The Seduction of Gretchen: Paranormal Erotic Romance (Anam Céile Chronicles) (7 page)

No longer able to rely upon my sight, I had to tune in my
other senses to assess what he was doing next.  He grabbed each of my arms and after
placing a small kiss within each palm, raised them above my head.  Crossing
them one over the other, he began wrapping what I knew to be the other silk
scarf around my wrists.

I know that I should not allow myself to be vulnerable to
a Vampire like this, but he has me so hot, how can I possibly deny him? 
Besides he is far more than just a Vampire to me.

He is
my
Vampire.  And I am his.

Still, I hoped he would not bind my feet as well. 

Feeling his garments brushing against me, Lucius leaned in
and commencing at my armpit, planted delicate kisses all the way up the inside
of my arm and then down the other arm until he reached the opposite armpit. 
The chill of his lips inspired my skin to prickle up.  In contrast, this little
bit of attention from him had my insides melting, begging for that which he
could never give me.

I felt his lips travel over my shoulder to the lower curve
of my throat where he lingered as though contemplating a temptation. Tipping my
head back, I braced myself, fully expecting to feel his bite.  Rather, Lucius
resumed slowly kissing his way up my neck, nibbling at my chin.  Finding my
mouth once more, I delighted in the feel of his lips upon mine.  I allowed my
mouth to fall open so as to invite him inside.   Instead, instigating in me a
whimper, he nibbled his way along my lips, his mouth descending once more down
the line of my neck. 

When Lucius reached my clavicle, his lips diligently followed
along the bone, his chin teasingly brushing the protruding tops of my cleavage,
driving me crazy.  After he had kissed all the way from one side to the other,
at last his mouth moved below the line of my bone, alighting upon the fleshy
mounds of my breasts.  Leaving not a single spot of flesh untouched,
unhurriedly he kissed his way over my amplified cleavage. Hoping they too would
soon know his lips, my nipples stiffened in response.

His lips finally reaching the line of the corset, I anticipated
he would begin unhooking the front to access me.  Feeling his hands grasp the
top of it, I smiled at my right perception.  But then, he proved me wrong, for
instead I heard the unmistakable sound of fabric being torn as he proceeded to rip
it right open.  I heard several buttons pop off and fall to the floor, completely
destroying the garment. 

I was stunned at his audacious move. 

What’s more, I was insanely turned on. 

Why is it that the only man who has ever had this
profound an effect upon me is not capable of giving me what I crave from him?

I heard a low growl come from him as he regarded my breasts
bared to him for the first time.

“My God, Gretchen,” Lucius murmured in a low tone.  “You are
one gorgeous creature!”

Before I could respond, his hands were upon my breasts,
holding them up to his desirous mouth.  A low moan escaped me as he drew my alert
nipple into his mouth, suckling at it as he would my vein, worsening the ache
within my groin.  I wanted desperately for him to touch me there, something…
anything… to satisfy my need to be filled.

And then, suddenly his mouth was gone and I felt Lucius
moving completely away from me and I was unclear as to what he was doing.  A
second later I heard the distinctive sound of metal clinking followed by fabric
rustling and I knew that he was removing his clothing.  My sex clinched at the
thought of what that would mean if he were a human man. 

But, sadly, he is not.  Better to not get caught up in
having unrealistic desires.

Oh, but if he was… the things I would do to this man!

And then he is upon me again, the coolness of his bare skin
against the warmth of mine. 

But I do not mind it, not at all, if it means I can
finally be close to him like this. 

My breasts melding into his muscular chest, Lucius kissed me
again, his tongue requesting entrance.  Naturally, I indulged him.  As our
tongues circled together, his hand roamed over my body, as though learning
every inch of me.  I sucked in my breath as I felt it descend lower yet, his
fingers weaving through the curls of hair crowning my sex.   I felt him smile
against my mouth at my reaction and knew he was reveling in the powerful effect
he had upon me.

Apparently attempting to drive me as much over the edge as
he possibly could, Lucius teasingly brushed his finger over my swollen clitoris
as he continued downwards.  Not realising I had been holding my breath, I
suddenly gasped into his mouth when his fingers found my moist opening.  Pushing
them inside, I moaned profusely, fighting against his mouth for breath.

My breaking away from his mouth inspiring him to find other
creative uses for it, Lucius began kissing his way down my body, his lips
travelling over my breasts and down the plane of my abdomen, leaving a trail of
wet kisses as he continued his descent.  Comprehending just where he was
heading, I breathed in sharply as his face was now level with my sex.

