Samson's Lovely Mortal

No, not teeth.

Fangs!

Pointy, sharp fangs like those of an animal. Like a Sabertooth tiger.

She couldn’t think it, no, because to think it made it real. It couldn’t be real. It didn’t exist. He didn’t exist, not like that.

Was this one of her strange dreams again? When would she wake up from this nightmare? When? Delilah gripped the counter behind her harder to counterbalance her buckling knees and felt the pain in her fingers where she’d cut herself. No, this wasn’t a nightmare, this was reality. Bizarre reality.

She watched Samson get up, releasing Amaury from his grip, slowly moving toward her.

“No!” Her breath caught in her chest.

Need air. Need air now.

“Delilah, everything’s ok.” His voice was as soothing as it had been the night before.

“Get away from me.” She backed away further until she hit the wall behind her. There was nowhere else to go. She’d managed to back herself into a corner. And he was coming toward her, slowly, but steadily. Oh, Jesus Christ! Her throat dried up. Her vocal cords froze. She had to face facts now. She couldn’t deny it any longer.

She’d made love to a vampire, over and over again.

Dracula. A vampire.

Samson was a vampire, a vampire whose mouth had devoured her, whose fangs had been so close to her jugular—he could have killed her with one bite.

“I’m not going to hurt you.”

She let out a hysterical laugh. “No, you’re just going to bite me. That’s what you want, isn’t it? Oh God, how could I have been so stupid?” Really, how could she have been such a fool? Why had she not seen this coming? She felt like one of those stupid heroines in a B-grade horror movie, running up the stairs in her nightie with the killer hot on her heels.

Delilah frantically looked around for anything she could use as a weapon.

“Amaury, would you give us a moment alone,” Samson requested.

“Do you think that’s such a smart idea?” Amaury rubbed his jaw.

“I want Amaury to stay,” Delilah said quickly, hoping that at least he could provide some protection against Samson.

Samson gave her a surprised look. “So you think having two vampires in the room is safer than one?”

That’s when it hit her. She drew in her breath. They were both dangerous, they were both vampires. Amaury didn’t show any fangs, and now that she stared at Samson again, his had retracted too. His eyes were their usual hazel color. Had she hallucinated? Was she even awake?

“Samson, I wasn’t attacking her. I was helping her bandage the wound.”

They exchanged looks until Samson finally nodded. “I’m sorry I misjudged you, but I couldn’t take the risk of anybody hurting her. The situation—”

“I’m not as bloodthirsty as you think, and I would never touch your woman.” Amaury sounded a tad hurt. A vampire hurt by somebody else’s words?

Get real! You’re seriously losing it.

Delilah slowly moved along the wall while the two vampires had their chatty conversation. She barely listened as she slid along the wall toward the kitchen door. Just a few more steps and she would reach the door.

“Where’re you off to, Delilah?”

She stopped in her tracks. So much for her escape. She bit her lip.

“Let’s bandage your hand first, before the scent of blood drives one of us over the edge.” His voice seemed calm, but it could be a trick. For all she knew he’d suck her dry as soon as he saw the blood drip from her fingers.

Samson took a few steps toward her, and she pressed herself harder against the wall. But there was nowhere else to go. He was only inches away from her now.

“Please, I’m sorry you had to find out like this. I was planning to tell you—”

“When? Before or after you bit me?” She shouldn’t show him her fear. It made her even more vulnerable, but she had no idea how to hide it. And animals like him would pounce as soon as they smelled fear, wouldn’t they? Would he? Would he attack her when he realized that she was scared shitless?

She could feel his breath on her face. It reminded her of the way he’d kissed her, how he’d made love to her, how he’d touched her. How could he be the same man? No, he wasn’t a man, he was a vampire.

Wake up and smell the blood!

“I’ll never hurt you, sweetness. I was trying to protect you. I smelled the blood and thought Amaury had attacked you.” Did he have to look so deadly sexy while he was only inches away from her? It wasn’t fair.

She felt his hand reach for hers and tried to pull back, but he held on.