Page 22 of Depths of Obsession
I say nothing. Gazzago won’t wait that long and I won’t let Pippa be sacrificed.
CHAPTER 7
Iwalk down the hallway and pause outside Pippa’s door, listening. Her breathing is steady, deep—she’s asleep. I lean my forehead against the door, my chest tightening. The urge to go in there, to hold her, to reassure her, borders on physically painful. I want her to feel safe, to feel like nothing can touch her as long as I’m here. But after what Renzo just told me, I’m not sure I can promise anything like that. Putting Pippa before all of us…all vampires, that’s a big fucking deal. The needs of the many…
Why is she so important to me? Where does this pull come from, this calling to protect her at all costs? It’s far beyond mere lust or animal need. If I wanted to get laid, I could make that happen all day, every day. This—whatever the hell this is—is deeper, something that makes me want to tear apart anyone who looks at her the wrong way. The tarot reader claimed we’d known each other in a past life. That’s a long time to feel this depth of emotion for someone from a past life, considering I’m pushing four hundred. It doesn’t seem reasonable to reconnect with someone I might have known half a millennia ago. Not sure I believe in that stuff. I shake my head. If I didn’t know better, I’d say it felt like magick—a bond forged in something beyond the human world. And that thought is the most terrifying of all.
I take a deep breath and push away from the door, walking back to the living room. The monitors flicker, casting shadows across the walls. I sink into my chair, the exhaustion settling in again, my thoughts swirling in a tangled mess of anger, fear, and something else—something I can’t quite name.
I need to focus. I need to be ready for whatever comes next; for whatever Gazzago throws at us. But as I sit there, the only thing I can think about is Pippa. The way her eyes snapped with anger. The way they flashed with defiance. How her voice softened with fear. I rub my face with both hands, and curse. I need to get away from Pippa before I do something stupid.
I stare at the screens, checking on my brother’s holdings. Everything looks normal. A sound catches my attention. It’s Pippa. She’s dreaming. Her heart rate is going up and her breathing is getting shallow. She’s having a nightmare.
I’m on my feet and headed to her room before I can stop myself. I open her door and go to her bed. I sit down as she sits up and starts screaming. “Pippa,” I say wrapping my arms around her. She fights me, still half asleep. “Pippa, it’s Luca. You’re okay. I’ve got you. You’re safe.”
She still fights me but opens her eyes and stares. Then the fight goes out of her and she wraps her arms around me burying her face in my chest. Her scent engulfs me, and I can’t stop my body from responding.
I start to pull back. “Pippa, it’s okay. You’re safe here.” She meets my gaze, and damn me, the fire of desire flickers in her eyes.
I know I should get up and leave but she is intoxicating. I can't help but feel an overwhelming possessive desire for Pippa.
I drop my arms and stand. “You are safe. Please try and remember that. I’m sorry you’re having nightmares. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.” I hurry to the door, putting as much distance between Pippa and me as possible is the only solution.
“Luca, don’t leave,” she pleads.
I lower my head before turning toward her. “Pippa.” It’s a warning and she knows it.
“You can help by staying with me.”
“That’s not a good idea.” I can’t simply hold her all night. I’m too wound up. I am struggling as it is to keep from tasting her. Spending hours wrapped up with her would be exquisite torture.
Pippa gets out of bed and comes to stand in front of me. She’s wearing a matching lacy red tank top and panties.
My body instantly responds. I grit out, “Pippa, get back into bed.”
“No. You said to tell you if there is anything you can do.” She raises her arms. “This is what you can do, me. I need you to hold me. I need a distraction, a way to get some relief. This whole mess is killing me. Help me, Luca.”
“You have no idea what you’re asking.” I grip the door handle so tightly, it dents under my fingers. If she thinks this is killing her, she has no idea what I can do to her. I can literally fuck her to death. Vampires aren’t known for being gentle. I don’t have it in me to do that for her. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I do,” she responds.
“You don’t know what you’re asking,” I repeat.
She puts her hands on my chest. “Oh, I think I do.” She leans up and brushes her lips over my neck. My fangs grow as well as my cock. There’s no escaping this.
“Pippa,” I say through clenched teeth. “Please go back to bed,” I say as I turn her around. “There are consequences for what you want, and I don’t think you will like them.”
Instead, she backs up into me, rubbing her ass against my erection. “I need you. I need to feel you inside me. That’s what I need, Luca.”
“You don’t know what this means. You have no idea of the consequences.”
“I don’t care about the consequences. I want you to fuck me. Make me forget everything. I want to feel you inside me. That’s all I care about. The hell with the rest of it.”
“Pippa,” I try one last time, “if we do this, you will pay a heavy price. The consequences are intense. You won’t like it. Climb back into bed and forget about you and me fucking. I promise you, it’s a bad idea.”
“I’m a big girl. I can deal with any consequences, I promise.”
“But you don’t even know what they are,” I say.
