Crimson Dichotomy (Dichotomy Saga) Read Free Page B

a large, barren room. A faded oriental rug covered the floorboards, but the walls were unadorned, the only window tightly shuttered. She was fully dressed except for her shoes. She hadn’t been wearing them when Taerok came for her.
    In her sorrow, she’d cried out to Taerok. He’d appeared, as he always did when she needed him most. He’d taken her in his arms and placed his mouth over hers and… She couldn’t remember anything after the kiss.
    He stood now at the foot of the bed, silent and still. His hands were clasped behind his back, drawing his T-shirt tight across his lean chest. Candlelight picked up the lighter tones in his warm brown hair and accented the sharp angles of his features.
    “You want to be transformed,” he said without preamble. “Before we begin, I insist you understand exactly what that means.”
    “I do understand.” She curled her legs beneath her and folded her hands in her lap, wanting to appear calm and composed. They’d discussed the possibility several times before, but never had he indicated he was willing to grant her wish. “My life as a Dichotomy will end and I’ll be reborn as a vampire.”
    “It’s not nearly that simple. We do not know what will happen to your day-dwelling twin. I’ve never awakened a Dichotomy before.”
    “A few drops of your blood gave me complete control over Emily. My transformation will only make me stronger.”
    He moved to the side of the bed, his stride rolling and unhurried. “I hope for that outcome as well, but we have no guarantee. You are nocturnal by nature. It is likely Emily will fight the transformation with every fiber of her being.”
    “I can control Emily. You have no idea how much I want this.”
    “Your true determination is what we need to ascertain. My world is very different from yours. Vampires survive by their instincts and their brutality. I have shielded you from the harsher realities of my existence.”
    He raised his elegant hand and a shadow separated from the darkness. The aberration rolled across the floor like smoke, then swirled into a column beside him. A shape formed within the vapor and Valerie pressed her hand to her chest. The smoke dissipated as suddenly as it had arisen, leaving a man, or rather a male vampire.
    Taerok always flashed into sight without dramatics. Who was this other man? Half a head taller than Taerok and more heavily muscled, the stranger studied her as intently as she studied him. His dark hair had a hint of red and his eyes were emerald green. Taerok’s allure was almost indefinable, while this man was downright gorgeous.
    She looked from Taerok to the newcomer and back. “Why is he here?”
    “Raze is my companion. If anything, you are intruding on his domain, not the other way around.”
    Her eyes rounded and she scooted back toward the wall. “Why did you…sleep with me if you were already involved with someone else?”
    “This is your first lesson and it is an important one. Vampires often fuck when they feed. Sexual arousal infuses blood with energy. The concept works in the reverse as well. Vampires often become sexually stimulated when they take a person’s blood. You offered me your blood and when I accepted your offer, I became eager for your body. Do you understand?”
    She crossed her arms over her chest, feeling ridiculously naive. “That’s all I mean to you?”
    “I’m fond of you. I enjoy spending time with you, but there is no grand passion between us. I find pleasure in your body and your blood is unusually potent. Monogamy and love are concepts that have little meaning in my world.”
    “A vampire can’t love?”
    “I didn’t say that. Some vampires form a sort of symbiotic union, where all they need is each other, but those bondings are few and far between. Far more of us abandon ourselves to the freedom of fucking without regret or shame. There is no risk of pregnancy and no sexually transmitted diseases, so why not indulge the flesh?”
    She wasn’t