Dying to Love Her by Dana Lorraine

opened
his door and stepped out onto the pavement. “Look, we fucked this all up taking
her blood so quickly. Now we have hours hanging over our heads and if Melanie
doesn’t follow her heart we’re all screwed. Forgive me for wanting to make sure
she’s moving in the right direction.”
    “You’re my best friend, Alec, but I swear if you fuck this
up for us—”
    “I won’t. I promise.” He’d never forgive himself if he did.
Alec headed across the quiet street. “You keep making sure tonight is special
for Melanie and I’ll make sure she’ll be there.” He ended the call and shoved
the phone into his back pocket.
    His long-sleeved shirt and jeans gave him little protection.
Already his skin felt tight and itchy. Self-preservation quickened his pace. He
recognized the early discomfort of sun exposure. Melanie’s blood—its effect—was
beginning to weaken. Everything in him burned to strengthen the precarious
bond.
    Potted mums decorated either side of the wide steps leading
up to her shaded porch. He hurried to find cover under the awning. Alec slid
his sunglasses down his nose, folded them into his shirt pocket and knocked
loud enough to wake her neighbors.
    Through the door he could just make out the sound of her
steps. They slowed as she neared. Inches of milled wood separated them but it
felt like miles. Not knowing what was going through her mind, not knowing if
she’d be in his arms from this day forward suffocated him.
    Melanie opened the door and his lungs gave way, filling with
cool morning air. She crossed her arms over the pink tank top that matched her
striped flannel pajama bottoms, and tilted her head. “What, no danishes?”
    If she looked this cute every morning they were never going
to make it out of bed before noon. The furry pink slippers she wore looked like
bad seventies shag carpet. They put a smile on his face. So did her
unconvincing frown.
    “Just tell me the name of your favorite baker and I’ll bring
you back a dozen.” Give him a day and he’d have them shipped over from Paris if
that’s what she wanted.
    “Where’s Rook?” Melanie rose on her toes and looked around
his shoulder, her eyes searching. A fleeting shadow of disappointment darkened
her expression and then disappeared. “We might need more than a dozen.”
    He didn’t let the twinge of jealousy nagging at him take
hold. It could only mean good things for them if she missed Rook.
    “I’m betting he’s lost his taste for danishes indefinitely.”
His gaze traveled to her lips. Alec’s sluggish heartbeat sped up. Never would
he lose his taste for her. He barely kept himself from taking her into his arms
and indulging in one of her sweet kisses. “When you left yesterday he headed
back to his apartment in the city.”
    “So what you’re telling me is Rook is better at following
directions than you.”
    “You said you needed time, not how much.”
    Her lips quivered, almost giving way to a smile. She ran her
fingers through her hair releasing the faint citrus aroma of his shampoo still
clinging on from yesterday’s shower.
    He wanted her covered in his blood scent too, marking her as
his own. “I was hoping we could talk.”
    “Do you want to come in?”
    More than anything . “I better not. Me, you and all
manner of surfaces to have sex on. I don’t trust myself. We better stick to
public places.”
    Melanie looked up from under her flirty lashes. “You don’t
strike me as the kind of man who would shy away from putting on a show in
public.”
    With Melanie he’d never shy away or apologize for the desire
he felt. How he’d need to touch her, always and often. He rubbed his fingers
along the hard line of his unshaven jaw. “I’m game if you are?”
    “You think you’re so charming, don’t you?” Melanie shook her
head and challenged him with her no-nonsense look.
    “I don’t know. You tell me.”
    Alec had promised himself they’d just talk but she was
irresistible. And her obstinate