Blood Thief Box Set

  I glared at him. "He's not my-"

  "A simple armored truck heist," Simon told him.

  Specter arched an eyebrow. "That sounds pretty mundane for you. What's the catch?"

  "The catch is we need your assistance in dealing with the driver," Simon explained.

  Specter crossed his arms and floated a few inches above the tombstone. "You know I can't fly that fast, so is this truck going to be moving or sitting somewhere?"

  "Moving, but we have transportation for you," Simon assured him.

  Specter frowned. "That's not all the problem. I can't get a good grip on anything solid that's moving, so I'm going to need help getting onto that truck. That means a body."

  Simon looked down at me and smiled. "We have our body among us."

  I started back and glanced from one man to the other. "Wait, what? What am I supposed to do?"

  "You will board the armored vehicle with Specter inside your body and assist him in taking control of the vehicle," Simon explained.

  I felt the color drain from my face. "You're joking, right? You seriously want me to be vehicle hopping?"

  Specter furrowed his brow. "She might be right. She's not a full vampire yet, and if something happened we'd both be in trouble."

  "It is precisely because she is not a full vampire that she will make the perfect candidate," Simon insisted. "She has many of the benefits and yet can still be a host for you."

  Specter turned to me and jerked his head towards Simon. "You want to go through with what he's asking?"

  "I-I don't even know if I can," I replied. "I'm not exactly good at hopping on anything."

  Simon smiled and gestured to the gravestones and Specter. "Then I leave you to Specter's capable teaching hands, and will return for you in three hours." He stepped past me and strode back to the car.

  Specter dropped his arms. "Wait a sec. I'm not going to be babysitting anybody!"

  I spun around and glared at Simon's back. "You're the vampire! You teach me!"

  Simon waved his hand above his head, but didn't turn around. "Perhaps another time."

  He disappeared into the trees that surrounded the graveyard. I turned to Specter and pursed my lips. "I really hate that guy."

  A smile played across Specter's lips as he floated to the ground. "He's pretty hard to get along with, but I guess he's right."

  I frowned. "So now you're going along with this?"

  He shrugged. "Why not? That old man's got a lot of things wrong with him, but it isn't his judgment. He probably knows what he's doing if he left you with me."

  My shoulders drooped and I hung my head. "Perfect. Just perfect."

  "So where do you want to start?"

  I lifted my head and an eyebrow. "Come again?"

  Specter gestured to the gravestones. "Simon said you needed practice hopping. This place is as good as any to do that."

  I held up my palm. "First, I'd like some answers."

  He smiled. "Shoot."

  I held up one finger. "First, what did you mean when you said we'd both be in trouble if I didn't make the jump?"

  Specter folded his arms. "If you die and I'm inside you, I get do die again, too."

  I blinked at him. "A ghost can die?"

  He nodded. "Yeah, and I'm not sure what would happen to either of us. We could both be shoved into heaven, we'd both be shoved into hell, or nothing would happen and we'd both be stuck here on earth."

  I cringed. "I don't really like any of those options."

  "Neither do I, that's why after these questions you're going to practice," he told me.

  I sighed and held up a second finger. "Second, if this is so dangerous then why can't Simon do this himself?"

  Specter smiled. "It's because Simon's a vampire. A ghost can't possess somebody who's already dead, or even undead."

  My shoulders drooped. "So I'm stick with this job?"

  He nodded. "Seems like it. So you want to start practicing, or do I get a spot in the dirt ready next to me?"

  I swept my eyes over the graveyard with its ancient tombs. "Where exactly are you buried?"

  Specter's smile slid off his lips. He waved at a far corner of the graveyard close to the river. "Over there, but that's not important. What's important is keeping you out of the dirt for a couple hundred more years." He stepped aside and nodded at the gravestone he'd occupied only moments before. "Climb up on this one and we'll check out you're hopping skills."

  I pursed my lips, but marched forward and crawled onto the top. I stood on the precariously thin curved ridge and jerked from side-to-side as I tried to keep balance with my arms.

  Specter stepped back and studied my stance. "We are in deep shit."

  I glared at him. "I don't have much balance, okay?"

