“I’ll be fine once I get in the mood.”
How could such a strong, virile man be so slow? “Maybe I should touch you after all. To help you get in the mood.” She reached for his groin, but he grabbed her hand.
“What kind of gift do you need to be queen?” he asked, encasing her hand in both of his.
She groaned silently with frustration. “Why do you need to know? You cannot be queen. You are a man.” She pulled her hand from his grip and eyed his groin with suspicion. “That is, if you can ever get in the mood.”
His jaw shifted. “I’m getting there. Just a few more questions. What kind of gift does the queen need?”
“She must be able to communicate with . . . winged creatures.” Neona winced. Now she’d said too much.
Zoltan inhaled sharply. “You mean birds? Your mother can talk to birds?”
“Yes.” She gave him a wary look. “That probably sounds strange.”
“No. It doesn’t.” He gazed into the fire for a moment. “Are there other women in your group who have had that gift?”
“My twin sister, Minerva, did, but—” Neona tensed, afraid a wave of grief would sweep over her. She steeled her nerves and continued, “Winifred has the gift, so she will be the next queen.”
Zoltan turned toward her. “You had a twin sister?”
“Let me see if the tea is ready.” Neona jumped to her feet and grabbed the teapot. Her hands trembled, and some tea splashed onto the table.
“That’s all right.” Zoltan took the teapot from her and set it down. “I don’t really need any tea.”
She sat back down and clenched her hands together in her lap. “I think we’ve talked enough.”
“You lost your sister?”
She nodded. “Two weeks ago.”
“I’m so sorry.” He reached over and took hold of her hands. “I’ve lost my loved ones, too.”
She glanced at him and saw the pain shimmering in his golden amber eyes. “I’m sorry.”
He squeezed her hands. “What happens if you get injured? Are you able to heal yourself?”
She shook her head. “There was another healer. Frederic’s wife, Calliope. But she died about six years ago. I couldn’t save her.”
“And now you’re on your own? You relieve everyone’s pain, but there is no one to help you?”
Tears filled her eyes. “The pain I have cannot be healed.”
“I know.” He reached up and brushed her hair back from her brow. “But I would give you comfort if I can.”
He was so tempting. Oh, God, don’t fall for him. Her heart yearned for someone to hold her and care for her. But it couldn’t be Zoltan. She had to have a daughter. She could hold and cherish a daughter.
But what if she had a son? Would Zoltan react like Frederic had when Calliope had given birth to a son? Frederic had waited till the boy was old enough for school, and then he’d taken him to England. He’d left his mate and daughters behind. Abandoned.
A tear rolled down her cheek. What if she fell in love with Zoltan? How could she bear to lose him? Good God, she could lose him and a son. The pain she was feeling now could triple. “I cannot do this.” She jumped to her feet and ran for the door.
“Neona!”
She dashed outside, headed for the stream.
“Neona.” Zoltan grabbed her arm to stop her. “What happened? Did I say something wrong?”
She shook her head. “You’re not wrong. You’re too right! I could fall for you.”
“Would that be so bad?”
She broke away from his grip. “I don’t want your heart. The only thing I wanted from you is a daughter!”
He stiffened. “What?”
“I told you. Men are not allowed here.” Tears streamed down her cheeks as she backed away. “I wanted a daughter, but I changed my mind. It’s too big of a risk. I can never see you again. Good-bye.”
Chapter Seven
Stunned, Zoltan watched her run along the stream with her pet leopard trotting behind her. All she had wanted from him was a daughter? Had she planned to bed him, then never see him again? Was he nothing more than a damned sperm bank?
A blast of anger surged through him. She was rejecting him without giving him a decent chance. Even more infuriating was the thought that she would have dismissed him from the start if she’d known the truth. She would have considered him entirely useless. Hell, she probably would have killed him. For the truth was his sperm was dead.
Dammit. He could give her jewels and gowns. Mansions and castles. He could give her pleasure. In time, he could have given her love. As a Vamp, he could even give her immortality. But she wanted the one thing he couldn’t give. A child.
Rejected again. For the same damned reason. Over the centuries, he’d fallen for a few women. The affairs would last for a year or two, but they always ended the same way. The lure of immortality would fade, and then they always left him for a man who could give them children and grow old with them.
A few years back, something had happened that had given Zoltan hope that he could break the cycle of rejection. A brilliant Vamp scientist, Roman Draganesti, had figured out a way to insert their Vamp DNA into live human sperm. Now the Vamps with mortal wives were having kids like crazy. Technically, he could give Neona children, but it would require a trip to Romatech in New York, where Roman worked.
Zoltan wasn’t sure she would ever agree to go there for the artificial insemination process. Roman could probably guarantee her a daughter if that was what she really wanted. But would she expect Zoltan to drop her and his daughter off in Tibet, never to see them again? He would not abandon her or his child, dammit!
And why the hell couldn’t a woman want him for himself? Was he so damned unlovable that a woman could only want him for the children he might provide? He’d been rejected in the past for that, but he would not sit by and let it happen again. Not with Neona. She was different. Somehow, her fate was linked to his. They were connected. He wasn’t sure how, but he knew in his gut that she belonged with him.
He charged toward Neona, using vampire speed to catch up with her. Six feet behind her, he slowed to a rapid walk.
The cat looked at him and snarled. Get lost.
No. He glared at Neona’s back. “So that’s it? You’re giving up?”
The cat huffed. Great idea, yelling at her. That will make her like you.
Shut up, cat. “Talk to me, Neona. Why did you change your mind all of a sudden?”
She kept walking. “I decided it was unwise.”
“Bullshit. You’re afraid. What kind of warrior are you? I thought you were tougher than that.”
