Chapter 5

“Do you—”

she tried to center herself in clear thought, but how could she? Every inch of her skin tingled, her breasts were heavy, her pussy aching against the press of his cock. There was too much space between them. Too many clothes. She wanted every cold, hard inch of his body pressing her into the mattress, against a wall. “Do you need more?”

she managed on a thick tongue. “Are you still hungry?”

“Ravenous.”

He revealed the sharp points of elongated canines, sliding his hands up her back. “Are you sure about this, Heidi?”

“So very sure.”

The words had barely left her before Cam swept in, lavishing her breasts with the same attention he had paid her knee. He kissed her breastbone and nipped a clavicle, fingers trailing the neck of her tanktop before pulling it down to reveal peaked nipples beneath a thin cotton bra. His breath caught in his throat, a tight, strangled sound escaped, and then his mouth was on her. Teeth gently scraping, tongue flicking, lips sucking.

His cock teased against her center, and the snag of a fang against her nipple had her crying out, arching her back to shove more of her breast into his mouth. He gripped her by the hips, curling his fingers into her waistband until all she could do was lightly grind. Denying Heidi the release she sought as he stretched out the moment.

“Tell me to stop.”

His voice vibrated against her chest.

“No.”

Heidi clasped the back of his head, forcing his mouth to her other breast.

“Tell me you don’t want this.”

“Never.”

He tugged at her waistband, jerking Heidi onto his groin, and fabric ripped and tore. She gaped at him, too stunned to find the words beyond, “My shorts.”

“I’ll buy you more,”

he snarled, wrapping her in his arms. Her back hit the mattress, and he dove for her breasts, tearing the straps away, ripping the front of her bra apart, and pausing as he gazed down at her, transfixed by the sight of Heidi beneath him.

She rolled her hips, reaching for him. Cam grabbed her wrist, again kissing her palm. “Last chance, Heidi. Tell me to stop.”

No. She stared right back at him. I want this .

His expression shifted as those words unfurled in her mind, the pained plea melting into a look of pure awe, and his restraint broke.

Jeans flew across the floor, and he draped himself over her, every hard plane and cool, muscled inch pressing her into the mattress as he worked her legs apart. As on that first night, a hand cradled the back of her head, the other banded around her back. Only this time, Cam was not so tender, holding nothing back. He fisted her hair, angling Heidi’s head up and to the side as he peppered kisses along her jaw and her throat, sucking on a pulse point that had her squirming beneath him.

“Bitte,”

she begged. “Bitte, please, I need…” More .

“No need to shout.”

Teeth snagged her earlobe, and he slipped his hand between them, circling her clit as his mouth sucked and stroked her throat, drawing a vein to the surface. Every inch of her throbbed, her pussy clenching around nothing. She could barely grab hold of him, barely form the words to tell him what she wanted, even in her mind. But he knew.

Somehow, he knew, and he pressed a finger against her entrance, teasing the fevered flesh before entering Heidi. A moan built in her chest, and he pressed his palm against her clit, crooking his finger against her walls before withdrawing to trace her lips and enter her again, this time with two fingers. The faint stretch had her eyes flying wide, her moan ending on a gasp. Cam caught her mouth, slipping his tongue inside to taste her, drink her, devour her.

Cold and demanding, slick and strong. His tongue stroked against hers, teeth scoring the muscle and opening up tiny wounds. Another wave of heat rushed through her body, into her head, drowning Heidi in the drunken haze of his kiss. He sucked on her tongue, groaning into her mouth as he worked her pussy, driving his fingers again and again against her walls until stars burst in her eyes. Tightness coiled in her belly, writhing her hips up up up in search of more.

“I’ve got you, blue eyes,”

Cam murmured, kissing a path along her cheek, her jaw, down to the crook of her neck. His hand slipped away, replaced by the press of something thick and blunt against her entrance. Fangs traced her skin, raising goosebumps. “If you’ve got me.”

“Ich tue,”

she gasped, English failing her for the second time that week. I do.

He pressed into her, and his fangs cut her flesh, heat roaring through her veins. Pleasure overrode any pain she might have felt, from the stretch of his cock to the pinch of his bite. Bouncing from her throat to her pussy and landing somewhere in between, caught in a tug-of-war between each deep suck and every hard thrust.

Heidi was lost. Utterly lost to the bliss, pawing at Cam’s shoulders and crying his name, unable to grab hold of the moment, and finally, letting go to be caught in the tide. One last deep draw had rapture lighting up her veins. An orgasm crashed over her without warning, whiting out her vision and leaving her a boneless mess. She would never recover from this. Never survive without this; never want anything other than this. The ecstasy of his bite and the pleasure of his cock. The elation of being consumed by him .

Cam ripped his mouth away on a cry, the tempo of his thrusts going erratic as he chased his own pleasure. His muscles tensed, eyes clenching shut, and he came with a shout, emptying into Heidi as he covered her with sated limbs. His tongue laved her throat, the dull edge of pain fading altogether, and then he gathered her into his arms and rolled onto his back, cradling Heidi against a chest with a heart that did not beat.

Sunlight crept through a crack in the blinds, rousing Heidi from a deep, restful sleep. She stretched in the bed, taking her time to wake up and recall the night before.

Her fingers flew to her throat, and where she expected the dull pain of a bruise, she found smooth, uninjured skin. Sitting up, she scanned the room, spotting clothes folded neatly on the armchair and the Post-It note pressed on top.

“Looks like I owe you underwear, too. C :)”

and at the bottom, in smaller handwriting, “Hope you don’t mind, but I sent Wren for your things.”

Glancing again around, she noted her trekking backpack propped against the wall and her smaller crossbody bag on the counter. Easing out of the bed, Heidi padded across the room and found another note on the counter.

“Not rushing things. We both know I sleep beneath your feet. C”

A laugh bubbled free, and Heidi sank to the floor, giggling as she knocked her fist against the floorboards and grinning like a fool when Cam knocked back.

The rest of the day went by in a blur. Perhaps it was the post-coital giddiness of great sex or the joy of knowing she had done what she set out to do: find a job, a place to call her own, and people who did not know her past to call friends.

Or maybe it was the blood loss.

But whatever it was, her shift tore past in a blur of pleasant customers and a plate of sausages, schnitzel, kraut, and roasted Brussels sprouts from Wren. He glared at her until she’d eaten every bite and nodded like a pleased schoolmaster before whisking the plate away and ordering her to drink a glass of juice.

When the sun sat heavily on the mountains to the west and the sky darkened to a pleasant purple, she tidied the bar, clocked out, and flipped the sign to read “brB.”

“Excuse me,”

a man called as he entered the beer garden. “Are you closed?”

“Not closed.”

Heidi smiled and gestured to the sign. “Only stepping away for a moment.”

“How long will you be?” he asked.

“She won’t be long.”

Wren sidled out of his kitchen, eyeing the man with his watery gaze. “Got ourselves a critter caught in the crawl space.”

He waved his spatula and gestured for the man to follow him to the bar. “Damn thing keeps gettin’ stuck down there, an’ the only way to get him out is to bribe him.”

“With what?”

The man glanced between them, then eyed the exit.

Heidi winked at Wren. “A bite to eat.”