She didn’t argue, but Nick could sense that she didn’t quite believe him. Her confidence had taken more than one hit in the past, and he wondered what was wrong with the human males that she’d known. How had they not lost themselves in lust for her? How had they failed to be charmed by her quirky sense of humor, or awed by her bravery and loyalty?

  Or maybe that had been the problem right there. Maybe they had been all of those things and just didn’t have the balls to handle how she made them feel. In each century of his life, Nick had often seen humans run from the things they wanted most, but had never really thought of the flaw with anything more than confusion. But now… Now he felt a raw, blistering fury at their petty reactions. Those men in Lainey’s past had run because they were too afraid of looking small and weak and of not being enough for her, whereas Nick was forced to hold himself back from what he wanted most because he was terrified of taking her fucking life!

  And on that note, he knew it was time to put some more distance between them.

  Lowering his arm, he started to move back to his feet, but she chose that moment to lean over, picking up one of the bloodstained wipes that had fallen on the floor, and Nick found himself staring down at a smooth, feminine shoulder. The neckline of his shirt had slipped to the side, revealing this glimpse of her creamy flesh, and his breath seized in his lungs.

  Unable to resist, he lifted his hand…and ran two callused fingertips over that exquisitely tender skin.

  “So fucking soft,” he breathed, sounding more like he was talking to himself than to her.

  Lainey tried not to let the joy that Nick’s words gave her show, since she knew damn well it would just make the sexy vampire even more skittish around her than he already was.

  He had a wary look on his face when he finally dropped his hand and lifted his dark, smoldering gaze to hers as she straightened. But she couldn’t stop herself from asking, “If you enjoy touching me, then why the whole ‘a woman like you is not for me’ line?”

  “It’s not a line. It’s the truth.”

  “Why then?” she pressed, unwilling to let it go.

  His nostrils flared. “Because I’m a fucking vampire.”

  “And I’ve read Twilight. I—”

  “Just stop,” he growled, holding up a hand. “And. Don’t. Even. Go. There.”

  She blinked, then started to laugh. “Okay, I get it. I wasn’t trying to say that you’re some work of fiction. But if real vampires are anything like the ones in romance novels, then it’s possible for you to touch a human woman. Maybe not simple or uncomplicated…but it is possible.” With another shrug, she added, “Just look at Sookie on True Blood.”

  “Jesus Christ!” he roared, surging to his feet so quickly his chair fell over behind him. “This isn’t a fucking TV show! Open your eyes, Lainey, and use your head. I’m a vampire who’s been bitten by a bloody werewolf. Exactly how do you think this is going to play out? It’s a goddamn full moon tonight!”

  She took a moment to think about what he’d just said – or shouted, actually – and suddenly all those cryptic remarks about his brothers arriving in time started to make sense.

  “That’s what you meant last night, isn’t it? You’re worried about the full moon, aren’t you? About how it will affect you?”

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” he said in a low voice, sounding as if he was suffering the torments of the damned.

  “And you think that you will?”

  “I don’t know what to think,” he forced out through his gritted teeth, backing away from her. He didn’t stop until he came up against one of the bunker’s metal walls.

  “Explain, please.”

  He looked to the left of her as he said, “When a werewolf bites someone, its blood enters the victim’s system. Humans either change or die, but every vampire is affected differently when bitten by a wolf. They might take on all the physical attributes of the animal – or none of them. Some completely lose themselves to the wolf’s feral hungers and end up having to be destroyed. Others are capable of mastering the more aggressive hungers of the beast and accept them as a part of his or her nature. But there’s no way of knowing how a particular vampire will be affected until the first full moon after their bite.”

  “So why borrow trouble?” she murmured. “Maybe we’ll get lucky.”

  He cut her a sharp, furious look. “I’d rather not risk your life on a maybe.”

  “And what if I said that I trust you not to hurt me?”

  “Then I’d say you’re being an idiot,” he rumbled under his breath, glaring at her.

