Nothing Lasts Forever--Scene 7

So what did Bastian find when he got to the estate? Were Elise's parents there? Were they alive or dead? Scroll down below the book cover to find out.

In case you missed them, here is the link to the other scenes.



By the time Bastian reached the estate, the rain had stopped and the clouds dispersed, leaving the countryside blanketed in moonlight. Without breaking his stride, he leaped the tall iron gate and landed squarely on his feet, bolting for the castle.

He nearly ripped the large wooden door off when he slammed it open. “Donovan! Where are you, brother?” Why he’d allowed such anger to take hold, he wasn’t sure, but Donovan would now take the brunt of his wrath.

Casually, Donovan descended the curving staircase. “Well, well. I wondered when you’d return. I have a present for you.” He smiled, his youthful face accentuated by his long blond hair. “Come, little brother.” Something sinister seemed to lurk behind his pale blue eyes.

Bastian stiffened, breathed in deeply, and gasped in shock at the mortal scent teasing his nostrils. “They are here? Alive?”

“There is only one way you will find out.” Following his older sibling, Bastian’s heart pounded in his ears. Maybe I can still salvage things with Elise if I bring them home quickly.

When Donovan reached for the door to the dungeon, Bastian’s gut tightened. It was where they kept their meals, the ones they went back to repeatedly, at least. Others were not so lucky.

Bastian charged at his brother, knocking him against the stone wall. His head hit with a thud, and quickly his perfect golden locks streaked with blood.

Donovan laughed. “Is that the best you can do? I will heal before you even find them.”

That was all it took for a rush of heat and anger to envelope Bastian. His fangs extended, his vision narrowed as if he were stalking prey, and he grabbed Donovan by the neck. “You are going to regret this, brother.”

In an instant, Donovan’s vampiric features emerged, eyes a silvery fire. His voice strained. “Come now…what about…” He coughed a few times. “Michael and Rose… Don’t you wish—”

Bastian tightened his grip and Donovan clutched his straining forearm, trying desperately to pull it away. After a moment, he apparently gave up, letting his arms hang limp at his sides, not breathing. Fully allowing the vampire to take over. Air no longer a necessity for their kind.

The corner of Donovan’s lips curved upward. “Oh no, you are choking me.” Another mocking laugh rumbled out of him.

Bastian cursed and used his free hand to punch the stone next to his brother’s head. Pieces of rock exploded outward. He tossed Donovan to the ground, dropped to his knees, and landed blow after blow to his face and torso.

At first, Donovan did not fight back, but when Bastian continued his assault, he must have realized he’d better defend himself.

Grabbing Bastian’s long hair, Donovan threw him into the wall. Bastian’s side took the full force of the impact, and he heard his ribs crack. Searing pain ripped through him. He stood halfway, winced, and held his aching body.

Before Bastian could move, Donovan stumbled to the door and down the dungeon stairs.

What is he going to do to them?

As his bones healed, Bastian gasped and leaned against the cold rocks, breathing heavily. He needed to give himself a moment to recover or he would be of no help to Elise’s parents.

“Hurry, little brother. You do not want to miss this. It is time you learned your lesson.” Donovan’s voice echoed off the high ceiling.

Bloody hell. He stood completely, heart racing. “What lesson would that be?”

“Why, keeping our secret better, of course. Oh, and not getting involved with a Hunter’s sister.”

Bastian slowly made his way to the dungeon. Though there were no torches lit, he could see plain as day with his vampire sight. “I didn’t know Jacob was a Hunter.”

He heard muffled cries for help coming from below. It had to be them. If Donovan spoke so freely in front of them, he surely planned to kill them. Hell, they probably knew he was a vampire since he’d most likely drank from them already.

Remembering his promise to Elise, Bastian prepared for the fight of his life. If he had to kill Donovan to save Michael and Rose, so be it. He couldn’t lose his Elise. Especially not over something as horrific as this. She would certainly look at him as a monster again.

By the time Bastian stepped onto the stone floor, most of his strength had returned. He met near silence in the narrow and musty anteroom. The only sounds came from the occasional drip of water seeping in through the walls.

Hunting mode it is, then. He closed his eyes and allowed his heightened senses to do their jobs. A scratching noise emanated from behind the door to the left. A deep breath let him know it was human, not animal. He also smelled his brother’s blood mixed with that of a mortal’s.

His pulse quickened. I cannot be too late. He moved and tore the door down, wood splintering, rock crumbling.

