Carpathian 17 - Dark Curse

think I can,\" she whispered, tears burning behind her eyes. She\'d managed to give blood to her aunt and that was all her mind would allow.
    She detested disappointing him, especially now when she was feeling totally satisfied and loved. She wanted that for him as well. She wanted him to know she would give him everything if he asked-but she couldn\'t quite overcome the aversion she had. She knew giving blood was natural, even erotic between life mates, she\'d enjoyed it once, but now her stomach churned and panic set in. Everything had been so perfect and she had ruined it.
    \"I\'m sorry,\" she whispered, shamed. \"I\'m so sorry.\"
    He cupped her chin, lifted her face to kiss his way along her cheeks, collecting her tears with his tongue along the way. \"Do you honestly think taking your blood every time I make love to you matters to me, Lara?\"
    Nicolas kissed her pulse and swept his tongue over the pinpricks there. \"Tet vigyázam. I love you, it is that simple. Nothing else matters. You. Just you. I love to touch your body and make love to you, but it is you, who you are inside, that counts to me. If I cannot take your blood, will I miss that? I am certain I would occasionally. But truthfully, I would rather have you curled beside me, laughing with me, teasing, bringing me joy, than ever being with anyone else. Tet vigyázam , Lara. Forever. I love you for all time.\"
    She reached up to his beloved face. \"Tet vigyázam, Nicolas,\" she whispered, knowing it was true.

Chapter 20
    Lara and Nicolas rose early the next evening, bathed in the pool and made leisurely love. The naming ceremony was in a couple of hours and Lara was looking forward to it. She could feel the excitement building in the air all around her, even from within their cave. As she dressed she studied Nicolas. The wounds were gone, but she could see the raw edges not yet healed.
    \"When are you going to ground? You haven\'t been since we\'ve been together.\"
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    Christine Feehan: Dark Curse
    \"I will go when you are ready,\" he said.
    She frowned. \"That\'s not good enough, Nicolas. I can only check a few people a day for the microbe. I\'m not through with all the women, let alone starting on the men. And if the microbe is in the ground, it will be an endless, vicious circle.\"
    \"You have to be converted, Lara.\"
    \"I will be, just not right now.\"
    \"Within the week. Check the women and you are done.\"
    She didn\'t reply, knowing when he got that edge to his voice that he was worried about her. She knew what that felt like when she looked at him and saw his wounds that should have been healed. And she was very aware how often Nicolas suppressed his need to protect and keep her healthy. He knew the drain the journey was on her when she was hunting the microbe and she was having trouble keeping even broth down.
    Nicolas suddenly looked alert, his fingers settling around her arm, pulling her behind him. \"We have company. Let us meet them at the entrance to the cave, away from where your aunts rest.\"
    To Lara\'s surprise, Shea and Jacques Dubrinsky stood waiting for an invitation to enter, Jacques holding their infant son in his arms. It was the first time Lara had ever gotten a good glimpse of the man who was life mate to the Carpathian\'s researcher. He reminded her in some ways of her father, that ravaged look, with lines etched deep, eyes that had seen too much pain and suffering. She had heard the rumors of this man, of his splintered mind and how truly dangerous he was, but watching him hold his son so tenderly, it was difficult to believe.
    \"We\'ve come asking more from your life mate, Nicolas,\" Jacques said without preamble. \"I understand these journeys she makes are difficult, and I would not ask, but Shea thinks it is necessary.\" His gaze slid to his life mate and the tenderness in his expression was touching.
    \"It isn\'t so bad now that I know what I\'m doing,\" Lara said. \"And I have Nicolas as well to anchor me.\"
    She cleared her throat, thinking to confess her problem with giving or taking blood, which made the journeying difficult. She could only take blood from Nicolas and she didn\'t want to take a journey without him close. Reliving her childhood repeatedly was taxing.
    It is no one\'s business. Nicolas reached out and took her hand, bringing her palm to his chest.
    Shea touched her son\'s foot and looked up at both of them, blinking back sudden emotion. \"He isn\'t doing well. Our son. He\'s struggling and