A Touch Too Much by Chris Lange Page A

tremors shaking his body.
    Deprived of strength, breathless, Liv sank onto the bed. Rogan let her slide before flipping a side of the bedspread over her naked body. Although she already missed his hands on her, she felt complete. He had so fully satisfied her she wondered how such a magnificent sensation could be real. Lids half-closed, she relished this unforgettable moment.
    Then a brief noise confirmed their wild lovemaking had been no dream, a zipping sound terminating an unbelievable experience. In a way, she could have cried from joy.
    As she turned her head towards where Rogan stood, a light jab reminded her she had been bitten for the second time. She sat up to touch the soft spot on the side of her neck. Two pearls of blood showed on her finger when she looked at it. She licked the bright red liquid, her blood, her vital link to the vampire-man looming over her.
    She glanced up to meet his eyes, still focused on her neck. The intensity of his gaze made her shiver, annihilating any sensation of wellbeing. Suddenly she felt cold, and wrapped the bedspread tighter around her body. Rogan opened his mouth to speak, but a knock on the door halted him. Whatever he had been about to say turned into some kind of irritated bark.
    “What?”
    As the door opened, Liv wondered if Rogan had been expecting someone. Had he found some help? Of course not—help never came when needed. On the other hand, she had trouble picturing Rogan asking for room service. He was more the break-and-enter type. So, when Khord came into the bedroom, she felt completely at a loss.
    No, no, no, not now! Not him!
    Adrenaline awakening all her senses, strangled with fear, Liv braced herself for the inevitable fight to come. Except that Rogan remained motionless while Khord stepped up to him, a look of reverence stiffening his ugly features. He stopped just short of Rogan, and bowed to him while holding out a black shape she couldn’t quite make out.
    Holy mackerel, what was going on here? Had they both been brainwashed in the past twelve hours? Had she inexplicably fallen into the fourth dimension? Unable to figure out the weird scene she witnessed, Liv gaped at Rogan. For a second, it felt like observing a total stranger. Or someone she might have come across in the street, but not let him touch her. Mind blank, guts twisted with dread, all she could do was whisper his name.
    “Rogan…”
    He slowly turned his handsome face towards her. So slowly her heart missed a beat. His sudden sneer made her blood race, causing her to tighten the bedspread around her shoulders.
    Feeling trapped like a frightened mouse, she couldn’t help but goggle at the malice in his eyes, seeming to take a wicked pleasure in her obvious confusion. Then his mouth puckered, and her disarray turned to downright fear as he uttered three ghastly words.
    “Guess again, baby!”

Chapter Fifteen
     
     
     
    What the hell did he mean by that? Why was he looking at her with such a mocking, satisfied grin? Surely he’d reach down in a second, swoop her in his arms and tell her to wake up. It was just a bad dream, an awful, gut-wrenching nightmare and everything would be all right.
    But he didn’t. Instead he stretched his lips into a scorn, and his hurtful words shattered her soul.
    “Oh, my, aren’t you a delightful piece of meat.”
    Her legs weighed a ton. Inner spasms twitched her nerve endings. Her stomach dropped down, at the same time trying to push her last meal back up. She swallowed to bring the fries and sandwiches under control, yet the horrible sensation didn’t fade. And when Khord sniggered loudly her cheeks and forehead began to burn.
    Naked. Helpless on a bed. Trapped in a motel room with two ferocious vampires, one of whom hated her. The other… Well, the other had just made love to her and was now treating her like a cow he had milked. To top it all, the brute’s idiotic snigger grated on her nerves.
    “Enough!”
    Rogan’s order shut him up immediately.