Patrick swears at his wounds while I nurse my scotch. “Fucking god damned motherfucking blood suckers.” I watch him wince as he binds the gaping slice of a vampire bite on his forearm. “Their saliva burns like acid.”

“You’ll be healed in less than an hour,” I mutter, sipping the amber liquid. “You’re lucky you’re immune. Nothing more to worry about.”

“You’re lucky you’re immune.”

“It isn’t the first time.” I take another pull off my glass of scotch. It’s taking longer than usual for me to calm down after a hunt. “I’m only immune to their hypnosis. If I hadn’t brought that gun…”

My partner’s lips press into a tight line. “We need Stuart here.”

I nod. I’d already thought of that. “He’ll be here tomorrow.” That’s how it is with Stuart and me. I call, he appears, and vice versa. “Did you have any idea what we were walking into?”

“Are you seriously asking me that right now?” Patrick isn’t one for sarcasm, and I only laugh.

“Then we really are a couple of lucky sons of bitches.”

“Damn straight.”

An icy chill passes down my spine at how wrong tonight could have gone. It isn’t often an unprepared vampire hunter and a weredog—even a young, strong shifter like Patrick—walk into a nest of vampires and make it out with only a scratch. I’m wrestling a mixture of fatigue, relief, and uncanny amusement.

“We are so fucking lucky.” I exhale, rubbing my hands over my face.

“Sazerac,” Patrick says to the bartender. We’re sitting at the bar in Razoo’s off Bourbon Street, and my partner is jumpy. I can’t stop drumming my fingers on the shiny wood in front of me.

“What exactly did you read in Sloan’s journal?” At this point it doesn’t really matter. Still, I’m curious, passing the time, waiting for us to come down. I can’t shake the image of that nightmarish clown-face, that grinning undead fucker coming down the wall at me headfirst like a giant fucking lizard. Shit.

“Nothing like what we encountered.” Patrick shakes his head, taking a sip of his cocktail. “Sloan’s notes said ‘an old one with answers’ lives in the crypt in Lafayette cemetery. It said if we went with flowers, played the role of gracious mourners, he’d talk to us.”

“Looks like he got bored with gracious mourners. Decided to turn a few.”

“No shit.”

Razoo’s is also a karaoke bar, and a young south Asian-looking woman approaching the mic draws my attention. She’s sexy with long, wavy black hair. I try to let her swaying and singing ease my mood, but it isn’t working. Her dark eyes only make me yearn for sapphire blue. I want Melissa. I want to burn off this excess energy in her arms.

“We should’ve stayed close tonight, done more research.” I should’ve been at Mr. B’s.

“That sounds like you’re second-guessing me.” Patrick’s itching for a fight, but I’m not interested.

“I’m not,” I answer honestly. “Just post-mortem.”

A group of drunken college kids stumble through the doors, laughing and adding to the crowd coming in off of Bourbon Street. It’s so late in the evening, I have no reason to believe anyone I’d want to see might come here. Melissa would be with her friend Elaine, most likely dining at Brennan’s or Galatoire’s, then heading back to her hotel to sleep, her beautiful dark waves spread out over her pillow.

“Fucking no way.” Patrick’s hiss cuts through my distraction. “It can’t be.”

Snapping to attention, I can’t help wondering if our friends are back. “What is it?”

He doesn’t answer, and I follow the line of his sight to the door. A beautiful blonde stands just inside, off the street. She seems a little lost, as if she’s looking for someone or trying to decide if she’ll stay.

I’m ready to guess she’ll leave, but her eyes move as if directed by an invisible guide directly to my partner.

I turn and look at him as well. His posture is as confident and strong as ever, but his expression is stunned. He’s trying to play it off, but something is happening to him.

“Do you know her?”

“No.” He looks down at the bar, his voice barely controlled.

“She’s headed in our direction.” Looking up, I see the confident smile on her lips. It’s as if she’s aware of her power over him. “You sure you’ve never—”

“It’s Patrick, right?” Her tone is happy, like she’s found something she lost.

My partner straightens, facing her, and though I’ve never seen it before, I know exactly what’s happening.

“Yes,” he says in a husky voice. “Elaine?”

