Vampire for Christmas by Felicity Heaton Read Free Book Online Page A

She was
distancing herself.
    He could
understand why. The revelation that she had been attacked by a
vampire had given him a lot to think about today. He had cast his
mind back over their two years together and her fragility, her
reason for discarding her feelings for him, for keeping them hidden
and pretending they didn’t exist, and her initial nerves around
him, all made sense now. He couldn’t believe that the agency had
paired her with him, a vampire, after she had been through so much
because of one. They knew her history. He wished that he did too.
That was why he had come here tonight. This was his last chance to
break through the barrier around her heart and convince her to
trust him.
    “ Haven’t you gone yet?” There was a snap in her
tone.
    “ No.” Rafe wasn’t about to leave just because she had asked. He
had never obeyed such a request in the past and he wasn’t going to
start now.
    A sense
of fear laced the beating of her heart.
    Was she
afraid that he would hurt her? Hadn’t he proven himself worthy of
her trust over the past two years they had worked
together?
    That
hurt.
    “ What about goodwill towards all men?” It was a long
shot.
    She
laughed. “You’re not a man. You’re a monster.”
    That one
really hurt.
    Rafe
ground his teeth and pressed his free hand to the door, trying to
feel her on the other side and pinpoint her emotions. Her heart was
racing, loud in his ears, speaking to his true nature and enticing
it. He ignored the temptation and desire to hunt her, and instead
reached further, deeper, until he could pick out the tangled
threads of her feelings. The past two years had helped him grow
attuned to her. He had catalogued her feelings whenever he’d had
the chance, separating them out when she gave clear indications of
what emotion she was feeling, so at a time like this he could read
her like a book written in large neon letters.
    She
didn’t believe what she had said. He told it to his heart
repeatedly so it would stop aching. It was just a reaction to her
emotions. They were strong, conflicted, and were causing her to
push him away because she didn’t want to deal with them or didn’t
know how to.
    “ I am not a monster, Shannon.” Rafe closed his eyes and locked
on to the two feelings that were strongest. Fear. No surprise
there. The other eluded him. Softer emotions were difficult for
vampires to grasp. Was she feeling something like that? Love, hope,
affection? What was it that kept her standing on the other side of
the door, giving him time to talk to her, to convince her to do as
he wanted? He sighed and lowered his voice, letting his emotions
flood it so she would know the truth in his words. “I promise you,
Shannon, whatever happened to you, whatever that vampire did, I
would never do anything to hurt you. I am not that sort of man.
Can’t you see that? Don’t you know that in your heart?”
    She
didn’t answer. He stood there in silence, waiting for her to turn
on him, to blame him for what had happened to her before they had
even met, or to tell him that he was wrong and she did think he was
a beast after her blood.
    Her fuzzy
shape moved and she turned and leaned against the door. He moved
his hand, placing it against the wood on the other side of the door
to her, so he could feel her emotions more clearly. She sighed and
tilted her head back, resting it against the glass. He could feel
the war in her, the emotions raging through the wood into his hand,
and could hear the battle in her heart.
    He needed
to know what had happened to her. He wanted to understand her pain
and fear, so he could find a way to open her eyes to her feelings
and show her that it was alright to be with him, because he would
never hurt her. Her words tore at his heart and doubt firmly
plunged its claws into his mind.
    “ Please, Shannon,” he whispered and leaned his right side on
the door near to her. He rested his forehead against the glass.
“Tell me you do not believe I am a