“Making new friends, Aurora?” a seductive male voice asks from behind us.
Tension takes hold of me when one of Lucca’s friends, the blond vampire who looks like a rock star, stops next to the witch. By the glower she’s aiming in his direction, I don’t think she’s happy to see him.
“Piss off, Saxon.”
“Ooh, I love when you talk dirty.” He laughs, unfazed by her angry reply. He turns to me, giving me a once-over. “Who do we have here?”
“My name is Vivienne.” I cross my arms, hella uncomfortable by his proximity.
He was the one who stopped me from escaping Lucca back at the night in Havoc.
The music changes to a mellow song, and Saxon peers across the room. “What fresh hell is this?”
He speed-walks toward the DJ booth and pushes the guy off his station. In an instant, the music changes back to techno.
“Oh my God. Saxon is so hot. I’d do anything for him to notice me,” Cassie says, watching the Blueblood with open admiration.
“Please don’t talk about hot Blueblood vampires in front of regular males,” Damon pipes up. “We already suffer from an inferiority complex as it is.”
I can’t tell if he’s joking or not.
“Saxon is a narcissist ass. I’d stay away from him,” Aurora adds before walking away.
Uh, bad blood between her and the blond vampire?
Cassie and Damon engage in a conversation about where they’re from, and since I’d rather not participate, my attention is free to search for Lucca again in the crowd. My mission is to get closer to him, but I should be reluctant to do so, not feel this insane pull toward him. The first time I laid my eyes on him at Havoc, I was terrified beyond my wits. I know I came close to dying that night by his hands, so logically and considering my past, I should be a hundred times more afraid than before. He must have put a spell on me. That’s the only explanation.
I don’t find him right away. It’s so dark in here. It’s probably perfect for vampires since they can see better at night than humans. After a minute or so, I see him dancing with a human. She’s all over him, writhing her body against his as if she were trying to become one with him. My hands curl into fists without me willing them so. Lucca turns the human around, so her back is now pressed against his chest. Still mimicking a sex act as they dance, Lucca brushes her hair aside and licks her neck. She lets out a content moan, arching her back like a fucking whore. I hate her immediately.
He glances at me and then takes a bite, keeping our stares locked as he feeds. I refuse to look away first even though the sight sickens me. A small, demented part of me wants to be the human in his arms, and that’s what bothers me the most.
Someone touches my arm, making me jump.
“Hey, Vivi. Damon and I are going to get something to eat. Do you want to come?”
The mention of food makes my stomach rumble loudly. I can’t remember the last time I ate.
Damon laughs. “I guess that answers it.”
“Where are you going?” I ask.
“To the feeding room. The humans here are for the Bluebloods only.”
Fuck. I can’t go with them. I need to find real food.
“Uh, actually, I’m going to pass. There are blood bags in my apartment. I’ll eat later.”
“Gross.” Cassie twists her nose. “Why would you eat that when you could have fresh blood?”
Shit. Think fast, Vivi. Think fast.
“I’m a shy eater. I don’t like to feed in front of others.”
Cassie and Damon trade a glance.
“Your family must have been well-to-do then. Remember the time when we had to hunt for our meals, Cassie?” Damon asks.
“Oh my God. Those were the worst times. Sometimes, we had to wait days without a single human to get by.”
“Wait, did you used to feed from unwilling humans before?” I ask before I can stop myself.
Cassie and Damon are staring at me like I’ve grown a second head.
“Duh, of course. Back in the old days, our kind was perceived as monsters, demons even. Very few humans offered their blood to us of their own free will,” she replies.
“And the few who did wanted to be turned.”
“But only Bluebloods have the power to do so,” she adds.
I’m shocked about all this even though I shouldn’t be. I can’t believe how quickly I forgot that Cassie is a vampire, and to me, they’re all monsters.
“Well, we’re going now. Are you sure you don’t want to come?” Cassie asks again.
“Yeah, I’m good. I might just head back to my apartment soon.”
