A small, strained smile touched his lips. This was the Monica he knew. He held her a little tighter without thinking, until he heard her gasp.
“Shit,” he muttered, loosening his hold immediately. Knowing what he needed to do, he pulled back, lifted his arm to his mouth, and bit into his wrist.
She froze. “Kane… what are you doing?”
“My blood will heal you,” he said, already offering his wrist. “Faster.”
Her eyes widened. “That’s… really a thing?”
“Yeah,” he said softly. “It is. It won’t take much, but you’ll heal quicker. I don’t like seeing you in pain.”
“I don’t like being in pain,” she admitted, her gaze dropping to the blood welling at his skin.
He watched as she took his arm, hesitant at first, then brought his wrist to her mouth. Her tongue brushed over the wound like she was testing it, her lashes lifting as she glanced up at him.
“More?”
“Yeah,” he rasped.
When her lips sealed around his wrist and she began to draw from him, heat slammed through his body. His cock twitched hard, his control fraying at the edges. He’d never offered a human his blood. Hell, only a handful of vampires had ever tasted him. Watching Monica take it was the most intense thing he’d ever experienced.
“Okay,” he said hoarsely. “That’s enough. Too much isn’t a good thing.”
She pulled back slowly, awe written all over her face. “Your blood… it’s spicy,” she said, almost dazed. “And actually good. Never thought I’d say that in my lifetime.”
Kane noticed the smear of red at the corner of her mouth. He couldn’t help himself as he leaned down and took her mouth in a kiss that was slow, deep, and utterly possessive. His tongue pressed against her lips, wanting inside...wanting nothing more than to taste himself on her. She opened for him without hesitation, her hands curling into his shirt as he deepened the kiss.
For just a moment, everything else disappeared. The wreck. The bullets. The fact that someone out there wanted her dead.
Right now, she was here in his arms...safe.
At that moment Kane knew—without a single doubt—that he would burn the world down before letting anyone take her from him.
Monica practically crawled up his body.
Kane helped without hesitation, his hands sliding to her ass and lifting her until she could straddle him. He moved them both,pressing her back against the wall, his mouth hot and relentless—then he stopped.
He pulled away abruptly.
She made a sound of pure protest.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” Kane said, his words brushing her mouth when she tried to take it again.
“You’re not,” she shot back, rough and breathless, dragging him into another deep kiss.
This time, she was the one who broke it, making him growl in frustration.
“Does your blood make someone insanely horny,” she panted, grinding against him, “or am I just really happy to be alive and want to celebrate that with a good fuck?”
Yeah. Monica was definitely back.
He laughed and groaned at the same time, his forehead dropping briefly to hers. “Yes, it does have that effect. And I’m pretty sure surviving a near-death experience can make a person want to fuck like it’s a victory lap.”
He was seconds from stripping her naked when voices from inside the house cut through the moment.
And then his name was called.
Kane cursed under his breath. “Fuck.”