“We should get dressed.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and pulled her catsuit on for the second time. “It’s almost sundown, and we still have to find the rogues’ nest.”
“Okay,” he said as he put his shirt on. Doug nodded toward the bed. “At least we don’t have to change the sheets,” he said with a wink. “So. Let me make sure I’ve got all this shit straight. As I now know better than anyone, there are vampires, and Pete said something about being married to a shapeshifter, right?”
“Yes.” Olivia nodded. “His wife, Marianna, is an Amoveo. They’re shapeshifters.”
“Got it.” He secured his ammo belt and weapon before pulling on his gloves. “And, apparently, there is such a thing as reincarnation. Any other mind-fucks that you want to drop? For example, why did my turn take only twelve hours instead of two days? Why do you and I dream when vampires aren’t supposed to dream, and why have I slipped into this life seamlessly, when I should’ve had a fucking mental breakdown? And why the hell do our hearts start to beat when we drink from each other while we’re… y’know?”
“Not sure, it’s probably nothing,” she said in a tone that didn’t convince her any more than it convinced him.
Doug nodded and pursed his lips as he watched her take stock of the ammo she had left. She squirmed under his inspection but stood straight and steeled her resolve. She met his challenging gaze and gestured to the door. He knew she was holding back. Damn it.
“You know, I may not be an expert at relationships, but I know when a woman says nothing, it’s a whole lotta something.”
She met his challenging gaze and blurted it out. “We’re bloodmates.”
“Okay.” Doug shrugged and looked puzzled. “What’s that?”
Olivia burst out laughing. She belly-laughed until her stomach ached and tears streamed down her face. All this time she was terrified to utter the term bloodmates, scared that he would be furious with all it could imply, and the guy didn’t even know what it meant. Olivia swiped at her eyes but stopped laughing when she saw his irritated look.
“I’m sorry,” she said through fading laughter. “I’m not laughing at you. I’m laughing at my own foolishness. I was so scared to tell you that we’re bloodmates—at least I think we are—that it never dawned on me that you wouldn’t know what it meant.”
“Why would I be angry?” He put his hands on his hips and inched closer. “Olivia?”
“It’s a legend really. At least I thought it was until I found you. According to the legend, some vampires have bloodmates. If these mates find each other and bond with a blood exchange, then they become daywalkers.” She watched his reaction carefully, but his expression didn’t waver. He was pure concentration. “Vampires that can walk in the sun.”
“Okay.” Doug nodded slowly and ran a hand over the top of his head as he looked at her sideways. “That actually sounds pretty good. Why did you think I’d be upset? It’s not like you pick bloodmates, right? I mean, it sounds like destiny or fate.”
“The only bloodmate couple I ever heard of were targeted for termination by a sentry on orders from the Presidium. It makes sense, I guess. Vampires that can daywalk would threaten the Presidium’s power. But…”
Olivia lowered her gaze and tugged her gloves on tighter. Doug took her face in his hands and forced her to look him in the eye. Her lower lip quivered, but she clenched her jaw, refusing to cry like some silly girl.
“I was afraid you would think I turned you so that I could bond with you and be a daywalker, not to mention that if anyone finds out, we would likely have a death sentence on our heads.”
Now Doug was the one who started laughing as he pulled her into a loving embrace. He squeezed her tightly before pulling back to look her in the eye.
“Haven’t you heard anything that I’ve said? I love you, Olivia, and from the looks of things, I always have. Human. Vampire. Daywalker or not. I love you, and as far as this whole bloodmate legend goes, it sounds pretty good.” A lopsided grin cracked his handsome face. “I guess this means you’re stuck with me and my over protective, chauvinistic ass.”
He kissed her passionately and smacked her derriere as he released her.
“I’m still not sure about this, you know. I mean the daywalking part,” Olivia said plainly. “Like I said, I thought it was a fairy tale for vampires. I never thought it was real. So don’t plan any tropical vacations any time soon, okay?”
“Daywalking would be a bonus.” He tugged on a springy curl and released it. “Getting you is the best part, and I’ll take you any way I can get you.”
“Good,” she said firmly. “Let’s get going. We only have until the next sunrise before Augustus kills my coven off.” Olivia’s voice dropped to just above a whisper. “Then again, if we finish our job, this won’t end well for you, will it?”
They hadn’t spoken about his self-imposed death sentence since they left the Presidium’s offices, and she wondered if he had forgotten his offer. The resolute look in his eye told her he knew exactly what he had done.
“I’m not going to watch you die again,” she said tightly. Olivia brushed past Doug and pushed the button, opening the heavy steel door. Before she could leave, he curled his hand around her arm and turned her toward him.
“It’s going to be okay.” His lips brushed her temple, and his voice surrounded her like a blanket as he hugged her. “Maya will be fine, and so will I. We’ll figure it out together, but you have to trust me.”
Olivia pulled back and gave him a sidelong glance as she stepped through the door. “It’s time to hunt.”
Chapter 14
When the sun went down, Doug’s blood hummed and vibrated with the power of the night. He felt an ungodly strength when he was first turned, but something had changed after he and Olivia made love. The power surging through him now was nothing short of extraordinary. It was as though they were bolstering each other’s strength.
When they finally reached the street, the sights and sounds of the city almost overwhelmed his senses, and it took a moment to acclimate to the onslaught. They walked side by side up Bleecker Street, and he marveled at Olivia’s focus. She may have been looking straight ahead, but he could tell she was taking in several blocks with the sonar senses of a vampire. She was a far cry from the frightened young girl he saw in the dreamscape the previous night, and it was no wonder. She’d spent a good portion of the past three hundred years fighting, and from what he saw yesterday, she was damn good at it.
Lethal and beautiful were the two words that came to mind every time he looked at her. She could put a vamp down in a matter of seconds with her sharpshooting skills and her aim with the ninja stars, but she didn’t need that to slay him. All she had to do was look at him, and he was a goner. Gone, baby, gone.
He hated to interrupt her concentration, but hunger gnawed at him, and when they passed a traditional NYC hot dog cart, his stomach growled loudly.
“Holy shit, that smells great.” He lingered for a minute by the hot dog cart before Olivia took his arm and pulled him away. She was giggling and shaking her head. “What are you laughing at, Liv?”
“It’s not the hot dogs that you smell,” she said evenly.
“Yes, it was, I—” Doug glanced back at the man working the cart and then back to Olivia’s smiling green eyes. “It was the guy, wasn’t it?”
“Mmm-hmm.” She smothered another laugh. “I’m sorry, but the look on your face is priceless.”