Free Vampire Betrayed (Vampires Destined) by Rachel Carrington Page A

live as a vampire,” she announced in a haughty voice designed to let him know she meant business.
    He tucked that same strand of hair behind her ear. “And what makes you think you’ve been living any differently since Charon came into your life?” He licked her cheek, leaving behind a warm swath of wetness quickly cooled by the night air.
    “You’re mad.” Her eyes widened, and she pushed against his chest, an ineffectual attempt at freedom.
    Fingertips traced her jaw line before traipsing down to the vee of her shirt. “I wonder if your body still craves mine. Will it still hum beneath my touch?”
    She smacked his hand away. “Now I know you’re crazy. I’m not having sex with you.”
    His eyebrow lifted. “No?” He tipped her chin up and nibbled the length of her neck. “Would you really deny yourself that which you desire the most?”
    Ariana couldn’t breathe, could barely move, and when Joaquin pulled her into his arms, she knew she was lost. She’d fought for so long, trying to avoid the emotions battering her soul. Resisting him now seemed laughable. Even a vampire knew how much her body betrayed her.
    The will draining out of her body, she tipped her head back, her eyes meeting his with both a demand and a challenge. “Do you really want the one woman who wants you dead more than most?”
    Joaquin’s fingers fisted in her hair. “Don’t be ridiculous, Ariana. You’re not my greatest enemy, but you are my biggest curse.” Pushing her back against the wall, he captured her face in his hands and fused his lips to hers. 
    * * * *
    Charon’s heart burned within her breast. “Stupid, stupid fool!” she screamed into the darkness. “You would fail me now after everything I’ve done for you!”
    The birds of the forest scattered at her rage as she whirled her long robe in a vicious circle, the ray of light from her eyes glowing like hot beacons. “I will take you apart myself if I must, Joaquin Shepherd, but you will die this day, no matter who does the killing.” She rubbed her temples, willing the throbbing away.
    “I cannot fail. Don’t you understand that, Ariana? Joaquin cannot live.” Her shoulders slumped, she surveyed the couple with a keen eye. Did the girl even know what she had given up with the failure of this one mission? “Ariana, you could have been so powerful. I would have given you the world as my assistant.” Her head drooped. “Now you, too, must die.”
    As she spoke the words, Charon felt defeated. She’d grown to care for Ariana in her own way, but the girl had obviously made her choice.
     

 
    Chapter Six
     
    Joaquin read the challenge in those deep, violet eyes and felt the softness of her skin beneath his palms. In that instant, he was lost. He couldn’t take her life any more than she could take his. Would they be forever doomed then to loathe each other’s existence and remember the moments they’d shared?
    Much more than emotion wouldn’t allow him to kill Ariana. He couldn’t imagine knowing she was no more, that he’d been the one to extinguish her life. Everything about her was sheer perfection, and he could no more keep himself from touching her now than he could dislike the taste of blood flowing over his tongue. He cupped her face and traced the fullness of her lips with his thumb.
    “You’re as beautiful as I remember,” he whispered into her hair, the vibrant scent enveloping him.
    Her hands clutched at his wrists. “Joaquin.” He heard the hesitancy in her voice, and it heated his blood.
    He sifted his fingers through the silky length of her blonde hair and brought it close to his nose. It tickled his upper lip, and his body reacted in the most primal way. “I think about you day and night. You’re a constant craving, burning within my soul. Tell me you haven’t thought about me just as much. Tell me that’s not desire I see in your eyes.” He pressed the lower half of his body against her thigh.
    She closed her eyes.