James’s gave me an amused smile. “Gabriel’s nearby to help if we need him, but I trust you just as much as you trust me.”
Emotions swelled in my chest, almost too quickly for me to handle. Before they got the better of me, I tugged James down into a kiss. Our lips met, and my nerves faded away. One, two, three soft presses of his mouth against mine, and he was winding his way to his mark. He licked over the bruise and I gasped, fully expecting to feel the cold stab from his fangs.
“One more time for me, love,” he said against my skin.
“Please,” I begged. “I want you to turn me. Ineedyou to do it, James, and we’re not leaving this room until—fuck!”
His fangs pierced my skin. The now familiar fire spread through my veins and settled deep in my belly. Only this time, James took one quick draw of blood and switched to the other side of my neck. I tensed as he sank in a second time. Venom coursed through my body, warmth radiating from deep inside me. My head grew fuzzy, the high hitting me much more intensely than before, as if something had changed.
Trying to remember to breathe, I inhaled deeply through my nose.
James slowly, softly kissed his way down my neck. Through bleary eyes, I hardly registered the words of praise he murmured against my skin.
“Bite me again,” I said, voice slurred. “Please.”
“I will, but the venom will be stronger at your pulse points. Trust me, it’ll be faster this way.”
He grabbed my hand, pressing tender lips to my wrist as he undid my watch and tossed it to the nightstand. He licked over the skin, then bit. I groaned, heat bolting up my arm and mingling with the residual burn from the bites on my neck. Every beat of my heart made the venom pulse beneath my skin. I peered down, seeing blue lines etch themselves into my arm.
James distracted me by dropping my left hand, repeating the motion on my right. One quick draw, and he pulled back. “Let me know if you need a break.”
The flames zipping through my veinsalmostconvinced me to take him up on it, but he continued working his way down my stomach, licking a hot path south from my belly button. Damn it, he knew just how to make me tick.
Despite the brain fog and the exhaustion, my cock took interest. Especially when James tongued high on my thigh and… bypassed my erection completely. Damn him.
The high was unlike anything I’d felt before. I could hardly move, but a low growl emanating from my chest made it crystal clear how displeased I was with his teasing.
Nose in my groin, he laughed. “You are entirely insatiable, Ryder Campbell-Clark.”
Unable to move my mouth enough to speak, a whimper passed my lips and my head fell back to the pillow.
Only for me to arch off the mattress a second later. James sank in again, this time in the crook where my thigh met my hip. I started to shake, scrabbling at his shoulders for support. His drinks were growing shallower, his sole focus on pouring as much venom into my body as possible. I trembled from head to toe and began to wonder how much more I could take.
James peered up from his spot between my legs, eyes redder than ever. “You’re doing great. Keep breathing for me. You can do this.”
That gave me newfound confidence. I inhaled deeply. Every inch of me felt like it was on fire. When I spoke, it was weak, and my voice quavered as violently as the rest of me. “Is this what it’s supposed to feel like?”
“Yes,” James responded, lips tender against my heated flesh. Was that hope tinting his voice? “This is a good sign, Ryder. You’re almost there.”
His encouragement gave me the strength to push through. I closed my eyes, inhaling a deep breath through my nose and letting my body ease into the mattress. Instead of focusing on the heat simmering through me, I gave my attention to the soft sheets against my skin, on James’s hands smoothing over my chest and stomach. His mouth nibbled up the inside of my hamstring, tongue licking a hot path toward where I reallywanted him. Even with the discomfort of the venom burning its way through my system, James’s bites were erotic in a way nothing else ever had been.
He stretched out, nuzzling into my neck once more. “Can you handle one more for me, love?” he asked, lapping at the tender, unmarked skin.
“Ah…I think so.”
Cold fangs pierced hot skin. Fire and ice mingled beneath the surface. My lungs seized and my heart pounded, feeling like it would burst right out of my skin. The pain was off the charts. I nearly surrendered to it, but James was quick to distract me, plunging his tongue into my mouth. The taste of copper lingered, and warm blood trickled down the side of my neck. I sucked, and the feeling of his hips pinning mine carried me away.
I could practically feel the venom dancing through my veins, trailed by James’s mouth as he sealed the bites he’d left behind. The next time I peeled my eyes open, I watched his lips trace the electric blue lines etching themselves into my skin. They were brighter now, seeming to shimmer in the dim moonlight. James brushed the faint mark on my ribcage, and I shuddered.
Thank fuck weddings only lasted one day. Between the tender touches, the words we’d shared, the bites, and the way he looked at me now, I was overcome with emotion.
Or maybe that was the burning.
My eyes stung. I squeezed them shut, and James stretched over me once more. “I’ve got you.”
I didn’t need to respond. I’d spent so much of my life demanding attention at any given turn that I hadn’t realized howrefreshingit could be to enjoy the quieter moments.
Exhausted, I needed James’s help to shift over so he could lie down next to me. Sweat beaded across my hairline and poured down my face, my body temperature seeming to rise bythe second. Venom surged under my skin with every beat of my heart. The lines in my skin pulsed, each flash weaker than the one before.
