Their mouths worked over each other's lips. She saw tongues stabbing in and out. Hands stroked. Arms, legs, stomachs pulled tight, muscles coiling into taut ropes.

Bale threw his head back, eyes closed, an expression of rapture touching his features.

Raine slid back slowly, mesmerized by the sight of those two glorious men touching, kissing, giving and taking. She doubted she'd ever get tired of watching them.

Tryphon licked his way down Bale's neck, over his collarbone to his chest. "Come here, Raine. Let's give our lover pleasure together."

A shudder swept up Raine's spine.

She knelt beside Bale, exploring his beautiful body with her hands, tongue, teeth. Every now and then, Tryphon's hands would slide over hers as they stroked and caressed Bale's smooth, damp skin. And when their faces met, at Bale's bellyb.u.t.ton, Tryphon cupped the back of her head and pulled her closer for a kiss. The flavors of Bale's sweet skin and Tryphon flooded her mouth. Intoxicating. After he stabbed his tongue in and out a few times, he broke the kiss and gently forced her head down until her kiss-swollen lips met the ruddy head of Bale's erect c.o.c.k.

"Take him in your mouth, Raine," Tryphon whispered. "We'll make him come, together."

While she slid her lips over the tip, she used her tongue to cus.h.i.+on his head and suckled. He groaned, curled his fingers into her hair and pulled until his c.o.c.k escaped her mouth with a s.e.xy little popping sound. Tryphon dipped over Bale's c.o.c.k, replacing her mouth with his. She watched as he opened his mouth to let Bale f.u.c.k him deeply until his lips reached the base of Bale's thick c.o.c.k. Up he went and then it was her turn again.

Back and forth they worked, Tryphon then her, f.u.c.king Bale's c.o.c.k with their mouths. All three of them touched and explored each others' bodies as they gave and received pleasure. The room heated, filling with the coa.r.s.e huffing sound of their labored breathing. Raine's body coated with slick sweat.

She sensed Bale was getting closer to release. His skin was hot, a deep magenta stain creeping up his chest. His movements grew jerky, his moans rough and ragged. Tryphon gently forced her away, straddled Bale's rod and sank down on it, taking him in the a.s.s.

Raine sighed, wrapped her arms around Tryphon's chest and straddled his hips so that she was riding Tryphon as he rode Bale. Tryphon held her, kissed her while she slipped a hand between their bodies to stroke her c.l.i.t. Together, they generated the heat of a nuclear reaction until all three of them were groaning, writhing, lost in their pleasure.

Raine cried out as she came a second time, and two male voices joined hers. Bodies trembled. Hands soothed. Words drifted between them, sweet promises.

And for the third time that day, she wept as emotions so profound she couldn't grasp them rained down upon her heart.

She'd never known s.e.x could be like this-more than the joining of bodies. More than the simple give and take of sensual pleasure. So wonderful. So terrifying.

Over the remaining few nights, the s.e.x she shared with Tryphon and Bale grew even more intense. And a thousand times more satisfying than it had ever been with anyone else. s.e.x no longer just satisfied a physical need, it fed her soul.

There was only one problem-it couldn't continue.

It was almost time.

Raine stood in the bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror, and marveled at how much the past week had impacted her. Never had she experienced such intense sensual pleasures, but that wasn't what amazed her the most. It was the emotional journey these men had taken her on throughout the week. One that was both amazing and scary at the same time.

One that had left her seriously questioning herself-whether she could ever be content to live the rest of her life alone. Play it safe with her heart. Keep shutting people out.

Even though Tryphon and Bale had been busier with work the last couple of days, they'd found at least a few hours every evening to spend some quiet time with her. Tryphon had tried to drill his way through her walls. He'd made some pretty hefty chips in them but he hadn't been able to completely break through.

And Bale had tried to work his way into her heart too. He was more the quiet strategist. Instead of attempting to bust through her defenses, he tried to sneak around them. No less dangerous. And, in many ways, much more effective.

Now, she sat in the backyard, lounging in the dappled sunlight, the sun warming her skin. The guys would be home soon. Antic.i.p.ation, mixed with a little sadness, was making her twitchy, uneasy. She'd tried watching television. She'd tried reading a book. She'd tried eating. Showering. Pampering herself. Nothing worked.

Today, she had to tell Tryphon and Bale goodbye. Forever.

Bale was the first to find her. He looked both happy and sad, as if he was already prepared for what she was about to tell him. Probably because she'd made it pretty clear from the start, despite their offer. To both their credits, neither had pushed her for a decision.