  He shook his head. "No, it's not okay, but I guess we'll fix that." He nodded at a headstone some six feet from the one on which I stood. "Hop to that one."

  I followed his gaze and my mouth dropped open. "Are you kidding? I can't do that!"

  He sighed. "You're a vampire, remember? That's an easy jump for you."

  I pursed my lips and braced myself. "All right, but don't laugh." I took a deep breath and jumped.

  Or rather, hopped. My hop got me half the distance and I dropped to the ground. My only consolation was I landed on my feet.

  Specter floated in front of me and folded his arms. "I've seen roadkill jump farther."

  I whipped my head up and glared at him. "That's easy for you to say. You're a ghost."

  He paused and rubbed his chin. "Now why didn't I think of that sooner?"

  I straightened and arched an eyebrow. "Think of-hey!" Specter dove into my body.

  I felt him shove aside my mind and take control of my body. He tested out my hands and shook my feet, and all the while I was screaming inside my mind.

  Get out!

  My lips moved, but it wasn't me doing the talking. "I'm going to prove to you you can do this."

  Specter turned me around and forced my body to climb back on top of the tombstone. He stood atop the tombstone without using my arms for balance and faced the opposing grave. I wanted to shut my eyes, but he kept them open.

  "Don't worry. You can do this," he assured me.

  But do I have to watch? I snapped back.

  He smiled. Or I smiled. My body smiled. "Watch and learn."

  Specter leapt my body into the air. We sailed across the six foot expanse and landed neatly on the top of the other grave. He even showed off by landing on the toes of one foot. I would have glared at him if I had been a spectator and not a participant.

  Can I have my body back now? I demanded as he settled me on two feet.

  "I'll leave when I'm sure you're not going to send both of us to hell," he told me.

  He retreated into my mind and I felt myself regain control. My eyes widened as I lost my balance. I swung my arms and kept myself from falling the three feet to the hard ground.

  Now it's your turn he whispered in my mind.

  I turned my head slightly and tried to glare at the back of my head. "Don't push me. I'm still new at this." He nudged my mind and my foot scooted forward. "Knock that off!"

  Come on. We might both have all eternity, but I don't want to wait that long for you to learn he teased me.

  I ground my teeth together, but slowly turned myself around so I faced the original tombstone from which we'd jumped. I held my arms out and scooted to the back of the tombstone. My heart thumped in my chest as images of my broken body draped over the grave came to my mind.

  That's pretty gruesome Specter scolded me.

  "You'd better not be digging too deep in there," I warned him.

  He chuckled. Not yet, but if I get bored I can't make any promises.

  I took a deep breath and raced the one and a half feet across the tombstone. I jumped at the last second and sailed over the ground. Farther. Farther. And then I sailed right over the tombstone.

  "Ack!" I yelped.

  I flailed my arm
s and landed one foot on another grave marker. My other foot couldn't get a grip, so I pushed off that slab of rock and flew into the air. I danced across the top of several tombs before I ran out of rock and tumbled to the ground. My heart beat against my rib cage as I rolled to a stop near the tree line. I sat up and gasped for air as I looked back at how far I'd gone. Twenty yards without touching the ground.

  Not bad.

  I goofily grinned. "Yeah, it was, wasn't it?"

  A clapping noise behind me startled me. I spun around on my rear and watched Simon emerge from the trees. "What the hell are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to leave?" I asked him as I climbed to my feet.

  He stopped in front of me and smiled. "I lied."

  I glared at him. "If you stuck around then why didn't you teach me?"

  "Did you need another teacher?" he returned.

  I crossed my arms and pressed my lips together. "Misery loves company."

  Simon chuckled. "Then I am glad I excused myself. Are you confident in your abilities, or is more time needed?"

  Specter floated out of my body and grinned. "Nah, I think she's read, or as ready as she's ever going to be."

  I felt my heart drop into my stomach. "That doesn't really make me feel any better."

  He shrugged. "Then don't take my word for it." He nodded at the path of graves I'd bounced across. "Just take a mental photo of that and keep that in your mind when you need to bounce off of one car and to another."

