Chapter 26
The red color of her car was the first thing that caught his eye as Kaleb brought his bike to a halt at the stop sign, placing his booted feet on the pavement for balance. The townhouse with the beige brick facade and white flower boxes adorning each window Cara had described sat across the road and down two houses from the corner. A large wreath graced the center of the burnt orange door. Thankfully, Suzi’s Neon sat in the driveway, along with another car he didn’t recognize. The midnight-blue Chevy Camaro looked fairly new with its thirty-day plates. Maybe a friend of hers or Tamera’s had stopped by … or possibly a family member. In truth, he hadn’t bothered to get to know anything about Suzi, if she had parents or siblings, her likes or dislikes. Kaleb had been a self-centered son of a bitch and he didn’t deserve her. Hell, it was a miracle Suzi even bothered to stick around all these years. Kaleb needed to rectify that.
Pushing off with the soles of his boots and pulling back on the rubber handle grip to gas the engine, Kaleb rounded the corner and pulled up alongside the second car, then killed the engine. He stepped over his black seat, hung the skull cap from the handlebar, and peered into the tinted windows of the Camaro. Someone had good taste in cars, if one didn’t mind riding in a cage. He admired the sleek, black leather interior, proving the owner had spared no expense. Flat-black, wide stripes finished off the exterior paint job, giving it the mean look of the modern-day muscle car. Well, if he were to ride in a cage then this was certainly the type of car he’d choose.
Kaleb looked back up at the townhouse, then headed for the entrance. Just before he reached the door, it swung inward and Draven stepped out. Kaleb’s ire skyrocketed. Not seeing Kaleb, the barkeep leaned in, kissed Suzi on the cheek, then turned and ran straight into Kaleb’s fist, snapping his head back as he crumbled to the floor. What the hell was the bar owner doing here? And why the fuck was he kissing his woman?
Draven’s hand rose to the lump already swelling over his quickly purpling jaw. Kaleb reached out and helped the man to his feet. About that time all hell broke loose and Suzi started going ape shit on his ass, jamming her tiny fingers into his sternum and forcing him back toward the steps. Finally having had enough, he gripped the tiny brunette beneath her arms and set her away from him and smiled. Damn, he loved her spunk.
“What the hell, man?” Draven worked the kink from his jaw, drawing both their gazes.
Kaleb turned and faced the barkeep head on. “What the fuck are you doing here, Draven?”
“She called me … not the other way around, man. Don’t go all postal on me. Take it up with your little donor. I’m here as a friend.”
“You’re leaving.” It wasn’t a question.
Draven placed his hands up, palms out. “I am. No need to get violent.”
“Stay the fuck away from my woman, or next time I’ll break that jaw.”
“Since when has anyone been yours?” Draven asked. “Last I knew, Hawk didn’t lay claim to any one woman.”
“That’s none of your fucking business, Draven.”
“Jesus, Hawk,” Suzi piped up. “Stop being a fucking bully! Why not head back to the clubhouse where you’re needed. Last I checked, I wasn’t anyone’s woman, yours or otherwise.”
Dismissing him, just that easy, Suzi walked into the entrance and meant to slam the door in his face. Kaleb stuck the toe of his boot into the jamb, stopping her from shutting him out. He could tell by the puffiness of her eyes that she’d been crying before he had arrived. Not acknowledging that Draven still stood behind him, Kaleb easily nudged aside the door with his shoulder, then closed it, giving Draven no choice but to leave. Kaleb sure in the hell wasn’t about to worry about manners, not when he had more important matters at hand … namely, Suzi.
He pulled her necklace from his pocket and hung it from his forefinger in front of her. “Yours?”
Her bloodshot gaze locked with his. “Not anymore. That’s why I called Draven. I’m done, Hawk.”
“You’re damn right you are.” No one was going to feed off his woman. And soon, neither would he if everything went as he hoped … not for nourishment anyway.
“You can’t tell me what to do,” she crossed her arms beneath her breasts in a self-protective manner.
“I can … and I will.”
She rolled her eyes and walked away from him, leaving him standing by the door. Kaleb heard the soft rumble of the Camaro as it started, and backed out of the driveway. He’d deal with Draven later. He’d not be making anymore more house calls to Suzi, whether invited or not.
“Is that all Draven was here for?”
Suzi spun on her heel, and straightened her spine. All five-foot-two of her stiffened like a board. “What are you suggesting, Hawk?”
“That you fucked him.”
“Seriously?”
