Dark Gold

She heard noises first. A drum beating. Wood creaking. Water running. Whispers of conversations, rumbling car engines, and the distant laughter of a child. Alexandria lay perfectly still, not daring to open her eyes. She knew she wasn't alone. She knew it was night. She knew the drum beating was her own heart - and that of another in a synchronized rhythm. She knew the conversation she could hear so clearly was taking place at a distance from her, on the first floor, in the kitchen. She knew the child laughing was Joshua.

She didn't know how she knew these things, and it terrified her. She could smell cookies and spice. She could smell... him. Aidan Savage. He was there watching her with his beautiful eyes. Liquid gold. Penetrating. All-seeing. She let herself breathe. Hiding like a frightened child beneath the covers was not going to change anything. She was whatever he had made her. And he had somehow made her... not human. But, the voracious hunger now crawling through her body in a way she had never known was a fact she had to deal with.

Her long lashes lifted, and the first thing she saw was his face. It was amazing how beautiful he was, in a purely masculine way. She studied him carefully, thoroughly. He was strong and powerful. It was there, all of it, the violent nature hidden just beneath all that civilized charm. His eyes were like a cat's, golden orbs, unblinking and steady, lashes long. He had a strong chin, an elegant nose. His lips were very defined, inviting, his teeth exceptionally white. His hair was a tawny mane of shimmering gold flowing to his broad shoulders. His muscles were ropey and rippled when he moved. But now he remained utterly still, like a part of the room, almost blending in, watching her intently. He was a magnificent predator. She knew he was, knew there was no other quite like him.

She touched her tongue to her lips to moisten them. "So, what do we do now?"

"I need to teach you our ways."

His voice was quiet and matter-of-fact. Did that mean people turned into vampires every day? Alexandria sat up tentatively. Her body was sore and stiff but not agonized as it had been before. She stretched her muscles gingerly, testing them. "I don't have any desire to learn your ways." She glanced up at him, a flash of blue eyes quickly concealed by long lashes. "You tricked me. You knew I thought I would become... human again."

He shook his head, the force of his will so strong, she had to look up at him. At once the molten gold captured her gaze. "No, Alexandria, you know that is not true. You wanted to believe it, so you convinced yourself. I chose not to confront you with the truth, but I never at any time misled you."

A small, humorless smile touched her mouth. "Is that what you think? How noble of you to absolve yourself of any responsibility."

He stirred, a slight ripple of muscles, and her heart leapt in alarm. He subsided, motionless once more, as if reading her fear. "I did not say I do not hold any responsibility in this matter. But I cannot change what is. Nor could I change what occurred last evening. Believe me, Alexandria, I would give anything that you not have had to endure what the vampire put you through. Had I been able to do more to spare you such agony, I would have done so."

His voice, so soft and gentle, rang with honesty. He seemed incapable of lying. But didn't vampires have that ability, that power to mesmerize their victims? Alexandria didn't know what was reality anymore, but she was not going to allow anyone to take over her life without a fight. She had a brain, she was strong, and she was determined. She had long ago learned patience. Fortitude. Survival skills. Right at this moment she didn't have enough information to make any decisions.

"Am I like you now?"

His mouth quirked in the smallest of smiles; then his face was once again a cool, blank mask, his golden eyes soulless, reflecting back her own image. "Not exactly. I was born Carpathian. My people are as old as time itself. I am one of the ancients, a healer of our people, and a hunter of the vampire. I have knowledge and power from centuries of study."

She held up a hand. "I'm not sure I'm ready for all this. Mostly I want to know if I'm still me."

"Who did you think you would become? There is no longer any lingering taint of the vampire's blood in your system, if that is what concerns you."

She took a deep breath. Drew on her knowledge of vampire lore. Hunger was a clawing ache. "What concerns me is... whether or not I can walk in the sunshine. Whether or not I can eat like a regular person, go to a fast-food place with Joshua and eat whatever I want."

He answered calmly. "Sunlight will burn your skin. Your eyes will have the worst reaction, swelling and tearing. In daylight you must wear dark glasses, made with special lenses for our people."

She let her breath out slowly. "That answers one question. I'm trying hard not to get hysterical here. Just say it out straight."

"You must have blood to survive."

