Unafraid Read online

  “Go to hell, bitch! I don’t take orders!” Tessa choked out. It was stupid. She should have pretended to obey and given herself a chance to walk away, but she was angry and too emotionally exhausted to be afraid. She would live what was left of her life unafraid of what others thought of her. She was not evil because she was clairvoyant. She was not unworthy because she was human and she would not cower in the face of those who sought to hurt her.

  A familiar look of confusion she’d seen on the faces of Griffin and Mason when they tried to put the vampire whammy on her washed over the woman’s face. Up this close Tessa could see just how beautiful her vampire assailant was. She tried again, but without words, to reach into Tessa’s mind, but came up empty. Tessa did the only thing a sensible human could do after foiling a vampire’s dastardly plan. She coughed out a whizzing laugh in the bitch’s face.

  The beautiful but clearly deranged woman shook her head sadly. “You see now. I didn’t want to have to do this but he has left me no choice.” She lifted Tessa by her throat.

  “Delphina!” Griffin’s bellow startled them both and she dropped Tessa back to her feet.

  Tessa looked down the alley to see both Griffin and Mason moving in that freaky vampire fast forward way they had and the moment of inattention cost her. Delphina spun around and put one very well placed kick to Tessa’s chest. Griffin howled. The impact sent Tessa airborne to strike the opposite wall. Her head struck with a sickening thud and blinding colors exploded, clouding her vision before she fell to the ground. The sound of retreating footfalls competed with the approaching ones to further rattle her brain.

  Someone lifted her from the dirty pavement and she knew it was Griffin by the way he held her, like she was precious and fragile. “I’ll take care of Delphina,” she heard Mason say as his pounding boots continued down the alley.

  “Tessa, baby, open your eyes for me!” Griffin was shouting and the pain echoed around her head. Her chest was on fire and breathing was becoming increasingly painful.

  “I can’t breathe,” she gasped just before she coughed and blood spewed from her mouth. Griffin cursed and probed her chest with his fingers. She hissed when he found her broken ribs.

  “Tessa, you cannot leave me now. I need you to listen to me. Are you listening?” he asked, but Tessa was making peace with herself before the end came. Her head had to be split open. She must have a punctured a lung because each breath she took was a struggle. She was spitting blood and that always meant eminent death in the movies.

  “I think it’s time to go now.” She coughed up more blood. “No family. No real friends. The man I love is a vampire whose people seem to hate me. Why should I even want to live? This is a mercy.”

  Griffin gasped and spoke in a wobbling voice. “You want to live because the dumbass vampire you love loves you more than his family, his friends, or his people.”

  Shit, had she said that bit about dying out loud?

  “Open your eyes for me, baby.” She didn’t want to open her eyes. It hurt and she was tired. “Open them now!”

  Tessa dragged her lids up and there he was. Griffin tried to smile but it was a sad effort. His chin wobbled and his eyes filled with tears. “I’m going to save your life. I can’t lose you. I love you too much.” She coughed up more blood and the light faded a little more. She weakly shook her head. It was too late.

  “It’s not too late!” he barked and she winced. Damn her errant mouth. “Will you be my mate, Tessa? Please say yes. My blood will speed your healing. It can stabilize you until I get you the help you need.” She was stunned. He would ruin his life just to save hers. “It will not ruin my life.” He gently wiped blood from her lips and kissed her tenderly. It seemed that all of her thoughts where public now. “You are my only love, my mate for all time. Please accept me, Tessa. You need my blood now. I’ll have to bite you, but I won’t take much blood, just enough for the bond to take hold.”

  Oh, God! It was her dream all over. Only in her dream she wasn’t dying. Griffin smiled. “Did you dream this was coming? Good. It’s meant to be. Will you be my mate?”

  Tessa nodded, too weak to answer with the words of joy and love that were flooding her fading consciousness. Her vision narrowed to the wrist he’d just ripped open with his fangs. She didn’t want to drink blood.

  “I know you don’t want to but it’s going to save your life. After this you will be my mate, my female to love and protect forever. I don’t know how things will work out with my family, but none of that matters as long as I have you by my side. Please don’t make me live without you.” His voice broke. She tried to reach for his wrist but her arms were useless.

  “I love you. Forever.” She looked into his eyes when he lifted his shredded wrist to her mouth.

  Tessa didn’t have time to think about the taste or smell of the thick, coppery liquid filling her mouth. With her first swallow, Griffin bit down on her wrist and lapped at her blood. He growled and suckled for only a moment and then in the back of her sleepy mind, she felt him. He licked the wound on her wrist to close it and held her to his chest while she swallowed and swallowed.

