He stood in the center of the floor while she closed and locked the door. Stood there, hardly daring to breathe, as she removed his shirt, unbuckled his belt, unfastened his trousers, then climbed up on the bed and slipped under the covers.

Expelling a deep breath, he heeled off his boots, pulled off his socks, stepped out of his trousers, and left them all in a heap on the floor.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked gruffly.

“Very sure,” she said.

Wearing only his briefs, he slid in beside her. “You know where this is likely to end, don’t you?”

“I hope so.” She wrapped her arms around him.

“What has you so worried? You don’t think Nadiya will come here, do you?”

“I don’t know. I’ve just got a bad feeling about this whole mess.”

“Are your premonitions usually right?”

“No. But I’ve never been this worried about anyone before.”

She was close, too close. He could feel the heat of her body warming his, smell her desire, hear the slow, steady beating of her heart. And overall, the scent of her blood calling to him.

He muttered an oath as his honor faded away, overcome by a yearning so primal there was no denying it any longer. He groaned her name as he captured her mouth with his.

And he was lost.

One sharp yank and her gown was on the floor on top of his trousers. He crushed her close, marveling at the velvet smoothness of her skin, the warmth of her breasts against his chest. He rained kisses over her forehead, her cheeks, along the length of her neck, and then, unable to restrain himself, he closed his eyes and drank. It was the first time he had taken her blood without asking, but she didn’t protest, only moaned with pleasure when his fangs pierced her flesh.

When he lifted his head, she smiled up at him. “My turn?”

“Be my guest.”

She drank eagerly, careful not to take too much. Sighing with pleasure, she fell back on the bed.

“You look like the cat that ate the canary,” Zack observed.

She looked up at him and grinned. “Meow.”

He growled low in his throat.

“Oh, I’m scared now,” she said with mock terror.

“You should be.”

“Oh?” She propped herself up on one elbow, her fingers drawing figure eights on his chest. “Why is that?”

“Because everything about you tempts me.”

“What’s wrong with that?” She traced the ridges of his six-pack abs. “Aren’t you supposed to find me tempting?” She certainly found him tempting. “We’re getting married, after all. It would be awful if you didn’t want me.”

“Oh, I want you. The thing is, I don’t know how much longer I can keep my hands off you.”

“Then touch me, Zack. I don’t want to wait any longer. All I could think of when I was Nadiya’s prisoner was that I might die without ever having made love to you.”

“Dammit, Kaitlyn. I’m not made of steel.”

“Why are you fighting me?”

“For once in my life, I’m trying to do the right thing. Dammit, girl! Your father and mother are down the hall. . . .”

“I’ll be very quiet,” she whispered.

“Yeah? Well, I can’t make that promise.” Taking her in his arms, he kissed her until she gasped for breath. “When I take you the first time, I want to hear you screaming my name. And I want my ring on your finger.” He kissed the tip of her nose, then slipped his arm around her shoulders. “Now, go to sleep. It’s almost dawn.”

He closed his eyes as he felt the tightness in his skin that meant the sun was rising. Darkness engulfed him, stealing the strength from his limbs as he tumbled gratefully into oblivion.

Kaitlyn heaved a sigh of exasperation as Zack’s eyes closed and he surrendered to the dawn. Stubborn man! Even when she tried to seduce him, he refused to give in. How did he manage such self-control? She knew he wanted her.

Turning on her side, she studied his profile. Now that she had cooled off and she was thinking with her head instead of her hormones, she knew he was right. This wasn’t the time or the place. When they made love the first time, she wanted it to be in their own home, not under her father’s roof. Not with her parents just down the hall.

She would have suggested they go to the hotel in town, but she wasn’t foolish enough to go traipsing off into the night when Zack and her father had detected the presence of another vampire lurking nearby.

She rested her head on Zack’s shoulder, her fingers splayed over his chest, and prayed that the trouble with Nadiya would be over soon.

Chapter 37

Kaitlyn’s yearning for a quick end to the conflict between her father and Nadiya waned as her father prepared to go to the Fortress to meet Lucien. Her father was a strong man, never defeated in battle. But Nadiya and Lucien were not to be trusted. In a fair fight, Kaitlyn was certain her father would emerge victorious. But Nadiya had already proved she didn’t fight fair.

Her father spoke briefly to Zack, then strode toward her. He was, she thought, the personification of a warrior about to go to battle. If he was worried about the outcome, there was no trace of it in his bearing or his expression.

