Page 65 of The Highwayman's Bite

Rhys’s resolve crumbled under her impassioned words. He claimed her lips with a kiss that transfused all his longing and despair. The sound of her heartbeat beckoned him like a forbidden melody. Before he gave into the siren’s song of her embrace, he released her. “I have to go now.”

Before she could protest, he grabbed his coat and fled the cave.

The cold, salty air did little to cool the heat in his blood. What he’d shared with Vivian had been more than mere coupling. When he’d joined his body with hers, he’d felt as if they’d become one. Magic had been wrought between them. Somehow, either inside her slick heat, the melding of their lips, or the hot rush of her blood on his tongue, Vivian had bound him to her with invisible threads that pulled taut with every step he took away from her.

Eager to return to her as soon as possible, Rhys ran in a blur, cresting hills and dodging trees, until he reached Southport. Normally, he avoided areas so close to his cave so that the vampires of villages near the no-man’s land did not take notice of him, but he needed to feed and wanted to find a hot meal for Vivian. He came to a hotel and made his way to the restaurant, full of humans dining on their own suppers, but thankfully no other vampires.

Instead of finding a patron to slake his thirst, Rhys stole into the kitchen, mesmerizing the first servant to see him before the lad could cry out.

When he’d drunk his fill from the kitchen boy, he turned his attention to Vivian’s meal, gathering fruit, cheese, and a hot roll. These he stuffed into his pockets before he encountered the cook. He froze the man with his gaze and stole a capon and wrapped the roasted bird in a handkerchief before tucking it under his arm to keep it warm. As he dashed out of the kitchen, some of the hot juices soaked through into his sleeve.

He’d made a spectacle of himself, but hopefully not a significant one. Mortals had a way of dismissing things that were out of the ordinary.

When he returned to the cave, he realized that for the first time, he’d left the door unlocked. Vivian could have escaped, yet here she remained. The welcoming light in her eyes when he entered the cave pierced his soul. No longer naked, she was dressed in a plain gray gown from the trunk of clothing he’d stolen. Yet she remained just as desirable as when she’d been bare before him.

“What is that delicious smell?” she asked.

He presented her with the capon. “I’ve also brought you an orange, some cheese, and a roll.”

She tore into the capon with her white, even teeth, occasionally pausing to lick her fingers, making soft, blissful noised that forced him to smile at her delight. When the bird was reduced to bones, she devoured the bread and then made short work of the orange. The cheese she set aside in the small larder he’d accumulated for her before she washed her hands in a barrel of salt water.

While watching Vivian enjoy the sort of meal that she’d long been denied, Rhys once more warred between guilt at what he’d taken away from her and elation at what he’d been able to give her. When she returned to her cot, still joined with his, he studied her with a mixture of awe and confusion.

He may have abducted her, but she’d stolen his heart. Why had she given herself to him? Was it simply a matter of convenience and proximity since she didn’t believe she’d have an opportunity to be with another man? Was it some sort of subversive reaction to her captivity? An attempt to gain some control over the situation? Or could she possibly feel the same way he did about her?

The last thought made his heart swell with mingled hope and despair. It was best that he never learn about her true feelings, because a future for them was impossible. However, Rhys had to know, for some self-punishing reason.

“I left the door unlocked. You could have run away,” Rhys said. “Why didn’t you?”

“Because I support your cause to save your family.” Vivian said, eyeing him as if he’d lost his senses. “And I want to stay with you.”

Rhys shook his head with disbelief. Had captivity driven her mad, or had last night borne the same effect on her? “I cannot comprehend why you would wish to do so.”

She reached for his hand and threaded her fingers through his. “My time with you has been a revelation of excitement and freedom.”

“Freedom?” he echoed with a disbelieving frown. “I’ve kept you a prisoner for nearly a fortnight.”

“Look at my hands.” Vivian pulled their intertwined hands towards him. “I haven’t had to wear gloves. You cannot fathom how liberating that has been.” Her lips curved in a coy smile and she peered at him beneath her long lashes. “I’m also not wearing stays.”

Rhys’s gaze raked across her body and his mouth went dry. “You are driving me mad with such talk.” He looked away from her tempting figure and pulled his hands away. There was only one way to know what was in her heart. And only way to appease his conscience. “I should release you. My honor demands it. I broke the agreement with your uncle when I took you.”

He rose from their makeshift bed where they’d slept in each other’s arms and tried to ignore the stabbing pain in his heart. He opened the cave door. If she left, he’d lose the ransom money and have nothing but a broken heart. But at least he’d have done something honorable. He couldn’t hold the woman he loved against her will, no matter the cost.

He spoke through the lump in his throat. “You are free to go.”

Vivian blinked at him. “I told you, I wish to stay with you. And to hell with my uncle. He made no agreement. He made that clear when he refused to pay the ransom in the first place.”

“But—” He broke off his feeble protest as the selfish imp within danced with triumph. She wished to remain with him, of her own free will.

She rose and strode from the bed to the door and slammed it shut before he could react. “You need that money, Rhys. And I need a few more memories to cherish before we are parted.” She took a deep, shuddering breath, and a sudden vulnerability flooded her eyes. “Unless, you don’t want me anymore?”

Her words crumbled the walls around his heart. He pulled her into his arms and buried his face in her silken hair. “I want you more than I’ve wanted anything in my long life.” He trembled in her embrace as the confession held locked in his heart tumbled from his lips. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Vivian whispered, stroking his back. “I wish—”

He silenced her with a kiss, unable to venture down the road to tragedy. “Wishes are never granted. We only have now.”

Her arms tightened around him as she rose up on her toes to silently beg for another kiss. Rhys indulged her, feeding at her mouth, reveling at her taste of fruit and honey. Even through the fabric separating their flesh, the feel of her breasts pressed to his chest gave him a thrill of delight.

---