  A funny thought occurred to her just before she gave in to exhaustion. This alley had plagued her dreams. She’d found the love of her life in this alley and she had, at least by vampire standards, just been married in that same alley on the dirty pavement.

  * * *

  Griffin took Tessa back to her home as fast as his legs would carry him. Her place was the closest and they needed to get off the street. His mind was spinning with the decision he’d made. His heart felt like it would explode when he saw Delphina kick Tessa in the chest. It seemed he would lose her not to his family obligations, but to an attack by one of his own.

  He could have saved Tessa without binding himself to her, but that wasn’t what he wanted. He’d planned to beg her to be his mate as soon as he found her tonight. He hadn’t made the decision hastily. He was sure she would figure out soon enough that he’d used her injury to manipulate her into a quick capitulation.

  What he’d done was a dangerous thing for him, but Griffin was willing and ready to pay the piper if the worst happened. He would have gone crazy with grief whether Tessa was his mate or not. He had just tied his life to a female who was on death’s door. If he lost Tessa before they were mated, he could have survived. If she died now, it would destroy Griffin. His heart and soul would forever search for the one that made him complete and if she died he would want to die inside as well. He knew this was true because his sister had taken her own life after losing the mate she’d loved and bonded with in secret.

  Griffin had felt just a glimpse of what it would be like to live with Tessa’s beautiful light shining in his heart and mind forever. He’d felt some of her pain and oddly a sense of amusement just before she lost consciousness. When Tessa’s mind shut down in the alley, so had their mental connection and Griffin was frantic to get it back as soon as possible. As long as he could feel her he would know she would live. Even after such a short time with his mate, the loss of that connection was nearly painful.

  * * *

  Tessa struggled to open her eyes. Griffin was arguing with someone, but he stopped shouting suddenly and sat beside her. She could feel his anxiety and fear. He was stroking her face and asking questions she couldn’t understand. Then he changed tactics and came at her through the new bond they’d formed. He was searching for signs of health and mental wellbeing. She had a head injury and her lungs were in rough shape but it was obvious his blood had helped heal her enough to save her life. When the sounds began to filter in, Tessa remained quiet and listened.

  “What happened when you caught up with Delphina?” Griffin asked Mason.

  “We’ll keep an eye on her, but she isn’t going to be a problem. She isn’t willing to risk her family’s social ruination if she pisses us off. Also, I reminded her that murder is a crime whether the person is a human or vampire. She tried to kill Tessa in front of two future Councilmen. Like
I said, she won’t be a problem.” Mason paused before continuing.

  “I don’t think we should do this Griffin. She isn’t strong enough and the change will be difficult for healthy humans. Its bad enough you bonded with her when she could have taken you out with her. Just look at how irrational you are now,” Mason argued.

  “If it comes down to saving her, we will do it whether she likes it or not. I love her, Mason.” He was running his hands over her arms and caressing her face while he spoke.

  “I know you do, man, but she seems to be waking up and we should wait until she’s in full health to give her the best chance of survival.”

  “Survival from what?” she croaked.

  “Hey there, baby. You’re awake. You scared the shit out of me. You’ve been sleeping for nearly two days.” He pulled her closer to place kisses on her face. “Rest while I get you some water.” He left the bed. Tessa pried open her eyes to find Mason looking around her tiny home in horror. His expression was so comical she couldn’t help giggling. Both men looked at her like she truly did have some brain damage. Tessa greedily drank the water Griffin gave her. Once in an upright position she could breathe much more deeply. She had a headache, but it wasn’t too bad.

  “Tessa, we need to talk,” Griffin spoke up. Again she felt fear and anxiety flowing through him. It was extraordinary to be so deeply connected to another person. She could feel his emotions. She also felt his love for her and an intense need to protect. “I want you to become like me. I want you to accept the change.”

  “Why?” She was confused. He loved her; she knew that because she could feel it blazing through her mind. But he’d told her that over half of the humans that tried to change died in the process.

  “I can feel your confusion. Let me explain. I nearly lost you twice. The last two days have been pure hell without your presence in my mind. You were mortally wounded before my eyes. You are human, baby, and that isn’t a bad thing. The problem for me is that I am not human. If I don’t lose you to an injury or disease in the next eighty years or so, I will lose you to old age while I remain roughly twenty-five. I want us to be together forever like we promised when we bonded.”

  Griffin pressed his hand over her heart. When he removed his hand she saw the gold chain around her neck. There was a beautiful engraved sunburst pendent hanging from the chain. Griffin turned it over to show her the inscription on the back. It said ‘The center of my universe.’

  “I was going to ask you to be my mate before your injury.” The truth of his statement rang through their bond. “I know I’m asking you to take a big risk, but I love you. I love you and I don’t want to live without you now or eighty years from now.”

