instead of begging me for the life of that mortal woman."
"Nina, even a vampire cannot chose whom he will love. I cannot deny my feelings for Sara, but I swear to you that I will do anything and everything you ask of me if you will only let her go."
"Will you make love to me, here, now?"
"Yes, bella, but only after you have released Sara."
"And will you return with me to Italy and swear not to return to France as long as the little ballerina is alive?"
"Yes."
Nina's eyes glowed, red and evil, and then softened as she stared at the man kneeling before her. He had not changed since she had seen him in Italy all those centuries ago. He was as young and virile and handsome as he had been then, with his dark gray eyes and smooth olive-hued skin. In a thousand years, she had not found another who stirred her blood as he did.
"Tell me the truth, Giovanni, for I will know if you lie. Do you have any true affection in your heart for me?"
"No."
She nodded, as though he had given her the answer she had expected.
"Your punishment will be long indeed, Gianni," she remarked. "For I shall demand your attention every waking minute for as long as you survive. You will be my slave. You will serve me, and hunt my prey. You will satisfy my every desire, and should you displease me while this mortal still lives, I shall return here and finish what I started." Her gaze bored into his. "Do we understand each other?"
"Yes."
"Come then, kiss me to seal our bargain."
Gabriel rose slowly to his feet, his mind replaying the distant past. He looked into Nina's eyes and wondered how he had ever found her desirable. There was no warmth in this woman, no life, no laughter.
Making love to her would be like making love to a corpse, and yet he would do it for Sara.
With an effort, he masked his distaste, took Nina in his arms, and slanted his mouth over hers. Her lips were as cold as the grave; her tongue tasted of death. He flinched imperceptibly as her arms slid possessively around his neck. Her skin felt cool and clammy.
She drew away for a moment; then, standing on tiptoe, she ran her tongue over the side of his neck. He felt the sharp prick of her fangs at his throat, shuddered with revulsion as she drew his blood into her mouth, and all the while a small voice in the back of his mind warned him that he must learn to submit without recoiling, that he must get used to the touch of her hands on his flesh, her teeth at his throat, her mouth on his.
Nina stepped back, her gaze intense, and he wondered if she could sense the depths of his revulsion.
"So, Giovanni," she remarked quietly, "we have sealed our bargain with your blood."
"And now you will keep your promise."
"Yes, as you will keep yours. She is there," Nina said, gesturing at a patch of uneven ground.
He was there in two long strides, removing the heavy block of sod, lifting Sara from the hole.
"Gabriel..." Her voice was hoarse, her face pale and haggard. "I knew you would come," she whispered, and collapsed in his arms.
Cradling her against his chest, Gabriel dropped to his knees, quickly removing the ropes that bound her, massaging her hands and feet.
"Leave her," Nina said curtly. "Leave her now and come to me."
Gabriel bit back his words of protest. Sara was not badly hurt, only frightened and exhausted; she would be all right.
Rising to his feet, he went to stand before Nina, his pride already rebelling at her imperious demands. In all the centuries since this woman had transformed him, no one had dictated what he would or would not do. But all that was changed now. He had surrendered control of his life to Nina in order to keep Sara safe.
But he would have his revenge. When Sara's life was no longer in danger, when she had passed through mortality and was beyond Nina's grasp, he would have his revenge.
"You remember your promise, Giovanni?" Nina asked archly. "You will be my slave. You will do whatever I wish, whenever I wish it."
"I remember."
She smiled benignly as she held out her hand. "Let us go, then. It is hours until dawn. We will hunt together, and then you will share my resting place."
"Yes, bella." He took Nina's hand in his. It was cold