The sickening crack of bones screamed in his ears as Donovan snapped their necks. He dropped to his knees when he saw the lifeless bodies of Elise’s parents fall to the damp ground, their clothes stained crimson. Part of him wanted to cry out in anger, another part simply wanted to cry. With their deaths, any hope for a life with Elise was shattered.

He looked up and locked gazes with Donovan, but to his surprise, his brother’s eyes were filled with compassion.

It was not enough to keep Bastian from taking his anguish out on the other vampire.

Within seconds, he flew at his brother. Too quickly, Donovan stepped to the side, and Bastian crashed into the wall.

“Bastian, stop. It is over.” Donovan reached out to rest a hand on his shoulder.

Unfortunately, those words rang true for Bastian. The thought of facing Elise, trying to explain to her why her parents were murdered, took all the fight out of him. He slid to the floor and cradled his aching head in his hands.

It is my fault. The secret must be kept.

How will Bastian break the news to Elise? What will be waiting for him back at her parents’ cottage? Has Elise broken his trust and told her brother Bastian’s secret? And if so, what will happen next? Will their love survive? Will they even survive with their lives?

This story will be continued in my upcoming anthology, Nocturnal Surrender: Short Erotic Stories with a Bite. It will be released in late summer of this year and will be followed in the fall by the first novel in my series, Night Therapy.

I know, how can I leave the story hanging like this? Think of it like the season finale of a TV show. You only have to wait a little while for the story to continue. Thank you for reading, and I promise the ending will be worth the wait.

Nothing Lasts Forever--Scene 6

We left Bastian and Elise on a happy note last time, but things are about to get worse from here on out. Scroll down below Bastian's picture to find out what happens.

In case you missed them, here is the link to the other scenes.

Bastian reveled in every second of the last few weeks since Elise had accepted him for what he truly was. Too many times in the past he’d allowed himself to fall, to love, only to be shunned for the creature he hid behind his mortal façade.

But not this time.

For once, he had hope for the future. Maybe he would be able to convince Elise to let him turn her so they could be together forever, as they had wanted.

There were still many things he needed to explain to her, including the fact he was unable to father a child, but he had every confidence in the survival of their relationship, even after he revealed these last details.

Though, the biggest test to their love was about to take place shortly.

As the carriage they rode in bumped along its way, he leaned toward her, attempting to reassure himself that their future was secure. He brushed her auburn hair away from her face and kissed her. Lips soft as rose petals met his, her sweet tongue searching the recesses of his mouth.

After a moment, she pulled away and fanned herself. “I believe we should calm down. We are almost there, and it will not do to have you overly excited when we arrive.”

Good point considering he’d have a difficult time hiding his vampiric features if he became too aroused. And heaven knew she could have him hard and full-fanged in seconds. “You are right, my love, as usual.” He captured her hand and raised it to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on her lavender-scented skin.

When the carriage came to a halt, he took a deep breath and gritted his teeth. He could do this, especially since he’d been pretending to be mortal for over seven hundred years. Surely a few hours with her family would be simple enough.

The overcast evening was perfect for him, only occasional slivers of sunlight peeked through the clouds as they walked up the stone path to the door of her parents’ cottage. He held her firmly around the waist. She was his now, not theirs.

He had met them on a couple of occasions, but that was before she knew his secret. Everything had changed the minute he showed her the other side of him. In truth, he had placed his life in her hands, made himself completely vulnerable to win her love for eternity.

Just this one last step, then we can move on with our lives.

When a strange man greeted them, Bastian quickly delved into his mind. He was Elise’s brother, Jacob. Bastian stiffened instantly. In all his years, he had never faced a Hunter. When he’d visited before, Jacob had always been gone. Off on another one of his adventures was how their father, Michael, had put it.

The hatred radiating out of Jacob hit Bastian squarely in the chest. The Hunter met him with a sweeping glance, as if to determine if he was good enough for Elise, and then turned his attention to his sister. He wrenched her from Bastian’s grasp and hugged her tight, lifting her off her feet momentarily.

After ushering them in, Jacob grabbed her hand. “Where have you been? Mother and father were so worried.”

Not giving her time to answer, he led her to a chair in front of the small fire in the open living area, ignoring Bastian and leaving him to follow behind them like a dog. Bastian clenched his fists and fought back the anger threatening to make his fangs extend.