  She pondered his words and another conversation they’d had on the day he took her to his new condo. If he was willing to take risks, so was she.

  “I’ll do it.” Griffin let out a sigh of relief. Mason groaned. “Under one condition,” she qualified. Griffin frowned.

  “What condition?” he asked gruffly.

  “I want a baby.” She smiled. Mason groaned again. Griffin got up and began to pace.

  “A baby will more than likely kill you, Tessa.” Mason explained. “No human woman on record has ever survived long after giving birth to a vampire child. The pregnancies are difficult and the births even more so.”

  Griffin continued to pace. He knew he had painted himself into a corner. He had to agree and all three of them knew it. He fell to his knees and laid his head on her lap. “Why are you doing this to me?”

  “Because I love you and I want a baby with the man I love. Your baby. Our baby. If you are willing to risk my life in the change I will agree to the risk but you have to be willing to also risk my life for our child.” She smiled.

  “It could actually work, Griffin.” Mason said. “It’s a huge risk but she has survived a life threatening injury without any real medical intervention. The fact that she is your mate, with your blood in her body, could make all of the difference.” Bless Mason’s helpful little heart. She would now forgive him for hurting her in the past.

  Griffin crawled onto the bed and gently lifted her into his lap. “Do you really want this, Tessa?” She could feel him probing around in her head for the truth.

  “I would have wanted to have a baby either way. I want a family of my own. Please don’t deny me the one thing that will make my life complete now that I’ve found you.”

  * * *

  Two Years Later…

  Tessa’s huge, round belly contracted into a tight ball while Griffin watched the monitor and counted to ten. She’d been pushing for hours with no pain relief and the time was finally near. Griffin wanted her to give birth at a vamp owned clinic with plenty of drugs and equipment in case of emergency, but Tessa had made him promise to keep her a secret until after she was changed. It was logical that she didn’t want to risk being attacked again until she could defend herself, but it made it impossible for him to explain a human woman delivering a vampire child to medical personnel.

  In between contractions he leaned over to kiss her belly. She ran her fingers through his streaked hair and panted while he spoke to the child in her womb.

  “You’ve been naughty in there, little one. Mommy is tired. It’s time to let Daddy hold you for a while.” Tessa smiled weakly. Her hair was plastered to her head with sweat. Some of the blood vessels in her eyes had popped from the force of her pushing for so long. Her belly began to tighten again and Griffin’s stomach churned. He should never have agreed to this madness. If she died, it would likely be within the next day and it would be entirely his fault. He would never survive without her. The pain would drive him insane.

  “Stop that,” Tessa scolded him. “I’m not going to die. This is what labor is like, Griffin.”

  “I hope the kid looks like you.” He nuzzled her forehead, trying to lighten the mood.

  “I hope she looks like you.” Tessa was convinced they were having a girl from the very beginning of her pregnancy and he tended not to second guess a woman who was always right.

  “We will have a baby with this one, Tessa. I know you’re tired but give it all you’ve got. You’re doing great,” the midwife spoke from the bottom of the bed.

  The contraction built and Tessa wrapped her fragile little body around her protruding belly and gave one last mighty push. It was the most beautiful and terrifying moment of Griffin’s life. With that push, Tessa delivered a squalling baby girl. The midwife briskly wiped the baby down and laid her on Tessa’s chest. They inspected their little bundle of joy while she seemed to be giving both of them the once over. The baby’s eyes were the same captivating crystal clear aquamarine of her mother’s eyes. Tessa smiled through tears of joy.

  “I think we both got our wishes. She looks like both of us.” Tessa gently stroked the baby’s full head of dark hair. Griffin hated the white streaks in his hair. When he was a kid his mother told him they were birthmarks. When he got older his father told him they were a very rare sign of great power among their kind. His father had high expectations of his only son. The marks had been a curse and made him different his entire life, but when his daughter came into the world with the same markings, they became beautiful and his chest swelled with pride. Of course she would be a powerful being. She was a Vaughn, after all.

  “What are we going to name her?” Tessa didn’t believe in naming children before they were born. She believed you should look into a child’s eyes to find their name.

  “Her name is Soliel.” Griffin chose the name that leapt into his heart. The word meant ‘sun’ in French. “Surely our little girl will be the center of the universe.”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  To learn more about Cat Miller's books please visit her blog at www.catmillerbooks.blogspot.com

  You can also visit her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/catmillerbooks

  Available now:

  Unbound

  A Forbidden Bond Novel

  Unforgiven

&n
bsp; A Forbidden Bond Novel

  Coming Soon:

  Unmerciful

  A Forbidden Bond Novel