Genesis's eyes pooled with tears.
I cupped her chin. "Beautiful inside and out — the last thing you need to be is afraid of your own beauty. Embrace it, but don't let it overtake all sense of reality. You are beautiful. You are strong. You are pure. Those are simple facts. Outside of that, nothing else matters other than the way I feel about you."
"If being beautiful means I turn into Ara, I'd rather be ugly."
"You could never turn into her." I pressed an urgent kiss to her mouth. "You're… you."
Genesis returned my kiss, biting down on my lips.
I flicked her tongue with mine then deepened the kiss. "Home."
"Bed."
"Yes," I growled, rubbing my body against her. "Now."
She let out a little gasp.
"Or here." I tugged her shirt over her shoulder, kissing the bare skin. "Vampires can be very… creative."
"Show me." Her eyes burned bright green.
I ripped the rest of her T-shirt with my teeth. "Never… challenge me."
Frenzied hands reached for my jeans while I reached for hers, both of us colliding with one another as we tried to peel clothing away.
Layer after layer went flying.
And then she was naked, straddling me.
"Mmm…" I took her fingers between my teeth. "…I've never tasted anything so incredible."
"My hands?"
"Your skin." I chuckled then placed myself near her entrance. "You know… we could always wait until we get home and—"
She welcomed me into her body.
But didn't move.
I let out a frustrated growl and gripped her hips. "You think to tease me?"
"I was told never to tease a vampire."
A mixture of laughter and ecstasy left my lips as our bodies began to move.
"No bite this time?" she asked.
"Sometimes," I growled, thrusting hard, then pulling out, "faster is better."
Genesis
We made it home.
But I was without shirt, considering Ethan had ripped mine to shreds. So he handed me his while he walked into the house sporting a pair of jeans and a really big smile.
"Ethan." Alex was in the kitchen drinking wine and reading. "Is today no-shirt day? Should I remove mine as well?"
He reached for the edges of it but earned a growl from Ethan.
Mason was sitting in front of a bowl of berries; his hand paused midair as he looked between the two of us. "Damn, Ethan, at least feed her every once in a while."
"He's very concerned with food, always concerned with food." Alex nodded. "Hurry up, Mason, your berries are drying out."
A berry went flying by Alex's head.
I didn't notice Stephanie in the corner; she wasn't normally so quiet. When her eyes met mine, they lit up. "Hey, how about shopping tomorrow? Before your fun little human job?"
She looked like she'd been crying. "Are you okay?"
"She's fine," Alex snapped, his good humor completely gone. The room turned tense in an instant. He cleared his throat and forced a smile. "Sirens, very emotional."
Stephanie smiled. "Very."
"Ethan, a word?" Alex stood.
"Sure." Ethan kissed the top of my head and left the room while Mason started rummaging around the kitchen; pots and pans clanged together, and then he pulled out a giant piece of steak.
"I hope that's not for me." I pointed.
"Protein…" He threw the steak into the pan. "…feeds the blood, which feeds the mate, which, in turn, feeds you."
"You gonna start singing Circle of Life?" I joked.
"Circle of life?" he repeated.
"Lion King?"
"Cassius is king."
I looked helplessly to Stephanie, who was trying to hide her smile behind her hand.
"Have you seriously never watched Lion King?"
"Werewolves are scared of TV," Stephanie said with a soft laugh.
"And sirens are afraid of the dark," he fired back, while she shuddered. "I'm not afraid of the TV. I just don't see the point in sitting in front of a flat box and watching people make fools of themselves."
"He'd rather be the fool." Stephanie nodded and winked in my direction.
"Mason…" I walked over to him and put my head on his shoulder. "How about I eat the steak and we watch Lion King?"
"No."
"Dances with Wolves?"
Stephanie snickered loudly behind her hand.
"Wolves do not dance," Mason growled.
"Oh, we know." Stephanie nodded. "I've seen it once. Don't care to see it again."
"Too much whiskey." Mason kissed the top of my head. "Eat the whole steak, and then we'll talk about King Lion."
"Lion King."
"Same thing."
I sighed helplessly and went to sit at the table while Mason cooked.
Stephanie gave me a side hug. "Eight tomorrow morning, alright?"
"Great."
"Bed." She shrugged. "It's been a long night." Her eyes misted again.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah." Her voice cracked. "Like Alex said, we get emotional. Can't help it."
It felt like she was lying, but I was human, how would I know? I nodded and turned my attention back to Mason, who'd started searing the steak.
"So you cook meat but refuse to eat it?"
"I'm a vegetarian." He smiled. I'd never realized how pointy his teeth were on the sides. Maybe that's how he'd been able to bite into me before Ethan had mated with me.