Part 19 (1/2)

”He saved your life, and now he is a guest in my home. I will show him the respect he deserves,” Pallo said, taking the smallest of steps toward me.

I looked around the bedroom. This was his. I'd been in this two-timing loser's bedroom for the last four nights. How the h.e.l.l many bedrooms did he have? I guess you walk around and think about s.e.x twenty-four hours a day for, like, two-hundred years, you make sure you're always prepared for it.

”I liked your taste in wall colors better before you became a monster. Yellow was a much better choice.” I made sure to emphasize the word monster. Every bit of my body wanted to hit him, over and over again. He had said such ugly things about me. More importantly, he had fooled me into thinking he really did love me.

He started across the room to me. I put my hand up and yelled at him.

”Stay the h.e.l.l away from me. I'll get my stuff and go to a hotel,” I said hotel instead of farm house, because I didn't want him to know where I would be. I'm sure he'd figure it out eventually, but he wouldn't be hearing it from my lips. I moved towards the bed, and pulled my bags to the floor.

”Gwyneth, you are being unreasonable.”

I couldn't believe the nerve of this guy. He thought I was being unreasonable.

”I didn't turn on you. I didn't f.u.c.k somebody else in the room next to you.”

He cut me off. ”No, you are correct. As I remember it, you did it in the same room as me as you pinned me to the floor to be sure I didn't miss the show.” He lifted his pale hand and touched his chin. ”Ah, yes, I believe you did. Or do you forget your precious little Caleb so soon?”

He had me there. ”Christ, Pallo, it was a l.u.s.t spell! I will not stand here and justify my actions to you. Besides, as I remember it, Caleb wasn't a crazed lunatic who was about to have you killed.” I lost my cool fast. ”You mean nothing to me, get away from me. I can't even stand to look at you.” My voice got louder as my anger grew. ”And, don't you ever say Caleb's name, ever! You will never be close to the man he was. Do you understand me?”

”I have not been a man for over two-hundred years. My quest for your hand saw to that.”

Oh, how rich! He was going to twist this around and blame me for everything. I'm not without my faults, but this was not all my doing. ”f.u.c.k you, Pallo!”

”Please, lower your voice. I swore that I would not see you until tomorrow. If Giovanni finds me here, our agreement is over.” There was something in his voice I had never heard before. It was fear.

I turned and looked at him. ”You're afraid of Giovanni, aren't you?” The look in his eyes told me I was right. ”Maybe you should pretend to care about him, sleep with him, or, excuse me, 'f.u.c.k him' as you like to call it, then bash him across the face...oh...and then go get f.u.c.ked by some psycho b.i.t.c.h from h.e.l.l. Yeah, that ought to do it.” I could feel my anger rising. It brought my power to the surface.

”That is not what happened, Gwyneth. Talia would have destroyed us all if I hadn't tricked her. I could not single-handedly take on her entire pack of hounds. I am sorry, and I do love...” Pallo was almost touching me now.

I wanted to lash out at him with my power. I wanted to knock him to the ground. I didn't want to hear his lies anymore.

”You called me wh.o.r.e--a donnaccia and struck me down, and left me to die by Jonathan's hands. If that's how you love people, I don't want any part of it.” I pushed at him slightly with my power.

Pallo's white s.h.i.+rt blew back against his body. His black pants clung to him as my power pushed at him. He stood his ground. He brought his own power to the surface and pushed against mine.

”Gwyneth, I tried to warn you of what I was going to do. I tried to reach you.”

I let more of my energy seep from my body. ”All I felt around you was a wall. You were blocking me from sensing anything from you.”

His brown curls were blowing gently in the breeze that I pushed past him. He shook his head. ”I blocked Talia from sensing my lies. She would have ripped your throat out, right before my eyes, if she knew how I felt for you.”

”Well, thank goodness you beat her at her own game!” I said.

Pallo looked shocked. ”You saw that?”

I pushed more energy at him. ”I guess I should feel lucky that you didn't do that to me after I rode you. Although, that might have been less painful than telling me that you loved me only later to find out you lied, and were only using me.” I thrust as much power as I could muster at him. He staggered backwards, but didn't fall.

”Do not say such things. You know in your heart that is not true.”

I threw my hand up. ”No, Pallo, you're the liar. I hate you.” I meant every word of it.

That last comment managed to do what my power had failed to. It made him fall. He fell to his knees. His broad shoulders slumped forward. His head drooped down. Hair spilled forward, covering his face.

