Page 34 of Hot Blooded

“No, Amos, you don’t have to do that. Really, I’m fine.”

“Do you like pizza?” he prompted. Thanks to Fran, Amos had a list of restaurants that were open in the middle of the night. “Chinese? Greek? If you don’t tell me, I’ll just order something at random.”

He could see the internal debate written across her face. It was obvious Tessa wasn’t used to being taken care of. Chewing her lip, she met his gaze, and finally gave in. “Pizza sounds good, actually.”

Satisfied with the small victory, Amos picked up his phone. “What do you like on your pizza?”

“Jalapeño, pineapple, green olives, and ham.”

Amos must’ve made a face because Tessa laughed. “What would you know, vampire? When’s the last time you tasted anything besides blood?”

Amos sighed heavily. “I do this against my better judgment.” He tapped at his screen, placing her order.

When he looked up from his phone, Tessa’s gaze was on him, but her focus had gone distant.

“Is everything alright?” Amos asked softly.

Tessa blinked, her focus returning to him. She smiled ruefully. “Everything’s great. I was just thinking, I could get used to this. Ordering pizza with my family is impossible. Nobody can compromise. This is kind of selfish, but it’s nice not having to compromise.”

It was on the tip of his tongue to assure her that she would never have to compromise or settle for less with him, before reality sank in. Being a vampire’s bloodmate was nothing but compromise. An eternity lived in darkness. An eternity in which she would watch her family age and die, even the children, without her. An eternity that would be contingent upon her relationship with him.

He swallowed the naive promise, the lie. “I can guarantee I will never fight you over pizza toppings,” he said instead.

They settled back into a comfortable cuddle and watched the movie. After a while, it was obvious that Amos had chosen well. Tessa was completely engrossed, occasionally murmuring questions about the plot, but quickly subsiding back into attentive silence. Her pizza arrived and Amos went to the door to get it. Tessa slid down to sit in front of the coffee table, eating with her eyes pinned on the TV screen. When she’d had her fill, she climbed back onto the couch and cuddled up against Amos again. He pulled her into his arms, barely paying any attention to the movie, almost entirely focused on the warm, soft weight of Tessa’s body pressed against his.

Feeling her like this was different from feeding. When he was drinking from her, the pleasure of her blood was enhanced by the closeness of her body, but the forefront of his awareness was occupied by the taste of her blood and the flow of vitality suffusing him. Now, there was just Tessa, just the lush feel of her and nothing else. Without consciously meaning to, one of his hands began to stroke slowly up and down the length of her spine.

Tessa murmured something inarticulate, shifting against him. Amos looked down at her, about to ask her to repeat herself, but the words never made it out of his mouth. Tessa tilted her head up, catching his lips with hers in a sweet, soft, long kiss. Amos groaned as he leaned into it, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer.

The kiss deepened, mouths open, tongues stroking together. The tip of Tessa’s tongue curled teasingly around one of his fangs, sending a jolt of hunger through him that tightened his gut and pulled a snarl from his throat. He jerked back, embarrassed at his loss of control, but Tessa only chuckled and came closer, slinging one leg over his lap so that she was straddling him. Her hands slid up the back of his neck, fingers furrowing through his hair, nails dragging against his scalp. He was hard again, alive with need. He brought his mouth down on Tessa’s, stealing her laughter away and turning it into a helpless moan.

He savored the way she clung to him, the way she yielded to the urgency of his kiss. He wanted more—he wanted everything. Her hands roamed over his shoulders, down his chest. They slipped beneath his shirt, pressing hot fingers against his bare skin, sending another almost-painful jolt of pleasure through him.

Before he knew it, he had Tessa on her back, pinning her with his weight while he devoured her. Hard, hungry kisses traveled from her sweet, hot mouth to the edge of her jaw, to the fluttering pulse at her throat. Slowly, he worked his way down, tasting the crook of her shoulder, her collarbone, until, at last, he was nuzzling the soft curve of one breast. He dragged his tongue over that velvety slope, rewarded with a gasp from Tessa, and the arch of her spine.

More. She wanted more. He needed more. His hands slid up her body, cupping the voluptuous swells of her breasts.

“Amos,” she panted, one hand closing over his, pressing him down harder, urging him to take more, more.

He did—squeezing, pressing, stroking—but it wasn’t enough. His fingers curled in the edge of her neckline, hooking the lace of her bra, and tugged one cup down. Her nipple was already a taut brown peak, and he shifted lower so that he could close his mouth over it, stroke his tongue over it, suck on it. Tessa’s hand slid to the back of his head, holding him there, soft cries rising from her throat as she writhed beneath him.

Half-wild with lust, only vaguely aware of what he was doing, Amos tugged her shirt and bra down to her waist, freeing her other breast for his mouth to feast upon. Her skin was fever hot, her pulse a drumbeat beneath it. Her plush thighs were spread beneath him, clinging to his flanks, hips rocking against him. His cock was hard as iron, desperate to be inside her. His fangs ached, tempting him to bite her, to suck sweet blood from the swell of her breast, sucking on her nipple at the same time, making her come while he did it.

But he resisted the urge. He’d already fed from her twice today. A third would be too much.

The hunger continued to build until it became nearly unbearable. Before he did something he’d regret, Amos drew back, holding himself up on arms that wanted nothing more than close around Tessa and crush her close while he fucked and fed from her.

“What’s wrong?” Tessa asked, breathless, flushed, eyes glassy. Her breasts rose and fell with each deep breath, her nipples still peaked and shiny from his mouth. Her bountiful hair spilled across the couch, tousled and free. Her bottom lip was swollen and red from her teeth sinking into it. She was too beautiful, too tempting.

With a groan, he levered himself off of her entirely. He sat on the edge of the seat, rubbing at his face as if he could scrub the sight of her—dazed, pliant, needy—out of his mind’s eye. “I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he rasped. “I’m getting carried away.”

Tessa puffed out a breath, running her hands restlessly up and down her body before she tugged her shirt back into place, tucking those glorious breasts out of sight. She sat up, leaning against the backrest as if she needed the support, and regarded Amos contemplatively.

“We can go at whatever pace you want,” she said gently. She swept her hair over one shoulder, finger combing it back into order.

“I don’t want to take too much, too soon,” Amos told her.

“You’re not taking anything from me. Believe me, I’m giving it, freely. But I think it’s sweet that you want to take things slow.” A devilish twinkle came into her eyes. “And kind of hot.”

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