Nina Croft Week: ‘Break Out’ Bonus Scene

“Nice room,” Skylar murmured, hovering in the doorway. Though maybe nice wasn’t the right word. This was the first time she’d been to Rico’s cabin. It was huge and, like the rest of the ship, decorated in black and silver to match its owner.Rico tugged her inside and gestured with a flourish of his free hand. “Mi casa es su casa.”

“What does that mean?” she asked as the doors slid shut behind them.

She was in the vampire’s lair. With the vampire. Would she ever get over that little twist of primordial fear when she thought the word? Part of her hoped not.

“It’s an old Spanish saying—my house is your house. In this case my cabin but the sentiment remains the same—it’s yours if you want it.”

She thought about the words. A ring and now sharing quarters. This really was serious.  “You want me to move in in here with you?”

“Of course. We’re almost married and I’m an old-fashioned guy. This is my home and I’d like it to be ours.”

Home. A strange concept.

The only furniture was a huge bed in the middle of the room, covered in black sheets and mounds of black pillows. It looked comfortable, but she wasn’t tired. She felt totally wired. She’d faced death, today, and made love for the first time in… well, a lot of years. At the memory, everything tightened low down in her body.

Rico turned to her. “So, you’re our new security officer. You think you’re up to keeping order on the Cazador?”

She eyed him up. God, he was beautiful, all long lean grace, wrapped up in black leather. And he was hers. Heat washed through her, tightening her nipples and settling between her thighs.

His nostrils flared, a slow smile curled his lips, and he quirked a brow as he waited for her answer.

She shook herself.  “Hell, yeah.”

Rico released her hand and turned to face her, his gaze running over her, no doubt snagging on the hard little points of her nipples pressing against the jumpsuit. Suddenly her clothes were way too tight.

“You think you could take me?” he murmured.

Oh, yes, she could take him. Every way he could think of, and she was betting after fifteen hundred years, Rico could think of quite a few ways. She remembered what he’d said earlier about tying him up and image flashed in her mind of Rico flat on his back, his wrists and ankles bound to the corners of the bed, while she had her evil way with him. Trouble was she wasn’t sure what her evil way would be—maybe she needed a bit of practice first. Get her head around the whole idea that she had a lover.

She swapped the image for one of herself spread-eagled on the bed, while Rico crouched over her, kissed her, licked her, bit her… She was a little concerned about how much she liked that idea. Only a few hours after they’d made love for the first time and she was turning into a pervert. Shaking her head, she banished the image—well, for the moment anyway—and focused on the vampire. “Yeah, I could take you.”

She glanced across to where he stood, his body relaxed, a sleepy smile on his lips. So he found the idea amusing? Without giving herself time to think it was a bad idea, she whirled around and kicked out, sweeping his legs from under him.

He landed on his ass with a thump and stared up at her. “Hey, not fair.”

“Nothing about fighting is fair.”

“You’re right.” He moved so fast he was a blur and she was on the floor next to him, flat on her back. He moved again so he crouched, looming over her. “Totally right, querida.”

She sat up abruptly. Her face slammed into his rock hard chest, she fell back to the floor, and slapped her hand over her nose. Beneath her palm she could feel the warm ooze of blood. “Oh, fuck. You broke my nose.”

Rico had gone still above her. She blinked and stared up into his crimson-flecked eyes. His gaze focused on her face where blood trickled down from beneath her hand.

“Ugh,” she said. “Don’t tell me you find a nosebleed sexy?”

He shook himself. “God, sorry sweetheart.”

“Not your fault. I banged into you.”

He rolled to his feet and disappeared through a door opposite. Skylar pushed herself up and was investigating the damage when he re-appeared. Crouching down in front of her, he peeled her hand away from her face and gently wiped it clean with the warm wet towel.

Skylar twitched her nose. The pain was gone, the damage healed almost instantly. Perhaps she shouldn’t tell him that though. She quite liked contrite Rico. She blinked a couple of times. “I’ll be fine if I just lie down for a little while,” she said adding a small catch to her voice.

His brows drew together then his eyes narrowed. Reaching out he stroked one long finger down the length of her nose. “Broken?”

“I heal quick.” She gave a shrug of one shoulder, then curling her hand into a fist, she punched out, catching him in the center of his chest so he toppled over onto his back. Quickly, she straddled him, palms flat on the floor on either side of his head.

He grinned. “Are we going to fight about who goes on top every time?”

“Probably.”

His hands gripped her arms and they rolled on the floor, and somehow he was on top once again, and her jumpsuit was open to the waist, and his mouth was on her breasts. The urge to fight drained away as his cool tongue licked at her heated flesh, his teeth tugging at her distended nipples.

