Hey lovely readers!

Thanks so much for the reviews, faves and alerts I've received for this. Hope you all enjoy this installment.


Brooke lay in bed and was thankful that she had installed the black out blinds when she had bought her house. She had hated the sunlight peeking in and disturbing her from her sleep after a long night of designing. However, the blinds now prevented her and her new lover from perishing under the suns harmful rays. There were no lights on in the room and it was as dark as night. Brooke thanked her new powers to be able to see clearly as she took in the Adonis that lay beside her in all his naked glory. His pale skin seemed to glow as she raked her eyes over him. She appreciated the way his skin was taut over the defined muscles of his torso. His whole body was firm and muscular and Brooke had thoroughly enjoyed exploring him since they had left the club, several days ago. She had lost track of time as they had become absorbed in each other. Thinking back, they had to have been in her house for at least a week.

Brooke then began to think about how her life, or unlife, would be now. She was suddenly thankful that she had signed the business over to Victoria to get her off her back. She had a brief notion of heading to New York and torturing her until she signed it back to her and then draining her as revenge. She quickly brushed it away. She knew that no matter how much she hated her mother, she would never do that. The fact that she had killed drunk boy in the club weighed heavily on her mind. She didn't know how she would able to survive as a vampire if it meant draining people on a regular basis.

She was drawn out of her thoughts as the man beside her stirred in his sleep and rolled over so he was facing her. His left hand fell against her thigh and she saw the intricate ring that was on his ring finger. She had briefly noticed it in the car and she took the opportunity to take a closer look. It was made out of gold and looked ancient. There was an inscription around the band in a language Brooke couldn't fathom and in the center there was a blood red stone. Her fingers ran over it lightly and his hand jerked back and quickly took hold of hers.

"Don't mess with that." he told her in a deep gravely voice that sounded thick with sleep. She looked at him curiously.

"Sorry I was just looking," she replied. "It's such a stunning ring."

"Well it's the only thing that's keeping us safe right now." He told her.

"What do you mean?" she asked with a frown.

"My sire," he began. Brooke looked confused. "The vampire that created me is what you would call very possessive. If she knew that I was here with you she would kill you and punish me. Again."

"She?" Brooke asked as a pang of jealousy went through her. He felt it through their connection.

"Yes she," he replied. He had felt the jealousy she had felt and it intrigued him. This had never happened to him before. "I hate her. She keeps me for her own amusement and enjoyment. Every time I have tried to get away, she manages to find me and takes me back against my will. Then she punishes me however she feels."

"What's the ring got to do with anything?" Brooke asked.

"Somebody got it for me," he told her as his blue eyes flashed with that silver hue. "I only got it the day we met in the club so this is me testing it out. It must be working because she's not here."

"What does it do?" Brooke asked softly.

"When I wear it, she can't sense where I am," he told her. "Supposedly."

"But like you just said, she's not here so it's obviously working," Brooke replied. She then frowned as she thought. "How does it work exactly?"

"Do you see the stone?" he asked. Brooke nodded. "The person who had it made for me had a witch use some of the bitch's blood to make the stone. Then it was placed into the ring with a few incantations and spells. Then the word was inscribed and it was made. I've been waiting for this for so long."

"How long?" Brooke asked curiously. She looked deep into his eyes and was amazed at how much she felt for him already. She still didn't even know his name. This was also the first proper conversation they had had.

"Since she turned me," he replied. He could tell by her look that it wasn't enough and he found himself wanting to tell her everything. "A hundred and ten years."

"A hundred and ten years?" Brooke asked in a stunned tone. "Is that how old you are?"

"If you add on the age I was when I was turned, I'm a hundred and thirty two," he told her. He then added. "And my name is Nathan Scott."

"Scott?" Brooke asked as she scoffed. "That's a popular name around here. You're not related to Lucas Scott are you?"

"I am," Nathan replied and Brooke's eyes went wide as she wondered how. Their connection meant that she didn't even need to ask. "I'm his great, great, great Grandfather."

"Oh my God!" Brooke said shocked. "Do you know that I just broke up with Lucas because he cheated on me?"

"With Lindsey Strauss. Yes I know," Nathan told her. Brooke's expression was again one of surprise and she wondered how he knew that. "I've always kept a watch on my family over the generations to make sure that she doesn't hurt them."

