Page 11 of Stranded with a Wounded Vampire

Heat spreads across my cheeks. “It was for your own good. Also, I am still learning how to communicate correctly with humans. I am here on this mission, but I am not like Justice or Hail. They are especially adept at communicating with other Korn, as well as with other species. This networking with humans is not where I excel, I'm the one who works behind the scenes. I make sure everything gets done and the logistics figured out. I communicate back and forth with our government and commerce authority through batches of messages and make sure all documents are correctly filed.”

“Sounds like you're an important part of the team.”

I nod. “I am. And after spending time with Justice and Hale and their brides, I want to be like them, mated to a human I’m reacting towards. But as I already told you, it is illegal. I am a special case. Both Justice and Hale have human brides and half-human, half-Korn offspring. They all appear happy and healthy.”

“I wish I could meet them,” Willow muses.

“But, this doesn't mean that all humans can make a lifetime commitment. I've seen this scourge your species refers to as divorce and to be truthful, I find it disgusting.”

She chuckles. “Really? You find it disgusting?”

“Yes. Humans can pleasure mate, which is normal. But once Korn complete the frenzy we are locked together for life until one of us passes away. So again, I remind you, if this wasn’t illegal and I were able to take you…you’d have to take this mating very seriously because it's not like a human mating where you could discard me soon after. If the next morning you woke up and realized the whole thing was a mistake I am locked physically to you for life and would go mad from not being in your presence. I would have to be isolated, quarantined in order for you to go on with your life with no worries. Not that any of that should bother you. You get to make your own decisions, especially since you're human, but you need to know how serious this is and why I've kept you away from me. This is why I said you couldn't stay here because it will get worse for me. And I… I need to drink some antidote soon.”

“What?”

I open the fridge.

Willow is right behind me, not even trying to remain safe. Everything I'm telling her should make her want to run away and hide in the car from me, even though it's raining. Start walking by foot back down the hill just to get away.

She gasps with surprise. “Why are there bags of blood in the fridge?”

Chapter 4

Willow

Bruce Bloodworth stands with the refrigerator door opened, as if storing bags of blood in the fridge is completely normal. “This is Korn synthetic blood.”

I exhale, happy to hear it’s not his own blood, or someone else’s. For a moment, I thought his wounds were more serious than I’d first assumed.

“I am concerned,” he continues, “that if I do not drink this blood I will behave inappropriately. And it is important that you come to me with full consent. It is against our laws to lock another into a frenzy against their will.”

I look him up and down, because for some reason it’s only now hitting me hard that this man isn’t human. “So you have to drink all this blood in order to stay away from me?”

“I have this blood as an antidote. This supply was left behind by the military, as standard procedure. I didn’t think I’d have reason to use it, but now that I’ve met you it’s been essential. I don't know if I'll have enough. I've already drank two bags during the time since you've been nearby, this is the only reason why I am behaving reasonably. It helps to decrease the need.”

I love it when he repeats his “need” for me. “This is you behaving reasonably?”

“Yes.”

“Drinking this blood means we can stay together for a while and get to know each other better?”

“I think you should go into a bedroom upstairs right now and lock the door because at some point I will run out of blood. This is when I will not be able to control my lust.”

Ooh. And why does that sound fabulous? I bite my lip again to stop from smiling because now I see his wine rack holds my favorite type of Viognier. “I could do that,” I agree, “or… we can eat dinner together.” I put a hand on my stomach and hold up a bottle of wine. “Because I'm hungry and we could talk and spend time together.”

“Willow, are you listening to me? I will get progressively worse. If I run out of blood, even though our joining would be illegal, I will be trying to talk you into having sex with me and allowing me to mark you with my fangs.”

I shrug, looking for nice wine glasses because drinking out of plastic cups while hanging out in this luxury kitchen is depressing. “That doesn’t sound so bad to me.”

He groans and shakes his head. “I have done my best to stop this between us and to keep you safe.”

“You have,” I agree. “And yes, maybe another woman would be running in the opposite direction right now. But for some reason all I want is to get closer. And it breaks my heart that you think it’s illegal for us to be together. How could your own people have decided you couldn’t ever have a wife, girlfriend or kids because you’re scarred or simply wounded? I don’t know the whole story but I can tell you already there has to be a work-around for that nonsense. I need to get to the bottom of this. Can you explain to me better what blood frenzy means? All I've heard is that it's a bonding.”

“I will sink my fangs in your neck and drink your blood.”

I place a hand against my neck. “Oh, is it going to hurt?”

“No, it will not. When I sink my fangs in your skin it releases a painkiller.”

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