Aidan, come home to me. You are not deadly. You are gentle and kind. Look at you with Joshua.

With Marie and Stefan. Gregori has made you melancholy.

So many of my people are lost, he mourned.

All the more reason to fight, to keep going. There is hope. We found each other, didn't we? Others will, too. She sent him an image of herself, of her sweater floating to the floor of the third-floor bath, the master suite steamy from the frothy Jacuzzi.

He began laughing softly, his spirits rising as quickly as they had plummeted. Alexandria was waiting for him, s.e.xy and sweet. Light to his darkness, a beacon to guide him home.

That's not all I am. Her voice was provocative. A wisp of lace floating to the floor filled his mind. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were bare, full, enticing. She was smiling, a siren's invitation. You're keeping me waiting.

Show me. Holding the picture of her in his mind, he moved away from the scarred corpse and began to rebuild the storm's intensity.

Her hand went to the fly of her jeans. With infinite slowness she slipped each b.u.t.ton from its hole.

His breath caught in his throat as she hooked her thumbs in the waistband and inched the denim over her hips.

Come home and see. There was need in her voice, a little catch that sent his blood surging hotly.

He lifted his face to the heavens, sent clouds whirling and darkening at his command. Like the roar in his blood, the waves leapt and slammed into sh.o.r.e, dousing the cliff with spray and foam.

Thunder rumbled ominously, and veins of lightning flashed inside the clouds.

Come to me, Aidan. She was temptation. She was light while he created the darkness.

Lightning flashed to the ground, lit the sand with a shower of sparks, red tongues of flame licking at his very feet. He could feel her moving in his mind, her mouth on his skin, the sensation taking away the pain of death, the death of an old friend. Losing so many of his people nearly drove him mad.

Aidan raised a hand higher and began to gather the sparks into a fireball. He lifted his face to the wild winds. He could not fathom ever doing this to Gregori. Even if he could defeat Gregori, he could not do this. Yet how many times had Gregori been forced to hunt a friend? A relative? A childhood playmate? How many such stains could one's soul bear before there was no redemption?

I am with you, Aidan. Alexandria's voice was a breath of fresh, clean air, untouched by the evil in front of him. Your soul is not black. I can see it, feel it, touch it with my own. What you do, you do out of necessity, not out of desire. Your friend fights to save himself. If his soul was black, he would not have stayed to protect me. He would have gone after the second vampire for the joy of the hunt, the kill. He stayed, Aidan. And he has gone to be alone where violence cannot touch him, where he has a chance to wait out his vow. That vow alone should tell both of you something. He is no selfish vampire, not even close to becoming one. He thinks of her. Finish your task, ugly as it is, and come back to me. Think of me.

I will often have to come to you with blood on my hands.

There was a small silence. Then he felt the brush of her hand and was astonished that she had reached out to him when she had never been trained. Her fingertips lingered on his jaw and trailed down his neck, conveying tenderness. I have been in the hands of a vampire, Aidan. You forget, I know the ugliness of evil. It is not in you, as you seem to think. You hunt because you must, not from a need to kill. Perhaps at one time those who became vampires were good men, but the men you once knew are long gone from this earth. Perhaps Gregori and you give them peace.

Aidan allowed her words to rinse the sorrow from his mind, the terrible fear and dread that her very presence in his life had allowed him to feel. He shook his head over the irony of that. He had felt no emotion for so many centuries, and now, because Alexandria had come into his life, he knew the terrible burden, the sorrow of the hunter.

He sent the ball of fire racing toward the dead vampire, his attention now focused on his task. The ball entered the ruined chest, and before his eyes the betrayer blackened, withered, became the ash of the earth once again. His gaze on the ashes, he built the wind with one hand. The gust came not from the sea but from the land, scattering the ashes into the waves that would carry them out to a fitting resting place. Aidan whispered an ancient chant to cleanse himself as well as his fallen friend. Squaring his shoulders, he stood tall and straight, then turned to face the direction of his home.

He could hear the sound of water, Alexandria's murmur of pleasure as she stepped into the sunken tub. He could smell her scent, beckoning him. Smiling, he took to the air, feeling it move over his body, cleansing him.

Chapter Sixteen

Alexandria sat in the huge marble tub, her hair swept up into a topknot, bubbles brushing her skin like a thousand tiny fingers. Aidan paused in the doorway, his face drawn, his eyes holding shadows and a sad, haunted expression she wanted to erase for all time.

When she had felt his deep, disturbing sorrow, she had deliberately sent him erotic images, wanting to help him, wanting to comfort him. From a distance, knowing she didn't have to face him, it had been easy to allow her imagination free rein. She had been shy at the thought of his return, when she would have to face whatever repercussions her vivid, wanton images had created.

