Free Forever Black (Nightwalkers 2) by H.N. Sieverding

how
hurtful your words have been. The devil …"
The next words dripped off his lips like thick drops of blood, a snarl to his
voice that was mimicked by his curled lip, "The man who has held vigil for
you for hundreds of years…waiting an eternity for you to be reborn."
    An angry huff of air escaped his nostrils. "So that I
can look into your eyes instead of your sleeping form in my catacombs. I have
done terrible things, and I am not a good man, but I have never hurt you. None
of the things you have written about me are true. You loved me. How can you
betray me? Sleeping with that boy and calling him your prince?"
    She tried to open her eyes, but they wouldn't budge. Her
words came out breathless, "I don't remember you. I'm…sorry."
    "Then, let me show you." He laid his hands over
her eyelids.
    When she opened them, she was trapped in a vision that the
Count's magic had created. Standing at the foot of the stairs, she peered down
at a party below. It was cold where she stood, far from the warm reaches of the
fire. But she didn't want to move. Her long, black hair fell down one of her
shoulders in a thick curl, a giant silver comb in the back of her ponytail that
fanned out like a halo.
    " ’Tis cold in the
shadows." The Count appeared behind her, and his hand slipped around her
waist.
    She turned to him slowly. A loving smile filled out her lips
as she gazed into his handsome face. His eyes sparkled with a yellowish light,
his suit black with a tuff of red popping out the collar.
    "No." Her words were low and sweet. " ’Tis cold outside your arms. When I know what lies in the
shadows, I shall never fear the dark."
    "You are the beacon that lights the darkness that
envelopes me." He chuckled as his wolf-like eyes captured hers. His
whitish blond hair was slicked back into a long ponytail. "Even as a dark
queen, you still possess the softness of an angel's wings. I could never fully
taint you, yet you choose to wallow in the thick sins of the devil. Such a man
as I am undeserving of such a coveted lady."
    "Drake…" Her hand reached up to his face. Her soft
fingers barely kissed the surface of his skin. "Do not try and sway me
with your loving words." A small laugh escaped her lips. "Where have
you been? I have waited centuries for you to find me."
    "This shall make you grateful for the gift of endless
time I have blessed you with." He leaned his head closer to her neck and
planted a few kisses behind her ear. They were tense, as if he was holding back
the need to devour her.
    Her words were a soft whisper, "Forever would be
torture, if it meant missing a single day spent in your arms." Though they
were speaking in a foreign tongue, Ashleigh could understand their every word.
"And your kiss…the amazing kiss that only my love can produce. Taste
me." Her head was thrown back as she took in the pleasure of his lips.
    Closing her eyes, her words were breathless, "I want
nothing more than to be captured on your tongue, my blood becoming part of
you." Her hands moved leisurely up and down his back, her light touch
barely kissing the surface of his coat. "You tease, my love."
    "Do you not wish to feed first?" He pointed to the
crowd below. "Choose your fountain, and I shall tap it."
    "I love you, Drake." Her hand took his. Her
movements were so light and airy, it was as if she floated on air.
    Ashleigh focused on the Count's face as his loving
expression disappeared and was replaced by a mere cloud of white. Her world was
coming back again, as was that deep, panging hunger in her chest. She let out a
pained groan. Closing her eyes tightly, she grabbed the first thing near her,
the Count's hand.
    "I'm so afraid." Tears escaped the dam of her
tightly closed lids. A severe dizziness occupied her head, a thick blackness
creeping ever closer. The feeling of losing consciousness terrified her.
"Are you…going to let me…die?"
    His voice was firm, hurt underlying his deep tone,
"Apologize."
    "I can't." She squeezed his hand, but her