His temper had always been his downfall, but this was not the time or place to allow himself to be provoked. And certainly not by a Hunter…in front of Elise and her—

Wait a minute, where are Michael and Rose?

He cleared his throat, interrupting the brewing argument between the siblings. “Where are your parents?”

Elise looked around as if she only then realized they were nowhere in sight. She stared at Jacob, brows furrowed. “Yes, where are they?”

Jacob’s attitude softened and he kneeled in front of her. “You should have been here, Elise. You should not have gone off with him. If someone had told me before that this was the man you were seeing, I would have warned you of his and his brother’s…how shall I say it…propensity for using innocent women to fulfill their needs.” He glared at Bastian then turned back to Elise. “Mother and father would still be here if we’d have known you were coming home.”

She shook her head as waves of confusion rolled off her. “I do not understand. What are you trying to say?”

Jacob stood, dragged his hand through long, red hair, and fixed his green-eyed glare on Bastian. “They went searching for you two weeks ago. Feared he had kidnapped you. They begged me to stay here in case you returned.”

Bastian cringed as guilt washed over him. He had taken her against her will, but there’d been no choice.

Facing Elise once more, Jacob continued. “I know they started at the Evanko Estate, though I am uncertain of where they went after that.”

Great, that means Donovan knows. Bastian’s relationship with his brother, Donovan, was already strained from years of Bastian’s temper and impulsive behavior. Now that a Hunter was involved, and the risk of exposure existed, Donovan would be watching Bastian’s every move, waiting for him to make a mistake.

Elise clasped Jacob’s hand. “Then there has been no word from them?”

Jacob bowed his head. “None, and they should have been home by now.”

Bastian’s mind spun. Had Donovan kept them, or worse, fed on them and killed them? Mortals going around asking questions about a vampire, even if they had no idea of his true nature, were courting trouble. Threats had to be eliminated before things spiraled out of control.

If he left now, with his preternatural speed he could make it to the estate and back before sunrise. Elise and Jacob would have some time to talk before they retired to bed for the night. Leaving her with his secret, in the company of a Hunter, was a risk, but one he needed to take. He should simply put the suggestion in her mind to not reveal anything about him.

“Elise, my love.” Bastian extended his hand and waited for her to come to him. He wrapped her in his arms but was unable to make himself interfere with her thoughts again. I must trust her. “I will go to my brother and see if he knows where else they may have gone. I promise I’ll bring them back to you.”

She sobbed into his chest, trembling. “Please…”

There was no need for her to say more. As much as it pained him, he released her and gave her to Jacob. Her brother held her close, stroking her hair, and staring at Bastian.

Bastian nodded and turned to leave. When he stepped outside, thunder boomed across the countryside and the sky let loose its fury. Rain poured down on him as he ran.

What do you think happened to Elise's parents? Are they alive or dead? Does Donovan have them? Leave a comment and let me know.

This way to Scene 7.

VILF--Vampire I'd Like to...

It's that time again. Last time, it was the vampire Mick St. John, as portrayed by Alex O'Loughlin. This time, it's the vampire Henry Fitzroy, as portrayed by Kyle Schmid. Henry is a character from Tanya Huff's Blood Books, later turned into a short-lived TV series, Blood Ties. He is also a real historical figure. He may look a little young, but that's because Henry was supposed to have been turned at age 17. Don't let the looks fool you. Kyle Schmid made Henry into one hell of a sexy vamp. If you haven't seen Blood Ties, do yourself a favor and watch it. Oh, and the books are pretty good, too.

If he looks familiar to you, you might have seen him play another vampire named Henry on the latest season of the American version of Being Human. I didn't add any of those pics, though, because this post is all about Fitzroy.

So that was Henry Fitzroy, another Vampire I'd Like to Fuck. Let me know if you like Henry, too. Who is your favorite vampire?

More vamps to come...

And remember: Save a horse, ride a vampire.

Mohawk Appreciation

After seeing the recent pics of Alex O'Loughlin with his new hairstyle, I had to do this mohawk appreciation post. Oh, and I should mention he's shirtless in some of these. Enjoy.

Well, there you have it. The man can even look sexy with a mohawk. Plus, it's nice to see him looking so healthy and happy again.

What do you think of Alex's new look?

Nothing Lasts Forever--Scene 5

All right. It's finally here. The scene everyone has been waiting for. Did Bastian and Elise make love or not? Scroll down below Bastian's picture to find out.

In case you missed them, here is the link to the other scenes.

