Chapter 6

Lynda clutched the seatbelt, yanking on it to click it in place. The limo driver swerved down the street. Beneath her feet, the vehicle shook and shimmied. I don't think this luxury car was made to go this fast.

She looked behind her and shivered. The image of them breaking down and the vampires descending on them made panic race through her.

She had no idea the vamp war was this bad, and now she was smack dab in the middle of it.

After several minutes of speeding down the highway, she no longer noticed anyone following them and the driver slowed the car down to a normal pace. Streetlights and a few other cars illuminated the road around them in patches. Lynda leaned against the backseat, trying to calm her breath as the road noise vibrated through the open door, pushing her hair over her face. The opening let in the night air and the scent of the city of old buildings, and cement. Mixed with that were the aromas of seafood, steak, and other restaurants.

“Thanks for rescuing me. I’m Lynda.”

“Mihnea, I’m Andrei and Pierre’s other brother, the oldest,” he answered, his gaze catching hers through the rearview mirror.

Wait, Mihnea was a limo driver? The vamp who liked to make an entrance? She let out a whistle. He’d made a hell of an entrance for her. “Do you have my laptop? Andrei said you were bringing it.” She checked behind them once more for the enemy.

He shook his head. “Sorry, no time. I turned back around once Pierre sent me a text that Russians were attacking in his restaurant and to get you somewhere safe.”

No wonder Andrei and his clan were so anxious to find a human to match with one of them. They needed to get the upper hand on future generations. They were being hunted down.

And the Russian vampires had attacked the wait staff. The screams of the people still echoed in Lynda's head. She’d never heard anything, human or animal, make a sound like that before, and it would haunt her forever.

Mihnea pulled into a neighborhood with homeless people standing on the street corner. When they eased into a driveway of a house that looked like even ghosts wouldn't want to live there, Lynda stiffened.

The garage door opened and Mihnea drove inside then clicked a button and the garage shut. He turned the car off, then came around to the ripped-off door.

“You okay?”

She shook her head. Her hands wouldn't let go of the seat belt around her.

“Here, allow me.” He un clicked the latch. Gently, he tugged the seat belt from her hands before he took the only shoe that she had left off her foot and handed it to her. “Here. I’ll get you another pair later.”

“Where are we?” She forced her shaky legs to work and pushed out of the car. “Where's Andrei? Is Pierre okay?”

A knot formed in her stomach.

“Questions later, let's get inside to safety.” He led her to a steel door.

Was anywhere safe from vampires? By helping Dracula’s sons, was she picking the lesser of two evils?

They passed through a dark hallway. Lynda blinked to adjust to the lack of light. When Mihnea closed the metal door behind them with a clank, lights buzzed on overhead. Metal ceiling, walls, and floors surrounded them.

“Let me squeeze around you.” His body pressed up against hers as there was not enough room for them to stand shoulder-to-shoulder in the dark hallway.

A sweet, sexy fragrance filled her nostrils, reminding her of oranges and cloves with an underlying masculine scent. Her sexual desire slammed into her again. Before she could let out a breath, Mihnea reached behind her and laid his hand on a silver panel on the wall.

She looked up at him, his mouth so close and yet so far away. Her head swam with lust, and she imagined him hoisting her legs up over his hips and his dick stretching her completely, bringing climax after climax bursting forth. The image was so sudden, so complete, that she had to wonder if he’d done some kind of vampire magic that sent the thought into her head.

He licked his lips, staring down at her, his eyes flashing crimson. The scent of her arousal must have triggered him to what she was thinking. Watching her face, he ran his thumb across her stomach causing a hiccup to escape her mouth.

Then he trailed his hand up higher, stroking the underside of her breasts beneath her bra. There wasn't much room in the hallway, and the coldness of the metal wall shocked her back. She gasped, and Mihnea crushed his mouth down on hers. The intensity of his mouth on hers lit her on fire. She raked her hands over his shoulders, trying to bring him closer. This was Dracula’s firstborn son and Andrei’s brother, and he’d gotten them to safety.

His hand skimmed under her shirt. His cool fingers grazed her breast through her bra. Quickly her nipples hardened, straining through the fabric for his touch.

Her entire body wanted him to caress her, to kiss her, to do whatever he goddamn felt like as long as she could feel him inside her.

Her kiss was ferocious and demanding, matching his. All over, her skin was hot with need. Was he bewitching her? Putting her under a trance? But no vampire had ever been able to do that to her before. Or was it just the idea that she’d escaped death that lowered her resistance and he was happy to take advantage? A shiver of yearning pulsed through her and she no longer cared to reason why.

When he lifted her dress off, a shudder of need ran through her. He grasped her breasts, freeing them from their cups and they spilled out into his hands. She moaned against his mouth as his thumbs circled the nipples. One hand massaged her breast while the other slid down her stomach to the apex of her legs.

