Consumed by Love - A Short Story Read Free

believe she
could survive losing him, so she sat and kept vigil, day after day, as he—and
now she—wasted away until they were nothing but skin and bones.
    A sob broke from her,
and she bit down on her lip to contain the sound. The capillaries of her soft
flesh broke, causing a deep reddening of the skin.
    Hugo stirred, pulling
his arm back up and rolling to his side.
    Baby, please wake up.
    Bree chewed on the
inside of her cheek. The pain centered her, kept her focused, kept the tears at
bay.
    Hugo woke and looked up
from his quiet resting place. Sunlight drifted through the curtains, softening
the light as it fell across his face. To Bree, his dark skin was suddenly
devoid of pigment, his eyes blank, his hair limp and slicked back with sweat
against his head.
    Rita’s words rang in her mind: If he starts to change, if his hair falls out, if his skin becomes white,
you can’t let it go too far.
    Smoothly, Hugo stood,
his gaze fixed on his wife’s mouth with desire, the fire behind his flat eyes
inhuman with its need. Bree, in her desperation, only saw that he was awake and
walking toward her with strength she mistook for health.
    As for Hugo, the weight
holding him down lifted, and he felt almost buoyant, excitement showing in his
gait.
    She smiled at him
brightly, releasing her hold on herself and reaching for him, needing him to be
the one to hold her together. His mouth twisted into something resembling a
smile, but his lips curled back with a soft, animal-like growl.
    Hugo pulled his wife
into his arms and inhaled deeply, immediately recognizing the scent of his
salvation. His lips roughly met hers, and he searched her mouth with his
tongue, seeking the flavor that would return him to life.
    Bree clung to him,
pulling him in closer, digging into him with her nails. She breathed deeply and
her excitement enhanced the provocative scent that had awoken him from his
slumber. She lost herself in their kiss, sucking on him and letting her need
take over. She didn’t notice when his kiss became more about his teeth than her
lips, or when his hands gripped her ass so tightly she could not have gotten
away if she tried. Perhaps she didn’t notice because she didn’t want to
get away. She didn’t want him to stop his assault.
    If
he stopped, he might disappear again. This moment was real and tangible.
    Hugo’s teeth sunk deeply
into Bree’s lower lip, his incisor striking the very spot she had bitten
earlier. The tip was sharp and sunk easily into her flesh.
    She gasped as he sucked
on the wound, drawing blood to the surface. His hold on her tightened, a vice
grip around her waist. One hand locked behind her head so she could not get
away. He would have her and take what his biology demanded.
    Hugo
pulled back and looked at her with eyes of life and fire, then released her and
shook his head as if trying to break a spell.
    “Hugo....” She reached
up and took his face in her hands. Whatever just happened between them had
restored his strength. Whatever he needed, she would give it to him willingly.
    “Hugo....” she said
again, pulling him down to her lips. He resisted until she bit down on her lip
harder, re-opening the wound he had caused.
    They
made frantic, desperate love on the living room floor. Fear, relief and passion
blended together, bringing them to a new high. Hugo made love to her body while
he suckled her lip.
    Bree felt complete with
him inside her. They moved together easily; like the tide against the dunes,
their bodies danced to the familiar rhythm of love. Today, though, Hugo’s
hunger for her body consume him, and he crashed his need into her with a
strength he hadn’t possessed before.
    Bree screamed and lifted
her body up to him, her legs pulling him closer as her hands gripped his back.
She moaned and her world condensed, closing in on her until all that existed
were their bodies together. As she drew closer to her final exaltation, Hugo
pulled away from her swollen and bruised mouth.
    With