Page 108 of Her Vampire, His Ruin

“It’s the only way to get Edie away from her. You know that.”

He nods once before slipping back into the car.

Striding towards Henrietta’s home, I brace myself for what’s to come. Edie will put up a fight, but I have no choice but to do what I must. I’m not here to drain Edie, and I’m not here to change her either, despite what Logan thinks.

I’m here to kidnap her. Do I have a plan after that? No, not at all. I’ll figure the rest out later.

Rapping my knuckles against Henrietta’s door, I wait. Seconds pass, and I see the curtain shift in her window. I can’t enter Henrietta’s house without her permission, but I can glamour her so she invites me in willingly.

Crouching, I open the flap to her letter box. “Henrietta, open the door.”

Footsteps sound moments later, followed by Edie’s voice rising in panic. “Don’t you dare, Henrietta,” she screeches. “Have you gone insane?”

There’s a scuffle, and I wince, knowing I’ve pitted them against each other.

The door swings open, and Henrietta looks up at me. Behind her, Edie stares at me wide-eyed, trembling. Yet despite her fear, her cheeks are flush, no doubt from my saliva still coursing through her veins.

“Edie, how are you feeling?” I find myself asking, and with that question, her body seems to sag ever so slightly, as though she’s been holding her breath until now. Has she been worried about me, even after everything I’ve done? I swallow the knot in my throat and force that thought away, concentrating on Henrietta.

“What are you doing here, you bloodsucking vampire?” she spits. My compulsion might have forced her to open the door, but it hasn’t quietened her anger just yet.

“I’ve come for Edie.”

“No. Edie isn’t going anywhere with you.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I’m sorry to do this to you, Henrietta, but I have no choice. You’re not afraid. You’re not angry. Invite me in.”

“Henrietta, don’t,” Edie cries, trying and failing to smother Henrietta’s mouth with her hand.

But it’s too late. Henrietta’s features soften instantly, my compulsion slipping past her defences as easily as a knife through softened butter. She smacks Edie’s hand away. “Please, come in.”

I step across the threshold, flicking my gaze to Edie. “I won’t hurt her. I won’t hurt you.”

But the instant my gaze falls to Edie’s jugular vein throbbing beneath her skin, my fangs drop, and this time I don’t bother to hide them. What would be the point?

“Tell that to your fucking teeth,” she snarls, pushing Henrietta behind her and pulling out a wooden stake from the back pocket of her jeans.

I eye it, cocking a brow. “That won’t kill me.”

She swallows hard, holding the stake aloft. “I will stab you with it. Then we’ll see if it kills you or not.”

“I’d have you disarmed before you’d even be able to puncture my skin. Don’t make this harder than it already is. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Bullshit. You drank my blood, Dorian. You lied to me about who you are, about what you are. You’ve been deceitful. You… You… I am so angry with you.”

“It was bloodlust, Edie. I couldn’t stop myself.”

“And what about now? Are you going to bite me again? Are you going to drink my blood until I pass out, or worse, until I’m fucking dead?”

“I have myself under control.” For now.

She shakes her head and laughs, her fingers curling around the stake. “I don’t believe a single thing you’re saying right now.”

“Edie. There are things we have to discuss, and I can’t do that here. Dawn will rise eventually. I don’t have time for this.”

“You think I care? I don’t. Fuck off out of here.”

“Edie, why are you shouting so much?”