality, and her heart sank. This was the terror thatkept her love buried for so long. She turned over on her side to face Katie.“Will you promise me something?”
“What is it?” Katie replied.
“I’m not trying to be controlling or to boss you around, but willyou promise me you’ll be really careful? Don’t take any silly risks. You’remortal, and everything is in flux just now—vampires distrusting each other,some European covens working with vampires, whatever fight is coming with thePrincipessa—don’t let me lose you. Please?” Alexis begged.
Katie stroked her face. “I will do my best and not take any sillyrisks. I promise you, and if death comes to me, I will have done my best toavoid it.”
“Thank you.” Alexis kissed her forehead.
Katie went quiet as if she was thinking hard.
“Is something wrong?” Alexis asked.
“With everything going on with the Dreds, there’s something youneed to know.”
Alexis was suddenly on alert. “What?”
“It’s about Daisy.”
Chapter Sixteen
“I’m trying to find out, Madam Anka.” Drasas paced up and down atthe back entrance to the Dred castle. Madam Anka had called seeking an updateon Victorija’s situation.
“I need Victorija better. She is a born vampire, and I need herpower, and if you hope to have any at all, you will find out who she was bloodbonded to.”
Drasas looked around for anyone listening in to her conversation.“I’m trying, but I wasn’t with her every second when she fed in Britain. It couldbe anyone.”
“If you ever hope to lead the army I’m building or become the mostpowerful vampire alive, then you will hurry up and find out, so we can get themto your Principe. To give you what you want, I shall have to harness herpower.”
“I will find out, I promise you, Madam Anka.”
“Make sure you do, and make it a better attempt than your vampiresdid trying to kill Sybil. I want her dead.”
“We got her mother and father,” Drasas pointed out.
“I needed Sybil too, before Amelia Debrek finds out who she is.Make things right, or I will find another worthy vampire, understand?” Ankasaid.
“Yes, Madam Anka.” She hung up the phone.
“Busy, Drasas?”
Drasas nearly jumped out of her skin at Victorija’s voice.“Principe? Just giving out the orders. Are you feeling better?”
If Victorija knew what she was doing, she’d rip her limb fromlimb. It wasn’t that she didn’t admire her Principe still, she did, but theevents in Britain had made her soft. It was time for new, strong leadership.
Victorija looked at her silently. Her eyes were edged with redpermanently now that she hungered for the blood of her bonded. Drasas held herbreath. Had Victorija heard her?
Victorija looked over at the stables and said, “I’m going riding.”
Drasas couldn’t believe it. “You’re going riding? You haven’tridden in a century.”
Victorija’s eyes went even redder in anger. “Well, today I feellike it, okay?”
“Forgive me, Principe. Have you thought of who your blood bond isyet?” Drasas asked.
“No,” Victorija said firmly. “I’m going riding.” She strode off.
She knows something, Drasas thought, but why would she tryto keep the identity of that person a secret? Victorija was a woman who sawhumans as simply there to feed her. Why was she not telling the whole truth?
As she watched Victorija ride off, she realized she could lookaround her private apartments freely. Drasas sped back into the castle.
* * *
Alexis was worried. They had been back in London for a week, andthe reality of being in a relationship with a human was hitting home.
She glanced at the time on her phone and paced up and down, herworry never letting her calm down. Byron was having lunch with a governmentofficial in a private dining room of a top London hotel. It had been a longlunch. Two hours now, and the longer she waited the more her mind drifted backto Katie.
This morning when they woke, Katie told her she was going shoppingin the afternoon. Despite being