Fallen from Grace [Part Two of the Thicker than Blood Series] Read online

  “Oh, yeah. Please.”

  She smiled, picked up my empty glass and left.

  “You okay? You seemed upset about something...,” Alex said, looking concerned.

  I nodded and shook my head. “No, yeah, I'm fine. Just friend stuff.”

  “The big blond man,” he concluded.

  I stared at Alex. “That's right... you were spying on us that morning, weren't you?”

  “I won't answer -”

  I raised my hand, cutting him off. “Fine, I'll ask that again tomorrow. But, how much of our conversation did you hear?”

  I could see in Alex's eyes that he was trying to determine if he should answer me. I just waited.

  “I only heard when you spoke my name and there after.”

  “Do you know Matt?” I asked, relieved he didn't know I was trying to jump Matt to satisfy my lust for him.

  Alex shook his head. “No, I don't think so.”

  “Well he certainly knows you.”

  The waitress brought another large margarita for the both of us.

  Alex stared at me hard, then averted his eyes to the window. His expression changed. His thoughts and feelings were being guarded.

  I sighed, taking a drink of my fresh beverage. While I was dying to know what was going on, I didn't want the lovely evening to be ruined. “I'm sorry. I just have so many questions.”

  Alex looked at me and smiled. “I know and I apologize for asking you to wait for answers. But I will answer them all tomorrow.”

  I laughed. “What is going to change between now and tomorrow that will allow you to tell me?”

  He said nothing as he continued his stare.

  I blinked. “Oh,” I said as I flushed pink. He was thinking sex. He thought bedding me would make me more receptive to his answers to the weird questions I had. He must believe he's an incredible lover. How arrogant. “What happened to being a gentleman?” I asked, meeting his gaze.

  “What. I'm a man and I can be gentle... if that's what you want,” he said softly, his eyes boring into mine.

  My insides liquified. I pushed the thought of being ravaged by Alex in every room of my house, yard, car and even the woods out of my mind with a gulp of air. Wow, it was hot in here! Did someone turn on the heat?

  Alex chuckled softly. “I didn't mean to embarrass you.”

  I slowly shook my head. “You didn't. You just caught me off guard.” I stirred the cubes in my drink thoughtfully and took a large gulp from the side of the glass. “You were planning this all along then?”

  He nodded. “I'm not going to lie, I've wanted you since the first night I saw you.”

  “So, it's about sex,” I stated. I couldn't bring myself to look at him.

  “Certainly not.” Alex took my hand from my glass, causing me to meet his eyes. “That's not what I meant at all. You're... unique. I don't want to have sex with you, I want...,” he paused, his thumb absently working small circles on my hand. He looked down at the table.

  “You want what?”

  It took him a moment to look back up at me, but when he did, I gasped. His irises were completely black. “I want to possess you.” His voice was raspy and deep as he whispered the words.

  I sucked in a breath and shivered. Lust, joy and fear shot through my body and I shivered. He wanted to possess me. I looked out of the window in an attempt to calm myself. I didn't know how to respond.

  “I'm sorry,” Alex said after a while.

  When I looked back at him, the black had receded into the liquid caramel that I loved.

  “Some first date, huh?”

  I busted out in giggles. “Yeah.”

  “Are you ready to get out of here? I have some wine at the house I'd like for you to try.”

  My eyes searched his.

  Alex raised his hands up. “Gentleman, remember? Although, I might not be able to resist stealing a kiss or two from those mesmerizing lips.”

  He was a smooth-talking bastard. “Uh huh,” I laughed, climbing out of the booth.

  Alex put some cash on the table and followed me, placing his hand at the small of my back once again. It was comforting.

  “Thank you for dinner,” I said as he drove to his house.

  Alex smiled. “You're welcome. Believe me, it was all my pleasure.”

  He pulled up to a large, old-yet-beautiful, brick home. It seemed to suit him – classy yet somewhat old world. On the inside, the furnishings and décor matched the outside. It was expansive but still retained a factor of warmth.

  “Your home is lovely.”

  “Thank you. Please have a seat and I'll get the wine.” Alex walked to a large wet bar visible from the living room.

  I sat on a worn leather sofa, which faced an imposing hearth, and rubbed my hands across the soft material. There were huge wooden beams in the high ceiling. “Seriously, this place is something else.”

  “It's not too shabby,” he said as he rounded behind the sofa and sat next to me, handing me a glass of a deep-red wine.

  “Thank you.”

  “It's a Cabernet-Merlot from Tuscany. Try it.”

  I looked at the wine and wondered how much it cost him, positive it must be expensive. I swirled the liquid gently, scenting the bouquet that opened to my nose and took a sip. “Wow. This is nice.”

