"I love you as certain
dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow
and the soul."

~~Pablo Neruda

****************

~Nevada~

After Nova left me alone with August, I was bubbling with nervous energy that I somehow managed to keep contained. He didn't say anything as he pulled out a chair and indicated for me to sit before turning back towards the refrigerator. I watched him move, not paying attention to what he was doing but how he did it. Each movement was fluid and graceful, precise as he went about his business, muscles flexing in all the right places.

I was too busy watching his arms to notice that he had returned to the table so when he set the plate of food in front of me, I jumped. My cheeks heated with embarrassment and I looked away, letting my hair fall over my face like a curtain.

"How are you feeling?" August asked, his voice low.

"Like I spent the night running through the woods," I replied without looking up as I picked up my fork. "My legs are a bit sore but otherwise I'm mostly alright."

"Good."

Neither of us said anything as I picked at my food, forcing myself to eat when I no longer had an appetite. The last few weeks had been stressful, taking a toll on me in ways I hadn't realized but I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. I managed to get down half of the food before pushing it away.

Sitting back in my chair, I finally met his eyes. As always, the silver orbs were intense as he watched me, searching my face for what I wasn't sure.

"Can I ask you something?" I ventured, my curiosity spiking.

"Always." 

"Do vampires really not need to eat food?" It was a ridiculous question but one that had been poking at my thoughts since the beginning of all of this. "I've seen Hatter eat, but he said that was the shifter genetics."

"He's not wrong. Vampires don't need to eat or ingest anything besides blood and most don't crave anything else." August answered with a slight shrug. "Most vampires are born or turned from humans, as it's an unspoken rule not to turn those of equal or greater strengths to begin with. Humans are inferior to the supernatural which causes their desires or needs to be easily washed out by the true vampire nature."

"And if someone were born a vampire?" I asked, suddenly intrigued.

"Then they don't develop the urge to eat, only feed."

"But you and Hatter are different." I clarified.

"Yes. He is still quite young and will most likely continue to enjoy and even want food. It even helps restore some things faster for him. I, on the other hand, am older and I no longer require it but I indulge myself from time to time with certain foods or drinks."

"Like what?" I wanted to know everything about him, from the biggest things to even the small useless facts. 

August looked thoughtful for a moment before a small smile curved the corners of his lips. "Whiskey."

I made a face before I could stop myself, my thoughts drifting towards my adoptive father and his untimely death. "I'm not a fan of alcohol, besides doesn't it burn your throat?"

"It quells the bloodlust and keeps me from being…," his voice trailed off as his eyes skated over my body before returning to mine with a spark of heat in the silver depths, "… tempted."

Warmth washed over my skin, leaving me flushed and my thighs clenching at the mere idea of what he could be tempted to do. I fought to stay still in my seat and not squirm as images formed in my head of the things I was tempted to do or let him do to me. I licked my lips, his eyes following my tongue as they darkened with lust. 

This hadn't been the problem with August and I, the desire to have each other because it had been there from the beginning. It was the fact that he was afraid to cross that line farther than he had, convinced he would destroy a bond that defined his life up until now. Dominic wouldn't be pleased but I believed he would come to terms with it, if for no other reason than I was his daughter. I just needed to get August to believe that.

"I don't think he will hate you, August," I told him quietly, knowing he would follow my train of thought. "He loves us both, you know."

"I wish it were that simple, princess." August looked away, watching the garden through the window but his eyes were unfocused as if he weren't really seeing it. "Maybe soon it will be."

August laced his fingers through mine, the back of his hand resting against my thigh. It was a gentle comfort, one that I would embrace as long as I could because who knew when things would go south again. With the future so unknown for all of us, I wanted to cherish the small moments of joy whenever they came my way.

"Will it always be like this? The fighting, the running, the being afraid?" I asked, my thumb grazing across his knuckles. It was getting harder and harder to remember a time when things were so much simpler. 

