Dark Hunger

"You should go back to Ixoviya with her, Caleb," said Auril. "After you have dropped me. And if you want, you can leave me here and I will find my own way back to Scotland!" 

"You assume that after what you've done to Elize, I will leave you behind on your own?" Caleb said, almost growling, as if taking his words with offense. "I will take you up there and this time we are going to speed—" 

Elize sauntered in. Creamy, peach skin that glowed, hair tied in a high pony, in sneakers, grinning in her short cutoffs. 

Caleb's thoughts blanketed when he saw how sexy she was looking. His mouth dropped to the floor. She walked with her hips swinging and sidled up to him near the barstool. "Hey, Auril. Thanks for making an antidote for me." 

Auril let out a short laugh that reached his eyes. "You are welcome. And don't venture into those forests," he chided. "Which brings me to the topic—why did you go there?" 

She bit her bottom lip. Things were too hazy for her. She shrugged and said, "I don't know…" 

"Well, never mind," Auril said, giving a knowing glance to Caleb. He chose to get up and leave. "I will be right back." 

Before Caleb could even decide to make up his mind to hold her hands, he had already wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to sit on the counter in front of him. "How are you Lizzy?" he asked as he lifted her off the ground as if she weighed nothing. 

"I am very fine," she said with a blush rising to her cheeks. 

Easing his hips between her knees, he said, "Do you not remember how you reached the forest?" His eyes were focused on hers. 

She shook her head and pursed her lips. "Not much…" 

"Well, then we need to make you mentally strong." 

She raised her hand and put it on his chest. His muscles jumped beneath her touch and she could feel them. "Perhaps yes…" she was ready to be mentally strong. It was cold, but she chose to wear these cutoffs only for him. When she was dressing up, she was somehow beginning to get worried about him. 

Caleb sensed her higher heart rate. He was slightly taken aback at how she was acting cozy with him, but he loved it. "Did you worry about me?" 

She bit her lip, focusing hard on his chest and not looking at his lips. "I did, a little, Caldy." 

"What did you call me?" 

"Caldy. Short for Caleb and scald with a 'y'." 

His fingers dug in her hips. "I do not scald! And it takes a lot to survive in the world of Lore." 

"Well, right now that's what I am going to call you." 

He stared into her eyes that were a beautiful red. "And why do you choose to call me Caldy, now?" It was actually a surprise, but a pleasant one. He wouldn't mind if she called him a pet. He was willing to be her pet for life. 

She took her fingers to his hair that were on his forehead and brushed them back. "Because I think you are looking gorgeous and too… sexy…" She heated like the morning sun. "And I felt you needed a nickname." 

His eyes dropped to her lips. They were so red that if he pinched her there, he was scared they would drip blood. A shaky breath left him. "Last night you wanted to run away from me, and today… You want to run to me? What made you change your mind?" 

"I don't know…" she didn't want to admit her inclination towards him. "But I was concerned about you. Last night I remember leaving you, and then you came to my rescue." She didn't want to tell him that Laurel asked her to reject him. She wouldn't. She couldn't. 

He tensed. "What do you remember about last night?" 

"Bits and pieces, which don't make sense. And I am not even bothered about it." Because she was back with him. "So I have been thinking, Caldy, that I am going to give us a try and that I would like to keep you as my pet." 

Every little part in his body trembled, but in a quiet and amused voice he said, "Really? Are you then?" 

"Even if we started on a bad note, and I do feel that you are the biggest ass one can ever come across, I want to keep you as my pet." Her eyes darted at the bruises on his face—a cut on his cheekbone, a large cut beneath his chin and one that peeped angrily from the collar of his black shirt. A memory of him getting beaten up by the demons flashed. Her heart clenched at the sight. Soreness of guilt built in her. Every part of her buzzed with the need to touch him and feel his flesh under her skin to erase the bitterness of the guilt. 

He growled. "You incorrigible, girl." 

"I am your wife," she raised her eyebrow. "Am I not?" 

He nodded. Oh, how his vampire wife made him want to go on his knees and worship her. "You are my bride." 

"Then can I call you, groom?" From the corner of her eye, she saw Laurel entering the restaurant. Keeping her eyes on her, she leaned next to his ear and said, "What if I drink from you now wolf?" 

His body shuddered with excitement. Would she? "Well, you can do that anytime." 

She held his collar and pulled him closer to her. She tilted her head and then crashed her lips on his. "Liz—" she caught his groan in her mouth and grazed his lips with her fangs, drawing a little blood from him. She sucked it and when she pulled away, he was breathless, while she licked her lips making sure to smear his blood on hers. She turned to see Laurel, who was scandalized.. Then she turned her eyes to Caleb and said, "I want you to do naughty things to me."