  I cringed and turned to Simon. "Yeah, about that. Moving vehicles are a little bit trickier."

  He stepped aside and swept his hand in the direction of the car. "Some skills must be learned on the job."

  "Then I'll see you tomorrow after dark," Specter spoke up as he floated backwards over the tombstones and away from us. "Oh, and Faith? Don't think too many sexy thoughts about Simon." And with that he disappeared.

  My mouth dropped open and I gaped at the spot where Specter vanished. Simon chuckled behind me.

  "I must learn more about this," he teased.

  I spun around and tried to hide my blush. "H-he's lying!"

  Simon turned away from me, but I glimpsed the sly smile on his lips. "Indeed. Now come. We should rest."

  CHAPTER 9

  We returned to the penthouse to find Swift asleep on the couch. Certus stood behind the couch and looked to us as we entered.

  Simon joined his servant and looked down at his 'guest.' "Were there any problems?"

  Certus shook his head. "No, though he did ask many questions about the windows and fire escape."

  Simon smiled. "And when he found there was none?"

  "He was quite disappointed."

  "I see." Simon turned to me. "Does the hunger still bother you?"

  I looked at the sleeping human on the couch and shook my head. "I don't feel anything."

  Simon returned his attention to his servant. "We will sleep until tomorrow."

  Certus bowed his head and left the penthouse. I watched him leave and turned to Simon. "Does that guy ever sleep?"

  Simon gave me a sly, crooked grin. "Very little. He has the unique ability to fight the effects of fatigue that the day forces on vampires."

  I folded my arms and arched an eyebrow. "Where did you pick him up? Or when?"

  "A few centuries ago in one of the Italian states, if memory recalls." He gestured to the bedroom door. "But shall we."

  I followed his hand and frowned. "I doubt we'd be getting much sleep in there."

  He chuckled. "Perhaps not as much as we could, but more than is necessary."

  I stepped back. "Maybe I'll just sleep in the guest-" Simon was in front of me and his arms wrapped around me.

  His red eyes looked down at me with a passion I couldn't deny. I also couldn't look away. "I asked you once this night if you trusted me." He brushed the back of his hand against my blushing cheek. His cold skin warmed against mine. "Do you still trust me?"

  I swallowed the lump in my throat as the familiar lust arose inside me. "Y-yes."

  He smiled and stepped away from me, but slid one of my hands into his. "Then do not fear me and all the pleasures I offer you."

  I let him lead me into the bedroom. My skin was warm to the touch as he shut the door and clasped my upper arms. He leaned down and caught my lips in a passionate kiss that took my breath away. His hands slid down my sides, exploring my clothed body as I leaned into his touch.

  My swollen breasts pushed against my shirt. I pressed my mounds against his chest and groaned into our kiss. A hot, sensual pleasure filled me to my wet, pulsing core.

  His hands reached my waist and he unbuttoned my pants. They slid over my hips and onto the floor. His long fingers caressed my quivering flesh. I groaned and rubbed against him. My body was afire with a desire that hungered for more of his gentle touch.

  He broke our kiss and pressed more of them down my neck. I shuddered when his lips ghosted over the small fang marks. A hot wave of desire rippled through me.

  My shirt and bra joined my pants on the floor, and I stood before him in little more than my underwear. He pulled off his shirt and wrapped his arms around me so our naked bodies pressed against one another. My pert nipples rubbed against his hard muscles and seized me with a flaming lust for more. More of him, and more of us.

  He lifted me into his arms and placed me on the bed. I reveled in his heated body as he covered my body with his own. Our sweat-soaked flesh slid together in a sensual dance as we kissed and caressed each other. His tight pants and my wet underwear were torn away, and I groaned as his thick, swollen manhood pressed into me. He filled me with such deep, delicious longing. It was a hunger only his body could satiate, and oh god did I look forward to it.

  We rocked our hips together in time with our deep lust. Every moment of him inside me was a sinful heaven. Every feel of his manhood caressing my walls filled me with a deep, carnal pleasure that stirred within me a wondrously lustful monster. I wanted nothing more than for him to take me all night long, again and again, until I knew nothing but him. At that moment he was my whole world, and my world was filled with hot, delicious friction.