  Rolling her eyes, she drawled, “Wow, Nick. Don’t try to spare my feelings or anything.”

  “I don’t have the luxury of worrying about your fucking feelings. I’m trying to keep you alive!”

  “But I—”

  “No! Just drop it or I’m putting you back in those damn chains.”

  She huffed with frustration. “Why did you even have me in them in the first place?” she demanded. “Because you thought it’d be easier to deal with me? I’m surprised you didn’t put me in a gag as well and just leave me in here all alone, trying to pretend I don’t even exist!”

  “The gag’s not a bad idea,” he growled, looking like he could chew nails. “And I put you in those chains because I was worried you would try to attack me.”

  Confusion filled her, and she could feel a tiny notch tugging between her brows. “You can’t really think that I’d hurt you.”

  “It’s not that,” he bit out. “But I’m worried about how the wolf’s blood in my system might make me react if you were to try. I could be…violent, and end up doing something that can’t be taken back.”

  She tipped her head a bit to the side as she studied him. “But now you realize I’m not going to do anything that stupid?”

  “Who knows?” he muttered, moving around her and heading back to the table, his back to her as he started packing up the first aid kit. But even though his voice was little more than a graveled rasp, she could still make out his words as he added, “With the way things are going, there’s always the chance I’ve simply lost my goddamn mind.”

  Chapter 5

  The woman was trying to kill him. That was the only reason Nick could think of for this incessant flirting that was surely driving him mad. He didn’t believe for a second that she truly understood just how badly he craved her…or how aggressive he could be when it came to sex. An aggression he knew damn well was only going to be magnified by the werewolf blood churning through his system.

  After their argument, she’d washed his blood from her hands at the kitchen sink, while he’d put away the first aid kit. Then he’d made them a late breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast, and now, as they sat together at the table again, he found that watching her eat was more arousing than any strip show he’d ever seen in his long lifetime. She had a good appetite, and the way her full lips closed around her fork each time she took a bite made it damn difficult for him to sit still. When she nibbled on a piece of bacon, then ran her tongue over her lower lip, leaving it shiny and wet, he finally exploded with a sharp, clipped, “Stop torturing me, Lainey.”

  Looking surprised, she said, “I didn’t know that I was. I’m just eating, Nick.”

  He stifled a groan as he closed his eyes. “I can’t fuck you,” he muttered.

  “Yeah, you made that pretty clear before breakfast,” she murmured. “But… Well, if you hadn’t been bitten, I’m curious if things would have been different. I mean, if that were the case, would you have been trying to get me into bed with you while we’re stuck in here?”

  He opened his eyes again to glare at her. “No.”

  She scowled in response to his quick, gruff reply, then gave him a confused frown. “Why not, if you’re attracted to me?”

  Because even if a miracle happened and I didn’t hurt you, we’d have an even bigger problem to deal with. Because I have a strong feeling that I’d want to keep you, golden girl. But Nick didn’t say any of that out loud. He simply muttered, “Because it isn’t done.”

  “You’re telling me that even if you weren’t worried about the bite, you still wouldn’t sleep with me just because I’m human?” She sounded thoroughly insulted. “Didn’t we already establish that that wasn’t a valid excuse?”

  “What we established is that this isn’t a fucking work of fiction. I’m a danger to you in ways you can’t even imagine.”

  Pushing her empty plate to the side, she said, “Then explain it to me.”

  “For one, I have enemies,” he said in a low voice, sprawling against the back of his chair. “Ones who would be ruthless about going after any woman I was involved with. The kind of enemies who don’t have any qualms about hurting innocent people.”

  “So did my brother.”

  “Not like mine,” he snapped.

  She sent a pained look toward the door. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

  Nick cursed under his breath, knowing she had a point.

  After a minute or so of awkward silence, she finally gave up on the conversation and went into motion, busying herself cleaning up the plates, and he helped by carrying their coffee mugs into the small kitchen.

