succubus traits were deeply ingrained because of my link to Arys. Blood was only part of the feed. I gleaned as much power from the tantric energy of desire and lust, and Kale’s energy spilled over with longing.
He couldn’t be trusted. I had become someone he loathed only because I was someone he loved. What a bittersweet knife in the gut love could be.
Kale reached out to me metaphysically, luring me with the burning desire he couldn’t hide. I tensed, fearful that any move I made would send me into his arms. He was a killer, drawing me in. It was working.
“You want it, don’t you?” He asked. “You always do. You know how to get what you want from me. Isn’t that right?”
I couldn’t speak. My tongue felt heavy in my mouth. I did want him. Goddammit, I always did. He craved me in a way that was tangible. The passion he carried for me fed my succubus yearning for erotic energy.
“I don’t want anything from you.” I stood my ground. Backing away would only encourage him.
“Then, why do you keep going out of your way to save me?” He stopped just inches away. He used his height to tower over me in a domineering stance. “Shya. The FPA. Even your beloved Arys. Is there anyone you won’t save me from?”
There was no correct response to that. My cheeks burned. I was tired of defending my choices to both Kale and Arys.
“Myself, maybe,” I said, refusing to be cowed.
My temper flared, and my wolf rose to the surface, bristling at his close proximity. I tensed, ready to slap him with a psi ball. It was what he wanted. At least, I thought it was.
With careful yet brazen manipulations Kale created a gentle push and pull of power between us. It was daring and downright inappropriate. It was an intimate touch, lacking only a physical connection. He draped that honey sweet energy over me, and I groaned. The high from the kill beckoned me to chase the ecstasy he promised. Why stop now?
“You let your actions say the things that will never cross your lips.” Kale’s voice dropped low, a sensual sound. “You torment me, and I was broken so long ago.”
He threw me up against the wall, trapping me with an arm on either side of my body. My teeth smacked together from the impact. I growled.
“I know what you’re doing. Provoking me into a fight is not going to end the way you want it to.”
I wrestled the urge to hit him with a shot hard enough to send him crashing through the door. I was curious. Could I do it? Knowing that he wanted a strong reaction from me kept me from giving him one.
Instead, I said, “I didn’t break you, Kale. I’m not the one who made you so twisted.”
I stiffened when he leaned in to lick a drop of blood off my lip, but I couldn’t stop myself from nipping at him. The battle for control continued. I was high on the kill, and Kale was high on me. This could end badly in so many ways.
Kale laughed, a devious sound that told me I should be afraid, but I wasn’t. Not yet. I was too caught up in the tidal wave of power between us. He was unpredictable and clearly up to no good, yet I couldn’t resist him. I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed this game between us, one we both sought to win.
“No, someone else created my hunger. But, tasting your blood brought it back to life. Vampire heroin, that’s what you are. I wonder, will the hold you have on me break when you have breathed your last mortal breath?” Boldly, he laid a hand on my chest, watching it rise and fall.
“So, that’s what this is about.” Understanding settled in with the first cold spark of apprehension. “You kill me, you free yourself.”
I raised a hand to throw him off, but he caught it and slammed it against the wall. His timing was impeccable tonight. He was running at full power. Clearly, he had been binging.
“Something like that.” He ran his hand down my thigh, tugging up the hem of my skirt. “It doesn’t have to be that way. Put me out of my misery.”
Such bittersweet agony. Part of me despised him for what he’d done to me in the FPA basement. He had been an animal, seeing me as only a victim. It was a loveless attack. Here,