"You could have broken it to me more gently, in stages or something," she replied wryly, her customary irreverence clearly intact even though her mind was spinning, in total chaos. It was hard to think, to breathe. This couldn't really be happening. It just couldn't. "I hope you don't expect me to sleep in a coffin." She tried to make it a joke, to help her mind accept the possibility of such a thing. More than anything, she wanted to scream.

His eyes were absorbing her, drawing her to him. She could almost feel him reaching for her, an illusion so real that she felt the warmth of his arms, his soothing touch in her mind. "I do not think that will be necessary."

Her tongue found her suddenly dry lips. "I can't breathe."

He physically touched her then, his hand curling around the nape of her neck, forcing her head down. "Yes, you can," he said calmly. "This panic will pass."

She dragged great gulps of air into her burning lungs, fighting the sobs tearing at her throat. She could not cry aloud. She couldn't do anything but try to inhale. His fingers began a slow massage, so gentle, so light, but her body responded, an easing of the terrible tension at the calm command of his hand.

"Why didn't you just kill me?" The words were muffled by the quilt, by her aching throat.

"I have no intention of killing you. You are innocent of any wrongdoing. I am not a cold-blooded killer, Alexandria."

She looked up at him then, her large eyes meeting his. "Please don't lie to me. This is hard enough as it is."

"I am a hunter, piccola. But I do not kill the innocent. I am a sentinel of justice for our people, appointed by our Prince, the leader of our people, to guard this city."

"I am not your kind. I'm really not." She knew she sounded desperate despite her every intention to remain calm. "There's been some kind of mistake. You have to undo it." Her voice was trembling, her body shaking. "If you would just listen to me, you would understand. I'm really not like you."

His hand closed over hers, eased her clenched fingers, his thumb lightly stroking the frantically beating pulse in her wrist. "Stay calm, Alexandria, you are doing fine. You will heal fast. I know you did not get a look at yourself last night, but you are already remarkably healed. And you will find much to love in your new life. You will be able to see in the darkness as if it was high noon. You will be able to hear things never before heard, see things never seen. It is a beautiful world."

"You don't understand. I already have a life. And I have to take care of Joshua. Joshua can't be without me during the day. He's just a little boy. He needs me to take him to school. I have to work, too."

Aidan said he was no killer, but Alexandria was not blind. He was beautiful but deadly beneath a thin veneer of civilization. She could not, would not, become like him. She had to care for Joshua. Aidan sighed, soft and gentle, a quiet exhalation she felt right down to her toes, and she had the horrible feeling that he knew what she was thinking, that he really was somehow in her head with her, sharing her thoughts and emotions.

"You will be able to care for Joshua. Your things have been moved into the second-floor rooms. You and Joshua will maintain living quarters there. It will be essential for you to keep up the illusion of human life. Only during the afternoon, when you are at your most vulnerable, will you come down to this chamber and sleep. Joshua remembers nothing of the vampire. I could not allow him to be traumatized for life."

"You can't allow him to know the truth," Alexandria guessed shrewdly. "We have our own home. As soon as I'm able, I am going to take him away from here. "

Out of this city if need be, away from you, so far away that no harm can ever come to him.

There was a small silence that seemed to stretch into eternity. For some reason, she could feel her heart pounding in alarm. When Aidan moved, every muscle in her body froze. He was silent, but he terrified her, the way he moved so silently.

"There is a bond between us, Alexandria." His voice was pure, like the sound of a clear stream running over rocks. "It is unbreakable. I will always know where you are, as you will always be able to find me. If I was going to harm Joshua, I would have disposed of him long before now. You will stay here and learn what you must to survive. At least give yourself time to adjust to your new life."

"I want to see him, right now. I want to see Joshua."

For some inexplicable reason, she was finding it impossible to breathe again. Emotions whirled and danced, raged and exploded, until she thought she might go mad. Instead she sat quietly like a polite child awaiting his agreement. He stood staring down at her with his golden eyes, his face an expressionless mask.

Afterward Alexandria had no idea how it happened. One moment she was sitting quietly, the next she had launched herself out of the bed and flung herself at him, unable to contain the rage racing through her. Aidan's sensual features remained cool and calm even as he caught her small, flying figure. She was already desperately fighting to regain self-control, horrified at her behavior. She had never done such a thing before. Aidan restrained her easily, clasping her wrists behind her back so that she was held tightly against his hard frame.

And at once she was aware of the thin shirt covering her bare skin, her curves fitting against his body. She was aware of him as a man, of herself as a woman. That horrified her. Everything about the situation horrified her.