“Yes!” Her green eyes sparkle, and she touches his arm. His entire body stills at her caress. “We were walking by, and I knew you were here.”

She laughs, but he only smiles.

Fuck me, Patrick’s imprinting. If I thought we needed Stuart before, we sure as hell need him now. I have no idea how finding his mate is going to impact his performance.

As much as I’ve wanted this to happen, it irritates the shit out of me it’s happening now, until I glance up toward the entrance and my entire body snaps to attention. She’s there, just outside the door, watching this woman with my partner. Her brow is lined in frustration, as if she can’t enter—or she doesn’t want to.

“Melissa…” The word is a whisper on my lips, and I’m on my feet.

Elaine and Patrick are talking. He’s turning on all the charm, and she’s falling for it hard—or maybe she’s already fallen for him, and all his charms are sweet icing on the cake. She sure walked into this bar and straight to him as if she knew full well the strange transformation happening in his mind.

None of it matters. I’m consumed by the discovery of Melissa. She sees me. Her sapphire eyes hold me, and a mixture of deep longing and cautious optimism moves through me.

I want her. I’ve wanted her all day. From this morning in the shower to every other minute of this long-assed day, I’ve thought about her luscious lips, her gorgeous breasts, her long legs wrapped around my waist. I’m at the door where she’s standing, keeping the glass between her and the bar as if it were a shield.

“Hello,” I say with a smile. “I’m really glad to see you again.”

Blinking down, she seems almost guilty when she answers. “I wasn’t able to be at Mr. B’s tonight. I’m sorry if you waited.”

She wasn’t there. The idea sends a wash of relief through me followed quickly by disappointment. I debate my next words.

“It’s okay,” I say. “I’m really glad you’re here now.”

Her hand trembles a bit, and I can’t help wondering if I make her nervous. Is it possible this small, beautiful woman who holds my entire breath in her hands is nervous?

“Did you come here after dinner?” she says.

I decide to be honest. “I wasn’t at Mr. B’s tonight either.” Her eyes blink quickly to mine. “A job took me away from the city, and I couldn’t make it back in time. I’m so glad you weren’t there.”

“And what if I had been there?” The defiance in her tone fans my smoldering desire even hotter. She’s so fucking strong.

“I’d do everything in my power to earn your forgiveness.”

I’ve stepped outside, closer to her, and she inhales sharply. Her gorgeous eyes blink up to mine, and I want to taste her so badly my mouth waters. The scent of ocean-kissed roses, her scent floats around us. I want it all over me again.

She exhales a little sigh, glancing toward the bar. “Lucky for you, I’ve had a really shitty day. I’m in a forgiving mood.”

“I had no idea it was going to be such a lucky day for me.”

A hint of a smile crosses her lips, and I want to gather her in my arms and love the shittiness away. Lifting my finger, I lightly trace a line up the smooth skin of her arm to her shoulder, and she shivers. Her breathing shallows, and it’s almost too much for me. I mentally calculate how far we are from Pirate’s Alley. The Royal Sonesta is closer.

“Let’s go to my hotel.”

Her eyebrows pull together. “You want to—”

“Spend the night with you.” I reach for her hand. “Yes, I want to spend the night with you… like before.”

Shaking her head, she moves out of my reach. “I’m sorry. I don’t do the walk of shame.”

“I would never let you walk home alone.”

Her back is to the glass doors and she seems to consider my offer. I take a chance, rubbing my hand across my chin. “A bed would be more comfortable, and I would do anything to see your gorgeous body spread across my sheets.”

She blinks up at me through her lashes, and desire spikes in my veins. I know she remembers last night. I glance quickly back in the bar to see Patrick dirty-dancing behind Elaine. She’s smiling with her blonde head thrown back on his shoulder, and from the looks of things, they’ll be in a bed together before long.

Closing the distance between us, I speak softly, right at her temple. “Can I have you tonight. Please?”

Only a brief hesitation, and she whispers, “Yes.”

Relief mixes with desire and urgency as I take her hand. We’re only steps from our own heaven, and I plan to spend all night with her there.