“Answer the question, Suzi. Have you fucked him?”
“If you are asking, in rude-like manner, if that’s what we were just up to, then no.” She perched her fists on her hips and glared at him. “I called him over to give him the news. I’m done donating.”
“That’s only part of the question, Suzi.” Kaleb wasn’t sure he was going to like the answer, but he had to know. “Answer me.”
Why it should matter, he didn’t know. It wasn’t fair of him to expect that she had remained celibate while he fucked anything with a skirt. “Did you ever fuck Draven?”
“Yes.”
His heart squeezed. “When?”
“On occasion, Hawk. Why now does that matter?”
“How long ago?”
“Oh, for crying out loud. It doesn’t matter, Hawk.” She flopped down into the large cushioned chair. “I’m not having sex with him now.”
“When?”
“The last time was six months ago.”
“Before or after I kissed you at the clubhouse.”
Suzi took in a deep breath of air, then let it out slowly. “That night. I had nowhere else to go, so I went to see Draven.”
His heart panged. “And he took advantage of you.”
She rolled her eyes. “No, I took advantage of him, Hawk. I was pissed at you. I thought he could help me forget.”
“Did it work?”
She shook her head. “If it had, I wouldn’t be here. I’d still be with him.”
“How many times since?”
“That was the last time. Afterward, he introduced me to Tamera so I would have a place to stay and the rest is history.”
“Did you love him?”
“What the hell, Hawk?” Her voice raised. “What is this? Twenty questions?”
“Please.” He knew if he demanded, she might not answer. “I need to know.”
“No.” Tears slipped down his cheeks. “I never loved Draven.”
It was time for truths. He’d not lose her to the barkeep. “Do you love me?”
Her lower lip trembled. She was damn near close to breaking down. His intention was not to hurt her, but to prove to her that she belonged with him.
“Answer me, piccolo diavolo. Do. You. Love. Me?”
Her gaze left his, darting everywhere but at him. More tears fell, and she angrily swiped them away. Her chest rose and fell with exertion as if she had just ran a marathon. A sob escaped her as she finally looked back at him. His heart ached at the pain he saw within their depths. Suddenly, he feared what her answer might be. Maybe he shouldn’t have come, shouldn’t have slugged her ex-lover, and sure in the hell not pushed her into an answer.
What if the answer was no?
“Please, piccolo diavolo,” he whispered.
“Why is it so important to you?”
“Again, I need to know, Suzi.”
“I left the clubhouse because I was scared. I left the lifestyle because I’m not strong enough to do this anymore. I thought I could. But I can’t Kaleb.”
“None of that matters if you love me.”
She chuckled non-humorously. “It all hinges on me being a complete coward. It doesn’t matter if I love you or not. What I saw today … what Tamera was going through. I’m not strong enough to ever endure what I witnessed.”
“What you saw today was a woman without a mate.”
Suzi nodded, looking to the floor. “How could that make a difference? The pain and torture Tamera was going through was excruciating.”
“Cara survived it.”
“She’s stronger than I am.” Suzi glanced back at him. “So is Tamera, for that matter. I’ve never been good at pain. I damn near pass out at the sight of my own blood.”
Kaleb walked to where she sat and knelt down in front of her, her knees touching his ribs. Running his hands up her calves, he whispered, “Do you love me, Suzi?”
Her brown gaze held his, and he saw his answer clearly within the depths before she ever uttered the words. “With all my heart.”
Kaleb smiled, his hands leaving her calves to wipe away the tears from her cheeks, then trailing his thumb over her swollen lower lip. “How much?”
“You’re impossible.” Her eyes turned up in the corners as she bit her lower lip. “Do I need to show you?”
“Not in the way you’re thinking, piccolo diavolo.” He palmed her face and brought her in for a deep kiss, one of possession. He hoped she could feel his desperation in that moment to claim her as his. Then, letting her go, he leaned back on his haunches.
Something told him that if he asked her now to be his mate she’d refuse him outright after what she had witnessed. He needed to keep her away from the clubhouse a few days, just until Tamera completed the change. Kaleb didn’t want to chance giving Suzi any more reasons to deny him. But in the end, she’d be his … in every way. He never thought to ever claim a mate. Now he wouldn’t be denied.
He leaned in and kissed her again, though just a brief meeting of their lips. “Do me a favor?”
A shiver shook her shoulders. He could smell the fear on her, scared of what he might ask of her, undoubtedly afraid he would request that she go through the agony her dear friend had endured.