Now though, seeing his beautiful eyes shadowed, haunted, holding such sorrow in their depths, washed every vestige of shyness away. She would do anything to remove that grief.

There was such a weariness in Aidan, he felt he might never move again. He could only stand in the doorway and stare at Alexandria, unable to believe his good fortune, unable to believe she was really with him, really forever in his life. Why him? Why was he the one staring into enormous sapphire eyes overflowing with joy at seeing him? Why not Gregori, who had given so much to their people, who had suffered so much and lost so much of himself in the process? Why not Julian, his soulmate, his twin, so dark and twisted with loneliness? Why was it that the G.o.ds had chosen to favor him?

"Because we were meant for one another," she said softly, reading his thoughts. "Gregori has his lifemate, Aidan, and he has chosen to give her time to grow up. He'll hold out; he has hope to keep him strong. As for your brother, I know him from your thoughts and memories. He has your strength, and he will endure forever if necessary."

Aidan raked an unsteady hand through his windblown hair. He leaned his weight against the doorjamb and simply watched her with his unblinking golden gaze. She was so beautiful, so brave.

Had he really done anything in his lifetime to deserve her, the happiness she brought him, the joy?

Alexandria shook her head, a slow smile curving her mouth, deepening the dimple that so intrigued him. "Of course you don't deserve me. I'm so good and brave and perfect." Her smile was teasing, frankly s.e.xy, and as she shifted slightly beneath the fizzing bubbles her full b.r.e.a.s.t.s broke the surface, inviting his suddenly heated gaze.

"And so beautiful. Do not forget beautiful," he said softly and straightened abruptly, his muscles rippling.

She felt her heart jump in antic.i.p.ation. "Maybe. You certainly make me feel beautiful." She tilted her chin, her sapphire eyes s.e.xy, speculative. The look made his blood race.

His hand went to the b.u.t.tons of his shirt, and he slowly slipped each one free, his eyes holding hers. She didn't look away or look scared. Instead, she smiled that slow, s.e.xy smile of blatant invitation.

"You have something in your mind, piccola," he murmured softly, his body tightening in antic.i.p.ation.

She shrugged, a lazy movement that sent ripples along the bubbling surface of the water. "I decided now would be a good time to try out something from one of those fantasies of yours."

The shirt floated to the floor unnoticed. She had eyes only for him, an urgent singing in her blood, a fire sweeping through her.

"Do I have fantasies?" he asked softly. His body tightened, hardened, wanted, and needed. He could barely speak, barely move.Her laughter slid over his skin caressingly. "I'd say some pretty interesting ones. But don't get too excited. We're going to start with something easy."

His eyebrows rose as he reached down to remove his shoes and socks. His every movement was unhurried and lazy, but his eyes were molten with heat as his gaze devoured her. Alexandria's breath caught in her throat. He was bending over, that was all, a casual, everyday movement, but his face was so sensual, his body so fluid yet controlled. She bit her lip, her lashes falling to hide her sudden surge of desire.

"I want you to want me, Alexandria," he chided softly. "I need to know you want me. Do not hide from me."

In spite of herself, her mouth was already curving in response, her dimples deepening. "It's just that you're so beautiful, Aidan."

"Women are beautiful, not men."

"You are beautiful," she corrected him. "Look at yourself through my eyes." It was a teasing challenge.

He found it hard to resist. And there was something s.e.xy about seeing himself the way she saw him. The wanting, the needing. The hunger. His hands went to his slacks, pushing them from his hips with a deliberate slowness that sent antic.i.p.ation curling through her.

"See?" She shifted to her knees in the tub, the bubbles fizzing around her narrow rib cage, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s bare and gleaming with beaded water. Her eyes were on his lean hips and hard, jutting masculinity as he stepped into the sunken tub, the bubbles swirling around his legs like tiny tongues lapping at his skin.

Alexandria let out her breath slowly. His thighs were strong, muscled columns covered with fine golden hair. Her hands slid up his calves, urging him closer. She felt the tremor that ran through him, and she smiled seductively.

Her fingertips moved slowly over the sculptured muscles, and her breath was warm and tempting along his heavy erection.

Aidan closed his eyes in ecstasy as her tongue moved in a slow, languid caress over his velvet tip.

His stomach muscles tightened as her mouth, tight and hot and moist, closed around him. A groan was torn from somewhere deep inside him. He caught her hair in his fists, dragging her even closer to him, and his body nearly exploded with pleasure as her hands sought his b.u.t.tocks and urged him more deeply into her. With her mouth tight around him and her soft b.r.e.a.s.t.s pressed against his thighs, the bubbles tugging at his calves, and her silken hair in his fists, every thought was pushed from his mind until it was filled only with her, with pure sensation.