* * *

Melissa

Maybe it’s because I have nothing left to lose, or maybe it’s because nothing can really hurt me anymore—at least no more than I’ve already been hurt. Most likely, it’s because Derek is so damned determined and delicious… and sexy. As soon as I saw him in the bar, my teeth ached. Everything we did in the alley flooded my mind, and I flushed with need to have him again.

None of that matters. I don’t need justification anymore. I want him, and he wants me. The half-block to his hotel passes in a haze of anticipation. My skin is on fire, and my breath comes in little pants. Above the corner entrance, the word Desire is lit up in vaudeville lights, and it makes me want to laugh. After everything that happened today, all the disappointment, I can’t believe I might even consider laughter, but this man changes everything.

We cross the marble-tiled lobby straight into an open elevator. It’s empty except for us, and Derek presses the number four repeatedly.

Close, doors… Close! Anticipation buzzes in my chest, until they finally start to move. They barely touch when he has me against the wall, pinned by his huge physique.

“God, you’re so beautiful.” His breath is a hot whisper across my cheek just before he claims my mouth, forcing my lips to part and finding my tongue with his.

A little whimper aches in my throat, and he lifts me against the shiny, wood-paneled wall. Breaking apart, his lips move down my jaw, velvet followed by scratchy beard. Another moan. My lust for him is at an epic height.

He lifts his head and our eyes meet. “I want to taste you.”

“Okay.” My voice trembles.

I’m thinking the same thing, when all at once the box we’re in stops. The doors open, and he looks over his shoulder. We’re on his floor.

He gives me a little wink. “Hold that thought.”

In a flash we’re out, headed down a narrow hallway. He swipes the door card, it emits a little tweet, and we push inside the room. I barely have a chance to notice the gold walls, marble-topped coffee table, or wood and brass accents of his suite before he’s got me in his arms.

My hands rest on his chest, and heat flames through my core with every heartbeat. My eyes travel up, up, up, to his blue ones now darkened with desire, and I know he’s remembering the same things as me—how fantastically our bodies came together only twenty-four hours ago. It seems like a lifetime after this day.

“When I saw you tonight… I couldn’t stay away.”

I smooth my palms over his shoulders, down his rounded biceps. He cups my cheeks, studying my hair, my chin, my lips, as if memorizing every part of me. It’s incredibly seductive, and I almost can’t bear the anticipation.

He gently kisses my brow, and my eyes flutter shut. “When I realized I wouldn’t make it back tonight, I was sure I’d lost you.” He traces a fiery line across the bridge of my nose to my other brow. “Why did you stay in the street? Were you feeling sick?”

“No,” I manage, despite the thickness in my throat. “I… I didn’t want to go inside.”

“Good,” he says before covering my mouth with his.

Our lips part quickly, and our tongues entwine before he continues his progress down my neck. Tasting. He wants to taste me. I’m burning with the same desire.

A swift pull and the top of my strapless dress is at my waist, revealing my bare breasts. A low noise of approval, and he rolls a hard nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

“Oh, god,” I gasp, as he leans down to give it a little suck, a teasing bite.

Heat floods my panties, and with every inhale, my need for him rises. Only tonight something is different. My heated lust is burning at both ends. My core is throbbing, begging for him, but something else—a consuming hunger is in my throat.

“Take me,” I barely speak, and he drops to his knees.

With one powerful lift, I’m off my feet, my back pinned against the wall as he holds my legs, pulling my thong to the side with his thumb.

Large, strong hands grip my inner thighs, opening them, and his nose touches my skin as his tongue covers my clit. A cry trembles from my throat, and he pulls back, pressing his mouth against my leg.

“I had to hear that sound again.” His voice is a sexy vibration against my skin, his beard scratching my most sensitive parts. I can’t help another shudder.

He holds me with strong hands, as if I weigh nothing at all, and his mouth returns to my center, his tongue making slow, languorous sweeps mixed with little pulls.

“Ooh, god!” My head drops back against the wall as my eyes roll closed. I thread my fingers in his soft, dark hair never wanting him to stop.

My back arches against the textured wallpaper. My entire focus is on his mouth, his tongue, slowly massaging, tasting and teasing me to the very edge. Pressure builds tight, low in my pelvis, then expands, snaking down my legs with every stroke of his tongue.