Oh God, is this gorgeous man really about to pleasure
me
with his tongue? 

As if in answer, he planted a soft kiss upon my clitoris
before letting his tongue sweep across the aching flesh of my sex.  Hardly able
to believe the level of pleasure he could inspire in me with the scarcest of
contact, I moaned and squirmed beneath him.

To my utter delight, beginning at the lower end, he traced
all the way up my slit, eliciting the parting of my inner labia as his tongue
discovered my sex.  At this point, it was impossible to refrain from squirming
and moaning.

“Gretchen, you are delectable!” Lucius exclaimed.

Whimpering in response, I just wanted his mouth back upon
me.

Granting my wish, he placed his tongue upon me again, taking
turns playfully sucking in each labia.  His tongue climbing higher, I was
elated when at last it made contact with my now throbbing clitoris. 

“Oh yes…” I murmured, encouraging him.

I leaned my head back in pleasure as his tongue skillfully
manipulated my button, alternating between sucking it in between his lips and
bathing it with his tongue.  Feeling the pleasure already gathering in my core,
I knew it would not be long before he brought me to orgasm.

More than anything, I wanted for him to push his fingers
into me, to thrust them in and out.  But I dared not make any requests from him
for fear he would suddenly stop everything.

And I was
so
close…

Closer than I realised, for all at once it seemed, all the
pleasure in me rushed towards my centre, collecting together for the big moment.

His tongue descended to sweep down me once more and with
just one more flick of his tongue to my clitoris, it transpired.

“Oh, Lucius…” I groaned, alerting him to the fact that it
was coming, as if the movements of my body had not been sufficient in giving me
away.

 “Oh yes, Lucius!” I cried as I writhed against his face. 
“Oh my God, YES!”

He rose up abruptly, his body hovering over mine.   I waited
to feel the puncture of his teeth into my vein.  I quickly decided that if he
did not, I would bury my fingers in myself while he was occupied with drinking
from me. 

But the bite did not come.  Instead, I felt something large
and firm brush past my leg and then pushing against my sex.  I wondered if he
had put on a leather phallus.  My sex clinched at the thought.  That definitely
would have been far preferable over my fingers, especially for him to be the
one doing it. 

But the moment it began to slide inside of me, I knew it was
not leather, not to mention the fact I could detect no belt about his waist.

It was
flesh
! 
His
flesh.  His
cock
!

And it was
hard
!

I did not know how it was possible for him, but in that
precise moment, little did I care.

“Oh, Lucius… Yes, make love to me!”

“Gretchen,” he breathed into my ear.

Suddenly, more than anything I wanted to be able to look
into his eyes, to not be denied the full experience he was bestowing upon me.

“Lucius, please, I need to see you, to touch you,” I implored
him.

Stilling himself in me, I felt him reach up and manipulate
the scarf binding my wrists.  Relieved to be able to move my arms, I lowered
them, immediately wrapping them around his back, my hands roving over his body. 
It felt so good to be able to touch him after all this time.  It was like a
dream!

“My God, Lucius!  You feel so incredible inside of me!”

His hands moving to the back of my head, he proceeded to
loosen the scarf.  When he uncovered my eyes, I was almost surprised to see it
really was him on me,
in
me.  I was relieved to know that it had not
just been a dream or my imagination gone wild!

As Lucius gazed into my eyes, a smile erupting onto his
handsome face, I suddenly had an overwhelming urge to tell him I loved him. 

That is ridiculous!  How can I possibly love him.  I know
so little about him!

To prevent the foolish words escaping my mouth, I kissed him
hard.  He returned my kiss with a fervor all his own, his hips moving back and
forth in me.

Swiftly, my pleasure ascended, peaking once more, every
thrust sending me higher, closer to him.

Like a tsunami, my ultimate bliss crashed over me, flooding
every cell in my body with more ecstasy than ever I had experienced.

“Lucius!  Lucius!  Lucius!” I cried, arching my back as my
sex clamped rhythmically around him, the tremors of my orgasm pulsing through
me endlessly, instigating him to thrust deeper.

With the next thrust of him into me, I felt the sharp sensation
of his teeth sinking into my neck, except the pain immediately transformed into
surplus pleasure.  His lips sealed around it as he began to suckle at my vein. 

Never had I felt so desirable!  I was thrilled for Lucius to
take my blood as his nourishment.  I wanted to give him everything of myself.

Moaning in harmony, he drove himself into me with primal frenzy
as he took my blood into him.  I knew he would not last much longer.

With the next push of himself into me, he suddenly released
his hold upon my neck.