A smile crossed his lips. “Don’t ever fuck Draven again.”
Suzi’s eye twinkled as the corners turned up. “I have no desire to.”
“Good.” Kaleb flashed her just a hint of his fangs, causing her to take in a slight breath of air. “I plan to keep you too busy to even think about fucking another man.”
“Promise?”
He chuckled. “Most definitely.”
“Kaleb?”
His gaze traveled to her tits, before landing back on her face. Damn, he was suddenly horny as hell. He wanted to sink his fangs into her flesh, draw an orgasm from her, then slide into her balls-deep until he took her to the edge again.
“Yes?”
“What about me?”
He raised a brow, somehow in his carnal thoughts he had lost the train of the conversation. “What about you?”
“I answered your question.” Her gaze wavered. “Isn’t it customary to let me know how you feel in return? Don’t leave me hanging here.”
Grasping her behind the knees, he pulled her forward so that her heat laid against his lower abdomen. “I don’t think you said anything yet, piccolo diavolo. As I recall, you said, ‘With all my heart.’”
“Technicalities.” She used her thumb to trace his lower lip. He sucked it into his mouth and nipped at the tip, drawing the tiniest bit of blood. “Do you love me, Kaleb?”
He growled.
“With all my heart.” Standing, he slid one arm beneath her knees and one behind her back, easily lifting her. “Your bedroom?”
“Up the stairs to the left.”
“You have any plans the rest of the day?”
She shook her head.
“Good, because I’m about to show you how much my cock loves you too.”
Suzi laughed, the sorrow and fear in her eyes now replaced by desire. “You’re incorrigible.”
“No, my dear, I’m insatiable.” Then he deeply kissed her once more before heading for the stairs.
* * *
The bacon sizzled and popped in the skillet on her glass stove top as Suzi turned it to brown the second side. The smell of cooking pork wafted to her nose, setting her stomach to growling. After hours of sex and very little sleep, not that she was complaining, she was suddenly starved. Moving the two pieces of bacon to the side, she then dropped in an egg. She used the spatula to spread the grease from the bacon, then flipped the egg. Suzi walked over to the bread basket, grabbed two slices, then placed them in the toaster and pushed the lever down.
As Kaleb lie sleeping, Suzi tip toed down the stairs and made her way to the kitchen twenty minutes prior. She hadn’t wanted to wake him. He looked so peaceful as he lay on his back, tattooed arm slung over his eyes, his mouth parted slightly. He wore nothing, aside from the sheet covering his groin. The vampire had a magnificent body. Suzi smiled thinking about how well she had explored his flesh from head to toe, pausing on his arm tattoos, those on his calves and thighs, and the large, full back piece that matched Kane’s Sons of Sangue death head with two fangs dripping blood. Kaleb sported more tattoos than his twin, and Suzi loved every inch of them.
Reaching on the tips of her toes to the overhead cupboard, she stretched to retrieve a plate when a warm body pinned her to the granite countertop. His large hands caged her in as he nestled his erection in the small of her back. The only thing that separated them was the oversized sleep shirt she had pulled over her head before leaving the bedroom. Obviously, Kaleb hadn’t bothered with clothes.
He leaned down, trailing his fangs along the crook of her neck and nipped at her shoulder, sending a shiver racing down her spine. Her desire kicked up a notch, making her more than ready for another round. Kaleb hadn’t been lying that he was insatiable. But if he didn’t give her time to nourish her body, he’d plumb wear her out. After all, she didn’t have his vampire DNA and couldn’t hope to ever keep up.
“I’m hungry, Hawk,” Suzi said, glancing at him.
His wicked gleam and black obsidian gaze told her he was hungry for an entirely different thing. Slipping one hand from the counter, he trailed it down the front of her sleep shirt, over her abdomen and between her thighs, where he cupped her sex, no doubt feeling her readiness all over again.
He growled low, the sound feathering over the flesh of her neck. “I’m famished.”
She sucked in a sharp breath as his fingers slipped past the cotton and ran along her slick flesh, dipping just the tip of one finger inside. “I … I didn’t make you breakfast.”
Kaleb withdrew his hand, flipped her in his hold so that now she faced him and his erection lay intimately between them. Leaning in, he nipped at her ear, then trailed the points of his fangs along her neck, his tongue then soothing the path. “Trust me, it’s not bacon and eggs that has me ravenous.”
Her breathing quickened, her desire trumping what popped and sizzled in the frying pan. Suzi reached over and shut off the burner about the time the toast popped up. Kaleb gripped her by the waist and set her on the counter, spreading her thighs. His nostrils flared.
