His hands were in her hair as he brushed it frantically back from her face. "Are you ok?"
She wasn't entirely sure what she was right now, confused and stunned definitely, but she hadn't been exposed long enough to do any lasting damage. "What happened?" Xavier demanded from the doorway of the bedroom.
"The sun," Hannah whispered.
Aria gave her a sympathetic look. "It will be ok," she said before retreating back to her brother's side.
"I don't understand," Hannah said as she twisted her blistered hands before her. "What happened?"
"We haven't exchanged blood in a few days." Jack's fingers were tender on her cheeks as he caressed her skin.
He stopped talking as Xavier appeared in the doorway. "I'll go," he offered as he brushed past them.
Jack took hold of her elbow again and led her onto the small back deck that overlooked a valley. Out here, the sun was blocked by the front of the house as it sank over the horizon. Jack's hands slid over her arms as he pulled her closer to him. Tingles erupted over her flesh as the anxiety she'd been experiencing over the past four days began to ease. The warmth of his lips against her ear caused her to go limp as he spoke to her.
"Take what you need, Hannah."
Her fingers curled into his arms and though she hadn't been hungry before now, she found the desire to feed burning hotly through her as the scent of his blood washed over her. Standing on her tiptoes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her body flush against his. He released a small sound of pleasure as her lips skimmed back and her canines elongated into razor sharp fangs. His fingers dug into her back as she drove her fangs deep into the vein in his neck.
A sound that she didn't quite recognize escaped her as her fingers curled into his hair and she strained to get even closer to him. He spun so quickly that she barely registered the movement until he was pressing her flat against the wall. She was spiraling out of control, falling as surely as the leaves dropping from the trees in the fall. She stifled a small cry as she felt the prick of his fangs against her shoulder seconds before he began to feed from her as well. The stubble lining his jaw rubbed against her skin but it wasn't an unpleasant feeling and in fact she found she actually enjoyed it.
Jack pulled away from her as the front door opened and closed but he cradled her head to keep her feeding from him. Hannah, unable to stand anymore, collapsed into his arms as she reluctantly pulled away. She met his fiery gaze as she tilted her head back to look at his beloved face. His finger traced over her bottom lip, pulling it out as he bent to kiss her again.
"When this is all over we are going to find some time to be alone together," he promised in a harsh voice that caused her body to quiver.
"I look forward to it," she whispered.
The rakish grin he shot her caused her heart to melt. "I know you do."
He took hold of her hands, turning them before him as he inspected her previous injuries. "Amazing," Hannah whispered when she saw that the blisters had already disappeared.
"As long as you continue to feed from me regularly you'll be able to go out in the sun. Maybe one day you won't even need me. Braith said his vision continues to improve."
Unexpected tears burned her eyes at the prospect of being able to return to the warmth of the sun that had been denied to her throughout her entire life. She'd never known what she'd been missing then, but to experience the freedom the sun brought to her now was a gift she'd never imagined to have been given.
Jack had come into her world when she hadn't been expecting it, and certainly hadn't been looking for it and now she was never going to let him go. He'd completely disrupted her practical existence and he'd given her more than she'd ever dreamed of from life. Because of him she could walk in the sun, because of him she was free of Calvin, and she knew what it was like to be loved and accepted no matter what, and how to give that love and acceptance in return.
"I'll always need you," she whispered. "Aria said she only feeds from Braith."
His fingers froze on her face. "That is true."
It wasn't something she had wanted before, but now the idea of feeding from anything or anyone else seemed repulsive to her. "I would like to do the same with you, if you wouldn't mind. I mean, if it was an emergency I would use a blood bag, but..."
His finger over her lips silenced her rushed words as he leaned closer to her. "I would like nothing more, Hannah."
Joy suffused her as she smiled against his finger. "I love you Jack."
He pressed his lips briefly against her nose. "I love you too, Hannah."
Pure delight engulfed her as she threw her arms around him. She hadn't known it was possible to feel this connected to someone else, to feel this safe and secure, but she was protected and she was cherished. He wiped away the tears from her cheeks as he pulled her a step closer and kissed her again.
"Jack."
Braith's voice from the front of the house pulled them apart. Jack stepped to the side to look down the hall. "Yeah?"
"William is awake, and coherent."
Jack took hold of her hand and pulled her into the shadowy hall. Braith was waiting at the end of it, his hands folded behind his back as he watched them approach. "How is he?" Jack inquired.
"Hungry, but that will pass. He seems to be doing as well as Aria afterward."
Jack's shoulders slumped as he closed his eyes. "Thank God," he muttered.
Relief filled Hannah as she wrapped her hand around Jack's arm and stepped closer to him. "He's one of us now?" she inquired.