Chapter 13: Part 1

Amy woke at 4:00 am. It wasn't intentional, she just couldn't sleep. The sight of Marcus with his teeth imbedded in Ivan's throat made her think of pure sex. His eyes, at the moment he gazed up at her, were the amber glow she'd dreamed of. It was like nothing she had ever felt. Lying in bed for thirty more minutes did not dispel the alluring visual. She decided to leave the room. As she stirred, Alba touched her hand with a cold wet nose and a low whine, "I'm going to take a walk. Go back to sleep. You need to rest for the babies." Amy had awakened knowing that none of what happened the night before was a dream. Speaking to Alba just seemed natural. Yesterday she was sane and today she lived in an insane world. She could accept that, not that she had a choice. Amy put on a loose shirt and a pair of jeans then headed downstairs. She turned toward the back of the house, made several more turns, and then went out through a side door, where she could see a faint luminescence. She was surprised when she realized it was a garden. It was aglow with small white lights and she could hear water falling in the distance. She moved toward the sound. A high fence seemed to enclose the entire area and Amy realized she had not previously visited this section of the house or yard. She drew near the pond and stopped to admire the beauty surrounding her. She stood listening to the sounds of frogs and crickets calling to their mates and the soothing rush of a waterfall. She wondered when the weather would force the amphibians and insects away. Amy suspected that in winter the pond would freeze and the waterfall would stop sounding its musical notes. A small gazebo stood about ten feet from the edge of the pond and she moved toward it. She stepped into the shelter and with a short indrawn breath realized it was occupied. She could barely make out the silhouette of a shirtless breathtaking man sitting inside. The reason she could not sleep was before her.

"Don't let me stop you from entering." He had been silently watching her as she gazed out over the pond. She was beautiful and someone should paint the picture she presented in an old t-shirt with the silvery water reflecting behind her. For her, Marcus didn't mind having his quiet interrupted.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize anyone else would be up at this time." She said in a soft feathery voice. She didn't want the sound of her words to disturb the music of the nighttime garden. Her eyes traveled up his body stopping at his chest for a moment and then continuing up to his shadowed face. She blushed, he knew exactly where her eyes had been and his lips gave a knowing smile.

"This is the end of my day and I enjoy seeing the last of the darkness as the sun begins to rise." Marcus spoke just as low. His smile remained.

"Well, I guess that was a stupid statement for me to make. Of course, you would be up. So, the legend of vampires and the sun is true?" Don't look at his chest.

"To a certain point I can tolerate the sun just as it rises and sets. If I stay out longer, I receive nasty, sometimes painful sunburns, and what some might call sun poisoning. It's unpleasant, but from time to time my needs dictate I be out during the day. Here at the ranch, I do as I please and avoid the pain whenever possible. If I don't sleep during the day, I become very...let's just say cranky."

Amy was trying to reconcile the violence seen the night before with the calm man standing before her, though he wasn't a man, he was a vampire. He proved it when his eyes met hers while drawing blood from Ivan. "Are there female vampires?" She asked suddenly.

Marcus gave a low laugh. "Your fear seems to have given way to your inquisitive nature. But yes, there are female vampires."

"I didn't mean to be rude. You told me last night that you have been alive for hundreds of years and I wondered if you shared those years with a woman. I guess it's an intrusive question for me to ask."

"I don't mind answering though. I shared many years with one woman. She did not want to become a vampire and she left before I was ready to lose her."

"You can make a vampire?"

"Yes, it can be done. For those that have been this way for hundreds of years and especially the ones, such as I, that had it forced upon us, we do not take the making of a vampire lightly. I do not feel it should be done against anyone's will."

"How did she die?" Amy could only assume the woman was now dead.

"Of old age, but when you live hundreds of years the average eighty-year lifespan of a human is but the blink of an eye."

"You continued to love her after she was old?"

"I would have loved her for all eternity if she had allowed it. Her hair turned gray and her skin changed, but to me she was the same beautiful young woman I gave my heart to. If she grew two heads, I would have continued loving her."

Amy looked at him. He sat in the shadows and she could not see much of his face, but the sadness in his voice brought tears to her eyes.

Marcus noticed, "You're crying. Why do you cry about something that happened more than two hundred years ago?" He said as he got up and came near her.

He wiped the tears that fell down her cheeks and stood silently gazing down at her, a silhouette against the vanishing moon and stars. Amy wasn't sure why she did it, but she leaned forward and lifted her mouth to his. She kissed him.

Marcus stood very still for a moment and then put his arms around her, lifting her up into his embrace. He deepened the kiss. She tasted as good as he had dreamed. Amy's hand came up and rested on the side of his cheek. The heat from his bare chest surrounded her. He was hard as steel where she was soft. She finally came to herself and pulled away. His arms released her grudgingly.

"I shouldn't have done that. I'm not sure why I did." She murmured in a breathless voice.

"I hope you did it for the same reason I wanted you to. Your body pulls at me. I can't explain. It started the first night I saw you."

Amy took a step back. "Was that before or after you were going to kill me?"

"I guess I could lie at this point, but I won't. I also don't want to ruin the mood so can I just say, it would have been a very big mistake. I would have lost something truly special, and never have known what I missed."

"Do ladies fall at your feet all the time?" Anger showed in her voice. She had no doubt this gorgeous man could kill. She saw it the night before. Saw the violence and the true animal he was now hiding.

"Money seems to have that effect on many ladies, as you call them."

"Do you think I kissed you because you're rich?" She asked even more angrily.

"Why did you kiss me?"

Amy could see a touch of insecurity on his face. To have lived as long as he, and still feel vulnerability, it touched her. Her anger was impossible to hang onto and her voice softened, "I kissed you for two reasons. One was because you seemed so incredibly sad."

"And the other?"

"Because I wanted to." Longing was in her voice.

He could also smell her desire in the air. It was a musky perfume all her own. Marcus stepped close and pulled her into his arms to claim her lips again.

Amy never wanted the kiss to end. His hands went around her back. Her hands went to his chest and ran up the hard plane of his body. His skin was now hot, but not as hot as his mouth. A fire was burning deep inside her. His heat had ignited it.

When he finally moved his mouth away, he took deep breaths to bring his breathing under control and allowed her to do the same. He released her body and clasped her hand with his, "Watch the sun rise with me?"

Amy gazed to the east where the first streaks of sunlight were appearing over the horizon. They stood together as the sun came up. He stayed with her for a short time, but finally lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed it. He was gone.

Amy blinked at where he had been standing. It wasn't a dream, but she wondered what else he could do that defied the mind. She couldn't solve that puzzle right now so she turned and made her way back into the house. She wanted to shower and prepare for the day. She needed to make some phone calls and then planned on learning as much as possible about Marcus' wolves.