Her fingers ma.s.saged his b.u.t.tocks, pressing hard into the heavy muscles, urging him on. He moved, a slow, long stroke, gritting his teeth against the pleasure that nearly consumed him. Her mouth moved over him, again and again. His hands bunched in her hair so hard he was afraid he might hurt her, but he couldn't control the involuntary response. His mind sought hers, and he found excitement, need, a total sharing of his pleasure. She was aware of what she was doing to him and reveled in it, in her power over him. Every sane thought disappeared, every care, every worry. There was only his body, her mouth, and the feel of her satin skin and the bubbles bursting around them. Fireworks. Earthquakes. White lightning. He found himself helplessly thrusting against her, his head thrown back, his joy and rapture not only physical but a part of his very soul.

Aidan's hunger rose until the demands of his race overcame him, insisting he put her pleasure before his own. With a soft, possessive growl he pushed her back into the water, his gaze running over her bare skin like lava. She had time for only one inarticulate cry before his mouth was on her throat, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, his hands all over her body. She felt so small, so delicate under his palms, her skin warm and slick with water. He explored her everywhere. Then his fingers found her creamy with need for him. He pushed inside, watching her eyes, and her body responded with a fresh wave of liquid desire. He pushed deeper, his mouth on her now, his teeth sc.r.a.ping her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, her stomach. He could feel her muscles clench around him, velvet and hot. He kissed her hips, the little indentation that always drove him crazy, then raised them out of the water.

Slow down, slow down, his mind repeated, but his body had other ideas. He was on fire, his very skin burning. His mouth replaced his fingers, wanting to bring her to the same fever pitch he was experiencing. She moaned, the sound making him wild. She tasted like hot honey, spicy and addicting. He attacked, on fire with need and love and violent, insatiable l.u.s.t.

Beneath the onslaught of his mouth, she writhed, cried out. Water splashed over the sides of the tub. Her body clenched, released, wave after wave of sensation spiraling through her. She clutched at him for anchorage as she spun out of control, a terrible, wonderful ride that went on forever.

Aidan finally lifted his head, his eyes hungry, his mouth sensual. He pulled her body to his, wrapping her slender legs around his waist. "You drive me wild, Alexandria. You make me completely insane with wanting you." His voice was husky, and he was pressed against her, hard and thick, pushing so aggressively that her body was slowly opening, allowing him entrance. The feeling was exquisite, a slow burn, hot velvet clutching him, tightening around him, the friction almost unbearable. His hands pinned her small waist, holding her firmly while he buried himself slowly, deeply in her hot, moist sheath. "Look at me, Alexandria. Know that I am your lifemate and that you are always in my care," he commanded softly, his golden gaze holding her blue one, forcing the ultimate intimacy, wanting all of her, every inch of her, wanting them to merge completely, body to body, mind to mind, soul to soul.

He began to move then, a slow thrusting of his hips, burying himself deeply with each surge. She bit her lip, the tiny pinp.r.i.c.ks of blood triggering the fangs in his mouth. His hands urged her closer yet, so that she arched her body, her head back, her throat vulnerable and exposed, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s equally inviting. His tongue took the water from the rosy, hard tips and moved upward, tracing swelling curves until his mouth rested over the pulse in her neck.

He felt her body clench in antic.i.p.ation, and his teeth sc.r.a.ped gently back and forth until she moaned and caught at his head with both hands. Satisfaction gleamed in his golden eyes. His tongue stroked her pulse as his body moved in hers. He thrust his hips harder and harder.

"Aidan!" Her soft cry was a plea.

"Not yet, cara, not yet." With his great strength he stood, taking her with him, the water sluicing down into the tub. Her legs circled his body, her hands around his neck, and he thrust harder still, over and over, wanting every inch of him inside her.

Her nails dug into his shoulders, an exquisite pain. He leaned her against the wall for better leverage, his hips savage, relentless, frenzied. His teeth sc.r.a.ped, nipped. Then she cried out at the piercing pain, so sweet and sensual, as his fangs buried themselves deeply, claiming her blood as voraciously as his body was claiming hers.

She had driven him wild, and his predatory nature took over, the untamed male of his species, dominant possessive, claiming his mate. His mouth worked at her throat, taking her very essence as her body took his, dragging at him, tightening around him, clenching and demanding until he had to cry out with the intensity of the pleasure. Ruby droplets trickled down the swell of her breast, and his tongue followed the trail.

Alexandria was spiraling into the night itself. The ferocity of Aidan's lovemaking should have terrified her, but she matched his intensity, beat for beat, her fists wrapped in his blond hair, her body wrapped around his tightly, her cries m.u.f.fled against his shoulder.