“Gretchen!” he groaned raggedly as his cock pulsated within
me, filling me with his seed.

Then Lucius collapsed atop me.  Though I could scarcely
breathe, the weight of him felt so wonderful.  Suddenly, I had never felt so
safe.  As he lay there over me, I kissed along his ear, down his jawline.  The
words that went unsaid still begged to be released, waiting to jump off of my
tongue at any moment.

But I knew I could not say them.  I dared not tarnish this
magical moment.  Furthermore, I wasn’t even sure that I really felt them. 

One thing I did know for sure. 

I had most certainly never felt anything like it before.

S
imilar to the first time, afterwards Lucius left
rather abruptly.  It was difficult not to feel a bit hurt.  While I could not
deny that the sex was phenomenal, I found myself wanting so much more from him,
things I had never desired from a man before.  Now, left with so many
questions, I had no choice but to wait to see him again, never knowing when
that might be— or even if. 

Every day which passed without seeing him felt like an
eternity.  Even with all the sex I was having with the other guys, suddenly it was
not enough to satisfy me.  I knew that it was not about the sex and nothing but
he could ever truly satisfy me now.  And that knowledge was very difficult for
me to bear, for what if I never saw him again?

With Lucius, though he knows how to satisfy the carnal
cravings of my body like no man ever has, still I am always left wanting more. 
Though I hate to admit it, I do believe it is something far beyond physical
gratification I crave from him.  I now realise that my soul needs him just as
much— if not more— than my body!

Just three days after my glorious night with Lucius, I was
granted the night off, for which I was undoubtedly grateful.  I really needed
the time to myself to contemplate everything— these foreign feelings I had for
him.  What
was
this that had afflicted me?  Simultaneously I felt restless,
giddy, depressed, my stomach churning, my chest full, my head light, my mind overcome. 
Each day without him seemed like an eternity.

Tucked away in my chamber contemplating the oddity which I
had come to be, I decided to forego my evening meal.  I just could not be
around other people right now.  All of a sudden— after four routine years of
life at
Sanguelascivia
— for the first time I felt out of place, like no
one could possibly relate to what I was going through.  All of a sudden, to my
intense surprise, I found myself wishing I could talk to my mother.  Not that I
could tell her of such things.  I could see it now…

Dearest Mother, I believe I have fallen in love with this
dashing Vampire gentleman who has just given me the most superb sex of my life…

Sure, that would go over well!

Still, she was the only person I could think of with whom I
could rely on for decent advice, who would have my best interest at heart.  But
I could never tell her such outrageous things.  I certainly was not about to be
the one responsible for her breakdown!  Besides, she was all the way in
Amsterdam, more than thirteen hundred kilometres from Venice.

Pulling me from my mental meandering, came a sudden rap upon
my door.  With an exasperated sigh, I rose from my bed and made my way to it.

It was one of the club’s couriers.  “A message from Signora Lucia,”
he said, handing me a notecard.

“Thank you,” I told him as I took it and shut the door.

Walking back to my bed, I opened the card.  Inside the
message read: 
“Gretchen, Your private service has been requested for the
evening, commencing at the seven o’clock hour.   Please see me as soon as
possible for further details— Lucia
”   

What?  No!  It’s my night off!  I cannot be requested! 
Damn right I shall go see her as soon as possible! 

Hastily throwing on a robe, I left my room and marched down
to the performer’s lounge to
give her a piece of my mind. 

When I opened the door to the lounge, Lucia was right there
as though she had been expecting me.  “Gretchen, so lovely to see you—”

The expression upon my face stopped her short.  Holding up
the note she had sent, I shook it in her face.   “What is the meaning of this?”
I demanded.

“Well, as I already indicated in the note, your services
have been requested, dear,” she stated, entirely unaffected by my outburst.

“Who the hell requested me?” I bellowed.  “It is my night
off!”

“Well, I thought you would be interested, but I suppose I
shall have to inform him that you have declined…” she said, attempting to stir
me.

In was not in the mood to play her games.

“Just spit it out, Lucia” I ordered.  “Who is it?”

Smirking, she enjoyed making me wait for her answer. 

Crossing my arms over my chest, I scowled at her.

Finally she spoke, “A Monsieur La Croix… I do believe you
have seen him before, no?”

My heart stopped as I gasped.

Lucius?  He is back to see me already?  But it has only been
a few days!  He must not have returned to Paris yet!

“Never mind, I will see him!” I told her, trying to keep the
eagerness from my voice.