Elise’s breath caught in her chest when Bastian’s hard length dipped into her. She gripped his shoulders and her body tensed. She had no idea what to expect. Would this feel as good as his fingers had, or would it be painful? The stories she’d heard told of both extremes—and there were no vampires involved in any of them.

His kiss was soft and tender, his touches like feathers. He’d never been gentler with her. Maybe he truly is still my Bastian.

With that, she relaxed, giving herself to him completely. She tightened her legs around him, pulling him in. He moved deeper inside her with a groan, his fangs scraping her lips. Both sensations brought slight pain with them, but there was something else…

Before she could think about it, she tugged at his shirt, wanting to feel his skin next to hers, just as it was below. Her exposed breasts, her budded nipples, ached to touch his broad chest. A throbbing in her core made her arch into him, needing to be filled. The pressure of him sliding in further sent waves of pleasure and pain rolling over her, yet she could tell he hadn’t pushed in as far as he could.

“More,” was all she managed to whisper between kisses.

He pulled away and stroked her hair. “I must go slow, my love, so I don’t hurt you. I want you desperately.”

She took the opportunity to finish removing his shirt, easing it over his head. Her hands roamed along newly exposed muscles. Leaning up, she pressed her lips to his neck then drifted downward until she stopped at a hardened nipple. She wanted to give him the same tingling sensation he’d given her when he had explored her breasts. He moaned her name, and she sucked at the nub, hoping to pleasure him more.

It must have worked. He shifted his hips, and, with one smooth motion, he eased fully into her. She released his nipple and gasped. Brief pain deep within gave way to overwhelming warmth.

He remained still for a long moment. In that time, her body adjusted to having him seated so far inside her. The slight pressure and slow burn his presence created only made her need grow. She ran her nails down his back, trying to prod him to action. Nothing. Next, she skimmed her fingertips softly up his sides.

Shuddering under her touch, he thrust forward, she was certain from her tickling him. Gently, he fell into a sensual rhythm, and she lifted her hips to match his cadence. His mouth devoured hers, his tongue sweeping in, exploring. Her body trembled, unaccustomed to the intensity of the emotions and sensations flooding her. The friction of his shaft gliding in and out created a pulsing heat in her core. She writhed beneath him.

Heart aching with love, body throbbing with desire, she teetered dangerously close to the edge of an abyss. I could lose myself in him forever.

She had to pull away from his demanding lips to catch her breath. “Oh, Bastian… I love you.”

“I love you, too. And I always will.” He lowered his head and trailed his fangs along the curve of her breast.

Arching upward, relishing the sting of his sharp teeth, she dug her nails into his back, needing… She was unsure what. But when his thrusts hastened and he bit into her flesh, she had what she longed for.

She grabbed his hair and held him to her, urging him on, yet unable to believe she could want such a thing. Fiery yearning spread over her body as Bastian pushed into her harder, sank his fangs in further.

“Oh, God…” Instinctively, she clenched the muscles deep in her core.

This was far more intense than it had been with his fingers. She bucked against him wildly. Faster. Panting. Clawing. Until her entire body quaked in time with his.

He released her breast, leaned up, and drove into her. Skin slapping. Sweat dripping. Both of them moaning when they came for each other.

The moment went on endlessly as waves of pleasure rolled over her. The urge to touch herself overtook her, and she gave in. She plucked at her nipple, massaged the soft mound, while her other hand seized Bastian’s forearm. Her own caresses heightened her ecstasy.

Bastian’s grin, and growl, suggested he liked what she’d done. He licked his lips, slowed his movements, and lowered himself, trapping her hand between their slick flesh.

“You’re so beautiful.” He feathered kisses along her neck as he continued easing in and out of her.

Ripples of pleasure made their way through her body, and he bit down again. She threw her arms around him and held him tight, wriggling beneath him. Another long moan escaped her lips. She enjoyed the feel of his fangs sliding into her as much as she relished having his hardened shaft inside her.

“I love you. You are still my Bastian.” She let out a contented sigh and ran her hands over his back.

After a quick kiss where he had bitten her neck, Bastian locked gazes with her. She was awed when his fangs receded and his eyes returned to their wondrous sapphire hue.

He stilled, but his length remained buried within her. “You don’t know how much it means to hear you say that.” He kissed her softly then whispered, “I love you, too.”

Well, was that what you expected would happen? Leave a comment to let me know what you think of the story so far.

This way to Scene 6.