Suddenly his hand gripped her bicep hard and made her jerk her head toward him.

“Don’t say that! It’s not true. You’re not defective. There’s nothing wrong with you. On the contrary, you’re the most perfect woman I’ve ever been with. You’re strong, smart, and you’re beautiful. And when I’m inside you, you make me feel whole. Better than whole. That alone would be enough. But when you sink your fangs into me and take my blood …”

Haven closed his eyes for a moment as if searching for the right words. When he opened them, warmth flooded toward her. “When you do that, you turn my world upside down. You make me forget everything: the pain of all those years looking for Katie, my mother’s death.” He swallowed. “Even her betrayal.”

Yvette touched his cheek with her palm, stroking over his stubbles. Was he really trying to tell her that it didn’t matter to him whether she was able to bear children or not?

“The years of looking for Katie and hunting vampires, those years were only fueled by the desire for revenge. I never want to feel that kind of pain again. I practically raised Wes. We were sent to a great-uncle after our mother’s death. But Wes always looked up to me for guidance. Now, I’m not so sure what I did was right. I fueled the hatred in him too. I made sure he didn’t forget, always keeping the desire for revenge alive. He looked up to me like to a father. I’ve had all this. I’ve felt the responsibilities of a father on my shoulders, and losing Katie felt like I’d lost my own child.”

He pressed his hand against hers, holding it tighter to his cheek. “I don’t ever want that responsibility again. ‘Cause I couldn’t stand to lose another child.”

It took several seconds for Yvette to process his words and what they meant. He didn’t want children?

“But, you can’t know that. Nobody would—”

Haven put a finger across her lips. “You couldn’t be more perfect for me.” Then he smiled. “And as for the reason why you cut your hair short. If you were trying to hide your femininity, I’ll let you in on a little secret: it’s not working. You’ll never be able to hide that you’re a gorgeous, hot-blooded, passionate woman.”

Before the last word had even left his lips, she pressed her mouth against his and kissed him.
Thirty

Zane answered on the first ring of his cell phone.

“We’re under attack,” Gabriel yelled through the line. “She’s trying to get Wesley.”

“We’re on our way.” He disconnected the call and in the same instant speed-dialed Amaury’s number while heading for the bedrooms.

“Yeah?” Amaury answered.

“Gabriel’s under attack. We’re on our way, but you’re closer.” Zane stalked down the corridor, banging on Thomas’ door before opening it.

“I’m on it,” Amaury replied, disconnecting the call.

“The witch is after Wesley,” Zane informed Thomas, who came running out of the bathroom, clad only in a towel.

“Shit!” Thomas cursed. “I didn’t expect her to regroup that quickly.”

Eddie’s head rose from the pillow. “Damn it!” Dressed in a t-shirt and boxers, he jumped up.

“Get ready!”

Then Zane turned and gave Yvette’s door a brief knock, yanking it open without waiting for a reply. The room was empty.

“Ah, shit!” He didn’t need to be a brain surgeon to figure out where she was. Did that woman have no sense of self-preservation? Did she have to get involved with a damn witch?

Pissed off, he headed for the guest room and opened the door without knocking. The sight that greeted him was something he would have given just about anything to erase from his memory. A naked Yvette lay on her back with Haven’s head between her legs. Not only was that man sucking her like a world champion, their hands were intertwined, indicating a connection that ran deeper than sex.

Luckily, Zane only had to watch the scene for a split-second, because Haven had heard the door opening. His head snapped to the side, and he immediately scooted up Yvette’s body, covering her nakedness while he pulled on the duvet to hide her completely from Zane’s view.

“What the fuck!” Haven growled. “Get out!”

“Zane!” Yvette yelled at the same time. “Can’t I have any privacy?”

“No, you can’t. Not now. Gabriel’s under attack. The witch is trying to get Wesley.”

***

Haven cursed. Shit! While he’d been thinking only of himself and making love to Yvette, his brother was in danger. He should have known that splitting them up wasn’t a good idea. They should have all stayed together.