"Shh, piccola, cara mia, be calm," he soothed her, one hand pinning her wrists while the other tangled in the heavy fall of hair at her nape. "We will get through this together. Hold on to me. Use me. Use my strength." He released her wrists even as his hand tightened on her neck.

She thumped his chest once, twice, trying not to scream out her frustration. "I'm crazy. My mind is crazy. It won't stop." She rested her head against the heavy muscles of his chest, the only refuge, the only sanctuary left to her. Her brain was racing, a terrible, chaotic jumble of desperate thoughts. Aidan was solid, an anchor of strength, the calm in the eye of the storm.

"Breathe, Alexandria. With me, breathe." The words whispered softly over her skin, seeped in through her pores, penetrated to her heart and lungs.

He seemed to be doing it for her, his breathing regulating hers. Aidan held her almost tenderly, not asking anything of her, simply holding her until the terrible trembling ceased and she was able to stand on her own two legs. Almost reluctantly, he released her, putting space between them, his hand trailing down the length of her thick braid until his arm once more dropped to his side.

"I'm sorry." Alexandria pressed her fingertips to her temples. "I'm not normally a violent person. I don't know what got into me. "

Itwas so unlike her, this craziness. The vampire's blood must be still in her, and Aidan did not want to reveal the truth to her.

Aidan could read her fear, that the vampire was still in her, directing her actions. What nonsense. He shook his head. "Fear itself can make us act out of character. Do not worry yourself so. Are you ready now to see Joshua, to be calm enough to reassure him? I know you need more time to adjust to all this newness, and I will not insist, but your brother is beginning to worry. Young Joshua thinks of himself as your protector. As much as he trusts me, he needs to see you, to touch you." Deliberately, he directed her thoughts to the child, the only one capable of taking her mind off her terrible transformation.

With a shaking hand, she reached for the jeans Aidan had had brought from her boardinghouse. "Fill me in on what I should know, what Joshua expects. I can't remember everything you told me."

Aidan couldn't drag his gaze away from the slender length of her legs. His body hardened unexpectedly, his blood pounding and hot. He turned away from her to hide his hunger. Hunger for erotic, steamy sex. He had never felt its pull with such intense heat.

"Aidan?" He heard the whisper of the zipper as her voice skimmed over his skin. Fangs exploded in his mouth, and his body clenched with need. He was barely able to suppress a low growl of aggression. His fingers curled into fists, his knuckles white. As Carpathians aged, everything increased in intensity. Including emotions, if they could feel. Pain, happiness and joy, sexual need. He had known that, but he had never experienced it before. It was not easily controlled when it was so new.

He let his breath out slowly, the red haze before his eyes receding, the demon struggling for supremacy leashed and muzzled. He had an eternity to win Alexandria. She was bound to him, soul to soul, mind to mind. He would find the patience to give her time to come to him willingly.

"Aidan?" This time her voice trembled. "Is something wrong?"

"No, of course not. Let me review things for you. Joshua believes me to be an old family friend. He believes that the two of you had been planning for some time to move into the suite of rooms on the second floor and that your illness at the restaurant merely moved the schedule forward."

Her large sapphire eyes glinted at him; then her long lashes swept down. "Just how good of friends are we supposed to be?"

A small smile tugged at his mouth, and for one brief moment he looked almost boyish. Then the illusion was gone, and he was a powerful predator once more. "Oh, I would have to say close. Very close. And, fortunately for me, Joshua likes it that way. He is my staunch ally."

One eyebrow shot up, and the dimple near her mouth deepened. "

You need an ally?"

Again he glimpsed her mischievous nature, and it prompted another small smile. "Absolutely."

Aidan had a way of tipping his head to one side and looking at her with such hunger that it took Alexandria's breath away. It might have been a trick of the light, except there was no light. She concentrated on his words, trying not to react to his sensual looks or the mesmerizing sound of his voice.

"A rather odious friend of yours tracked you down here and demanded to see you. Aside from upsetting my staff, he did not get very far, he did return some property of yours. You are aware, of course, that both your friend Henry and little Joshua instinctively disapproved of this childish game maker. In fact, Josh has secret plans to make money so you do not have to sell your art to such a man." Aidan reached behind his head to secure the thick mane of hair at the nape of his neck. "He has a smile reminiscent of a shark, do you not agree?"