  While she washed the dishes and he wiped down the counters, Nick tried like hell to keep his eyes off the way her shapely thighs looked under the hem of his shirt. Did his best not to breathe in the mouthwatering scent of her skin and hair. But it was impossible. He might as well have tried to drink down the ocean in a single gulp. He watched her constantly from the corner of his eye, practically panting as he pulled in deep, hungry breaths. And, God, he was hard. It was a good thing she was keeping busy, because it would only take one look at him for her to know just how desperate he was to get her stripped and spread and packed full of his cock.

  When she turned her head a bit and he caught the way she was chewing on that plush lower lip, he felt like a total ass for pushing her away, but didn’t see that he had any other choice. There was no silver lining at the end of this nightmare. No magic solution that meant he could have what he craved without someone paying a price. She was hurting and worried and seeking a way to take her mind off everything that was happening to her – but he’d only make it worse by ignoring his conscience and taking what he so badly wanted.

  “Nick?” she said, glancing at him over her shoulder after she’d set the last piece of silverware in the drainer beside the sink.

  “Yeah?” he grunted, knowing he had it bad when he got on edge just from watching a woman wash dishes. He was growing increasingly restless, his heart thundering, fangs heavy in his gums, his body burning with heat. But was he being driven by the sexual needs of the vampire…or by the primitive hungers of the wolf? And how was he going to make it through this entire day without losing his goddamn mind?

  She looked away as she gave a little cough, then murmured, “I know you said we can’t have sex, but…can we at least have some fun together?”

  Fuck. She was definitely trying to kill him. If she suggested anything more intimate than a bloody board game, he was going to need to dunk himself into a tub of ice water. “Doing what?” he scraped out, forcing the words from his tight throat.

  Taking a deep breath, Lainey turned around to face him. “You said you were attracted to me.”

  “So?” he muttered aggressively, staring to the right of her. “That doesn’t mean—”

  “We don’t have to have…intercourse. We could just do other things,” she blurted, cutting him off. “You know, to…each other.”

  He went so still he didn’t even look like he was breathing, but Lainey could feel the hunger and energy pulsing beneath his skin, like an electrical current flowing from him to her. He swallowed, then locked that hot, scorching gaze with hers. “Yeah?” His voice was low…husky. “Like what?”

  She sucked in a quick breath for courage, determined not to cower like a wimp. But she could feel the heat burning in her face as she said, “You could, um, let me use my mouth on you.”

  He visibly trembled, and a low, guttural sound vibrated in the back of his throat, predatory and raw. “You want that?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?” He stalked toward her as if a powerful force was drawing them together. One he believed he should fight, but couldn’t. “Is it because you’re hurting inside? Because you think we’re going to die in here?”

  She shook her head. “No. I could use those things as an excuse, but it wouldn’t be the truth.”

  “And what’s the truth, Lainey?”

  Staring up at him, she was proud of how steady her voice sounded as she said, “The truth is that I’ve wanted you since the first second I saw you, and despite the crappy situation we’re in, I want you more with each moment that goes by. Which kinda sucks, because I know that if we make it out of this, you’re just going to walk away from me. But even so, I don’t want to regret not getting as much of you as I can, while I’ve still got the chance.”

  Nick stared down at her in shock, unable to believe the things she’d just said to him. He’d never known a woman – or man – who was so open and honest about their feelings. So courageous and full of life. And when she reached out and pressed her palm against his bare abs, that was it. He couldn’t have kept himself back from her then even if the fate of the entire fucking world hung in the balance.

  Growling every dirty swear word he knew inside his mind, his Spanish and English all garbled together, he grabbed the front of Lainey’s borrowed shirt and ripped until its buttons were pinging off the cabinets. Then he yanked the ruined shirt off her shoulders, letting it slither to the floor, leaving her in nothing but the tight black boxers. She immediately raised her arms, trying to cover her naked breasts, her cheeks pink with embarrassment.