Another deep kiss, it slides lower, plunging into me.

“Ah, yes!” I cry as he does it once more before returning to my clit. The circles quicken, and my entire lower body explodes in fiery orgasm.

“Oh, Derek! Oh, god!” My hips buck against him. I can’t stop the shuddering in my legs. I’m wailing and shaking and grasping his shoulders as I come.

He strokes me a few more times until I can’t take the sensation anymore, then he gives me a quick kiss, stands, and sweeps me into his arms. I’m in a daze of euphoria as he crosses the small space to his enormous, king-sized bed.

My dress is quickly removed along with my panties, and I push to the center, watching him with hooded eyes as he steps out of his boots while unfastening his belt. Yes, I’m thinking, Oh, yes.

I want him inside me again, stretching me, filling me. His pants are finally off, his navy eyes never leaving mine, but I break away to admire his full erection. So big. Crawling toward him, I grasp his thick shaft, flickering my tongue across the tip before pulling it into my mouth.

“Shit,” he hisses, smoothing my hair off my cheek with a large palm as I suck him.

I lower my head as far as possible, grasping the base and pulling it into my throat. I’m rewarded with a deep groan, and I pull back, looking up at him with a naughty smile. His lips press together in a stern line, and he shakes his head.

“I’m not coming in your mouth.” All at once, he’s got me under my arms, pushing me back on the bed forcefully.

Excitement flashes in my chest. I want him to be rough. I want him to show me his strength. He only pauses a moment to whip his dark shirt over his head before crossing the bed toward me.

“What do you want?” I say in a low voice, rising to meet him in the middle. The white cotton sheets are as soft as silk, and I grip his strong arms in both hands. “You want to fuck me?”

His eyes cloud with desire, and I turn around quickly, leaning my back against his bare chest. I drop my head onto his shoulder and grind my ass against his rock-hard dick.

“Fuck,” he growls, grasping my breasts in his large hands. Scratchy kisses tease the backs of my sensitive shoulders as he glides a large palm down my flat stomach. Two thick fingers plunge deep into my core, and I moan loudly.

“You’re so wet,” he groans.

“Fuck me hard,” I whisper. “Don’t be gentle.”

An animal sound fills my ears, and he lifts me quickly before lowering me firmly onto his lap, onto his cock. His sudden invasion is shocking and erotic, and I cry out from the pleasure tinged with pain. The back of my head is against his shoulder as he lifts and lowers me again, thrusting further into me.

I have to help. I rise on my knees and drop, sending him even deeper. A ragged groan coughs from his throat. “Jesus… So fucking good.”

His forehead is pressed to my back as he grips my hips, slamming me harder up and down his shaft. I feel a trickle of his sweat roll down the line of my back, and it’s as if I go into a trance.

The memory of his taste floods my senses, and it begins. Something more powerful than my will takes over. The hot pressure of my orgasm tightens low in my pelvis, but the drive of hunger burns hotter in my throat.

My jaw drops open, and I let out a long wail as my canines stretch from my gums. “Ahhh!”

It’s like fuel to his fire. He’s pumping harder, faster, and I fumble one hand to the back of his neck. His muscles are rippling and strong. Turning my head, he’s right at my mouth. I lick the sweat from his skin, but it’s not like before. His taste overwhelms me. I must have more.

Feed. The low voice of my demon speaks directly to my soul.

No! A small voice whimpers back.

Derek’s heartbeat is loud in my ears, drowning out everything. The strength of his blood fuels my orgasm. He releases my hip with one hand and touches my clit, circling quickly with his fingers, and all my control is lost.

Another burst of intense pleasure scrambles my brain, and my hips begin circling with his movements. Don’t stop. Oh, god, please don’t stop. My brain repeats the phrase like a mantra as my legs begin to shudder and jerk.

FEED! It’s a direct command I can’t resist. My extended canines burn.

“I’m coming,” Derek grinds out. So much raw hunger is bound up in his words.

“Yes, Derek, yes.”

I arch my back, grazing my razor-sharp teeth lightly across the skin behind his ear, right at the base of his hairline. A little pinprick, and I pierce him. As my teeth sink into him we’re both swept up in a powerful orgasm.