Alexandria was held spellbound by Aidan's simple act of securing his hair, finding the way he moved incredibly sexy. She shook her head, angry that such a ridiculous thought should even occur to her. "Are you talking about Thomas Ivan? Because if you are, show some respect. The man is brilliant at what he does. He actually came by here looking for me?"

She grabbed on to that notion. It was human and normal in a world gone mad. Thomas Ivan was someone she could relate to. Someone who had things in common with her. She ignored the fact that Thomas Ivan's smile was exactly like a shark's toothy grin. She ignored the fact that this creature in front of her was the most purely masculine man she had ever seen and that his smile alone held a fascination for her.

"The man's story lines are idiotic drivel. He does not know the first thing about vampires." There was contempt in Aidan's voice, yet it still held such a purity of tone, she found herself leaning toward him and had to pull herself up sharply.

"No one knows anything about vampires," she corrected firmly, "because they don't exist. They can't. And his work isn't drivel. His games are brilliant."

"I had not heard that about vampires not existing," Aidan responded with a mocking grin. "I wish I had known earlier. It might have saved me a great deal of trouble over the centuries. As for Ivan, I fear I must agree with Joshua. The man is a pompous ass. In any case, he returned your briefcase, and I told him you would get in touch with him when your doctor says it is all right to do so."

"I don't have a doctor."

Aidan's white teeth flashed, and his golden eyes gleamed with wicked amusement. "I am your doctor. I am your healer."

She could not meet that heated gaze. His amusement was as sexy as his sculpted mouth. "I think I'm getting the picture. So, what else has my little brother been told?" She glanced about the room. "Aren't there any shirts of mine around here?" She lifted the tails of his elegant silk evening shirt. "Some that don't reach my knees?"

He cleared his throat. He liked her wrapped in his shirt, surrounded by him. "Well, actually, as Joshua knows, that is one of your annoying habits. You like to run around in my shirts. You think they are much more comfortable than your own clothes."

Alexandria regarded him with wide blue eyes. "Oh, I do, do I? I take it you grumble about it."

"Often, to Josh. We laugh together about the idiosyncrasies of women. He thinks you look cute in my shirts."

"And what would give a little boy an idea like that?"

He looked unrepentant. "I might have mentioned it a time or two."

His golden eyes slid over her body, making her aware of her bare skin beneath his shirt, of every curve of her body, of the fact that they were completely alone in some secret chamber of his home.

"It is true, after all. You do look cute in my shirt."

"Why do Joshua and I have to stay here?" She was going to keep this conversation on track and away from these frighteningly new sensual sensations.

"Joshua is a beacon to guide our enemies to us, as Marie and Stefan are. As long we have human ties, we are anchored to them, and those who wish to destroy us can easily find us. Where most of our kind can remain hidden at will, our enemies know that we will never be far from our human connections, especially Josh, a small child. You are far safer from our enemies, here in my home."

"What enemies? I don't have enemies." Aidan spoke matter-of-factly, yet Alexandria could feel her heart begin to pound all over again. She sensed he was speaking the truth, and whoever the enemy was, it was no ordinary assailant.

"Paul Yohenstria was not the only vampire in this city. There are others, and they know I am hunting them. They will know of your existence quickly, and they will turn their powers to acquiring you."

Alexandria felt her stomach muscles clench. "Why would they want me? I don't understand any of this. Why is all this happening to me?"

"You are a true psychic, a human woman capable of becoming one of us. And even vampires are Carpathians before they turn. There are few women among our people, and they are greatly treasured."

Her chin rose belligerently. "I have news for you, Mr. Savage. 'Your people' hardly seem to treat women like treasures. No wonder there are so few." She touched the ragged wounds still visible at her throat. "I can't imagine too many women wanting the honor. I can truthfully say

I'm not happy about it."

"I have asked you to call me Aidan. It is necessary, even when we are alone, that we continue to behave in the human manner and keep up the pretense that we are close friends until it becomes so." His golden eyes glinted for a moment, nearly stopping her heart.

Her fingers twisted in the tails of his shirt, her agitation increasing at the quiet, soothing tone of his voice. "Who else lives here? I know there is a woman. I remember she wouldn't call an ambulance even when I begged her to." Despite her attempts at normalcy, Alexandria could not keep the fear and bitterness from her voice.