”Pallo!” His name came from the doorway. I turned and saw Giovanni standing there. He stood there glaring at Pallo. He looked so intimidating in his black s.h.i.+rt, jeans, and boots. I really needed to convince these guys to incorporate some color into their wardrobes.

Pallo looked up at him. ”It does not matter anymore.” His voice was weak.

Giovanni appeared in front of Pallo. I never even saw him move. He turned and looked at me. ”Bella, is it you who did this?” he asked, referring to Pallo being on the floor.

I smiled and batted my navy blue eyes at him.

His head tipped back. He laughed and walked to me. He picked my hands up into his. I didn't fight him. ”You never cease to amaze me.” He pressed his lips to my hands. This felt familiar, but not necessarily safe. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Pallo looking at us.

”I have lived many years, few things surprise me--yet, you always do.” My hands were still near his lips. I could feel Pallo's penetrating gaze. I hurt him and I liked it. I moved my body closer to Giovanni's. He was not as ma.s.sive as Pallo, but every bit as spectacular to look at. I was so amazed at how creamy his skin was. For a vampire as old as I believed him to be, he held his color well. My body, still wrapped in a towel, brushed his. He tensed up. I looked up at him. I searched his dark black eyes. I wanted to remember him. I wanted to know why I had chosen Pallo over him. I wanted to know what had drawn me to him in the first place. Was it his beauty, charm, grace? Or was I a horrible person who only went with men for money and power? I looked into his face. It was so familiar, yet so foreign to me. I tugged my hand free from his lips and touched his face. His mouth turned quickly, kissing at the palm of my hand. I could feel his pull on me. He used vampire tricks and I didn't like it.

”Don't,” I said to him. He stopped. Even without his pull, I could tell that I knew him well. I knew that when he smiled he got a crease in his forehead. I knew that he had a tiny birthmark on the back of his right leg, right before his b.u.t.t. I knew that he enjoyed listening to cla.s.sical music, and spinning me round and round until I was too dizzy to see straight. I had no idea how I knew all of these things about him, but I did, and I knew something else. I knew that he loved me. But, he also felt dangerous, he felt wrong.

Giovanni pulled me close to him. He looked down at me. ”Shall I send him away?” he asked tipping his head in the direction of Pallo.

I looked at Pallo, who still sat on the floor. He looked beaten, he look broke. I remember him standing in Ken's house, saying how he had only used me for a 'f.u.c.k'. I remembered how much my face hurt when he hit me, how used I felt. He had managed to make me feel like what he accused me of being--he made me feel like a wh.o.r.e.

”No,” I said.

Pallo looked up at me with hope in his eyes.

”No, don't send him away, make him stay and watch. I have seen him bleed, shall we see if he weeps?” I loved spinning and twisting his words back at him. I loved the power I felt.

Giovanni pulled me to him and put his hands on my towel near my b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

”Are you sure?” he asked.

I looked at Pallo. His eyes were begging me to stop this. I thought about seeing Talia's naked body moving up and down on his. I glared at him. My face was hard and cold. I pulled on Giovanni's wrists and my towel dropped to the floor. I moved to him. I pulled his s.h.i.+rt over his head. His long, silky hair spilled down his back. I touched his chest. My fingers traced over tiny scars that covered his perfect body.

”What happened?” I asked.

He pulled my hand away from them. ”They are not important.”

I let my finger slid over his silver nipple ring. It was a tiny hoop, a perfect accent to his creamy tan coloring. My fingers kept coming back to the tiny scars on his chest. I let my hand slide over them again. It was odd how his scars lined up exactly with my fingers. I pulled my finger nails down them, following the path they took. I looked up into his dark eyes. Had I done this to him? Had I clawed his perfect skin with my hands?

Giovanni seemed to read my every thought. He lifted my hand from his chest and brought it to his mouth. He pulled me closer to him as he started sucking on my long fingers. I drew in my breath. I wanted to be near him. I wanted to please him. I lost my free will.

”Gwyneth!” Pallo's voice hit me hard.

It was Giovanni who turned first. He threw his hand out. A slash appeared on Pallo's face. I didn't understand how Giovanni had done that, and I didn't want to see an instant replay. I grabbed his outstretched hand and pulled it to me.

”No,” I said gently. ”Let me be the one to punish him.”

He smiled down at me. A tiny crease appeared on his forehead. ”Bella, he is my creature. I will have control of him.”

His creature? I didn't understand what that meant, but I wasn't going to let Pallo be physically hurt again if I could help it. ”You would deny me my revenge?” I had idea why I said this, but some part of me knew him, and that part was in the driver's seat now.