Sara Humphreys: Vampire Trouble

The boy moaned and mumbled something incoherent, pulling Shane from his thoughts. Maya pressed her body tightly against the boy, and just before sinking her fangs into the neck of her prey, she whipped her head around, locking gazes with Shane.

He froze. No one had ever spotted him or picked up on his presence unless he allowed it.

Until now.

A fanged grin cracked Maya’s face. Winking at Shane, she whispered, “I win.”

A growl rumbled low in his chest at the sight of Maya piercing the tender flesh of the boy’s neck. The eyes of her prey widened briefly, and his body went limp while Maya fed. After not even a minute, Maya released him, licked his wound closed, whispered a new memory into his ear, and stepped back. The glamoured human mumbled something incoherent, staggered toward the path, and wandered off into the night no worse for wear.

Shane’s eyes narrowed. Something far more than the desire for blood was driving her. She’d barely fed and couldn’t have gotten enough to sustain herself for long, which could mean only one thing—she would want to hunt again.

Maya adjusted the black leather bustier and repositioned the emerald necklace that was ever present around her long, lovely neck. She ran her hands through her hair and watched the boy disappear into the night, but Shane couldn’t take his eyes off her.

Her alabaster skin practically glowed in the moonlight. Shane removed his leather gloves, the ones he wore to protect himself from the silver weapons he used in battle, and shoved them into the pockets of his long coat. He flexed his bare hands and allowed himself to imagine what it would be like to touch her. To run his fingertips along the curve of her shoulder, to trace a line down the length of her neck with his tongue and sink his fangs into the sweet spot beneath her ear. The wickedly decadent images flickered through his mind, making his body tighten further.

In the blink of an eye, and without realizing he’d done it, Shane had closed the distance between them and found himself standing directly behind her. Maya’s petite frame was dwarfed by his own and wavered just inches from him.

“I knew you liked to watch.” Her voice, quiet and edged with bitterness, cut into the silence of the night. Maya spun around and stormy, dark blue eyes latched onto his. “Do you get off on that?”

“You are the one who challenged me to follow you.” Perplexed by her obvious anger at his presence, Shane knit his brows together. He inched closer, his gaze wandering over her face, memorizing every curve. “Or did you forget?”

Maya’s eyes widened with every inch of personal space that he invaded, yet she didn’t retreat. “I remember telling you and everyone else that I’m tired of having my every move monitored.” She placed her hands on her hips and met his challenging stare. “You’re a sentry and supposedly some badass warrior, but you’re spending the last hours of your night spying on me? What’s your deal? Are you trying to get brownie points with Doug and Olivia? Do you get some kind of bonus for following me around and messing with my life?”

“Hardly.”

“Then what’s your damage, dude?”

“Actually”—Shane tilted his head slightly to one side and folded his arms over his chest—“that was going to be my question for you.”

“What?” Maya blinked and took a step back. “Me? What are you talking about?”

“Yes, you.” Shane leaned closer and his voice dropped low. “Why do you insist on hunting but barely feed on your prey?” Maya said nothing and took another step backward, but Shane persisted. He dropped his hands and continued moving toward her, even though she moved farther away.

“You only hunt men, and from what I’ve observed over the past few months, your taste in human men is… Well, let’s just say it’s questionable. You don’t just hunt, Maya. You court, seduce, and lure them in much the way one would with a lover, and yet you clearly don’t love them. In fact, I’d say it’s quite the opposite.”

“I like the hunt.” Maya tilted her chin defiantly but gasped when she backed right into the trunk of a massive oak. “What’s wrong with that?” she whispered through trembling lips. “Besides, what would a stodgy old vampire like you know about love?”

“Nothing.” Shane placed his hands against the tree on either side of Maya, caging her in. He leaned in so his face was just inches from hers. “I know little of love, but I’m well schooled in hunting, whether it’s to feed or in battle. It’s not what you’re doing that intrigues me, Maya, but why you’re doing it.”

“I-I’m hunting, like any other vampire does.” Her voice lowered to a whisper, but the anger and defiance had been replaced by fear and uncertainty. “For the blood.”

“No.” Shane shook his head slowly. Brushing a lock of blond hair off her face, he ran his thumb along her jaw. Her skin was warm and smooth beneath his. Although vampires felt cool to the touch to humans, they were felt warm to other vampires because their body temperatures were the same. But Maya’s flesh seemed hotter and more enticing than any Shane had encountered.

He tilted her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye, and to his surprise, she didn’t resist. “If it were only about blood, youngling, then you would simply glamour a human, feed, and release him. No.” Shane traced the line of her full lower lip with the edge of his thumb, and sadness tugged at whatever was left of his heart. “We both know there is much more at play here than the need for blood.”

“Then spill it.” Maya’s features hardened, and her hands balled into fists at her sides. Dark blue eyes glittered up at him with fierce determination. “What is it that you think I’m after?”

Memories of Maya being dragged into the alley and the look of pure terror and helplessness in her eyes came roaring back—and in that instant he knew. He felt like a fool for not realizing it the moment he’d woken from the dreamscape. When the realization dawned, something deep inside him shattered into a million tiny pieces.

“Power,” Shane whispered. His fangs burst free, and Maya let out a gasp of pleasure. “Control.” He placed a gentle kiss at the corner of her mouth. “Domination.”

Maya’s body quivered, the subtle vibrations fluttering over Shane in erotic waves, like a siren song, willing him closer. He brushed his cheek along hers and nuzzled her hair to the side, exposing her long, lovely neck. He placed his hand on the trunk of the tree, once again framing Maya’s petite frame with his far larger one.

“Do I frighten you?” he asked, taking in every beautiful feature of her face.

“No.” A smile played at her lips, and he stilled when her hands found their way to his chest. “You’re arrogant and bossy, but no, I’m not afraid of you.” Her grin widened and charmed him beyond reason. “Annoyed, not afraid.”

Maya giggled, filling his head with the sweet, clean scent of Ivory soap in an almost intoxicating way. A gust of wind wafted over them, bringing with it the thick scent of desire, and he had to taste her. Shane’s gut clenched hotly with need. Sensing what he wanted, Maya tilted her head, offering herself to him instinctively as one leg slipped enticingly between his.

“I have to taste you, Maya,” Shane whispered between kisses down her throat. Her body quaked and she moaned in response. He lifted his lip and gingerly ran the tip of his fang along the curve of her neck, knowing what he needed to do. “Will you let me taste you?”

“Yes,” Maya whispered. Her fingers curled around his wrists and her back arched, offering him what he so desperately needed.

On a curse, Shane let his fangs pierce the pristine flesh along her throat. The instant the warm sweetness bathed his tongue, lights burst behind his eyes and the world around him fell away. He’d drunk from humans and vampires, and even a fairy or two, but no one tasted anything like this. Maya’s blood was sweet and thick and sent tentacles of power through him like lightning.