by Lexi C. Foss
Our battle of wills continues until the sounds of approaching footsteps captures Vincenzo’s awareness. Dante appears, padding toward us barefoot but now wearing a black t-shirt with his jeans, which hug every inch of his carved muscled frame.
My babysitter pushes himself off the cabinet he’s perched against. “What did Piovene say?”
Dante jabs his chin in my direction. “Has she eaten?”
The prince shrugs. “The bitch refused.”
“Go find Mateo and then come back here,” Dante instructs, his brows furrowed attention solely on me. He gives me a steady look visibly controlling his impatience.
Releasing a sigh, Vincenzo rolls his eyes but leaves without complaining.
Dante moves into my personal space, placing a palm at the small of my back to lean over me. “You need to eat, Pussycat. Your body needs subsistence.”
“You can shove your food where the sun doesn’t shine,” I burst out raising my chin haughtily.
Brushing my hair over my shoulder, he exposes my neck, pressing a lingering kiss to my skin. “I’m going to have you beneath me, Yukie. Writhing. Moaning. Whimpering. Begging. Nothing is going to stop me from taking you and making you scream my name. Although I find this attitude of yours amusing, it isn’t going to help you.”
Feeling his warmth against me, I can’t prevent myself from breathing in his scent. The addictive smell and the undertone of a musky male that seems to be all Dante. I don’t want to look at him. Registering the heat in my cheeks, I almost swallow my tongue. I’m blushing? I’m a stone-cold vampire hunter. I never blush especially for some alpha male asshole vamp who thinks he can do what he likes with me.
“So, spill what happened with Piovene?” Vincenzo demands, trooping back into the kitchen with Mateo in tow.
The brown-eyed male’s expression holds distaste when he catches sight of me. I get the impression, he’d rather see me with my throat cut and buried in a shallow grave somewhere other than with his king. Not that I care. Soon enough, it will be the other way around. They just don’t know it yet. My mission hasn’t changed. I'm just adapting to the situation as I ride it along.
Dante straightens but remains directly behind me when he speaks. “He wants to meet and swears he had nothing to do with the attempt on my life.”
Is he really that gullible?
“And you believe him?” Mateo scoffs, taking the seat opposite me and crossing his arms over his chest.
I’m aware of Dante stepping away from me. There's the sound of him opening and closing cupboards, but I keep my focus stubbornly on the wall beside Mateo’s ear.
“He’s merciless, but he’s not stupid. This doesn’t strike me as something he would do unless his daughter’s position wasn’t secure. I’ve yet to announce the merging of our families. He would also be more discreet.” He tells the others, still busy with whatever it is he’s doing. “If one of the other houses has learned about our plans, they may be trying to disrupt them. I’ve been without a Queen since I began my rein five hundred years ago. Marrying Vanna closes any opportunity for the others to gain the power I have.”
Another plate is placed in front of me. This time the sandwich contains delicious slices of prosciutto and freshly cut tomato. A glass of water is planted next to it.
“Eat,” Dante orders, his voice a curt command right next to my ear.
Picking it up, I allowed myself to take a small bite from the corner only realizing then how hungry I am but not about to admit it. Swallowing, I take another still listening intently to the conversation unfolding around me.
“What do you want to do about her?” Mateo questions from where he’s seated “If we leave some guards here, you could keep her chained up. Personally, I still think it's better to just finish her off now.”
“She’s coming to the meeting.”
Vincenzo’s mouth gapes open, his eyes widening in shock at his older brother's words. “Now I really do think you’ve lost your mind. She’s a mother fucking contract killer…”
“Who might come in useful.” Dante continues to loom behind me overseeing my meal.
Finishing off half of the sandwich, I sip the water in my glass, suppressing a smile. It was a risk, but their actions are predictable. By dawn, Dante will be exactly where we want him, and I’ll be leaving with my money.
“I agree with Vincenzo.” Mateo rolls to his feet, looking just as unhappy about his king's decision. “This is a cluster fuck just waiting to happen. I advise against this.”
