Chapter 268

Joseph’s POV

What the fuck did I just do?

I shouldn’t have drank from her but it was just so tempting. When she gets turned on, her blood smells even sweeter and my mouth is practically watering. I knew she could see my desires in my eyes; they were probably red. I could hear every single beat of her heart thrumming in her chest and pumping her blood throughout her body.

I usually have way more self-control than that, but I couldn’t resist myself. As soon as she gave me permission, I knew I was a goner. My fangs were elongating before I could even stop them. The soft curve of her neck and the small vein that sat just above her shoulder was pulsing and begging for me to bite it.

When my fangs dug deep into her flesh and her blood oozed into my mouth, all my senses grew heightened, and the sweetness attacked my tastebuds like a loaded truck. Her blood was so warm and thick. It was sweeter than anything I had ever tasted in my entire life. It even tasted better than that first night Tessa and I made love, and I drank from her then too.

I gripped her hips, thrusting even harder and faster into her and drinking even more of her blood. I wanted so much more of her; her blood satisfied a hunger that was buried deep in the pit of my soul.

Her heartbeat was getting lighter, and her body was getting limp. I pulled my mouth away from her skin, allowing blood to drip from my lips and pool around her body. I bent down and licked the small puncture wounds on her neck, allowing it to close instantly.

Her climax came quickly and that was enough to push me over the edge as well. When we finished, I fell into the bed beside her, and she fought to catch her breath. Her heart got stronger with each breath she took. When I looked over at her and saw the paleness of her cheeks and the blood staining her flesh, it was like someone splashed cold water onto my face.

“Shit,” I said, panic starting to consume me as I grabbed for her and pulled her into my arms. She went willingly. Though, I was pretty sure it was because she was too weak to actually move her body or resist me. I shouldn’t have done this. I shouldn’t have been so careless.

I could have killed her.

As I went into my ramble about how sorry I was, she lifted her head and kissed me gently on the lips, telling me that she was okay and that she was just tired.

Her words trailed off though and were replaced with light snoring as she fell into a deep sleep.

I held her in my arms for a little while longer before sliding out of bed, grabbing my boxers on the ground, and putting them on. She remained peaceful on the bed, but still pale and still covered in blood that dripped from my lips.

I licked the rest of the blood from my mouth before retreating to the bathroom. I grabbed a warm washcloth and returned to her. I wiped away the blood and sweat on her body. Then I trailed the cloth down her lower abdomen and washed it between her legs as well before discarding the cloth and putting the blanket over her body.

I kissed her lightly on the forehead and finished dressing before leaving the bedroom.

Carter remained in his seat with his earbuds in, sipping on his beer and staring out his window longfully.

I scooted in beside him, drawing his attention to me. He took out his earbuds and offered me a tired smile.

“Are you prepared for this meeting?” I asked him.

“As prepared as I’ll ever be,” he admitted. “I’m hoping they will see reason.”

“Bernard doesn’t think they will,” I told him, shaking my head with dismay written all over my face. “But I promise we aren’t going to give up until they do.”

Carter nodded, but he looked uncertain.

“Is Tessa sleeping?” Carter asked, peering over his shoulder at the closed bedroom door.

A ping of guilt washed over me as I thought of Tessa being drained of blood by my hands. I stared down at my hands and clenched my fists.

“What happened?” He then asked, reading my face like a book.

“I drank from her,” I blurted, not bothering to look at him. I was too ashamed.

“You drank from her?” Carter asked, his mouth dropping open. “Thought you didn’t crave blood.”

There was a bit of humor in his voice. A lot of vampires will drink the blood of their lovers during sex for an even more intense orgasm. However, they weren’t usually human so there aren’t any risks. Tessa was different; I could have killed her.

I had never done that before out of fear that I would take it too far. But I couldn’t resist her; especially when she asked so sweetly.

“I don’t,” I told him with finality. “But Tessa’s different…”

Carter nodded thoughtfully.

“Is she okay?” Carter then asked.

“She’s just tired. A little pale, but the color should come back after she rests.” I stood up from the seat. “I’m going to go back in there with her. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t losing your mind out here.”

Carter let out a humorless laugh.

“I’m fine,” he assured me.

I nodded and went back toward the back of the plane. I walked into the room Tessa was sleeping in and shut the door behind me. Tessa was unmoved, but thankfully she was still breathing, and her heartbeat was back to normal. I even noticed some color returning to her cheeks.

She looked peaceful and it made a smile tug at the corner of my lips as I slid back into bed with her.

I held her tightly, running my fingers up and down her spine as she snuggled against me, still completely and gloriously naked.

I kissed the top of her head and murmured to her how much I loved her, and that I was going to protect her for the rest of her life. I never admitted this to Tessa, but the thought of her growing old and dying without me causes a sharp pain to pierce my chest. I didn’t like the idea of her dying in any lifetime, but I couldn’t tell her that.

I would rather her grow old and live out the rest of her days with me than risk her life and turn her into a vampire. I also wasn’t going to let her become a bloodslave because I knew what that kind of thing did to the human brain.

The crackling of the loudspeaker startled me, and it made Tessa stir in her sleep.

“Good morning, Folks. This is your pilot speaking. We will be arriving in about 9 hours, which is sundown tonight. The sun is starting to rise so I ask that you close your windows and refrain from opening them until we land. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Thankfully, there were no windows in this room, so I didn’t have to get out of bed.

I figured now was a good chance for me to get some sleep. With another kiss to the top of her head, I drifted off to sleep.

…..

Tessa’s POV

When I woke up, I had so much energy I felt like I could take on the world. Joseph was still sleeping soundly beside me. He was also fully dressed, and I wondered when he did that. With a small frown, I slid out of bed and grabbed my clothes off the ground. I quickly dressed and went around the bed to give him a gentle kiss before leaving the room.

For a moment, I forgot I was on a plane until I closed the door behind me and saw Carter sitting on one of the booths, his head back and his earbuds in his ear. It was pretty dark with only a couple of dimmed lights to light up my passageway to my seat. All the windows were down, and I knew it was because it was daylight.

The stewardess stood from her place at the front of the plane; she looked tired, but that smile never left her lips as she approached me.

“Is there anything I can get for you?” She asked me.

“Water would be good,” I asked.

“Of course,” she said before turning back and walking toward her station. She grabbed a water bottle from the mini fridge and returned it to me moments later. “Anything else?”

“No, I’m okay. Thank you,” I told her.

She nodded and went back to her seat. I cracked the lid of the water bottle and greedily drank from it. I was much thirstier than I thought.

Memories of last night resurfaced in my mind and my cheeks flushed. Joseph drank from me. Granted I asked him too. I wanted to feel it again and see if it felt just as good as the first time. Oddly enough, it felt even better.

I reached my fingers up to touch the part of my neck that he had bitten. I felt small puncture bumps on my flesh, and I knew his fangs dug into me. I bit my lower lip to keep myself from smiling like a dummy.

“Good evening, folks, this is your pilot speaking again. We are going to be landing in a few minutes, so I ask that everybody return to their seats and buckle their belts. Thank you.”