Out of the Dark

"If you're a sicko than I am as well because I can't wait to taste your blood," Decebel confessed without shame.

Jen's brow furrowed as she stared into Decebel's eyes. His words confused her.

"Do you," she took a ragged breath that had her cringing at the pain, "do you remember me?"

Decebel was shaking his head as he answered gently, "No, baby, I don't. I wish more than anything that I did."

"Then how can you say that to me? How can you want to taste my blood?"

Decebel tried really hard not to touch her but it was impossible. He could no more keep his hands from her than he could stop the tide from rolling in. He took her hand and rubbed his thumb gently across it.

"My wolf knows its mate. He remembers you. Even if I didn't want to stay here with you, even if I didn't want to remember you, remember the love I had for you, he wouldn't let me walk out of this room. If I leave your side even for second he gets feral."

"Why?" Jen asked, genuinely not understanding.

"There is nothing more dangerous than a dominant male Canis lupis when his mate is injured and helpless. But I need you to understand, my wolf is not the only one who wants you, Jennifer. I want you. I need you to help me remember."

Jen was hurting and her body was desperately fighting to sink back into oblivion, but with the help of Decebel's blood, she was able to hold off the compulsion. She watched in utter disbelief as a tear escaped Decebel's eye. His jaw clenched and though he looked vulnerable, nothing about him looked weak or any less threatening.

He continued to stroke her hand as he talked. "I need you to remind me who I am." Decebel met her eyes, knowing the next words out of his mouth were going to be difficult ones.

"They...they know what will break the curse."

Jen's eyes widened. "Then why are sitting here discussing me somehow trying to fill in your memories?"

"Because love is what breaks the curse." Decebel watched as Jennifer's breath became shallow. He didn't want to hurt her, it was the last thing on earth he wanted. His wolf was angry that he was causing her pain and pushing at him to give him control. "I want to love you, Jennifer. I want to love you more than anything. But wanting it and doing it are not the same when it comes to the curse. I look at you and I feel something. You draw me in and I long to be near you – not just my wolf, me, the man longs to be close to you."

Jen was shaking while she listened to the man she loved more than anything tell her he didn't love her. Oh, he wants to love her, well loddie-freaking-dah. She wants to get up off the damn bed and hit him with a 2x4, but, as she always says, wish in one hand and crap in the other and see which one fills up first.

She didn't realize she had tuned him out until she heard “Blood Rites” and “break the curse” in the same sentence.

"Wait, excuse me, say that again?"

Decebel took a deep breath. It was obvious he was getting frustrated. "I said, Vasile thinks that if we perform the Blood Rites it will pull the veiled emotions to the forefront. And it's the only thing that will save your life. Your wolf needs her mate. She's no longer dormant, and when the bond was severed between us, the darkness in me reached across to you. You won't live just on my blood, Jennifer."

The pain that was tightening Jen's chest began to turn to anger and disbelief at Vasile's suggestion.

"He wants us to bond because he thinks it will break the curse? Really? Are you freaking

kidding me?" She didn't even bother with the whole saving her life bit, she wasn't going to touch that with a fifty foot pole.

Decebel was taken aback by the venom in her voice.

"You're my mate. Why wouldn't we bond?"

Jen looked at him in disbelief. Decebel turned his head as he ran his hand through his hair. It was then that Jen saw the markings on Decebel's neck. Markings that hadn't been there before. She reached up slowly, grinding her teeth against the pain, and gripped his chin, turning his head even more so she could get a good look.

"Your markings changed?"

Decebel smiled the heart-stopping grin that always made her want to crawl up in his lap and purr. By the slight smirk on his beautiful face, it was obvious he knew the effect it was having on her whether he remembered her or not.

"Yes, they changed."

Jen nearly jumped, then groaned at the hurt it caused, as Decebel reached for the hem of her shirt and began to raise it. Her eyes widened as she saw the markings – identical to Decebel's –  running along her right side, starting below the waist of her sweats and continuing up. Without conscious thought to what she might be showing Decebel, she continued to pull up her shirt to look at the markings as they traveled up to just beside her right breast. Jen didn't realize Decebel had been tracing the marks with his finger until he caught himself and cleared his throat. He took her shirt from her and pulled it back down.

She didn't know what to say. Part of her was happy beyond belief, part of her was ticked off that it happened while her mate didn't have a clue who the bloody hell she was, and still another part of her was pissed because of the location.

"Why did it have to be there?" she groaned.

Decebel narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Why does it bother you to be on your side?"

"Fane freaks out anytime someone sees Jacque's marks."

"As he should," Decebel growled.

"Oh, keep your panties on, Decebel. I'm ticked because I imagine, if you ever remember me, that you will be even worse than Fane about it. Which means I no longer get to wear bikinis. So, so not cool. Do you know how old a one piece is going to make me look?"

Decebel was shaking his head at her when he spoke. "You just found out that we have yet another confirmation that we are mates, and you're concerned about bathing suits?"

"You'll get used to it," Jen said absently. She closed her eyes briefly, trying to gather her strength.

"You need to rest," Decebel told her, his words a command.

Jen opened her eyes and cut them up at him without moving her head. "I will rest after I have said my peace."

"Are you always this unreasonable?"

"No," Jen smiled sweetly, "usually I'm worse." She held his stare – something only Vasile was allowed do. "I won't bond with you." She ignored the growl coming from Decebel's chest. "I won't perform the Blood Rites with a man who doesn't even remember me. If I understand correctly from Jacque, the act of performing the Blood Rites is even more intimate than sex."