He wrangled the door open while she leaned against a wall.

“Are you okay?”

“Yup. Mostly, I just like hanging on to you,” she said truthfully.

He grinned and held out his arm. “Is that so?”

“Oh yes.” She took his arm and he led her into the room. Sitting heavily on the bed, she watched Noah as he went to close the heavy drapes. His secret still on the tip of her tongue, she swallowed the words. A new subject—a non-vampire subject—that’s what she needed.

“Tell me about your wife,” she said, then clapped her hand over her mouth. Why did she keep asking about her? Maybe that wasn’t the best thing to ask about. Not if she wanted to have sex tonight anyway. And she so did.

Noah winced, but nodded. “You have a right to ask.”

She didn’t argue. If he thought she had a right to know about his ex-wife, that meant something, didn’t it?

“We met when we were young—too young, really.” He paused, searching his thoughts. Probably deciding what was safe to tell her and what verged too close to the truth. Because she had no doubt that his vampire nature had something to do with why he was no longer with his wife.

“So you married too young?” she pressed.

“Yes. And there were things she didn’t like about me, about my life. Things she didn’t really find out about until after we were married.” He let out a short laugh and then sat down on the bed, a couple of feet between them. “Shit, that sounded ominous. I guess—it’s hard to explain. We were just very different people.”

She bit her lip, wanting to push for more information, but knowing she shouldn’t.

But Noah didn’t give her a chance to push. “Why have you been acting different around Brent?”

She smiled to herself. Apparently she wasn’t the only one who wondered about things. “He apologized for his behavior when we danced.”

“That’s it? An apology?”

She grimaced. “What’s the subtext here, Noah? That I’m naive to forgive him after an apology?”

“Honestly? Fuck yeah.”

She chuckled. She should have been angry—or at least irritated—at his words, but somehow, she wasn’t. His worries were too ridiculous. “I’m not running back to Brent. I’ll never go back to him. And even though Kristen betrayed me, and I might never completely forgive her, I won’t ever think he’s good enough for her. But hating him for being an asshole isn’t something I care to spend the energy on.” Elation rushed through her as she realized how true that was. “I don’t care,” she repeated. “I really couldn’t give two figs what Brent thinks now.”

Noah gave her a doubtful glance, but she didn’t bother to push the issue. She knew how she felt, and Noah would either figure it out or he wouldn’t. But he was a pretty smart guy, so she had faith that he’d get it eventually. Besides, insisting on her point would probably only make her look defensive, like she was trying to convince herself.

“I was never married to Brent.” She felt compelled to point that out. And Noah knew far more about Brent than she did about his wife. “What was her name?”

“Anna.”

“You must have a thing for A-named women.”

He grinned at that. “I must.” His smile faded and his brows drew together. “But I wasn’t honest with her about something, not soon enough. Not until after we were married.”

“Sounds like a learning moment,” she said, keeping her voice light.

His eyes were dark and rolling with emotion when they met hers, like the ocean during a storm. “I need to tell you something.”

She tried to smile, but faltered, her mind reeling. If he told her, what would she say? Should she try to pretend it was a shock to her? That she had no idea vampires existed, let alone that Noah was one of them?

That was probably the route Olivia would choose for her, and the smart thing to do. He would wonder why she hadn’t told him before if she confessed the truth. And he would wonder how she knew. She’d promised Olivia that she would keep her secret.

“This is going to be hard to believe.”

She schooled her expression, thoughts still reeling.

“I’m a vampire.”

And she knew, with his worried expression and hopeful eyes, she could trust him. In a way she’d never been able to trust anyone. And she didn’t want to keep any secrets from Noah.

He took her hands in his, his eyes entreating her to believe him. “Look, I know this is sort of impossible to believe, but let me show you—”

“I know,” she said, simply.

He gaped at her. “You…what?”

She forced a small smile to her face and hoped she looked more reassuring than she felt. “I know you’re a vampire. I’ve known for a while.”

He released her hands and leaned away from her, looking at her as if he’d never seen her before. “Again, what? How?” His eyes narrowed.

“No need to look so suspicious. I knew a vampire, once. She’s not around anymore—I mean she’s around, but not around us.” Alice shook her head. “This is coming out all muddled.”