“Okay. We’ll be back in thirty minutes or so. If you’re not here, we’ll see you tomorrow.”
I watch Cassie and Damon walk away until they disappear into the darkness. Then, I search for Aurora again. Witches eat real food; maybe she can hook me up. I definitely don’t want to go on an exploration mission through the institute, looking for food. If I get caught munching on a cracker, it will be hard to explain.
I catch a flash of white hair in the crowd. It’s Manu, so I steer in the opposite direction. There’s a catacomb being used as a table with refreshments, and upon closer inspection, I see that there’s actual booze here. Tequila, whiskey, and even Baileys. Hmm, that has a milk quality to it. Maybe if I drink some, it will hold me over. I just have to be careful not to drink too much.
“Hey,” says one regular next to me. “How can you drink that stuff and not get sick?”
“Huh?”
Lucca drank what I gave him at the club without a second thought. The red Solo cup gets knocked out of my hand before I have the chance to ask about his remark.
“What the hell!” I glare at the person responsible, who turns out to be Therese, Lucca’s fuck buddy.
She invades my personal space, pointing a manicured finger at my face. “I don’t know what hole you crawled from, but let me make myself very clear: stay away from Lucca.”
I step back, hating that I can’t say what’s stuck in my throat out of fear I’ll be discovered. One single strike from this bitch, and I’ll bleed, revealing my secret. I also don’t think I could win a fight against her. She’s a Blueblood, and I’m only a puny human.
“Like I want to get close to that jackass.”
Her lips curl into a cruel smile. “Oh, darling. Everyone wants to get close to him. You’ve been warned.”
When she walks away, I find Aurora looking at me from across the room. She seems worried, but I can’t tell in the gloom. Fuck. I think I’ve had enough of this party.
“Here.” Someone offers me a napkin.
Mad as I am, I accept the offer without looking up. “Thanks.”
“So, you really don’t want to get close to me, huh?”
I freeze and then slowly turn around. Standing next to me with a shit-eating grin is none other than Lucca.
13
Lucca
I saw the exact moment Therese set her eyes on Vivienne. She was alone and distracted, and like I had predicted, Therese didn’t waste any time in marking her territory. I moved closer, keeping myself concealed until Therese walked away.
Now, Vivienne is staring at me like a deer caught in headlights. It’s an adorable look on her, if I’m being honest with myself. It makes me want to do bad things to her, like fuck her against the wall while I drink from her sweet neck.
“Where the hell did you come from?” she asks.
“What do you mean? I was standing right here.” I smile, showing my fangs.
“You were obviously hidden since your girlfriend had no idea you were here either.”
“What makes you think she didn’t know?”
Her eyebrows arch ever so slightly before they furrow together. “Fine. She’s as sick as you are.”
She makes a motion to walk around me, but I grab her arm. “Where are you going? I’m not done with you yet.”
I read the fight gathering in her stormy eyes. She’s afraid, but I thi
nk the hatred she feels for me is winning. Many theories run through my head in the blink of an eye. Here, I have a terrified, feisty human, risking her life to steal from me. I missed a lot of things during my long hibernation, but no one has mentioned anything about the resurrection of the Van Helsing movement. The man and his followers had a sick obsession with hunting us down. Could she be part of their cult?
“What do you want from me?” She lifts her chin in a defiant manner, trying to show a brave face.
I know that’s not what she truly wanted to say though.
“Dance with me.”
Her bee-stung lips make a perfect O, and my cock responds immediately. I’m lusting for this thief like I’ve never done for any human before in all my five hundred and twenty-one years of existence.
“But … I’m all sticky.”
I ignore her weak excuse, grabbing her by the hips and bringing her flush against my body. Tense and shaking nonstop, she rests her hands on my biceps and maintains her gaze fixed on the hollow of my throat. Maybe she’s trying to see if I’m wearing the necklace she covets.