“I’ve already made up my mind,” Dante murmurs. “Choose our best men for the escort. If we do find trouble, I want to be prepared.”
“You better find her something other than a shirt to wear, because your future father-in-law will have a hissy fit if he sees her like this,” his friend sighs heading out to arrange for their meeting.
“Are you done?”
Stiffening at the sound of the Vampire King’s voice in my ear, I push the plate away with my bound hands. “Yes.”
Vincenzo scowls at me when his brother yanks me up by the arm. Turning me around, his grip cruel and bruising, Dante marches me to the door. He practically drags me up the stairs and into his bedroom.
Cool air rushes along my spine as he rips the shirt I’m wearing apart exposing my nudity. He doesn’t stop until it's nothing more than tattered remains at our feet. Circling around to stand in front of me, he checks the chains keeping my wrists together.
His show of violence with his clothing doesn’t intimidate me. I’m not going to meekly bow to his will no matter what he does to me. Dante moves the intensity of his eyes back up to my face as an emotion other than amusement flickers in his eye. Desire? Lust? A hint of wariness? I’d been expecting antagonism. Not this. It leaves nothing but confusion in its wake.
Gripping me roughly by the throat, he walks me backward into the ensuite. “You're an itch I need to scratch.”
Nudging me backward against the cool tiles of the shower, he forces my bound hands up, pinning them above my head. Sliding a muscular thigh between mine, he drags his lips down to explore the sensitive skin at the base of my throat.
Gasping at the sensation of his jean-covered thigh pressed against my core, it starts the embers of an unbearable ache. When he rocks it against me, it sends zinging sparks of electricity through me.
Dante’s tongue tastes my pulse point as if he can sense the blood pumping beneath it. “Your pulse is racing.”
Swallowing hard, I fight to control the shivers running through me as his mouth trails across my collarbone to the soft skin of my shoulder, where his teeth nip gently.
Why aren’t I immune to him? Why does my pulse race in confusion whenever he gets close? Whatever it is about him, it's irresistible and a very, very bad idea to submit to it.
“Please…” The word comes out in a croak. I want to tell him to stop, but the rest dries up in my throat. How can he have me so messed up in the matter of seconds?
With a wicked grin at my plea, Dante raises his blue gaze to mine. “Poor, little Pussycat all mixed up inside.”
Squeezing my eyes shut, heat floods my cheeks. Bending slightly, he runs his free hand up the back of my thighs, cupping my bottom, and arching my body into his until I can feel his hard arousal through his jeans. He feels big, hard, and very intimidating. The liquid heat invading my body speeds to my core, melting me from the inside.
Pushing me back to the wall with his hold still on my chained wrists, Dante’s fingers slide down my belly and between my legs. Pushing one inside me, he finds the damp evidence of my arousal. “So turned on. Your green eyes might spit hate, but your body begs for my touch.”
Rotating his thumb, he moves it over my clit, wiping every last thought of protest from my mind. Head thrown back, using the shower wall for support, I close my eyes giving myself up to the sensation.
“Does it frustrate you that my merest whisper has your body alighting with such desire and passion?” Pressing his lips to my neck, he increa
ses the pressure of his thumb against me. “I’m going to make you purr.”
My instinctive response is to writhe my hips against his hand. Another finger slides against my hot, swollen flesh making my knees go weak with pleasure. Dante begins a maddening set of circles with his thumb building an unbearable tension inside my body.
Biting back the moan that rises in my throat, I twist relentlessly, begging silently for more, anything to reach the peak. A third finger joins the first, stroking and stretching, my pussy accommodates the intrusion.
“Dante!” My voice is hoarse and broken. My hands move restlessly above me, still imprisoned by his own.
The pleasure-inducing finger sets a rhythm with the others while he fucks me with his hand. All I can do is focus on the way they slide in and out of me, taking me somewhere I crave to go.
“Give it up, Pussycat.” There’s a sexy, raspy edgy to his tone that takes me over the edge. Screaming, limbs stiffening, mind-shattering pleasure radiates out from my center. Dante keeps his thumb ruthlessly on my clit, extracting every last second of my orgasm.
