Chapter 4

I don't remember much of the drive in Jack's big black truck. His house was tucked into a wooded, exclusive area, and I recall thinking that the bar must make more money than I'd suspected. I remembered Jess' and Dani's shocked but delighted faces when I handed them the napkin with Jack's name, address and phone number. Jack. Somewhere along the way he told me that's what he preferred to be called. It suited him - strong and simple, without a trace of pretension.

He pulled up before what was essentially a log cabin, blending into the woods around it. Except that it was the biggest log cabin I'd ever seen. Even in the dark I could tell that the three-story house sprawled over the tree-covered hillside. The garage door opened at the push of a button and Jack pulled the truck inside.

Before I could even get the door open Jack leapt out of the cab of the oversized pickup and opened it for me. He lifted me down, making sure the front of my body skimmed along his as he slowly lowered my feet to the ground. My breath caught as I registered the fact his erection hadn't subsided at all during the drive.

"I'm not going to have the patience for politeness," he murmured, looking down into my eyes. He was so tall that my face was only level with his sculpted pecs. He'd thrown on a leather jacket but hadn't bothered to zip it, so I was pressed close to the warmth of his chest. "Not this first time. Once we go through that door, all bets are off."

"Good." I'd thought of nothing else for the last ten minutes. "I - I want that too."

"Jesus!" He grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the entrance to the house. He fumbled with the doorknob then opened it and tugged me through, kicking the door shut behind him.

I barely had time to register that we were in the kitchen area of an open great room before he was loping across the enormous room and lowering me to a couch in front of a big stone fireplace. He hadn't bothered to turn on any lights, but we both had good night vision so it didn't matter. I could still see the intense desire burning in his eyes and that was enough. I sprawled backward on the sofa, and Jack's weight came down on top of me, pushing any other thought right out of my mind. My legs splayed to cradle his hips, allowing me to feel the thick bulge of his erection through both pairs of our jeans.

"What is it about you?" he murmured as he lowered his face. Instead of kissing me as I'd expected, he lightly nipped my ear then ran his tongue around the edge of it, making me shudder as my pussy clenched. "There's something in your smile that's just so sweet and appealing - I feel like I'm fifteen, making out behind your daddy's barn."

I had no idea how to answer that, so I didn't. I grabbed his head and pulled it over so I could kiss him with all the hunger that had been building from that first touch in the bar. It was savage rather than pretty, all lips and tongue, and more than a little fang. Jack explained later that when they're really excited, werewolves experience the first symptoms of their change - their adrenaline spikes and their teeth start to emerge, just as blood or sex make my fangs descend. Right now all I knew was I tasted blood but wasn't sure if it was mine or his, and I didn't care. The rich coppery flavor just made me hotter and I knew I had to have him.

Jack had started pumping his hips in a frustrated attempt at the relief we both needed. When I paused the kiss to gasp in a ragged breath, he jerked to his feet, his hands immediately going to the fastening of his jeans. "Naked," he rasped. "Now."

I had no problem following that command. Since Frederic had dumped me, I hadn't once had sex, and for most of those years I hadn't missed it. Now, tonight, I felt the need to make up for every lost opportunity. I lifted my hips off the sofa and peeled down my jeans, kicking them away from my ankles along with my boring cotton panties and my pink tennis shoes. My eyes never left Jack, and I became even wetter as I watched him reveal that beautiful body bit by bit. He was just as ripped as I'd expected with a thick patch of dark curls on his chest that I couldn't wait to run my fingers through.

As I pulled my sweater and bra over my head, he reached into the pocket of his discarded jeans and pulled out a little square packet. Confused, I sat on the leather sofa and watched. What was he doing?

He tore open the packet and took out a small ring of plastic. Then when he began to roll a thin tube over his rigid cock, I began to understand.

"Jack, I'm a vampire," I reminded him. "You don't need to do that." I was actually a little bit hurt that he wouldn't want to be fully naked inside me since there was no risk of pregnancy or disease.

He raised one eyebrow and cocked his head. "No danger to either of us for disease, but I think it's a little early in the relationship to risk having kids, don't you?" His voice was little more than a growl that seemed to rumble from deep in his chest.

A little pang of pain went through me. Once upon a time I'd wanted children. But everyone knew vampires were sterile.

Jack must have read my expression because he said softly, "I know vampire couples with children. From what I understand, it's rare but it can happen."

My mouth dropped open in shock. Frederic had never bothered with protection, and in fifty years as his slave I'd never conceived. Of course this was the same man who'd convinced me I couldn't eat human food either. It had taken me a good ten years after his desertion for me to be comfortable eating solids. So maybe Frederic hadn't known everything. I didn't object further.