Free Bound by Blood: Two Novellas of Paranormal Romance by Sarah Bella Page A

potential down.
    Of course, none of that would matter if she never came back. That was when I started to wish I'd paid more attention to the stories.
    I pulled bits and pieces of our lore from the recesses of my mind, praying for some cohesive bit of information. Something worthwhile must have stuck with me. Was it possible for a blood mating to go only one way? Could she not need me as desperately as I needed her?
    I started to envision the rest of my life alone and realized that without her, the rest of my life would be much shorter than I'd ever anticipated. I'd walk into the dawn before I wallowed for the rest of my existence and I'd be lucky to last another two months without feeding.

CHAPTER 2
    Six weeks after she left my shop with the tool, she walked back in without him. I was in the furthest corner of the shop, straightening the demo floggers when the bell above the door chimed, alerting me that I had a customer. I called out, letting them know where I was, and a second later I heard the click-click of heels on the tile floor.
    The hair on the back of my neck stood and I knew it was her long before I saw her. Somehow, I thought I should have known it was more her style to ditch the guy and come back, rather than calling me while they were still servicing each other.
    She was every bit as succulent as she'd been the first time I saw her – thick and ripe in all the right places, dressed to impress with mouthwatering perfection. The old marks on her neck were faded nearly to the point of invisibility, gone but not forgotten.
    I wouldn't be happy until I'd eradicated him from her memory.
    We stared at each other silently for several long minutes. My breathing was harsh to my ears; I felt like I'd just run a marathon. My heart raced wildly and I willed it to slow.
    "I broke up with what's his name. He wasn't getting the job done. The boys never do."
    "No?"Of course they wouldn't get the job done. No one would ever get the job done but me. I couldn't wait to get the job done, so to speak.
    Neither of us moved, standing stock still, rooted to the floor. I couldn't bring myself to go to her. I'd waited weeks.
    Weeks.
    She could come the rest of the way.
    She shook her head and bit her lip, perfect teeth sinking into plump flesh. Her tits strained against the flimsy tank top she wore; the way they bounced when she walked pulled my fangs from their sockets and I had to taste one. My tongue ran along the sharp edge of my teeth, anticipating the sweet taste of her in my mouth.
    "You feel it too?The pull?The bond?" The purse hanging from her shoulder looked heavy and she let it suddenly drop to the ground. She shoved it off to the side of the aisle with her foot, not sparing it a second glance.
    Without a word, I walked to the front of the shop and flipped the open sign to closed, but didn't bother with the lock. I leaned casually against the glass wall at the front of the store and when she looked at me questioningly, I smiled back.
    "No one ever comes in this time of night anyway."I winked. "Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke."
    Her eyes grew dark and I started to question my judgment. I'd been so sure I was the hunter, the predator, but the look in her eyes was lethal. I cackled madly and bolted for the aisle to her left. Knowing the layout of the store would definitely be to my advantage – one I'd be using differently than I had planned.
    Knowing it would only take her a minute tops to find me, I headed straight for the back of the store. One of the many benefits to our kind: our tracking ability. It was like sonar, or GPS. We just knew how to find what we wanted. And she was after me.
    "I don't even know your name,"I called over my shoulder as I raced for the swings.
    "Edana."
    "Fitting, maybe I'll call you 'firecracker'. I'm Caoimhe," I yelled. My heart resumed its frantic pace, pounding in my ears so loudly I almost couldn't hear her coming. She crashed heavily into my back just before I made it to my destination. I