"Who is this vampire that sired you?" Brooke asked.

"Her name is Peyton Sawyer," Nathan told her as he recalled the night that had turned his life as he knew it upside down. "I was out with some friends, celebrating the birth of my daughter. We ran into Peyton and her minions. I don't know if I had too much to drink or she put something in my drink, but the next thing I knew I was in bed with her."

There was a few moments silence as he relived the painful memory he had only shared with one other person. The one who had given him the ring. Brooke could see the sadness in his eyes and she realized that she could feel it too. And she knew that he knew that she could feel it.

"I was disgusted with myself. I loved Haley so much," he told her. "I tried to stop, but she didn't want to. So she bit me and turned me into her toy. I have been trying to get away from her ever since."

"Wow," Brooke said stunned. "You know before all this, if people had told me vampires were real, I would have had them carted off to the loony bin."

Nathan laughed and was surprised. It was his first genuine laugh in so long. This unique connection he and Brooke had was confusing him. The one and only time that he had turned someone, nothing like this had happened. He had a vague idea where she was but that was it. Whereas with Brooke, he could feel everything she did and experienced everything she did.

"So this Peyton bitch," Brooke began causing Nathan to laugh some more. "Does she experience everything you do too?"

"No and I don't with her either," Nathan replied. "That part I don't quite understand. It's never happened before that I know of."

"How many have you turned?" Brooke asked him quietly.

"You're the second," he replied. She looked at him surprised. "And I don't kill when I drink. I got carried away with you that night. I didn't want you to die, so I did the only thing that I could."

"I'm glad you didn't let me die," she replied and then realized what she had said. "Well you know what I mean."

"I do," he replied as the look in his eyes changed. "I'm getting hungry."

"Me too," she replied. "Can you teach me how to stop so I don't kill anyone else?"

"I can try," he replied. "Although it's not something that I can teach. You just have to control your instincts and urges."

"Easier said than done," She replied as she gave him a sultry look. He smiled as he caught the double entendre to her words. She climbed off the bed and headed towards her closet. "So what should I wear to go and get our meal in? I mean I can't exactly go out there naked can I?"

"No you can't," he said in a growl. Brooke felt a rush of desire shoot through her as he did. "You do know that that particular view is for my eyes only now?"

"Really?" she asked with a grin. "So we're mates for life?"

"God I hope so," Nathan replied honestly as his eyes roamed over her. She was the first female he had wanted to be with since he had been taken from his wife. "No other vampire will bother you, because you have my mark on your neck."

"You mean besides Peyton?" she asked with a smile. Her hand reached up and she traced her fingers over the mark he had left when he had bitten her. "And as for the mark on my neck I would check it in a mirror but I can't seem to see anything in it."

"Welcome to the vampire world," he said as he climbed off the bed and followed her. "Why don't you wear a pair of those jeans that show that great butt of yours off?"

"What is with you Scott men and your obsession with my ass?" Brooke asked as she kinked her eyebrow. She pulled a pair of jeans off a hanger and then found some underwear before she started to get dressed. Nathan headed back into the bedroom and easily found his clothes that were scattered around the place. He grinned to himself as he saw that his shirt had been trashed.

"Brooke, do you have a shirt I could wear?" he asked as he headed back to her closet. She now wore her jeans and a bra as she looked for a shirt.

"There's some of Luke's thing he left here in that bag over there," she said as she pointed to a trash bag in the corner. "Help yourself."

"Thanks." he replied as he began to rummage through.

"So Nathan," Brooke began. "What happened after I asked not to die?"

"I kept drinking," he began as he stood and faced her. He walked over to her and took her hand. He placed it on a scar that was above his heart. "When you were almost gone, I opened this and you drank. Then I left you to sleep."

"How long was I asleep for?" she asked as she found herself running her fingertips over the scar.

"Four hours," he told her. "I made sure nobody disturbed you."

"How did you get this scar?" she asked curiously. Her fingers instinctively traced over it and she heard Nathan suck in an unneeded breath.

"I fell and cut myself when I was a boy," he told her. He then smiled as he asked. "Can we go and eat now?"

~X~

"Where is he?" the angry female voice demanded as she glared at the three people in front of her.

"We don't know," one of the men replied. "We tracked him as far as we could, but then it was like he vanished."

