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unpleasantness should I not give up the fugitive for
whatever water dungeon torture she has in store
for little boys whose fathers cheat on their wives.
By the way, said fugitive and or slash outlaw was
eating potato chips and drinking soda while playing
video games in my television room. Very
dangerous.
He sat up and sighed.  You re avoiding the
question.
 I m avoiding the question? Did I not just tell
you about your crazy mother s threats? Are you
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trying to talk about cohabitation instead of that?
Okay, I ll let you live in denial for another few
minutes. To answer your question, I can t live with
you. More than that, where would Alex go?
 Is that what worries you? He reached out to
caress her jaw line.  So sweet for a girl who acts so
tough. He ll live with us, of course. He ll be
changing in six months, anyway. I m committed to
bringing him over. And since we re on the subject,
why don t I bring you over, too? It ll be harder for
you, of course. You ll need a full conversion. But
my blood is strong. I ve never made another, so it s
undiluted.
 You want me to be a vampire? She couldn t
keep the incredulity out of her voice. He d go to
any length to keep from dealing with his batshit
crazy mother!
 I want you to be my wife. My partner in all
things. It ll be easier if you re a vampire, too.
You ll be so much stronger, I won t worry about
you as much. And I ll have you for hundreds, if not
thousands of years. I don t want to lose you,
Lissie.
Xander Stryker had never been felled by
anything in his life. He d always been in charge.
Always in control and on top. And here this woman
came and tossed all of that on its ear. Turned his
world upside down in amazing, wonderful,
beautiful, annoying, frustrating and, infuriating
ways. She connected with that part of him that no
one else had ever seen. That no one had ever even
59
Lauren Dane
bothered to see. She knew him.
He smoothed a thumb along the line of her
cheek.  My mother will accept this situation soon
enough. She s just throwing a tantrum right now.
Once she gets over this nonsense, you can move in.
I ll convert you when Alex matures. I love you,
Lissie. Say you ll do it. Say you want to be with me,
too.
 I do love you, Xander, she said softly.  But
there are a few big issues standing between us.
Your crazy-assed mother is one. Sweetie, you are
not rational about her. She tried to kill your
brother! She sent her lackey to threaten me for
taking him in. The fact that you refer to this kind
of behavior as something she ll get over just tells
me you are out of your mind, too.
 She s upset. Having Alex here means she ll
have to face my father s behavior. It s hard for
her.
She growled inarticulately and punched the
pillow in frustration.  Stryker! Wake up! She.
Tried. To. Kill. Him! Why couldn t the man see it?
 Upset is when you torch the cheater s car or his
clothes or you put his name on mailing lists for a
cult. Once attempted murder is involved, we ve
officially moved past upset and into crazy. That
boy in there is flesh and bone. A human who is
twelve. She could crush him like a bug. She
sighed, pushing off the bed to stand and pace.
 More than Cruella DeVille, we have the issue
of your little harem to deal with. I know you need
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blood, but I do not understand why they have to
live with you. Why you need ten of them and why
they have to be like some scene out of Bram
Stoker! Her voice got all breathy as she imitated
the women.  Walking around in filmy peignoirs and
throwing themselves at you. Oh, Xander, you re so
sexy! Gah! She stamped her foot in frustrated
anger.
 I might be able to deal with the fact that the
feeding causes orgasm. But, Stryker, other vamps
seem to be able to be collegial with their donors.
Why are yours like your fuck dolls? I m not living
with ten women that you get off daily, women who
constantly throw themselves at you. I won t do it.
He quirked up a smile.  Jealous?
She spun and narrowed her eyes at him.  Hell
yes! Jesus, Stryker, how will you feel when I need
donors? Hmm? How about I get ten hot men who
writhe all over me? Men who I ll make come every
day, who will constantly offer to fuck me? Okay,
this is sounding pretty damned good now. I ll let
you keep your harem if I get one of my own. She
lifted an eyebrow in challenge.
 You ll do no such thing. You ll get older
women, say in their seventies.
 And why is that? It stands to reason that young
men virile men who are at their top physical
shape would be the best donors for me. After all,
it s just about nutrition, right?
 Do you think I want you getting other men off?
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Lauren Dane
How do you expect me to live with that?
She threw back her head and laughed.  You are
the most self-centered man I ve ever known. God
help me for falling in love with you. This is the root
of the problem. You try to push the spotlight off to
other things. Crazy homicidal mother? Here, move
in with me and become a vampire! Skanky floozies [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]