I expect him to fuck me next, instead while I’m still panting, coming down from my release, he twists the taps on. Warm water pours down on top of me from the shower head above, bringing me slamming into awareness. Trying to struggle out of the cascade, he holds me under the spray while I’m spluttering and swearing.
8
Dante
Yukie sits between me and my brother in the back of the SUV, her glare burning a hole in the side of my head. It had been fun toying with her in the shower. Watching her resistance crumble as easily as sand. It’s cute she seems to have no idea what’s going on. I intend to tame my pussycat. Use her for my own means. With a deadly assassin under my thumb, I could have anyone I desire taken out. There’s a conspiracy in motion, and I need to find out who’s at the center of it.
“If you keep staring at me like that, I’ll have to assume you're upset because I didn’t fuck you in the shower,” I murmur.
Yukie snorts, rolling her eyes. “The amount of alcohol I would need to sleep with you would actually kill me.”
Vincenzo bursts into laughter on the other side of her. “Christ that mouth of hers. It never stops.”
“Oh, I’m well aware of her mouth and what exactly I’m going to do with it later,” I respond with one eyebrow raised at the woman watching me. From the blush that stains her cheeks, I think she knows she will be on her knees with my cock down her throat. My gaze drifts down the dress she’s wearing. The same one we stripped her of when we caught her. It hugs every inch of her curvy figure, emphasizing her breasts, a narrow waist, and gently rounded hips. Hands still chained in her lap, I know that won’t stop her from killing someone when she decides to make her move. It turns me on knowing she could strike at any minute.
The collision comes out of nowhere.
My body jerks sideways, the side of my head colliding with the window at the sudden impact of something into the side of the SUV. Everything spins as the vehicle is flipped over and over until it comes to a stop. The driver’s side of the car is bent inward, shards of broken glass shimmering in the moonlight. Glancing to my left, I see Yukie struggling with her seatbelt, blood spilling from a cut on her forehead. One of her arms is twisted at an odd angle, agony on her face. An instinct to protect her surges through me. The other side of her, Vincenzo is limp in his seat. Disoriented I taste blood pooling in my mouth. Voices shout from outside the mangled SUV, Mateo and the bodyguards who’d been following us.
When the door on my brother’s side is jerked open, I expect to see them. Instead a stranger peeks in at us. His brown eyes are amused, blond curls framing his slim face.
“Again, not the outcome I desired. You all still continue to battle against the inevitable.”
Reaching in, he unbuckles Vincenzo dragging his unconscious form from his seat. “Shall we try this all again?”
Yukie’s eyes widen as she tries to grab a hold of my sibling. “Try what again? The attack? Trying to kill us?”
He doesn’t answer as he heaves Vincenzo free and vanishes from sight.
Sucking in a breath, the distinct smell of petrol reaches my nose as I fumble with my own seatbelt. A roar comes next, a fist of flames exploding so violently it scorches my skin from my bones.
I continue my sweet, leisurely torment, backward, forward. Circling my hips, I pull back pausing for a heartbeat before easing into the woman who’s spread out beneath me on the bed until I’m buried deep. I know it drives her insane. Deliberate slow thrusts, leaving her deliciously full and begging for more. Green eyes gaze up into mine, glazed with lust and desire that matches my own.
“One day, I’ll take you away from all this. Just the two of us, I swear.” Her insides quiver in response on the verge of an orgasm, but it's not something I’m ready to let her have. “Not yet. Not until I hear your pleas.”
Her smooth skin flickers, orange flames dancing up to consume everything in its path. The heat lashes against my body, roaring up with joy as they feast. An urge to protect drives my panic. Trying to grab a hold of my lover, my arms are filled with nothing but grey ash.
Waking with a jerk, my flesh tingles with the ghostlike touch of fire. Disoriented for a second, I almost don’t recognize my own bedroom. The memory of a blaze is fresh in my mind along with a pair of jade green eyes. Lucid images fading, all I’m left with is snatches of the dream. Thrusting away the blanket, I find no signs of healing damage. My confusion only increases. Grabbing my phone off the side, I swipe my finger over the screen to check my messages. Attention latching onto the time and date, I freeze.