The reminder of why she’s here renews my anger. For a moment, I let my attraction to her distract me from my end goal. I sink my fingers harder into her hips, bringing her closer. I’m rocking a major boner now, and I’m sure she can’t miss that. Her breathing changes; it becomes shallow. Finally, her fear is the winning emotion now. Good. I was beginning to think I’d lost my touch.
“Relax, honey. I’m not going to bite,” I whisper in her ear, but it’s not the smart thing to do.
Her blood is calling to me. I hear it pumping in her veins loud and clear. It’s like a luring symphony designed to make me lose control. The urge to feed hits me hard, and I’m salivating already. Before I know it, I’m licking her neck. She gasps and then shivers even more. Her fingers curl around the fabric of my jacket, and I don’t know if she’s trying to push me away or melt into me.
“You said you weren’t going to bite.” Her voice is feeble, almost a whisper.
I snap away from her neck, noticing the little marks my teeth left behind. Fuck, I didn’t realize how close I was to puncturing her skin. As much as I want to punish Vivienne, I don’t want to expose her secret right away. And feeding from her will surely reveal she’s not a vampire.
“I’m not. I prefer human blood. It tastes that much sweeter, don’t you think?” I watch her closely, catching the wince.
“Uh-huh.” She glances away.
“So, Vivienne, where are you from?”
“Born and raised in Salem,” she answers without pause.
“Really? You were here for the witch trials then?”
It’s a known fact that regular vampires haven’t been able to procreate in generations. If Vivienne was truly one of us, she’d have been born at least three hundred years ago.
She glances at me with a look of pure anguish in her eyes. Does she even know that regular vampires aren’t popping babies left and right anymore? Who sent her here with so little information about our kind? There’s no way she was able to acquire such a powerful spell of disguise on her own.
“Yeah, I was.”
“Tell me then, how was it?”
“What do you mean, how was it? Awful, obviously.” Her indignation is cute. It shows how human she is.
She doesn’t know that the trials were simply the outcome of a war between two powerful covens and that the witches who perished were part of the Van Helsing army. They deserved to die.
“I’ll take your word for it.” I chuckle. “Why do you want to become a Keeper?”
“I’m a regular. It’s the only chance to have a better existence. Bluebloods have no idea how difficult life for us regulars is.”
I’m taken aback by her answer. Immediately, I know those aren’t her words. She heard it from another regular. In the back of my mind, I knew regulars had a harder time with getting by. Many migrated to Salem because it’s the only place in the world where humans are aware of our existence and mostly okay with it. But in other cities, vampires have to hide and scavenge for human blood. There are blood brothels everywhere, but they aren’t cheap.
“You decided to pledge your life to defend one of us?”
She blinks a couple of times, almost as if that’s the first time she’s heard any of this. Fuck, didn’t Hanson cover the basics of his program with prospects before they were accepted? That male needs to go. But that’s a problem for another time.
“I guess I did,” she replies.
Unable to resist, I caress her cheek. Her skin is so soft and warm; it makes it really hard for me to resist taking a bite. The hunger is still present, swirling in my chest, begging to be set free. But right now, I’m able to fight it. As long as she doesn’t bleed, I’ll be fine.
“What do you want from me?” she asks, not taking her eyes from mine.
I run my hand up and down the side of her torso, purposely brushing my fingers near her breast. “Many things, Vivienne.”
Her eyelids drop, and a hint of desire shines in her blue eyes. “Make your girlfriend jealous?”
I rub my thumb over her lower lip, dying for a taste, while the corners of my lips twitch up. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”
I’m an inch away from her mouth, ready to claim her lips, when the back of my neck prickles. I stand up straight at once, curling my lips into a sneer when I spot Boone and his followers at the entrance of the party.
Motherfucker.
14
Vivienne
Lucca pushes me away like I’m nothing but a toy he’s done playing with and faces the white-blond vampire who attacked me at Havoc. A rough hand grabs my arm and pulls me back. It’s Saxon of all people.
“You’d better stay out of range, sweetheart,” he says before stepping nearer his friend.
