Virgins and Vampires: Blood Falls (The Blood Falls Book 3)

“Do you think about it?” Kris threaded his fingers between mine as we lay naked in my bed.

“Think about what?”

 The room was so quiet all I heard for a few moments was the crackle of the fire. “That day. The rift. What Rever saw.”

The way he hesitated caught my attention. “Are you asking for me or for you?” Because I got the distinct impression Kris needed to talk.

“Both? It’s not like it was a normal day.”

I sat up a little. “How often do you think about it?” We had so much going on that I shoved all thoughts of the rift from my mind. It sat in a little mental cardboard box to be dealt with another day.

“More often than I’d like. And not just because of what we went through—although being locked up isn’t exactly something I’d like to experience again—more…like I saw what our future could look like and it scares the piss out of me.” He pulled my palm to his chest and rested it against his skin. “We’re just getting started. I don’t want anyone or anything to take this away.”

Oh, he was sweet. And so much more committed than I thought he would be. I honestly wouldn’t have been surprised if we had one night and that was it. But maybe those were my own issues talking. It’s hard to imagine a relationship with anyone when you spend the first part of your life under careful supervision. My time with Kris felt as much like being in a dream state as an actual real life.

“Honestly? I don’t have time to think about it. If I start, I worry I won’t be able to stop.”

His brow furrowed as he frowned. He sniffed once before speaking. “Well then I’m going to be honest too. I don’t know when we’ll have the time. Not what you’re talking about anyway. When will this research end? When will these beings make another attack on our Plane? It’s entirely possible we just roll from one event to the next until we win or lose.”

“So I keep it boxed up until we win. If I die it doesn’t matter.”

“Fucking hell,” he swore, getting out of bed and pulling on his skimpy black boxer briefs before pacing to the windows. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration. “One,” he said to the window, “never talk about dying ever again. I don’t want to hear it. And two,” he rested his hands on his hips, looking up at the sky, “it’s bothering you more than you realize.”

I froze. That…that meant Kris felt something from me.

He turned, hands still wrapped around his hips. “In here, when you let your wall down, holy shit how did I not know I was empathic? I feel everything you feel, Rain. And yeah, it’s probably some of you just taking up all the space. Maybe anyone could feel your emotions if they were alone with you in here, but I think it’s more than that. I realize now I’ve always felt like this. I’ve always just known how everyone feels about everything. It’s why I like to be alone.” He looked down at his bare feet. “Except when I’m with you.”

I moved to the edge of the bed because I wanted to be closer to Kris while still giving him space. I could feel how much he needed that space. “What am I feeling?”

“You’re happy,” he started, shaking his head. “And you’re nervous and stressed. Those seem to be your standard daily emotions. But underneath it? There’s a whole simmering level of emotions ready to boil over at any moment. And I’m worried because if you feel a fraction of what I’ve felt since that day, then it won’t take much to rip whatever bandage you’ve put over it right off. And I can tell you from experience, dealing with emotional explosions is much messier than working through them on your own terms.”

I wanted to ask about those experiences but now wasn’t the time. I made a mental note for later. “I don’t feel it.”

He trained those gorgeous eyes on me. They overflowed with worry. “You’re very good at creating walls. I’m not going to lie—I’m terrified you’ll do it to me one day and cut me off from you.”

Whoa. Just…whoa. His statements weren’t those of a new relationship. The things he said were what mates who planned on spending their lives together said to each other. And even scarier? I wanted that from him. I wanted him to want me. Desperately. It made me feel feminine and powerful and like I wasn’t losing my mind for feeling just as strongly towards him.

“Okay, so I’m hiding some of my emotions from myself. Like, for real, not metaphorically like I thought. So what?”

“So what? So what!” He pulled his hand through hair again, tugging. “What if a rift opens here and you freeze.”

“A rift can’t open here.” But I hesitated because I didn’t know that for sure. The rifts opened all over the North. The House of Axl almost created something similar. It could happen. Especially if these creatures learned from all the other events.

Shit.

Kris knelt in front of me. “We have no idea what will happen when. You need to be ready and right now you aren’t ready.”

The power of his emotions overwhelmed me. It was a lot to have so much directed at me without my wall up. My eyes stung with tears.

