shoulders, he turned her away so she couldn’t see it, but he couldn’t sway her that easily.
“You’re hurting. Don’t give me that look. All this prana and mind-reading business isn’t one-sided, you know. I can feel how it hurts you almost as if I had it on myself. Let me get some salve and bandage it up. Shirl’s got to have a first-aid kit around her somewhere.”
“Not necessary. I heal fast. It’s feeling better already.”
She gave him a lopsided scowl and climbed off his lap. Nope, she wasn’t buying it. He heard her rummaging through the bathroom drawers, and a few minutes later she returned with a tube of ointment and a box of bandages.
“You may heal faster than I would, but I still know a nasty wound when I see one. You’re not putting that damn thing on again. Gimme your hand.”
Too bad. As long as she was around him, the device wouldn’t be far away.
He watched as she squeezed a small amount of ointment onto her pinkie finger. Cradling his forearm gently in her hands, she seemed to be examining the wounds for an extraordinarily long length of time. In his head he felt the beating of her heart increase its tempo and he ground his teeth together. No, he couldn’t let her go there. Making love to her was one thing, but if she took any more of his blood, he knew his willpower would be gone. Shredded. Zilch. Cilice or no cilice. Like committed couples who shared blood, his body would need that from her. It wasn’t a one-sided thing. If she fed directly from him, he would need to feed directly from her. But that would have disastrous results. He pulled away.
She scowled and grabbed his hand again. “Hold still, will you?” Then she gently touched her finger to each puncture wound.
“You were saying something about biting and making love. What do you mean? Is biting like a sexual thing?”
“Sometimes. Blood sharing is a common practice when we make love. Not necessarily when having sex just for the hell of it, but when there’s a deep emotional connection between committed couples, some feel the urge to share blood. Or so I’m told.”
She applied the last bandage and his eyes met hers. Yes, she felt the same urge. The urge to share blood. She wanted his, too.
“Committed couples? Have you ever shared blood with anyone?”
“No. Never had the desire till now and I’ve, uh…” He coughed. How could he word it so she didn’t think he was some easy man-whore? Hell, most unmated vampires were. Who was he fooling? He was no different. Before he’d met her, there weren’t many weeks that passed without several hook-ups. Casual sex to the extent his kind engaged in wasn’t as accepted a practice among humans. But it was a healthier, more acceptable way to deal with their aggressive natures. “I’ve had lots of experiences and… Well, it’s just never happened to me before. I wasn’t expecting it.”
“And it’s not something related to my being Sangre Dulce?”
“The bloodlust—yes. But the emotional connection, the need to drink from you—no. And you know your desire for me to take more of your blood?” He waited for her to nod her head. “I’ve got the same feeling, too. Like a drumbeat in my head. I want you to have some of mine again.” He’d hardly realized that was what the need had been, but seeing her taste the drop of his blood clarified what he hadn’t been able to define.
She was quiet. He’d have to tell her it was against Council rules to share with a human. Unless they had gone through the mating ritual.
“Mackenzie…I—” His lips went suddenly dry. “Given my family history, I freaked out.”
“What do you mean? What happened?”
Why the hell had he even brought it up? Things had been going along perfectly fine without mentioning that. Just thinking about it made him feel sick. But there was something about the strength behind her eyes that made him want to tell her things he’d never felt comfortable sharing before. He wasn’t sure he could get the words out.
Running his fingers through his hair, he got up and walked to the window. The sun had dipped behind the distant horizon of the peninsula and washed the sky in enchanting shades of pinks and oranges. His heart banged against his ribs and when he felt an unfamiliar welling of emotion, he realized he was looking at the sunset as Mackenzie would.