Aidan advanced a step, suddenly close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his body. "My housekeeper, Marie, was extremely distressed over your condition, Alexandria. It was not her fault, and I hoped that you would not place the blame with her. She knew no human doctor could help you. I was the only one who could ease your suffering. Just so you are aware, she was very angry with me over your condition. She has been my housekeeper and a member of my family for many years. She is the one who will look after Joshua for us while we are unable to do so in mid-afternoon. For that reason alone you should find it in your heart to become her friend."

"Do you control her? Drink her blood? Make her do whatever you want, like a puppet?" Alexandria burst out.

"I have never taken blood from Marie, nor have I ever controlled her thoughts. She has chosen to stay with me, as did her family before her, of her own free will. She stayed by your side while you were so ill because she felt compassion. I will repeat myself one last time so that you might understand. She did not call an ambulance because no human physician could have eased your suffering." He felt it unnecessary to inform her that, in addition, the human doctors would have discovered the new abnormalities in her blood, and his species could never allow such a discovery. They were often hunted by more than only the undead. Human "vampire-slayers" sought them out as well.

Again his voice was cool and even, yet her mouth went dry with fear. He could convey menace quietly far better than most people could with roaring anger. She nodded, trying to look agreeable when in truth she was crumbling inside, her mind fragmenting and her body trembling almost beyond her capability to control it.

"Take another breath. You keep forgetting to breathe, Alexandria. Your mind is trying to deal with the trauma of what has happened to you a bit at a time. Every time a new piece of information is processed, your body reacts to it. You are a very intelligent woman; you have to know this will not be an easy transition, but you will get through it."

A small, humorless smile curved her trembling mouth. "I will? You're so certain of that. Is that because you've decreed it?" Her chin lifted, and for a moment her eyes flashed in defiance. "You're so sure of yourself."

He simply watched her in that calm, infuriating manner she was becoming familiar with. Alexandria finally sighed. "Don't worry. I don't blame the woman."

"Marie." He whispered it softly between his white teeth, a whisper of velvet over iron. His golden eyes were growing hot, molten gold that could so easily engulf her.

She swallowed hard. "Marie, then. I'll be nice to her."

He held out a hand. Alexandria stared at it a moment, then, carefully avoiding contact, slipped past him to the door. Aidan moved with her, a silent shadow, yet she was aware of his every rippling muscle, body heat, his very breath. He was so close to her, she felt their hearts were beating the same rhythm.

The tunnel they entered was narrow and wound its way upward toward the first floor. She was forced to stop no more than halfway to their destination, a wave of dizziness overcoming her. She gripped the stone wall and fought for breath. At once Aidan curved an arm around her waist.

Her fingers curled into his shirt. "I can't do this. I'm sorry, but I can't." There was an involuntary plea in her voice, her fear overcoming her sense of self-preservation against Aidan's power. He was enormously strong and as solid as a rock. He was all she had to cling to when her mind rebelled against the trauma it had been subjected to.

He held her like a child, his body giving comfort when, inside him, the beast raged for fulfillment. "For now, think only of the boy. He is lonely for you and afraid. I have done my best to reassure him, but he has lost so much in his young life, and the memories he has of this place and of me and my family are merely implanted, no substitute for the reality of his love for you. The rest of the future can wait, can it not?" His voice was pure sorcery, impossible to resist. It whispered sensuously in her mind, assuring her that if she simply did as he suggested, all would be well with her world.

His chin brushed the top of her head, lingering for a moment while he drank in her scent, made certain their scents mingled. His golden gaze held possession and hunger; his arms were gentle and tender.

"Come with me now, Alexandria. Come into the warmth of my home of your own free will. Share some time with me and mine. Forget everything for now but this respite from your nightmare. You need the relief, and there is no harm in it."

"In the illusion of normalcy?"

"If you care to put it that way, I suppose it can be said." His fingers, on the nape of her neck, were working a kind of magic.

In her life there had been too much adversity, no warmth other than what Joshua had provided. Aidan was so gentle, and even if that was the biggest illusion of all, Alexandria took comfort in his arms. On some level she was aware of clinging to him, of leaning on his strength, but she refused to dwell on it; for her sanity, she didn't dare. She needed to immerse herself in a small measure of normal life, if only for a short while.

She took a deep breath. "I'm all right now. Really. And I'm going to pretend you're a nice man, not some snarling beast about to eat me if I don't do everything you say."

