Chapter 8
Shae froze,knife poised against the potato in herhand.
Damn his mind games. She glowered at Dagan as he killed his half-smoked cigar on his heel. “Lie all you want, you’re still not getting the bladeback.”
But his words rattled inside her skull:It now belongs to you.When he continued to simply stare at her, uneasiness took hold. “You’recrazy.”
Mate?Asif.
He rose to his feet, pushed his cigar into his pocket, and crossed to her. Removing the dagger from her hand, he tossed it onto the table, grasped her wrist, and hauled her along with him like she’d forgotten how to walk. “Damn it, Dagan,” she snapped, a little unsettled. “You could just ask instead of dragging me all over theplace.”
“Would you havecome?”
“No.”
“Then my way works.” He stopped in the middle of the lounge and faced her, those yellow eyes searing her like a flame. “Summon the dagger. Use yourmind.”
“Why?”
“Because onlymymate can doso.”
“You’re crazy. I’m not playing these games with you.” She headed for the kitchen. But recalling how the thing had appeared in her hand earlier, a chill slid throughher.
“Scared?”
At his softly uttered taunt, she spun back and met his challenging stare. “You’re making up this drivel to drive memad.”
“Then let’s find out. Summon the dagger,Shae.”
Sheesh, he wasn’t going to let this go. Besides, with that soft order, she had no other recourse. Fine, she’d do it, if only to give the lie to his stupidallegations.
In her mind’s eye, she saw the weapon lying on the old, wooden table. Black. Harmless now. She willed it to her. The next instant, something cool took shape in her palm. Shae jumped back, the air vacating herlungs.
No. No way! This isn’thappening.
She inhaled harshly, whispered, “I drew rats to me, it’s the samething.”
“They probably saw you as one big pile of delectable humancheese.”
Now he found his sense of humor? She cut him an annoyed glare. “Ha, ha—funny. We are not mates. I don’t even likeyou.”
For a second, his eyes blazed with an intense emotion. Then he shrugged like he didn’t really care what she thought of him, wiping away thatillusion.
“Good. Then this should be easy to do. You’ll be fine as long as we don’t mate and soul-join. So, little hellcat, refrain from provoking me, because every time you open your mouth, all I think of is stripping you naked and licking you from lips to toes before fucking you into surrender. But I’m sure you don’t want theties.”
Her eyes widened. The erotic images so vivid in her mind, she swore she could actually feel his tongue slowly licking a trail down her tummy to between her…she inhaled sharply. Her face on fire, she retorted, “You’re absolutely right, I don’t. But thanks for the heads-up.”
His lips took on a sardonic twist, like he knew something she didn’t, which just irritated her more. She scowled. He smiled, revealing the tips of his…fangs?
What the hell?“What-what areyou?”
The smile faded. “You’re a clever girl, figure itout.”
He definitely wasn’t a demon. His irises didn’t have that hint of red like Harvey’s sometimes did…wait! The night outside The Tower, it hadn’t been her imagination; shedidsee the tinge of red in hiseyes.
Her gaze flew to his mouth, but his lengthened incisors were no longer visible. She pressed her hand to her neck. “You’re a-avamp…”
“…pire?” A dark eyebrow lifted. “If you want a tag,sure.”