"No, but it won't be over tomorrow, love. Dominic was right about the fact that things will get bad, uglier than you should have to imagine." His voice was gentle and filled with remorse as his thumb caressed small circles over my thigh. "I will do whatever I can to protect you but the trials that lay ahead will be hard, harder than you should have to endure."

"I'm not fragile, August." My mind wandered back to the vision I had been overwhelmed with at Michael's house, countless lives lost at the hands of my brother and I. A shiver ran through me that had nothing to do with his skin against mine. "I don't want to hurt anyone but I will if I have to and I'm not afraid to die for those I love if that's what it takes."

August's face hardened at my words. "It won't come to that."

"I'm not saying it will but I can't pretend that it's not a possibility." I squeezed his hand reassuringly and met his gaze. "I'm stronger than I was a few weeks ago and I'll be stronger still with you at my side."

He raised his hand to cup my cheek and I leaned into his touch, savoring the intimacy as long as I could. I watched as he leaned towards me, his breath whispering over my lips. For one brief moment, I contemplated the strangeness of a vampire breathing before all thoughts were snatched away as his mouth captured mine.

It was slow and soft, gentle as if I were a glass figurine that could break. I threaded my fingers into his dark locks and pulled him closer, drawing a moan from him as he tugged me into his lap. One hand gripped my waist while the other tangled in my hair, pressing my body into his and grinding his growing erection into my hip. My nerves flooded with desire, my skin tingling and centering in my core.

August growled into the kiss and lightly bit my bottom lip before pulling away far enough to press his forehead against mine. "We should probably stop before I lay you out on this fucking table."

I shivered, heat pooling between my legs and I clenched my thighs together as possibilities wrapped around my every thought. There was no doubt in my mind that I would have let him, and still would if given the opportunity. I shifted anxiously in his lap, which did nothing to help my racing heart and only teased the both of us even more. 

"Careful, princess, I'm already moments away from stripping you down," he spoke into my ear, his voice low and husky. "Not exactly the best way to get your father's approval now is it?"

The tips of his fingers edged beneath the hem of my shirt, skating across the sensitive skin of my lower back before tracing along the curve of my hip. August was strong, his muscles solid beneath my hands as I struggled to calm the flutters in my stomach, but I didn't miss the subtle tremble in his touch.

"Then you'll need to distract me," I answered breathlessly, fisting his shirt in my hands.

"Mmmm, tell me what your favorite color is." It was a question but a subtle command whispered against my ear.

"Color?" I asked, unable to make sense of the word as his other hand slipped beneath my shirt and traced slow circles on my stomach. "My favorite color?"

Laughter rumbled in his chest, vibrating through my body. "Yes, you're favorite color."

My concentration had completely shattered. His actions contradicted his desire to stop what we had started and my mind couldn't even process words properly. I closed my eyes, torn between giving in to the subtle pleasure and finding an answer to his question. But I had no idea what my favorite color was, everything fuzzed and scattered in my head.

"P-purple?" I stuttered but gasped as his thumb grazed my breast through my bra. "No, that's, uh, that's not it?"

I knew I wasn't making any sense to him because even I wasn't sure what the hell I was trying to say. August didn't seem to mind, however, as he hummed in approval and teased his fingers beneath the fabric of my bra. Anyone could walk in at any moment, catching his hands under my shirt and I was surprised to find the idea thrilling in an illicit sort of way.

His touch was so soft, so careful, just enough to set my body on fire, my skin burning with every light brush of his hands. But it wasn't enough, I wanted more. 

"August… " I whimpered, unable to find the words but afraid to say anything in fear that he would stop altogether. 

"Sshh, princess," he soothed, the rumble of his voice whispering over me while nipping lightly on my ear as he toyed with the band of my shorts. "I can get you off just like this, slow and quiet as you tremble in my arms. It would be so easy to slide my fingers beneath your panties and slip inside, coaxing pleasure from you until you can't help but ride my hand to bursting. Would you like that, love?"

