Chapter 9

Leandro

Having my arm around Anais made me aroused again, but I was used to ignoring my bodily needs when I had to and I could see how distressed she was. Her body responded to mine every time I grew close to her and I knew that when the time was right I could tempt her enough.

Now wasn't that time.

My desire to stay beside her and help her were genuine and not only attached to my lust. I might want to screw her hard, but I also really wanted to see her do well and fix this problem.

If I had any idea what Ludis was up to, having a hunter take him out would prove useful. If anyone in the vampire world wanted to accuse me, I could have pointed to her and washed my hands of it. No one would be able to pin his death on me.

But I couldn't allow that to happen yet.

She needed to kill him and I needed him alive.

For a few minutes I simply enjoyed being beside her while I thought through the problem. She was skilled, talented and funny. And she was committed to her cause.

I had spent most of the evening watching her. She had played the room around her, managed to con a rich man into helping her, enchanted me and given off at least three different vibes almost flawlessly. And then she had still been so determined to complete her mission that she had stood in the middle of a ring of vampires and goaded the target.

Her concern for her safety was both non existent and secondary to her mission. She would be likely to take any option held out to her to have a chance to complete the mission.

And I wanted her. At my side and in my bed.

On top of that, I could use her to kill him. All I needed was to investigate him first. Which she could almost certainly help with. If I had her pretend to be my enthralled I could get her help to find out what he was up to, stop him and then make sure she killed him and completed her mission.

It was the perfect plan. But I still didn't utter it.

She was a vampire hunter and I would be asking her to not only appear addicted to being in my presence, but there was a good chance she would actually get addicted to the highs she'd get being fed on and mated with. Frequently.

Vampires were known for their appetites and their lack of restraint and all the stories about us in that regard were true. If this plan was going to work she would have to agree to let me do all sorts to her.

Not sure how I felt about asking that of her when she was at rock bottom, I held back. I would be taking advantage of her situation and there was a certain pride in not doing so. I didn't want her to say yes to this plan because she was desperate. If I was going to truly enjoy her, I wanted her to want it as well.

I needed her to want to be mine. Entirely mine.

"If you weren't a hunter and I'd offered you being mine earlier tonight, would you have accepted?" I asked, the words tumbling out of my mouth. "And I don't mean an enthralled. I mean... mine. Forever."

"To let you turn me?" she replied, her eyes wide as she looked at me. Her breathing grew more rapid as she stared at me. I could smell her arousal, the scent growing.

"Not if you didn't want to. I could keep you alive far longer than you'd think."

"That's not exactly forever."

I shrugged, not entirely happy that she had picked holes in the question and not answered it. It gave me all the information I should have. She didn't want me. There was plenty of lust, but any regard between us was one sided.

Sighing, I got up again and put some distance between us. I couldn't think so close to her.

"Yes, I think there's a chance I would have," she said only a fraction of a second later. "If I'd never been a hunter and I didn't feel as if I couldn't, I might have considered it. But you have to understand. I do not have that luxury and there is no way to know for sure."

Although it wasn't the perfect answer, I nodded. I understood what she was saying and why she was saying it. It mattered more that she was being honest, no matter how I felt about her words. She had been nothing but honest with me, and I liked that. More than anything else about her.

If only she hadn't been a hunter.

"I might be able to help you," I said after another pause to screw up the courage. As I spoke I leaned back against the dresser and sat on my hands. "There are two options."

She swallowed but nodded.

"What?" I asked, surprised that she was reacting already.

"Two options? I didn't think there was even going to be one. If you've thought of two and you're presenting them as if I'm not going to like either, they've got to be really crazy." She smiled despite her words and it helped me relax around her. She was still somehow cracking jokes and willing to hear me out.

"Option one. You stop being a hunter, don't worry about Ludis and I really do take care of you. You're... different and I have more money than I need. I could make it so you didn't have to consider money ever again." The words tumbled out of my mouth and I knew that it was ridiculous as soon as I said it, but I had to finish what I was saying.

She frowned, almost stunned by it. "And what would you get out of that, other than having someone spending your money?"

I tilted my head to the side, surprised she was taking the idea seriously enough to ask for more details. Maybe I wasn't as much of an idiot as I thought I was. But I needed to answer her question.

"There are lots of things I could ask, but in truth, I don't know the exact answer to that. I don't want to force anything, but I think there is something special about you and if I can have that in my life, then I will." I shrugged. "Can I think about that option and what I'd want?"

She nodded, waiting for me to either think about it or carry on. Again I had to pause and appreciate that she was giving me her attention and letting me make a decent offer. It encouraged me to be sensible with what I offered and consider her needs as well.

"Option two is that you work with me. My mission is to find out what Ludis is up to and stop him from harming my vampire clan. He is up to something, but we're not sure what. I'm not supposed to kill him and he's already a little suspicious of me after today. If you helped me find out what he was up to and stop him then I would help you kill him."

She lifted an eyebrow and folded her arms as she considered my words. I knew I was making her an important offer and it would be a lot for her to think about.

"What do you mean by help me kill him?" she asked after a moment.