“Fuck!” He shouts, coming deep inside me.

My body goes rigid, as if electrocuted. The onslaught of erotic pleasure blanks my mind. My mouth is attached to his skin as his blood pulses into me. He doesn’t seem to notice I’m drinking him. He groans, and I can feel his cock deep inside me, throbbing.

I swallow, and my eyes squeeze shut. I’m on another plane where sound and sight—nothing exists but this man. He penetrates me; I penetrate him. It’s the most intense experience of my life. Had I known it would be this way, I’d never have been able to resist it last night.

His ragged groans are little after-shocks of pleasure. He’s still coming; I’m still coming as I drink. Until, from somewhere, some other place inside me—a place filled with sadness and loss, a place still clinging to the smallest hope of mortality—a word appears: STOP!

It’s my voice, not the demon’s. I have to stop. I don’t want to kill him. I don’t want to lose him. Pulling out quickly, I swallow the last drops as the haze breaks. As if released from a trance, he pushes us forward into the pillows never once breaking body-contact. His hips rock twice more before we both are able to control our breathing and slowly start to come down.

“Jesus.” His voice is a hoarse whisper at my shoulder as he makes another slow thrust.

I can’t move. I’m floating in space, attempting to manage the legions of emotions spinning and warring in my mind. His blood races through me, a slight burning at first. Curious. The discomfort passes as it mixes with my blood in my veins. It’s in my brain, filling my mind with everything about him.

Derek Alexander. Strong… so strong… so incredibly strong. He’s a soldier. No… a Marine… A commanding officer… There’s something more. Something different. Something… like me? No… it’s not like me, but it’s supernatural. What have you done, my Derek?

I pull my lips between my teeth to capture any last essence of him lingering there. I want more. I want to swallow every drop of his sensual blood. I want more. I want to fuck him all night. I never want him out of my sight. I want him to be a part of me always. Mine.

My eyes are pressed closed as all these messages flood my brain, but I realize he’s above me now. He pulls out slowly, moving to his side. I feel his absence intensely. His large palm smooths my skin from my shoulder, down my torso.

“That was… incredible.” His voice is husky, but I can’t answer yet. I’m still trying to find my feet. “You make me crazy.”

I make him crazy? He has no idea what he does to me. He sends me to another galaxy. Focusing all my strength, I force my teeth to retract. He can’t know what I am.

When he speaks again, I hear a smile in his gentle tone. “Did I break you?”

I have to move. My chin dips, and I push up onto my elbows, hoping to buy time for my mouth to return to normal. I’ll be able to face him in a moment. In the meantime, I allow my long, dark hair to form a glossy curtain between us.

“I’m not broken,” I whisper. As I say the words, I realize how untrue they are.

He kisses my lower back, and the scruff of his beard is almost painful against my hypersensitive skin. “Good, because I hope to repeat everything we just did a few more times tonight.”

It’s safe, and I lift my heavy locks over my shoulder. “A few more times?” I give him a coy smile, and his gorgeous blue eyes twinkle.

“Naturally, the number of times is up to you, Miss…” His dark brow furrows. “I don’t know your last name.”

I quickly scan the suite looking for something I only vaguely spotted when we entered—before he had me against the wall. There it is.

“You have a Jacuzzi.” My chin drops and I lift an eyebrow. “We should test it out.”

He smiles, revealing straight white teeth. He really is perfect. I feel a strange surge of pride over the few ounces of his blood I’ve stolen, a peculiar possessiveness of him buzzes in my veins.

“So it’s like that?” He levels that steely gaze on me, and it’s breathtaking.

“You’re a private investigator?”

“Yes, Melissa.”

“Last names aren’t a good idea.” I can never explain the fucked up nature of my existence, and anyway, it doesn’t matter. He’s my last fling, my final heavenly indulgence before I accept my fate and return to Baltimore to die.

He doesn’t move as he watches me. I wait while he weighs my words against the mind-blowing experience we shared only moments ago. He’ll either insist on knowing more, in which case I’ll leave, or he’ll accept my answer.

“You want to test out my Jacuzzi?” I release the breath I’m holding with a grin and a nod. “Give me a sec.”

