CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The words were like a punch to the stomach, one that Eva didn’t expect and didn’t need at the moment. She was beaten up enough already as it was, and she didn’t think she could take more. But Raz’s serious expression told her there was more to the story, and Eva found herself wording just one question as she tightly folded her arms in front of her.
“How?”
Raz was silent for a while, standing in his foyer which was much, much grander than hers. But he didn’t seem to care—in fact, he looked exhausted, reminding Eva that he had even less sleep than her and had handled the bigger part of the fight. His blue eyes were steady on hers, a force of emotion swirling in them that she couldn’t quite figure out yet.
Finally, he spoke.
Eva listened as Raz told the story in careful, modulated tones: about how their society head, Lucinda, had discovered that Michael was keeping a secret that could potentially harm their kind. Then he spoke of how Michael had tried to kill a couple of them on a mission, along with himself, in the hopes of keeping the secret further. The words blurred all over each other as shock reverberated inside her, but the point of what he was saying came through loud and clear.
It had all been a scheme for Michael to keep the children safe.
The birth of two vampire children who hadn’t died or gone mad yet was a miracle that shouldn’t have happened.
The demon-vampire spawn that was Peter was the most dangerous creature of them all.
…and Raz had known all of this and lied to her.
She tried to take a deep, calming breath. She tried to stop her hands from shaking, switching from folding her arms to wrapping them around her body in the effort to make herself still. But none of that worked as the hurt built up and grabbed her by the throat, threatening to consume her if she wasn’t careful.
So Eva let it out.
In a few measured steps, she was approaching him. Then, before she knew it, her hand was coming up, quick and hard as it connected with Raz’s cheek. He could have evaded the slap, but he didn’t, instead looking at her with the same unreadable emotion that she could feel deep inside him. The sting of the sound rang in the air, echoing in its silence as they stared at each other.
Unable to take it anymore, afraid of what she would do if she did stay here with him, Eva took a step back.
Then she disappeared up the stairs as the tears she’d been trying to hold off since Peter woke up finally fell.
*****
She wasn’t an irrational person, so it didn’t take Eva long to figure out that despite Raz’s lies, there had been one glaring omission he hadn’t pointed out: that he saved their lives when it obviously hadn’t been part of the plan.
Another thing she admitted was that she wouldn’t exactly solve any problems by hiding in the guest bedroom of the man she was mad at. With a sigh, Eva finally got herself to stop brooding enough to get out of bed. Then she was slipping out of the room and searching for Raz.
The house wasn’t a house, but a mansion—one that was unbelievably grand and just a bit too cold for her liking. The food in the fridge was one of the few vestiges left of Raz’s human life, and every other room was filled with antique vases and gold collections that indicated just how staggeringly wealthy he was. It was a lonely life, and she had to wonder how long he’d been living like this.
She found him in the kitchen, the one place they always seemed to bump into each other. His side profile was to her, and he seemed so preoccupied that at first, she thought he didn’t feel her presence.
Then he spoke.
“Do you know what happened after I turned into a vampire?”
Eva stood where she was, watching him. “What?”
“I tried to fight the bloodlust. I really did. In the end, I couldn’t. I ended up killing more people than Peter did before I could truly control myself.”
“And your family?” Eva found herself asking.
Raz shrugged. “When they found out, they were so afraid of me that they had me locked up and beaten. When that didn’t work, they tried to kill me. So I cut myself off from them and dropped my last name. It was for the best. The Zitami family name is doing better now.”
Her eyes widened, recognizing the family name right away. It was one of the most successful pastry and restaurant chains in the world, and suddenly Raz’s love for her creations clicked into place. Then her heart constricted at how he was treated for being different. Before she knew it, she was walking towards him.
“Peter…he’s lucky to have you,” he said softly. “Someone who would accept him and teach him to be better. I’m so sorry I couldn’t save Ana for you.”
He looked up, and her breath stopped as she finally saw what he’d been hiding earlier—despair, strong and fresh.
She sat beside him on the kitchen’s long bench. Then Eva took his hand in hers and intertwined their fingers, watching the surprise flash on his face.
“We’ve made mistakes and choices we’re not proud of, but we did our best—and that’s what matters in the end,” she whispered.
He kept looking at her, the emotions changing from despair to shock to something else—something that was steadily rising to the surface and taking its firm root. It was desire—but again, it was also something else, and he squeezed his hand as he no longer hid it.
“We can’t,” he murmured.
Eva nodded, her skin tingling. “We can’t,” she murmured back in agreement.
But she didn’t stop him from leaning forward and pressing his mouth to hers. In fact, she encouraged him, opening her mouth instantly and feeling the kiss that she’d been missing out on for so long. It felt like heat being poured into her, felt like it was seeping into her bones.
It felt like home.
She didn’t fight it, nor did Eva protest when Raz stood up and started carrying her. She lost her breath when he moved with his vampire stealth towards his bedroom, then regained it back when he lowered her on the bed and kissed her some more. The hunger and desperation sank into her, and pleasure rose as she pulled him on the bed, too. They knelt in front of each other, their mouths moving to taste more and their hands cruising as they started to undress each other.
The sight of Raz’s bare, pale chest had her heart beating even faster, and she touched it without hesitation and felt the same heat she felt from his hands. His body was hard all over, muscles sleek and making her mouth water. She let her fingers run all over him, marveling at his beautiful chest, even while her busy tongue tangled with his.
It started out slow but sped up in no time as the desperation rose to the surface and took over whatever control they had left. She removed his last item of clothing and watched his bottom half for a while before wrapping her hand around his cock. It hardened and grew bigger, and the groan that came out of him was so addictive that Eva had to stroke him again—and again and again, until his engorged tip was leaking cum.
The growl was the only warning Eva got before she was flat on her back and her clothes were torn from her body. She whooshed out a breath. Then she gasped in shock when he plunged in with one swift movement, his pulsing cock sliding in smoothly.
“You’re so wet,” he rasped through gritted teeth.
His rough, strained voice almost did her in.
Eva nodded and pulled him down, kissing his neck. Her gasp turned into a moan when he started moving—slow at first before her hips adjusted to the rhythm and urged him to go faster. His mouth cruised down and latched onto her nipple, and the ache that was already pulsing there spread even further down her body and had her crying out his name.
Raz urged her to wrap her legs around him. She did so and clung on as he pounded into her, the slapping sound echoing in the air. Her muscles clenched around his hardness as she went to that peak—then Raz sucked on her nipple, at the same time his thumb found and pressed on her wet clit.
She erupted gloriously, her orgasm blurring her senses as she arched her body and flew. She felt his pounding continue until his body tightened, too. Then he cursed, spurted his seed inside her.
And he soared beside her.
*****
Eva woke up at dawn to the feeling of sore muscles and the memory of just how good making love with Raz had felt. Even if they both tried to deny it, there was no mistaking that that wasn’t just sex.
She then froze when she felt something else.
Beside her, Raz was still, indicating that he already knew what she suspected as the darkness spread outside.
“We’re surrounded,” he murmured.
Eva took a steady breath to calm herself, realizing he meant vampires. He took her hand and squeezed it. Then he looked at her, fierce and steady, and she thought he was going to ask her to run—something she wasn’t going to do.
But then he threw her for a loop.
“Will you marry me?”