He laughed. "No. I was upset because I don't want anything to happen to you and you seem determined to plunge yourself into danger."
I ran my hand over his chest again. "Not exactly. Just trying to protect the people who have protected me."
"I'm not going to change my mind," he said. "Callum would tell me to shut my mouth, but I'm going to be honest with you. It's been decades since I met a woman I wanted to make love to, much less live with."
Oh, my God. Decades? He was gorgeous, kind, gentle, funny, and strong. He should have been swatting women off with a stick.
"I don't need to read your thoughts to know you're surprised," he said. "Why?"
"Well, you're hot and nice and you can cook. Women should be bumping each other off for a chance to be with you."
"You forgot something very important," he said.
"What's that?"
"I'm excellent in bed."
I laughed. "That too. But, seriously, decades?"
He gazed at me for a long moment. "Time moves differently when you've been alive for thousands of years," he said, his voice soft. "Decades seem like nothing after such a long time. You start to look for something different. Someone different and you begin to recognize a special person when you see them."
Ah, shit. This was it. I was in love with Marcus Vane. He was literally the man of my dreams.
"You can't say things like this to me," I said, my voice breaking.
"Why?"
"Because then you'll never get rid of me."
"You're assuming that I'll want to."
In my head, I was already planning our future...until it hit me that I would eventually grow old and die while he stayed the same.
"But I'm going to get old," I said.
He studied me. "Not necessarily."
I waited but Marcus didn't say anything else. "You have to explain that," I said.
"I will, I'm just trying to figure out how to explain it in a way that won't freak you out."
"Forget freaking me out and just tell me."
"Well, if we continue to exchange blood on a regular basis, you'll stay the same age you are now. Physically."
"Regular basis?"
"Several times a week. You would only have to take a few drops each time. But there's another option. You could become a vampire."
I looked into his eyes and considered it. "That's a big commitment."
"I don't expect you to decide tonight. Or even tomorrow. But it is an option that you should consider if you decide to stay with me."
"Okay. Yeah, I think I need a while to mull it over. Especially the whole drinking blood thing."
"If I turned you, we would only drink from each other."
"Good to know."
