Page 15 of The Darkest Chase
Vaguely, I know what he’s doing.
He gave me a few pumps off my inhaler, but it takes a few minutes for the prednisone to really hit, and those excruciating minutes can be life or death.
That’s why he’s sharing his breath.
A taste of his life, helping me hold on to mine.
But my drowning mind remembers something else, too.
A teenage fantasy. Dark dreams I’d never tell anyone about when they’d just laugh at me for being so excited by a pale, inhumanly beautiful man with a dangerous mouth and eyes drawn like swords.
Christian Dracul.
…okay. Yes. I was one of those freaks growing up.
Totally vampire-obsessed, and the movie version of Christian could curl my toes with the thought of his lips at my throat, so hungry and seductive.
…and it’s not so different from what’s happening now, is it?
That’s what a vampire man does.
He gives you a piece of himself to make you like him.
He brings you back from the dead, sharing his blood like Officer Ainsley shares his breath now.
I’m trapped in the most surreal place right now.
I should be panicking. My chest caving in. The pain stitching up my lungs until I pass out.
I know this feeling all too well.
Instead, I feel like I’m dreaming.
I must be when all I can feel is this slow, molten warmth as the tightness in my chest slowly eases. It feels like escaping a giant’s fist.
His mouth burns so hot against mine. I taste a hint of coffee and something stark and creamy-minty every time he exhales.
His touch feels far too warm for the undead, too.
The graze of his teeth teases my lips.
That’s why I think I’m dreaming.
Because I swear his teeth feel sharper than any man’s have a right to be.
My heart rabbits, but not because of the asthma attack anymore. Because right now, I am so confused.
The logical explanation for what just happened battles the weird fantasy devouring me and making me wonder if this is all a grand delusion from my oxygen-starved brain.
But his eyes are too real. They never leave mine.
That pale, stark color completely swallows my world.
I don’t even remember why I had an asthma attack.
But suddenly, it’s over.
Suddenly, Officer Ainsley leans away from me and I’m looking up at him through a haze of tears while the sun forms a burning halo behind his head.