I leaned my head against his shoulder, cradled in the safety of his arms as the rest of the world fell away. It didn't matter to me where we were or who could possibly find us this way, I just wanted August in whatever way he would let me have him.

"Please," I whimpered, anticipation and lust fogging my mind.

I cried out with the first brush of his fingers over my clit through the thin fabric of my underwear, that somehow sharpened the sensation. August brought his other hand up to cover my mouth, the weight of it light but still firm and heightening my arousal.

"You have to be quiet, princess, or someone might hear," he groaned in my ear as his fingers ventured under the edge of my panties and into my already slick folds. "Gods, you smell like strawberries and cream, and already soaking wet for me aren't you?"

I moaned into his hand, pleasure already coiling tight and low in my belly. This was different than before as if something had been missing then, a slow burn that was suddenly sparked into life. It was a heady feeling, wrapping me in a hazy blanket of lust and need.

Over and over, August slid his fingers against my heated flesh but was careful not to go where I wanted him most. He was teasing me, driving me higher and higher but denying me relief. I nearly shattered when he pressed a single finger inside of me, my walls clenching around the large digit as my back arched.

"I want to feel you come on my fingers," August said, his silver eyes glowing as they held mine and his canines were extended to press against his bottom lip. His finger retreated only to return with a second, stretching me to an almost painful extent but I was so wet that it almost instantly turned to heat pushing me closer and closer to the edge. "Show me how big those eyes can get, love."

The pad of his thumb, already slick with my own juices, traced a circle around my clit with just the right amount of pressure. And that was all it took. I came apart in his arms, my cries muffled behind his hand as I held his eyes. Waves of heat clashed into my nerves, severing any coherent thoughts as my channel clenched around his fingers again and again.

As I began to drift back down, August removed his hand from my mouth and caressed my cheek with the back of his fingers. "So fucking beautiful."

I knew my cheeks were already flushed but I felt them burn even more under his appraisal. My mind was still fuzzy as I pulled his head down to meet mine, giving in to the desire to feel his mouth on mine again. Until he wasn't and I was sitting back in my seat instead of on his lap.

My plate was still where it had been but August was nowhere to be seen as I looked around confused.

"Hey, August! Nevada!" Dominic's voice called from the stairs and his footsteps drew closer to the kitchen. Moments later, he came into the room and paused, looking around. "Where's August?"

"Uh… " I had no idea what I was supposed to say but August answered for me.

"Right here, Dom. What's up?" He replied, walking out of the large pantry of all places. His voice was casual, no indication that he had just made me orgasm in a dining chair mere seconds ago. 

"Alana has agreed to watch a movie if you two want to join us? I can't seem to find Nova but he probably doesn't want to be around me right now anyway." Dominic tried to hide how that thought hurt him behind a lazy smile but I wasn't fooled but I let him have his privacy. "Nothing heavy after… you know, but I thought maybe a comedy."

He was nervous and rambling a bit as he looked at me, hope glimmering in his eyes that mirrored my own. But there was hesitation there as well like he expected me to say no.

Instead I smiled and said "Sure. That sounds like fun. You go on ahead and set it up. I'll bring popcorn."

Dominic smiled, a genuine one this time that was full of barely masked relief. "Great. Oh, uh, Alana liked the extra buttered kind if we have it. Maybe it will help."

I waited until I was certain Dominic was out of hearing range before I turned to August, my arms crossed and one eyebrow raised. "The pantry? Really?"

August had the decency to look sheepish as he shrugged. "I'm sorry, I kind of panicked."

I couldn't hold back my laugh as I relaxed and shook my head. "Obviously. Now,  if you've recovered from your teenage-boy-caught-in-a-girl's-room moment, help me with snacks. We'll talk about it all later."

"Maybe more than talk," he replied, his voice husky once more.

A shiver ran through me as anticipation heated my blood. Maybe this would be easier than I thought it would be after all.

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A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. I've had a rough week.

Let me know what you think or if you see mistakes.

Thanks for reading!❣

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XOXO🖤❤🖤❤

~SM~