Christian walked coolly toward him and then snapped the man’s wrist, the gun falling to the floor. Declan wailed in pain, unable to escape the Vampire’s iron grip.
Christian seized the man by the throat and lifted him off the ground for a few breathless seconds. The second Mage took off as soon as he realized they were up against a Vampire.
“So you’re the one who likes to torture women.”
Christian spoke in a calm voice, one that told me he was charming the man. “Do me a favor and light a nice warm fire. I want the flames high, and be sure to place the same instrument in there as you used on Raven. You and I are going to have some fun. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
The man coughed for air when Christian set him down. He turned toward the fireplace and put a log on the grate.
I dragged my eyes away from him and stared daggers at Christian.
He chuckled, his voice throatier than before. “Worry not, lass. Sometimes you have to lie to get them to cooperate.”
I picked up the flashlight and shone it on him. “You’re still bleeding.”
He glanced down. “Aye. It’s slower to heal the more blood we lose. There’s only one thing that’ll speed it along.” He lifted his gaze to my neck, and I stepped back.
“Then slurp on him,” I suggested, nodding at Declan.
Christian gave me a crooked smile. “I have other plans for that one. Besides, it doesn’t work as well unless it’s from a Vampire.”
“I’m not letting you drink my blood.”
He clapped a hand on my shoulder, his voice raspy. “That’s all right. You’re only half Vampire anyhow, so it probably wouldn’t work. Never you mind. The bullets left over will work themselves out… eventually,” he said, laying on the guilt.
Christian took a seat on a small stool while the Mage stoked the fire.
Claude rounded the corner, blood staining his mouth. He looked like a fallen angel with his beautiful features and savage eyes. He flared his nostrils and surveyed the scene before disappearing to search the outer rooms.
I thought about those split seconds when Christian reacted like a bodyguard—my bodyguard—shielding me from an onslaught of bullets. Was I overreacting? He could have just let the Mage take me out, and that was exactly what I’d expected from a man like Poe.
But why didn’t he?
I drifted toward him, a rattling sound coming from his chest each time he drew in a deep breath.
One swallow of blood; it seemed like such a little thing. Still standing, I straddled his legs and cupped his face in my hands. Christian’s eyes rose to meet mine. His shoulders were hard beneath my fingertips, and before one of us said something that would change my mind, I bent over and turned my head away, feeling the brush of his short beard against my neck.
His breath heated my skin in the place his lips touched.
“I can’t do this,” he whispered unconvincingly.
“Take what you need.”
His fangs grazed along my neck, inviting and deadly. My heart slowed down, beating strong, and something flickered between us—a sharp desire that made me lean into him. His hand briefly slid between my legs before he pushed me back.
Christian’s dark gaze fixed on my bleeding arm, and he lifted it, placing his mouth on the wound and gulping down the blood. This felt way less erotic, and all that sexual tension that had sparked up between us melted away as I watched him licking my arm.
“I’m not an ice cream cone,” I said. “Hurry up.”
“It’s not as pleasant this way,” he snapped.
“I offered you my neck. Doesn’t it all taste the same?”
He licked the corner of his mouth. “Maybe I prefer to draw the blood out and not have it gush into the back of my throat like from a stuck pig.”
“I could always pour it into a glass. Or would you prefer a baby bottle so you can suck on the nipple and draw it out?”
He lapped at another stream, his voice a murmur. “This is a truly scintillating conversation. If you don’t mind, a little peace and quiet would be appreciated.”
Watching him drink my blood should have repulsed me, and in some ways it did, but it also made me think of moments ago when his lips were pressed to my jugular and a spike of need went through me. Was the Vampire in me really a separate entity, waving her arms and begging for someone to take her vein?
It made me want to smack her.
His eyes darted up, and I had the strangest feeling come over me—as if he’d seen me naked.
He let go and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “You really don’t like Vampires, do you? I can taste it in your blood. Is it because you’re afraid of what I can do that you can’t?”
“No, it’s because Vampires think everyone is inferior to them.”
“You’re marvelous at hiding pain,” he said, nodding at my arm. “The bullet struck a nerve.”
“What else can you tell?” I asked, my voice unsteady. I hadn’t given much thought to what he might learn from me by drinking my blood.
He stood up and arched his back. “I think we better tidy up.”
A pinging noise sounded when one of the bullets popped out of his chest and onto the floor.