"Go," he rasped. "Before I lose my fucking mind again and do something even worse. For fuck's sake, I might have killed you just now."
He hissed as she knelt down beside him on the floor. With the slightest coaxing, she brought his head around to face her. "I'm okay, as you can see. You scared me a little, but that's all. God, Rio...how often does this happen to you?"
He scowled and shook his head, not interested in having this conversation right now.
"How do you get through it?" she asked. "I'd like to help you - "
"You can't."
He couldn't force his gaze away from her throat as he said it, hard as he tried to avoid looking at the graceful column of Dylan's neck. He hadn't bruised her - a small miracle - but he could still feel the velvety skin against his palms, the heat of her still tingling in his fingertips.
And there, near the hollow at the base of her throat, beat a strong, tempting pulse.
"You need blood, don't you," she said, too smart to miss the weakness that he couldn't conceal. "Would it be better for you if you fed?"
"Not from you."
"Why not, if you need it?"
He cursed, head still pounding from the lingering effects of his meltdown. "Your blood in my body will create a lasting, unbreakable bond. I would always feel you - be drawn to you - for as long as you are alive."
"Oh," she said softly. "And we definitely wouldn't want that. Not when you prefer to feel isolated and alone."
Rio scoffed. "You don't know how I feel."
"When did you start hating yourself?" she asked, unfazed by the fire he was throwing off with his narrow glare. "Was it after Eva betrayed you, or much earlier than that? Back in that forest cottage in Spain?"
He snarled, turning away from her before she stoked his anger any higher. He was volatile in his current state, a deadly predator teetering on the very edge of sanity.
Just another good reason why he should put the beast down. Before he hurt someone again. Before he let himself think that the future might hold anything of worth for him.
And damn well before he considered Dylan's reckless offer any longer than he had already.
"My mother's been fighting for her life for nearly a year. You can't wait to throw yours away."
"What do you think you'd be doing if you let me drink from you now?" he shot back, his voice rough, combative. A bit desperate, even. "I'm the last thing you need, Dylan. If you reach into the trap to pull me out, I can't promise I won't take your arm off in the process."
"You're not going to hurt me."
Rio grunted, a coarse, animalistic sound. "How do you know I won't?"
"Because I'm going to trust you not to."
He made the very grave mistake of turning back to look at her. With her eyes on his now, Dylan pulled her hair over to one shoulder and moved closer, until her neck was poised near his mouth. Rio stared at the exposed column of pale skin, his gaze rooting on the rapid tick of her pulse beneath the tender flesh.
He growled a violent curse.
Then he curled his lips off his fangs and sank them into her neck.
Oh...God.
Dylan's entire body seized up in the instant Rio's bite penetrated her skin. There was a sudden, piercing shock of white-hot pain, then...bliss.
Warmth filled her as Rio's lips fastened to the wound he'd made and his tongue coaxed her blood to begin flowing into his mouth. He drew from her with a needy intensity, his fangs grazing her skin, his tongue creating a demanding, delicious friction with each hard, wet pull at her vein.
"Rio," she whispered, her breath leaking out of her in a long, shuddering sigh.
He made a low noise in the back of his throat, a rumbling growl that vibrated through her skin and bones as he eased her down beneath him to the floor. His strong arms cushioned her, the heat of his body warming her as he covered her.
Dylan melted into him, losing herself in the dizzying pleasure of Rio's darkly erotic kiss. She was burning up inside. She writhed beneath him, desire swamping her as he held her close to him and drank more of her blood.
He was on fire too.
Dylan could feel the rigid line of his cock pressing against her hip as he lay atop her. His thigh was wedged between her legs, spreading her