Master of Smoke

praying she wouldn’t have to kill him. He groaned.
    Then Davon put his arms around her. It wasn’t a grab for prey, but a tender lover’s hold, light with affection and gratitude, perhaps even a little love. Belle closed her eyes in relief.
    But there was one more test they had to get through. And it was the trickiest part, the one that determined if he’d really made it—or if insanity rose out of some dark cave in his soul and turned him into a monster.
    They really should start, but instead Belle lay listening to his heartbeat slow as his abused body adjusted to its magical transformation.
    Until she could put it off no longer.
    Lifting her head, Belle met his eyes and forced a smile. “Hey, you.”
    “Hey.” Davon smiled, dazed and happy and clueless. She’d warned him about the risk of blood-madness, but she was fairly sure he had no idea how much danger he was in. “God, that was ...” He blinked big brown eyes. “Surprisingly painful, actually. I’ve never been hit by lightning, but it’d probably feel a lot like that.”
    “Yep, that’s the Gift.” He sounds good. So far. “Are you hungry?”
    “Yeah, now that you mention it.” Another blink. Dazed delight slipped into discomfort as he processed the implications. “You mean ...?”
    “Your body needs blood to complete the transformation.” Rather a lot of it, more than the cupful vampires usually took. Which was what made this so damned tricky.
    “Now?” He looked queasy and apprehensive, though nowhere near as scared as he should be.
    They never were.
    “Now. I’ll show you what to do.” Belle slipped off his limp cock and eased up his torso to reach his mouth. Unable to resist his worried expression, she gave him a quick kiss. “You’ll be fine.” I hope. She tapped a forefinger at the point right under her jaw where her pulse thumped. “Bite here. It’s better if you do it fast. And for God’s sake, don’t gnaw.”
    “One clean stroke, like with a scalpel.” He frowned. “But won’t it hurt you?”
    “Don’t worry about that. You’ll learn how to give pleasure during the bite later.” She leaned down, carefully bracing her left hand on his upper arm, the other on the center of his chest. She eased up her right knee until it was next to his left arm, ready to clamp down and pin his hand if she had to.
    Angling her throat right over his fanged mouth, she waited, doing a little praying while she was at it.
    Davon hesitated a long moment, as if working up the courage. Then he bit, quick and stinging.
    Both of them froze, nether so much as breathing. Until he finally began to drink. First one swallow, then another, then another. He moaned in startled pleasure at the taste.
    Belle swallowed at the lush sensation of his mouth working at her flesh, delight seeping through her dread.
    She lifted the right hand she’d braced on his chest, angled it. And conjured a knife, its blade thin and sharp, its point bare inches from the underside of his jaw. Ready to drive into his brain if he lost it and began to rip.
    She’d have only the blink of an eye to decide if he’d gone blood-mad. If she stabbed too late, she’d be dead before her knife broke the skin. If she stabbed too early, she might murder a sane man who could have been a warrior Avalon needed.
    Merlin’s Cup, I am so sick of this. The thought flashed through her mind, cold and heavy as lead.
    Davon opened his mouth and tugged his fangs free of her throat with exquisite care, so as not to tear her skin any further. “I think I’ve had enough.” He was breathing hard, but as she lifted her head, his dark gaze met hers, sane and intelligent.
    The knife vanished from her hand as she gave him a grin of pure, dizzying relief. “That’s good. That’s very good.”
    But as he wrapped his arms around her in a hug, the thought came again: I am so very sick of this.
    TWO
    There was something extremely disconcerting about driving with a naked man in the passenger seat. Even the coat didn’t help.
    Eva had found a jacket in the backseat and given it to Tall, Dark, and Naked. He’d looked at it askance. “I do not think it will fit.”
    Since it was her jacket, it sure as heck wouldn’t. “It’s to put in your lap while we drive.”
    He’d shot her a look of pure puzzlement. “But why?”
    “To cover up your ... umm.” She gestured below his waist.
    His lips quirked. “But why?”
    Jackass. “To keep the other drivers from running off the road.” To keep