Free Smoldering Nights by Lisa Carlisle

ran to the store to pick up a few things.”
    “How long was I asleep for?”
    “Come. Let’s sit on the couch.”
    He took my hand and led me to the living room. When we sat on the couch, he pulled me closer to him and I rested my head against his chest.
    “You’ve been out almost twenty-four hours,” he said. “It’s been rough.”
    “How so?”
    “The first several hours, you were breathing so erratically. I didn’t know what was happening to you. Were you dying? Were you changing? Or were you just recovering from a traumatic experience? It was brutal to see you like that and be helpless to do anything about it. I held your hand and hoped. And waited.
    “Around dawn, your breathing evened out and slowed down. Whatever was happening to you seemed to be settled down. Then you drifted into a deep sleep. I waited until I was sure you were out of danger and then held you in my arms and went to sleep with you. At sunset, I woke up, but you were still sleeping peacefully. So I went to pick up a few things in case we’d be here for a while longer for you to recover.”
    “So am I out of danger?”
    “I think so.”
    “Am I still me?”
    “Of course.”
    “I mean—have I changed at all?”
    “I don’t know. How do you feel?”
    I gauged how I felt once again. My body felt strong, not weakened by all that had happened.
    “I don’t feel a thirst for blood, if that’s what you mean. But my wounds—they all healed so quickly. Overnight.”
    “I don’t know what that means,” Michel said. “I don’t know how the blood loss and then taking my blood will affect you.”
    I took a sip of coffee to see if it tasted different. The hot liquid rolled over my tongue feeling almost magical and reminded me of how Michel’s blood rolled over my tongue. Did it taste different or was it just the wonders of coffee after a traumatic experience?
    Michel said, “What I do know is over the last few days, I have fallen deeply for you. I wish you’d never walked in the club that night so you wouldn’t have been involved in any of this danger. But that thought almost kills me. I want you with me. It may be selfish, but that’s how I feel.”
    He put a hand over mine. “When I thought I’d lose you, it almost drove me to madness. So I’m racked with guilt. I want you to be safe and happy and yet I want so much for you to be with me, even if it’s dangerous.”
    I looked at his tormented face and wanted to reach out to him. “I don’t understand everything that’s happened. But what I know is that I’ve felt more alive in the last few days than I ever have. And I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. Everything else—it seems just like a game. Like it was pretend and we’re real.”
    So much had happened so quickly it was hard to understand. But my feelings were much clearer. “I didn’t know supernatural things even existed before that night. I’ve seen a lot and I’m still trying to process it all. I don’t know what’s happening to me and I don’t care what you are. All I know is I want to be with you.”
    He caressed my cheek and kissed me softly on the lips. “Then we’ll go through this together?”
    I looked into his eyes, at his lips. “Whatever happens. Yes, together.”
    Our lips met with a yearning. Soft touching gave way to a more urgent union between our lips and tongues. My hands explored his chest while his roamed down my breasts and sides. He lifted me and grabbed my ass over my robe with both hands, positioning me over his hips.
    My robe slipped open beneath the waist as I lowered myself onto his lap. He was already growing hard beneath me.
    “Ohhh,” I moaned softly.
    “Yeah. That feels good,” he replied.
    As we kissed, I moved my hips down, feeling more of his cock rub against me. He moaned this time. I worked myself up and down his shaft slowly, savoring the sensation of the growing heat between us.
    “Are you all right, Nike? We shouldn’t rush anything if you need