to both sides of me. “None of this means anything without you. How can you be willing to stake your life off a text from seven hundred years ago? Don’t you think if it was safe, they would have kept doing it?” There was a reason it was forbidden to feed a human.
She paled and glanced away.
That sinking pit in my stomach was back. “Tell me.”
“A nobleman’s daughter died. Her father knew and declared war. The coven…” She swallowed. “They were drugged with something staked out in the sun, according to the scholar that got away.”
“And this is something you want to try?” I ripped my hands through my hair, tugging on the strands. “No, Lyric. No.”
“I’m strong!”
“Strong enough to rip into a human’s neck and feed?” I challenged, seeking any way to get through to her.
Her mouth opened and shut a few times. “You would want me to feed off someone else?”
My vision went thermal for a few heartbeats, then evened back out. Fuck, I couldn’t even think about her feeding from someone else. “No, of course not. I’d feed for the both of us.”
A slow smile spread across her face. “See? It could work.”
“No! Damn it, Lyric, could you be any more stubborn?”
“Sure, I could be you!”
“Well, as long as I’m me, then you’re staying human because I sure as hell won’t turn you. I’m not rolling the dice with your life!”
“Fine!” Her fists clenched, and her pulse skyrocketed, only serving to trigger the predatory part of my nature. If she ran, we were both fucked, because I’d chase. I’d conquer.
I blinked. “You agree?”
“That you won’t turn me?” She scoffed. “Sure. Good thing Avi’s blood is just as pure.”
The world went infrared, and I growled. “She would never disobey me.”
“Maybe not, but Julian said all warrior blood was strong, and I bet if I told your Assassins that turning me would keep you alive, one of them would gladly oblige.”
“Lyric,” I warned, my fangs descending and my entire body preparing to attack the first male who even thought about getting close enough to my mate to turn her.
“And if you’re so angry that I want to save your life, then don’t worry about feeding me. I’m sure any of the guys over in that little feeding room would do just—”
I moved so fast that my mouth finished her sentence, kissing her hard and long, my tongue parting her lips to thrust deep. It wasn’t a sweet kiss, or even a passionate one. It was pure, carnal ownership of my mate, and she knew it.
Thank God she went instantly pliant against me, melting within seconds, or I wasn’t sure what would have happened.
“Alek,” she whimpered against my mouth.
I grabbed her ass and lifted her against me. She wrapped her legs around my waist and kissed me back, her hands tangling in my hair as I found the nearest wall.
She didn’t even blink—oh no, she used the wall as leverage, arching so she could press her breasts against my chest. The growl that rumbled from my chest sounded exactly as inhuman as I felt.
She was mine. Mine to protect. Mine to cherish. Mine to provide for.
My cock throbbed against the zipper of my leather fighting pants, and she worked her hands between us, flicking open the button and pulling my zipper down.
We were so on the same page with this.
I grabbed her dress by the fistful, yanking it above her waist, then ripped the strings of her underwear one by one and discarded it. Our kiss had turned so hot I was sure we’d both combust.
She shoved my pants and underwear past my hips, and my cock sprang free.
“Fuck, Lyric,” I groaned, then sucked her tongue into my mouth.
That little whimper she gave me right there was always my undoing. She gripped the back of my neck and rolled her hips over mine.
My fingers found her wet and slick, already swollen with need. “You want me.” I sank two fingers inside her.
“I always want you.” She tried to lift up so she could ride my fingers, but I kept her pinned against the wall. “Alek, please!”
I sucked her lower lip, then slipped my fingers free, swirling them over her clit until her breathy pants became keening cries.
“You’re mine.” I looked in her eyes as I said the word.
“I’m yours,” she agreed, her face tight with desire, her scent blooming around us.
I kissed her once more, then lined up my cock to her entrance and thrust home, taking her in one