Always and forever—
Back arching, I let out a cry as a crushing force clamped down on my skull, sending shockwaves through me that stole my breath.
His weight suddenly left me as he shifted back, lifting me with him to hold me in his lap. Releasing my wrists, he clasped my cheek. Ravenous hunger erupted and quickly overcame the faint charge of energy, but something else brimmed beneath the need, spreading like a wildfire and clawing at the very core of my being. It was that twisted darkness. As my gaze met his, I had the violent and blood-soaked urge to sink my fangs into his throat. Not to feed.
But to kill.
Yes.
“You need to feed, Poppy. You’ll feel better once you do,” he coaxed, his voice a seductive lure. “I’m sure of it.” A moment passed. “Take what you need from me.”
Every cell in my body was starving. My gaze zeroed in on his throat.
I should take from him. Take everything.
My stomach plummeted with fear, and I pulled back.
The arm around my waist stopped me as a pained sound came from him. “I need you to listen to me,” he said, his voice rough, his hand sliding from my cheek to the back of my head. He guided me to his throat. My nose brushed his skin as I breathed in his scent. “You need to feed, Poppy.” He cupped my cheek. “Please.”
That one word from him.
It undid me.
I could no longer stop myself. My breath danced over his pulse. A heartbeat passed, and then I sank my fangs into the vein.
A tingling sensation erupted and spread in my mouth when the first drop of blood hit my tongue. The taste…
Gods.
It was a jolt to my senses, tart and sweet as it coursed down my throat. I swallowed as unease itched at the edges of myconsciousness, faint and hollow. But I was immediately lost in the warmth and texture of his blood. Thick and warm, it hit the void in my chest first. It was the most amazing thing I’d ever tasted. I wanted more. Needed more. I gripped the back of his neck.
His fingers curled into my hair as I drank deeply, my body trembling with each pull at his vein. He held me close to him as I fed, and the fog in my mind began to dissipate, taking the crimson wisps with it. I released my fangs, moaning as the cramps in my muscles started to subside, replaced by a pleasant thrill. I shifted in his embrace so I straddled him.
“Gods, you have no idea how good it feels to have you in my arms,” he said, his voice thicker. “I don’t know what will come next, but no matter what we face, we’ll do it together.”
His fingers brushed my cheek and smoothed my hair back in a slow, comforting caress as he spoke. His words were confusing at first, but his touch was a gift. And I knew that touch was important because it had been forbidden to me for so long. The sense of being here before surfaced as I drank from him.
Because Ihadbeen.
He had done this for me before. Had given me his vein when I was in need. And I knew I’d done the same for him after he went too long without feeding. We would do anything for each other.
“Because there is no way I’m going to lose you now.” His fingers moved on my scalp. “No way at all. I will always bring you back to me.”
His blood was like liquid fire, igniting a new heat and a different kind of instinct. A noise, much like a purr, came from me, and his hips jerked in response. I felt him against me, hard and thick. An intense curling sensation tightened low in my stomach. Gods, the size of him… A rush of damp heat gathered between my thighs.
“Gods,” he groaned, shuddering against me. “What you do to me.” His fingers pressed into my waist. “Will you ever know? Truly?”
I knew I wanted more of him.
Truly.
I moaned, rising so I could feel him straining against where I ached for him, thick and hard against my core. A heaviness settled in my breasts, and my nipples pebbled against his chest. Restlessly, I moved against him, fingers digging into his forearm. He let out a low groan as I rubbed against the hard length of his arousal. His hips flexed, and his hand landed on mine before sweeping down, leaving a trail of shivers in its wake. His fingers pressed into my bottom.
I swallowed hard and started to see something through the fog. Brown walls and the slow, steady rocking of a…ship. I saw myself holding a journal bound in red, and I realized I was seeing one of his memories. He was between my thighs, his eyes heated, and his lips glossy as he grinned up at me, a deep dimple in his right cheek.
“Gods,” he groaned as I continued to move against him. “I believe you knowexactlywhat you do to me.” His hand moved back to my hip. “I can’t believe I am about to say this—” He groaned again, his hand fisting my gown. “But you need to behave yourself.”
Whatever else he said got lost in my desire for him, the need I had. For his blood. His body. To have the hard, thick length I ground against inside me. A deep guttural sound left him as I rocked against him, pressing my core against his length.