"h.e.l.lo, fiery sprite." He bent over and gave her a sweet kiss, the kind that communicated deep affection without being demanding or possessive. Just the kind of kiss she didn't need at the moment. "I want to talk to you about something important."

Here it comes.

She nodded and watched as he pulled up a chair and settled into it.

"Tryphon doesn't feel you need to know this, since we're both guessing you have no plans to continue seeing us after..." He gave her a questioning look, a silent plea for her to deny what he'd said. She didn't. "Anyway, I don't give a d.a.m.n. I'm going to tell you anyway."

"If it'll make Tryphon upset, maybe it's better-"

"No," he interrupted. "I want you to know everything." He sighed. Stood. Paced. "Tryphon and I are not just suffering from some bizarre medical condition like we've kind of led you to believe. We're descended from a race of beings that go back millennia, to days the human race has long forgotten."

"Beings?" she echoed.

"Yes, that's right. We're like humans in some ways and unlike them in others. For example, our bodies age much slower than humans'. We live for hundreds of years."

Raine felt like she had just stepped into the Twilight Zone or some freakish thriller film. What was this? "I don't understand. Beings? Race? Your race has lived for hundreds of years?"

Looking serious, as if he genuinely believed the strange words he was saying, he shook his head. "No. Each individual lives for hundreds of years." He leaned toward her, setting one of his hands on top of hers. "I know it's hard to understand, and even more difficult to believe, but I'm telling the truth. I was born in England, during the reign of Queen Anne. In the summer of the year 1710. I met Tryphon shortly after traveling to America, and we both fought under General George Was.h.i.+ngton in the American Revolutionary War."

She s.n.a.t.c.hed her hand away and lurched to her feet, wrapping her arms around herself. A chill crept up her arms, like spiders. "Almost three hundred years? That's impossible." She didn't understand. What was Bale trying to do by telling her such an unbelievable story? Scare her away? There was no need for him to do that. He knew she wasn't coming back. And he wouldn't make such a thing up to keep her here. Besides, he'd never lied to her. Why start now?

Standing, he nodded his head. "It's very possible, and I can prove it. If you want to come inside."

How could anyone prove he'd lived for just shy of three hundred years?

Even if she couldn't believe him she was curious enough to take him up on the offer. She stood. "Okay. Let me see your proof." She followed him into the house, upstairs, to a bedroom located at the very end of the hallway.

"These are mine." He opened the closet and started pulling out delicate-looking articles of clothing. Aged. Worn. And handmade. If they were reproductions, they were darn good ones. "And these. You can't deny the truth when you see the pictures." Next, he went to a ma.s.sive dresser and pulled out some old photograph alb.u.ms, like the ones her grandparents had owned, and set them on the bed. "And just in case you still don't believe me, here are some other things." He returned to the closet and pulled down several boxes, adding letters, hand-painted portraits, books, and other personal items to the pile.

Slowly, fascinated, she picked through the items. Having been a total history geek forever, she found every piece absolutely fascinating. The way the clothing was sewn together. The fragile books printed in the early 1800s. The faded photographs that couldn't have been faked.

In the old pictures Tryphon and Bale looked exactly as they did today, with one small difference-they were wearing clothing from the turn of the twentieth century. And sitting atop horses. Or standing next to Model T cars.

Letters. Journals. Newspaper clippings. She read them all, completely immersing herself into the shadows of Bale's and Tryphon's past. Slowly, she accepted the impossible.

She had no idea how much time had pa.s.sed until Bale returned later asking if she was hungry. Her stomach rumbled.

"How?" she asked, pointing at the closest portrait. "How could this be? It's impossible."

"It's impossible for humans. But not for us."

"Us? What are you?" She trailed an index finger over the lumpy surface of an oil painting. Tryphon's face smiled up at her, looking just as dark and mysterious and s.e.xy as in real life.

"We're what you would call vampires."

"Vampires," she repeated, not sure what to believe.

"We don't call ourselves vampires, since it has a derogatory connotation. But that is the most common term you humans use."

"Vampires," she repeated, still staring at Tryphon's portrait.

Bale sat beside her. "Once a year, we seek out a human for one week and form what we call a Blood Bond. During this time, two of us feed on the same human every night. By doing so, a special reaction takes place within the human's body, producing a chemical that prolongs our lives by basically turning back the clock."

"Feed?" She glanced up at him. "On blood?"

He nodded. "We consume the human's blood."

