Page 98 of Midnight Kiss
And now, my life was no longer my life. A part of me had always wanted more. It was the reason I’d started writing vampire romances in the first place, but this was next level.
Alex parked his fancy black sports car outside my old apartment building. He held out a hand to indicate I should stay put, then got out and stood on the sidewalk for a moment, scanning the night sky.
My pulse raced.
Alex turned and beckoned for me to follow him inside, and I did, hurrying after him.
We entered my apartment, and Alex surrounded it with vampire magic. The kitchen was just the same, everything in its place, and it made this even harder.
“Morgan?” I called out. “Morgan, are you home?”
But her room was empty, as was the bathroom. My bedroom was untouched. The vampires hadn’t gotten what they wanted and left everything else.
“Do you think she’s okay?” I asked Alex. “Morgan, I mean. You don’t think they’d go after her, do you?”
Alex hesitated.
“If there’s even a chance they’ll hurt her, I can’t just leave.”
“You don’t have a choice,” he said, brushing the hair back from my face.
My skin tingled at his soft touch. “Alex, there’s so much we need to talk about.”
“There’s no time to talk,” he murmured, drawing closer to me.
“I want you to bond me.”
He froze, his fiery, golden gaze biting into mine. “You know I can’t do that.”
“I don’t know that. I know you won’t do that. And I want to know why. Why won’t you give me what I want? I want to be safe and free of the book’s curse.”
“Because that would mean you’re bound to me. I’ve been bound my whole life, Emily. If we’re going to be together, I want it to be because we choose it, not because we’re forced to be that way.”
“But if you don’t bind me, someone else will,” I said. “Isn’t that true? They won’t stop until they’ve found me, and you’ll be able to protect me if we’re bound.”
“It will make me weaker.”
“It will make us stronger too,” I said. “I know what’s going on, Alex. I read the book, remember?” I didn’t want to tell him about the visions. Or about the ruby necklace just yet. I needed to know that Alex trusted me fully. How could he when we weren’t bound? And how could I trust him?
Saying we loved each other was one thing, but actually trusting and building something together?
“Emily,” he said, and pressed his lips to mine.
My eyelashes fluttered, and I melted against his chest. The touch was perfect. Divine. It lit me up from the inside again, and I moaned into his mouth.
His tongue brushed over mine as he deepened the kiss, and I lost my breath, already panting.
Alex’s fangs grazed my bottom lip, and I cried out.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his gaze flicking from side to side as he took me in. “Did I hurt you?”
“No,” I said, “it feels amazing, Alex.”
“Hmm.”
“I wish you would bite me,” I said.
“Bite you,” he growled, and traced kisses across my cheek and down my throat. “Now, if I had to do that, Emily, we’d be in real trouble.”