  Breathing hard, he said, “Lower your arms, baby, and let me look at you.”

  She licked her bottom lip, her precious face bright with color. “Can’t we turn down the lights a bit first?”

  “Hell no,” he husked. “I want to be able to see every inch of you. You’re fucking gorgeous.”

  “Hardly,” she said with a tense laugh, running her hungry gaze down the front of his body. When it landed on the distinctive bulge of his hard-on, the buttons on his fly straining to the point he was surprised they hadn’t burst open, those pretty brown eyes of hers shot wide with shock.

  “You see what you do to me?” he growled, flexing his hands at his sides, shaking from the effort of holding himself back. “You think I get this bloody hard for just anyone?”

  “I…um—”

  “I don’t.” Unable to stop himself, Nick reached out and ran two fingertips along one of her trembling forearms. When she looked him in the eye again, he said, “You started this, Lainey. So you had better be damn sure before we go any further, because I’m not going to let you hide that incredible body from me. I’ve been dying to get you naked and wet and under me from the moment you hit town.”

  “I’m… I’m not hiding,” she whispered.

  “Do you still want me?”

  “God, yes. I want you more than…” Something soft and vulnerable spilled through her gaze, and he could see her slender throat work as she swallowed. “Just trust me when I say that I want you a lot, Nick.”

  Curling his fingers around each of her wrists, he pulled them away from her shoulders, uncrossing her arms. “Then get your nipples wet for me,” he told her, letting go of her wrists.

  “W-with what?”

  Nick lifted his greedy gaze from her beautiful breasts and slid her a slow, sin-tipped smile. “What do you think?”

  Her breath quickened, and she gave another nervous swallow, but couldn’t seem to find her voice. It was such a fascinating contradiction, the way she could be so bold and determined one minute, then turn shy and uncertain the next. It was also a huge turn-on for him, which wasn’t helping the situation, seeing as how he was already hotter for her than he’d ever been for another woman.

  Lowering his gaze again, Nick stared at the bounty before him the way a starving man might stare at a feast. “Your breasts are fucking perfect, Lainey. But I want to be able to eat your taste off them, so make them slick for me. Right now.”

  “Like this?” she whispered, finally slipping her hand into the front of the boxer shorts.

  “Yeah.” His nostrils flared as he watched her touch herself, his jaw clenched so tight he could feel a muscle pulsing beneath his skin. “You know what to do.”

  She shivered as she pulled her hand from beneath the waistband, her slender fingers glistening. Being as tall as he was, Nick caught a glimpse of pale gold ringlets before the elastic band snapped back into place, a low growl rumbling in his throat as he watched her touch those trembling fingertips to a tight, candy-pink nipple.

  “And the other one,” he ground out, leaning forward and caging her in with his body as he braced his hands on the counter behind her.

  Still shivering, she painted the other nipple until it was shiny and wet, and his mouth started watering. She was panting harder now, her lush breasts quivering with each shallow breath, the sight and scent of her juices on those pink little nipples making him burn with a savage, visceral hunger.

  “More,” he growled. “I want them wetter.”

  A mischievous glint sparked in her eyes as she glanced up at him. “You like being bossy when it comes to sex, don’t you?”

  Nick smirked. “I’m a vampire, Miss Maxwell. I like being bossy in all things.” Snagging her wrist, he lifted her hand up to his mouth. “But I’m getting a unique kind of pleasure out of being bossy with you,” he drawled, loving the way her scent filled his head. “Guess that means you bring out the worst in me.”

  “Or the b-best,” she stammered breathlessly, when he sucked those glistening fingers into his mouth and cleaned them with his tongue. Her taste blasted against his senses with more force than he’d expected, making him groan, a surge of foreign thoughts and emotions instantly flooding through his mind. They should have worried the hell out of him, but Nick was too lost in her to care, his body throbbing with the need to claim her as something that would belong to him – and only to him – forever.