Page 19 of Tamed By Her Vampire Protector

As soon as Leo closed the door behind us, I shoved his shoulder, pushing him against the door with a thud.Claiming his lips with a sudden ferocity, I tried to devour him, as if doing so could keep him with me.

“You need to come back tomorrow–” I started.

Leo gathered me in his arms.Looping my arms around his neck, he kissed the top of my head and stroked my hair.“Don’t fret.It’s a standard mission.Cederic’s forces are scattered and despite the orb, he is weak.”

“Promise me you’ll come back.”

“Everything will work out.You’ll see.”

Before I could say anything else, he covered my lips with his.I moaned in protest at our interrupted conversation, but there was no use pretending that I stood a chance against his passionate onslaught.

We made quick work of discarding our clothes and stumbling towards the bed.Soon, I was grasping at the back of his neck, my fingers tangled in his hair as he kissed his way down my body.

After we had claimed each other multiple times, we clung to each other in a mass of stated sticky limbs.Even though he had showed me his love physically, he still hadn’t promised me that he would come back to me alive and in one piece.

The next day, the Diamantis vampires headed out to battle with what looked like every weapon and explosive in their armory.The rest of the human women and I stayed behind and watched helplessly as our men marched out to war.

Anxiety filled the air.Even Amanda, who usually had a voracious appetite, had to be forced by Rose to eat for the sake of the baby.Hours seemed like days as we waited for their return.I wanted to reach out to Leo through the bond to see if he was okay, but that could distract him at a crucial moment.

Lizzy passed the time by fluttering around and making sure we all had an endless supply of tea flowing into our cups.I think it had something to do with her being a witch that made the act of brewing tea such a calming action for her.My hands shook with caffeine jitters as I brought my seventh cup of tea to my lips.

Suddenly, a vision of billowing smoke, fire, and destruction flashed in my mind.A bunch of injured vampires were fleeing the scene, but they were not the focus of the vision.A blonde woman stared directly at me as she helped a man with white and black hair get up.She was as tall as Leo and had the same glacial blue eyes, though hers were dead inside and held none of the warmth and kindness of Leo’s eyes.This must be Leo’s mother.She looked like she was torn between coming closer or escaping with her companion.After a moment of hesitation, she turned her back on Leo and followed the rest of the fleeing vampires, disappearing into the thick black smoke.

The vision turned black and the bond between Leo and me snapped like a door slamming shut.Despite my mate’s best efforts to sever the link between our minds, the pain of his mother’s betrayal and abandonment radiated through the bond.

I came back to consciousness at the same time as Amanda.“Alex has the orb!”she declared.She paused again as she spoke to Alex yet again.“Cederic has escaped with some of the Aurelians, and Giselle is with them.The important thing is, we have the orb of Teneblas”

Finally, a bit of good news.

“What about the rest of the men?”Rose asked.She plucked at the hem of her shirt nervously.

Amanda closed her eyes for a moment as she spoke to Alex.“They are safe.All of them are safe.A bit worse for the wear, but alive.”

When Alex, Grant, Dante, and Leo came back, all of the human women greeted them with a war hero’s welcome.Grant was the most seriously injured, with a deep slash across his torso that looked like it was caused by a sword.Immediately, Lizzy set out to concoct a poultice and healing potion for her mate.

I ran my hands over Leo, examining him for any damage.There was none besides the rapidly swelling lump above his right eyebrow.I touched the wounded flesh with my fingertips.

“That’s going to bruise tomorrow,” I whispered.

“Doesn’t matter.It’s nothing that won’t heal in a day or two.”Leo gathered my hands in his and placed a kiss on my knuckles.“I told you everything was going to work out, didn’t I?”

Indeed, it did.All of our mates were back home, safe and sound with us, and the orb that controlled the sun was now in our hands.

For the first time in ages, I was hopeful for the future.

I bolted up in bed, scared awake out of a dreamless sleep by the screeching sound of alarms going off at full blare.Fumbling in the dark, I messed around with every button on my nightstand until I found the button for the lights.

“What’s going on?”I asked blearily.The fog of sleep made my brain feel mushy, and not much was making sense to me at the moment.

Leo pulled on his pajama pants and shirt in a hurry.“There’s been a breach in the compound.”

I sniffed the air.“Is something burning?”

“Fuck!”Leo lifted me in his arms and carried me as he rushed out of the room.Acrid black smoke filled the hallway.Grant was already guiding Lizzy, and we followed him as he led us out of the building.All around us, vampires rushed to and fro as they tried to put out the raging fire.

As soon as we got outside, I gasped for fresh air to clear out the burning sensation in my lungs.Rose and Lizzy were already outside.

“Stay together,” Leo said before he joined the firefighting efforts.

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