Kaitlyn blinked back her tears as her father embraced her. “Do not worry,” he said, smiling. “I will be back soon.”

She nodded, unable to speak past the lump in her throat.

He hugged her fiercely, kissed her cheek, and let her go.

Kaitlyn watched as her parents embraced. The love between her mother and father was a palpable presence in the room. They gazed into each other’s eyes for a moment and then, between one breath and the next, her father was gone.

Unable to hold back her tears, Kaitlyn stared at the place where he had been standing and wondered if she would ever see him again.

“He’ll be all right,” Zack said, taking her in his arms.

“I know.” She drew a deep breath. For her mother’s sake, she had to stay calm and positive.

As was her wont when she was worried, Elena cleaned house. She didn’t ask for help, but Kaitlyn pitched in, glad to have something to do. They mopped the floors, they washed the windows, they stripped the beds and turned the mattresses. Elena cleaned the refrigerator. Kaitlyn scrubbed the stove.

Zack watched the women with envy, wishing he had a way to expend the nervous energy building inside him. He had never liked waiting, would have preferred to be at the Fortress, in the thick of whatever was taking place there. But leaving Kaitlyn and her mother unprotected was unthinkable.

And so he paced the floor hour after hour while the women scrubbed the castle from top to bottom as if their lives, and their sanity, depended on it.

Finally, needing to do something, he went outside and spent a few minutes chopping wood for the fireplace, wishing, all the time, that the ax was a silver-bladed sword and the log in front of him was Nadiya Korzha’s slender neck.

Drake stood outside the Fortress, his senses probing the night around him. His brothers and other relatives were near. He had warned them not to interfere unless he called them. He did not expect Lucien to meet him honorably; if he lost the battle in a fair fight, he had instructed Zack to flee the country with Elena and Kaitlyn and take refuge with his half sister in Russia in hopes that Nadiya would never find them. As for Liliana, he had no idea where she was. Liliana didn’t carry a cell phone. Hopefully, she was safe at home. He should have insisted she stay at the Fortress, but she had been determined to go to her own house, and there had been no stopping her once she made up her mind.

Striding toward the entrance of the Fortress, Drake wiped everything from his mind but the battle ahead. He knocked on the door, hard enough that he heard it echo inside.

One of Lucien’s sons bid him enter.

Drake pushed the man aside and strode down the corridor toward the council chamber.

The door stood open. Lucien sat in Drake’s chair on the dais. Nadiya stood beside him, looking regal in a long black gown. The chairs at the council table were filled with Lucien’s kin.

“I am here,” Drake said, his hand on the hilt of the sword sheathed at his side. “Are you ready?”

Lucien looked fleetingly at Nadiya, then stood. “There is no need for us to fight.”

“There is every need.” Drake glanced at Nadiya, then back to Lucien again. “You have aligned yourself with a woman who is my enemy. You have usurped my rightful place by treachery. If you will not yield to me, then you will die, either on the field of battle, or now, in this room.”

The air in the chamber seemed to thicken as those assembled waited for Lucien’s answer.

Drake watched him through narrowed eyes. If Lucien refused to fight, he would be branded a coward, scorned by all who knew him.

“Answer him!” Nadiya hissed.

Lucien sucked in a deep breath. “I will meet you on the field of battle. Have you a second?”

“I do. He awaits outside.”

With a last glance at Nadiya, Lucien left the dais.

It was a solemn procession that made its way down the side of the mountain to the clearing below. Four men clad in black cloaks, each carrying a torch, led the way. Drake and Lucien followed the torchbearers. Because Drake did not trust Nadiya at his back, he had insisted that she walk at the head of the procession. Lucien’s second trailed behind.

When they reached the clearing, the four torchbearers formed a large circle. Drake and Lucien took their places in the center of the circle, facing each other.

Lucien’s second took a place outside the circle. A moment later, Stefan emerged from the trees and took up his position on the opposite side of the circle.

Nadiya stood apart, her long gray cloak billowing in the faint breeze.

One of the torchbearers walked to the center of the circle and stood between Drake and Lucien. “Lucien Muscarella, Master of the Carpathian Fortress,” he intoned, “be it known that Drake Sherrad, former Master of the Carpathian Fortress, has challenged your right to rule, claiming you have obtained it by treachery. He has come here this night demanding satisfaction. Should he be the victor, he will take possession of all your lands and holdings, both here and in Italy. Do you accept his challenge? Or concede?”