“We’ll come back to that.” He gave her a pointed look, but the suspicion had faded from his expression, so she counted that as a win. “How did you know—” He cleared his throat. “How did you figure out I was one?”

“Well, you were either a vampire, or a total psycho.”

“Excuse me?”

“The shampoo. You were either a vampire or a man kooky enough to drink shampoo.” She shuddered. “And I’d much rather date someone who drinks blood. Shampoo is disgusting.”

He stared at her, unblinking, until she snickered under her breath.

“What’s so funny?”

“I never thought I’d get to see such a totally shocked expression on your face. It’s very cute.”

His shock shifted to a glare, and her snicker blossomed into an outright laugh.

He ignored her humor. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“It was tempting to mess with you—ask about your family. Pretend to want to look up them for my genealogy hobby. But, I figured it was your secret to tell.” And that was the truth—a decision she still believed right. Her amusement faded. “I still stand by that.”

He stared at her for a painfully long moment, his gaze searching her face. “Do you have any idea how fucking amazing you are?”

She looked down at her hands, uncomfortable. Her mind searched for an appropriate answer to that. Flippant or denial? Finally she settled on deflection. “You’re pretty amazing yourself.”

She forced her gaze up to meet his, ignoring her own discomfort. Wide eyes, lacking any guile or walls, met hers.

And then they were kissing.

As if Noah were both a vampire and a magician, their clothes disappeared so quickly that she suspected wizardry. There was at least some sleight of hand involved. Noah kissed her so carefully, it was as if he worried she might break in his hands.

That wasn’t good enough.

She kissed him back forcefully, her hands roaming over his body, drawing a low growl from his lips when she found his erection. She stroked him and he moaned into her mouth.

She liked the sound of that.

She pushed against his chest, and he rolled over onto his back for her, his eyes questioning. But the look on his face changed when she started licking her way down his chest, confusion replaced by anticipation.

When she licked his cock, he jumped, muttering an expletive under his breath. She grinned, then took him in her mouth.

She explored him with her tongue, loving the salty taste, the pure, manly scent of him. Clean and strong. Noah gasped when she started to move faster, take him deeper. His hand threaded through her hair, not directing her, but desperately gripping it, holding it out of her face. The noises he made spurred her on, and she relished in being able to make him lose control in such a way.

He gasped loudly, and then his grip on her her hair turned almost painful. He tugged her back up, his face a picture of need. He was close.

High on that knowledge, she went to take him back in her mouth, but he rolled her over onto her back and kissed her with a ferocity that made her gasp in need. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, touching and stroking, making her feel as desperate as he had just looked.

He positioned himself at her entrance and she pulled him close, her mouth against his ear. Did Noah want a future with her? Surely he wouldn’t have told her about his vampire heritage if he didn’t. And she trusted him—actually trusted him. She needed to show him how much.

“You can bite me, if you want to,” she murmured.

His head pulled back and she expected to see shock on his face. Instead, his mouth was wide, in a snarl that revealed his fangs. God, his fangs. Long and sharp, they looked every bit the weapon. Her stomach twisted as desire mixed with a healthy dose of fear.

His face was laced with wanting so fierce she wasn’t surprised when he didn’t ask if she was certain. Instead, he lowered his face to her neck and took a deep breath, taking in her scent. Then he pushed his cock into her with a long, swift stroke. She moaned at the sudden fullness, but her voice cut off when she felt a sharp pain at her neck.

The warring sensations overwhelmed her senses, but before she could wrap her shocked mind around it all, a strange heat spread from her neck, and euphoria hit her. The world went surreal.

Intense pleasure crashed into her, swirling and mixing, familiar yet strange. Noah pumped into her fiercely while his mouth sucked at her neck. Her head grew light, and there was nothing but him and the sensations he wrought through her. The pull on her neck. The thrust of his thickness into her. The weight of his hard body on top of her. And then the orgasm hit.

It started the normal way, rolling from her core and sending her muscles shuddering, but the euphoria from the bite intensified it, and her whole body shook from the sensation. Her mind couldn’t grasp the feelings, as wave after wave hit her, extending far past when a normal orgasm would have ended.