For a moment, she closed her eyes and savored the feeling, then she bent her knees, placed her feet against his chest and shoved. He flew across the room slamming into the wall. And she was on her feet and stalking after him.

He leaned against the wall and watched her through narrowed eyes. “You like it rough?”

Actually, she’d never had it “rough.” “I don’t know.”

“You want to try?” Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed her by the arms and whirled her around so she was facing the wall, her naked breasts up against the smooth metal, Rico’s long, hard body pressed against her back. He lowered his head to the curve where her shoulder met her neck and nuzzled. His fangs grazed her skin while his hand slid around her and tugged her zipper all the way down. She jumped as one hand slipped inside then went still as his teeth gripped her shoulder, not breaking the skin, but holding her in place.

Her insides were melting, heat sinking to her belly, then lower to where a pulse throbbed at her core. Rico worked quickly, pushing the jumpsuit down her arms, over her hips. She kicked off her boots and the jumpsuit followed leaving her naked. He kissed her neck, then the lobe of her ear. His body held her in place while his hands roamed over her, cupping her breasts, tugging at her nipples, sending darts of pleasure between her thighs. He pinched hard and she gasped but pushed back against him, her ass pressing against the hardness of his erection.

“You like that?” He pinched again, rolling the nipple between his finger and thumb. Sliding his hand lower, his fingers tangled in the curls at the base of her belly and her breath caught in her throat. His fingers slipped easily between the folds of her sex. “I’m guessing that’s a yes,” he whispered against her skin, as he tormented her sensitive flesh.

As his hands left her, she bit back a groan. He stepped back, then his lips caressed the nape of her neck and he kissed his way down her spine using his tongue and his teeth. Tingles raced through her body, settling between her thighs. There was a constant throb there now, sensation swelling inside her. He licked the curve of her buttocks, bit gently, then shifted lower to her thigh and every muscle tensed in anticipation. “You have a vein”—he spread her legs and kissed her inner thigh—“just here. May I…?”

She couldn’t speak but she nodded, bracing herself for the bite, her breath coming in short sharp pants. Instead he straightened, scooped her up and tossed her onto the bed.

Before she could register what was happening, he came down on top of her, sliding over her body. His hands grasped her ankles, spreading her legs then his mouth was on her inner thigh and his fangs sank into her. At the first pull, the pleasure exploded, her head falling back, a scream locked in her throat. He drew the blood from her vein as the sensation pulsed through her. As the pleasure ebbed, he plunged a finger inside her, the pad of his thumb massaging her clit, and she came again.

Then he was over her, parting her legs with an impatient thigh, shoving himself inside her while the ripples still radiated out from her core. He filled her hard and fast. She blinked open her lids to find him gazing down at her, his expression savage, his eyes glowing crimson. Fear flashed through her. As the adrenaline pumped through her system, she wrapped her arms around his neck, dragged him down to her, and kissed him, thrusting her tongue into his mouth, careless of the fangs, then tasting the sharp metallic tang of her own blood as her tongue dueled with his.

He ground his hips against hers, each stroke tormenting her sensitized clit, so the pleasure grew again. His fingers dug into her hips as he held her steady for each hard thrust. He was losing control and she loved it. She bucked, rubbing herself against him, until his back arched and they came together just as a loud crash filled the room and the ship lurched, sending them rolling from the bed.

Rico hit the floor with her on top and his arms wrapped around her. For long seconds, they lay waiting for whatever came next. Finally, he looked into her face. “Are you getting a sense of déjà vu here?” he murmured.

“Yeah.”

The ship jolted again, hurling them sideways so they slammed into the wall. She held on tight but when nothing else happened, she levered herself up. “I suppose, as the brand-new security officer, I’d better go check out who’s shooting at us.”

Time to go to work.

Someday, she’d really like to spend a whole uninterrupted night in bed with Rico. But not today. One thing was for sure—things would never be boring around here.

The year is 3048, Earth is no longer habitable, and man has fled to the stars where they’ve discovered the secret of immortality—Meridian. Unfortunately, the radioactive mineral is exorbitantly expensive and only available to a select few. A new class comprised of the super rich and immortal soon evolves. The Collective, as they’re called, rule the universe.

Two-thousand-year-old Ricardo Sanchez, vampire and rogue pilot of the space cruiser, El Cazador, can’t resist two things: gorgeous women and impossible jobs. When beautiful Skylar Rossaria approaches him to break a prisoner out of the Collective’s maximum security prison on Trakis One, Rico jumps at the chance. Being hunted by the Collective has never been so dangerous–or so fun!