I settled in, knowing this was most likely to be the option she took, if she took any of them. "I'd help you get close and get the opportunity you needed to kill him. I can't be the one to do it, but I can stand by and let it happen. Especially if he was wounded, suffering already or on his own somewhere."

"But the killing would still be on me?"

"If need be, I'm also willing to train you."

This made her blink and shift back, the surprise my quick offer created making her pause. "Train me?"

I nodded. "I'd be more than happy to teach you everything I know of fighting vampires. It would almost certainly never be enough for you to kill a true-blood, but I could ensure that you hold your own against any turned."

"You know some fighting techniques? She shifted again, relaxing once more. I had her curiosity now.

"Many. A vampire doesn't live this long without learning a thing or two. I could teach you many things, but I would be delighted to teach you how to fight." I smiled letting my gaze wander over her body. If she'd let me I could also take her to heaven and teach her exactly what her body was made for.

She nodded and continued to think for a moment. I studied her, knowing that I was going to need to give her time, but also more than ready to get on with this job, or fuck her first, then get on with this job. I had to hope she got her questions out soon and let us move on.

"How do I know that I can trust you on this?" she looked up at his face again, studying him as intensely as he had been studying her.

I considered trying to give her loads of reasons why, but none of them came out of my mouth. I didn't want to make excuses.

"You could kill me at any point," she continued. "You almost did a few minutes ago. How do I know that you won't kill me as soon as you're done with me, or, I dunno, if you lose your temper."

At this I chuckled. "I had no intention of killing you earlier. I'm not sadistic. I don't torture people and I don't take delight in hurting others. If I wanted you dead, you would be dead. I was angry earlier because I thought you had played me for a fool, but I still gave you time to explain and I have taken you at your word that you aren't here with a team."

"So you're saying that I'm far more valuable alive and you don't plan to kill me for no good reason?"

"Something like that."

This time she chuckled and I smiled back. It lit up her whole face when she laughed and I liked the look in her eyes.

"How exactly do you plan on bringing me into your... whatever?" she asked next.

"I plan on having Ludis believe that you're my enthralled. It's the easiest lie to sell at this point."

She gulped and looked up at me. For a moment she seemed to shrink and also looked younger. I straightened and walked over to sit beside her. "I promise to help you feel more comfortable for me in that capacity if this is the route you choose. Your consent in choosing this will be important to me."

"And it will definitely include... sex, and stuff?"

"Yes. I plan to enjoy your body at every opportunity. But I promise to make sure you enjoy it as well." I couldn't stop myself from reaching up and running the backs of my fingers down her cheek. She shuddered, but her eyes never left my face. "You're beautiful and you'd be my enthralled. It would be expected of me to take your body when it pleases me to do so. How else would we make it look like you belong to me and aren't a hunter?"

As she swallowed again it drew my attention toward her neck. I leaned in and kissed the soft skin on the side of her slender neck before inhaling her scent. Her heart was racing again, but she didn't pull away. Her arousal was evident, but I knew that being a true-blood vampire would be having an impact on her.

Our race was designed to seduce hers.

"I'll also feed on you now and then. Not enough to do you any harm. But enough to help sustain me." I moved my mouth even closer to her neck again and she didn't pull away.

If I'd wanted to, I could have devoured her again and it was tempting to bite her and drink a little. To show her what she would be getting into, but she hadn't given me permission yet. She hadn't agreed to this and it had always been important to me to have a partner who chose life with me, human or otherwise.

Giving her a little space again, I backed up and waited. Silence fell between us as she composed herself. Her hands were in her lap, clasped together and she was breathing steadily to calm her body back down.

I was impressed with her restraint and the self control she was exhibiting and it gave me even more confidence that any answer she gave would be of her own free will.

"Would the first option also involve being your enthralled. Letting you enjoy me when you wanted?"

The question surprised him, but the answer was simple. "If we're not trying to sell an act, or placate anyone's opinion to get close to them, it would only ever be what you were comfortable with it being. No matter what you choose I won't deny one thing. I want you and in many ways. I've wanted you since the moment I set eyes on you earlier this evening, sitting at the bar, trying to make a single drink last all evening. And it's deeper than lust. You're different."

"So what about after this mission. If I kill Ludis?"

"That would be as much your choice as anything else. We might decide that we don't get along as well as I hoped. We might want to spend the rest of forever together. Something in between. You wouldn't be promising me anything beyond this mission. Both of our goals align. We can help each other and see where everything else goes in the meantime."

She nodded as I spoke, seeming to agree with my assessment of the situation enough that she was considering it.

There weren't many women I could have made this sort of proposal to. Certainly not vampire hunters and I knew that this was a rare opportunity for me to have someone in my life who was special. Far more special than most people could ever hope for.

"All right," she said, looking me straight in the face. "I'll do this with you. Promise to keep me safe and make sure I complete my academy mission and I will pretend to be your enthralled until you find out what Ludis is up to. But that's all I'm promising. And I don't expect to have this strung out. I'll investigate with you. We will complete both missions as swiftly as possible."

"I can agree to that condition. I need this solved just as swiftly."

"Then we have a deal." She got up and put her hand out for me to shake. It was a cute way of agreeing it, but I obliged her.

"Deal."