She lifted her hand to her neck and fingered a tender spot, located over the beating pulse point. "You didn't consume my blood, did you?"

"We did."

Another chill raced up her spine. "When? How? You didn't cut me. I don't remember."

His finger touched the exact same spot hers had. "We bit you, right here. But you don't remember because we produce venom that contains an amnesiac. It makes you forget."

"I..." She stared down, her eyes sliding to a photograph of Tryphon, standing next to a woman wearing a Victorian-era dress. Vampires. The men she'd come to respect and care about were vampires. And they'd used her as some kind of fuel. She shook off her confusion. What did it matter what they were? She was saying goodbye to them today, anyway. Humans. Vampires. Whatever. She swung her legs over the end of the bed. "I should get ready to head home."

Bale caught her upper arm. "What about dinner?"

"I'm not so hungry anymore. I'd rather just get going. Now." She pulled on her arm but he didn't let go. "Bale?"

"Wouldn't you like to say goodbye to Tryphon? He's not home yet."

She shook her head. "I think it would be better if I just go. Now. I mean, I'm not trying to be rude, and I'm not running because you told me you're vampires. That's weird but I'm actually handling that bit of news better than I ever would have guessed. I just think it might be easier. For all of us. If I go now, quickly. Just get it over. You are through, right?"

G.o.d, this was tough, talking about this. Facing this moment. It would have been difficult, awkward, even without the added shock Bale had delivered just now.

"Yes, we're through. Okay then." He looked uncomfortable, as if he didn't know what to do with his hands.

Vampire or man, it looked as if his heart was breaking, and she wanted to hug him, to press her body against his and tell him she was sorry things couldn't go a different way. But she didn't, knowing it would only be cruel. Instead, she brushed past him, gathered up her packed suitcases, and headed for the stairs. Bale, being the gentleman he always was, carried them out to the car.

Once again, as she stood next to the car, her bags already stowed in the trunk, he gave her a sad look. "I'll drive you home unless you want us to call the limo."

"No, not the limo. Thanks."

The ride was excruciating. She gnawed on her lip and a ragged fingernail, staring blindly out the window while images from those old pictures flashed through her memory. Almost three hundred years. That was such a long time. What kind of amazing things had they seen? She couldn't even imagine. Life had changed so much in the last three centuries. Technology had advanced. Inventions had changed the way everything was done. And they'd watched it all, lived through it.

Suddenly, she realized why these two men had touched her the way they had. They were like no other men she'd ever met. They were men of days gone by, in so many ways different from the men of today. Wise. Powerful. Strong. Worldly.

Men of her fantasies.

Men who were permanently out of her life.

"Where is she?" Tryphon asked as soon as Bale walked through the front door. He'd searched every inch of the house, both inside and out. "Do you know?"

"Yes." Bale's sorrowful eyes met his. "I took her home."

"Home?" Tryphon repeated, feeling as though his heart had just been torn from his chest. She'd left. Without saying goodbye. Without telling him what he'd needed to hear. f.u.c.k, his insides hurt. He dropped into a chair and let his head fall back. Cupped his hands over his face. "She went home."

"She thought it would be easier if she left before you returned." After a short hesitation, Bale added, "I could tell it was difficult-"

"Difficult," Tryphon echoed. What a f.u.c.king understatement that was. It felt as if some b.a.s.t.a.r.d had torn his guts out and sent them through a meat grinder. He knew difficult. This was h.e.l.l.

And yet, he accepted her decision because it was hers. He didn't like it, but he respected it. Ironically, she'd lived far fewer years than he, had no doubt seen a h.e.l.luva lot less s.h.i.+t in her lifetime, yet something or someone had taught her that she wasn't worthy of love.

He'd like to disembowel whoever had been responsible.

The only thought that gave him the slightest comfort was knowing that she did love him. And Bale. He had to hope her love was strong enough to bring her back to them when she was ready.

"Tryphon." Bale rested a hand on his shoulder.

Tryphon uncovered his face.

"She'll come back to us. She just needs a little time."

"I hope you're right."

"I give her a couple weeks, a month tops. We've got to give her s.p.a.ce, let her work through things. No pressure."

"Yeah, no pressure."

Bale smiled. "I miss her too. I had no idea how hard it would be to see her go, or come home without her."

"She's special."

"d.a.m.n special."

"She's ours," Tryphon stated, determined to hear her say those words to him one day.

"Yeah. Ours."

Chapter Fourteen.

The job was great.

Her boss was wonderful.

It was a huge relief to have money flowing into her bank account, rather than always out.