"I thought you were supposed to be a great tracker Julian!" Peyton barked at her lackey. "The three of you need to get out in that town tonight and look for him. I want him back here! I don't care how long it takes! If you don't bring him back then I will kill one of you as an example!"

"Chris! Can't you get a vision of him or something?" Peyton asked the other man.

"It doesn't work like that," Chris told her. "I don't choose what to see."

"Rachel, have you tried the regular hunting grounds?" Peyton asked.

"Yes," Rachel told her. "There hasn't been any sign of him since he left."

"Well go and check them again!" Peyton barked. "And if you find that whore that took him. Bring her back to me alive. I want to torture her while Nathan watches."

"Yes Peyton." The three mumbled before they obediently left the office and headed into the already busy nightclub.

The music pounded loudly and vibrated across the floor as she made sure the door was closed. The private room had been soundproofed so any occupants couldn't hear what was going on in the club on the other side of that door. Also the club goers couldn't hear what went on in the office as well. Peyton's face was like thunder. She couldn't believe that her toy had taken off with another woman. She knew it wasn't just for food as he would have returned long before now. She was going to punish him severely this time when he returned.

As she plotted his fate, she stared into space. Anyone who saw her would have thought that her face was almost angelic. She had large green eyes that were almost hypnotic. Behind those eyes however, anyone that knew her, knew that she was far from an angel. Inside this angelic looking woman's body lay a monster. A monster that purposely sought out seduced and killed innocent men. And sometimes women. Her thoughts then drifted back to Nathan. She thought of his incredibly handsome face and felt her blood heat to a boiling point. She couldn't believe her good fortune at finding such an unbelievable human being in Nathan all those years ago. Not only was he wickedly handsome, but when she had seduced him, she discovered that his looks weren't the only treasures his body held.

After she had threatened to harm his family, he had begged her for mercy and to leave them alone. He had told her he would do anything if she would just leave them be. Peyton had smirked at his whining as she had him exactly where she wanted him. It was then he had agreed to be her plaything for as long as she deemed fit. She had then made him give her the most amazing afternoon of pure, raw, unadulterated pleasure that she had been searching for many, many years. Her body had been craving a man like Nathan for centuries. Her decision to turn him into one of her kind, binding him to her, had been made the moment she had set eyes on him. She wasn't going to let him go without a fight.

~X~

Brooke moved through the shadows of the trees, listening intently for any sounds that would tell her where he was. She could sense him near, but couldn't understand why he wasn't making himself known to her. A twig snapped over to her left and Brooke spun around. Her eyes searched the shadows but she only saw small creatures scurrying through the leaf strewn ground. An almost bone-chilling breeze hit her back and she froze. He was there, standing just behind her now. She could sense him with every fiber of her being.

"What are you doing?" That delicious deep voice demanded in an amused tone. Brooke turned slowly to face him and smiled as she looked at him seductively.

"Looking for you." She answered in a sexy tone. His blue eyes flashed silver back at her. The light in the distance only illuminated his face and black hair, his lower half was still hidden in the shadows.

"Why?" He asked as he smiled lazily. He already knew the answer; the scent of her lust was strong. And he could feel it too. "I thought we were supposed to be looking for a meal?"

"I need you, Nathan," She answered honestly and heard him chuckle softly. "So badly. I'm sure you can feel just how much."

"I can," he told her in a husky tone. "That's why I came to find you. You made me as horny as you are with those feelings you have in there."

"Nathan, make love to me, please." She whispered.

"I can't, Brooke," He told her softly. "Not here, it's too risky. She could find us. And I don't want her to hurt you. And we really need to get some blood before dawn. We've not fed for about a week."

"I need this, Nathan. Take some of my blood. We can last another night." She begged.

"Brooke we have only taken mere sips from each other," he told her. "We need to keep our strength up."

"But I want you Nathan," she told him. He felt just how much and he knew that he couldn't say no to her. "Please."

