Stay

12. Much

“What is there some hidden obligation to these mutts that you’re not telling me about?” I joked, but it seemed like Ekko was dead serious with a frown creasing his cheeks and intently staring at the wall like it held the answer to everything.

          “Um, no, but I just have a bad feeling about this. These werewolves—I don’t know,” he sighed. “We don’t know much about them, and we’re staying in their quarters.

          “Hey, if they try anything,” I said, tipping Ekko’s face up to me so we were eye to eye, “We can just use our mad vampire skills to end those bitches,” I smirked.

          He shook his head and smiled mischievously. “Damn right,” he laughed quietly. Then all of a sudden he got even quieter.

          “You know, you’re really being no fun,” I said challengingly. “We should go skinny-dipping. We should swim with sharks. Ride bulls, smoke some Cubans, go mountain-biking, and just have a human-sucking frenzy.” I shrugged, suddenly impatient.

          Ekko ran a hand down his face. “Oh Henna, my beautiful anxious little Henna, first of all—“Here it comes, I thought—“We have eternity to get all of this done. Second, smoking is disgusting, and third, you are already full from that lady earlier today, so calm down.”

          “Okay, first, you didn’t shut down the skinny-dipping so that’s still on. And second, don’t act like blood isn’t all you like about,” I said with raised eyebrows.

          “No, all I think about is you,” he said with a smirk like he just said the pickup line of the century.

          “Oh, smooth,” I busted out in laughter. “Ah,” I cried as I wiped a tear from my eye.

          “But really, Henna,” he started as our laughter subsided. “After I met you and found out you were my mate and ‘the one,’” he motioned with air quotes, “Literally everything changed. It wasn’t blood that was keeping me alive. It’s you,” he said lightly, cupping my cheek in his hand softly.

          “Oh ho, you have good lines today,” I said as our faces inched closer and my heart rate elevated.

          “They’re not lines, Henna,” he whispered onto my lips. “I’m speaking from the core of my dead little heart that seems to come alive with you.”

          That was it. I could not take this tease of a boyfriend any longer. Our lips met violently, and Ekko pulled me into his lap so I was straddling him. I felt the warmth his tongue against mine, and electricity ignited in my spine. I put all my pressure on him as he pressed my body against his chest. I wanted to be as close as possible to him, maybe even closer than that.

          My whole body was on fire, and that’s not always a good thing when you’re a vampire. In that moment, all my strings broke, and I dug into his shirt and ripped it effortlessly. The touch of his rock-hard abs against hands drove me insane, and, without warning, Ekko pushed me so I was lying on my back facing him above me. Our lips never lost contact, and, just like in the forest, Ekko ripped my jeans as he gripped my legs. He moved one hand to my neck and moved my hair. I felt his warm breath, and he bit down. Not enough to break the skin, though; only enough to scare the shit out of me. I bit down on his lip, and he started to bleed. I shot out from under him as his blood touched my tongue, and my head hit the wall opposite of the bed. I was breathing heavily, and I knew a frenzy was about to begin. Ekko look up at me with glassy eyes, his bottom lip still gushing. He look off the remnants of his shirt and patted his lip as he sat back.