He pushes off the mattress, and I watch his perfect ass flex as he crosses the beige marble floor to the large tub. Two low steps lead to it, and he sits on one as he opens the faucets.

No need to worry he’ll change or be like me. We didn’t complete the ritual. I only have him inside me. He doesn’t have me in him. I didn’t force him to drink from my veins the way I was forced. I didn’t rape his only hope away.

I, on the other hand, am running out of time to complete my transition. I have to kill or die. I’ve already decided which it will be.

Leaning on one elbow, he reaches out to me, and I stifle a gasp. His body is Michelangelo’s Adam, reaching out for the hand of God. Only he’s reaching out to a devil.

Horror and guilt hit me like a freight train. My chin drops, sending a dark curtain across my cheek, but I know he saw the change in my expression. I hear him crossing back to the bed at once.

“What’s wrong?” Concern fills his voice. “Melissa, look at me.”

He catches my chin, and my eyes travel over his olive skin, his smooth muscles, the light dusting of hair on his chest. I have to leave. Now.

I can’t believe I would risk my one hope at escaping my fate—not only that, I risked his very life! Has my animalistic nature truly become so strong? I stole from him. I bit him. I can’t rationalize this away any more. I’m too weak to fight my lusts. I’m lost.

His hands are on my shoulders, pulling me onto his lap. “Stop,” he orders.

I try to resist his arms, but he’s stronger than me. Or I’m too weak to fight him.

His stern voice continues. “Whatever you’re saying to yourself, stop it.”

I shake my head. “We can’t do this, Derek. It’s wrong.”

“It’s not wrong. It’s fast.” His chin drops, and I watch as he collects his thoughts. I confess, I’m incredibly curious as to what he might say next. “I’m sure this is new for you. Hell, it’s new for me.” His eyes fix on mine, and his expression is so earnest and lovely. “Don’t shut us down yet. Give us a chance.”

“You don’t know me,” I argue. “We don’t know each other—”

“So let me get to know you.” He takes my hand carefully in his. “I want to know your mind the way I already know your body.”

His blood sings in my veins, and my eyes close at the sensation. Tasting him has only made him harder to resist.

“We don’t have time.”

“We have plenty of time.” He smooths my hair back, cupping my cheek with his large palm. “My life has been so empty these last six years. This is the first time I’ve wanted to live.”

Oh, god, the terrible irony. “You want to live?”

“I’m not explaining it right. I’m jumping ahead.” He takes both my cheeks in his hands, and looks deep into my eyes. “But you feel it, too. I know you do. Please stay.”

I want to cry. My heart is breaking because I can’t tell him we don’t have a chance. I can’t tell him that if he wants to live, he needs to run as far and as fast away from me as possible.

I’m either the worst coward or his blood is making it impossible for me to say no, because this beautiful man holding my face overwhelms me with his words.

“Okay.” My voice is soft, and I feel my cheeks turn pink. It’s a ridiculous response. I know all of this is a fantasy, yet I want to indulge it so badly. “What do you want to do?”

He glances over his shoulder at the now-full Jacuzzi tub and pushes away to walk over and shut off the water. Reaching into the pool, he tests it. Then he smiles and dries his hand.

Returning to me, that sexy grin is on his lips. “First, we finish what we’ve started tonight.” Catching me by the legs, he roughly pulls me across the sheets, making me squeal a laugh. I’m in his arms as he carries me to the tub. “Tomorrow, I’m going to buy you brunch.”

“Brunch? So I’m sleeping in?”

He laughs as he steps down into the swirling water, me still in his arms. It surrounds us in bubbling warmth, soothing away my tension, making me believe I could be a normal girl with a normal life, who only needs to give this incredible man a chance. As if we have a future. As if I get a happily ever after.

“You’ll probably be tired after tonight. I wasn’t planning to wake you.”

I’m on his lap, straddling his waist, our faces close. My hands are on his shoulders, and I wouldn’t push him away for anything.

“And then?”

He leans forward and captures my lips with his. Our mouths open to let our tongues touch, and I feel a stirring low in my pelvis. At the same time, energy surges through my chest. His blood is in my heart making me burn for him.

He pulls back, nipping my lip. “We take it as it comes.”