The Vampire Hunter. Michele HaufЧитать онлайн книгу.
been distracted by the inked image of a corpse worm crawling across that exposed brain.
“He is creepy, but kind,” Zoë said.
“Apparently, I’m only one of two humans the witch has ever agreed to do a tat for.”
“You must have charmed him.”
“Either that or the thick stack of cash I whipped out had something to do with it.”
“I’m glad you have the tattoo. Had one of them bitten you last night I might have had to rush out to save you. I wanted to fling some magic at them, but it tends to be less than reliable when I’m under stress.”
“That would not have been smart. I held my own. Mostly. I’m a little embarrassed you witnessed what is a rarity for me.”
“A rarity?”
“Getting my ass kicked.”
“Your ass is fine.” At least it looked well and fine in those snug jeans he wore. “It’s your kidney that took the licking. If I hadn’t been there you might have bled out in the alley.”
The man suddenly sat upright, puffing up his chest. “I wouldn’t go so far as to say bled out. I might have lain there in pain awhile, but eventually I would have pulled myself up and staggered home.”
“But you prefer that I decided to toss in a little magical intervention?”
“Can’t deny your touch made me feel better.” His fingers stroked her leg and landed on the ruffle above her knee. “Pretty.”
He’d said the same about her earlier. She threaded her fingers through his and he turned his up to clasp within hers. Zoë felt a grin start deep in her soul. Holding hands was so simple a connection. Yet it quickened her heartbeat and warmed her skin.
“Uh, I should...” She gripped his hand tighter when she sensed he wanted to tug away. “...get going soon.”
Why was he so insistent upon leaving? “Wait for your shirt to finish drying. Just a few more minutes.”
“Right.” He slapped a hand to his bare chest as if he’d forgotten he was half-naked.
Zoë had not.
She leaned across him to check his side. The bruising was almost gone. Take that, witches who daren’t dip into molecular magic. Their healing touch would take much longer.
“Looks better,” she said.
Their faces were close. She could feel his breath mingle with hers. And the only thing that could happen, did. They connected in a rush of need and desire. Spreading her hand across his chest, Zoë felt the steady pulse of his heartbeat as she deepened the kiss, wanting to take all of him into her being as if he were a new kind of magic she needed to study.
He pulled her closer, slipping a hand around the back of her head and into her hair. The possessive move sent a giddy thrill through Zoë’s system. She liked the way he took control, coaxing, as if the only place she belonged was against him.
Her body moved of its own volition, one leg sliding across his lap, until she straddled him. Nibbling his thick lower lip, she smiled against his mouth and his return smile made her giggle.
But he suddenly bracketed her face and pulled from the kiss, his eyes searching hers. “This changes things,” he said.
“What? This? You mean us this? Are we an us?”
“You. Being a witch. And me, being what I am.”
“No, it doesn’t. Why do things have to change? They’ve only just begun.” She kissed him again. He did not pull away. He wanted this connection as much as she did. She wouldn’t allow him to deny it. “I’m no danger to you.”
“No, you’re not, but whenever I think about you—and I think of you a lot—I thought you were human, like me.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Is being human so important to you?”
“Maybe. I don’t know.” He leaned in for another kiss, but Zoë moved back, unsure now. “It’s not important. Hell, yes, it is. It’s just— I’ve never done this with anyone who was not human. Kissing, and...making out.”
Trying not to be offended only made her all the more offended. Zoë began to slide off his lap when Kaz gripped her by the shoulders and, hands gliding down her back, pulled her to him forcefully, and landed a kiss on her mouth that she could not escape.
And did not want to escape.
While she did not care for any man who would rule out another breed as a potential romantic partner, she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. If he’d not ever had a partner out of his breed, then his leeriness was justified. She wasn’t different from the average human female, save that she could cast magic, press her body and mind beyond average mortal limitations and could have immortality if she chose it. She hadn’t made up her mind regarding that life-prolonging measure yet.
“I said that wrong,” he offered, his thumbs stroking her cheeks as his eyes flitted back and forth between hers. For a moment, his thumb stroked the scar and Zoë winced. Was it the scar? Did that turn him off? “I’ve been saying all the wrong things, and yet, you still want to kiss me?”
“Kaz, resisting your kisses is futile.”
“I could say the same. Your mouth is better than blueberries in chia pudding, that’s for sure.”
“Maybe I can teach you that witches are nothing to be afraid of.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
No, he wasn’t. But something about her made him stumble over his words and she suspected what it was. “Does the scar offend you?”
“What? No. Well—”
“It does bother you.” She pulled a strand of hair across her cheek, an involuntary action she’d developed after getting the scar a decade earlier. “I can’t heal myself.”
“Zoë, don’t hide it like that. It doesn’t bother me. You are—well, perfect would be boring. No one is perfect. What does bother me is that you obviously suffered to have received such an injury. I hate that someone did this to you, or something. Was it an accident?”
Zoë shrugged. “Kind of.”
Sighing heavily, he nodded. “I get that you don’t want to talk about it. I’m inexperienced with this conversation kind of stuff. I’m more of an action man.”
“More kisses, less talk? Your kisses are toe-curlers. And as a hunter, you must know about all the various breeds, so it’s not as if you’re a bumbling human who has no clue about witches.”
“True. You’re as close to human as any breed gets. Though I’m not sure how all the magic works. Let’s just say I’m much better at running away from things like this. Okay?”
Things like emotional stuff, she suspected. What guy was good about that kind of thing? But she wasn’t going to award him any prizes for such honesty. If she expected more of him, he would give it to her.
“You haven’t fled yet, so I’ll mark myself as lucky.”
“But I’m trying, trust me. I’d be at the door right now were you not sitting on me.”
“That creepy, huh?”
He shook his head and kissed her quickly on the mouth. “I like you, Zoë. But there are things going on in my life right now that could complicate the good stuff happening between the two of us. And believe me, this is very good.”
“Like things with vampires?”
“Always with vampires. I’m currently working a job that I don’t want you to get tangled up in.”
“I’ve no desire to tread the grounds a hunter walks. But...” She traced her fingers