I braced myself for him to clear his throat, to back up and tell his driver where to drop me off. Vampires idealized perfection in every sense of the word, so there was no way Premier Victor Corvane would want a damaged mate, or to have children with someone who might pass on their weak genes.
But instead, his eyes misted over. “I might have lost you…” He looked up at me, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “My little fighter. My warrior.”
He kissed me again, gently this time, as though he’d just considered I might be fragile. It was nice, it was sensual. His head tilted as his tongue found mine, working to find the best angle to reach me.
But that thought slipped his mind once I whimpered and a fresh cramp released more scented slick, his breathing turning into shallower pants as he worked his hand down my bra, pulling my breast and the runics I’d hidden free from the cup. His lips left my mouth and suctioned my nipple, his fangs teasing the skin as he drew it into a stiff peak, sucking and licking until I felt I might come from that alone.
“P-Premier!” I gasped, my hands shaking at my sides. I was too afraid to touch him. To spur him on. Or was I just afraid that touching him would make this situation real? Like if I resisted long enough, I might wake up, and realize it had all been a strange dream.
He released my breast from his mouth, his red-rimmed black eyes staring up at me. “I’m your mate, so call me by my name.”
My throat closed. I just couldn’t; it felt wrong to cross that threshold with him. My omega instincts weren’t quite kicking in enough for me to submit to what he was asking, so I froze.
He had already unbuttoned my pants, and was sliding them down my hips when his gaze narrowed. “Say it.”
When I still couldn’t get my mouth to work, he grabbed my hair and pulled my head to the side, hissing in my ear. “Say my name, Sage.Call out the name of your mate.”
An alpha command—there was no resisting. “Victor,” I whispered, a single tear sliding down my cheek. He pulled off my underwear, and then began unbuttoning his shirt.
“Louder.”
“V-Victor,” I said again.
“Louder!” he demanded over the sound of his zipper.
“Victor!” I yelled as his cock pierced me. My head slid up and slammed into the car door, but he had lost himself to the rut too much to care. His hips thrust into me with wild abandon, snarling like a wild beast. His nails turned to claws, slashing the leather interior as he tried to find purchase, pounding into me harder and harder.
Maybe if we had the space or were in a bed, I could actually enjoy the experience, but the position was so awkward that my discomfort was all I could concentrate on. And he was too strong, too focused on chasing his own pleasure to notice my suffering beneath him. Before I could voice my pain, his fangs grew even longer, and he struck like a viper to my throat.
My mouth opened in a wordless scream. Pure, icy venom slithered through my veins as the magic of his claim branded me and bound me to him. Merfolk, werewolf, witch, demon… alphas of all Magiks could claim someone, mate or not, as a partner. But only vampires would stay latched, and my body seized like thegood prey I was, letting him gulp his full while I lay still. He took with his cock and he took with his mouth, everything my body had to give.
And give I did.
I tried to lift my hand to tap him, to tell him to stop. Stars, forming in the corners of my vision, began to spread, and my skin felt cold.
It was too much. He was taking too much.
He had fallen to bloodlust.
“Vic…tor…” I gasped. He finally detached from the wound, my blood running down his chin. His eyes widened in shock and horror.
“No… no, no, no, Sage. Hold on. Fuck, hold on Sage! Fuck!”
His voice became quieter as I retreated into my mind, the world turning black.
18
Sanguis Vita
Amachine beeped, and I felt something embedded in the crook of my elbow, my skin itching and tight.
I tried to open my eyes, but the light was blinding, and they shut automatically, tears protecting them from the pain.
“Sage? Sage, are you awake?”
That voice… it was a little familiar. Who did I know that would be that worried about me?
“Kaleb?” I rasped. But why would he be here? Did Nellie call him?