“I thought you might change your mind…” she said.  “Room
Three sixteen, Seven O’clock.”

How she could know anything of my feelings for him, I do
not know.  No business is it of hers!  Could it be that evident on my face?

Glancing at the clock upon the wall, I saw that it was
already half past six.  I didn’t have much time.  Though I was sure that seeing
him so soon again would do nothing to help me sort out my feelings, insane with
delight, I turned to head back to my room and do what I could in the short
amount of time to ready myself for him.

Though it was only thirty minutes till I was to be with him,
the time seemed to drag by, giving ample opportunity for my stomach to become
infested with butterflies once more.

At last, the time had come.  Feeling as though I could
scarcely breathe, I made my way to the room in which I was told he would be
waiting.

Lifting my arm to the door, I took a deep breath to steady
myself.  Before I could even knock upon the door, it opened.  There stood Lucius,
looking every bit the blonde God he was, wearing a heartbreaking smile upon his
beautiful face.  For
me
. 

“Gretchen!” he said enthusiastically, pulling me into his
arms.

“Lucius,” was the only thing I had a chance to murmur before
his mouth covered mine in a passionate kiss, filling my head with the scent
which drove me crazy.

When I was able to breathe again, I finished my thought. 
“Lucius, I am so thrilled to see you again.  I… missed you.”  I could not
believe I let that slip out.

I was busy worrying about what he might make of my
declaration when Lucius burst forth with one of his own.  “Then come with me,
Gretchen.”

“Come
with
you?” I repeated incredulously.  “To
Paris
?”

“Oui.  I want you to come back with me to live with me in my
chateau in Paris.”

My mind was spinning.  

He wants me to live with him… to be his?  I have always
sworn I would never be part to that arrangement with a Vampire.  But that was
before I met Lucius… Somehow it all seems different now.  Still, could I give
up my freedom like that, truly commit myself to another?

And then, what if he grows tired of me?  Then will he
just send me back here or would he merely drink me to my death one night?   No,
I cannot believe Lucius would do that… He is so different from them.  And I
think I may actually be in love with him.  Still, I cannot very well be rash
with a decision such as this.  It is not all that different from a marriage proposal.

“Will you allow me some time to consider it?” I entreated
him.  “Perhaps give you an answer the next time you come to see me?”

“I apologize, Gretchen, but I haven’t much time.  I am to
depart momentarily.  But I could not seem to get you out of my mind.  I could
not bring myself to leave without you.”

What am I to say to that?  Should I tell him that he has
not left my mind for one second since the day I first saw him?  That even when
my body was being occupied by another, he was with me in every breath?   That I
too, cannot imagine being without him, that it hurts me every moment that we
are apart?  No, I am not ready to make myself vulnerable, to spill my heart
like that just yet.

But can I refuse him?  And if I do, will he still
continue to call on me?

“So… you are requesting me to be your blood servant?  You
wish for us to be bonded?” I confirmed, still unclear.  This was completely
unexpected.

“If that is what you wish to call it.  Whatever it takes.  I
just know I cannot live another day apart from you,” he confessed.

“So then you have spoken to the managers of
Sanguelascivia
to petition for my release?”

“No.  I see no need to speak to anyone,” Lucius answered
bluntly.  “You are not a slave, Gretchen, and I will not pay anyone for you. 
You are a free woman, whether you want to believe it or not.  And it is my wish
that you will use your free will to choose to come with me.  Because you
want
to, not because you have been bought.”

Adding fuel to the fire, he said, “When I go, I do not know
when I shall return to Venice again.  The truth is, Gretchen, I want you for
myself and cannot stand to have to watch you being taken by other men.  If you
refuse me, I simply cannot come back here.   My heart cannot take it.”

His heart?  Not return to Venice?  Not see him again—
feel him again?

The way my heart wrenched at the mere thought of it, I knew
very well I could not just let him go knowing I would never see him again.  I
would never forgive myself.

“Alright, Lucius,” I stated as steadily as I could manage,
though my mind was a whirlwind.  “Yes, I will come with you.”

Clutching me by the waist, Lucius kissed me more fervently
than before.  When he finally let me go, the room was spinning. 

“You must go straightaway and gather your belongings.  We
need to leave as soon as possible if I am to make it to Paris before sunrise.  I
will clear you with your employer, if that will ease your mind and meet you out
back.”

“Yes, my Lucius,” I said, leaving him with another brief
kiss upon the lips. 

I felt no qualms at all about leaving
Sanguelascivia
. 
Quite the contrary, I was most eager to begin this new chapter in my life.