Danger is heading Annie’s way. The faceless man haunting her dreams is a portent. Is it her devious stepfather who wants to enslave her, or the tall, dark stranger who sweeps into her life, unleashing an erotic inferno that sears them both? Lust, fear and desire make a volatile combination as she tries to fight one man’s dangerous seductive charm, while keeping a step ahead of another.

He tried to speak but couldn’t. His gaze was transfixed on the long length of her neck. Her life’s essence beat just beneath her ivory skin, calling to him. He nearly groaned with the need to take her into his arms and sample her. Her corseted breasts rose and fell rapidly. The full swells inviting him to touch and caress.

Mine. The thought entered his head uninvited.

She adjusted her stance, taking a step backwards, as she nervously glanced over his shoulder. “It’s getting dark.” The place was nearly vacant, except for a few people milling about. “Perhaps you could return next Friday.”

Quickly, she began to gather her cards. They made a sharp sound as she tapped them against the wooden table to straighten them. Then she once again began to fold them in the scarf patterned with multiple versions of Celtic knots.

When Etienne found his voice, he said, “No.” His abrupt word made her gaze snap back to him. She silently scrutinized him. He thought to touch her mind, but her worldly blue-green eyes captivated him. He knew immediately that her young life had not been a happy one.

“Then we must hurry. Sit.” The legs of her chair screeched across the porch floor.

“Not here. Your place,” he demanded with a little too much authority.

Her eyes widened. She stopped mid-way of sitting down. “What?” Her voice thinned into a high-pitched squeal. Her backbone went rigid as she stood. A little attitude was present in her rising brow.

Etienne could see clearly at night, but he doubted she could and the night was approaching. Gently, he pushed her will with his mind for compliance.

She shook her head, a frown twisting her lips when she realized what he had done. “D-Don’t ever try that again or I’ll walk.”

Now it was his turn to be shocked. No one had ever thwarted his mind-control, but she did. She slammed the walls of her defenses around her so tightly that he bumped into nothingness.

He had never apologized for invading a human’s mind, but this woman was different. “Forgive me.” His hands itched to touch her, feel her writhe beneath him as he made love to her. An indescribable need to bind her to him with blood tore through his heart.

Apprehension shimmered in her eyes. “Who are you?” She swallowed hard, studying him with a wariness he felt bone deep. How could someone so young appear so haunted? She had to be nineteen, twenty, no more than twenty-one.

He tried to comfort her by taking a step backward, giving her more space, even though he wanted to do just the opposite. “Etienne Deveraux.”

She stared at him a moment longer, scrutinizing him with an intensity that made him a little uncomfortable. “You are at a point of indecision. Tonight is a juncture in your life,” she said, as if she could read his mind, revealing what he had intentions of doing when the sun rose. “You are a seeker in need of answers.”

Reading minds was his gift—not hers. Either she was guessing or extremely intuitive. Either way, he sensed she was special, even if she was wrong about him seeking answers. He knew what he needed to know—twelve hours before dawn.

Still he was mystified at the immediate attraction he felt for her. This had only happened to him once before. Thoughts of Meryell vanished when the gypsy stepped forward and placed her warm palm on his arm.

The earth literally quaked beneath his feet. She must have felt it too because she jerked her hand back so quickly she stumbled backward, barely catching her footing. Nervously, she retrieved her cards, cramming them into a handbag she pulled from beneath her table.

Without looking up at him, she said. “Follow me.” Not waiting to see if he was following, she strolled down the steps and made a beeline for the exit. Her skirts made a soft, rushing sound against her ankles with her quick stride.

What would those long legs feel like wrapped around his waist? The thought almost pulled him up short, but he continued after her. Satisfied just to watch her hips sway side to side, he couldn’t wait to peel each layer of clothing off her body and quench himself of the lust building inside him.

“Night, Annie.” A man dressed as a medieval knight waved as he fastened a lock on the front of his store advertising leather and metal goods like armor and swords.

She returned the wave, never pausing. “Good night, John.”

By the time they stood before a small silver trailer, the light of day had blinked out and night took over, casting them into darkness. Her hands trembled as she tried to insert a key in the door.

“This is asinine,” she muttered, turning the knob. “I don’t even know you.”

With a grunt, she pulled open the door, climbing the two stairs leading inside. As he followed, she spun around. The confined space had her turning straight into his arms.

Their eyes met. He didn’t wait for common sense to hit her. Before she realized she’d invited a stranger, much less a vampire, into her home, he shut the door, leaned down and captured her mouth.

Soft. Her lips were velvety soft, parting as his tongue slid between them. She whimpered, the feminine sound sweet to his ears, almost as tantalizing as her warm honey taste. While her arms hung limp by her side, he pulled her closer, reveling in the way their bodies fit together and how holding her made him feel more alive than he had in ages.

Her dark lashes were crescents upon her high cheekbones. When he slanted his head to deepen the kiss, her shawl slipped from her shoulders and her handbag fell to the floor with a thud. Quietly, her hands rose to tentatively touch his biceps.

An ache began to throb in his gums, fangs threatening to explode in his mouth. The swish of her blood, her pulse growing rapid, and her heart beating a staccato rhythm echoed in his ears. Slowly, he moved one of his hands across her back to her neck where her essence called to him. With his thumb he stroked the blue vein. He broke the caress, sliding his lips downward, kissing her skin.

A grinding sound and a sudden cool gust of air as the air conditioning kicked on made her cry out and jerk away. To his disappointment, her sanity had resurfaced.

Immediately, he released her, putting as much distance between them as the small room in the trailer would allow.

Her startled gaze darted from his eyes to his obvious erection. Her face flushed the prettiest pink. From the heat or the moment, he didn’t know. All he knew was his body screamed to get closer with a desperate need to feel her next to him and her blood flowing through his veins—his through hers.

Throughout the centuries he had never given anyone the curse of immortality. As his gaze stroked the fine features of her face, he couldn’t push the compulsion from his mind.

He wanted this woman.