She whirled to face him, her clenched hands raised and ready to punch him. “I beat you once. I can do it again.”
“Then do it!” He spread his hands in surrender. “Tie me up and ravish me.”
“I don’t want to anymore!”
“Why not?” He stepped toward her. “Are you afraid you might develop feelings for me? God forbid you might feel close to me while I’m inside you.”
She swung a fist at him, but he jumped back.
Oh, you’re making fine progress, the cat sneered.
Sod off! “You know what really pisses me off?” He stepped closer. “That you see me as a damned sperm bank. There is more to me than my ability to father children. And there is a hell of a lot more to you than your ability to bear a child!”
She blinked, staring at him.
The cat hissed. Stop yelling at her, or I’ll claw your foot off.
Not before I stuff it down your throat. Zoltan gave the cat an annoyed look, then lowered his voice and motioned back to the cabin. “Why don’t we go back in and talk? I thought we were getting along very well.”
She slowly lowered her fists. “I cannot be a . . . friend to you.”
“Why not? I like you. I thought you liked me. We were getting to know each other. That’s what couples do—”
“We cannot be a couple!”
“We can!” He grabbed her by the shoulders. “I’m not giving up on you.”
A pained look crossed her face. “You have to. There is no future for us. Men are not allowed here.”
“Why not?”
“They’re not . . . necessary.”
“Bullshit. Every community needs some men.”
She broke his hold on her and stepped back. “Ours does not.”
He scoffed. “How do you build your houses?” He gestured toward the cabin. “Didn’t Frederic build this one?”
“He helped, but we know how to do it without a man. We built our own homes.”
“What about protection? A man can pro—”
“We can protect ourselves.”
Not against an army. But Zoltan didn’t want to remind her of the recent death of her sister. It would be too cruel. “Men have a lot of uses.”
She gave him a dubious look. “Really?”
“Of course. A man can . . . build a fire.”
She shrugged. “I can do that.”
“A man can provide food for his family.”
“I am an excellent hunter.”
“A man can till the soil and plow the field.”
“We have a donkey.”
He snorted. “You can’t replace a man with a donkey. They are stubborn creatures who won’t do as they’re told.”
Her brow arched. “And there’s a difference?”
He gritted his teeth.
The cat yawned. You stepped right into that one, moron.
Go chew on your fleas. Zoltan planted his hands on his hips. “A donkey doesn’t have hands. He can’t do repairs around the house. Or cook. Or clean.”
“I can do those things myself.”
“What about those ten cl**axes you wanted? Are you going to do that yourself, too?”
She lifted her chin. “What makes you think I haven’t?”
Dammit. Zoltan searched his brain. “I know! What if you can’t open a jar? You’ll need a man for that!”
Pathetic, the cat muttered.
She shrugged. “Our jars do not have lids. We tie a piece of fabric around—”
“What if you need a hug? And don’t you dare mention that damned donkey!”
She laughed.
“There! You see. You need me around to make you laugh.”
“Actually, the donkey has made me laugh a few times.”
He scowled at her. “I refuse to compete with a donkey.”
“You don’t have to compete at all.” Her face grew sad. “I shouldn’t see you again.”
“I’m not giving up on you.” He stepped closer. “Who will listen to you in the middle of the night? Who will you share your secrets with?”
She gasped, her eyes widening. “Did you hear me?” She shook her head. “You couldn’t have. I was alone.”
“Hear what?”
“Nothing.” Her eyes filled with tears.
“You’re grieving for your sister, I understand that.”
She closed her eyes briefly. “You don’t understand how long we were together, or how long we will be apart.”
The first part of her sentence struck him as odd, since he assumed she’d been with her twin for only about twenty-two years. But facing the rest of her life alone was clearly causing her pain.
When a tear rolled down her cheek, he smoothed it away with his thumb. “I could be with you for a very long time. Trust me.” He kissed her cheek.
She trembled. “Men cannot be trusted.”
“I would never hurt you. Trust me.” He kissed her other cheek.
“Men cannot—”
He stopped her by planting his mouth on hers. She tensed at first, her hands splayed against his chest. But as he moved his lips gently and insistently, her fingers slowly dug into his jacket. He deepened the kiss, and with a moan, her mouth opened.
Yes. He explored her mouth, claiming it as his own. She would belong to him. This was no mistake. The arrow that had haunted him for almost eight hundred years had led him to her. She knew the answers he’d sought for so long. She’d touched his heart that had been cold for so long. Their fates were entwined, he could feel it in his bones. This was the woman he’d waited centuries for.
He scattered kisses across her face and down her neck. Her breaths grew quick and agitated. Her hands slipped up around his neck.
His groin hardened, and he debated how far he should go tonight. As much as he wanted to bed her, it didn’t seem fair to take her when she believed the act would result in pregnancy.
But he could pleasure her. Give her one of those cl**axes she wanted. He slipped his hand to the front of her tunic and palmed a breast. The silk was so thin that he could feel her nipple hardening.
“Neona,” he whispered in her ear. “Let’s go back to the cabin.”
She leaned back, giving him a nervous look. “You’re in the mood now?”
“Yes.” He grasped her h*ps and pulled her tight against his erection.
She gasped. “You . . . you’re vibrating.”
“I am?” He glanced down, then realized the sat phone was buzzing in his pants pocket. Dammit. If he didn’t answer, would Howard send Mikhail looking for him?
“Just a minute.” He stepped back and retrieved the phone from the pocket. “Why the hell are you calling, Howard?”
“Good evening to you, too,” Howard grumbled. “Russell showed up here out of the blue and insists you talk to him. I tried to get him to tell me what the problem is, but he said it had to be you. Something about an arrow.”