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He drew in a deep breath. “I’m still the same person. Just a little older.”
She touched a few scars across his shoulder blades. “I healed these first.” She moved her hand up the back of his neck to his head, then her fingers delved through his wet hair to stroke his scalp. “You had a nasty cut here. Swollen and bleeding. It was the blow that knocked you unconscious.”
He closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of her fingers.
Her hand skimmed down his neck to the red scar that marred his back. “I was afraid to touch this. I knew it would hurt something fierce.”
“But you did. You saved me.”
“I have been dreaming about that day since the first night we met in the woods. Somehow, deep inside, I knew that it was you.”
He turned slowly. “Then I am the man of your dreams.”
She hiccoughed. “Or a nightmare.”
He plucked a wildflower from her hair. “I would never harm you.”
“You are hurting me. You’re making my heart ache.”
“Sweetheart.” He dragged the flower down her cheek. “It doesn’t need to hurt. If you’ll accept me for what I am—”
“You’re a vampire.”
“Who loves you.” He kissed her brow.
“You shouldn’t say that.”
“But it’s true.” He kissed her nose.
“Why are you kissing me?”
“Because I love you.” He brushed his lips against hers. “We were meant for each other from the beginning.”
She shook her head. “I’m afraid you’ll bite me.”
“I’ve kissed you before without biting you.” He nuzzled her neck. “I’ve nibbled your neck without biting you.” He palmed her breast. “I’ve kissed your br**sts without biting you.”
She moaned and gave him a sleepy-eyed look. Then she flinched and jumped back. “Your eyes are turning red!”
“It only means that I want you—”
“No!” She grabbed the knife off the floor where it had fallen earlier. “My mind is made up, and I will not be swayed.” She pointed the knife at him. “I will not fornicate with you.”
He raised his eyebrows. “That’s good. Because I’d much rather make love.”
“That’s even worse!” She motioned with the knife. “Go to bed.”
“Come with me.”
“No! That is your bed. This one is mine.” She scrambled onto the other bed, then settled against the wall with her legs drawn up and her knees bent. She hugged her knees with one hand and pointed the knife at him with the other.
With a sigh, he sat on the edge of the other bed. “You don’t need the knife, Neona. I understand the word no.”
She frowned, flexing her hand around the knife handle. “I’ve never had to spend the night alone with a vampire.”
“I’m not going to hurt you.” He moved the black box from the bed to the bedside table. It didn’t look like he’d be proposing tonight.
“What is in the box?”
“I’ll show you later.”
She yawned.
“You’re used to sleeping at night, aren’t you? You can sleep if you want.”
“I have to keep an eye on you.”
He snorted. “You think I’m going to fly across the room and attack you?”
“Isn’t that how you became a vampire? Didn’t another one attack you?”
He sighed. “Sometimes that happens. In my case, I asked for it.”
Her eyes widened with shock. “Why would you do that?”
“I lost my brother and parents within a week. I was fourteen, and suddenly I was a count, responsible for a destroyed castle and a burned village. The only friend I had left was an old vampire. Istvan. He gave me advice and money so I could rebuild the castle and village. He helped me defeat the Mongols when they invaded a second time. And he watched over my domain when I would go searching for answers.”
“He was a good friend,” Neona whispered.
Zoltan nodded. “My best friend. And a second father to me. I had the arrow that killed my real father, and I would spend every summer hunting for those who had murdered him and destroyed my village.”
Neona winced. “I’m not sure who killed your father.”
“I know.” He smiled at her. “You were with me, healing me. But still, I wanted answers, and I wouldn’t give up.”
Her eyes softened. “You were always stubborn.”
“Yes. When I turned twenty-nine, I became worried that I would grow too old or infirm to continue the search, so I asked Istvan to transform me. And he did. He said something about my mother having an ancient soul, and that he’d always known I was destined for the same fate. It didn’t make any sense to me at the time, but it does now.”
“What happened to Istvan?”
“He died in the Great Vampire War of 1710.”
She blinked. “There was a vampire war?”
“Yes.” His mouth curled up. “Don’t worry, the good guys won.”
“But you lost your best friend. It must have been lonely for you.”
“Not anymore.” He smiled. “Now I’ve found you.”
She frowned. “Don’t smile at me. It makes me feel strange.”
His smile widened.
She bit her lip. “So there really are good vampires who fight the bad ones?”
He nodded. “We’ve been fighting them for centuries. Lately, we’ve been fighting Master Han and his vampire lords. You met Russell. He’s more determined than anyone to kill Master Han.”
“You know Russell?”
“Yes. He drops by my castle twice a month for a supply of blood and weapons. It was your arrow in his quiver that caused me to come looking for you that first night.”
“Oh.” She made a face. “I asked Russell to use it to kill Liao. He’s the monster who killed my sister.”
“We’ll get him. We’ve already killed the other two lords. And we got rid of the demon Darafer.”
She winced. “There was a demon?”
“Yes. Don’t worry. We’ll defeat Lord Liao and Master Han. You can trust us.” Zoltan felt the pull of the upcoming sunrise. He stood and dropped his jeans.
She stiffened. “What are you doing?”
“The sun will rise soon.” He tossed the jeans on top of the wooden chest. “I’m making myself comfortable.” He stretched out on the bed and tugged the sheet up to his hips, even with the band of his black boxer briefs.
“You’re going to fall asleep?”
“Death-sleep.” He rolled onto his side to look at her. “I’ll be completely vulnerable. I’m trusting you to keep me safe.”
She studied him, searching his eyes. “Why do you trust me?”
“You’ve saved me twice. I don’t figure you would let me die now.”
“What do you mean by death-sleep?”
“I’ll be dead. Then I wake up right after sunset.”
“How can you wake from the dead?”
“I’m not sure. I’m just damned grateful that it keeps happening.”
She frowned. “Does it hurt? When you die?”
“A little,” he lied. Then he sat up with alarm. “If I look like I’m in pain going into my death-sleep, do not touch me. Do you understand? It’s the pain of death, and if you take that upon yourself, you would probably die.”
Her face paled and she nodded.
He lay back down as another tug pulled at his senses. “Why the no fornication rule?”
“Isn’t it obvious? They’ll kill you as soon as I’m pregnant. So the best way to keep you alive is to make sure that I never get pregnant.”
“So you’re rejecting me because you care about me.”
“I don’t want you to be killed because of me.” She hugged her knees. “And I don’t trust you. I saw how your fangs sprang out in a moment of intense pain. They might do it again if you feel . . . intense pleasure.”
“You think I’ll bite you while I’m climaxing?”
“Yes.” Her cheeks turned pink as she gave him a wary look. “Does that usually happen?”
He yawned. “I can control it.”
