Chapter 32

After walking up and down every aisle of every store on Main Street, and grabbing dinner, Piper and I were headed back to my car when we walked past a bar. When a handful of patrons walked out, loud music filtered through the open door. Sounded like a live band belting out 80s music.

Piper stopped and tugged on my hand, her eyes wild with excited mischief. “Can we please go in? Just for a few minutes?”

“You want to go a bar?” I raised a brow, the corner of my mouth following suit.

She nodded emphatically. “C’mon, it’ll be fun. We can have a few drinks, listen to some music. Dance.” She squeezed my hands. “Please?”

I’d already made up my mind, so she really didn’t need to beg me, but I couldn’t deny I loved how it sounded. “Is this really your type of music? I mean, there’s no praising Jesus going on in there.”

She laughed, and when she tried to swat at me, I dodged her. “It’s certainly not that redneck, hillbilly country crap you love, but I think I can suffer for a little while.”

I shook my head, my amusement hard to contain. “Let’s go,” I said.

With another squeal, she bounced up and down, then dragged me into the bar. The band was just finishing a Bon Jovi song, then announced they were taking a quick five-minute break. Piper and I eased our way through the crowd and to the bar. She ordered some sort of fruity drink, and I got a soda.

Piper planted a hand on her hip. “Soda?”

“Driving, remember?”

“Yes, but with your unique… skills, you should be able to have at least one drink with me, right?”

Technically, I could have a lot more than one and still be sobered up by the time we left. One of the many perks of being a vampire. I motioned for the bartender and ordered a beer. Piper grinned with triumph.

One arm propped on the bar, I stood facing her. She had her back against the bar, but she stood close to me. My gaze scanned the inside of the bar. Lots of couples were here, mostly in groups with other couples, and a stab of longing punched me straight in the gut. I could so easily picture me and Piper here with Trent and Chloe, and Abby and Isach. The six of us hanging out, laughing.

Piper finished her drink before the band made it back onto the stage, and I flagged down the bartender for another. When I did, she made a point to tell him to bring me a second one, too, even though I hadn’t even finished my first.

I leaned over so my mouth was near her ear. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to get me drunk.”

She tossed me a flirty, sideways glance. “What if I am?”

I grinned, my lips curving against her earlobe. Her heart fluttered in response. “Now why would you want to do that?”

She put her hand on my chest, and I fully expected her to push me away, laugh, make some sort of snarky comeback, but she didn’t do any of those things. Instead, she curled her fingers against my chest and pushed her body flush against mine. I groaned with need. If she thought for one second that I wouldn’t finish whatever she was about to start, right here in a bar room full of people, she was in for a very rude surprise.

“Because I don’t want you to hold back with me, Jax.”

Over the din of noise around us, I swore it sounded like she purred my name. Lust thickened in my veins. She coursed her hand over my shoulder and around to the back of my neck, her delicate fingers tangling in my hair, and I was totally helpless in her grasp. She could’ve pulled out a stake and plunged it straight into my heart and I wouldn’t have been able to stop her.

“What makes you think I’m holding back?” I asked.

“I saw how you acted after the bachelor party when you and Trent came home drunk. You were completely relaxed, you said whatever was on your mind. Your entire demeanor was different. You looked at me like you wanted to devour me. I want you to be that way with me tonight.”

“You realize you’re probably going to end up regretting this, right?” I set my beer on the bar.

“I doubt it.”

She started to pull away, but I yanked her back to me before she could, and then I went straight for her neck. She moaned softly. Coming here was a mistake. If we left right now, I could have her naked and in bed with me in thirty minutes flat. Twenty if I wanted to terrify her with my driving.

“I want the same from you, too, Piper. No holding back. We both put it all on the line tonight.” I kissed down the column of her neck, and she tilted her head to grant me easier access. “Think you can handle that? Or are you too scared?”

“Ask me that again in the morning. Then we’ll see which of us is still standing.” She nipped at my ear, and a deep growl rumbled from my chest, but the sound was drowned out by the band.

Piper grabbed my hand and tugged me onto the dance floor. She positioned herself in front of me, her back to my chest. I clutched her waist as she swayed her hips, her body grinding against mine. Then she lifted her arms and locked her fingers behind my head. I moved in rhythm with her, and not for the first time, I was struck by how incredibly perfect she was in my arms, how her body molded to mine like she’d been made just for me.

We danced for a solid hour, had a few more drinks, then danced some more. Several men watched her, and I shot each of them a warning look. Most of them quickly looked away, but there was one guy who clearly needed to have his eyes removed for the way he gawked at her. His aura was a sickening red, and even from across the bar I could smell the liquor and lust that clung to him. I gave him a deadly stare, then I lowered my face into the crook of Piper’s shoulder.

I left a few well-placed kisses that had her tilting her head. Then I scraped the tip of my fang down her neck, and she trembled against me. I wanted nothing more than to sink my fangs into her soft flesh, to taste her blood, to claim her as mine once and for all. The urge festered and built until I was sure I’d explode. The fact that she was rubbing her ass against my crotch wasn’t helping the situation, either. She’d been teasing me like this for too long.

From the corner of my eye, I saw one of the bartenders walk out of a small room—a supply closet. I dragged my lips up Piper’s neck. “Come with me.” I took her hand, not giving her the chance to answer.