“Shit, Rain. You’re killing me.” Kris swiped at his eyes.

“You’re the one killing me.” I couldn’t even identify all the things he felt, just that they were a lot, they were powerful, and they felt good. “Push me.”

“What?”

“You think I need to do this, right? Well you’re the one who knows what I’m feeling, not me. You’re going to have to push me to find these locked up feelings.”

“I…no.”

I slid off the bed onto the floor in front of him. “Either you push me or I keep ignoring them.”

His eyes flashed. “That’s not fair.”

I shrugged. “Then tell me how you feel.”

After a few minutes of staring and glaring he broke. “It’s a lot. Start with the salishan. To realize they were just regular Heida who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time…it could happen to any of us.” He shook his head and shivered. “The only way to stop it from happening is to find a way to keep our Plane safe. Until then…a rift, or something else, could come from out of nowhere. We could be the ones trapped between Planes or dimensions. Never the same again.”

Kris was right. I didn’t want to think about this. It didn’t surprise me I had it all suppressed.

He rushed on. “And no, I wasn’t a fan of getting jumped, but we—my brothers and sisters—we train for that. None of getting captured and held, or even escaping is what bothers me. His gaze locked with mine.

The intensity took my breath away.

Me. It was me. That day still bothered him because I was in danger. If I didn’t understand from the look in his eyes, then I sure as hell couldn’t mistake the emotional waves coming off him.

“You…you liked me even then?”

“I don’t know if like is the right word, but yes. From the moment you came to help the Heida, when you appeared in our House with Rever and the rest…I’ve felt this way.”

It was like starting a novel on chapter fifteen. I kept trying to catch up but there always seemed to be details I missed. “And the day in the cave…it’s hard for you to remember…because of me?”

He nodded slowly. “I’m protective of my family. I’ll rip anyone’s face off if they hurt someone I love. I fought at the House of Axl without hesitation. But this? You? It’s different.”

My heart started beating harder and faster in my chest as my feelings grew even more intense. I swear I could drown in them. It already felt like they choked the air out of my lungs. How was it possible to feel so much for another person? So quickly? I thought back to that day. I was so focused on getting us out of there—using my unique gifts—that I couldn’t dwell on how glad I was that Kris was with me.

But I was glad. Relieved. Having him beside me gave me the confidence to find a solution. “I was only able to do what I did because I felt completely safe.” I put up my hand to stop his protest. “Yes, I know we were in danger the whole time. That’s not what I mean.” The more I thought about it the more I realized my attention wasn’t on Rever, the male I knew and who was there to keep me safe, it was on Kris. Maybe it was the way he hovered, or maybe I sensed his feelings on a subconscious level. Regardless, it was Kris who made me feel like I could do anything. “Even with everything at stake, I couldn’t let go and focus on breaking the spell if I didn’t trust that you would keep me safe. I knew you wouldn’t let anything happen to me.”

Now Kris seemed confused. “But…Rever. He was your guard. He’s your cousin.”

I took Kris’s hand between mine. I let his emotions flow over me like electricity. It tingled, warm and then hot. There was no connection quite like it. “It didn’t occur to me that I might have feelings for you. I was oblivious to that part of me and focused on the job, but looking back…I had feelings for you. I trusted you blindly because it felt right. Instinct maybe?” I tipped my face into his palm as he cupped it with his other hand. “Yes, the day at the rift was scary. And yes, being in the minds of the salishan and Rever have affected me in ways I can’t begin to understand. I should probably start facing that reality.”

“We should talk. Everyday.” His eyes darted between mine.

“Okay. I like that. But know this: when I think about the cave, all I remember is being close to you.”

Kris pulled me into his lap and kissed me senseless. “You know what that sounds like?”

“What?” I breathed, lost in a lust fog all over again.

“Natural trust like that? It sounds like I should be your Shield.”

“I can’t ask you to do that.” Even if it was what I desperately wanted. I couldn’t imagine anyone keeping me safer than this sexy, intense, amazing male.

His eyes drifted over my face before locking with mine again. A slight smile curved his lips as he growled low in the back of his throat. “I wasn’t asking, Rhiannon. I was telling.”