Page 28 of You Only Die Twice

But there’s no time.

The pains in my chest grow stronger, bursting through me like lightning bolts. The pain starts at the center of my chest and sparks outwards until my hands and feet are tingling. I can’t let this pissant a vampire know that something is wrong. If it is indeed Luka, I don’t need him panicking. “Where are they?” I snarl at him, my cock jutting up as he trembles under my ire.

“Master Luka said they were going to the playroom. I assume you know what that means.”

I drop him back down and whirl about, heading in the opposite direction. The vampire behind me audibly sighs in relief as I leave, and my lips curl up into a feral smirk. This is what true power feels like. The twists and turns of this godforsaken castle slow me down, keeping me from the only two people I care about.

Anger ripples along my spine as I take yet another turn. What in the hell was he thinking? She was perfectly safe up there. If he wanted to move her, why didn’t he tell me himself?

My brain goes a mile a minute as it conjures up worst-case scenarios only to shove them to the side as quickly as they come up. I shouldn’t think these things about him. Not when he can hear every damned thought, and certainly not with my Katrina in his clutches.

There is no logical sense for him to bring her down here, and I can’t think of any reason that justifies it. The only thing that latches on is the idea that they were forced to retreat. As strong as Luka is, I’m sure Katrina would hinder him if he had to fight people off.

When I reach the entrance, I shove open the door, my body on high alert, ready to fight whoever was a threat to my mate and lover. Growl on my lips, I storm in, pausing as I watch Luka drag his fingers through Katrina’s hair with such tenderness that it makes me catch my breath.

He glances up, a smirk lifting his lips. “I was wondering when you’d be down here.” Katrina moans and twists about, the sheets sliding down her supple body. “It freaked me out the first time too. Don’t worry. You will always know when your progeny is being born. The moment they begin to turn, you will feel it in your body, just as I felt you.”

Absently I rub my breastbone as I sink to my knees beside them, relief flowing through my veins. Now that I have my family, the thought of losing them is more terrifying than I originally allowed myself to think. “You feel her too?”

Luka nods, that soft smile easing once more across his face. It’s breathtaking. He looks so kind, so…sexy. It’s the only word that comes to mind. With his features softened like this, he looks approachable, more like a lover as opposed to an enemy with benefits.

His jaw is slack, the permanent lines etched in his forehead diminished, the tranquility making him look younger somehow. For a moment, the phantom heart in my chest thumps, as if begging me to fall for him all over again. I’ve never seen this look, and I so desperately want to see it more often.

“I know the turn of your thoughts, Jackson. Do not be fooled. I’m still the monster in your bed. Because I chose to celebrate adding yet another to my ranks by exhibiting a moment of what you might consider weakness doesn’t mean I’m still not the hardened animal that will bend you to my will and fuck you until you have difficulty walking the next day.”

My cock jerks in my pants at his words. Like Pavlov’s dog salivating for that treat, I want Luka’s cock in me, filling me, consuming me. He smirks again before turning back to Katrina. “It will get easier the more you do it,” he continues, shooting me a dark gaze. “Not that I’ll allow you to turn many others. I want to keep a tight rein on how often we procreate. I will not let Russia fall because an underling of mine cannot keep their fangs to themselves. My punishments will be swift if you ever turn someone without my permission.”

I glance down at Katrina, my own hard heart softening at the weak, distressing noises coming from her throat. Now that I have her, I can’t imagine needing anyone else. As sappy as it sounds, she completes us. She’s the missing puzzle piece to our demented triad, the soft, rounded corners to our hard, jagged edges.

“Is she going to be okay?”

Luka snorts and turns to me, his lips pressed together as if to stifle a laugh. “Did you get soft in your old age? She’s fine. Trust me, the death of an underling feels nothing like this. It’s an explosion of pain and then nothing. It’s a black hole where a being once resided. What you’re feeling now is more like birthing pains. It’s the issuing forth of life.”

“Did it hurt when Gloria died?”

His lips curl up into a silent snarl. “The pleasure of taking her life far outweighed any agony. Besides, when you live to be as old as I am, having those under you die isn’t anything new. So many souls reside in my body that if one were to go missing, it’s no big loss. I have my favorites, of course, and those, I imagine, would actually make a difference to me if they were to go away.”

I wonder if I’m one of those favorites. Until Luka, I didn’t really care what anyone thought. It was me against the world. When I gave Gloria my heart, she was the first one. After her death…. I just couldn’t allow anyone else in like that.

Your inner musings are both amusing and annoying. You wouldn’t be here next to me, welcoming Katrina into our world if you weren’t at least in my top ten.

Glancing over at Luka, I note the smile pulling at his lips even as he looks down at Katrina. Somehow, it’s still not enough. For some reason, I need to know this isn’t one-sided. I’ve changed my entire life, hell, my entire sexuality for this man, only to have him acknowledge that I was in the top ten. It’s not good enough. I take a step forward, my mouth opening to demand an answer when he finally tears his gaze away from Katrina.

“You will stand down, boy,” he snarls, rising from her side. “Do not make me demonstrate the power I wield over you. I hear your thoughts. I know what you think you need. I know what you want. I’m not romantic. I don’t do kindness. You want flowers from your lover, then go fuck another man. I am not the one. What I can give you is my word that I will own you and protect you until the day you die, if that day ever comes. You would be the biggest black hole in my life, second only to Katrina. Does that answer your fucking question?”

In a stride or two, he storms over to me, grabbing me by the back of the neck to yank me to him. His lips crash against mine, and we devour each other. Though he never said the words, I realize I no longer need them. He said enough. In his own way, he loves me, even if he can never say it.

He may casually toss about the idea of me fucking another guy, but the possession of his touch, the raw, primal way he holds me against his body, tells me a different story. Just like I would kill any man that thought of pleasuring Katrina, I have no doubt Luka would hand another man by his entrails if he showed even the slightest interest in me.

Luka’s hand skims down to wrap around my cock, the grip bordering on painful. Groaning, I wrap my hands around his back, scoring my nails down the pale skin. He hisses but allows me to inflict my temporary branding on him, a pale shadow of the brand he has on my heart and soul.

Deep inside, I feel the shift in Katrina. The pain morphs into something else - a tether almost. Instead of just pain, there’s something else tying her to me. Luka pulls back, his eyes searing into mine as we let the sensation overwhelm us. Her body bows up as pained wails come out of her.

Luka must see the worried look that crossed my face because he leans in, his lips skimming mine in the most tender kiss he’s given me. “Shall we bring our girl into our world together?

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Katrina