All Souls' Night - Renee Rose Page 0,49

at the scene is another beast altogether. I am most interested in how she will respond to the bite.

Her pulse is racing, thumping loudly in my ears. There is a small spot of drool at the corner of her lips, and sweet sweat beading on her forehead. When the dominant leans in for the bite, my sweet submissive chews down on her lip, and the drop of blood that appears is almost my undoing. She is not turned off—to the contrary, she is turned on; turned very, very on.

“Did you like that, Butterfly?”

“Yes.” She blinks a couple times, as if clearing away the fog of arousal. “I’m thirsty, may I go get a drink?” she asks sweetly. I’m thirsty too, incredibly thirsty, but not for anything they have at the bar. What I want comes straight from the tap. I turn us towards the bar, irritated when we are interrupted by Constance, another vampire. I resign myself to remember that this is part of the job, part of coming to Arizona. I had hoped this weekend would be less about work and more about personal pleasure, but to be fair, I have set up a reputation for being all business. I need to change that, especially now. I send Keri ahead to grab the drinks.

Keri has barely walked away when Nina appears at my arm. “Leave. Now. I have nothing to say to you,” I tell her.

“You used to have plenty to say to me.” She leans in, rubbing her breast against my arm, sticking her offensive face within an inch of mine. I look past her to Keri and see that she is watching us, her eyes narrowed, her hands on her hips.

“Used to. I am with Keri now, and the sooner you understand that, the better.”

“For now… that could change. She could… I don’t know, disappear.”

I snatch Nina up by the throat, lifting her clear off the ground. “The next time you approach me, or threaten my girl, it will be the last thing you do. Do you understand me?” I don’t wait for her to respond. I set her back on her feet and turn back to Constance, giving Nina my back.

I try to focus on what Constance is saying. There is a specifically dangerous job in Africa. He needs my specific set of skills. I’ve heard it all before. I can be picky with the jobs I take now. I’ve built an empire, and garnered an impeccable reputation. It wasn’t easy, but I have done it. The respect that follows me is my ticket into all of the exclusive clubs around the world. I can afford to ask the age old, what is in it for me? question to these dolts. If I took every job offered, it would be all work and no play.

Unfortunately, Keri missed the last part of the conversation with Nina, and only saw her rubbing herself on me. When I look over again, Keri has found Taylor and is quizzing him about Nina and myself. She wants to play games? She can try, but I will win. I always win. If she wants to gamble, she’d better make sure she knows that it is much more than just her shirt she could lose. I crook my finger at her, beckoning her to me. I wait for her to obey, and she does so without hesitation.

“If you keep trying my patience, I am going to take you… here. Right here. In front of everyone in this room. Do you understand me?” I watch her as she processes my words. She blushes prettily, the heat spreading up her neck to right below her mask.

“Yes, Sir.” The words flow submissively from her mouth but her thoughts say another thing altogether.

He wouldn’t! He’s too possessive. Our public play at our club has always been discreet. He won’t want another man to see me naked…

“That’s where you are wrong, Butterfly. We aren’t back at home among the humans, we are at Toxic, and I’m among my kind. I don’t have to hide who I am here. You are right about one thing: I am possessive of what is mine, and don’t you dare forget that.”

Her breath has hitched, caught in her throat. Her pulse beating against the thin skin of her neck is like a drug. I need to taste it. I want to sink my teeth into her. Down, boy.

“May I go to the restroom?” she asks in a submissive, quiet voice. I nod my