Blood Debt (Kingdom of Blood #1) - Callie Rose Page 0,47

me softly and flicks his tongue against my skin—not like he’s tasting it, but like he’s feeling it. He’s still so close to being human, it isn’t fucking fair. It’s too easy for me to pretend this is something it isn’t.

My body is already buzzing with heat and adrenaline, but Connor hesitates, moving his mouth over me with agonizing slowness. I can’t tell if he’s teasing me or if he’s working up his nerve. Either way, the waiting is beginning to fray my nerves.

I put my hands on his back, just over his hips, and press my body close to his. His breath deepens as he relaxes, and then I feel them—his sharp fangs scraping over my skin. Anticipation makes my stomach clench and my knees weak, and I grab him a little harder for support. His breath quickens again, but he’s not hesitating anymore.

His teeth pierce my skin, more painful than Rome but far less so than James. He pauses after he’s in and just… holds me. I allow myself to be comforted by his touch, his nearness, the barrier of him between me and the world—even though he’s doing what the rest of the vampires would do if he gave them the chance.

It seems different, somehow, like getting bit by a friend.

Don’t think like that, Mikka, I remind myself angrily.

But before the thought can form into any kind of real command, Connor starts drinking. Silvery pleasure runs through my veins, clouding my head and putting a heavy, warm weight low in my belly. He’s gentle, holding me close, and doesn’t let his hands drift too far. Still, I can feel what this is doing to him, and I have the urge to tease him with my hips, to grind against the hardness of his cock. What’s wrong with me?

I restrain myself from moving too much, but I can’t keep from enjoying it. There’s some kind of magic that goes along with these voluntary feeds; something that makes them less horror and more foreplay. Arousal pulses deep inside me, and I forget about my own directive to keep still, allowing my fingers to drift into his hair.

Time passes at a slow, dreamy rate, and I can’t tell how long it all lasts before he finally withdraws his teeth from my skin. After sliding out, he licks my wounds closed but doesn’t pull away. Not much, anyway. He’s still holding me close, his forehead almost touching mine and his eyes burning.

There’s a bit of my blood on his lip. Without thinking, I run my thumb over it. He catches the tip of my thumb in his mouth, kisses it, and releases it back to me with a slow turn of his head. My clit throbs, my body practically straining toward his as he cages me in against the wall. I want him to do that again. I want him to do a hell of a lot more than that.

Before I can talk myself out of it, I tilt my head up even more, closing the last small bit of space between us as I press my lips to his.

He responds instantly, holding me closer and kissing me back, his mouth hungry and warm. Every move is slow, deliberate, but I can feel the tension in him just below the surface.

He wants me, I realize, and not just for dinner.

When Connor finally breaks the kiss and pulls away, his eyes are bright. The fierce pull inside me that draws me to him against all my better instincts, reflects back at me from his gaze. He chuckles softly, his voice a little rough.

“I don’t usually kiss someone after I feed from them, but… fuck, I really wanted to do that. I’m sure all the guys say this,” he murmurs with a crooked half-smile as he raises my hand to his lips to kiss my knuckles. “But that’s never happened before.”

I open my mouth to say something—but what? My usual snappy comebacks to dudes who feed me lines in bars don’t feel right, not with him standing there looking at me like I’m something precious.

When a few long seconds pass and I don’t say anything, the tension between us begins to build again, as if fed by my silence. Connor’s expression turns more serious and intense, and he starts to lean in again, moving in for another kiss as my heart thunders away inside me.

“May I cut in?”

The voice behind Connor is cool and smooth, deep and precise. Even though I’ve only spoken