“He doesn’t share,” Damien said conversationally. “It’s why I have his harem.”
“Ah, that makes more sense now,” Jace replied. “And a pity regarding the lack of sharing. I’ve never tasted a hybrid before.”
I shivered at the way he said it, his tone a sensual caress that felt foreign to my senses. Not wrong, just not right either. Ryder kissed my temple and took my mostly empty mug away from me.
“Here, make yourself more useful,” he said to Damien, handing it to him. Then he cupped my cheek and pulled me into him, his mouth claiming mine in a show of domination that left me winded and dizzy against him. His opposite arm went around my waist to hold me upright, while the hand on my cheek moved into my hair to angle my head to his preference.
I shuddered, overwhelmed by his sudden display of possession. Yet I clung to him as if he were my lifeline, my fingers digging into his shirt as I fought to kiss him with the same ferocity as he did me.
A beep sounded, followed by Damien clearing his throat. “More blood, Sire.”
Ryder grinned against my mouth, his arm remaining around me as he released my hair to reach for the mug again. This time he sipped from it, his eyes on mine the whole time, ensnaring my focus. When he reached the bottom of the mug, he set it aside and kissed me again.
I sucked the blood from his tongue, my inner beast reveling in the flavor. He hummed in approval. “She tastes divine,” Ryder said, his gaze holding mine. “And Damien’s right. I don’t share.” He nipped my lower lip, then laved the wound, his mark clear.
My wolf perked up, her instincts taking over as I repeated his action, taking his lip between my teeth and biting down. It was so natural to me that I didn’t think about the repercussions until Ryder growled.
My eyes flew upward, my heart in my throat.
Oops.
28
Willow
“What did I say about biting?” Ryder asked, his dark eyes swirling with hot promise.
“My wolf, uh, reacted,” I whispered.
“Hmm.”
“Technically, it wasn’t a rule,” I added slowly, referring to his “No biting” comment from last week.
“It was implied.”
“But there are no rules,” I reminded him, feeling slightly bolder than I probably should.
He studied me while he licked the blood from his lip, the wound I’d created a pronounced mark on his mouth that made my inner wolf preen with satisfaction. I’d grown used to her presence this last week, something about the animal feeling right inside me, as though I were always destined to have her there.
The vampire was a little different, creating a war in my head. That part of me was mortified that I’d bitten him so blatantly, especially as the wound was clearly not healing the way it should. He’d told me how my bite had impacted him before, so I should have known better than to sink my teeth into him now.
Except he didn’t seem upset with me for it.
And my wolf refused to apologize as well.
I licked my own lips, tasting my blood there. But the skin was already healing.
Damien snapped his fingers beside us, making me flinch. “Enough showing off. We gave you a week to fuck. Now I need your focus.”
Ryder glanced at him slowly. “I needed more than a week.”
Damien rolled his eyes. “You have eternity now, right?”
“Eternity with one woman,” Jace mused. “I suppose if you were going to pick one, a hybrid is adequate.”
Ryder finally released me to face the other royal. “Didn’t your new sovereign recently take an Erosita?”
Jace grinned. “So you have been paying attention.”
“I told you he has,” Damien interjected. “Ryder likes to play recluse, but he watches everything.”
“What else have you told him?” Ryder asked, his focus still on Jace.
“Enough,” Damien admitted.
“He showed me the data you both collected these last few weeks on Silvano Region. You were right about the blood shortage.”
“And?” Ryder pressed.
Silence fell.
I glanced around Ryder to see Jace staring at him with those chilly blue eyes that revealed nothing. It was a bit of a surreal experience to be able to study him in the flesh. The former human in me demanded I go to my knees in subservience, but my wolf refused. Meanwhile, my vampire was… conflicted.
I felt like I had three battling personalities inside me—my past self versus the two making up my present.
“You’re right about our need to act sooner rather than later,” Jace said after a tense beat. “Silvano wasn’t the