Every place he touched her, pulses of desire shot straight to her core.

She broke free from his searing kiss, panting for breath. “Oh God, what is happening to me?”

Her sex warmed with desire against his erection. She felt swollen and yet empty deep inside all at the same time.

“Lust.” He dipped down and grasped her nipple in his mouth. His teeth grazed her yet didn’t draw blood.

Pressure built between her legs. He was caressing her everywhere except where she needed him the most.

“Please.” She couldn't take any more of this sweet torture.

When his cold fingers slid along her clit, she groaned and tugged at his hair.

“What is it you want?” His deep purring undertones zinged through her like dark chocolate candy with a delectable cherry center that she wanted to gobble up.

He’d awakened the nympho inside her, and she couldn’t stop. Didn’t want to stop. His dominating kiss alone had been enough to cave her walls. She’d never been kissed like that before. Just the memory of it made her hot all over again.

His breath tickled across her collarbone as he moved away from her just enough to look down at her. Dark crimson eyes stared at her. “Tell me, minx, what will bring you the greatest pleasure?” His head dipped down, and she groaned when he licked his way up her neck.

A shiver started at the base of her spine, and she clung to him. If he pulled away, she’d crash to the floor. “You…I-I want you.”

He chuckled and sucked on her neck. The pull of his mouth on the side of her throat made her knees buckle, but his body held her in place as he continued to stroke her clit. Was he sucking her blood? She couldn’t tell because an orgasm hurled through her. She screamed out her pleasure, her throat suddenly raw.

Yet she wanted more.

She had an itch deep inside her that no one could scratch but him. Then the image of Andrei and how he’d dashed away to protect her flashed through her mind. And what about Pierre? He’d battled the Russian vamps too. And here she was making out with Andrei’s older brother.

A loud thunk vibrated through the metal wall behind her, and she yelped.

Mihnea growled low in his throat, and her heartbeat slammed against her chest. “Wait here; we’ve got company. Let me go see if they’re friendly.”

He slapped his palm against the silver panel, whispering something she couldn’t make out. Then the far wall opened into a dark hole and he disappeared inside.

Waiting, she chewed on her lip as she strained to hear anything. Her hand brushed across her neck where Mihnea had kissed her. She didn’t find any broken skin. Her sigh of relief echoed around her. Letting a vampire bite a human was dangerous. It was more binding than marriage. And gave the vampire the ability to control the relationship…meaning they could keep the human to abuse as a source of food or as a sex slave. The latter thought had her sex clenching in anticipation.

What the hell is wrong with me? With all the food and the adrenaline of the chase and their escape from the Russians, she couldn’t blame her wantonness on the wine from Andrei’s car. Maybe all of that added to her long hours and lack of sleep, made her more susceptible to vampire pheromones than usual.

What was keeping Mihnea? Even though she heard nothing, it didn’t mean that he wasn’t somewhere dying. Here, it felt like the walls were closing in on her. What if Andrei and Pierre were hurt too?

A physical sting pinched her chest, her breaths turning shallow. She had to find out what was going on. Check on Mihnea before her imagination got out of control. She pictured them dead with stakes through their hearts and decapitated.

With numb fingers, she put her bra back in place and pulled her dress back on. She moved down the hall and took a deep breath to steady her nerves.

She traced her hand along the wall to guide her forward into the darkness that lay beyond. Her steps shuffled down the metal flooring with the slide of her bare feet a little too loud for her liking. Was she being too loud? What if the other vampires were still here and heard her? Their hearing was better than any human.

But she couldn’t just stay there. She shook off her concerns, then slowly, she inched forward. Her nerves made her blood crash through her veins. Her mouth was suddenly dry, and she couldn’t stop shaking.

The wall underneath her fingertips changed to a stone-like texture and curved to the left. She followed the path, still unable to see anything in front of her face. The metallic scent of blood flooded her nostrils. Her steps halted. Was that Mihnea’s blood?

Her heart thundered so hard against her breastbone that she couldn’t breathe. A burst of air whipped past her, and she stifled a scream.

It came again so fast that she spun to run. But she couldn’t see. Stumbling, she waved her arms before her as she tried to find the metal hallway. It had been a mistake coming into the house.

If she found her way back, she could figure out how to open the door to the garage and get the hell out of there.

Her hip smashed into a corner. Pain shot down her leg, but she pressed on. Footfalls now pounded behind her. How many chased her? She pushed aside the thought and plunged ahead only to meet a solid wall. Her breaths panted out of her throat. Had she passed the entrance? Or had it closed behind her?

An arm snaked around her abs and hauled her back against a thick, muscular body.

She screamed, but the guy’s free hand clamped down over her mouth. All her instincts to fight or flee vanished as she froze in panicked terror.