Bound by Danger (The Alliance #6) - Brenda K. Davies Page 0,38
quarter off them, a brick would launch off those things.
And if those abs weren’t enough enticement, a trail of dark blond hair led from his bellybutton to the sagging waistband of his jeans... jeans that had a noticeable bulge in the front of them.
She blinked as she tried to tear her attention away from the mouthwatering sight of him, but her fingers itched to run over those broad shoulders and chest before dipping into the hollows of those abs while she memorized every inch of him.
She hated the complete darkness of the storage unit, but she’d prefer not to see how attractive this vampire was. Slowly, she forced her gaze from his abs to his chest and finally to his face.
His reddened eyes met and held hers as she gazed at the chiseled contours of his face. Now that he was clean, she could tell the scruffy beard covering his square jaw was a dark blond color, but she still wasn’t sure about the color of his hair as it remained wet.
Behind the scruffy beard was the temptation of his mouth. His lips were full, but the bottom one was slightly fuller, and the upper one…. Why did she suddenly want to bite it?
Callie shook her head as a tumult of emotions assaulted her. She couldn’t be attracted to a man—no, a vampire who willingly admitted to loving every minute of killing things, even if those things deserved it.
She’d already been in one fucked-up relationship; she was not getting into another one, even if that meant staying single for the rest of her life. Although, after everything that happened, she was beginning to suspect her life might be a lot shorter than she anticipated.
Pushing back her sudden unease, her eyes settled on the fading bites on his shoulders and arms. Without thinking, she rested her fingers over one of them.
“They fed on you?” she asked.
Self-disgust filled Lucien as he glanced at the marks. “No.”
“Then—”
“I did it to myself.”
When Callie’s eyes flew back up to his, he saw the confusion in their beautiful depths.
“I was starving. I needed to bite, to bleed, to taste blood. It’s—” He couldn’t hold her gaze as he spoke. “—it’s not something I’m proud of.”
Horror churned inside her as his words sank in. She couldn’t imagine the desperation that would compel someone to do that to themselves. Given everything she’d witnessed, she was beginning to realize it was a miracle he’d retained enough control to get them out of those tunnels.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
“For what?”
“Saving me.”
Uncomfortable with her gratitude, Lucien shifted. “We have to go.”
She ignored her impulse to clasp his hand as they walked through the storage units and toward the entrance. They were almost to the guard booth when he tugged the shirt over his head. Disappointment filtered through her, but it was definitely for the best.
When they stopped outside the guard booth, the man turned to look at them. He didn’t seem surprised to see them standing there.
“I need to use your phone,” Lucien said.
The guard grabbed the black phone sitting on the counter and pushed it toward him.
“Do you have a cell phone?” Lucien asked.
“No.”
Lucien kept his irritation over this concealed as he pulled the phone closer and lifted it from the receiver. He started dialing the last number he remembered for Ronan and waited as the phone rang. Usually, Ronan would have gotten rid of the phone with this number by now, but Lucien suspected Ronan kept it in the hopes of receiving this call.
He’d almost finished dialing when he spotted three Savages emerge from the alley between the buildings across the way. They stayed to the shadows, but they were out in the day, which meant they weren’t as far gone as some of their brethren and the sun didn’t bother them as much.
And as he watched them, their eyes found his.
Chapter Seventeen
The Savages emerged from the shadows of the buildings and raced across the road toward them. Gripping Callie’s elbow, Lucien hurried her toward the guard booth. The older man stood inside, gaping at the monsters racing across the street toward them.
“Get in the booth,” he told her, “and stay in there until this is over.”
“Lucien….” She started to protest, but he was already pushing her inside and closing the door.
Out of frustration, she slapped her hand against the glass before reaching for the handle. Her fingers enclosed on the knob and froze there. Heart hammering, she lifted her gaze to the Savages racing across the street toward them.