Against the satin skin of her neck his mouth curved into a smile, his breath warm against her pulse, his teeth scraping gently. The sensation was far more sensual than frightening. "I do not know where you get these ideas, cara. Perhaps from Thomas Ivan's games? You should cease playing them. They seem to influence you unduly."

"But he is so good at what he does. You have played his games, haven't you?" she asked, guessing as much and trying to goad him a bit. She remained very still, almost holding her breath, enjoying the feel of his mouth on her neck, yet terrified of this strange reaction in herself.

"Twill admit reluctantly to wasting my time investigating his foolish propaganda... but you are not to tell anyone. I might lose my status as a true vampire-hunter." His arm slipped back around her waist, and his body urged hers upward along the narrow tunnel.

"Aidan! Are you a snob?" she teased, trying to ignore the unfamiliar feelings his hard muscles brushing against her body were creating. He was so close to her, his arms made her feel protected, a sensation she had never experienced before.

"Probably."

His voice whispered over her skin, making her insides tremble.

"You forgot your shoes," he pointed out. "This floor is cold. You should have put on the slippers I left for you." There was a trace of censure in his voice.

Alexandria glanced up at him over her shoulder, a quick flash of blue eyes. "Actually, that's another one of my habits that will no doubt annoy you - I have many, you know. I always like to go barefoot in the house."

Aidan was silent a moment. She couldn't even hear his footfalls. He seemed to glide rather than walk. "So, just how many annoying habits do you have?" he asked.

His voice created a funny melting sensation inside her.

"So many I can't count them. And they're bad, really bad."

There was a teasing note in her voice, a warmth that hadn't been there before. Aidan searched her mind and found that she was trying to do as he said, put aside all that had happened and live only in this moment. Her natural warmth and humor were beginning to surface in spite of all the odds against it. He found himself feeling pride in her. She was constantly amazing him. This woman, so unexpected in his life, was certainly worth the effort and patience it would take to win her completely. No one had ever teased him before. Marie and Stefan had been in his life a long time. He saw their affection for him, but it was always tinged with respect for what and who he was.

"You do not know the meaning of the word bad. You have no vices. You don't even smoke, and you very seldom drink alcohol. And before you accuse me of reading your mind, let me explain that Joshua has spilled all your secrets. He wanted me to know of your virtues."

"Oh, did he?" There was a wall facing her, and Alexandria stopped abruptly. It seemed made of solid, immovable stones.

Aidan reached past her and casually placed his fingertips on one of the oddly-shaped stones. A panel swung outward, allowing them access to stairs leading up from the basement to the kitchen.

Alexandria rolled her eyes. "How very melodramatic. Secret passageways and everything. You should write a book, Aidan. Or perhaps a video game."

He leaned close, his warm breath sending a shiver down her spine. "I have no imagination."

Her pulse beat right beneath his mouth. Aidan felt her heat beckoning him, the scent of her, the spice of her blood, so addicting, calling to him. For a moment his eyes glowed with hunger and need, molten gold shooting fiery sparks. His blood leapt in anticipation, and in his mouth his fangs fought for liberty.

"Oh, really? I think one of your annoying habits is to lie whenever it suits you. It took great imagination just to design this place. And don't tell me you didn't do it yourself."

It was his prolonged silence that gave him away. Alexandria sensed the sudden danger she was in and froze, holding her breath. Her stillness, the scent of her fear, beat at him. His fingers circled her fragile wrist gently. "I am sorry, cara, it has been a long time for me. To experience emotions is slightly overwhelming. You will have to forgive me when I blunder."

His voice once again wrapped her in safe arms, offered a haven. Alexandria bit her lip hard enough to produce a drop of blood, hoping the pain would dispel that illusion of safety he had created. She tried to step away from him.

Aidan refused to relinquish control. His fingers never tightened, but, just the same, his grip was unbreakable. He bent his head to hers, his golden eyes holding her blue ones captive. "Do not place temptation in my way, Alexandria. I have little control around you."

He whispered the words, a velvet seduction, his voice alone stirring a small flame in her midsection. His mouth brushed hers in the lightest of caresses, but he stole her breath as his tongue stole the tiny red droplet of blood from her lower lip.

When he lifted his head the same slow, sensual way he had lowered it, she could only stare up at him helplessly, mesmerized by the unexpected fire in her blood and the need in her body. It shocked her, the strength of her first real sexual awareness. That it should be with this man, that she could feel such heat and hunger for a creature like Aidan Savage, made her tremble.