“The scent of your desire is driving me beyond sane thought.”
“I have to go to work in a few hours. I need food. I need a shower.”
“Food is overrated.” His gaze went to the V of her thighs. “But this … damn, I can’t get enough of.”
Suzi placed a few fingers beneath his chin and tilted his gaze back to hers. “Promise?”
“Seriously? You doubt how much I want you after the night I just spent showing you?” His face sobered. “What has you worried, piccolo diavolo? I’ve told you that I love you. I’ve never said that to another woman.”
“What happens when you tire of me?” She inched her legs back together and pulled down on her sleep shirt. “You’ve never been with one woman for longer than a few months, Kaleb. How do I know I’m not just another notch on your belt? The idea of you walking away…”
He ran a finger across her lower lip before she sucked the digit into her mouth briefly, earning her another growl. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“I’ll grow old,” Suzi said, not able to look him in the eye as she laid her fears bare.
She toyed with the snake-like pattern running down the length of his right arm, afraid to bring up the subject of mating. After what she had witnessed, Suzi feared the change, that she couldn’t possibly survive the agony. Though the thought of losing Kaleb terrified her enough to actually consider it should he desire to ask her.
“Suzi,” Kaleb said, “Look at me.”
When she did as instructed, her heart skipped a beat. She had never seen a more handsome man, even in his vampire state. She supposed the depths of her feelings had a lot to do with how she viewed him. Suzi ran trembling fingers across his more prominent brow, down his hollow cheeks and across his full lips that hid his fangs from view. She had never loved him more than she did in this moment.
“There is something I need.”
Her brow creased. “What?”
“Do you trust me?”
“I’m here.” She smiled. “I’ve given you everything I have to give.”
Her admission had him leaning forward and placing a quick kiss on her lips. “I treasure you and the fact you didn’t give up on me, even though you rightfully should have. You must know that I would never wish you harm.”
Her fingers fiddled with the edge of her sleep shirt, but she said nothing.
Kaleb cupped her cheek. “I want you with me.”
“I want that too, Kaleb.”
“No, piccolo diavolo … I want you with me for all eternity.”
He gripped her waist and pulled her flush so that her thighs parted and hugged his sides. Her center rested against the heat of his abdomen, eliciting a moan from her. Suzi couldn’t help envisioning him taking her here on the countertop.
“I want what Kane has with Cara,” he said, then followed it with a chuckle. “Never thought I’d say those words. But I can’t lose you a second time.”
“Are”—her gaze fastened on his—“you asking me to be your mate?”
“I’d demand that you be my mate if I knew you’d listen.” He smiled, the white tips of his fangs peeking beneath his upper lip. “You need to get to work and I need to call a church meeting. I wanted you to know that I plan to ask for the MC’s blessing. If their vote is unanimous, then you can name the day and time. I will be there every step of the way.”
“I’m scared, Kaleb. What I saw—”
“Suzi.” He pressed his lips to hers. “You saw a woman without a mate.”
“Are you telling me I won’t go through that kind of pain?”
He shook his head. “You’ll feel pain like never before. But I can make it bearable for you.”
Her breath hitched. “I’m not so sure—”
“I want you to be my mate, Suzi, to love me until the end of time. You can do this for me … for us.”
She worried her lower lip between her teeth. “I want to, but I’m afraid.”
He smiled, knowing he was breaking through her fear. “I promise you that you can endure it. Do you think you can put up with me? I know I’m not the easiest of vampires—”
“Kaleb…”
“There can be times I’m down right impossible—”
“Kaleb.” She framed his face with her hands. “Shut up and kiss me.”
His smile widened. “Is that a yes?”
“I swear, Hawk. I must be some sort of a fool to put up with your sorry ass some days, but I wouldn’t have you any other way. If you so much as think to abandon me while I go through the change—”
His possessive kiss stopped her from completing her requirement that he stay with her. Kaleb wouldn’t think of leaving her on her own as Grayson had Tamera. Before she had a chance to say another word, he stepped back, spread her thighs then pulled her forward, and onto his thick erection. She tilted her head back and moaned as he gripped her ass cheeks, sliding in and out of her. Her breath hitched, and damn if she wasn’t already on the edge of another orgasm as he took her slowly, her ass sliding on the granite.
“Look at me, piccolo diavolo.”
And she did, seeing him for the first time as the man … vampire she’d spend the rest of her days loving.