My body is still on fire from the close proximity to Lucca, but quickly, the lust vanishes as I get blasted by the stark reality. Lucca’s posture is tense, ready to strike. It seems to me that everyone here is sitting at the edge of their seats, waiting for the worst to happen.
“You really have some nerve, showing up here,” Lucca says through clenched teeth.
The evil Blueblood smiles. “I was invited, buddy. Times have changed, and you’re no longer the prince around here.”
“This pathetic truce means nothing to me. If you want to keep your head attached to your body, I suggest you leave now.” Lucca’s hands turn into sharp claws.
I can’t see his face, but I’m sure he looks like the monster he truly is. And I almost kissed that monster.
Aurora stands next to me. “I don’t think you should stay, Vivi. Things can get lethal pretty fast.”
“What’s going on? Why does Lucca want to shred that vampire to pieces?”
Not that I’d care one bit. He’s the foulest creature that has ever come near me, worse even than the vampire I was sold to. I don’t know why he felt that wrong, that depraved.
“Boone is Tatiana’s son. He tried to kill Lucca before, and he almost succeeded.”
“Am I supposed to know who Tatiana is?” I whisper back.
“Girl, you’re truly clueless.”
Boone throws his head back and laughs, a gesture that his companions follow. “Lucca, you’re fucking hilarious. You can’t touch me. If you hurt me—which I doubt you could—your uncle will pay the ultimate price.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Lucca growls.
Boone switches his attention to Manu, who is standing by her brother’s side, also as tense as a coiled spring. Next to her, a massive Blueblood is watching Boone like a hawk. He’s part of Lucca’s inner circle. He has a don’t-mess-with-me attitude, which, paired with his Viking warrior physique, can really put the fear in the heart of any creature—I bet even the dragon kingpin Larsson.
But Boone doesn’t seem to care when he switches his attention to him. “You didn’t tell Luc boy here about the details of the Accords?”
“King Raphael
never agreed with those terms, so there’s nothing to tell,” he replies.
“Oh, is that the lie he told you lot? He did agree, signed in blood. The witch’s spawn there can testify to it. Her mother was there.”
Everyone turns to stare at Aurora. Her jaw clenches hard, and when Lucca focuses on her, she answers the question displayed in his gaze. “It’s true. If any of King Raphael’s followers hurt Tatiana’s sympathizers unprovoked, he loses the crown.”
Lucca’s face contorts into an expression of pure fury. Even though he’s not aiming the aggression at me, I feel it deep in my bones.
Boone smiles smugly. “You can’t touch me, asshole.”
“Maybe I didn’t make myself clear, bonehead.” Aurora speaks loudly. “Unprovoked. If you step out of line, anyone here can put you back in your place, which is at the bottom of a sewage lake.”
“You little bitch.” He advances in her direction, faster than a bullet. But before he can strike Aurora, he bounces off an invisible barrier, falling on his ass.
Half the room snickers; the other half doesn’t know what to do.
“Go now,” Aurora urges me in a whisper. “This will get ugly.”
Despite my curiosity about vampire history, it’s not worth risking my life. I slide to the side, trying to disappear into the shadows. But there are people in my way, so sneaking out easily and unseen doesn’t seem to be in the cards for me.
Boone is back on his feet, staring daggers in Aurora’s direction. Lucca hasn’t changed his stance yet. I don’t think he will relax until the jackass Blueblood is gone. I finally manage to break through the wall of bodies in my way toward the exit when Boone grabs my arm.
“Where do you think you’re going in such a hurry, darling? The party has ju—” His tirade is cut short when Lucca tosses him across the room.
“Don’t touch her,” he snarls, stalking in his direction.
Boone is already standing, baring his teeth and dark claws at Lucca. “You just sealed your fate, motherfucker. I can end you now without fear of prosecution.”
Dark Prince: A Vampire Paranormal Romance (Blueblood Vampires Book 1) Page 7
