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SHE was hiding from him. Miranda knew it. The one place she’d escaped him was in the bath. Two days had passed and she still didn’t know what she was supposed to do about the vampire. About Adric.
She didn’t love him. Of course she didn’t. How could she? He’d found her, claiming her without asking—which she’d learned wasn’t all that uncommon in this vampire tribe of his, then expected her to just fall in line with all of his plans. And he liked to make plans. He also liked to touch her, to brush a hand over her hair. To kiss her right on the forehead. To make her anticipate those little touches. To crave them.
Too bad Miranda actually liked him. He was almost too perfect.
Which meant too arrogant, too sexy, too controlling... She’d never done well when someone tried to tell her what to do, had she?
He knocked on the bathroom door and she bit back a squeak. She swallowed and forced herself to be at least halfway dignified when she answered. “Yes?”
The one word was about all she could do.
The door slid open partially. He stuck his head in, just enough that he could look at her. His eyes burned and Miranda felt an answering heat in her cheeks—and lower.
The guy did sexy really well. “Adric?”
“We, as head of my House, have been summoned to the Great Ruling Hall again. There has been another attack, this time on Galaosis.”
“Do I have to go?” The one thing she had refused to talk about was the future and what the days had in store for her now. That would make it too real. But Adric had responsibilities, she’d seen that for herself. Responsibilities Miranda wanted no real part of.
He hesitated. “You are my Rajni. I lead a House of several thousand. They will expect us to be visible. To inspire confidence. Safety. We owe it to our House to be there.”
“But do I have to be there? And are we safe here?” Miranda said to hell with it, and grabbed one of the extremely thick turquois bath towels he’d ordered for her the day before. She stood and wrapped it around herself.
The very last thing she wanted to do was go to that ruling hall again. All of those Dardaptoans, pushing in on her? No, that was not her cup of tea at all.
“As safe as I can make you. Which is why these sessions are needed. And...I would like you there. The Adrastos is the largest family within the Dardaptoan Kind. As many of us as possible go to these sessions, for our people. I have long wished for my mate to sit next to me.”
Damnit. He needed her; she could hear it in his words.
Adric needed her. Every fiber of her darned being told her that was all that mattered. She was pitiful, wasn’t she? Another day or two with him and she wouldn’t want to ever leave him.
Then again, would that be so bad?
“I’ll get dressed. But if this is your lame attempt at a first date...”
He grinned. “A bit like the cart after the horse, love.”
“How so?”
“Dating comes before marriage, does it not? Not after.”
“We are not married, Adric. I’m not quite sure what we are.”
“We are Rajnis. That is all that is needed.” Before she could grab the clothes next to the large stone tub, his hands were on her. “I have hungered for you for hundreds of years, Miranda. There is only so much longer I will wait for your decision.”
Oh, boy. Vampire-boy was getting impatient. And why was her body practically curling into his? “I don’t want to choose to be with someone just because it’s the easiest, or safest, or even most logical answer. I want to be with someone because we can’t keep our hands off of each other, because no matter what, we can’t get enough of each other.”
His hands tightened on her, burned against her skin. “Still not seeing the problem here. I have been aching to get my hands on my mate. On you. There is nothing easy about it. We are not human. I have never been. Had I known you were in this world, I would have been with you from the very first.”
He yanked the towel out of her hands and then she was naked in front of him. He stared at her. Miranda didn’t even try to cover herself. This was what her body was telling her she wanted. Nothing else really mattered.
She stood in front of him, as bold as she’d ever done anyone before.
She was adaptable, that was what she’d always prided herself on. This was a bit different though. This was...far too important. This was for real. “It has to be about free choice, Adric.”
“I know.” There was a wealth of pain, longing in his words, wasn’t there. Was it possible she’d done something to hurt him? How?
Miranda reached her hand out and touched the chest right in front of her. He felt so solid and real beneath her palm. “How do I know this is real?”
He paused for a moment, as if he’d never considered it. “I suppose to me it has always just been. Rajnis are just fact for Dardaptoans. We spend so many hundreds of years alone. The knowledge that we have a mate out there waiting for us keeps many of us going for those long years. I have dreamed of you, waited for you, hungered for you. You are all that I have wanted for so long. To me choice is just delaying what is meant. It’s fear. The goddess of our people put you and me together. Because we are meant. Can’t keep my hands off of you? The hardest thing I have ever done in my life has been not touching you these past two days. I breathe for you, Miranda. And I burn for you.”
He dropped his hands to her waist and lifted her off of her feet. Her naked body pressed against his clothed. Miranda didn’t care that she was getting his clothes wet. His fingers cupped the back of her head and he leaned down to kiss her.
Every inch of her burned where he touched her.
Miranda reared her head back and a hiss escaped. One of hunger, that she hadn’t ever expected.
His hands were just as insistent as she wanted.
When he pulled back to let them both breathe, she rested her head against his chest. “Well, that answers one major question.”
“What was that?”
“Whether you were just going along with your goddess’s orders. I mean...don’t you want to pick the woman you spend the rest of your life with? What if you despised freckle-faced redheads?”
He threw his head back and laughed. He pulled her legs up until they were wrapped around his waist. It should be awkward. She was stark ass naked in the guy’s clutches, after all. But she just didn’t care. She tightened her legs around him, feeling his strong body right where she wanted him. He stopped laughing and looked at her. “It doesn’t work that way. First there is the knowledge that we have a destined mate out there. Second, we see how Rajni bonds are supposed to be. Like Aodhan and Mallory, how they adore each other already? And then, finally we find the one who is meant for us. And it’s the culmination of hundreds of years of hope. You are my hope, Miranda.”
Pretty heady stuff.
Miranda had a lot to think about, didn’t she?
He kissed her again, but the tone of the embrace had changed. Became less about heat, and more about...more about tenderness.
For the first time in a longer time than she could think about, Miranda actually felt special to someone.
As the vampire kissed her one more time before letting her go, the only thought in Miranda’s head was that she never wanted him to let her go again.