Page 7 of Bound By Blood

In yet another attempt to figure this out, Landon reached down and brushed her hair out of her face once again. Unfortunately, at that moment, he heard the front door of the house open and close as the owner of the honey scent returned for the night.

Like a teenager being caught in his lover’s bedroom, Landon rushed to the closet and hid inside. The floral scent was stronger in there and assaulted his senses as he fell quiet and unmoving. A few moments later, the door opened, and another female peeked in. She had short red hair and was a tad taller than Carly. When she spotted Carly on the bed, she crossed the room with a smile on her face.

The girl gave Carly a once over and then shook her head, clearly amused by something. It suddenly hit Landon that she had just come to check on her friend and make sure she got home okay. She cared about Carly, and that was strangely endearing to him.

Just as she turned to leave though, her brows suddenly furrowed, and she bent down over Carly. She gently turned Carly’s neck to reveal the bite marks he had left just a little bit ago.

Landon stiffened within his hiding spot. He had never come across a problem like this before. While there was no way he could kill Carly for knowing about his existence, her friend, or roommate, was fair game. If she somehow figured out that the wounds had come from a vampire, he wouldn’t hesitate to strike. No matter how much it may hurt Carly for him to do so.

Thankfully, the woman just sighed heavily and shook her head once more, clearly assuming the marks were something other than what they were. She gently patted Carly’s arm before turning and finally leaving the room.

Once she was gone, Landon let out a breath and stepped back into the room. He stared at what should have been his latest victim, still puzzled by what had transpired tonight.

This had never happened to him before. It was concerning, and yet, he wasn’t scared. Landon didn’t scare easily. In fact, he couldn’t even remember the last time he had been afraid of something. However, he definitely needed answers about what was going on with him.

In order to get the answers he so desperately needed, he knew he was going to have to speak with the coven Elders. If anyone knew what happened to him tonight, it would be them. But he was going to have to find a way to do so without his father discovering what he was up to.

Drayton would not be pleased to hear that he had let a human live after he had fed from them. That wasn’t how they did things and the punishment for such things was starvation, something that Landon had only had to experience once in his long life. But that one time was all it took for him to never disobey his father again.

With one last look at the girl on the bed, Landon disappeared through the bedroom window and headed back toward his car. He didn’t like the thought of leaving her, but he knew deep down that he would see her again. And hopefully, next time, he’d be able to finish what he started and would be able to kill her. After all, he was a vampire. Killing was what they did, and they did it well.

Chapter 4

Carly Harris

Carly woke up the next morning with a pounding headache. Perhaps it was her phone’s alarm blaring next to her, or perhaps it was all the alcohol she drank last night. Either could be true.

Blindly, with her eyes still closed, she reached over and slapped her phone. It took a couple of slaps before her room grew quiet once more, and she settled back into bed. She couldn’t go back to sleep though. She had stuff to do today. Work and responsibilities that came with being employed.

It took a moment before she opened her eyes to stare at her ceiling. Even though she could tell the sun was up, she had black-out curtains that kept the shine at bay.

She wrapped a hand over her forehead. What the hell happened last night?

It came back to her slowly, her brain foggy. The memories swirled and surfaced one at a time. She remembered her friends, their jokes, and the guy she kneed in the balls. Nestling deeper into her pillow, she smiled at the last memory. She was quite fond of it.

Breathing through another pound in her head, she recalled leaving the bar. She remembered the bunny that almost scared the shit out of her, and she remembered . . . the alley.

She bolted upright in bed, ignoring the aching of her head. Her head spun with the memory coupled with the hangover. Reaching up, she cupped her neck, feeling scabs under her fingertips. Her blood had been sucked from her body by some handsome demon god. She still felt lightheaded, dizzy, as if she had given blood. She had given blood once when she was in high school, and this felt exactly like that.

Surprisingly, fear didn’t cripple her. It should have, and she knew that was fucked up, but it didn’t. He was hot. Insanely hot. She’d never seen a man more beautiful before, even if he was a freak of nature. She had this insane and irrational attraction to him. Even now, her thighs clenched. She wasn’t afraid of him, even though some fear had trickled through her body last night.

None of those feelings made sense to her, but she didn’t question them for long. She shoved the thoughts of attraction aside.

“Wait,” she whispered to the room. How did she get home? She didn’t remember the walk home. She didn’t remember the hot guy leaving her alone. The last thing she remembered was hitting her head against a brick wall when she tried to get away from him.

Did he – Did he take her home? She couldn’t decide if she liked that or not.

Flipping back the covers, she rushed into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. There were four puncture wounds and bruises from more teeth. She leaned closer, her hips digging into the vanity. The marks look like they’d been made by fangs.

She frowned at herself. Did she get attacked by a vampire? It was a sarcastic thought at first, but then her frown deepened. Was it true? Vampires were a myth. Vampires were legends meant to scare or romance a woman.

But she had the proof right there on her neck.

He had pulled away from her after his first bite, and she had watched as he seemed to struggle with himself. His fists had clenched at his sides, and his body had been coiled with restraint. But it was his eyes that told the most.

She recalled the memory perfectly. She could see the need for blood, the need to kill, the monster underneath the surface. She wasn’t a fool. She lived on the streets. She knew when someone wanted her dead.

She turned away from the mirror and leaned her rump against the vanity. She took in the bathroom, the marble floors, the walk-in shower, and the soaking tub without actually seeing them. She shook her head a little, but the image of him was burned into the back of her mind.