Page 74 of Afflicted

Juliet inhales sharply and nods. “Yeah, OK.” She scrapes the heels of her hands along her thighs. “Can you put on the air, please? I need to cool down.”

I flip on the air-conditioning, which throws up the scent of her arousal as the air bursts from the vents. Blood rushes to my cock, and I grasp the steering wheel hard to stop myself reaching over to grab her.

She snatches up a bottle of water from the dash and twists off the lid, gulping it down in three long bounces of her throat. Droplets run down her chin, and she licks her lips, trying to snatch them back up. This is bad. I’m an idiot. This was a bad idea.

I spot a sign up ahead, the white writing peeling off the green background, but still legible.Ansom Lake. I tear the steering wheel to the right and we fly down a corrugated dirt road.

“Where are we going?” Juliet asks, her voice still breathy and sexy.

“Somewhere to cool down.”

It’s only a short drive down the road, and the forest opens up to reveal a shimmering dark green lake. The tires screech to a halt as I pull up, and I realize as I kill the engine that we’re both panting. Juliet looks over at me, her hands clenched between her thighs.

“What did you do to me?”

“I wanted to mask your scent,” I say, waving to the backseat. “It’s basically concentrated vampire scent.”

“Well y’all smellrealgood.” She runs a hand over her flushed face, tipping her head back against the seat as she closes her eyes. Her chest rises and falls rapidly, her nipples still bunched up under the white fabric of her shirt. She turns her head and opens her eyes, gazing at me.

It would be so easy to have her right now. I could pull her onto my lap, tear those soaked panties aside and bury my cock in that pussy that’s aching to be fucked right. I could pin her down and suck on her throbbing clit and not let her go til she’s come on my mouth three times. I could soak my cock in all that arousal pooling between her legs and fuck her in the ass so she can’t walk tomorrow. Right now, I can do what I want with her. She’d be open for anything, her body’s so strung out on my scent.

And none of it would be because she wanted it. She’s drugged out of her mind.

I throw open the truck door and climb down, sucking in heavy breaths of warm air.

The door on the other side opens, and Juliet clambers out, a little unsteady on her feet as she walks around to my side. She stops right in front of me, staring up at me. Her pupils are blown, sweat still beading on her forehead.

“Why don’t you go for a swim?”

Her brows knit together as she looks at me. “A swim?”

“Sure. Get your mind off things. I’ll keep watch.”

She takes two steps back from me, then lifts her shirt.Fuck.She pulls it up over her head, and hands it to me. Her eyes stay fixed on me as she drops her shorts and her panties down her legs, picking them up with her foot. She hands those to me too, and the hit I get as her scent wafts up into my face - no drug is this good.

She stands completely naked in front of me, her hands at her sides. Her long blonde hair hangs over her shoulders, partially covering her breasts. She looks like an angel. My angel.Maybe just once…

But it wouldn’t be once. It would be forever. If I taste this woman I know that she’s the only thing I’ll want for the rest of my life. I can’t have her. I can’t do that to her. I can’t do that to myself.

“Go on.” I tilt my head towards the water. “Go cool off. Swim. You said you were a good swimmer once.” I give her a crooked smile.

The fog seems to lift a little, her face crinkling as she frowns. She looks over at the water, finally breaking the stare on me, and moves slowly towards it. I watch as she crosses the small sandy beach, a flicker of panic passing through me as she hesitates at the edge of the sparkling depths. Am I about to trigger an episode of PTSD?Shit.She hasn’t been in the water since… That day. I take two steps forward, ready to grab her if I need to.

But after a moment, she wades in, her hands caressing the water’s surface as it meets her fingertips. Her legs are almost fully submerged by the time she lowers her body in, her hair spreading out behind her like some heavenly lilypad.

I lean my back against a tree, breathing a sigh of relief, watching her swim. She moves through the water swiftly, naturally. Like she’s never left it. Her long arms glisten in the sunlight as they lift then plunge back into the depths, propelling her forward.

Gradually my own arousal sinks away, eking out of my bones miserably. I want her. I want to own her, to taste her and consume her. When I nearly kissed her in the forest, I had to stop myself because I know what kind of man I am once that boundary gets crossed.

Vivien’s boyfriend discovered that. Painfully.

Margot used to laugh at me. “My little love addict,” she’d tease, stroking my hair. She was right.

I’d fucked Vivien out the back of the record store where she worked, it was meant to be a casual thing. She had a boyfriend. She didn’t want any more than that.

But I did.

Once I’d tasted her cunt, her blood, her mouth, I was done. I had to have her. I had to own her.

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