  “Tell me what you taste.”

  I lifted the glass to my lips again, meeting his gaze—caramel was framed with black rings. I exhaled, taking another sip. I could relax around him, even if his eyes did change color. “Uh, I taste oak, blackberries, chocolate...,” I paused to smack my lips in an unlady-like fashion. “And honey.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Good. Is that all?”

  I nodded.

  He took my glass from me and sat both of ours down on the coffee table. Alex turned back, gently brushing my cheek with his fingers. Black was pushing it's way closer to his pupils. “Let me taste,” he said in a low tone.

  His lips sought mine and they connected with a jolt of electricity that shot through my body. He probed my lips tenderly, seeking access to my mouth. I sighed, allowing him entrance. His tongue danced lightly and I could feel myself be pulled into the swirling vortex of his kiss. His hand moved slowly up the slight curve of my spine to pass under my hair and hold the back of my head. While kissing him in the hospital had been great, this blew that away.

  His mouth trailed from mine to my jaw bone and then my neck. “Your skin is delicious,” he murmured.

  “Stealing just a kiss or two...,” I sighed.

  He planted thick, wet nibbles on my neck. “Possibly a few more than that...,” Alex whispered.

  I gripped his wavy hair in my hand, holding his face against my skin. A small moan escaped my parted lips.

  Suddenly, there was a bright flash of pain in my neck. Alex bit into me hard, breaking my skin. I cried out in agony, trying to push Alex away. He didn't budge, his teeth remained in my flesh.

  “Alex!” I screamed.

  He quickly pulled away from me as if breaking from a trance. His irises were completely black and my blood trickled down his lips. “Kenna, I'm so sorry!” Alex quickly left the living room to return a second later with a damp towel and sat down next to me.

  Shoving him from me hard, he had to grab the arm of the sofa to remain seated and not fall to the floor.

  “What the fuck, damned vampire!” I backed as far into the edge couch as I could and felt my neck. It wasn't bleeding badly, despite how it felt. He missed any major arteries, luckily.

  I glared at him, daring him to come closer. He held up the towel and pleaded with his eyes. “I'm not a vampire.”

  Was he serious? I raised an eyebrow and laughed at him. “Well, no shit...” I snatched the towel out of his hand and applied pressure to my neck. “But just so you know, for future reference, I'm not into the whole pain/pleasure thing.” I considered leaving, but despite what he had done, I couldn't bring myself to do it. What the hell was wrong with me? I huffed angrily, more at myself than
Alex.

  He looked mortified. “Kenna, I'm so sorry.”

  I pulled the towel back to see that I was only bleeding a little. “Next time, ask before you do some crap like that.”

  Alex went over to the large fireplace and laced his hands behind his head. “It's not like that.”

  “It's not like what.”

  “I didn't bite you because I thought you'd like it.”

  I stared at his back. “Then why the hell did you do it? Do you get off on biting?”

  Alex didn't say anything but put his hands in his pockets and turned towards me. “I need to show you something... and you might want to finish that wine before I show you.” He nodded at the glass on the table.

  Uh oh. This didn't bode well. I checked the towel again and figured it was good enough for now. I tossed it on the coffee table and picked up my wine, taking a gulp of the delicious red beverage. “Is there a real reason for the dramatics?” I asked in all seriousness.

  “Yes,” he said softly. “I don't want to frighten you... but I fear that's inevitable.”

  “Frighten me,” I repeated and took another gulp of the wine. What could he possibly show me that he thought would scare me after all the shit I've been through with him already? “What is it, Alex.”

  “Set your glass down and lean back into the sofa, please,” he asked tenderly.

  I sighed. Was he serious? I sat the glass down and snuggled as far back into the sofa as was possible. “Okay, show me.”

  Alex studied me for a moment with regret filled eyes. “I didn't want the evening to be like this...” He unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it in the chair nearby.

  My eyes grew wide and I swallowed hard. He was amazingly perfect. I certainly could stand to see more of his body. While he wasn't as bulky-muscular as Matt, he was cut. In all honesty, he looked like an Armani model.

  “Vampire myths started because of... people... like me,” he said in a stronger tone. Alex seemed to shimmer for a moment, and suddenly huge, black-feathered wings spread out behind him.

  I gasped, trying to back into the sofa further. “What the...,” was all I could say. The room grew far away as blackness spread into my vision.

  “I'm a fallen angel, Kenna.”

  “Oh my Go...,” I think I managed before the world went black.

  ****

  Thank you for reading part two of the Thicker than Blood series! Part three will be available before the start of 2014.

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