He could feel the tremor that ran through her slender body, see the sensual awareness in her blue eyes. Her tongue darted out nervously, touching her lower lip right where his tongue had touched. He found his body tightening in demand, urging him to claim what was rightfully his, the demon lifting its head and roaring.

"Aidan?" Her hand went protectively to her throat. "If you're going to hurt me, get it over with. Don't play some sort of game with me. I'm not a very strong person, and I don't think I can handle much more without going crazy."

"I have said I will not harm you, Alexandria, and I will not." He stepped away from her to give his body some small respite.

For the first time, his voice was husky, but the huskiness only deepened the beauty of it, increased its enthralling effect. Alexandria could barely breathe with the effort to keep from being ensnared by him. She found herself wanting to comfort him, to be the one to take that hungry look from his golden eyes. There seemed such a need in him, and she wanted to sate it. "I think I'm more afraid of you than I was of the vampire. At least I knew he was evil. I could feel it in him, and I knew whatever he wanted from me was more horrible than dying could ever be. Tell me what you're planning to do to me."

"If you do not recognize evil in me, Alexandria, then trust your instincts. Have you not always been able to recognize evil?"

"I saw what you did to Paul Yohenstria. Shouldn't I believe my own eyes?"

"What did I do that was so evil? I destroyed a vampire preying on the human race. My only mistake was in believing he had turned you vampiress. I believed you were about to feed on the child." He touched her face, his palm warm and comforting, the feel of him lingering even after he lowered his hand. "I deeply regret that I frightened you, but I cannot regret that I destroyed the vampire. That is what I do; that is the reason I continued my existence for so long alone and far from home. For the protection of both our races, human and Carpathian."

"You say you aren't a vampire, but I saw the things you can do. You are far more powerful than even he was. He was afraid of you."

"Do not most criminals fear justice when it finds them?"

"If you are not a vampire, then what are you?"

"I am Carpathian," he reiterated patiently. "I am of the earth. We have existed from the beginning of time. We are of the soil, the wind, the water, and the sky. Our powers are great, but we have limitations, too. You have not become vampire, a wanton destroyer. You have become like me, like my people. As I told you, only a handful of humans can become as we are. Most die or become deranged and must be destroyed. I tell you this not to alarm you but to help you to understand that I do not mean you harm."

Alexandria was silent, studying his face. Physically he was the most beautiful man she had ever seen. He exuded masculinity and power. Yet always that danger lurked beneath the surface, and it was that she was afraid of. Should she believe him? Could she?

The hard line of his mouth softened, his amber eyes warming to molten gold. "Do not worry about it this moment, cara. Get to know me better before you attempt to make such a judgment." His hand brushed the length of her hair, a touch of his fingertips, no more, yet she felt it in the pit of her stomach, in the nape of her neck, on every inch of her skin. "A truce, Alexandria, for this night with your brother, while you heal and grow stronger."

She nodded mutely, afraid to trust her voice. She was both repelled by and drawn to Aidan. She felt safe, and yet she knew she was in danger. But for the moment she would try to put aside her fears, her suspicions, and simply enjoy her time with Joshua.

Aidan smiled. It was the first real smile she had seen on his face. It warmed his eyes and stole her breath. There was something very sexy about it that made Alexandria even more afraid. She had never had to fight her own feelings before.

"The door is in front of you," he said.

She turned her head slightly so that she could keep an eye on him even as she observed the basement door. "Any tricks up your sleeve? A secret password?"

"Turning the knob will do it."

"How very mundane." Alexandria reached for the doorknob at the same time he did. His arm curved around her, bringing their bodies close so that she smelled his clean, masculine scent and felt the heat of him right through their clothes. Hastily she dropped her hand. As he opened the door, she could have sworn she heard soft, taunting laughter in her ear. When she turned to glare at him, his face was all innocence.

Alexandria refrained from kicking his shins and with great dignity walked into the brightly lit kitchen, proud of her self-control.

Aidan leaned close as he trailed behind her. "I can read your mind, cara." His voice was teasing, velvety, sliding over her skin like the touch of his fingers, fanning flames she hadn't known existed.

"Don't brag about it, Mr. Savage. What a great name for you, by the way. Savage. It suits you."

"If you do not call me Aidan, I am going to have some explaining to do to Joshua. That boy is very smart, you know."

She laughed softly. "And you said you had no imagination. I can't wait to hear what you come up with."