  "Yes," I groaned as he penetrated me with slow, careful strokes. I clutched his upper arms and arched my back. He slipped deeper into me. "Oh god, yes."

  He grunted and raised himself on his arms so he lorded over me. His red eyes stored down at me with a feral hunger that made me shudder. He curled his lips back in a sly, crooked grin and revealed his long sharp fangs. My eyes widened as he dove down and penetrated my neck with those sharp teeth.

  My body was wracked by a torrential flood of pleasure and lust. I gasped and moaned. He thrust harder into me in time with the building carnal pleasure that pulsed from my neck. I shut my eyes and reveled in the feel of him as he took me and dominated me. He was my lover, my master, my everything, and it felt good to be damned.

  My chants filled the room as he thrust deeper and faster into me. "Yes. Oh god, yes." My body shuddered as the teasing hints of orgasm rippled through me. I squirmed atop the covers as the pleasure inside me filled me to near bursting. I was so close. Just a little more. The aching desire was too much for me to bear. "Take me! Make me yours! Oh god, faster! Oh god, fuck me!"

  Our bodies rubbed against each other in a furious frenzy of lovemaking. My hips rocked in time with his as he took me and claimed me as his own. I was consumed by his touch, his body, all of him. He became a part of me, the dark, sinful shadow to my human self.

  My orgasm swallowed me in its warm, lustful embrace. I leaned back my head and shouted my joy to the world. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

  My lover thrust into me, plunging me deeper into my world of sensual pleasure. My body shuddered and jerked. My muscles tensed and stretched. I felt my teeth lengthen into fangs, and in the heat of the moment I plunged my fangs deep into the soft, pale flesh of his neck.

  A world of blood and lust filled my senses. He stiffened and gasped. My eyes widened as the thick, cold blood flowed into my mouth and
down my throat. A hot blaze ignited inside me and my vision turned to white. My orgasm wracked my body as blood mixed with pleasure in a penetrating mix of physical and spiritual desire.

  It was too much. I tore myself away and dove into a coughing fit. Simon raised himself onto his arms and panted above me. A sly smile curled onto his lips as my coughing ceased.

  He leaned down and pecked a kiss on my blood-stained lips. "It seems your blood lust hadn't yet abated."

  I cringed as I realized what I'd done. The flavor of the blood lingered in my mouth like a heavy wine.

  Simon nuzzled our noses together and spoke to me in a soft whisper. "Ssh. You needn't worry. It is only natural for a young vampire to want the blood of their maker."

  I blinked at him. "Come again?"

  He raised his head and chuckled. "You crave all of my body. Blood is no exception."

  A warm blush swept over my cheeks and I turned my face away. My tongue flicked out and picked up the loose bits of blood at the corners of my mouth. He really was delicious, all of him.

  Simon rolled over and pulled me with him. He wrapped me in his arms as our bodies began to cool. I shivered as a cold, dark chill sank into my bones. He pulled a discarded sheet over us and pressed me close to his hard chest. A wave of exhaustion led me into the day sleep of a vampire.

  CHAPTER 10

  A hand shook my shoulder. I scrunched my eyes shut and burrowed deeper into the sheets. "Go away."

  Simon's familiar chuckle chimed over me. "It is time."

  I cracked open an eye and glared at him. "For what?"

  He swept his hand towards the window. A new night was in full bloom. "For our latest effort to alleviate an eternity of boredom."

  I sat up and snorted, careful to keep the sheet wrapped around my naked upper body. "You're boredom, you mean."

  He smiled. "We shall say it is for the greater good."

  My eyes narrowed. "Speaking of greater, I thought you were supposed to have a bigger part in this plot. I haven't heard how you're going to help at all."

  He backed up towards the door and bowed his head to me. "You must follow me to learn."

  I rolled my eyes, but clothed myself and joined Simon in the living room. Certus and Swift stood around the coffee table. Swift eyed the vampire servant with a wary glance before he turned to us.

  "So what's the deal here exactly?" Swift asked us. "I'm guessing it's something big and fast, or you wouldn't need my car."