Total pages in book: 51
Estimated words: 47359 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 237(@200wpm)___ 189(@250wpm)___ 158(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47359 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 237(@200wpm)___ 189(@250wpm)___ 158(@300wpm)
Lara jumped and watched Michael Valaine emerge from the shadowed corner, slowly as if the darkness was a lover that refused to release him, clinging possessively to his arm, his shoulder, his waist, until she had no choice but to let go.
And Lara couldn’t blame her...he was a gorgeous hunk of a man. Tall, dark and handsome didn’t do him justice and didn’t fit, though he was tall, at least two maybe three inches over six feet. Not dark, though paler skinned and not handsome—drop-dead gorgeous. Any woman would kill for his perfectly arched dark brows and long lashes, not to mention his eyes. Dark brown, no intense black, no lighter...oh, forget the eyes what about his lips? Slim and lusciously kissable. Dark hair, shoulder length. What man wore his hair even a bit long today? Confident ones, her thoughts whispered. And damn if his smoky gray sweater didn’t display just enough muscle to entice. Gorgeous, hunky and wealthy. What was she thinking? This wasn’t a social meet, this was business. She was here to find out about vampires.
Recalling her reason for being there, Lara got right to the point. “I am terribly sorry for showing up without an appointment, but I have limited time and from what I’ve learned around town you may have information I’m looking for.”
Michael Valaine walked over to an oversized chair by the fireplace and pointed to one. “Sit and tell me what you want from me, Ms. Bennett.”
“Lara, please,” she said and sat in the chair or actually sunk in it. It was so soft and comfortable that she could imagine herself sitting there for hours lost in the pages of a book. “I’ve been contracted by a New York publishing house to write a chapter on vampires for a forthcoming book and with the myth that vampires settled Mull, my editor suggested that this was a good place to start.”
He didn’t say a word; he simply stared at her with those dark eyes that unnerved.
Lara continued with some unease. “Whatever you can tell me of the myth or if you have your own unique take on vampires due to your family being the founding family of Mull, I’d appreciate anything you have to offer.”
Michael sat on the sofa opposite her and crossed his legs, running his hand down the crease in his black wool trousers. “Exactly what do you want to know about vampires?”
“Anything you can tell me,” she said eagerly.
“With limited time before you must leave, Lara, I suggest you be more specific.”
The way her name rolled seductively off his lips raised goose bumps along every inch of her flesh and she had to stop herself from shivering. She forced a smile and said, “Their appetites.”
“For blood or sex?”
If he intended to intimidate her with his blunt response, he was in for a surprise. “Both,” she said and leaned forward in the chair, “and with as much detail as possible.”
“An easy answer—ravenous. Vampires thirst for blood is as ravenous as their hunger for sex.”
“And you would know this how?” she asked, certain he was doing nothing but humoring her.
“I’m a vampire.”
“Very funny, Mr. Valaine,” Lara said not at all amused by his tactless response.
“Michael,” he said, “No, being a vampire isn’t funny, voracious for human blood isn’t either, and then there is the ravenous appetite for sex. Not human sex with passable climaxes, but sex that engages the couple down to the very core of their being. Where everything is felt beyond what is imaginable, where a climax is not the end, but the beginning.”
Lara slipped off her red wool jacket and loosened her scarf around her neck, feeling suddenly much too hot and—much too sexually charged. And too sexually curious. “And how do you know this?”
“I am a vampire,” he repeated.
A sudden chill replaced the heat that left Lara in a flash. She braced her arms across her chest not just for the warmth, but feeling the need to protect herself. Was Michael Valaine so angry with her for showing up unannounced that he was making her appear a fool for asking about vampires or was he simply nuts? Either way she thought it was best that she leave sooner than she had planned.
“You see, Lara,” he said continuing, “a vampire can have sex the human way and make it more than enjoyable for his partner and adequate enough for himself, but when he truly wishes to satisfy his sexual appetite then he must find a willing woman who doesn’t mind being—bitten.”
“And made a vampire?” she asked, finding the conversation ridiculous, yet herself curious.
“When bitten by a vampire you become one is a fallacy as are many other myths associated with vampires.”
“Like a willing woman? Doesn’t a vampire simply take what he wants?” Was she really playing into this game of his? It certainly made for good material for her chapter, but was it also feeding his absurdity? Fantasy?