Friday night.
A few hours before the party when I’m supposed to announce my engagement to Vanna Piovene. The goal I’ve been working toward. Uniting my house with hers. Securing a stronger hold over my kingdom and the vampire houses I govern. Shoulders relaxing, the tension ebbs from my body. Rubbing both hands over my face, I rise from the bed. What I need is a shower. Something to wash away the lingering unsettled feelings from the dreams. I don’t have time for distractions. Padding across the room to the en-suite, I enter the shower twisting the knobs and making sure the water is hot before standing beneath the spray.
Everything needs to go perfectly tonight. Yet I can’t explain the bad feeling stirring in my gut.
Grabbing the bottle of shower gel, I empty some onto my palm scrubbing it over the length of my muscled torso. My glance strays to the wall. A vivid image dances before my eyes. Pale, naked skin, a woman pinned against the tiles as I make her come against my hand. It's blazoned through my thoughts. Her moans and cries, the way her body had reacted to the pleasure. I can remember every fleck of green in her eyes. The sexy curves of her tempting body. How we’d both burned with the attraction between us even if she’d been my captive.
Shaking my head, I slick my wet hair away from my face with a hand.
Vanna is the only female I should be thinking of right now. She’s the one who I’ll be shackling myself to for the rest of eternity. Gaze returning to the wall, I can’t shake off the woman from my dreams. Perhaps it was a sign? I’m being hasty in my proposal to Vanna? Why else would my subconscious make up someone else? A desirable nameless female who sets my blood on fire just at the mere thought of her. Dark hunger swirls within me. The need for blood steadily builds.
Turning off the taps, I step out of the shower unable to deny it any longer. Drying off with a towel, I muss my hair with a hand. My focus slips, my head filled with images of green jade eyes that arouse another need in my veins.
Damn it. I need to stop thinking about a woman who doesn't exist. The dream is nothing but wisps now. Impressions and shards of recollection. I’ve never had one affect me in this way before. I’m not sure I like it.
Venturing back into my room, I quickly dress in my tuxedo for tonight. Taking a small black velvet box off the side, I open it and gaze down at the ring. The large gem sparkles up at me. Vanna’s engagement ring, w
hich I will present to her tonight. Strange though, she chose an emerald. With her blue eyes, I would have thought she’d have gone for a sapphire. Tucking it into the side pocket of my suit, I sweep out of the penthouse. Vincenzo is waiting for me when I emerge from the elevator down on the main floor of the hotel.
“There you are! I thought you were going to miss your own party!” He laughs, tucking his mobile phone away in his pocket. “I was about to send someone up to look for you.”
“You know I can’t afford to do that,” I counter as he falls into step with me. Making our way to the large function room, I can see it's already teeming with my guests. Perfect. Every power player in the country is here. Once the news of my engagement is announced, they’ll make sure it spreads.
“You need to stop looking like you’re being dragged to your execution.”
Turning sharply to my brother where he’s whispering in my ear, a sense of déjà vu washes over me. I’ve done this before. I’m certain of it. The recollection is so overpowering my steps falter.
“What’s wrong?” he questions seeing my wary expression.
“Nothing,” I assure him with a spike of unease.
Together we continue moving through the crowd. Attention sweeping the room full of elegantly dressed guests, I search for a woman I know can’t be real. Disappointment twists my gut when I see no sign of her. Perhaps it was just a dream after all. Giving one last sweep of my surroundings, my breath freezes in my throat when I catch sight of someone sitting at the bar.
She’s looking down at her phone with a smile. She’s just as beautiful and exotic as in my dream. As if she senses my presence, her chin lifts, and our gazes collide. I see recognition flare in her green eyes. She looks pale and shaken. As if seeing me has triggered something inside her. She knows me but how? I’m suddenly more than certain this is beyond déjà vu.
