Aiden’s arms vibrated with tension as hisgaze fell to her mouth before drifting to her neck. The red of hiseyes intensified.
“Maggie!” Ethan shouted.
“I’m… I’m fine!” she called back as Aiden’seyes returned to hers. “Leave us be!”
Maggie bit her lip as she waited for them tocontinue trying to get in, but she heard nothing, and no one shovedon the door. Aiden continued to stare at her until Maggie wonderedif he didn’t recognize her. Then, he removed one arm from the doorto stroke her cheek with his knuckles.
“Maggie,” he breathed.
“Yes, it’s… it’s me.”
“Why did you come here?” he demanded in avoice she barely recognized.
“For you.”
Before he could reply, she slid her handaround the back of his head and rose onto her toes. She might beabout to kiss a live wire, might be about to pay the price fordoing something so stupid, but she sensed he needed contact withher if she were going to get through to him.
When she ran her tongue over his mouth, shelicked away the trickles of blood beading his lower lip. Heremained unyielding against her as she tasted him. The longer heremained unmoving, the more apprehensive she became that she’d cometoo late, he was too far gone, and he would kill her. However,while she lived, she wouldn’t give up on him.
“I came for you,” she whispered against hismouth.
She felt it when something within him brokeand he lost control. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he liftedher against his chest. Maggie draped her arms over his shoulders ashe gripped her hair and pulled her head back to deepen herkiss.
His beard abraded her skin, and she shovedher apprehension aside when his fangs pricked her bottom lip. Shedidn’t try to fight him. He needed her, and she trusted him to keepher safe. When his fangs pricked her lip again, and he consumedmore of her blood, he shuddered against her.
“Maggie,” he breathed.
A part of him believed he’d hallucinated heroutside his cell, but as the scent of her engulfed him and the heatof her body warmed his, he became increasingly convinced she wasreal. Then, her blood hit his tongue, and some of his madnessebbed. Only Maggie could taste so good.
“I came for you.”Her words replayedin his mind as her fingers dug into his shoulders and she groundagainst his swelling cock. The rare times he’d slept since cominghere, dreams of her had haunted him, and he’d woken with an achingneed his hand failed to satisfy. Now that need tripled until hisdick throbbed painfully.
He broke the kiss and lifted his head tolook down at her. Heavy lidded, her eyes were dazed with passion,her mouth swollen from his kiss and stained a deeper red from herblood and his. He’d never seen anything as beautiful or amazing asher.
Aiden’s eye flashed from red to green andback again as he struggled to regain complete control. She cuppedhis cheeks in her hands and drew him down for another kiss. Hishands twisted in her sweater, and material shredded as he rippedthe front of it open from her neck to her belly button.
Surprise crossed his face, and he pulled hishands away from her as he stepped back. Maggie held onto him. Shewas certain she could bring him back from the edge, but if she letgo of him now and allowed him to retreat, she feared she’d lose himforever.
And she also held on for herself too. Forthe first time in weeks, she didn’t feel like shredding her skinoff, she felt at ease, and she almost sobbed with the joy ofit.
“No,” she said when he dropped his hands toher waist and started to pull her away from him.
“Can’t. Too out of control,” he grated.
She sensed his mounting confusion. “No,you’re not.” She ran her lips over his cheek and down to his neck.“I trust you.”
When her hands slid over his shoulderblades, his muscles flexed beneath her touch, and his handstightened on her waist. He could pull her off him, but he didn’t.Her fingertips traced his shoulders before she ran them down hischest to his waist.
“I trust you,” she murmured as she ran hertongue over his ear and slid her hand down between their bodies togrip his erection.
His cock was stiff and hot in her hand, yetsoft against her palm. She ran a finger over the thick vein on theside of it before running her thumb over his silken head to spreadthe bead of precum forming there. The familiar feel of him createda pleasant ache between her thighs and she grew increasingly wetfor him.
His head fell to her shoulder; he inhaled aragged breath as he gazed at her belly. He’d torn the front of hersweater open, but she still wore her bra, and the sleeves remainedon her arms. Unable to resist touching her, he glided his knucklesover her stomach before flattening his hand on her hip. His fangsscraped her neck, over her vein, but he didn’t sink them intoher.
“I need you too, so badly,” shebreathed.
He lifted her off him so fast she didn’tregister the movement until she was on her feet. Her breath caught,but she didn’t have time to process what was going on before he wasundoing her jeans and pushing them down her legs. Maggie kicked offher sneakers as he tugged her jeans off and tossed them aside.
His eyes were still a volatile shade of redwhen they met hers again, but the fury had ebbed from him. Therewould be no going back after this, no changing her mind, no keepingher mortality. She’d known that when she walked out of herapartment with Ethan.
