“Josef sings a particularly interesting version of rap,” he said.
Her mouth opened wide in a gasp of alarm. She slid beneath the water as she spluttered a protest. He caught her and pulled her to the surface, his soft laughter mocking. “I have all your music,” he assured.
“That was really mean,” she said. “In retaliation, I might point out we didn’t use birth control. I don’t even think about birth control when I’m around you, which is silly, because I’m always responsible. I can’t see your face, and I hope you’re frowning.”
He took her hand, brought her fingertips to shape his mouth. “Does it feel as if I am frowning?”
She snatched her hand away. “You are impossible to upset. You’d probably be thrilled if I got pregnant, which isn’t logical at all.”
“I would prefer you wait until I convert you.”
Antonietta sat up, scooted to the small hollowed-out seat beside him. “All this talk of conversion sounds suspiciously like a vampire. What’s the difference?”
“A vampire is wholly evil. Carpathian males lose emotions around two hundred years when they are fully adults. At that time, the lure of power begins to work at them, whispers to feel the rush of the kill. We are predators, with some animal traits. We can be dangerous when provoked, but we do not kill indiscriminately. A vampire lives to bring pain and torment and ultimately death to others. We take blood but do not harm those we take from. A vampire kills for the adrenaline in the blood and also the rush of power, a momentary thrill, when he kills. It is the duty of our hunters to bring these males to justice and protect our species by concealing their existence.”
“That was what you meant by a hunter. A vampire hunter.”
“Yes, among other things. I have done so, but it is not my calling.”
“For which I’m grateful. How long do you live?”
He shrugged, a lazy shift of his shoulders causing the water to wash over her skin. His hand caught her foot, pulled it into his lap so his fingers could massage her. “Unless there is a mortal wound and no one to supply blood, we can live as long as we wish.”
“So if I became as you are, I would live, but I would watch my family die, and eventually even their children.”
“Unfortunately, that is one of the difficulties we all face. We have people we lose, but then, everyone does. Don Giovanni is not going to live forever. You will have to face his death, no matter what. And young Margurite could have been killed when the shield fell. Anything can happen in life.” His fingers moved up to her calf.
Antonietta slid down further beneath the water to extend her leg to him. “That’s true; I can’t argue with that. I wouldn’t be able to be awake during daylight hours?”
“No, and you would have to acclimate your skin to the early morning hours slowly before you could be out during that time.”
“But I would have you.”
“You are my lifemate, Antonietta. You will always have me.”
“Men leave women all the time, Byron. You’re asking me to change my entire way of life for you. I love my family. I love the palazzo. I don’t want to leave my home. And I don’t want to quit my career. Music defines who and what I am.”
“It is impossible for lifemates to leave one another. I have not asked you to give up your career or to leave your home. There are some Carpathians who live with humans, and it works out very well.”
“How does conversion work?”
“We exchange blood three times. The blood works on your organs, reshaping and changing you to what you should be. Already there are signs of it.”
She idly flicked the surface of the water, popping bubbles as they churned around her. “What about my eyes? The strangest things have happened lately. I’ve seen flashes of light, shadows, even colors, as if I’m seeing body heat. I thought it was because we’re so closely connected.”
Byron turned the information over in his mind. “I saw color through Jacques. It was not my memory I was tapping into, but his vision of his lifemate. That is unusual. We tap into memories to feel emotion, but it does not work that way with vision as a rule. Perhaps there is something in my lineage that allows for such a thing. I would think your sight would be restored as the blood heals and reshapes. Our eyes are different, more functional for night vision. Is the thought of seeing again more tempting than choosing to be with me?”
Antonietta laughed. “You are such a male. That’s such a little-boy thing to say.”
He tugged on her foot until she slid underwater. Antoinetta pulled her leg away from him and reversed direction beneath the water to bump her head against his stomach. She circled his waist with her arms to anchor herself and rested her head in his lap, her mouth closing over his floating penis.
Byron looked down at the wealth of silky hair floating in the churning water. Her mouth provided a strong suction that brought him to instant attention. Her tongue danced and teased and stroked until his body trembled and hungered all over again. She seemed to be pulling a volcano from the very center of his being. His blood thickened and pooled, and his every nerve ending seemed to be centered where her hot, passionate mouth was working. The breath slammed out of his lungs. She came up for air, a water nymph laughing at him.
“Come here, you crazy woman.” He reached for her, pulled her to him. “We will live in your house with your family. You will travel the world playing your music for people, and I will once again make art from the gems I call to me. Live your life with me. I cannot bear to be without you. lifemates are for eternity, Antonietta. We can be married in the way of your people and live and seem to age. At times we may have to go away, but we will always return if that is your wish.”
She tilted her head, a small siren’s smile playing around her mouth. “Can you really make it so I’m not uncomfortable and we can make love all night?”
“Absolutely.”
“I think I need proof before I commit to any more biting.”
In answer, he lifted her, seating her on the rim of the Jacuzzi, parting her thighs wide enough to allow his broad shoulders between her legs. “A challenge I cannot resist.” He bent his head to her, teeth nipping gently on the insides of her thighs, his breath warm on her most vulnerable entrance.
His hands gathered her hips and simply slid her into his mouth so that she cried out, grabbed fistfuls of his hair for an anchor.
Antonietta allowed her head to fall back. Her breasts seemed to ache with fullness. Every muscle in her body went taut. His tongue did incredible things, caressing, and stroking, and probing. Everywhere he touched, he soothed and heightened her pleasure. Her body coiled tighter and tighter, winding like a spring. She was wet and hot and impatient for him. She wanted to cry with the wonder and beauty of the way he could make her feel. And yet she needed. And hungered. For him.
Byron lifted his head, brought her mouth to his, sharing her taste, his tongue teasing hers before he spun her around and bent her over the edge. “Is that enough proof? I can give you more.” His hands cupped her breasts while he pressed against her buttocks, deliberately showing her the fullness of his desire. “Do you need more?”
She reached back in an effort to guide him into her. Byron avoided her hand, rubbed again, his teeth nipping her firm bottom. Antonietta began to turn around, determined two could play. Byron held her against the rim, caught her hips, and pushed into her tight sheath with exquisite slowness. “You want slow and easy, remember?”
He was so thick, she could feel him stretching her, pushing his way into her folds, the slow friction driving her to the edge of madness. “I didn’t say that. I’m sure I didn’t say that.” He was very strong, holding her with a gentle but completely unbreakable grip, all the while moving with leisurely, long strokes. Each surge forward made her shudder with pleasure. She had to remain completely still while he did the work.