The next moment Brooke's back slammed hard against the bark of a tree. His mouth closed over hers and his tongue drove past her parted lips. Brooke nearly melted at the passion of the kiss. His lower body shifted back slightly. The faint sound of his zipper opening drifted to her ears and she smiled against his lips. His hands came to her hips and he deftly unfastened her jeans and pulled them down. She then groaned deeply into his mouth as he began to give her what she wanted. Brooke nearly dropped to her knees in pleasure. Nathan sensed it and he wrapped one strong muscular arm around her waist to hold her steady as he continued his actions. Her knees buckled in response and his arm tightened. Blinding white lights filled her vision and her orgasm was so violent that Nathan had to tighten his hold on her more than he thought was possible. His mouth swallowed her cries of complete rapture as her body convulsed against him.

"Oh fuck, Nathan!" She gasped as she finally regained her senses and he pulled his lips from hers.

His blue eyes flashed silver sparks at her erratically. Her hazel eyes were flashing sparks of gold. He grinned at her as she came back to earth. Nathan then commenced his actions so that he could reach the release he now so desperately craved. They gazed into each other's eyes before moving their mouths to the other's neck. Brooke's lips sought out and found the pounding vein at his throat as the borrowed blood circulated through it. She snaked out her tongue and tasted his flesh. She felt the blood rushing through his vein and she felt another release hit her. She couldn't stop herself as she opened her mouth wide, bared her fangs and bit down. Nathan moaned against her neck as her fangs buried themselves into the side of his own. The shock and erotic feel of her drinking caused him to react. His own fangs found the permanent mark on her neck and he re-opened it easily. Before Brooke could take too much, she fought her instincts and pulled away. She lapped at the wound on his neck with her tongue and used her saliva to close it. She felt him do the same to her as they both came down from their euphoric high.

"Are you all right?" He asked his voice slightly husky in the darkness.

"Better than all right!" Brooke gasped in delight.

The two of them shared a deeply intimate kiss as Nathan carefully placed her down so she was standing once more. He then stepped back over her jeans that were still pooled at her ankles. He bent and pulled them up for her, before he adjusted his own clothing. They then kissed once again, their hunt for their meal completely forgotten. The only hunger they felt now was love and passion for each other. A noise in the distance caught Nathan's attention. His super hearing then heard a familiar voice.

"We have to go." He whispered urgently. He took hold of her hand and began to lead her in the opposite direction.

"Nathan?" she asked sounding worried. She felt the panic he had when he heard the voice.

"Don't, Brooke. Let me get you safe. I may have signed a death warrant for us both." He stated sadly as they stealthy moved back the way they had come.

"Whose voice was that?" Brooke asked as they continued to head towards Brooke's house, which was now their safe haven.

"Someone who works for Peyton," he told her. "She's probably sent them looking for me."

"You're right she has." A female voice said from behind them. Nathan and Brooke stopped in their tracks. Nathan turned to face the voice and placed himself in front of Brooke protectively.

"Rachel," Nathan said with a sigh. "I'm not going back this time."

"You're going to have to," Rachel said in a defeated tone. "If you don't go back she's going to kill one of us. We've been searching for a week already."

"What?" Nathan asked incredulously as he gripped Brooke's hand.

"You know what she's like Nathan," Rachel said. "She won't let any of us get away. If she finds out that I let you get away again it'll be my head she's cutting off. Plus she knows you left with that hotty behind your back. She wants her too."

"She's not touching her!" Nathan said in a growl, catching Rachel by surprise.

"I'll do you a deal," Rachel said. "You come back with me and your piece of ass here will be left alone. I'll tell her I found you out hunting."

"Let me talk to her in private." Nathan said as he ushered Brooke away from Rachel and to the entrance to the park. He took his ring off and handed it to her.

"Nathan what are you doing?" Brooke asked in a panicked voice. "She'll find you."

"I don't care. I'm more concerned with her finding you. Put it on," Brooke quickly slipped the ring onto her index finger as Nathan hurried her further towards the exit. He then used their connection to tell her. "Go home and then tomorrow night head to the factory by the river. Ask to speak to Karen. Show her this and tell her I sent you. Tell her I turned you."

"Nathan I can't," Brooke replied close to tears. "I can't leave you."

"You have to," he told her as he stroked her cheek. He kissed her lovingly and deeply before pulling away. He looked deep into her eyes as he said. "I love you Brooke. Promise me that you will do as I ask."

"I promise," she replied as she sniffled. "Promise me you'll come back to me Nathan."

"I can't," he told her in a broken voice. "Go Brooke. Before she comes here. I need you to be safe or what I'm about to do is for nothing."