I led her to the closet, glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then I opened the door and ushered her inside. I tugged on the rope hanging from the overhead lightbulb, and the room was cast in a dingy glow.

“Uh, what’re you doing?” She had her back pressed to the door.

I reached around her to lock the door. “You said you didn’t want me to hold back, right?” My entire body was hard and on edge. “Well, here you go, sweetheart. This is me giving in to my instincts.”

“About damn time.” A slow smile curved her lips. “Got another trick for you.” She snapped her fingers, and her clothes disappeared.

I blinked, but my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. Piper stood before me completely naked. “You really should lead with that,” I said as I stalked toward her.

She sucked in a sharp breath, and her heart raced. The smell of her blood pumping through her body at such a rapid pace had my bloodlust hitting me hard and fast. There was no stopping it, so I gave myself over to it, letting my primal desires take control. My eyes darkened, and I trailed my fingers across her breasts and down her stomach, leaving a path of goose bumps in my wake.

“You’re so beautiful.” My voice was rough with need. The urge to kiss her consumed me, and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to stop myself tonight, not when I was so deep into my bloodlust. “Turn around.”

Her gaze was questioning, but she did as I asked, slowly, almost like she wanted to taunt me until I snapped. If she only knew how close I was to the point of no return.

I stepped up behind her, took hold of her hands, and pressed her palms flat against the door. “Don’t move.” My tone left no room for argument, not like that would stop her, but for probably the first time ever, she didn’t have anything to say.

Smoothing my hands down her sides, I slid one hand around to her stomach, and then lower. I spread her lips with my fingers and teased her.

She gasped, and her head fell forward, but she kept her hands planted against the door like I’d instructed, and that small act of obedience had everything inside of me clenching and coiling. Placing my free hand over hers, I curled my fingers through hers, and she squeezed my hand like it was her anchor. I eased one, then two, fingers inside of her, and she let out a moan that I was sure could be heard over the loud music on the other side of the door.

Adjusting her footing, she parted her legs, and pushed her ass out, driving my fingers a little deeper. I snarled, my mouth crashing down on her neck. My fangs protruded. I was a prisoner to my bloodlust, my body reacting in ways I couldn’t control. With as far gone as I was, I had no business being this close to her. So many things could go wrong—I could bite her, claim her, kiss her. Hurt her.

Yet, I couldn’t physically force myself away from her, either. This was Piper, after all. The woman who held every part of me. My soulmate. The woman I’d lay down my very life for. I craved her in a way that drove me to the brink of insanity, and if I didn’t satisfy this craving, I’d have to be committed.

“Oh, God.” She panted. Her hands slid down the door, and then she clutched my wrist as if she wanted me to stop but also keep going. “Jax, please,” she begged.

“This is what you wanted, remember?” My tone was a harsh whisper at her ear. “This is the real me, Piper. No holding back.”

“Yes,” she cried out. Her body stiffened, and then she succumbed to an orgasm that tore through her so hard it nearly knocked me on my ass.

“I have never wanted anyone as much as I want you right now.” I borderline snarled the words.

Without giving her any time to react, I reached between us, deftly undid my jeans, and jerked them down far enough to be able to move. I spun her around, grabbed her ass, and lifted her. The moment she wrapped her legs around me, I pushed myself into her with a guttural groan. Her fingernails dug into my shoulders with enough force to draw blood, the metallic tang tainting the stifling air.

Her head fell back against the door with a hard thud, and she arched her back. I flicked my tongue across her nipple, and she moaned in response. My kisses against her neck and jaw were frantic and ravenous. I simply couldn’t get enough of her. No matter how deeply I was buried in her, how tightly pressed our bodies were, how firm my lips were on her skin, it wasn’t enough.

“Bite me,” she gasped.

I growled and let my fangs free, my mouth poised over her carotid artery. My vision blurred with the effort of holding back. If I bit her right now, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to stop. Not to mention, if I bit her, I’d do so with the sole intention of claiming her, and I was almost positive that’s not what she was asking me to do.

“No,” I said.

“Bite me,” she said again, this time more forcefully. Then she shoved her wrist against my mouth. “Do it.”

My eyes went completely black, my face contorted, and then I tore into her soft flesh.

She screamed only a second before trailing off into a needy moan. Her blood, so sweet and addictive, filled my mouth, coated my tongue, and slid effortlessly down my throat. Pull after pull after pull, I drank from her. Only when she started to go limp in my arms did I stop. Her hazy gaze met mine, and she licked her lips.

I kissed her wrist, then pinned her hand above her head, our fingers laced tightly together. All coherent thought fled, and I operated on pure impulse. My thrusts were purposeful. Deep and hard and merciless. She never once complained or demanded I slow down.

So, I didn’t. I pushed both of us to the edge until neither of us could hold on a second longer. We crashed over the cliff, each of us clinging to the other, panting, gasping, but sated. I dropped my head to her shoulder and just stood there for a moment, holding her. She raked her fingers through my hair, and nothing had ever felt so right.

“Two down. Three more to go,” I said around a few deep breaths.

Piper laughed, which caused me to smile, and she wrapped her arms around my neck, hugging me. “I love you, Jaxon,” she whispered and buried her face against my shoulder.

And with those four words, my world once again shifted.