My arms were quivering, but my shining blade was once again making progress. Breathing hard, knowing the spell needed direct contact with my magic—not through the sword—I summoned a tiny bit of fire. It flicked along the bottom of my blade, hopefully not noticeable to the nosy parker looking over my shoulder, and seeped into the spell. The fabric of the spell tore, little by little at first, then faster as I bled in more fire. My toes tingled and spikes of pain jabbed my eyes and temples. My power was almost out.

“Blood would be good about now,” I said through a clenched jaw, squeezing my eyes shut against the pain and putting everything I had into the sword, cleaning out the corners of my body and wringing myself dry.

“My blood can help revive you, not lend power,” Darius said, his face suddenly close but his voice so far away.

“Almost.” The word fell from my lips, vague and wispy. I should’ve risked using more of my direct power in front of Darius. The decision to protect my secret might’ve been my undoing. “Almost.” The last of the power gushed from my blade. The spell unraveled in a whoosh. Metal snapped. I saw black.

Chapter Nine

“That’s better. Yes, drink,” a deep, sexy voice urged me. A strong arm held me tightly against a rock-hard body. “Drink.”

The sweetest elixir I’d ever tasted dripped past my lips and exploded on my tongue. I couldn’t even describe the flavor, only that it was the best thing I’d ever had the pleasure of tasting in my entire life. Joy and adrenaline surged through my core, blossomed in my middle, and blasted into all the dark, depleted magical wells inside my skin. My life’s force filled up and overflowed, a feeling that made me want to laugh manically. Even my skin felt healthier. My head fuller. My nails stronger.

The dripping stopped and I groped wildly for more, finding a smooth face and latching my palms on to the cheeks. I claimed the full, warm lips, which quickly moved against mine. Passion rose up between us. A moan welled in my throat. But as good as it felt, the taste of that delicious, lifesaving decadence was missing.

I pushed away. Sunlight danced in my eyes, but I didn’t have to squint. The most beautiful man, with gorgeous honey eyes, gazed down at me. His muscular arms held me on his lap as we sat in the middle of a bright green meadow. Wildflowers danced and played in the soft breeze, their movements like laughter. His hard, pulsing heat pushed against my butt.

Ten feet from where we huddled together, two bodies entwined as one, stood a cream-colored, regal animal. Light glowed from around it, and rainbows flickered when it moved.

“No fucking way.” I blinked a million times it seemed like, laughing, or maybe crying, from joy as I beheld the most glorious animal that had ever walked the Brink or the Realm. “Am I tripping on acid?”

“In a way.”

Oh man, that voice was sexy. Perfectly tuned for my listening pleasure.

Speaking of pleasure…

I leaned my head back as kisses trailed down my neck, making me shiver. When Darius sucked in the sensitive skin on my neck, I twisted so I could wrap my legs around his middle. His hardness was now right where I needed it. If it weren’t for these danged clothes, he could enter me. Over and over.

“Taste me,” I groaned as a fang trailed along my artery. “Take me, Darius.”

His fingers snaked through my hair and he made a fist, clutching tightly. His other hand hardened at the base of my neck, trapping me in his hold. A surge of desperation overcame me—a need so strong that I was panting with desire.

“Yes,” I cried, gyrating against him. “Yes. Harder.”

He shook me a little, proving his dominance. Ready to claim what was his. In contrast, his lips glided softly across my fevered skin, leaving a trail of scorching wetness.

This seemed so right in the presence of that great animal. Mating. Bonding. Celebrating life.

What the hell?

Shock, fear, and—most importantly—reality bitch-slapped me.

Have I gone fucking crazy?

I tried to struggle away, but Darius wouldn’t release his hold. The dull, delicious ache of fangs pressed on my skin, ready to puncture. “Don’t you fucking dare, Darius!”

I slapped my hands to the sides of his face and dug my thumbs into his eyes. His grip loosened. He flinched away. I used the space to my advantage by hooking my arms under his and ripping them upward, flinging his hands off. I hopped up and wobbled across the meadow, patting my body to make sure my weapons were in place. Once I was far enough away, I turned back and prepared to physically fight the man while I mentally fought his effect on me.

Darius rose slowly, the bulge in his pants prominent and a little smile tickling his lips. “My, my. What layers you have, my lovely Reagan. So much passion. So much fire. Come. Let me taste you.”

The shiver racing across my body turned into a heebie-jeebies dance. “Stop it. Did you feed me blood? Or what was it, and when does this acid trip wear off? Because I’m seeing things.”

Those delicious eyes glimmered with sex and mischief. My core pounded so hard that I wondered if it would dislodge from my body and skitter across the field.

“I am quite aroused, Reagan. Vampires my age usually only feel this way when we are feeding, and we only feed once in a great while. I should’ve been sated for months. But instead, I am harder than I can remember being. I want to be inside you, Reagan, while tasting the sweet nectar of your veins.”

“Awesome. Great info. Thanks for sharing.” I swatted at my arms to stop the tingles. Then squeezed my nether region for the same reason.

He walked toward me slowly—prowling, almost. Graceful and beautiful, his body was like a dance. An erotic, sexy—

I dug my thumbs into the corners of my eyes and backed up. “Make this stop. Please.”

“Whatever for? You were enjoying it as much as I was.”

“Look, dude, I will literally take out my gun and shoot you in the heart right now. Okay? I’m saying no. No means I’ll kill you if you don’t stop stalking me like a feral cat trying to make kittens. Back off.” I rubbed my eyes and blinked them open.

A smile drifted up his face, but he halted. “As you wish, ma biche—”

“Is that derogatory?”

“—but I will think on that moment for decades to come.”

“You need to get out more. Seriously. It wasn’t that hot.”

“You know that it was. I can still smell your desire.”

“Gross.” I put my hand up to stop the insanity. “What happened?”

“I felt you gyrating against my—”

“Not that part! After I blacked out, I mean.”

His smile brightened. “Come back to me, Reagan. Let me taste you, as you commanded.”

I ripped out my gun. “Really? That the road you want to take?”

“I want to slide my—”

I pulled the trigger. A slug dug into his leg.

Shock covered his features and he faltered before regaining balance on his good leg. He did not call out. There was no sign of pain in his expression. Instead, his sparkling sexual heat dimmed. His features smoothed out, arrogance and disinterest taking over.

I ignored the twinge of regret. Ignored it, and vowed to knife it out of myself if I had to.

He nodded once. It almost seemed like a thank-you.

Mental note: green light for shooting Darius in the leg to prevent sexy times and possibly fall under his enchanting vampire spell.

“You lost consciousness when your blade split in two,” he said, back to business. “Luckily, you had just made it through the last of the spell. I rushed you in here to see if I could get help. The mistress of the island, this great beast, took your measure, and found you worthy. She lowered to give you her life’s blood so that you could heal.” Darius regarded me warily now. “It had an immediate effect on you, and you had a…strange effect on me. I apologize. I lost control.”

“You’re a vampire and therefore bloodthirsty. Don’t stress. Shooting you was strangely gratifying.”

“I am an elder, and therefore not bloodthirsty. The unicorn blood enhances your allure. You call to me, more so than before. It is…unnerving.”

I waved my hand in the air, trying to wipe away the crazy. “You have issues, I get it. But— What?” I rubbed my eyes, blinked, and stared at the regal animal. It had pranced backward when I shot away from Darius’s warm, hard… “Dang it. Stop.”