His shout, husky with pa.s.sion, rose to the heavens, carried on the wind. And as he held her, breathing hard, leaning both of them against the wall, from far off in the night came a reply. Of anger. Rage. A howl of the suddenly ferocious wind. The sound clawed at them, filled with hate.Frightened, Alexandria looked toward the window. "Did you hear that?"

Slowly, reluctantly, he lowered her to her feet, his arm still circling her waist. "Yes, I heard," he admitted grimly.

Outside, the clouds began to darken ominously, malignantly. Hail the size of fists beat at the roof and windows. Instinctively Aidan turned her, standing protectively in front of her lest the ice break through and harm her.

"Is it Gregori?" she whispered, remembering the awesome power clinging to the man, seeping from his very pores.

Aidan shook his head. "If Gregori wanted us dead, Alexandria, we would be long gone from this world. No, this is the last one of the group of undead who entered the city together, for what purpose I do not know. With the incredible hearing of our race, I guess he did not like the joy we shared."

"He sounded dangerous," she said. "Like a wounded bear."

Aidan tilted her chin up, his golden eyes moving over her face possessively, tenderly. "He is dangerous, piccola. That is why I must hunt his kind and see to it that they do not cause the world misery."

Looking down at her upturned face, her lips swollen and her cheeks flushed from his lovemaking, he couldn't resist lowering his head to hers, claiming her mouth with a gentle kiss. "Thank you, cara, for ridding me of my own particular demons."

She sank back into the tub, its jets now silent, and looked up at him with her enormous eyes.

"Could he... kill you?"

"I suppose, if I became careless." He sat down opposite her, the water rising with his weight. "But I will not be careless, piccola, not even for a moment. Tomorrow night I must hunt him. He is waiting for me."

"How do you know?"

He shrugged casually. They might have been discussing the weather. "He would never have sent a challenge if he had not devised a trap. I have acquired a certain... reputation among the undead."

She drew up her knees and rested her chin on them. "I wish he would just go away, find another city to terrorize."

He shook his head, his golden eyes loving. "No, you do not. Besides, I would never allow him to kill wantonly anywhere nearby. My work often involves travel, you know."

"He's the serial killer who's been in the papers recently, isn't he?" she guessed shrewdly.

"One of them. The others are dead now."

She twisted her fingers together in agitation.

Aidan laced a hand through hers rea.s.suringly. "Do not worry, Alexandria. I will protect you from him."

"It isn't that. I know you will. It's just that now that I know you, now that I've met Gregori and I know what causes someone to turn vampire, isn't there any way to... to cure them?"

He shook his head sadly. "I know you feel sorrow for them and for those of us who must destroy them, but in most cases it is a conscious choice on their part. And once a kill has been made during the taking of blood, there is no way back."

She met his eyes squarely. "Gregori has done so."

His golden gaze was suddenly cold and speculative. "That is impossible."

"I know he has. He regrets it bitterly, and it eats away at him, but he has killed someone evil using that method. I know, Aidan, really. I sometimes see things in people that others can't."

"Is he turned?" His voice was quiet, lacking inflection, and he was very still as he awaited her answer.

She shook her head. "He thinks he's evil, but he has tremendous compa.s.sion in him. But he is dangerous, Aidan. Very dangerous."

"Vampires are adept at hiding the truth. They are consummate liars. You are certain Gregori has not turned?"

She nodded. "I was afraid of him. He's afraid of himself. As he said, he's like a tiger, unpredictable and dangerous. But he's not evil."

Outside, clouds were blackening the gray dawn sky. Aidan smiled smugly and waved a hand, and instantly the clouds began to disperse. "The remaining vampire thinks to intimidate me with a display of power, and I allow it to lull him into a false sense of security. But the dawn is upon us, and he must seek the shelter of the earth."

Alexandria relaxed a little. She didn't like to think the vampire could be just outside their window, listening to their conversation.

Aidan shook his head. "If he were that close, piccola, I would know."

She laughed. "I still forget you can read my thoughts. Sometimes it's very disconcerting."

"Sometimes it can be very interesting." His strange, brilliant eyes gleamed at her, sending a blush spreading over her entire body.

"Your mind is interesting, too," she agreed, a smile curving her mouth. "It has all sorts of interesting ideas."

"We are just getting started," he said softly. He leaned toward her, cupping one breast in his hand, his thumb feathering over the hard peak. "I love touching you, being able to touch you whenever I wish." His fingertip brushed her throat, the mark he had deliberately left on her.

She felt his touch through her entire body. "You should be outlawed, Aidan. You know, all my recent sketches for Thomas Ivan's characters took on your look. I couldn't help myself. Do you think Thomas will notice?"

His eyes glittered at her. "Thomas Ivan is an idiot."