“Ugh! I might just leave since you refused to take his shirt off.”
My brows shoot up. “Why would you want my shirt off?”
“Reasons.” The cat shrugs.
God, this is so freaky.
“Stop talking to her,” Sophie snaps. “She’s not your concern.”
I try the bindings again. They’re definitely much looser.
“What were you doing in Bloodstone’s catacombs? Did you free that deranged ghost?” I ask.
“I said I’m?—”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re asking the questions. Whatever. You can ask all the questions you want. I won’t say a thing, not even if you torture me.”
She narrows her eyes. “Torturing you would be pleasurable, but messy, and I just decorated my apartment.”
“Why? Did you just move in? Oh… I know. You were in hibernation.”
Irritation shines in her eyes. I guessed that one right. Vaughn one, Sophie zero.
“Has anyone ever told you how annoying you are?”
I smile broadly. “Every damn day, sweetheart.”
Something happens to her. Her pupils dilate, and her heart seems to skip a beat. Then her scent changes, and it becomes sort of intoxicating to me. Holy shitballs. Does she have a thing for me?
She grabs me by the hair and yanks my head back, exposing my neck. “I don’t need to torture you to get the information I need. You might not know this yet since you’re a newbie vampire, but… blood remembers.”
Fast as a cobra, she bites my neck, sinking her fangs deep. It hurts for a moment, and only because I think she wants to punish me. But when she drinks my blood, the pain turns into pleasure, and I react accordingly. The sensation shoots straight to my cock, making it as hard as a rock. I’m not the only one who’s affected, though. I can smell her arousal too.
Before all these new senses do my head in, I try to break free from the bindings again. Now that she’s distracted, this is my chance to escape. This time, the cord breaks, and before she notices I’m free, I push her off me as hard as I can. She staggersback, trying to remain upright, but she trips over the corner of the coffee table and falls, hitting her head with a loud clunk.
I get back on my feet, ready to run to the door, but Tish jumps on my face, scratching me with her claws. Fucking hell. I yank her from me none too gently before she gouges my eyes out. The window is open, but I don’t know how high we are from the ground, and I seriously don’t want to add animal cruelty to my list of accomplishments. The damn cat is going berserk, though. If I let her go free, she’s going to do some serious damage to me.
I spot a wooden chest, and without thinking twice, I stuff her inside, then run to the door. But Sophie moans on the floor, making me pause.
Vaughn. What are you doing? Escape while you can.
“Please, somebody, help me,” Sophie whispers, and for some reason, I don’t think she’s talking about me.
I turn around and go check on her. Yes, she kidnapped me, but I’m unable to leave her like this.
Her eyes are closed, and her eyebrows are scrunched together. Then she starts to thrash and raises her arms to her face as if she’s protecting herself from an attack.
“No! Don’t touch me. Don’t touch me,” she repeats, then starts to cry.
Fuck. She must be reliving a nightmare. I kneel next to her and, like an idiot, cradle her in my arms.
“It’s okay. You’re safe. I’m not going to hurt you.”
She finally opens her eyes and stares straight into mine. In an instant, I’m ensnared. I want to drown in her lavender gaze. Her body is shaking when I touch her face with the tips of my fingers. “Whoever hurt you, they’re gone.”
She blinks fast, and I expect her to strike me at any moment. But she simply says, “You didn’t run away.”
“No, I didn’t. Are you okay?”
