CHAPTER SIXTEEN

“This would have been a lot easier if you hadn’t taken my phone, you know.” She was holding a candle while he dug a tunnel out of the cave. The wax kept dripping onto her hand. “Ouch!”

“Lift it up a little higher.”

Her shirt had been ripped beyond repair during the fight, so he’d given her his. Baojia only wore a pair of pants while he dug through the sandstone rubble. She had to admit, the view was nice. Well, what she could see of it, anyway.

“You have super strength, right?” She watched as he hefted a boulder the size of a Saint Bernard out of the way. “Shouldn’t this be going faster?”

He turned, frustration evident on his dark features. He pointed to his chest. “Water vampire.” Then he spread out his arms. “Desert!”

Natalie bit her lip and tried not to smile. “You’re really cute when you’re angry, George.”

He blinked, obviously not expecting her answer. Then she saw him try to suppress the smile. “Just… hold the light. I’m almost through the biggest pieces and the smaller will go fast. We’ll be out of here soon.”

“Can I help?”

“You can hold the light, Natalie.”

“Don’t you have super night vision, oh elemental creature of the dark?”

He spun and walked toward her. “I have excellent night vision when there is some natural light.” He grabbed the candle and set it on a rock nearby. “Moon. Stars.” He grabbed her and pulled her to his chest. “But there is no light down here. None.”

He bent down and kissed her, 8">eyHe grabbedhis lips hard with anger, then softening when she melted. He did this to her. In his arms, she felt like the center of the world. She reached up to hold his shoulders, because her knees actually felt weak. Finally, he pulled away. “Now be quiet and hold the light.” Then he shoved the candle back in her hand and went back to work.

She swayed a little, leaning against a boulder to regain her balance. “Okay.”

How, how, how had this happened? She’d fallen. Hard. Natalie had thought she was going to die the night before. No matter how she had protested, she’d run through the desert searching for Brigid and Beatrice with no thought of leaving alive. She’d had the Taser, at least. And then Baojia had come. Furious. She’d seen him cut off the head of her attacker with one stroke. It was… otherworldly. He was otherworldly. And then he wasn’t. He was a man, angry with her for risking herself. Desperate to feel alive. Giving her…

Do you understand?

He hadn’t said it with words. Watching the strong, silent man she was falling in love with, Natalie realized he might never give her words. But she could probably live with that, because she had a feeling he would give her everything else.

Do you understand?

She understood. Now she just had to decide if she could live with the rest of it.

The muscles of his back flexed effortlessly as he moved the enormous rocks that had fallen in, blocking the cave. No sweat marked his skin in the flickering candlelight. He didn’t breathe harder because he didn’t need to breathe. When she’d lain next to him through the day, he had appeared, for all intents and purposes, dead, though his skin had retained the same soft tan color, and she could feel his energy humming every time she touched him. So Natalie had closed her eyes and laid her hand on his arm when she fell asleep, comforting herself with the single sign of life his body exhibited. But he hadn’t turned to her in her sleep and held her close, because he couldn’t.

Tell me you understand…

He might give her everything, but could it be enough?

“Why are you upset?”

She blinked back the tears that had started gathering in her eyes. “How did you—”

“Your scent changes when you get upset. And I can smell your tears. Are you afraid?” He turned, carefully walking over to her. “We are almost out. I can smell the fresh air now.”

“No.” She cleared her throat. “Just… thinking.”

He frowned, as if he could guess what had been on her mind. “Oh.”

“Can vampires have kids?” She flushed immediately, cursing internally for blurting that out.

Baojia’s mouth had dropped open a little. “No. We can sire other vampires, but we can’t… it’s not possible to—”

“Oh.” She nodded and looked at the candle. “Okay. I was just curious.”

“You want children.” It wasn’t a question.

The flush she’d been trying to control came back. “Not right now. It’s kind of a ‘someday’ thing. You know, someday I want kids. Not now. I mean, I work too much. And I travel a lot. So kids now would be… And I’m single, so—”

“No, you’re not.” He had stepped closer, and his voice dropped to a low growl. “Whatever this is… you are not single. You’re not unattached as far as I’m concerned.”

Her back straightened instinctually. “And what about you?”

“You think I would pursue someone else while I am with you?” His frown grew fiercer. “Is that what you think of me?”

“No!” She was making a mess of this. And really, they needed to get out of this stinking cave. The air was getting practically claustrophobic. “I just… Are you going to bite other people? I mean… It feels really good and if you—”